Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week – our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! This week, it’s Game Maker’s Toolkit and Mind Over Magnet mechanics knower, explainer, and designer, Mark Brown! Cheers Mark! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?
Two-point(-and-click) perspective.
Back in 2018, the Switch’s touchscreen functionality made point-and-click games, once best played on PC, much more accessible for console players. In fact, many games on our list of Best Point And Click Adventure Games launched in the hybrid console’s second year – NAIRI: Tower Of Shirin among them. Six years later, Dutch developer HomeBear Studio continues the story with Nairi: Rising Tide. So does it rise to the occasion? Almost.
We’ll elaborate in a moment, but first a quick warning that mild spoilers for Tower Of Shirin lie ahead. The first instalment isn’t a prerequisite; if you haven’t played it or need a recap, Rising Tide has an optional narrative section in which Nairi tells the story of her previous adventure. That said, Tower Of Shirin players will come equipped with advantageous knowledge of the lore.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Double trouble.
We are back, back, back with another edition of Box Art Brawl!
Last time, we matched up two Game Boy covers for the weird Tetris sequel, Hatris, and oh boy was it a close contest! The colourful Japanese design just about clinched it in the end, taking 51% of the vote over North America’s 49%. Talk about a photo finish!
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
“Another patch” is also scheduled.
Vampire Survivors recently rolled out new DLC titled ‘Ode to Castlevania‘ on the Switch. It seems there were some bugs in the initial build, but a patch has now been released addressing some of the problems.
There are some fixes for crashes, respawns, missing unlocks and more. Here’s the full rundown from the official Vampire Survivor’s account:
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
This also includes remakes, remasters and new seasons.
Ahead of the nominees being revealed for ‘The Game Awards’ this year, it seems there’s some debate online about the new eligibility rules.
According to the FAQ on the official website, “expansion packs, new game seasons, DLCs, remakes and remasters” are now eligible to be nominated across “all categories”. This also factors in if the jury deems it “worthy of a nomination” and also considers the overall “newness” of the content, price and value.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Feel the beat in 2025.
Earlier this year, it was announced the team behind the Patapon would be releasing a new rhythm side-scroller roguelike on the Switch in 2025 called Ratatan.
Following the successful Kickstarter, we’ve now got a brand new reveal trailer showcasing a good chunk of gameplay.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
Half-Life 2 just turned 20-years-old, and to celebrate Valve updated the game with some new features. They also produced a documetary in which several of its development team look back on their work on the game and its episodic expansions – including the never-released Episode 3.
The documentary includes in-progress footage of the episode in action for the first time, and it shows an ice gun and a new liquid enemy type.
Half-Life 2 just turned 20 years old, and to celebrate Valve have released an update for their classic first-person shooter. In brief: they’ve recorded developer commentary; they’ve added Steam Workshop support; Episodes One and Two are now part of the package; and there are some bug fixes and new graphics options.
Grab it before the end of the weekend (November 18th at 6pm GMT) and it’s also free to keep on Steam.
The weekend is officially here, and we’ve rounded up the best deals you can find! Discover the best deals for Sunday, November 10, below:
The Samsung S90C is a 2023 model (superseded by the S90D for 2024) and was considered one of the best OLED TVs on the market last year, superior to even the LG C3. The S90C uses Samsung’s proprietary quantum dot (QD) OLED panel. QD OLED panels are brighter than traditional OLED panels without losing the color accuracy, range, and wide-viewing angles that OLEDs are known for. Compared to a traditional LED LCD TV, an OLED TV offers superior image quality, near-infinite blacks, near-infinite contrast ratio, and near-instantaneous response times.
Mario & Luigi: Brothership is the first Mario & Luigi title on Nintendo Switch, acting as the first new entry in the series in over nine years. Developed by Acquire, this is the first 3D entry in the series, with plenty of new mechanics to discover. Join Mario and Luigi on this adventure to reconnect the world of Concordia and set sail to many islands on Shipshape Island!
This weekend at Best Buy, you can save on the ROG Ally Z1 Extreme model, where it’s priced at $499.99. This handheld device is perfect for exploring your Steam library on the go, with PC Game Pass support also easily accessible. If you’re a My Best Buy Plus member, you can save an additional $50 off this deal, scoring the ROG Ally for $449.99.
The recently released Monster Hunter Stories Collection includes both Monster Hunter Stories and Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin. This marks the first time that players can experience the first game with the Japan-exclusive Title Updates, in addition to full voice acting. Jump into the world of Monster Hunter in a new light with this collection!
Metroid Dread was the grand return of 2D Metroid on Nintendo Switch, with developer MercurySteam teaming up with Nintendo EPD to craft the long-awaited next chapter in Samus Aran’s story. Challenging puzzles, fun boss fights, and wide exploration combine to create one of the best games on Nintendo Switch. Don’t miss your chance to pick it up at a discount this weekend.
As part of Best Buy’s early Black Friday sales, you can save $250 off this M2 MacBook Air. With 16GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD storage, this is a very solid option for those looking to either upgrade their current Mac or enter the ecosystem for the first time. This model includes features like TouchID for login, a display capable of up to 500 nits of brightness, and Apple Intelligence support.
Persona 5 Royal is by far one of the most beloved games of the last ten years. With a vibrant cast of characters and impressive narrative, there are well over 100 hours of gameplay here to discover. The turn-based combat system the Persona series is known for feels better than ever, with new mechanics to customize your gameplay the way you like it.
“If the original fans aren’t satisfied, the remake will ultimately be considered a failure”.
Booting up Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake and hearing the Overture — known as Loto / Erdrick’s Theme in Dragon Quest III — played by the Tokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra for the first time, it’s hard not to be washed over by a wave of warmth.
Whether you’ve played DQ III before or not, there’s a real sense of magic, history, and nostalgia that comes with the game. The beautiful HD-2D visuals and the game’s cosy narrative structure lend themselves to a bygone era of classic RPGs, and this remake faithfully recreates that experience over 35 years after the original’s release.
Read the full article on nintendolife.com
