MoonKnight7

This looks really good. I’ve been thinking of getting a chess game, I love chess. But I might opt for this cause it comes with so much more. Can’t go wrong with board games sometimes.

My wife tried this on iOS. She played it for maybe 3 days and never picked it up again. I would much rather they find a way to get Fallout on Switch, than focusing on things like this.

As fun as Directs can be, this is fine. So long as we get announcements, who cares how they do it. Times are crazy right now.

@Moistnado

Fair enough.

Good luck to you, hopefully you can find a home for that voucher.

@Moistnado

Certainly not wealthy, I just manage my money correctly, and pay my bills on time. Look, I know some have it harder than others, but if money is an issue, you shouldn’t be spending it on video games in the first place. They are a luxury item. They are purely for entertainment. If you’re broke, save for a house, not a game console.

I didn’t have jack when I moved out. Fought and scrapped like anyone else. Had 3 minimum wage jobs. We get taxed too — like most developed nations — not even sure why you went there. Only difference is insurance is paid outright, it’s not a government program. Therefore, I Didn’t buy new games for a long time, so sorry if the fact that I can buy Astral Chain at full price now, somehow offends you. Nintendo said its $60, and I said that’s fair, it’s the same price as any other Switch game. The game is great, btw. Probably Platinums best effort yet.

Funny you mentioned resident evil 2. I got it for that exact deal too (just obviously in dollars) so no I don’t just piss my money away to make it harder for everyone else. I just know how a Nintendo published game works. They won’t drop the price, so don’t expect it. If you only want deals, don’t buy a Nintendo console expecting it.

However, games used to be really expensive. Games if anything, have gotten much more complex since the sprite days, but also cheaper. 60 bucks is an investment sure, but they are not nearly as expensive as they used to be in the 80s and 90s. But yeah, if you’re broke, don’t spend the money on video games. Buy food instead.

So you can back off the privilege angle. Yes, now I like collecting games. I like Nintendo, with the understanding that their prices are higher. I like the PS4. Hey, I even have a happy cat and Netflix. But you won’t find a sports car in my garage — you won’t even find a garage. I drive a 2004 Pontiac cause it’s good enough and reliable. But you will also find that my bills are paid, even with a new cart of Astral Chain.

@Moistnado

“You sound very privileged when you belittle such a large sum of money.”

Lmao, I have a job. Bringing teenagers into this is... well, odd. Um, everything is expensive to them — they’re teenagers. Compared to a teenager, sure, I guess I am privileged. They’re a small sliver of the market, especially as millennials and Gen X get older, and games find ways to reach older markets (like the Wii did).

The prices have been $60 for a long time. When you account for inflation, we’re getting a steal at $60, especially for games that take so long to develop for. NES games were about $50 in the 90s, which is almost $100 in today’s money. Anchoring, or not, we’re lucky they’ve stayed at $60 for so long.

Are there bad ones? Sure there are. 1-2 Switch — bad (the first thing we can agree on, definitely not telling you to use your voucher on that). Mario Odyssey and Astral Chain — good, whether it’s your style of game or not. Astral Chain was even a brand new IP, so not much cutting corners there. Yeah some games are just about cashing in, for a while Assassins Creed was just spinning their wheels retooling old assets, and it was obvious. But there’s plenty of cases of game studios going under as well. Games are a tough business, it’s not as simple as you’re making it seem.

If you spend 3-4 years making a game and it tanks, you’re screwed. Bowsers Inside Story for 3DS, where certainly some reuse of assets was used, carts were probably dirt cheap, and it completely sunk AlphaDream. Some see great profits, but some don’t. And if they reuse old assets from somewhere, who cares? Work smarter, not harder. You find that in almost any business. Games still can take years, whether they’re reusing assets or building from scratch. It usually involves both. Who cares?

I’m sorry, I just don’t agree, an 8 month old game is not old. By that logic, everything’s old then. Why you expect a drop on an exclusive game in price is ridiculous. Sony does it sure, but they rely on third parties and those games are on more platforms to begin with. They can sell games for 10-20 bucks cause they made back everything they put out, cause the game is everywhere. The more places you have it available, the better your profit margins. It’s more about spreading the brand at that point.

