Comments 336

Re: Nintendo Website Suggests Multiple Switch Games Will Not Support Cloud Saves

Smigit

@JamesR As far as I'm aware Fortnight at this time is online only without the PVE of PC, so it's always connected to a server. Both Splatoon and Pokemon support offline play which means no server connectivity.

In the case of Splatoon you can also find things in the Single Player campaign that act as buffs for online play by rewarding bonus XP etc.

Re: Yooka-Laylee Physical Editions Sell Out In Minutes, One Last Chance To Pre-Order Later Today

Smigit

@tseliot Nah the games pretty average as a 3D platformer, especially after Mario spoilt us. It has its crowd and a lot of people were probably holding out for a physical copy to try it though. It's playable and all, but very far from great.

3,000 copies for the collectors edition for a system that has shifted 20 million copies in the end of the day is nothing, especially given whats sold out so far is only a portion of those 3,000. The demand probably isn't that high but given the very low stock levels it's going to sell out instantly anyway. Other releases via Limited Run Collectors Editions that had much less media attention sold out very quickly as well so it's largely a function of low stock. Unsure why they don't do larger order sizes, it can still be limited but not piss everyone off by selling out of these editions in a matter of minutes.

Re: Rumour: Cloud Saves Will Be Supported On All Existing Switch Games By Default

Smigit

@BlueOcean You'd just pull the data to the local system the same as if you need to access the data for offline play. There's going to be customers out there that will start off with a subscription then cancel, so the service needs to allow moving between cloud backups to having it disabled gracefully off the bat, let alone leading up to a potential decommission.

Re: Did Team Meat Just Tease A Potential Super Meat Boy amiibo?

Smigit

@Moroboshi876 Personally is like to see more but probably not from Smash. I’m glad the approach seems to be to do a reissue rather than create new ones. I’m sure we’ll see another half dozen characters get added as DLC too which will all generate new Amiibo (or two).

Would like to see some of those other franchise get a look in. Donkey Kong Country especially. Maybe some classic Pokémon ones. I’d probably kill for a Zelda Skull Kid one.

To be honest I think the release pace this year hasn’t been too bad. First half was slow but this six months is pretty dense in terms of releases.

Re: Did Team Meat Just Tease A Potential Super Meat Boy amiibo?

Smigit

@Moroboshi876 Definitely haven't given up on them. Theres 3 new Splatoon ones due this year to go with Callie and Marie from a few weeks back. Theres a new Smash one for all the new characters (8 Amiibo total so far). Theres a triple pack for Shovel Knight for next year.

Along with that theres a restock of EVERY Smash Bros Amiibo occurring (as you mentioned) in Japan at least between Dec and Feb which can be ordered from Amazon Japan right now. I know it differs by region but Australia stores often carry a decent amount of stock and seem to be constantly getting resupplied.

Mario Odyssey's line also occurred in the past calendar year as did the four Zelda Champions. (Edit: Samus Returns 3 were just on a year ago also)

I think its fair to say they aren't issuing Amiibo for every new game. At the same time they didn't on the Wii U either even when Amiibo were more popular. Star Fox Zero and other titles released late in the Wii U life never got dedicated Amiibo and they've also avoided doing any Mario Kart themed ones to date which would be one of the biggest franchises available.

I have 11 on preorder and that will go to 14 once Shovel Knight ones are available for local order. I don't think Nintendo has given up on them so much as the hype around them has died down a bit. Thats to be expected for something that started out late 2015.

I am a bit surprised we havent seen ones for Pokemon Let's Go though.

Re: Nintendo's Japan Twitter Account Clarifies When Switch Online Service Will Begin

Smigit

"For some time now, there's been much confusion about when the Switch online service will be launched. Nintendo originally said it would arrive in September and then narrowed it down to the second half of the month. With September now here, Nintendo's Japanese Twitter account has had to issue a tweet to clarify the service won't launch on the first day of September"

Who was confused? Obviously it wasn't going to be 1st September when they had previously committed to the second half. They haven't told us anything we don't know already (unfortunately).

