Comments 156

Re: Ubisoft Employee Explains Why Star Wars Outlaws Is A Game-Key Card

darylb24

I'm happy with the flexibility that key cards offer in certain instances. The majority of consumers just want to buy the game, play it and then sell it on. They aren't preservationists.

Sony and Microsoft have been doing the licence on a media thing for years. Nintendo just made the mistake of branding it into a buzzword people can get angry over.

A key card was the right call for this game as the quality and performance of the game should take priority over the media format.

Re: "We Answer To Nobody But You, The Audience" - Digital Foundry Is Now Fully Independent

darylb24

Good luck to DF for the future. I got told off by Sammy from Push Square, like last month, because I said IGN/Ziff Davis owned them. He said they were "advertising partners only" and not owned in any way by Ziff Davis/fully independent. Hookshot might have supposed full autonomy now, but they are part-owned, and if the shareholding increases in the future, that could be bad news for us. I think that is a very reasonable concern given how DF openly admitted their content had to be approved by executives. I have noticed a change in the way content has been presented post-pandemic, but I'm choosing to believe it's ZD providing support on how to increase ad revenue via SEO.

Re: Reaction: Switch 2 Needed A Partner Showcase With Pep; This Wasn't It

darylb24

FF7 Remake and Silksong will be announced via Xbox as I previously mentioned. The big stuff people are waiting for will drop in September. Having a Direct in July is something that has been done to get some smaller bits out of the way and drop some 2026 announcements.

The show has some good bits overall and was a solid 7/10 to tide us over for the next 6 weeks or so until the September main Direct.

As Nintendo fans, we have been spoiled rotten, so any kind of downtime is seen as a very big deal.

Re: Poll: Switch 2 Battery Reportedly Lasting Under Two Hours With Mario Kart - How Is Yours Holding Up?

darylb24

I get around 2 hours with Cyberpunk 2077 on handheld, If you want more power, you've got to pay with battery life, as the PC handhelds would demonstrate. I think I could get 3-4 hours if I turned of internet, put brightness below 40% and played a less intensive game.

I can see a unit update with improved battery in a year or 2. I hope there is a software fix for us early adopters.

Re: Retailer Smyths Is Holding A Switch 2 Midnight Launch Across All UK Stores

darylb24

@Captain_Kirk I spoke to the manager at my store, and for in-store pre-orders, the money will be taken at a point on Wednesday, when they receive their stock. It seems like Smyths are keeping the stock at their own warehouses and then shipping it on Wednesday to stop staff breaking the street date. For online home delivery, it will be when the item ships (Guessing that will be early next week too).

Re: GameStop To Offer Additional Switch 2 Units In-Store And Online At Launch

darylb24

I'm quite surprised but the perceived shortage of stock in the US. In the UK, I have been able to comfortably pre-order 2 units and could have pre-ordered a couple more. The UK is one of the largest Nintendo markets, and demand is high. I am guessing the UK must be a priority market for Nintendo based on the % of profit it makes (more than Japan and the US). Even though pre-orders do sell out quickly, we are getting really good restocks, and Nintendo even let me pre-order a unit just for being an NSO member without any other requirements this week.

Despite Nintendo's higher profit margin on the UK units, the £396 price point is very good for a dual-purpose machine. It's also cheaper than both the base PS5 and Series X consoles. I do expect the base console to go up to £430 or even £450 within the next year, though.