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Yahoo
12 hours ago
- Entertainment
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22 Games We'd Love To See On The Nintendo Switch 2
The original Switch was a trailblazing device that proved you could take console-quality games on the go, but it was demonstrably less powerful than its PlayStation and Xbox competitors. In the years since the handheld hit the shelves, that gap has only grown with the release of the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S. Making up some ground, the Switch 2 is more powerful and runs games like Cyberpunk 2077 that wouldn't have been possible on the original system. So now that we know what is possible, we started thinking about some big games that we'd like to see ported to the Switch 2. Here are a few of our ideas. Assassin's Creed Valhalla seems like the obvious choice for an open-world RPG on the Switch 2, but I'm actually going to go with Odyssey. Developed solely for the PS4 and Xbox One, it might be a bit more technically feasible. Plus, despite Valhalla being a more robust (and certainly longer) game overall, Odyssey's ancient Greek isle hopping is the experience I keep pining for. The protagonists are solid, the combat is decent, and the ship-based exploration gives it an air of adventure missing in some of the other recent Assassin's Creed games. A cloud version of the game actually came to the Switch 1, but only in Japan. Now's the time to fix that. — Ethan Gach There have been rumors that Stellar Blade's PS5 exclusivity (Sony published it, but developer Shift Up owns the IP) might make the jump to the Switch 2. Fuel was certainly added to that fire when the studio bought the new Nintendo console for everyone on staff to celebrate the sci-fi action-adventure's recent success on PC. I don't know if the Switch 2 could really handle the current-gen release, but it would be fun to have it there. The Souls-y combat is more forgiving than other games that play footsie with the genre, and there are tons of collectibles and backtracking perfect for handheld mode. — Ethan Gach Soulslikes have completely taken over on PC and console, but they're still pretty rare on Nintendo's systems. While the Switch 2 is getting Elden Ring later this year, and FromSoftware is working on multiplayer PVP exclusive The Dusk Bloods, the original Dark Souls is the studio's only other game on the platform. Bloodborne is out of the question. Sony can't even get a next-gen upgrade of it for PS5, but Lies of P would be the next best thing. Its Pinocchio-inspired diesel punk world, brutal but imaginative boss fights, and gear system allowing you to mix-and-match crafting components and their respective perks all worked together to create a GOTY-worthy package in 2023. With the new Overture DLC just out, it feels like a great time to see an Ultimate Edition come to Switch 2. Pinocchio. — Ethan Gach If there were ever a game that could make great use of the Switch 2's mouse controls, it's Baldur's Gate 3. I like playing Larian's Dungeons & Dragons RPG on my PS5 as much as the next guy, but having experienced it on both my PC and console, it definitely feels built for mouse and keyboard. The Switch 2 feels like a decent middle ground between both experiences, as being able to scroll around the game's complex menus with my Joy-Con 2 while playing it on my TV sounds like the ideal way to play Baldur's Gate 3. I doubt it would run as well as it does on the other platforms, but we give up pretty graphics for function with the Switch 2, and it's the only system that could even come close to replicating how the game was meant to be played. — Kenneth Shepard Bungie's loot shooter might not run great on the Switch 2 (it sometimes feels like it's barely holding it together on PS5 and Xbox Series X/S), but Destiny 2 could really use some fresh blood, and the Switch 2's mouse controls would be a perfect test case for the sci-fi FPS. The timing couldn't be better either. Does Bungie have the resources to port its increasingly ancient tech stack to a completely new platform? Who knows. But with The Final Shape wrapping up the MMO's 10-year storytelling arc, it would be neat to see an ultimate edition that lets Nintendo fans finally dig into the glories and grind of that big, beautiful universe. — Ethan Gach Red Dead Redemption is already on the Switch, so it just makes sense to bring the bigger sequel to Nintendo's more powerful portable console. While I personally don't want to play an epic western like RDR2 on a tiny Switch 2 screen, I get the desire to take a game like that with you on the go. Heck, over on Steam, RDR2 is regularly one of the most-played Steam Deck games. So there's an audience for it. Plus, the Switch 2 could likely run it just as well as a base Xbox One when you plug your new Nintendo console into its dock. The question now is if Rockstar will actually make this port happen. Considering that we still haven't gotten a PS5/XSX update for Red Dead Redemption 2 after all these years, I'm not confident at all that the company's amazing western will arrive on the Switch 2 anytime soon. – Zack Zwiezen It's easy to forget, but Sea of Thieves began life as an Xbox One game. You can still go play it there! There's no question that the Switch 2 should be capable of running