@HeadPirate oooh now that was both insightful and educational! I was more just looking at how the large language AI would just be plugged in and no one would be able to understand what it's doing (we already generally have this problem with pre-existing AI at Google & Facebook). But, I'm also just stunned as the tech bros probably crashing our economy by forcing their large language AIs into critical infrastructure at mass scale... Granted what I am describing as you pointed out is already a thing, so hopefully it won't get worse.
Unfortunately as you pointed out this has already happened multiple times where the markets crash... Man I need a drink. When I think about how our entire economy hinges on the whims of a few hundred ultra wealthy individuals I want to become a hermit out in the woods.
Man I really need to get more educated on this topic, but the more I learn the more existential dread emerges.
I'd love Xenoblade X2, give the mainline series a bit of a break as Xenoblade 3 and Future Redeemed did give us a nice swansong to the Klaus saga. No need to jump into the next one right away. Or maybe cook a new IP? I'd be down for that.
Monolith Soft is the masters of their craft so I'll be happy no matter what they put out. If that be X2, Xenoblade 4 or a brand new IP
@HeadPirate It's only going to get worse when AI trading becomes mainstream. All an AI will do is notice that high value traders are trading off stock and not even understand the reason and just follow based on an algorithm and data training. I can see this kind of tech bro, vibe trading going to crash an economy harder than any politician or banker in our life time.
@JohnnyMind Indeed friend. Like I get why this happens, but is also so, so stupid. There is no real logic behind it outside of a bunch of investors panicking because they perceive something can happen. Just dumb. And as @HeadPirate pointed out we won't even be in a recession till October even if there was going to be one. Just a joke some days.
@Ironcore THQ was always a bit of a skeezy brand and their financial downfall did introduce some terrible AAA practices. But, THQ Nordic is not that bad of a company and are actually a completely different organization (based in Austria rather than the US for example). But, yeah their Switch ports are pretty hit and miss, and the fact that they bought up a bunch of older THQ and other obscure/mediocre PS2-era IPs doesn't endear them as a titan of game publishing either.
Their owner Embracer Group though... OOOOoh nelly now that is a company with some pretty bleak reputation.
@-wc- hahaha same. Nintendo gave some banger deals on the Wii U! Though I think I'm overall happier when they do well because most of time it's because they're killing it with their 1st and 3rd party releases.
Though yeah I miss snagging some 1st party bangers for $20! Nothing will hit harder than getting DK Tropical Freeze, Xenoblade and Metroid Prime Trilogy for $40
@-wc- same, but that ended with the GCN. Feels like only when Nintendo struggles they pull that out. Switch games will stay $60 for a while especially if Switch 2 is backwards compatible.
@DogDetective It does help that the base game is already excellent and this more or less a remaster/expansion. Granted the Colors remaster does have me a bit worried, but this is Sonic greatest hits remix, it would be kind of hard to screw up.
@JohnnyMind I was referring to more generally Dub vs. Subs not all that mattering. I do think knowing Japanese helps determine which the better performance is. But, not knowing it will not make someone automatically not know a good performance from a bad one in Japanese... though I do think the generally dub vs. sub argument is heavily tinged in bias to begin with.
As for this one, it's a Sonic game, the characters will sound like the characters people are used to (more or less similar voices and performances to the ones established in the Adventures duology). That plays a major part in most of these arguments as which dub you heard first will dictate how you hear the characters. People who like Sonic dubs will like this dub, those who don't will prefer the sub. At the end of the day arguing over this is pretty pointless as I doubt they will change over 20 years of English VAs doing a David Humphrey's impersonation (more airy, reserved and subdued interpretation) for an English version of Koji Yuse (more arrogant, emotive and firm interpretation) for Shadow.
As for foreign dubs that are not English, apparently the German dub for Jin-Roh is quite excellent. Thematically I can see why the German dub could work for Jin-Roh due to the Brothers Grimm source material.
@JohnnyMind I think it can depend. Not knowing Japanese can cover up some pretty mid-performances while knowing Japanese can help you determine which performance was actually better (picking up on subtleties, certain inflections, if an actor is hitting their timings). I think it does matter to a point in these discussions to an extent.
Dub vs. Sub is a pretty pointless argument though because it really doesn't matter all that much as most English and Japanese dubs are pretty top-notch now-a-days you can't really go wrong picking either or. Yeah there will be some differences in performances, but that can be a cultural thing. For example kawaii voices just don't work in English. However, for English performances can feel more immersive when characters are canonically supposed to be speaking English like in Black Lagoon, or Baccano! (no one can convince me Bryan Massey is not fantastic as Ladd Russo). It just depends as English can hit HARD in some anime, but Japanese performances tend to be consistently good.
@DemonKow Indeed. Small companies that work on razor thin margins don't really get a say on who they partner with. If you're told you can help develop a Final Fantasy, Call of Duty or insert major franchise here you'll bite on it just to add the experience and name to your portfolio to attract interest in your next project.
I'm sure larger small studios like WayForward, Inti Creates, Mercury Steam or Yacht Club Games may get a say with who they work with... but small teams that namely work as a support studio with close to no public footprint are far more susceptible to being screwed. It is the risk of being the guppy playing with sharks... the sharks with chew you up if it means they get larger profits. It is also why you see so many studios deciding to be bought up in the first place as it gives them some security rather than being fully independent. Sure being just the studio that supports CoD probably sucks for your creative ambitions, but it keeps the lights on and pays your staff.
@GameOtaku I don't think Legends 3 is the best example for that. From the information available the paid Prologue/Demo was almost done, but the game itself still had a couple years or more before it would hit the market. Capcom really did a poor job communicating why the project was cancelled, and failed by not just releasing Prototype to actually gauge where fan interest was in raw sales. But, between Inafune leaving (he was a big reason why any Mega Man game released at all after X5 as he constantly championed the series in Capcom) and the 3DS struggles at launch making them question if another 2-3 years of development would be worth it... and with the massive failures of Mighty No 9 and Red Ash those same executives probably felt pretty vindicated. That is before we even talk about how the original Legends games sold on PSOne and N64, which was not great to begin with. It makes sense why Capcom cancelled it... still sucks though.
As for some really good examples well Star Fox 2 is a good go to as the game was done and only got cancelled because it would release too close the N64. I mean Hollywood are some of the worst culprits of this recently with Batgirl and Coyote v Acme which are complete films, but canned for a tax write-off.
Yeah big companies generally suck when it comes to undercutting art for immediate profits.
@AJWolfTill I don't think that is a controversial opinion to programmers or coders. AI has a place in development to off-load repetitive grunt work that can save time and resources to where they matter more. However, keep it away from areas where the human element actually matters.
Makes sense. Sakaguchi since leaving Square seems content doing one off projects rather than working on franchises. Blue Dragon (which had two small DS spin-offs), Lost Odyssey and Last Story all had franchise potential and yet Sakaguchi seemed content working on mobile projects till Fantasian (and that still has strong mobile roots as an Apple Arcade project first before coming to Switch). Even then I would not be surprised if he still holds bad blood with Square Enix despite softening his stance and his outspoken enjoyment of Final Fantasy XIV in recent years.
