Red Dead Redemption got a sweet Nintendo Switch 2 Edition back in December 2025, but according to a new rumour from Dealabs Magazine, it might soon be getting a ‘physical’ release.
Don’t get too excited though, because it sounds like the Switch 2 version will be a ‘code-in-a-box’ monstrosity, meaning no cartridge will be included, only a poxy sheet of paper with a download code printed. Boo.
It’s apparently not too far off either, with writer billbil-kun stating that the release date for the retail edition is 7th May 2026. A physical PS5 release will also supposedly launch on the same day, with both priced at €34.99.
Naturally, just like the digital versions, the retail release will package the main game alongside the Undead Nightmare DLC, which remains to this day one of our favourite expansions. Chuck zombies into a game and we’re happy, y’know?
Whether you go for the code-in-a-box release or just a bog-standard eShop download, we reckon Red Dead Redemption is will worth a shot on Switch 2. We awarded it a score of 9/10 and said “With slick controls, DLSS, HDR, volumetric effects, options to personalise mouse mode, 60fps that felt flawless, and a resolution bump that’s got it looking super sharp, this is a gem that still feels modern, immediate, and relentlessly replayable on Switch 2″.
What do you make of this, dear reader? Are you tempted, or is a code-in-a-box release just one step too far for you? Let us know.
If you can believe it, we’re almost in the tenth season of Ranked Battles in Pokémon Legends: Z-A. What is time?
The Pokémon Company has today revealed that Season 10 will get underway next week on 23rd April at 6am UTC, and will be hanging around until 14th May.
As was the case with the last season, there’s no big Mega Stone reward up for grabs this time, though you will once again unlock all previous Mega Stone rewards as you progress up the ranks. That means Greninjite, Delphoxite, Chesnaughtite, Baxcalibrite, Sceptilite, Swampertite, and Blazikenite are returning as promotion gifts from Ranks Y through to S.
Here’s the exact time that Z-A’s Ranked Battle Season 10 will get underway in your region:
Again, you’ll only be able to participate in this season with Pokémon numbered 001–227 and 231 in the Lumiose Pokédex, and 001–127, 131, and 132 in the Hyperspace Pokédex, all of which will automatically be set to Level 50 for battling.
Of course, this all means that there is one week left of Ranked Battle Season Nine. For the complete rundown of everything up for grabs in the current season, check out our full guide below.
Will you be taking part in Z-A’s Ranked Battle Season 10? Let us know in the comments.
The series has a reputation for being extremely open-ended, so that can feel overwhelming. And with a huge install base across Switch 1 and Switch 2, more and more people are likely diving into the series for the first time.
So we have a selection of helpful beginner tips that we think will help you make the most out of early life — and often for your whole playthrough — of Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream.
A Beginner’s Guide to Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream
Everything below should help you find your footing for the first five-ish hours of the game, but lots of these tips are also invaluable for the entire time you spend in Living the Dream. So make sure you bookmark this page.
And we’ll obviously add to this guide if any other tips come our way.
Get through the tutorial
Image: Nintendo Life
This seems very obvious, but focus on following the tutorial to start off with.
This will not only teach you how to do every basic thing with your Miis or on your island, but it’ll also allow you to expand your island once.
The tutorial basically ends when you have six Miis on your island, so just go step-by-step.
Gradually make more Miis
Image: Nintendo Life
Don’t rush into making tons of Miis for your island, because the game can get pretty overwhelming pretty fast if you do.
Get the initial ones out of the way via the tutorial, of course, but then just make them as and when you feel like it. Maybe one a day? Two? Of course, if you played the 3DS game, you’ll be more familiar with the mechanics and micromanaging, but newcomers should take it slower.
Remember, you can have up to 70 Miis on your island.
Play in short sessions
Image: Nintendo Life
Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream isn’t a game you can binge, and it’s one you certainly shouldn’t try to, either. The nature of the experience is that you’re really letting the Miis go about their lives, and just intervening when they want help or when you feel like it.
There’s no real end goal besides levelling up your island and making your Miis happy, so maybe just check in once or twice a day for 20 or 30 minutes.
