Zaruboggan

Played this as a kid it's all my cousins, but I won't pretend I ever really came to grips with all the move sets.
Now that I've cut my teeth on SCs 4-6, I'm excited to come back to Link and actually do combos and stuff!

I'm gonna hold off on the Pro Controller. See if the new joycons have legs or have drift. And hope for the best.

Kinda curious how I get on with the soundtrack separate from the rest of the game.

The shooter genre has passed me by :l
I'm counting on the new Battlefield to be the game I want to play, and not another extraction/battle royale/hero shooter. Otherwise I guess I'll have to make do with co-op and single player shooters like Borderlands 4, Doom The Dark Ages and Metroid Prime 4.
Which is a lot of words to say Marathon isn't exactly my cup of tea lol

I feel similarly.
The character picks are delightfully insane and a substantial improvement over Pink Gold Baby Peach and the Koopalings (who are all likely to show up anyway), and the hints we've seen of the world map suggest we'll be touring the tracks to track them down. And we'll get to do so with friends. What's not to be excited about?
Oh, right—the pricing.
I've played every Mario Kart, and I do enjoy them, but my favorites are still DS and DD. The rest have been a matter of course for me. This one is likely to buck that trend.

"Drag X Drive (said as Drag and Drive)"

I hate this from the darkest recesses of my soul.

@rjejr The camera is capable of more than 8FPS; it's just that the Switch 2 prioritizes maintaining the game's performance over the multiple camera video streams. Which, good lol

But it'll definitely be a blast from the dial-up past all the same!

Xenoblade Chronicles X and Avowed again this week. Some Monster Hunter Wilds whose update we still haven't touched, but today should be the day.
That should do it! I'm basically getting nothing until Switch 2 at this point, and who knows if I'll even be able to get that. Of course, I wouldn't mind a chance to go back and play some oldies...

@Hawkes142 Position on the controller, responsiveness, and habit, I guess. It's how CoD used to be by default, back when I played it.
As for R1/R2, that's the PlayStation buttons, where I did most of my shooting. But you are correct that on Switch(2), it'd be R/ZR.

All I know is I like shooting with R1 more than R2.

I don't want ANY roadmap. For 80 bucks, that game better be cooked to completion.

I'll definitely be giving this a listen.
I been thinking, maybe the Kirby one was cut in two because the second half will include the switch 2 stuff?

I, uh, I never tried to lick my cartridge.

Friend Codes aren't perfect, but I'm also never told my user name is taken on Switch. Because they're not taken. You can have a hundred Zaruboggans running around in Splatoon at any time.

Maybe I'm just used to em after all these years. But also I haven't put a friend code into my Switch in half a decade, so...

Sorry to the achievement hunters out there, but my automatic reaction to this news is "good."

The video explanation for no music makes sense. Doesn't mean I don't miss it.

All my joycon are dead, my switch pro controller had to be sent back, and my PS5 controller started drifting hard in the middle of the Edin Ring DLC.
I'm tired of drift.

Kind of a non answer about the drift, but I suppose a loc guy wouldn't be the one to say definitively 'no drift.' I also imagine nobody would be cleared to say 'no drift' because if there's drift, and they've said no drift, that's a problem.

@Spider-Kev Fair shout. I can't imagine the GameCube controller wouldn't support analog controls, but stranger things have happened.

Of course it all depends on the games' and console's ultimate pricing here in the states (grumble grumble...), but I would certainly like to get Mario Kart World and Fast Fusion in launch week, when I'll also be playing F-Zero GX.

(The launch line-up above is missing Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, for the record—a game I will get for $60 on Switch 2, but will skip at anything more.)

I'll be picking up Metroid Prime 4 and Pokemon Z-A, but if the price for these games hits $80 on Switch 2, I'll have to have a long hard think. I preordered MP4 8 years ago for $60, which is crazy to think about. When PS5 and PS4 titles launch at the same price, it's hard to think Switch 2 should be doing anything different.

Kirby Air Riders is a definite (Sakurai is always a lock). I will be getting Donkey Kong Bananza. Age of Imprisonment is...unlikely.