I suspect if he ever does another Final Fantasy it's going to be a small spin-off project not Final Fantasy XVII.
I think we need to remember this port is not for us (people who played it on Wii/3DS). This is for people who missed out on it or people who don't pay attention to Nintendo fansites. Let's remember all the Wii U ports that sold millions despite being more expensive than they were on Wii U.
@SpinEnDash Yes and no. When you answer a question off the record it can still be published as it is a non-blinding agreement between you and the journalists. Most journalists won't publish information you give them off the record to keep you as a source (and to maintain their own reputation). But, still people can and have been burned in the press by not being careful even when they were "off the record" as you don't have legal protection even when off the record. It is just a case of be extremely careful if ever approached by the press and you know you can get into deep trouble if you say the wrong thing.
Kids here is a piece of life advice. When asked to comment on something by anyone in the press about information you should not have access to (especially if it can get you or your sources into financial or legal trouble), do your CYAs. You either answer with "no comment," or "Is it okay if I run your questions through my lawyer first." You answer with those two phrases and you will never be caught with your pants down with a journalist. Even if you say this is "off the record" a journalist can still run and publish your answer as it is a non-binding agreement. Most journalists won't, but you never know and even then it can still get back to you if you're not careful.
NEVER and I repeat NEVER answer a journalist's questions about something that can get you into legal problems unless you speak to your lawyer first.
Not saying all journalists will do this, but you need to do your legal CYAs.
@-wc- now that is way better!!! I can cheers to that one! And yeah Konami during the SNES-PS2 released so much amazing games! A few stinkers like Zone of the Enders and Castlevania 64, but damn were they kings!
I think Rocket Knight could had been a real banger of a franchise too. Imagine a Banjo inspired platformer with the jetpack allowing you to hover or rocket up in the sky. Would had been awesome!
I just hope they never release another Metal Gear Survive again... Shutters... Hopefully Konami is turning a corner.
@-wc- That's fair. I read it more as like in comparison to other 16-bit darlings like Super Mario World, Sonic 1-3, Donkey Kong Country or Mega Man X, it was overlooked? I dunno I just remember Konami was really pushing Sparkster as a brand back in the day. But, it was pretty forgotten after that... maybe I'm just overthinking it at this point.
Real shame Konami never tried to do more with it, but if Castlevania or Metal Gear Solid is any indicator it might be a good thing they didn't. I dunno.
@-wc- I think overlook as over the years Rocket Knight as a brand as kind of been forgotten. It was pretty big in the 90s, but outside of the odd Happy Video Game Nerd video, I can't really name a lot of love online for the series post the "Angry Video Game Nerd/Nostalgia Critic" internet reviewer-ear on YouTube. The video game reviewer scene of the late-00s and early-2010s pumped out a ton of recognition for the 16-bit gems of old... but today a lot people don't really talk about Rocket Knight or Gunstar Heroes sadly.
Though that is probably because big YouTubers now are kids from the 00s who grew up on the GameCube and 360 and probably only really focus on that era of gaming now.
@KoopaTheGamer In my opinion it is a good thing they didn't or they'd be locked into things they (Retro Studios) don't want. Go read some Final Fantasy XV interviews and you'll notice a trend of the director and staff being locked into parts of Versus XIII that they had to include because it was shown off in early builds. I'd much rather Retro being free to do their own vision than locked into what the original devs wanted to do and failed to achieve. It's unfortunate that Retro is bagged with the "long development cycle" even though they have hardly had anytime with the game in comparison to other comparably sized releases.
Realistically the game has only been in development for 4 years. And this is not the most outlandish wait for a game I've ever seen. Elder Scrolls 6 was announced in 2018 and it's still apparently no where near done. Dragon Age Dreadwolf was announced in 2018 and is only getting released now as Veilguard. Games take time to develop and I hardly count the first 3 years of Prime 4's development as it all got scrapped 4 years ago.
@Keyblade-Dan He creates some pretty cracked IPs and stories. His games tend to be a mixed bag due to budget and scope, but he has made some insane franchises like No More Heroes, Killer is Dead and Shadows of the Damned. That and he is just an amazing writer when he actually wants to sit down and make an extremely engaging story.
I recommend checking out the The Silver Case as the story is just 10/10 chef's kiss! It is a lot more serious than his other stories, and far less whacky than what he is known for. After that you will probably understand the hype around him.
@Zeebor15 It could be a new Deus Ex or Legacy of Kain game. I think Embracer and Eidos expressed interest in going back to those franchises a couple years ago.
Would not be surprised to see a port of the 2008 Turok happening and not a new game. But, I don't fully expect much more outside of that as despite the excellent remasters I highly doubt we'd get a new Turok game as I don't think Turok has had a new comic in almost a decade so the franchise is pretty dormant. I could be wrong and would be pleasantly surprised, but I doubt it.
@GoshJosh We can like and respect the individuals in the company or even how said company generally operates, but companies will never be your friend. At the end of the day the only people they report to are their shareholders and employees. But, realistically they only care about their shareholders.
I generally respect Nintendo for treating their employees well, being against crunch culture and generally releasing games in a humane way. But, I generally don't agree with their treatment of emulators and mods. Even though they're in their legal right to do so.
Not everything is black and white, but indeed companies are not your friend.
@-wc- Anyone who claims Nintendo is even comparable to the evils Microsoft and even Sony are out for lunch. Nintendo may do some shady things or even anti-consumer practices at times... but Microsoft is in a different league. Even Sony themselves are much worse than Nintendo. Such as Sony basically parading around Michael Jackson who has been long dead to sell more singles of songs he never consented to publish... or how they tried to strong arm him in negotiations to scoop up his and the Beatles discographies. Or those really embarrassing leaked Sony cooperate emails from a decade ago showing the massive mistreatment and contempt they had for their own creators and IPs... yeah Sony is pretty damn evil.
@Cut3Panda-SNES64DD While Microsoft now owns some very strong IPs (they pretty much have always had strong IPs since the 360 generation with Halo, Gears and the Rare catalog) they've never been in a position to capitalize on it or keep a certain level of consistency with them. The fact that Halo Infinite crashed and burned and the really mixed reception around Gears 5 really shows the cracks in Microsoft's management.
Bethesda has been struggling with audiences in recent years and was not in a position to capitalize on the Amazon series success, not even with a Fallout 3 or New Vegas remaster. And while yes Id kills it with Doom, but Rage and Wolfenstein still struggle with audiences and critical reception.
Activision is a beast of a publisher, but we once again come to the issue of capitalizing on legacy IPs that are not CoD. The lack of Crash and Spyro games despite the huge numbers the remakes brought in is concerning. That and the disaster around Overwatch 2.
While I think Microsoft put out an amazing show with some amazing games, let's not pretend that Microsoft does not have an extremely spotty track record with asset management. The fact they closed down Tango Gameworks after the smash hit that was Hi-Fi Rush should be a massive example of this. Or even the criminal treatment of Arkane Austin which was tossed into development hell with Redfall and never given a chance to fallow-up on the critical smash hit or Prey is another highlight of IP mismanagement.
