jtmnm

One could argue this explains why the later entries' depth has been ... paper-thin. 😎

It's been a while since Nintendo threw a bone to us older fans. I learned to never trust in rumors after the SSBU Grinch Leak, but I hope we'll see a new F-Zero soon, regardless. Bring on Star Fox, Earthbound, and Metroid while you're at it, too, Nintendo!

@Maulbert What does any of that have to do with the comparison? You're deliberately overcomplicating it to justify your avoidance. This is beginning to feel bad faith.

The comparison is very simple. I took two RPG series. One made a departure from being a core RPG, and I posited a scenario where another did the same thing and asked how you would respond. You then argue I'm strawmanning you, and, to defend this, you state Paper Mario is a sub-series, so it doesn't matter what happens to it—because Mario, franchise pedigree, and so on.

For the sake of argument based on the assumption you are, in fact, operating in good faith, I'll revise the comparison once again to square this hole you made and propose a hypothetical.

Sonic Chronicles: The Dark Brotherhood is a core RPG based on the Sonic the Hedgehog series. Sonic is traditionally a platformer, but the series is home to a variety of genres ... just like Mario. Here's the hypothetical: Let's say SEGA announces they're collaborating with BioWare to produce a follow-up. Fans of Dark Brotherhood ignite in online spaces and anticipate only the best from this long-awaited sequel. Despite this, marketing surrounding the game is fairly scarce, and, when it finally releases, it's confirmed to be more of a traditional Sonic game than its predecessor. This new entry is a fine game in its own right, but fans of the previous title are making their grievances known.

Now—would you continue to be dismissive of these fans; telling them to get off their collective high horse, that they're hating, that the series they like so much is a only sub-series and doesn't matter, etc.?

@Maulbert Explain how I'm strawmanning you for the class, please.

@Maulbert You're conflating Mario as a whole with a series that was originally established to be an RPG. Great job on avoiding the question, though.

Here, I'll rephrase it to meet your obtuse rebuttal: Would you be saying the same thing if Fire Emblem, an RPG aimed at a core gamer demographic, dropped its established formula in favor of reinventing itself as a platformer ... with minor RPG elements?

@Maulbert Would you be saying the same thing if Intelligent Systems took Fire Emblem and turned it into a platformer?

@Luffymcduck You're, of course, entitled to your opinion. In fact, I'm jealous of you. For me, the gameplay change was too drastic to reconcile. I just couldn't get into it.

My first RPG was Super Mario RPG on the SNES. It's a game largely responsible for carving out my tastes in gaming. As the article mentions, Paper Mario was originally a follow-up to this classic. Despite not knowing this at the time, it was something I felt in its game design: the self-involved world, silly humor, cultural commentary—qualities that gave life to a believable Mario universe in a lighthearted and engaging fashion.

When TTYD dropped, I screamed like a schoolgirl upon first playing it. I immediately recognized the changes to the combat. They were so fresh and satisfying. I remember the eager desire I had to learn everything I could about the new wacky companions accompanying you this time around. There was Goombella, the witty university student; Koops, the timid Koopa hellbent on avenging the death of his father; a wind spirit, a Yoshi, a villain-turned-hero, and more.

Then there was Admiral Bobbery, the forlorn naval ship captain. He was a sailor whose love for the sea was only matched by the love he had for his woman, Scarlette. Every time he was shipped off, she loyally awaited his return. One day, she grew devastatingly ill while Bobbery was out at sea, and, when he returned, she was dead. Bobbery, unable to cope with the reality of her passing, receded into hiding. This particular segment is notably memorable because the player is forced to spend a somewhat frustrating time tracking him down, but it's easy to see why this was done.

These moving narratives complimented by a compelling and entertaining gameplay loop made the series for me. Some years later, Super Paper Mario dropped. As expected, I hotly anticipated the latest Paper Mario adventure. This was during a time before game boards were as sexy as they are now, mind you. I went in blind, and disappointment washed over me like a tsunami. This was no longer the Mario RPG I came to love.

