by Stone Marshall | Sep 8, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
It turns out that “Ultra Street Fighter II,” a souped-up version of the 1991 classic for the new Nintendo Switch console, is a certifiable smash hit.
So far, game developer Capcom says “Ultra Street Fighter II” has sold 450,000 copies, reports IGN— despite lukewarm reviews, and the ongoing shortage of the Switch console itself. Now, Capcom says it’s planning to release a flurry of new Switch games to meet this apparent demand.
From my perspective as a Nintendo Switch owner, the reason for the runaway success of this game is simple: Every video game ever made is better, or would be better, on the Nintendo Switch. All of them. Full stop.
Let me explain.
What Nintendo does for me
I own a PlayStation 4 and an Xbox One, and a whole heap of games to play on them. Still, I don’t get a lot of time to play games on the TV, and when I do, it’s usually for a matter of minutes, not hours. Lately, I’ve played many more games on my iPhone or Nintendo 3DS than my fancy-pants TV consoles.
It means that critically acclaimed games like “The Witcher 3” and even the older “Skyrim” have all passed me by. They’re probably both great, but I just haven’t been able to commit the 40-plus hours in front of my TV that those games would demand from me for full enjoyment.
Back to Nintendo. In case you haven’t heard, the Nintendo Switch has a simple, killer gimmick: It’s a TV console, like an Xbox or PlayStation, but when you’re on the go, you can pick it up right off its dock and keep on playing. It even lets you split one controller into two, for impromptu two-player action. 
The Nintendo Switch can be plugged into a TV, or played on-the-go. Either way, it’s great.Ben Gilbert/Business Insider
This has been a huge boon for me, personally. The Switch is a TV console, and a thing I can take with me. All of a sudden, I don’t have to choose between playing a console game or something portable. Console games fit into my life, once again. And I suspect that I’m not alone in feeling this way.
So, yeah, of course “Ultra Street Fighter II” sold like crazy, despite being a mediocre version of a decades-old classic. And when “Skyrim,” which first released in 2011, comes out for the Switch later this year, it’ll probably sell like crazy, too. The Switch itself makes any game more accessible, and more playable, by virtue of sheer flexibility. (Plus, this early in a console’s life cycle, people are thirsty for any half-decent game, which also helps.)
Ultimately, I would urge every game developer out there to consider a Nintendo Switch version of any games they’re working on, or even that they’ve already made. Superhero fighting game “Injustice 2,” for example, would be killer on the Switch.
And, look, I get that the Nintendo Switch isn’t as powerful under the hood as the Xbox One or PlayStation 4, graphically. Speaking personally, though, I would rather play a version of a great game at a lower resolution, or with slightly diminished special effects, than I would not play it at all.
Every video game would be better on Nintendo’s newest console
by Stone Marshall | Sep 8, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
How can you tell that I’m old?
The answer: I can’t stand playing most 3D games on a touchscreen for very long. I love playing “Minecraft,” Microsoft’s smash-hit block-building game, on my iPhone with my nephews, but the control feels weird and unnatural to my withered 30-year-old hands. I could play it on PC, naturally, but then I lose the portability.
This is why I was so eager to try “Minecraft: Nintendo Switch Edition,” the $30 version of the game for the new Nintendo Switch console. I thought, perhaps, this version would strike the perfect compromise:
Because the Switch is a TV games console, it uses a traditional joystick setup, the kind I’m very accustomed to. And because you can detach the Switch from the TV, I can take it on the go.
Well, the game met my expectations, and actually exceeded them. And in so doing, it shows off what’s so great about both “Minecraft,” and about the Nintendo Switch itself.
Mining and crafting
The actual experience of playing “Minecraft” is exactly the same here as it is on other versions.
In Survival Mode, you begin alone and unarmed, and are challenged to craft tools and weapons in a blocky, charmingly pixelated world. In Creative Mode, you’re freed from the shackles of responsibility, and can zip around the world using the game’s amazingly intuitive interface to build massive structures limited by your imagination.
