SuperBro64

The US cover is nice and simple in my opinion. The Japan cover is too overly gaudy and colorful by comparison.

Really enjoyed the remake. The aesthetic changes alone, like the new character talking noises and animations, really made the game feel more alive than the original. Very happy with it.

@LadyCharlie I would argue Donkey Kong 64 is relatively better as a collect-a-thon, because once you unlock all of the playable characters in the first few levels of that game, each level afterward can be fully completed in one go, since they are distinct and unconnected from one another, similar to Banjo-Kazooie.

It's not like in Banjo-Tooie where the multitude of interconnections between all the levels can make completing every objective very confusing.

@LXP8 That's a good question. Didn't really think about that.

I think I'll say that, yes, Four Swords Anniversary Edition was a DSi game, but it was not a completely new game in the series, so I wouldn't count it as a DS game in the same way as Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks.

Similarly, Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury was a Switch game, but not a completely new Mario game like Super Mario Odyssey or Super Mario Bros. Wonder.

That's my take on it.

@Samalik @obijuankanoobie It was rereleased on DSi and 3DS, but I'd still call Four Swords a GBA game, since it first released as part of the GBA port of A Link to the Past.

Phantom Hourglass and Spirit Tracks would be the official DS Zelda games.

Unfortunately, the issue with the limited-time challenges being off by one week for a while has not been fixed, so I'm stuck without one of the spin colors that I was never given any chance to get, all because one of the limited-time challenges from weeks ago incorrectly lasted for 2 weeks instead of 1 for some reason... 😮‍💨

From what I recently learned in a podcast I listened to, the people who made this also made Snipperclips! (https://interactive.libsyn.com/from-nintendos-snipperclips-to-crow-country-with-adam-tom-vian)

I'm legit getting a little tired of these super-generic patch notes. I'd sure like it if Nintendo would be a little more specific.

I mean, just compare this with the patch notes for F-Zero 99: (https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2024/10/f-zero-99-update-version-1-5-0-adds-five-new-tracks-satellaview-content-and-much-more)

Proof that improper translations of a different language can seriously impact the response to it. Not to mention selectively clipping a piece of the dialogue out of context.

@Gamepro500 My pronouns are "he/him", in fact. 😐

F-Zero 99 continues to be my favorite of all of the Battle Royale games on the Switch. It's grown so much since it first premiered a year ago.

Very exciting to see them acknowledge the long-lost BS F-Zero tracks!

Not everyone who engages in emulation just wants to play games for free.

I consider this unfortunate. I used this emulator not to play games for free but to play mods for games I already bought, because I didn't want to hack my Switch.

I wish that more people would understand that just because a video game has more inclusive options for players, it does not mean that the developers have gone "woke" or are "pushing an agenda".

People come in many different types. It should only be fair to let everyone be able to have something they can better relate to when playing games.

Unfortunate, considering the costs of air travel. It seems pretty cool.

As a U.S. resident, I guess the closest I could get would be to visit Super Nintendo World in California some time.

@JohnnyMind Just curious, do you pre-prepare your weekly "What are you playing" comments? They're always impressively comprehensive for being posted so soon after the article drops lol. 😉

In preparation for the release of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, I've been playing Zelda: Spirit Tracks for the first time, since it's a previous game in the series heavily featuring Zelda. Enjoying it so far! I think it's really underrated. The relationship between Link and Zelda in the game is great. 🙂

Also, to enhance my playing experience, I'm playing the game on my phone using the Android DS emulator DraStic, because the emulator has the option to double the standard resolution of the DS. For DS games that heavily use 3D models like Spirit Tracks, the doubled resolution makes the generally highly-pixelated models much nicer to look at.

Below are before-and-after screenshots of the game on my phone, with the top being the standard resolution and the bottom being the doubled resolution. 👍

@FrowardCoast440 If that's true then that's unfortunate. I guess they wouldn't want to acknowledge that in the patch notes. The fact that the notes label it as improving the gameplay experience is also rather frustrating...

As much as we like to joke about Nintendo and stability concerning their software and hardware updates, it is in all honesty a little irritating how vague their patch notes can be.

Can't they be at least a little more specific about what is actually being fixed/changed? 🤔

Based on what I've seen, the world map layout seems to heavily resemble A Link to the Past in some places, but is completely different or extends further out in others.

What about New Hyrule from Spirit Tracks?

Most likely won't be playing this as being a completionist I'd probably go crazy trying to 101% complete it, but cool that it's on Switch now. I've watched videos of people playing it very well and it's mesmerizing.

@abbyhitter I don't know much about it myself but as I understand it there was a very recently released unpopular Sony-published game called "Concord" that was just shut down after like only 2 weeks.

Glad for other people who like it, but I've never been a fan of Hero Modes in the Zelda franchise. Completely removing recovery hearts just doesn't sound like any fun at all to me.

If the cards in a pack are stacked on top of each other, meaning the upper cards are covering the lower cards, how do x-rays help identify which cards are in a pack? Or am I misunderstanding?

@Yoshi3 Thanks for the reply! You raise some great points there about how special it can feel to discover new Heart Pieces. One Piece of Heart I always really enjoy getting is the one in The Wind Waker where you need to bid for it. That auctioning minigame stands out to me as one of the series' most interesting minigames.

For me, while I can't currently speak for Tears of the Kingdom because I haven't gotten around to playing it yet, I enjoyed Breath of the Wild enough that there were some shrine quests I found quite memorable, like the one for surviving as a castaway on Eventide Island, the one for saving the malice-infested dragon Naydra on Mount Lanayru, and the one hidden within the pitch-black Thyphlo Ruins.