It'll be Xenoblade Chronicles X and Avowed for me this weekend. I started the latter this week and am blown away by how beautiful it is. It's also nicely written and performed relative to the last western RPG I played, so that's been fun! It's lovely to roam around in, but I'd better advance the story and keep up the momentum.
As for XCX, I just finished chapter 5, so next I'm gonna wrap up some of these affinity quests. Gotta get my old team back together!
We'll probably jump in on the Monster Hunter Wilds update, but no promises.

My answer before I took the quiz: No
My answer after taking the quiz: No

It's fun seeing lots of people going for the same wrong answers. Well done, quiz writer!

Launch switch games did sweet things with HD Rumble. By and large, it just wasn't used by the rest of the industry.

Just make it a Real-branded game and suddenly it'll have soul!
(Manga by the author of Slam Dunk and Vagabond)

Looking forward to another console launch with Fast along for the ride!

Nintendo's games look spectacular.
The direct spent way too much time on late 3rd party ports. I came away disappointed with how little we saw of Nintendo's first year first party lineup. But hey, that half hour let me get ready to go to the office.
The real bad news came after the direct (game prices, console price, etc.). Well, the paid tech demo was during the direct, I guess. All that has left me with mixed feelings...
But hey, Gamecube!

Like my cousin said, I like a Nintendo that's losing.

+Path of Radiance, Chibi Robo, Pokemon XD, F-Zero GX are coming to NSO+
-I can't preregister to buy a Switch 2 because I'm on a family plan.

I have a lot of mixed feelings about today's news (only half of which was actually in the direct), because it was such a mixed bag. Mario Kart World looks peerless...but it's $80, a horrifying prospect for the (very near) future of game prices. DK looks fantastic, with an incredible sense of momentum. Air Riders is hypothetically exciting. And Gamecube on NSO+ is definitely sweet.
$450? Okay, sure. It's doing 1080p at 120FPS. The deck has a fan built in. It's capable of 4K on the TV. There's plenty going on under the hood and in the controllers. I can do $450, considering what I paid for my PS5 and how much more I'll be playing this. Am I secretly rooting for it to get a $70 price drop in just a few months a la the 3DS? Absolutely.
I love getting to upgrade my Switch games. $10 is industry standard. $20 for the content-based updates, alright, like DLC. I don't want either of them, anyway. But if Metroid Prime 4 launches at $70 on Switch and $80 on Switch 2, I'll be royally pissed.
Worst-case scenario, the Switch 2 is a Switch Pro with a limited Gamecube library. Best case, Nintendo uses variable pricing to ensure our hobby remains affordable. Because I don't know about you guys, but just because game prices are finally going up doesn't mean my salary is, too.

I just want to know how much, uh, more MP it is than a game like Eldin Ring.
Which I already played entirely in co-op, while being jumped by random people from the internet.
In that way, Souls have always been 'pvpve', but calling it that in marketing is new and concerning.

Damn they couldn't at least make the NSO icon match the rest? Sigh.

I got f***** since I'm on a family plan. TBH, I never thought I WOULDN'T meet Nintendo's criteria for a console preorder preregistration.
Hopefully Best Buy has my back next week. If not, well...I had to wait three Christmases to get my PS5. Let's hope I do better than that.

@SpaceboyScreams Yeah that's an uncomfortable angle to play at for any length of time. Maybe I just have bad wrists.

Yikes.
$80 prices me out of a lot of games. At $80, I wouldn't buy any Mario Sports games anymore. I'd have to skip more experimental purchases. Games we'd get two copies of in my household we'll now only get one, and make do with digital sharing and GameShare.
$80 mostly just means I'll be spending less on gaming.
Will digital games be priced differently? Will the rest of the industry follow suit? Will they bring back Nintendo Selects? The vouchers? Something to make gaming a little more affordable in the long run?

First one's story was butt, but it was fun, looked nice, had great music, and a decently fun co-op.

Absolutely dope game. If you haven't played it, be sure to give it a try on Switch 2! One of my favorites from last year.

I really hope it has gyro aiming.
Sorry, but I'm not set up to play games at a desk, so where exactly am I supposed to put my joycon for mouse controls?
I've tried PC gaming at my TV, and whether the mouse is beside me, on a table in front of me, or on my leg, it's not comfortable.
Anybody with couch+tv mouse setups that work want to share their secret?

