Wexter

@Sirko I could see a port. But, I think the issue is they'd need Mistwalker to sign off on it.

My guess is Banjo Tooie and Conker will go to Switch Online. Probably they'll announce Gears and Halo for Switch 2. That is the most likely announcement as Halo Master Chief Collection was rumored forever for Switch 1.

I would be surprised if they announced any Rare 360 games or Sea of Thieves. But, it be a good surprise.

@RupeeClock still a pretty gross display... Really makes you realize how other companies value their talent and actually push through the hard times together if they believe in them...

This is awful and generally mass layoffs have a net negative at studios post firings.

@EarthboundBenjy or this could be a different Pauline? Maybe this takes place before the Country Games... The lore is vast and full of terrors

@arabiansanchez don't listen to the Steam Deck crowed in general. In total it has sold between 4-6 million units within 3 years. Which is perfectly fine numbers for a niche gaming PC. But, in any reality if this was compared to a console, it is more Wii U than Switch... Or even Xbox One.

I like the Steam Deck fine enough, but when you look at the cold numbers... It was not a Switch killer like so many people predicted. It is almost as if general consumers don't want a gaming PC and are perfectly happy with buying consoles.

And this is coming from a PC gamer.

@Cyrax77 it's simple cost to time investment. If you know the game will be a centerpiece of your gaming/family/date nights it's an easy purchase.

Mario Kart 8 has been a part of my gaming rituals with my family for over 10 years now. Of course $80 for Mario Kart World is a no brainer purchase for me.

The $80 price tag I think is harder to swallow for folks for games they know will be a one and done. Which is very fair! But, for those there are always sales and despite what people think Mario Kart goes on sale a LOT so Mario Kart World will too.

@Arawn93 anyone could tell these people the Steam Deck won't ever get mainstream attention for one simple reason... Mainstream consumers generally don't like gaming on a PC. They don't want to fiddle with settings, the possibility of a game just not working or deal with the the thought of viruses.

The thing has sold 4 million units in 3 years... Which is fine! That is great sales for a niche product... But the idea of it ever replacing a Switch to mainstream consumers was a out there idea in the first place.

I also highly doubt the Xbox Rog Ally will do much to change that perception for mainstream consumers either.

EDIT: for context this coming from someone who does most of their gaming on a custom built PC.

@Grumblevolcano I bought up FFVIIRE more as a point illustrator. Square Enix recently admitted having the Final Fantasy VII Re Trilogy and Final Fantasy XVI as console exclusives was a mistake. 3rd parties as canaries in the cole mine sometimes if they are saying exclusives are unprofitable without substantial investment from Console manufacturers then the in-house games must on some level be even more unprofitable especially by Microsoft.

@Arawn93 I think my point was missed. I was just saying is that people acting like the Nintendo bullet is some holy symbol that can keep a game from going multiplatform are fooling themselves.

Wonderful 101, Devil's Third (Online), Fatal Frame 4&5 all have appeared on PC. Yes the context around these releases need to be taken in account. I was more so just saying this could be true... Or it could had been an article written by AI that just told a big old fib... Like AI does.

Though the idea that Sony puts their massive sellers on PC because their games don't sell enough to earn back their budget is a key point here. At some point the same will also be true of Nintendo. Let's use Xenoblade as an example as the franchise despite being a critical darling does only really sell in the 1-3 million unit category. Compared to Zelda, Mario, Pokemon and Animal Crossing that is not a lot.

Odds of us seeing the oddball low selling Nintendo franchise on PC might not happen during the Switch 2, but I think it is closer than some realize.

@Sindayl platform exclusives are dying a slow painful death. In this market where games are so expensive to make it makes almost no sense for these games to not be on PS5, Switch/Switch 2 and PC. Xbox as a brand is dying as ever since the 360 Microsoft has been struggling to remain relevant; outside of buying large publishes like Bethesda, Activision-Blizzard. It makes sense that after the struggle to sell people on the Xbox One and now the Xbox Series S/X they'd start publishing on Sony and Nintendo systems. Even Sony is dipping their toes in on this idea as even PlayStation games are now on PC (development costs are just so damn high).

