Lyricana

@YoungLink64 Skyward Sword has Japanese art that's anime-esque. I can understand genres and game types not being your thing, but I'll never understand people refusing to even look at a game because the art isn't their favorite style. There are so many great games you'd miss our on! With your icon and name, you're obviously a Zelda fan. Did you dislike Wind Waker for similar reasons? I'm legitimately wondering.

@Xiovanni Music being part of something doesn't impact implicit ownership of said music. If Nintendo doesn't own it, it's just like much of the music in any film or TV show. If this were about a movie clip with a full song by a well known band on YouTube, this wouldn't even be a news article.

@rushiosan Yes, I know. That's exactly what I already said!

@Sweetz Save states in nearly 40 year old games isn't particularly comparable to potentially game breaking fast travel in a game that's not even a decade old, with mostly modern design philosophies, with a plethora of remastered improvements. I'm not weighing in on the Amiibo situation in general, I just don't think your argument is sound.

@Heavyarms55 I couldn't agree more. I don't really use Twitter much, but if I browse a single Nintendo post about anything (even a completely different game, like Legend of Mana), 75% of the comments are people complaining about their "one thing". Whether it's Skyward Sword's price/Amiibo, the art style for Advance Wars or whatever else, it's the same ragey complaining. It's inescapable.

Legend of Mana is a bad game. One of the worst ever made. And as a follow up to the Mana series, it was particularly terrible and disappointing. But it's bad on all of its own merits, as well.

Unless this is a nostalgia trip for you, stay away at all costs!

@Jokerwolf @rushiosan You're both right, kind of. You don't need a second memory card save to allow someone to play as the random side characters, but you do need it if you want the second player to be able to play as their own version of the main character.

They have to start somewhere with bringing the series back and a lot of gamers unfortunately associate fully 2D games with low budget and indie. I feel like they almost have to go 3D sometimes to draw in new audience members and that's definitely what Advance Wars needs if the series is going to thrive. Also, I actually like the visuals a decent bit anyway. Are they the same? No, but I can still play the originals if I want that. Nothing wrong with mixing it up some!

Here's hoping we get a sequel in the next couple of years and the series becomes a regular staple again moving forward.

@NintendoKnight Breath of the Wild came out 4 years and 3 months ago. Much more than almost 3.5!

@Mystique When was the first time you played an NES game? Just curious.

@BongoBongo123 The graphics in the GBA games were great and I'm sure any collection will be remastered. M2 does great work so I'm sure they'll make this look great on the Switch.

I'd love to see it be a 6 game collection with the DS titles as well. Also, M2 is known for a lot of other things too and, personally, their Switch port work is their best stuff. The work they did on some of the Sega Ages titles (like Phantasy Star and Gain Ground) is just stellar. As was the Collection of Mana. They're awesome and if M2 is doing this collection, I imagine it won't just be a straight set of ports, but will rather include a lot of nice bonuses and minor upgrades.

@dimi My significant other has a PS5 and I was thinking I was going to get one, but I might not bother. I can always use it if there's something I want to play (like Ratchet and Clank), but otherwise I'm fine with my PS4, I think.

Microsoft is definitely working hard to make deals and bring stuff to consumers that they want and Gamepass has inarguably huge value if you buy even a few games a year normally. Though I don't think I'd go as far as saying Nintendo hasn't tried hard to get exclusives. They've secured a shockingly high number of third party and indie exclusives, particularly considering the hardware's shortcomings. And a ton of 6-12 month timed exclusives or "releases first" deals, which is infinitely more than they managed in the Wii U era.

I like a lot enough games on Sony's platform to own a PlayStation, but I never really get the impression they're willing to do too much for the consumer, but that's why I have a Switch and a gaming PC too, so I can just play whatever seems good and not worry about the limitations of a specific platform holder. Though I definitely know that's not viable for everyone and in some cases, the affordability of something like an Xbox Series S and Gamepass is the difference between partaking in modern gaming or being unable to almost entirely.

@Joeynator3000 Metroid II wasn't an NES game. It's a Gameboy game.

@dimi "Xbox & Bethesda presented like 20 great AA and AAA games. Nintendo also had some footage of a sequel of a current gen game BOTW, a 2D Metroid and some ports (Advance Wars was nice). Oh and SMT. Xbox had more variety"

The issue for me with every Xbox show ever and why I can't get excited about them boils down to a few issues.

