Xenoblade is great, though it does go on, and on, and on. The opening couple of areas are marvellous though. I played the 3DS version and it was remarkably good, I'd imagine the Switch version is an improvement even if the new graphical style does make all the characters look like they are 6 years old.
I'm currently slogging through the 'it goes on and on' bit.
In Melia's city, and the last few hours have been pretty crap. The only thing keeping me going is the goodwill the game had built up before this.
Yeah. That’s a really low point and it drags on for hours. It picks up later through, so stick with it.
Melia’s got the worst voice actor in the whole game, which is surprising because she’s the only one I’ve actually heard of: Jenna Coleman of Doctor Who fame. Totally phoning it in.
I'm still amazed the game tops each location with the next one, Eryth Sea and Valak Mountains at night are absolutely beautiful.
51 Worldwide Classics… is winning with the hounds on Hare and Hounds actually possible? Am I just being thick?
Does anyone know how to get past the rocks on the ground in Mount Moon in Pokémon Let's Go? We've done the first gym and are now stuck. I suspect Little Miss Bloodaxe has skipped some vital dialogue at some point.
I think Twitter has solved it. They aren't rocks, they are fossils.
Has anyone played Hotshot Racing? The trailer looks fun and it's only £10 just now. Also it's Sumo Digital and I know I've enjoyed their games in the past. I'm a little concerned that their Drift mechanics are going to be unweildy or just weird.
It's a beautiful game with terrible rubber banding.
No matter how well you race, the other cars will be right behind you. It has a boost mechanic that's pretty much pointless, as the AI racers boost when you boost, to stay exactly the same distance behind you.
The handling is okay, definitely not as satisfying as other arcade racers though.
Its on Game Pass if you have that?
Ok, think I'll skip it for now. Thanks!
Crash Team Racing is free to play on the Switch for the next six days. Probably of more interest to our kids than us but the price is right. (Nintendo Online required)
You can finish that in five.
My goddaughter got a switch lite for Xmas, we’ve already visited each other’s ACNH islands - but she’s asked about Mario Kart.
As I understand it, the lite won’t let her play with her sister, is that right?
And Just Dance also seems not supported - is there anything else I should be aware of that doesn’t really work in Handheld Mode?
You should be able to connect another controller to the Switch Lite and do split-screen Mario Kart. Obviously not ideal as one person would be holding the console itself but I think it's possible. Check with your own controller first, maybe.
You should be able to connect another controller to the Switch Lite and do split-screen Mario Kart. Obviously not ideal as one person would be holding the console itself but I think it's possible. Check with your own controller first, maybe.
Yes, it is (up to four players split screen, I think). But, as pointed out, not ideal since one person would have to hold the console to play while the other(s) looks over their shoulder.
And Just Dance also seems not supported - is there anything else I should be aware of that doesn’t really work in Handheld Mode?
Anything that requires Tabletop mode (some games in 51 Worldwide Games, quite a bit of Mario Party) is out. Anything that requires specific JoyCon movement (1-2 Switch, for instance) is out. Anything multiplayer on one device, based on the above explanation. Most games are fine, but on the understanding that the Lite is very much a single player device with support for local wireless and online multiplayer.
You can finish that in five.
We played this on News Year's Eve. We played some multiplayer but when we moved on to taking turns on Adventure mode I was surprised how hard it was on Normal/standard difficulty, and in a cheap way as the car that wins doesn't seem to do anything special on some of the tracks but is just faster than yours.
It's the first Crash game I think I have ever played other than a dabble on the original PS1 version of this via emulation earlier in the year. Not massively endeared by it.
I used to love CTR on the PSone. The drift boosting meant that you had to work for it if you wanted to go fast and the weapons were fun without making the game too random.
The new CTR is just a mess. There's no weight to anything the boost is ineffective and I'm too old for all this noise!
Remake in 'Isn't actually good, because the devs basically relied on the license to make it sell rather than making it decent, and oh, hey, the original wasn't as good as everyone remembers it anyway' shocker. Gasp.
There is a reason why I didn’t pay for it.
It had too many Crash Bandicoots for me.
Did anyone else pick up Mario 3D World?
Ho-lee-shit Bowser’s Fury is good. Probably not worth the 50 quid entry if you’ve played 3D World to death, as it’s only 3 hours long. But what’s there is bloody amazing.
