Seems fair enough, this system. You can play your games at all times on your main system (Switch 2 I believe) as long as you're connected to the internet (which shouldn't be a problem for me as I always play at home) and then you can play them on your second system as well as long as the Virtual Game Card(s) are inserted in that system (and on your main system without access to the internet as long as the Virtual Game Card is inserted to that one instead). A game can't be played on both systems at the same time hence the need for an internet check on the main system.
Edit: you can't be on-line on both systems playing the same game (if it makes sense).
I haven't pre-ordered the Switch 2 yet, but I would like Nintendo to produce (and market of course) a special left Joy-con edition with an actual D-pad on it for us (casual?) handheld fighting games (and arcade and 2D games too) "aficionados".
I would gladly pay up to 60€ for it and pre-order it in an instant (just to make sure I got it). Please let it happen!
Whether I'll keep my Switch Lite when I upgrade (either to a - possible - Switch 2 Lite or a regular Switch 2 - if I can't wait for the former) very much comes down to how the tranferring of digital libraries from Switch (1) to Switch 2 is done.
Is it all games at once? (in which case I'll have no real use for my Switch Lite anymore, as 98% of my library is digital). Or will I be able to keep some games on the old system and only transfer select games to the new one? (OG Resident 4 for example, I would prefer to play on my Switch Lite as the textures look too "rough" on a bigger screen - like on the Steam Deck for example).
Then there's the issue with Switch 2 not having a proper D-pad, as I play quite a lot of games these days that plays best with a D-pad (2D fighting games, arcade games and 2D games in general). Of course there'll be Hori Joy-cons with proper D-pad available down the line (one genre that will play better on the Switch 2's large screen is vertical shmups though).
But we do need a lot more information from Nintendo imo.
On topic, I think it's fair to get 50% of "new" prices for your old hardware as long they are not too "picky" with the condition of it (no scratches on the screen and elsewhere plus being fully functional is of course a given though imo).
I hope they reboot the series with IX as none of the RE Engine games has blown me away.
Village was a step in the right direction because at least the action was good (it felt kind of disjointed though, trying to be too many things at once).
4 was solid and the Ada DLC was actually better than the original one imo, and has a good chance of being ported to Switch 2 (the original was an exclusive to Gamecube after all - for 9 month at least).
Here in Denmark its available for pre-order at 8 different on-line retailers (half of them have physical shops nationwide too). All according to Pricerunner.dk (a price comparison site).
What baffles me most though is that the price seems to slowly go down. Not by much yet (about 7 €) but still.. (bookmarked the page - could be fun to follow ).
Now I'm getting a bit tempted.. Too bad that it's only Street Fighter 6 Years 1 and 2 I'm interested and Switch 2 has no proper D-pad (and I'm not really interested in that game at the current price tag - I play casually and off-line only.. plus I play handheld only too).
But what can you do? I'm addicted to playing fun videogames, and it's fun to get new hardware (but still it's getting a bit to much imo - but we'll see what the future brings, I guess).
This would never have happened if physical lovers ("let's get physical, physical") had been willing to pay the real price difference between a physical and a digital copy years ago (at least 70$/€, when you consider the cost of manufacturing, distribution and retailer cut).
To those who want it on Switch 2 I can say that right now it's available and Verified (running well) on Steam Deck, so there should be a good chance it will run well on Switch 2 too .
@CammyUnofficial Fighting Collection (1) and the Marvel Vs. Capcom Collection both had a "0 star" difficulty below the normal 1 to 8 stars difficulties added (among other QoL features). To be honest it makes the games ridiculously easy (it's almost impossible not to beat them using this difficulty).
But yeah, as soon you go up to 1 star difficulty it becomes quite challenging to get anywhere in all the games.
People can charge whatever they want for their possesions as long as they bow to rules on Ebay imo. Trying to fight that is a bit like Don Quixote fighting windmills.
From whay I personally have enjoyed the most, I will say the 3DS line-up; Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition is one of my favorite games of all time; Splinter Cell and Asphalt 3D, while neither technically perfect, I had a good time with; Ridge Racer 3D was a solid entry in the series; Rayman 3D I actually had some good fun with; and lastly PES 2011, while barebones, played nicely for casual player like me.
(I didn't full price for any of these games which probably affect my opnions about them)
The price is ok imo (at least the UK one being around 35% more than the OG Switch - don't know about the rest of Europe etc.). At least when you consider inflation and the fact that you getter a much bigger screen and much improved Joy-cons (electromagnetic attachment, mouse function - and maybe those HAL sticks?).
My main concern is how Nintendo will handle backwards compability now that not all games seems to be working perfectly, (and even some not at all).
Nintendo will probably address this over time (hopefully). But then there's how the transition from having games on your Switch (1) to having them on Switch 2, is handled.
Will you have to move your entire Switch (1) library at once to the Switch 2 (with the risk of some games not working)? Or can you choose which games to move and which not to move? That's an important question (to me at least).
Maybe Ridge Racer 2 (if not too expensive), Street Fighter 6 Years 1+2 (deeply discounted - only interested in offline Arcade mode) and a month (or 2) subscription to NSO with expansion pack for Soul Calibur 2 mainly (plus catching up on the rest of the library).
But not going to lie; I'll probably wait for a Switch 2 Lite (with a proper D-pad), because it will be cheaper (and I have no use for the dock, detachable Joy-cons etc.) AND I'd prefer a smaller form factor/screen too.