All of their games are on PC and aren't Xbox exclusive which means I will never have any reason to buy one of their consoles. It's like showing off Battlefield 2042 (which amusingly they did) and trying to get everyone fired up because it'll be on Xbox, but I don't need an Xbox to play it. It's like Nintendo hyping up their Cloud Version Guardians of the Galaxy. Why would I buy it there when it'll be better on PC or PS5? Same with literally 100% of Xbox games. Doesn't mean the company is bad. It's good for the consumer to get to choose their platform, but I won't care about an Xbox system then.

Many of the games they showed were either third party multiplatform titles or have been announced long ago and don't get me excited then for a tiny additional update (for the record, I didn't much care about the Breath of the Wild 2 trailer either because it wasn't really news, except to say it's not coming this year).

The sort of big Xbox games are just not ones I generally care much about in the first place, either. More shooters, more racing games, etc. The only ones they listed as exclusive are Halo Infinite, Redfall, Starfield and STALKER 2. I didn't like Skyrim, so if Starfield is that in space, I'm not excited. I do like sci-fi, but not enough is known to see if the game will be any good and it's 1.5 years off. It's a maybe. Redfall could be fun, maybe, but similar to Starfield, we don't really know anything because they didn't show anything. STALKER was a trash game with stolen assets so I'm not pumped for any sequel. And I've never liked Halo. As for Forza, I've always hated realistic racing games and it also looks really samey, which is how I'd describe virtually all of Microsoft's shows in general. And even if one or two of these games turn into a must play, which none of them seemed to be so far.. I can just get it on PC when the time comes.

Meanwhile, even if Nintendo didn't blow my mind, they announced 3-4 games that are exclusive to their system and are a must buy for me. Then add that to a list of updates to existing titles.. there are maybe 6+ Nintendo exclusives coming through 2022 that I'm definitely going to buy.

@Cheez York Peppermint Patty Switch promotion confirmed. New dark chocolate brown/mint green joycon colors.

I don't really have much special swag. I have a few special edition things, like Xenoblade 2 collector's edition and the controller. I think I have a pre-order gift from eBay games that's a special coin for Super Mario Galaxy. I still have the Zelda GameCube Collection and I have the Zelda Wii U. I don't know that I particularly value those though. I'm not overly sentimental when it comes to "swag" and stuff like that and I never did Club Nintendo.

Garden Story looks amazing! I just love it.

I didn't realize these games were related, I just thought the name was coincidentally derivative. This makes the name less bad!

No. I won't. Standard for me.

Gato Roboto launched on Switch with such ridiculous amounts of game breaking bugs that it was a challenge to finish for weeks and even then, getting locked and forcing a reboot in some cases was never fixed. Easiest game to break that I've personally ever played. I gave up on the game, even though I like Devolver Digital.

Hearing that Doinksoft is making a physical only game makes me think it'll release broken and stay that way forever, so even if I thought this pointless gimmick was a good idea (I don't), I still wouldn't buy it because of Doinksoft.

@Heavyarms55 I certainly wouldn't advocate against inventiveness and originality. It feels so rare these days to see a truly new franchise in gaming, particularly from already established developers.

@Heavyarms55 It's definitely true that there is a huge lack of effort put into new characters and IPs, particularly in anything comic related. I agree that original characters and stories have a lot of potential and it's wasted on rehashing or remaking existing stories/characters.

However, there's at least one major element to consider, particularly when making a new $60 video game. Consumers have shown with their buying power that they often prefer the familiarity of known IPs. Even when a completely new character takes up "the mantle" of a previous character/story, it tends to be more financially viable than a truly new concept. It's a frustrating situation to be in from a creative standpoint, but it's also one that consumers fuel by throwing money at popular IPs over new, untested ones.

@Dirty0814 Except there is no gunning. And almost everyone seems to like it.

Weren't you just saying how much you didn't enjoy genre names such as "rogue-like" or "Metroidvania", yet you're using the term "Paper Mario-like"?! Also, does that actually describe the gameplay or just the visual style?!

@Silly_G How is this baffling? You say it like Nintendo publishing an action RPG about DC super heroes somehow is related to or impacts in some manner an unrelated developer making a new Girls Mode game.

I just can't bring myself to watch these other shows. I understand people seem to love them, but it's just not my cup of tea. I'd rather just watch any relevant game trailers posted after the show.

This is an outrage! I can't believe Nintendo settled for Pinnacle Sponsor when they could have been a Double Platinum Ultra Pinnacle+ Sponsor. They may as well cancel E3.

