Welcome, folks, to another edition of Box Art Brawl!
Last week, we checked out Mario Power Tennis for the GameCube and, as expected, the results weren’t even remotely close. With a much more interesting cover, Europe and North America easily won the day with 70% of the vote, leaving Japan to mop up the remaining 30%.
This week, we’re heading to the land of the DS to look at Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift. Originally released in 2007, it was very well regarded at the time and remains a firm fan-favourite to this day. With the recent success of Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles on Switch and Switch 2, many (including us) are no doubt hoping to see its sequels remastered in a similar manner.
For now, let’s check out the box arts for Grimoire of the Rift. This time, Europe and Japan team up to take on North America.
Europe and Japan have gone for what could arguably be described as a more ‘traditional’ approach for a Final Fantasy game, opting for a white background to allow the logo and characters to really stand out. It’s clean, it’s eye-catching, and we like it.
North America, meanwhile, has gone for a much darker approach, showcasing a black background with a dark blue outline of a key character. Very ominous stuff, indeed. It’s cool though, and despite the change in approach, it’s still quite classy and restrained. This might be a tough one to call.
Which region got the best Final Fantasy Tactics A2: Grimoire of the Rift box art? (124 votes)
Europe / Japan96%
North America4%
Thanks for voting! We’ll see you next time for another Box Art Brawl.
Koei Tecmo and developer Omega Force are bringing Dynasty Warriors: Origins to the Switch 2 next week. It was previously revealed the Musou would run at a fixed but “stable” 30fps on Nintendo’s new hybrid platform, and now that reviews have gone live, it’s been confirmed there’s also a ‘variable’ option.
This might not necessarily be the best option for everyone, but if you’re eager to see the game closer to 60fps on Switch 2, it’s at least there. As shown in tests by the YouTube channel Cycu1, the title’s quality mode outputs a consistent 30fps, while the variable mode targets 60fps (and mostly jumps between the 50s and high 40s).
In our Dynasty Warriors: Origins review for the Switch 2, PJ O’Reilly mentioned how the 30fps option felt “smooth and responsive at all times” and was good once you had readjusted. As for his time with the game’s “variable” unlocked frame rate toggle, he experienced some stutters.
“Even though Koei Tecmo has gone and thrown in a “variable” unlocked frame rate toggle for you to mess with, honestly, I recommend just leaving this off to enjoy a consistently smooth and fully exhilarating ride without any little niggling stutters that this toggle introduces at points. You don’t need niggles distracting you from the story or the ‘1 VS 1000’ battles here either, as what Dynasty Warriors: Origins brings to the table is a grand refocusing of the usual Warriors caper that makes for a very exciting and stylish reboot.”
You can change the game’s frame rate in the ‘Graphics’ menu within the settings. What will you be selecting – 30fps or variable? Tell us in the comments.
Developers who have worked with Nintendo’s intellectual properties have often shared stories about odd requests and demands from the video game giant. With this in mind, the latest story to surface comes from former Sega of Japan producer, Ryoichi Hasegawa.
Ryoichi Hasegawa: There was one funny story…There was artwork of Mario and Sonic, and you know, other characters standing on the field. And those artworks were used for the package, the instruction manual cover, and the cartridge label, and things like that…There was one small error and Sonic’s foot was in front of Mario’s foot, and Nintendo demanded us to change the priority”.
Arcade Attack: So, what? Mario had to be slightly ahead? Oh, for goodness sake.
Hasegawa: (nods) Yes…I still remember that.
Aracde Attack: And you did change it, I take it?
Hasegawa: Of course, of course, we were like ‘oh my god’ we have to change it, or there will be no deal.
Again, it’s not the first time we’ve heard stories like this from third-party developers about Nintendo, and Nintendo is well-known for being extremely protective of its IP. As for the Sonic & Mario at the Olympic Games series, based on some rumours a few years ago, it might not be returning.
We are blowing through January faster than a big blowy fast thing that’s been blowing faster than usual right now, and the delicious slices of gaming goodness continue to drop across Switch consoles.
In the news, it’s been rather quiet overall, never a bad thing, but we have had some tasty nuggets in leaked looks at a new Zelda lego set (I’ll take 10, thank you, and no I don’t have any money), Sophia Turner making an awesome-looking Lara Croft (please put more Tomb Raider games on Switch 2, lads, come on now) and, of course, lest I forget – I could never – we’ve had the arrival of a brand new member of the Nintendo Life YouTube team. So if you haven’t said hai to Mai yet, now’s as good a chance as any.
