Showing posts with label Nintendo Switch. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nintendo Switch. Show all posts

Thursday, April 21, 2022

Buying Nintendo Games Digitally from the Nintendo e-Shop

April 21, 2022 0 Comments

Besides buying physical game carts, if you want it digital and possibly cheaper (during sales), you should get your digital games directly from the Nintendo e-Shop.  The region which you set in your Nintendo Account is the e-Shop which you have access to. 


[More about Nintendo Account Region]


How to buy games from the US e-Shop 

This is suitable for players who do  not have a region e-shop (e.g. Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand etc...). If you have PayPal set up or a credit card, it easy to purchase from the US e-Shop.

For the US e-shop, you will be prompted for a zip code; be sure to select a state that doesn’t have sales tax. 

Here are some codes you can use:
  • 97330 – Corvallis, Oregon
  • 03222 – New Hampshire, Bristol
  • 97222 – Milwaukie, Oregon
  • 97116 – Forest Grove, Oregon
  • 97080 – Portland, Oregon
Note: This is only valid for users outside of the Americas region. US citizens need to use their original states for tax obligations.

When there are sales, it can be more affordable to get some games digitally. The only downside is you cannot resell the game once you have completed it or if you find that you don't like it. And you need to have enough storage so buying an external SD card is a must if you plan on getting ma=ostly or may games digitally. Like the physical  game carts, you can get gold coins to offset your next digital purchase. 

I was able to get Mario Rabbits Kingdom Battle Gold Edition for less than USD$20, which was SGD$21.02 after conversion. The physical game cartridge without the DLC goes for around SGD$35-40 for a brand new game cart, and around SGD$25-30 if it is 2nd hand.

To stay updated on the latest sales or drop in prices on games, you can set up price alert on Deku Deals. Deku Deals tracks the prices of Nintendo Switch games on the e-Shop and at major retailers in order to find the best deals.






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Sunday, April 10, 2022

Nintendo Switch Game Region (Physical Game Cartridges)

April 10, 2022 0 Comments
For physical cartridges, it is easy to tell the regions they are from as the region will be printed on the cartridge code and case.

Here is a list of codes:
  • USA: North America
  • EUR: Europe
  • JPN: Japan
  • AUS: Australia
  • CHT: China / Hong Kong / Taiwan
  • KOR: Korea
  • ASI: Asia

You can also tell by the ratings system displayed in the lower-left corner of the game box cover art insert.

  • USA: E for Everyone, T for Teen, M for Mature, etc.
  • PAL: Green label with the number 3-7, Yellow label the number 12-16, Red label with the number 18, etc.
  • JPN: Cero A, Cero B, etc.
  • KOR: 12, 15, etc.

For those of us living in South East Asia, Maxsoft and Convergent are our official distributors. They are the ones who import the games from Nintendo. The covers are for the MDE(Middle East Region) are basically the US carts with the E rating on the front but a slightly different back cover (with the MDE one mentioning the Middle East Region). The game cart itself is indistinguishable from the US one as it is the same -USA. Of course, you would still be able to get other covers as games from other regions are also imported (or you could just buy it online).

Fun Fact: Did you know that the spine title alignment for EUR and USA are different?

USA versions are more aesthetically aligned while EUR versions are centralised.
Sometimes physical game cartridges are cheaper when there are sales, and for those of us familiar with Amazon, Shopee and Lazada, they do have pretty good sales from time to time. 
 
If you want it a little more affordable, because let’s admit it Nintendo games are not exactly cheap, you can get them second hand come Carousell or Facebook Marketplace for slightly less then retail price. However, prices hardly drop much for Nintendo games, so you may manage to get a good deal for second-hand games or you might have better luck with brand new ones.

Do remember to do your research before buying, especially if the price is too good to be true. If the retail price is around S$69.90 or on the e-Shop USD$59.99, and you see it going for less than 1/3 of the price do check if they are selling second-hand physical cartridges or a digital version of the game. If it is a digital version, then it’s against Nintendo’s terms and conditions.

One advantage owning a physical game cartridge is that when you are done with it or are no longer interested in playing you could always resell it off on the second-hand market. 
 
As mentioned earlier, the prices for pre-loved games do not drop that much so the loss is minimal and you can use the monies to fund your next gaming adventure.