Astral Chain is on Switch, and only Switch. Now could Nintendo do better? Sure, I don’t disagree that they hide behind the “quality banner” to keep prices higher. But you’re not gonna see Astral Chain drop for a while, it’s the only console you can get it. I have no idea what the profit margins are for Astral Chain, but I know it was a new IP, and that alone, is an expensive risk. Saying Astral Chain is only worth 10-20 bucks, cause if it’s age of 8 months is absurd. It’s not on PS4, it’s not on Xbox, it’s not on PC. It’ll drop eventually, but not for a while.

I think giving your voucher away is a great idea, it might be tied to your account, but hey, doesn’t hurt to check. Best of luck.

@Moistnado

I’m saying you should give Octopath more credit than you’re giving it. If I worked on the game, I’d just be — slightly insulted at that kind of description, that’s all. It was a major third party effort. Whatever Doom has to do with this, I am sure, I don’t know.

So, if it’s not the duration of Astral Chain, why is it overpriced exactly? You mentioned the age — of which is 8 months old — hardly old, so you gotta do better than that. Can’t hide behind, well $60 is a lot of money. Yeah, but that’s pretty typical isn’t it? Especially for a Nintendo console. I’m sure you didn’t have sticker shock when you found out Switch games were $60. What if I told you that most Wii U games way back in 2012, we’re also $60? No, I think I’m right on the money, but if you don’t want to admit it, that’s fine. We’ll just say the 8 month old game is super old. I can’t believe Nintendo hasn’t dropped an 8 month old exclusive game to the price of $20 or given it away for free. Sounds very unlike them.

You’ve had a year to figure out what to spend the vouchers on, so sorry, my sympathy only goes so far. Apparently 35+ games wasn’t enough.

@Moistnado

In regards to PS4, my mistake, I misread it. I read it as “lead”, as in present, not past tense. So my bad, I’ll own that mistake.

As for Octopath. “ Octopath with it's 2D pixel art, I will certainly stand by the words that it "Looks like a small indie" even if it isn't one.”

Even calling it 2D pixel art, doesn’t characterize it correctly. It’s 2D pixel art, in fully fleshed 3D environments. You’re severely discounting what they actually did, and was a lot more work than you’re giving credit for, whether it’s your style of game or not.

In regards to Astral Chain, you even said “it looks quite good”. So you clearly want it in some capacity, but for some reason you think it’s only worth $10-20. Who doesn’t love deals, but that’s a low bar to hit. Are you one of those that purely counts a 12-20 hour campaign as not worth a full price investment? Is a good 90 minute movie too expensive or would you rather watch a 3 hour movie cause you get double the content? From personal experience, Titanic went on way, way too long — Toy Story was better.

So it’s either a solidly good magic hat game, or a solidly good 12 hour action game. You’re in quite a pickle, I’d hate to be in your shoes.

@Moistnado

Octopath Traveler is one of my favorite games on Switch. Some thought it was too long/repetitive, but for me it was just right. It has some of the best video game music I’ve heard since Xenoblade. “Looks like a small indie”. Lmao, no, it clocks in at about 80-100 hours of content, but hey, not your cup of tea, no shame in that. I am just correcting your assessment — old, indie, 2nd-3rd tier it is not — You just don’t want it.

Yes, Mario’s hat is magical. Why that alone would stop you from trying it is about as sensible as calling Octopath Traveler a small indie game. But hey, magic hats are a no-go, and not your cup of tea either. Fine, I guess. I am just correcting your assessment — old, indie, 2nd-3rd tier it is not — You just don’t want it.

Astral Chain is very good, but you’ll never find it for $10. Not until the Switch lifecycle is over anyway. Maybe, maybe, you’ll find it half price somewhere. So my best advice is to use the voucher, hopefully enjoy Astral Chain, then go buy a PS4. If game deals are what you want (no shame in it, who doesn’t like deals), Nintendo consoles are not the right platform. This isn’t anything new.

