Off Topic Nintendo

[Ashez]

I didn't bother with the one in S/M one, I believe this one is less punishing in defeat though. 

Ahh I hate Smogon, I liked it when I was younger but I soon stopped using there haha. YouTube is full of breeding guides though, also a few on the battle tower 

This battle tower guide is basically what I did, I used Dracovish which is incredibly broken and then Pokemon I wanted to use which were Mudsdale (to Dynamax) and Arcanine for singles and for doubles I added a random Tsareena as I wanted to use something I'd not used before. Standard F/W/G core with a broken Dragon and a beast Dynamax (can boost both defences and attack due to moves). 

Let me know what you're thinking team wise and I'll check if I have any :). 

To make use of Pokemon Home's GTS I've been working on collecting the different forms of some Pokemon and I started with the Deerling/Sawsbuck line as I love it, imagine my surprise when my I receive a shiny bloody Deerling! 

Clearly hacked though as Lv100, shiny and max stats. Still cool though and a bonus form for the collection I wasn't expecting! 

[zaangie]

I don't follow their rules but I like their setups/EV spread. I always take ideas out there. 

I'll check that later 😁

[zaangie]

Look what I got on my mail today 😁

[Ashez]

I've never really got the point of steel books but that's pretty sexy! 

Cart holders scare me lol, my cousin uses a little Zelda chest (ALBWs pre-order bonus) and he lost it losing all his important 3DS games. It took him basically a year to find it accidentally after ripping the house apart looking for it once he noticed it was missing 😂. 

[zaangie]

I have oras and sun Steelbooks, so I had to get this one too.

How could he lost it? Mine is always in a special place 😂

[Ashez]

1 minute ago, zaangie said:

I have oras and sun Steelbooks, so I had to get this one too.

How could he lost it? Mine is always in a special place 😂

I have the Moon one , then I have the Fire Emblem Fates one and Arkham Origins. Actually I think I have an old Messi Fifa one knocking around somewhere as well. They make decent display pieces but I'd never use them. I love how uniformed Switch cases are, excellent size too. 

His daughter got hold of it when she started moving about I think he said, iirc it ended up behind an unit or something lol. 

[Ashez]

Did the Animal Crossing Direct do it for anyone? 

I'll admit the island crafting and decorating does look pretty neat in a Minecraft kind of way but everything else looks so boring! Like where is the gameplay! I wish it had a free trial or demo as I wanna know what all the fuss is about!

[Rob]

I hated it. The styling and graphics winds me right up. 

[Ashez]

The garbage camera doesn't do it justice but I've had a delivery 😍😍

[zaangie]

12 hours ago, Ashez said:

The garbage camera doesn't do it justice but I've had a delivery 😍😍

How much did it cost? 

Did you see the Mewtwo lvl100 raid event? 😱

[Ashez]

8 minutes ago, zaangie said:

How much did it cost? 

Did you see the Mewtwo lvl100 raid event? 😱

£44 but I bought it from somewhere already in the UK so I didn't have to mess around with importing it myself, the thought of it getting lost and all the fees involved just made this option appeal more. £44 is cheaper than the 3 digitally on Switch when not on sale so it's not a bad price. However only the first is on the cart, the second two are DL codes, I knew that going in but it still annoys me lol. This was one of my dream ports though so I can't moan too much. 

Holly shit, no?!? Looking into that now!

[zaangie]

13 minutes ago, Ashez said:

£44 but I bought it from somewhere already in the UK so I didn't have to mess around with importing it myself, the thought of it getting lost and all the fees involved just made this option appeal more. £44 is cheaper than the 3 digitally on Switch when not on sale so it's not a bad price. However only the first is on the cart, the second two are DL codes, I knew that going in but it still annoys me lol. This was one of my dream ports though so I can't moan too much. 

Holly shit, no?!? Looking into that now!

Yeah, I also find it annoying when they do that with two or more games pack. 

You can't catch it but it drops nice items. Also there's Kanto starters raids.

[Rob]

Rumours are going around that Ash’s salary is actually going to start being paid directly to Nintendo and other games companies rather than himself, therefore saving him a lot of hassle.

[Ashez]

2 hours ago, zaangie said:

Yeah, I also find it annoying when they do that with two or more games pack. 

