Category: Nintendo News

Krafted Games has announced that its minimalist, randomly-generated FPS Polygod is headed to Nintendo Switch next month.

The game is set to feature a “brutal” difficulty curve, epic boss fights, and arena-shooter style action in local multiplayer and online vs/co-op multiplayer modes. Polygod offers a deep level of weapon customisation and extensive multiplayer features, coupled with that randomly-generated level design which aims to offer players a different experience every time they play. The official PR’s feature list is a pretty hefty one, so we’ll let that do the talking below:

▪ Infinite level possibilities – maps are randomly generated and seeded providing a tonne of replayability, but then shareable among friends in order to encourage competition with full leaderboard support
▪ Brutal Difficulty curve – Only the most skilled gamers will ascend to Godhood…
▪ Online co-op and versus multiplayer – Allows for competitive fun to be had among friends featuring daily leaderboards. (Versus multiplayer not available on Switch.)
▪ Skill based gameplay – Built upon a principle that if one lacks skill, it can be substituted for strategy and vice versa. Eg. unskilled strategic players will be just as good as skillful nonstrategic players.
▪ Unique ‘Blessings’ based weapon customisation system – Combine and stack ‘blessings’ to create hundreds of thousands of unique weapons, blessings combine to give a high level of depth. Deep understanding is required to fully utilise the blessing system which in turn gives a high replay value
▪ Classic FPS controls – Polygod’s controls are reminiscent of Quake 3 and the original Doom, bringing a classic gameplay vibe back having been absent since the 90’s!
▪ Gyroscopic controls – Nintendo Switch version only
▪ Super fast paced and addictive – requires hundreds of hours to master, a speed-runner/hardcore gamer’s dream

The game is scheduled to launch on 17th August worldwide for £16.19 / $14.99 / €16.59.

Are you up for this one? Share your thoughts with us in the comments.

In this guide, we’re going to help you find all of the Job Shrines Locations in Octopath Traveler.

There are eight of these in total, and finding them allows your character to take on secondary jobs. This allows them to use skills previously only available to other party members.

For example, if you start with Olberic, you could take on Cleric as a secondary job to gain access to powerful healing skills. As you can tell, this is a very worthwhile undertaking.

It’s also worth noting that there are four secret advanced jobs that don’t have a character associated with them. We’ll also detail the locations of those shrines too.

New to Octopath Traveler? Why not start by reading our Beginner’s Guide.

Or, read on to learn the locations of every single Job Shrine in Octopath Traveler.

Warrior Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Thunderblade	North Stonegard Pass

Scholar Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Sage	Western Noblecourt Flats

Thief Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
The Shrine of the Prince of Thieves	South Quarrycrest Pass

Hunter Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Huntress	East Victors Hollow Trail

Merchant Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Trader	Moonstruck Coast

Apothecary Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Healer	East Saintbridge Traverse

Dancer Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Lady of Grace	Northern Wellspring Sands

Cleric Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Flamebearer	Western Stillsnow Wilds

Warmaster Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Warbringer	North Riverford Traverse

Sorcerer Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Archmagus	East Duskbarrow Trail

Starseer Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Starseer	Western Wispermill Flats

Runelord Job Shrine Location

Shrine	Location
Shrine of the Runeblade	West Everhold Pass

Given how successful 2017 was for Nintendo, following up on that success was always going to be hard. The Switch launched at the start of the year and was quickly blessed with one of the best year-one libraries we’ve seen in quite some time; smash hit after smash hit arrived on store shelves giving the console enough momentum to overtake the total lifetime sales of its forerunner, the much-maligned Wii U, in no time at all.

It’s pretty obvious that Nintendo’s strategy was to load the Switch’s debut year with key titles to ensure it would hit the ground running and capture enough market share to encourage consumers – and third-party publishers – it was a horse worth backing. Reading out the Switch release schedule for 2017 is an almost dizzying exercise even now; it’s hard to even believe that, in less than 12 months, we had Zelda: Breath of the Wild, ARMS, Splatoon 2, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Pokkén Tournament DX, Fire Emblem Warriors and Super Mario Odyssey – not to mention third-party offerings such as DOOM, Mario & Rabbids Kingdom Battle, FIFA 18, NBA 2K18 and much more besides.

