Comments 623

Re: Poll: Are You Bothered By The Frame Rate In Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom?

swoose

It gives a feeling of "cheapness" to me moreso than affecting gameplay. And by principle it's a shame since this is a premiere Nintendo franchise and they passed it off to a dev team that can't optimize a top-down, fixed camera game. It's really not much to ask for.

But at least it's not a remake of a 60fps GameCube game that runs worse than its inspiration.

Re: Dragon Quest Creator Chimes In On Characters Showing Less Skin In Upcoming HD-2D Remake

swoose

"Who is really complaining about this" is an apt question only because the answer is no one, no one is complaining. $1000 bounty for anyone who can find complaints from even the most strident activists, that a game lists Male and Female player options. New games come out all the time still bearing those labels, you hear nothing.

And so this change is made voluntarily, because people in development and marketing recognize it's NICE to acknowledge the social and scientific consensus, that sex and gender are separate and on a spectrum. It's appreciated and can be handled elegantly, I've praised this before about Animal Crossing and Splatoon.

Meanwhile you absolutely WILL hear complaints about scantily clad characters, both from those who say it's objectifying women and those who say it's corrupting the youth. My take is we should probably just leave legacy games made by old men like these unaltered, and avoid the tiring discussions. They get a longer leash anyway because of when they were made.

Re: Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom's Frame Rate Is "Even Worse" Than Link's Awakening

swoose

Now more than ever, it feels like… Nintendo should develop their 1st party flagship titles internally or find competent development partners, instead of going back to Grezzo who already failed at this while remaking a fixed viewpoint GameBoy game.

Otherwise I’m sorry to say, this will keep happening on the Switch 2. B team devs will keep using middleware, keep pushing too many shaders and effects to justify the Switch 2 exclusivity, and their games will keep running like porridge. It’s always been a problem of dev priorities, not hardware.

Re: Rumour: Supposed 'Switch 2' Design Photos And Specs Surface Online

swoose

The latest is those renders might have been mocked up by an enthusiast, but the factory list and photos of hardware are likely real.

Pro: the face buttons looking larger, even extending to the outer edge. I hope this makes it feel less "cramped" as I've heard good things about the Steam Deck's funny-looking button placement.

Con: Why on earth do they refuse to make the joycon ergonomic. Do they have to be flat on the back?? Would a 2nd hump at the bottom of the joycon be so bad? It would also make it feel more symmetrical held sideways!

Re: PSA: Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom Has Reportedly Leaked Online In Full

swoose

It’s funny, Nintendo could start selling the game digitally as soon as it goes gold, before cartridges are on shelves. Many people would hate that I’m sure. But it would sure eliminate the market for leaks!

I’ll be getting this game on cartridge, and I see zero reason to care that some people are playing it before me.

Re: New AI Model Can Recreate Super Mario Bros. Footage, But It's Full Of Glitches

swoose

The scope of this is a 64p text to video diffusion model that by the researchers’ admission is “not practical and friendly for interactive video games”. That’s benign and mildly interesting even.

Then the for-profit tech company funding this research says it’s “for the creation of interactive video games” and that the “The era of infinite interactive worlds is here”.

All the “dumb money” flowing into AI research means it always has to justify itself with grand claims like this, so investors don’t worry that it’s another dot com bubble. When the disconnect between practicality and marketing is that huge, no wonder it has become so controversial.

Re: Rumour: 'Industry Whispers' Fuel Speculation Of A Switch 2 Reveal This Month

swoose

It would be nice to have something to grab people's attention after Splatoon 3's Grand Festival, which will preoccupy a LOT of players in Japan and feel like the end of an era. Then there's a new 2D Zelda this month, which will have stable enough interest that a future (backwards compatible?) console won't hurt its sales.

The "this is Furukawa" tweet was 4 months ago now, it might make sense to reveal the console sooner rather than later so they're not saying "the Switch successor will not be mentioned" about presentations for the next 4 months. And if Nintendo is moving towards production, they want to get ahead of it so we're not getting news from manufacturer leaks and shipping lists.