Not great imho. It reminds me of my Steam Deck, where you can't be 100% sure all games work. It leads to frustration in my experience (plus you'll have figure out what works and what doesn't - never great having uncertaincy - a bummer imho).
Now that the Switch Skyrim remaster seems to have been successful, maybe the rumoured Oblivion remake will be announced for Switch 2, with a november release date for the Switch 2 version (and Xbox, PC - and maybe PS5 - versions being released earlier).
The Vita game was fun for 10 hours (got for 8 € I think), even for me who are not into sports. So I'd say it's a welcome addition to the Switch library.
I still wonder how the transition of my digital library on my Switch Lite to the Switch 2 (highly probably a Switch 2 Lite in my case) will work. Lending some of my Switch (1) library to the Switch 2 for 2 weeks is not going to work for me, I'm sure (will be way to fiddly constantly "renewing" my "loans").
I have thought of "jail breaking" my Switch Lite when I (hopefully) get my Switch 2 Lite and use it solely as a Sinclair ZX Spectrum emulator if possible (the Fuse emulator on PSP IS great - just too bad the screen is very small - for some games at least it can be very hard to see small bullets because of the games's often rather monochrome nature).
Looks interesting, and I'm on a bit of a point and click adventures stride atm having just bought/re-bought the 3 first Secret Files games a few days ago. Will be watching this for sure.
@Bydlak Yeah. Have you played the ZX Spectrum port of Space Harrier (also by Elite Systems), coded by yhe aforementioned Keith Burkhill (Commando etc.) with it's "chequerboard" surface/background? If you have and have a bit of understanding of how much data you have to "move" from one area of the memory to have that "chequerboard" AND have the game's graphics running on top of that, and that even with pseudo 3D/sprite scaling (ok, I don't think there's actual sprite scaling going on - that would be too crazy - just lots of predefined sprites in different "sizes" probably).
Keith Burkhill was known in the industry as being probably the most technically accomplished ZX Spectrum coder (when it was about getting as much "juice" out of the processor at least - Mike Singleton was extremely technically advanced too - but on another level).
Keith apparentlty even used "racing down the beam" (the old Catode Ray Televisions were entirely analog, projection each pixel in quick succession to the screen every 50th of second (PAL TV versions)) techniques known from the Atari VCS/2600, that didn't even have a screen memory.
These old home computer had something called Borders around the main area of the screen where the "action" took place so to speak. And the idea with "racing down the beam" is using the time where the beam is not doing anything, because it's in the Border "area", to actually execute code in between the lines being "drawn" in the main ("action") area. Simply to get as much "juice" out of the processor as possible.
Yeah, it's extremely difficult to get the timings correct, but they did get it right on the Atari VCS/2600 (out of neccesity), so why not ;-.
@Bydlak None of the ZX Spectrum versions of the games I mentioned had any music though. They were all released around 1985-87 when the 128K Spectrum (with the added AY 891X sound chip) barely had released. The C64 and Amstrad CPC versions probably had music, but Bomb Jack and Paperboy for example weren't very good on the C64 (or the Amstrad CPC?).
Elite Systems (the Wilcox brothers), I heard, more or less bet all their money on the licensing contract for Commando (their first Arcade conversion, I believe) in late 1985.
They had Nigel Alderton (of Chuckie Egg fame) and Keith Burkhill doing the coding in a very short time (to be able to release it before Christmas). They each got £10.000 for the effort, but then had to work almost around the clock (sleeping a few hours on the office floor a day - talk about crunching!).
They even had clause in their contract reducing their salary for each day they were late. They did end up getting a few days late, but the Wilcox's were so happy with their effort, that they didn't use the clause in end (graphics were done by Karen Trueman and Rory Green).
Yeah, the British computer industry was just as crazy as the Japanese (or the American).
I hope it's co-published by good old Elite Systems (which published and developed the original game). Elite Systems was probably the best publisher overall when it came to porting the big arcade titles especially for the ZX Spectrum. They were VERY thorough when they ported arcade games; they had actual modded arcade cabinets at their HQ (probably slowed down the games) and studied what happened on screen.
There was no help whatsoever from the mainly japanese publishers back then, I understand. They had to figure out everything themselves; from graphics to AI to music (they weren't even allowed to use the original music in most cases - but had to compose something themselves).
Oh, I would love to have to have some of those games on the Switch Lite instead of the PSP's small screen; Commando, Bomb Jack, Paperboy, Space Harrier, Scooby-Doo, ThunderCats and even 1942 and Ghost 'n Goblins. All great ZX Spectrum games published by Elite Systems back in the mid 80's.
I bought my Switch Lite 12th of march 2020 (the day before the covid lock down in Denmark). I actually got it 20 € off which is kind of weird to think of now. But I guess covid helped Switch sales a lot.
With a 98% digital library on my Switch Lite, I'm curious on how Nintendo will handle backwards compatibility on Switch 2 (in my case - hopefully - more like a Switch 2 Lite). Can you keep some games on your Switch (1) and then transfer the rest to Switch 2? Or will it be all or nothing? If it's all or nothing, my Switch Lite will see very little use (but I'm not sure I will sell it anyway as I'm kind of emotionally attached to it ).
Fun facts (at least according to Wikipedia):
Tomb Raider is the 22nd most successful video game franchise ever, having just reached 100 million sold games late last year.