Then there was the eShop, which blessed us with titles like Golf Story, Stardew Valley, Snake Pass, Snipperclips, Tiny Metal, Yooka-Laylee, Sonic Mania, Rocket League and Minecraft – and that’s barely scratching the surface of what was a bumper year in terms of downloadable delights.

After such a robust showing, 2018 had to be pretty spectacular, and now that the glow of E3 has well and truly vanished, it’s pretty clear that Nintendo has no intention of keeping up its barrage of hits – and nor should it. Granted, twitchy investors will fret over the value of their shares in the absence of software announcements, but the fact is that Nintendo’s trailblazing 2017 has effectively secured its 2018; the Switch has such an embarrassment of amazing games that it seems almost churlish to grumble about a less populous 2018.

Certainly, from a business perspective, Nintendo is still feeding off its amazing previous year. People picking up Switch consoles at this point in time are literally spoilt for choice when it comes to games, which is why evergreen titles like Zelda and Mario Kart continue to drift in and out of the sales charts. To Switch newcomers, there’s a veritable feast waiting at the table – more than enough to keep them content until next year comes around, anyway. Arguably more so than Sony and Microsoft, Nintendo has always been a company that produces software that sells year after year (the seemingly immortal Mario Kart 7 on the 3DS being a notable example), and we’d imagine that certain Switch titles will still be hoving around the lower regions of the charts in a couple of years, such is their enduring appeal.

Even if you’ve owned a Switch from day one, there’s still more than enough content floating around to keep you happy in 2018. Many people on the Nintendo Life team have a personal “pile of shame” packed with games half-finished or not even properly started. Should you be one of these people who is lucky to enough to have hours of spare time then it’s hardly like 2018 has been totally lacking in software; Octopath Traveler, Wolfenstein II, Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition, Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Mario Tennis Aces, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection and Kirby Star Allies have all been excellent releases, even if some of those are re-heated Wii U titles. And that’s not including eShop releases like Fortnite, Celeste, Hollow Knight, Sky Rogue, Subsurface Circular, Owlboy and more. In fact, looking at that list, it almost makes you question the whole “Switch has nothing in the tank for 2018” narrative; this year has more than its fair share of decent games.

However, it’s only human nature to want more than you reasonably should have, so the feelings of disappointment following this year’s E3 are understandable. Metroid Prime 4 was teased last year so its absence felt odd somehow, while Nintendo’s decision to focus so much time on the next Smash Bros. was perhaps ill-judged, given the number of eyeballs watching the broadcast. Still, between Smash and Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu! and Let’s Go, Eevee!, it’s hard to shake the suspicion that Nintendo has more than enough ammo in the clip to make sure Switch keeps selling right the way up to the end of the year; in fact, such a potent combo – when combined with the existing Switch library – could make sales explode during the holiday season, without any assistance from other games, eShop releases or third-party support.

While industry analysts will have you believe that Nintendo is running out of ideas after a breathtaking 2017 and pessimistic fans will grumble that the company has taken its foot off the gas when it needs to keep the pedal to the metal, there’s merit in the school of thought which suggests the Kyoto giant knows precisely what it is doing in 2018 – and with games like DAEMON X MACHINA and the mainline Pokémon RPG looming temptingly in 2019, the signs are good that Switch will get a steady stream of new classics over the next 12 to 18 months, and we’d hope that as Nintendo eases off the accelerator, third-party publishers will slowly but surely fill the void with exclusive and multiplatform releases, giving the Switch library even more variety and balance as the console moves into 2019 and beyond.

Just a few short days ago, toy manufacturer Funko revealed that it will be bringing a new line of Pokémon Pop! Figures to stores. Starting with Pikachu (of course), this series could include a variety of different creatures – Funko has even invited fans to share their suggestions. As if Pokémon wasn’t quite big enough on its own, however, the company has now secured a Fortnite license, too.