Still on my burnout from the last 3 games in a row, so no(-t yet). when does the game get taken down or was only the Mario Collection limited? Is the base Mario World game as fun as I remember? Fucking insane double cherry shenanigans and all? :o
Did anyone else pick up Mario 3D World?
Ho-lee-shit Bowser’s Fury is good. Probably not worth the 50 quid entry if you’ve played 3D World to death, as it’s only 3 hours long. But what’s there is bloody amazing.
Yep, got it. Not played BF yet though. Will do soon.
Still on my burnout from the last 3 games in a row, so no(-t yet). when does the game get taken down or was only the Mario Collection limited? Is the base Mario World game as fun as I remember? Fucking insane double cherry shenanigans and all? :o
The base game is fantastic, yeah. I loved it so much more this time around.
I think the original release was just too close to Galaxy. It doesn't have that epic scope, so back on Wii U I was disappointed to see the direction they were taking mainline Mario. But judged out of context it's a lovely, inventive game.
But Bowser's Fury, oh boy. It's a combination of Odyssey's sprawling worlds (just one of them sadly), and 3D World's tight level design. Every corner of the huge world is a whole Mario 3D World level, with its own Mario-64-style objectives. And there are no seams. Stuck on one level? Just dive off the side of the cliff and into the next one.
I'd be surprised if this wasn't the future of mainline Mario.
I think I mentioned this here recently but I played through 3D World not too long ago and thought it was distinctly mediocre. It's not a great single-player game because all the levels have to be big and flat and open to accommodate the 4-player mode. It's not a great multiplayer game because the "pick up player" button is the same as the "run" button so you're forever picking up your team players when you don't mean to. The whole thing is bland and its insistence on 8-way digital run (to accommodate Wiimote players, apparently) removes the best thing about a Mario game, the fluidity of movement.
I'd like to try Bowser's Fury but of course there's no way I can buy it without shelling out on a full price re-re-release of a Wii U game I already own. So I guess I'll be passing on that. Honestly, Nintendo's business practices are infuriating sometimes.
Isn't the running fixed in this version?
There's still a run button, but all movement speed has been boosted, so you usually don't need to use it.
But 'run' and 'pick stuff up' being on the same button has been a 2D Mario staple forever, and I've always thought it was stupid. Especially that awkward manoeuvre when you're holding run, then have to tap jump with the same thumb.
More rumours about a New Super Switch Pro DX coming some time this year:
This actually sounds a lot more plausible than some of the previous rumours predicting hugely improved performance. A better screen and the same kind of upscaling tech that's already used in other devices sounds like quite a sensible upgrade, that wouldn't make current Switch or Switch Lite owners feel like they'd been cut out of the loop. Using more readily available modern components might actually make the thing less expensive to produce rather than more.
Who's going to volunteer to force-feed Mart pies until he coughs up the info?
This place is entirely need-to-know on all things we're doing. I can proudly say I know absolutely nothing about the validity of this, but please go ahead with the pies anyway. 
Not fussed about the 4k but would love a newer switch with a bigger screen. We will occasionally now play ours on the TV/Dock at least for 3 player Mario Kart - and I have one of the Super Brook Fight Stick convertors now too that I use for or arcade gaming, but I would love a bigger screen, even marginally so as am still a handheld Switch user. Going to imagine that means new Joycons etc, but that wouldn't stop me.
Guys why did no-one tell me Picross is digital crack.
Two hours ago I didn't know how to play it. Since then I've solved about forty puzzles, and my eyes are dry from not blinking.
Mrs Bloodaxe has been hooked on picross for years. She plays through massive 60x60 pictures which don't even fit on her ipad screen. I haven't a clue how it works.
Guys why did no-one tell me Picross is digital crack.
Two hours ago I didn't know how to play it. Since then I've solved about forty puzzles, and my eyes are dry from not blinking.
All of the Switch ones bar the latest (S6) are on sale now, so it'd be a good time to pick them up.
Guys why did no-one tell me Picross is digital crack.
Two hours ago I didn't know how to play it. Since then I've solved about forty puzzles, and my eyes are dry from not blinking.
All of the Switch ones bar the latest (S6) are on sale now, so it'd be a good time to pick them up.
My partner is a Picross demon. It's her cocaine.
