Cliff Notes – Which video games have you bought multiple times
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Ōkami’s Endurance: A player expresses frustration over never completing Ōkami despite owning it on multiple platforms, highlighting its enduring appeal and challenging gameplay.
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Nintendo Direct Reactions: The recent Nintendo Direct received mixed reviews, with some players disappointed by the lack of new content and clarity regarding game versions for the upcoming Switch 2.
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Physical vs. Digital Media: Discussions around the practicality of Game-Key Cards for the Switch 2 reveal concerns about storage and pricing, suggesting a shift in how players perceive physical media in the gaming landscape.
Ōkami HD – one of many different versions (Capcom)
The Monday letters page gives its verdict on Friday’s Nintendo Direct, as one reader is pleased Switch 2 modders are being sued.
Forever unbeaten
RE: Ōkami. I started playing it again and I have never completed it, although I still class it as one of my favourite games (which is crazy). I have it on the PlayStation 2, Wii, PlayStation 4, and Switch and I have the DS spinoff game as well! I won’t include Marvel Vs. Capcom 3.
I have always been stuck at the sunken ship and never gone back. I think in your original review you said how it should have ended at the boss battle with the main villain (hydra thing) but it just carried on.
I think Resident 4 is the only other game that I own on multiple formats, although at least I have finished Resident Evil 4.
Simon
Only maybe
I don’t like the look of that motorbike in Metroid Prime 4 at all but Danganronpa 2×2 looks good. I wasn’t interested in what looked like a straight port (the main three games are already on the Switch 1 anyway) until I saw the extra story mode – I will keep an eye on that, as if it is a genuine new chunk of story and not just a couple of extra chapters then I will be picking that up.
Overall, not a very interesting Direct.
Simon
Expert, exclusive gaming analysis
Third time’s the charm
Having already purchased the Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection for the Switch 1, I have pre-ordered Mario Galaxy 2 for the Switch 2, but not Super Mario Galaxy 1.
However, I am now wondering if the Mario 3D All-Stars version of Super Mario Galaxy 1 and the new Switch 2 versions are completely different versions/SKUs? I had assumed they were the same and the Super Mario Galaxy 1 would be updated on release, so did not pre-order it.
Now that I think they are different, and I would need to re-re-re-buy it for the upgraded Switch 2, if you include the Wii version I owned previously. If so, I will then have to pay a premium as I didn’t order the bundle, unless I cancel my pre-order which is a bit of a faff!
It wasn’t clear on the Nintendo eShop or on the direct, now I think I have stuffed up. I mean, it was a good game but not that good. But I know I will order it anyway – can you provide any clarity?
Geoff
GC: The implication is that it’s definitely a different version, but it still doesn’t sound like they’re changing it much. So while it’ll probably be the definitive edition, if you can’t cancel your pre-order you’re probably not missing out that much.
Come back later
I’ve been playing through some of my indie backlog before I get stuck into Hollow Knight: Silksong. As they are leaving PS Plus soon, I prioritised playing Road 96, Night In The Woods, and The Plucky Squire. I really enjoyed Road 96, with its unique approach to storytelling, and Night In The Woods was pretty good until its ridiculous ending, but surprisingly my favourite was The Plucky Squire.
I know you weren’t fans at the time, but I found it utterly charming! The graphics are obviously beautiful, emulating storybook artwork and lettering perfectly. The characters were all endearing, especially Thrash the heavy metal troll and the famous artist-inspired inhabitants of Artia. Some of the puzzles were really quite clever and used the ability to control the storybook well. The combat was probably the weakest part, but even that worked well enough and had some fun minigame battles thrown in to mix things up.
Interestingly, I played the updated Streamlined version with less dialogue and hand-holding. From what I’ve read this vastly improves the game. It’s a shame the developers didn’t have this mode on initial release; the game might have had a better reception. Playing games on release isn’t really the optimum time to play these days. With bugs being fixed, general gameplay improvements and new added content/modes it seems wise to wait. It already seems to have paid off for me with Silksong and its difficulty adjustments.
Ryan O’D
The sensible option
I wasn’t overly keen on Game-Key Cards when they were announced but they make a bit more sense to me following the (excellent) port of Star Wars Outlaws. One of the developers who worked on the Snowdrop engine, which Outlaws uses, stated that Switch 2 cartridges aren’t fast enough to handle data streaming at the same level as PlayStation 6/Xbox Series X/S console’s SSDs.
So the options open to developers are to completely redesign their games for Switch 2, just so they can run fully from the cartridge (and maybe with some further compromises to asset loading), or have the games run from the internal storage/microSD Express. The latter method will always require a game install, so I guess in that sense a cartridge makes a bit less sense unless people really wanted to pay more for the privilege of being able to install Ver 1.0 of a game fully offline?
I’m a big fan of physical media but if it’s not saving internal storage space on Switch 2 and is significantly higher priced than the digital or Game-Key Card version, it’d become a bit less appealing. In that case having effectively a sellable digital download on a cheap, low capacity, cartridge seems like a reasonable compromise.
Magnumstache
Starting from scratch
Nintendo announced Metroid Prime 4 around 10 years ago and I’m afraid it really does show. The graphics genuinely do look like they could be running on a Wii U console and the motorbike sections look like something off Metroid: Other M.