Yes, the Switch’s latest online multiplayer shooter phenomenon will be receiving its own line of Pop! toys, with 5 Star figures, Pint Size Heroes, Vynl, keychains, POP! apparel and more on the way. It’s hardly surprising, given Fortnite’s crazy levels of success, but two huge franchise announcements in one week is pretty good going from Funko’s point of view. The company’s CEO, Brian Mariotti, has said the following:

“We are thrilled to collaborate and partner with Epic Games to create the inaugural Fortnite™ product collection and to bring these characters to life for the first time. This collection will be a true celebration of Fortnite’s incredible popularity and cultural significance, and we believe our Funko Fortnite collectables will strongly resonate with fans of the game. We look forward to expanding this collection and combining our leading product capabilities with our strong retail platform.”

This collection is set to launch in “holiday 2018” and will be available to purchase from a wide range of retailers worldwide. No specific figures have been shown off just yet, but we’re hoping for some adorable Loot Llama goodies.

Are you a fan of the Pop! range? Will you be getting your hands on as many of these little figures as you possibly can? Tell us below.

The Fortnite devs have clearly been listening to their fans, as at the very start of Season 5 of the game, we were gifted with something that people have been cleating on about for some time, us included. Yes, the inclusion of the oft-contentious motion controls that have grabbed Switch players hearts and won’t let go, but unfortunately they’re not exactly worth your time.

Simply put, there are many design oversights that need to be addressed, and thankfully they all could be in future patches. When jumping from the buttery smoothness of Splatoon 2 to the judder and inaccurate offering Fortnite has, there’s no metaphorical comparison. Of course there’s plenty of room for a literal comparison, so we did that.

Make sure you give the video above a watch for all the juicy details, and if you happen to have played with these motion controls enabled, please let us know how you got on in the comments below.

The announcement of Sega AGES a couple of months ago no doubt had fans of the company positively bursting with excitement; a range of digital-only re-releases of classic titles coming to Switch, AGES is essentially a Virtual Console service from Sega – doing what Nintendo’nt (and all that).

Now, the weekly issue of Famitsu magazine in Japan has confirmed that the first two titles for the service will become available in August. These games are Sonic the Hedgehog and Thunder Force IV, both scheduled to be available for 925 yen each – roughly £6.30 / $8.20.

Sonic the Hedgehog is said to feature elements from the 3DS version of the game, such as the added Spin Dash, and will also include the Mega Play arcade version. Thunder Force IV will introduce online leaderboards for the ultimate bragging rights, as well as the Styx Mode from the SEGA Saturn edition.

The other previously announced titles – Alex Kidd in Miracle World, Gain Ground, and Phantasy Star – are still set to follow these two games at a future date, with even more titles planned, too. It hasn’t been officially confirmed that these titles will launch in all regions at the same time, but we’d be surprised to see western releases come with any delays. 

Are you excited to get stuck into these classics? Share your excitement with us below.

Indie game studio Lapovich has announced that State of Anarchy: Master of Mayhem will launch on Nintendo Switch on 1st August.

The game is a light-hearted shooter that aims to put a smile on your face as you play. Your town is on fire, anarchy reigns the streets, and aliens are going crazy in the sky – it’s up to you to grab a gun and join the mayhem.

We love the artistic direction seen in the trailer above, and Steam users have shared “very positive” reviews for the game so far, so this one could well be a nice way to pass the time. If you’re interested, here’s a list of features to check out:

Features:
– Intense run and gun action
– Hilarious doodle graphics and mouth made sound effects
– 60+ weapons. New gun on every level!
– 100+ enemies and bosses
– 3 cars and 6 spaceships
– Talents and weapon upgrades
– 48 stages
– Awesome rock music

As mentioned above, the game is set to land on Switch on 1st August. No pricing has been revealed just yet, but we’re hopeful that it won’t be too much higher than its usual Steam price of £2.89. We’ll make sure to keep an eye out on this one when it arrives.

What do you think? Is this one for your wishlist? Let us know your initial impressions below.

The Japanese chart figures are finally in for last week and Octopath Traveler has grabbed the top spot without even the slightest bit of concern from competitors, securing 110,111 sales in its opening week.