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Monday, April 4, 2022

Nintendo Account Region

April 04, 2022 0 Comments
When you are setting up your Nintendo Switch you would be promoted to create a user profile and link it to a Nintendo Account. You can set up your Nintendo Account via the console or your good old computer browser.

This is when you link it to an email account and set up the region to allow you to buy digital games and get the online subscription etc…
 


When prompted to key in your region, please select one of the regions previously displayed when choosing your Console Region (e.g. America, Europe, Japan etc). You can also choose another region (that your console states). For example, if you Switch console region was set to Korea, you can select America for your Nintendo Account region. It’s best to select a region which Nintendo has e-Shops for.
  • The Americas (America)
  • Europe
  • Australia / New Zealand
  • Japan
  • Hong Kong / Taiwan / South Korea

Why you might ask? Well that’s because choosing a region on your Nintendo Account affects your Nintendo e-Shop access: the e-Shop only recognizes a select few regions and sometimes the cities and states located in these regions. For example, if you select “Singapore” or “Malaysia”, you will get an error message saying “Nintendo eShop is currently not available in your country/region”.
 
Different country e-Shops have different promotions at different times, if you want to leverage that advantage, you should create a new Nintendo Account for each country's e-Shop to keep track and manage your digital purchase. You can also switch your Nintendo Account to another region / country, but the downside would be any Gold Points, funds or credits that you have in that account would be void once your region is changed.
 
Do note that the currency and language might also be country specific as well: if Japan was your selected region the currency will be Yen, and the games will be Japan region games and entirely in Japanese.

It might be also good to know that there are times when certain games have DLC packs (additional content) that are region locked, meaning if you have a Europe Region game, you would have need to go the Europe e-Shop store to purchase the DLC packs. If you purchased it from the US e-shop or another region, it might not work. So always do your research before buying DLC content. Splatoon is one such example.
 
But freight not, mainline Nintendo published games such as Mario, Zelda, Pokemon etc… tend to have DLC that is region free, meaning that if you have a game (digital or physical) in the Europe Region, and you see a good sale for DLCs on the US e-shop you can go ahead and purchase it.
 
How do you check which regions are supported? All you need to do is press the “plus”/+ button when selecting your software, go to “Software Information” and click on “Support Information”. For most games, supported regions for that software will be displayed here.
 
Of course, if you are unsure or note that tech-savvy, it’s best and much easier to just stick with your game region when getting an DLC to save yourself the hassle.




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Thursday, March 24, 2022

Nintendo Switch Console Region

March 24, 2022 0 Comments
There are many regions for the Nintendo Switch and it might get confusing at times on the regions and setting up your Switch and Nintendo account, both of which work hand in hand but yet independent of each other. Confused? Read on…

This is the first thing you will see when setting up your Switch. It will prompt you to set up a region for your console. There are a few regions to select from:
  1. The Americas (America)
  2. Europe
  3. Australia / New Zealand
  4. Japan
  5. Hong Kong / Taiwan / South Korea

If you haven’t noticed by now, if you are not in any of the above-mentioned regions then you can pretty much choose any region you want. For example, choosing “The Americas” for example, will set your Nintendo Switch Console region to America. If you feel later that you want to change your console region you can do it anytime you want.



The region that you select for you console does not have to match the region as your game. Yes, there are regions for games, but not to worry they are not region locked. You can still pop in a Japan or Europe game cartridge and play on your console which was set to America.


So what exactly is the point of the region setting? It’s mostly for in-game data and may affect the language choices available. It doesn’t restrict you from playing any game!

If you want to know how to set up your Switch for the first time (be it a Gen 1/2, OLED or Lite), you can refer to this which pretty much sums it up nicely with screenshots to follow.





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Nintendo Switch News: Update 14.0.0

March 24, 2022 0 Comments
Nintendo

If you have a lot of games on your Nintendo Switch and wanted a way to organize them, you can do it with the latest 14.0.0 version update. This updates comes with a “group” function which allows players to create up to 100 folders or groups. 

Each of these folders, which are called Groups, can hold up to 200 games. Individual games can also be simultaneously accommodated in several groups. The only thing you can't do? Having groups within a group. So if you wanted to create sub groups in a group, sorry but maybe next time. 


The new feature can be found on your Nintendo Switch dashboard by selecting “All Software”. 

