Comments 7,628

Re: Video: Digital Foundry Dives Into GameCube Emulation For The Switch 2

RupeeClock

@Spider-Kev
Yeah, Nintendo's retro offerings in general are prone to omitting stuff or giving you a barebones experience, or even forcing options like annoyingly dark looking screens. They're always behind on what unofficial solutions provide.
It's absurd that button remapping for N64 games may only be available on the Switch 2 version of the N64 NSO app!

Re: Video: Digital Foundry Dives Into GameCube Emulation For The Switch 2

RupeeClock

@Davina_McCall
Theoretically you should be able to unpack a GameCube disk image and run improved compression on the individual files and file structure. This does more than simply trimming the empty data from the ISO.
Dolphin Emulator already has its own specialised compression format for GameCube and Wii disc images. Nintendo should have their own solution for this.

Re: Video: Digital Foundry Dives Into GameCube Emulation For The Switch 2

RupeeClock

I'll be keen to see how accurate the GameCube emulation is on Switch 2.
Historically, innucuous things like the heat wave effects in the first volcanic dungeon of Wind Waker haven't been rendered correctly in early versions of Dolphin emulator, and there have been bugs with calculating how much goop has been cleaned up in certain missions for Super Mario Sunshine.

They also need to address the GBA connectivity for Wind Waker's Tingle Tuner specifically, I hope they have a creative solution for that, like software features through the Nintendo Switch app?

Re: UK Charts: Switch 2 Anticipation Creates A Quiet Week For Nintendo

RupeeClock

@roy130390
This is actually pretty typical for big JRPGs, they have a strong launch and then dip when most of the audience have already got their copy.

In any case, first party Nintendo is going to be slow for the next two months, with people saving up cash for the new system, and a lack of new first party releases.

Re: Where To Pre-Order Nintendo Switch 2

RupeeClock

@Stwert
Since the system has a reasonably generous 256GB internal storage, I'll weather not adding a microSD express for a little while to see how it goes.
Whilst it won't be enough to hold my digital library of games and updates for my physical library, there's only so much I can play at a time you know.

Re: Community: What Questions About Switch 2 Do You Still Have For Nintendo?

RupeeClock

I'd like to know what resolution is used for Switch 1 games in handheld mode.
Switch 1 handheld mode expects to render to 720p, but it's a 1080p screen so there's a risk of Switch 1 handheld games looking fuzzy.
There could potentially be an override that Switch 1 handheld runs with docked resolution, but without the program changes like in Pokémon Let's Go Pikachu/Eevee where it changes the control scheme accordingly.

Re: Nintendo's Bowser Comments On AI And Its Uses

RupeeClock

There are meaningful, ethical uses of AI, but the term is so broad and ambiguous that people are quick to assume it's slop generated through models trained on stolen data.
The machine learning process by itself can be trained on internal data and used to deliver powerful insights and transformations, as a form of computation that does not replace human creativity or ingenuity, but the implementation or utilisation itself can be creative. Think of it as the difference between using a digital calculator or doing calculations by pen and paper or in your head.

I just hope that with Nintendo, it's the latter and not the former. We aren't privy to their development processes after all.

Re: UK Switch 2 Fans, Don't Bother Going To GAME Stores For Your Pre-Order

RupeeClock

@Kidfunkadelic83
Yes, for my Argos order they have already charged £433.94 (£429.99 Mario Kart World bundle + £3.95 shipping) to my bank account as a pending transaction.
I used debit card, I didn't check if they offer other payment options though.

If you're planning on making an Argos order I'd hurry, the bundle is already sold out, but they're still taking orders for the standalone system.
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/7550333

Re: Hori's Switch 2 Piranha Plant Camera Has Much Worse Resolution Than Nintendo's

RupeeClock

Considering the 420p camera is only needed to display your visage in a small window or such for the chat features, or Mario Party's camera stuff, it'll probably be fine if not looking a bit fuzzier?

One of the nice things about the Pirahna Plant camera is that it can be inserted directly into the Switch 2's top USB-C port, which is an option that Nintendo's first party camera lacks.
That means that the pipe stand is technically just a USB-C extension.