The Switch can either be plugged into a TV to act as a normal console, or else used as portable system, as pictured here. 4J Studios
This version’s sole twist is a Nintendo-exclusive “Mario Mash-Up Pack,” which optionally lets you play as various Super Mario characters, while also giving a Mario-style makeover to the game’s items, buildings, and enemies. If you happened to play the Wii U version of “Minecraft,” it’s the exact same here as it was there.
It’s a fun addition, but not game-changing (so to speak). If you’ve ever played “Minecraft” before, and you should, you know what you’re getting. One thing I would note is that the game’s graphics get just a little worse when the console is in its portable mode, with the distance you can see noticeably diminished. That’s a quibble, though.
Playing with power
The real beauty of this version of “Minecraft” comes in the unique stuff that the Switch brings to the table.
Again, I can’t get used to touchscreen controls. So having a portable version that supports the Switch’s trademark Joy-Con controllers, thumbsticks and all, was a welcome blessing. I found myself playing the game more, and for longer sessions, than I had with other versions of “Minecraft.”
My absolute favorite moment with the game, however, came when I showed it to my nephews. Like the Xbox and PlayStation versions of the game, “Minecraft: Nintendo Switch Edition” supports a split-screen multiplayer with up to four players, so long as the console is plugged into the TV.
The game has a pre-built Super Mario world for you to explore. Microsoft/Nintendo
When the Switch isn’t plugged into the TV, though, you still keep the power to have two local players. It meant that my nephews could play with each other sitting at the coffee table, while a movie played on the TV. They love “Minecraft;” they love playing “Minecraft” with each other, and they were totally into this idea.
The caveat is that “Minecraft: Switch Edition” doesn’t support the Switch’s nifty method for turning one of its Joy-Con controllers into two, meaning you’ll need a full two controllers to take advantage. That part is a bummer.
Still, to me, it proves two things. First, Nintendo’s boasts of the Switch as a social console are well-deserved. Whether it’s attached to the TV, or in your backpack on a trip, the Switch really does let you have fun solo or with friends.
Second, “Minecraft” is really an extraordinary game. It’s incredibly flexible, and is equally as fun on phones, consoles, and PCs. It’s no wonder that the game has had such staying power when it’s so easy to get started everywhere the game plays. And when Switch players of “Minecraft” get the ability to join their Xbox brethren later this year, you can expect the fun to get cranked up to 11.
‘Minecraft’ for the Nintendo Switch proves what’s so great about both the game and the console
by Stone Marshall | Sep 7, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
Recently, Microsoft and its third party partners announced quite a few Japanese games coming to Xbox One, partly as a result of a recent trip by Xbox Division Head Phil Spencer to Japan, where he met local publishers and developers.
Xbox fans can expect to play Code Vein, Dynasty Warriors 9, they will get their hands on the Sword Art Online franchise for the first time with Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet, and quite a few more.
Back in the early months of Xbox 360, Microsoft launched a big push with quite a few Japanese exclusives like Tales of Vesperia, Lost Odyssey, Infinite Undiscovery and more. Unfortunately, it did not last long. During a chat at Gamescom, DualShockers asked Xbox Games Marketing General Manager Aaron Greenberg if we can expect this newfound commitment to Japanese games to have a lasting impact.
Greenberg mentioned that Microsoft always had a deep respect for Japanese creators, and they worked with them on a number of projects both internally and on the third-party side. Phil Spencer himself cares a lot about Japanese developers, and working with them is a personal passion of his, as shown by the fact that he regularly goes to Japan to meet them.
According to Greenberg, we should expect to continue to see more and more Japanese games coming to Xbox One, and Microsoft is going to do as much as possible with them.
He also mentioned that Japanese creators are always among the first to adopt and experiment with new technology. With Xbox One X they’ve been working with local developers and heard good things from them. They’ll wait until it’s time to announce more, but it’s important to both Microsoft and Phil Spencer, and they know that this matters to the fans.
Speaking of Japanese games, we also asked about the extension of the trademark for Scalebound, wondering if Microsoft is still looking to do something with teh IP. Greenberg put rumors to rest explaining that the game was canceled, and that’s the reality of the issue. He has a lot of respect for the Director, Hideki Kamiya, and he feels that everyone at Microsoft believed in the partnership with PlatinumGames and in the vision for the title. Yet, some times you just put the ingredients together and for whatever reason things don’t work out. It happens with movie projects, music projects and any creative process, including video games.
