Author: sick skills

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“No Plans” To Localise Shinobi Refle: Senran Kagura, Says Marvelous Games

Shinobi Refle: Senran Kagura launches in Japan today but developer Marvelous Games says that it has no current plans to release the title outside of Japan.

Part of the titillating Senran Kagura series, Shinobi Refle makes use of the Switch’s HD Rumble for various – ahem – tactile mini-games.

Of course, having no plans at the present moment in time doesn’t mean the game won’t eventually come to the west – and the region-free nature of the Switch means, if you can read Japanese, you can play it right now – but would you want it on your Switch anyway? Let us know with a comment.

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The Pokémon Series Has Now Sold Over 300 Million Units Worldwide

We all know that the Pokémon series is big – perhaps one of the biggest gaming brands there is, and certainly one of Nintendo’s most important properties.

However, the news that the series has now passed 300 million units sold (across 76 different titles) puts just how gargantuan it is into perspective; that figure doesn’t even include downloaded versions or free-to-down games, like Pokémon GO, either.

The figure will no doubt have been significantly boosted by the recent launch of Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon on 3DS, the latest million-selling release in the series which started life in the ’90s. 

Here’s to the next 300 million!

[via japanesenintendo.com]

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Building the new PvE features in WoW: Battle for Azeroth

It’s been over ten years since World of Warcraft took the world by storm, and in that time, a whole slew of online games in other genres have been learning lessons from its success. 

That means now, in 2017, the still-going-strong World of Warcraft does have to indirectly compete with games like Destiny and League of Legends for player attention, as both games have taken core elements of the Warcraft formula and evolved them into new genres. Destiny’s built a first-person shooter with raids, League and other MOBAs yanked the most popular mod from Warcraft 3 to build their own empires on.

With that in mind, we reached out to Blizzard with a question for the current stewards of Warcraft: what new features in the Battle for Azeroth expansion help the long-running MMORPG stand out from its new competitors? 

Thankfully, creative director Alexander Afrasiabi and production director Jon Haight had some interesting insight for us about how island explorations are helping World of Warcraft create new co-operative experiences that help the game continue to evolve. 

“How do you make randomization become a thing that isn’t really frustrating when you get the wrong seed?”

First, a quick breakdown of why the announced “island expeditions” are a notable feature for World of Warcraft. In Battle for Azeroth, islands are instances meant to be experienced with multiple players in a party, just like dungeons. The key difference is, when the instance loads, not only will the loot tables be different every time, the enemies and encounters on each island will be different too. 

Since this expansion focuses on a renewed conflict between The Alliance and The Horde, players will either be pitted against an AI team representing the opposite faction, or if they choose, an actual group of opposing players, as they all race for the same randomly-generated goal. Many of these goals involve gathering Azerite, the new resource players can use to participate in end-game progression, but they may also involve killing specific enemies before the other team does. 

Afrasiabi jokes that this randomly-driven encounter design is a kind of “holy grail of gaming,” since it hopefully ensures that each push into the Islands is fresher than the usual scripted content seen in Warcraft raids. “We had years of experience building this content, how do we make something more compelling? How do we make something that doesn’t become stale after X uses,” asked Afrasiabi. “That led us down the path of randomization. How do you make randomization become a thing that isn’t really frustrating when you get the wrong seed?”

“This kind of challenge opens the door for unusual party configurations, meaning a 3-healer party could succeed in the same way a traditional tank/DPS/healer party could.”

Now that Afrasiabi and his team have had time to explore that idea, he says the biggest difference between these two forms of design is that dungeons, like his favorite raid The Halls of Valor, do a very good job delivering large encounters that reward practice but diminish “newness” over time. 

But on the islands, Afrasiabi says that they’ve been able to explore more emergent gameplay, with “little mini stories and micro-stories that are happening across these island explorations. Hopefully, the tenth run, the twentieth run, it’s different enough because of the randomization and the AI that you don’t feel like ‘man I’ve seen this before.’”

Part of the reason there’s more emergent play in islands, is performing well in them involves less prescribed choreography and a more give-and-take interaction with the game’s artificial intelligence or players from the opposite faction that are racing for the same goal as you. Haight adds that this kind of challenge opens the door for unusual party configurations, meaning a 3-healer party could succeed in the same way a traditional tank/DPS/healer party could.