I mean there is a reason Final Fantasy VII-Re trilogy is coming to Switch 2. I think Nintendo still has some runway to keep their games exclusive this gen just do to their ability to keep budgets lower, but at some point it is likely even the Big-N will publish at least on PC.

@Woodyshoe it is possible they are doing what Sony does and releasing a few "last gen" games on PC. Probably a few outlier franchises like Xenoblade or Fire Emblem. I mean they have allowed Nintendo owned franchises like Wonderful 101 on PC and other consoles before.

However... It was probably an AI mistake as I doubt Nintendo is doing this as Xenoblade X is still fresh in gamers minds.

@VoidofLight fair. I'm hoping for a sequel to Xenoblade X... But I can dream

@amongtheworms yeah it has been in use in game development since the 1980s... Should this really surprise people? It has been a huge part of open world development since at least 2006... Bethesda made huge use of it during the development of Oblivion. This is really a nothing burger of a story. Like of course Monolith Soft made use of it.

This is a no answer is better than a answer. We all understand why game prices are going up... Does not mean we like it or high profile devs should just say "make it happen" as that is an extremely tone deaf.

@super_intaglio yeah, I think a lot of us are in denial of the all digital future. The health of GameStop is directly tied to the health of the physical games market... And the last time I went into GameStop I saw more Funko Pops on the shelves then actual Xbox games. It was actually extremely depressing when I thought about the state of game stores.

Sure Mom and Pop, and independent game stores may never die since retro is so huge... But... What will happen in 20 years when the Switch 2 is as old as the Xbox 360 is now? There is substantial less interest in collecting Xbox 360 games then there have been collecting other retro consoles. Which makes me think how will PS4, PS5, Switch and Switch 2 will look in the used market when their time in the sun has fully set.

It is very depressing when you actually stare at reality in the face.

Looks cool... But doubt it be a serious Switch/Switch 2 competitor considering even the Steam Deck had not gone mainstream and the Xbox brand has not done great since the 360-era. We'll see more competition is always good!

@JohnnyMind agreed. Games (especially 3rd party games from Ubisoft, EA and Activision Xbox) will go on steep sales within 6 months of launch. Just be patient and buy the games when they're within your price range, don't submit to fomo.

This point has been argued to death, but games generally cost more back in the 80s and 90s and game prices remain pretty stagnant in that $50-60 range for a long time. Games on average are more expensive to make, but cost less at market then they did 30-40 years ago. But, just because that is an explanation does not mean we need to like it. Something costing more does not need to be enjoyed or even liked...

I quite like Gears of War 1, a really good horror cover shooter... But, what about Gears 2&3? They were better than Gears 1 and are currently dying on the Xbox 360 on almost completely abandoned servers. That and we just got a remaster of Gears 1 not that long ago on the Xbone and it is already on PC. I don't even care if they come to Switch 2, but give me Gears 2&3 on PC.

This isn't the 80s, 90s or 00s anymore. Due to how popular rereleases are developers are way better at backing up their work which makes future ports far easier than in the past. However the end of physical media actually storing the game is sad. On the positive though the game keycards do allow you to share digital games as if they were the same as the physical ones. Just disappointing that if the servers ever go down the cart is worthless... Grated since you can still download purchases Wii Shop games it probably won't be for a long time.

@JohnnyMind I'm hoping for the best too. Love the work over at P* and would be extremely disappointed if we never get Astral Chain 2, Bayonetta 4 and find out their not working on the Nier Automata follow-up. Hopefully for the sake of the games they still have that special juice.

@JohnnyMind yeah they've been like the development studio for action games since Bayonetta and Madworld back on the 360 and Wii... Not all of their games have been financial hits like Vanquish, W101 and Babylon's Fall... But like they've have a track record of excellence... Hopefully it is not a complete collapse, but it would suck to see more games like Babylon's Fall than Nier Automata in the future.

