Tag Archives: Nintendo Switch 2

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Review

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Metroid Prime fans have been waiting a very long time for this game. We got the first trailer back in 2017 after all and even then it ended up taking another 8 years to come out. After all that waiting you would certainly be expecting an absolutely top tier experience. Well, ultimately I thought it was pretty good but I suppose it would be a bit underwhelming considering all the time that has gone by. It’s a good game but an ordinary one at the same time. You’ll be able to blast through the content and so in the end I would recommend it but definitely keep your expectations at the baseline.

The story starts with a big battle between the Federation and Sylux’s goons. Samus is able to easily overpower him but then gets stranded on a planet along with a few other soldiers. Samus will have to find several teleporter keys as well as a mythical fruit in order to get off this place. Unfortunately it is loaded with powerful monsters everywhere and Sylux is still on the loose. This may finally be a job that Samus cannot complete on her own. Will she be able to trust these other soldiers to help her out or will she be forced to tackle all of the responsibility on her own?

The game puts a lot of stock into Samus being the chosen one, a hero beyond all measure. Honestly I wouldn’t even say that’s a bad thing. She is clearly a cut above the rest and as the various games have shown she is able to incorporate a ton of different dna and special abilities without side effects. In essence she is the ultimate battle soldier and this game does a good job of showing how powerful she is. This can be a double edged sword though. For example, Sylux is never portrayed as being a real threat to her.

Likewise for the rest of the villains. This is clearly an easier battle for her than the last 3 Prime games and the only reason the situation is tough is because getting off the planet will require more than super strength. Her allies help out quite a bit and so that ties the whole adventure together. It just makes this an uphill battle for the villains since they are the ones on the back foot the whole time. They are never even close to making a play.

That being said, I still like Sylux. He gets some good dialogue at the end and has a good design. His boss fights are also fun except the final boss which gets a bit rough. This ties into the gameplay itself. You have to use both joysticks to aim which makes it hard to also shoot. I had to hold the controller in a bit of a weird way in order to land all 3 and it didn’t really feel natural. I think there should have only been one control stick to move and then the rest goes as normal. It felt like they had to nerf the lock on feature here in order to make the final boss more of a challenge.

To be clear, they definitely succeeded. It was a really tough final boss and one that absolutely kept me at the edge of my seat. I died several times there before I was finally able to win. Ironically the first phase is the toughest one while the next two go by very quickly and easily. In general the game is easier than the first 3 Primes but not insultingly so. I would say the difficulty is reasonable enough so long time fans will have a good time.

The main gameplay is still the classic first person style where you can shoot your energy blasts or missiles at the opponents until they go down. You will unlock different elemental attacks as you go forward and will get other kinds of power ups. It’s all pretty familiar if you have played the previous titles. In a lot of ways this one is trying hard to be a total formula game without trying to go beyond that. Fortunately the gameplay is fun enough where you won’t mid the repetition too much but there are some areas where the game isa bit dated.

The biggest example is not having any fast travel. There is a lot of backtracking here and it feels completely unnecessary. You should be able to cover larger chunks of ground without taking so long. Then you also have the green crystal grind at the end. I made sure to hit all the green crystals I could as I went through the game but wouldn’t go out of my way for others either. So then at the end I would do the main grind. It won’t take you longer than 2 hours or so but it just feels like a pointless grind. Why even include it?

The Prime games always have a bit of a collectathon at the end so it felt like this game was just adding one to continue the trend instead of actually getting real hyped for it. Not the best way to go. The desert definitely could have been handled better and the bike would have been more fun if it was faster. It goes by slow enough where that just adds to the tedious nature of it. A rare mistake from Nintendo. So the game had its issues like this but on the whole it was fun.

The collectibles are pretty easy to find with how well the map is labeled. Additionally, the power ups do help to make you feel a lot stronger. The puzzles are much better than in previous games and so for the most part it did feel like Nintendo thought this one through. Just one or wo quick fixes would have done a lot to make the game reach the next stage.

The graphics are definitely real solid. Metroid has never looked sharper and that is something I can say with 0 reservations. I did appreciate that we got more voice acting here. The side characters were all rather weak though. I much preferred the aliens and metahumans from Prime 3. I don’t know why you would go back to normal humans. Still, we got more of a plot than I was expecting even if it would vanish for large portions of time.

The soundtrack is also solid although it doesn’t match the previous games. For example you won’t be hearing anything that launches you out of your seat the way the Dark Samus theme did in the second game. That one is just hard to beat. So it was good all around but like in other areas, Prime 4 was unable to pass the third game here.

