MatthewTaranto

The new additions look notably beefy, especially that undersea bit! I'll have to get this but I have no idea in what format...

@w1p3out Are you referring to the new diorama style or the way some of the female characters are more modestly-dressed?

Assuming it's the latter, apparently that's a CERO thing. CERO has gotten stricter about character outfits and yesterday's all-ages rating A (like the PS2 version of DQVIII) is today's teen/B. Dragon Quest aims for all ages so instead of raising the rating they cover the girls more. Something similar happened with Super Smash Bros' outfits to avoid the CERO B rating as well.

@FX29
It always warms my heart to hear of people enjoying Dragon Quest for the first time. It's really a wonderful series that never really got its due in the west.

Great soundtrack. My favorite is probably the final battle theme. My favorite track from the first game is Buoy Base.

@Croctopus I do not hear that.

@sketchturner It's not quite 50 amazing games but nearly all of them in my experience have had more depth to them than it initially seems. I think the real strength is the ability to just jump between so many varied, quality games. No matter what you're in the mood for there's something to play.

1st-party stuff is stronger than it's been in a while. I see Nintendo doing ambitious things and taking chances with MKW and DKB. Kirby Forgo DLC is a little light on content though.

I love the upgrades a lot of original Switch games are getting, many of them free! On the flip side, the weaker newer ports with performance issues put a damper on the fun.

GameCube is a nice bonus.

Overall it's quite good. 8/10

What's with this trend of entitled social media users and "journalists" expecting Team Cherry to carry the game industry on their back? Absolutely bizarre.

I hate the term "lizard brain."

I like Easy Come Easy Golf. This doesn't seem like it'd replace it.

I dunno, it just looks kind of bland, like something from 2 or 3 generations ago. They could've really punched up the visuals as lovely scenery and atmosphere can go a long way towards making golf games more enjoyable.

UFO 50 is one of the best Indies I've ever played...and I'm only halfway through its list of games! A very late must-own swan song for the Switch.

@Anti-Matter You can play as a Bratz who is in turn playing DDR??

The performance bump should be really nice, but a dozen levels sounds a little light (especially when they're technically remixes which is kind of inherently limiting). I was initially hoping that EVERY level would get a remix. But the original Forgotten Land was so well-done that I'll probably still pick this up.

Are there any new copy abilities that we've seen?

Congrats to both games, they're both excellent.

That said, it's bizarre how MP4 was up for nomination when it isn't even out yet.

@nin10doom If you played Smash 3DS's Smash Run, the appeal is kind of similar. It's fun to run around making your character stronger and stronger mixed with mild exploration elements and surprises. It's a little bit of a battle royale, but one where you're all kind of independently searching for upgrades. It's not everyone's thing but it's a cult classic for a reason.

If KAR didn't do it for you, I'm not sure if this one will be different enough to change your tune.

I love KAR but I felt a little underwhelmed by the Direct. Despite running for the better part of an hour, I struggle to really think of that much stuff that's particularly novel and a major selling point (outside of being more KAR, of course).

Especially since it seems Top Ride is probably gone, I'd have guessed we'd get a smorgasbord of City Trial content like more islands, a 1P progressive/story mode, and/or even some crazy new Battle Royale extra mode sort of like Knockout Tour. Just spitballing here but it'd be insane to see a 50-player City Trial mode where every 3 minutes, periodic Stadium Events would eliminate the lowest several players and everyone would continue beefing up their machines after that until there's one winner. Etc.

Even so I'm likely going to get the game because Sakurai puts a lot of love into his craft and I'm sure I'll have a good time. Voted 6/10 on the poll.

@AussieMcBucket
It's pretty dumb that Nintendo can't release two arcade racers without insecure people having to pick their fave and dump all over the other. I don't see this kind of behavior with most of their other series that share genres (Fire Emblem/Advance Wars, Wario/Yoshi, Paper Mario/Xenoblade). It's like the '90s console wars again but on the same system.

A console civil war, if you will.

@8bit-Man
Is this confirmed? We saw split-screen in Air Ride mode, so why wouldn't it exist for City Trial like in the original? Sakurai's games tend to have plenty of options and pretty much always have local multiplayer when possible.

@Vil
I really don't think that was a dig, and people are just assuming it was. The games are very different and I'm sure a developer like Sakurai knows that 6-player Air Riders is a lot more chaotic than 6-player MK.

@I-U
I only started it around a week ago and it's already retroactively my GOTY 2024. It's crazy how much value there is and I've still got plenty left to see.

@CaleBoi25
Duly noted!

I want all the Resident Evil.

All of it!

