Nicktendo

You can't launch anything in China without a Chinese partner, hence Tencent. They're only helping local distribution, WeChat pay and cloud stuff for the e-shop in China. Bonus: They also get access to all your design materials so they can replicate the technology and release their own brand once you're surplus to requirements. Then you get booted out of China. Couldn't care less about a Pokemon mobile game. Nintendo shouldn't even be bothering with the Chinese market. Not worth the hassle and they have to give up a lot to get in. Any government that is fragile enough to ban Animal Crossing of all things should be mocked, ridiculed and boycotted until the end of time. Pathetic doesn't accurately cover it.

The money they invested in Platinum was essentially a loan so that Platinum could set up shop as an self-publishing developer and better retain their own IP. They're still 100% independent. Slightly different from the situation we have with Act/Blizzard, Epic and Riot games, for example, but not ideal. I'd forgotten about it too. I'll have to wait and see on Bayo 3. Might be one for the second-hand market. Just looking now I also had no idea they owned 20% of Marvelous, and therefore, No More Heroes... Damn. Seems like everyone wants a slice of dirty CCP money. @Dcubed - I've been hearing rumours that it's not WBIE, but 2K Games they're after. Which means Rockstar and GTA It's definitely something big though. Potentially industry changing the likes of which have not been seen since... ZENIMAX . Can't see the next four years being very kind to Western devs with Tencent swinging their big dick of unlimited money around, especially with Xo Bai-Den at the wheel. Maybe this is what's forcing all the conglomerates to buy up studios? Getting their cards on the table in preparation for war? Conglomerate wars? Might be time for me to go all in on Nintendo and indie games. My backlog is huge, I hadn't planned on buying anything outside of the big Nintendo releases this year, but I guess we'll have to see which way the wind blows. Either way, China ain't getting a penny off me.

Yay! Another company going straight on the ignore list

I've just finished it this evening, but won't speak about it just yet!

Finally finished Doom 2016. I'll talk about it this week on the podcast as Greg and Lee have also beat if I remember right. For everything I feel it does right, it also does a lot wrong. Struggling to come up with an overall assessment in my head.

Take BOTW for example, it runs at about 30FPS at 900p on the docked Switch. It's not super stable and drops a few frames, think by the Deku Tree, for instance. What DLSS can do depends on what type of experience you want. You could run the game in 720p native (lighter load on the GPU), upscaled to 1080p. The deep learning super sampling would output an upscaled 1080p image, but the actual game would be rendering in 720p, so in TV mode, the frame-rate would be much smoother because the GPU is not working as hard to produce the image. The cost of running DLSS would be far lower than natively rendering the game in 900p over 720. Mario Kart 8 is a buttery smooth 1080p60. With DLSS enabled, it could, in theory upscale the image to 2160p or even 4K with very little cost. I'd imagine, with it being a Wii U game, there is still some overhead that could be used to achieve this. If they slightly upgrade (or even unlock) the clock speeds on the next model, this would be instantly achievable. For handheld mode, you could have Doom Eternal, as an example, rendered in native 480p and outputting at an upscaled 720p on the Switch Screen, which may even make 60FPS possible, or allow it to maintain a consistent 30fps upscaled to 720p (so no more variable resolution to keep the frame-rate stable). Basically, it allows you to play around with output and frame-rates and tailor the experience to what you want. Now I'm sure Nintendo will be extremely strict with what they allow users to select and it certainly won't be as free as it is on PC. But this stuff really works and I'm kicking myself for buying an AMD GPU a couple of years ago. There are loads of Digital Foundry videos if you want to get all technical which examine different uses of DLSS and the cost or running a game like Control in native 4K compared to upscaled 4K. The amount of power you can save is really as much as 50% and the difference in image quality is almost not visible unless you zoom right in. It's also really going to come into its own when stuff like ray-tracing takes off as rendering that stuff is extremely expensive. This shit is magic. The best part is it would not cost Nintendo anything like a full generation shift but can get similar results. All they would need to do is use a slightly more modern chip than the one they have now and keep everything else the same. This stuff has been around for a few years now but has only started seeing real results in the last 12 months as the technology has improved. They would be absolutely insane to not make use of it in their partnership with Nvidia, and best of all, they could still make a tidy profit off a $299 Switch with this feature included. They don't need to break the bank. Edit: It also makes sense for Nintendo to adopt this as a matter urgency, before the XSX and PS5 get up and running. The longer they leave it, the further they'll get left behind. Though that's just my opinion based on 2010-2012 and the Wii.

DLSS does not mean native 4K to everyone dismissing it. Watch the video that @Goron_3 posted. This is technology that already exists in most Nvidia chips post Switch launch. It is completely feasible and even logical that a new Switch would include this technology. In fact, it would be outrageous if they didn’t include it.

