@Picola-Wicola Oh you’re welcome! I doubt you’d regret the purchase, other than potentially adding another must-play game to your pile. 😅
I think it’d be the perfect palette-cleanser after Requiem. I broke off of Requiem just because I had to play Minishoot right away, so I’ll need a different mental-health game afterwards. If I can make it through Requiem! The game terrified me, and I barely started the hospital.
@Picola-Wicola I’m sorry! I meant to get back to you with my impressions on Minishoot’ Adventures!
I’m not even a quarter of the way into the game, but can I just be brief and say it’s wonderful? Just a modest yet marvelous marriage of twin-stick bullet hell ballet shooting with top-down Zelda-like exploration & dungeons. You zoom around and snipe at the many random baddies while avoiding their shot patterns and scooping up crystals which you exchange for incremental power-ups for your chirpy little ship. You’ll gradually get more power, range, speed, and shot multipliers as you gain important new abilities via dungeon rewards, and open up the overworld. The gameplay loop is so very satisfying!
The art is cheerful and intentionally uncomplicated, like cartoony versions of the ships and enemies we encountered in the early arcade era. Except now you have the freedom to scroll and shoot in any direction! It runs very smoothly on S2 (probably 60fps?) and I’ve been struck by some quite atmospheric music, too. My one nitpick would be some noticeable load times as you enter caves and dungeons - it’s really just a few seconds, but I felt a little impatient wanting to get back to the sweet flow of the game.
I can’t wait to get back to it, really, and would be much deeper into the game by now had it not been such a busy, tiring week. I’d wholeheartedly recommend it to you!
My high-schooler performs in 4 shows this weekend, so my game consoles will get a bit of a break.
Even so, I’ll still have time to zoom through some more Minishoot’ Adventures, perhaps my favorite shadow-drop EVER. It’s been at least a year since I first heard NVZ and Bally rave about Minishoot on their This Nintendo Life podcast, so I was itching to play it. The wait was well worth it!
I'll also take a few laps in Rave Racer and try to pull off the glitch that nearly doubles your car’s speed.
Had I more time, I’d probably plunk my Area 88 cartridge into my yellowed old SNES that I rescued from storage and hooked up this week. I’m amazed something I bought in my teenage years still works!
Wishing Pokopians and all other NLifers a peaceful and fun weekend! 🕹️👾
I am so ready for this game, since about 1984!! And that theme song seems like it stepped straight out of the 80s Transformers movie! WOW!
I will be doing my utmost to be patient and not double-dip on this, so please announce that physical soon! Fortunately, I've got my copy of Marvel Cosmic Invasion coming next week, and I still have to go back and give Absolum some proper play time. Meanwhile, that new Rotwood game looks decent, too.
Friends, we are living in scrolling brawler paradise lately!
@CRASH64 I think the He-Man IP is in good hands with this dev, Bitmap Bureau. They released a quality beat 'em up called "Final Vendetta" a few years ago, and I love some of their other games, too - namely, Terminator 2D: NO FATE and Xeno Crisis. This He-Man game will be under the microscope, though, just because the IP is so beloved and nostalgic, and so tailor-made for a beat 'em up! I am hoping they deliver BATTLE CAT and not CRINGER!
I thought that was quite the densely-packed Direct! I already bought MiniShoot (hope to play more of it tonight), and Rotwood will be a must-play for me, too.
@Picola-Wicola You’re not alone! Deadzone Rogue caught my eye, too. I can’t justify buying now, right after picking up MiniShoot and so soon after bringing home the RE Generations Pack, but I’ll watchlist it for sure, for a rainy day. I hope you have fun with it! I’d be interested in hearing your impressions of it. 😁
Funny you ask, because I discovered a couple weeks ago that my long-idle baby blue DS Lite couldn’t charge up or operate at all!
I ordered a replacement battery for it and now all is well.
I'm happy to hear Pokopia turned out better than the rather creepy vibe it gave me initially! But my gaming cup runneth over right now and there is no way I'd consider picking up this game key card. How sad that they couldn't give it proper physical release with a playable build of the game on the cartridge! Also, stacking this one month prior to Tomodachi Life, another builder game, seems odd to say the least!
I’ve been doing laps on & off all weekend - just pure arcade racing fun! When you think back to the Atari, NES, and Genesis/SNES days and how playing arcade-perfect games at home was just a dream, it really feels like we’ve come a long way!
I imagine I’ll dip in and out of this game a lot as time goes by, much like Outrun and Virtual Racer.
I think I remember hearing that the local splitscreen mode was exclusive to the “Arcade Archives 2” version of the game, and not available in the plain “Arcade Archives” version. That feature makes the extra $2 investment well worth it, I’d say.
I’d like to ask @AlexOlney or anyone who’s played the eShop version of Star Trek Voyager: Across the Unknown if the text size has been improved?
Text in the demo was too small on my 50in TV for me to read from the couch, and even with readers on I don’t know if I could squint hard enough to read it in handheld!
I was hoping the devs would address that in the full release. Especially since their audience is going to be an older demographic!
@DennyCrane KUNG FU! Such a classic. It was a really fun, quality port of Irem’s arcade game. Thank you for reminding me I need to add that to my NES “must get” list!