it. Thanks to GameChat, the social features should be straightforward to bring over as well. Wouldn't it be extra neat if you could use webcams to see players' faces over their characters, too? The ship sailing pirate sim remains one of the most underrated MMOs out there, and one of the few crew-based multiplayer games available on console. It came to PS5 last year. Hopefully, Nintendo's platform is next. — Ethan Gach Leading the pack is the remastered collection that I was hoping and pleading would end up on the original Switch when it was released in 2021. Mass Effect: Legendary Edition combines three landmark RPGs into one package and would be an excellent addition to the Switch 2 line-up. This wouldn't be unprecedented for BioWare and EA, as they, for some reason, released Mass Effect 3 as a Wii U launch title. Might as well give Nintendo fans the full experience. Now if only they'd throw in Mass Effect: Andromeda for good measure before the fifth game comes out. — Kenneth Shepard Sometimes it feels like Dragon's Dogma 2 came and went last year, but the game is widely beloved by those who played it, and Capcom brought the original fantasy RPG to the Switch, so why not bring the sequel to the Switch 2? You, too, could experience the jaw-drop moment of the game's second title card on your commute. — Kenneth Shepard Fans are probably hoping for a full remaster of the original three Dragon Age games, but while that sounds like a far-off dream at the moment, I wouldn't be surprised if The Veilguard ended up on the Switch 2 in the near future (well, it seemed possible when I first wrote this in January). Even though none of the previous games have been on a Nintendo platform, it's a decent enough entry point, and who among us doesn't want to take a great RPG party with us wherever we go? — Kenneth Shepard Resident Evil 4 has a long history with Nintendo. The original game launched exclusively on the GameCube and director Shinji Mikami said he would 'disembowel' himself if it ever came to another console. Well, it's launched on about a dozen other platforms since then, but the 2023 remake has only been on half as many. Why not add another to the list, Capcom? — Kenneth Shepard The original Switch has Overwatch 2 and it is not a great version of the game. But the Switch 2 could get an upgrade and include the hero shooter of the moment, running in all its twitchy glory. Marvel Rivals has been such a huge success that it's hard to imagine developer NetEase isn't already trying to get the game onto as many platforms as it can. The Switch 2 might not be the optimal way to play a game like Marvel Rivals which thrives on high framerates and reaction times, but more people playing a competitive game is always a good thing. — Kenneth Shepard Metaphor: ReFantazio and Persona 3 Reload are the kind of RPGs that thrive on handheld, and feel like shoo-ins for eventual Switch 2 ports. I adored playing these long, meticulous social sim RPGs on my PS5, but they would have been much better on my Switch. The long stretches of visual novel-style dialogue are the kind of thing you'd rather not squint at across your living room when you could, instead, read them at arm's length in bed. I'd bet money that we will see one or both of these games on the Switch 2 in its first 12 months. — Kenneth Shepard Remember when people datamined Tango Gameworks' rhythm action game Hi-Fi Rush and found what appeared to be an in-game shirt referencing a Switch version that never came to be? Well, Tango Gameworks is alive, well, and outside of Microsoft's clutches, so this incredible gem of a game should show up on the Switch 2. — Kenneth Shepard The original Switch could certainly have run both The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker HD and Twilight Princess HD remasters since they both launched on the Wii U. I'm here to say they should be on the Switch 2 because they're two of the few Wii U exclusives that never made their way to the original Switch. Just rectify the issue, Nintendo. — Kenneth Shepard If you were to look up 'surefire money-making machine' in the dictionary, you'd find Grand Theft Auto V on the Switch 2 right next to it. Grand Theft Auto VI is supposed to be gracing PS5 and Xbox Series X/S later this year, but if you want to make sure the Nintendo kids don't feel too left out, porting Grand Theft Auto V to another platform seems like a decent compromise. It would sell another bazillion copies, even 12 years after its original launch. — Kenneth Shepard It's surprising that Sparking! Zero, the latest fighting game in the Budokai Tenkaichi subseries, never made its way to Switch. The series has pretty consistently landed on Nintendo's platforms in the past, so Sparking! Zero is an odd outlier. The only reason I can think of is Bandai Namco aiming for an early Switch 2 release date. I'm not one to make bets, especially not two in the same article, but I'm betting again that Sparking! Zero makes an appearance at a Nintendo showcase at some point this year. — Kenneth Shepard Incredible games like the Kingdom Hearts series, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Control are all playable on Switch, kinda: if you've got a fast and stable internet connection, you can play them through the cloud, but it doesn't live up to the experience of playing them