Overall the smoke is looking plausible this time.

Re: Soapbox: The Next Pokémon Game Should Rework Old Critters, Not Just Add Dozens More

swoose

@SillyG My gen 2 example was only that it was a small generation. Yes, they were also poorly distributed in Johto. But the following 3 generations all introduced more pokemon than Gen 2, and the last 4 generations have now introduced even fewer. That points to an already downwards trend.

Johto was directly attached to Kanto so it made some sense to heavily feature Kanto mons. It still had its own identity due to innovating the series forward in a number of huge ways (day/night cycle, held items, gender, eggs, special atk/def split, weather conditions)

Re: Soapbox: The Next Pokémon Game Should Rework Old Critters, Not Just Add Dozens More

swoose

Excluding regional and paradox forms, no 3D pokemon game has introduced even 100 new pokemon. That’s how many Gen 2 introduced, and Gen 2 was tiny!!

They’ve clearly already put the brakes on new designs in favor of servicing old ones, and it’s for the worse. Each game used to have its own identity because you saw so many new faces filling up niches in the dex and the game world. Maybe not every game can be Black & White, but I’d settle for a Ruby & Sapphire again! At least the Hoenn dex was over half new.

I play a new Pokemon game to see NEW pokemon. The 3D era has blended together into grey goo because each region is just a staging ground to see old designs over and over.

Re: Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom Trailer Introduces Us To The 'Still World' And Dungeons

swoose

I was worried the game would suffer for lacking the simple press A, swing sword gameplay that is so polished and satisfying in 2D Zeldas. I'm glad it's in there even if it's a limited capacity.

Between that and all your summons I'm guessing battles will get quite chaotic. Hopefully Grezzo has this game running smoothly, not something they're known for.

Re: Splatoon 3 Version 9.0.0 Announced, Here Are The Full Patch Notes

swoose

Very interesting that they can still tweak things about the connection speed. I remember much was made about Splatoon 2 and 3 having a lower ping than the WiiU game. I assume to give more leeway to the handheld console that most users would be playing on wifi.

Most users will still be playing on wifi. The state of internet infrastructure in the west isn’t getting any better, and wifi isn’t getting any better at stable connections. That’s the single biggest obstacle to a Splatoon where opponents aren’t jumping around the screen or DCing.

Re: Feature: The Company You Can Pay To X-Ray Unopened Pokémon Card Packs Speaks Out

swoose

Used to work at a game store and we would get the irregular customer trying to weigh our packs with a milligram scale. It wasn't allowed. Sometimes they would turn it around and accuse us of weighing the packs first, and taking out the good ones.

To me, there is no replacement for a good brick and mortar store. If you become a regular, you get to know the people behind the counter, and more importantly others in the community who have gotten good pulls there, if everyone is accountable. And at the end of the day, the point of a TCG is having others with whom you can play and trade. There's not much reason to buy blind packs online - at that point, just order the specific cards you want.

Re: Nintendo Expands Switch Online's GBA Library With Pokémon

swoose

@kkslider5552000 Everything about the story, premise, art, and music of PMD looks fantastic. I think the main turnoff for people is the snail’s pace, repetitive gameplay. It makes the GameBoy Pokemon RPGs look like speedrunning games.

50 floors of procedurally generated dungeon with the same encounters and tile-by-tile turns is pretty much the opposite of a game to me. I’m envious of people who can find fun in that part because they get rewarded with all the other good stuff.

Re: Poll: Which Is Your Favourite Nintendo Game Cartridge Design?

swoose

I voted GBA for being the most modern of the plasticky, toy-like era, but at a size where it’s easy to store them together.

I definitely think something was lost in the move to disks, and now what are basically memory cards. An advanced game coming out of something so chunky and plastic, that you don’t have to handle delicately, has a sense of magic to it.

