Eiji Aonuma And Multiple Others Have Been Promoted At Nintendo
There are a lot of employees at Nintendo who have spent their entire adulthood at the company. As many of these individuals grow in experience and age, they help create more games and rise up the ranks. Recently, a number of these well-known individuals have been promoted. Nintendo’s E3 2019 press website reveals new positions for Eiji Aonuma, Hisashi Nogami, Aya Kyogoku and Yoshihito Ikebata.
Aonuma will keep his role as the producer of The Legend of Zelda series but is now also a Deputy General Manager. Nogami – best known in recent times as the producer of Splatoon – moves into the same position, Kyogoku – the face of the Animal Crossing series – has taken on the “Manager of Production Group No. 5” role (Splatoon & Animal Crossing) and Yoshihito Ikebata is now with “Production Group No. 6” (responsible for the Metroid Prime and Luigi’s Mansion series).
It’s great to see such a talented group of individuals working their way up the company ladder while making Nintendo’s beloved series better and better at the same time.
Posted by: xSicKxBot - 06-16-2019, 04:00 AM - Forum: Lounge
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This Week At Bungie – 6/13/2019
This week at Bungie, we watched Guardians hunt for Truth.
Season of Opulence is off and running. Guardians are piling into the Emperor’s lost vaults in search of the treasure of their choosing. Earlier this week, you discovered a new boss waiting for you in the depths of the Menagerie. Upon defeating it, you were given a quest to seek out Truth. Not in an X-files way, but to find the Rocket Launcher, Truth—a weapon that seeks out its targets… aggressively. Just look at what some players are seeing in the wild:
Next week, we’ll mix things up once again with a third additional boss to keep things fresh in our new six-player activity. And that’s not all we have planned. We are also welcoming an old friend back to the Tower.
Iron Pursuits
Lord Saladin will return next week for the first Iron Banner of Season of Opulence. With a new Season, you have a fresh set of weapons and armor available to earn. Saladin continues to offer Iron Banner bounties, but will also set you on a quest to earn your gear. In other words, prove your worth, and be outfitted as an Iron Lord.
This Season’s Iron Banner armor is now acquired through a quest.
Each armor piece will be granted upon completing its associated quest step.
Each armor piece will be granted as a powerful reward.
After unlocking an armor piece, it may be reacquired with random rolls through Iron Banner Reputation Packages and match rewards.
If you are a veteran player who earned Iron Banner ornaments in the past, this Season’s armor is compatible with all Year 1 Iron Banner ornaments.
Iron Banner packages have been updated.
Iron Banner Armor may now roll with enhanced perks.
New weapons have also been added to Iron Banner packages and have a higher chance to drop on the first package you redeem.
New Iron Banner shaders, an emblem, and a Sparrow may be earned through objectives that must be completed during Season of Opulence.
Iron Banner bounties will continue to grant rewards and Iron Banner Tokens.
Iron Banner bounties no longer unlock direct purchase for Iron Banner gear, as it is now acquired directly through the Iron Banner quest.
Iron Banner and Increased Valor
Start: 10 AM PDT on June 18
End: 10 AM PDT on June 25
Here is a preview of the armor and weapons available during Iron Banner events in Season of Opulence.
Valor boosts will also be available next week in Iron Banner and the rest of the Crucible. Saladin will also have some other items available including this new Emblem.
Raid Stats
Thousands of Guardians explored deep within the Leviathan to tackle the challenges of the Crown of Sorrow raid. A fireteam of six completed it first and paved the way for others to follow in their footsteps. We made a graphic showing the number of Guardians who beat the raid in a few key timeframes during the first week.
If you were one of the 45,475 Guardians who bested Gahlran within the first week and are thinking about purchasing the Bungie Rewards raid jacket, you have until 11:59 PM PDT on June 18 to claim your Bungie Reward code and place your order. Dmg04 and I both completed it the night before the deadline and ordered ours.
Congratulations to everyone who has completed it so far. If you’re still Powering up, Gahlran is waiting for you.
Q and A
The DPS team is always working diligently behind the scenes. They are making sure you have the info you need to have the best Destiny 2 experience.
This is their report.
