@the8thark I had been feeling a little bit that way for a while, but I didn't think it was a real problem until the Pokemon Ultra Sun&Moon review. That was easily the worst 10/10 critical review ever written on Nintendo Life... And also the worst 10/10 critical review I've ever read in my entire life. It's one thing if the reviewer actually explains the reasoning behind their score in depth and backs it up. But when the reviewer doesn't support the score they've given, and is dishonest (or at least not upfront) about what the player should expect, to the point that user reviews found on sites like GameFAQ's are more comprehensive and honest... That's when you know there was no integrity behind that critical review. It was all for the Metacritic money.
Even in this review, it doesn't really back up that 9/10 score- but at least it's an honest one, and tells you what to expect. So I wouldn't fault this particular review. "Professional" reviews which aren't truly written with the purpose of informing the reader, like the Pokemon US&M one on NL, are those truly deserving of scorn.
The picture is proof positive of Mario's TRUE nature. A deranged psychopath with no remorse for killing innocents. He knew the true form of those bricks. O_O
Just for you. Whoever says the SNES sound chip always beats out the Genesis hasn't listened to stuff like this. I'm amazed that this is output from a console, not a PC88...!
Looks like ARMS isn't going to get much of an extension! And to think, people thought Nintendo would go out on a limb to make ARMS into the next big competitive title! Guess they should have gone with having greater LEGS instead...
@NEStalgia I think the shrines were well-implemented primarily for two reasons in the Normal Quest, and an additional reason in the Master Quest:
1. They act as much-needed landmarks and waypoints in a huge world.
Having nothing attached to them would make them too simple, but it would be too complicated to create more intricate mini-dungeons in each one. Completing one or a couple quick tasks in each one is a good balance. They also serve as goal points, giving concrete destinations to reach while gradually expanding your recorded traversal of the world.
2. They help build both basic and unorthodox skills for survival, exploration, and tool usage.
Even if it's only one enemy to fight, or one waterfall to climb, or a couple heavy balls to time-stop then smack as hard as you can with your hammer ( ), the shrines very quickly teach the player how to efficiently use their skills and tools out in the world. For example, after exiting the Magnesis shrine on the Great Plateau, I carried the steel ball outside it throughout my trip in the Forest of Spirits. It was loud as hell and alerted everything to my presence, but who cares? I killed every enemy in my path easily. Even the Stone Talus was readily tamed by swinging my ball of steel around and smacking it's weak spot.
...COUGH
But yes, in any case, they provide useful hints on how to play, just in case you hadn't already figured it out. Or an opportunity to speedrun them if you're already comfortable with their lesson.
3. They can actually provide a challenge in Master Quest.
Some of the shrines, while very simple in the Normal Quest, are much more demanding in the Master Quest. The casual stroll through many of the simpler shrines in NQ have turned into harrowing gauntlets in MQ. The pathetically weak lone monster in a one room shrine may now be a deadly Golden Lynel, or a quickdrawing Guardian Stalker. The MQ addresses the complaint that the shrines are too easy, and makes preparing for them a serious task.
The only possible critique I could have about the shrines is that they aren't used to build up towards the four Divine Beast dungeons, because... there's no substance to those. But that's not really a knock against the shrines themselves, just against the lacking implementation and presence of the Divine Beast dungeons. Hopefully in the NeXt mainline Zelda title, Aonuma will take some inspiration from his own roots in the series, Majora's Mask. (Which demonstrated an excellent buildup towards and implementation of each main dungeon, with each one progressively using lessons from the former. The Stone Tower Temple is the incredible crescendo in this case.)
@Dr_Lugae To be fair, Witcher 3 has exponentially more character development and world building than BotW. That's the real focus of Witcher 3, and it's world accommodates that. Whereas BotW's focus is on exploring the world, not on character interactions. One methodology isn't better than the other, they're just two different approaches. Low 90's, High 90's... either way, still above 90th percentile.
@ThanosReXXX I can't help but think back to the Futurama God quote on this topic:
"When you (only) do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all."
It's human nature to focus on the negative, since it can be perceived as being against their well-being. It's a more cerebral form of the animal nature of focusing on, "What's going to harm me?" But that perception can be misjudged. Thus, to perceive something negative accurately, it must be tempered with an accurate perception of the positive.
In my case, I said, "BotW is only worth an 8/10", focusing on the -2 since it's integrally involved with the focal point of lacking traditional dungeons. However, if the discussion were about other things, like the exploration, physics, and inventory usage, the +8 would get all the attention.
In any case, I appreciate your focus on what was done well, and what raised the bar. If no one did, who would know anything good was done?
@ThanosReXXX In that way, I agree, unwarranted and mindless critique isn't useful or helpful. In the case of BotW, the shrines serve their purpose well, and though there is the potential minor quibble of having to use motion controls in some of them, that's still not really an issue. The shrines don't represent any of the weaknesses that exist in BotW, they're a positive point.
There are bigger fish to fry, although even those can be overshadowed by BotW's strong points if they're not focused upon.
@ThanosReXXX Personally, I would greatly appreciate critique, even harsh critique where appropriate. Regardless of how hard I worked, I would even encourage people to rip into the weak points of my creation, so I could learn from that and either fix it or improve upon it in the future. Making people happy with good stuff is goal #1, but fixing mistakes and addressing weaknesses honestly is also a very important aspect of that.
@ThanosReXXX BotW as a whole is great, yes, but there are certain points which can definitely stand to be harshly critiqued. The critical reception for many big games of late have increasingly been inaccurate or incomplete takes on each game's experience. (The Pokemon Ultra Sun&Moon review on NL is a recent egregious example of this.) I don't think there's ever been a time where user reviews have been more necessary to actually piece together an accurate representation of each piece of the experience. Although, the whole picture doesn't fully come into view until months after a game's launch.
Yes, the developers decide what's best, but ignoring user feedback is perilous. ...Or maybe not, since people will continue buying their games no matter what they do.
Agreed with @KeeperBvK , I don't get the ragging on the Water Temple. The Fire Temple was more annoying to go through. (But I liked it's BGM theme, with the chanting!) Didn't have trouble going through the Water Temple when it first released in 1998, still wouldn't now. (The 3DS update which allows quick equip/unequip of the Iron Boots, instead of having to go into the menu every time, is a nice modern touch though!)
In hindsight, BotW is only worth 8/10 to me. To copy/paste from the discussion on lack of traditional dungeons:
The shrines are okay, they serve moreso as landmarks and progress trackers than as dungeons.
What IS a problem are the 4 main dungeons with the Divine Beasts. There's no reason why they couldn't have served as BotW's take on the traditional dungeons, with wildly different architectures and unique puzzles/tools associated with them. (Like Majora's Mask had for it's 4 main dungeons.) Instead, they all have the same architecture, and the puzzles use the same old tools you got from the beginning of the game on the Great Plateau. Not to mention the Divine Beasts at the end of them aren't unique either, they're just variations of the same type of boss. Imagine if you had to fight a variation of Ghost Ganon in every future era temple of Ocarina of Time, instead of just in the Forest Temple. That's how it is in BotW.
All in all, the dungeons are definitely a weak point of BotW. (Except for Hyrule Castle, which is excellent, aside from lacking Darknut duels and human-based Stalfos that would team up using more intelligent AI than monster skeletons... seriously, what's up with that!?)
And to be honest, there are other weak points associated with the lack of traditional dungeons too- Settling for a poorly executed, disjointed story; providing less incentive for creating a fully fledged soundtrack played throughout the whole adventure; and endlessly recycling the generic, copy-pasted humanoid monsters and ancient mechs. Those are just a few things, but those three are proof positive that as good as BotW is as a whole, it's still incomplete in several ways.
