Rudy_Manchego

This is hugely disappointing and was my concern when Netflix bought them. I loved Oxenfree 1 and 2 and really liked Afterparty but these are niche narrative titles ultimately. They arent going to drive consumers to an emerging gaming platform.

This is a shame. I was a big user and the small discount often tipped me into grabbing a game on sale if I could get a few quid off. It felt like a reward for investing in the eco system.

Still surprised that we haven't had Metroid Prime 2 and 3 remastered dropped ahead of 4 to build anticipation. I loved the remaster of Prime.

I get some of the doom and gloom as whenever a new gen raises its head, it's the end of the old one and there is a risk and a worry about priorities etc. My biggest annoyance with Nintendo is a lot of their crackdown's on SOME forms of emulation. As a current system, with massive titles launching, emulating the Switch is something I understand Nintendo protecting. I'd even continue that position when the Switch 2 launches as its backwards compatible. However, going after things like 3DS emulation and YouTuber's that show Wii U emulation when Nintendo have made zero effort to preserve so many of their titles irks me some. I love my 3DS and Wii U.

@Antraxx777 I mean... yes, of course. I am aware of exclusivity but my point is that the gamble is that this will be enough. It is just an iterative upgrade. Given that there is now competition in this market (Steam Deck, Asus, Lenovo, MSI etc.) and rumored future competition from the likes of Microsoft), it means entirely relying on on first or second party games or exclusive ports. I bought a lot of games either on Switch specifically or bought AGAIN titles so I could play remotely. For many non-Nintendo titles, it is likely that I now have an option of how to play third party games remotely... and Hey, I may be totally wrong and people do see this as the natural upgrade path from their OG Switch, especially if they have large libraries. At the same time, its USP has now been imitated.

I mean, I'm in and it looks good, but compared to the marketing triumph of the Switch initial reveal, there was nothing in this that told us why this is cool. What makes this worth upgrading? Because it feels like an upgrade. Just worried that they are going to struggle with explaining why people should rush and get one when the market has a lot of competition.

Absolute master class presenter that pitches videos perfectly. Congrats to Alex.

Have said elsewhere but the length of time it took Nintendo was I possibly hardware related. Yuzu was a thing in 2018 but needed a PC and didn't have much support for many games. Fast forward and there are powerful enough Android phones and things like the Steam Deck/ROG Ally/Odin 2 that can comfortably play almost all Switch games using Yuzu. The last couple of years saw Switch emulation move from a niche community to being something really easy to do!

The launch of TOTK was the big driver clearly - social media was literally awash with people showing it running ahead of launch on various devices, all running on Yuzu.

I made a comment on a forum that this would be the end of Yuzu and got piled on for people saying that Emulation isn't illegal. However it can't be denied that it helped piracy of a new product and Nintendo would be frightening to take on. Plus the devs had a patreon so technically profited. I'm gutted about Citra as its a dead system that needs emulation .

The Switch launch was very special to me. My work got one in secret as a reward for launching a huge project because I kept banging on about how much I wanted one. Getting it a few days after launch, downloading BOTW coz I couldn't find a physical copy near me, and being sat playing it handhled was amazing. The first 6 months were barren - just BOTW and MK8 seeing me through but by the winter, I was guns blazing and its become the console with my biggest physical library.

I have a Switch, SD and ROG Ally and the Switch still gets a lot of play time because its a Nintendo console and has Nintendo games for it. You turn it on and it works. All the others have caveats and are more really gaming PC's then a dedicated console.

@steely_pete Same here.

I also agree. Given the compromises that it would need to run on Switch and the core of the game being an online experience, most multi platform players would play on a different console. It was just a generalisation made to compare the offer by MS to go on all platforms as a gesture. It would be put on Switch to prove a point, not to make money.

Just gimme the other remasters already. Or better yet, Metroid Dread 2: Dread Head.

This is like the time my friend blew all his studen loan on a car that he couldn't afford to drive. Or eat.

Considering what I've done to all those Koroks with rockets and the like? Yeah, it's pretty horrific.

I've loved playing with the glitches. Not really used for game breaking purposes but I love trying out different items in scenarios and fusing stuff without wasting any material. TLDR - you do you!

Well the duplication bug is just too much fun for me to patch. I love turning basic combat encounters into Apocalypse Now for the sheer lolz.

