N-E Café Podcast

[Nicktendo]

12 minutes ago, bob said:

Is it Wii Fit U?

Nope, nor Wii Fit Plus or Wii Fit tracker 😂

[S.C.G]

N-E Café Episode 39 now available!

Now up on the main page.

An excellent episode, I especially enjoyed the big topic this week, it's going to be an interesting next few months for videogames.

Oh and as for that transition tune?

Spoiler

It is of course, the immortal, Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training  

 

Edited August 11, 2020 by S.C.G

[Jonnas]

Alright, busy August, so a day late:

• I appreciate the Stardew Valley recommendation, but it's not my genre (the "Life Simulator" type). I know these elements exist in Fire Emblem: Three Houses, but I'm in it for the lore and story,. A game made up entirely of Garreg Mach doesn't grab me (and I certainly spare very little thought to gardening or fishing there). The dating sim part of Stardew Valley is the part that sounds more appealing to me, but it's not enough;
• "Everyone who wanted to play Pikmin 3 already has done so". Evidently not. Casual fans of the genre, or new customers looking to be introduced to the series exist (or even series fans who just refused the Wii U). I do think some perks should exist for those who already own the Wii U version (and the eShop version should've never been de-listed, agreed), but let's face it, there's sense in remastering for the Switch and acting like it's new;
  • Also, I think "Wii U + Pikmin 3" is more expensive than 60€. It's certainly more cumbersome, and will lack any perk from the Switch version (like handheld mode).
• Nintendo has not de-listed Xenoblade Chronicles from the Wii U eShop. Would be hard to do, considering it's a Wii game that was never there in the first place The 3DS version is still there on the eShop, though;
• I'd say the differences in battle system between Paper Marios are considerably larger than the ones between Final Fantasies (or even Fire Emblem, another Intelligent Systems franchise). That said, IS really likes shaking things up in any series they work on (remember Advance Wars: Days of Ruin?), retaining only what they consider to be the "core" parts of the series. And I think they don't consider the battle system from 64 and TYD to be a "core" part of the franchise;
• I adore Developer's Commentary, but it's not as simple as in doing it for films or series. In those mediums, it's enough to hear developers talk over certain scenes, so it's a matter of recording audio (which may even be spontaneous, while watching the product) and then editing the video. In videogames, they might need to introduce audio logs in select parts of the playthrough, create assets for the functionality, and do so in a way that does not impede a new playthrough (like during a frantic fight), so there's certainly a bigger workload involved here than for other mediums.
  • Developers can also get creative with the concept, though. Off the top of my head, I've seen "audio logs scattered through a playthrough" (Amnesia, Portal, Mark of the Ninja), "Commentating over a pre-recorded cutscene/gameplay segment" (Telltale's Back to the Future), "Every single screen in this Point&Click game contains the game's director rambling, interviewing actors, playing guitar, etc." (Deponia series, Daedalic in general) and even stuff like "Interactive Museum that represents the playthrough" (Infliction). From personal experience, indie developers are more prone to do Dev Commentary than bigger companies.
• I believe someone mentioned at some point that Paper Mario is the only original Nintendo game from this year. I just think Animal Crossing disagrees, is all.
• As for the big topic, I thought it was a tad disorganised, because it felt like it was quickly alternating between what's good for Nintendo, and how Nick feels on a personal level (good thing he made distinction clear a couple of times, could've been confusing otherwise).
  Me, I'm more than satisfied with my backlog, both as a person who has little time to play, and as someone who skipped the Wii U. I also value the handheld functionality immensely, since the TV can get occupied fairly easily, or I might just want to play something light while in bed. Setting up the Switch in my house also takes a minute (I mostly keep it out of sight, hence the need to do that), and handheld mode saves me the bother.
  • I actually had a PS4 in my house for a month a while back, and the difference in practicality was palpable. Not only was it more cumbersome to connect to my TV setup, basic stuff like figuring out what the On/Off button is, or how to charge the controller, was just needlessly bothersome (why is the DS4 charge cord so short, anyway?) 