Re: Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy Finally Gets Knocked Off UK Chart Top Spot After Eight Weeks

Smigit

@Hobbesyall Yeah it's not at the top of my list so far as franchises go. That said, I did really enjoy V myself, far more so than most in the series. Never bothered with the online but.

Just thought the sales figures were interesting. You're right, its insane how often it appears on sales lists and on Xbox at least (where I got it) it's usually not particularly discounted either (even the sales are pretty average).

Re: Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy Finally Gets Knocked Off UK Chart Top Spot After Eight Weeks

Smigit

@Hobbesyall "How the heck does GTA v still sells that much xd"

According to Wikipedia it's sold 95 million copies as of May this year (including re-releases) and created around 6 billion dollars. Thats bonkers considering they likely made back their initial investment after the first few million units. I'm not sure if that includes in app purchases or if that would be in addition to.

One has to wonder what the impact GTA V Online will have on the design of the next title.

Re: Switch eShop Sales For Blossom Tales Are Twenty Times Higher Than Steam Sales

Smigit

@Einherjar I don't think I saw a single review or piece that mentioned mega textures for Doom 2016. Thats tech people were talking about for Enemy Territory: Quake Wars or Rage and its tech I think many are pretty skeptical of (neither of those titles look especially good thanks to Mega Textures, especially on consoles where memory was limited and HDDs slow). Far more focus went to the fact that Doom 2016 on consoles hit 60fps and was using dynamic resolutions to achieve it I'd say.

Re: French Video Game Retailer Lists Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove Physical Release

Smigit

@Not_Soos something to keep in mind I guess is that they’ve continued to sell copies over those four years (including new platforms), and the DLC they had added would have contributed to those sales. Personally I grabbed it digitally on the 3DS but only played a bit. Since getting a Switch I’ve been holding out for a physical copy as have others so there’s still plenty of money to be made on the release.

If the strategy was a huge financial burden I’d expect them to drop the final dlc or half arse it, but it doesn’t appear they’ve had to.

Re: Guide: The Best Video Game Books Money Can Buy

Smigit

Regarding “Console Wars”, just a fore warning that the book is heavily dramatised and many Amazon reviewers (correctly in my view) were left with the impression that the author has produced something closer to a script to a movie than perhaps a book that sticks strictly to fact. In particular there’s a number of dramatic conversations that are played out that almost certainly didn’t happen in the way it was put to page.

It’s an ok read, but it wasn’t particularly my style. The book also felt like it was trying to paint Sega as good guys and Nintendo as the big baddies (again with the dramatisation) in what was really a more grey scenario, so to that end the book came off as heavily biased.

Might still be worth a read, just keep in mind it feels at times like a novel more so than the non-fiction book one may expect going in.

I do highly recommend Masters of Doom also. Just wish it covered even more of that history...the books quite old at this point. Would have loved for it to go past the Quake 2 engine works more and to get perspective on online only Quake 3 (don’t think it was covered) as well as Epics ascent to the powerhouse in terms of FPS engines and how that relates to John Carmacks disinterest in creating tool sets for third parties.

Probably room for a sequel covering lower points like Quake 4, Quake Wars, Rage and then the resurgence that was Doom 2016. That and the Bethesda acquisition.

Re: Diablo III Producer Explains Why Blizzard Wanted The Game On Switch

Smigit

@Zuljaras It doesn't necessarily prove anything, but the box art I've seen includes all the rating boards classifications, Blizzard logos and a "Ganandorf DLC" badge etc in my region but not the standard white Switch banner that they use if the game has mandatory downloads.

Not to say they can't just swap the art down the line, but hopefully thats not the case.

Re: A Range Of Nindie Games Will Soon Be Offered At Brick-And-Mortar Stores In Europe

Smigit

Id like Celeste, Hollow Knight, Shovel Knight, Golf Story and Stardew Valley.