The SNES original was great and sometimes I think about playing it again. I remember when it first came out and I got a chance to play it. I initially had no idea what it was about. I thought maybe it had something to do with astronomy and when I fired it up, I had no idea what I was doing. I hadn't really conceived of such a game before and it was such a departure from the Megaman or Mario I was used to. Even Dragon Quest, which it vaguely resembled from visual perspective and NPC interaction, was so different.

I was blown away and immediately entranced. Every little detail impressed me. I just loved it. Great game. To be honest, the only time I've ever played another game that was able to recapture that sense of amazement was when I got Back to Nature a couple of years later. Such a phenomenal game and still my favorite in the series. Virtually every other Harvest Moon (or Story of Seasons game, rather) has underwhelmed me since then. Even something like Stardew Valley was a fun game and had a lot of enjoyable mechanics on offer, but it didn't capture any of the excitement or joy of what I loved about the older games. I also never particularly felt like the franchise improved. It changed in some ways. It got different, but I never really felt it was better. Even visually. The 2D art of the original SNES game is still probably my favorite. Though I liked the world of Mineral Town more, those PSX 3D visuals don't quite hold up.

To be honest, I don't think going back to play it would ever have the same impact. I think for games like this, for me, it's a one time, lightning in a bottle experience that had its day already. I'll just have to wait until I find a new game that blows me away in a similar fashion some day.

Oh and.. the Game Boy titles were good, though I'd like to say one thing. All these games are about self imposed goals, for the most part. Having a little more complexity wouldn't hurt HM 2 GBC because you could always choose whether or not to engage with most or all of the expanded elements.

@Maxz 🤣 Touche.

I'm not sure there are even 10 "amazing" games on the Wii, let alone 100. I'd say there are maybe 5-6 amazing games, a few dozen good games, maybe 50 decent games.

@eltomo No. No, it absolutely doesn't sound like Alex if you close your eyes. Alex and Jon have insanely different voices. Unmistakably different.

Dragon Quest VII is the best game in the series.

Dragon Quest IX is a great game that should get a modern remake. Please keep (and even upgrade) the multiplayer!

Dragon Quest VIII is the second worst game in the entire franchise and is disgustingly overrated. While this isn't true for everyone, I think that many of the fans in the western world are so fixated on it because it was another Final Fantasy VII, Tales of Symphonia/Vesperia situation where it was the first entry on new hardware and the first entry they'd played in the series and they fell in love with it and now the all-powerful nostalgia goggles just can't be stopped. In Japan where the series was always popular and no entries were skipped, VIII is frequently at or near the bottom of popularity polls.

Still, every Dragon Quest is at least a good game and many are great games. XI is a great way to bring in new fans and hopefully the next entry (whether it's a potential remake of III or IX, or just moving on to XII) will capitalize on what made XI so successful and continue in that general direction.

@suikoden It was probably two patches, but it doesn't download them one by one. You just download everything and install it simultaneously.

@Nin10dood As many have said, there are countless broken games that were released previously, never to be fixed. Nintendo has a track record of releasing games that are finished and low on bugs, particularly compared to other companies today. There's nothing wrong with them patching out a bug or two that got by quality control before printing.

@Low_ink I'd really love to see a fully fleshed out sequel. And not some pseudo sequel where it's mostly different. An amazing sequel that's true to the original but better. Unlikely, I know, but I still want it.

@the_beaver If this is better than Rune Factory 5, Marvelous just needs to shut their doors.

@Low_ink It only looks a bit like Fantasy Life, it doesn't really play like Fantasy Life. Fantasy Life's biggest lie was that it pretended to be more than an action RPG, but it wasn't. It didn't really have any simulation stuff, just some crafting and minigames tacked on to an RPG. Still a fun game, though.

No real reason to be angry about this. Japan is always going to get some games that weren't translated into English officially. The US gets some games they don't get either, but of course fans are going to want the ones they don't have (even if they've played the game to death with the English fan translation). Instead of sitting here being angry, maybe go tell Nintendo on social media that you want an English localization like they did with NES Fire Emblem on Switch or just get that remake train rolling.

@nessisonett Well, to be fair, it's not Nintendo Life's fault that endrift accused Nintendo. They literally did tweet it as if Nintendo was at fault at first. Endrift isn't mentioning the developer of the software, just that Nintendo is "shipping" it.

While it's obvious who is actually at fault, the article is representing the accusation accurately.

I really did think the article was a fun read, though it did feel like you tried to make it seem more preposterous than it really is. Terms like AAA, indie, wholesome, VR, PVE, F2P and many others aren't game genres. They are descriptive terms that help identify elements about the game, but not the gameplay genre. The same is true of things like supernatural or fantasy or sci-fi or drama. These are thematic genre descriptors which are more in line with classic film genres which also aren't the same as gameplay genres.