Right. Enough messing. Let’s take a look at what the team’s game-playing plans are for this weekend!
PJ O’Reilly, Staff Writer
This weekend I’ll be doing a whole lot of racing around on Switch 2 for my next review, but I’ll also definitely be making plenty of time for Absolum, which I’m finally serious about playing through, and The Rogue Prince of Persia, which is turning out to be a belter so far. It’s no wonder we gave it a 9!
That’s it for me, I think, all that gaming goodness and some sausages for tea. Have a relaxing one!
Ollie Reynolds, Staff Writer
I’m really hooked on Star Wars Outlaws at the moment. Honestly, if I’d actually got my bum in gear and started playing this earlier, it might have wound up on my top five games of 2025. It’s wonderful. The world just feels so alive, and I love sneaking around the different syndicate hideouts and stealing a bunch of goodies.
I’m eager to dive back into a Zelda game at the moment, too, but which one is unclear at the moment. Maybe The Wind Waker via NSO? Or perhaps I should give Tears of the Kingdom another shot. I’m sure I’ll have an answer for you next week. Have a good one!
Mai Ladyman, Video Producer
This week has been pretty spectacular for me, what with joining the Nintendo Life team and the Animal Crossing New Horizons 3.0 update releasing! Let’s just say I’ve spent every spare moment collecting over 1.5k of hotel tickets, tidying up my island and upgrading my house storage to accommodate my “collecting” habits.
Other than that, I’ve also been exploring some of the demos on the eShop, including Reanimal. I have a soft spot for the Little Nightmares games, so checking out the latest entry was pure adrenaline-pumping joy. I can’t wait to try it out when it finally releases. Is it weird to say that I can’t wait to get creeped out?
Gonçalo Lopes, Contributor
It is quite amazing I am this many years old and Halo 4’s campaign remained an unspoiled experience. I am having quite a blast in the boots of Spartan 117 and should wrap up the game this weekend, which also wraps up all the single-player campaigns from Halo: The Master Chief Collection. I am now even more depressed with the cancellation of the TV show.
I’m having a hard time in virtual 16th-century Japan because I keep wandering into high-level zones and missions in Assassin’s Creed Shadows. I need to get more serious about this whole main plot revenge thing else I risk not having enough free storage space next week to trade Naoe and Yasuke’s adventures for Cloud and the Avalanche crew in Midgar.
On a more ‘cosy game’ affair, I have picked up the delisted 2014 remake of Cinemaware’s Wings!. Absolutely loved the original Amiga outing and was quite happy with both the Super Nintendo and Game Boy Advance versions, but had never played the Wings! Remastered Edition version, and I hope to shoot down von Richthofen before the sun rises on Monday.
Game of the week is the weekly Arcade Archive! Being quite the fan of the original back on both ZX Spectrum, NES, and Game Boy, Bomb Jack Twin was the entry in the series that I would expect to show up on Super Nintendo or Mega Drive, but alas it was not meant to be, so this supercharged 16-bit sequel eluded us all.
Now, it shines forever on our modern console tablet thing.
Alex Olney, Video Producer
I’ve got some chums coming over this weekend, so I know what I’m going to be playing: Dungeons & Dragons.
How does that sit with your preconceived notion of a weekend’s entertainment, eh? Bet you couldn’t imagine someone as hip and happening as me rolling dice and being nice to various peasants, could you? Well, it’s happening, baby, and I’ll probably bash out some Animal Crossing: New Horizons as well.
Gavin Lane, Editor
Animal Crossing has gotten its claws in me once more. Between stripping Kapp’n’s tour islands of their natural resources and using said resources to craft crap to get access to more crap like a good little capitalist, I acquired a couple of genuine artworks from Redd by chance. Now I’m spying the only wing of my museum that isn’t complete and wondering if this update is the excuse I need to 100% my collection.
Elsewhere, I want to make time for Despelote now that it’s out in Europe. Short and sweet, I’ve heard – looking forward to a kickaround. Have a good one, folks.
Kate Gray, Contributor
This weekend is Plane Time (again) and I’m about 1% through Hundred Line, so getting through that is probably my job for the foreseeable future. And I don’t mind at all! It’s wonderful! Although the bit I’m at is a little hands-off. There was a lot more to do in the [REDACTED] but now it’s a lot more visual novel-y. Maybe that’ll change! Who knows! I have no idea where this game is going any more, and I love it.
