S.C.G

True, they could have... then potentially that would have been yet another blow to those who originally backed the Wii U version, having presumably been OK with having the Switch version instead (I had no problems with this) but to then delay it again? I'm not sure if that would have gone down to well, even if the end result might have been better in the long run but yes absolutely, it should have been possible to switch to another version but... it's Kickstarter so I don't know how these things work logisitically once things reach a certain point. I think backers were given the option when the Wii U version was cancelled to change versions though for what it's worth, I wanted to be all in for the game on whatever Nintendo platform it came out on though due to me being really stubborn I know that I could be playing a technically better game right now on one of the other platforms but I can't help but be all in on the Switch version now. I'm curious about John's bolded comment there... he stated that he only played in handheld mode and he's still stating input lag problems? I thought that the joy-cons in portable mode connected directly to the console and NOT wirelessly... therefore normally there shouldn't be any inout lag, fair enough if it's there when they are connected physically then that's that... I'm just really curious about that. From my experience of using a wired Pro Controller I can't detect any input lag, so maybe it's just the joy-cons or general lag from people playing with wireless controllers. Just to be clear, I'm not here to pick at every point, I'm just trying to offer a bit more perspective on the situation, also I'd love to find out what's causing the lag in particular but more than that, I just want the game to end up as polished as it can be over time and yes, it seems like the devs still have some work ahead of them but after following all the updates for years now, I can't see them giving up just like that and I think we will end up with a better game on the Switch sooner rather than later... even if it is later than the other versions and parity is out of the question and I definitely don't like the approach in the industry generally but here I can see that they are really making an effort.

The MetroidMania event is live this weekend, I like the write-up that came with the announcement... "The three-day #SmashBrosUltimate spirit event "Metroidmania" starts on 28/06! Check your Spirit Board, because #Metroid characters are coming out of the walls! Defeat them in battle to earn more SP than usual." I'm sure I'll be taking part in this one.

While I don't agree with the "release it as is and patch it later" approach either... I think in this instance, it was all they could have reasonably done in order to launch it with the other versions. Four or five years ago, we didn't know for sure what the future was when it came to home consoles, sure the Wii U wasn't doing well but it was still... existing. So then when Nintendo decided to Switch things up (and rightly so) the development of the Wii U version would have been partway through and even that wasn't powerful enough. Having to change over to the Switch version was their only option, I believe the Vita version was cancelled as well so that gives you an indication power-wise of what can run it. Now, after actually playing the game myself last night (finally!) for... only half an hour but even so I can say that I didn't experience all of the stuff others have been reporting. Yes, the visuals have clearly taken a bit of a hit on the big screen but it's not that bad unless you're directly comparing between versions, the framerate is fine and no input lag at all. Of course, that is while using a Pro Controller in wired mode, but for me, there isn't any other option, yes ideally it should be fine in wireless mode as well but all I'll say is that if you're relying on wireless controllers for everything... there's nearly always a wired alternative or option, it's not very elegant but I have my Pro Controller connected instead of charging in the options and I have a USB extender cable, this works for me. I'm still hopeful that the game will be improved significantly in the coming weeks and as for the gameplay, visuals and soundtrack itself? Masterful. I won't be giving up on the Switch version just yet, I've waited this long and I'm too stubborn damnit! Also, if everyone else is enjoying the game on other platforms then that's great and probably the wiser option but I'm just glad that we can all get to play it now in one form or another.

Switch Release Update We have been listening to the feedback regarding Switch performance. Our goal is for everyone, regardless of platform, to be able to enjoy the game and have it run smoothly. We want to live up to your, and our, expectations. Throughout the QA process we have been addressing performance issues in the game. Update 1.01 was published to Switch prior to launch to add content and improve performance. It did not accomplish as much as we had hoped and we need to do more. To address the concerns brought up by the community we are immediately shifting resources to improve performance and stability for the Switch. You can expect a number of small updates that will improve different areas of the game rather than waiting longer for one big update. We will have more details as we dive into the work. We thank you for your patience and apologize for the inconvenience. Jason “Question” Ryan Sr Community Manager – 505 Games

Switch Release Day Notes! Posted by Koji Igarashi Jun 25, 2019 It's Switch release day in most territories! Bloodstained is now 50-100% more portable than it was last week, depending on how small your gaming laptop is. Switch digital download codes in the North American, European, and Australian regions are now available on your survey page—if you don't have your survey/backer management page handy, you can have the link resent to you from our survey support page. Physical Switch games in the US and UK were expected for delivery yesterday and today. Switch games in the rest of Europe were delayed due to shipping issues between the facility that produced the games and the warehouse that's shipping them out to backers, but they've arrived and have been processed—shipping confirmations will go out soon if you haven't received one already. If your game is coming from those European or Australian warehouses, you'll be receiving your slipcase in a separate shipment—either with your other rewards if you're at a $100+ tier, or by itself in a separate shipment if you backed at $60.) Hello everyone, Bloodstained is now live on Switch! Today’s launch marks the completion of a long journey that we’ve all been on together, and now we see Igavania making its triumphant return! However, the journey hasn’t been without its share of challenges along the way, and as Iga said, we still have a lot of work to do. Regarding the Soundtrack specifically, we’re pleased to announce that as of today, the soundtrack on PC (Steam & GoG) as well as any future sales portals that support it, will include high quality FLAC files for all tracks. We heard your feedback on this (no pun intended) and appreciate your patience while we got this implemented. Below are some patch and general notes for everyone to be aware of in light of recent bugs that in some cases caused progression to be lost: With the Switch launch, to avoid issues with treasure chests we recommend everyone with a physical copy update their game with the 1.1 build (which has been live since Friday) before playing. 1.02 Chest Bug - Some players on PS4 who began a new game before downloading the 1.02 update have run into an issue where crates appear in the wrong open/closed state resulting in blocked progress. A new save is not affected. We are currently looking into solutions that will allow affected players to keep their progress. Since this bug would have affected Xbox One users when the update went live, we are holding off the Xbox One update. (FYI, a small localization update, 1.004, is coming for Xbox. This is not connected to the current issue). Current build status: Steam/GOG: 1.03 (1.03 is a localization fix) PS4: 1.02 Xbox One: 1.003 (Upcoming 1.004 is a small localization fix) Switch: 1.1 - This update was published on Friday June 21st. All players should download it before playing to avoid the Chest Bug. That’s it for today’s update, thank you to everyone for your support and patience and we can’t wait to announce more cool stuff soon! Roberto Piraino “Angel-Corlux” Global Brand Manager 505 Games