Destiny 2 Hotfix 2.5.0.3
Today, we deployed Destiny 2 Hotfix 2.5.0.3 to players. This hotfix addressed the following issues:
Resolved an issue blocking progress toward the quest “The Invitation,” where some players were not receiving credit when defeating Menagerie bosses.
Resolved an issue blocking progress toward the quest “The Invitation,” where some players could not upgrade their Chalice of Opulence.
Resolved an issue where Sturm’s “Accomplice” perk no longer reloaded non-Drang energy weapons following Update 2.5.0.1.
PLEASE NOTE: We are investigating an ongoing issue where Sturm does not reload non-Drang sidearms.
Resolved an issue causing Eververse armor to have different perks than shown in the Eververse storefront.
For upcoming patch notes as soon as they are available, players should monitor our Updates page.
Fall 2019 FAQ
Following the series of announcements we made last week, we’d like to follow up with the first batch of frequently asked questions submitted by players.
Forsaken and New Light
Q: Will Destiny 2: New Light be its own separate game/file?
A: No. All Destiny 2 players will be automatically converted to New Light and will maintain all of their prior purchases and entitlements.
Q: What Forsaken and Forsaken Annual Pass content will be included in New Light?
A: Forsaken content available in Destiny 2: New Light includes:
Free roam on all destinations
Strikes playlists
Crucible playlists
Gambit and Gambit Prime playlists
Select Annual Pass content
Q: What Forsaken and Forsaken Annual Pass content will NOT be included in New Light?
A: Forsaken content available only with purchase includes:
The Forsaken campaign
Year 2 raids and dungeons
Exotic quests
Cross Save
Q: Do players need to repurchase Destiny 2 on each cross save platform separately?
A: No. New Light will be available for free on Steam, Xbox, and PlayStation.
Cross save will preserve all gear, character, and items across all platforms regardless of entitlements.
Expansion ownership (Forsaken, Shadowkeep) is tied to the platform’s store it was purchased on. Players will need to purchase expansions on each platform that they wish to play that expansion content on.
Q: Can players merge different characters, items, or Triumphs from different accounts?
A: Cross save does not feature account, character, or progress merging. Selecting a active account for cross save does not delete or alter the data of any other accounts.
Q: Will Destiny 2 support cross-play matchmaking between different platforms?
A: Each platform will have its own matchmaking pool.
Steam PC
Q: Which Destiny 2 purchases and entitlements transfer over from Battle.net to Steam?
A: The PC migration from Battle.net to Steam will include a one-time transfer of ALL ownership rights that a player already owns (expansions, Silver, account, Seasons, etc.).
Q: Can players pre-order Shadowkeep on Steam right now and migrate their Battle.net account later?
A: Yes. Players may purchase Destiny 2: Shadowkeep from Steam’s product page now, and migrate their account at a later date.
Stadia
Q: Can players pre-order Google Stadia Founder’s Edition right now, and setup cross save for their account at a later date?
A: Yes. Players may purchase Stadia Founder’s Edition from Google’s product page now, and enable cross save on their account at a later date.
Q: Will Stadia feature cross play with Steam or other platforms?
A: Stadia is its own ecosystem, just like current existing platforms. Stadia players will only be able to play with other Stadia players.
For the consolidated list of frequently asked questions as they are added throughout the summer, players should see our Destiny 2: Fall 2019 FAQ help article.
Destiny 2 Season of Opulence Known Issues
Listed below are the latest player impacting issues discovered in Season of Opulence:
Queen of Hearts Ship: We are investigating an issue where this ship can’t be reacquired from Collections when bought from Eververse.
404 Errors on Bungie.net: We are investigating an issue where players who are trying to get a Bungie Rewards code or are trying to verify their email receive a 404 error page.
Opulence Weekly Bounties: We are investigating an issue where weekly bounties offered by Benedict 99-40 did not grant powerful rewards for a period following the 6/11 weekly reset.
Chests on the Pleasure Barge: We are investigating an issue where the chests on Werner 99-40’s pleasure barge reset at Sunday’s daily reset and not at Tuesday’s weekly reset.
Showtime
We are back with a hot new edition of Movie of the Week. For anyone unfamiliar, this is where we highlight our favorite videos that were created by the community. The winners get an emblem, and you get to watch some cool Destiny action. Here is what we got this week.