"C" for "Cverse," the new Miiverse-like functionality.

Neat. F-Zero music is great.
I wasn't around to complain about the half OST that is the Forbidden Land release, so I'll complain about it now. You've got too many OSTs to be splitting them into pieces!

@Not_Soos I had a similar experience with the original (minus the letter--thanks for doing your part!). Enjoyed the quirkiness of the demo, but ultimately only got like 16 hours out of the full release. Which probably is pretty decent for a handheld title, but I just wanted there to be more to it.
I also had a similar experience with the Sims. I liked building and designing a house, but after that, nothing about the gameplay kept me engaged.
Unfortunately, I can't help you on your hunt for a better life sim!

I'm only like 14 hours in, so I can't score anything. That said, the original is one of my favorite games of all time...so take that as you will!

NA, easy. They're all busy enough you have to activate your brain to focus on any individual set of Miis. NA just has a way better color balance and way better logo.

I remember the PS5 preorders were supposed to go live on a certain date, and they went live like a day before that.
I'd rather take my chances with a Switch 2 shadow drop since I've got three potential retailers within 2 miles of me.

Like most everybody else, Xenoblade Chronicles X DE! I'm about ten hours in, and finally got the necessary treasures to drop to wrap up Lin's affinity quest. It took a while, which meant I was locked out of doing most anything else.
I'm using the same class I used when I played on Wii U (Javelin/Sniper), but trying to change my approach. The Y button has made a real difference!

I also got through Victory Road on my Pokemon Red playthrough on 3DS, so I expect I'll polish off the Elite 4 sometime today!

There might be some multiplayer (Windblown or Monster Hunter Wilds) as well.

Metroid, Pokemon, Rhythm Heaven, and Tomodachi Life for me. I'll be getting the Marvel one for palling around locally, too.

Oh boy Rhythm Heaven!
Some fun stuff but no solid dates for the games I'm interested in. I guess it's just as well, since the first half of this year has been pretty stacked for me.

Yes please!
Unfortunately I won't be able to watch it live, or for another 12 hours after it comes out...but I can be patient!
As long as my colleagues don't spoil it at work...

I somehow got sick...again, so I don't know. I decided to continue my Pokemon Red file during the week and I'm just about to surf down to Cinnabar Island, so maybe I'll continue that while I consider my underachieving immune system.
I have Xenoblade Chronicles X downloaded. But unless this is a miraculously short ill-gotten illness, I'll probably be saving it for next weekend.
Ugh. At least I got to be well for a week of skiing!

Remember what I said about keeping rumors vague and not ruining every surprise (surprising or otherwise) before we get to the direct?
Yeah, keep that in mind. I can just go full 0-Nintendo Life for the next few weeks, but neither of us really want that.

This weekend I will be mostly in a car, doing a twelve hour drive to get to a ski resort. Fortunately, we've got three drivers, so I might be able to get some game time in.
I'll be bringing my switch (Urban Myth Dissolution Center, Pipistrello demo), Steam Deck (maybe Firewatch, maybe some demos), and 3DS (Etrian Odyssey Untold, Pokemon Red), and the three consoles will be sustaining me for the week (when I'm not skiing).
I'm also bringing a Bluetooth keyboard to do some writing, plus The Bladed Faith to do some reading.
Should be a nice vacation!

Edit: I should mention we absolutely polished off Monster Hunter Wilds last weekend. We all finished our crafting goals so now I guess we'll sit on it until the expansion. So much good game throttled by so many questionable decisions, so yeah, it's definitely a MH World sequel.

I bought FFIV so far, and my brother got FFV. We're looking forward to playing through them!
We had them on Gameboy Advance once upon a time. I had gotten about halfway through FFIV before moving on to other things, so I'm excited to catch back up and polish it off.
Mostly, I just want to play them alongside Final Bar Line lol.

XCX! A one-of-a-kind RPG dripping with an atmosphere all its own. In no small part due to that OST. The game constantly surprised me.

The others are cool, too.