I managed to finish a couple of games from last year off in the past couple of days. I'll be talking about both on the N-E Cafe this week in a little more detail. Firstly Part-time UFO on Switch, which is a great little game developed by HAL. Please read @Hero-of-Time's review here https://www.n-europe.com/reviews/part-time-ufo It's a fantastic little game with a deceptively large amount of content. The final boss is wonderful and introduces new mechanics, which work really well for a "boss battle". There are heaps of costumes, extras and achievements to unlock, some of which are brutally difficult. I finished the main game in just under 3 hours, but I can see it stretching out well beyond 5 for anyone who wants to hit 100%. Highly, highly recommended considering the price. Also did the final room and boss(es) in Luigi's Mansion 3. Not really much else to add here. My favourite Switch game release after the start of 2018. So pleased that NLG have been brought into the fold full-time. The final, final boss was extremely tough, but I managed to finally do it on the third or fourth attempt. Credits and ending cut-scene were wonderful. They've really managed to capture the Nintendo magic in this title and I can't wait to see what they do next. I have a few jewels to go back and get for 100%, but I can easily see myself replaying the entire thing in a year or two. Definitely a 10/10 game! #DCubedWasRIght

The operation was a complete success. Don't get me wrong, I'm pleased to see Derrick do a trailer analysis. Guess he'll have to look inside himself and ask if it was all worth it in the end. A real shame that they chose this option rather than hashing things out seriously with supposed friends. Maybe business and friendship shouldn't be mixed, but I don't like seeing this type of behaviour rewarded and reinforced. They'll be on the end of a cancelling themselves sooner or later, the mob is never satiated.

Being in the public eye is not normal. It's a privileged position. If I have a problem with my boss, I don't have the Internet to correct it and right the wrongs for me. This stuff should be settled behind closed doors. The drama is just ugly, cringeworthy and tribal. All it achieves is forcing people to choose a side and casting "evil" people asunder. Andre is likely a persona non-grata in the games industry now. Probably doesn't deserve to be, but that's the society we live in. His former employees have thrown him under the bus to boost their own profiles. Doubt he'll get a redemption arc. The loudest complainers usually get their way as long as they hit all the sympathy points (such a difficult time, mental breakdown, I didn't know what to do and who to turn to). Why go to a lawyer when online mobs exist? No one takes responsibility for anything anymore. If Andre was exploiting them, then they should've sought legal advice. If they didn't have contracts, that was their own fault. Ash said he didn't sign his new one. Well done, that's what you should do. But I still think this doesn't have to be public. I'd say losing the majority of his staff would be a wake up call. The work they do is not replaceable overnight. The money for GX won't keep rolling in, simply because Andre no longer has the manpower to produce the content. You're not wrong about the corporate world, but a YouTube channel of GX's size is not a corporation, this would've hit him hard in the pocket, with or without the former members going public.

I would like to think that any competent boss would be self-reflective if three or four of their prominent staff members banded together and left. Someone who doesn't self-reflect after that is never going to change.

This whole thing reeks of entitlement and backstabbery. Some guys split off and started their own thing, which is their prerogative. It seems to me this was a way of carving off some of the GameXplain audience for themselves. If they weren't happy with the conditions at GX, there was nothing stopping them doing exactly what they did, just doing it sooner. They've all spoken about how they have other jobs, so this is not solely about the money. Nobody was forcing anyone to make video content. They do it because they want to be a bigger name and have more influence in the community. If they can't hack it, they should get out. People who air their work grievances over the Internet are only doing it for money, sympathy or to destroy someone's reputation. They could have raised their concerns settled their differences behind closed doors and put out a statement saying: "We at GameXplain have decided to go our separate ways and focus on content we are passionate about". Over. I have no real love for Andre, Jon is a complete tool, and Ash is one of the most whiny and entitled "influencers" I've ever had the displeasure of listening to. They all had a hand in ruining GameXplain by shoving their personal politics into the product and chasing the algorithms, like so many other gaming outlets. They all get what they deserve. I'll add by saying that if you want your product to grow, stating on your podcast and Twitter that "people with x, y and z political views probably shouldn't be a part of the GX community" Then you shouldn't be surprised if you don't get any sympathy.