Movie of the Week: TR3-VR Recreated
Honorable Mention: Better Blink
It’s been a blast sharing news with the community all while getting to see you experience the content we have been working on for Season of Opulence. We’re not done yet! There is more coming this season and more coming this fall. Thanks for inhabiting this universe we love to build.
PSN Is Down, Causing PS4 Server Issues And Errors For Games During E3 [Update]
E3 2019 is winding down, with Thursday marking its final day. Even without Sony at the show, there has been a lot of games for PS4 fans to check out. But those at home looking to boot up their PS4 (or other PlayStation Network-reliant device or service) might find themselves running into server issues. Sony has confirmed PSN is down, with many users reporting the error code WS-37403-7. [Update: The status page says PSN servers are back online, so you shouldn't have any further issues for the time being.]
Sony shared the news in a tweet on its PlayStation Support account, writing, "We’re aware that some users are experiencing issues logging into PSN." The PSN status page further reaffirms this, listing all areas of PSN as impacted. That includes account management, gaming and social, PlayStation Now, the PlayStation Store, PlayStation Vue, and more. No further tweets have been shared, but the most recent update on the PSN status page came at 2:26 PM PT and reiterates that Sony's "engineers are working to resolve the issue as soon as possible."
We’re aware that some users are experiencing issues logging into PSN. Thank you for your patience as we investigate: https://t.co/s026QGzJZr
With these widespread issues, you may not be able to sign in on your PS4, which could mean you're locked out of not just online play, but also some of your games. There's no word on how long this may last or when servers will come back online.
When things do come back up, Sony's E3 sale is ongoing and offers some very nice deals on PS4 games and hardware.
Nicalis Reveals Ikaruga Physical Release For Switch
If you love the juicy, vertically-scrolling shoot ’em up action of Ikaruga on your Nintendo Switch, or if you’ve been holding out on picking it up all this time, you’ll probably be pretty pleased to know that a physical release is on the horizon.
There are no concrete details just yet on when it’ll be launching or where you can expect to find it, but it’s absolutely on the way. It has been teased by Nicalis on the studio’s official Twitter account (and you can be pretty sure that the game will appear on Nicalis’ store in the near future).
Of course, back in August last year Nicalis showed off the “world’s largest Switch game case” for the much-loved shmup, sending fans into a frenzy by making them think a physical release was on the way. We’re still not entirely convinced it was a real tease ourselves, but at least it’s definitely coming now.
If you’re not clued up on this one, feel free to check out our full review.
Are you a fan of Ikaruga? Does this physical release have your name all over it? Fire away in the comments below.
E3 2019: GTA 5's Grand Theft Auto Online Adding A Luxury Casino
Grand Theft Auto Online, the online mode for GTA 5, has turned into a sprawling mix of activities--some more legal than others--and Rockstar has announced one more vice that you can live out in the game soon: casino gambling.
A tweet from Rockstar teased "a luxury casino in the heart of Vinewood." It also showed some stylized neon lights to evoke the casino look, but was otherwise short on details.
GTA Online updates come frequently and when something is announced it tends to follow in the game shortly after. Rockstar has not announced release plans for its casino or how exactly it will operate.
The online mode is technically a part of Grand Theft Auto 5, the latest in the action crime series from Rockstar. It has grown far beyond its original incarnations, though, and is largely responsible for GTA5 continuing to sell incredibly well even six years after launch.
Recently Rockstar was on a confirmed list of developers for Google Stadia, but it was one of only a handful of studios named without specific games attached. GTA 5 with GTA Online would be one possibility, since it already has a successful PC version up and running.
E3 2019 was a pretty wild time for Nintendo fans yet again; with Switch riding high and a decent number of top-name games on the horizon, there was plenty for the Japanese giant to shout about this year.
But what about next year? If there’s one thing we’ve learned in the 13 or so years of running this very site, it’s that people are always looking ahead to the next big thing – we’re not sure when it became the norm to class something that happened just 24 hours ago as “old news”, but here we are.
Well, the dates for E3 2020 have now been firmly locked in. You can expect to enjoy watching the madness unfold from 9th – 11th June (so yep, it’s pretty much the same as it always is) and likely the day or two just before that, too. Will Sony return with its new console? Will Microsoft finally announce that Game Pass is coming to Switch? Will we get our first glimpse at Metroid Prime 4? Who knows?