“The way islands are designed, players won’t be focusing on mastery and memorization so much as they will improvisation.”

Island encounters are also a lot shorter than raids, lasting 15-20 minutes instead of…well, hours, so there’s a big incentive for the Warcraft team to avoid that repetitive raid feel. “We want to make sure that all those prolonged play sessions you’re not [thinking] ‘this dungeon is awesome, but it can’t be awesome forever,’” says Afrasiabi.

Haight notes that the way islands are designed, players won’t be focusing on mastery and memorization so much as they will improvisation. “So it’s not a scripted behavior in the same way that a dungeon boss has. They’re going to react to you in the way that you act towards them,” he explains. “So it’s stimuli and response. It’s going to feel very different.”

There are a few other new features in Battle for Azeroth that are intended to shake up the traditional endgame formula. Warfronts, for instance, is a Horde-versus-Alliance-themed PvE feature that re-introduces strategy game mechanics to the Warcraft universe, as 20 players group up to manage an army of units while still running around the battlefields themselves.  

What’s interesting about this feature is that Afrasiabi says the original intent wasn’t to re-introduce classic Warcraft mechanics, but while building this mode they found they could call back to them while doing something different. “There’s always that breakpoint when you’re making a new game system where it goes from being not fun to fun,” he explains. “And that was our breakpoint, when we’re like ‘actually, we’ve already got things to reference and it feels like it really fulfills that fantasy of a world at war and it’s something we can kind of harken back to fondly.’”

As more online games use events and their own raiding systems to drive player retention, it’s interesting to see Blizzard go the extra mile in adding new instance-driven features with this expansion. With randomization and strategy mechanics back on the table, it’ll be interesting to watch these features grow once Battle for Azeroth launches. 

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Guide: Best Nintendo Switch Black Friday 2017 Deals In The UK

It’s that time, once again, for Black Friday, when shoppers around the world prepare to brave the crowds in search of bargains. Though originally an American tradition, like Big Macs and over-sized soft drinks it’s been exported around the world, for better and worse. UK retailers have had a mixed relationship with the discount phenomenon in recent years, but seem to be going all in this time around. The official day is Friday 24th November, but discounts arrive over the broader Black Friday ‘weekend’.

From a Nintendo perspective this festive season has a few big hitters aside from the obvious with the incredibly popular Nintendo Switch. One of which is the Super Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Edition, which has unfortunately been difficult to track down after initial stock sold through; more is promised before Christmas. Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon is also big news, and as a result 2DS and 3DS bundles and deals are sure to be prominent. On top of that, game discounts and neat merchandise will be ever-presents for Nintendo.

We’ve compiled some of the best deals and most useful links for Black Friday so far, but we’ll be updating frequently through the day and the following weekend. Read on for the best savings in the UK, and don’t forget to refer to our alternative guide for the Best Nintendo Black Friday 2017 Deals in the USA.

We’ll be updating this guide every few hours as the discounts pick up speed.

Please note that some of the links below are affiliate links. If you click them and make a purchase we may receive a small percentage of the sale which helps support the site. Please read our FTC Disclosure for more information.

Hardware Deals

Switch Hardware

4K Televisions

Televisions

Game Deals

Switch Games

3DS Games

Accessory Deals

Switch Accessories

Classics

Clothing

Clothing

Found a deal we don’t have? Tell us about it so we can add it!

Here are some quick links to UK retailers with the biggest deals:

Nintendo Switch Black Friday Deals

The Nintendo Switch has been hot all through the year. Launched back in March, the portable console hybrid has really begun to pick up pace in recent months. While we doubt there will be any crazy deals on Switch hardware this year, you may well be able to get a good deal on a bundle that includes some games.

Super Nintendo Entertainment System Classic Edition – Will I Be Able to Get One?

If you want a SNES Mini all hope is not lost, but it’s going to be difficult. More stock roll-outs are expected through December, so it’ll be a case of keeping vigilant and being ready to pounce. Sites like Amazon and the official Nintendo UK Store will be worth following, and we’ll keep an eye out for stock updates.

Don’t give up yet!

