Yesterday was supposed to see the release of Galak-Z Variant S on Switch – a space-shooting action-RPG full of dangerous combat and laser swords – but the game never appeared on the eShop. There was no reason to believe that the game wouldn’t arrive as expected, so what exactly happened? And is it still coming to Switch in the future?
While we don’t have the answers to that first question, we can assure you that the game is indeed still headed to Switch (if the article’s title hadn’t already given that away). After being asked about the shock delay on Twitter, the game’s official account @galakzmobile gave a reassuring confirmation that the game is still on its way.
It’s still very much unclear why the delay has happened in the first place, and this second tweet suggests that things may well be out of the developer’s control. We’ll have to wait for the promised announcement to know more.
Diddy Kong Racing remains one of the most beloved kart racers of all time – no mean feat considering it shared a platform with Mario Kart 64 – so there’s always been rumours and unfounded whispers that the title has a long-gestating sequel in development.
One of the most infamous has only just come to our attention thanks to a recent post on a Resetera thread that claims that Monster Games – a Minnesota-based studio that works primarily on racing titles – was previously working on it, and that Sumo Digital (which is now working on Team Sonic Racing) would make a great fit for such a revival. They even posted a screenshot purportedly from a build.
Much of the rumours surrounding DKR2 have stemmed from a blog post by a ‘Kevin Callahan’, who claimed the game had gone through multiple guises both on Wii and Wii U, but it’s a report – much like this new ‘leaked’ screen – that remains nothing more than an unsubstantiated rumour as of 2018.
Would you like a sequel to Diddy Kong Racing or has the ape had his time on the track? Share your thoughts below…
Wolfenstein II is a towering technical achievement on Switch; sure, it’s not as detailed as the other versions but the fact that you can play it on a system small enough to fit in your rucksack is nothing short of stunning.
However, people love comparisons so we’ve decided to pit the Switch port (running in docked mode) against the Xbox One edition of the game. Again, the differences are clear between the two, but the gulf isn’t as large as you might expect.
Have a watch and let us know what you think by posting a comment.
Last summer we reported on the announcement of Unruly Heroes – an action-adventure game from Magic Design Studios that is destined for Switch. Now we have a brand new gameplay trailer for you to feast your eyes on, as well as some tasty details to go with it.
Inspired by the famous Chinese novel Monkey King Legend, Unruly Heroes puts players through unexpected challenges as you fight a diverse line-up of enemies in solo or co-op modes. This trailer shows off some new enemies, new bosses, and new environments such as Skull Canyon, Taoist Temple and Flaming mountain worlds.
As promised, we also have a list of features for you to look through.
FEATURES: – An adventure in solo or in coop up to 4 players. – Discover or rediscover the universe of the Monkey King legend. – Choose one of the 4 heroes, join their strength and switch between the characters depending on the situation. – Unforgettable combats against different kind of enemies and frightening bosses. – Puzzles, platforming and unexpected challenges. – Embody some enemies and possess their power. – Explore a colorful and fantasy universe through different worlds. – High-quality visuals, animations and audio. – Crush your friends in PVP modes in local or online!
The game is still to receive a confirmed release date, but as seen in the trailer above, a window of “Q4 2018” is currently in place. We’ll keep an eye out for more info on this one in the coming months.
Do you like the look of this one from this new gameplay trailer? Let us know your initial opinions with us in the comments below.
3D platformers have come a long way since their inception, but back in the mid-’90s, the genre was a wild west of ideas and applications. It’s weird to think of something as straightforward as moving around in a 3D space being a technical challenge, but that was absolutely the case, as the flood of mediocre attempts to cash-in attest. Thankfully, there were some efforts that proved to be more memorable than Bubsy 3D, and although Super Mario 64 was undoubtedly the king at the time, Crash Bandicoot gave people a very different kind of 3D jumping simulator. The titular bandicoot makes the leap to Switch in the form of Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy, but have the years been kind?
This offering is a trio of the first three games released in the series that have been remade from the ground up with all-new assets – the classic example of a remake. You take control of Crash as he runs through a series of linear levels smashing crates, grabbing fruit, and eventually making it to the end. This is true for the most part in all three games, but there are occasionally levels that mix things up. These include riding a motorbike in a sort-of race, riding a jet ski, riding a polar bear, basically an awful lot of riding other things.
The core gameplay is probably closest to something like Super Mario 3D World in design, but with more long corridors with only the occasional branching path. The primary objective is just to get to the end in the first game, and in the other two you’re required to find a Power Crystal that’s usually in plain sight and then reach the end. It’s a simple premise and works in the game’s favour; there aren’t a huge amount of mechanics or moves to learn and remember – it’s just good old-fashioned 3D platforming, just not as open as a Mario outing.
However, the way in which you control Crash is quite different. Despite having an analogue stick at your disposal the original games were designed with a D-Pad in mind, meaning your directions are notably limited. This is actually a benefit, as many times you’ll want to just move forward and not drift one or two degrees left or right, potentially throwing you off course. You can use the D-Pad instead, and for some, this may well be preferable. The game boasts analogue input with the stick, but really it’s not worthwhile. Crash walks or runs but there’s nothing in between – and walking was never something we found useful whilst playing, again likely due to the original games’ design.
