“Oh, that’s just mean”.
Mother 3 got a surprise announcement for the Switch Online service yesterday, but the catch is it’s only been confirmed for Japan.
To add to the pain, Nintendo has now released new Switch Online icons based on the Famicom title EarthBound Beginnings. They’ll be available until 28th February 2024, so be sure to redeem them with your Platinum Points while you can.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
We may not be getting a Fallout: New Vegas 2 any time soon, but Obsidian fans still have reason to rejoice! Magic: The Gathering’s next video game crossover will be a set of four Fallout-themed preconstructed decks for its most popular format, Commander – and today we’ve got the full reveal of the “Hail, Caesar” deck.
Led by New Vegas’ menacing Caesar himself (with the dice-rolling Mr. House as an altnerate Commander option), this Red-White-Black deck is full of creature sacrificing, token making, and a thematically fitting amount of Quest counters across its legendary characters. You can see the names and images of all 100 cards in the deck below, as well as some photos of what’s in the box itself and more info about it and the other Fallout decks further down!
Similar to its Warhammer 40,000 crossover, the four Fallout precons are ready to play with right out of the box, with brand new cards unique to this release and existing cards reprinted with new Fallout-themed art. While the cards inside can be picked apart and used in other decks as well, these four are designed as a bit of a set for the four-player Commander format so that any Fallout fans looking to simply use Magic’s game system in their favorite video game world can do so.
Caesar’s deck is built in part around what’s commonly called an “aristocrats” theme, making lots of little creatures and then sacrificing them for other beneficial effects. A sub-theme of the deck is also loosely tied around Quest counters, which have been used in Magic a small amount before, but take on a new meaning when themed after an RPG full of literal quests. Those often show up on iconic legendary creatures in the deck, and this crossover has pulled from every Fallout game stretching back to the very first for inspiration.
Beyond Caesar himself, the other three deck options include a Rad-themed one built around the Mothman, a deck that uses Magic’s Energy mechanic alongside a bunch of artifact cards (including Liberty Prime), and a deck led by the ever-faithful companion Dogmeat, who fittingly digs up scrap for you.
Each of those decks even contains two unique Bobblehead artifacts, all of which have different effects that get more powerful the more Bobbleheads you have out – for example, the Luck Bobblehead in “Hail, Caesar” lets you roll dice to make mana-generating Treasure, but will even cause you to win the game outright if you manage to get enough Bobbleheads (either by copying them in creative ways or mashing the Fallout cards together into a custom deck) and then roll absurdly precisely.
All four of these Fallout decks will officially launch on March 8, though they are available for pre-order right now. Wizards of the Coast is also selling Collector Boosters that give you a chance to open cards from the decks in special Pip-Boy themed art treatments, as well as other cards in Fallout’s signature cartoony style. And if Fallout isn’t your cup of tea, Magic also has upcoming crossovers scheduled for Assassin’s Creed, Final Fantasy, and even Marvel.
Tom Marks is IGN’s Executive Reviews Editor. He loves card games, puzzles, platformers, puzzle-platformers, and lots more.
To hug while we wait for our English localisation.
The Mother Project is launching four brand new Mother 3 plush toys later this year to commemorate the GBA game’s release on Nintendo Switch Online in Japan. (Thanks Wario64!)
Look, it’s not the NSO localisation we wanted, but at least this is something we could import, love, and understand without needing a whole translation or an English script, right? Sigh.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Brie Larson is many things: an Oscar winner, an MCU star, and, perhaps most famously, a gamer.
While that last part is mostly a joke, Larson’s love of games – especially Nintendo games – is well documented. It’s something she’s talked about extensively on her YouTube channel, which she launched by showing off her Animal Crossing: New Horizons island back in 2020. (She admits that it’s been awhile since she’s visited said island, and she’s a little “scared” to check on it now: “I think there’s a lot of passive aggressive neighbors.”)
So, it makes sense that Larson would appear at a Nintendo preview event for the upcoming Princess Peach: Showtime! as a celebrity spokesperson, where she sat down with IGN’s Brian Altano to talk about Peach and her love of games in general. In fact, looking back to when she started gaming, she says those are her “earliest memories.”