Lara Croft is the most successful female lead protagonist/star in any video game franchise, having sold the aforementioned 100 million games.
(and she's the only protagonist in at least 99% of time in the games - she's so iconic a character that barely any other characters are playable in the games - or have any real significant roles).
IIRC Angel of Darkness got a 57 on Metacritic back in the day. Now in the remastered version I would move those numbers around and give it a 75; nothing mind blowing, but good enough to play through once if you're a fan of the older Tomb Raider games.
The Black Isle ("Cursed Island") levels in Chronicles (not mentioned in the review) were actually the highlight of that game imo. They had this survival horror feel to them and the level design were quite ingenious iirc. I my opinion they were genuinely great.
I'm playing 'Angel of Darkness' from the Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered collection. Surprisingly I'm really enjoying it; it's much more story heavy than the PSOne era ones. The controls are actually not far from the ones in the PSOne games. Just finished my first "Tomb" (a night club really) and it really isn't much different from the ones in the "trad" (traditional) Tomb Raider games (I-V +Legend, Anniversay and Underworld imo). Quite challenging really. Not a bad game at all in the remastered version.
I'm very happy with the LCD screen on my Switch Lite (and I have an Vita with OLED screen too - looks kind of "smeared" compared compared to the Switch Lite's screen imo - could be down to advances in screen technology though IDK).
Will be interesting to see how this collection will fare compared to the first one.
Don't get me wrong The Last Revelation generally has a good reputation and Chronicles is a bit underrated imo and actually good (but is actually 4 small adventures from Lara's past put together).
With Angel of Darkness it will be interesting to see if they have somehow made it better with the added content and sometimes small changes to the level layout (from an early demo, I believe). I also hope they have tightened the controls a bit as they were quite loose imo in the PS2 version. But we'll see I guess.
I'm probably the odd one, but I'd actually like a new Lords of Shadow Castlevania. And it could be a continuation of the 2D game Mirror of Fate or the 3D LOS 2, I don't care as I like them both equally much (I'm bit of a Mercury Steam fanboy).
I'm not into the Metroidvania ones, having tried SotN, the GBA ones and one of the DS games. I do like the Classicvania generally, although I find them too difficult in the end (not literally). The 3D (non LOS) ones I've never played.
In the past in Japan (30-40 years ago or more) if you got employed in large company/corporation it was for life (but then you were also expected to be literally 100% loyal - and completely bust your a** working if the company was in trouble).
Now this practice is not law enforced anymore but is still very much expected to be code of conduit. And sometimes the old way of working your way out of company troubles still works, but apparently it doesn't seem like that way in this case.
You don't force employees out if you think they can still add value to the company (and isolating people that are very concerned for their future is practically forcing them to resign imo).
And if you sit in a room alone for 8 hours a day after maybe a 2 hours commute to your workplace (which is quite common in the big in Japan - real estate costs a fortune in Japan) and then 2 hours back it could "break" just about anybody. And people almost automatically will be looking feverishly for a new place to work.
Japan is highly capitalistic (and successful) country in its own way (maybe only really rivaled by the USA in that regard). Around 15% of population lives in poverty (a bit more than in the USA, I think), so the pressure is high on just about every citizen in Japan.
How they cope with it? Well, honor (and being honorable) is a very important part of japanese culture historically (both Harakiri and Kamikaze have been acceptable in the past in Japan and are effectively suicide - for different reasons though) so it's very important to be valuable to the society.
Even today it's extremely humiliating for japanese to loose face or become laughing stock. You're supposed to do your work to perfection and not complain.
One thing that's a big comfort to japanese people, I think, is gaming (they can even play when they commute, why handhelds are so popular - their small living space is part of it too) and is probably why they're so coders/developers/artists etc.
Then there's their humor which is "rough"/black; I had a friend who was more or less obsessed with Japan (he was mad about japanese women for some reason) and he once rode in a car with a bunch of japanese people (in Japan) and they started totally laughing their a**es off when they saw an animal that had been road killed (probably using the occasion trying relieve as much stress as possible).
Yeah, I think we can conclude the japanese are more overworked and under higher pressure than almost any highly industrialized nation (there's more to it but it will be to long - hint: Second World War).
@Dee123 In my experience most citizens in any given country ultimately prefer the "system" they are living under; it's called nationalism and is imo one of the reasons why sports are so popular everywhere.
@Anachronism The employee that is "unwanted" is put in a room with access to the internet, but with no work to do. He/she can then look for a new job while there.
Nintendo is kind of pushing it imo; 2 month and 1 first party old port coming out and on the 3rd party front there's only the Tomb Raider collection I'm looking forward to. And I'm not really going to play that before 2027 because I still haven't finished the first TR collection (that's how much I yearn to play it - but it's still the only release I'm interested in - and that's industry wide!).
The Switch Lite is in my opinion the best remaster platform ever (nothing more nothing less) and I will be there day one if Nintendo decides to release a Switch 2 Lite (with proper D-pad and no Joy-cons).
Just pre-ordered the Tomb Raider IV-VI collection (with 10% discount) yesterday because The Last Revelation and Chronicles are both really solid Tomb Raider experiences imo (Angel of Darkness is probably not a great experience though).
And then I hope we'll get a Legends/Anniversary/Underworld collection next year.
Black is black (at least on a Sinclair ZX Spectrum - the machine had a brightness option that affected all the other colors available - 7 in total - but black was black even with brightness turned on - thus it had 7+7+1=15 colors available - so yes black was black, there was no nuance to that color - I guess it's like that in real life too).