@AverageGamer Rareware was at their peek with the N64 KI2/KI Gold, Goldeneye, Banjo Kazooie & Tooie, Conker, Diddy Kong Racer, Donkey Kong 64 and Perfect Dark (plus the sprinkling of other neat smaller titles). It would be hard for any developer to keep pumping out bangers like those at that rare. Rare's first few years with Xbox was solid with Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Conker Live & Reloaded, Viva Pinata and Kameo. But, after the bungle of Perfect Dark Zero it felt like every title was in development hell... Sea of Thieves has been a success, but not near their 90s peek.
I'd argue if it were not for the sale Star Fox Adventures would had been a much better game. But that's really the only blemish on their time with Nintendo and it's not entirely the developers fault.
@Boston_J that is beyond beautiful! I'm beyond happy you got to experience that! I actually got teary eyed reading that. Love Mass Effect as well because it really let Shepherd be whatever you wanted them to be and it's beautiful!
@EVIL-C clearly you missed several of my follow-up responses.
1) niche titles with limited physical releases is extremely common. Try finding a copy of Xenosaga 3 for less than $200 or even the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster collection for less than $120. These were not done by Limited Run. Or let's jump to the 3DS want Yokai Watch 3, that will $300, or Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright can run you north of $100 easy. So no, this isn't Limited Run exclusive problem.
2) if you read my follow-up comments you'd notice I'm also not a fan of Bethesda or Konami using Limited Run's services. But, is that Limited Run's fault or is it large publishers using Limited Run's service? And to be fair to Limited Run if they said no to those games, would physical copies even exist? Seems like Bethesda and Konami didn't really care to release the games physically in the first place and if they what would stop them from just doing what Square Enix did with Pixel Remaster? Or what Atlus does with every title not Persona or SMT mainline titles. Is your issue with Limited Run or the publishers who really shouldn't being using them.
Secondly as a Canadian myself I know your full or crap when it comes to Amazon. I can go get a copy of Ricky's Revenge for $60 (PS5) which is around the price I would had paid through Limited Run. Or even the Castlevania Anniversary Collection for roughly the same price after shipping through Limited Run (both the regular and collectors editions) instead I'm saving money with Prime shipping rates.
Yes, some games are going to be pricier than others, but that happens with every Physical game after their out of print. I've been a retro collector and trying to get a copy of Devil's Third (US) for less than $200 was like pulling teeth for years. That and Limited Run also does not make the digital copies disappear. You can still get these games off digital storefronts. Physical releases through Limited Run are more collectors items than mass consumer items just due to the nature of their business.
And if you think Limited Run is awful don't look at TCG games. Wizards of the Coast and the Pokemon Company make Limited Run look like saints.
@echoplex because the N64 had very limited memory and storage space so a lot of textures (and UI assets by proxy) had to be extremely condensed. This is different from GCN and Wii where they had more space to use higher-res assets. So a lot of UI elements like buttons and icons are just really fuzzy and pixelated when blown up on HD/4K screens exposing their low-res/compressed origins.
In the case of GCN and to a lesser extent 3DS there are a number of HD texture packs that focus on just UI elements that people use. Currently recomp projects don't have access to texture packs, but that will be ironed out in short order.
@Azuris I'm inclined to agree. I do think a lot of the people complaining about FOMO don't really understand Limited Run's business model. A LOT of these releases would had never happened without them as they take on the bulk of the costs. Doing physical releases is expensive, it is why so many indie and AA games are exclusively digital because the overhead is that much less when you don't have to ship a physical product.
Yes larger companies like Konami and Bethesda should not be using Limited Run, but if Wayforward or another company can't invest in doing a physical release Limited Run is fantastic for them.
@Thmystic you hit the nail on the head as to why Limited Run is better for the consumer than the alternatives. If you want to preserve games an arbitrary "only small batch of physical releases ever" is the worst way of doing things.
@EarthboundBenjy any game can be ported using this project. However, you'd still need to have an understanding now how to code in C to actually get the game working. This took just rapidly speeds up the process.
I'm going North America because it reminds me of the classic Final Fantasy boxarts. Love how the Bravely series is an homage to that series so makes sense the boxarts would be like that.
@Spider-Kev the main point was even if you don't get your preorder in it's not like the games disappear and Limited Run even makes extra copies for Amazon and Best Buy. You can go on Amazon search Limited Run and get a ton of recent releases at MSRP. I know the early Switch games are above MSRP, but so is a lot of niche one print and done games.
So Limited Run really doesn't do anything specifically bad. They're upfront about how they only do the one run... Which a lot of companies do.
Is it FOMO? Sure, but it's way less FOMO than what other publishers do. If you're concerned about buying every Limited Run title... That's a different issue in my books especially if you can't financially afford to.
@EVIL-C it's not really FOMO though. The games tend to hold value on the secondary market yes, but they give you a bit over a month to order the release. They're not a true limited release of only 50k being printed, it's more print by demand. If 20k people order the game they'll print 30k and the other 10k will be shipped to Best buy and Amazon.
You can still easily get a number of their releases on Amazon as well. It's not like they pull an Atlas where they'll also only ever do one print run of a game and just not tell anyone. The thing is niche games will always only ever get one print run, LRG is just upfront about it
I think the hate you have for them is a bit overblown.
Wish Liam nothing but the best... but the series really dropped off after Season 1. I was even okay with Season 2, but Season 3 was just pretty all-round bad. You have a mega-fan of property who plays the role perfectly and even he didn't want to stick around... just glad the show is being put out of its misery after season 5. So much wasted potential.
@Ryu_Niiyama I think I get where you're going now with the idea. I will say though I think part of the reason God of War worked so well with the trio of Kratos Mimir and Atreus was the solid banter, which I personally think unless you seriously rework Link to be less of a blank slate Zelda could fall into the same trap Navi, Tatl and Fi fell into. I think the only time the companion character worked was with Midna.
Then again I really enjoyed the 2008 Prince of Persia, I thought the Prince and Elika where really enjoyable, and I liked how Erika was integrated into the gameplay. But, again a lot of that was because of the Prince's banter and how he and Elika bounced off each other extremely smoothly. I think if Nintendo went that direction it could work.. they kinda of experimented with that before with Spirit Tracks. But, unless Link speaks it might get grating with Zelda doing all the talking and Link just grunts.
I also, don't want Link to be diet-The Prince either... that would be pretty boring as well as that snarky adventurer archetype has thoroughly outstayed their welcome. Which is why I think a female Link could work better, because you don't even need to rework the character and lore wise, you can handwave it with "well this time the spirit of the hero incarnated as a girl or a boy." It doesn't really change the lore, as each Link is not directly related to the last (except maybe Minish Cap LInk, and Windwaker Link) so who says the Spirit of the Hero has to incarnate as a man every time.
Which is why I think the issue is less Zelda and more what do you do with Link that holds the idea back. I'm not against it, just not for it either. He just doesn't work as a side-character or really a duel protagonist without reworking him seriously.
@Ryu_Niiyama I was referring to the mainline series. Side games Zelda being playable makes perfect sense... I'm more looking at the main series and how Link is namely used to represent the player and the courage to overcome the trails. I just don't see a scenario where Link can really function as a side character as they don't really have an interesting enough... Well character to work as he is right now.