All of the Switch ones bar the latest (S6) are on sale now, so it'd be a good time to pick them up.
Is there any significant difference between any of them or are they all pretty much the same?
I played the demo of 6 then bought 1 (it was cheapest). It's graphically identical, I think they're basically level packs.
The later ones added in some extra modes that were sorely missing from S1 (Macross, mainly), but yeah it's just more puzzles. That's not necessarily a bad thing, if you like Picross. I did say to my other half the other day that I wondered why they didn't just launch an overall hub container (like Zen Pinball) and then release add-on packs rather than separate games.
They did announce this game a while back and it's still not here. Annoying.
I wouldn't recommend the Hatsune Miku Picross game on eShop - the presentation is great, but it has some of the worst puzzle solutions I've ever seen…
EDIT: To clarify the changes…
S1 - Just features Picross
S2 - Added Clip Picross mode (Macross) where you complete many smaller puzzles to make one big puzzle
S3 onwards - Also added Colour Picross, which is a completely different way to play
So S3 onwards are the best ones on Switch.
Talking of Picross, has anyone played Murder by Numbers on the Switch?
It's a lovely little game (by the guy(s) that did Hatoful Boyfriend) that builds Picross puzzles into a series of interlinked detective narratives, visual novel style. The central character is an actor playing a detective in a tv show and there's a mysterious flying robot, so you'll need some tolerance for meta silliness, but it's very good-natured, relatively coherent as far as these things go, and doesn't outstay its welcome.
The puzzles are a little basic at the start but they pick up, the narrative is entertaining and the writing/translation is surprisingly good and funny. Recommended for a nice distraction.
Also - hello, long time no post. How are you?
Talking of Picross, has anyone played Murder by Numbers on the Switch?
I hadn't even heard of it, but I'll be picking it up as soon as I've finished Tokyo Mirage Sessions. I'm continuing my entirely uncharacteristic JRPG streak (after finishing Atelier Ryza) with this, and it's great so far. Incredibly satisfying combat system, considering it's turn-based, and it's all just a lot of bright, colourful fun.
Just don't Google the game, or look at user reviews, or you'll be subjected to pages of mouth-froth over 'censorship'. It's incredible how annoyed people will get over the blurring out of some pants…
Also - hello, long time no post. How are you?
I'm good, thanks for asking! Yourself?
Murder by Numbers was the last game from Mediatonic before they released Fall Guys and drowned in money. It's pretty good, by all accounts.
It's incredible how annoyed people will get over the blurring out of some pants…
To be fair, that happens to me when I take my trousers and glasses off.
I'm good, thanks for asking! Yourself?
Very well thank you! Although with little time to game these days due to work and children. Grabbing 20 mins on the Switch every now and then is basically my only option, hence my knowledge of random indies thereupon.
I've never played any Ace Attorney, and the setting of the new one appeals. Should I wait for that and pay double, or just get the original trilogy remake?
I don't know how well they hold up, considering they're DS games.
The original trilogy is fantastic and holds up really well on Switch, the graphics have been redrawn but are faithful to the originals. You won’t regret getting it.
Lovely, thanks!
Swapped my Switch for a Lite. It's so much nicer to use in handheld; I didn't realise quite how heavy and creaky the Switch was until I got my Lite.
If anyone was looking for that fabled Vita replacement, I'd say the Switch Lite is in with a shout. It's definitely the best handheld I've owned. (Although I never bought a Gizmondo.)
I love my Lite and only go back to the original to play on TV - never handheld.
What colour, given the new Tory Blue one came out on the day of Boris's great Hartlepool victory?
Grey. Would have gone turquoise/coral but grey was cheaper, and came with a game.
It's just a much nicer thing to hold in your hands. The materials (still plastic) feel better, the buttons are softer, there's a proper d-pad. And it's so much lighter.
I’m still tempted, but holding off because I know Nintendo will announce a new more powerful model the week after I buy one.
In the meantime I’ve bought the Hori Split Pad Pro for the full-size Switch and although now the thing is bloody massive it’s also a damn sight more comfortable to hold.
That Hori pad looks cool. Let us know how you get on with it.
Yeah, what Bri said. Now I’ve started Rise the chances of my playing the Switch for long periods have risen exponentially, and I’m tempted.
