Picola-Wicola

Hades and Dead Cells (took me 40 hours to get to the hand of the king!)

I have been gaming since the NES, and although Zelda is now my favourite franchise in all of gaming, I didn’t actually play a Zelda game until 2011 with Ocarina of Time 3D. I have since gone back, replayed and finished every Zelda game apart from the two NES entries. They are just so unplayable to me compared to what Zelda has become since alttp.

@gollumb82 I was just about to say, part of me is very jealous of being able to experience a Nintendo system for the very first time! Hope you enjoy.

@Donutsavant I bought Dead Cells last week having stayed away from the whole ‘rogue’ genre, but I played it all this morning and after some initial frustration it had me hooked for just one more attempt...

Played the demo and thoroughly enjoyed it (somewhat unexpectedly). Just started Dead Cells and stuck in Blighttown at the minute, but next month I will pick this up.

@Teksetter I wouldn’t mind hearing those heavy thoughts, as I have my own and as a fellow gamer it would be of intellectual interest at the very least, but I won’t ask you to share them. This article was wonderfully timed as I have been feeling the same way as Thomas recently, so thank you for that.

@Teksetter Thanks, I am actually excited to try the genre: it’s one of the few I have never tried before, but the sale and reviews (especially of Hades) has me intrigued no end. Which one did you prefer, out of interest?

I downloaded both Hades and Dead Cells last night... and I have never played a roguelike before.

Does this mean gyro controls will work on the switch lite!?

This was an amazing game back then, and the multiplayer was also fun and worth the effort: I remember getting an awesome club weapon from it that I used from then.

Mario sunshine remains the only mainline Mario game ever released that I have not finished. It just never felt like a Mario game. Zelda 2 is rough to play these days. Those are the worst for me.

I really hope so, this looks like a perfect fit for switch.

@Specter_of-the_OLED Yes! Yes! And yes.

Does anyone know the date boss rush mode arrives? Will be a great incentive to revisit this great game

Oh please just let it be released in 2022, no pushbacks.

I spent over 300 hours, and considered it completed after all shrines, divine beasts, DLC, and memories were completed before defeating Ganon. Generally I consider a game finished when the credits roll. How on earth a completionist could do all I did in 88 hours, plus all koroks is beyond belief.

Been watching videos of this game having recently got into Dark Souls through the remastered switch version. I have to say this looks an amazing game, and definitely has similarities to BOTW. Can’t wait for the sequel to BOTW (and can’t help but wish they would release DS2&3 on switch).

@Korgon AMEN!

Thanks for the review, I’d pretty much decided to get it based on what I’ve seen so far. I wonder how it compares to similar Zelda clones like Blossom’s Tale and Oceanhorn?

@Medic_Alert it’s funny you should say needing a guide for it. Zelda is my favourite gaming franchise of all time, and yet this remains the only Zelda game I have not completed. Tried it on 3DS but just could not get into, having no idea what to do. I may stump up for expansion pak next week just to complete this. Begrudgingly with a guide this time.

1730 hours on Mass Effect 3 is my number one WiiU game. The online multiplayer, free and with built-in online chat and ability to send invites, far exceeded what the switch offers now in terms of an online experience. Some great gaming memories.

I for one am extremely grateful for you bringing this to my attention. I have recently been getting my 2D Zelda on: replayed ALTTP and Link’s Awakening, then Blossom’s Tale and Kamiko. Also started Dark Souls Remastered for the first time, so this looks right up my street and wouldn’t have even known about it otherwise. Would love a full review.

Oceans heart looks right up my street, just as Blossom Tales was.

This is a real shame, I loved the look of it in the Direct and was going to purchase. Now I think I’ll give it a miss.

@AnorakJimi these are the exact things I was wondering.

The final boss was hard enough on normal, so no dread mode for me thanks. Or rookie, but good to see this excellent game getting more support. Will definitely try boss rush though

This may seem like a silly question, but I’ve almost ran out of space in my SD card, and I want to buy more games this month. Can I use a second SD card separately, without transferring my current SD card games over? So I mean can I have two different SD cards with different games on them and use them interchangeably?

@johnvboy haha, not heard that before! And you don’t hear many people use ‘budgerigar’ these days!

Absolutely loved this game and the brutal final boss, and I’d never completed a 2d Metroid before (not counting Other M). Such a slick, well-made game.

@Mr-Glissando wow, great memories there my friend. I remember playing Street Fighter II in the arcades in Withernsea, with my brother.

What a terrifying thought, but what a superb read!

@Nin10doh Did you just quote Bender!?

Metroid Dread for me. I was up till the early hours last night making progress, and I’ve gotta say, what a job the developers did with a 2d game in 2021. The gameplay is as tight as can be, and the boss fights, man are they hard! The precision required to beat them is unreal; I am currently on Z-57, and for the first time I had to watch a YouTube video for guidance. Even with that, you have to be so bloody accurate and just good to beat it. Not like other games where a walkthrough gives you the answer. I have Dark Souls on my backlog next.

I thoroughly enjoyed the game, a perfect follow up to BOTW and playing as Zelda was amazing.

Oh wow, I’ve not heard anything of this game since I played it with a friend when it first released. Will definitely check it out.

I remember going to the central library on my lunch breaks in 2006 just to play this. It was wonderful playing a 2d mario again after SMB3 (best videogame ever made) and World.

One of the best games of all time, no question!

As a long time experienced gamer, I’ve never played a soulslike game. But bought Dark Souls Remastered on sale recently for switch, and actually really looking forward to the challenge. I hope I don’t get as frustrated as some commenters have been in the 250 comments on the review section for this game. As soon as I finish Dread this is next, wish me luck!

I just bought this game after trying the demo.

Great article. Reading the comments has brought back lots of memories: wii sports was the only game I played with my parents. Before that it was taking me to Toys R Us to buy Super Mario 3, or paying £60 for Streetfighter 2 on the SNES, because Christmas would be ruined without it, and setting up my N64. But they bought their own Wii and beat me on golf and bowling! Never owned a console before or after, but good times.

9 years since waiting at midnight to grab one with Nintendo Land, ZombiU and NSMBU! How time flies, that launch night was good times.

I have a switch lite and drift is a real concern, but I haven’t heard many stories of it on the lite. Hopefully that means it’s less likely?

I haven’t read the article because of the spoiler alert at the beginning for Dread, and I am on the fence as to whether to take the plunge yet. Here’s my dilemma: I’m a long term Nintendo fan who loves all Mario and Zelda games, but didn’t try Metroid until Super on the Wii VC. I couldn’t finish it. Then I tried Fusion, got stuck halfway through and gave up. I tried the Prime trilogy on Wii and couldn’t get past a few hours into 1. But I absolutely loved Other M! So will I like Dread? I want to get into this franchise so badly.

Legen- wait for it...

The combination of Wii/DS then WiiU/3DS were the most played consoles and games for me. Had at least 5/10 on all 4 of those (all 10 on WiiU) and have only 2/10 on switch

@gutsy you are even replying to your own messages. Bloody hell, not sure what your problem is. Anyway, good article.

This is really heartwarming. Halloween can be such a magical time: did anyone else have to use turnips instead of pumpkins because they were cheaper?

Well, this was a nice surprise. I had been planning on getting the game yesterday, but through circumstances I couldn’t and so the demo is very welcome.

As a non, NSO user so far, I have a question which might sound obvious to most: if I subscribe, will I be able to play N64 games offline or do you always have to be connected to the internet to play them?