They had to wrap up development to get it out the door, and they had to expend resources on making the NS port within a year to coincide with the NS launch, instead of putting everything into perfecting a single Wii U version. In other words, the lack of traditional dungeons is a key reminder of how BotW is not as good as it could have been. It's only worth an 8/10, or a 9/10 if you're being extra generous, and definitely isn't worth a 10/10 like the critical press claims.
Oh well, hopefully the Cemu modding community can add on some crazy awesome stuff to pick up the slack. As for the inevitable NS exclusive Zelda adventure, hopefully that improves on BotW in every way, with low console sales not being a factor impeding development.
The shrines are okay, they serve moreso as landmarks and progress trackers than as dungeons.
What IS a problem are the 4 main dungeons with the Divine Beasts. There's no reason why they couldn't have served as BotW's take on the traditional dungeons, with wildly different architectures and unique puzzles/tools associated with them. (Like Majora's Mask had for it's 4 main dungeons.) Instead, they all have the same architecture, and the puzzles use the same old tools you got from the beginning of the game on the Great Plateau. Not to mention the Divine Beasts at the end of them aren't unique either, they're just variations of the same type of boss. Imagine if you had to fight a variation of Ghost Ganon in every future era temple of Ocarina of Time, along with every temple resembling the Forest Temple. That's how it is in BotW.
All in all, the dungeons are definitely a weak point of BotW. (Except for Hyrule Castle, which is excellent, aside from lacking Darknut duels and human-based Stalfos that would team up using more intelligent AI than monster skeletons... seriously, what's up with that!?)
And to be honest, there are other weak points associated with the lack of traditional dungeons too- Settling for a poorly executed, disjointed story; providing less incentive for creating a fully fledged soundtrack played throughout the whole adventure; and endlessly recycling the generic, copy-pasted humanoid monsters and ancient mechs. Those are just a few things, but those three are proof positive that as good as BotW is as a whole, it's still incomplete in several ways.
They had to wrap up development to get it out the door, and they had to expend resources on making the NS port within a year to coincide with the NS launch, instead of putting everything into perfecting a single Wii U version. In other words, the lack of traditional dungeons is a key reminder of how BotW is not as good as it could have been. It's only worth an 8/10, or a 9/10 if you're being extra generous, and definitely isn't worth a 10/10 like the critical press claims.
Oh well, hopefully the Cemu modding community can add on some crazy awesome stuff to pick up the slack. As for the inevitable NS exclusive Zelda adventure, hopefully that improves on BotW in every way, with low console sales not being a factor impeding development.
Version 1.4.1, AKA v192. It's a hotfix for 1.4.0. Those involved in the Cemu scene for BotW think that at the very least, it may fix a spawning issue in the new DLC shrines and for the Boss at the end of the new DLC.
Also, video evidence can now be found on Youtube for BotW in Cemu v1.11.2 that shader packs used with BotW v1.4.0 are still usable, and that frame rates may be a little more consistent, staying above 50 FPS more frequently in the field, and staying above 40 FPS more frequently in populated areas/towns, although more testing is needed.
Long story short, US&M is a rushed cash grab that actually removes some elements and features from the original package (such as the post-game Ultra Beast episode), and changes some things up for the worse (such as making the Rotom Dex even more annoying than the original S/M's, and still less useful than the Player Search from XY/ORAS), and is generally lazy with most of it's additions (such as the Ultra Recon Squad, who are ultimately inconsequential to the story). There are even some gameplay-related things missing, e.g. several of the old legendaries you can catch in US&M don't even show up in the Dex(!) because it's not a National Dex. You're actually forced to use the Pokemon Bank to get a full National Dex.
Overall, Pokemon US&M is only worth a 7/10 at best, and arguably it's worth less. It's nowhere near a 10/10- the game was as poorly modified as this "professional" review was written.
@Nincompoop Did you know that there are already places throughout the world which would already be self-sufficient, but organizations in first world countries like the World Bank actually drains and destroys them?
For example, there are many places in Africa which already generate all the electrical energy they need and then some, but the World Bank forces them to send it elsewhere. Same goes for all of those conflict minerals mined by slave labor used to build our fancy tech, especially from the Congo. Meanwhile, Zimbabwe is heading towards self-sufficiency with geothermal energy, supplying all their energy needs and their neighbors', while American oilmen claim it's too difficult to do in the US. (Even though the area running along the eastern edge of California is one of the best spots on Earth found by Google for geothermal energy extraction.) We could have abandoned traditional oil and gas by now ourselves with renewable sources, including geothermal and biodiesel. But the greed behind the petrodollar is too influential.
First world countries aren't just crippling others, they're crippling themselves. All in the interest of short term profits. The whole attack on net neutrality is another recent example of that. Sometimes, there's barely any (or no) infrastructure in certain areas.
As a more relevant example to tech being donated, most of the USA barely recycles any of our computers, and dumps millions of the broken/old ones onto other countries that can't process them, instead of creating more jobs and infrastructure to process unusable ones, reuse the recovered technical nutrients for new products, and provide usable products to those who need them. I am keenly aware of this, because I've been involved in just about the only major dedicated program for providing computers to the needy in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area for 8 years now. There was plenty provided through government and corporate programs in the past, but now that they've been slashed, there's next to nothing available. Charity is the only thing left now for that field.
And that's happening in the area of the nation's capital of supposedly the most powerful and wealthy nation in the world.
@AlwaysGreener The SoA management during the mid-90's were idiots. Just a generation earlier, Tom Kalinske was kicking @$$ with the Genesis/Mega Drive. But then he made the suicidal decision to rush the Saturn to market immediately after E3 1995 as a failed attempt to pre-empt the PS1, and it all went downhill from there.
Not many people know this, but according to "The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World" by Steven L. Kent, the Genesis had actually overall outsold the SNES during the holiday season four years in a row, from 1991-1994. His business strategy combined with Sonic, arcade style titles, and licensed titles was killing it. Yes, even during the year of Mega Man X, Super Metroid, Final Fantasy VI, Super Punch-Out, and Donkey Kong Country, the Genesis still came out on top during the holiday season sales.
It wasn't until 1995 that Sega's management completely lost it. Then once Bernie Stolar was brought in during 1996, that hammered the nails into the coffin with his boneheaded decisions on which titles to bring over, failing to read the mood that FF7 would later capitalize upon. (Panzer Dragoon Saga could have been the Saturn's FF7 moment in 1998 if the momentum had been there...) Then he buried the coffin himself with his comment during E3 1997, "The Saturn is not in our future."
Great games, great development teams, HORRIBLE lapses of judgement by company management getting in the way of their strokes of genius. Classic era Sega in a nutshell.
@Kiyata Most people think of PS3 as the black sheep of the series, but it was really just too ambitious for it's time. If you're interested, check out this guy's remixes:
I particularly recommend Melody of Doom (PS3), Death Trance (PS2), and Journey On Alisa III 2012 (PS3). Listen with good headphones or surround sound and download using an add-on for the best quality listening experience.
Very nice, Phantasy Star is one of my favorite series! Phantasy Star IV in particular is fantastic, and holds up well even today. I really enjoyed my time playing with others on PSO and PSU, and PSP2:Infinity is still a good outing. Too bad PSO2 never made it outside Japan. Sega really should not have strung people along, claiming they were looking into releasing it outside Japan, when they weren't really going to... ever. 😡
Rieko Kodama (the director of the classic series, later working on other titles like Magic Knight Rayearth and Skies of Arcadia) once held an interview with Nintendo Power going in depth about the series, and even explaining how a Phantasy Star V might have worked out. It was being planned, but never came to fruition, in part due to Sega's management botching the Saturn years. But it would have gone deeper into questions like, "Is the Great Light really good?" Which is foreshadowed moreso in the Japanese version by removed (censored) nude enemies in one section of PS IV in the cave where the Elysion sleeps. Just look them up, then look at the history/form of Alys' soul every millennium, then look at the final form of the final boss. Coincidence? I think not.