So this is cool but what the heck about the Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity timeline? That went all out of whack by messing with the events of BOTW. Guessing that is not canon (or Ganon - I'll show myself out).

'Is this the very end of the road for E3?'

Yes.

There will be no cease and desist because it is an emulator. It has been available publically on Windows, Linux, Mac and Android for ages now. Same as retroarch and other emulators publically available, even on store fronts.

I get the argument against piracy and I agree but also there is no other way to buy and play many GC/Wii titles without original hardware or paying extreme prices for second hand copies - none of which profit Nintendo.

@Eggolor Was gonna write something but you put it perfectly. Exactly this.

I hit Deepnest deep into the game and it did its job perfectly. Taking away all the niceness and ambience of the other areas. I couldnt say it is a favourite but it sure is memorable!

I have been following this and obviously this is a one sided video but it has been an interesting view into the world of releases and ports. From my understanding, all consoles ports are being done by the publisher and all updates managed by them as opposed to the PC release? The arguement comes down to whether the developer had version control and veto on builds for consoles or not. If they were supposed to give approval and that is contractual and they did not do so then that is pretty damning on the publisher and incredibly anti consumer. I was close to buying on Switch before this all kicked off as I loved the aesthetic. Might think about PC instead.

It was my least favourite aspect as it felt like a time filler. THe idea is fine in theory and agree it makes combat more impactful but at the same time I found that it discouraged me from random combat encounters. I think it needs a bit of balancing and possibly investment in different weapons etc.

Have to be honest that I was very quick to defend the actor in question because a) I was a long time fan of the series and missed her return and b) there has been a long history of poor treatment of voice acting talent.

In this case, it's important to state I was wrong and a lesson has been learned. I can understand the upset and that PG's didnt give the real reason for her lack of return but the original video was without a doubt looking disingenous and this has probably set back industry pay discussions considerably.

Really was looking forward to it but will probably wait a bit before jumping in. Not trying to bandwagon but this has left a bad taste in my mouth as I loved her performance. It’s a personal choice and I get everyone else’s misgivings or choices to still buy.

@Rambler If memory serves he was award nominated in 1977 but Star Wars opened a lot of doors. Plus Star Wars was literally considered to be an embarrassment for 20th Century Fox and no one thought it would make lots of money. So it wasn’t exactly top tier casting with guaranteed success.

@russell-marlow Yes one is a bigger industry than the other with typically higher profit margins.

@Olliemar28 This is the perfect comment and agree wholeheartedly.

For those interested, James Earl Jones got $7000 dollars for 2 hours work on the 1977 Star Wars.

$4000k pre-tax for the use of her voice in the game in perpetuity is ridiculous.

I am oddly disapointed by this. I really thought the voice work on the first two was something that made a ridiculous character work. Still, such is life

The butt needs more work. Just saying.

I love The Chinese Room and really enjoyed this on Apple Arcade. I will note for all, this is incredibly gameplay light. At most it is some basic puzzles and some timed jumps. It really is a narrative visual novel parading as a platformer. So funny and heartfelt though.

Not sure there will be a buyout but I can see more alignment. I'd argue that Nintendo aligns well with Platinum in terms of fanbase and the style of a lot of their games.

I played the demo and talked to the amazing solo developer at EGX and I am soooo excited for this game.

Really great article. I think it is something we lament as gamers while doing it. Describing Hyper Light Drifter to a friend who is a souls game fan, I used that as a mechanical description of the way the story and world unfolds. Couldn't think of any other way.

Super Metroid and Hollow Knight. I know both the worlds inside and out and could probably navigate without the help of a map at this point but something about just exploring completely takes my focus away on anything else.

@Dromosus That is a good point and I'd be lying if I didn't say I was worried about being mugged if someone saw it as the scalpers are having a field day with the Steam Deck. Whereas the OLED is largely available at the moment.

I have both an OLED and a Steam Deck and got both close together. At first I thought the OLED was a bit of a wet blanket - I only sold my old Switch and got one as the household got Covid and I wanted to treat myself in bed. However, I was quite wrong. The size of the screen and vibrancy works wonders.

The Steam deck is, oddly, more comfortable and I love playing my Steam Library. However when i went away for a week, it was the Switch that came with me. I feel that the OLED is on the border of what I would consider a portable handheld whereas the Steam Deck is large and loud. I seem to basically have a Switch and Steam game on the go at all times at the moment!

