Dcubed

It would be the single biggest industry shift since the death of the Dreamcast in 2001 (or at least since the introduction of the Apple App Store in 2008). And while I wouldn’t be nearly as sad to see MS go as I was SEGA? I’d be a lot more frightened of the consequences this time around as it leaves Sony with what is essentially an uncontested monopoly in the traditional console space. Oh how ironic that the UK government tried to block the ABK acquisition on grounds of giving Microsoft a monopoly when the exact opposite is about to happen!

Oh wow! Mahjong Drifters Chronicles Classic actually sounds legit cool! I didn't think we'd see a Mahjong game that I'd actually be interested in playing, but I think you've gone and found one! I'd defo play that if it were available in English The "cheaters" mode reminds me of the "Spot The Sneak" mode in Wii Party/Wii Party U; where one player is given an unfair advantage and has to play the games without making it obvious that they're cheating. It's a great mechanic there that I'm surprised hasn't been replicated in many other games, but I guess MDCC came up with a similar idea well over a decade in advance!

Just started my playthrough (playing the PC version on Steam Deck docked onto my TV) and I’ve just finished the 3rd zone. What a lovely little game this is so far! The physics are spot on (obviously copied basically 1:1 from Sonic Mania, which is exactly what I wanted), the level design is great so far (plenty of new mechanics, well hidden secrets, good structure and pacing with faster paths as rewards for good play), the new emerald gimmicks are well implemented; even the much maligned bosses have all been fun and enjoyable, with some cool gimmicks that haven’t outstayed their welcome yet (though I can see future bosses likely suffering from a bit of Kirby 64 syndrome, where they spend too much time invulnerable in the background). The bonus/special stages are also great! And I can definitely see myself going back for all of the medals too. Really, I have nothing to complain about. It’s all great so far! I hear that the multiplayer battle mode is a bit pants, but that’s just a sideshow to the main game anyway. This is brill! Easily Arzest’s best game to date, feels like they’ve truly come home! Edit: Ok, if there is one thing to complain about, it’s that the music is a bit hit & miss. Some of it is really great, while other tracks are just ok.

BTW. We figured out what was going on with my wired GCN controller… turns out that it wasn’t the G-Bros adapter’s fault; it was the c-stick. Turns out that the c-stick on my wired Smash GCN controller was knackered (I blame @Glen-i for being too rough with it ) and was starting to drift like mad; and because I have tilt attacks mapped to the c-stick, it was causing my controls to freak out while we were playing (BTW, I normally play with one of my many Wavebirds, but since I need to play in handheld mode during Smash nights? I have to use the wired controller with a G-Bros adapter as there’s no other way of using a GCN controller in handheld mode). Luckily though, I just so happened to have a spare old busted GCN controller in my box of crap that I could salvage for parts. So, armed with my trust soldering iron and some reckless courage… All fixed! All working perfectly now

So… this is basically the end of Xbox as a console manufacturer? Not much point in continuing to make consoles if you’re not going to have exclusive games. It’s just a big money pit that they don’t need if they’re going to transition into being a hardware agnostic 3rd party publisher.

Wait? Really? The scoring system is completely gone? Is there not even a best time saved? That’s a huge blow if so; aiming for high scores was one of the best parts of the original game!

Haven’t played this one myself, but I don’t think that arcade style rally games were all that common on the N64… (certainly there were plenty of Simulation style rally games… probably too many), so this would still be fairly novel within the N64 library; especially at the time of its release in 1997. The problem is that SEGA Rally already existed, and had already been available on the Saturn for well over a year by this point. Meanwhile, the later Top Gear Rally games would end up blowing this game out of the water.

I wonder if there's a chance that they might be able to retro-fit the Classic Sonic physics from Sonic Superstars into this port? Because Sonic Generations plays like complete shite in comparison to Mania/Superstars... That would actually make this a very worthwhile purchase if they could pull it off!