@Nincompoop Oof, exact same type of comment as the previous incident with buying a console for someone at school. You need some new material. 😜
On another note, just realize that you ironically have no idea how many additional people would die or experience greater suffering every single day without charity. Due to economic inequality, no matter how much education is brought on, people still need jobs and money that pays for food and shelter. Education helps with that, but it guarantees nothing. The infrastructure just doesn't exist to provide good jobs for everyone, with so many people in this world. (Especially with the defeat of unions.)
This kid's faith in humanity just got restored a little, and in a way, that's worth more than the education he's getting. Doesn't matter where he is. A lot of the USA is as bad or even worse off than a 3rd world country zone at this point.
@Smhjph Congratulations to you and your son for the support he has received! I was also the victim of theft in the past, so I know how it feels. Your son is lucky to have so much support around him.
This kid is super lucky he has people backing him up like this. When I was the victim of theft, I had to do my own little bit of detective work. I had no one to back me up, I had to advocate for myself.
I remember back in 9th grade, I dropped a quarter in the locker room, and my GBA with Oracle of Ages was in my backpack front pocket. When I turned around, it was gone. I questioned the one who I thought was the culprit, but of course they lied.
So I waited for them to screw up instead of reporting them right away. I didn't trust other students not to tip him off and hand it over to someone else. Sure enough, they dropped their name tag at one point, and I reported their name and their crime to one of the guards. I kept checking in with him frequently for updates. I thought the GBA may have been as good as gone.
About a month later, the guard returned the GBA to me. I never got Oracle of Ages back, but I was happy to get something back. So I was really thankful for the guard being able to help me. Meanwhile, the guy who stole the GBA got a count of theft on his permanent criminal record.
I don't know what happened to them afterwards, but... I never saw the one who stole my GBA ever again.
Finally getting around to starting BotW after modding the Wii U with Mocha CFW. Playing from system memory instead of the disc it came on. Just got to Kakariko Village after getting a 3-2-3 solid pink colored horse!
@manu0 Nah, Americans are all about dodging taxes. Just look at the people we elect, or take a look at the Paradise Papers. And we just let it get swept under the rug.
The stupid thing about all of the above discussion is that no one really knows all the answers. There's over 2 trillion galaxies in the known universe, and we barely know anything about our Milky Way Galaxy, much less everything there is to know about our solar system and the Earth. We don't know how it all works together, and yet we deign to come to any kind of reliable conclusion on the true nature of the universe? Yeah, right. There's some common patterns to note, like the similarity of dark matter and mycelium when viewed under an electron micrograph:
There are also some interesting things known about dark matter in particular:
But no one really knows yet how things like this are all interconnected. The best one can do right now basically just amounts to guessing from an extremely limited, strictly Earthen point of view. Maybe someday we'll know the answer, but it's too early to say for certain what's behind it all right now.
What can be said for certain is that these two squidchicks have REALLY long fingers. It's kinda creeping me out. But also intriguing me in multiple ways. I'm so conflicted.
@AlphaElite Because those people are convinced that individuals who aren't in a position of power are powerless. In truth, it is the opposite: those who make the decisions need the little people to move a certain way. That's the whole basis behind their power. But no, some people are convinced things like Operation Rainfall are totally meaningless...
@UmbreonsPapa Maybe it would be different today, but that wouldn't have gone over well 20 years ago if, for example, the gift were a Game Boy or an N64 in such a case. But I don't think interpretations of professionalism have changed that much.
@roadrunner343 It's not just that, it's common etiquette (or it used to be) to refuse expensive gifts like this in such a situation, unless it's something like a medicine that you absolutely need to survive, and you have no other good option. It's also a matter of dignity and humility. You give up those things if you accept nonessential gifts like this in this context, especially when the gifters are much younger than you. If the students ran a leukemia education/awareness drive or something, that would have been a more appropriate effort and gift.
@frogopus That's a lot of if's. Lots and lots of if's. No one should have to pray and hope just to get treatment, it should be guaranteed, but alas, that's not how it works in reality. All too many people have been refused.
@Nincompoop Frankly, if I were the teacher, I probably would have thanked the students and refused the gift. It's kind of weird for a teacher to accept a relatively expensive gift like that, especially for their three year old son. The students' hearts are in the right place, but it's a little awkward in this situation. I think visiting the son semi-regularly would be a more effective gift.
@SimplyCinnamon53 That only applies to certain situations, like life threatening situations. It's not easy at all to get government paid health care in the USA. Hell, politicians, insurance companies, and the medical industry are viciously fighting the public and the Nurse's unions to prevent any sort of single payer system from coming into existence.
@Henmii There's more than two titans this time around. They're separated by the cloud sea they travel upon, which is what blocks progress between them except after certain story sequences. The narrative also wants the player to progress in a certain order, much like the original XC. I'm guessing those things are what this review really means by "inexplicable walls," which would be a little confusing, since that's not related to their gripe with the combat progression in the same sentence. So this is basically the same amount of openness as the original XC, which wasn't truly open world either. The review should have elaborated upon that, among other things. I also think their comment relating XC2 to BotW and SMO was probably unnecessary.
Good review! Yes, this is a 9/10 title, there's a few too many glaring flaws to get a 10/10 as-is, such as the stilted animations noted in this review. Here's a few points that this review doesn't fully touch on:
There have been reported (rare) intermittent incidents where the menu randomly freezes while going into it, and does not fully load or close, which is a show-stopper bug. Hopefully a patch for that is forthcoming sometime in December. Also, it seems that characters and base tiles visibly load first before many textures and other objects, imparting a brief "PC-like" load-in appearance during heavier map loading sequences. So the NS is pushed to it's limits pretty hard in XC2.
Many of the characters fall hard into anime clichés, true to the art style and narrative change. In particular, Rex is a bog standard cliché anime protagonist, and his English voice acting is often muted and inappropriate for more intense moments, especially during the iconic "yelling XC protagonist" battle cries. Rex ain't no Shulk. The overall English voice acting is reportedly uneven, too. I would say wait for the Japanese language pack, since it seems their voice actors more consistently convey the appropriate tone for each sequence.
Following up on the limp MC characterization, the Blades' character interactions are ironically often better than their Driver counterparts, although the nopon are an interesting mix this time as well. Tora in particular is the pervert (homie) of the main group, who drives a lot of the ecchi anime clichés. On that note, expect copious booty shots in the front and the back, with Dead or Alive physics to match! (Especially with Pyrra/Mythra- the "jello/thicc" memes about them are already real.) Not that I mind, but it does distract from the more serious narrative moments sometimes, compared to the less ADD original XC.
Speaking of comparisons to the original XC, there's currently no menu option to revisit battle tutorials. (Which is the reason why this review recommended capturing tutorial screenshots- this should have been elaborated upon.) There's no catalog of every conceivable concept and action, like the original XC gave you. So hopefully, a proper tutorial catalog should be patched in at a future update, because the overall battle system is more complicated this time around. In the meantime, better keep at it with a playthrough, so you don't forget anything due to a hiatus.
With that out of the way, onto a much more positive note! Like the review says, the soundtrack is excellent, but it really glosses over just how fantastic it is. It's easily the best executed part of the whole experience. Let's just say the plains of Gormott are the new Gaur Plains.
@Ryu_Niiyama Thank you for sharing your hardships with us. We may not be able to do much for you, but taking care of people who need it, in ways both great and small, is always going to be more important than measuring how disgustingly wealthy a company can possibly get. It's quite sobering to see a bit of reality seep into this article of showcasing Nintendo's executives basically being able to live in a shining golden castle on the hill, while down in the not so illuminated fields, many such as yourself are not so fortunate.