We’ve shared plenty of round-ups and hands-on articles over the last few days, highlighting the best of this year’s event. We’ll leave just a few of these for you below should you want to relive your favourite moments.
Feature: Playtonic On Switch, Yooka-Laylee And Standing On Its Own Two Feet
A lot has happened since we last had the good fortune to visit Playtonic Games. The previous time we popped by the studio’s offices outside the rural English town of Burton-on-Trent (acclaimed actor Paddy Considine was born and still lives there, fact fans), the team was still in single-digits and occupied a tiny, room. Now, a few years (and one game release) later, and Playtonic has moved to much larger premises on the same industrial park; a sign that the company has grown dramatically since the early days of the Yooka-Laylee Kickstarter.
“We’ve taken another step away from being this really small, niche studio to being a studio which can have grander ambitions and take its time a bit more,” says Gavin Price, Playtonic’s Managing Director and studio Creative Lead. It’s a statement of pride – Playtonic has certainly grown in size and stature, and its team is packed to bursting point with a combination of ex-Rare staffers and talented people from other companies.
However, it could also be seen as an admission that Yooka-Laylee, as beloved as it was and still is, wasn’t the product of a studio working at its full capacity. The game was, lest we forget, produced by tiny team compared to the one currently seen occupying Playtonic’s new and rather spacious offices, and it’s perhaps not fair to take it as the definitive example of what the company can offer; that product is likely to be Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair, Playtonic’s next game and one which demonstrates a team at the very height of its creative powers.
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair sees the evil Capital B – thought to have been banished inside a mysterious book at the end of the last game – rising up to cause more mischief. Unlike the first title, this isn’t a 3D platformer in the style of Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie; instead, it’s a hybrid which skillfully mixes Donkey Kong Country-style 2.5D platforming with an expansive Zelda-like overworld, the latter of which also serves as the ‘hub’ from which you enter the aforementioned side-scrolling stages.
The visuals are absolutely stunning – we’re talking Nintendo-levels of quality here
The aim is to conquer Capital B’s titular Impossible Lair, and as Lane reveals, this can actually be taken on from the beginning of the game. However, doing so is brutally difficult and you’ll want to instead explore the 2D levels to unlock ‘Bee Shields’ which allow you to withstand more punishment in the Impossible Lair (think TV’s The Crystal Maze, but instead of crystals buying you time, they’re buying you stamina).
While many fans may be disappointed that Playtonic has decided to take a step back from the kind of full-3D adventure many of the team was famous for at Rare, there’s a definite feeling that Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair feels more polished and playable than its forerunner. The visuals are absolutely stunning – we’re talking Nintendo-levels of quality here – and the controls are tight and responsive. Price tells us that the shift to 2D wasn’t as easy as some might assume, as everything needs to be tighter and more accurate as a result; there’s no margin for error here, he insists.
However, as good as the platforming levels are, it could be the massive overworld which steals the show. While it’s tempting to compare it to the map in Super Mario 3D World, it’s far more interactive; you can pick up objects, talk with NPCs and solve puzzles to unlock new routes. Perhaps the most tantalising feature is the ability for events in the overworld to directly impact the layouts of the 2D stages; for example, if you unblock a river in one part of the map, it will flow into one of the 2D stages and change the way it looks. If you’re old enough to recall the Block Palaces in Super Mario World on the SNES, this is a similar mechanic – but far bolder.
Had we shipped simultaneously on Switch with the first Yooka-Laylee game, the ratio between the platforms would have been even more in favour of the Switch
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair is shaping up to be quite the game, but for Switch owners, the fact they had to wait for the previous title might cause some concern. Price is quick to point out that it won’t happen again. “There’s been tons of effort, under the hood, put in to make sure that, day one, the Switch version – and all the versions – launch simultaneously and there’s parity across them all,” he says.
Despite shipping much later than the PS4 and Xbox editions, it turns out that the Switch version of the original Yooka-Laylee did very well for Playtonic and publisher Team17. “We’re so pleased with how we were received on Switch,” Price says. “I think, had we shipped simultaneously on Switch with the first Yooka-Laylee game, the ratio between the platforms would have been even more in favour of the Switch.” It’s clear from his explanation that the first Yooka-Laylee shipping later on Switch wasn’t something Playtonic could control itself; a lot of “external factors” were to blame, although Price is too much of a gentleman to go into more detail.
