rdm22

Shocked Europe scored as highly on this poll as it has. Coin flip for me between NA / Japan, with Europe as a distant third.

Would help address the problem of a lack of sword fighters, too. (I kid, this would be very cool.)

Minish Cap - gimme Kinstones!

Definitely will pick this up eventually, but backlog is too overloaded to justify an immediate purchase (to wit: still haven’t worked my way through Crash 2-3 on Switch, or wrath of cortex on Xbox 360). In other words, the question is not if; it’s about [what] time.

3 easy steps, Sega!

Step 1) Invent time machine.
Step 2) Go back to 1994.
Step 3) Do a lot of things differently thereafter (though not everything!) so that you could still be making consoles in 2021.

Finally Beat Zelda II earlier this week on Wii, so I started Minish Cap last night on my DS Lite. Doubling down on retro Capcom with Mega Man 5 on Switch via the collection. Playing the word jumble mini-game you unlock after beating Typoman on Switch. Probably will squeeze in some Yoshi’s Crafted World.

I haven't played a Pokemon game since Yellow (...yeah, I am embarrassed), but this looks great.

@KingMike Thanks for the further info and nice contextually appropriate use of "went on a crusade."

@mezoomozaa I had the same question recently (I'm playing Zelda II at the moment) and came across several web posts noting that Christianity was the intended religion for the Legend of Zelda through a Link to the Past (with crosses appearing in the game, official artwork showing Link kneeling before the crucifix, etc.).

Thanks for this, had somehow missed Iconoclasts.

I’ve had Splatoon 2 since launch and still have only dipped my toe into it. Seems great, but I don’t online game. I have enjoyed the bit of the single player / expansion I’ve done, though. And the gameplay / world design is brilliant. Really should give it more of a go.

This headline is literally speaking true — Skyward Sword is good — but that’s the problem — it’s just good.

For a franchise where the bar is elevated so absurdly high and each game feels like a monumental event, it was (and remains) a disappointment.

Skyward Sword is hugely disappointing — just lazy to re-release essentially the same game as was used for the 25th anniversary (and while I know it is oddly popular, I find it to be the weakest mainline modern Zelda).

But Mario Golf looks AMAZING and NMH3 is also really promising.

So on the whole, I’m happy, although Zelda is my favorite franchise in video games so I was certainly hoping for a bigger announcement in that respect.

I am a rabid Zelda fan, but this is easily my least favorite that I’ve played. Too bad.

I love without qualification every MarioGolf game. I am so excited.

@DockEllisD Same. Immediately garnered my vote and instilled me with untold jealousy (though I love me my Jet Black GC).

I want a chaotix release on Switch so badly.

Would love to see an NL review so I can decide whether to pick this up (truth be told, it’s probably just a question of immediately versus down the road).

Huge gut blow. They did fantastic work on that Crash remaster

YEEESSSSSS very excited for this, as I don't have this title on any other system. Great Friday news.

Garou 2 is one of those "shut up and take my money" sort of games that nonetheless never seems to happen.

No love for my beloved Brighton and Hove Albion Seagulls, Fortnite? Must have been an oversight.

Shocked Europe isn’t running away with this. I didn’t think this one was gonna be close. Guess I have strange taste!

God I loved this game. Just played it last year. Lives (as it were) up to the hype.

Hollow Knight, Undertale, Yoshi’s Crafted World, and First Tree on Switch. Banko-Kazooie: Grunty’s Revenge on DS Lite (which I basically use as a backlit GBA).

The mario ones look like the Super Mario Brothers Super show animations, Luigi especially.

Agree with all the above. I’d add that I’d love for some of the excellent Capcom cross-over fighters to make the jump — I have Capcom v. SNK 2 EO on GameCube, but would definitely Re-buy. And would leap headlong into some Capcom vs. Marvel or Tatsunoko vs. Capcom action.

@gaga64 This perfectly describes my self-imposed conundrum. Particularly because there's zero chance that I will not continue buying games.

This is very cool chart. I would also be interested to see a visualization that showed Nintendo's market share over time. Of course, that chart would be far more interesting (and sobering, for Nintendo fans) if it went back to the halcyon Famicom / NES days when there was no other game in town (well, unless you were in Japan circa 1987 and enjoying them sweet, sweet PC Engine vibes).