natively on other platforms. Maybe with the Switch 2's more powerful hardware, we'll see some of those games make their way to the device in ports that feel as good to play as these games should. — Kenneth Shepard Final Fantasy VII Remake and Rebirth both started out as PlayStation exclusives, but now they're on PC, so they're probably fair game for the Switch 2. Depending on the device's specs, I could see both of those games getting relegated to cloud versions, and I swear that's not a pun on their spikey-haired hero. It just seems like that's Square's go-to approach for games that might be a bit too demanding on Nintendo's system. Think of the groans that would echo throughout the theater when Square announced a Final Fantasy VII Remake: Cloud Version at a press conference! Would the company want that reaction to be associated with the game forever? Or maybe the pun would be too good to pass up as an expensive bit? Anyway, sure, yeah, let's put these games on Switch 2. — Kenneth Shepard Speaking of Final Fantasy, the critically acclaimed MMORPG Final Fantasy XIV would be a great showcase for the apparent mouse controls included in the Switch 2's Joy-Cons. I've tried to play XIV on my PlayStation multiple times and loathe its controller support, so this could be a nice middle ground between the two. And again, more people playing a multiplayer game is always a good thing. — Kenneth Shepard The Diablo games are ideal for handheld play, and Diablo III was great on the original Switch. Diablo II also found its way to the Switch through the Resurrected remaster, so the series has a strong history with the Nintendo console already. Diablo IV feels like another guaranteed Switch 2 port down the line. — Kenneth Shepard Rounding out this list are some of the best Star Wars games on the market. The Jedi games starring Shameless' Cameron Monaghan are good enough to make a certified Star Wars hater pick up a lightsaber. Bring them to the Switch 2, Respawn. They deserve to be played by as many people as possible. — Kenneth ShepardThis is where I'd normally ask what games you'd like to see on the Switch 2, but the powers that be still haven't turned the comments back on, and at this rate, I don't think they're going to. For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Yahoo
26-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Switch 2 Preorders Open To Pure Chaos And More Of The Week's Top Stories
This week saw a few massive happenings in the world of games. First and foremost, after being delayed to allow Nintendo to take stock of the potential impact of President Trump's chaotic implementation of tariffs, the company finally kicked off retail pre-orders for the Switch 2 here in the U.S., and the results were chaotic. People struggling to place orders on sites like Walmart's and Target's encountered all kinds of errors, confusion, and sometimes even cancelation of orders they thought they'd successfully placed. Elsewhere, Bethesda finally released The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered after years of rumors and speculation, and Marvel Rivals support players are going on strike. Read on for these stories and more. Switch 2 preorders went live online at 12:01 a.m. ET and were every bit the mess some fans feared: pages timing out, error messages that weren't real, and email cancelations being received just moments after it seemed like orders had gone through. There must be a better way to do these. Not in time for the Switch 2 launch, unfortunately. - Ethan Gach Read More After many reports, leaks, and rumors, Bethesda officially unveiled The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered. And the $50 remaster is launching today on Xbox Series X/S, Game Pass, PS5, and PC. - Zack Zwiezen Read More Though we've known it's coming for a few days now, today Bethesda showed off its fancy new remaster of 2006's The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and it looks spectacular. It's also out, like, right-friggin-now! If you want to check out the whole reveal, you can do so here. But if you just want to peruse some lovely screenshots we nabbed during the reveal, read on. - Claire Jackson Read More Being a support player in a hero shooter is a thankless job. You keep everyone alive, and then your bad teammates still blame you when they run off and die trying to 1v6 the enemy team. Things have gotten so bad in the eyes of some Marvel Rivals' Strategist mains that a group of them are going on 'strike' by refusing to play the role and instead queueing up to play as tank and damage heroes instead. - Kenneth Shepard Read More After years of rumors, leaks, and speculation, Bethesda has finally confirmed the worst-kept video game industry secret of 2025. Yes, we are getting an Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion remaster. - Zack Zwiezen Read More The worst-kept secret of the year, Bethesda's current-gen remaster of The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, finally shadow-dropped yesterday and the Xbox-360-era open-world RPG has wasted no time in reminding fans why it was such a hit nearly two decades ago. Complete with refreshed graphics, updated gameplay, and cherished memes intact, Oblivion Remastered is already topping Steam charts and taking players on an Unreal Engine 5-made trip down