I'm not going to really be upset if they go the direction of Zelda being a playable lead, I just don't see how they can make the dynamic really work as Link is a silent character. What makes the current God of War games work is it feels natural for Kratos to go in that direction, Link is a very static character unlike Kratos so it's hard to say how It'll work. I get I may sound odd, but I just not sure how it will work to take Zelda as a series in that kind of direction without majorly revamping Link to be more than a player avatar with some unique characteristics. I'm sure it can work, but I feel you need to basically completely revamp Link and I feel that would end up being more controversial than Zelda being playable as Link is a blank enough slate that each player projects something different on to him.
The issue for me is less Zelda and more what do you do with Link.
Might be a hot take, but nah I don't want Zelda as the main playable character. She works best as a side character, and that was kind of the point when naming The Legend of Zelda was that it wasn't the name of the hero. Link is supposed to be the player avatar (which is why I think I'm more okay with the option of a female Link). If you're playing as Zelda it gives Link nothing to do as they've never been a fully fleshed out character. They are a character and has some character attributes, but not a fully baked three dimensional character unlike Ganon and Zelda. They are the hero as they embody the courage to go and adventure to save the Kingdom. The humble everyman who takes up the magical sword to save the people. That's what works best as it's the most relatable part of playing Zelda. Anyone can be the hero not just people born in the magical bloodline.
I know they've kind of broken that reading a tad, but Link is meant to embody that archetype.
But, Zelda for sure should be playable in side games. But, Zelda as the playable character kind of makes Link redundant.
@gcunit I miss the 3DS dearly! Never got into the DS when it was out (outside of the handheld Castlevanias), but the 3DS was my jam! Loved the games from launch-ish titles like Kid Icarus, Animal Crossing New Leaf, to the 3DS Pokemon games and I've probably sunk hundreds of hours combined in the 3 (or 5, I guess) Fire Emblem games on the system.
I really hope the Switch 2 (or Attach whatever it ends up called), will give us DS and 3DS games on Nintendo Online. Would love to relive these games again without having to find my old 3DS.
Moved a few times, so it is in a box somewhere. I might finally Homebrew it now that the servers are offline so I can still enjoy online trading in Pokemon when that gets going again.
@Olliemar28 Yeah, this article does make tons of sense to post considering these are two former Nintendo employees. I'm sure if Scot the Woz or RGT85 had worked at Nintendo and sharing insights of working at the company they'd be highlighted.
But, I do believe the NintendoLife editors made the right choice here, considering this is a wholesome article highlighting the post-Nintendo careers of two long standing Nintendo employees (combined 25 years with the company)... I don't get why some people don't get the difference between these two kinds of creators.
PS. Great article enjoyed the content and do miss seeing Kit and Krysta during Nintendo Treehouse showcases and other events.
@dtlux1 the question is why bother? Nintendo is not providing a service for Wii U online anymore, odds are the severs are completely offline so no cost either. This will probably get at most a shrug at Nintendo HQ as it doesn't require modding the system or allows piracy. It's pretty much user's personal private servers which have existed fine on PC and older consoles for decades with no issues from right holders.
@JohnnyMind @FirstEmperor I have a strong feeling BDSP was only made to please fans and GameFreak probably didn't trust ILCA to make too much original content for the game. Rather the Legends games are the region revisits that GameFreak wants to focus on moving forward, but have built such a strong expectation for remakes that it's a catch-22.
A) They make the remakes moving forward due to fan expectations and divert attention from their passion projects that would push the series forward, but continue the stagnation of the franchise in fans and critics eyes. That and further dilute their manpower to focus on the polish of said projects.
B) Don't do the remakes, but disappoint fans of regions like Johto, Unova, Kalos and Aloha as their favorite regions won't get the same love as previous ones. Or they get another company to do them as straight remakes, and possibly disappoint the fans anyways.
It really is a no-win scenario. And while I was fine with BDSP, I do have to admit compared to FRLG, HGSS, ORAS or even Let's Go, it really was lacking overall. So, I'd personally be more than okay if they allowed other companies to do them and just give them a looser leash to be more creative. Allow them to incorporate mainline mechanics even if they might be seen as a little silly, but maybe just include them in the post-game.
Either way much like most things Pokemon despite the popularity of the franchise there is no winning for GameFreak in this scenario.
@Preposterous That was a yikes right there. Yeah, if they were sharing pirated copies with each other to develop Yuzu (especially copies that broke streetdates), then they would not enjoy a discovery process. That and advertising the methods to circumvent Nintendo's copy protection is not going to end well.
This entire scenario could had been avoided for them if they were just a bit more less public with this information.
Comments 2,323
Re: Nintendo's Share Price Tanks Amid Fears Of A US Recession
@HeadPirate oooh now that was both insightful and educational! I was more just looking at how the large language AI would just be plugged in and no one would be able to understand what it's doing (we already generally have this problem with pre-existing AI at Google & Facebook). But, I'm also just stunned as the tech bros probably crashing our economy by forcing their large language AIs into critical infrastructure at mass scale... Granted what I am describing as you pointed out is already a thing, so hopefully it won't get worse.
Unfortunately as you pointed out this has already happened multiple times where the markets crash... Man I need a drink. When I think about how our entire economy hinges on the whims of a few hundred ultra wealthy individuals I want to become a hermit out in the woods.
Man I really need to get more educated on this topic, but the more I learn the more existential dread emerges.
Re: Xenoblade Chronicles Dev Monolith Soft Is Recruiting For A 'New RPG'
I'd love Xenoblade X2, give the mainline series a bit of a break as Xenoblade 3 and Future Redeemed did give us a nice swansong to the Klaus saga. No need to jump into the next one right away. Or maybe cook a new IP? I'd be down for that.
Monolith Soft is the masters of their craft so I'll be happy no matter what they put out. If that be X2, Xenoblade 4 or a brand new IP
Re: Nintendo's Share Price Tanks Amid Fears Of A US Recession
@HeadPirate It's only going to get worse when AI trading becomes mainstream. All an AI will do is notice that high value traders are trading off stock and not even understand the reason and just follow based on an algorithm and data training. I can see this kind of tech bro, vibe trading going to crash an economy harder than any politician or banker in our life time.
Re: Nintendo's Share Price Tanks Amid Fears Of A US Recession
@JohnnyMind Indeed friend. Like I get why this happens, but is also so, so stupid. There is no real logic behind it outside of a bunch of investors panicking because they perceive something can happen. Just dumb. And as @HeadPirate pointed out we won't even be in a recession till October even if there was going to be one. Just a joke some days.
Re: Round Up: Every Nintendo Reveal And More At THQ Nordic's 2024 Showcase
@Ironcore THQ was always a bit of a skeezy brand and their financial downfall did introduce some terrible AAA practices. But, THQ Nordic is not that bad of a company and are actually a completely different organization (based in Austria rather than the US for example). But, yeah their Switch ports are pretty hit and miss, and the fact that they bought up a bunch of older THQ and other obscure/mediocre PS2-era IPs doesn't endear them as a titan of game publishing either.
Their owner Embracer Group though... OOOOoh nelly now that is a company with some pretty bleak reputation.
Re: Talking Point: Will The Switch Ever Get A 'Nintendo Selects' Range?