I picked up my RE Generations Pack yesterday, but no way am I playing those games with my kids around. When the coast is clear, though, I’ll try out either Requiem or maybe 7, since Ollie spoke so highly of it. While that downloads for 3 hours or whatever, I’ll do a few laps in Rave Racer and continue on in UFO 50 while wishing Capcom gave us real, big-boy cartridges for their flagship horror franchise.
Or I may just crank up my NES - I came close to beating Jackal solo last weekend so I may give that another shot.
Whatever I play, I’m happy, as we’re not facing another snowstorm this weekend! 🥳
Wishing everybody fun times and good games this weekend and always! 🕹️💕👾
Were I to choose, it’d be Pombon for sure! Winds & Waves seems so Okinawa-inspired to me, and Pombon has got to be a pokefied version of Okinawa’s shisa lion dog guardians.
Excellent! Like a Marvel version of the Cowabunga Collection! I’m surprised to see Cap & The Avengers (Data East) collected with X-Men Arcade (Konami). Does Konami own Data East IP now?
Either way, I loved some of these games (even Silver Surfer had its charm back then) and I’ll preorder this physical without hesitation.
I enjoyed pogo'ing around a bit in NES Ducktales long ago, and always wanted to own a copy of the game. Bring on the Capcom Disney goodness! This collection is long overdue on Switch, and I'm really looking forward to picking it up physically.
Sounds excellent! This, 7 and Village in the Generations Pack will be my first Biohazard/R.E. games since the original trilogy and 4. Although my pre-purchase hype is deflated a bit, as these are all game key releases. Like, I don't even care that any potential Mercenaries mode would be DLC, because basically the whole game is DLC.
Capcom, why do you hate physical media so much??
I haven’t played any RE games after 4, though I’d heard that they really returned to form these last few entries. With that in mind, I preordered the Generation Pack and it sounds like it’ll be worthwhile! 7 sounds suitably creepy l, and as a native Rhode Islander, I’m positively intrigued by Auntie Rhody!
I do hate that the games are all game key nonsense but considering Capcom’s track record I knew we’d never get these on proper carts. At least they’re not code in a box!
No, I was a working adult when the first Pokémon games came out and I’m nostalgic for older games. My younger daughter enjoys the newer Poké titles though. I’m content to just watch her play and I’ll occasionally help when asked.
I think it was Feb of ‘87 when I took a chance (based on the weird TV commercials I’d recently seen) and used some spending money during a family trip to buy this unknown NES game with the gold cartridge. After getting home and slotting it into my Nintendo, the game was amazing! It imprinted hard on my early teen brain and really opened my eyes to the potential of home video games. I was burning bushes and dropping bombs on every flat surface, looking for secrets - the original Zelda must be my most-played NES game.
Happy 40th to a true masterpiece and progenitor of one of gaming’s greatest legacies! 💕🎂🎉
More big snow on the way Sunday night (I am so done with this winter) so I'll be distracted somewhat, but I’ll play a little more Tennis Fever and no doubt a few more puzzles in Sega Picross.
I should probably add that last weekend I thrifted and found a retro rattan TV stand upon which to put my retro CRT TV and retro top-loader NES to play some retro NES games. Yes, I’ve decided to try and rebuild some of my long-lost 8- and 16-bit collection from the 80s/90s, starting with the ‘ol Nintendo. I’m planning to play some Jackal this weekend, that old “desert rat” style, top-down jeep shooter from Konami. It’s a nostalgia trip plugging in that big chunky cartridge and hearing that box TV hum. Just change it to channel 3 and away we go!
Wishing all NL friends a fun weekend with your favorite pursuits! 🕹️👾🛻
Bimmy?! I thought he was just an urban arcade myth! 😮
Who’s next, Shen Long??
But what a great update to an already stacked little game! You’ve really got to hand it to this dev team, they’ve built one of the most fun beat ‘em ups of the Switch gen and they’ve been super generous with the content. Excellent job!
Well, that should make the Poké fans happy! Although it’s a bummer Nintendo very intentionally omitted physical releases (code in a box doesn’t count). I suppose that means we’ll actually get that big physical Gen 10 game announcement next week, and Nintendo doesn’t want to cannibalize it.
The fact that it’s BlazBlue but NOT a vs. fighting game actually piqued my interest. I might consider a physical pickup sometime! Though I’d probably have to wear my best readers to see the tiny sprites and text on the screen! Is that what Tom’s “Not for boomers” comment meant??
I’d like to think the dialogue and story are hokey on purpose, like the original Biohazard games were in Japan. Multiplayer control of a single character sounds like a bad time, though, unless you’re teaming up with close friends or family.
Either way, I do hope it hangs on and gains a following over time. Unloved games make me sad. 😢
I’m happy to see Stern and other makers still producing pinball machines these days! I played modern Godzilla and Rush pins lately, and what a joy it was! I certainly wouldn’t be averse to my local pinball emporium acquiring one of these Pokémon pins.
Respite from the snow these past few days, yippee! So while it melts this weekend, I’ll see if I catch that Mario Tennis Fever and maybe just play the adventure/tutorial mode for a while. And I’m sure I’ll finish off the last of the standard Picross puzzles in Sega Picross. I don’t know if I’ll find the mega-picross and color-picross puzzles as satisfying. We’ll see! I’ve got Namco Picross on deck, anyway. 😁
But really my main pursuit this weekend is finding a cheap, used stand for my boxy old CRT TV. I dug it out of the basement and bought myself a top-loader NES because the retro bug hit me hard lately. I’ve realized that, wait as long as I like, some games I loved as a kid are just never coming to modern consoles. So I’ll just play them the old-fashioned way, seated way too close to my old 19” tube tv. At least, I will if I can find a decent tv stand!