Re: Poll: Are You Ready To Move On From The Switch?

swoose

I play Splatoon 3 almost daily so as a docked console, I’m pretty content with it. I could play games that look like this with a Switch pro controller for the rest of my life for all I care, and graphically devs have enough power to tackle nearly any art style. All I’d really want improved is framerate and cooling that doesn’t involve creaky fans.

As a handheld, I’ve been ready to move on for years - ever since I revisited my DS and 3DS and remembered how much more comfortable they were to play. I really wish Nintendo was going for a smaller form factor next with incrementally more power, but rumored screen size suggests otherwise.

Re: Splatoon 3 Announces Fresh New Update (Version 8.1.0), Here Are The Full Patch Notes

swoose

@sunspotty I'm guessing some X rank players abuse the block function to take good opponents out of their matchmaking pool and climb the ranks faster. People get THAT caught up in their X power. This prevents that kind of thing, and the downsides you mention only affect the minority of players in X, a mode that already struggles to make matches quickly.

For what it's worth, I don't see offensive names or poor sportsmanship in X all that often. The barrier of entry to the mode might help weed that out, but that's just my experience.

Re: Switch Lite OLED Modder Showcases The Stunning Dinky Screen In Motion

swoose

The Switch Lite form factor was woefully under-served this whole generation, with only the original model released. It was an HDMI out and hall-effect sticks away from being the definitive Switch model, and sure a nicer screen wouldn't hurt. I have zero interest in the OLED model being even bigger and heavier than the launch Switch.

I'll keep an eye on the Switch Lite modding scene going forward, because they'll come the closest to fulfilling this console's potential.

Re: Pokémon Sleep Has Reportedly Made $100 Million In Its First Year

swoose

Any surprise that this game made so much money means we haven’t been shouting enough from the rooftops that it’s the most well crafted Pokémon mobile game to date. From the creators of the other real mobile gem, Magikarp Jump. And yes I’m including Go in that calculation.

It’s a slight surprise only given that the monetization in the game is so subdued, and it’s easy to play totally free. Still, the FTP model is always worth critique. Most of that $100 million no doubt comes from a small group of Sleep “whales” who may face addiction, which is sad to think about.

Re: Nintendo President Says Longer Game Development Cycles Are "Unavoidable"

swoose

For major releases, sure I understand longer dev cycles. But like many here I'd like to see a return of smaller Nintendo games. During the home console / handheld split they used to have a 2nd rail of games that were more experimental, shorter, more casual, or expansive of their audience in some way. Thinking of Rhythm Heaven, Tomodachi Life, much of the "Touch Generation" series, all which have fallen by the wayside.

Nintendo now seems content to let indies fill that price point on their platform, which is a shame because we miss out on that "weird Nintendo" charm. And a lot of their developers might miss out on a cool creative outlet as well.

Re: Nintendo Is Hard At Work To Prevent Future Leaks

swoose

A leaked game may eventually be good, a game where time and resources were spent on "information security management" and "continuous education for employees" will be bad forever.

Talk about something that has no impact in the grand scheme of things and should be at the bottom of Nintendo's priorities. It does not matter if people hear about a game a few weeks early.

Re: Gallery: The Legend Of Zelda: Echoes Of Wisdom Is A Glorious Mix Of Old And New

swoose

“Zelda can use the rod to attack enemies, but that's not the only thing she can use it for.”

Was it confirmed the rod can be used for attacking? The trailer sure implied you would have to summon or throw things to defeat enemies.

Important distinction because melee attacking is a big appeal of 2D Zeldas and this game may be doing away with it entirely. But I’m open to see how it turns out with more puzzle-oriented combat.

Re: Japanese Charts: Paper Mario Dominates As The Switch Scores A Full House

swoose

@rainbowtick For sure, it would have been unthinkable for the biggest new Playstation release to only be top 10 in software sales for a few weeks, before it returns to being entirely Nintendo games. And many of those games are several years old!

Nintendo really read the market perfectly by going all handheld, at least for Japan. Hopefully if Sony starts prioritizing handhelds more, the broader industry can finally move away from hyper realism and tech arms race junk.