As for the actual jumping and platforming, well, that’s a meaty subject. The levels are fantastic to run through, but Crash feels strangely floaty and jumps can take a few frames to kick in, which means enemies you feel you should miss end up catching you out. Various jumps also feel unusually challenging, especially in the first game. What appears to just be a standard chasm can require near-perfect timing or you’ll just hit the edge of the platform and slide off. This is supposedly due to the hitboxes used for Crash, which are rounded rather than square. We repeatedly failed on several jumps time and time again when it felt like we really should’ve been able to make it. It’s a real shame as it can render an otherwise brilliant level frustrating and repetitive. We do want to point out that these levels are the minority, and most of the stages are devoid of any ludicrous leaps.
Speaking of difficulty, these games are seriously tough at points. Some levels we breezed through, but others were really troublesome, causing us to drain all of our lives and have to restart the stage from the beginning. The first game sometimes hides pits behind objects that only reveal themselves when you’ve got just a split second left to react, which feels like a very cheap move and is thankfully not something that happens in the two later games. It really feels like a call back to the platformers of the period, which if anything is a testament to just how accurately the developers have managed to replicate these games.
For long-time fans of the series, it’s brilliant to see the older games realised so precisely with modern graphics. However, we can’t help but feel that a remake is the perfect chance to make changes and fix issues that classic games had. N. Sane Trilogy sometimes feels like a missed opportunity in that sense; the developers did throw in additional checkpoints to take the edge off, and its absolutely a boatload of fun for a majority of what the games throw at you, but then you’ll come across one section that spikes the difficulty up to an enormous degree without warning, and it’ll really take the wind out of your sails.
Against normal logic, if you’re new to the series and having a tough time with the first game, it might be worth playing the games in reverse order. The later games do have more mechanics to learn, but they’re still fairly straightforward by modern standards so it shouldn’t be an issue – and they give you the practice you need to play the first game without tearing out every follicle. This collection has clearly been designed with those who have played the originals in mind, to the point that there’s basically no hint of a tutorial beyond a bit of text popping up on the side of the screen when you start a new game for the first time. Various techniques aren’t explained to you, such as body slamming to gain a tiny bit of extra height, and whilst it doesn’t seem to be required for standard progression, these advanced moves are often mandatory in bonus rooms, and they’re never explained.
When you do get through each game though, there’s plenty to keep you coming back. Unless you smash every single crate in a level you won’t have properly completed it and obtained the illustrious gem that definitely looks more like a diamond. There’s also a time trial mode in each level, meaning for 100% completion you have to play each stage at least twice. The crate challenge often involves taking hidden paths as well, so chances are slim that you’ll smash every crate on your first run – and when you spread that over three games, that’s a serious amount of replayability. Oh, and the Switch version also gets the two bonus levels that have just launched on other formats, too – right out of the box.
Where the game really excels is in its visual design. Every single screen is absolutely bursting with colour and tiny details, and Crash’s Jim Carrey-style rubber face is always ludicrously expressive, and it’s perhaps this aspect of the game that has benefitted the most from the HD face-lift. Whether it’s celebrating after completing a level or glancing worriedly behind him as he’s chased down by a colossal boulder, the character really feels alive – he did back on the 32-bit PlayStation, but here his personality really shines.
N. Sane Trilogy is locked at 30fps, and we weren’t able to find a single instance of a dropped frame. The resolution isn’t as perfect a story though, as we’ve had it confirmed by Digital Foundry that we’re looking at a 720p image upscaled to 1080p when in TV mode. You’ll also see a lot of anti-aliasing and motion blur, which makes for a softer image than we’d like, but on the plus side, there’s not a single saw-toothed edge to be seen. Portable play is much the same, although the game looks even softer than when on the TV, as you might expect. It’s been very cleverly handled though and still looks pleasing to the eye despite this.
Conclusion
All in all, Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy is a ruthlessly faithful recreation of some of the earliest successes in 3D platforming. Levels are slick, gorgeous to look at, and recreate the feel of the originals superbly. However, newcomers to the series may be put off by the steep difficulty spikes and little to no explanation of some of the finer mechanics. All the fun and the foibles of the original three games are here, for better or for worse, and despite some odd design choices it still manages to be a really enjoyable retread of some old classics, warts and all. This is definitely worth a look if you’re a fan of 3D platformers, but just as was the case back in the ’90s, Crash isn’t in quite the same league as Mario when it comes to playability, inventiveness and entertainment.
Searching between a bear, crater, and a refrigeratorshipment is one of the weekly challenges in Fortnite. Complete it and you’ll earn XP and Battle Stars that will help boost you up the Battle Pass tiers for those sweet exclusive rewards.
In this guide, we’re going to help you visit the centre of four different named locations in a single match to complete this challenge with relative ease. That way you can move onto completing the other difficult challenge for this week – searching Hungry Gnomes.