Overall, Metroid Prime 4 is a pretty good game. I had a good time with it. The title is fairly short as you will definitely manage to beat it in under 10 hours. Getting all of the collectibles and such will likely take this to around 15 hours or so but even then it won’t be extending things a whole lot. There isn’t a ton of replay value here unless you really like the story. For that reason you may want to wait for a bit of a discount. I’m always glad to see Samus though so hopefully this time the wait for Prime 5 is a lot shorter.

Overall 7/10

Madden 26 Review

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Madden is one of those games that I had been waiting for many years to go back to Nintendo. Back on the Gamecube these games were always so exciting and I got to play them many times. Unfortunately Nintendo and EA had a falling out and these vanished for many years. Well, now for the first time in over 10 years, Madden is back on Nintendo and it’s better than ever. It’s a real blast playing through the game and there’s a ton of content here for you to enjoy. Whether this is your first Madden or you are a veteran, you are bound to have a lot of fun.

I decided to jump right into the online head to head mode because that’s the main incentive of why I got it on the Switch 2 in the first place. I always wanted to be able to fight other people online and not have to worry about a free PS+ weekend. Well, I started off pretty strong and got off to a 8-2 record. Not too shabby considering how long it’s been. I only got to actually finish maybe 2 games tops though as opponents tend to quit midway when they are losing. I get it in that if you know you’re gonna lose, then you may as well hop out but it’s all about your own dignity. You need to see this through to the end as quitting midway is an extremely weak move.

You need to show that you are made of sterner stuff! It’s a bit hard to describe the gameplay but just think of it like actually playing football. You get a fairly good birds eye view of the game and you have your team decide to run or pass. You always play as the player with the ball when you’re on offense and when you’re on defense then you can play as whoever you want. For me it can be a little tough playing defense since I haven’t done that much in years.

When I’m playing offline, I generally pick to go offense only since that side is a lot more fun as it is. When against a real opponent, you are doing everything though. I mainly stuck to the d-line and focused on trying to get a lot of sacks. That’s where I’m the most comfortable at least. On offense, I’ve found that it works really well to run the ball a lot compared to the old days when you would only pass. The way the A.I. has improved means that passing the ball is always going to be a risk unless your guy is wide open.

It’s also why I would say this is a game of reaction times because you have to choose who to throw it to very quickly or you will be absolutely squashed by the incoming defenders. Always have some kind of a gameplan at the ready in order to deal with this. Of course the same is true for running as you want to find a hole and go through that way or you will be stuffed at the line.

Kicking has become a little more difficult in recent years as they’ve tried to make it more realistic. Instead of one meter like the old days you now have to worry about two meters. They have different speeds depending on the difficulty as well as the distance of the kick or punt. It also makes this a game of reaction times and for now I miss more kicks than I make so I really need to work on this. It’ll be fun to improve on it though.

Meanwhile there are plenty of other modes here like offline franchise and minigames. I used to like the minigames a lot on Madden 2004 so it’s fun to see them here as well. To an extent I don’t think the minigames are quite as solid when the game is this realistic but they are still pretty good to go through. I tried out about half of them but then I was ready to go back into the full games. Right now I am at Rank Silver so maybe I can shoot my way to gold with enough wins at some point.

Naturally the graphics are really solid. Yeah they may be better on the PS5 but they are definitely good enough for me. Additionally the soundtrack is solid with a pretty large assortment of tunes in there. Most of the time you’re going to be way too focused to notice much of anything though. When you’re inside of a game, it’s just you and the other team. It’s a big reason why Madden never gets boring even though it comes out every year. The core gameplay is just too good to pass up and you are always guaranteed a dynamic experience.

With online that means every game will always be different. The game has unlimited replay value and now they even have level ups and season tracks to earn rewards. I’m confident that this game will stay fully supported at least until we get Madden 27 so you don’t have to worry about them giving up midway. No, this is definitely a game that is worth every dollar for as long as you’ve got it. I aim to keep on playing this one at least a bit each week to keep my skills fresh and if you don’t have the game yet then you should definitely check it out. It’s a real game changer.

Overall, Madden 26 is a super fun game. Football is the best sport in the world so it’s only fitting that the games match that kind of energy. At this point it’s so lifelike that someone taking a glance might even think you are watching highlights. The attention to detail is scary but most importantly, the sport just lends itself well to being a video game. We’ll see if Madden 27 is able to match up to this one but I can tell you that it will definitely be a real uphill battle.