What is happening over there? P* was one of my favorite developers the past 15 years and now so much talent is leaving... Such a shame...

I mean just get the Expansion Pak for NSO. You're getting N64, GameCube, GBA and Genesis games already and if you're already subbed for that the Switch 2 upgrades are free. Just get it... It's super cheap if you get some buddies on a family plan you're more or less paying $20 a year for all that stuff.

@Max_the_German I mean very rude... But correct. If you're backlog is in an excess of 20+ games... Maybe quibbling about an $80 game should not be your priority atm.

@ryan_nil quite possible. Based on Xenoblade X seems like the Switch 2 features are locked on cart and just need to be unlocked. So it probably works in reverse too... Though the question of the Switch can still make use of the better Switch 2 cart is fascinating.

@Hank_Scorpio Sony's big innovation was popularizing CD and DVDs in consoles. And probably twin-sticks... Outside of that most hardware innovations and online innovations are Nintendo and Microsoft. Sony is just not a big innovator and most innovations are more in media then anything gaming related.

Anyone defending the price is being silly. Just because there is an explanation for the price does not mean as consumers we need to like them. And yes game budgets are insane, does not mean companies should have them in the first place! If it takes 7.5 million in sales to break even maybe don't make that budget in the first place that requires those kinds of numbers.

As for the other weirdos saying they'll never buy these games and Nintendo will never be allowed in their household... Grow up! Games go on sale all the time just wait for the price to go down to one you're willing to pay. Yes even Nintendo games go on sale even if it's $10-20. If you don't want to buy Mario Kart World at $80 wait till it goes on sale for $60 if that is the price you're okay paying. Just be okay waiting as well.

Jeez people need to grow up some days.

@moreDKplz nah you're trippen. That was the European price some Americans thought was the US price. It's 79.99 in the US the same price as most new PS5 games.

As someone who grew up in the 90s and saw stickers on N64 games as high as $100 this does not shock or surprise me that we've crept back up to those prices. Gaming has been stagnant at the $60 range for a bit too long and probably indirectly lead to predatory practices of monetization. However, that does not mean as consumers we need to like the prices either... I know I'll be more selective with my purchases. However Nintendo games being $70 is not a shocker.

As someone who grinded for Achievements on the Xbox 360... I kinda don't care if they ever go to Switch. Like it's neat, but feels like the trend has fallen off a cliff in recent years unless you're a Completionist... But even then like when the online match making servers go offline or just abandoned it becomes impossible to 100% Achievements... So kinda don't care if they ever come back.

@Thomystic nah Integrade is just the PS5/next gen upgrade version. It has the Yuffie DLC that takes place during Remake..

@JohnnyMind I concur! Reprints are good for consumers, collectors, players and the Pokemon Company. The only people it harms are scalpers who caused the problem in the first place.

@The21zonz emulators are not illegal. But, to release on during the life cycle of a console is a little dirty because we all know it will be mainly used for piracy let's not pretend it won't. But, it does not make something illegal.

I will never understand how a studio thinks laying off hundreds of employees will create good products. You just end up creating slop and gamers know when they are getting slop. When an interesting and passionate team creates a well reviewed hit, they toss it into the bin instead of giving it another go. If Ubisoft did that was Assassin's Creed 1 they wouldn't have the cashcow they have now... It just doesn't make sense.

@OorWullie that kind of leap just does not happen anymore. Going from SD to HD was massive for gaming... The leap from each HD console to each other has been minimal. Like yeah, comparing a PS5 game to a PS3 game is pretty huge, but between PS4 to PS5... Ehhhhhh.... I expect the same between Switch to Switch 2, it will be noticeable, but not WOW like it used to be.

@AnnoyingFrenzy I can see games like Baldur's Gate 3 supporting, same with RTS game ports like Age of Empires and Civ6/Civ7. I think it a nice to have feature. It might get used with shooters too depending on how it's implemented.