Ori and the Blind Forest, Undertale, Megaman 2.

@Alpha008 Astute point. I can think of many examples to corroborate your observation.

I agree with it not being on this list, but Journey of a Broken Circle was a charming little release with a killer soundtrack and visual style. And if memory serves, I picked it up for free. So that might be my personal favorite, but I also (somehow) have yet to play any titles on this list (despite owning a few of them).

@damien33ad Oof I feel your pain. It's a glaring omission from the Switch Online library.

“Super Meat Boy Forever (Team Meat, 1st Jan, $0.00)“ — well, at that price....

@Clyde_Radcliffe Not in recent memory, alas. But maybe over the holidays people will get nostalgic and fire up their 3DSes?

“[A]nd while the StreetPass functionality was left intact, you'd be pretty hard-pushed to walk by strangers in the street who still carry their 3DS around.”

I guess I’m among a dying (or already dead and buried) breed, then.

I would instantly buy a BK game on Switch—though I suspect it would only land there after a stint as an Xbox / PC exclusive given Microsoft’s ownership.

In the meantime, Yooka-Laylee is giving me those BK feels!

I have spent hours on mini metro—both before and after it came to Switch—and yer Switch version is the best. Love the touch screen controls and challenges. Huge recommend.

I think part of what has enabled Nintendo to succeed through the decades is that even its family-friendly titles hold much broader appeal. They accomplish this in several ways, the most tried-and-true method is just making the core gameplay fun as hell (who doesn't like swinging Link's sword, stomping a goompa, or blasting a foe with a perfectly timed green shell?) encased within captivating gaming worlds (I can close my eyes and still see OoT's Hyrule Field as I emerged onto it for the first time).

While back in the day they also ramped up the difficulty curve by mid-to-end game to the point that only the more determined 6 year-olds were going to prevail, I think nowadays Nintendo cleverly builds ample challenge into the heart of its less "kiddie" titles (think BotW), while with others ensuring that 100%ing requires overcoming some steep challenges if you are an adult / precocious young completionist (e.g., the Mummy-Me Maze Forever challenge in the decidedly family-friendly (but nonetheless addictive, clever, and charming as all get-up) Captain Toad). That way, kids get the joy of "beating" a game, while there are still plenty of challenges in the works for adults.

Or, as has been mentioned above, games like Smash (or Kart, Splatoon, etc.) allow older players to hone their skill levels to finely crafted arts and duke it out online / while sitting on the couch next to friends (...when it's not a pandemic).

Point is that while some titles really do cater to younger audiences without offering much by way of difficulty to older players, a) I don't think that's a problem — kids deserve games, too; b) some of these "easy" games are still fun for grown-ups — like certain Yoshi and Kirby titles; and c) most of the AAA Nintendo titles deftly strike a balance that genuinely appeals to "all ages."

Awesome! I'm actually playing this on my N64 now — an underrated hidden gem of a game!

Just 100%ed Fez last night — never played a game quite like that, real shame it hasn’t been ported to Switch. Not sure what’s up next for the weekend — maybe some Worms WMD campaigns, some Ori (love the Switch port), or Yoshi’s Crafted World.

What a shadow drag....Also, good one @Lordplops.

(I still am extremely excited for this, by the way.)

Nice Arthur Brown reference in the subtitle, too!!! What a great psychedelic rock deep cut.

The terrible game is almost worth it for the masterful “Elliot Mess” pun. That’s good stuff.

Dōmo arigatō, Gato Roboto!

Finally picked up the remastered Spyro trilogy. Solid Cyber Monday acquisition.

Thank you for the heads-up, NL. I already had (and enjoyed) One Strike from a prior free game deal, so this was a lovely little surprise.

Very exciting. Somehow missed out on these via Wii Ware. I will definitely be taking the plunge.

@Radima I made the same mistake as a kid! I ended up beating a friend's copy of the game, but I only picked up my own copy of Tooie recently (via Xbox 360 download).

Just rebought this game on my Xbox 360 (yes, I still buy games on that workhorse). This inspires me to fire it up. Been several years since I’ve played Banjo-Tooie.