New 2DS XL or New Nintendo 3DS? Which is the Best Deal?

For the most part the ‘original’ 3DS and 3DS XL aren’t seen too often nowadays, though some XL models may be available at bargain prices.

The choice of whether to go for a New Nintendo 3DS model is about convenience, primarily. If you have amiibo and enjoy those features, New systems are ideal with their in-built scanner, whereas the older 3DS XL and 2DS require an accessory to use the figures and cards. Aside from that the main benefits of the New 3DS (that are actually used) are improved 3D stability, making it far more effective than older models, and slightly quicker performance with eShop downloads.

New this year is the New 2DS XL, with a price that sits snugly between the standard 2DS and the New 3DS XL. It has all the same functionality as the New 3DS XL with the exception of 3D visuals on the top screen, and Nintendo will likely push hard with this model. 

If you can live without those New extras or are buying for a young gamer in particular, the 2DS is still a good bargain option. With a low price and deals / bundles taking it lower, it strips away the 3D effect and clamshell design but delivers a sturdy and solid bit of kit.

When Is Black Friday 2017?

The big day is set for Friday, 24th November – a day after Thanksgiving in the US. That said, there are some pre-Black Friday deals kicking around, especially online; we’ll report some of the better deals in news articles. Cyber Monday is also a time for discounts, which will take place on Monday, 27th November.

Looking for PS4 bargains? Our buddies at Push Square can help you with their UK Black Friday PlayStation Deals guide.

As always, point us to any great deals that are missing, and we’ll update this guide right up to and during the big day.

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Review: Aces of the Luftwaffe – Squadron (Switch eShop)

“The following persons and events are fictitious” states the disclaimer as the game loads up. “Any resemblance to actual events or actual persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental”. It’s a fairly standard notice, but also amusing as it’s hard to imagine anyone mistaking Aces of the Luftwaffe – Squadron for an historically accurate simulation. OK, at first glance it looks like a World World II-themed shmup, but it’s a game that sees German forces appearing in America after the war is thought to be over and these forces include metal insect-like craft, a flying saucer and an aerial train. In any case, it’s up to you and your team to stop them across twenty five levels of action for up to four players.

Play solo and the rest of the squadron still joins you, flying in formation and adding to your firepower as you shoot down the many enemy craft heading your way. For the multiplayer the challenge increases slightly, but this allows for higher scoring as well as the benefit of being able to cover different areas of the screen. Player One has a set character, but additional players can pick from the remainder of the team.

The team consists of Mark Taylor, Melissa Monroe, John King and Steve Davis. Steve is an interesting fella who will, on occasion, fall asleep at the controls, requiring the others to protect him until he wakes. The other pilots have their own issues, too. Melissa dislikes changing altitude so will sit some sections out while John will become enraged at times and start flying wildly about the screen ramming into anything in his path. This would be useful if it didn’t also include the other members of the team. Main character Mark suffers from bouts of sickness and when one of these hits, you must move as slowly as possible whilst you recover. These moments can sometimes annoy if you are trying to focus on the main task, but do add a bit of variety to the proceedings.

The pilots communicate throughout the missions, bantering or just commenting on the situation. Radio communications are accompanied by a static character portrait, but are fully voiced which adds to the experience, with other characters also chipping in (your general, the bosses) as the story moves along.

The game features a simple, bright and clean art style that allows for easy-to-follow action. Aircraft are generally small which allows the screen to be filled with dangers and necessitates constant movement as you avoid bullets and missiles coming from different directions and get into position to shoot down your attackers (some requiring more hits than others). Due to the large swarms of smaller craft, larger ones feel imposing when they appear, but are satisfying to shoot down.

Though mainly shooting anything that comes your way, the game also tasks you with completing sub missions. These are briefly described on the loading screens, a fact which doesn’t quite hide the up to 45 second loading times, but is a good idea nonetheless. The missions can include dropping supplies (hover over the indicated areas for a few moments), protecting an airplane or keeping up with a fleeing craft. One mission offers an opportunity for stealth as you weave about avoiding searchlights rather than bullets.