@Zeebor15 It is pretty common for musicians to not even file paper work to renew their music. It was probably done by this lawyer at some point over the years. I mean the timing is a bit, sus, but it isn't unreasonable for him to be not aware Live and Learn was being used in other not directly Sonic related media like Smash Bros or even on a TV show that aired through 4kids in the West.

@Pigeon You're saying I assume a lot, while you're also assuming a lot. You can work in the industry and not keep track of everything Sega does. This is also not the first time Sega has ended up in hot water over music from their games in the 90s (or even after the 90s in the case of Bentley Jones). He says pretty explicitly it was fans who told him his song was in games/shows he didn't sign-off on. It seems like a pretty reasonable explanation due to the film suddenly popularizing the song into the mainstream. Music copyright is also an extremely wonky area so this being a simple misunderstanding is also quite possible.

I don't want to color the artist with malintent when his explanation is pretty reasonable for people not consuming every game Sonic appears in. He is also apparently not much of a gamer according to fans that met him so it is not that unlikely once that factoid gets added in there.

@Haruki_NLI This, all this. Sega in the 90s was really bad with locking down their music catalog. And considering their collaboration with the likes of Michael Jackson on Sonic 3 they don't even own all the tracks in that game either. They've also collaborated with other notable musicians on other titles they have always been in a bit of a pickle when it comes to Sonic music in particular (Sonic CD I think has a few tracks that are not owned by Sega either).

@Pigeon Not really. Apparently he already gave Paramount permission to use the song and so did Sega. So, it really is a nothing burger there. This seems to be more so who has ownership of the track and considering the wild west that was Sega in the 90s I would not be surprised if this is just fallout of Sega not properly securing their eggs at the time and are now just licensing the song without his permission as it sounds like he owns the rights to it based on what is reported to the article. What it really comes down to is how his contract on the game was written and if it was as "work for hire" or with the explicit condition that Sega owns the music he makes while working on the title. It was very common at the time for game companies to use music not owned by them in their games as main themes such as Ozar Midrashim in Soul Reaver. So, it really comes down to how his contract was written.

As for the timing... probably just case that the song has renewed popularity and thanks to fans reaching out to him he has only now found out about the other games the song was used in without his knowledge.

@glennthefrog Nintendo has been extremely intelligent. While their games are gorgeous they don't seem to break the bank. Even more ambitious games like Xenoblade 3 can be modest successes selling about two million copies and still be profitable. And even when their games do crack into the tens of millions of unit sales Nintendo hits record breaking profits again and again which seems to be funding their more experimental whacky titles.

It is really impressive how their development philosophies don't just protect their profit margins, but also their staffing as Nintendo has been pretty anti-crunch. This is in comparison to other publishers where crunch is common and a few million units sold is a financial disappointment. It really makes you wonder what Nintendo is doing internally that other publishers have not figured out yet.

@fenlix While I'm inclined to agree that Shadow of the Erdtree is excellent... this is such a weird ruling. I get remakes (to an extent) as film also allows those to be Best Picture. But, allowing remasters? That be like if Terminator 2, The Godfather, or The Wizard of Oz got a 4k remaster and now became eligible for best picture. We'd be laughing at the Oscars if they allowed that. I get DLC acts somewhat different than a sequel, but in essence it is still just more of the same game that won last year... same mechanics, same hook, same engine, even the same story just more of it... just such an odd decision especially when games like Dragon Age Origins Awakening, Xenoblade 3 Future Redeemed and many other grade A expansions have been subbed in the past.

EDIT: Also when I say remakes should be allowed, I'm referring mostly to games like Resident Evil 2/4 Remakes, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth etc that completely reimagine the original titles with new combat mechanics, new art-styles, new story elements, new everything for the most part. They hardly count as the original anymore.