Fortnite – Search between a bear, crater, and a refrigerator shipment
Your goal is to figure out the location described in the cryptic title. Find the three points described on the map and head to the point at which they all intersect if you were to draw lines between them.
Or, just look at our map above to see the exact location you have to head to.
Once there, you’ll find a treasure that you can collect by holding ‘Y’. Do so and you’ll complete the challenge, but remember that you do have to complete that particular match of Fortnite to register it as complete. Quit the game, and you’ll fail the challenge.
Fortnite – Bear, crater, and a refrigerator shipment location
The exact location you need to visit is directly south east of Retail Row. Find three large trees near a small house and crater, and head between them to find a patch of dirt where the treasure spawns.
Check our screenshots above to help narrow down the location. The left screenshot reveals the location from the – specifically, the patch of dirt to the right of our character – while the right shows the location while on the ground.
As you can see, the trailer is celebrating the game’s upcoming release in Japan where it is scheduled to launch on 9th August. There’s still no word of a western release for this Switch version of the game, but we’d be surprised if it doesn’t make it over at some point.
Of course, the game has already been released on 3DS – and we really enjoyed it in our review – so we’re hopeful that Switch players will be able to get their hands on the game, too.
Are you a Layton fan? Are you itching for some Professor-based puzzles on your Switch? Let us know with a comment below.
Whether you’re a fan of playing games on the big screen or someone who’s always loved playing handheld games on the go, the Switch can be there to satisfy your every need. We’re sure that you all have your own preferences when it comes to which mode you play in, but how does the Switch user community play in general?
Believe it or not, it’s pretty much 50-50. Speaking to Ars Technica, Nintendo Senior Vice President for Sales and Marketing Doug Bowser said that the split is “about even – about 50 percent in the dock and 50 percent away from the dock.” Of course, the Switch has always been marketed as a gaming console that can do both, and with this message seemingly being confirmed by players, it’s clear that Nintendo has developed a clear understanding of what fans want from the console.
It’s worth noting that the undocked time Bowser refers to encompasses both handheld and tabletop modes, as Nintendo doesn’t currently monitor which of the two undocked options a player uses at any given time.
He also went on to explain how this data has been collected, suggesting that the information Nintendo receives is invaluable to the company’s planning and marketing.
“One of the nice things we’ve seen with the Switch is we’re able to read more telemetry data in how players are engaging with the content. We get that when they connect, if they have a Nintendo account we have the ability to understand how they’re engaging with the device… From a positioning standpoint, we can look at various titles and how they’re being played. That allows us to think about various ways with digital marketing and some of our videos to know how to position them.”
Nintendo seems to have hit the nail on the proverbial head with Switch; if this data showed that players used their console overwhelmingly one way or the other, an argument could have been made suggesting that Nintendo should have just made a dedicated platform to that particular playstyle. As it happens, fans are using the console exactly as expected, and the dual playstyle nature seems to have worked a treat.
You know what we’re about to ask now – which way do you play? Docked, or portable? Let us know with a comment below.
Data East fans rejoice because Flying Tiger is bringing yet another unmissable classic to Nintendo Switch – 1991’s Two Crude Dudes! It’s coming to the eShop next week on 5th July in North America, although retro fans in Europe will have to wait a little longer for a solid release date.
Know as Crude Buster in Japan, this spiritual apocalyptic sequel to Bad Dudes is equal parts beat-’em-up and grab-’em-up, with neither enemies or the environment safe from a good grapple. And if all else fails, just grab the other player and use him as a impromptu throwing weapon. If you were lucky you might have stumbled onto the excellent Sega Mega Drive conversion back in 1992.
This Johnny Turbo release will set you back $6.99. Will you be grabbing these dudes next week?
Just last week we reported on the news that Bethesda had filed a lawsuit against Warner Bros. and Behaviour Interactive over the new Westworld mobile game. The studio claimed that the game uses code that was originally created for Fallout Shelter, and there seemed to be some pretty fishy evidence to back that up.
Speaking to the folks over at GameInformer, Warner Bros. has now responded with a new statement on Bethesda’s claim, describing it as “surprising” and “baseless”.
“As one of the world’s leading creators of intellectual property, including the ground-breaking television series Westworld, Warner Bros. has a deep respect for intellectual property rights. As such, the assertions by Bethesda Softworks that Warner’s Westworld mobile game improperly used source code from Bethesda’s Fallout Shelter are as surprising as they are unsubstantiated. Warner Bros. has been assured by the game developer, Behaviour Interactive, that Bethesda’s allegations are untrue and that none of Bethesda’s code was used in the Westworld game. Moreover, contrary to Bethesda’s baseless accusation, Warner Bros. at no time “induced” Behaviour to use the Fallout Shelter code in Westworld.”
Bethesda is reportedly suing to have the Westworld game shut down, but this response from Warner Bros. will certainly delay – or potentially stop – proceedings. As always, legal matters such as these can take an awfully long time to resolve themselves; we might have to wait quite a while before hearing any outcome.