Hopefully Nintendo does this while paying their fair share in taxes. Apple is one of the biggest offenders in offshoring their reserves to dodge paying taxes- they're one of the biggest tax evaders in the USA. Hundreds of millions of dollars that could have gone towards life saving medical treatments have been lost to corporate greed. I hope Nintendo is more responsible. Although, I'm uncomfortable with any company having too much wealth and power, to be honest...
There's been all too many cases in the USA (and around the world) where people's lives have been ruined at the whims of company fortunes and management. "Trickle down" doesn't work for community enrichment in the long run. I've always found it funny how relatively few people have a problem with companies being able to stockpile unlimited amounts of wealth if they are able, but as soon as the idea is brought up of increasing the minimum wage to compensate for overall wealth being shifted from flowing throughout communities to being mostly held within increasingly larger private reservoirs, everyone goes ballistic.
Well, all the more reason Nintendo doesn't need my money for an NS sale right now. Or really any first party game sales. I think I'll buy those second hand only for the time being, only buying new copies of third party games.
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Did I mention this is my reason for wanting to get an NS? Yep, not BOTW (already have it on Wii U), not SMO (not as enthused by it as many others are)... SMT V. This is the one. I wouldn't anticipate this releasing outside Japan until early 2019. That should give enough time for an upgraded/updated NS SKU to be on the way. I will wait for that.
@tanookisuit Actually, it's the other way around... The Virtual Boy released in 1995. Top Hunter released in 1994. There are other series like Fatal Fury which also made use of multiple planes long before VB Wario Land. Nintendo and the VB Wario Land devs were the ones taking notes from titles like these.
@kobashi100 It's not surprising, and that's not the point. The point is, it's disappointing this review is not giving readers the full picture. So we're forced to look elsewhere for a more accurate representation of the product- an upscaled, faster version of a 3DS title, plus a downscaled, slower version of a PS4 title.
In short, yes, the NS version suffers from being on weaker hardware. The frame rate drops are definitely noticeable by comparison, and are more frequent during heavier action. To be fair, the PS4 version was also kind of blurry and didn't look miles better, so the NS version holds up pretty well all things considered. But it's still the inferior version. The only thing it has going for it is portability, which may or may not be a make or break deal for you.
My guess is Jon Mundy, the reviewer here, either never played the PS4 version (so he can't give an accurate representation of the product), or he's simply following the NL Switch review mantra of being relatively lenient on sub-30 FPS frame drops.
Following up on what others have said, just because he didn't mention frame drops doesn't mean they aren't there. As the saying goes, absence of evidence does not equal evidence of absence. One just needs to look elsewhere.
@roadrunner343 This is what the Zohar was originally, according to the Xenogears Perfect Works explanation:
A certain discovery rocked the modern world-an "Object" with the shape of an eye (though clearly being of unnatural origins) had been found deep within a bed of sedimentary rock that was approximately 3.9 billion years old. Eventually, one research institution advanced an alarming new hypothesis about the "Object," stating that its appearance in Earth's geological timeline coincided with the earliest known life ever found; the hypothesis suggested this "Object" may have been the source of all terrestrial life: "artificial" panspermia (Pan-space embryo).
Shortly thereafter, many romantic theories and interpretations began to form about the "Object," however, this accomplished very little and soon, all of these foolish notions came to constitute a simply hopeless mess. The senseless "deduction" swept across both scientific and academic fields, leaving in its wake vague and ambiguous opinions which joined with equally impaired suppositions which ultimately served to destroy any grounds for a concrete argument. All the while, one vital question remained: "what is the 'Object?'"
And before we can even delve into that matter--do we even know if the "Object" is of artificial fabrication? In fact, the mere circumstances of its discovery remain an enigma; finding such an "Object" out of sheer fortuity seems nigh impossible. And this enigma is only deepened as hypotheses awaited evidence while constantly randomly replicating through random theorization and actually reproducing any of these hypotheses may result in one's untimely demise. Eventually, through Carbon-dating, the age of the "Object" was determined to be over 15.0 billion years, confirming that it had been present at the birth of the universe.
This announcement simply added to the existing volume of confusion and strayed into a whole new labyrinth of mystery; if the "Object" is assumed not to be created by some artificial means, then it enters unto the realm of God.
The "Object" was later discovered to possess a considerable amount of a substance which causes magnetic anomalies and, in addition, the "Object" emits a strong magnetic field of its own. Considering this, the "Object" was then referred to as 'MAM' (Magnetic Abnormal Matter) out of convenience. Analysis of the "Object" was carried out on an international scale, however, the project would meet with funding issues and would ultimately wind up abandoned.
Any remaining analysis of the "Object" would be left to private voluntary researchers who would eventually come up with a new name for the "Object."
The name--Zohar."
In other words, TLDR version- no one knows what it's for.
The Zohar represents the mystery of the origin of creation. The truth of it's full significance is pursued by mortals, but none have uncovered it since the dawn of the known universe. Or at least not to live and tell the tale.
15 billion years is far older than even our sun (about 4.5 billion years), and older still than the Earth as we know it. So it's also a mystery how it got here in the first place, since it predates our solar system by such a long time. Everything in the whole solar system started forming at about the same time, so this means that the Zohar was most likely somewhere else previously. (And who knows how it wound up in the Milky Way galaxy, out of the over 2 trillion galaxies that exist.)
The Zohar is ultimately not really important on it's own to the stories of the Xeno series, but rather, it's a metaphorical driving motivator manifested in physical form. The characters only attribute as much meaning as they want to it, so it's not necessarily important to understand. (Which no one really does anyways.)
Comments 5,813
Re: Review: VS. Super Mario Bros. (Switch eShop)
@the8thark I had been feeling a little bit that way for a while, but I didn't think it was a real problem until the Pokemon Ultra Sun&Moon review. That was easily the worst 10/10 critical review ever written on Nintendo Life... And also the worst 10/10 critical review I've ever read in my entire life. It's one thing if the reviewer actually explains the reasoning behind their score in depth and backs it up. But when the reviewer doesn't support the score they've given, and is dishonest (or at least not upfront) about what the player should expect, to the point that user reviews found on sites like GameFAQ's are more comprehensive and honest... That's when you know there was no integrity behind that critical review. It was all for the Metacritic money.
Even in this review, it doesn't really back up that 9/10 score- but at least it's an honest one, and tells you what to expect. So I wouldn't fault this particular review. "Professional" reviews which aren't truly written with the purpose of informing the reader, like the Pokemon US&M one on NL, are those truly deserving of scorn.
Re: Review: VS. Super Mario Bros. (Switch eShop)
The picture is proof positive of Mario's TRUE nature. A deranged psychopath with no remorse for killing innocents. He knew the true form of those bricks. O_O
Re: Data East Arcade Titles Are Coming To Switch, Courtesy Of One Of Gaming's Worst Mascots
@AcridSkull https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ie1yVhXkpCU
Just for you. Whoever says the SNES sound chip always beats out the Genesis hasn't listened to stuff like this. I'm amazed that this is output from a console, not a PC88...!
Re: Data East Arcade Titles Are Coming To Switch, Courtesy Of One Of Gaming's Worst Mascots
"DATA VISE!"
Re: ARMS Version 5.0 Is The Last Content Update The Game Will Recieve
Looks like ARMS isn't going to get much of an extension! And to think, people thought Nintendo would go out on a limb to make ARMS into the next big competitive title! Guess they should have gone with having greater LEGS instead...
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
@NEStalgia I think the shrines were well-implemented primarily for two reasons in the Normal Quest, and an additional reason in the Master Quest:
1. They act as much-needed landmarks and waypoints in a huge world.
Having nothing attached to them would make them too simple, but it would be too complicated to create more intricate mini-dungeons in each one. Completing one or a couple quick tasks in each one is a good balance. They also serve as goal points, giving concrete destinations to reach while gradually expanding your recorded traversal of the world.