@nessisonett she can put on weight and muscle. Look up Linda Hamilton from the 1st Terminator movie then compare her in T2. She put on major mass. Let's give Sophie Turner a chance first to put on size

@HingryHuppo I don't blame you for not knowing about that regarding some board components. I didn't know about it till around 15 years ago when Clan of the Grey Wolf got their hands on an Earthbound Zero prototype cart. Apparently on prototypes they would flash UV light on the carts to delete data off them and to put new data on. Very interesting, but also does raise a concern of what if someone didn't know that and accidentally erased a 30+ year-old beta off a cartridge. I doubt Nintendo would be that careless, but you simply never know what's on some of these prototypes or how flash can interact with them.

Interesting video and worth a watch https://youtu.be/6j8NWSrNTJ4?si=xTwBGUqFFi48V8cp

@HingryHuppo I have not looked over the photos of the prototypes themselves, but if there are exposed boards flash can be very harmful to them. If there are no UV stickers on some of the chipsets it can potentially wipe the carts. So, without looking over the prototype catalogue I can't really comment too much. But, that is one reason why they may just not allow photos is to protect the sensitive components of some of these prototypes which in some cases are probably 40 years-old.

As for the Sistine Chapel I was told explicitly by the both my guide and security that no pictures at all were allowed inside the chapel not just flash (here is a link bellow that states it is no photos at all if you were curious). it was to both to preserve the art and to avoid noise as the chapel is meant for religious contemplation and to enjoy the art. It was just a recent example I had on hand of people not respecting the general rules.

SOURCE: https://www.vaticancitytours.it/blog/are-cameras-allowed-in-the-vatican-city/#:~:text=Sistine%20Chapel&text=The%20real%20reason%20for%20the,companies%20to%20fund%20the%20project.

@NinChocolate You're now playing a semantics game. This is a museum not a "property attraction." You are playing a semantic game. And how can Nintendo "accommodate photographers" in a part of their museum that they don't want pictures taken in, that is an extremely common practice in museums. It is so common in fact that I guarantee you can go to your nearest museum and find a part of the museum they do not want pictures taken in.

Don't try to weasel this one you know exactly what you're doing. To the point your last comment highlighted that fact pretty clearly now that you refuse to use the term museum and are using "property attraction" a term so obscure that the first article on Google is in an insurance article and next one is for magnetism. You can't find a reference for it in both Webster or the Oxford dictionaries.

@SilentBluntman This right here is the reason I think museums should embrace the virtual tour model. I don't think it would be hard (and rather would be very profitable) to strap a few staff members with GoPros and have them tour the museum with a guide for those who cannot physically go.

@NinChocolate No, still not how that works. This is a museum not an "attraction." If we want to treat games as a form of art we need to play by the same rules any other museum would. That includes some sections will require you to not take pictures and be respectful of the pieces. People unplugging controllers and checking for "emulators" is not "shareable as stories by people who buy into them" or taking pictures of sensitive prototypes when told not to, to content chase is also not "shareable stories." It is just disrespectful. That would be like going to an art museum and randomly touch paintings because you want to feel if it was painted on real canvas.

Notice how there is a disconnect here between sensible behavior and just being rude?

@NinChocolate not how that would work. When you're visiting a foreign country you should still respect the local customs and expectations. Japan is an entertainment titan between Anime, manga, video games, film and novels to expect Japanese people to just excuse ignorant behavior from foreigners is pretty bold just because Japanese media is internationally consumed. Maybe you didn't mean that and I'm just misunderstanding your comment. However, I don't think Japanese people should put up with people being ignorant just because they're foreign. The general norm when visiting a different country is to do some research before going on what is, vs. what isn't acceptable locally.

@JohnnyMind That is an extremely fair take that I can agree with. I think in general that especially larger publishers like Nintendo, Sony, Microsoft (add Activision and Bethesda there), EA and Ubisoft should have a ton of behind the scenes information available. I think that would be a net positive for the industry. I do think some discretion should be used as it has been revealed over and over again that Nintendo reuses old scrapped ideas in new games (dungeons in Zelda and beta-Pokemon in well Pokemon), so I don't think we're entitled to everything, but more transparency would for sure keep some of these clout chasers (and legit criminals) at bay to an extent.