Overall 9/10

Donkey Kong Bananza Review

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It’s time to look at the new DK game that came out recently. I knew that I needed to get this one as soon as possible because it was really going to put the Switch 2 on the map. There aren’t too many destruction games that come out either so that was another reason to pick it up. I can safely say that this was a really good game as well. Playing through it just feels like a lot of fun and it’s really something that Nintendo is super good at doing. They always bring in that fun factor which is super important to any title.

The game follows a character named DK who works in the mines for bananas. One day a sentient rock shows up and it turns out that her true identity is Pauline. A mysterious group led by a villain named Void Kong are after her. She has some kind of special ability that makes her a big target for these guys and DK agrees to help her get to the planet’s core. There is something there that can grant wishes and her wish is to go home. DK also has a wish, he wants lots of bananas. Together the two of them will dive through the planet and pass a great many number of countries. Will they be able to pull this off?

The game is playing it fast and loose on what exactly is happening here. Why is Pauline a kid and how does this work in the timeline? The answer I like is that this is a hard reboot and is serving as essentially a DK origin story as well as a prequel to Mario Odyssey. It works really well when you look at it that way even if the timeline will still have various questions for you. Ah well, we’re playing more for the gameplay than the story as this is a Nintendo title. DK is not quite as serious as Mario so you can expect DK to be goofing off a lot and getting distracted by bananas. Fortunately Pauline is here to mainly keep him on task.

None of the new villains are all that good but we still get a super good climax regardless. Also while the game is a cakewalk for a good chunk of the adventure, the final boss is legitimately difficult. Not in a cheesy way either but in a very well developed boss battle that forces you to use your various abilities to their full potential. The boss battle certainly took me several tries to defeat and even now I feel like there has to be a better way of dealing damage than what I was doing the whole time. Make sure you don’t slack on your damage upgrades, that’s all I gotta say there.

I do appreciate the skill tree and how many different areas there are to power up. It ensures that you can really be getting a whole lot stronger as you play the game and also makes you prioritize what you are doing. If you really can’t get past a level, you can always go back and earn some more bananas. You should naturally get a whole lot of bananas by beating the game but there are over 700 throughout the game so there are tons of bonus levels and challenges to play to get them all. There are several other kinds of collectibles as well like different buttons and amulets that you can use towards clothes and other items.

The game has an incredible amount of replay value thanks to all of the content. The main campaign is less than 10 hours but the collectibles will likely triple or even 4X that amount by the time you’re done with it. Fortunately the game has a good amount of quality of life features on this, like letting you see the secrets on the map by paying a fee and also giving you a wide range scanner. It ensures that the game won’t feel tedious or anything as you are going through it. Instead, it will remain as a super fun experience the whole time as you go through the game.

The gameplay also lets you feel really powerful since almost anything can be destroyed. You can punch your way through any object and then you unlock various forms with abilities of their own. One of the big ones is the time slow with the snake and you get this near the very end of the game. It really comes in handy and of course flying is really good for skipping some of the puzzles near the end of the game. Use each transformation strategically and you will be just fine.

It’s always fun to run into an old face like Grumpy or Diddy in the game. Look out for the characters when they appear and make sure to say hi. It’ll definitely be worth your while. Meanwhile the graphics are definitely super good. The level designs look really solid and each level is so large. The colors are striking throughout and you’re never confused on what is going on. Then you have the soundtrack which is a lot better than I would have dared hope. The first Bonanza theme is the highlight of the game. I’ve heard it a ton of times and it’s really super great. It’s a catchy theme that gets you right into the action. Pauline definitely had real talent here.

So in the end there are really a lot of things to be happy about within the game and I don’t really have any big negatives. I do think it would have been nice for DK to have been a little more serious when it counted. So as a small issue I would say he was super underwhelming the whole time. Still….it is DK we’re talking about so it’s not like I should be all that surprised. Pauline is one of the few kids I’ve seen in a game like this that was not annoying though so I give her full props here. That can be a tough challenge.

Overall, DK Bonanza is a great game. Nintendo really did a good job with this one and it feels so creative. I would definitely be down for more destruction type games like this one. It is surely a genre that has a ton of potential within it. I’m sure other companies could mess it up but Nintendo just laid out the blueprint. There are no tedious moments, no times where the game gets randomly unbalanced, etc. Every minute you are playing the game is a minute that you are having fun. The controls are super smooth after all and you always feel like you are fully in control. If you don’t have this game yet then you should definitely change that. Nintendo has set the bar rather high here but they’re always a company that continues to climb higher and higher. The game should keep you plenty busy working towards that true ending as well so it won’t be going anywhere.