@-wc- hahaha same. Nintendo gave some banger deals on the Wii U! Though I think I'm overall happier when they do well because most of time it's because they're killing it with their 1st and 3rd party releases.
Though yeah I miss snagging some 1st party bangers for $20! Nothing will hit harder than getting DK Tropical Freeze, Xenoblade and Metroid Prime Trilogy for $40
Re: Talking Point: Will The Switch Ever Get A 'Nintendo Selects' Range?
@-wc- same, but that ended with the GCN. Feels like only when Nintendo struggles they pull that out. Switch games will stay $60 for a while especially if Switch 2 is backwards compatible.
Re: Sonic X Shadow Generations Physical Pre-Orders Come With Reversible Sleeves
@DogDetective It does help that the base game is already excellent and this more or less a remaster/expansion. Granted the Colors remaster does have me a bit worried, but this is Sonic greatest hits remix, it would be kind of hard to screw up.
Re: Link Will Be Playable In Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom, According To New ESRB Rating
@Yousef- Ganon: it was not by my hands I was once again given flesh. I was brought here by Hylians who wish to pay me tribute.
Re: Here's Your First Look At Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings
@JohnnyMind I was referring to more generally Dub vs. Subs not all that mattering. I do think knowing Japanese helps determine which the better performance is. But, not knowing it will not make someone automatically not know a good performance from a bad one in Japanese... though I do think the generally dub vs. sub argument is heavily tinged in bias to begin with.
As for this one, it's a Sonic game, the characters will sound like the characters people are used to (more or less similar voices and performances to the ones established in the Adventures duology). That plays a major part in most of these arguments as which dub you heard first will dictate how you hear the characters. People who like Sonic dubs will like this dub, those who don't will prefer the sub. At the end of the day arguing over this is pretty pointless as I doubt they will change over 20 years of English VAs doing a David Humphrey's impersonation (more airy, reserved and subdued interpretation) for an English version of Koji Yuse (more arrogant, emotive and firm interpretation) for Shadow.
As for foreign dubs that are not English, apparently the German dub for Jin-Roh is quite excellent. Thematically I can see why the German dub could work for Jin-Roh due to the Brothers Grimm source material.
Re: Here's Your First Look At Sonic X Shadow Generations: Dark Beginnings
@JohnnyMind I think it can depend. Not knowing Japanese can cover up some pretty mid-performances while knowing Japanese can help you determine which performance was actually better (picking up on subtleties, certain inflections, if an actor is hitting their timings). I think it does matter to a point in these discussions to an extent.
Dub vs. Sub is a pretty pointless argument though because it really doesn't matter all that much as most English and Japanese dubs are pretty top-notch now-a-days you can't really go wrong picking either or. Yeah there will be some differences in performances, but that can be a cultural thing. For example kawaii voices just don't work in English. However, for English performances can feel more immersive when characters are canonically supposed to be speaking English like in Black Lagoon, or Baccano! (no one can convince me Bryan Massey is not fantastic as Ladd Russo). It just depends as English can hit HARD in some anime, but Japanese performances tend to be consistently good.
It honestly doesn't matter at ALL.
Re: Square Enix And Nintendo Co-Dev Reports Losses After Multiple Projects Cancelled
@DemonKow Indeed. Small companies that work on razor thin margins don't really get a say on who they partner with. If you're told you can help develop a Final Fantasy, Call of Duty or insert major franchise here you'll bite on it just to add the experience and name to your portfolio to attract interest in your next project.
I'm sure larger small studios like WayForward, Inti Creates, Mercury Steam or Yacht Club Games may get a say with who they work with... but small teams that namely work as a support studio with close to no public footprint are far more susceptible to being screwed. It is the risk of being the guppy playing with sharks... the sharks with chew you up if it means they get larger profits. It is also why you see so many studios deciding to be bought up in the first place as it gives them some security rather than being fully independent. Sure being just the studio that supports CoD probably sucks for your creative ambitions, but it keeps the lights on and pays your staff.
Re: Square Enix And Nintendo Co-Dev Reports Losses After Multiple Projects Cancelled
@GameOtaku I don't think Legends 3 is the best example for that. From the information available the paid Prologue/Demo was almost done, but the game itself still had a couple years or more before it would hit the market. Capcom really did a poor job communicating why the project was cancelled, and failed by not just releasing Prototype to actually gauge where fan interest was in raw sales. But, between Inafune leaving (he was a big reason why any Mega Man game released at all after X5 as he constantly championed the series in Capcom) and the 3DS struggles at launch making them question if another 2-3 years of development would be worth it... and with the massive failures of Mighty No 9 and Red Ash those same executives probably felt pretty vindicated. That is before we even talk about how the original Legends games sold on PSOne and N64, which was not great to begin with. It makes sense why Capcom cancelled it... still sucks though.
As for some really good examples well Star Fox 2 is a good go to as the game was done and only got cancelled because it would release too close the N64. I mean Hollywood are some of the worst culprits of this recently with Batgirl and Coyote v Acme which are complete films, but canned for a tax write-off.
Yeah big companies generally suck when it comes to undercutting art for immediate profits.
Re: Nintendo President Says Longer Game Development Cycles Are "Unavoidable"
@AJWolfTill I don't think that is a controversial opinion to programmers or coders. AI has a place in development to off-load repetitive grunt work that can save time and resources to where they matter more. However, keep it away from areas where the human element actually matters.
Re: Final Fantasy Creator Isn't Interested In Revisiting The Franchise
Makes sense. Sakaguchi since leaving Square seems content doing one off projects rather than working on franchises. Blue Dragon (which had two small DS spin-offs), Lost Odyssey and Last Story all had franchise potential and yet Sakaguchi seemed content working on mobile projects till Fantasian (and that still has strong mobile roots as an Apple Arcade project first before coming to Switch). Even then I would not be surprised if he still holds bad blood with Square Enix despite softening his stance and his outspoken enjoyment of Final Fantasy XIV in recent years.
I suspect if he ever does another Final Fantasy it's going to be a small spin-off project not Final Fantasy XVII.
Re: Donkey Kong Country Returns HD Costs $60 On Switch
I think we need to remember this port is not for us (people who played it on Wii/3DS). This is for people who missed out on it or people who don't pay attention to Nintendo fansites. Let's remember all the Wii U ports that sold millions despite being more expensive than they were on Wii U.
Re: Leaker 'Pyoro' Locks Account After Claiming Their Source Works For Nintendo
@SpinEnDash Yes and no. When you answer a question off the record it can still be published as it is a non-blinding agreement between you and the journalists. Most journalists won't publish information you give them off the record to keep you as a source (and to maintain their own reputation). But, still people can and have been burned in the press by not being careful even when they were "off the record" as you don't have legal protection even when off the record. It is just a case of be extremely careful if ever approached by the press and you know you can get into deep trouble if you say the wrong thing.
Re: Leaker 'Pyoro' Locks Account After Claiming Their Source Works For Nintendo
Kids here is a piece of life advice. When asked to comment on something by anyone in the press about information you should not have access to (especially if it can get you or your sources into financial or legal trouble), do your CYAs. You either answer with "no comment," or "Is it okay if I run your questions through my lawyer first." You answer with those two phrases and you will never be caught with your pants down with a journalist. Even if you say this is "off the record" a journalist can still run and publish your answer as it is a non-binding agreement. Most journalists won't, but you never know and even then it can still get back to you if you're not careful.