The main gameplay is standard but enjoyable shmup fare as you blast away at the bad guys and collect power-ups to send blast waves or missiles to aid in your survival. Initially survival doesn’t seem to be a problem however due to a few factors. You have a number of lives for each level and should you lose one you’ll resume at the same spot. You can also take a few hits before destruction, so perfectly navigating the bullets raining across the screen doesn’t seem essential and whilst your squad members can be shot down in single player mode, they too will return after a short time out. The challenge does arrive however, particularly if you fail to upgrade your craft.

Throughout the levels, medals can be collected (further medals awarded for successful side missions), which level your squadron up and award you with skill coins. These skill coins can be spent to upgrade the abilities of the team (each has different skills), increasing defensive and offensive capabilities, provide special items to repair craft or deploy a devastating (and spectacular looking) bomb attack. You can even spend coins to reduce the recharge time on these specials. At launch this was a bit too effective, allowing constant special attacks, but was fixed in an update a few days later. One good feature here is that you can reset the skills and redistribute your coins on different abilities if you feel you made poor choices previously, or if you just want to try something different for a particular level.

After a gentle start the difficulty steadily increases, with the very effective cracked screen effect (signifying your plane is near destruction) appearing more and more often, but as long as you stay focused and keep spending those skill coins, the challenge is not insurmountable. As well as the normal difficulty setting there is a hard and (unlockable) extreme mode, both of which unsurprisingly increase the challenge while also giving you less lives to get through the stages. Further upgrades help you through but do not make the game a pushover, with the extreme mode in particular requiring frantic movement around the screen as you attempt to avoid a fiery death.

Boss battles are enjoyable, and conversations with the wacky characters (undead train conductor, mad scientist) push the story along while providing a stern challenge (whatever the difficulty). They are generally large enemies, giving you less room to manoeuvre as you avoid the circling lasers and spiralling bullets. Some have parts that suddenly shoot out to ram you (although these can be avoided when you recognise they’re coming) and the runaway airborne train is happy to plough straight through you. “Terror Twins” Luzia and Angela fly relatively small craft, but as you are fighting both at once, they cause plenty of trouble.

There’s no online leaderboard (which is a shame as this kind of feature works well in the various ACA Neo Geo shmups), but the game keeps track of your best score for each level, providing some replay value as you attempt to see how much better you can do. The stats screen also lists the longest time undetected in the stealth stage, giving you another area in which you can try to improve.

Conclusion

Aces of the Luftwaffe – Squadron provides plenty of action as you do the standard thing of shooting anything onscreen while avoiding getting hit yourself, and variety is provided by squadron’s various troubles and the optional side missions. It’s fairly easy to begin with, but the challenge steadily increases as you progress without being too difficult – as long as you keep upgrading your skills, that is. Two additional difficulty settings provide a tougher challenge, and fun boss battles add to the enjoyment. With support for up to four players, Aces of the Luftwaffe – Squadron is a good pick for those seeking multiplayer shmup action.

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Guide: Super Mario Odyssey: Lost Kingdom Power Moon Locations And Walkthrough

Welcome to our ultimate guide for collecting every Power Moon from the Lost Kingdom in Super Mario Odyssey! Below, you’ll find maps detailing the exact location for all 35 of the Power Moons located in this Kingdom, as well as descriptions on how to get each and every one of them.

The numbers on the maps correspond to the relevant Power Moon listed below and, whilst most of them appear in that spot from the beginning (or after you’ve completed the story at least), it is worth nothing that sometimes you are required to perform a specific action to make it appear. Use a combination of our maps and walkthrough information to grab each of the Power Moons with ease. Enjoy!

Lost Kingdom Power Moons (1-25)

1. Atop a Propeller Pillar: Head to the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag and capture one of the nearby Wigglers. Stretch over to the first spinning platform in front of you, and then over to the second, to find this Power Moon.

2. Below the Cliff’s Edge: Head to location number 2 on our map (to the east of the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag to find a small ledge sticking out of the cliff’s edge. Drop down onto this ledge to grab the Power Moon.

3. Inside the Stone Cage: You can see this Power Moon behind some bars just below the Swamp Hill area. Climb up the stairs just to the right of the barsand head left until you come across a tall pillar that can be ground-pounded. Perform said ground pound on the pillar to reveal an entrance to the Power Moon’s prison.

