farrgazer

There's something new in this video that I've never seen before in an S-Tribute title: a remap option that doesn't swap Saturn buttons. Unlike Cotton Guardian Force (https://www.nintendolife.com/reviews/nintendo-switch/cotton-guardian-force-saturn-tribute).

There's an interesting pattern here.

City Connection has been responsible for bringing Saturn ports of arcade games. So far, they've handled Layer Section+Galactic Attack, Cleopatra Fortune, Elevator Action Returns, Puzzle Bobble compilation, and Metal Black.

Out of those titles, M2 has handled the arcade version of Layer Section (among the Ray'z pack), and Arcade Archives handled the arcade Metal Black as well as at least two of the Puzzle Bobble arcade games.

What's with one group handling the Saturn port of an arcade game, and another group handling the arcade original?

"I mean if you're that good why not go for the record again and shut everyone up?"

@ParadoxFawkes I like this.

Obtain an original cabinet, get a shop to fix it up if need be on camera, and then toss everyone in front of a gazillion cameras. Play.

@Bunkerneath Don't give up all hope. There are shmups with plenty of contrast for easier visual deciphering.

Off the top of my head: Danmaku Unlimited 3, Crimzon Clover, the Ray series (RayCrisis, RayStorm, RayForce).

"Chinese-based"

China-based? Or Chinese?

I lean physical for two reasons:

1. I can resell and cut my losses if I don't like a game.
2. I can share carts with my spouse who also owns a Switch. Great for games with a lot of single player content like Fire Emblem or Final Fantasy.

That sounds more like a standard New Year message than a product announcement...

@IceClimbersMain I borrowed FB1 from a coworker, and bought FB2. My subjective take is that FB2 tweaked FB1's motion processing to be better, or more combo-friendly.

@Sisilly_G I've pretty much decided that this will be the last console I'll ever collect for. I get that DLC is not a new thing anymore, but when even Nintendo is committed to piecemeal releases of content after the supposed main course is unveiled, it's clear that the market is solidly shaped in such a manner. More than ever, games feel like a commodity.

It was interesting to see the results of the survey; almost half of the respondents (as of when I answered) claimed they played shortly after initial release, which means that there are a lot of late 20s+ readers here.

@chefgon I would agree with you in that SOTN is not mysterious like SM. But I would call for a different perspective.

While there are definitely a lot of Super Metroid inspirations and riffs in SOTN, the two games have different approaches to storytelling and atmosphere. SOTN is more in-your-face with all the cutscenes and the vivid backgrounds, music and enemies, but SM goes the other way with the minimalist presentation and judicious use of music. I would go so far to say that SOTN isn't a mystery story, but an adventure story.

I think SOTN has a lot of staying power among fans today (including myself) because of how well a good chunk of it has aged.

@Desrever It's supposed to mean "one o'clock," but written out in Japanese.

The band's name comes out as "ワンオクロック" when written out in Japanese.

If you romanize that, it comes out to "wanokurokku."

Add some spaces for each syllable, and it looks like "wan o ku rok ku."

I find it informative to see how power consumption breaks down, especially as utility costs going up seems to be a global phenomenon. It's going to help me budget my non-essentials going forward.

Have there been other instances of regional box art being done by the same artist or illustrator, but with the artwork being different? The only other titles I can think of are Final Fantasy 4 and 6 for the GBA (FF1&2 have faded Yoshitaka artwork on the US/EU versions while the JP version is just the wording and crystal, and FF5 has identical artwork, but different cropping and sizing).

@Wilforce If you think about it, though, back in the 80s and 90s, the arcade was the more intensive platform to develop for; an arcade game was arguably the AAA target in terms of budget and tech. So another way to see it is that TMNT could be coming full circle.

That said, it's best to just forget this blurb was ever mentioned, and be pleasantly surprised (or disappointed) next year.

For me, LOUD looks like it's gonna be more playable on a controller with symmetric sticks.

One of the first eShop games I bought was Superbeat Xonic and the asymmetric stick location really messed with the flow.

@-wc- I agree, and I'm not even an expert in shmups.

I remember someone saying Ikaruga is like a puzzle in shmup form. I thought that actually made a lot of sense.

@CharlieGirl Well, it's not like all 3DS handhelds will suddenly become unplayable on Judgment Day.

It looks like they're using the Xbox-like shell for all of them, and changing the innards here and there. Which is good for them - simplified tooling.

That said, the wireless Bluetooth one is going to be interesting. Its MSRP is identical to the US MSRP of the Nintendo Pro Controller, and it's down to "NFC, remote wake, HD rumble" or "extra buttons, controller-level remapping, extra controller profiles."

@RadioShadow I am also in the camp that the SNES version of Turtles in Time feels much more polished than the arcade version.