What can I say, I’ve watched too much Retro Bird on youtube lately. 😅
Wishing everyone a warm weekend, with the people (and games) you love! 🕹️💕👾
Next year or whenever, if I ever have the urge to play these, I imagine these “physical” versions will be discounted sufficiently for me to consider a purchase. They’ll have to be cheap! Plus maybe by then we’ll know what game is actually on the Switch cart (rather than Konami’s nothing-answer above).
What dark sacrifice was made to wake Konami up this way?? A new Castlevania game, and 2 great retro collections (Bomberman & Goemon) announced in less than 2 weeks. It’s like they care about their IP again!
Game key card is going to push this into "wait for a sale someday" territory for me. There's far too much else on which to spend my limited fun-money these days.
@Picola-Wicola Jumping back in is rather overwhelming! As in, when I checked out the upgraded S2 version briefly last summer, it dumped me in a space station and it had been so long since I played, I couldn't even remember how to refuel my ship and navigate home! Or did I use a warp portal to get there? I just didn't remember. So I'll have to re-learn all the basics of the game, let alone start to familiarize myself with the new content.
(This reminds me that I guess it did load my old save data, or else it wouldn't have started me on a random space station! I'll have to edit my earlier post.)
Still, though, NMS seems so tempting to go back to. Maybe if I get to a good stopping point in Sega Picross. My gaming time and energy just is not what it used to be!
All these updates and additions I’ve missed out on, multiplayer is added and it looks gorgeous on S2 — I’ve got to make a concerted effort to get back into this game! I’ll take another stab at resurrecting the save data from my OLED. For some reason, when I booted the game up on my S2 last year it didn’t find my old data.
Well going by PJ's review I won't regret my preorder, even if I would have preferred a meatier single-player campaign mode. I'm glad to hear the game has a decent amount of content at launch, and plenty of unlockables. (Yes, I'm a relic from the distant past and enjoy unlocking extra content while playing my games - it's always felt rewarding to me!)
I should add I find ways to enjoy pretty much any tennis video game I play - from TENNIS on the NES to ACES on the Switch, as long as the core gameplay and mechanics are solid. That sounds like the case here, and all the fever rackets and court shenanigans will be garnish on the main dish. And hopefully make it goofy-looking enough that my kids would want to play doubles with me.
@Don If LRG can pull off a physical release of Jaws, maybe Friday the 13th is possible, too. That’s another NES game I have find memories of playing at a friend’s house. Corny, but fun! I’d buy a re-release of that for sure.
I love the Next Gen era of Trek at least as much as Spock, Jim, and Bones, and I’m going to end up buying this game. Voyager really hooked me back then, and if that main orchestral theme is playing, I’m sure I’ll be motivated enough to finish a run or two!
It seems crazy to me that this will be only my 2nd Trek game, after the old wireframe-style arcade game. I guess because I never really gamed on PCs. Either way, looking forward to this one!
The snow is falling again this weekend - only 3-5 inches or so forecast, but once again my main game today will be Snow Shovel DX. That wretched groundhog must feel pretty smug, having predicted more wintry weather here in the U.S. 🦫 At least it’s a fluffy snow this time.
While inside I’ll probably do a puzzle or two from Sega Picross and play a little more of last week’s Arcade Archives brick-breaker title, Quester. It’s Namco’s 1987 homage of Arkanoid, and it’s quite well done! I bought the S2 version so I could try out mouse mode - I’d say it controls better than an analogue stick, but still not as good as a traditional “paddle” or “spinner” for this type of game. Hori, where are you with that promised arcade multi-controller? We need you!!
Wishing all NL friends a warm weekend with time for your games du jour! 🕹️👾
@GameOtaku Your disappointment is valid! I was a little surprised to see Hamster omit the OG Switch this time because they truly want to reach as wide an audience as possible. It must just be because of their bandwidth. They’re still continuing Arcade Archives every week, and they’re not the biggest company.
@Athropos
I think legally (unless they pay for the right/license) Hamster is prevented from using the original console names (NES, PS1, etc) in any official marketing. Like in yesterday’s livestream, Hamada-san tread carefully when he announced this week’s title as “the 8-bit home video game console title ‘Ninja Gaiden II’. But immediately qualified that by saying informally that it was released originally on “Family Computer.” No mention of “Nintendo,” except alluding to it as “N Co.” during discussions with guests during the show.
I’ve noticed this kind of “platform omission” with Evercade’s releases, too. Like we know the game ROM was the NES version, or the Sega Genesis version, but Blaze/Evercade and now Hamster aren’t licensed to tell us that outright.
@GameOtaku From what I’ve seen so far, Console Archives is announced only for S2 and PS5. It seems a shame to limit their audience like that, but they must have felt it was the best way to allocate their resources.
NL thanks for the tip!! I checked out Hamster’s website last night to learn more about Console Archives (Con-Aka) but didn’t see mention they were doing a weekly “Archiver” livestream for it like they do for Arcade Archives! How awesome!
I’m a Japanese speaker and love to listen to Hamster’s arcade program every Thursday AM, and now I can enjoy their console program on Fridays, too.
