NOALink

@BoilerBroJoe Yep, Mario RPG is a better all around game than Paper Mario. It holds up much better as well IMO. And of course, RPG has the better soundtrack as well.

If they are showing Super Sonic now it must be part of core gameplay, not just the finale of the game. I'm here for more super sonic like in the old games, but I'm still doubtful that what's being offered here will actually qualify as fun.

@BASEDSAKRI agree. The combo system alone makes racing far more satisfying. I would love to see the game design of tour applied to MK8's driving mechanics and graphics on console. That would truly be an excellent Mario Kart experience.

A lot of hate in the comments for a Mario kart game with better game design than MK8. The driving mechanics are obviously limited by the mobile format, but the tour concept and ranked mode maintains the players interest much better than the static world of MK8.

They are reusing way more than Sonic's model. Even the level designs have elements copy-pasted from earlier games. This could be a good game, but they are certainly getting a lot of mileage out of their prior efforts.

That's a lot of recycled assets!

The sequel no one asked for isn't revolutionary? Go figure. It's like people knew we didn't need it.

**Yawn**

Wake me up when a real direct is announced.

Mk8 is really polished. So polished that it is an incredibly sterile experience. It's a great game but there's no actual racing challenge. No Uber skillful shortcuts or tricks to land. It's all so clinical. MK64 and Double Dash had the chaotic gameplay in spades.

@gwilly double dash 4 life. The handling and game mechanics have never been surpassed. The courses were also mostly excellent. The team mechanic needs to make a comeback.

Easy profits will trump new content 9 times out of 10.

I sincerely hope they keep the best parts of MK Tour and make it less of a cash grab given that the new game will not be free to play. At its core, the combo system is a solid game mechanic that would be amazing with proper controls. Weekly challenges, ranked mode, and content updates with new karts, drivers and gliders are also great. If they can do it for a mobile game with a small dev team, they can do it for MK9.

The sequel that no one asked for.

So many generous Nintendo fans in this forum. I've been playing Nintendo games for 30 years and this year was a pretty weak-sauce effort, no doubt partially COVID related.

From a business standpoint, it was a good year. Existing games like MK8 continue to sell, so no need to release a bunch of new AAA titles or sequels. As a player, this year was rough. When a 2D Metroid is the biggest release of the year, that should say everything. No new Mario, Kart, Zelda, or 3d Metroid. Instead we get ports and more ports.

I give 2021 a very generous 4/10.

@Dezzy70 this is an excellent point that people are not talking about. The Big N is just, well... not that big. The pandemic has seemingly already hit their development resources hard, too. Developing for new hardware may have been a bridge too far right now.

@Cooe lol, someone needs to chill. Believe it or not people value games differently. And Dread isn't out yet, so you might want to pump the brakes on the quality argument.

The problem is the comparative value proposition. You can't tell me this offers the same value as breath of the wild, odyssey, or some of the big AAA titles on other consoles, all of which retail for $60. Many "metroidvania" games that look like Dread retail in the $20-40 range. This should be a $40 game, tops.

Still have my 10th anniversary pack from Japan, might have to snag this one as well. I assume the JP sonic colors will play fine on a US switch.

This game should be ready for release this year. Nintendo probably developed BotW in less time than Sonic Team has had to work on this game already. They've had 4 years since Forces wrapped up, and can't even show us gameplay today. Disappointing.

It's almost cruel to ask people to play this game again in 2021, especially for $60.

Anyone who has played BotW is going to have a supremely hard time enduring some of the most monotonous and unnecessary set pieces ever created for a Zelda game. It's unsurprisingly going to feel like a downgrade on every level compared to BotW, except perhaps in the dungeon department. And unlike games like Wind Waker, there just isn't much retro charm to be had here imo, especially with the most ambiguous and uninspired art direction the series has ever seen.

@JPRN46 You would do well not to make broad assumptions about people based upon anonymous comment section posts.

I'm also one of the biggest Nintendo die-hards you'll never meet, having owned every single home console (and nearly every portable) they have ever sold. Objectively, this Nintendo Direct left a lot to be desired, as did Skyward Sword, which is pretty much the only Zelda game I could not force myself to finish.

They literally tried to convince people Skyward Sword was like Breath of the Wild. Such desperation to convince people this was a good idea.

@SalvorHardin Yes, yes it is. 2021 is looking really rough for first party Nintendo games.

Great, we get a remake of the worst 3d Zelda. Thanks, Nintendo. 2/10 for this direct, only saving grace was Mario Golf.

At least we got Minecraft out of the way.

Where oh where is MvC.... : /

The most fun I've had with 3d sonic, other than the wow factor of SA1,l at the time, are the unleashed day stages. Beautiful in every respect, including gameplay. So good that generations tried to build on them.

@Cinaclov I am guessing they substituted Sonics blue quill as a power source for an emerald.

What does the box art tell us about additional characters? It already has K Rool on there. Is that it for new fighters?

I see a striking similarity to the animation created for Sonic CD. Go watch the end credits sequence for that game and then watch this video. Some of the sequences are almost identical but with mega man instead of sonic!