Unsure if I just want an empty case but. Golf Story has been confirmed to be getting a release on Limited Run Games at the very least so I may wait for that one. The Hollow Knight and Shovel Knight teams have also both hinted at physical releases. I wonder if this is what they meant or if they have something else in the works with an actual cart.

Re: Head Of Abstraction Games Addresses Technical Performance Of The Switch

Smigit

His points are 100% valid. What’s refreshing is it’s not an excuse not to release a title, just a recognition that compromises need to be made and their team are working towards that. I mean even the better ports (Doom and Wolfenstein being notable ones) have compromises to achieve what they do. It’s the simple reality of things.

No different to argue that to achieve their power both the Xbox and PS are much larger and draw more power...compromises in their own right at the other end of the spectrum.

Re: Sumo Digital's Snake Pass Is Receiving A Physical Makeover On Switch

Smigit

Nice to see more physical releases, although I do find the majority of these indie physical releases are coming in at too high a price. I imagine to get this to me here in Australia will cost me 4x what the digital copy frequently goes for which will dampen my appetite for it.

Limited Run games has a similar issue, especially with the added shipping cost.

Also finding I can’t redeem Nintendo points on these releases too (probably due to my region) which adds a bit of a further sting compared to the digital copy.

Re: id Software Evaluating If Rage 2 Would Be Possible On Switch

Smigit

@Dazzle “Also again with just the sequels? Like with wolfenstien if I haven't played the first one it's no buy and if they're not on the same system, no buy.”

Rage came out two years before the current gen consoles and wasn’t ported to them. Wolfenstein may be one thing as it’s quite recent, but I don’t think it’s unrealistic that a relatively lukewarmly received (at best) game from 2011 isn’t ported to the Switch.

If you want the back story read the Wikipedia article. As it is Rage for most was a pretty forgettable experience and the story in particular was never strong or important.

The industry is full of sequels and I think in cases like Rage if people really want to go back, then in some cases playing on PC or an Xbox (maybe a One with backwards compatibility or a cheap 360) makes more sense than companies spending resources porting a game that almost anyone interested in it has had ample of opportunity to play to date. Much rather resources went into new titles or porting the countless games that are more deserving of a port.

Seriously, playing Rage is probably more likely to turn someone off 2 than psyche them up for the new one. Dooms probably a better lead in, narrative aside.

Re: Zelda-Inspired Action Adventure Sikanda Is Making Its Way To The Switch

Smigit

I’ll have a look but doubt I’ll back it. Too many titles slip their date and kickstarters are just as (or more so) susceptible. Half the games I’ve back I was so over hearing about them I never bothered to play, and a good few ended up taking twice as long to deliver and when they did they had a price that was the same as the backers anyway.

So yeah, I’ll look but I’m pretty weary of backing games at this point or really anything with a 12+ month release date.

Re: Minecraft Movie Delayed After Director Leaves Project

Smigit

The problem with half these film tie ins is they get green lit while the games at its peak and by the time the movie hits the films lost a lot of its relevance. Not to say Minecraft is small or irrelevant now days, but culturally speaking I think it was more dominants a couple of years back in broader pop culture.

Angry Birds is probably another good example. Rovio were struggling by the time that film arrived. Had it hit cinemas two years earlier I'm sure people would have been more interested.

Re: Metal Gear Movie Director Shares His Ideas About A Potential Legend Of Zelda Film

Smigit

Silent protagonist in a film? No thanks. Trying to stick too closely to the game is what’s made so many other tie ins completely fail when transitioning to the big screen.

There’s no reason for link to have no voice in a film. In a game we’re plying and controlling Link, he is us. It makes sense then. On a film we have precisely zero control of the character so he should have his own voice and be his own identity. We’re passengers in a cinema, far more so then in a game.