NEVER and I repeat NEVER answer a journalist's questions about something that can get you into legal problems unless you speak to your lawyer first.
Not saying all journalists will do this, but you need to do your legal CYAs.
Re: Review: Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked (Switch) - A Sparkling Return For One Of The 1990s' Best Platformers
@-wc- now that is way better!!! I can cheers to that one! And yeah Konami during the SNES-PS2 released so much amazing games! A few stinkers like Zone of the Enders and Castlevania 64, but damn were they kings!
I think Rocket Knight could had been a real banger of a franchise too. Imagine a Banjo inspired platformer with the jetpack allowing you to hover or rocket up in the sky. Would had been awesome!
I just hope they never release another Metal Gear Survive again... Shutters... Hopefully Konami is turning a corner.
Re: Review: Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked (Switch) - A Sparkling Return For One Of The 1990s' Best Platformers
@-wc- That's fair. I read it more as like in comparison to other 16-bit darlings like Super Mario World, Sonic 1-3, Donkey Kong Country or Mega Man X, it was overlooked? I dunno I just remember Konami was really pushing Sparkster as a brand back in the day. But, it was pretty forgotten after that... maybe I'm just overthinking it at this point.
Real shame Konami never tried to do more with it, but if Castlevania or Metal Gear Solid is any indicator it might be a good thing they didn't. I dunno.
Re: Review: Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked (Switch) - A Sparkling Return For One Of The 1990s' Best Platformers
@WaveBoy I think you'll have a great time with the SNES version of Sparkster, the Genesis version has some issues, but the SNES one slaps!
Re: Review: Rocket Knight Adventures: Re-Sparked (Switch) - A Sparkling Return For One Of The 1990s' Best Platformers
@-wc- I think overlook as over the years Rocket Knight as a brand as kind of been forgotten. It was pretty big in the 90s, but outside of the odd Happy Video Game Nerd video, I can't really name a lot of love online for the series post the "Angry Video Game Nerd/Nostalgia Critic" internet reviewer-ear on YouTube. The video game reviewer scene of the late-00s and early-2010s pumped out a ton of recognition for the 16-bit gems of old... but today a lot people don't really talk about Rocket Knight or Gunstar Heroes sadly.
Though that is probably because big YouTubers now are kids from the 00s who grew up on the GameCube and 360 and probably only really focus on that era of gaming now.
Re: Random: It's Now Been Seven Years Since Metroid Prime 4 Was Announced
@KoopaTheGamer In my opinion it is a good thing they didn't or they'd be locked into things they (Retro Studios) don't want. Go read some Final Fantasy XV interviews and you'll notice a trend of the director and staff being locked into parts of Versus XIII that they had to include because it was shown off in early builds. I'd much rather Retro being free to do their own vision than locked into what the original devs wanted to do and failed to achieve. It's unfortunate that Retro is bagged with the "long development cycle" even though they have hardly had anytime with the game in comparison to other comparably sized releases.
Re: Random: It's Now Been Seven Years Since Metroid Prime 4 Was Announced
Realistically the game has only been in development for 4 years. And this is not the most outlandish wait for a game I've ever seen. Elder Scrolls 6 was announced in 2018 and it's still apparently no where near done. Dragon Age Dreadwolf was announced in 2018 and is only getting released now as Veilguard. Games take time to develop and I hardly count the first 3 years of Prime 4's development as it all got scrapped 4 years ago.
Re: Rumour: New Leaked Codenames Suggest Turok, Tomb Raider, DOOM & More Are Inbound
@Zeebor15 Good point... yeah in that case Just Cause makes the most sense.
Re: Grasshopper Manufacture Is "Definitely Gonna Cook" For 'Switch 2', Says Suda51
@Keyblade-Dan He creates some pretty cracked IPs and stories. His games tend to be a mixed bag due to budget and scope, but he has made some insane franchises like No More Heroes, Killer is Dead and Shadows of the Damned. That and he is just an amazing writer when he actually wants to sit down and make an extremely engaging story.
I recommend checking out the The Silver Case as the story is just 10/10 chef's kiss! It is a lot more serious than his other stories, and far less whacky than what he is known for. After that you will probably understand the hype around him.
Re: Rumour: New Leaked Codenames Suggest Turok, Tomb Raider, DOOM & More Are Inbound
@Zeebor15 It could be a new Deus Ex or Legacy of Kain game. I think Embracer and Eidos expressed interest in going back to those franchises a couple years ago.
Re: Rumour: New Leaked Codenames Suggest Turok, Tomb Raider, DOOM & More Are Inbound
Would not be surprised to see a port of the 2008 Turok happening and not a new game. But, I don't fully expect much more outside of that as despite the excellent remasters I highly doubt we'd get a new Turok game as I don't think Turok has had a new comic in almost a decade so the franchise is pretty dormant. I could be wrong and would be pleasantly surprised, but I doubt it.
Re: Nintendo Issues Multiple DMCAs On The Modding Site 'GameBanana'
@gsilver they own the game the mod is modifying and legally mods are in a dubious grey area. Here's an article that generally explains the situation. https://iplaw.allard.ubc.ca/2023/11/24/legal-risks-for-modding-in-video-games/
Re: Nintendo Issues Multiple DMCAs On The Modding Site 'GameBanana'
@GoshJosh We can like and respect the individuals in the company or even how said company generally operates, but companies will never be your friend. At the end of the day the only people they report to are their shareholders and employees. But, realistically they only care about their shareholders.
I generally respect Nintendo for treating their employees well, being against crunch culture and generally releasing games in a humane way. But, I generally don't agree with their treatment of emulators and mods. Even though they're in their legal right to do so.
Not everything is black and white, but indeed companies are not your friend.
Re: Nintendo Issues Multiple DMCAs On The Modding Site 'GameBanana'
@-wc- Anyone who claims Nintendo is even comparable to the evils Microsoft and even Sony are out for lunch. Nintendo may do some shady things or even anti-consumer practices at times... but Microsoft is in a different league. Even Sony themselves are much worse than Nintendo. Such as Sony basically parading around Michael Jackson who has been long dead to sell more singles of songs he never consented to publish... or how they tried to strong arm him in negotiations to scoop up his and the Beatles discographies. Or those really embarrassing leaked Sony cooperate emails from a decade ago showing the massive mistreatment and contempt they had for their own creators and IPs... yeah Sony is pretty damn evil.
Re: Xbox's Phil Spencer Reiterates Plan To Put "More Of Our Games On More Platforms"
@Cut3Panda-SNES64DD While Microsoft now owns some very strong IPs (they pretty much have always had strong IPs since the 360 generation with Halo, Gears and the Rare catalog) they've never been in a position to capitalize on it or keep a certain level of consistency with them. The fact that Halo Infinite crashed and burned and the really mixed reception around Gears 5 really shows the cracks in Microsoft's management.