Folks I’m telling you, Hamada-san and his team at Hamster are a hard-working crew who love video games, and I expect they’ll bring back some real buried treasures from different consoles over the years. Some of the releases will cater more to the Japanese market, but we’ll get plenty that appeal to the West, too. I haven’t read about the starting game lineup here, because I’d rather hear it direct from Hamada-san in the livestream. Off I go to watch! 😁
It’ll be another little surprise to look forward to each week, and at the very least, a nice option for people who prefer to buy titles rather than subscribe to a service. Maybe Hamster will even put together some physical console game collections eventually. 🤔
I’ve just been a satisfied Ake-Aka shopper for years, and their moving to the console realm is an unexpected delight for me! Now I just need to magically summon more leisure time and money somehow…
Console Archives came out of nowhere and I’d say it’s a pleasant surprise! If Hamster does for obscure console games what they’ve done for old arcade games, this could bode very well. If they collaborate with Nintendo, we could actually have an option to buy some old NES or SNES games.
I’m hoping they bring us some nice niche games and cult favorites that companies haven’t been willing to give to Nintendo for the NSO service.
I'd be fine with a release date and some decent-looking footage for Elden Ring.
But what I really want to see is Minishoot Adventures finally come to Switch. That is totally an Indie World type of game, though.
How about some surprises from Sega, Capcom, or Konami? Its been a while since we heard anything about the Crazy Taxi or Golden Axe reboots (really, just give me collections of those games' classic titles). If Capcom could pull off some licensing magic and bring back their peak beat 'em ups (Cadillacs & Dinosaurs, Aliens vs. Predators, and the D&D games) it would be a retro dream come true. And I'm sure the Silent Hill games would find an audience on S2 (or would they be censored, too??).
I'm taking a swing at it, even though I dislike the $70 price tag. It seems like the game will be content-rich at launch, which I appreciate as a physical-first shopper.
@Nao120 Love your profile pic! It's always nice to see other fans of old anime and mecha shows here. Welcome to the NL community!
Well here’s hoping an uncensored Asian (not Japan) physical release comes out. I’m still hoping there will be some way for adults to play this game without Nintendo’s patronizing. I thought the “kiddy console” days went out along with region locks.
It’s a rare occasion when they got me to preorder game key cards (ugh) for the RE Generation Pack. I haven’t played any of those titles, and we’ll never get big cinematic games like that on conventional cartridges, so I relented. Looking forward to Tennis Fever, too.
I’m probably most hyped for Marvel Cosmic Invasion, and isn’t Rushing Beat coming out in March, too? I love my beat ‘em ups. 🥰
Then IIRC, Japan has R-Type Tactics 1&2 and Taito Milestones 4 coming soon, too, which I’ll have to import.
Comments 3,185
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (7th March)
@Picola-Wicola
Oh you’re welcome! I doubt you’d regret the purchase, other than potentially adding another must-play game to your pile. 😅
I think it’d be the perfect palette-cleanser after Requiem. I broke off of Requiem just because I had to play Minishoot right away, so I’ll need a different mental-health game afterwards. If I can make it through Requiem! The game terrified me, and I barely started the hospital.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (7th March)
@Picola-Wicola
I’m sorry! I meant to get back to you with my impressions on Minishoot’ Adventures!
I’m not even a quarter of the way into the game, but can I just be brief and say it’s wonderful? Just a modest yet marvelous marriage of twin-stick bullet hell ballet shooting with top-down Zelda-like exploration & dungeons. You zoom around and snipe at the many random baddies while avoiding their shot patterns and scooping up crystals which you exchange for incremental power-ups for your chirpy little ship. You’ll gradually get more power, range, speed, and shot multipliers as you gain important new abilities via dungeon rewards, and open up the overworld. The gameplay loop is so very satisfying!
The art is cheerful and intentionally uncomplicated, like cartoony versions of the ships and enemies we encountered in the early arcade era. Except now you have the freedom to scroll and shoot in any direction! It runs very smoothly on S2 (probably 60fps?) and I’ve been struck by some quite atmospheric music, too. My one nitpick would be some noticeable load times as you enter caves and dungeons - it’s really just a few seconds, but I felt a little impatient wanting to get back to the sweet flow of the game.
I can’t wait to get back to it, really, and would be much deeper into the game by now had it not been such a busy, tiring week. I’d wholeheartedly recommend it to you!
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (7th March)
My high-schooler performs in 4 shows this weekend, so my game consoles will get a bit of a break.
Even so, I’ll still have time to zoom through some more Minishoot’ Adventures, perhaps my favorite shadow-drop EVER. It’s been at least a year since I first heard NVZ and Bally rave about Minishoot on their This Nintendo Life podcast, so I was itching to play it. The wait was well worth it!
I'll also take a few laps in Rave Racer and try to pull off the glitch that nearly doubles your car’s speed.
Had I more time, I’d probably plunk my Area 88 cartridge into my yellowed old SNES that I rescued from storage and hooked up this week. I’m amazed something I bought in my teenage years still works!
Wishing Pokopians and all other NLifers a peaceful and fun weekend! 🕹️👾
Re: He-Man's Arcade-Style Retro Brawler Locks In A Release Date For Switch
I am so ready for this game, since about 1984!!
And that theme song seems like it stepped straight out of the 80s Transformers movie! WOW!