2. They help build both basic and unorthodox skills for survival, exploration, and tool usage.
Even if it's only one enemy to fight, or one waterfall to climb, or a couple heavy balls to time-stop then smack as hard as you can with your hammer ( ), the shrines very quickly teach the player how to efficiently use their skills and tools out in the world. For example, after exiting the Magnesis shrine on the Great Plateau, I carried the steel ball outside it throughout my trip in the Forest of Spirits. It was loud as hell and alerted everything to my presence, but who cares? I killed every enemy in my path easily. Even the Stone Talus was readily tamed by swinging my ball of steel around and smacking it's weak spot.
...COUGH
But yes, in any case, they provide useful hints on how to play, just in case you hadn't already figured it out. Or an opportunity to speedrun them if you're already comfortable with their lesson.
3. They can actually provide a challenge in Master Quest.
Some of the shrines, while very simple in the Normal Quest, are much more demanding in the Master Quest. The casual stroll through many of the simpler shrines in NQ have turned into harrowing gauntlets in MQ. The pathetically weak lone monster in a one room shrine may now be a deadly Golden Lynel, or a quickdrawing Guardian Stalker. The MQ addresses the complaint that the shrines are too easy, and makes preparing for them a serious task.
The only possible critique I could have about the shrines is that they aren't used to build up towards the four Divine Beast dungeons, because... there's no substance to those. But that's not really a knock against the shrines themselves, just against the lacking implementation and presence of the Divine Beast dungeons. Hopefully in the NeXt mainline Zelda title, Aonuma will take some inspiration from his own roots in the series, Majora's Mask. (Which demonstrated an excellent buildup towards and implementation of each main dungeon, with each one progressively using lessons from the former. The Stone Tower Temple is the incredible crescendo in this case.)
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
@ThanosReXXX "Devine Beasts"
LMAO
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
@Dr_Lugae To be fair, Witcher 3 has exponentially more character development and world building than BotW. That's the real focus of Witcher 3, and it's world accommodates that. Whereas BotW's focus is on exploring the world, not on character interactions. One methodology isn't better than the other, they're just two different approaches. Low 90's, High 90's... either way, still above 90th percentile.
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
@ThanosReXXX I can't help but think back to the Futurama God quote on this topic:
"When you (only) do things right, people won't be sure you've done anything at all."
It's human nature to focus on the negative, since it can be perceived as being against their well-being. It's a more cerebral form of the animal nature of focusing on, "What's going to harm me?" But that perception can be misjudged. Thus, to perceive something negative accurately, it must be tempered with an accurate perception of the positive.
In my case, I said, "BotW is only worth an 8/10", focusing on the -2 since it's integrally involved with the focal point of lacking traditional dungeons. However, if the discussion were about other things, like the exploration, physics, and inventory usage, the +8 would get all the attention.
In any case, I appreciate your focus on what was done well, and what raised the bar. If no one did, who would know anything good was done?
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
@ThanosReXXX In that way, I agree, unwarranted and mindless critique isn't useful or helpful. In the case of BotW, the shrines serve their purpose well, and though there is the potential minor quibble of having to use motion controls in some of them, that's still not really an issue. The shrines don't represent any of the weaknesses that exist in BotW, they're a positive point.
There are bigger fish to fry, although even those can be overshadowed by BotW's strong points if they're not focused upon.
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
@ThanosReXXX Personally, I would greatly appreciate critique, even harsh critique where appropriate. Regardless of how hard I worked, I would even encourage people to rip into the weak points of my creation, so I could learn from that and either fix it or improve upon it in the future. Making people happy with good stuff is goal #1, but fixing mistakes and addressing weaknesses honestly is also a very important aspect of that.
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
@ThanosReXXX BotW as a whole is great, yes, but there are certain points which can definitely stand to be harshly critiqued. The critical reception for many big games of late have increasingly been inaccurate or incomplete takes on each game's experience. (The Pokemon Ultra Sun&Moon review on NL is a recent egregious example of this.) I don't think there's ever been a time where user reviews have been more necessary to actually piece together an accurate representation of each piece of the experience. Although, the whole picture doesn't fully come into view until months after a game's launch.
Yes, the developers decide what's best, but ignoring user feedback is perilous. ...Or maybe not, since people will continue buying their games no matter what they do.
Happy Holidays to you as well!
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Agreed with @KeeperBvK , I don't get the ragging on the Water Temple. The Fire Temple was more annoying to go through. (But I liked it's BGM theme, with the chanting!) Didn't have trouble going through the Water Temple when it first released in 1998, still wouldn't now. (The 3DS update which allows quick equip/unequip of the Iron Boots, instead of having to go into the menu every time, is a nice modern touch though!)
Re: Review: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch)
In hindsight, BotW is only worth 8/10 to me. To copy/paste from the discussion on lack of traditional dungeons:
The shrines are okay, they serve moreso as landmarks and progress trackers than as dungeons.
What IS a problem are the 4 main dungeons with the Divine Beasts. There's no reason why they couldn't have served as BotW's take on the traditional dungeons, with wildly different architectures and unique puzzles/tools associated with them. (Like Majora's Mask had for it's 4 main dungeons.) Instead, they all have the same architecture, and the puzzles use the same old tools you got from the beginning of the game on the Great Plateau. Not to mention the Divine Beasts at the end of them aren't unique either, they're just variations of the same type of boss. Imagine if you had to fight a variation of Ghost Ganon in every future era temple of Ocarina of Time, instead of just in the Forest Temple. That's how it is in BotW.
All in all, the dungeons are definitely a weak point of BotW. (Except for Hyrule Castle, which is excellent, aside from lacking Darknut duels and human-based Stalfos that would team up using more intelligent AI than monster skeletons... seriously, what's up with that!?)
And to be honest, there are other weak points associated with the lack of traditional dungeons too- Settling for a poorly executed, disjointed story; providing less incentive for creating a fully fledged soundtrack played throughout the whole adventure; and endlessly recycling the generic, copy-pasted humanoid monsters and ancient mechs. Those are just a few things, but those three are proof positive that as good as BotW is as a whole, it's still incomplete in several ways.
They had to wrap up development to get it out the door, and they had to expend resources on making the NS port within a year to coincide with the NS launch, instead of putting everything into perfecting a single Wii U version. In other words, the lack of traditional dungeons is a key reminder of how BotW is not as good as it could have been. It's only worth an 8/10, or a 9/10 if you're being extra generous, and definitely isn't worth a 10/10 like the critical press claims.
Oh well, hopefully the Cemu modding community can add on some crazy awesome stuff to pick up the slack. As for the inevitable NS exclusive Zelda adventure, hopefully that improves on BotW in every way, with low console sales not being a factor impeding development.
Re: Here’s Why Traditional Dungeons Got Axed in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
The shrines are okay, they serve moreso as landmarks and progress trackers than as dungeons.
What IS a problem are the 4 main dungeons with the Divine Beasts. There's no reason why they couldn't have served as BotW's take on the traditional dungeons, with wildly different architectures and unique puzzles/tools associated with them. (Like Majora's Mask had for it's 4 main dungeons.) Instead, they all have the same architecture, and the puzzles use the same old tools you got from the beginning of the game on the Great Plateau. Not to mention the Divine Beasts at the end of them aren't unique either, they're just variations of the same type of boss. Imagine if you had to fight a variation of Ghost Ganon in every future era temple of Ocarina of Time, along with every temple resembling the Forest Temple. That's how it is in BotW.