I'm going to give this thread a proper response because H-o-T made it and I want to contribute to his discussion starters. I think Jan-Mar are looking good, with 3 big games dropping. I, ashamedly, want them all. That trailer we saw yesterday was fantastic. As SM3DW is the BEST Mario game since Sunshine, I will be double dipping. The extra content looks like a fantastic amalgamation of 3D Land, World and Odyssey. I am very hyped, maybe too hyped. I'll pick up that and Bravely Default 2 with a voucher most likely. Monster Hunter is gonna be day one because it's better with friends and I'm sure most will be getting it on or close to launch. As for a new Switch model. I'm sticking to my guns and saying it's coming at the end of March. I remember reading somewhere that Nintendo were aiming for an 8 year life cycle for the Switch. There are plenty of convincing cases above for that meaning a new model in 2023 with 2 years of lag during the transition, but I'm sticking to my original prediction. Before the end of the FY. The model itself will not be a massive upgrade. Slightly faster clocks, a new CPU and maybe GPU, slightly more ram. DLSS enabled. 4K home menu, some games in 4K, the vast, vast majority slightly more stable FR and resolution. Model will still be 720p with thicc bezels. I still remember this "family of systems" - OG and lite does not a family make. We need some offspring. In terms of content, I think we'll see Monolith's new game revealed at E3, launching 2022. A remaster of Xenoblade X (I was serious about that one) with a proper ending coming in Summer 2021. No More Heroes will drop in Autumn (September) and Bayonetta 3 will come in early Winter (November). Both will be a big part of E3 2021. Nintendo will go blowout + playable demo of BOTW2 at E3 also, it's launching in early December. We know Pokemon Snap is coming (FYQ1) and Nintendo will release a YouTube trailer for Camelot's next game (probably Golf), which will launch in May/June. The anticipated Zelda collection will drop in October but will be disappointing for those who want a lot done with the remasters. We'll see a first (very early) CGI trailer for Prime 4, just to remind us all it still exists. Holiday 2022. Nintendo will have one more game which is currently unknown dropping in July/August a la Paper Mario. I have no idea what it is, but it's an old franchise and was developed by Next Level Games. There will be an expansion to NSO. Another console, maybe, not sure. There might be a "platinum" tier added which is required to access that new console. I do think they'll increase their offering, but only for a higher price. A split is coming with Gold and Platinum tiers as the names. Platinum will be £29.99 a year. NSO games will be made available to purchase and we'll see some removed from the service before the end of the year. Of course it's a ploy to get more money and not a licensing issue. The Platinum tier will allow you to retain access.

Xenoblade Chronicles X Deluxe Yoshi's Woolly World Deluxe Nintendo Land Deluxe

If you've never played 3D World, you need this DAY ONE, Dennis.

Thanks for noticing that, I made a late edit and forgot to shift it along. I'll get it fixed and re-uploaded.

You'd be surprised at how good it is. If you can wire up, you'll get a very smooth experience. Outside of Mario Maker 2 I've never had any problems with Switch online. It's fine, sometimes even *gasp* good. At least it doesn't take 5 hours to download a 15gb game (Hello PSN!). But seriously, if you do get Monster Hunter, it should be played online, and it should be played with forumers and voice chat. So get a LAN adaptor, download Discord and embrace the future - NINTENDO STYLE. I'm hoping a lot of people here will be jumping in day 1 and questing together in late March.

Or just make a Discord. It's 2021! But seriously though. Screw Nintendo's app. Screw party chat. We have our great 3rd party apps now! I've been playing Animal Crossing vicariously through Discord for the past 6 months and it has been quite the ride. Text + voice + WTF is going on = win.

Oh yeah, sorry for the garbage audio from my side this week. Recorded using the wrong microphone...

Mark of the Ninja to add a bit of spice to the voting.

Just came to post the same story. Great news! They’ve been a solid studio for a long time. Luigi’s Mansion 3 was excellent and it will be exciting to see what they can do with closer collaboration.

Colin's Last Stand is levelling up! The first few mins of this video are goddamn hilarious. Especially when he picks up the Switch. @Hero-of-Time, I know you listen to SS, so you'll appreciate the little references. I still listen to Sacred Symbols every week, despite having no interest in PlayStation. I Love the chemistry Chris and Colin have and their "industry" takes, which always makes the podcast a fun listen, even if you aren't PS centric. A new Xbox podcast, which is not really of interest to me, but good to see Colin's business going from strength-to-strength after being basically blacklisted from the industry. Shows just how talented and hard-working he is that he's managed to build a second company from the ground up. Massive respect to the man.

I will never, ever get that achievement. I can barely finish most levels on Normal, let alone Legendary You have my respect though, I think the library took me 1hr 45 this time round. Absolutely insane, it's just corridor after corridor after corridor. As for the Flood, I'm not keen on them because it's almost impossible to outsmart them or use tactics that work on the Covenant. Yes, it's cool to have two completely different enemies, and the exploding ones are super fun, but it is often just too relentless. I often end up get stuck between the beefy lads and a wall with no where to move. It's frustrating as hell. Tearing through small waves of them is great fun, but when it is just non-stop, I just can't be arsed with it. I haven't checked out any of the books, but will definitely look into them! Speaking of Gears, I got GOW5 on Steam at the back end of last year for a pitiful amount. Not played one since the first so it'll be interesting to see how that holds up later in the year. Not very high up my list, just thought I'd give it a shot when it had such a low price tag.