Comments 286

Re: Sonic Movie Director Promises To Change Controversial Design

TrixieSparkle

I am firmly of the opinion that the only reason the current abomination came to be had nothing to do with creative direction or artistic vision, and everything to do with Hollywood wanting to be as lazy and cheap as possible in production, animating him with motion capture that required no tweaking or editing whatsoever. It makes the "normal human proportions painted blue" allllll make sense.

I wonder what the revision will look like.

Re: Near-Identical Fake Switch Pro Controllers Are Now On The Market

TrixieSparkle

I knowingly and deliberately bought unofficial look-alike Wii U Pro controllers at one point, and they were of equal quality to the official product with the exception of the battery life, at a fraction of the price. I recommended the seller to others, who were also happy with what they received.

I'd be interested to know if these unofficial Switch ones have all the features, such as gyroscopes. If they do everything they should, perform well, and are the right price, I'd be interested.

Re: Poll: Is Your Nintendo Switch Cracking Under The Pressure?

TrixieSparkle

I assume this issue is a combination of heat and the pressure of sandwiching from the official Switch dock.

Fortunately I have been unaffected, but I also invested in one of these unofficial dock shells quite some time ago, which does a good job of reducing physical strain and increases ventilation while docked compared to the official shell:

www.amazon.com/TOP-Portable-Replacement-Nintendo-Switch/dp/B072V9ZBSK/

Re: Poll: As "Gaming Disorder" Becomes A Thing, Is It Time To Assess How Much You Play?

TrixieSparkle

There are definitely games designed to be addictive, most of them falling into the "mobile game" and "online multiplayer" categories. Where the game is designed to have people compulsively check progress every several hours, or play a certain number of winning matches every day to maximize free-to-play benefits. Eventually that behavior becomes a habit if left unchecked, and that's when the problems start. And with no story elements or end-goals, they're endless time sinks where you never get the satisfaction of being "done".

It's why I make it a general rule to avoid mobile games, and quit a game cold turkey if I go into one of those forbidden pools and notice I'm playing it more than necessary. If I pull my sister in with me, I always let her know if I was playing too much so she can evaluate her own behavior as well (and usually comes to the same conclusion).

Re: Talking Point: Nintendo's E3 2018 Went Big On Smash Bros. But Left Us Wanting More

TrixieSparkle

It's not my thing, but Fortnite is kind of a big deal to people who care about online games 'round these parts. So it coming to Switch is great news!

Seeing the first proper looking Mario Party in years is something worth getting excited about. I'd all but given up on that franchise after they added the vehicle.

I'm happy that the The World Ends With You remaster is still on track for 2018.

And as someone who likes Smash, I was pleasantly surprised to see so many characters being added to the roster compared to Sm4sh, with none being left behind. It really looks to be the ultimate entry! And all the overhauled mechanic changes to shielding, dodging, air attacks, and damage calculation is kind of a big deal to anyone who plays even somewhat seriously, even just with friends, not to mention the new UI features for tracking limited moves (both for the player and the opponent).

Re: Zelda: Breath Of The Wild Clears One Million Sold In Japan While BlazBlue: Cross Tag Battle Struggles

TrixieSparkle

@CrimsonMoonMist

I, for one, would have waited on my Cross Tag Battle purchase if I'd realized the characters I was most interested in playing were being with-held as paid DLC (but those characters still appearing in the story campaign as enemies, emphasizing their on-disc DLC nature), or the characters that seemed like obvious inclusions are simply nowhere to be seen (like Taokaka from BlazBlue, although their unusable chibi form is decorating the lobby's item shop, rubbing salt in the wound).

Feeling pretty burned on that purchase right now.

Re: Guide: Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition - All Weapons And How To Unlock Them

TrixieSparkle

@rjejr

There wouldn't be much to make a guide for. From what I've found, with the Switch version, is if you scan a character from the Zelda franchise it gives you a random weapon drop of an unlocked weapon (usually one that can be used by the character scanned). If you scan an amiibo from any other franchise, it usually gives you either some quantity of materials or rupees, but also has a small chance of a random unlocked weapon drop. This makes scanning non-Zelda franchise amiibos far more useful, in my opinion, as getting rupees/materials can potentially save a lot of grinding time. You can scan up to five unique figures per day (I say unique because I can't, for example, scan my Splatoon and Splatoon 2 Squid Girls on the same day, as the game treats them as the same figure).