Halo: Combat Evolved really was something else when it came out in 2001 and is possibly the best game on the OG Xbox (I did play, and finish, its sequel, but felt it was just more of the same and was quite bored with it).
The good thing to say about this particular collection is that it is the Bungie developed Halos that are on here (and not the 343 Industries ones). It's not for me though as I burned out on the series more than 20 years ago.
@GVIL They did sell better than the Wii U around 10 years ago though (whatever their system going directly up against the Wii U was - Edit: it was the Xbox One and PS4 the Wii U was up against, as Nintendo did a kind of Xbox 360 releasing the Wii U one year prior to the competition - then the Wii U bombed and was followed by the Switch 4 years later, which kind of messed the "system" up, with Nintendo now releasing new hardware when PS and MS are mid-gen).
Forget about the 'Switch 2' and start to embrace the actual successor to the Switch: the 'Nintendo 4DS', complete with double screens, clamshell design, glasses free 3D effect AND a completely new invention from Nintendo; TIME TRAVELLING (hence the '4D' - or 4th dimension). Be ready to experience any period of time in glorious 3D on your 1080p screen on your new Nintendo system, all at the safe distance of you and the screen. It will be true revolution!!!
I'm a bit leaning towards the 'small is beautiful' camp as I have 2 of the HyperMegaTech Super Pocket editions handhelds (which are very small) and am mostly satisfied with them for what they are. But I lean towards having a Switch 2 Lite that is a bit bigger than the current Lite model (think 7" screen).
My Steam Deck I don't play as much as my Switch Lite for various reasons. It's big and heavy but at least it's comfortable to hold. It's kind of like the OG Xbox console OG controller (yeah the thing was huge) cut in half and a screen attached in the middle (I did have some issues with my hands/wrists when I first got it and played for about 300 hours the first 3 month).
But, yeah, handhelds can easily get to big (and on another note, do we really need 1080p resolution on a handheld).
@rjejr I'm personally never going to buy a 'Switch 2' unless it has a proper D-pad and comes without a dock and Joy-cons.. and that would basically be a Switch 2 Lite (so I believe there will be one eventually - the original sold over 25 million and that's no mean considering it can only be played handheld).
(Ok, under very special circumstances, like Switch 2 getting an exclusive Resident Evil Revelations 3 with the same quality as the first one, I guess I could be persuaded)
@ShaneReactions I think it's german, Depeche Mode first record label was called Mute and the catalog numbers of the records were 'Stumm' (iirc) followed by a number. I think the meaning of the word(s) is "not saying anything" (or maybe more precisely being literally unable to speak - maybe that's Nintendo situation right now - damned if you do speak - damned if you don't).
Comments 1,020
Re: How Do Nintendo Switch 2 Virtual Game Cards Work? - Game Transfer & Lending Guide
Seems fair enough, this system. You can play your games at all times on your main system (Switch 2 I believe) as long as you're connected to the internet (which shouldn't be a problem for me as I always play at home) and then you can play them on your second system as well as long as the Virtual Game Card(s) are inserted in that system (and on your main system without access to the internet as long as the Virtual Game Card is inserted to that one instead). A game can't be played on both systems at the same time hence the need for an internet check on the main system.
Edit: you can't be on-line on both systems playing the same game (if it makes sense).
Re: Poll: Which Switch 2 Accessories Are You Picking Up At Launch?
@jake1421 Ok, thanks.
Re: Poll: Which Switch 2 Accessories Are You Picking Up At Launch?
@jake1421 Yeah, it could a be solution, I guess. Has it got drift issues?
Re: Poll: Which Switch 2 Accessories Are You Picking Up At Launch?
I haven't pre-ordered the Switch 2 yet, but I would like Nintendo to produce (and market of course) a special left Joy-con edition with an actual D-pad on it for us (casual?) handheld fighting games (and arcade and 2D games too) "aficionados".
I would gladly pay up to 60€ for it and pre-order it in an instant (just to make sure I got it). Please let it happen!
Re: Poll: GameStop Offers A Tempting Switch 2 Trade-In Deal, But Is It Really Worth It?
Whether I'll keep my Switch Lite when I upgrade (either to a - possible - Switch 2 Lite or a regular Switch 2 - if I can't wait for the former) very much comes down to how the tranferring of digital libraries from Switch (1) to Switch 2 is done.
Is it all games at once? (in which case I'll have no real use for my Switch Lite anymore, as 98% of my library is digital). Or will I be able to keep some games on the old system and only transfer select games to the new one? (OG Resident 4 for example, I would prefer to play on my Switch Lite as the textures look too "rough" on a bigger screen - like on the Steam Deck for example).
Then there's the issue with Switch 2 not having a proper D-pad, as I play quite a lot of games these days that plays best with a D-pad (2D fighting games, arcade games and 2D games in general). Of course there'll be Hori Joy-cons with proper D-pad available down the line (one genre that will play better on the Switch 2's large screen is vertical shmups though).
But we do need a lot more information from Nintendo imo.
On topic, I think it's fair to get 50% of "new" prices for your old hardware as long they are not too "picky" with the condition of it (no scratches on the screen and elsewhere plus being fully functional is of course a given though imo).
Re: Resident Evil's Continued Success Makes Us Eager For Switch 2 Ports
I hope they reboot the series with IX as none of the RE Engine games has blown me away.