As @MajinSoul so eloquently put, this was the turning point. Everyone refers to Sticker Star as "the one that changed everything", but it all began with Super Paper Mario taking the coveted RPG experience and nerfing it into oblivion; leaving what's better described as a standard-fare Mario game ... but with storytelling and hit points.

I haven't returned to the series since. I didn't leave Paper Mario. It left me, and that's what a lot of these newer fans don't seem to understand. The shift in the core gameplay dynamic was so radical it was disorienting. I could hardly believe this was Paper Mario now, and that same sentiment can be used to sticker, paint, or throw confetti over the rest of the later entries.

With The Origami King painfully confirming there won't ever be a return to what originally brought me to love the series, I can move on, at least and fondly remember Paper Mario for what it once was.

Unbelievably stupid.

@the_beaver A language barrier can definitely make things confusing. I'm happy for you, regardless, and I genuinely hope you get the most out of The Origami King.

To add a little bit of context to my post, I looked to Paper Mario's latest outing to confirm one thing: whether or not the hallmark Mario RPG is, in fact, dead, and it looks like it is. With Alpha Dream gone and the Mario & Luigi series along with it, it doesn't look like we'll be getting another Mario RPG anytime soon. Affirming that acknowledgement is the point I tried to make.

@the_beaver You're restating something at me I included in my post. Read a little further next time.

As for the second part of your comment, it disagrees with the Review Round Up NL published not too long ago. The overall consensus seems to acknowledge it's a good game with a [synonymous descriptor for "bad"] battle system.

@Samuel-Flutter If players can rationalize forcing themselves through less than desirable game mechanics for the sake of enjoying the overall experience, more power to them. I'll be quick to admit I'm not one of them.

An 8/10 seems generous if a central gameplay element like combat is admitted to be "a slog" and "an unnecessary gimmick". It seems too significant of a flaw to paint (or throw confetti) over.

Here's an example of what I mean: Let's say I chart out a walk in a given city. This walk includes a variety of wonderful things to observe along the way, but it takes you through a crime-addled area where the pavement is either missing or uneven. Although this segment may be surrounded by more pleasant features, does it make sense to call this a "great" walk?

From an outsider's perspective, as I will not be buying this game, the puzzle system seems like it would be an entertaining gimmick if limited to a single boss battle or, more broadly, a dungeon, at most. Stretching it across the entire game just sounds frustrating. Given battling irrefutably makes up a large portion of the game and is one even biased sources like Nintendo Life admit is best avoided, Paper Mario: The Origami King comes as an easy pass.

I shared more conclusive thoughts on Paper Mario: The Origami King and the series as a whole in the last PM-centric article NL published. I'm going to include it here to close out, as I see more people agreeing with the overall theme of the post:

With most (if not all) of the RPG aspects convincingly and permanently gutted from a series that was once called Mario RPG 2, there's some solace to be found in finally leaving it behind rather than hoping for a return to the glory days. 2020 brought us RPG fans many joys through heavy hitters like Trials of Mana, Final Fantasy 7R, and Xenoblade Chronicles: DE, but, regrettably, Paper Mario won't be joining them. To echo the sentiment from a certain headline, Paper Mario: The Origami King doesn't want to replicate the games of the past. The series has long since moved on from its RPG roots, and internalizing this clarification is important. The best we older fans can hope for are ports of the first two games, it seems, and that's okay ... assuming Nintendo eventually delivers.

Dragon's Dogma is one of my favorite games. I don't know if I'll watch this, but if it helps bring another Dragon's Dogma game, I'm all for it.

