Worlds of wizards and magic aren’t uncommon in the gaming world, but a setting as realistic as modern-day Shibuya, Tokyo does add a flavor that makes Reynatis stand out immediately. Flashy modern day outfits, blazing weapons, and flashy skills with fights breaking out on realistic representations of streets we could go and walk today. Reynatis is set in a prefecture bursting with commerce, the towering shopping malls, businesses, and bistros bustle with traffic of consumers and business people alike. Shibuya is the pinnacle of Japan’s fashion industry, boasts an incredible music scene, and the food is absolutely to die for. Also, for whatever reason, it seems to attract wizards.

More: FuRyu, highlight, NIS America, Reynatis, top

Strange moves you never knew Pokemon could learn

Posted on 2 months ago by Ethan in Features, General Nintendo | 0 comments

In the early days of Pokemon – we’re talking back on Game Boy – many Pokemon suffered from incredibly small movepools. For example, Scyther didn’t have access to a single Flying-type move in Red and Blue despite being a half Flying-type itself. Fortunately, the developers have fixed this issue over the years, and now many Pokemon have huge movepools. That being said, certain move decisions are questionable at best. Some Pokemon have access to certain moves that don’t make a ton of sense thematically, and today we’re going over a big list of some of the strangest movepool additions in the Pokemon series.

More: Game Freak, Pokemon

[Interview] Talking Reynatis and more with scenario writer Kazushige Nojima and composer Yoko Shimomura

Posted on 2 months ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Interviews, Switch | 0 comments

Ahead of the launch of Reynatis in the west, we were able to catch up with scenario writer Kazushige Nojima and composer Yoko Shimomura as part of a new interview. The two shared a few words about the action RPG and touched on a few other topics.

For Kazushige Nojima, his previous works includes Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts. Yoko Shimomura also needs no introduction, as she’s had a long history in gaming having been involved with Super Mario RPG, Live A Live, Kingdom Hearts, and Final Fantasy XV – just to name a few.

Here’s our full Reynatis interview:

More: FuRyu, highlight, NIS America, Reynatis, top

Examining each of Nintendo’s launch titles

Posted on 2 months ago by Ethan in Features, General Nintendo | 0 comments

With Nintendo’s next console confirmed to be revealed before March 2025, we thought it’d be a good time to examine something that will be very impactful on whether it succeeds or not: its launch titles. Though launch titles don’t always make or break a console’s success, they definitely play a hand in what happens next. Today, we’re going over all of Nintendo’s strongest and weakest launch titles and how they affected their respective systems.

More: highlight, top

[Let’s Talk] Where does Switch rank among other Nintendo systems?

Posted on 2 months ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Let's Talk, Switch | 0 comments

It’s still wild to think that Switch has been around for well over seven years. If all goes well, it may very well end up as the best-selling gaming device ever. There are many reasons for its success, including its hybrid functionality, quantity and quality of games, and more.

We’re towards the very end of Switch’s lifecycle now, so how are you feeling about it? Where does it personally rank for you compared to other Nintendo systems? Let us know in the comments below.

More: highlight, top

The best and worst Salmon Run rotations possible in Splatoon 3

Posted on 2 months ago by Ethan in Features, Switch | 0 comments

Every few days, a new Salmon Run shift starts in Splatoon 3. Each one includes four different weapons, a different stage, and a different King Salmonids. We’ve already written guides on all of the King Salmonids in Splatoon 3 (you can check them out here), but how can you tell if a given rotation is good or bad? Today, we’re going over what makes a Salmon Run shift “good” – in other words, viable for farming – and what makes a Salmon Run shift “bad”, too.

More: Splatoon 3

The most forgotten Pokemon of all time, ranked

Posted on 2 months ago by Ethan in Features, General Nintendo | 0 comments

The matter of most forgotten Pokemon is always a subjective one. Everybody’s got different favorites, and they say that every single Pokemon is at least one person’s favorite. That being said, some Pokemon are more obscure than others – and there are bound to be instances where a specific Pokemon is the favorite of very few players.

Today, we’re going over a list of some of the most forgotten Pokemon of all time. Do note that we’re actually not including Lumineon on this list – it’s always on “most forgotten Pokemon” lists, and it’s so forgettable that it’s looped around into being memorable for being forgettable (if that makes sense). We’re including Pokemon who really aren’t talked about very much.

More: Game Freak, Pokemon

[Review] Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland

Posted on 2 months ago by Dawn in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments

System: Switch
Release date: September 9, 2024
Developer: Wallride
Publisher: The Mix Games Inc.

Rugrats is one of those cartoons that seems to get better with age. As a child I enjoyed watching the adventures of the babies as they transformed the everyday into something new and exciting, and as an adult I can appreciate the dry humor and now very relatable struggles of their adult parents. Although they have featured prominently in Nickelodeon titles, it has been some time since the Rugrats have had a game to themselves. Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland, their first solo outing for many years, feels like a platformer taken straight out of the era when they were at their most popular, for better and for worse.

More: highlight, Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland, top, Wallride

[Review] Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club

Posted on 3 months ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments

System: Switch
Release date: August 29, 2024
Developer: Mages / Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo

I like it when Nintendo gets weird. It’s usually at about this point in their consoles’ lifespans, well after they’ve sold roughly a bajillion Mario and Zelda titles, when we see them start to resurrect dormant franchises and experiment in genres that other platform holders are ignoring. So, here we are – it’s 2024, and Nintendo decided now is the perfect time to release a new entry in in the Famicom Detective Club series of visual novels, which hasn’t seen a new entry in 27 years. Emio – The Smiling Man has some compelling ideas driving its core mystery about a serial killer with an unsettling modus operandi, and initially, it had hooked. Unfortunately, this story’s lethargic pacing, tedious writing, and general lack of meaningful character development fails to live up to the high bar set by earlier entries in the series.

More: Emio: The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club, highlight, top

[Let’s Talk] What are you playing? – September 2024

Posted on 3 months ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Let's Talk | 0 comments

A new month just started up a few days ago. Now that we’re in September, we want to know what you’ve been playing.

Are you going through some of the releases from the Indie World + Nintendo Direct: Partner Showcase like Castlevania Dominus Collection or Pizza Tower? How about Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club? No matter the case, let us know in the comments below.