And as for the shrines themselves, beyond the simpler ones that had just one quick challenge, there were some that also really stood out to me. I particularly loved the electricity-based puzzles in the shrines around Gerudo Desert, but the best shrine in my view was the one called Trial of Power near Hryule Field's tower. That one wasn't just one simple puzzle but felt like a complete mini-dungeon, with a cohesive theme of knocking open giant doors in various ways. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sk0-0mUpHE) More of the shrines should have been like that.

@Yoshi3 I think I've seen you mention in a previous article that you are glad that Pieces of Heart are back. I'm glad for that too; I've always liked the idea of finding and assembling broken fragments of a Heart Container back into one.

Still, mechanically speaking, finding four shrines in BoTW/ToTK, completing their challenges, and getting four Spirit Orbs/Lights of Blessing to exchange for a Heart Container isn't too different from completing various challenges in other games to get four Pieces of Heart for the same outcome. Basically just four of a different item collect.

I'm curious to know, if you want to explain, what entices you to Pieces of Heart more?

Hopefully that didn't come across as argumentative. I just like discussing about what is also one of my favorite series. =)

If it has a screen, it can run DOOM.

I find the hostility here towards vtubers particularly odd, and that's coming from someone who's only watched a few clips of them here and there.

From what I understand, one reason some people use vtuber models is not for weird parasocial relationships or anything but because they are camera shy and don't want people commenting on their real appearance.

That specific image behind the new logo is NOT Super Mario World, yet it has been used so many times across the Internet to represent the game.

I also agree that the eShop is way too slow, especially when trying to load a new page.

@stevenw45 Yeah, a glitch was discovered in the remake that allows you to duplicate badges if you have a full badge inventory. And unlike what you said about the original, it doesn't corrupt the save data.

I hope they haven't patched out the badge duplication glitch.

@Pastellioli "It still does slightly bother me that I wasn’t able to get a 100% in Tooie like I was able to in Kazooie, but oh well. I think I should just appreciate the fact that I was able to nearly 100% it."

That's a good mindset to have, glad you're able to find contentment there. I know it would not be easy for me to do that myself, being a major completionist.

@Pastellioli I actually quit 100% completion of Banjo-Tooie a long time ago because of that exact same racing challenge. It was pretty frustrating at the time to have to leave the game without beating it.

But just earlier this year, at least like 15 years later, I looked up online a strategy for winning the race, got out my old N64 and the game, and finally won the race to get that last Jiggy and cheat page. It felt really validating lol.

So I definitely feel your pain.

As a a completionist, I like to finish games 100% if it can be done. I also like checklists a lot, so I maintain a list of games I've finished and games I have yet to play. It helps keep me organized.

There are some ROM hacks of Nintendo games I've played out there that I've really enjoyed, like:

• Newer Super Mario Bros. Wii / DS
• Super Mario 64: Star Road
• Zelda: The Missing Link
• Paper Mario TTYD 64

These hacks haven't made me think less of Nintendo's official games. In fact, they've made me appreciate them even more. Hacks just help give a new, fresh look on games I love.

@babyThorman "They haven't even made a new IP character that stands out in....I don't know, have they ever since the original NES?"

They made Splatoon just nine years ago on the Wii U. I'd say that series stands out quite a lot.

@_Figo_ Oh, they did? That's interesting, I guess I assumed that being online was the requirement to actually enter those games.

@MirrorFate2 I've thought the same thing. Them adding the tracks and cars from the BS version would be a really cool way to bring that little-known content back.

Alternatively, I've imagined the F-Zero 99 devs making an entirely new set of tracks and putting them into a new grand prix league. They could call it the Bishop League or something to fit with the chess theme of the other leagues.

@AlexanderDaniels Not sure if offline will ever be an option, unfortunately. The entire game requires an online connection, just like Tetris 99, Pac-Man 99, etc.

I've even previously had a momentary bad internet connection kick me out of the game while I was doing the single-player Practice mode. It's all online.

So glad that they have been continuing to update the game. It's become my favorite of the "99" games on the Switch (Mario 35 included in that).

Currently at Level 96, finally almost at the star levels!

Earlier this year, I bought a modified N64 cartridge containing that really good hack of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, called The Missing Link, billed as an interquel between Ocarina of Time and Majora's Mask.

Doug Bowser simply saying that he "appreciates the visibility", rather than decrying it or some such, is amusing to me.

According to an article on pcgamer.com from last year, Beyond Good & Evil 2 has been reported in some way to still be in development nearly 30 times since it was first announced!

Source: https://www.pcgamer.com/all-the-times-ubisoft-has-said-that-beyond-good-and-evil-2-is-still-in-development/

Super Mario Run is underrated, IMO, ever since I played it for the first time about 2 years ago. Happy to see it still getting updates like this.

Never personally played any Rhythm Heaven games, but only because the music in the series is really good and so I prefer to hear it online played by people who would be much better at it.

This news is pretty unfortunate, in my opinion.

I've always preferred the GBA port of A Link to the Past over the SNES original for the changes it made. I was pretty bummed when they made Four Swords Anniversary Edition on the DSi, added a single player mode to it, and then didn't include A Link to the Past in the package, as well.

I'm just glad I can still listen to video game music on a website called downloads.khinsider.com. I would be pretty upset if that site ever got struck by DMCA claims.

@LikelySatan You're welcome!