JakedaArbok

X and Y was the first thing that came to mind when I saw the title, but I think it has more to do with the story behind it than the quality of the fireworks themselves. This is one of the few times in the game where the story was actually front and center, and while that wasn’t always a good thing (I don’t think anybody enjoyed the Furfrou minigame) it was worth it to get to this moment of two people enjoying something breathtaking. I imagine Final Fantasy 7 is probably a better version of this but I only play games where I catch funny dogs before I have the emotional scene.

In terms of visual fidelity, 8’s N64 Rainbow Road is just phenomenal. The track itself is really rather basic, but those turns accompanied by those fireworks accompanied by THAT music carries the course.

Yeah I really enjoyed Gaiden, but this game does not look all that compelling.
I thought the “modern gritty revival” trend died out in the 2000s, nobody was looking for it with Double Dragon. Even if the gameplay’s good, I’ll probably go to Marvel for my beat-em-up fix this year.

Will choose Totodile when I pick it up, never played his gen but always liked his voice in the anime and usually pick Water types.
I’ve never been that much of a fan of the other two so it’s really the best of a bad bunch.

Thank you for not spoiling anything, I was really looking forward to watching two of my favorite hobbies collide.
Do check this out, I know CMLL has been putting out some great matches recently and you will probably see something genuinely crazy.

@AG_Awesome
Some of those micro-transactions are DLC for like 20 or so wrestlers who will be free in the next game anyway.
There are some micro-transactions that you have to pay in order to get a specific version of a wrestler in the MyFaction mode. Like, you could get John Cena just for playing a few matches in Exhibition mode, but getting the 2003 version of him would require you to go and potentially spend money in that mode or grind to get him for free (which isn’t that hard to do but can still be annoying).
In terms of unique wrestlers, you start the game with about 120 and can get the others (a lot of the retired wrestlers) by playing enough games in the exhibition mode.
The micro-transactions, while annoying, are avoidable, and the game has enough single-player modes to be fun regardless. I would probably still wait for a sale, but I would say I’ve gotten my 70 bucks worth out of it and I don’t know if the Switch 2 version will get a sale any time soon.

On the one hand, having significant content that is just gone and you can never get it back in a game due to online shutdown is always a shame.
On the other hand, online lobbies in these games are the sweatiest, no-fun allowed, edgelord create-a-character slogs I’ve ever see , so you’re really not missing much beyond the DLC and maybe the ability to play with friends.

Glad it’s good, as Transformed is a game that has a lot of nostalgia for me, but I’m kinda full on kart racers with Mario and even Kirby coming soon.
Will wait for the 50 or 40 dollar sale next week and pick it up on PS5.

Might as well put in my ranking after I’ve let Wonder sit in my mind for a while (even if the DLC is good I don’t see it bringing the game up or down any placements)
Haven’t played: SMG2 (will remedy that in the fall), Vs. Super Mario Bros.
21: Lost Levels (how does a hard mode feel this boring?)
20: NSMB2 (I have an unnatural hatred for this game because I remember it being the first game I ever bought with my own money as a kid that was disappointing. This just feels like the peak of bland Mario and stole just about everything it does have going from NSMBWii, the coin gimmick is so lame as well)
19. Run (it’s a cool concept ig)
18: 2 (the controls to this game just do not have the precision that a Mario game should have, and a lot of the levels near the end just throw enemy spam after annoying level gimmick at you)
17: 64 (You heard me. It is not fun anymore. The camera feels like wading through wet cement and so many stars would be considered absolutely ridiculous to expect the player to figure out what to do in if it wasn’t for pop culture making it famous. Revolutionary for its time but it is not timeless.)
16: Land (at about 30 minutes, this is about as high as it can go, but it’s a fun 30 minutes)
15: Sunshine (when this game is great, it challenges the top 5, but that’s about 10 percent of the time unfortunately. The rest ranges from generic 3D platforming filler to abominations)
14: SMB (The game that put gaming on the map is still mostly fun to this day, barring like 1 or 2 annoying level types that Lost Levels would make its entire personality)
This is where the list starts to get hard, the rest of these games are all 9/10 or above.
13:NSMBU (The NSMB fatigue still sets in on replay after the era has left, it’s very clear that Nintendo wanted to make another Mario game and not much more with this one)
12: 3D Land (much of the same issues but with plenty of cool level concepts that its sequel would improve on)
11: NSLU (a much better way to experience boring Mario, the level design is genuinely pretty great this time through)
10: Land 2 (A great time with actually unique level themes and enemies and a great final boss, super underrated game)
9: NSMBDS (that being said, it can’t beat the game that brought so many 3D staples into the 2D series, great bosses as well)
8: NSMBWII (it is difficult to understate how amazing it was to have 4 player co-op in a Mario game, and this game designs around it, which can be a shame for single players, but just get some friends nerd)
7: Odyssey (excellent the first time through, too many moons)
6: 3 (has a few too many obnoxious or nothing levels on replay, but still feels like a genuine adventure to this day)
5: Wonder (some of the Odyssey problem where the Wonder effects aren’t as replayable as I would like, but the platforming is better with all the new discoveries of Odyssey.
4. World (an icon for a reason, one of the few Mario games that make you actually feel as if you’re exploring a new world)
3. 3D World (phenomenal level design, excellent music, chaotic multiplayer, one of the few reasons to own a Wii U when it was an exclusive)
2. Galaxy (one of the few times in which the whole game felt like art, not just the levels Mario wahooed through)
1. 3D World + Bowser’s Fury (all the great things about 3D World with an open world to explore, the best game.
Happy 40th Mario!