Phew... As for the Transition Tunes, after wracking my brain, I think I got it...

Spoiler

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate!

Yeah, that's where I heard two of those tunes. One of them is listed as "Brain Training", the other is listed as "Brain Training 2".

I must therefore assume that the tunes actually come from Brain Training 2: More Training in Minutes a Day.

(Or maybe Sam really did get it. Whatever the case, I got there before looking at his guess, so I'm satisfied)

 

Edited August 13, 2020 by Jonnas

[Nicktendo]

10 hours ago, Jonnas said:

• "Everyone who wanted to play Pikmin 3 already has done so". Evidently not. Casual fans of the genre, or new customers looking to be introduced to the series exist (or even series fans who just refused the Wii U). I do think some perks should exist for those who already own the Wii U version (and the eShop version should've never been de-listed, agreed), but let's face it, there's sense in remastering for the Switch and acting like it's new;
  • Also, I think "Wii U + Pikmin 3" is more expensive than 60€. It's certainly more cumbersome, and will lack any perk from the Switch version (like handheld mode).

The point I was making was that everyone who wanted it on Wii U (when it released) had already bought it. The sales weren't anything to write home about, despite it arguably being the best game on the system. Of course no one is going to go out and buy a Wii U just to play it, that would be a little bit insane  What I was getting at was that there could be some people who own a Wii U and didn't get it, who might have picked it up upon seeing the Switch remaster. But that number would have been absolutely tiny. Easily < 1000. So why remove it from the shop? The touch screen controls on the Wii U are amazing, and while you can't play the game outside, you can still play handheld in the home, and will be miles better than the switch version because of the stylus. Not HD, but it still looks great on the gamepad. 

10 hours ago, Jonnas said:

Nintendo has not de-listed Xenoblade Chronicles from the Wii U eShop. Would be hard to do, considering it's a Wii game that was never there in the first place The 3DS version is still there on the eShop, though.

I checked this morning and it's still on the e-shop. Wii games did come to the Wii U digitally and XC1 hasn't been removed. It's £17.99. 

10 hours ago, Jonnas said:

• I believe someone mentioned at some point that Paper Mario is the only original Nintendo game from this year. I just think Animal Crossing disagrees, is all.

Animal Crossing is just like Splatoon 2 and Mario Maker 2. Perhaps even worse. Some new content (the building stuff is nice, if a little cumbersome), but it's essentially the same game it was before on the DS, Wii and 3DS with crappy online and with some stables of the franchise having been removed / held back from launch. Yes, it's an original game (and a very pretty one at that!), but it's more of the same 

Edited August 13, 2020 by Nicktendo

[Glen-i]

1 hour ago, Nicktendo said:

I checked this morning and it's still on the e-shop. Wii games did come to the Wii U digitally and XC1 hasn't been removed. It's £17.99.

I do have to wonder if this is because (assuming you have both a WiiU and a Switch and price is no roadblock) there is almost no benefit in getting the original version of Xenoblade over the Definitive Edition.

Whereas, with Pikmin 3, there's a good argument for the dual-screen setup and better touch controls being a valid reason to get the original.

[Nicktendo]

4 hours ago, Glen-i said:

I do have to wonder if this is because (assuming you have both a WiiU and a Switch and price is no roadblock) there is almost no benefit in getting the original version of Xenoblade over the Definitive Edition.

Whereas, with Pikmin 3, there's a good argument for the dual-screen setup and better touch controls being a valid reason to get the original.

That would be my guess. You’re getting the 480p version of the game without the additional story stuff. The Switch one is supposed to be definitive after all. I know Pikmin 3 DX has some new content, but I can’t see how it’s going to control better without a resistive touch screen / pointer controls. 

[Glen-i]

26 minutes ago, Nicktendo said:

I know Pikmin 3 DX has some new content, but I can’t see how it’s going to control better without a resistive touch screen / pointer controls. 