Village was a step in the right direction because at least the action was good (it felt kind of disjointed though, trying to be too many things at once).
4 was solid and the Ada DLC was actually better than the original one imo, and has a good chance of being ported to Switch 2 (the original was an exclusive to Gamecube after all - for 9 month at least).
Re: Poll: So, Did You Manage To Get A Switch 2 Pre-Order In? (North America)
Here in Denmark its available for pre-order at 8 different on-line retailers (half of them have physical shops nationwide too). All according to Pricerunner.dk (a price comparison site).
What baffles me most though is that the price seems to slowly go down. Not by much yet (about 7 €) but still.. (bookmarked the page - could be fun to follow ).
Now I'm getting a bit tempted.. Too bad that it's only Street Fighter 6 Years 1 and 2 I'm interested and Switch 2 has no proper D-pad (and I'm not really interested in that game at the current price tag - I play casually and off-line only.. plus I play handheld only too).
But what can you do? I'm addicted to playing fun videogames, and it's fun to get new hardware (but still it's getting a bit to much imo - but we'll see what the future brings, I guess).
Re: Switch 2 Game-Key Cards Won't Make It Easy For Physical Collectors In Japan
This would never have happened if physical lovers ("let's get physical, physical") had been willing to pay the real price difference between a physical and a digital copy years ago (at least 70$/€, when you consider the cost of manufacturing, distribution and retailer cut).
Re: Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered Is Out Now, But Switch 2 Is Unconfirmed
To those who want it on Switch 2 I can say that right now it's available and Verified (running well) on Steam Deck, so there should be a good chance it will run well on Switch 2 too .
Re: Digital Foundry Dives Into Cyberpunk 2077 On Switch 2
Doesn't seem like a game that'd really appeal to Nintendo fans in any capacity though.
Re: Hands On: Capcom Fighting Collection 2 - Come For The Power Stone, Stay For The Project Justice
@CammyUnofficial Fighting Collection (1) and the Marvel Vs. Capcom Collection both had a "0 star" difficulty below the normal 1 to 8 stars difficulties added (among other QoL features). To be honest it makes the games ridiculously easy (it's almost impossible not to beat them using this difficulty).
But yeah, as soon you go up to 1 star difficulty it becomes quite challenging to get anywhere in all the games.
Re: Fans Fight Back Against Nintendo Switch 2 Scalpers
People can charge whatever they want for their possesions as long as they bow to rules on Ebay imo. Trying to fight that is a bit like Don Quixote fighting windmills.
Re: Talking Point: Does Switch 2 Have Nintendo's Best Launch Line-Up Ever?
From whay I personally have enjoyed the most, I will say the 3DS line-up; Super Street Fighter IV 3D Edition is one of my favorite games of all time; Splinter Cell and Asphalt 3D, while neither technically perfect, I had a good time with; Ridge Racer 3D was a solid entry in the series; Rayman 3D I actually had some good fun with; and lastly PES 2011, while barebones, played nicely for casual player like me.
(I didn't full price for any of these games which probably affect my opnions about them)
Re: Opinion: A Few Too Many Questions & Unwelcome Surprises Are Taking The Shine Off The Switch 2 Reveal
The price is ok imo (at least the UK one being around 35% more than the OG Switch - don't know about the rest of Europe etc.). At least when you consider inflation and the fact that you getter a much bigger screen and much improved Joy-cons (electromagnetic attachment, mouse function - and maybe those HAL sticks?).
My main concern is how Nintendo will handle backwards compability now that not all games seems to be working perfectly, (and even some not at all).
Nintendo will probably address this over time (hopefully). But then there's how the transition from having games on your Switch (1) to having them on Switch 2, is handled.
Will you have to move your entire Switch (1) library at once to the Switch 2 (with the risk of some games not working)? Or can you choose which games to move and which not to move? That's an important question (to me at least).
Re: Community: Which Switch 2 Games Are You Wishlisting?
Maybe Ridge Racer 2 (if not too expensive), Street Fighter 6 Years 1+2 (deeply discounted - only interested in offline Arcade mode) and a month (or 2) subscription to NSO with expansion pack for Soul Calibur 2 mainly (plus catching up on the rest of the library).
But not going to lie; I'll probably wait for a Switch 2 Lite (with a proper D-pad), because it will be cheaper (and I have no use for the dock, detachable Joy-cons etc.) AND I'd prefer a smaller form factor/screen too.
Re: The Switch 2 Will Emulate Switch Games, Because It Shares No Internal Hardware With Its Predecessor
Not great imho. It reminds me of my Steam Deck, where you can't be 100% sure all games work. It leads to frustration in my experience (plus you'll have figure out what works and what doesn't - never great having uncertaincy - a bummer imho).
Re: Talking Point: What We Expect From The Switch 2 Direct
Now that the Switch Skyrim remaster seems to have been successful, maybe the rumoured Oblivion remake will be announced for Switch 2, with a november release date for the Switch 2 version (and Xbox, PC - and maybe PS5 - versions being released earlier).
Re: Iconic Sony Sports Series 'Everybody's Golf' Tees-Off On Switch This Year
The Vita game was fun for 10 hours (got for 8 € I think), even for me who are not into sports. So I'd say it's a welcome addition to the Switch library.