Why don’t Nintendo just give Zelda: Ocarina Of Time the modern remake it deserves with state of the art graphics? I genuinely would buy a Switch 2 for that game alone assuming it was done well.
Adams6Legend
GC: The current version of Metroid Prime 4 was started in 2019, when the Switch 1 had already been out for several years.
Dreams can come true
I prayed for this and it happened. I said on Thursday that this was my impossible dream and it’s come true. A remake of Fatal Frame 2. I won’t lie, I was praying for the first game more than anything. That’s basically my dream wish. To see the first game on handheld is literally my biggest fantasy. I do actually own the second game on PlayStation 2, so I’ll be buying it twice or thrice by the looks of it.
Isn’t it funny? I assumed the teaser of the next mainline Zelda had more of a chance than Nintendo mentioning Fatal Frame. The opposite has happened. If there is a possible opportunity for the third and first title to be remade and a chance for me to own the first three games on handheld, I’d be over the moon. I’m so buying this when it releases.
In other news, Metroid Prime 4 finally has a release date. December 4th. I’ll be buying it. Hyrule Warriors: Age Of Imprisonment looks great. It releases a month before Metroid Prime 4. I’ll pick it up. I’m ecstatic to see Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 being ported to Switch. There’s also the Super Mario Galaxy movie in April 2026. Since the first movie wasn’t great, supposedly, I’ll keep my expectations low.
Kirby doesn’t need a second Direct, but we have it anyway. The show closer wasn’t Persona 6. It’s Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave. A bit disappointing to say the least, but I guess the fans are glad for it. I’ve never played Fire Emblem, so I’m kind of alien to the franchise. Overall, Fatal Frame 2 was my favourite highlight of the Direct. But if I had to rate the entire showcase. I’d score it a 6/10.
Shahzaib Sadiq
PS: Animal Crossing was excluded, that’s unfortunate.
GC: Most people would consider the second game to be the best of the franchise, which is no doubt why they went with that entry. Since it may not even be out this decade, a teaser for the next mainline Zelda is likely several years away.
Magic is real
So there has been some trademark shenaniganry in regards to a Mario Galaxy movie
I don’t imagine it’ll lead to a Mario Galaxy 3, as much as I’d love one, but there will likely be re-releases of the first two games, if only to remind us all about its world/characters, etc…
I actually played through the first in January and boy oh boy, that game has aged better than Paul Rudd.
I’d love to have Galaxy 2 for Switch 2 and I’m sending before the Direct, so hopefully I’ve invoked some Inbox magic.
As far as the potential film goes, I’m not particularly hopeful it will be good but if nothing else it’ll have a great soundtrack.
ANON
Not good, not bad
So, for me the Nintendo Direct was, OK. I put it as better than other recent similar from Microsoft or Sony.
Highlights for me:
Metroid Prime 4 – just yay, getting it.
Super Mario Bros. Wonder Nintendo Switch 2 Edition – will get me back onto it after so nearly 100%ing it. Pending a Switch 1 to 2 upgrade, because I am not paying full price again.
Mario Tennis Faver – I did like the previous versions, so interests me (but maybe not enough for £60/70).
Super Mario Galaxy 1 and 2 – very divisive for me, absolutely love them, but have both of them on the Wii (looks perfectly good on the Wii U at 1080p output) and Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection on Switch, so buying it might be a miss for me.
Yoshi And The Mysterious Book – my wife loves a new Yoshi game, so buying. I sort of coasted through the last few alongside her, one of my fave games ever is Yoshi’s Island, but they seem to have become walking/collecting games since (Yoshi’s Woolly World was OK).
Donkey Kong Bananza DLC – bought it as soon as I saw it, but can’t use it as I haven’t clocked it or got to the right level.
Virtual Boy – absolute total highlight, best announcement ever, for ‘what in the world was someone on when they even thought of it?!’ But I have a Nintendo Switch Online sub, so I might get the cheapo cardboard one for random (but a bit rubbish) nostalgia.
Within those thoughts, I am finding increasing prices are making me think twice about buying.
For a question, given the price hike in games in general (alongside everything else). Do GC reviews take account of the game cost? I know the commentary does, but more the overall score.
Example, a good game that costs £20 might be an 8/10. If it costs £60, maybe could be down to a 5/10?
Some sort of barometer, roughly like:
£60 – 4/10
£40 – 6/10
£20 – 8/10
£10 – 9/10
10/10 is a sacred score at any price. And it won’t apply to all games, as a really bad game is a bad game at whatever price.
Si Zero
GC: We do take price into consideration, but it has to be a pretty extreme issue to have an impact on the score. Oddly enough the Donkey Bananza DLC is one of those cases.
Inbox also-rans
I am always on edge and tenterhooks when a Nintendo Direct is announced, not because of the hope for a new F-Zero or Super Mario Galaxy 2 remake but I know you will be using the Mario curtain photo.
I find it rather unsettling gives me Psycho vibes.
ThePowerFeeling (PSN ID)
GC: We love that photo.
That Nintendo Direct was really bad. How did they manage to keep it going for so long and the only thing of interest was 30 seconds of Metroid Prime 4!
Winston
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