“I don’t think there was ever a time I’ve lived without them, like, from a baby,” she says. “There was always a Nintendo console. My earliest memories are trying to figure out games. We had Super Mario, we had Little Mermaid, and we had a volleyball game and Duck Hunt.”
And, even though it’s been awhile since Larson checked on her New Horizons neighbors, she’s long been a fan of Animal Crossing. Recalling some particularly formative gaming memories, the actress says the first game in the series, released on the GameCube in 2001, was the first title that spawned “a lot of desire and competitiveness with my sister.”
“That was the one where my mom actually had to create real rules, like you have to finish your homework and then you can play because we were just so into it, unlike any other game at that time,” she remembers.
As for her favorite game of all time, she used to say The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild took the crown. However, its sequel, Tears of the Kingdom, might take the title, although Larson says she still needs to finish it.
“I’m really taking my time, I’m not trying to blast through it,” she says of Tears of the Kingdom. “I’m putting a lot of time into it because I just love it so much.”
And, like any good Nintendo gamer, she has her Smash Bros. and Mario Kart mains. For the former, it’s usually Zero Suit Samus (fitting, then, that she previously asked Nintendo to cast her as Samus in a movie), while she also dabbles in Kirby and Pikachu. For Mario Kart? Luigi (even if she was “spooked” by Luigi’s Mansion as a child).
Larson made a point, however, to talk about the real star of the hour: Princess Peach. In fact, when we ask what Nintendo character should be the next to get their own game, she playfully pushes back, saying, “That’s all you’re going to talk about? Why won’t we talk about Peach?”
“Peach. Peach 2. Peach 3,” she adds.
When asked if she wants a Princess Peach: Showtime! trilogy, she says, “Of course I do. Yeah. Just to start with. I’m putting that out there.”
“I’m really just rooting for Peach,” she continues. “I’ve watched her my entire life and I always knew that she contained multitudes and she was just waiting a little bit to show us what she had, and now she’s here with her adorable little friend.”
“That’s the thing with games,” she continues. “…It’s just that games are limitless and that’s what I love about them.”
She quickly gets sidetracked, however: “Sorry, I’m just staring into Princess Peach’s eyes. I mean, how can you not love them? She’s magnetic. With her heart bangs? Come on.”
Understandable.
Princess Peach: Showtime! arrives on Nintendo Switch on March 22, 2024.
Alex Stedman is a Senior News Editor with IGN, overseeing entertainment reporting. When she’s not writing or editing, you can find her reading fantasy novels or playing Dungeons & Dragons.
Limited Run Games and Konami team up again.
Limited Run Games and Konami are adding another game to the retro specialists’ Carbon Engine rereleases. This time, it’s the GBA platformer Ninja Five-O (or Ninja Cop, as it’s known in Europe) from Hudson Soft. And yep, it’s coming to Switch later this year.
The game was announced at IGN FanFest 2024 and joins Felix the Cat and Rocket Knight Adventures as part of Konami’s slate of LRG rereleases. Originally released on the GBA in 2003, Ninja Five-O was critically acclaimed back in the day, praised for its excellent platforming and level design. However, the game had a pretty low print run, and if you’re a retro games collector, then you probably know that copies sell for over $300 fairly regularly as a result. Thank goodness for this rerelease then, right?
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Hey Xbox Insiders! We have a new Xbox Update Preview releasing to the Alpha ring today.
It’s important we note that some updates made to these preview OS builds include background improvements that ensure a quality and stable build for Xbox consoles. We will continue to post these release notes, even when the noticeable changes to the UI are minimal or behind the scenes, so you’re aware when updates are coming to your device.
Details can be found below!
Thanks to all the great feedback Xbox Insiders provide and the hard work of Xbox engineers, we are happy to announce the following fixes have been implemented with this build:
Accessibility
System
While known issues may have been listed in previous Xbox Insider Release Notes, they are not being ignored! However, it may take Xbox engineers more time to find a solution. If you experience any of these issues, we ask that you please follow any guidance provided and file feedback with Report a Problem.
Audio
Networking
As always, be sure to use Report a problem to keep us informed of any issues you encounter. We may not be able to respond to everyone, but the data we’ll gather is crucial to finding a resolution.