Re: Nintendo Announces 'Virtual Game Cards' For Switch, Unlocking Digital Lending
I still wonder how the transition of my digital library on my Switch Lite to the Switch 2 (highly probably a Switch 2 Lite in my case) will work. Lending some of my Switch (1) library to the Switch 2 for 2 weeks is not going to work for me, I'm sure (will be way to fiddly constantly "renewing" my "loans").
I have thought of "jail breaking" my Switch Lite when I (hopefully) get my Switch 2 Lite and use it solely as a Sinclair ZX Spectrum emulator if possible (the Fuse emulator on PSP IS great - just too bad the screen is very small - for some games at least it can be very hard to see small bullets because of the games's often rather monochrome nature).
Re: Chances Are You've Never Heard Of Nightdive Studio's Latest Switch Rerelease
Looks interesting, and I'm on a bit of a point and click adventures stride atm having just bought/re-bought the 3 first Secret Files games a few days ago. Will be watching this for sure.
Re: Commodore 64 Platformer 'Beyond The Ice Palace' Returns With Brutally Difficult Sequel
@Bydlak Yeah. Have you played the ZX Spectrum port of Space Harrier (also by Elite Systems), coded by yhe aforementioned Keith Burkhill (Commando etc.) with it's "chequerboard" surface/background? If you have and have a bit of understanding of how much data you have to "move" from one area of the memory to have that "chequerboard" AND have the game's graphics running on top of that, and that even with pseudo 3D/sprite scaling (ok, I don't think there's actual sprite scaling going on - that would be too crazy - just lots of predefined sprites in different "sizes" probably).
Keith Burkhill was known in the industry as being probably the most technically accomplished ZX Spectrum coder (when it was about getting as much "juice" out of the processor at least - Mike Singleton was extremely technically advanced too - but on another level).
Keith apparentlty even used "racing down the beam" (the old Catode Ray Televisions were entirely analog, projection each pixel in quick succession to the screen every 50th of second (PAL TV versions)) techniques known from the Atari VCS/2600, that didn't even have a screen memory.
These old home computer had something called Borders around the main area of the screen where the "action" took place so to speak. And the idea with "racing down the beam" is using the time where the beam is not doing anything, because it's in the Border "area", to actually execute code in between the lines being "drawn" in the main ("action") area. Simply to get as much "juice" out of the processor as possible.
Yeah, it's extremely difficult to get the timings correct, but they did get it right on the Atari VCS/2600 (out of neccesity), so why not ;-.
Re: Commodore 64 Platformer 'Beyond The Ice Palace' Returns With Brutally Difficult Sequel
@Bydlak None of the ZX Spectrum versions of the games I mentioned had any music though. They were all released around 1985-87 when the 128K Spectrum (with the added AY 891X sound chip) barely had released. The C64 and Amstrad CPC versions probably had music, but Bomb Jack and Paperboy for example weren't very good on the C64 (or the Amstrad CPC?).
Elite Systems (the Wilcox brothers), I heard, more or less bet all their money on the licensing contract for Commando (their first Arcade conversion, I believe) in late 1985.
They had Nigel Alderton (of Chuckie Egg fame) and Keith Burkhill doing the coding in a very short time (to be able to release it before Christmas). They each got £10.000 for the effort, but then had to work almost around the clock (sleeping a few hours on the office floor a day - talk about crunching!).
They even had clause in their contract reducing their salary for each day they were late. They did end up getting a few days late, but the Wilcox's were so happy with their effort, that they didn't use the clause in end (graphics were done by Karen Trueman and Rory Green).
Yeah, the British computer industry was just as crazy as the Japanese (or the American).
Re: Commodore 64 Platformer 'Beyond The Ice Palace' Returns With Brutally Difficult Sequel
I hope it's co-published by good old Elite Systems (which published and developed the original game). Elite Systems was probably the best publisher overall when it came to porting the big arcade titles especially for the ZX Spectrum. They were VERY thorough when they ported arcade games; they had actual modded arcade cabinets at their HQ (probably slowed down the games) and studied what happened on screen.
There was no help whatsoever from the mainly japanese publishers back then, I understand. They had to figure out everything themselves; from graphics to AI to music (they weren't even allowed to use the original music in most cases - but had to compose something themselves).
Oh, I would love to have to have some of those games on the Switch Lite instead of the PSP's small screen; Commando, Bomb Jack, Paperboy, Space Harrier, Scooby-Doo, ThunderCats and even 1942 and Ghost 'n Goblins. All great ZX Spectrum games published by Elite Systems back in the mid 80's.
Re: Talking Point: What We Expect From The Switch 2 Direct
Tekken 7 (Tekken 8 is as PS5 game, so I'm not sure porting that one is doable) preferably with some added functionality for us fighting games noobs.
Re: Hamster's Arcade Archives Celebrates Eight Years Of Switch eShop Releases
I just bought Pooyan (Konami) yesterday and now have 19 games across Neo Geo and Arcade Archives (and a couple more on my wishlist).
Re: Anniversary: Nintendo Switch Launched On This Day Eight Years Ago
I bought my Switch Lite 12th of march 2020 (the day before the covid lock down in Denmark). I actually got it 20 € off which is kind of weird to think of now. But I guess covid helped Switch sales a lot.
Re: Poll: Will You Trade In Your Switch When Switch 2 Arrives?
With a 98% digital library on my Switch Lite, I'm curious on how Nintendo will handle backwards compatibility on Switch 2 (in my case - hopefully - more like a Switch 2 Lite). Can you keep some games on your Switch (1) and then transfer the rest to Switch 2? Or will it be all or nothing? If it's all or nothing, my Switch Lite will see very little use (but I'm not sure I will sell it anyway as I'm kind of emotionally attached to it ).