Bethesda has been struggling with audiences in recent years and was not in a position to capitalize on the Amazon series success, not even with a Fallout 3 or New Vegas remaster. And while yes Id kills it with Doom, but Rage and Wolfenstein still struggle with audiences and critical reception.
Activision is a beast of a publisher, but we once again come to the issue of capitalizing on legacy IPs that are not CoD. The lack of Crash and Spyro games despite the huge numbers the remakes brought in is concerning. That and the disaster around Overwatch 2.
While I think Microsoft put out an amazing show with some amazing games, let's not pretend that Microsoft does not have an extremely spotty track record with asset management. The fact they closed down Tango Gameworks after the smash hit that was Hi-Fi Rush should be a massive example of this. Or even the criminal treatment of Arkane Austin which was tossed into development hell with Redfall and never given a chance to fallow-up on the critical smash hit or Prey is another highlight of IP mismanagement.
Re: Shiver Entertainment Has Updated Its Website After Being Acquired By Nintendo
@AverageGamer Rareware was at their peek with the N64 KI2/KI Gold, Goldeneye, Banjo Kazooie & Tooie, Conker, Diddy Kong Racer, Donkey Kong 64 and Perfect Dark (plus the sprinkling of other neat smaller titles). It would be hard for any developer to keep pumping out bangers like those at that rare. Rare's first few years with Xbox was solid with Grabbed by the Ghoulies, Conker Live & Reloaded, Viva Pinata and Kameo. But, after the bungle of Perfect Dark Zero it felt like every title was in development hell... Sea of Thieves has been a success, but not near their 90s peek.
I'd argue if it were not for the sale Star Fox Adventures would had been a much better game. But that's really the only blemish on their time with Nintendo and it's not entirely the developers fault.
Re: Soapbox: Nintendo Needs More Characters Like Paper Mario's Vivian
@Boston_J that is beyond beautiful! I'm beyond happy you got to experience that! I actually got teary eyed reading that. Love Mass Effect as well because it really let Shepherd be whatever you wanted them to be and it's beautiful!
Re: WayForward's 'Clock Tower' Switch Port Receives Stunning Physical Editions
@EVIL-C clearly you missed several of my follow-up responses.
1) niche titles with limited physical releases is extremely common. Try finding a copy of Xenosaga 3 for less than $200 or even the Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster collection for less than $120. These were not done by Limited Run. Or let's jump to the 3DS want Yokai Watch 3, that will $300, or Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright can run you north of $100 easy. So no, this isn't Limited Run exclusive problem.
2) if you read my follow-up comments you'd notice I'm also not a fan of Bethesda or Konami using Limited Run's services. But, is that Limited Run's fault or is it large publishers using Limited Run's service? And to be fair to Limited Run if they said no to those games, would physical copies even exist? Seems like Bethesda and Konami didn't really care to release the games physically in the first place and if they what would stop them from just doing what Square Enix did with Pixel Remaster? Or what Atlus does with every title not Persona or SMT mainline titles. Is your issue with Limited Run or the publishers who really shouldn't being using them.
Secondly as a Canadian myself I know your full or crap when it comes to Amazon. I can go get a copy of Ricky's Revenge for $60 (PS5) which is around the price I would had paid through Limited Run. Or even the Castlevania Anniversary Collection for roughly the same price after shipping through Limited Run (both the regular and collectors editions) instead I'm saving money with Prime shipping rates.
Yes, some games are going to be pricier than others, but that happens with every Physical game after their out of print. I've been a retro collector and trying to get a copy of Devil's Third (US) for less than $200 was like pulling teeth for years. That and Limited Run also does not make the digital copies disappear. You can still get these games off digital storefronts. Physical releases through Limited Run are more collectors items than mass consumer items just due to the nature of their business.
And if you think Limited Run is awful don't look at TCG games. Wizards of the Coast and the Pokemon Company make Limited Run look like saints.
Re: Zelda 64 Recompiled: Majora's Mask Gets An Exciting New Update (Version 1.1.0)
@echoplex because the N64 had very limited memory and storage space so a lot of textures (and UI assets by proxy) had to be extremely condensed. This is different from GCN and Wii where they had more space to use higher-res assets. So a lot of UI elements like buttons and icons are just really fuzzy and pixelated when blown up on HD/4K screens exposing their low-res/compressed origins.
In the case of GCN and to a lesser extent 3DS there are a number of HD texture packs that focus on just UI elements that people use. Currently recomp projects don't have access to texture packs, but that will be ironed out in short order.
Hope this helps explain things a bit.
Re: WayForward's 'Clock Tower' Switch Port Receives Stunning Physical Editions
@Azuris I'm inclined to agree. I do think a lot of the people complaining about FOMO don't really understand Limited Run's business model. A LOT of these releases would had never happened without them as they take on the bulk of the costs. Doing physical releases is expensive, it is why so many indie and AA games are exclusively digital because the overhead is that much less when you don't have to ship a physical product.
Yes larger companies like Konami and Bethesda should not be using Limited Run, but if Wayforward or another company can't invest in doing a physical release Limited Run is fantastic for them.
@Thmystic you hit the nail on the head as to why Limited Run is better for the consumer than the alternatives. If you want to preserve games an arbitrary "only small batch of physical releases ever" is the worst way of doing things.
Re: Zelda 64 Recompiled: Majora's Mask Gets An Exciting New Update (Version 1.1.0)
@EarthboundBenjy any game can be ported using this project. However, you'd still need to have an understanding now how to code in C to actually get the game working. This took just rapidly speeds up the process.
Re: Poll: Box Art Brawl - Duel: Bravely Default
I'm going North America because it reminds me of the classic Final Fantasy boxarts. Love how the Bravely series is an homage to that series so makes sense the boxarts would be like that.
Re: WayForward's 'Clock Tower' Switch Port Receives Stunning Physical Editions
@Spider-Kev the main point was even if you don't get your preorder in it's not like the games disappear and Limited Run even makes extra copies for Amazon and Best Buy. You can go on Amazon search Limited Run and get a ton of recent releases at MSRP. I know the early Switch games are above MSRP, but so is a lot of niche one print and done games.
So Limited Run really doesn't do anything specifically bad. They're upfront about how they only do the one run... Which a lot of companies do.
Is it FOMO? Sure, but it's way less FOMO than what other publishers do. If you're concerned about buying every Limited Run title... That's a different issue in my books especially if you can't financially afford to.
Re: WayForward's 'Clock Tower' Switch Port Receives Stunning Physical Editions
@EVIL-C it's not really FOMO though. The games tend to hold value on the secondary market yes, but they give you a bit over a month to order the release. They're not a true limited release of only 50k being printed, it's more print by demand. If 20k people order the game they'll print 30k and the other 10k will be shipped to Best buy and Amazon.
You can still easily get a number of their releases on Amazon as well. It's not like they pull an Atlas where they'll also only ever do one print run of a game and just not tell anyone. The thing is niche games will always only ever get one print run, LRG is just upfront about it
I think the hate you have for them is a bit overblown.
Re: Netflix Reveals The First Official Look At Liam Hemsworth In 'The Witcher'
Wish Liam nothing but the best... but the series really dropped off after Season 1. I was even okay with Season 2, but Season 3 was just pretty all-round bad. You have a mega-fan of property who plays the role perfectly and even he didn't want to stick around... just glad the show is being put out of its misery after season 5. So much wasted potential.