It's an awesome package! For those of you worried about your backlog, I think this is almost more comparable to a single mega-game with 50 wildly different levels...? Because of the way UFO 50 keeps track of games you've beaten, I feel much more inclined to stick with games I wouldn't spend much time with otherwise. Inevitably, I don't regret it and end up appreciating them that much more. Highly recommended!

@Yoshi3 Retro Game Challenge is great and a decent point of comparison but there are some notable differences. It focused more on the whole growing up with games experience and that connective tissue was as important as its set of games itself. However, it had 8 (well 7, really) different games to enjoy of varying length, while UFO 50 has a full 50.

I thought RGC was great and I think this is great. Why not both?

I'm starved for a new Punch-Out style game but this game's vibe just isn't my thing. I'm not into shonen and the blood makes it feel less fun and more brutal. Oh well, back to waiting...

It's not bad. Movement controls actually feel pretty slick and I like the little expressions you can do by waving the arms. I'm having trouble shooting though and sometimes it can be frustrating just doing something simple like pivoting in place.

Hip Tanaka is one of the great founders of game music. What a legend!

Is Metroid's ending theme the first of Nintendo's that does that "descending bass line" thing? It has a real sense of finality. Other games that have this musical motif during the credits: Mario 2 (USA), Mario 3, Mario World, Mario 64, Mario Galaxy, StarTropics, Super Punch-Out, I'm sure there're more...

Even some movies get in on that action, like My Neighbor Totoro.

@naxuu Thanks, sounds good!

I know almost nothing about this but I hear great things.

Is this kind of like Retro Game Challenge, where it's a series of games by a fictional company and you get the impression that they kind of progress throughout the decade? Is there some kind of macro progression or way to keep track of which games you've beaten etc?

Hip Tanaka is a genius and I think he contributed to Nintendo music during the NES days as much as Koji Kondo did!

I also feel that Nintendo's music has been lacking of late, with the big exception of Mario Kart World which was mind-blowing. Would love to hear more strong melodies again. No reason why Zelda soundtracks can't be as good as Octopath Traveler's.

It's a really neat demo and I'm thankful for the lack of an EXP system. After all, we have plenty of action-RPGs as it is; I'm ready for a Zelda-like action-adventure again! Down with grinding, I say!

The music is great.

I think the name would be better simply by flipping the title and subtitle - "Millennium Tales: The Adventures of Elliot." Main titles tend to be punchier and subtitles tend to be longer.

I want RE2, 3, 4, and 8!

Also Slay the Spire 2 getting official confirmation would be lovely.

@dmcc0

The real question is, can someone buy and construct a bunch of these and then use them to build an even bigger object (like ANOTHER brick)??

I'm not big on Lego but this is actually pretty cool and not ridiculously expensive. Props for the choice of game cartridges and for the classic Link/Marin beach scene as one of the screens.

Manufactured outrage.

Air Ride was an underrated racer, even by its own fans! (there's more to the game than City Trial, after all!)

Nice words from Sakurai about the late great Iwata. Excited to hear that he feels Air Riders is shaping up well too.

This story has cheered up everyone I mentioned it to.

40+ hours, it's kind of divisive but I really like this game.

Here're some other divisive thoughts: I thought MK8 was a letdown and the weakest game in the series. After dozens of hours of MK Wii, I just couldn't get into MK8 or MK8D's online. Something about the item balance and mechanics never really clicked for me. Mario Kart Live was instead the definitive Switch 1 Mario Kart to me, just a hilarious game that brought instant laughs to my family. MK World was right to go for something totally new and minus a few missing options I think it mostly nailed it.

I really like the sense of place the tracks have now and there's just something endearing about traveling across the world as a group, snacking along the way, and seeing the environments slowly transition. It's like a video game version of the Great American Road Trip! And while Free Roam isn't the next coming of BotW, it's a good way to unwind between races for 15 minutes at a time, try out some fun mini-challenges, and rock out to classic Mario songs.

On that note, the soundtrack deserves special mention--it's really on Smash Bros Melee/Brawl's level. Truly excellent in both quality and scope.

(I'm sick of Mirror Mode, can we drop this goofy filler next time? It always feels so half-baked and tacked-on. Where's my Reverse Mode?)

I voted 9 but I would've voted 9.5 if I could.

I guess there's a larger question here about when someone should be credited.

Broadly speaking, I think it's the considerate thing to do. But I will also say that certain roles like composers and voice actors get a lot more attention than programmers and even some character designers. @Ogbert brought up a great point about returning enemies. Are people ensuring that the character designers for foes like that and Coin Coffer and Fishbone are credited? How about the guy that came up with original ideas that are still used in MKW, like power-sliding, and the designers of the retro tracks like DK Pass? Or do we only hop into action to back up the guy who did Banjo-Kazooie's soundtrack?