During the same chat Greenberg also talked about the “overwhelming” reaction of the fans to Xbox One X, and mentioned that Microsoft is working hard to manufacture as many units as possible to meet demand.
Xbox One Fans Can Expect More Japanese Games According to Aaron Greenberg
by Stone Marshall | Sep 7, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
Microsoft has been making quite a few announcements lately, but the house of Xbox has been quiet about what The Coalition and the main team at 343 Industries are doing. According to Xbox Games Marketing General Manager Aaron Greenberg this is a positive signal, as he told DualShockers during an interview at Gamescom in Cologne
Greenberg thinks that first party studios being quiet is a good thing. As a fan he knows that The Coalition is there, and they’re hard at work on “something,” and the same goes for 343 Industries. The question is how far in advance Microsoft should announce what they’re doing.
There are so many games coming to Xbox One over the next twelve months, and Microsoft feels good about its first party lineup. Greenberg feels that it’s nice to be able to have a strong lineup like that, and still be a little quiet about what is being done behind the scenes. That being said, he recently visited The Coalition, and he is “very excited” about the future of the Gears of War franchise. He is also very excited about the future of the Halo franchise.
Interestingly, Greenberg also commented on Black Desert Online‘s upcoming release on Xbox One: Microsoft believes that there is an opportunity to have more MMO games on the console, and Black Desert in particular has a strong following, but isn’t yet very well known in the west. So it’s a great opportunity to bring a great game to the console and give it more visibility in the west.
This was actually the idea behind the E3 show: showing a large and diverse line-up of creators from all over the world, including Europe, Korea, Japan and more. Microsoft “really want that diversity,” and the folks working at Xbox pride themselves on loving games and wanting to honor the creators and artist making these titles.
Xbox Division Head Phil Spencer himself is a game developer, and has a “deep appreciation” for this. According to Greenberg it’s not always about selling millions of units, and Microsoft wants to make sure that they have a good variety and a diverse lineup for their players.
Xbox Wants Diversity in its Games Lineup; it’s Good for Gears of War and Halo Developers to Be Quiet
by Stone Marshall | Sep 6, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
First released in 2015, Rocket League took the gaming community by storm on PlayStation 4 and Windows PC, and it wasn’t too long until it made its way to Xbox One. Once again, the game is making the jump to a new console. With the release of Rocket League on the Nintendo Switch, developer Psyonix is bringing exclusive Nintendo-themed battle cars.
When Rocket League releases on Nintendo Switch this holiday season, these three Nintendo-themed cars will be available as free special unlocks. Technically speaking, the Mario NSR and Luigi NSR are the same vehicle. Whether or not a player is Mario or Luigi is dependent on the team color they select before a match. Orange players display the Mario skin while Blue players show up as Luigi. For the Metroid-themed Battle Car, Samus’ Gunship, the team color variations are modeled after different Varia Suits from the series.
Along with the different body designs, both cars feature specialized boosts. The Mario and Luigi NSR feature a “Super Star” trail while Samus’ Gunship uses a “Wave Beam.” Other Nintendo items include Mario and Luigi hats.
Rocket League on Nintendo Switch was officially announced during Nintendo’s Treehouse presentation at E3 2017. Anticipation for the reveal came much sooner though as Psyonix began teasing the possibility of a Switch port
Right out of the gate, the Switch version includes all previous game modes and features found in other versions of the game. This includes later additions such as Hockey, Dropshot, and additional rotating modes. It also supports cross-network play, but the systems have yet to be announced.
Other unique features come from the design of the Nintendo Switch. The biggest draw is the ability to play Rocket League on the go. Users can get the same console experience, without being tethered to their living room. Additionally, local wireless multiplayer allows Switch owners to circle around each other to play without using dedicated Wi-Fi.
Rocket League rolls out onto Nintendo Switch consoles during the 2017 holiday season. This means that players will have plenty of time to battle their friends during the holiday break. Expect a solid release date in the coming months.
‘Rocket League’ on Switch comes with exclusive Nintendo battle cars