It's so annoying! DMC is the first like that I've supported as I don't agree with it but for DMC I had too 😭. I've not played the first in years, I want to remember why everyone hates the second and I adore the third, money well spent imo. 

2 hours ago, zaangie said:

You can't catch it but it drops nice items. Also there's Kanto starters raids.

You can't catch it? Instantly lost its appeal! The items are cool but I've not got time to grind items 😂. As for the starters I've got them a million times including hidden abilities lol. I might try it out but I doubt it tbh. 

1 hour ago, Rob said:

Rumours are going around that Ash’s salary is actually going to start being paid directly to Nintendo and other games companies rather than himself, therefore saving him a lot of hassle.

If that was the case I'd buy digitally 😂. 

I have splurged this month but I'll enjoy it all in time 😂

[zaangie]

@Ashez how about the challenge of beat it? I heard it's super hard. It has like 6 moves to cover his weakness. We complained about the game being easy. So I welcome this challenge. Hope there's more to come. 

[Ashez]

Just now, zaangie said:

@Ashez how about the challenge of beat it? I heard it's super hard. It has like 6 moves to cover his weakness. We complained about the game being easy. So I welcome this challenge. Hope there's more to come. 

Fair point, I have nothing even close to high enough level to take it on though, I think my highest levelled Pokemon is 70 😂. Then if it is hard the AI are useless in raids so you'll go online and beat it easy lol. Maybe I'll try at least one 😛

[zaangie]

18 minutes ago, Ashez said:

Fair point, I have nothing even close to high enough level to take it on though, I think my highest levelled Pokemon is 70 😂. Then if it is hard the AI are useless in raids so you'll go online and beat it easy lol. Maybe I'll try at least one 😛

Are you telling me that going into a raid with a partner using a magikarp with hydro pump is hard? 😂

[Ashez]

6 minutes ago, zaangie said:

Are you telling me that going into a raid with a partner using a magikarp with hydro pump is hard? 😂

It's so frustrating the AI partners stay awful, sure it pushes online so it's not bad but losing to three Magikarp knockouts is infuriating lol

[Ashez]

Should have been the starter was my first thought

[zaangie]

1 hour ago, Ashez said:

Should have been the starter was my first thought

I like it. Just hope I can get it this time. 

[zaangie]

It's impossible to beat mewtwo alone lmao

[Ashez]

39 minutes ago, zaangie said:

It's impossible to beat mewtwo alone lmao

Looked into it this morning, I have nothing close to being able to handle it atm. Then I saw the event ends on the first which gives me no time to prepare at all so I went on DQ instead. 

[Ashez]

What I've Been Playing 

February

Switch 

Dragon Quest XIs - Where do you even begin with a game like Dragon Quest XI? This was the first Switch game ever announced and it's one I've been hyped for for years and the best part is it's not only lived up to my high expectations it's totally smashed them! The Dragon Quest formula is traditional to a fault but personally it's why I adore the series, the simplicity of the combat and the loving care that's built the world and story is all this series needs. For those unaware the typical Dragon Quest structure is you'll have a big overarching plot that runs through the entire game, however with each town you visit you'll encounter a small side story where you'll have to sort out whatever the issue is. And it's here where the formula draws you in as while you're ever pushing towards the end game of the main story it's the smaller stories that pull you in and make this world feel alive! You'll find towns with issues surrounding a horse racing tournament to a cursed kingdom where the residents are turning to gold and many many more. With each story you're pulled in as each town is so unique but they're alive by themselves with each area having their own gimmick, for example one area only speaks in rhyme, another is French and one is an underground fight club. It just all works together to make every section memorable and special! Dragon Quest is a massively story driven game as it's fairly linear with you going town to town and advancing the story at every point, for this reason I don't want to spoil anything but I will say the story is excellent. It is your typical hero and big bad story in many ways but it's still gripping with plenty of mystery, it is however the small side stories that make the game. The amount of times I've messaged @Nucleus basically saying "holy shit such and such part was excellent" is unreal, it feels like I've done it every other section! Admittedly if you end up in a town story that doesn't do it for you the flow of the game can stumble slightly but it's always worth pushing through as something special is always around the corner. However while the world feels alive it's the characters that truly make this game what it is! The main cast is absolutely outstanding and they might be my favourite cast of characters from any game, especially in the second half of the story where you learn alot more about their back grounds. The thing DQ has always been excellent at is using emotion to impact you, the way the game can break your heart is scary as so many moments are tear inducing, that's not all though as there are also amazing highs and moments of triumph which feel just as emotional. Basically I want to gush about this game yet I also don't want to spoil anything, this is an old game now and the way the DQ community has protected it's spoilers is unlike anything I've seen before, it's a game I've looked into since its PS4 release yet I've had nothing spoiled! There is a section around 25 hours in that's mind blowing, it was this point that my love of the game was cemented. The fact this game runs on the Switch is impressive but seeing it in action is surprising as it runs perfectly, it looks stunning and the load times are minimal and it's just a wonder, the care and effort poured into this game deserves tremendous credit. I've already wrote alot but I could keep going forever as the story, characters, world, charm and emotion of this game is top tier and the best combination I've seen on Switch, I'm still not sure if it beats out DQ8 for me but I'm only like half way through DQ11s sitting at around the 45 hour mark, so I'll continue to talk about it in next month's update. Just seriously guys if you're reading this and yet to try the demo just download it already, it's easily not only one of the best games on Switch but one of the best RPGs ever made. You need to get back on this @zaangie!