I will be doing my utmost to be patient and not double-dip on this, so please announce that physical soon! Fortunately, I've got my copy of Marvel Cosmic Invasion coming next week, and I still have to go back and give Absolum some proper play time. Meanwhile, that new Rotwood game looks decent, too.
Friends, we are living in scrolling brawler paradise lately!
@CRASH64
I think the He-Man IP is in good hands with this dev, Bitmap Bureau. They released a quality beat 'em up called "Final Vendetta" a few years ago, and I love some of their other games, too - namely, Terminator 2D: NO FATE and Xeno Crisis.
This He-Man game will be under the microscope, though, just because the IP is so beloved and nostalgic, and so tailor-made for a beat 'em up!
I am hoping they deliver BATTLE CAT and not CRINGER!
Re: Nintendo Indie World Showcase March 2026: Every Announcement, Game Reveal, Trailer
I thought that was quite the densely-packed Direct! I already bought MiniShoot (hope to play more of it tonight), and Rotwood will be a must-play for me, too.
@Picola-Wicola
You’re not alone! Deadzone Rogue caught my eye, too. I can’t justify buying now, right after picking up MiniShoot and so soon after bringing home the RE Generations Pack, but I’ll watchlist it for sure, for a rainy day. I hope you have fun with it! I’d be interested in hearing your impressions of it. 😁
Re: Poll: 20 Years On, Does Your DS Lite Still Have Charge?
Funny you ask, because I discovered a couple weeks ago that my long-idle baby blue DS Lite couldn’t charge up or operate at all!
I ordered a replacement battery for it and now all is well.
Re: Poll: What Review Score Would You Give Resident Evil Requiem?
I'm only 2hrs into Requiem, but I'd rate it a solid "HORRIFYING."
I haven't played an RE/Biohazard game in decades, and I worry I may not have the intestinal fortitude to get through this game! (@_@;;
Re: Review: Pokémon Pokopia (Switch 2) - One Of The Most Enticing Pokémon Games Ever
I'm happy to hear Pokopia turned out better than the rather creepy vibe it gave me initially! But my gaming cup runneth over right now and there is no way I'd consider picking up this game key card. How sad that they couldn't give it proper physical release with a playable build of the game on the cartridge!
Also, stacking this one month prior to Tomodachi Life, another builder game, seems odd to say the least!
Re: Nintendo Indie World Showcase Announced For Tomorrow, 3rd March 2026
Whoa outta nowhere!!
I am buried in games at the moment, but
GIVE US MINISHOOT ADVENTURES!
Re: Mini Review: Arcade Archives 2 Rave Racer (Switch 2) - The Pure Spirit Of Ridge Racer, Finally On Home Console
I’ve been doing laps on & off all weekend - just pure arcade racing fun! When you think back to the Atari, NES, and Genesis/SNES days and how playing arcade-perfect games at home was just a dream, it really feels like we’ve come a long way!
I imagine I’ll dip in and out of this game a lot as time goes by, much like Outrun and Virtual Racer.
I think I remember hearing that the local splitscreen mode was exclusive to the “Arcade Archives 2” version of the game, and not available in the plain “Arcade Archives” version. That feature makes the extra $2 investment well worth it, I’d say.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (28th February)
I’d like to ask @AlexOlney or anyone who’s played the eShop version of Star Trek Voyager: Across the Unknown if the text size has been improved?
Text in the demo was too small on my 50in TV for me to read from the couch, and even with readers on I don’t know if I could squint hard enough to read it in handheld!
I was hoping the devs would address that in the full release. Especially since their audience is going to be an older demographic!
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (28th February)
@DennyCrane
KUNG FU! Such a classic. It was a really fun, quality port of Irem’s arcade game.
Thank you for reminding me I need to add that to my NES “must get” list!
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (28th February)
I picked up my RE Generations Pack yesterday, but no way am I playing those games with my kids around. When the coast is clear, though, I’ll try out either Requiem or maybe 7, since Ollie spoke so highly of it. While that downloads for 3 hours or whatever, I’ll do a few laps in Rave Racer and continue on in UFO 50 while wishing Capcom gave us real, big-boy cartridges for their flagship horror franchise.
Or I may just crank up my NES - I came close to beating Jackal solo last weekend so I may give that another shot.
Whatever I play, I’m happy, as we’re not facing another snowstorm this weekend! 🥳
Wishing everybody fun times and good games this weekend and always! 🕹️💕👾
Re: Poll: So, Which Starter Will You Choose In Pokémon Winds & Waves?
Were I to choose, it’d be Pombon for sure! Winds & Waves seems so Okinawa-inspired to me, and Pombon has got to be a pokefied version of Okinawa’s shisa lion dog guardians.
Re: Marvel Maximum Collection Revives Six Classic Superhero Titles On Switch
@HammerGalladeBro
You beat me to it!
JUGGERNAUT WILL FLATTEN YOU!! 😆
Re: Marvel Maximum Collection Revives Six Classic Superhero Titles On Switch
Excellent! Like a Marvel version of the Cowabunga Collection! I’m surprised to see Cap & The Avengers (Data East) collected with X-Men Arcade (Konami). Does Konami own Data East IP now?
Either way, I loved some of these games (even Silver Surfer had its charm back then) and I’ll preorder this physical without hesitation.
