Everspace is equally good on PC and switch
Has anyone here checked out Wandersong? It looks pretty neat, but I’m not exactly sure what kind of game it is. I would love to hear impressions.
Wandersong is cute. It’s basically a light adventure game. You walk around side scrolling style, but there’s minimal platforming. Most of the interactions are talking to people and very light puzzle solving.
It’s mostly about the writing. It’s gentle jokes in a DnD/ fantasy videogame setting.
There’s a button that has no purpose but to make your character (a bard) do a silly dance. That’s the kind of game it is.
The trailer does a good job capturing the tone. Just note that there’s almost no mechanics. There’s literally no death/fail states. It’s also less musical an experience than the content might suggest. The song-wheel singing mechanic (each direction is a different note) makes pretty dissonant noises.
Thanks for the write-up, CLWheeljack! That sounds kinda similar to A Night in the Woods, which I absolutely adored as a modern take on the adventure genre without all the tedious stuff. I only just heard about it on the Bombcast’s end of year wrap-up but it seems right up my alley. I’ll pick it up after I finish Monster Boy.
Ah, cool. I haven’t played A Night In the Woods, but I almost cited it as the closest thing I could think of from what I know of it. If you liked that, Wandersong will probably work pretty well for you.
Any thoughts on whether this is a good time to pick up a Switch? My kids, who mentioned nothing of it before Christmas, are now saying they were hoping to get one. They did get some cash and gift cards, so we’ve been talking through a scenario where they could save up for one, probably in the next few months.
I haven’t really paid much attention to Switch news, partly to avoid the temptation I’ve faced with every Nintendo generation (wanting to spend a bunch of money for another iteration of Mario Kart and Zelda), but I figure the Switch has been out long enough that a hardware refresh or v2 might be coming.
I think it’s great in its current form and that you’d get tons of enjoyment out of it. Breath of the Wild is excellent, if you haven’t played. The Switch very quickly became my preferred gaming platform since it’s both TV and mobile. Any hardware upgrade would have to be pretty compelling for me to want to upgrade quickly.
Watch me be disproven in like a week, but I doubt there’s a substantial hardware refresh coming for the Switch any time soon. There might be an internal parts shrink or something, but since there aren’t significant power problems or anything like that currently, i wouldn’t wait for it. I wouldn’t expect anything before Holiday 2019 at the earliest.
- An actual form factor change is prevented by the joycon design. Even if there is a new version, it will have to be basically the same shape and size to fit existing joycons.
- a handheld-only switch would be possible in theory, but Nintendo is still paying lip service to the 3DS, so they wouldn’t cannibalize that quite yet.
- the current version is selling strong, without even really having significant discounts at holiday this year, as you’d expect if they were clearing to make room for new SKUs
- Smash just released, so they don’t need another sales gimmick for a while.
Thinner Switch with better screen has been rumored for months. Will it happen? Who knows. But new joycons doesn’t seem like any sort of significant impediment.
I could easily see a revision that has a bigger screen with a smaller bezel and a spec bump that allows 1080p in portable mode. But I’ve also given up on predicting Nintendo’s moves. They are the only company I can never anticipate.
Thanks for the input. We sat down and figured out how long it would take for them to save for it, and it will be at least three months. We’ll see if they can hold out that long, and if so, if anything has changed in terms of hardware announcements.
Anybody in Europe pick this up today?
April 23rd:
- Dynamic combat experience – Cut off the four heads of a Hydra, climb atop griffins and fight airborne, or defeat dragons and other creatures by finding out their weaknesses.
- Tons of content – Includes all previously released extra content, DLC and the Dark Arisen expansion content. Features the highly praised combat experience and rich customization, plus a huge underground realm to explore with terrifying monsters.
- Customization options galore – Nine different vocations for players to choose from with a variety of skill and magick options for each, armor that can be upgraded and enhanced, plus Pawn companions that can be trained to fit your desired combat style.
- Adapted User Interface – Revamped user interface offers improved screen visibility.
- Online Functionality – The iconic Pawn system comes to Nintendo Switch with online sharing abilities between Nintendo Accounts. (A Nintendo Switch Online membership is not required for online features).
- Play Anywhere – For the first time, Dragon’s Dogma can be played on the go using the Nintendo Switch system’s handheld or tabletop mode.
Cool! I’ve been curious about this game but having watched a few gameplay videos it looks like there is a lot going on with fighting as well as commanding your party members and such. Is the game very hectic to play, particularly during combat?
k Qt3 fam, best Switch game* for a long flight? I already own Stardew valley plus Disgea. Into the Breach is not for me.
I am eyeballing Diablo, the new Pokemon and …(whispers) Civ 6 which I do not own on PC.
Good choices? bad? Things I missed. Really looking for games that you can lose yourself in.
*used to say “non action game” but that was stupid of me, so lets forget that :)
Having difficulty parsing diablo with non-action game.
At any rate, I’d suggest Yoku’s Island Express
Golf Story, Lumines, Mario and Rabbids, Money Puzzle Exchanger, Picross. Not Octopath Traveler. Pokémon is a good choice.
I don’t normally care for 2D platformers. You seen one, you seen 'em all, right? But for various reasons, I’m really digging Monster Boy. It feels like it was made by people who know what they’re doing, who have a ton of affection for the genre, and who really want you to have a good time. Also a +1 from me for Yoku’s Island Express for its unique pinballery traversal. What a cool concept.
-Tom
As an alternative to Civ 6, I’d suggest Neo Atlas 1469.
It’s a quantum world map generator, which makes it sound much more complicate than it really is: the basic game is to tap on the map looking for bubbles of rumors, which shape the world depending on you choosing to trust or distrust them, and you send expeditions on the sea whose results you accept or reject in the same way. There is also a Railroad Tycoonesque trading goods “mix and match” mini-game inside the game, although it really is a very minor aspect of it.
It is quite repetitive but I find it also absorbing. The game was released on PC as well (it’s an update to an old Japanese series), but the Switch version supports somewhat awkward but still nice to be present touch controls.
It sadly comes with modern Japanese gaming annoyances, in the form of an almost hour long hand-holding tutorial and torrents of texts and personal dramas I don’t think anybody on any Earth would give a damn about.
Also, its 49,99$ price tag is quite a bit expensive for what it is in my opinion.
Edit: I forgot to mention: the big fonts and interface make it really playable on the move. No squinting required.
I have to echo the support for Monster Boy. That game is a delight!