Of the games I’ve played, I’d pick Majora’s Mask. The reduced size and linearity combines well with the time mechanic and forced repetition. I don’t agree that the BotW/TotK map was too large, though. The “emptiness” was kind of the point of those games. The space allows you to appreciate the little things like grass swaying in the wind or the distant sounds of animals.

Here’s a non-AI generated version of this story back from 2010 when it was actually news.

I watched the ‘Melchior the Apothecary’ trilogy over three nights. I was surprised at how great the sets, costumes and sound design were. It seems like they shot these films within a relatively short period and on a reasonably low budget, but I thought they looked and sounded great and that helped connect me to the world and the characters which, again somewhat surprisingly, really paid off in the final film. All three are around the 90 minute mark, but don’t feel rushed (although I think they all could have benefitted from a slight extension to the runtime). The mysteries are passable but nothing special - actually I’d say they’re probably one of the weaker aspects of the films. However, if you enjoy historical dramas or medieval settings then I think you’d really enjoy these three films like I did. I’d like to read the novels they are based on, but unfortunately it doesn’t seem like many have been translated from the original Estonian to English.

And I’d call it creepy rather than scary.

I found the first portion of the film set in Transylvania very scary. Honestly I think it peaked around then and the rest of the film, although still good, never got close to reaching those heights.

I don’t tolerate it at all, to be honest. I think it’s a complete joke how acceptable blatant phone addiction has become in society; a third of my sessions at the cinema have people using phones during the film now. There is no such thing as “watching in the background” - you’re either watching it or you’re not watching it. You can put a film on in the background but don’t tell me you watched it, because you didn’t. It’s such a widespread problem now that there has even been debate about whether some modern writers are instructed to dumb down their dialogue so that people who refuse to look up from their dopanime injector can follow the basic plot.

if you watch it, don’t doomscroll at the same time.

It’s sad that you actually felt the need to tell people this in a movies community. What a time we live in.

I guess I will need to rewatch 2049 again (I’ve only seen it once, in the cinema at release). I’ve watched the original quite a few times since though and I’m increasingly of the opinion that it’s quite overrated and gets heavily carried by the visuals and the soundtrack, so I could see a case being made for the sequel being better.

I made it a bit further but also gave up. I guess I wasn’t particularly interested in a Nolan biographical feature to begin with (I feel he is better suited to fiction), but it definitely felt like one of his most self-fellating efforts yet. Sort of just confrationally different for the sake of being different. I bet his fanboys ate it up, though.

What did you think of it? I’ve been planning to watch it for ages based purely on the hype, but it’s not the type of genre I’d usually go for so I’m not sure whether I’ll enjoy it.

How did you feel about the opening 45 minutes or whatever it was? The constant time skips, loud music in every scene, etc?

The Wii U also suffered from it’s weak library of games, though. Yes, you could argue that was partially due to Nintendo pivoting away from it earlier due to the slow start which was, in part, caused by the confusion over the naming and marketing…but if Nintendo commits to the Switch 2 and releases more bangers from big franchises it will be a long-term success. The “gimmicks” of the Switch are the best assortion and implementation the company has ever delivered and it has an amazing library of games. There is no reason why the Switch 2 can’t deliver in those same areas (it already will with the retention of motion controls and portability).

Football Manager 2024 (the PC version). I’m curious if anyone here has played the Switch version.

I don’t pre-order anything really but I always buy the games on release without any second thoughts. Xenoblade Chronicles, The Legend of Zelda and Professor Layton are the three series where I am always super confident I’ll enjoy the latest installment.

The exclusive games will need to be really good if a design like this is to sell well. Otherwise they are heading for another Wii U situation.

Being able to play co-op and the single player storyline at the same time is so cool. It’s something I always wanted in the series; the ability to enjoy everything with friends without losing any of the single player features. I played Scarlet/Violet with my girlfriend at launch and it was a very fun way to enjoy the game with her whilst also being able to play at my own pace. But unfortunately the visuals really annoyed her and she lost interest. It’s just not that fun exploring a world as barren and ugly as the one in Scarlet/Violet.

About KC: D, I agree with you, but that’s a problem with most RPGs, you are either a “cozy” game, or there’s doom and gloom going on.

I kind of disagree, I think it’s definitely possible to write a mainline story in a way that it allows for downtime for exploration and/or side quests. Cyberpunk 2077’s quests often have breaks where you need to wait for an NPC to contact you or you are required to meet them at a time and place that allows for some flexibility. Even just in terms of the way dialogue is written, you can have a quest assigner ask you to meet them in a certain spot when you’re ready with a warning that you shouldn’t take too long, rather than just instantly progressing the quest. I think Kingdom Come: Deliverance actually did this at some points, where characters would meet you at a different location if you took too long to join them for the journey there. There are ways around it through clever writing, though obviously most RPG’s will also have urgent moments where it doesn’t make sense to wander off.

Is that the first one? I had the exact same problem with the campaigns and never finished them.

I don’t know about uninspired, Scarlet/Violet is a great game at its core. It’s just a shame that it was so obviously rushed and the resulting technical imperfections overshadow the gameplay for many.

I think it’s awesome that game is actually playable on Switch. The port looks pretty good too, all things considered. Hopefully it meant a ton of people who wouldn’t otherwise have played it got to experience (what I consider) one of the best RPGs of the last decade.

NEW LAYTON