Nintendo NX is now Switch (Official thread) (1 Viewer)

[Bryan^H]

A 2.5D Link's Awakening remake was announced today. Looks very nice and will make a Switch a tempting proposition for me when it hits. Reminds me a lot visually of A Link Between Worlds, which remains my favorite 3DS game.

The inevitable Super Mario Maker 2 was also officially announced. Really figured this one was going to be happening relatively early in the life of the Switch, after a straight port of Super Mario Maker essentially was confirmed as not happening when it was instead ported and released on the aged 3DS just weeks before the launch of the Switch.

I didn't know about these. You just made my day

 

[Morgan Jolley]

The Direct last night announced a LOT: https://kotaku.com/everything-that-happened-in-todays-nintendo-direct-1832603323

 

[Steve Y]

I enjoyed the Direct this week. Has anyone played Tetris 99 yet? It's a free downloadable Tetris battle royale game for people who subscribe to Nintendo Switch Online. And it's addictive.

I downloaded the demo for Yoshi's Crafted World. I LOVE the game in terms of level design and aesthetics, but the animation feels a bit janky and the controls are a little more "floaty" than I like.

BAR was delightful, with tracks that told a story environmentally, changing slightly each lap, and filled with discoverable alternate routes and shortcuts.

I love Beetle Adventure Racing. The phrase "hidden gem" is overused, but it applies to this game. I suspect licensing issues prevent it from being re-released? That's a shame. The title makes it sound like the kind of shovelware one might rent from Blockbuster Video in the 1990s, but it's shockingly good. I'd love to see it re-released officially on consoles with better performance.

 

[LeoA]

It's better positioned than most licensed based games, I suppose. There's only one license that would need to be resecured. But I bet it never resurfaces officially.

I wonder who even owns it? Electronic Arts or the developer?

 

[DaveF]

I don't even need "Beetles" specifically. But it was such a fun arcade racer, with delightfully well crafted tracks that told a story vignette in their three-lap evolution, had great audio, and played so well single player. Mario Kart, as an arcade racer, is a pale shadow of BAR. I know I'm being "get off my lawn" old man, and the world has moved on to online multi-player or hyper-realistic simulation racers. But I miss the simple pleasures of Beetle Adventure Racing.

 

[DaveF]

I also lament the loss of Tetrisphere and Wetrix

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I've played Tetris 99 a few times and really enjoy it. It's a neat little bonus thing for having the online sub and I hope they offer more things like it in the future.

 

[Bryan^H]

Tetris 99 I made the "top 10" twice out of seven times playing. But it all boils down to the master players as usual that win first place. So I lost interest.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

I got first place twice in Tetris 99. I used to play Tetris DS online a LOT and grew up on the NES Tetris as a kid. I enjoy 99 as a time-waster for when I need to kill 10 minutes but I kind of feel like I should be playing something else if I play longer than that.

There's definitely more modes coming to it. Dataminers found stuff like a co-op mode and the stats screen looks like its set up for a few more modes.

 

[DaveF]

I have to be online, I assume, to play Tetris 99?

 

[Bryan^H]

I have to be online, I assume, to play Tetris 99?

Yes.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Yeah, Tetris 99 currently only has 1 mode, and it's a 99-person online mode where you play against other people. I don't think it even works offline. And you need the Switch Online subscription to even be able to play the game.

 

[Bryan^H]

The more I think of it the more Tetris 99 is just a shit show of a game.
Hard for me to say that but Tetris doesn't fit as a battle royal game.

I grew up on Tetris also, and I'm a good player. On the XBox 360 I used to play Tetris Splash all the time, and against 5 other players...yes that is manageable because you could see each player, and pinpoint fairly quickly the best players on the board and dierct your best attacks at them. It was fun.

Tetris 99 is almost entirely devoted to luck to reach the top.
I had a game where I blasted a dozen Tetris in a row with perfect placement, and super quick reaction time...then I got hit by about 4 people at once and was bricked instantly. I came in 72nd.

Another game I was barely playing an average game(wasn't even trying) and skated my way to 3rd place. No rhyme or reason to this at all. I might as well roll a dice with a friend and see which one of us gets a higher roll. It is that random.

I deleted it with good reason, it isn't fun, or addictive two things a Tetris game should be.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Some of the luck with Tetris 99 is that you are playing against a random group of 98 people. I've seen online that there are certain times of day when it's harder because certain regions (ie - Japan) have larger numbers of players online and the difficulty shifts with that.

I also feel like the game penalizes you or makes you more likely to be a target for other players after rounds where you place very high. After the rounds where I've gotten first place, the next few games seem to be harder and I get hit by others more.

There are some deeper mechanics that aren't explained well (how to target other players, badges, the benefit of t-turns) that really come into play for higher-level play. I find the game really addicting and fun, especially the frantic pace as it goes further into a game. Plus...it's a basically free game.

I still find it immensely more enjoyable than almost any other online multiplayer game. Will I play it for weeks or months? Probably not.

 

[Bryan^H]

Whatever the game engine is, it is flawed. Playing a slot machine at a casino is just the same--random luck.
And that to me undermines what a video games should be. Strategy, progression, and skill are thrown out for a lot of flash blanketed in a "battle royal" Tetris game.
If the people that dislike video games, and think of them as mindless/pointless they would have a pretty good argument if this game were the one on display.

It is an embarrassment to the Tetris name, and video games in general.

 

[Morgan Jolley]

In all seriousness, how is that basically any different from literally any online multiplayer game? You go in, you can dropped in a random spot on a map, you are playing against random players who may be much better or much worse than you, and your chances of survival are kind of random.

 

[DaveF]

I played T99 last night for the first time. I went in with high hopes, but was disappointed and didnt enjoy the game.

First, it takes far to long to get a game going. I want to jump in and play tetris. But it sits there showing random numbers on the screen for a minute or two. Then the random numbers stop and it flashes a tiny “ready” for another minute or two. So finally after waiting several minutes, the game starts.

I’ve never played Nintendo Tetris. I’ve mainly played on computers over the years. And so the controls felt very weird. The block rotation seemed odd, not conforming to how I expect them to be spun. The drop and lock process felt mushy and fussy.

And of course the “multiplayer” aspect meant that I was randomly getting garbage with any understanding of what was going on or how to search with it.

So...the first game experience was poor and didn’t entice me to try again to overcome my newb weaknesses.

I’d be happier with a single player Tetris game.

 

[Sam Posten]

Reggie: OUT
https://www.businesswire.com/news/h...America’s-Reggie-Fils-Aime-Retire-Doug-Bowser

Something is very suspicious here. Guys with this much success don't go spend time with their families. He's pushed out for performance or conduct.

 

[Sam Posten]

Reggie says thanks:
https://twitter.com/NintendoAmerica/status/1098666321473024000

 

[Morgan Jolley]

Reggie has been in that role at Nintendo for like 15 years. I don't think he's being pushed out, I think he's looking to do something different or simply retire, honestly.

That said, it should be noted that the guy taking his job is Doug Bowser, which is excellent.