4. On a Tree in the Swamp: Head to the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag and capture the Wiggler nearby. Walk around the staircase on the right-hand side, travelling around the thin path until it bends around to the left. Stretch the Wiggler over to the staircase from here, use ‘ZL’ to release it, and then use Mario to ground pound the centre of the stairs. Recapture the Wiggler and stretch around the tree to grab the Power Moon.

5. Over the Fuzzies, Above the Swamp: Capture yourself a Wiggler and take it to the Mountainside Platform flag. You’ll see some moving yellow platforms in front of you. Stretch across the yellow platforms, using the tree stumps when needed, to reach the Power Moon floating above the second platform.

6. Avoiding Fuzzies Inside the Wall: Head to the Mountainside Platform checkpoint flag and throw Cappy at the red hat door on the wall beside it. Travel to the end of the 2D section that this reveals to grab a Power Moon.

7. Inside the Rising Stone Pillar: Warp to the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag and look to the east. You’ll see a staircase made up of four platforms just below the cliff’s edge. Use your ground pound on these steps to make the highest end sit nearest to the checkpoint flag where you started. Now jump off the steps (in the direction of the poison sea) and look at the pillar that is the tallest step. You’ll see the Power Moon tucked away inside.

8. Enjoying the View of Forgotten Isle: Just to the right of the Crazy Cap store, you’ll notice a palm tree. Climb to the top of this tree to grab the Power Moon.

9. On the Mountain Road: Head to location number 9 on our map to find a group of butterflies hovering over a patch of mud (this is near the thin gap in the wall that Mario can wall-jump in). Ground pound the floor in the centre of the butterflies to reveal the Power Moon.

10. A Propeller Pillar’s Secret: Jump onto the spinning platform closest to the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag. You’ll notice a group of butterflies hovering over the centre of the platform. Ground pound this spot to reveal a Power Moon.

11. Wrecked Rock Block: At location number 11 on our map, you should find a set of four blocks (near the staircase that takes you up to the Swamp Hill area). Near these blocks will be a Trapeetle (round, spiky things with big hands). Throw Cappy to the Trapeetle and jump onto the four blocks – the Trapeetle will come hurtling towards you and smash the blocks, one of which contains a Power Moon.

12. A Butterfly’s Treasure: At location number 12 on our map, you should spot a very narrow platform sticking out of the mainland. A butterfly is sitting at the end and you need to throw Cappy at it to get the Power Moon. You need to be careful, though – get too close and the butterfly will fly away, forcing you to leave the area and return later for it to reset.

13. Caught Hopping in the Jungle!: On the first spinning platform by the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag, you should spot a rabbit bouncing around. The easiest way to catch the rabbit is to use one of the nearby Wigglers and, when you do manage to make contact with it, the rabbit will give you a Power Moon.

14. Cave Gardening: Head to Talkatoo’s location and turn around to face away from him. If you follow the wall ahead of you on the right-hand side, you should eventually spot a small cave behind some plants. Throw Cappy around inside to make all of the flowers bloom at the same time (spin throws are useful here).

15. Moon Shards in the Jungle: For this Power Moon, you’ll need to find five Moon Shards which are all located on and around the tree stumps near location 15 on our map. Use the Wigglers in that area to travel from tree stump to tree stump, looking all around you to spot the shards.

16. Peeking Out from Under the Bridge: There is a Power Moon sitting underneath the bridge at location number 16 on our map. The easiest way to get there is to capture a Wiggler and stretch over from the area underneath the spinning platforms, using the roots of the nearby tree as mid-points.

17. Twist ‘n’ Turn-Up Treasure: Capture yourself a Wiggler and take it all the way over to the Odyssey in the south. Just past the Odyssey (at location 17 on our map) you’ll find an area that you can drop down to on the cliff’s edge. Jump down and stretch around to find a Power Moon tucked away inside the cliff.

18. Soaring Over the Forgotten Isle!: Head to the Crazy Cap store and capture Glydon who is sitting closeby. As Glydon, fly all the way over to location number 18 on our map to find a Power Moon on the island there.