Also, probably a fair bit of Ball x Pit, and another game I can’t talk about because I’m playtesting it, shhhh.
That’s our plans for the coming weekend. Now it’s your turn to tell us yours, so make sure to get busy with our poll, and let yes know all about your weekend gaming plans in the comments!
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties hits the Switch 2 next month and if you weren’t already excited about the game, to top it off, there are a bunch of retro Sega titles you’ll be able to revisit.
This title originally debuted in 1998 and is a solo and co-op “on-the-rails” action experience where you control two kids named Roy and Alma who must power a hand-operated rail cart to retrieve a “magical stone”. You’ll also be required to dodge and jump things along the way, as you pump the lever up and down to accelerate through a variety of wild and wacky courses.
You can see the other retro games revealed for Yakuza 3 Kiwami so far in our story from earlier this week. We’ve also gone hands on with the game, and an announcement on the PlayStation Blog recently confirmed this upcoming release would be getting a demo.
What do you think of the retro games announced for Yakuza 3 Kiwami so far? Are there any other titles you would like to see added? Let us know in the comments.
Earlier this week, the 2008 Nintendo DS title Disney title Cory in the House was reportedly on the cusp of dethroning the award-winning Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 on Metacritic’s user ranking list.
Although Clair Obscur remains out in front at the time of writing with a user score of 9.6, as a result of this viral campaign to get Cory’s game into the top spot, it’s now reportedly led to the title’s price spiking in value on eBay. As highlighted by IGN, the game is now being sold for “hundreds of dollars”.
This includes sealed listings which have sold for up to $399 USD. It’s quite a contrast to last year around November, when copies of the title were supposedly selling for under $10.
Image: via IGN / eBay
So, if you happen to have a copy of this DS shovelware on a shelf or packed away in a cupboard or box somewhere and it’s in decent or pristine condition, now might be the time to offload it.
When this game was originally released, IGN (one of the few outlets to apparently upload a professional review when the title launched) said it was “awful” – awarding it a score of three out of ten, and noting how the short-lived experience had “some of the clunkiest controls”, “insultingly stupid” presentation and minigames that were “hardly games at all”.
Have you got a copy of this game in your collection? Would you be willing to pay a lot of money for it? Let us know in the comments.
Earlier this month, Nintendo announced it was bringing the ‘My Mario’ line to the West on 19th February 2026.
This line is supported by a “range of partners”, and now, ahead of the launch, Mattel’s Fisher-Price brand has officially revealed three Mario-themed ‘Little People’ sets. Here’s a look and some information about each one:
My Mario 6-Piece Character Figure Set
Toddlers can dive into the whimsical world of Super Mario with this Little People My Mario figure set from Fisher-Price! This set features 6 iconic characters from the franchise, including Mario, Luigi, Princess Peach, Toad, Yoshi and Bowser, all sized just right for small hands to grasp and move as kids imagine their own Super Mario adventures. Look for other Little People My Mario figures and playsets for more toddler-friendly storytelling play! (Additional toys sold separately and subject to availability.) Colors and decorations may vary.
My Mario Adventure Playset
“From collecting coins and dodging Chain Chomp to powering up for big-time play, toddlers can bring to life all the exciting action of Super Mario with this interactive Little People playset from Fisher-Price. Mario’s Adventure Playset features lots of toddler-friendly activities inspired by the game, plus iconic music and sounds that activate as kids play their way around with Mario. Look for additional Little People My Mario toys to add to the toddler-friendly fun! (Additional toys sold separately and subject to availability.) Playset requires 2 AA batteries (included). Colors and decorations may vary.”
My Mario Bowser’s Airship Playset
“Toddlers can dive into the exciting world of Super Mario with this Little People My Mario Bowser’s Airship playset from Fisher-Price! Inspired by the iconic game, this push-along toy boat is packed with fun activities designed just right for preschoolers including a cannonball launcher, bat-at spinners, and a trapdoor pipe for drop-through play. As kids roll the vehicle along, Bowser’s Airship bobs up and down in a cool wave-like motion! Look for additional Little People My Mario toys to add to the toddler-friendly fun! (Additional toys sold separately and subject to availability.) Colors and decorations may vary.”
Listings for each of these sets are beginning to pop up online on Amazon and other websites such as Target. They’re expected to be made available between the end of this month and early February in the US.