With most (if not all) of the RPG aspects convincingly and permanently gutted from a series that was once called Mario RPG 2, there's some solace to be found in finally leaving it behind rather than hoping for a return to the glory days. 2020 brought us RPG fans many joys through heavy hitters like Trials of Mana, Final Fantasy 7R, and Xenoblade Chronicles: DE, but, regrettably, Paper Mario won't be joining them. To echo the sentiment from a certain headline, Paper Mario: The Origami King doesn't want to replicate the games of the past. The series has long since moved on from its RPG roots, and internalizing this clarification is important. The best we older fans can hope for are ports of the first two games, it seems, and that's okay ... assuming Nintendo eventually delivers.

Ys Origin is an absolute blast. It features fast-paced gameplay and monster-slaying set to incredible music. On a personal note, it's probably my favorite out of the bunch that use the old engine. If you can appreciate hectic ARPGs, get this game!

Forgive me, but I can't help but chuckle to myself while recalling all the aggressively ignorant members of this community who've been averse to acknowledging the dreaded drift even exists. It took a while, but here we have the Nintendo President making a public apology over the very thing! Every user on here who has repeatedly insisted this isn't a manufacturing issue and pushed the blame on the consumer has egg all over their face. Y'all are dumb!

Adol for Smash?

I'm thrilled to see Ys 9 finally dated. Seeing a Switch port is a surprising bonus, although I hope it'll be handled better than the Ys VIII port! Assuming it will be, I may even double-dip!

@Apportal_SMM2 Ys is closer to to a hack n' slash than a JRPG, but it definitely has JRPG elements. You'll mostly be spending your time cutting down enemies to an awesome soundtrack.

Bring over Rockman Battle & Fighters while you're at it!

I'm worried about fighting this character online. Can't help but feel nervous about all the laggy Min Min mains attacking you from across the stage!

S&S fans don't seem to be having an easy time. Let Monolith Soft develop a Pokemon game, and watch how much easier it becomes to defend. Unironically, this would be ideal—for me, at least.

I avoided buying S&S because nothing really interested me there, but I plan to pick them up on sale somewhere down the line. They're strictly going to be games I buy for the sole purpose of adding them to my collection. That said, it's likely New Pokémon Snap will be my second Pokémon game on the Switch. I would've called it my first, but I completely forgot about Pokken. I'll undoubtedly get more time out of New Pokémon Snap than I did with Pokken. New Pokémon Snap has about 2 decades of anticipation behind it. Can't wait!

This has been an excellent year for JRPG fans. We're seeing remakes of either the best or some of the best JRPGs across a variety of console generations: Trials of Mana, FF7R, and (now) Xenoblade Chronicles. Honestly, I can't remember a better year for JRPG fans. After years of subpar releases alongside the occasional banger, seeing this amount of quality releases within the window of one year is an unexpected showing from the modern gaming scene; how I interpret it, at least. It's wild.

I'm really liking the more normie-looking Shulk outfit. Xenoblade's (series) anime aesthetic can be overbearing at times, though it wasn't nearly as bad in XC as it was in XC2.

This is it. This is the update. Beyond the rotation/input delay overhaul, they're adding gyro aim. Compared to that, everything else is supplemental. I need a date!

@Ardisan Is that so? An ARMS inclusion is starting to make more sense now. I'll admit I never even tried it, but Nintendo's efforts to boost the series may change my mind.

I was always under the impression ARMS performed below expectations. Is ARMS 2 around the corner? Regardless, it goes without saying the extendo-arm fighting style sounds like it'll be a blast to play! They might even be OP! New top-tier character confirmed!!!

Mega Man Legends Collection (with bonus unreleased MML3 prototype demo) when?

@ThanosReXXX Thanks for the correction. I wasn't aware the X1 brought along policy changes. My last Xbox was the 360.

Finally! AC fans have been starved for what seems like years now. Good for them.

When is the general Direct, though? 😏

Although a few paragraphs were dedicated to praising the competing services' game offerings, a more honest interpretation would've spent time highlighting how their monthly games go beyond "access" and into "ownership". I don't know (or care) what the policy surrounding Tetris 99 is, but those NES and SNES games are gone with your subscription. This is true for PSN, as well, but all Games With Gold redeemed are yours to keep regardless of your subscription status (except current-gen releases, as ThanosReXXX kindly pointed out).