19. The Caged Gold: Look over to location number 19 on our map from the mainland nearby to see a Power Moon inside a cage. You’ll need to throw Cappy to the Trapeetle nearby and put yourself directly in between it and the cage. The Trapeetle will launch itself at you and, if you dodge it, it will fly towards the cage and smash it. This may take a little time, and several goes, to line up correctly.

20. Get Some Rest, Captain Toad: Capture a Wiggler near the tree stumps at location 15 on our map and stretch your way over them to the north. When you reach the northeastern corner of these tree stumps, move the camera around to the right to spot a tunnel in the wall. Stretch inside this tunnel to find Captain Toad who will happily give you a Power Moon.

21. Shopping on Forgotten Isle: You can purchase this Power Moon from the Gold Coin half of the Crazy Cap store. It will cost you 100 coins.

22. Taxi Flying Through Forgotten Isle: Use the binoculars near the Odyssey and look up to the sky – if you look closely you’ll see a taxi flying through the air. If you zoom in on this taxi for several seconds, a Power Moon will fly out towards you.

23. I met a Tropical Wiggler!: Head to location number 23 on our map to find a Bonneter (one of the Cap Kingdom residents). He wants to see a Wiggler up close so, perhaps unsprisingly, you’ll need to capture a Wiggler and take it over to him for closer inspection, ground pounding the staircases when necessary. You’ll receive a Power Moon when you reach him.

24. Lost Kingdom Regular Cup: Head to location number 24 on our map to find a Koopa who will challenge you to a race. You need to win this race to get the Power Moon. The best advice here is to use a couple of attempts to study the path that the Koopas take, and then perform it quicker than them when you are used to it. You can also perform a Cappy throw and dive to jump around the area where the Trapeetles are needed to smash blocks if you’re struggling.

25. Peach in the Lost Kingdom: Warp to the Rocky Mountain Summit checkpoint flag to find Princess Peach hanging out near the Crazy Cap store. Talk to her to receive a Power Moon.

Lost Kingdom ‘Moon Rock’ Power Moons (26-35)

These Power Moons will become available to you when you have smashed the Moon Rock located in this Kingdom. 

26. The Shining Fruit: Head to location 26 on our map (on the right-hand edge of the island just north of the Odyssey) to find a Power Moon hanging from a palm tree.

27. Jump Down to the Top of a Tree: At location 27 on our map there is a Power Moon hovering on top of a tall tree stump. An easy way to reach this is to capture Glydon (who is sitting by the Crazy Cap store) and glide down to that location from behind the store itself.

28. Line It Up, Blow It Up: Head to the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag and look towards the spinning platforms. Just before you jump over to the platforms you’ll notice a staircase that can be ground-pounded. Make sure that the right-hand side (the one nearest the spinning platform) is low to the ground and then jump on to the spinning platform. Keep travelling in that direction to find a Trapeetle and throw Cappy at it. You’ll need to jump down onto the ledge below the Trapeetle and line up its shot with some blocks that can be seen beyond the staircase you just lowered. When these blocks are smashed, you’ll receive a Power Moon.

29. Taking Notes: Stretch and Shrink: Warp to the Swamp Hill checkpoint flag and capture one of the Wigglers. Take the Wiggler over both spinning platforms to find a glowing treble clef hovering in the air beyond the second one. Touch the treble clef, and then use the Wiggler to collect all of the music notes that appear to receive the Power Moon. You’ll have to bend its body to match the curves of the notes. 

30. Lost Kingdom Master Cup: Head to location number 30 on our map and talk to the Koopa to enter into a second race challenge. You’ll need to make use of a shortcut to stand any chance of winning this one. At the section where the opponent Koopas use the Trapeetles to smash through rocks blocking the path, you’ll need to dive off the cliff’s edge to the right, throw Cappy towards the path just after the troublesome blocks, and then dive from Cappy back onto the path. It can be tricky to pull off, but it will save you precious time and will give you a chance to match the leading Koopa for speed.

31. Lost Kingdom Timer Challenge: Head to location 31 on our map (easily accessed by jumping off the cliff from the Rocky Mountain Summit) and throw Cappy at the scarecrow standing there. Run along the blocks and long jump onto the palm trees below. Reach the Power Moon above one of these palm trees in time to add it to your collection.