The bottom line is that Playtonic knows it has a receptive audience on Nintendo platforms, and Price is aware that a strong affinity between the studio and Nintendo fans exists. “There’s more of a natural fit between our games and fans of Nintendo,” he explains. “Even though the Switch [version of Yooka-Laylee] came later down the line, it did incredible for us.” It’s encouraging then that with this sequel, Switch owners won’t need to feel like second-class citizens. In fact, Price says that Switch has arguably been the studio’s target platform this time around, even though it’s less powerful than Sony and Microsoft’s hardware.
Playtonic as a studio, as a brand, has got to be its own machine, its own beast
With the strong connection to Rare – which, it should be noted, is a short drive away from Playtonic’s offices – it’s unsurprising that so many fans compare the studio’s output to what many of its staffers have done before on the SNES, N64, GameCube, Xbox and Xbox 360. However, Price insists that Playtonic as a company needs to carve its own niche, and that means stepping away from the past to a degree.
“We do want to do games in styles to what we’ve done in our past, but we’ve also got to stand up on our own two feet,” he adds. “Playtonic as a studio, as a brand, has got to be its own machine, its own beast. So we’ll be looking to try and do a bit of both in a way that makes sense; no more are we going to say ‘we’re doing a spiritual successor to this game we’ve previously done’; everything we do from this point on is a brand-new concept for us, unshackled. But hopefully, there’s plenty of crossover – without us having to say it or try to achieve it – with stuff we’ve done in the past, as well.”
Take On An Isometric Survival Adventure When Distrust Crash-Lands On Switch
Heading to Nintendo Switch next month is Distrust, an isometric survival adventure which looks set to bring a frosty chill to proceedings this summer.
The game follows a group of explorers stranded near an Arctic research station after their helicopter crashes; the team must escape the dangers of the long polar night and find their way to shelter. When they fall asleep, however, they attract a terrifying force that sucks the life out of their bodies, so things aren’t as easy as they might initially seem.
The game makes use of procedural generation, so you’ll never know what’s coming next as you explore, and is said to feature multiple endings for you to uncover. We’ve got a pretty lengthy feature list for you to check out below.
MYSTERIOUS ANOMALIES WAITING IN THE WINGS They come out of nowhere and disappear instantly. They may be faster than light or may crawl slowly till they get near enough to strike. What are they? What do they want?
HE ENDLESS NIGHT AND EXTREME CLIMATE Explore and research the abandoned station, gather and craft the tools and open the supply boxes so you don’t starve from hunger and cold.
PROCEDURAL GENERATION No matter if you stick to a singleplayer or play with a friend in a co-op mode, a randomly generated base turns every new playthrough into a unique adventure.
15 SURVIVORS TO CHOOSE FROM Every character has unique skills and abilities to fit any survival strategy of yours.
AN ABSORBING NARRATION WITH TONS OF PLOT TWISTS AND QUESTS TO COMPLETE What is that force that inhabits the station? Is that an alien from the outer space or a mythical ancient creature from the from the depths of the centuries? Or is that a result of a failed scientific experiment? Survive to learn the answer!
ALTERED PERCEPTION OF REALITY As the explorers try to sleep just enough to stay alive, they slowly go mad and eventually reach the point where they can no longer trust their senses and tell the difference between reality and a hallucination.
The game is set to launch on Switch on 16th July for $11.99.
Do you like the sound of this one? Will you be adding it to your Switch wishlist? Tell us below in the usual place.
Review: Collection of Mana – Expensive, But Ultimately Worth Every Penny
While Square’s Seiken Densetsu series continues to this very day, it’s the two SNES / Super Famicom outings on which the franchise arguably built its enviable reputation. Seiken Densetsu 2 – better known in the west as Secret of Mana – is one of the finest RPGs ever made, while its sequel has only been held back from global acclaim by the fact that it was sadly never localised outside of Japan. That changes with the release of Collection of Mana, the western localisation of the Seiken Densetsu Collection which launched on Switch in 2017 in Japan.