Re: Amazon UK's Switch 2 Pre-Orders Won't Be Invite-Only For Long

RupeeClock

I also just ordered through Argos thanks to the comments in the pre-order guide article. Hopefully it won't get cancelled as the payment was up-front.
However, if you want to buy accessories like the Pro Controller or a Carry Case, you can get those on the My Nintendo Store UK without needing an invite.

Re: Where To Pre-Order Nintendo Switch 2

RupeeClock

@nocdaes
Thank you, I just placed my order with Argos!
I ordered the Pro Controller and Carry Case with screen protector accessories from the My Nintendo UK Store, since they're not behind the invite system (though the GameCube controller is).

Re: The Switch 2 Will Emulate Switch Games, Because It Shares No Internal Hardware With Its Predecessor

RupeeClock

@Ploppy
Original PS3's backwards compatibility was by virtue of actually sticking the necessary PS2 hardware inside there, and not because the PS3 was leveraging any of it for PS3 software.

The 3DS being able to natively play DS games, and also GBA games, was because the 3DS re-used the ARM processors present in the DS and GBA.
https://www.copetti.org/writings/consoles/nintendo-3ds/
The 3DS main processor for playing games was ARM11, whilst ARM9 was used for the operating system and DS/DSi games, and ARM7 was used as the co-processor for those DS/DSi games, but also for GBA games.

Re: The Switch 2 Will Emulate Switch Games, Because It Shares No Internal Hardware With Its Predecessor

RupeeClock

I believe what we're seeing here is not a conventional emulator, but a translation layer where both the Switch and Switch 2 (likely) use ARM processors, and there the instruction sets are so broadly compatible that you can comfortably map them.
It's a big part of why Switch emulation with Yuzu ran so well on Android devices (and ironically, modded Switch systems running ARM Linux).

I'm also really glad their internal testing is identifying straggling compatibility issues that they're working on fixing. They're thorough enough that even something obscure and "shovelwarey" like "OMG Police - Car Chase Simulator TV" was tested.

Re: First Impressions: Nintendo Switch 2 'Wows' Most When You Go Back To Your Old Switch

RupeeClock

Primarily for me, the Switch 2 is shaping up to do the most important thing; deliver on performance.
That was always the sticking point for me on Switch, too many games struggling to reach full resolution, full frame rate (30 or 60), or both. The performance is looking to be uncompromising at long last, though with the caveats of Switch 1 games needing updates, some of which being premium, if you want to enjoy them.

What might be lacking a wow factor, will instead of a sense of relief and satisfaction to leave the poor performance behind.

Re: Where To Pre-Order Nintendo Switch 2

RupeeClock

It's pretty absurd that it's come to this, that they have to prioritise the customers with the highest engagement.
My NSO membership has been 4 years, 5 months, 6 days so far, but I've had periods of time where it lapsed because I wasn't using it, including in the past two years, so I'm worried that this might disqualify me from the first round of pre-orders.
I'll see how it rolls, I really want the Switch 2 with Mario Kart World, the Pro controller, and the GameCube controller.

Re: Octopath Traveler I + II Physical Switch Bundle Announced

RupeeClock

Saw that my earlier post got removed as "posting adverts", my bad it was inadvertant.

In any case, I wanted to share that VGP did have stock which is where I secured my copy, but they've already sold out.
Play-Asia's first round of stock sold through quickly and they weren't able to fulfil my order due to a shortage, but it looks like they'll have a second round.

The other part was just an explanation of how Square Enix like to do these fully on-cart releases in Asia regions for places like Singapore where downloads may not be a guarantee. They don't do it often because it can require 32GB Switch game cards, which are expensive to manufacture, hence why international bundle releases usually have the additional titles as mandatory downloads.

Re: Nintendo Download: 27th March (North America)

RupeeClock

Tried the Bubble Ghost Remake demo, but didn't particularly like it.
Pre-ordered a physical for Kemono Heroes since that one looked nice. Same for the Croc remaster, that'll arrive sometime next month I think?
Backed Which Way Up: Galaxy Games on their Kickstarter, but the campaign was unsuccessful and it didn't get funded. I'm glad they still managed to get their game launched though.