If you’re an Xbox Insider looking for support, please visit the community subreddit. Official Xbox staff, moderators, and fellow Xbox Insiders are there to help with your concerns.
When posting to the subreddit, please look through the most recent posts to see if your issue has already been posted or addressed. We always recommend adding to existing threads with the same issue before posting a new one. This helps us support you the best we can! Also, don’t forget to use “Report a Problem” before posting – the information shared in both places helps us understand your issue better.
Thank you to every Xbox Insider in the subreddit today and welcome to the community if you’re just joining us! We love that it has become such a friendly and community-driven hub of conversation and support.
For more information regarding the Xbox Insider Program follow us on Twitter. Keep an eye on future Xbox Insider Release Notes for more information regarding your Xbox Update Preview ring!
The post Xbox Insider Release Notes – Alpha (2403.240219-1730) appeared first on Xbox Wire.
Last time, during our special Valentine’s Day experiment, you decided that Doomguy’s pet rabbit, Daisy is better than health pick-ups looking like cartoon hearts. This one was decided by a Brexit-narrow margin, which shows me two things: 1) every vote counts; 2) love truly grows stronger once someone is gone (RIP Daisy). This week, I need you to decide between cheery chat and couturial challenges. What’s better: characters making ‘bdbdbdbdbdi’ noises while talking in text or cosmetics unlocked by challenges?
While everyone has Elden Ring on the mind today with the official unveiling of the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, there’s another FromSoftware title that has fans still hungry for love: Bloodborne. And today, the game’s director finally acknowledged the overwhelming fan demand for a remake…though he stopped short of confirming or denying that one might ever materialize.
In IGN’s own interview with Hidetaka Miyazaki about the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, we asked Miyazaki about the possibility of a Bloodborne remake. But he deflected: “Unfortunately, and I’ve said this in other interviews, it’s not in my place to talk about Bloodborne specifically,” he said. “We simply don’t own the IP at FromSoftware. For me personally, it was a great project, and I have a lot of great memories for that game, but we’re not at liberty to speak to it.”
But Miyazaki shared a few more thoughts with Eurogamer, acknowledging it made him “very happy” to see so many fans passionate about Bloodborne, and suggesting the game would benefit for a release on more modern hardware.
“I think having new hardware is definitely a part of what gives these remakes value,” Miyazaki said. “Things you weren’t able to achieve on previous generations of hardware, ways you weren’t able to render specific expressions – [new hardware] sometimes makes it possible.
“However, I wouldn’t say that’s the be all and end all. I think purely from a user perspective, modern hardware also allows more players to appreciate all the games. And so, it ends up being a simple reason, but as a fellow player, I think that accessibility is important. I think that can be the driving force between bringing an old game to a new platform.”
So that’s it. No promises, no hints of anything in the works, and to hear Miyazaki tell it, the decision isn’t even really up to FromSoftware – it’s entirely on Sony, who owns Bloodborne. In stark contrast, we recently learned that publisher Bandai Namco switched the ownership of its trademark on Elden Ring fully to FromSoftware, meaning the developer now has full control over what to do with that license. It seems highly unlikely Sony would ever do the same for Bloodborne, however.
Bloodborne fans have been desperate for a remake for years now. We gave the game a 9.1/10 when it first launched, but despite critical acclaim and incredible sales success, Bloodborne has remained relegated to PlayStation 4 exclusivity. There’s no dedicated PS5 version, nor is it available on PS5 or other consoles. With other FromSoftware games such as Demon’s Souls and the original Dark Souls getting a remake and numerous ports, respectively, hope has been kept alive. For now, FromSoftware fans will have to be content with the Shadow of the Erdtree DLC, about which we also spoke with Miyazaki at length.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
Find room to squeeze one more nail into the coffin scrawled with “Hopes for Bloodborne on PC”, as the head of developers FromSoftware has suggested that a Bloodborne remake might need to wait on another generation of console hardware.
I’ve been looking back over my news pieces about artificial intelligence tools, generative image software and/or large language models and reflecting that what I really distrust about “AI” is the fact that AI is “the future”. Saying that X thing is the future is de rigueur for technology marketing. It’s something you hear repeatedly from videogames companies in particular, with their sequels and console generations and other chronological fixtures that form an endless staircase towards The New.