Even in a game if Nintendo ever makes a more text heavy Zelda title, then I could potentially see Link eventually being able to speak. Not a given but I wouldn’t be against it.

Re: Retail Release Of The Banner Saga Trilogy Requires Net Download And microSD Card

Smigit

So why is an SD Card required? If the digital games take up 13GB then they should fit on the internal storage easily, even if an SD Card is recommended.

I can only assume they are listing it as a requirement to save from backlash if someone’s downloaded a bunch of other DLC and can’t fit this game on the system.

On that note I hate this decision when there’s 16 and 32GB cards out there.

Re: Nintendo Says There Are More Updates Coming To Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Smigit

Would love another 8 - 16 courses and for them to double the multiplayer arena count. I can see why some may want to just get MK9 but that’s be a lot more effort and they can presumably do both. That and I don’t have too many issues with the fundamentals of 8 (which I can’t say for Wii) so I’d be happy for them to build off that rather than add a new entry.

Re: Japan Will Get Physical Boxes Of Smash Bros. Ultimate And Pokémon Let's Go With Digital Codes Inside

Smigit

@NEStalgia yeah I’d prefer no checks, just pointing out there is a mechanism there. It’s doable and it doesn’t need to be as invasive as those proposed by the original Xbox One launch.

If they did have some digital + physical scheme, even if they locked it down, I’d even be happy to pay say $10 more for the digital code post sale I reckon. Make it redeemable when the carts in.

You’re right in that other consoles don’t function that way and do support an account to be in multiple systems, but at the same token that applies to digital copies only that you can’t then sell so they’re still somewhat locked to a single user/account. I think publishers would be pretty concerned about a system that allowed a single purchase to be split into two without any major impact on the ability to access or restrictions on resale.

Re: Nintendo UK Is Asking For As Much As £180 To Repair Cracked Switch Consoles

Smigit

@Damo As others have noted is that while 1000 responses seems like a good basis, it doesn't necessarily present an unbiased one. Some issues to consider are those with problems always cry louder than those without, and this is especially true online. Myself and I'm sure many others with no issues glossed over the article and never voted.

Secondly as some others have noted you don't know the cause of the breaks in those 200 cases. Most people will say they take great care of their items but the reality is many treat their property much rougher than others, and some people arguably use things the wrong way. A good example is threads about mobile phone cables breaking and people showing photos that clearly demonstrate that people were yanking the table rather than pulling at the connector, which is cable removal 101. None the less those people will be adamant that the cable is the issue despite the obvious rough treatment. In this case you don't know how many users did or did not treat the switch roughly.

The fact this is a Nintendo heavy crowd also will bias the results for better or worse. You can argue either way, but the user base isn't reflective of the market generally.

It is clear there is an issue, but I would be pretty weary of claiming the issue is a 1/5 type scenario. You'd likely be hearing A LOT more about it if it was a 20% type issue. Thats approaching MS RROD levels.

Re: Japan Will Get Physical Boxes Of Smash Bros. Ultimate And Pokémon Let's Go With Digital Codes Inside

Smigit

@Hikingguy Yeah I'd like a physical copy that could also be treated as a digital copy. The issue in the past has been that theres a much more common second hand market than there is for film so I imagine companies were concerned people would get the digital code and then on sell the physical copy, getting them a huge saving on the cost of the game. Digital copies for films aren't always overly convenient either.

The fact we've seen the past few weeks that Nintendo has add individualised identifiers to all physical copies would however seem to make that viable in that they could invalidate the digital copy if the corresponding physical copy shows up on systems other than those as part of a family Nintendo Online sub. Might annoy people lending games, but presumably you could re-activate the download copy when the user gets the physical copy back and adds it to the console to verify.

I think it'd be a cool concept myself.

On the topic of getting a physical case with a download code. If its the same price I can see the appeal but its worth noting you can already buy empty cases for pretty cheap so if you really must do that and download some high res cover art and make up your own.