memory lane. - Ethan Gach Read More Switch 2 preorders don't begin in the U.S. until late tonight (12:01 a.m. ET on April 24), but they've already been underway in other parts of the world and even Nintendo has been shocked by the level of demand so far. The company said that, with over 2.2 million fans seeking to preorder a Switch 2 directly from My Nintendo in Japan alone, the demand already 'far exceeds' its ability to fulfill shipments to that country at launch. - Ethan Gach Read More Just an hour after Switch 2 pre-orders went live on April 24 in the United States, Kotaku has spotted over two dozen eBay listings for the upcoming Nintendo console. Some are real. Others are actually people making fake listings to throw off bots and scalpers. - Zack Zwiezen Read More kinjavideo-197541 The 4X strategy sequel just got a ton more highly requested features kinjavideo-197531 It seems like Goofy's son Max is a fan of his dad's multiverse adventure For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
The Latest On How Trump's Tariffs Could Impact The Switch 2 And More Of The Week's Top Stories
This week, all eyes continue to be on the Switch 2, Trump's tariffs, and how the latter could impact the former. With the president putting a 90-day pause on the bulk of his announced tariffs and instead maintaining a 10-percent across-the-board tax, Nintendo is stockpiling consoles in the U.S. in advance of the planned June 5 launch date. In other news, new puzzle game Blue Prince has taken critics by storm, becoming the highest-rated game so far this year, and the developers of No Mercy, a visual-novel-style game with subject matter many find reprehensible, announced that they will be pulling the game from Steam, though they also defended the game in the same announcement. Read on for these stories and more. Switch 2 preorders were originally supposed to go live today but were halted by Nintendo in the U.S. and Canada after President Trump's latest round of tariffs threatened to torpedo its original $450 price. The White House is now suddenly backing off the most extreme import taxes less than a day after they went into effect. Is the Switch 2 in the clear, or will the latest act of brinkmanship just lead to more questions amid the uncertainty? - Ethan Gach Read More The studio behind No Mercy, a recently released 3D visual novel featuring non-consensual sex and incest, has announced that it plans to remove the game entirely from Steam after the game attracted controversy online. Valve pulled the game from the United Kingdom version of Steam after a government official slammed Valve for allowing No Mercy to be sold on the storefront. - Zack Zwiezen Read More Blue Prince is an ingenious first-person adventure about exploring a house and uncovering its tantalizingly unexpected secrets. It's already the highest-rated game of 2025 on Metacritic so far, and it also happens to be hitting Xbox Game Pass and PlayStation Plus the day it comes out. - Ethan Gach Read More The Final Fantasy Universes Beyond set for Magic: The Gathering doesn't drop until June 13, but previously unrevealed cards have already been spotted in the wild after a starter kit seemingly got into someone's hands early. Thanks to the decks inside, fans have now gotten early looks at Steiner from Final Fantasy IX, Barret Wallace from Final Fantasy VII, and a bunch of other favorites from the Square Enix RPG. - Ethan Gach Read More All of the cool stuff revealed in last week's Switch 2 Direct was quickly overshadowed by worries about its higher prices, including $450 for the console and Mario Kart World being Nintendo's first $80 game. Then the company halted pre-orders in the U.S. in the face of unprecedented tariffs that could push prices even higher. Now Nintendo has gone on record to defend those prices and claim tariffs weren't part of the original arithmetic. - Ethan Gach Read More Hollow Knight Fans have been waiting years for the metroidvania's sequel Silksong to appear at a new gaming showcase alongside an actual release date. Last week, the game finally was briefly featured during the Nintendo Direct for Switch 2, but a 2025 launch window wasn't all fans were blessed with. A new screenshot over on Nintendo Japan website offers a new glimpse of a scene we also saw in the original 2019 reveal over six years ago. - Ethan Gach Read More Marathon is Bungie's first new project in over a decade. It feels like a lot is riding on the extraction shooter as the studio behind Halo and Destiny becomes slowly subsumed into the larger PlayStation portfolio. But in the meantime, all we know is Marathon continues to be one of the coolest-looking shooters around and is about to get its big gameplay showcase reveal later this month. - Ethan Gach Read More The Switch 2 is shaping up to be one of the messiest console launches ever in the U.S., at least from Nintendo's point of view. The company's new $450 console is set to come out on June 5, but it's also being forced to navigate a chaotic circus around tariffs that could torpedo the rollout at any moment. Bloomberg now reports that the Mario maker has been diverting Switch 2 shipments to stockpile them in the U.S. before tariffs potentially skyrocket again, but even in the current environment some analysts believe Nintendo would be selling the console at a