It’s been another astonishing week for Nintendo on the whole, with games on Switch and 3DS securing nine of the top ten places, and the company’s newest releases are unsurprisingly sitting right at the top. Here’s the full top 20 list with all the juicy sales figures you need (first numbers are this week’s sales, followed by total sales in brackets):

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1) [NSW] Octopath Traveler (Square Enix, 07/13/18) – 110,111 (New)
2) [NSW] Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Nintendo, 07/13/18) – 41,852 (New)
3) [NSW] Mario Tennis Aces (Nintendo, 06/22/18) – 21,838 (227,452)
4) [NSW] Splatoon 2 (Bundle Version Included) (Nintendo, 07/21/17) – 20,430 (2,447,782)
5) [NSW] Minecraft: Nintendo Switch Edition (Microsoft, 06/21/18) – 15,101 (121,785)
6) [3DS] Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Nintendo, 07/13/18) – 14,558 (New)
7) [NSW] Mario Kart 8 Deluxe (Nintendo, 04/28/17) – 11,417 (1,627,674)
8) [PS4] Mary Skelter 2 (Compile Heart, 07/12/18) – 10,370 (New)
9) [3DS] Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon (The Pokemon Company, 11/17/17) – 7,145 (1,668,513)
10) [NSW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Limited Edition Included) (Nintendo, 03/03/17) – 6,622 (1,043,717)
11) [NSW] Kirby Star Allies (Nintendo, 03/16/18) – 6,160 (559,764)
12) [PS4] New Gundam Breaker (Limited Edition Included) (Bandai Namco, 06/21/18) – 5,023 (82,077)
13) [NSW] Super Mario Odyssey (Bundle Version Included) (Nintendo, 10/27/17) – 5,016 (1,766,438)
14) [PS4] The Crew 2 (Ubisoft, 06/29/18) – 4,951 (32,276)
15) [PS4] Zanki Zero: Last Beginning (Spike Chunsoft, 07/05/18) – 4,164 (19,705)
16) [PS4] Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix (Square Enix, 03/09/17) – 3,788 (167,064)
17) [NSW] Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze (Nintendo, 05/04/18) – 3,642 (190,330)
18) [NSW] Shining Resonance Refrain (Sega, 07/12/18) – 3,465 (New)
19) [PS4] Detroit: Become Human (SIE, 05/25/18) – 3,321 (90,360)
20) [PS4] Pro Evolution Soccer 2018 (Konami, 09/14/17) – 2,724 (172,154)

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It’s looking just as bright as ever on the hardware front, too, with Switch leading the charge by a comfortable margin once again. Nintendo’s hybrid system managed to shift 6,000 more units than last week’s numbers:

1) Switch – 50,239 (44,237)
2) PlayStation 4 – 12,431 (12,608)
3) PlayStation 4 Pro – 5,165 (5,226)
4) New 2DS LL – 4,176 (3,965)
5) PlayStation Vita – 4,112 (3,444)
6) New 3DS LL – 2,507 (2,739)
7) 2DS – 448 (528)
8) Xbox One – 47 (41)
9) Xbox One X – 32 (47)

Are you surprised by any of the figures here? Or is this pretty much what you expected for Nintendo this week? 

Nintendo has revealed that it will be bringing a demo of Super Smash Bros. Ultimate to Evo 2018 this year, alongside the Super Smash Bros. tournaments already scheduled to take place.

Evo, or the Evolution Championship Series, is a yearly esports event that has players battling it out in the biggest and best fighting game tournaments. This year will see Super Smash Bros. for Wii U and the much-loved Super Smash Bros. Melee have their own mainstage tournaments, but the latest release on Switch will also be playable for eager fans.

The event is taking place from 3rd – 5th August with tickets and event registration available right now from the official website. If you live in or around Las Vegas, Nevada and want to get your hands on Nintendo’s latest fight-athon, make sure to secure those tickets.

Ultimate is unsurprisingly being showcased at every event possible at the moment – just yesterday we heard the news of the game being present at San Diego Comic-Con – so we’re hopeful that more and more players will get opportunities to attend events in due time.

Will you be going?