Switch Weekly - Despite bugs, Pokemon sets records

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Issue #‍309 | November 27, 2022 · The F-Zero future we never got...

Hey, issue #309 of Switch Weekly here with your update on everything Nintendo.

So a week on from the launch of the new Pokemon titles and we know two things: yes, the performance issues are bad, and no, it doesn't seem to have hurt things, as the game has sold like crazy. There's plenty of links and follow-up on this in the issue below.

Next week there's around ~25 games coming to the Switch, I've marked a few I like the look of, so be sure to check them out.

That's all from me. Catch you next week.

Cheers,
Chris ✌️

🎮 Currently Playing: The Gunk (Xbox)

▶ Pokémon Scarlet & Violet — Incredibly poor visuals and performance — Digital Foundry's usual tech review highlights the "comprehensive technical failures with a litany of issues" found in these latest games.

Digital Foundry // YouTube

Pokémon Scarlet & Violet sell 10M copies in spite of performance complaints — Absolutely gargantuan launch. This is now biggest game launch ever in Japan.

Nicole Carpenter // Polygon

Unhappy Scarlet & Violet players claim mixed results requesting refunds

Tom Ivan // VGC

Pokemon is never going to get better if we keep on buying it — With 10 million sales already in the bag "the incentive to pump out yet another half-baked generation remains".

Jade King // The Gamer

30 changes we'd like to see in the next Pokémon Scarlet & Violet update

Kate Gray // Nintendo Life

Nintendo’s Shigeru Miyamoto – what we owe the most influential game designer

Keza MacDonald // The Guardian

▶ F-Zero's future: What happened — A neat look at what could have been, including a potential F-Zero project for the Switch. Still waiting on a GX HD port with online....

Did You Know Gaming // YouTube

REVIEW 'Milk inside a bag of milk inside a bag of milk' and 'Milk outside a bag of milk outside a bag of milk' — These two games "provide a hanuting look at mental illness" handling the topic with deft.

Kevin Cassidy // GoNintendo

REVIEW Donut Dodo

Bobby Jack // Superjump

Missing in action - What happened to these Switch games? — Prime 4, Silksong, Advance Wars, and others...

Kate Gray // Nintendo Life

What happened to Sonic’s roll? — Rolling up and down and all around slopes was core to Sonic’s gameplay, but somewhere along the way, the move went missing.

Brandon Johnson // Superjump

A Pokémon Champion's quest to master the unmasterable

Chris Tapsell // Eurogamer

The 30 best couch co-op games for Nintendo Switch

Nicole Clark // Polygon

🎮 Upcoming Releases

All releases are digital, Europe & U.S. unless otherwise stated.
Release data sourced in collaboration with Switch Scores.

⭐️ = Ones to Watch · 📦 = Physical release · 🎮 = Demo available

Mon

28

⭐️ Soccer Story — A delightful looking physics-driven adventure RPG, where every problem can be solved with your trusty magic ball. (Nov 29 in U.S.)

Tue

29

⭐️ The Knight Witch — A spellcasting Metroidvania 'without barriers', mixing shooting and deckbuilding. Devs previously worked on RiME, Moonlighter, and PvZ.

Wed

30

⭐️ Astronite — A black and white 1bit sci-fi metroidvania.
Elevator Action Returns: S-Tribute — 2D side-scrolling shooter game by Taito from 1995. This version is a reproduction of the home console version released in '97.
⭐️ Front Mission 1st: Remake — A remake of the tactical role-playing game from 1995.
Megalan 11 — Sci-fi exploration-puzzle game. Rescuers have only eleven days to get out of a trap on an abandoned planet.
Tomomi — A lighthearted 2D Metroidvania side-scrolling action game with massive bosses.
Until the Last Plane — WWII aerial sim.
Warp Drive — A pretty cool looking 3D futuristic racer with a teleportation mechanic. (Dec 1 in U.S.)

Thu

1

Donut Dodo — A light-hearted arcade game with Donkey Kong vibes.
Grisaia Phantom Trigger 07 — Visual novel that you can play with one hand *blinks*. M for mature.
⭐️ Inscryption — A "card-based odyssey" that blends a deckbuilding roguelike, with escape-room style puzzles, and psychological horror. M for mature.
Japanese Escape Games: The Room Without Doors — Solve riddles and escape.
Lover Pretend — Otome game.
⭐️ Papetura — A two-hour point-and-click with a lovely, unique hand made paper look that has to be seen.
⭐️ Railbound — I love the visual style of this train-based puzzler.
Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song - Remastered — A remaster of the remake of this Square RPG.
Sakura Succubus 6 — Romance visual novel. M for mature.
Sword of the Vagrant — Hand-painted fantasy 2D RPG.
⭐️ The Outbound Ghost — Help ghosts ascend to the afterlife in this adventure RPG (with Paper Mario vibes).
⭐️ Work from Home — A co-op party game for four about slacking off behind your bosses back.

Fri

2

Intrepid Izzy — 2D platformer meets beat'em up adventure.
Siralim Ultimate — Monster catching dungeon RPG.
Super Kiwi 64 — 90s style low poly 3D platformer/collect-a-thon.

Sat

3

Cyborg Invasion Shooter 3: Savior of the World — A 3D shooter/runner action game with nine levels.

⚡️ Quick Links

Golf is being added to Nintendo Switch Sports tomorrow (Monday 28).
Sakurai hints "it sure would be nice" to play Kid Icarus: Uprising on console.
The Outbound Ghost (mentioned above) launches next week, looks delightful.
This awesome accessory turns your Switch into a portable purple GameCube.
Takaya Inamura (who worked on Star Fox and F-Zero) has a new 16-bit-style sci-fi adventure heading to Switch.
Wanna go out of bounds in Splatoon 3? The latest Boundary Break has got you.
The NX was the codename for Switch. Here's a look at the early boot-up animation / logo Nintendo used during development of the hybrid console.
25 years on, composer David Wise talks Diddy Kong Racing.
Sony: "Microsoft wants PlayStation to become like Nintendo".
Sony will remove Shovelware from the PlayStation Store — maybe Nintendo should take note.
Nintendo sure isn't happy about Switch emulation on Steam Deck.

💸 eShop Bargains

Here's a quick list of some current offers on the Nintendo eShop that caught our eye. Price tracking is provided via Family Gaming Database.

Defunct — ~86% discount.
Snake Pass — 85% discount.
PixelJunk Monsters 2 — 85% discount.
The Gardens Between — 80% discount.

Looking for more? Family Gaming Database has a full list of the Switch games that are on sale right now.

💌 Switch Weekly remains both accessible and sustainable thanks to the ongoing support of my amazing patrons, including:

PC, CapnGoat, SB, FrozenTrout, JR, MindFad, Greg, Michael Fairley, Chris D, Andrew E, Pobble, TomNinetyTwo, and others — why not join them?

Curated by Chris Brandrick

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Switch Weekly - Despite bugs, Pokemon sets records

🎮 Upcoming Releases

⚡️ Quick Links

💸 eShop Bargains

Older messages

Pokemon bugs (not that type)

Your Nintendo Update

Bayonetta 3 stands defiant in its absurdity

Mario + Rabbids Spark Joy

Bayonetta's low-ball row

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