You can find out more about Nintendo’s ‘My Mario’ line in our previous story. This line has been bolstered with a bunch of Yoshi products in Japan. This includes another app available for Switch and mobile devices.
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There have been some strong third-party controllers for the Switch 2 so far, with 8BitDo’s Pro 3 proving to be particularly compelling with its SNES-inspired design, TMR stick tech, and tactile (albeit noisy) D-pad. It was, in my opinion, the best alternative if you weren’t keen on splashing out on Nintendo’s own Pro Controller.
Until now, that is. Gulikit made headlines in 2025 by introducing the first third-party controller with wake-up support for Switch 2. But while the Elves 2 certainly boasts a unique design, it’s ultimately lacking in other areas and looks somewhat ‘cheap’ compared to other models.
With the TT Pro / TT Max pads, however, Gulikit has created its best controllers yet at $59.99 / £59.99 and $69.99 / $69.99 respectively; two that, in my opinion, just edge out 8BitDo’s Pro 3 as the strongest third-party offering for Switch 2 so far.
One glance at the Pro or Max — I’m covering both here — and you’d be forgiven for thinking, ‘But this is just an Xbox controller!’ And yes, Gulikit has been leaning heavily on Microsoft’s design for a while now, so the overall shape is much the same. Putting it side-by-side with an official Xbox pad reveals that the Pro/Max is slightly lengthier, but otherwise you’d be hard pressed to find much difference with the form factor.
What is different, however, is the D-pad placement, which has been swapped with the left analogue stick for a more symmetrical design akin to the PlayStation DualSense (and, fortuitously for comparison’s sake, the Pro 3). Whether this is a good thing or not really depends on personal preference, but I like it. Having the D-pad up high makes the Pro/Max a wonderful choice for both fighting and retro games, but if you do want to use it for 3D titles with both analogue sticks, this still feels really good.
The D-pad includes two floating designs that you can swap out on the fly. One is more traditional, with a cross on its face, while the other is basically just a concave disc. When I saw the latter in promotional images, I feared the worst, but it’s actually my go-to option. You can still feel the tactile response from the eight directional inputs, and it just feels really nice to waggle about. Overall, the D-pad is responsive and satisfying to use, while lacking the annoying ‘clicking’ sound of the Pro 3.
The analogue sticks feel great, too, and the TMR tech should keep dreaded stick drift at bay for many years to come. Gulikit has also included RGB lighting around both sticks if you’re into that kind of thing, and you can change this via the controller itself to display a basic blue, a rainbow multi-coloured effect, or have it light up depending on the direction you’re moving the sticks. If you don’t want any of this, you can turn it off entirely.
This is also where the Pro and Max differ the most. The latter contains an extra four stick caps of varying heights. In my time testing the controllers, I didn’t really come across any scenarios in which a lengthier stick cap proved necessary, but it’s nice that these are included.
The Max also includes the option to swap between four and eight-directional inputs on the D-pad, while the ‘Auto-Pilot Gaming’ (APG) functionality — which lets you record and play back specific input combos — includes longer time options.
The ABXY buttons all feel exactly as you’d expect, though like the D-pad, these are generally a bit quieter than the Pro 3. If you fancy using the Pro/Max on PC, you can also swap out the buttons for the standard Xbox layout using the included tweezers. Spacing is slightly closer than what you’d see on Nintendo’s official Pro Controller and the Pro 3, so everything is easily within reach, while the convex shape of the buttons themselves feels pleasant enough.
Up on top, you’ve got Xbox-inspired triggers, and just like the Pro 3, you can toggle between micro-switch inputs and pressure-sensitive Hall Effect inputs with the relevant switches over on the back. Both options feel great, and I found I’ve been swapping between the two depending on what game I’m playing. So I’d have the full Hall Effect triggers activated for something like Mario Kart World, while the micro-switches feel better on more retro offerings like Super Metroid. To be clear, Mario Kart doesn’t make use of analogue triggers; they just feel more natural to me in modern games.
Both pads come with additional paddles that you can add into the four slots on the back. These are nearly identical to what you’d find on the Xbox Elite Controller, and so they’re designed in a way that your two middle fingers rest comfortably on them without accidentally pressing them in.
Again, mapping inputs to these is all done via the controller itself by utilising the settings button in the centre of the device. Gulikit includes a manual for any settings you might want to fiddle around with, and it’s much preferable to loading up an app. If you’re not keen on having the paddles, then the controllers still feel comfortable without them.