Pokemon Shield - As I expected the events managed to pull me back in as I grinded the Alcremie event to get one of each form (not design there is like 90 of those lol). Pokemon Home also released this month which saw me organise my entire living dex into one place, I also decided to breed a few Pokemon, partly to have some more competitive ready mons but also to have some trade bait and wonder trade options for the newly released GTS. I still think Pokemon Home is expensive yet it's a great bit of kit which I've already spent hours upon hours in, being able to trade from a mobile device is way cooler than it should be, especially the wonder box feature. It's encouraged me to start sorting out unique forms for my Living Dex so for example I've been tracking down each Sawsbuck variant and things with big gender differences. I've now broken the 100 hour barrier in Shield, I believe that's my third 100 hour plus title after BOTW and Darkest Dungeon! I'm delighted I played this before DQ as DQ blows the Pokemon world out the water yet there is a special Pokemon charm about Sw/Sh, I've found jumping between the two surprisingly easy. 

Game Of The Year
 
New Releases

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First Time Played This Year

1. Dragon Quest XIs
2. Steamworld Quest Hand of Gilgamech
3. 
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5. 

Recent Pick Ups

Yeah I splurged a daft amount this month, the right deals just appeared and I was too weak to ignore them, the expensive one was paid for on pre-order though a few months back so it's not as bad as it looks, especially as one was a back order that arrived weeks earlier than expected 😂. 

Mutant Year Zero Road To Eden - Switch - £19.99 - Means, motive and opportunity led to this pick up and I'll admit it's one I likely shouldn't have grabbed! You see during my week off the missus and I basically shopped until we dropped as I have to engage in her main hobby from time to time! I don't know about you but when I'm on my third day of shopping at the third different location without buying anything my purchasing trigger finger gets a tad twitchy, I'm out shopping so I should shop damn it! So when I walked into Game and saw Mutant Year Zero on the shelf I knew I was taking it home with me, after hours of pointlessly looking at clothes I finally found something I wanted. This game was on my radar because one of my favourite podcasts (TalkNintendo) raved about it giving it one of their game of the year awards, however and it's a big however the Switch version has issues, but even with these issues the podcast host loved this game, I stood in the store looking at patch notes and recent reviews to see inconclusive reports but it seemed okay in docked mode so I gambled. The final nail in the coffin of my wallet was I know the physical copy is uncommon, I've been looking for it for a while and even on Amazon it's only available as an import so having it in hand made it tough to put down. Obviously I realise it might be uncommon because the port is that bad or it might just of had a small print run but this is the first time the uncommonness of a title impacted my purchasing decision on a Switch game. Thankfully if it is a complete train wreck I'm confident I can get most my money back so we'll just have to wait and see what it's like when I get to it. The game itself is highly rated on other platforms so as long as this port is decent I'm okay with my decision, if it's shit I'll just flip it for as much as I can. Thankfully the title is a strategy RPG so if it runs okay I should love it, it's one I would have bought without the extra knowledge tbh but buying it with the knowledge it might be a mess does give me slight buyers remorse lol. Time will tell!