This is so stupid I love it

Where did her nose go?

If you haven’t played a WWE game in a while, I absolutely encourage you to give this one a go. The gameplay is a great combination of arcade and simulation, there’s plenty of content even if you ignore anything related to microtransactions, and the roster is about as stacked as a wrestling game has ever been.
If you have played a wrestling game since 2k22, it’s beginning to worry me how little this series has iterated since that game, and the move towards more predatory microtransactions in the Island doesn’t help things. I think I’ll probably skip the next entry and pop back in for 27.

Looks like the end of Infinity War.

They perfected Advance Wars by going to…
nope, I can’t finish that one and have the comment stay up, unfortunately.

Still holding out for an invitation from Amazon since I have a fair amount of gift cards already. Good luck to those looking for one in Best Buy, though!

Is “DK’s best game that doesn’t have Country in the title” from Eurogamer really a high bar? You’re competing with such visionaries as Donkey Konga, Jungle Climber, 64 (I get it has its fans but come on), and, even though you’re playing as Mario, the Mario Vs. Donkey Kong games and DK 94, which, while good, were never going to stand up to a 3D platformer made by the Odyssey team. Odd thing to close a review on.
Really excited to play this once I get my hands on a Switch 2, though.

If they port the PS4 version, it would remove the Island, which would be an improvement to the game imo.

I understand that plans for this pricing structure were probably already set up before MK World came out, but this was SEGA’s chance to provide an affordable alternative to Nintendo and actually compete with the plumber for once. This doesn’t mean the game will necessarily be bad, but cramming in random pop culture characters as DLC just to spice up your game is not giving me a lot of hope in the quality of the finished product.

I’d be more upset about the lack of an upgrade plan if the game wasn’t going to be 30 dollars by this time next year anyway. I’ve never understood why Sega is so stingy with games at launch only to discount them so much shortly after.

@N00BiSH
The DK design that was iterated by Rare seems to be inspired more by American-style animation. I should have been more clear on my statement. It had just always seemed like DK was more popular in the West.

Interesting that Bananza is so low- maybe the Japanese audience doesn’t vibe with the American DK design?

@BirdoDidNothingWrong
You got me, I like it when funny monkey says yoyoyo.

7 is so weird to me because on paper, it should be my second favorite Mario Kart, having a bunch of my favorite tracks and adding underwater and gliding. But every time I think of it, I just think of things 8 did. Everything good about 7 was either stolen from Wii or stolen by 8, so it just doesn’t have a lot of personality when compared to every other game in the series. 8 is great, but I think that the weak character roster and the horrendous battle mode edge Wii out as the better game, as I think base 8’s nitros aren’t quite as good as Wii’s. However, due to all of the tracks and characters that Deluxe added, as well as double items that allow for enhanced strategies, I think it has to be better than Wii, even though I’ll always be nostalgic for Wii and DS.

@BirdoDidNothingWrong
My heart is completely unclouded when I say Wii’s is better. While 7’s is great, give me varied and challenging track design over drifting across a planet’s rings for 10 seconds or spamming the trick button off of moon craters.

@Joeynator3000
As a big Mario RPG fan, let’s be honest: who has had a bigger cultural impact, a hazard who has made appearances in one of the most popular tracks of two of the best-selling Mario games of all time, or Fawful/Geno/Vivian? They would be nice to have, but it’s not like Nintendo’s gonna make a “Fawful Falls” track to go alongside it, so it doesn’t really have the interconnected element that seems to be the theme of the game.

@NinChocolate
Fair enough, what do you like about the series that Wii got rid of?

@NinChocolate
With more characters, better tracks, and unhinged item balancing? I’m not following you.

I wonder if people had this much of an overreaction at the Rare redesigns back in the 90’s.

Saw the title and briefly thought that this would be a balancing update and looked forward to see the competitive community scramble to come up with the new meta.

I ranked them all as 8/10 games because they each have a few major flaws that prevent them from being standouts in the series, but GBA is easily better than Super. I mean, just comparing the tracks, GBA’s worst are better than the bottom five tracks in Super. N64 isn’t much better due to some very slippery controls, but having the best battle mode in the series makes up for it imo.

I can see Nintendo supporting the Switch for at least another year and a half with some more low-budget games and remasters, maybe more depending on 2’s sales.

I hope that means 60 frame Bowser’s Fury. A boost in graphics is literally the only thing it needs to be a perfect 4-5 hour experience.

One of the most baffling business decisions Nintendo has ever made.
And that covers a lot of ground.