Re: Review: The Disney Afternoon Collection (Switch 2) - A Delightful Yet Difficult '90s Throwback
I enjoyed pogo'ing around a bit in NES Ducktales long ago, and always wanted to own a copy of the game. Bring on the Capcom Disney goodness! This collection is long overdue on Switch, and I'm really looking forward to picking it up physically.
Re: Review: Resident Evil Requiem (Switch 2) - Action And Horror Combine In A Series Highlight
Sounds excellent! This, 7 and Village in the Generations Pack will be my first Biohazard/R.E. games since the original trilogy and 4. Although my pre-purchase hype is deflated a bit, as these are all game key releases. Like, I don't even care that any potential Mercenaries mode would be DLC, because basically the whole game is DLC.
Capcom, why do you hate physical media so much??
Re: Mini Review: Resident Evil 7: Biohazard Gold Edition (Switch 2) - A Survival Horror Masterclass, Free From Cloud Prison
I haven’t played any RE games after 4, though I’d heard that they really returned to form these last few entries. With that in mind, I preordered the Generation Pack and it sounds like it’ll be worthwhile! 7 sounds suitably creepy l, and as a native Rhode Islander, I’m positively intrigued by Auntie Rhody!
I do hate that the games are all game key nonsense but considering Capcom’s track record I knew we’d never get these on proper carts. At least they’re not code in a box!
Re: Poll: Will You Be Getting Pokémon FireRed Or LeafGreen On Switch?
No, I was a working adult when the first Pokémon games came out and I’m nostalgic for older games. My younger daughter enjoys the newer Poké titles though. I’m content to just watch her play and I’ll occasionally help when asked.
Re: Anniversary: The Legend Of Zelda Turns 40 Today - How Did You First Play It?
I think it was Feb of ‘87 when I took a chance (based on the weird TV commercials I’d recently seen) and used some spending money during a family trip to buy this unknown NES game with the gold cartridge. After getting home and slotting it into my Nintendo, the game was amazing! It imprinted hard on my early teen brain and really opened my eyes to the potential of home video games. I was burning bushes and dropping bombs on every flat surface, looking for secrets - the original Zelda must be my most-played NES game.
Happy 40th to a true masterpiece and progenitor of one of gaming’s greatest legacies! 💕🎂🎉
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (21st February)
More big snow on the way Sunday night (I am so done with this winter) so I'll be distracted somewhat, but I’ll play a little more Tennis Fever and no doubt a few more puzzles in Sega Picross.
I should probably add that last weekend I thrifted and found a retro rattan TV stand upon which to put my retro CRT TV and retro top-loader NES to play some retro NES games. Yes, I’ve decided to try and rebuild some of my long-lost 8- and 16-bit collection from the 80s/90s, starting with the ‘ol Nintendo. I’m planning to play some Jackal this weekend, that old “desert rat” style, top-down jeep shooter from Konami. It’s a nostalgia trip plugging in that big chunky cartridge and hearing that box TV hum. Just change it to channel 3 and away we go!
Wishing all NL friends a fun weekend with your favorite pursuits! 🕹️👾🛻
Re: Double Dragon Gaiden Adds Four New Fighters In Free DLC Switch Update
Bimmy?! I thought he was just an urban arcade myth! 😮
Who’s next, Shen Long??
But what a great update to an already stacked little game! You’ve really got to hand it to this dev team, they’ve built one of the most fun beat ‘em ups of the Switch gen and they’ve been super generous with the content. Excellent job!
Re: Pokémon FireRed And LeafGreen Officially Revealed For Switch
Well, that should make the Poké fans happy! Although it’s a bummer Nintendo very intentionally omitted physical releases (code in a box doesn’t count). I suppose that means we’ll actually get that big physical Gen 10 game announcement next week, and Nintendo doesn’t want to cannibalize it.
Re: Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition Gets Nintendo Switch 2 Upgrade, Out Now
Oh damn, they’re making me buy this game for a 3rd time.
WORTH IT! 🤩
Re: Review: BlazBlue Entropy Effect X (Switch) - A Remarkably Over-Ambitious Roguelike That Goes Deep
The fact that it’s BlazBlue but NOT a vs. fighting game actually piqued my interest. I might consider a physical pickup sometime! Though I’d probably have to wear my best readers to see the tiny sprites and text on the screen! Is that what Tom’s “Not for boomers” comment meant??
Re: Missed Potential Or A Campy Classic? Switch 2 Exclusive 'Tokyo Scramble' Hasn't Been A Hit
I’d like to think the dialogue and story are hokey on purpose, like the original Biohazard games were in Japan. Multiplayer control of a single character sounds like a bad time, though, unless you’re teaming up with close friends or family.
Either way, I do hope it hangs on and gains a following over time. Unloved games make me sad. 😢
Re: Pokémon Pinball Machine Officially Revealed By Stern Pinball, Available Now
I’m happy to see Stern and other makers still producing pinball machines these days! I played modern Godzilla and Rush pins lately, and what a joy it was! I certainly wouldn’t be averse to my local pinball emporium acquiring one of these Pokémon pins.
Gotta flip ‘em all!