Spoiler alert, it won't. No capacitive stylus will be as accurate as the Gamepad.

The pointer controls, however, can be replicated really well with a Joy Con or Pro Controller. Captain Toad proved that.

[Jonnas]

On 13/08/2020 at 11:02 AM, Nicktendo said:

The point I was making was that everyone who wanted it on Wii U (when it released) had already bought it. The sales weren't anything to write home about, despite it arguably being the best game on the system. Of course no one is going to go out and buy a Wii U just to play it, that would be a little bit insane 

Huh, I could swear that was a comment made in reaction to the remaster existing in the first place. That's what I get for commenting a full day after. My apologies.

On 13/08/2020 at 11:02 AM, Nicktendo said:

I checked this morning and it's still on the e-shop. Wii games did come to the Wii U digitally and XC1 hasn't been removed. It's £17.99.

I stand corrected, then. I know I found it weird you guys mentioned a Wii U version existing, so I looked it up on both the Nintendo eShop website and Wikipedia. I found nothing on either site, only info regarding the remake and the 3DS version.

Wikipedia is usually pretty good at cataloguing re-releases and remakes on different consoles (it even includes "Switch" as a platform where the game is available, despite that being only the remake), but it doesn't include Wii U. Checking the article more thoroughly, there is a very brief mention that it was released on the Wii U in Europe... and then a longer passage implying that it wasn't released there at all. My guess, if this release was EU-only, then that's probably where the blind spot comes from: US-centric shenanigans.

Either way, my bad.

On 13/08/2020 at 12:31 PM, Glen-i said:

I do have to wonder if this is because (assuming you have both a WiiU and a Switch and price is no roadblock) there is almost no benefit in getting the original version of Xenoblade over the Definitive Edition.

Whereas, with Pikmin 3, there's a good argument for the dual-screen setup and better touch controls being a valid reason to get the original.

Honestly, I find that makes the de-listing even worse. If the original feels legitimately different, all the more reason to allow both to co-exist. Metroid II wasn't de-listed just because Samus Returns was released, right?

Edited August 14, 2020 by Jonnas

[Glen-i]

16 minutes ago, Jonnas said:

Honestly, I find that makes the de-listing even worse. If the original feels legitimately different, all the more reason to allow both to co-exist. Metroid II wasn't de-listed just because Samus Returns was released, right?

It's the only reason I can think of for even doing something like this. It would be terrible, sure, but why else would you do something like this?

Edited August 13, 2020 by Glen-i

[nekunando]

5 hours ago, Glen-i said:

The pointer controls, however, can be replicated really well with a Joy Con or Pro Controller. Captain Toad proved that.

If anything, I have found the complete opposite to be true

I can usually deal just fine with quick recalibration and whatever other things that need to be taken into account when motion controls are brought into the equation but anything I have tried on Switch, be it Captain Toad or The World Ends With You, has left me in no doubt that the pointer controls can't be replicated to a satisfactory level.

The cursor just keeps going out of sync and I can't imagine it working at all well in a game that can require fast and precise moment like Pikmin 3..

[Londragon]

On 8/13/2020 at 7:49 AM, Jonnas said:

As for the big topic, I thought it was a tad disorganised

I brought a different approach to the Big Topic this week, so in part it was planned this way.  Normally, a lot of background research is done, with a list of topics, questions that should be answered, and a general running order in the show notes.  This week however, I thought a more easy going chat down the pub approach might be better.  So, instead of researching the competition myself, I'd just ask someone who knew more than myself, i.e. NIck.  So, yes, it was far more disorganised, but intentionally so, as an exercise to educate myself and the listeners, who might only have knowledge to how Nintendo operate, to what the competition offer as an alternative.

Regrettably, I haven't listened to it back myself yet.  It was nice to record using a slightly different ad hoc approach though.