This was the epitome of an “I’m happy for you” direct. Tomodachi Life and Rhythm Heaven fans have been waiting a good while without a new game, so I’m glad they got what they wanted. Not much of a Metroid Prime guy either, but the trailer looked so good I might have to jump on it. Pokémon Legends continues to look good and I had nostalgia pumped directly in my veins with some of those remixes, and I might pick up that Marvel beat em up.
Otherwise… at least we have another one next week!

To unite all peoples within our nation!
(You know I had to get in on this one with my pfp)

As someone who has only played the first game, is playing 2 and 3 necessary to understanding or not being spoiled by the new content?
The game looks incredible, but I’m still considering whether I should play this or 2.

If you’ve let the middling review scores dissuade you from buying this game, I encourage you to give this a shot. I haven’t played an immense amount of beat ‘em ups, but this game in co-op is one of my favorite controlling games of all time, embracing more fighting game-like elements without feeling like you have to memorize every single attack thrown your way. You can get a physical edition for 20 bucks, and it’s easily worth that price imo.

Left-field pick: Wrestling Empire.
As a fan of both wrestling and buggy games, Wrestling Empire has taken an amount of time away from me this console generation in which I could have played actual good games or been productive that I don’t want to look up. One of the few games I could play for 500 hours and still see new things.
Mario Maker 2 is a close second, but I’ve honestly played it to a point in which I have no desire to come back to it at about 300 hours.

Add me to the camp of those who loved the original, but didn’t care for this one. It felt like “Ubisoft” more than “Ubisoft’s take on Nintendo” if that makes any sense, focusing more on style (open-world, increased skill trees, Rabbid OCs for some reason) than actual substance (the combat, actually going through those open worlds, boring sidequests). Maybe it opens up in the latter half of the game, but I could not get into it.

Having the After Burner stage from Transformed be in the game with a couple Sonic OC’s shoved in is objectively funny. Hope the Nights into Dreams stage gets the same treatment.
Otherwise, the game looks okay, I can tolerate the somewhat generic theme if it plays good, and I think the alternate vehicle types will give enough variety.
Sega does need to get this out somewhat quickly though, I can’t imagine it doing too well against the new Mario Kart in the holiday season.
Edit: Nvm I guess there are other Sega characters too. Odd that you wouldn’t announce that in the trailer but I have a feeling at least a few characters will be tied behind one of the fifty bonus editions that Sega likes to do with their games now.

I will always contend that Zero was a pretty fun game in co-op. I think it says something about the controls that you need two pilots to intuitively play the game, but if you can find someone to play with, it’s a decent time, even if it’s very derivative of 64.

@Max_the_German
The game isn’t a bad game because Nintendo is charging $60 for a 2D game.
This current release of DKC Returns is bad because charging $60 for a poorly-remastered Wii game is not a good business practice.
To follow your example, if Nintendo put a slightly upscaled version of DKC3 on the N64 for full price, it would also be a bad release and be lampooned at the time and today because it would not be a good business decision.
I haven’t played DKC Returns, but I’m sure that I would enjoy it, albeit probably slightly less than Tropical Freeze, which is one of my favorite games of all time. 2D platformers are some of my favorite games in general. But this release fundamentally is not worth the asking price.

Gonna knock out a little more of Brothership and plunge ever closer to 100%ing Sonic Generations despite some of the side missions kicking my tail.

The new DK model kinda reminds me of the original arcade art. I’d rather Nintendo lean in that direction if they won’t make a DKC game in the next millennia.

I was already on the fence before I heard that there were frame rate drops. I’m not at all a graphics guy but I’ve got to take my stand that a worse-running version of a Wii game is not worth paying 60 bucks for in 2025.

That’s a nope from me, which is a shame, because I love Tropical Freeze and have never played this one, but I can’t in good conscience support this game as a practice or as a purchasing decision.

Yeah I think Smash is a better rep over Hollow Knight to represent the Switch’s lifespan because so much of being a Nintendo fan from 2018-2021 was speculating about Smash. While there are a lot of great Metroidvanias that came to Switch, there are a lot of great Metroidvanias on a bunch of consoles. I think Hades edges in a spot just because of how prolific the roguelike has become as a genre in recent years, in large part due to how well this game meshes with the Switch’s portability.

Another member of the
“literally only ever used them when Warioware required me to”
party.

Picking Wario in solidarity

I don’t really buy this, as it’s not like Nintendo has distanced themselves from the Punch-Out series. Both the NES and SNES titles are on NSO, and plenty of the characters in their Wii format are spirits in Smash.
If some of the more iffy caricatures were removed or smoothed out, I don’t think anyone would complain.
It would also require the general public to notice an element of Punch-Out besides Tyson, so I think we’re okay.

My first ever true gaming device. I have extremely fond memories of playing NSMB and Mario Kart DS on it, but going back on its back catalogue now through totally legal and official means helps me to see that the DS was a packed console. A great entry in pretty much every genre (except maybe like an FPS or something) can be found on this bad boy.