That said, I think (emphasis on think) the arcade one gets the online support because of four-player mode.

I found it interesting that the Genesis version of Tournament Fighters is considered to be lesser, and doing some searching around, apparently it's almost another case of SNES Aladdin vs Genesis Aladdin, though with more similarities than differences.

And fun fact: a good chunk of staff who worked on Radical Rescue went on to work on Symphony of the Night.

@Redax Your reply should be the top answer. Granted, some titles are probably exorbitantly priced at the moment, but we all have our own personal favorites that may not be other people's cup of tea.

Speaking as someone who has limited experience with a GameCube, I'm of two minds about this.

On the one hand, for the most part, I find after years of gaming that for the most part, mixing controller form factors does not severely impact the overall gaming experience if you can remap the controller. With remapping, you're able to find the button layout that fits you best.

On the other hand, the GameCube's ABXY is definitely unique. It's designed to seemingly have your thumb rest on the A, and then move out from there. I don't know - are there games in the GameCube's library that make you press AB, AX, or AY simultaneously?

And looking through the material, I don't think I've seen any mention of how the analog triggers will be handled?

@Wordbonder The eshop being laggy on the Switch is not because of Tegra; that's all on Nintendo. There are plenty of devices equipped with older Tegra SoCs that don't chug so much on the web.

The eshop we access from the Switch is nothing but a webpage, and not a special app, as mentioned here: https://www.reddit.com/r/NintendoSwitch/comments/7ryj0k/you_can_view_the_eshop_on_your_pc/dt14nrm/

I am always interested when I come across these Windows handhelds, but the battery is always the worst weakness. As they stand in 2022, the best use case I could think of for these handhelds would be a bedside gaming device...but that's about it.

@Serpenterror On the one hand, I agree with you. The dock as it stands takes up quite a bit of space considering that you can transplant the innards into a casing the size of two decks of playing cards.

On the other hand, I think I can theorize why Nintendo went with this particular design. The fact that it has physical barriers in the front and back makes it more difficult to unintentionally (and probably intentionally as well) remove the Switch. A phone cradle-style dock doesn’t have the kind of surface area that could keep the switch fully immobile.

@coderkind Came here to say this but you already beat me to it.

Sure, it’s a neat novelty, but my neck hurt watching the video.

@Jhena If you prefer buying cartridges over digital downloads, it's worth keeping in mind that sometimes LRG is responsible for distributing only certain regional versions, and that you can import the same title with English support from Asia or Europe.

Off the top of my head: River City Girls, Blaster Master Trilogy, Treasures of the Aegean.

@bonham2 Amazon is one US store that allows non-US residents to buy US eShop gift cards. There aren't eShops for many parts of the world, after all. So this is a good article for Switch players who live outside regions not directly covered by Nintendo.

@completo88 I can understand that stance, and I can even empathize with it to some extent. I'll admit I might credit-feed some shmups or side-scrollers, but I will take instant fails in rhythm games if/when I can't keep up.

My issue with this article is that @Tom-Massey attempts to speak for everyone. It took some back-and-forth to clarify that he has a strongly-held opinion about credit-feeding, and I have no issue with him having such an opinion, I did and still do take issue at the usage of expressions like "what we want" or "weak-willed" given the nature of this website.

Now, if he were publishing this on a retro-focused website, or a website whose audience strongly holds 1CC to dear, then it'd be a different story. Like I said in the back-and-forth, there are some gamers who consider practicing towards 1CC to be genuinely fun, and there are other gamers who find that frustrating and a waste of time.

@Tom-Massey That's fair. And I do realize again that reviews will be subjective, and I can see how you aim to remain consistent.

Whether you agree with this or not, I still do not think it is right to use subjects like "we" or to imply certain players are "weak." I think there are much better ways to get your point across in that regard.

@Tom-Massey Firstly, I appreciate your willingness to engage with your audience.

I don't agree with your opinion, but that's fine. Your opinion is as valid as mine.

However, there is something to be said about wording. The way you put your stance out there makes it sound very much like it's my-way-or-the-high-way, and even exclusive. It didn't sound like an opinion, but like a prescription, a given. A one-credit-clear is definitely a source of motivation and fun for some players, but for others, it's a waste of time and a source of frustration.

Maybe I'm too sensitive with wording, and maybe I should not have gone off the rocker on a review, especially given that a review is bound to differ from person to person. But even so, when you say something like "What we don’t like is the ability to continue mid-fight," that comes across as highly presumptuous. That's what YOU want, and again, if you want that, that's just fine and dandy.

But you can't possibly speak for other players, whether you know them in person or not. Already, as of my post, there is at least one reader who looks at that as a pro than a con, and a handful more who don't understand why it's a con. Even in this very small sample size, it's clear you don't speak for them all.