All in all, the dungeons are definitely a weak point of BotW. (Except for Hyrule Castle, which is excellent, aside from lacking Darknut duels and human-based Stalfos that would team up using more intelligent AI than monster skeletons... seriously, what's up with that!?)
And to be honest, there are other weak points associated with the lack of traditional dungeons too- Settling for a poorly executed, disjointed story; providing less incentive for creating a fully fledged soundtrack played throughout the whole adventure; and endlessly recycling the generic, copy-pasted humanoid monsters and ancient mechs. Those are just a few things, but those three are proof positive that as good as BotW is as a whole, it's still incomplete in several ways.
They had to wrap up development to get it out the door, and they had to expend resources on making the NS port within a year to coincide with the NS launch, instead of putting everything into perfecting a single Wii U version. In other words, the lack of traditional dungeons is a key reminder of how BotW is not as good as it could have been. It's only worth an 8/10, or a 9/10 if you're being extra generous, and definitely isn't worth a 10/10 like the critical press claims.
Oh well, hopefully the Cemu modding community can add on some crazy awesome stuff to pick up the slack. As for the inevitable NS exclusive Zelda adventure, hopefully that improves on BotW in every way, with low console sales not being a factor impeding development.
Re: Legend of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Gets Wii U Update To Improve Gameplay
Version 1.4.1, AKA v192. It's a hotfix for 1.4.0. Those involved in the Cemu scene for BotW think that at the very least, it may fix a spawning issue in the new DLC shrines and for the Boss at the end of the new DLC.
Also, video evidence can now be found on Youtube for BotW in Cemu v1.11.2 that shader packs used with BotW v1.4.0 are still usable, and that frame rates may be a little more consistent, staying above 50 FPS more frequently in the field, and staying above 40 FPS more frequently in populated areas/towns, although more testing is needed.
Re: Review: Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon (3DS)
Should have posted this earlier, but finally, here it is, an honest review of Ultra Sun & Moon:
https://www.gamefaqs.com/3ds/210930-pokemon-ultra-sun/reviews/165472
Long story short, US&M is a rushed cash grab that actually removes some elements and features from the original package (such as the post-game Ultra Beast episode), and changes some things up for the worse (such as making the Rotom Dex even more annoying than the original S/M's, and still less useful than the Player Search from XY/ORAS), and is generally lazy with most of it's additions (such as the Ultra Recon Squad, who are ultimately inconsequential to the story). There are even some gameplay-related things missing, e.g. several of the old legendaries you can catch in US&M don't even show up in the Dex(!) because it's not a National Dex. You're actually forced to use the Pokemon Bank to get a full National Dex.
Overall, Pokemon US&M is only worth a 7/10 at best, and arguably it's worth less. It's nowhere near a 10/10- the game was as poorly modified as this "professional" review was written.
Re: Student Whose 3DS Was Stolen Is Given A Replacement By His Schoolmates
@Nincompoop Did you know that there are already places throughout the world which would already be self-sufficient, but organizations in first world countries like the World Bank actually drains and destroys them?
For example, there are many places in Africa which already generate all the electrical energy they need and then some, but the World Bank forces them to send it elsewhere. Same goes for all of those conflict minerals mined by slave labor used to build our fancy tech, especially from the Congo. Meanwhile, Zimbabwe is heading towards self-sufficiency with geothermal energy, supplying all their energy needs and their neighbors', while American oilmen claim it's too difficult to do in the US. (Even though the area running along the eastern edge of California is one of the best spots on Earth found by Google for geothermal energy extraction.) We could have abandoned traditional oil and gas by now ourselves with renewable sources, including geothermal and biodiesel. But the greed behind the petrodollar is too influential.
First world countries aren't just crippling others, they're crippling themselves. All in the interest of short term profits. The whole attack on net neutrality is another recent example of that. Sometimes, there's barely any (or no) infrastructure in certain areas.
As a more relevant example to tech being donated, most of the USA barely recycles any of our computers, and dumps millions of the broken/old ones onto other countries that can't process them, instead of creating more jobs and infrastructure to process unusable ones, reuse the recovered technical nutrients for new products, and provide usable products to those who need them. I am keenly aware of this, because I've been involved in just about the only major dedicated program for providing computers to the needy in the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area for 8 years now. There was plenty provided through government and corporate programs in the past, but now that they've been slashed, there's next to nothing available. Charity is the only thing left now for that field.
And that's happening in the area of the nation's capital of supposedly the most powerful and wealthy nation in the world.
Re: Video: The Complete History of Phantasy Star
@AlwaysGreener The SoA management during the mid-90's were idiots. Just a generation earlier, Tom Kalinske was kicking @$$ with the Genesis/Mega Drive. But then he made the suicidal decision to rush the Saturn to market immediately after E3 1995 as a failed attempt to pre-empt the PS1, and it all went downhill from there.
Not many people know this, but according to "The Ultimate History of Video Games: The Story Behind the Craze that Touched our Lives and Changed the World" by Steven L. Kent, the Genesis had actually overall outsold the SNES during the holiday season four years in a row, from 1991-1994. His business strategy combined with Sonic, arcade style titles, and licensed titles was killing it. Yes, even during the year of Mega Man X, Super Metroid, Final Fantasy VI, Super Punch-Out, and Donkey Kong Country, the Genesis still came out on top during the holiday season sales.
It wasn't until 1995 that Sega's management completely lost it. Then once Bernie Stolar was brought in during 1996, that hammered the nails into the coffin with his boneheaded decisions on which titles to bring over, failing to read the mood that FF7 would later capitalize upon. (Panzer Dragoon Saga could have been the Saturn's FF7 moment in 1998 if the momentum had been there...) Then he buried the coffin himself with his comment during E3 1997, "The Saturn is not in our future."
Great games, great development teams, HORRIBLE lapses of judgement by company management getting in the way of their strokes of genius. Classic era Sega in a nutshell.
Re: Video: The Complete History of Phantasy Star
@Kiyata Most people think of PS3 as the black sheep of the series, but it was really just too ambitious for it's time. If you're interested, check out this guy's remixes:
https://youtube.com/channel/UCSzXOaJ5eSLJcn30gLE6-Mw
I particularly recommend Melody of Doom (PS3), Death Trance (PS2), and Journey On Alisa III 2012 (PS3). Listen with good headphones or surround sound and download using an add-on for the best quality listening experience.
Re: Video: The Complete History of Phantasy Star
Very nice, Phantasy Star is one of my favorite series! Phantasy Star IV in particular is fantastic, and holds up well even today. I really enjoyed my time playing with others on PSO and PSU, and PSP2:Infinity is still a good outing. Too bad PSO2 never made it outside Japan. Sega really should not have strung people along, claiming they were looking into releasing it outside Japan, when they weren't really going to... ever. 😡
Rieko Kodama (the director of the classic series, later working on other titles like Magic Knight Rayearth and Skies of Arcadia) once held an interview with Nintendo Power going in depth about the series, and even explaining how a Phantasy Star V might have worked out. It was being planned, but never came to fruition, in part due to Sega's management botching the Saturn years. But it would have gone deeper into questions like, "Is the Great Light really good?" Which is foreshadowed moreso in the Japanese version by removed (censored) nude enemies in one section of PS IV in the cave where the Elysion sleeps. Just look them up, then look at the history/form of Alys' soul every millennium, then look at the final form of the final boss. Coincidence? I think not.
Re: Student Whose 3DS Was Stolen Is Given A Replacement By His Schoolmates
@Nincompoop Oof, exact same type of comment as the previous incident with buying a console for someone at school. You need some new material. 😜
On another note, just realize that you ironically have no idea how many additional people would die or experience greater suffering every single day without charity. Due to economic inequality, no matter how much education is brought on, people still need jobs and money that pays for food and shelter. Education helps with that, but it guarantees nothing. The infrastructure just doesn't exist to provide good jobs for everyone, with so many people in this world. (Especially with the defeat of unions.)