It's also interesting how the infamous NSO app was a footnote. You'd think NSO's premier form of communication would get more than that in an article aiming to compare the services in their entireties. It's borderline dishonest to avoid comparing and contrasting the clearly superior social aspects of both competing platforms.

NSO, as it currently stands, is the least competent and most incomplete online service in the game right now. Obviously, I'd like that to change, but it remains a question if it actually will. We're well on our way to the Switch's third year, and the service amounts to meeting the bare minimum of taking your games online and some minor retro offerings you can play in your web browser for free—which reminds me! The Switch still doesn't have a web browser when literally everything else does, including the Wii U and 3DS. What gives, Nintendo?!

I'm almost 30, and I love my Switch. I play it almost every day, and its portability makes it easy to do so. NSO, however, sucks. To suggest it needs improvement would be an understatement. With the app alone, anything short of a complete restructuring would be a half-measure. It's forever puzzling to me how we're paying for a service that was once free and more robust on Nintendo's previous consoles. (Virtual Console deserves an honorable mention.)

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: While I'm skeptical of Nintendo's new direction in embracing some of the gaming industry's more modern practices, I'd happily pay a higher price per month for a more satisfying online experience. NSO is just too lacking of a service to justify its own existence.

I forgot this was on the way, to be honest. I'll double-dip if there's a Steam port on the horizon!

I have a couple friends who hold this game in high regard and are eager to get a party going online. I was already sold after hearing its soundtrack! I wouldn't mind a new trailer or showcase, though. A Direct would be a perfect opportunity to do that.

Where the ♡♪!? is SMRPG?!

This is one of my most anticipated releases of the year. Trials of Mana was a masterpiece on the SNES. From the looks of the remake, it's looking like it transitioned faithfully to the modern era.

I already bought this on Steam, but I may double-dip for the Switch port. I'll need to try out the demo and see how well it's optimized.

I bought a new phone and didn't care to reinstall the NSO app. With how wildly successful and impressive the Switch's life has been, it's easy to forget how spectacularly Nintendo botched nearly every aspect of NSO. I'm averse to Nintendo's newly adopted paid subscription model, but if they need to increase NSO fees in order to provide a more competent service, make it happen. This sucks.

Season 3 is really starting with a bang! Just the changes to assists alone will make DBFZ play like a new game.

Kefla and UI Goku look great. There are so many more characters I'd like to see added. Roshi currently sits at the top of my list, but I'd also welcome a more unusual choice, like Chi-Chi.

Kingdom Heartbreak.

I've been speculating for some time (at least partially) the reasoning behind Bayonetta 3's secrecy is because they're planning a multi-platform release. This is odd, though, because the entirety of its promotion has been aimed at the Switch market.

Writing strictly as someone who was introduced to Bayonetta through Smash Bros, it's puzzling why Nintendo never attempted to claim the Bayonetta IP after funding Bayonetta 2 and saving the franchise from obscurity. In my eyes, Bayonetta is a Nintendo IP, but I also play a lot of Smash Bros. Perhaps my opinion here is negligible.

Look how they massacred my boy.

Believing this uncritically because this would be otherwise acceptable PR:

"Hi, I'm your local Nintendo representative! It would be wise to avoid purchasing a Nintendo Switch until the holiday season. We are releasing a new model, and we wouldn't want consumers making uninformed purchases since a superior one is due to release soon!"

"My Skateboard Will Go On" used to be my jam. Glad these guys are still at it.

I'm here for it, but Dragonborn might be a better fit as a Bethesda rep. Maybe I'm biased because I think Fus Ro Dah'ing Mario into the blast zone sounds hilariously awesome.

The only characters I really want to see now are Geno, Sora, and Rex. Maybe Elma, too. Xenoblade is woefully underrepresented.

The hope for Geno (coupled with likely inevitable disappointment) ... lives on!!!