There are some serious mental hoops people are jumping through on these comments.

1) Of course there is interest in the game from the media. Whether good or bad, this was a heavily marketed entry in a dormant franchise. Would it get the same airtime if a smaller release? Probably not. This is reality.

2) The message in the article is largely, MS made a great game however, turns out there are accusations they aren't the best employees in the world. There isn't a witch hunt.

3) What do largely anonymous ex-employees get out of giving their story? They won't get money, they won't get attention and they are probably risking their reputation in a competitive labour market. The game has already released and if Diablo 2 sales are anything to go by, poor conditions mean very little in real world sales.

4) Yes lots of industries have toxic and badly managed workplaces. I've worked in some. Does that make it OK? No, we should show solidarity in demanding better. The, 'I suffer as well so why should anyone get it better than me?' is a great way of ensuring nothing ever changes.

5) This isn't saying you shouldn't buy or enjoy the game. Just read and support the broad intent which is that companies like this should do better. How you action it is up to you.

It's a shame. I was interested but the current offerings are nowhere near enough for the price hike. I was expecting a few pounds more a year. Also, I'm not an AC player but I'd be annoyed if content is locked behind a subscription that I don't need YEARLY. Yet more profiteering.

I don't condone flat out piracy (which this is) though I do believe emulation is the only alternative to play many other games not released or available on current generation systems.

However, the issue that a lot of people make is that people who pirate would have bought a copy of the game. They really wouldn't have. Given the hoops to jump through, this is not going to be a mainstream option. It isn't like film streaming/piracy.

All these are fair points and it is so subjective but personally, I'd say that Fusion from a story perspective is the most difficult to get into. To really understand it somewhat explains what the Metroids were for, Samus' past with the Metroid and the nature of the experiements on them.

I also think the linear nature is possibly the weakest of the 2D series from level design. Still a great game and I love it but personal suggestion would be either Zero Mission or Super Metroid first. In fact, I'd go as far as to recommend Zero Missions, AM2R or Samus Returns, then Super Metroid then Fusion. Still, love debating this stuff!

Huge 2D Metroid fan. I liked Samus Returns, though it had some problems (largely the fact it had to stick to the Metroid 2 structure, and yes the counter became dull after some time). So I am cautiously optimistic. The art style doesn't seem as stylistic as I would have liked but I would need to see more to truly judge.

Seriously don't get the negativity though. Being optimistic about a game isn't fanboyism?

I really liked the vid and it really highlights how much easier it was on previous gens to pick up older games. However, as game collecting has become more popular and copies become rarer (or get inflated prices) AND many publishers are not interested in their legacy archive what other choices are there? For example, when Wii U and 3DS store support is fully gone, how do we play some of those titles?

The piracy argument is that every Rom represents a purchase someone would have made, hence robbery. If they aren't available to buy in any official capacity, why wouldn't people emulate?

To me, video game preservation is important. ROMS are the only way to access many many titles. It is as simple as that.

I am doing a second playthrough of Samus Returns now and I personally think the flaws from that game are largely to do with the structure of what the original game had. Repetetive Metroid encounters and a more linear world are kind of what the original GB game was about. However, it feels good to play, and the care and attention to the 3D world showed to me that they cared about what they were doing.

I think if they can take the movement and combat and apply a Super Metroid/Zero Mission world design they are on to a winner.

As a huge Metroid fan, it is day one for me and to be honest, I am looking forward to this more than Prime 4.

Great article and poignant as I have been collecting up 3DS games of late. I think Nintendo software is also a difficult topic for game preservation - the generational innovation with devices mean that with touch, giro, 3d etc, its going to get hard to get these to run as intended on other systems.

@KateGray Late to the party but this line is pure brilliance:

"Either every user reviewer here has unpronounceable consonant sneezes for names..."

Awesome stuff - keep up the good work and glad all the sites are thriving.

Had a Switch since launch and I love the little hybrid. I still love the bigger cousins with the PS5 but it is the perfect console for me to tackle longer games. BOTW, Skyrim and Witcher 3 were just perfect for me. Plus, as an indie machine, I've played some bangers on the console.

I agree the tone of his message needed some work - but at the same time, I can't fault his original point in most ways. This is a case of an employer or boss of some sort sitting down and saying... apologise for this.