This kid's faith in humanity just got restored a little, and in a way, that's worth more than the education he's getting. Doesn't matter where he is. A lot of the USA is as bad or even worse off than a 3rd world country zone at this point.
Re: Student Whose 3DS Was Stolen Is Given A Replacement By His Schoolmates
@Smhjph Congratulations to you and your son for the support he has received! I was also the victim of theft in the past, so I know how it feels. Your son is lucky to have so much support around him.
Re: Student Whose 3DS Was Stolen Is Given A Replacement By His Schoolmates
This kid is super lucky he has people backing him up like this. When I was the victim of theft, I had to do my own little bit of detective work. I had no one to back me up, I had to advocate for myself.
I remember back in 9th grade, I dropped a quarter in the locker room, and my GBA with Oracle of Ages was in my backpack front pocket. When I turned around, it was gone. I questioned the one who I thought was the culprit, but of course they lied.
So I waited for them to screw up instead of reporting them right away. I didn't trust other students not to tip him off and hand it over to someone else. Sure enough, they dropped their name tag at one point, and I reported their name and their crime to one of the guards. I kept checking in with him frequently for updates. I thought the GBA may have been as good as gone.
About a month later, the guard returned the GBA to me. I never got Oracle of Ages back, but I was happy to get something back. So I was really thankful for the guard being able to help me. Meanwhile, the guy who stole the GBA got a count of theft on his permanent criminal record.
I don't know what happened to them afterwards, but... I never saw the one who stole my GBA ever again.
Re: Weirdness: Pikachu Is Now A Cultural Ambassador For The City Of Osaka
@Joeynator3000
It's one of those moments, huh? Don't worry, this will cheer you up!
Re: Random: Of All the Games, Nintendo Uses Milking in 1-2-Switch to Promote Festive Gaming
OH NO GRANDFATHER! NOT IN FRONT OF THE CHILDREN!
Re: Talking Point: What Games Are You Playing This Weekend - Countdown to the Holidays
Finally getting around to starting BotW after modding the Wii U with Mocha CFW. Playing from system memory instead of the disc it came on. Just got to Kakariko Village after getting a 3-2-3 solid pink colored horse!
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@manu0 Nah, Americans are all about dodging taxes. Just look at the people we elect, or take a look at the Paradise Papers. And we just let it get swept under the rug.
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@maceng You did the right thing. I'm proud of your past self.
Re: Nintendo Reveals the Ages of Pearl and Marina
The stupid thing about all of the above discussion is that no one really knows all the answers. There's over 2 trillion galaxies in the known universe, and we barely know anything about our Milky Way Galaxy, much less everything there is to know about our solar system and the Earth. We don't know how it all works together, and yet we deign to come to any kind of reliable conclusion on the true nature of the universe? Yeah, right. There's some common patterns to note, like the similarity of dark matter and mycelium when viewed under an electron micrograph:
There are also some interesting things known about dark matter in particular:
https://phys.org/news/2016-08-dark-matterhot.html
But no one really knows yet how things like this are all interconnected. The best one can do right now basically just amounts to guessing from an extremely limited, strictly Earthen point of view. Maybe someday we'll know the answer, but it's too early to say for certain what's behind it all right now.
What can be said for certain is that these two squidchicks have REALLY long fingers. It's kinda creeping me out. But also intriguing me in multiple ways. I'm so conflicted.
Re: Review: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Switch)
@AlphaElite Because those people are convinced that individuals who aren't in a position of power are powerless. In truth, it is the opposite: those who make the decisions need the little people to move a certain way. That's the whole basis behind their power. But no, some people are convinced things like Operation Rainfall are totally meaningless...
Re: Weirdness: Pikachu Is Now A Cultural Ambassador For The City Of Osaka
Today, Ambassador. Tomorrow, Prime Minister. The day after that... Emperor.
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@NEStalgia I thought aomething was missing... Where's ol' Sliggy?... @nincompoop ! Will you be our replacement Sliggy? Pleaaaaase?
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@UmbreonsPapa Maybe it would be different today, but that wouldn't have gone over well 20 years ago if, for example, the gift were a Game Boy or an N64 in such a case. But I don't think interpretations of professionalism have changed that much.
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@roadrunner343 It's not just that, it's common etiquette (or it used to be) to refuse expensive gifts like this in such a situation, unless it's something like a medicine that you absolutely need to survive, and you have no other good option. It's also a matter of dignity and humility. You give up those things if you accept nonessential gifts like this in this context, especially when the gifters are much younger than you. If the students ran a leukemia education/awareness drive or something, that would have been a more appropriate effort and gift.
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@frogopus That's a lot of if's. Lots and lots of if's. No one should have to pray and hope just to get treatment, it should be guaranteed, but alas, that's not how it works in reality. All too many people have been refused.
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@Nincompoop Frankly, if I were the teacher, I probably would have thanked the students and refused the gift. It's kind of weird for a teacher to accept a relatively expensive gift like that, especially for their three year old son. The students' hearts are in the right place, but it's a little awkward in this situation. I think visiting the son semi-regularly would be a more effective gift.
Re: Teacher Whose Son Has Leukaemia Fights Back Tears After His Students Buy Him A Switch
@SimplyCinnamon53 That only applies to certain situations, like life threatening situations. It's not easy at all to get government paid health care in the USA. Hell, politicians, insurance companies, and the medical industry are viciously fighting the public and the Nurse's unions to prevent any sort of single payer system from coming into existence.
Re: Review: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Switch)
@Henmii There's more than two titans this time around. They're separated by the cloud sea they travel upon, which is what blocks progress between them except after certain story sequences. The narrative also wants the player to progress in a certain order, much like the original XC. I'm guessing those things are what this review really means by "inexplicable walls," which would be a little confusing, since that's not related to their gripe with the combat progression in the same sentence. So this is basically the same amount of openness as the original XC, which wasn't truly open world either. The review should have elaborated upon that, among other things. I also think their comment relating XC2 to BotW and SMO was probably unnecessary.
Re: Review: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Switch)
@Frank90 Well, SMT V might not be ready until 2019, but yeah, NS is looking like the next big JRPG powerhouse.
Re: Review: Xenoblade Chronicles 2 (Switch)
Good review! Yes, this is a 9/10 title, there's a few too many glaring flaws to get a 10/10 as-is, such as the stilted animations noted in this review. Here's a few points that this review doesn't fully touch on:
There have been reported (rare) intermittent incidents where the menu randomly freezes while going into it, and does not fully load or close, which is a show-stopper bug. Hopefully a patch for that is forthcoming sometime in December. Also, it seems that characters and base tiles visibly load first before many textures and other objects, imparting a brief "PC-like" load-in appearance during heavier map loading sequences. So the NS is pushed to it's limits pretty hard in XC2.
Many of the characters fall hard into anime clichés, true to the art style and narrative change. In particular, Rex is a bog standard cliché anime protagonist, and his English voice acting is often muted and inappropriate for more intense moments, especially during the iconic "yelling XC protagonist" battle cries. Rex ain't no Shulk. The overall English voice acting is reportedly uneven, too. I would say wait for the Japanese language pack, since it seems their voice actors more consistently convey the appropriate tone for each sequence.
Following up on the limp MC characterization, the Blades' character interactions are ironically often better than their Driver counterparts, although the nopon are an interesting mix this time as well. Tora in particular is the pervert (homie) of the main group, who drives a lot of the ecchi anime clichés. On that note, expect copious booty shots in the front and the back, with Dead or Alive physics to match! (Especially with Pyrra/Mythra- the "jello/thicc" memes about them are already real.) Not that I mind, but it does distract from the more serious narrative moments sometimes, compared to the less ADD original XC.