To be fair, much of Yoshi’s Story’s lukewarm reception also stemmed from it being a very unconventional score-attack game that bore little resemblance to the original Yoshi’s Island (and from being “beatable” in just over an hour). But yeah, 2D sprite games largely got a bum deal when it came to critical reception on both the N64 and PS1 (less-so on Saturn; but that console and its media had a much more hardcore/niche appeal anyway). Just for the record, Silhouette Mirage (the Japanese version at least) is better than Guardian Heroes @Hero-of-Time

So am I! I missed it when it first came out and was always expecting to come to the VC at some point, but it just never did. Should just pick up an N64 cart at some point, it’s not even all that expensive. I’m just being lazy at this point

This one’s still on my bucket list. Ridiculous that it has still never been re-released (I know that S-E generally don’t give a shit about Enix’s legacy catalogue in general, but come on!). Put this on Switch NSO already you bastards!

They finally learned how to use drones to deliver packages. Neat.

So it's literally Not Metal Gear. Gotcha. See you in 2032 on PS6 Pro.

The combat gameplay looks good... shame that it seems to be an open world game, I would've been interested otherwise.

Can't say that making an action combat focused trailer for Silent Hill 2 of all things was the best choice... The last thing people want is to see Bloober attempt to turn SH2 into RE4.

So... it's a game about cancel culture? This is gonna have some very right-wing political messaging, isn't it?

That's because Hexen is the direct sequel to Heretic. I'd be surprised if it didn't look so similar I should play this at some point. Never have, but I do like a good Doom clone

Decent showing, bit thin on the ground for first party games though... Seems like it's gonna be a pretty dry year for Playstation Studios overall.

Hey! Speak of the devil @Julius...

So... it's like a SM3DW + Bowser's Fury kind of thing then? A remaster with a new game attached onto it as well? Nice. Surprised that they're leaning into the characters and setting of Shadow The Hedgehog, would've thought that they'd try and distance themselves from that mess of a game... (I can hear the internal screams coming from @Glen-i already ).

Damn shame that it didn’t pan out. I guess Velan Studios (the staff from Vicarious Visions that splintered off after working on this cancelled DK game) was too small a team to be working on a game like this though, so I guess that’s how they got the Mario Kart Live gig following this then? Hope that rumour about EPD Tokyo working on a 3D DK game turns out to be true… they’ve been radio silent since they released Mario Odyssey in 2017; and I can’t imagine that they’ve been working on nothing but 3D Mario for Switch 2 for the past 7 years…

History has already shown that Nintendo can't win a head-on battle against Sony. They will always lose if attempting to compete on even footing in that red ocean, as 3rd parties will always politically favour Sony and they will never be able to outspend their competition. Nintendo's own IP isn't strong enough to overcome the tide (especially now that Sony's own first party output is pretty comparable from a commercial standpoint). Nintendo have to operate by offering something different. It's the fundamental, core part of their DNA that has kept them going. The gameplay evolution of their IPs also depends on them developing new hardware that allows for new types of gameplay mechanics to be made that couldn't be done before. Gameplay stagnation will eventually kill them.

You say that, but the hybrid form-factor isn't going to be much of a distinct USP over the next generation as the likes of Valve continue to encroach on their space with the Steam Deck... The portable PC space is only going to get more and more crowded as time goes on; and with even Microsoft now reportedly moving away from x86 and onto ARM with the next generation? A standard "Switch 2" isn't going to stand out very much in the market as time goes on. Complacency is very tempting, but also usually what happens before a fall. The Third Console Curse is a thing for a very good reason, and it's usually because the market leader gets over-confident, arrogant and complacent. Nintendo also need to consider the creative needs of their developers, who are no doubt begging for fresh new hardware that allows for fresh new experiences (Don't forget that Miyamoto himself has already been expressing a desire for new control schemes and new forms of play as far back as 2019). The last thing Nintendo needs is to lose their creative staff as they grow unsatisfied with chasing the status quo (especially as Chinese companies continue to poach Japanese developers en-masse).

Bloody hell! Low Poly is back! Has been a long time since the last episode! Always appreciate a detailed look at proper artistry on display (save for the last one.. which I reckon is rather wasteful and poor looking by comparison to the rest of the Snake models)

Looks like you may well be wrong… Looks like there’s gonna be some substantial new content and not just a straightforward remaster after all! That certainly changes things significantly