Nintendo News
UK publisher Sold Out is teaming up with Team17 to publish physical versions of Worms W.M.D and Overcooked: Special Edition on Switch, it has been revealed.
Arriving in 2018, the two games will launch in physical form on Nintendo’s console, adding two more titles to the machine’s burgeoning retail lineup.
Overcooked is already available on the Switch eShop but Worms W.M.D. – the latest entry in Team17’s long-running series – doesn’t yet have a confirmed release date in digital form.
Traditionally, one Nintendo console per household was enough. Granted, if you were a lucky kid you might have had your own personal SNES, GameCube or Wii in your bedroom all those years ago, but many homes buy a single machine which takes pride of place under the living room TV for the entire family to enjoy.
With Switch, Nintendo wants to buck that trend and encourage consumers to adopt a buying pattern which is perhaps more suited to the handheld market. According to Wall Street Journal’s Takashi Mochizuki, Tatsumi Kimishima has recently told investors that the company wants Switch to be positioned as a system that all family members own, rather than just having one per household:
Big deal, you may assume. Of course Nintendo wants everyone in the house to have a Switch – it sells more consoles that way. However, this stance shows Nintendo’s current thinking behind its promotion of the console; it wants to bring people together for local multiplayer rather than focusing on online play.
Have a think about the promotional videos and images Nintendo has released so far for Switch – most involve each participant having their own console, sitting within punching distance of their opponents. The message is clear: if you want to enjoy this system to its maximum potential, you need your own personal Switch.
Given the high cost of Switch, we’re not sure the machine is quite at this point yet, but as the years roll by and production becomes cheaper, we’ll almost certainly see a price reduction which makes the console more viable as a “one per person” proposition.
Switch has had an amazing first year, with some brilliant games in the form of Splatoon 2, ARMS, Breath of the Wild and, of course, Super Mario Odyssey.
The future is looking a bit bare at present, though – Nintendo is clearly working on key titles but hasn’t revealed them yet – with the exception of Metroid Prime 4, which we might not see for a while, and the console’s mainline Pokémon outing.
However, in an interview with TIME, Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime may have let slip one of Switch’s big forthcoming unconfirmed titles:
Of course, people could be reading something in nothing – perhaps Reggie just picked the name Donkey Kong alongside Metroid (already confirmed, remember) out of the air at random to make his point – or (and this is the version of the story we prefer to believe) he said Donkey Kong by accident because (deep breath) Nintendo is working on a new game in the Donkey Kong Country series; a sequel to Tropical Freeze, perhaps? We still don’t know what Retro Studios is working on, after all…
What do you think? Has Reggie subconsciously dropped a bombshell, or not? Destroy our dreams gently with a comment below.
EA’s company finance chief Black Jorgensen has told the Wall Street Journal that it’s too early to accurately judge the demand for the company’s games on the Nintendo Switch.
EA has released FIFA 18 on the console so far, one of its biggest franchises, but reports suggest that the Switch version has accounted for very few sales in comparison to the PS4 and Xbox One editions.
Jorgensen says EA will wait a full market year (until March, basically) before deciding on what other games it will bring to Nintendo’s console, if it decides to bring any at all. He states that the company wants to “fully understand what the demand is” before committing development resources to the machine.
Given that other publishers – such as Bethesda – are now pledging their support to Switch, EA’s stance does seem a little odd. However, FIFA 18 has hardly sold like hotcakes on the console, so perhaps this air of caution is wise? Let us know what you think by posting a comment.
Nintendo’s latest investor’s Q&A has been published in Japanese, and while we wait for the full English translation a few bits and pieces are coming through on social media.
According to Wall Street Journal’s Takashi Mochizuki, Nintendo CEO Tatsumi Kimishima has refused to be drawn on the question of Animal Crossing: Pocket Camp offering any kind of connectivity with “dedicated” Animal Crossing games on consoles:
Given the likelihood of an Animal Crossing game coming to Switch in the not too distant future, it would be amazing to see Pocket Camp have some form of interaction with a “mainline” console outing. Given that your phone is at your side all day long, some form of connection could allow players to gain resources while they’re away from their Switch.
Hopefully Nintendo is just keeping its cards close to its chest at present, and we’ll see something like this happen in the fullness of time. Make your own predictions known by posting a comment below.
Zen Studios offered decent support for the Wii U and 3DS eShop, and it’s now stepping up with the Switch eShop – it’s confirmed that Pinball FX3 is coming to the store on 14th November; the initial download is free and includes the Sorcerer’s Lair table, and you then buy other tables separately.