In addition to all the bells and whistles you’d expect to find, the Pro and Max have a plethora of additional options. I mentioned a few already, but you’ve also got a range of rumble settings depending on how much feedback you want. I can’t stress enough just how good the rumble really is; it’s just a hair away from being on par with the official Pro Controller 2.
You can also adjust gyro sensitivity, dead zones, and more, and there’s a capture button for snapping those sweet Mario Kart World wins. In terms of exclusions, it lacks a headphone jack, NFC amiibo support, and a dedicated chat button. I don’t personally consider any of these essentials, but you may feel different.
Gulikit states wireless latency of 2.62ms with a 730Hz polling rate (the frequency at which data is sent from the controller to the console), while plugging the controllers in reduces this even further to 2.16ms. I’ve found them to be remarkably responsive in practice.
The retail models also come bundled with Gulikit’s own Hyperlink 2 Adapter, so if you want to go Bluetooth wireless while eliminating the possibility of interference from elsewhere, that’s an option too with a quoted polling rate of 820hz at 2.95ms (and if you really want to, you can use the adapter to link up a PS5 Dualsense to the Switch 2 – wild stuff).
Meanwhile, I’ve used the Max specifically almost every day for over a month and only needed to recharge it once. Gulikit claims between 14 – 26 hours between charges depending on settings, and that sounds about right; it easily lasted for longer than 20 hours or so in practice. It’s head and shoulders above most competition, then, and is perhaps second only to Nintendo’s Pro Controller.
So overall, the TT Pro and Max are absolute beasts. Not only do they have wake-up support for Switch 2, but they’re easily two of the most comfortable controllers I’ve ever grasped in my grubby mitts. The D-pad placement works nicely for me, but I could certainly understand if you prefer the offset approach. And with the TMR sticks, Hall Effect triggers, RGB lighting, and loads of settings to fiddle around with, Gulikit has provided almost everything you could reasonably want or need from a third-party pad.
Most folks will be quite happy with the Pro model here, with only a minority finding genuine use for the additional stick caps found in the Max. Heck, at $70 though, the Max provides pretty much everything you’d find in Xbox’s own Elite Controller at more than half the price. It’s insane value for money, and in my opinion, the best third-party controller for Switch 2 so far.
Now, if companies could stop using the word ‘Pro’ to name their controllers, that’d be great.
The samples used in this review were supplied by Gulikit.
Armature Studio, a development team primarily focused on creating VR titles, has been shut down by Meta.
Originally founded in 2008 by ex Retro Studios developers Mark Pacini, Todd Keller, and Jack Mathews, Armature has primarily worked on ports, starting with the PS Vita version of Metal Gear Solid HD Collection.
It soon ventured into the world of VR and was acquired by Meta Platforms in 2022, a company that, at the time, were very keen to put all of its efforts into the metaverse. Now that tech bros around the world are obsessed with AI, Mark Zuckerberg has seen fit to steer away from VR.
The result is the closure of three key VR studios: the aforementioned Armature Studio alongside both Twisted Pixel Games and Sanzaru Games. Overall, around 10% of Meta’s Reality Labs division has been laid off.
We sincerely hope the folks at every studio affected find their feet in due course. Heck, maybe Retro Studios can snap up Pacini, Keller, and Matthews again..? We’ll have to wait and see.
What do you make of this unfortunate news from Meta? Let us know with a comment in the usual place.
Originally launched in January 2019, this coincidentally means that it’s sold 7 million in 7 years – how remarkable! The game saw a release on the Switch in 2024, which boosted its sales quite nicely; in January last year, Bandai Namco confirmed the game had sold 6 million units, meaning its added another million on top of that over the following 12 months.
Overall, the series has now reached an astonishing 21 million units sold, which means that Ace Combat 7 now accounts for a third of all sales. A sequel, Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, is in development for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, but there’s currently no confirmation of any Nintendo hardware.
Honestly though, given how well Ace Combat 7 holds up on the Switch, we wouldn’t be surprised to see the eighth mainline entry wind up on the Switch 2 at some point.
In our 9/10 review for Skies Unknown, we called it “the absolute pinnacle of the series” and “the most comprehensive portable experience ever delivered by Project Aces”.
Did you pick up Ace Combat 7 on the Switch? Are you keen to check out the next upcoming game? Share your thoughts with a comment.