This pack includes the first three titles in the franchise – the 1991 Game Boy original and the aforementioned 16-bit outings – as emulated by the experts at M2, the studio responsible for the Sega Ages 3D series on Switch as well as Konami’s recent Castlevania and Contra Anniversary Collections. The involvement of M2 should be enough to put to rest any fears that this might be a hack-job on Square Enix’s part; the emulation is utterly flawless throughout. Each title includes a music test which allows you to appreciate the gorgeous soundtracks outside of the games themselves, as well as screen filters to ensure you get the best view, either on the Switch’s screen or your television. Save states are also included for those times when you can’t reach an in-game save point, and multiplayer is possible on the second game thanks to those lovely detachable Joy-Con controllers.
The franchise debut – known as Seiken Densetsu in Japan, Final Fantasy Adventure in North America and Mystic Quest in Europe – arrived early in the Game Boy’s life and features enjoyable (if rather lightweight) action RPG mechanics which actually pre-date the likes of Zelda: Link’s Awakening. The visuals are quite basic and the storyline is threadbare – even by early Game Boy standards – but the mixture of real-time action and role-playing stats still clicks, even after all these years. It’s a gentle introduction to the core mechanics of the Mana series, and despite its obvious simplicity compared to what would follow, it certainly has plenty of charm.
Surprisingly, out of the three games presented here, the Game Boy entry is the one with the most screen options; you can play in black and white, with fullscreen and windowed variants, and there’s also a Game Boy Color filter which adds a spot of vibrancy to the visuals. However, the best screen filter, in our opinion, is the one which replicates the lurid green display of the original Game Boy, complete with visible pixels. It’s so convincing we were immediately hit with a strong sense of nostalgia; the only thing missing is the blurriness when objects are moving. Toggling through these screen modes is a simple case of tapping the ZR shoulder trigger, but you can’t change the border artwork or opt for a black surround, which some may find disappointing.
Released in 1993, Secret of Mana is arguably the most famous entry in the franchise, at least outside of Japan; heck, it’s probably the reason you’re so keenly reading this review – if you haven’t already excitedly downloaded the collection, of course. Even today it remains a true 2D masterpiece, with gorgeous visuals and one of the best 16-bit soundtracks ever committed to silicon, courtesy of Hiroki Kikuta. Offering hours of gameplay and some of the most memorable moments in the history of the SNES, it’s a game which surely needs no introduction; it has been re-released numerous times since 1993 (including a smartphone port and a rather divisive remake on PS4) and is one of the games you can play on your Super NES Classic Edition.
While the storyline in Secret of Mana is still pretty basic and there plenty of silly moments (such as your character’s ability to travel over the map by being fired from a cannon), there’s no denying the classic status of this game. Even the rather ropey combat – which is an odd mix of real-time and turn-based mechanics – can’t dent its appeal. During battle, you’re free to move around and swipe at enemies, Zelda-style, but you’ll often find that your attacks don’t register because your enemy is executing their recovery animation. Other times, your attack seems delayed because it has stacked on top of another attack from one of your AI-controlled companions. Add to this the fact that your actions are bound by a recharging gauge (you can attack at any time, but your blows will be weaker without a full charge), and it feels even further away from Zelda’s more immediate gameplay; it’s really not what you could call an elegant combat engine, but it’s not enough to totally sink the game, and the innovative ‘ring’ based menu system still feels fresh, at least.
Speaking of AI companions, one of the big selling points of Secret of Mana was that you could enrol a pair of friends to aid you in your quest. Using a second controller (or, if you had one, a SNES Multitap), up to three people can control the main trio of heroes. This element is neatly replicated here thanks to the Switch’s Joy-Con controllers; no matter where you are in the world, that second Joy-Con can be detached and handed to a pal for some welcome local co-op gameplay. With a massive quest to undertake packed with memorable locations, gorgeous music and a really nice sense of progression via level-ups and enhanced items, Secret of Mana remains a solid-gold classic.