It's unfortunate this harms the likelihood for a general Direct this month. I'm hungry for some Nintendo announcements. I love Smash, though; to the extent where I play it almost every day. I wonder if the presentation will be limited to the new character reveal or if there are some new modes planned. We may even get a peek into next season's DLC.

@Toy_Link I agree to an extent, though I think the broader expectation is more in line with being able to play BotW with a locked 60fps and stable resolution.

I think the Switch puts Nintendo in the strongest position to argue a Switch is all you need today. The third-party support has been through the roof! Despite owning multiple systems, I still spend quite a bit of time mine.

I run Switch, PC, and PS4. My PS4 hasn't seen the light of day for a while. It's been boxed since I moved months ago, and I haven't really been compelled to take it out. The KH3 DLC might do it!

I also have the NES and SNES Classics sitting on one of my shelves, if those count. I hacked my SNES Classic with the ROM injector and played it a ton around the time it came out. It's been mostly a decoration since, though.

Well, this is certainly one way to spin cutting content and bait some key users on here! I'll bite. I generally avoided the Pokemon discourse because I didn't have much stake in it, but this is too silly to pass up (and I have some free time).

To preface: I wouldn't consider myself a Pokemon fan these days. I am a Red and Blue veteran well into adulthood now; an OG, if you will. That said, I was still excited to see what Pokemon had to offer after falling out of the series for nearly one decade. The transition to console also brought additional excitement and speculation.

And here comes the part everyone saw coming! As the games began to be unveiled and discussed, they started to look less and less—excuse the pun—evolved. After release, "more of the same" seems to be the core criticism. The harsher variant of this is "less of the same" if you account for things like cut Pokemon and other missing features/mechanics longtime fans make note of. That's all without mentioning Sword and Shield look far too similar to their 3DS counterparts for Switch games.

These are problems, and the extent at which we see Sword and Shield criticism brushed off is stunning. These criticisms are ample and valid. To dismiss critics voicing their concerns as raging fanatics and whatever else is divorced from reality. Pokemon is an absolute behemoth of a media franchise; the biggest, in fact. It will survive having its games criticized. Rest assured, eWarriors, you are safe to lay down your arms.

As an anecdotal closer, I mentioned I fell out of the series around one decade ago. On learning about the inevitable Switch Pokemon releases, I was genuinely filled with excitement. I was hoping to return to Pokemon after intergenerational absence with fresh eyes and a newly invigorated appreciation. That didn't happen, because my expectations were met with some pretty significant disappointment. Of course, my disappointment is limited to just that. I can manage just fine without my ideal Pokemon game, and Pokemon will undoubtedly survive without my business. To see NL put out the occasional "Why S&S's Lackluster Content is Good, Actually" article, though—as I opened with—is silly.

I prefer simplicity when it comes to UIs. It is lacking in the features department, though. Some organizational methods would be greatly appreciated. Themes are also curiously absent. The eShop, on the other hand, could use a complete overhaul; one that includes lagless browsing and a catchy tune.

It's strange to see DQXIS so low on this list. It's a beautiful and robust game whose features are significantly greater than its original PS4 release.

Overwatch is a strange omission, too. Switcher deserves all the praise in the world, but I have a hard time seeing why some games made it to this list while others didn't. Different strokes, I guess!

@Ichiyama Definitely get the Switch port. It's the better release by a wide margin, and with the amount of additional content, you'll regret not doing so.

I have mixed feelings about this. On one hand, it's nice to see Nintendo supporting one of its most popular IPs consistently and generously. On the other, it's a phone game.

Meanwhile, the Switch has yet to receive its very own Mario Kart title. We're approaching 3 years into the Switch's lifespan, and we have a Wii U port. This is especially puzzling when you consider Nintendo developed a Mario Kart for each console and handheld since the SNES. It's even on phones! Why is the console responsible for putting Nintendo back on the map after a generation of failure left with a port? Curious stuff.