Speaking of comparisons to the original XC, there's currently no menu option to revisit battle tutorials. (Which is the reason why this review recommended capturing tutorial screenshots- this should have been elaborated upon.) There's no catalog of every conceivable concept and action, like the original XC gave you. So hopefully, a proper tutorial catalog should be patched in at a future update, because the overall battle system is more complicated this time around. In the meantime, better keep at it with a playthrough, so you don't forget anything due to a hiatus.
With that out of the way, onto a much more positive note! Like the review says, the soundtrack is excellent, but it really glosses over just how fantastic it is. It's easily the best executed part of the whole experience. Let's just say the plains of Gormott are the new Gaur Plains.
Re: Nintendo Tops Toyo Keizai's List Of Japan's Richest Companies, While Sony Is Fourth
@Ryu_Niiyama Thank you for sharing your hardships with us. We may not be able to do much for you, but taking care of people who need it, in ways both great and small, is always going to be more important than measuring how disgustingly wealthy a company can possibly get. It's quite sobering to see a bit of reality seep into this article of showcasing Nintendo's executives basically being able to live in a shining golden castle on the hill, while down in the not so illuminated fields, many such as yourself are not so fortunate.
Re: Nintendo Tops Toyo Keizai's List Of Japan's Richest Companies, While Sony Is Fourth
Hopefully Nintendo does this while paying their fair share in taxes. Apple is one of the biggest offenders in offshoring their reserves to dodge paying taxes- they're one of the biggest tax evaders in the USA. Hundreds of millions of dollars that could have gone towards life saving medical treatments have been lost to corporate greed. I hope Nintendo is more responsible. Although, I'm uncomfortable with any company having too much wealth and power, to be honest...
There's been all too many cases in the USA (and around the world) where people's lives have been ruined at the whims of company fortunes and management. "Trickle down" doesn't work for community enrichment in the long run. I've always found it funny how relatively few people have a problem with companies being able to stockpile unlimited amounts of wealth if they are able, but as soon as the idea is brought up of increasing the minimum wage to compensate for overall wealth being shifted from flowing throughout communities to being mostly held within increasingly larger private reservoirs, everyone goes ballistic.
Well, all the more reason Nintendo doesn't need my money for an NS sale right now. Or really any first party game sales. I think I'll buy those second hand only for the time being, only buying new copies of third party games.
Re: Atlus Confirms That Shin Megami Tensei V is Heading to the West on Nintendo Switch
Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want Do want
Did I mention this is my reason for wanting to get an NS? Yep, not BOTW (already have it on Wii U), not SMO (not as enthused by it as many others are)... SMT V. This is the one. I wouldn't anticipate this releasing outside Japan until early 2019. That should give enough time for an upgraded/updated NS SKU to be on the way. I will wait for that.
Re: Atlus Confirms That Shin Megami Tensei V is Heading to the West on Nintendo Switch
@FX102A You forgot Strange Journey. Unless you've played that one already!
Re: Top Hunter Is Your Next Neo Geo ACA Release On Switch
@tanookisuit Actually, it's the other way around... The Virtual Boy released in 1995. Top Hunter released in 1994. There are other series like Fatal Fury which also made use of multiple planes long before VB Wario Land. Nintendo and the VB Wario Land devs were the ones taking notes from titles like these.
Re: Random: You've Seen The NES Classic, Now Check Out The CoolBaby HDMI HD Video Game
Oh... Oh God... That pun... I think a part of me just died inside...
Re: Review: Resident Evil Revelations Collection (Switch)
@kobashi100 It's not surprising, and that's not the point. The point is, it's disappointing this review is not giving readers the full picture. So we're forced to look elsewhere for a more accurate representation of the product- an upscaled, faster version of a 3DS title, plus a downscaled, slower version of a PS4 title.
Re: Review: Resident Evil Revelations Collection (Switch)
@zip here you go, this review gives more details on the frame rate, comparing it to the PS4 version:
http://twinfinite.net/2017/11/resident-evil-revelations-2-switch-review/
In short, yes, the NS version suffers from being on weaker hardware. The frame rate drops are definitely noticeable by comparison, and are more frequent during heavier action. To be fair, the PS4 version was also kind of blurry and didn't look miles better, so the NS version holds up pretty well all things considered. But it's still the inferior version. The only thing it has going for it is portability, which may or may not be a make or break deal for you.
My guess is Jon Mundy, the reviewer here, either never played the PS4 version (so he can't give an accurate representation of the product), or he's simply following the NL Switch review mantra of being relatively lenient on sub-30 FPS frame drops.
Following up on what others have said, just because he didn't mention frame drops doesn't mean they aren't there. As the saying goes, absence of evidence does not equal evidence of absence. One just needs to look elsewhere.
Re: Video: Nintendo Goes for Drama in Its Latest Xenoblade Chronicles 2 Story Trailer
@roadrunner343 This is what the Zohar was originally, according to the Xenogears Perfect Works explanation:
A certain discovery rocked the modern world-an "Object" with the shape of an eye (though clearly being of unnatural origins) had been found deep within a bed of sedimentary rock that was approximately 3.9 billion years old. Eventually, one research institution advanced an alarming new hypothesis about the "Object," stating that its appearance in Earth's geological timeline coincided with the earliest known life ever found; the hypothesis suggested this "Object" may have been the source of all terrestrial life: "artificial" panspermia (Pan-space embryo).
Shortly thereafter, many romantic theories and interpretations began to form about the "Object," however, this accomplished very little and soon, all of these foolish notions came to constitute a simply hopeless mess. The senseless "deduction" swept across both scientific and academic fields, leaving in its wake vague and ambiguous opinions which joined with equally impaired suppositions which ultimately served to destroy any grounds for a concrete argument. All the while, one vital question remained: "what is the 'Object?'"
And before we can even delve into that matter--do we even know if the "Object" is of artificial fabrication? In fact, the mere circumstances of its discovery remain an enigma; finding such an "Object" out of sheer fortuity seems nigh impossible. And this enigma is only deepened as hypotheses awaited evidence while constantly randomly replicating through random theorization and actually reproducing any of these hypotheses may result in one's untimely demise. Eventually, through Carbon-dating, the age of the "Object" was determined to be over 15.0 billion years, confirming that it had been present at the birth of the universe.
This announcement simply added to the existing volume of confusion and strayed into a whole new labyrinth of mystery; if the "Object" is assumed not to be created by some artificial means, then it enters unto the realm of God.
The "Object" was later discovered to possess a considerable amount of a substance which causes magnetic anomalies and, in addition, the "Object" emits a strong magnetic field of its own. Considering this, the "Object" was then referred to as 'MAM' (Magnetic Abnormal Matter) out of convenience. Analysis of the "Object" was carried out on an international scale, however, the project would meet with funding issues and would ultimately wind up abandoned.
Any remaining analysis of the "Object" would be left to private voluntary researchers who would eventually come up with a new name for the "Object."
The name--Zohar."
In other words, TLDR version- no one knows what it's for.
The Zohar represents the mystery of the origin of creation. The truth of it's full significance is pursued by mortals, but none have uncovered it since the dawn of the known universe. Or at least not to live and tell the tale.
15 billion years is far older than even our sun (about 4.5 billion years), and older still than the Earth as we know it. So it's also a mystery how it got here in the first place, since it predates our solar system by such a long time. Everything in the whole solar system started forming at about the same time, so this means that the Zohar was most likely somewhere else previously. (And who knows how it wound up in the Milky Way galaxy, out of the over 2 trillion galaxies that exist.)
The Zohar is ultimately not really important on it's own to the stories of the Xeno series, but rather, it's a metaphorical driving motivator manifested in physical form. The characters only attribute as much meaning as they want to it, so it's not necessarily important to understand. (Which no one really does anyways.)