32. Stretch and Traverse the Jungle: Head to location 32 (just north of the Odyssey) and enter the grey warp pipe. Inside, you’ll need to use the Wigglers to make your way to the end of this section, standing on the P-Switches when necessary to lower the poison geysers. 

33. Aglow in the Jungle (see location 32): In the same area as Power Moon number 32, use the Wigglers to travel to the section with the fireball-spitting Piranha Plant. Break all of the bricks to the sides of the Piranha Plant, and then stand in between it and the torches to the left and right of the platform. When it spits a fire ball, move out of the way in time so that each torch becomes lit. You’ll receive a Power Moon when both are complete.

34. Chasing Klepto: Head to location number 34 on our map (just off the cliff behing the Crazy Cap store) to find a grey warp pipe. Inside, you’ll need to chase Klepto around to get Cappy back. When Klepto lands on a platform that has another ground pound-able platform beside, use that opportunity to send Klepto flying through the air to get Cappy back. Then use Cappy on the lever to open the gate to the Power Moon.

35. Extremely Hot Bath (see location 34): In the same area as Power Moon number 34, use Cappy to capture a Lava Bubble and make your way to the really tall blue pillar standing all alone – away from the main area. You’ll find this hidden Power Moon behind this tower.

We hope that you have found this guide on collecting all Power Moons in Super Mario Odyssey’s Lost Kingdom useful. Let us know if you’ve managed to grab them all with a comment below.

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Hardware Review: WaterField Arcade Gaming Case for Nintendo Switch

For me personally, I don’t always prefer to wear my gaming passion on my sleeves. When it comes to carting gaming gear around I prefer a more neutral, less ‘hey-check-me-out-I’ve-got-an-expensive-Switch’ look. Thankfully WaterField are a company that aims to offer just that, and to further expand their range they’ve recently blown the lid off their new Arcade Gaming Case for Nintendo’s latest beast.

Make sure you check out the video above where we test the sucker out to see if it manages to cut the proverbial mustard. Should you want to pick one of these up for yourself, you can do so from their website, but be prepared to pay a premium price for a premium product.

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Gallery: Reddit Users Have Been Recreating Movie Posters in Super Mario Odyssey

Most people love a good film, and over at Nintendo Life Towers we’re no exception. So when the gaming world collides with the movie world and we actually get to write about it, we get a little bit excited.

And thankfully that day is today, as certain users over on Reddit have been recreating promotional posters for famous (and infamous) feature presentations in Super Mario Odyssey, and the results are frankly lovely.

Which one is your favourite? Let us know down there in the comments.

Special thanks to King_LJN, itsjabo, muchamp, JoelSOL, CornfedVGC, MarianneThornberry, factoryfactor, ubsunkeys, tehsam016, and TheOnlineBoy.

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Review: Stick It to The Man (Switch eShop)

Over the course of its first year the Switch has been bombarded with ports. Stick It To The Man – originally released in 2013 and made available on the Wii U in 2014 – adds to the growing library of eShop re-releases on Nintendo’s latest device. Initially, this game was critically praised. Its story – penned by Adventure Time veteran Ryan North – is tied to a universe with morbid undertones and quirky humour. So now that Swedish developer Zoink has released it on the Switch, how does this 2.5D platform game hold up years later?

As we acknowledged within our Wii U eShop review in 2014, Stick It To The Man integrates the puzzle aspects of point and click classics into a platform game format to provide both a cohesive and modern touch throughout. Nothing about this has necessarily changed during the transition across to the Switch. It remains as faultless with the way it incorporates the different play styles together – as disruptive as this may sound to the natural flow of a platform game.

For those who haven’t played this title before, it’s about a guy named Ray who is a hard hat tester on a construction site. One day Ray cops a blow to the head (outside of work hours) when a mysterious package falls from the sky. He wakes up from the accident with a “giant spaghetti arm” sticking out of his brain and discovers he has gained unwanted attention from a mysterious group led by “The Man”. This bizarre premise is what drives the gameplay in Stick It To The Man.