Check out the trailer below.
Starting off with Switch-specific features, it’ll have HD Rumble and the option to play with a vertical orientation in portable mode, which is a neat touch. There’ll be 30 tables available to buy at launch, with more promised, and cross-platform multiplayer will also be included. As you can see in the PR excerpt below the FX series puts multiplayer and tournaments at the heart of the game.
The complete list of tables at launch is below.
We’ve confirmed with Zen Studios that pricing on the Switch will be exactly the same as on other platforms. On PS4, for example, The Walking Dead costs £2.49 in the UK while a pack like Universal Classics costs £7.99.
Are you excited about this one coming to the Switch? Let us know in the comments.
Super Mario Odyssey has given Switch the sales boost it needed to pass the two million consoles sold marker in its native Japan.
Last week, Switch sold 133,094 units, with the bulk of that figure apparently thanks to the Super Mario Odyssey Switch bundle. Last week also marked the biggest delivery of Switch stock Nintendo had issued to retailers in the last four months, meaning there were more consoles on offer than normal.
According to Famitsu, Super Mario Odyssey sold 511,625 copies during its first three days on sale in Japan. These sales include game-specific download cards and the Switch Super Mario Odyssey bundle, but not copies purchased directly from the Switch eShop.
It would appear that the entire shipment of physical copies sold during the first three days on sale, so the total figure could well have been even higher.
It’s no secret that we absolutely love Super Mario Odyssey, and one of the things we love most is just how many teeny-tiny details can be found throughout, whatever their form.
One of these is what could be classified as an easter egg that occurs when you jump repeatedly on the Odyssey’s globe. Doing so will play a music box version of Jump Up, Super Star, or the Fossil Falls theme depending on which Kingdom you’re in. If you want to hear it for yourself make sure you check out the video above to do just that.
Nintendo is really on a roll with the free goodies they are handing out for The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. If you check out the news section on your Nintendo Switch today, you will find a note from director Hidemaro Fujibayashi which gives you details about cooking dishes which boost your attacks.
If you read through all the note you will learn all the ingredients to make a mighty salt-grilled crab. This tasty dish is made up of: Razorclaw Crab, Mighty Porgy, Mighty Bananas, and Rock Salt.
There are a few disclaimers at the bottom about not being able to receive this gift without the paraglider and also it will not be available in certain areas, so it is well worth reading through the whole note to get yourself completely up to speed.
Let us know what you think about this culinary delight with a comment below.
With Black Friday quickly approaching, Nintendo is offering a variety of products to make holiday shopping a little bit easier and a lot more fun for everyone. These deals include two items that will make it easier for people of all ages and interests to get in on the fun and adventure of The Legend of Zelda series this holiday season.
The first is a Link green Nintendo 2DS system with bright orange buttons that comes pre-installed with The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time 3D game at a suggested retail price of only $79.99. This is ideal for young people who want to be introduced to one of the best games in The Legend of Zelda series on a durable and accessible portable system. The second is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Explorer’s Edition, a bundle that includes the critically acclaimed and award-winning Nintendo Switch game, a 100-page explorer’s guide and a two-sided map at a suggested retail price of $59.99.* The included guide and map are great for people new to the series, as well as people who haven’t yet had the opportunity to dive into the massive adventure.
But this isn’t all Nintendo is offering on Black Friday. In addition to these legendary deals, many other systems and bundles are currently in stores. These include a Nintendo Switch bundle that comes with the system, a download code for the Super Mario Odyssey game, Mario-themed red Joy-Con controllers and a special carrying case at a suggested retail price of $379.99.
“Between Nintendo Switch, Super NES Classic Edition, all the systems in the Nintendo 3DS family and all of the fun games available for these systems, shoppers will have multiple options for their wish lists this year,” said Doug Bowser, Nintendo of America’s Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing. “Our Black Friday deals are a great value for people looking to pick up gifts for the Nintendo fans in their lives.”
Other systems and bundles that will be available in stores this holiday include:
To check out all the offerings from Nintendo this holiday season, visit Nintendo’s holiday gift guide at https://happyholidays.nintendo.com/.
Remember that Nintendo Switch and the Nintendo 3DS family of systems feature parental controls that let adults manage the content their children can access. For more information about other features, visit http://www.nintendo.com/switch/ or http://www.nintendo.com/3ds.
* The Expansion Pass, which is composed of The Master Trials and The Champion’s Ballad DLC, is not included as part of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild – Explorer’s Edition.
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