Overall 8/10

Mario Kart World Review

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Mario Kart is one of those titles that is so famous because you can have unlimited fun with it. It’s the game that keeps on going. Well the new one for the Nintendo Switch was certainly getting a lot of hype. Nintendo was so confident in it that they basically were not coming out with any other titles for the Switch 2. It was this or nothing. Well, after playing the game I can say that it’s pretty good. I’m not going to call it amazing or anything like that but I do think they put in a solid amount of effort here. I can definitely see people playing this one for a very long time yet.

The game doesn’t have a story mode so you’ll probably jump right into the races. You can do the classic cups, knockout races, or jump straight online. I went for the cups first of course and they were definitely fun. The kind of races that you never forget because of the hype graphics and everything. At this point some of the items have been nerfed to the point where they are no longer a huge threat (Blue shell) but it’s still nostalgic to see them. Mario Kart is one of those games that is really easy to pick up and play even if it is hard to master.

A new mechanic in this game is the ability to grind off rails and different objects to get aerial boosts. I’ve seen people do some really crazy stunts with these jumps so it’s safe to say that this may have actually raised the bar for overall technical ability. I’m certainly a rookie when it comes to that so I will need to do a whole lot more training. Still, the online races are so chaotic that you can absolutely win or lose even without knowing the mechanic. With how many racers there are at once, you can even say that it is near pure RNG for the first lap or so.

As with most Mario Kart games, you probably want to stick to 2nd place for most of the race online so you dodge the worst of the items and then rocket your way to 1st at the end. Of course it is much harder to pull off that strategy than it sounds. Misplay your timing and you are basically asking to be crushed. All it takes is one wrong hit and you will fall to 8th or even lower. That is what you really need to watch out for.

As expected the graphics are really quite impressive here. The game looks like a Switch 2 title without a doubt. I enjoy the really big character roster here even if most of the characters are basically palette swaps. Yeah it can be a bit on the lazy side, but as long as it inflates the count then I’m good. We have over 140 characters in the game which is crazy and a lot of people think we will eventually have over 200 with DLC. Now that would really be a sight to see. I’ve unlocked most of them, I’ll definitely go back to get even more once they start releasing new characters. It’s definitely the benefit of being a pick up and play title.

The soundtrack is also pretty good, in fact I would say it’s a bit better than I expected it would be. One of the tracks even sounds like something out of a Sonic game which is real impressive. So Nintendo definitely showed up for this one and I would expect no less considering that this was their big flagship game. There is infinite replay value with the whole online play and everything. You never have to stop racing. I also appreciate that they keep track of some details like your race score online.

The stickers are around here as collectibles but I didn’t think they were all that good. My main problem with the implementation is that you don’t know how many are left before picking them up and additionally you can’t really show them off. We still need something more like a formal leaderboard some day to really get things rolling. The new Free Roam map is fun but definitely missing some key essentials like a map that lets you keep track of everything. The basic map we have now doesn’t do a whole lot of good.

All in all, there’s nothing to really dislike about the game. So you may wonder why it’s not a bit higher? Well, as fun as the game is, it just doesn’t feel like it’s a must play. It doesn’t quite have the style and flash that Sonic Crossworlds represents or the really cool story mode of F Zero. So this one has to rely purely on the racing gameplay which is fun, but inherently not quite as impressive. I would still play this for hours and hours if I didn’t have other games to play but otherwise it definitely tends to hit the shelf a bit quicker. It really needed a good story mode or some kind of feature that would blow you away.

Overall, Mario Kart World is definitely a really fun game. Nintendo did good here as expected. Now technically speaking it’s probably not something you need to buy a whole console for, but considering that you save $30 by getting the bundle, it’s certainly worth it if you ever plan to buy the game eventually. I’ll find myself returning to that game from time to time an right now is probably when the community will be at its best. There’s no rush since people will still be playing the game in droves for years to come but if you enjoy the racing then you should jump in. Allow yourself to be sucked into the hype and enjoy this 2025 Mario experience. It’s certainly taking Nintendo a long while to give us the next big 3D platformer after all. I suppose DK might end up being the next big Switch 2 title in the meantime.

Overall 7/10