Ray has essentially been gifted with the ability to read the minds of anyone around him to physically extract their thoughts – and then put them to use in a more practical manner around the world. The non-linear levels in this adventure are divided up into individual chapters, and you’ll regularly need to use Ray’s mind-reading ability to obtain necessary items in order to progress. When you gain an item in the form of a character’s thought, you’ll be able to apply it to a scene from nearby in a similar fashion to a point and click game – although it’s rather reminiscent of Paper Mario: Sticker Star on the 3DS where you could place stickers within the environment and a sequence would be activated. Like in certain Paper Mario games, you can also peel back layers of the surrounding cardboard environment to reveal additional areas, characters or helpful items or elements such as a flame which could be used to ignite a canon to fire a clown. 

When you’re not searching about for items, the platform aspects include grappling with your alien-like arm to reach higher or lower locations and jump between the layers of a level – perhaps to escape an enemy who may be chasing you. If you don’t succeed or fall off a ledge you’ll reset at the nearest save point. All of this combined gives you the general basis of the gameplay within this title, and arguably within the short time frame the rinse and repeat design may not win everyone over despite its solid execution. 

The adult themes and language in Stick It To The Man won’t be for everyone. This isn’t your average family friendly platform game, as accessible as it may be. You’ll discover there is a darker undertone to the universe – perhaps not immediately – but eventually when you witness a man with a noose around his neck because his girlfriend has left him for an older fellow. On face value it might not appear like a particularly sinister scene, but it’s characters like this that definitely set the tone of things to come. Another bizarre moment not far from this point is a cannibalistic chef who wants to spice up his human stew. As comedic as the dialogue and scenes can be – with references to pop culture and even video games – for the most parts it’s a twisted brand of humour with certain underlying themes that don’t necessarily cater to all audiences.

The self-aware nature of Ray, where he makes observations about the game world around him and the mechanics, is similar to Conker narrating his own adventure in Conker’s Bad Fur Day. While breaking the fourth wall is often applauded, in this case it does nothing overtly impressive. At best it adds a mild dose of humour to the overall package.  

What’s most impressive about the port of Stick It To The Man is how well it runs on the Switch. It looks fabulous, drawing inspiration from Tim Burton’s works and titles such as Psychonauts. The cardboard diorama aesthetic pops out at the player, making the layering within each level easy to identify. The darker themes and dangers lurking about are reinforced by the fact most of the chapters play out in a night time setting. Themed areas range from freaky carnivals to a dimly lit cityscape. 

There are no performance issues with the Switch version of the game – in fact this is one of the best ports for the system yet, from a technical standpoint – with the framerate consistent across the docked and handheld modes. The responsive controls are equally as impressive. About the only criticism is that the dark settings and fine details make the game harder to play in handheld mode. Character models and environments all look so tiny compared to how they are displayed on the big screen; as a result you might find yourself squinting a little bit in this mode. Adding to this is appropriately-themed music with both classical and psychedelic tunes, and quality voice acting to further immerse the player. 

Conclusion

Stick It To The Man somewhat feels out of place on a Nintendo system. It’s a platform game based on a universe made up of darker themes and a large cast of wild and wacky characters; the story, along with the humour, is certainly twisted and won’t appeal to everyone. For those who do enjoy something more obscure from time to time, what’s on offer is a brief but relatively well-crafted title that incorporates several other sub-genres within it to create a weird and wonderful world. 

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Nintendo of America’s Thanksgiving Message Highlights the Joys of Portable Gaming

While a number of us – such as this writer in the UK – see this week / weekend as a ‘stay away from the shops’ occasion, in the US it’s Thanksgiving, a Holiday that for some is the most significant of the year.

Nintendo of America has offered its followers a Happy Thanksgiving in a few ways, such as a News post on the Switch, a bunch of Cyber Deals and so on. A tweet for the occasion, though, seems to hit the nail on the head in terms of why Nintendo gaming is perfect for festive and family occasions. Embracing the portable side of the Switch, it shows a family playing various games in each other’s company after, presumably, stuffing themselves with food.

We’ve written a few times about how the simple yet effective ‘hybrid’ nature of the Switch can bring families together through shared gaming experiences, but of course the 3DS does this too.

For all of you celebrating the occasion, we at Nintendo Life wish you a Happy Thanksgiving.