PS4 will soon be “last gen”, so you’re gonna find great deals come the autumn, so long as PS5 isn’t delayed.

@Moistnado

Mario Odyssey, Octopath Traveler and Astral Chain are not old, indie, or 2nd-3rd tier games.

@GamerDad66 it’s $40 retail, not $60.

@jarvismp

Placeholder, but Platinum is shooting for end of June right now.

Ouch. Not what I was expecting at all, that’s pretty disappointing.

I actually might pick this up.

My hunch is that the Prime Trilogy remaster is still a thing, but who knows.

@BulbasaurusRex

Maybe a tad more blonde than smash, some screenshots look more yellow than others, but you’ve gotta get over the hair thing. So it’s a stylized yellow now, who cares?

I’ve literally never had a conversation with someone who has so adamantly defended the original character models. They’re not great, you can’t sway me, or most people, otherwise. My wife absolutely loves the game, in fact she got me into the series, but she’d be the first to say, “the game is fantastic, but the characters just don’t look good.” She’s right, sorry to say, probably cause they were going for that realism at the time. Fine at the time of course, but it really hasn’t aged well over the years. The shading is so extreme by Shulk’s eyes, it looks like he hasn’t slept a day in his life.

I already wrote a whole paragraph about the reason for brighter colors, so I’m not gonna go through it again. You think it’s worse — noted. But half the audience is gonna play this as a handheld.

“Who cares about dynamic effect when you can't properly make out what's actually happening compared to the original version of the scene?! Actual visibility is more important!”

No idea what you’re talking about — seriously. I just rewatched the clip to maybe see what you’re not making out. Looked like a battle to me. With some fog. With some dynamic lighting, cause you know, it’s a battle. You’re just trying to find things to criticize at this point.

And pull back on the “!“

No need to constantly exclaim at me. You like the original better — I get it.

@KillerBOB

Yikes for not buying it at all.

@KillerBOB

I don’t mind ports, from anybody. I will buy The Last of Us 2 again on the PS5, when it’s inevitably announced.

Would have been nice to have W101 this week (physically), but oh well, so it goes.

I don’t understand this at all. It’s not even doing anything. If your legs get hot while playing your Switch I guess that’s cool. Otherwise it’s, pretty clunky and useless.

Pikmin 3 was lovely. I think Pikmin 2 was my favorite, but they’re all great. I’d buy any, and all.

@Desrever

Agreed. I think we’re gonna get little trickles of info like this for the foreseeable future.

Always good if you can get the original voice cast back. Sometimes, especially after years, it gets quite challenging.

That’s pretty soon too! Looks awesome!

@FredsBodyDouble

I don’t disagree. The art itself is fantastic, one of the best looking games on Wii. It was a game ahead of its time, really.

@BulbasaurusRex

So if it’s clearer, more detailed, and brighter colored, it’s somehow worse?

There’s still shading going on, it’s just better placed and isn’t as blotchy. Shulk’s eyes don’t look like they’re sinking into his skull, lol. Brighter, more vibrant artstyle is a good thing! Now granted, you don’t want them to stick out like a sore thumb, true, but brighter, more vibrant colors makes it easier to track the characters and see the animations better (especially for cutscenes). I understand your point, but I’m ok with the balance they struck here, especially when you consider that some will play this in handheld mode. Brighter colors is necessary for a smaller screen.

The battle is dark and foggy for dynamic effect. That was something the Wii couldn’t do well, which is why it’s likely absent. I don’t mind either one, personally.

I’m not knocking the Wii version here, but they fixed the worst part of the game — the character models themselves. They were bad, no way around it. Even by Wii standards they were bad. Disagreeing how they slightly changed their hair, is, I’m sorry, but nitpicking beyond belief.

But hey, if you don’t like it, then you don’t like it — boot up that Wii and go for it. I just, respectfully disagree. It looks lovely.