[Nicktendo]

4 hours ago, Londragon said:

This week however, I thought a more easy going chat down the pub approach might be better.  So, instead of researching the competition myself, I'd just ask someone who knew more than myself, i.e. NIck.  So, yes, it was far more disorganised, but intentionally so, as an exercise to educate myself and the listeners, who might only have knowledge to how Nintendo operate, to what the competition offer as an alternative.

Never rely on me for "education" 

[Will]

Hurrah! I’ve finally caught up to the most recent episode!

On 8/14/2020 at 9:46 AM, Londragon said:

I brought a different approach to the Big Topic this week, so in part it was planned this way.  Normally, a lot of background research is done, with a list of topics, questions that should be answered, and a general running order in the show notes.  This week however, I thought a more easy going chat down the pub approach might be better.  So, instead of researching the competition myself, I'd just ask someone who knew more than myself, i.e. NIck.  So, yes, it was far more disorganised, but intentionally so, as an exercise to educate myself and the listeners, who might only have knowledge to how Nintendo operate, to what the competition offer as an alternative.

I really enjoyed the way you guys did this, I carried on listening during my run where normally I’d switch over to some music. I specifically thought this is two guys I’d like to bump into in the pub at one point, so I think this was mission achieved successfully.

I even found myself agreeing with the majority of what @Nicktendo was saying for most of it!

[Londragon]

11 hours ago, will' said:

Hurrah! I’ve finally caught up to the most recent episode!

I really enjoyed the way you guys did this, I carried on listening during my run where normally I’d switch over to some music. I specifically thought this is two guys I’d like to bump into in the pub at one point, so I think this was mission achieved successfully.

I even found myself agreeing with the majority of what @Nicktendo was saying for most of it!

Thanks, Will.  That made me smile.

[Londragon]

N-E Café [040] Overlooking Platforms is now available at all good podcast providers.  Greg returns, as we try to sell him the idea of some great platformers on the Switch that he may have overlooked.

 

Recorded on the 16th of August, 2020

Episode 40 of the N-E Café has hosts Lee Davies, Gregory Moffett and Nick Lone discussing the latest Nintendo News; games they’ve been playing, featuring, Setting up a new Switch, PS4 and Ring Fit; and this week our Big Topic, overlooked platformers on the Switch.

This is episode 40 of the N-E Café Podcast, an N-Europe Podcast. Enjoy!

⦁ Intro Music: No More Heroes - N.M.H.

⦁ Introductions: 0:00:20

⦁ Nintendo News: 0:03:08

⦁ PodPals Request: 0:25:46

⦁ Download Delights: 0:27:07

⦁ Secondary Switch Woes: 0:34:02

⦁ Ring Fit Adventure: 0:48:11

⦁ PS4 Adventure: 0:55:22

⦁ Topic of the Week: 1:10:12

⦁ Closing: 1:29:41

Can you guess what game the Transition Tunes come from?  If they ring a bell, get in touch with us, or if you have a Listener's Question you’d like to discuss, contact us right here.

[Jonnas]

Not much to add on the news side of things, but I did enjoy hearing about less known platformers, especially considering the thread that @Julius started some time back.

I actually own Dandara (haven't played it yet), and it's next on my list: a Metroidvania with a unique concept for movement. Didn't know it was also high-difficulty. I also hear it draws inspiration from Brazilian culture (the not-as-well-known part of it), so I'm looking forward to it.

Good on Nick for starting Mark of the Ninja, love that game. I'm also taking that Snake Pass recommendation to heart, as it's the type of game that interested me from the moment I saw it. I've flirted with purchasing it several times now too, but always backed out due to various reasons (even now, I have a Switch backlog to clear first!). I'll make it a priority for next time.

(Fun fact, besides making the Worms series, Team17 also published Yooka-Laylee)

As for the Transition Tunes...

Spoiler

Snake Pass

Recognized Dave Wise the moment I heard it, and wondered if you were going to bring up Tropical Freeze during the episode... but then Nick revealed the composer for this title within the same episode where we should guess its tunes!

 

 

[S.C.G]

N-E Café Episode 40 now available!

Now up on the main page.