Check on all your Miis at once
Image: Nintendo Life
No need to scroll around the island to see how your Miis are feeling; press the Y button to bring up a menu with up to six Miis. You can scroll through this or expand it to show 12 Miis at once.
In this menu, you’ll be able to see the mood of each Mii whenever you want!
Use fast travel
Image: Nintendo Life
Yes, fast travel is in Tomodachi Life, and you use it to warp directly to any Mii that you want.
Using the method to check your Miis’ mood, all you need to do is click on the Mii you want to visit and you’ll be taken straight to them, whether they’re at home or exploring the island.
Focus on Problems
Image: Nintendo Life
One mood you always want to look out for is a Problem; this is when a little speech bubble with a squiggly line appears above your Miis’ head.
There are three kinds of Problem you can get, correlating to the colour of the speech bubble, and doing these will raise a Mii’s happiness:
Yellow
Usually food, gift, or clothing related
Orange
Wants to hang out with someone
Pink
Romance related
Try to make your Miis happy
Image: Nintendo Life
Troubles aren’t the only way to make a Mii happy, though. Giving them clothes, Treasures, and food every day has a chance to raise their happiness — if they like what you give them.
These likes and dislikes are totally random, so you’ll need to use good ol’ trial-and-error to figure out what a Mii likes and dislikes. Luckily, if you find their favourite (or least-favourite) food, it’ll be highlighted on your Mii’s info.
If you happen to come across something a Mii loathes, then their happiness can actually decrease. Don’t worry! You can raise it again.
Check Daily / Weekly Specials
Image: Nintendo Life
You’ll get a few different stores for your Tomodachi Life island, and some of them get a new set of items to sell every single day.
Fresh Kingdom Food Mart and Where & Wear clothing get a new influx of Daily Specials every day, so every time you log in, check their inventories.
As for T&C Reno — the store where you purchase house interiors — they’ll get one Weekly Special a week, so check it every Monday.
Buy at least one of every food item (if you can afford it)
Image: Nintendo Life
The best thing about the Daily Specials is that, once you’ve bought one, you can rebuy it whenever you want. Great for clothing options, but we’d recommend focusing on food first.
Buy at least one of every new item you see at Fresh Kingdom every day, because it’ll then be available for purchase whenever you return. Finding your Miis’ favourite foods is the quickest way to make them happy, so having access to as much food as you can at all times is ideal.
Visit the Wishing Fountain once a day
Image: Nintendo Life
You’ll use the WIshing Fountain to spend wishes and unlock new interiors, decor, quirks, Treasures, and more. But once a day, you’ll also be left a big pile of money by your Miis, who have been donating coins in your namesake. That’s nice!
So, whenever you start a new day, visit the fountain and pick up that cash.
Leave the camera on Miis
Image: Nintendo Life
If you’re every struggling for things to do, then simply select a Mii and let the camera follow them. It’s the quickest way to make yourself laugh, because your Mii might just do some ridiculous thing, or they might get into an interaction with another Mii.
Regardless, it passes time and it might give you an opportunity to raise their happiness.
You can say no
Image: Nintendo Life
One way that Living the Dream is a lot more free than the 3DS game is it allows you to have much more control over what happens. That goes from refusing to let Miis be friends to getting into relationships to even playing minigames.
Sometimes, a Mii might ask you to place something down on the island, or may have some decor ideas. Saying yes will raise their happiness, but if you don’t like their idea, you can refuse to do it. It won’t make them unhappy, so don’t fret!
The same for relationships — if a Mii is trying to pursue another Mii but you have other plans, you can discourage them from going for that relationship.
Don’t like something? You can change it anytime!
If your Mii doesn’t look quite right, or you want to change their gender, pronouns, dating preferences, or personality, then you can do this whenever you want.
Simply select the Mii you want to change, either in the menu or by interacting with them, and select Edit Mii. This will bring up all the design and creation options again, meaning you can tweak your Mii to your liking at every single opportunity.
Those are just a few tips to get you started in Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream. We’ll add to this is more comes up, but for now, enjoy the game, and let us know what you’ve found most useful!