It's also worth noting that if we wanted to describe films in more complicated ways, we easily can and do, there just aren't as many useful shorthand terms like gaming has, anyway.

Realistically, though, you pick any of the games you mentioned and it's fairly simple to identify their genre and possibly why you like them and not others in a similar genre. Spelunky is a 2D platformer/roguelite. Slay the Spire is a deck building/roguelite. Dead Cells and Rogue Legacy are both Metroidvania/roguelites. Hearing those is more than enough to give as a strong picture of what the games are to know whether or not it's a genre you're interested in, potentially.

And while it's popular right now to hate on terms like roguelite/like or Metroidvania, you can't argue with the fact that you know exactly what that means, why it exists and that it does indeed do its job. It's not any more preposterous than calling cinematic experiences... movies. We call them movies because they're pictures that move. It's a terrible descriptor that sounds like a sleepy toddler came up with it (we may as well call a knife a cutty or a spoon a scoopy or a car a drivey), but now it's ubiquitous and everyone understands quite clearly what it refers to. It's the nature of language in general. I gave up years ago attempting to fight the tide of language because it's a losing battle and it's pointless.

Beyond that, games are just more complex now, yes. Most seem to have RPG elements in them of some variety. Or they're multifaceted experiences with many different modes of play. Regardless, we can still do pretty well to describe games by the classic genre definitions and then help clarify a few extra things along the way, like it it's an MMO, if it has roguelike elements or what the thematic setting.

@AJ1 Nintendo still puts out new games at a rapid rate and the Wii U ports are always a little better (like Tropical Freeze) and sometimes a lot better (MK8D and 3D World). I owned a Wii U but still picked up some of those again.

@Paulo Why are you counting Super Mario Run? Not only is it obviously not a New Super Mario Bros. game, it's not even a 2D platformer. It's a runner.

@Mando44646 You're still ignoring everything else like it doesn't exist, dismissing it arbitrarily. Miitopia is a full remake and it added a lot more than a horse. They completely remade the game from the ground up visually, they made a whole new editor for the Miis (I'm sure you've seen all the articles and social media buzz about how intricate the new creator is), as well as a bunch of other new elements just in the demo alone that they didn't talk about when it was announced. I'm not saying you have to like it or that it's worth $50 to you, but it's more than just a 3DS port with a horse added.

You're also discounting the pandemic, not even discussing, just saying "it's unacceptable that there wasn't more", but there was more. Tons more. Super Mario 35, 3D All-Stars, Bowser's Fury, Mario Kart Live, Fire Emblem NES translated for the first time. It's not always going to be Breath of the Wild 2 of another completely brand new smash hit title, but instead of just releasing nothing because of pandemic delays, they still cranked out a ton of new content. Also, just because the system's ecosystem subsists on more from Nintendo and less from third parties doesn't make Nintendo magically superhuman at producing expectation shattering levels of games. They already put out more content than virtually any other game developer in the world even though they're not even close to the largest.

And unlike other companies, they fill the gaps with desirable remakes, ports, DLC and crazy other experimental crap like Labo, Ring Fit, Mario Kart Live, Mario 35, etc.

I don't think 2020 was their best year, but it was no one's best year and it was still pretty damn good. It was all sorts of acceptable.

@Mando44646 Your parameters keep changing and were ridiculous to begin with. Your original statement was: "They've gotta do better than only 4 brand new games in a 2 year period"

But then you try to amend that by still calling it a two year period, but refusing to acknowledge any games older than ONE year and 5 months, essentially. You're cutting out over 6 months of games to fit your arbitrary narrative of "4 brand new games in 2 years".

Then you start redefining what a game is by some random metric of what you personally consider a "major" release. You also cut out all ports claiming they essentially have no value as game releases because they're not "completely new", yet you also don't acknowledge the remakes, which are not the same as ports and are still fantastic game projects that require lots of money and time to develop and are things the community wants.