@Ralizah

Well Mario is an entirely different comparison — a completely different game — completely different art style. Something more cartoony will obviously age better than something that isn’t.

What I’m saying is that the Wii did not do Xenoblade any favors. Still looked great cause of the art direction, and sure, the models were always pretty poor looking.

@Gradius

Digital Foundry will probably compare all 3.

@Ralizah

Ugly by today’s standards. It was one of the Wii’s best looking games — But the Wii was a standard definition console, so it really benefited from great art direction. Anything in SD has aged very quickly, especially in the age of HD and 4K.

Minor thing I just noticed, but the font is also different. It’s a little more stylized.

I’m really feeling it!

@The-Chosen-one

Maybe a month or two ago. I’m sure there will be another sale.

Edit: to clarify, I was talking about the base game. But yes, I’ve seen the dlc on sale for about 30% off.

@Razer

I’ve never had a crash. The game does chug a little towards the end when you have things like planes. Its not awful or unplayable, but yes, there’s a bit of lag when there’s complex units, etc.

I don’t know if the bug has been fixed that breaks finishing the game. I heard it can be resolved if you declare war on someone before you win. I cannot confirm though, but it was a while ago and they were aware so I’m sure it’s resolved by now, and if not, soon.

The base game is 7.6 GB if you buy digitally. The first DLC is about 3GB if I remember right.

I’ll wait for a sale, like I did with the last set of DLC. If you’re on the fence about the game in general, I see it on sale for $15-20 all the time, and its well worth it. I’ve sunk 230 hours into the switch version.

@BulbasaurusRex

I disagree — It looks like everything got an upgrade, some places more than others, but an upgrade nonetheless. Originally, the textures most likely looked a lot better in development but get fuzzy due to the Wii being a SD console. It still looked great for the system it was running on, but this game was begging for a spruce up. The art direction is too great to ignore.

But it’s likely that’s they improved them even further for this release. I’d look for the digital foundry video when this comes out to see what they changed exactly.

But hey, if you’d rather replay it on Wii, to each their own. No wrong way to play it.

@NoNoseNosferatu

I will, thank you.

@NoNoseNosferatu

I’ll be the first to admit that, I can’t skateboard to save my life, but these games were really addicting and fun.

I think it’s a mistake to skip switch.

Sounds about right.

I like them all, but I like NA the best. It’s got action, and a sense of scale.

@Klunk23

Yeah that’s more or less what I’m trying to question, and I do agree, I think the Switch has a decent shot cause it’s in a much better position as a hybrid console. The Wii aged poorly, especially when the HD market exploded around 2010 or so. Regardless, it’ll probably get close either way.

Funny enough, I’ve seen a lot of people express interest as well. Especially with everyone locked down in their homes.

This is obviously not the list for the year, but it does show that Nintendo needs to announce something very soon.

This is probably a fair prediction. Does make one wonder where Switch will land in Nintendo’s list of console totals. Cause Wii sales dramatically dropped in its last 2.5 years or so. If Nintendo sees a drop they’ll probably introduce a new Switch to give sales a little boost.

This is how you bring a game back to the modern era. Beautiful HD upgrade, remastered music (with the original music too), and an epilogue. Can’t wait to revisit this.

Does anyone want to argue that Animal Crossing isn’t a major Nintendo franchise now? No? I thought not.

Insane numbers. Almost 1 in 5 Switch owners have this game.

I’m not gonna hold my breath.

Explains why we’ve been getting little trickles of info instead. It’s just weird times right now. It’s understandable.

Even on twitter I’ve seen a lot of people saying that they really want a Switch right now; especially for people with families where the tv is occupied already.

It’s too bad that production was impacted (but understandable), but for the base that’s already there, yeah, I’m sure business is booming. I bought two games myself to play during the lockdown.

@NintendoPok

“Who cares”

Putting games on Switch can be a significant undertaking. It’s weaker hardware and sometimes the returns aren’t great. However, EA has focused on the wrong games for the platform. Instead of focusing on sports, they should find a port studio to get fallen order on the platform.