With the game and upgrade pack available on the cartridge (no Game-Key Card shenanigans here), this may well be the ideal way to own the game if you’re a fan of physical games. It’s available for roughly £50 in the UK and $65 in the US. Check the links below for some go-to outlets.
Of course, this might not be the most ideal way to own the game if you’ve seen some of the controversy surrounding the Switch 2 Edition. Nintendo has faced severe backlash from fans thanks to what looks like some dodgy AI upscaling to go along with the 60fps gameplay. The chaps over at Digital Foundry explain it wonderfully in a recent video.
If none of this bothers you, or you don’t notice the visual issues with the Switch 2 Edition, this this might well be the best way to own Xenoblade Chronicles X at the time of writing.
Have you had a nice physical edition of Xenoblade Chronicles X for Switch 2 delivered today? Or will you be getting it at a later date? Let us know.
Playtonic Games, the developer behind Yooka-Laylee and its Switch 2 reimagining Yooka-Replaylee, appears to be teasing something over on Bluesky.
Starting from last Saturday, the company has begun posting cryptic messages on social media relating to the number ’60’. Then, earlier today, it posted an amusing riddle that references performance that “didn’t take flight”, but will soon “soar, silky-smooth like never before”.
Gosh, what could it all mean..? Truthfully, it doesn’t take a genius to ascertain that Playtonic is probably referring to a potential performance upgrade for Yooka-Replaylee on the Switch 2. First launched in October 2025, the game was capped at 30fps, leading to some backlash from fans.
We’ll keep an eye on things, then, and let you know what’s cracking as soon as Playtonic spills the beans. In the meantime, it’s also announced a livestream of Yooka-Replaylee on YouTube and TikTok tomorrow, 16th April at 2pm BST.
What do you think Playtonic might be teasing? Let us know your thoughts with a comment.
Hytale dev Hypixel Studios has confirmed it is seeking legal action against a new Switch eShop game that’s blatantly misleading potential customers into thinking they’re purchasing the real deal (thanks, Automaton).
Hytale: Sandbox RPG is available now at a discounted price of £4.99 on the Switch eShop, but this isn’t the same game that’s currently in early access on PC. Instead, this is a blatant rip-off from developer RoVi Ninen; one that copies both the title and the key art from Hypixel Studios’ original.
Now, after receiving multiple queries about the topic on social media, co-director Simon Collins-Laflamme has stated “it’s being handled by our legal team”, presumably implying that they’re looking to have the knock-off title removed from the eShop entirely.
For a glimpse at just how shameless RoVi Ninen is, here’s a look at the original key art for Hytale (left) and the key art for the knock-off title on Switch (right):
RoVi Ninen appears to be a repeat offender too. A game by the name of Coin Pit launched on the Switch eShop recently, seemingly copying the acclaimed PC title CloverPit. Developer Panik Arcade took to Reddit to warn users against downloading Coin Pit, labelling it “fake” and “a scam”.
Honestly, RoVi Ninen should probably be completely banned from making Switch games at this point; or at least until it can demonstrate that it can make original titles that don’t mislead customers or infringe on existing copyrights.
What do you make of this debacle? Leave a comment in the usual place and let us know.
Nintendo’s next big release, and perhaps-penultimate Switch 1 title, is almost here. Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream lands on Nintendo’s older hybrid tomorrow, 16th April, and critic reviews have dropped ahead of the game’s launch. That includes our own, written by the very person putting together this article.
The Nintendo Life verdict calls the follow-up to the 3DS cult hit “the strangest thing you’ll play from Nintendo, bringing with it laughs and creativity in abundance” but faults it for some repetition and lack of Mii sharing, scoring the game a respectable 7/10.
Still, the perfect game for those who need a good laugh. And trust us, it’s really funny, especially if you’re extremely creative.
But we’re not the only ones who have thoughts on the game, and for the most part, impressions are pretty positive!
Let’s start at the very top of the scale, with Quinn Collins at Pocket Tactics, giving the life sim a glowing 10/10. In Collins’ words, “this game is a masterpiece of relaxing, cozy gaming”. Very high praise!:
“Any minor complaint I have has been made up for with endless fun, with near-infinite customization, cut scenes I’m still seeing for the first time ten hours after rolling the credits, and a healthy dose of quirky charm.”