This same conversation happened after the Mario movie. People were up in arms about Kirkhope but I didn't see anyone else bring up that other original song composers (such as Yokota or Matsuoka) didn't get credited in the film, just the English-speaking dude who tweeted about it.

Heck, Shigeru Miyamoto himself wasn't credited in Mario Kart World. The creator of Mario! Now you might disagree with that omission (I certainly do) but with that in mind, omitting Kirkhope is at least consistent. By and large it seems that Nintendo is currently only crediting people in-game who worked on that specific game they're making. So like I said at the top, it's really down to what level of involvement should be credited.

@markasscop
Maybe some of the characters from Camelot's Mario Golf games?

My guess is that they wanted the cute child + big protector dynamic, but also wanted Pauline to feasibly sing like a professional, so they split the difference and landed on 13 as a result. It's not too outlandish when you consider that the very short Toon Link is 12, and Catherine Warwick (who sang Pollyanna and other songs on the official Mother soundtrack) was 14 at the time. I guess Polly here is a late-bloomer.

As for the lore, everything makes sense with the knowledge that Nintendo hasn't officially confirmed that Cranky was the original DK since 1994. That might've been a Rareware decision for all we know. If they've retconned that, Bananza could very realistically be called a prequel, especially if we consider apes aging differently than humans. Really the only question then is why DK kidnaps Pauline in the arcade game, which I hope Bananza answers at some point.

Maybe it really is a jealousy thing, like "I was her friend first!"

Resident Evil Remake Collection, let's do it! RE2+3+4, all on a physical (non-Game-Key Card) cart!

A man can dream...

I think it's great. Free Roam is more a side mode than the main course like, say, Zelda's open world. I like to chill out in it between races and do a few missions, etc.

This might be my favorite Mario Kart.

Looks good to me. I haven't noticed a blur problem.

Nice review. It seems this game is slightly divisive in that many people love the new approach while others miss the classic style. I imagine it'll be a discussion point for years to come.

As for myself, I love it! I do agree that some of the connections/routes are too basic and there are points when it feels like the courses are over before they've begun. But by and large I think the new approach is a cocktail of skill and luck that just works for me. It reminds me of Mario Kart Wii's craziest sandbagging (in the first few "laps") mixed with required tech and good driving (during the courses themselves) to make for an online race where anything can happen but the best players tend to win.

In my opinion, it's the shake-up the series needed.

AND THE MUSIC AAAAAAAAAAAAA

"..I don't know what I expected."

I've been a fan of this series since the original and I'm very happy with how they've shaken up the formula. It's not perfect but as someone who was actually disappointed in MK8, I think this new take on MK is great overall.

My favorite three tracks are DK Spaceport, Cheep Cheep Falls, and maybe Dry Bones Burnout. They're all really distinctive in the game and the series as a whole and have lots of fun ideas throughout.

Can I play as Helga or Rocko?

This is crucial.

The art looks cute and well-animated but why redesign one of the classic characters (Flip) in such an anachronistic, off-putting way? Such a bizarre choice. Bonbon and Nemo's looks really work, so I don't get the decision here to completely reimagine a shady, cigar-chomping clown into a 2020s hipster.

Looks good but the Game Key Card thing is a real letdown. It's frustrating that I have to choose between having a real physical version of the game (Switch 1) or a higher-fidelity version (Switch 2). Guess I'll go with the older one, but it's stupid that it's come to this.

I'm so glad to see this team handling another game. Both Dragon's Trap and Streets of Rage 4 had some of the most gorgeous 2D visuals on the system.

I don't need to have the depth of a Pixar movie, but I mainly hope the writing is tighter and the tone fits the Mario universe better. The first film had too many "shock value" attempts at humor, such as the nihilistic Luma and all the "DON'T TOUCH THAT OR YOU'LL DIIIIIE" stuff. In general they bring up death weirdly often, like when Bowser says verbatim "We'll see how tough Mario is when he watches me KILL HIS BROTHER." I don't remember the Koopa King being quite so...murderous?

Also Peach felt like they swapped the character out for someone entirely different which was weird. I could see Daisy being that gungho, but Peach has always been dainty and poised. The Kongs felt off too.

Whatever, the movie was fine. It just felt like a first draft sometimes so I hope they have a tighter script this time around.

This sounds quite good, so hopefully it's closer to Danganronpa in quality than Rain Code.

In terms of launch lineup, I'd say

3. N64
2. Switch
1. NES