Devil May Cry Trilogy - Switch - £44.99 - The price point physically pains me but I had to have this in my collection, I've said countless times I love the DMC series with the third entry especially being one of my favourite games. This collection however is over priced but cheaper than the non sale price of the three games digitally on the Eshop, although the main reason for buying now and not waiting for a cheaper option is the physical release of this game is in Japan only. Thankfully one of the sites I use offered it for pre-order while handling the importing aspect themselves which just makes life easier and means I'm not hit by hidden fees or it getting lost, so just to have it I've gone in at the full price. However I'm livid by the fact only DMC 1 is on the cart, the next two games are download codes which boils my blood. Usually I'd walk away from this type of game or wait for a steep discount but as these are games I really want on the Switch I've swallowed my pride and bit the bullet. Capcom are such arseholes releasing games only in Japan and not all on the cart, thankfully at least they have added some new features to DMC3 but it hardly sweetens the pot. 

Yooka-Laylee & The Impossible Lair - Switch - £14.99 - The new Yooka-Laylee title for £15? The newest 2D platformer that got rave reviews for £15? Hell any highly regarded Switch game for £15 physical is a no brainer! This was a back order offer on Amazon I couldn't refuse but one reason why it appealed was it wasn't meant to release until mid March, so this was intended for next month! Unfortunately/fortunately it must have got back in stock quicker than anticipated as I received the game 2-3 weeks early which is why my February splurge looks so bad, it was never intended lol! I've not played the demo but for this price I had to have it and I'm actually really looking forward to playing it, I can't remember the last new 2D platformer I played! Did you bite @Rob?

South Park The Fractured But Whole - Switch - £19.99 - The final splurge saw me finally grab South Park on the Switch, this was one of the first games @Nucleus picked up once he got his system and his positive review sold me on the title. At one point it hovered around the £18-20 mark which I missed out on but it's when @Nucleus grabbed a copy, the price then stayed closer to the £30 mark. If I know a title has been cheaper I'm too tight to bite when it's higher and it took a whole 9 months for this title to drop back down to the price I was happy with! After buying so many games this month I almost decided against making the purchase but I've waited a long 9 months for this title and I wasn't prepared to wait any longer 😂. 

All I can say for sure is I'm going to do my best not to buy anything next month as February has been daft, then again I don't recall buying many Switch games in January :p! That's the issue with playing three long RPGs on the bounce as I've basically played three games since September which has allowed deals to happen and the backlog to build. My priority now is to smash out DQ then to start knocking out the backlog, it's big but damn I'm so excited by some of the titles I've got to play! 

[Rob]

Never got Yooka in the end, but almost got South Park. In the end a mate just lent me Links.

[Ashez]

3 hours ago, Rob said:

Never got Yooka in the end, but almost got South Park. In the end a mate just lent me Links.

I can't wait to get to those

[zaangie]

@Ashez I know I need to get back to DQ. But I'm not having enough free time to play it. 

[Ashez]

The Switch is now three years old! 

[Rob]

Where would you rank it in Nintendo’s list of consoles overall?

[Ashez]

Home console? That's easy as I think it easily sits top of the pile. 

Switch - Too many great experiences 

Gamecube - This or Snes is tight but I've played more GC games

Snes - I adore the Snes but select titles as I've not played enough

Wii - Some top tier games but screw that controller

N64 - Fantastic memories but the games don't hold up

WiiU - Saved by a few games but trash console that's now irrelevant

Nes - Never had/played one 

Handheld 

3DS - It's close but DS and 3DS library is legit, Switch will over take it though

Switch - Too new to over take the 3DS atm but it will

DS - So many great games 

GBA - Come on it's a handheld Snes, just too many ports to stand out.  

GB/GBC - They don't really hold up

Tbh I could put Switch on top of both as if I think about the experiences I've had with BOTW, Darkest Dungeon, Mario Odyssey and DQ XI it's easy to argue but the 3DS has been my favourite for years. As the Switch ports keep coming and the library continues to grow it'll over take the 3DS but the 3DS saw me through the Wii/WiiU mehness. 

[zaangie]

3 years and we still haven't got new themes and private messages lmao

As a whole it's the best Nintendo console ever made. If we only pick as handled I have to say GBA. It was such an amazing console. It had literally every game. You think of a random unknown game and it was on gba for sure.