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (14th February)
Respite from the snow these past few days, yippee! So while it melts this weekend, I’ll see if I catch that Mario Tennis Fever and maybe just play the adventure/tutorial mode for a while. And I’m sure I’ll finish off the last of the standard Picross puzzles in Sega Picross. I don’t know if I’ll find the mega-picross and color-picross puzzles as satisfying. We’ll see! I’ve got Namco Picross on deck, anyway. 😁
But really my main pursuit this weekend is finding a cheap, used stand for my boxy old CRT TV. I dug it out of the basement and bought myself a top-loader NES because the retro bug hit me hard lately. I’ve realized that, wait as long as I like, some games I loved as a kid are just never coming to modern consoles. So I’ll just play them the old-fashioned way, seated way too close to my old 19” tube tv. At least, I will if I can find a decent tv stand!
What can I say, I’ve watched too much Retro Bird on youtube lately. 😅
Wishing everyone a warm weekend, with the people (and games) you love! 🕹️💕👾
Re: Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 2 Switch And Switch 2 Physical Version Download Requirements Revealed
Next year or whenever, if I ever have the urge to play these, I imagine these “physical” versions will be discounted sufficiently for me to consider a purchase. They’ll have to be cheap!
Plus maybe by then we’ll know what game is actually on the Switch cart (rather than Konami’s nothing-answer above).
Re: Konami's Anniversary Revival Of Castlevania Is Only Just Beginning, Expect More "New Products"
What dark sacrifice was made to wake Konami up this way?? A new Castlevania game, and 2 great retro collections (Bomberman & Goemon) announced in less than 2 weeks. It’s like they care about their IP again!
Re: Castlevania: Belmont's Curse Unveiled For Switch, Launching In 2026
Yowza! Very kinetic and looking good! I’m on board for this. 🤩
Re: Starship Troopers: Ultimate Bug War! Brings A "New Retro FPS" Experience To Switch 2 This March
Game key card is going to push this into "wait for a sale someday" territory for me. There's far too much else on which to spend my limited fun-money these days.
Re: No Man's Sky 'Remnant' Update Adds Gravity Guns, New Vehicles & More
@Picola-Wicola
Jumping back in is rather overwhelming!
As in, when I checked out the upgraded S2 version briefly last summer, it dumped me in a space station and it had been so long since I played, I couldn't even remember how to refuel my ship and navigate home! Or did I use a warp portal to get there? I just didn't remember. So I'll have to re-learn all the basics of the game, let alone start to familiarize myself with the new content.
(This reminds me that I guess it did load my old save data, or else it wouldn't have started me on a random space station! I'll have to edit my earlier post.)
Still, though, NMS seems so tempting to go back to. Maybe if I get to a good stopping point in Sega Picross. My gaming time and energy just is not what it used to be!
Re: No Man's Sky 'Remnant' Update Adds Gravity Guns, New Vehicles & More
All these updates and additions I’ve missed out on, multiplayer is added and it looks gorgeous on S2 — I’ve got to make a concerted effort to get back into this game!
I’ll take another stab at resurrecting the save data from my OLED. For some reason, when I booted the game up on my S2 last year it didn’t find my old data.
Re: Review: Mario Tennis Fever (Switch 2) - Slim For Singles, But An Addictive Core Gives It Online Legs
Well going by PJ's review I won't regret my preorder, even if I would have preferred a meatier single-player campaign mode. I'm glad to hear the game has a decent amount of content at launch, and plenty of unlockables.
(Yes, I'm a relic from the distant past and enjoy unlocking extra content while playing my games - it's always felt rewarding to me!)
I should add I find ways to enjoy pretty much any tennis video game I play - from TENNIS on the NES to ACES on the Switch, as long as the core gameplay and mechanics are solid. That sounds like the case here, and all the fever rackets and court shenanigans will be garnish on the main dish. And hopefully make it goofy-looking enough that my kids would want to play doubles with me.
Re: Limited Run Games Is Bringing NES 'Jaws' To Switch Later This Week
@Don
If LRG can pull off a physical release of Jaws, maybe Friday the 13th is possible, too. That’s another NES game I have find memories of playing at a friend’s house. Corny, but fun! I’d buy a re-release of that for sure.
Re: Feature: "We Were Quite Nervous" - Star Trek: Voyager - Across The Unknown Dev Talks Returning Actors, Music & Fan Feedback
I love the Next Gen era of Trek at least as much as Spock, Jim, and Bones, and I’m going to end up buying this game. Voyager really hooked me back then, and if that main orchestral theme is playing, I’m sure I’ll be motivated enough to finish a run or two!
It seems crazy to me that this will be only my 2nd Trek game, after the old wireframe-style arcade game. I guess because I never really gamed on PCs. Either way, looking forward to this one!
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (7th February)
The snow is falling again this weekend - only 3-5 inches or so forecast, but once again my main game today will be Snow Shovel DX. That wretched groundhog must feel pretty smug, having predicted more wintry weather here in the U.S. 🦫
At least it’s a fluffy snow this time.
While inside I’ll probably do a puzzle or two from Sega Picross and play a little more of last week’s Arcade Archives brick-breaker title, Quester. It’s Namco’s 1987 homage of Arkanoid, and it’s quite well done! I bought the S2 version so I could try out mouse mode - I’d say it controls better than an analogue stick, but still not as good as a traditional “paddle” or “spinner” for this type of game. Hori, where are you with that promised arcade multi-controller? We need you!!
Wishing all NL friends a warm weekend with time for your games du jour! 🕹️👾
Re: Hamster's 'Console Archives' Starting Lineup Revealed, Includes More Than 10 Titles
@GameOtaku
Your disappointment is valid! I was a little surprised to see Hamster omit the OG Switch this time because they truly want to reach as wide an audience as possible. It must just be because of their bandwidth. They’re still continuing Arcade Archives every week, and they’re not the biggest company.