Re: Weirdness: Gal*Gun 2 Has Wild Guns Reloaded Artwork On The Inside Cover

TrixieSparkle

Amusingly, this isn't the first time a print run of Gal*Gun cases had an error. The first run of copies of Gal*Gun: Double Peace for the Vita mistakenly printed "E for Everyone" as the ESRB rating on the back of the box (there was M for Mature on the front, though). Some of the shipments got delayed to "correct" this by sticking an M sticker over the outside plastic wrap on the back, although it would still have the E after being opened. I got one of those misprints, and got this one as well.

Re: Senran Kagura Reflexions Brings The World Of Japanese Massage To Switch

TrixieSparkle

I'll probably pick this up, but already have it downloaded from the Japan eShop.

One odd thing I've noticed in the eShop is games I've bought on the U.S. market are marked as purchased in the Japan shop menus, and I am unable to buy or download them there. Can there only be one version of a game on the Switch at any given time? Is the only way to get the same game from another region to remove the version which is currently installed? I suppose I can test this first-hand once the game is on the western market, but has anyone else dealt with region juggling different versions of the same game on the Switch that could fill me in?

Re: Third-Party Nintendo Switch Docks Could Be Bricking Consoles

TrixieSparkle

Nintendo needs to put out an official dock that isn't an "open clam" design. Of the few times I've put the official dock in a bag/suitcase with other things, the front has a tendency to warp and bend inwards from pressure, and then I need to go through the process of un-warping it. I started putting rolled up cloth of various sorts in the center to help alleviate the problem when packing, but c'mon. It shouldn't be so much hassle just to take the dock along to show the Switch to other people on the big screen. That's why there's a demand for third party docks in the first place, it's hardly a money issue for most.

Re: You Can Now Leave User Reviews On Nintendo's Official Website

TrixieSparkle

On the 0 star vs. 1 star debate, off the top of my head I can't think of any website review system using a five star scale that lets you use no stars. Usually the act of clicking any star is what initializes the page's logic for "Yes, I am writing a review of this item" in a list of items. In the theoretical situation of allowing no stars, where would you click in that case? (Yes, a drop down list or a radio button list would be one way, but site design tends to lean towards image representations these days.)

Re: Guide: What Is Nintendo Labo? 16 Of Your Questions Answered

TrixieSparkle

I'm mildly intrigued by Nintendo Labo from a tech standpoint, but realistically I don't have the space or desire to store a bunch of large, fragile peripherals that will undoubtedly wear out over time, even with light use, and need replacements.

I do have a seemingly endless supply of cardboard boxes from receiving mail shipments, though. Depending on how practical it is to recycle cardboard already in the home to match the official templates, might still give it a try.

Re: Hyperkin Has Created A Prototype Portable Nintendo 64 Mini

TrixieSparkle

@rjejr
It's actually cheaper to get 16:9 screens rather than 4:3 screens these days for making products, due to mass production. 4:3 is a premium commodity item now. Newer products using 4:3 usually just block off the remainder of the 16:9 screen and render in the middle or something similar, like letting people toggle to the resolution they want to use. Even if the final version adapts 4:3 in some way (if there is a final version or if this is even a planned product), it makes sense for a prototype to be 16:9.

Between you and me, I'm a graphics heretic that routinely and deliberately plays 4:3 games in 16:9 for the extra screen real estate on small screens. Who would much rather play N64 games loaded from an SD card on a slim pocket sized device with a different button layout. I know where you're coming from, just trying to explain why this exists.

Re: Hyperkin Has Created A Prototype Portable Nintendo 64 Mini

TrixieSparkle

@rjejr
3D printing is pretty common for R&D prototype test products. This is even a step above the original prototype for the Wii U gamepad, which was literally just presented as cardboard and paper initially. Not that such information makes the leak any more or less valid.

And while I totally agree with you that more modern controller adaptations are both more practical and portable, these portable console using real cartridge contraptions are usually targeted at people looking for an authentic feel to the original product. In that sense, the "just strap a monitor onto a normal controller of the target system and call it a day" approach makes sense, if it doesn't become top heavy or something as a result.