I didn't realize NintendoLife had some of the most elitist and gatekeeping writers on staff.

"Unlimited continues totally destroys the experience for the weak-willed"? Whatever happened to actually having fun in a game? Who are you to determine the experience for a player? If you were the developer behind this title to begin with, maybe it would've flown, chalking it up to something like artistic vision or what have you. But that isn't the case.

"The willpower to ignore the continue option quickly becomes the greatest challenge, and failure to do so results in the game’s design principles collapsing entirely. Can you imagine being beaten halfway through a boss fight in a regular Mega Man title, only to hit continue and easily finish them off? It wouldn’t be the same game, and neither is this. That said, with resolve, one can overcome this 'continue' debacle - and in doing so be rewarded with data bonuses to fill all thirty-six slots in the database file."

And what if someone doesn't want to deal with that? Who are you to denigrate people who want an easier experience? You could've just said something like "More granular difficulty options would have been nicer."

@ValZ Now I'm curious. Besides additional languages, what did FF6 Advance EU have that the other regions didn't?

@steventonysmith Are you aware there are games that are PC-exclusive, just like how Nintendo games are exclusive to Nintendo hardware? PC ports selling lesser than console ports is not even the whole picture.

Also, it's much easier to sell at a cheaper price on the PC than it is for consoles. And speaking of cheap, it's also much easier to pirate games on the PC than it is to pirate games for consoles. If prices are higher on a console to begin with, then obviously the $$$ will be higher at the end.

The gaming world isn't limited to the likes of North America, Western Europe and Japan. Sure, that's where most of the money may be coming from, because that's where you have the largest pool of people who can actually AFFORD to buy a console in the first place. Again, consoles are a LUXURY.

I like Pocket Bravery's slowdown combo trainer. That alone has me interested.

@steventonysmith PCs are a necessity for most tasks and far more accessible than consoles all around the world, especially in lower-income countries. Consoles are a luxury good in comparison. You, everyone else in this forum and I easily earn enough money to afford it and a library of games, but that's a big chunk for others.

Maybe mobile gamers might be higher in count at this point.

Wow. Do y'all really need to bash other titles to feel better about your favorite game of choice?

Wait, this is a Bandai Namco game that actually let you take in-game screenshots?

Wow, those exist after all.

@Serpenterror While some hacking is required, the first Genesis Mini is capable of properly running Sega CD games, along with just about everything up to the 16-bit era; the issue was built-in storage.

To find out more (not affiliated): https://hi54.blog/content/an-updated-guide-on-how-to-hack-your-sega-genesis-mega-drive-mini

I did think about preordering, but then I realized that it was an impulse purchase through and through. I picked up the first Genesis Mini and the SNES Mini because those were the consoles I actually had as a kid, or could play regularly when I met extended family members as a kid, so there's nostalgic value. The Genesis / MD 2? Not so much.

Hopefully Analogue will maintain this level of openness for once. Trying to get any kind of info has been like pulling teeth.

It really isn't every day you get to see (or hear) how the hardware can be used for music. After all, the GBA hardly had much in terms of dedicated audio hardware.

So...how do these games get leaked in the first place anyway? Are they review copies?

I am amused at how the co-hosts avoid mentioning any other platform that is not Sony. I get why, but it is still amusing.

I think the Photoshop transparent checkered background is meant to invoke the checkered flag in racing. The only problem is that if you go full-on black, then it clashes with the foreground.

@Anachronism "If we could get a more generic Nintendo rhythm game..."

There were two many, many years ago for the DS developed by Nintendo, called Daigasso: Band Brothers (JP only), followed up Daigasso: Band Brothers DX (JP) / Jam with the Band (EU).

The interesting decision they made though is that at the time, as far as the Japanese versions were concerned, they were more focused on keeping the song list as mainstream as possible, picking classical music, Billboard hits and J-pop hits. Kinda like the track list on some of the later Taiko titles.

@CharlieGirl I feel like these 800lb gorillas take turns putting a fat target on their back.

My impression was that EA was the absolute devil in the 2000s to mid-2010s because it was like they were acquiring and then milking their IPs dry...but some of their more recent actions have been more palatable in comparison. Things like the re-release of Mass Effect and Command and Conquer come to mind.

Finally an urban shot! I hope there's more of it; the old-school Sonic games were great for many reasons, and one is the variety of backgrounds.

The start button is located in a hideous spot. It’s begging to be accidentally pressed more often than not.

@SteamEngenius Either that, or just incorporate all content already. You know, like conventional games.

To think that's becoming a higher bar...

@GrailUK It might not be fully compatible, but because it's USB, you could use it for something like Ace Combat or other arcade-y flight sims on PC or other consoles

Granted, there are more dedicated HOTAS devices...