potential loss. - Ethan Gach Read More On April 2, Nintendo revealed a lot about the Switch 2 via a big Direct. And in the days since that event we've learned more about the Switch 2 via statements from Nintendo, interviews, and more. For example, did you know that Nintendo confirmed Friend Codes are back, or that the Switch 2 carts will taste disgusting? - Zack Zwiezen Read More Big gaming showcases shouldn't just be for major console makers and Geoff Keighley, which is why the team behind Dead Cells' ongoing support, Evil Empire, launched the Triple-i Initiative last year. The event puts the spotlight on smaller projects ahead of Summer Game Fest season and returned this year with updates on a whopping 36 games, including world premieres for a few that look really cool. - Ethan Gach Read More For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Yahoo
15-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
An Amazing Steam Sale, A Major Pokémon Go Development, And More Of The Week's Top News
This week saw Pokémon Go become the property of the Saudi government as Scopely, the mobile game maker owned by Savvy Games Group which itself was founded by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, acquired POGO developer Niantic for the tidy sum of $3.5 billion. In other news, Steam has launched one of its best sales in years, full of massive discounts on great games, and as Battlefield 6 leaks emerge, hype only seems to be increasing for what looks to be a return to the modern combat glory days of the series' most beloved entries. Read on for these stories and more. One of the defining games of the last decade, Pokémon Go, now belongs to the Saudi Arabia government. Mobile game maker Scopely, which is owned by the Saudi royal investment fund, announced its purchase of the hit game along with the rest of Niantic Labs game business for $3.5 billion. The sale comes after the tech company failed to create any more hits on the scale of Pokémon Go. - Ethan Gach Read More Right now some of the best games available on Steam, including Undertale, Doom (2016), and Spiritfarer are all on sale for incredibly cheap prices. Combine that with Steam's annual Spring Sale and you have a recipe for some fantastic discounts. - Zack Zwiezen Read More ZA/UM Studio, the entity which at one point released Disco Elysium, a critically acclaimed detective RPG about navigating the ruins of capitalism and solving a murder, has finally revealed its next game nearly six years later. Instead of Disco Elysium 2, it's a spy RPG still mostly shrouded in secrecy called Project[C4], and one big question facing it is whether it will bear any resemblance to the studio's previous work after years of internal upheaval and tumult. - Ethan Gach Read More The next Battlefield game—referred to unofficially as Battlefield 6—is currently holding an early beta and despite players having to sign an NDA to participate, footage has leaked online. Encouragingly, the reactions are overwhelmingly positive as players seem excited about new features, details, and the return to the modern combat seen in past entries. - Zack Zwiezen Read More Another month, another bunch of games is joining the catalogs for PlayStation Plus' Extra and Premium tiers. This time around, fans of arcades, punching people, 2D platformers, and retro robot warfare should all be very excited. - Zack Zwiezen Read More Occasionally the stars align and a once-in-a-generation group of creatives come together to make something spectacular and ahead of its time. That's how Chrono Trigger was made, an RPG for the SNES that came out 30 years ago this week and still blows me away. Playing it was a formative gaming moment for me and one I'm grateful to have experienced firsthand. - Ethan Gach Read More Hunts in Monster Hunter Wilds can take anywhere from 10 minutes to half an hour depending on the level of difficulty and how geared up the player is. But a recent discovery makes it technically possible to clear a hunt in just two seconds. Fans are having fun with the exploit despite it not actually saving them any time. Let me explain. - Ethan Gach Read More The long-rumored Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion remake, which Kotaku confirmed was real in January, reportedly might be announced very soon and could launch as early as next month. - Zack Zwiezen Read More The Dungeons & Dragons community is extremely skeptical of generative AI, and publisher Wizards of the Coast has come under fire in the past for using AI art in material for its games. But the CEO in charge of the D&D and Magic: The Gathering maker continues to sound like he's all in on the technology, recently calling himself 'an AI bull' and speculating about how it could be used for D&D subscription services. - Ethan Gach Read More Earlier this week, a Mountain Dew collector shared some sad news with the Mountain Dew subreddit: A huge chunk of his collection of sodas was ruined by a single leaky can. After he shared photos depicting the aftermath of the leak, which damaged a wall and destroyed 60 cans of Mountain Dew Thrashed Apple, a discontinued and sought-after variant, I reached out to the collector about the situation. - Zack Zwiezen Read More For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Kotaku Weekend Guide: 3 Great Games Keeping Us Grounded