I really enjoyed the discussion in this weeks episode, it was interesting hearing about how to set up a secondary Switch account, useful info there.

The game discussion was really varied too, nice bit of Ring Fit Adventure in there and the overlooked Platformers topic featured some really good recomendations.

Two weeks to go until the Podpals episode... I'll hopefully make an effort this time to play The Messenger so that I can write down some thoughts about it.

[Nicktendo]

14 hours ago, Jonnas said:

Not much to add on the news side of things, but I did enjoy hearing about less known platformers, especially considering the thread that @Julius started some time back.

I actually own Dandara (haven't played it yet), and it's next on my list: a Metroidvania with a unique concept for movement. Didn't know it was also high-difficulty. I also hear it draws inspiration from Brazilian culture (the not-as-well-known part of it), so I'm looking forward to it.

Good on Nick for starting Mark of the Ninja, love that game. I'm also taking that Snake Pass recommendation to heart, as it's the type of game that interested me from the moment I saw it. I've flirted with purchasing it several times now too, but always backed out due to various reasons (even now, I have a Switch backlog to clear first!). I'll make it a priority for next time.

(Fun fact, besides making the Worms series, Team17 also published Yooka-Laylee)

As for the Transition Tunes...

  TT guess (Reveal hidden contents)

Snake Pass

Recognized Dave Wise the moment I heard it, and wondered if you were going to bring up Tropical Freeze during the episode... but then Nick revealed the composer for this title within the same episode where we should guess its tunes!

 

 

Snake Pass is really great! It has camera issues (classic 3D platformer problems, eh?) I've remembered who made it now, sumo digital, who've been doing A LOT of good work recently, not Team 17. It's a fun and challenging game but not a time sink. As I said in the 'cast, 5-10 hours is enough to see it from start to finish, with a little more for 100%. Well worth getting if it goes on sale. 

Transition tunes are correct, the hints were there for those who listened carefully  David Wise is a pioneer and instantly recognisable in these tunes. Great OST.

[Will]

Another great episode. I know you mentioned just before the Topic of the Week that it was a lot of non-Nintendo talk but honestly, I actually prefer the non-Nintendo stuff. I think hearing about that stuff from fellow Nintendo fans just fits nicely with me and I really enjoy the impartial talk about the other markets.

The talk on Fall Guys I generally agreed with but I do think the slightly spongier controls are what makes the game. If it was pure skill it would turn into any other online game and before long I’d be out as I just can’t dedicate the time to get good enough. As it is I can see myself being able to play for a good while.

I’ve also been someone on the fence ever since launch about Snake Pass. I will pick it up at some point, but it’s one of those games that seems easy to ignore, I’m not sure why. Was hoping I’d be helpful with the Sumo Digital knowledge, but you already beat me to it damnit. 

I also loved the Genki Rockets at the end. Hadn’t heard that in a while so ended up listening to a few more songs for the final part of my run. Even added a couple to my running playlist!

[Nicktendo]

4 hours ago, will' said:

Another great episode. I know you mentioned just before the Topic of the Week that it was a lot of non-Nintendo talk but honestly, I actually prefer the non-Nintendo stuff. I think hearing about that stuff from fellow Nintendo fans just fits nicely with me and I really enjoy the impartial talk about the other markets.

The talk on Fall Guys I generally agreed with but I do think the slightly spongier controls are what makes the game. If it was pure skill it would turn into any other online game and before long I’d be out as I just can’t dedicate the time to get good enough. As it is I can see myself being able to play for a good while.

I’ve also been someone on the fence ever since launch about Snake Pass. I will pick it up at some point, but it’s one of those games that seems easy to ignore, I’m not sure why. Was hoping I’d be helpful with the Sumo Digital knowledge, but you already beat me to it damnit. 

I also loved the Genki Rockets at the end. Hadn’t heard that in a while so ended up listening to a few more songs for the final part of my run. Even added a couple to my running playlist!