Saw it... I don't need it, I don't need it, I don't need it... ...but I still want it.

I'll let you know when I've played it. At this rate, with the way things are sounding I might just wait for the real 1.02 patch.

Well it appears that due to some confusion and generally fudged messaging regarding updates... Version 1.01 on the Switch is the equivelant to Version 1.02 on the other versions! So, I could have been playing it all along! If anyone else is checking the thread and wondering when they can play the game, you can do so now if you have the physical version. And obviously if you have the digital version you can as well, assuming it's even out yet as I know Nintendo like to make us wait until the afternoon for game releases. Just make sure you have version 1.01 and you're good to go! You would think that knowing this, I'd be on the game like a shot but... Nope, at this point I've gone past the rush of excitement as the game hit followed by disappointment of thinking that I wouldn't be able to just play it. I should have just trusted my insinct, as I thought it odd that the game went from version 0.1 to 1.01... Anyway, I will play it... but later today as I'd resigned myself to that in any case, plus I have other stuff to do, but once I do start playing, I doubt I'll stop until I finish the game. Expect a review... sometime between now and when the next inevitable update hits.

Ha, good one... I fell for it, nice trailer though.

That is an insane special edition, definitely just the physical game for me. Time to sell some other stuff from my collection to pay for all these limited release physical Switch games.

I just loaded up the game just so that I could see the title screen and listen to the music... ...I've just made thw wait so much longer for myself now.

*sigh* point taken. Maybe just maybe... Metroid Prime 4 will be the first title in the series to buck the trend? Nah... probably not, just as well to not judge games by their covers I suppose.

The wait continues then... I bet the update won't even hit at midnight tonight either, it'll be tomorrow afternoon. Ah well, I'll just stare at the boxart until then... ...or just go and do other useful stuff, yeah I'll do that I suppose.

Except... the patch is version 1.01... it just went from version 0.1 to 1.01 and the 1.02 patch isn't due out until tomorrow at who knows what time? @Hero-of-Time what exactly did the patch change when it went from 1.01 to 1.02? Is it even worth me starting a file at all? Probably not... damn... looks like its going to be tomorrow then afterall.

And now I'm about to become one of those people having fun with it... as my copy has just arrived! Hopefully your copy should arrive today as well though. Right well erm... *rushes off to put the game card into the Switch, update to version 1.02 and probably not been seen or heard from for the rest of the day/week/month*

Surely you can't be saying that no Metroid game has good box art? I'll agree on the Pokemon box arts but Metroid? I can think of at least two really good boxart examples at least. Although I think a lot of them have a certain amount of charm.

I would have picked this up already but I heard that there were elements in both titles which were... less than perfect but the games are still perfectly playable. Besides, if it's on sale this month... I'm willing to bet that it might be a plus game next month to carry on the Castlevania hype. It's a shame because I really wanted to buy this but I already have Castlevania Symphony of the Night on disc and Castlevania Rondo of Blood on the Wii VC. However you choose to play them though, both are fantastic titles worthy of their praise.

Oh, I backed the game on Kickstarter, I got an e-mail saying that it was dispatched on Friday so I'm hoping it will arrive on Monday. They're sending the copies of the games out first and then all the extra stuff later.

I'll be happy to let you know, just as soon as it arrives. It's in the post... it could be with me by tomorrow, if I'm exceptionally lucky.

Damn it... I really want my Switch copy to arrive now more than ever. Only a few more days...

Nintendo DS games eh? Well, with such a large library you'd think that this would lead to some difficult choices but despite this I've decided that there's no ideal way to pick five titles so... Here are my picks... Advance Wars: Dual Strike Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies Phantasy Star Zero Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky Sonic Rush And even then I ended up editing one of my selections before posting because I remembered that Phantasy Star Zero existed on the DS, so that's one of my choices. Of course, there are plenty of other titles I could have nominated, afterall it was during the DS era that I started reviewing games for N-Europe way back in 2005... ...and now I feel old(er) than the last time I felt old ah well, it's fine. Look out for the N-E Top Ten GameCube Games coming soon to the main site.

Same, but thank you all for the games, there were some decent matchups tonight and tonnes of shenanigans as always.

Gotta kill 'em all! Eh @Glen-i?

I got the Switch version in the post today, my brother and I played a bit of split-screen multiplayer and it was a lot of fun. All of the action held up pretty well, just that the load times are a little longer on the Switch. I'll have to give it a try in single player to get to grips with it properly though I reckon, also the A.I on Medium in multiplayer seems a little... excessive? Either that or I'm really bad at the game... or a combination of the two. I like the game anyway, first time playing it... ever.