After that, most reviews sit around the 8/10 mark, which is exactly the score Jessica Filby awarded the game at Dexerto. Like many other critics, she calls it “one of the wackiest cozy games ever made”, though with a few minor critiques on the touchscreen creativity and repetitiveness. It’s still a winner for Filby, though:
Tomodachi is back, and it’s never been better. While the character creation is so nearly perfect, Living the Dream is a welcome trip down memory lane for fans of the original.
Nintendo Insider’s Alex Seedhouse is another big fan of both the 3DS predecessor and this new sequel, which nets the game another 8/10. “I have missed this utter madness” kicks off a review full of praise for the humour, customisation, and spontaneity of it.
“Never being able to guess what will happen next perfectly captures what Tomodachi Life: Living The Dream is all about. It’s packed with so much hilarious material that the best recommendation any review can make is to go and discover it for yourself rather than let someone else spoil it for you.”
TheGamer’s Jade King is also part of the 8/10 club. Well, the 4/5 one, at least! There’s a few little personal anecdotes here with famous Miis hooking up with family members, highlight the fun and creativity of the whole thing. But repetitiveness does become an issue, too. So as long as you can look past that…
“Tomodachi Life: Living The Dream is a bizarre delight with unlimited potential, but you must be willing to unearth that brilliance for yourself instead of expecting the game to guide you.”
Brian Shea of Game Informer brings things down a notch to a 7/10, and though he’s a big fan of the game, his biggest criticism comes from the lack of Mii sharing and the repetition. But hey, Ozzy Osbourne’s a resident!
“I would argue that it requires a fair bit of imagination on your part as a player to get the full value out of the experience. By that, I don’t just mean a desire to create visually, but also an overarching concept of who your characters are and what their relationships with the other residents should look like.”
Last up is IGN’s Logan Plant, who also scored Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream a 7/10 for similar reasons. Though the emphasis here really is on the lack of ability to play and share with friends. “Tomodachi Life is a deeply funny and equally personal civilization simulator”, is how he kicks off his conclusion, calling it “genuinely hilarious”, but there’s a “darkside” as he puts it:
“Where Living the Dream loses me is its extremely restrictive sharing capabilities. It’s beyond frustrating that there’s essentially no way to directly share Miis or other creations online, even with friends, which is an enormous downgrade from the 3DS version.”
All in all, Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream’s enjoyment comes from your fingertips and creativity. Depending on who you are, this might be the perfect game for you. And right now it sits on a 78 on Metacritic (from 35 scored reviews).
We’ll be checking back in with you lovely readers to find out how you’re spending your time with Tomodachi Life. You don’t have long to wait, after all!
Let us know if you’re excited to live the dream in the comments below.
The next Pokémon Pokopia event is coming this weekend, but be wary, as it’ll require dextrous timing and button pressing on your part.
Bulbasaur’s Jump Rope Challenge is coming to the game on 19th April. The event will kick off 5am local time and will run for a week until 26th April. And all you need to have done is completed the very first Main Quest in Withered Wasteland, called Yawn Up a Storm.
And those of you who have played the game and hung out with the adorable Bulbasaur will know what to expect.
You’ll be taking part in a Jump Rope contest, using Bulbasaur’s vines as a rope to hop over as many times in a row as you can. Depending on how well you do, you’ll unlock various prizes, with an exclusive trophy being the number one draw.
The event is also available in multiplayer and on Cloud Islands, though only the host will receive prizes.
Sounds like a bit of fun! You can obviously have a little peek at the event if you want to play with your console’s internal clock, but there’s another event coming shortly after that you can also check out.
Will you be taking part in the Jump Rope Challenge next week? Hop to the comments and let us know.
Launching on 18th September 2026, the package will come rocking a lenticular postcard and an art book, and judging from the promotional image included with the announcement, it appears that this one won’t be a Game-Key Card release.
We’ve reached out for clarification and will provide an update as soon as we can.
Otherwise, yes, this looks to be the definitive way to experience Layers of Fear on the Switch 2 if you’re a fan of physical games. The package includes both Layers of Fear and Layers of Fear 2 with numerous enhancements, plus all previously-released DLC.