Given there isn't much news and stuff to play on the Nintendo front, I can see that being the case for a while, which is fine. The PodPals episode should be good, I know both me and Greg have a LOT to say about The Messenger and that was a timed console exclusive on the Switch IIRC. I've been playing my Switch a bit more recently, and with the Indie Direct yesterday, I might pick up a couple more games soon. I've had £60 sat on the eShop since April. 

When I settled on No More Heroes for the intro and outro music I had completely forgotten about Genki Rockets. Think that song played in one of the shops in Santa Destroy. I followed them from that game and downloaded one of their albums. Absolute waves of nostalgia when I listened to it on Sunday night. It must've been about 10 years since I've listened to any Japanese music, and I updated my music playlist with a load of old stuff I used to listen to back in the Uni days. 

[Will]

7 hours ago, Nicktendo said:

When I settled on No More Heroes for the intro and outro music I had completely forgotten about Genki Rockets. Think that song played in one of the shops in Santa Destroy. I followed them from that game and downloaded one of their albums. Absolute waves of nostalgia when I listened to it on Sunday night. It must've been about 10 years since I've listened to any Japanese music, and I updated my music playlist with a load of old stuff I used to listen to back in the Uni days. 

It's funny, I'd completely forgotten it was even in No More Heroes until this episode. Always brings Lumines to mind for me.

[Londragon]

 

N-E Café [041] No Direct Strategy is now live at all good podcast providers.  A 2-man show this week, but no less deep in terms of the amount of games to talk about thanks to the recent Direct, and our Overlooked Strategy, Card and Board games on Switch.

Episode 41 of the N-E Café has hosts Lee Davies and Nick Lone discussing the latest Nintendo Direct; games they’ve been playing, featuring, F1 2020, Ninja Gaiden and Bad Dudes; and this week our Big Topic, overlooked Strategy, Card and Board Games on the Switch.

This is episode 41 of the N-E Café Podcast, an N-Europe Podcast. Enjoy!

⦁ Intro Music: Tokyo Mirage Sessions - Reincarnation

⦁ Introductions: 0:00:32

⦁ Nintendo News: 0:03:27

⦁ PodPals Request: 0:33:46

⦁ Download Delights: 0:35:39

⦁ F1 2020: 0:47:28

⦁ Ninja Gaiden (NES): 0:49:32

⦁ Bad Dudes Vs Dragon Ninja: 0:58:20

⦁ Topic of the Week: 1:06:42

⦁ Closing: 1:28:30

⦁ Podcast Extras: 1:30:45

Can you guess what game the Transition Tunes come from?  If they ring a bell, get in touch with us, or if you have a Listener's Question you’d like to discuss, contact us right here.

 

[S.C.G]

N-E Café Episode 41 now available!

Now up on the main page.

Again, some really great game discussion in there this week, personally I enjoyed the talk about Ninja Gaiden and Bad Dudes. (hence the banner)

Nice intro and outro music as well, it just reminds me that I really enjoy the OST to Tokyo Mirage Sessions, despite not playing the whole game, I should fix that.

Does that mean that there's now only a week until the Podpals episode? I should get on with playing The Messenger...

Thanks again for another excellent episode.

[Londragon]

1 hour ago, S.C.G said:

 

Does that mean that there's now only a week until the Podpals episode? I should get on with playing The Messenger...

A week and a half now.  Will be recording the PodPals episode on the 6th of September.  NIck finished the game in 10 days, so there's time Sam.  I'm struggling to find the time to play, record it, and complete it.

[Will]

Listened while I was working and was nice having this on in the background.

I’ve been playing a lot of F1 too and have stepped away from my 100% career mode to do some trophy collecting. Seems like none of it is too challenging so might even manage to get the platinum if I stick with it.

I’ve also been thinking about getting a wheel, but don’t really see the point unless you go all in. Have been looking at the Fanatec stuff but it’s quite pricey.

I also went over to a friends place the other night and was shocked to see how fast the game loads compared to my super slow PS4, so now a PC is on my buying list.