For argument's sake, here's a more comprehensive list of what Nintendo has actually put out in the last two years.. and ACTUALLY the last two years, not some arbitrary amount of time that's 6.5-7 months less than two years to make my argument sound more legitimate:

Super Mario Maker 2
Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Astral Chain
Tetris 99
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (remake)
Luigi's Mansion 3
Ring Fit Adventure
Pokemon Sword and Shield
Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training
Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore (port)
Pokemon Mystery Dungeon (remake, not port)
Animal Crossing: New Horizons
Good Job! (eShop title)
Jump Rope Challenge (eShop title)
Cadence of Hyrule
Clubhouse Games
Paper Mario: The Origami King
Xenoblade Chronicles (remake, not just a port and
literally has a sequel game built into it that could
have been sold as a standalone title)
Super Mario 3D All-Stars (port)
Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit
Pikmin 3 Deluxe (port)
Super Mario 35
Fitness Boxing 2
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity
Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury (port and new game)

I'm sure I'm missing a few things here or there. We're also just days away this month from the Miitopia remake (not just a port) and the two Famicom Detective Club remakes, which might not be your thing at all.. but a lot of gamers are insanely excited not only that the FDC games were remade (and getting an international release) but that Nintendo is showing a willingness to bring back some oddball franchises that have been dormant for decades.

This is also all in addition to insane amounts of HUGE DLC from many Smash characters to major expansions to Sword/Shield that would have been sold as new games in previous generations to an entire story campaign in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, online modes to Super Mario Party, etc. And 15 of those 24 months have been in a global pandemic that's ongoing and has slowed things for everyone.

Obviously every title here isn't as big as Breath of the Wild, but they're all part of a larger strategy to deliver constant content to a hungry public and despite you saying they have to "do better", this is clearly working for them.

You also indicated something like Clubhouse Games essentially didn't count because it was a minigames collection and said Microsoft and Sony would be laughed out of the room for claiming it was a major releases, but..

This is the same Microsoft and Sony that currently are 6 months+ into a new console generation and Microsoft has zero new console exclusives and Sony has three. Their flagship launch title for the PS5 was a graphical remake of a PS3 game(Demon's Souls), a game that's the least popular in its entire franchise and already part of a niche genre.

Also, in that same time window, just for comparison's sake, Sony has put out:

MediEvil (remake)
Concrete Genie (PSN title)
Erica (PSN & iOS title)
Dreams (Early Access PSN title)
Ghost of Tsushima
The Last of Us Part II
Marvel's Spider-Man: Miles Morales
Sackboy's Big Adventure
MLB The Show 20

And that was during their major new console launch where companies are expected to bring their absolute best. Honestly, it's not a terrible lineup or anything and there are a few hits in there. Just for comparison, like I said.

@ianl579 Because the last one was already so good that you don't need any more news?

@Ulysses There has never been a system that I've enjoyed less than the Wii from an experience standpoint, yet still had games I wanted to play. Everything about it was trying and unenjoyable and it was an eye sore in the living room. Using the Wii Remotes is something I still have nightmares about! It did have a number of games I really loved though so I was incredibly torn about the system in general.

Obviously it comes down to personal preference. I know many people loved it and honestly, I wish I had liked it more. I missed out on some later life Wii hits because I just wanted to be done with it.

@EarthboundBenjy I initially thought that was clickbait and the real one would be a pale imitation. I almost can't believe it's real! What the heck kind of tools are at one's disposal with this editor?! Hah.

@Tsusasi I know it's not exactly the same, but when I was about to graduate high school, my mother told me that I could either have a big party with twenty friends, presents and pizza or I could have dinner with my whole immediate family and one or two close friends at a nice restaurant we all wanted to try. I picked the restaurant because I figured it would be a lot cheaper for my mother and the time with my family would be more special and memorable than just another hangout with friends and acquaintances.

I'm in my 30s now and that night turned out to be one of the best of my life for a few specific reasons. The food was amazing, we all had a fantastic time and ended up staying for five hours at this restaurant. The restaurant had a sitting area with a fireplace and after we ate, we sat there and talked for hours, just sharing and enjoying the evening. Turns out that the owners were there and they introduced us to this gentleman who was a local artist who had been commissioned to paint the restaurant. Well, he ended up adding us into the crowd in the painting because he had a nice time with us. I was able to go back months later and see it and it was great!

Also, one of the two friends I asked to join us went in for a routine exploratory surgery and after unexpected complications, he passed away. That was two years ago. After the initial sadness passed, the thing I remember most is that evening together and it's a memory I cherish infinitely more than a pile of presents that no doubt I'd probably have forgotten about completely by now.

So.. yeah. People thinking only about which has more financial value are throwing away the entire possibility that a time with family and a good meal can be far more rewarding.

Also, no one has mentioned the possibility that this kid could may have been aware his parents didn't have a lot of money for a Switch right then and this was perhaps a better option for their family, too.

Anyway, not everything has to be about the next Metroid Prime to be worth reading and for those in the comments who think this is such a waste of time, why did you click in the first place and then bother to comment?

@RadioHedgeFund What exactly about that was reverse, though?