Nintendo Switch!

[DjchunKfunK]

I really do not get the obsession with portability.

It's not about being obsessed with portability, it's about having the choice to take it on my commute for instance, or with me when I go away for a weekend. I even sometimes play a few games of Splatoon whilst watching something on TV.

[Medicine Man]

Nintendo Direct tonight at 11pm...

https://www.twitch.tv/nintendo

[Raid]

They've just announced Doom (the new one) and Wolfenstein The New Colossus for the Switch. Even a brief look showed an obvious visual downgrade, which is no surprise, but I think they're the first multi-platform AAA shooters for the console which is encouraging.

[Raid]

The Project Octopath Traveller demo is up on the US shop. I've played around half an hour of it and it's pretty good; it has a classic SNES-era Final Fantasy feel to it (the character sprites are very reminiscent of FF6), but with more modern updates like voice acting and the unique visual style of 2D sprites in a heavily post-processed 3D world. I really like the battle system which is a classic turn-based Attack/Ability/Item style system, but where you have the option to power up any of your attacks or abilities by using a boost gauge that builds at the start of each turn. You can switch which weapon you attack with, and enemies are weak to one type; hit them enough times with it and you'll stun them. Abilities cost a resource, but if you power them up they don't cost any extra, so you'll need to choose between hitting them multiple times by boosting your standard attack and boosting abilities to do increased damage. It's fast and fairly dynamic, but I imagine some will be put off by the random encounters.

It's one of the games that really stood out when they showed it briefly before the Switch launched, but this is the first news we've really had for it since, and to actually get a playable demo was quite a surprise.

[DjchunKfunK]

Those two were a big surprise. Not sure how well they will sell, I can possibly see a case for wanting to play Doom on the go, but not sure who would want to buy Wolfenstein months after it comes out everywhere else. Still, it's a positive move.

I thought Mario and Octopath Traveller looked great and Xenoblade looked interesting, although I'm not sure whether the use of such a diverse set of regional British accents is amazing or terrible.

[Raid]

The Xenoblade bit bored me, frankly. If I want a tutorial, I'll buy the game; it's hardly something I want in a quickfire console news video. And the voice they chose to narrate it with was awful.

[Subway Diet]

Picked up Mario Kart 8 with some gift card and store credits.
I am disappointed that there are so many Mario variants and no Birdo.

But, other than that, it's pretty cool!

[Medicine Man]

Mario Kart 8 is magic!

Played it to death on the Wii U. In fact it may be responsible for turning the inside of my wrists into mush. Stupid heavy game pad.

[Mantis]

I totally forgot about that Project Octopath game. I really love the art style and if it's a well written, traditional JRPG style game then that's something I'd definitely be more eager to buy a Switch for.

Mario Kart is literally just the same game but with a better battle mode and the ability to hold two weapons. As much as I loved the Wii U version I don't think I can possibly get any more enjoyment out of that game. I played a quick tournament on the Wii U the other day when I was retrieving my Nintendo ID and seeing all the 3 star gold cups for 200cc brought back slight PTSD feelings.

[Raid]

So that copy of NES Golf that people found hidden inside the Switch's OS in the last week? Well, turns out it's likely a sort of virtual Japanese luck charm intended to make sure beloved former president of Nintendo Satoru Iwata (who died in 2015) watches over the console.

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2017- ... -president

[DjchunKfunK]

Golf Story is out on Switch, would pick it up myself if I hadn't already bought Steamworld Dig 2 which is great by the way. Stardew Valley also has a release date, due out on Thursday the 5th, I might be double dipping on that. First time I've done that since Dark Souls 2.

[Raid]

I bought it, but haven't had much chance to play yet. It's charming, but not in the slightly sickly way that Stardew Valley is. Golf Story's opening section is filled with minor arseholes, rather than the wholesome farming community of SDV. The golf game seems pretty decent, though I've never really played similar titles so don't have a point of comparison.

It's a shame that after so much time waiting for Stardew Valley's Switch release, we're getting two long awaited 16-bit-style half-RPGs in the same week. Still, at £13.49 and £10.99 for Golf Story and Stardew Valley respectively, they're both hovering around the impulse-buy threshold. I did buy SDV on the PC, but it's not the type of game I want to sit at my desk to play, whereas it's an absolutely perfect fit for the Switch (assuming the controls are good) and I'll undoubtedly be buying it again come thursday.

[Wrathbone]

Golf Story is great, played loads this weekend, although I'm now stuck on a putting challenge which is either bugged, impossible or I'm missing something completely.

And I am more excited for Stardew Valley on Switch then I probably should be.

[DjchunKfunK]

I played Stardew on PC with a controller so I expect the controls to be fine.

And I am more excited for Stardew Valley on Switch then I probably should be.

This is not possible, Stardew is one of the best games to come out in the last few years.

[Wrathbone]

Agreed. I've put tonnes of hours into it on PC and I'm really looking forward to a fresh start on Switch.

EDIT - It's out now and I played for several hours last night. Aside from strangely long save times (about 30 seconds, along with an on-screen warning that it may take a while), it's a superb port. I didn't play it with a controller much on PC but on Switch it works great. I expect this will be my life for a few weeks now.