Next week is a big one. Assassin's Creed Shadows launches on the heels of new reporting that Ubisoft is looking to spin off the franchise into a standalone company backed by Chinese conglomerate NetEase. The 2025 Game Developers Conference kicks off in San Francisco with talks from people behind some of the biggest hits and blockbusters. And the first day of spring officially arrives less than two weeks ahead of the Nintendo Direct for the Switch 2, which some analysts think will cost over $400 and ship in June. Before all that arrives, we'll be taking a breath this weekend and spending time with these great games, which range from new indies to older gems. Play it on: Xbox Series X/S, PC Goal: Take down Boss_Wallducker. I like boomer shooters just fine, but Mullet Madjack has me hooked in a way other games in the subgenre rarely have. Originally released last year on PC, the arcade FPS roguelite just hit Xbox Game Pass this week and is scratching my 3D Hotline Miami itch (happy 10-year anniversary to that game's sequel, by the way). While the shooting is snappy and the weapon upgrades are neat, it's the hyper-stylized art and fun level design that's kept me entranced. The premise is simple enough—save a minor internet celebrity from robber baron robots in a futuristic world that feels like The Matrix huffing neon glitter glue—but it's a perfectly alienated fit for the sicko event horizon our online culture currently finds itself sucked into. Never has a game met the moment with a vibe so pure (and engagingly deranged). — Ethan Gach Play it on: PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC Goal: Brew a decent cup of tea. I'm excited to try Wanderstop, the new game about, as its Steam page puts it, 'change and tea,' for a few reasons. One is that it's the first game from Ivy Road, a studio founded by Davey Wreden. Wreden previously created The Stanley Parable and The Beginner's Guide, both highly original games that were fully committed to their own distinctive visions. On the surface, in the trailers that I've seen, Wanderstop looks like it could be a fairly conventional 'cozy game,' another chill, low-key release in which you soak up the pleasant vibes while running a business of some kind—in this case, a tea shop. However, given Wreden's involvement, I suspect there's more to Wanderstop than that, and that sooner or later the game's gonna throw me a curveball. Which is what I want! I want to be surprised, caught off guard, to have my expectations undermined. The other reason I'm excited is that I've seen the game receive a pretty wide range of critical reactions, from lukewarm praise to enthusiastic raves. (I haven't read these reviews yet because I want to go into the game knowing as little as possible, but it's clear to me that there's a good assortment of opinions on it out there.) I believe that most games should receive a much wider range of critical reactions than they do, but given that mainstream game criticism sadly still tends overwhelmingly toward consensus, when a game does receive a decent spread of critical responses I tend to sit up and take notice, because it inevitably means that the game is doing something interesting. It doesn't mean that I'll love it; it just means that even if I don't like it, I'll probably at least think it failed in an interesting way, and I'd typically much rather play a game that tries something distinctive and doesn't quite come together than a game that plays it safe and succeeds. Of course, it's also possible that I will end up loving Wanderstop. I intend to find out one way or the other this weekend. But right now, this moment before I've even started it, is sometimes one of the best parts: to be on the cusp of beginning a new game, and not having any clue of just what to expect. — Carolyn Petit Play it on: 3DS Goal: Remember where everything is in Kalos Pokémon's sixth generation has always been a weird one for me. I love the lore of the Kalos region and the Mega Evolutions battle gimmick, but despite that, I've never gone back to the 3DS games after all these years. With Pokémon Legends: Z-A coming out this year, however, it feels like the right time to return to my old copy of Pokémon Y and refresh myself on what came before. Game Freak was definitely still getting used to making games in 3D with X and Y, and as a result, a lot of the visual character the Pokémon had exuded in earlier games was drained from them in favor of mostly pretty lifeless 3D models. Back when the games came out, it still felt like a huge deal to finally see Pokémon in 3D on a handheld, but despite this visual shift, X and Y were a breaking point for me as I finally grew tired of the original Pokémon formula. Today, Pokémon Y is a relic of a bygone era in a series that has started to think outside the box in recent years, which makes it kinda quaint to go back to after games like Legends: Arceus and Scarlet/Violet have taken some pretty big leaps. That said, the simplicity of old Pokémon still has its charms. If I'm going back to reacquaint myself with Kalos, I'd rather not have something dense and cumbersome. It's fine! It's pleasant! I can't complain too much about hanging out with my Raichu in a place we haven't visited in a decade. — Kenneth Shepard For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