Here’s a look at the key features:
Deep Exploration: immersive first‑person gameplay that blends story-driven exploration, environmental puzzles, and psychological horror.
A Web of Obsession: the interwoven stories of three creators: The Painter, The Actor, and The Writer, each consumed by their craft and willing to pay the ultimate price for it.
Next‑Gen Visual Atmosphere: rebuilt visuals with HDR, ray tracing, and dynamic lighting that deepen atmosphere, enhance realism, and make every flicker of light feel alive.
Unsettling Original Score: a haunting original soundtrack by award‑winning composer Arek Reikowski, weaving fragile beauty, emotion, and unease into every scene.
Image: Meridiem
We reviewed the eShop release of Layers of Fear: The Final Masterpiece Edition and gave it a score of 6/10. There’s a lot to love about this one, including some truly impressive visuals and excellent mouse controls, but it’s also one that we feels lacks player agency, and the scares can quickly lose their edge.
Will you be picking up a physical edition of Layers of Fear on the Switch 2? Let us know your thoughts with a comment.
Fans of the 3DS game are champing at the bit to lose their lives to this long-dreamt-for sequel. Many have waited since 2014 to create more freakishly terrifying Miis and test the limits of humanity and absurdity.
We asked the residents for their reaction. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” said Jim, an advocate for the previous game.
I’m Alana, and you’re up-to-date.
Well, you’re not quite up-to-date, but if you have no idea what Tomodachi Life is like, this update is a good little snippet. This isn’t a life sim, it’s more like a simplistic, absurdist, Nintendo-esque take on The Sims.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
You are the master of your own island, which you populate with Miis of all kinds: yourself, real-life family members, friends, celebrities, or characters from TV shows and media you love (or hate). Add more Miis to your island and you unlock more stores and buildings, plus your island will gradually get bigger, allowing you to place more decorations and continue creating the most chaotic set of island residents imaginable. This is all about creating Miis and letting them live their lives. Oh, and what silly lives they lead.
Living the Dream started off as one of the funniest video games I’ve ever played. The laughter starts at minute one, when I’m creating my own Mii and messing around with the voice filters. The Mii creator is absurdly detailed with hundreds of options and the ability to draw on your character’s face – more on that later.
But the voices, once you start giving your character tones that make them sound like everything is a question, or they speak so high-pitched you can’t understand a word they’re saying – that’s when the uncontrollable giggles kick in.
As I began to populate my island, I got to witness some of the most absurdly funny interactions. I snorted way too many times at the bizarre dreams my Miis were having. Seances with rabbits, coral, or shells, spring rides through safari parks, an avalanche of chocolate-chip cakes (poorly designed by me).
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
One time, some Miis gathered at the local restaurant and a sitcom-like scenario would play out. It’s like being in a Nathan Fielder show, except you’re sort of in control of what happens.
And that’s the thing: Living the Dream is much more interactive than Tomodachi Life was on 3DS. Miis will actually walk around the island now and talk to other Miis themselves; you can pick them up and take them to any place of your choosing, have them stare at trees or use vending machines, or sit at tables on their own. You can pet them on the head or give them food or new clothes to make them happy.
Raising happiness is the one thing you really want to do in Living the Dream, as doing so gives you wishes, which you can spend at the Wishing Fountain. The best way to do this is to figure out what kind of clothes, gifts, or foods each Mii likes — which is basically trial-and-error — or to solve their Troubles by talking to them when they have a little bubble above their heads.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
There’s a rhythm to Living the Dream, a kind of short-session game where I’ll load up my island, see what new food items the shop has, how much money I’ll spend on clothes, and go around and fix Miis’ problems by feeding them what they want or getting them to make friends with another resident. Sometimes I’ll play a minigame with a few of them, like bowling, or What’s Missing?
Or I can just muck about: I can drag my Mii to hang out with Vivi from Final Fantasy IX and talk about the concept of death, as long as I’ve introduced the word ‘death’ to the in-game lexicon. Or Dante from Devil May Cry can talk to Guts from Berserk about “a silver-haired man”. Romances, marriages, and relationships can flourish or fizzle out with a little encouragement. I can even draw an approximation of my cat as a Mii or as a Treasure to give to another resident.