Re: Review: Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered (Switch) - A Fascinating But Inessential Second Collection
Fun facts (at least according to Wikipedia):
Tomb Raider is the 22nd most successful video game franchise ever, having just reached 100 million sold games late last year.
Lara Croft is the most successful female lead protagonist/star in any video game franchise, having sold the aforementioned 100 million games.
(and she's the only protagonist in at least 99% of time in the games - she's so iconic a character that barely any other characters are playable in the games - or have any real significant roles).
Re: Review: Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered (Switch) - A Fascinating But Inessential Second Collection
IIRC Angel of Darkness got a 57 on Metacritic back in the day. Now in the remastered version I would move those numbers around and give it a 75; nothing mind blowing, but good enough to play through once if you're a fan of the older Tomb Raider games.
The Black Isle ("Cursed Island") levels in Chronicles (not mentioned in the review) were actually the highlight of that game imo. They had this survival horror feel to them and the level design were quite ingenious iirc. I my opinion they were genuinely great.
Re: Talking Point: What Are You Playing This Weekend? (15th February)
I'm playing 'Angel of Darkness' from the Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered collection. Surprisingly I'm really enjoying it; it's much more story heavy than the PSOne era ones. The controls are actually not far from the ones in the PSOne games. Just finished my first "Tomb" (a night club really) and it really isn't much different from the ones in the "trad" (traditional) Tomb Raider games (I-V +Legend, Anniversay and Underworld imo). Quite challenging really. Not a bad game at all in the remastered version.
Re: Talking Point: Why An LCD Screen Isn't The End Of The World For Switch 2
I'm very happy with the LCD screen on my Switch Lite (and I have an Vita with OLED screen too - looks kind of "smeared" compared compared to the Switch Lite's screen imo - could be down to advances in screen technology though IDK).
Re: Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered Physical Release Seemingly Teased
Will be interesting to see how this collection will fare compared to the first one.
Don't get me wrong The Last Revelation generally has a good reputation and Chronicles is a bit underrated imo and actually good (but is actually 4 small adventures from Lara's past put together).
With Angel of Darkness it will be interesting to see if they have somehow made it better with the added content and sometimes small changes to the level layout (from an early demo, I believe).
I also hope they have tightened the controls a bit as they were quite loose imo in the PS2 version. But we'll see I guess.
Re: Poll: Is It Finally Time For Castlevania To Rise Again?
I'm probably the odd one, but I'd actually like a new Lords of Shadow Castlevania. And it could be a continuation of the 2D game Mirror of Fate or the 3D LOS 2, I don't care as I like them both equally much (I'm bit of a Mercury Steam fanboy).
I'm not into the Metroidvania ones, having tried SotN, the GBA ones and one of the DS games. I do like the Classicvania generally, although I find them too difficult in the end (not literally). The 3D (non LOS) ones I've never played.
Re: Bandai Namco Studios Has Reportedly Reduced Its Staff By Over 100 People
In the past in Japan (30-40 years ago or more) if you got employed in large company/corporation it was for life (but then you were also expected to be literally 100% loyal - and completely bust your a** working if the company was in trouble).
Now this practice is not law enforced anymore but is still very much expected to be code of conduit. And sometimes the old way of working your way out of company troubles still works, but apparently it doesn't seem like that way in this case.
You don't force employees out if you think they can still add value to the company (and isolating people that are very concerned for their future is practically forcing them to resign imo).
And if you sit in a room alone for 8 hours a day after maybe a 2 hours commute to your workplace (which is quite common in the big in Japan - real estate costs a fortune in Japan) and then 2 hours back it could "break" just about anybody. And people almost automatically will be looking feverishly for a new place to work.
Japan is highly capitalistic (and successful) country in its own way (maybe only really rivaled by the USA in that regard). Around 15% of population lives in poverty (a bit more than in the USA, I think), so the pressure is high on just about every citizen in Japan.
How they cope with it? Well, honor (and being honorable) is a very important part of japanese culture historically (both Harakiri and Kamikaze have been acceptable in the past in Japan and are effectively suicide - for different reasons though) so it's very important to be valuable to the society.
Even today it's extremely humiliating for japanese to loose face or become laughing stock. You're supposed to do your work to perfection and not complain.
One thing that's a big comfort to japanese people, I think, is gaming (they can even play when they commute, why handhelds are so popular - their small living space is part of it too) and is probably why they're so coders/developers/artists etc.
Then there's their humor which is "rough"/black; I had a friend who was more or less obsessed with Japan (he was mad about japanese women for some reason) and he once rode in a car with a bunch of japanese people (in Japan) and they started totally laughing their a**es off when they saw an animal that had been road killed (probably using the occasion trying relieve as much stress as possible).
Yeah, I think we can conclude the japanese are more overworked and under higher pressure than almost any highly industrialized nation (there's more to it but it will be to long - hint: Second World War).
Re: Bandai Namco Studios Has Reportedly Reduced Its Staff By Over 100 People
@Dee123 In my experience most citizens in any given country ultimately prefer the "system" they are living under; it's called nationalism and is imo one of the reasons why sports are so popular everywhere.
