darksnowman

Sooo... turn that mode on to avoid being turned on? Wonder if there's a pop-up like when games recommend assist/ casual mode. "Getting turned on? Consider Naive Angel Mode if you'd prefer to have less of a hard time." Please enjoy.

Good to know. Just checked on nintendo.co.uk and there doesn't appear to be a demo for any of the three that I can send to my Switch. Perhaps one (or three) will be added in the coming months.

Are there demos for any of these?

Now we know.

Glad to see the NI ladies haven't disgraced themselves. Would be nice if they can wrap things up without getting tonked by England.

I've started into the Obi-Wan series and thought I was braced for all the mediocrity Star Wars could throw my way. I'm afraid I could have been mistaken and it matters not if you find my lack of faith disturbing.

You could be thinking of the NES Mini with that one. Though according to Wikipedia Contra: Hard Corps is on the MD NSO service so you weren't far off.

If the answer isn't OutRun then the question's wrong. I didn't get Link's Awakening in summer but I got into it in summer. I remember replaying it time and again with Wimbledon on the box. Great times. Bit of a weird one probably: I remember borrowing and getting into Street Fighter II at the start of the summer holidays one year. I'd played it in 2-player before that but it was the opportunity to borrow it that allowed me to get into it decently. I specifically remember going through the sound test. LOL. What was Guile's theme? 014 or 016? Something like that? Other than that, no strong summer gaming associations are leaping out. Wario Land 1 and 2 kind of. Splinter Cell and SSX 3 maybe? Or was it Splinter Cell and Viewtiful Joe? I took advantage of some summer 2 for £30 combination in Game on Gamecube third-party stuff one year anyway. Think I got Mario Kart 64 in July (stock kept getting snapped up) but I don't think of it as a summer game. Think the same goes for Smash Bros. Melee. Konami Krazy Racers was a June release as far as I mind and I don't strongly associate it with summer either. Wind Waker came out during exam season (oops) and Mario Sunshine after summer so I don't associate either specifically with the summer holidays. It's a season that gets short shrift for gaming memories to be sure. It was just the time for OutRun and the arcades. Nowadays the summer months are well covered for gaming releases but back in the day it was always the drought before the dark nights would return and the years' big releases would come.

https://www.gematsu.com/2022/06/dragon-quest-treasures-launches-december-9-for-switch https://gematsu.com/2022/07/dragon-quest-treasures-details-story-world-and-characters More screenshots and some character info at the link. I'm extremely curious about this one as I know basically nothing about it.

There's a few Konami things on the NES and Megadrive apps too.

Thought there was a bonanza of N64 games added since I was last on the app but it's just Kirby and 5x Pokémon Snap.

You'll know better, but from what I just saw from it, any connection to future instalments will be subtle at best. Seemed like it was about them connecting to and protecting their rebuild and continued existence in peace and harmony. I went and checked some opinions on Future Connected and it seems the things I took as positives are in actual fact missteps and wrong turns. My bad.

Congratulations! New gameplay elements have been unlocked It's commendable that even after finishing the extra content the game is still adding stuff in. Can't see myself ever exploring it but never say never, eh. I found the scenario on the Bionis Shoulder to be surprisingly enjoyable. Possibly the single best section Xenoblade had to offer, tbh. Cutscenes seemed to be improved and it was easy to care about the situation we'd found ourselves in. It felt a bit like a Dragon Quest segment. I completed all the sidequests that came up (bit of a pain that some gave cash rewards only and a number still had me going to various spots with no convenient fast travel point), collected all the Ponspectors (loved em!) and pretty sure I took in all the quiet moments that were dotted around the map. Just didn't visit all the landmarks as the entirety of the map didn't autofill to reflect that. I had 15h13 on the clock at the final save outside the Fog Kings chamber. Having done all the sidequests the boss posed absolutely no threat. Just the way it should have been. For a second there I thought someone else was going to join the party right before the end. It would have been pretty amazing as they'd previously been shown to kick all kinds of ass but alas it wasn't to be. Nice to see the old crew during the credits. Thanks to Future Connected, I've come away feeling much more positive about Xenoblade than I did after finishing the normal game. Go figure.

All we want is meaningful change.

Seems the DSi and Wii Shop Channels are back online. https://www.eurogamer.net/four-months-later-nintendos-dsi-and-wii-shop-channels-are-back-online

And even then, only for those that have gone through Reggie's book with a fine-tooth comb to puzzle out the download code.

It'll be appearing on retailers' websites or systems any minute now.

Yeah unless reviews out the game as being atrocious in ways hidden by the demo, I plan to get it. It says the demo save data will carry over so no harm having a look at it as you shouldn't be starting from scratch again in the full game. One of the three characters the demo gives you access to is a ninja with whom you have the option to either Splinter Cell it or engage in battle with everyone in your path. I tried avoidance. You can of course go on the offensive and reap the exp. It gives you a kill count after each battle so I can see yours skyrocketing.

Looks like Aribo is taking the well-trodden route via Southampton to Liverpool. I'll be keeping an eye on the Green and White Army.

At first exploration, the Bionis Shoulder seemed like a cheapo phoned-in Gaur Plains rip-off that's only purpose was to funnel me across to Alcamoth, but I now feel like it's one of the best areas in the game. It's more RPG-y with a few settlements and shock-horror, a house (!) and is kind of like the Xenoblade equivalent of the Great Plateau, so I can see how Monolith might have influenced Breath of the Wild now. I'm relieved that the bulk of the extra content does not seem to take place in Alcamoth as I first feared.

For anyone wondering what Kompany would bring to the club...

I'm doing it. Bit disappointed that the setting of the bonus content seems to be taking me back to a location I'd probably prefer never to visit again but let's see how it goes. I'm liking that you directly mine equippable gems now and the Nopon Pikmin aspect seems fun. First time I panned the camera around and saw them following was in some water and for a second I got the fright of my life as I thought it was an enemy coming straight for me. Glad to see some differences like these. Hopefully there are more and it doesn't drag. Re: expert mode, they seem to keep getting experience but so far I've just knocked the characters back down to their minimum levels again when they level up a time or two.

It's directly proportionate to the quality of the signing.