You can see via the screenshots that I’m not an artist; you’re probably terrified of my cat Miles and his gormless eyes and weird stripes, and you’re probably asking, “Is that Tom Nook from Animal Crossing?” But you don’t have to be good at drawing to design a hilarious congregation of Miis. (Shoutout to TomodachiShare for buckets of inspiration.)
In fact, the creativity is incredible across the board. Not only can you draw your Mii’s face, but you can actually design structures — Moomintroll has become fond of sleeping next to my strange purple Eiffel Tower — create interiors and exteriors for your Mii’s houses, design your own food, books, and video games, and even create custom pathways.
You can use the touchscreen for all of these things, and for a few other moments in-game, like petting your Miis and using the in-game keyboard. But the touchscreen functionality is weirdly limited. I can’t use it to pick up my Miis or decorate my island in Build Mode. I can’t even use it in most menus. It’s a bizarre choice, which extends to the lack of Mouse Mode implementation on Switch 2.
It’s good that Living the Dream looks great on both Switch 1 and Switch 2, with the latter getting a resolution boost, but at least on the new console, I’m surprised the game runs at 30fps. It’s a little jarring, especially in some of the dream sequences where it drops frames thanks to some high-octane falling action (you’ll need to see to understand). Perhaps a Switch 2 patch is incoming, and I hope Nintendo at least adds Mouse Mode and perhaps expands the number of Miis you can have on the island (70, down from 100 on 3DS).
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
Back to Build Mode, this was one of my favourite parts of the preview period, but as I unlocked more and more decorations, the variety felt a little limited. I still redecorate and rearrange my island frequently thanks to how simple it is, but it’s here where I start to see my issues with the game.
Because, without the customisation options, Living the Dream is basically an elaborate game of watching goldfish and imagining personalities for them. And that’s been a struggle for me. As funny as the game can be (and sometimes still is), the novelty of the bizarre hijinks wore off after about 10 hours.
I’m more than triple that now, and I’ve seen at least five different Miis ride a spring bear in front of a realistic photo of a lion. I’ve watched multiple residents get stuck in a hiccup rut. I might get a new cutscene every so often if I drag Tom Nook over to Vincent Valentine from Final Fantasy VII, but they also might just walk off and chat together.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Docked)
Even as I unlocked new buildings and got a few new cutscenes and interactions, or got Miis to move in together, I felt like I was falling into the same rhythms all the time. Poke and prod Miis, drag them around, feed them, create a new Mii, get them integrated, and so on. I got bored of the loop, which the short play sessions helped with, but it sometimes felt meaningless.
Trying to get certain Miis to fall in love, especially the more Miis you have, sometimes felt a little hit-and-miss. I put my Mii with my partner Zach’s Mii many times and, for a while, there was the threat of Lydia taking him away from me. It did make the eventual joining together and marriage all the sweeter, at least.
But then we had a squabble over something absolutely ridiculous, and I had to live in fear that I might be breaking up with my IRL husband. Don’t worry, though, you can usually repair those relationships, and it adds a little more drama to friendships and dating.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
In fact, relationships are another area where Living the Dream has made big strides forward. The game has no restrictions on gender or relationships, to the point where you essentially have aro/ace Miis who just want to be friends and live together. That, plus the addition of a non-binary gender option, choice of pronouns, and lack of clothing restrictions means this is a win for everyone.
Creating a plethora of Miis has been a bit of a tonic for me over the past few weeks, and is the most surprising thing I love about Living the Dream. But once that creative process is over, despite all of the improvements the game makes over the original Tomodachi Life, I feel myself slipping back into that rhythm that has worn me out a little.
For as many times as I’ve laughed, I’ve sat blank-faced, trying to figure out whether Guts likes fried spring rolls or milkshake. I wish it’s an experience I could share with others a little easier, too, but with the online restrictions — including restricting sharing Miis, which I do understand — it feels a lot more solitary than it should. Unlocking new things brings a little spark to it, too, but I’d say I’ve been Living the Nice Life rather than the Dream, and that’s okay.