Re: Video: Nintendo Shows It's A Piece of Cake To Transfer Your Data To A New Switch

TrixieSparkle

Hopefully they'll eventually reach the point where, like all other relevant competing platforms (Xbox, PS3/4, PC), data is tied to a primary system and account holder, and can be easily stored on external non-proprietary memory for simple transfers as well as use on secondary systems, with the ability to switch the primary console without physical access to the original. It seems long overdue at this point.

I know at least one Switch-sharing household eyeing up additional Switches that will be glad for this added transfer feature as-is, though.

Re: Splatoon 2 Designer Explains Why The Maps Rotate And Salmon Run Is Time-Limited

TrixieSparkle

Going entire evenings without a mode being available that I want to play is not fun. It's not just Salmon Run, the ranked mode rotation is fairly random. You'd think it would go "Tower Control, Rainmaker, Splat Zones" or something of a similarly predictable order, but nope. Modes can repeat multiple times before one of the other modes becomes available, and the order is not set.

Splatoon 2 is a fun game, but the unpredictable times and limited modes is baffling.

Re: Nintendo Switch OS Version 3.0.2 Is Now Live

TrixieSparkle

@nhSnork

All PSP models (1000, 2000, 3000, GO) supported the PTF theme files. I just meant free themes were no longer a supported feature on the Vita.

I might as well also note that setting wallpapers was as simple as opening an image and cropping to the desired size, right on the system. It didn't matter where the images came from. The PTF theme files were mostly to change icons.

Re: Nintendo Switch OS Version 3.0.2 Is Now Live

TrixieSparkle

@nhSnork

"Has there ever been a console allowing that unless you CFW it?"

Yes, actually. The original PSP did not need custom firmware to use themes, you could make them yourself and they were readily available all over the place. There were official utilities available to create your custom themes. I believe that was also the first console to allow custom UI's.

I believe, much like how they "normalized" paying to play online for consoles, Microsoft was also the first to charge for avatars/themes, and proved it to be a profitable venture. Thereby causing the other console manufacturers to follow suit.

Re: PQube Is Bringing The Hyperkin SmartBoy To Europe

TrixieSparkle

@Krisi

The ability to use actual Gameboy cartridges with it is more of a fun little novelty feature, but most people interested are probably planning to use it mainly as an all-around controller that has the convenience of attaching to the phone (most Bluetooth phone controllers either don't attach to the phone, or rely on an awkward hinge). Being part of the mobile accessory partnership program, it's pretty much guaranteed to have the inputs recognized by the vast majority of programs available on phones.

Also, according to their website, it can also load GBC and GBA games. So its loading ability is slightly more versatile than just the original Gameboy games.

Re: Poll: Are You Excited About the Super NES Classic Edition?

TrixieSparkle

It's incredibly surprising that Star Fox 2 is seeing the light of day in an official release. From what I've heard, there was a lot of legal trouble surrounding that title after the game was canned and the main development team was dismissed without being paid, and then their code was stripped for assets in other titles. I guess that means they compensated or otherwise made amends with the at least some of the original developers in recent days.

It'll be interesting to see the gameplay differences between the completed, official version and the patched leaked version.

...Although I doubt I'll ever see the SNES Mini on shelves.

Re: Video: Unboxing and Testing the New Nintendo 2DS XL

TrixieSparkle

After losing all my digital saves multiple times from things going wrong during the system transfer processes and getting a 3DS XL with a body color and vinyl skins I'm fully satisfied with, not in any hurry to jump through any more transferring hoops.

They didn't bring much to the table for the New models, and personally no interest in the 2D models as I like the 3D features (for the games that support it, anyway; most newer high-profile releases have ditched that in favor of better graphics and more stable framerates on the aging hardware...).

Re: Feature: Ever Oasis Producer Koichi Ishii On Evolving from Classics Like Secret of Mana

TrixieSparkle

@Kalmaro
I share that sentiment. It's really discouraging to see fun looking, aesthetically appealing games getting gimped by sub-par screen resolution and hardware limitations when there are viable alternatives.

Although that being said, the 3DS is usually what I carry around on a regular basis, since it easily fits into pockets in comparison to the Switch. And two screens still works better for some games.