Finally, we have Seiken Densetsu 3 – or, as it now officially titled in the west, Trials of Mana – the 1995 epic which would surely have followed in the esteemed footsteps of its predecessor in terms of global acclaim had it seen release on the SNES back in the day. With improved visuals, multiple playable characters and three different storylines to explore, it’s a truly stunning piece of work – which makes us insanely pleased that it’s finally available in the west in an official capacity. The localisation is great, too – so much so that it makes the English script for the other two games included here look rather poor in comparison.
The impressive ‘Triangle Story’ system means that this positively dwarfs Secret of Mana in terms of sheer scope, and elsewhere Square has improved the game in practically every single way you could imagine. Combat, while similar, has been enhanced dramatically and now flows a lot more smoothly than it did before; instead of waiting for your weapon to recharge after an attack, your blows (which have a degree of auto-targeting) always have the same power; the key difference here is that subsequent attacks fill up a separate gauge which, when full, allows you to execute a more powerful special move. Furthermore, your AI allies are smarter and less inclined to get stuck behind scenery or wander off in the middle of a tense fight.
Visually, this is perhaps one of the finest games to ever grace Nintendo’s 16-bit system, with detailed characters and backgrounds which look like genuine works of art. Kikuta’s soundtrack, too, is sumptuous; while it will naturally lack that all-important pang of nostalgia for those of us who only knew the previous game, there’s no denying that this is top-tier musical artistry; it’s incredible to think this is the work of non-CD console, too. Oddly, there are only two screen options available for Secret of Mana and Trials of Mana – fullscreen and windowed – with the former stretching the image out to give the best view. Personally, we prefer the windowed option. It’s a shame that a CRT scanline option wasn’t included here, especially as it exists in M2’s Konami retro collections.
Conclusion
When you consider how many titles Konami is packing into its Anniversary Collection packages – and that their retail price is almost half what Square Enix is demanding for the three games included here – it’s impossible to not question the value of Collection of Mana. However, there’s no denying the fact that Secret of Mana is one of the finest console RPGs of all time, and even though it’s readily available elsewhere, playing it on Switch is like wrapping yourself up in a warm and familiar blanket; it’s just right somehow. We could argue that Secret of Mana is merely the appetizer for the real star of this collection: Trials of Mana. It’s nothing short of a masterpiece and finally getting the chance to play it officially in English is a landmark moment for SNES and RPG fans alike. Sure, there’s the temptation to wait for the upcoming 3D remake – also confirmed for Switch – but if you’re serious about this genre then it shouldn’t take our recommendation to convince you to part with your hard-earned cash. What you’ve got here are two of the finest examples of the genre, accompanied by a third likeable entry which is also well worth a look. When you consider the many hours of top-notch entertainment on offer, the price is very nearly a steal.
Looking for an open source personal assistant ? Mycroft is allowing you to run an open source service which gives you better control of your data.
Install Mycroft on Fedora
Mycroft is currently not available in the official package collection, but it can be easily installed from the project source. The first step is to download the source from Mycroft’s GitHub repository.
Mycroft is a Python application and the project provides a script that takes care of creating a virtual environment before installing Mycroft and its dependencies.
$ cd mycroft-core $ ./dev_setup.sh
The installation script prompts the user to help him with the installation process. It is recommended to run the stable version and get automatic updates.
When prompted to install locally the Mimic text-to-speech engine, answer No. Since as described in the installation process this can take a long time and Mimic is available as an rpm package in Fedora so it can be installed using dnf.
$ sudo dnf install mimic
Starting Mycroft
After the installation is complete, the Mycroft services can be started using the following script.
$ ./start-mycroft.sh all
In order to start using Mycroft the device running the service needs to be registered. To do that an account is needed and can be created at https://home.mycroft.ai/.
Once the account created, it is possible to add a new device at the following address https://account.mycroft.ai/devices. Adding a new device requires a pairing code that will be spoken to you by your device after starting all the services.
The device is now ready to be used.
Using Mycroft
Mycroft provides a set of skills that are enabled by default or can be downloaded from the Marketplace. To start you can simply ask Mycroft how is doing, or what the weather is.
Hey Mycroft, how are you ?
Hey Mycroft, what's the weather like ?
If you are interested in how things works, the start-mycroft.sh script provides a cli option that lets you interact with the services using the command line. It is also displaying logs which is really useful for debugging.
Mycroft is always trying to learn new skills, and there are many way to help by contributing the Mycroft community.