Re: Bandai Namco Studios Has Reportedly Reduced Its Staff By Over 100 People
@Anachronism The employee that is "unwanted" is put in a room with access to the internet, but with no work to do. He/she can then look for a new job while there.
Re: Bandai Namco Studios Has Reportedly Reduced Its Staff By Over 100 People
Tekken 7 with QOL improvements for Switch 2 please.
Re: Nintendo Confirms Timings For The Switch 2 Direct In April
Nintendo is kind of pushing it imo; 2 month and 1 first party old port coming out and on the 3rd party front there's only the Tomb Raider collection I'm looking forward to. And I'm not really going to play that before 2027 because I still haven't finished the first TR collection (that's how much I yearn to play it - but it's still the only release I'm interested in - and that's industry wide!).
Re: Opinion: With Forecasts Slashed (Again), Absolutely Everyone's Antsy For Switch 2 ASAP
The Switch Lite is in my opinion the best remaster platform ever (nothing more nothing less) and I will be there day one if Nintendo decides to release a Switch 2 Lite (with proper D-pad and no Joy-cons).
Re: Video: 8 Exciting New Games Coming To Nintendo Switch In February 2025
Just pre-ordered the Tomb Raider IV-VI collection (with 10% discount) yesterday because The Last Revelation and Chronicles are both really solid Tomb Raider experiences imo (Angel of Darkness is probably not a great experience though).
And then I hope we'll get a Legends/Anniversary/Underworld collection next year.
Re: Round Up: 'Switch 2' Renders Suggest A Sleek, Classy Successor
At the risk of this being erased..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkgyV_tTQfQ
Re: Round Up: 'Switch 2' Renders Suggest A Sleek, Classy Successor
Black is black (at least on a Sinclair ZX Spectrum - the machine had a brightness option that affected all the other colors available - 7 in total - but black was black even with brightness turned on - thus it had 7+7+1=15 colors available - so yes black was black, there was no nuance to that color - I guess it's like that in real life too).
Re: Rumour: Insider Claims That Halo: Master Chief Collection Will Come To 'Switch 2'
Halo: Combat Evolved really was something else when it came out in 2001 and is possibly the best game on the OG Xbox (I did play, and finish, its sequel, but felt it was just more of the same and was quite bored with it).
The good thing to say about this particular collection is that it is the Bungie developed Halos that are on here (and not the 343 Industries ones). It's not for me though as I burned out on the series more than 20 years ago.
Re: Rumour: Insider Claims That Halo: Master Chief Collection Will Come To 'Switch 2'
@GVIL They did sell better than the Wii U around 10 years ago though (whatever their system going directly up against the Wii U was - Edit: it was the Xbox One and PS4 the Wii U was up against, as Nintendo did a kind of Xbox 360 releasing the Wii U one year prior to the competition - then the Wii U bombed and was followed by the Switch 4 years later, which kind of messed the "system" up, with Nintendo now releasing new hardware when PS and MS are mid-gen).
Re: Is This Our Best Look Yet At 'Switch 2'?
Forget about the 'Switch 2' and start to embrace the actual successor to the Switch: the 'Nintendo 4DS', complete with double screens, clamshell design, glasses free 3D effect AND a completely new invention from Nintendo; TIME TRAVELLING (hence the '4D' - or 4th dimension). Be ready to experience any period of time in glorious 3D on your 1080p screen on your new Nintendo system, all at the safe distance of you and the screen. It will be true revolution!!!
Re: 'Switch 2' And Software Listings Spotted On French Retailer's Internal Database
It would be nice with a Tekken game for the 'Switch 2' (especially if it was "tailor made"/exclusive for the system).
Re: Talking Point: Is The Switch 2 Going To Be Too Big?
I'm a bit leaning towards the 'small is beautiful' camp as I have 2 of the HyperMegaTech Super Pocket editions handhelds (which are very small) and am mostly satisfied with them for what they are. But I lean towards having a Switch 2 Lite that is a bit bigger than the current Lite model (think 7" screen).
My Steam Deck I don't play as much as my Switch Lite for various reasons. It's big and heavy but at least it's comfortable to hold. It's kind of like the OG Xbox console OG controller (yeah the thing was huge) cut in half and a screen attached in the middle (I did have some issues with my hands/wrists when I first got it and played for about 300 hours the first 3 month).
But, yeah, handhelds can easily get to big (and on another note, do we really need 1080p resolution on a handheld).
Re: Switch 2 'Indentations' Make It Incompatible With Original Switch Dock, Says Genki
@larryisaman BONG was for their maxi singles/special editions or something (iirc).
Re: Switch 2 'Indentations' Make It Incompatible With Original Switch Dock, Says Genki
@rjejr I'm personally never going to buy a 'Switch 2' unless it has a proper D-pad and comes without a dock and Joy-cons.. and that would basically be a Switch 2 Lite (so I believe there will be one eventually - the original sold over 25 million and that's no mean considering it can only be played handheld).
(Ok, under very special circumstances, like Switch 2 getting an exclusive Resident Evil Revelations 3 with the same quality as the first one, I guess I could be persuaded)
Re: Switch 2 'Indentations' Make It Incompatible With Original Switch Dock, Says Genki
@ShaneReactions I think it's german, Depeche Mode first record label was called Mute and the catalog numbers of the records were 'Stumm' (iirc) followed by a number. I think the meaning of the word(s) is "not saying anything" (or maybe more precisely being literally unable to speak - maybe that's Nintendo situation right now - damned if you do speak - damned if you don't).