The Wednesday letters page ponders UK video game console preferences, as a reader speculates on the release date for Splatoon Raiders.
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Open questions
Read your review of Mario Kart World and it all made sense to me. Reviews seem to be coming out in the 8 to 9 range and from what I’ve played that seems to be about right. Like everyone, I’m confused as to why so little has been done with the open world, given how massive it is. So, like you say, do you mark the game down for not doing something obvious or do you just accept it’s something different to what you imagined?
We all assume Nintendo is going to add more with more DLC, but when? This year? Next year? Three year’s time? We literally have no idea. Nintendo is always secretive but this time I think it’s really hurting them, because everyone’s confused and making up their own theories. It’s silly because if they’d said: ‘We’ll have a ton of free content coming out all the time’ that would have been a real draw.
Now we don’t know what they’re doing, why they won’t tell us, and whether the DLC will be all paid-for or not. The core game is great but this weird way they’ve handled the open world feels like it’s pulling all the attention away from the stuff they got right.
Cranston
Secret plans
I have no problem with Mario Kart World getting a 9/10 but it is such a strange experience. Knockout Tour is probably the most fun I’ve had with a video game in several years and yet the open world stuff is just sitting there staring at me blanky, without anything to say.
It seems such an unlikely mistake for someone like Nintendo to make, that I feel there must be a reason and purpose to it, but while it’s easy enough to guess what that might be what I can’t understand is why they won’t tell us.
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A roadmap for the game, that promised tons of new tracks and characters and whatever would be a great PR move. Pack it in the box as an actual poster and it becomes a major talking point and an explanation for why the game’s so expensive. I just don’t get why they don’t do something like that.
Lumpy
Water good game
Been playing a bit of Wave Race 64 on Nintendo Switch Online.
Not only is it the best racing game Nintendo have made, it’s one of the best games ever made.
I wish they would do a remaster. The handling and wave physics feels as good as ever. Just be nice to have the frame rate and graphics improved. But it does still play brilliantly in its original, nearly 30-year-old form.
Simundo
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Xbox exclusive
This whole thing about Call Of Duty on Switch 2 is so stupid. The first Switch is the only Nintendo console it wasn’t on, and that was only because it doesn’t have a built-up online system like the Xbox and PlayStation 5. Nobody wants to play Call Of Duty on a modern Nintendo console unless they can absolutely avoid it. And if you care that much about it… you’d already have an alternative.
So far, I see no sign that Nintendo has done anything to upgrade its online services, so Activision were actually right not to bother in the first place.
Now if you wanted to make a spin-off that wasn’t so focused on online, that’d make sense, but they’re never going to do that. Or if they wanted to just port over Warzone, that’d make sense too as I’m sure Fortnite is quite popular on Switch.
A few months ago, I would’ve said the chances of an Xbox exclusive on Switch 2 was pretty high, or at least something that was Nintendo focused and would never sell much on other formats, like Banjo-Kazooie. But now I don’t know what’s going on.
I guess it’s because Activision Blizzard and Bethesda don’t really make anything Nintendo friendly, and Microsoft doesn’t want to put up the money for anything else.
Haymaker
Local pricing
Here in Hong Kong, I saw the Switch 2 plus Mario Kart bundle for around HK$4,000 (about £400). Most games were around HK$300-450 (£30-45) with standalone Mario Kart priced at HK$520 (£52). All in all, it’s not the pricing bloodbath I was fearing pre-launch, but I guess it’s partly due to lower taxes here in Hong Kong. I still don’t plan on getting it just yet as I can’t justify getting it for only Mario Kart. If it’d launched with an all-new Zelda, it would’ve been a completely different story!
Back I go to finishing the Switch 1 Zelda games in my backlog!
ttfp saylow (gamertag)
Now playing: Rolling Hills and Zelda: Tears Of The Kingdom
Adding it all up
I guess you could’ve probably predicted that Splatoon would be one of the first games to be announced after launch and I’m fine with that.
Personally, I think there probably is a reasonable chance Splatoon Raiders will be out this Christmas. If I was to take a guess, I think Nintendo is packing this year with mid-sized games, like Hyrule Warriors and Metroid and this Splatoon spin-off, and they think that’ll add up to one bigger one.
That makes some kind of sense and while it’s probably wrong, because you can’t predict Nintendo, I’m logging that as my 1 in a million chance to say I told you so.
I think for Nintendo the problem is Metroid Prime 4. It’ll probably review very well but it’s a Switch 1 game and the series doesn’t sell that much, so it’s not going to be much of a draw for the average parent at Christmas.
Since they’ve said it’s coming out this year I think they’re just planning to coast along on Mario Kart for now and rely on small fry for the fresh meat. Which does make sense because fans like me are interested in Metroid and casual gamers probably don’t care about anything but Mario Kart (and aren’t going to buying anything day one).
I do find the complete lack of any mention of a 3D Mario weird though. Not even teasing it in the first year is odd even for the big N.
Geln
The wisdom of youth
I overheard my 10-year-old son talking to his friends on his phone yesterday, while playing Among Us:
Him: The new GTA looks fire.
[All agree]
Friend: You have to be 18 to play it though.
Him: [Disappointed] Oh well…
Friend: Shame…
Him: [said seriously] …by the time it comes out we will be.
Major Kahonas
Taste of a nation
It always amazes me how mistakes Nintendo made in the 80s and 90s are still having a big effect on their current business, such that the Switch 2 can’t even outsell the Xbox Series X/S. Although how that became one of the biggest sellers I can’t even imagine. But then the UK is also the only country other than America that buys into Xbox, so I guess we’re pretty unique in terms of our gaming tastes.
We’ve never been as into PC games as the rest of the Europe either, as far as I understand, so basically we really only like PlayStation and Xbox, and mobile I guess. I wonder how that’s going to change as Xbox goes third party and it becomes more and more obvious that there’s no point in buying the console.
At that point we’re basically going to become PlayStation Land, not that Sony ever seems to show any appreciation for out unwavering loyalty.
I guess with each passing generation (in both senses of the word) Nintendo can grow its fanbase more, as they’re clearly on the up at the moment, but it’s not hard to see why Sony feels so confident and doesn’t feel the need to make much effort.
It’s just a shame they shut down most of their British developers, because I really would’ve liked to see them make a new The Getaway, or something similar, because they know there’s an audience for it.
Grant
Inbox also-rans
So if the PlayStation 6 is out in 2027, that means we should see Sony starting to talk about it next year? Basically, get through this Christmas with the PlayStation 5 then immediately start on the next next gen bandwagon. It’s inevitable but it seems far too soon.
Austin
I picked up Fast Fusion for my Switch 2 because it was cheap and I have to say I am super impressed by the graphics, they are top end PS4 quality and super smooth and fast. Not sure about the game itself so far, seems a bit clunky, but graphically it’s impressed me.
Donut
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