Re: Rumour: Princess Zelda May Take The Starring Role In An Upcoming Game
@Ryu_Niiyama I think I get where you're going now with the idea. I will say though I think part of the reason God of War worked so well with the trio of Kratos Mimir and Atreus was the solid banter, which I personally think unless you seriously rework Link to be less of a blank slate Zelda could fall into the same trap Navi, Tatl and Fi fell into. I think the only time the companion character worked was with Midna.
Then again I really enjoyed the 2008 Prince of Persia, I thought the Prince and Elika where really enjoyable, and I liked how Erika was integrated into the gameplay. But, again a lot of that was because of the Prince's banter and how he and Elika bounced off each other extremely smoothly. I think if Nintendo went that direction it could work.. they kinda of experimented with that before with Spirit Tracks. But, unless Link speaks it might get grating with Zelda doing all the talking and Link just grunts.
I also, don't want Link to be diet-The Prince either... that would be pretty boring as well as that snarky adventurer archetype has thoroughly outstayed their welcome. Which is why I think a female Link could work better, because you don't even need to rework the character and lore wise, you can handwave it with "well this time the spirit of the hero incarnated as a girl or a boy." It doesn't really change the lore, as each Link is not directly related to the last (except maybe Minish Cap LInk, and Windwaker Link) so who says the Spirit of the Hero has to incarnate as a man every time.
Which is why I think the issue is less Zelda and more what do you do with Link that holds the idea back. I'm not against it, just not for it either. He just doesn't work as a side-character or really a duel protagonist without reworking him seriously.
Re: Rumour: Princess Zelda May Take The Starring Role In An Upcoming Game
@Ryu_Niiyama I was referring to the mainline series. Side games Zelda being playable makes perfect sense... I'm more looking at the main series and how Link is namely used to represent the player and the courage to overcome the trails. I just don't see a scenario where Link can really function as a side character as they don't really have an interesting enough... Well character to work as he is right now.
I'm not going to really be upset if they go the direction of Zelda being a playable lead, I just don't see how they can make the dynamic really work as Link is a silent character. What makes the current God of War games work is it feels natural for Kratos to go in that direction, Link is a very static character unlike Kratos so it's hard to say how It'll work. I get I may sound odd, but I just not sure how it will work to take Zelda as a series in that kind of direction without majorly revamping Link to be more than a player avatar with some unique characteristics. I'm sure it can work, but I feel you need to basically completely revamp Link and I feel that would end up being more controversial than Zelda being playable as Link is a blank enough slate that each player projects something different on to him.
The issue for me is less Zelda and more what do you do with Link.
Re: Rumour: Princess Zelda May Take The Starring Role In An Upcoming Game
Might be a hot take, but nah I don't want Zelda as the main playable character. She works best as a side character, and that was kind of the point when naming The Legend of Zelda was that it wasn't the name of the hero. Link is supposed to be the player avatar (which is why I think I'm more okay with the option of a female Link). If you're playing as Zelda it gives Link nothing to do as they've never been a fully fleshed out character. They are a character and has some character attributes, but not a fully baked three dimensional character unlike Ganon and Zelda. They are the hero as they embody the courage to go and adventure to save the Kingdom. The humble everyman who takes up the magical sword to save the people. That's what works best as it's the most relatable part of playing Zelda. Anyone can be the hero not just people born in the magical bloodline.
I know they've kind of broken that reading a tad, but Link is meant to embody that archetype.
But, Zelda for sure should be playable in side games. But, Zelda as the playable character kind of makes Link redundant.
Re: Random: Kit And Krysta Show Off Their Immense DS And 3DS Collection
@gcunit I miss the 3DS dearly! Never got into the DS when it was out (outside of the handheld Castlevanias), but the 3DS was my jam! Loved the games from launch-ish titles like Kid Icarus, Animal Crossing New Leaf, to the 3DS Pokemon games and I've probably sunk hundreds of hours combined in the 3 (or 5, I guess) Fire Emblem games on the system.
I really hope the Switch 2 (or Attach whatever it ends up called), will give us DS and 3DS games on Nintendo Online. Would love to relive these games again without having to find my old 3DS.
Moved a few times, so it is in a box somewhere. I might finally Homebrew it now that the servers are offline so I can still enjoy online trading in Pokemon when that gets going again.
Re: Random: Kit And Krysta Show Off Their Immense DS And 3DS Collection
@Olliemar28 Yeah, this article does make tons of sense to post considering these are two former Nintendo employees. I'm sure if Scot the Woz or RGT85 had worked at Nintendo and sharing insights of working at the company they'd be highlighted.
But, I do believe the NintendoLife editors made the right choice here, considering this is a wholesome article highlighting the post-Nintendo careers of two long standing Nintendo employees (combined 25 years with the company)... I don't get why some people don't get the difference between these two kinds of creators.
PS. Great article enjoyed the content and do miss seeing Kit and Krysta during Nintendo Treehouse showcases and other events.
Re: Fan-Made Nintendo Network Replacement 'Pretendo' No Longer Requires Hacked Wii U
@dtlux1 the question is why bother? Nintendo is not providing a service for Wii U online anymore, odds are the severs are completely offline so no cost either. This will probably get at most a shrug at Nintendo HQ as it doesn't require modding the system or allows piracy. It's pretty much user's personal private servers which have existed fine on PC and older consoles for decades with no issues from right holders.
Re: The Pokémon Company Sets Up A New Subsidiary Called 'Pokémon Works'
@JohnnyMind @FirstEmperor I have a strong feeling BDSP was only made to please fans and GameFreak probably didn't trust ILCA to make too much original content for the game. Rather the Legends games are the region revisits that GameFreak wants to focus on moving forward, but have built such a strong expectation for remakes that it's a catch-22.
A) They make the remakes moving forward due to fan expectations and divert attention from their passion projects that would push the series forward, but continue the stagnation of the franchise in fans and critics eyes. That and further dilute their manpower to focus on the polish of said projects.
B) Don't do the remakes, but disappoint fans of regions like Johto, Unova, Kalos and Aloha as their favorite regions won't get the same love as previous ones. Or they get another company to do them as straight remakes, and possibly disappoint the fans anyways.
It really is a no-win scenario. And while I was fine with BDSP, I do have to admit compared to FRLG, HGSS, ORAS or even Let's Go, it really was lacking overall. So, I'd personally be more than okay if they allowed other companies to do them and just give them a looser leash to be more creative. Allow them to incorporate mainline mechanics even if they might be seen as a little silly, but maybe just include them in the post-game.
Either way much like most things Pokemon despite the popularity of the franchise there is no winning for GameFreak in this scenario.
Re: Reaction: Nintendo's Switch Emulator Fallout Is Shocking Only Because It Took This Long
@Preposterous That was a yikes right there. Yeah, if they were sharing pirated copies with each other to develop Yuzu (especially copies that broke streetdates), then they would not enjoy a discovery process. That and advertising the methods to circumvent Nintendo's copy protection is not going to end well.
This entire scenario could had been avoided for them if they were just a bit more less public with this information.