Re: Hamster's 'Console Archives' Starting Lineup Revealed, Includes More Than 10 Titles
@Athropos
I think legally (unless they pay for the right/license) Hamster is prevented from using the original console names (NES, PS1, etc) in any official marketing. Like in yesterday’s livestream, Hamada-san tread carefully when he announced this week’s title as “the 8-bit home video game console title ‘Ninja Gaiden II’. But immediately qualified that by saying informally that it was released originally on “Family Computer.” No mention of “Nintendo,” except alluding to it as “N Co.” during discussions with guests during the show.
I’ve noticed this kind of “platform omission” with Evercade’s releases, too. Like we know the game ROM was the NES version, or the Sega Genesis version, but Blaze/Evercade and now Hamster aren’t licensed to tell us that outright.
Re: Hamster's 'Console Archives' Starting Lineup Revealed, Includes More Than 10 Titles
@GameOtaku
From what I’ve seen so far, Console Archives is announced only for S2 and PS5. It seems a shame to limit their audience like that, but they must have felt it was the best way to allocate their resources.
Re: Hamster's 'Console Archives' Starting Lineup Revealed, Includes More Than 10 Titles
NL thanks for the tip!! I checked out Hamster’s website last night to learn more about Console Archives (Con-Aka) but didn’t see mention they were doing a weekly “Archiver” livestream for it like they do for Arcade Archives! How awesome!
I’m a Japanese speaker and love to listen to Hamster’s arcade program every Thursday AM, and now I can enjoy their console program on Fridays, too.
Folks I’m telling you, Hamada-san and his team at Hamster are a hard-working crew who love video games, and I expect they’ll bring back some real buried treasures from different consoles over the years. Some of the releases will cater more to the Japanese market, but we’ll get plenty that appeal to the West, too. I haven’t read about the starting game lineup here, because I’d rather hear it direct from Hamada-san in the livestream. Off I go to watch! 😁
It’ll be another little surprise to look forward to each week, and at the very least, a nice option for people who prefer to buy titles rather than subscribe to a service. Maybe Hamster will even put together some physical console game collections eventually. 🤔
I’ve just been a satisfied Ake-Aka shopper for years, and their moving to the console realm is an unexpected delight for me! Now I just need to magically summon more leisure time and money somehow…
Re: Hamster's 'Console Archives' Is The Closest We'll Get To Virtual Console In 2026
Console Archives came out of nowhere and I’d say it’s a pleasant surprise! If Hamster does for obscure console games what they’ve done for old arcade games, this could bode very well.
If they collaborate with Nintendo, we could actually have an option to buy some old NES or SNES games.
I’m hoping they bring us some nice niche games and cult favorites that companies haven’t been willing to give to Nintendo for the NSO service.
Re: Oblivion, Skyrim And Fallout Switch 2 Physicals Will All Be Code-In-A-Box, Bethesda Confirms
Bethesda you cheapskates. Can’t even release on game key cards?? Sheesh.
On the flip side, the Indiana Jones game on cart is a pleasant surprise!
Re: Talking Point: Nintendo Direct February Partner Predictions - What Do You Want To See?
I'd be fine with a release date and some decent-looking footage for Elden Ring.
But what I really want to see is Minishoot Adventures finally come to Switch. That is totally an Indie World type of game, though.
How about some surprises from Sega, Capcom, or Konami? Its been a while since we heard anything about the Crazy Taxi or Golden Axe reboots (really, just give me collections of those games' classic titles). If Capcom could pull off some licensing magic and bring back their peak beat 'em ups (Cadillacs & Dinosaurs, Aliens vs. Predators, and the D&D games) it would be a retro dream come true. And I'm sure the Silent Hill games would find an audience on S2 (or would they be censored, too??).
Re: Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase Announced For Tomorrow, 5th February 2026
I was just about to give up on any Direct for this week! I’ll be tuning in for sure, but will have to wait till lunch time.
But wow, Nate the Hate has some rock-solid sources. How much longer can they avoid the Nintendo bounty hunters??
Re: Round Up: The Final Previews Are In For Mario Tennis Fever
I'm taking a swing at it, even though I dislike the $70 price tag. It seems like the game will be content-rich at launch, which I appreciate as a physical-first shopper.
@Nao120
Love your profile pic! It's always nice to see other fans of old anime and mecha shows here. Welcome to the NL community!
Re: Dispatch Uncensored Physical Switch Release Apparently Not Possible
Well here’s hoping an uncensored Asian (not Japan) physical release comes out. I’m still hoping there will be some way for adults to play this game without Nintendo’s patronizing. I thought the “kiddy console” days went out along with region locks.
Re: Upcoming Nintendo Switch 2 Games & Accessories For February & March 2026
It’s a rare occasion when they got me to preorder game key cards (ugh) for the RE Generation Pack. I haven’t played any of those titles, and we’ll never get big cinematic games like that on conventional cartridges, so I relented.
Looking forward to Tennis Fever, too.
I’m probably most hyped for Marvel Cosmic Invasion, and isn’t Rushing Beat coming out in March, too? I love my beat ‘em ups. 🥰
Then IIRC, Japan has R-Type Tactics 1&2 and Taito Milestones 4 coming soon, too, which I’ll have to import.