Press the L button to view the titles in groups.

  1. If no folders have been created yet, a pop-up window will appear allowing you to create a new group. 
  2. All the games that should be in the folder have to be selected. 
  3. The selected titles can be sorted in the group as you wish. 
  4. Give the new folder a name. 

Note: New groups cannot be displayed on the Nintendo Switch home screen. They are only displayed as soon as you are in the new group menu.


Besides the folder addition, volume setting for Bluetooth devices has also been improved and increased. The volume can now be adjusted either via the Nintendo Switch as usual, or via the volume control on your audio device which has to support AVRCP profiles.

The update should happen automatically, but id it doesn't happen you can always start it manually via the system settings.
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Monday, March 21, 2022

Pokemon for a Newbie

March 21, 2022 0 Comments

If you like to collect cute little critters, fight them occasionally to level them up and evolve them with a simple storyline like with no major plot twists like your daily soap drama, welcome to the world of Pokemon!

There are plenty of versions from Pokemon Go and Pokemon Unite on your mobile phone, to the Let’s Go (Eevee / Pickachu), Sword / Shield, Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl and the latest Legends of Arceus.


If you want to follow all the different regions and history, that’s cool but if you’re like me who knew nothing about Pokemon except Pickchu then all that matters when playing is having fun.

 There are 18 different types of Pokemon and each of them has its own individual strengths and weakness. And let’s not even go with the dual typing of Pokemon, and the hundreds of different variations there are. There are cute looking Pokemon and the not so cute looking ones. 

Check out this table below for the various types, along with their strengths and weaknesses.

If you are just starting out and not competitive or anything, there’s no real need to memorize or study the different types that or their strengths and weaknesses. You can learn along the way at your own pace. 

It’s a game targeted at kids primarily so it’s not that hard. Some of it can be common sense. For example, a Water Type Pokemon would have an advantage over Ground, Rock and Fire Types, and a Fire Type is strong against Bug, Grass, Ice  and Steel Types.

 

Objective

The main objective for Pokemon has always been to catch them all and completing the Pokedex, which is similar to an Encyclopedia or sorts, where some professor will be research for the betterment of the Pokemon World. 

Catching and fighting Pokemon helps to level up the Pokemon on your team (those which you catch use in the game). There are also boxes where you can keep your forgotten other Pokemon, which can be used for trades or alternated with your team throughout the game. There’s berry picking and cooking for your Pokemon too.

Once you are all done with catching Pokemon for your Pokedex, or even while you are taking a break from catching and training your team, you fight in game trainers to get badges and money to allow you to handle higher level Pokemon. 

You can also breed them to create your own nursery or be competitive and try to win every online battle with trainers around the world. You might even be lucky enough to find Shiny Pokemon (just a rare and different colored Pokemon). There’s a little piece of something for everyone so you won’t get bored playing.

Playing a Pokemon game on Nintendo Switch is non-stressing too, fights are turn-based so controls are simple (no continuously pressing multiple different buttons to get a particular move). Navigation is also was and you can always revisit an area to see if you’ve missed anything or discover some potions and moves lying around on the ground. Who doesn’t love freebies?

Speaking of freebies, in games like Sword / Shield and Brilliant Diamond / Shining Pearl, there is an Online Mystery Gift option where there will be occasional freebies like status, clothes or Pokemon. If you are thinking if you should try playing, I would say go for it and enjoy the ride. 

If you are afraid you might not like it, there is always the option of getting it physically second hand or selling the physical game cartridge away when you are done with it and no longer want to play.

Have you played a Pokemon game? 
If no, would you want to pick it up? 
If yes, which is your favorite Pokemon game? 
Let me know in the comments below!

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Friday, March 18, 2022

Mario Rabbids: Kingdom Battle Gold Edition + Donkey Kong Adventure DLC Review

March 18, 2022 0 Comments
This game was on sale on the e-shop so needless to say I got it.. and I love it! I went into it not really knowing what to expect but Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle is a hidden gem with full of surprises. It’s a turn-based tactics gameplay where you figure out the tactical puzzles of chaining together as many stringed attacks in the least amount of moves possible. It’s oddly satisfying seeing the enemies getting beaten up Mario and Rabbid style.


When you first open up the game it starts with a bizarre story that brings Ubisoft’s Rabbids into the Mushroom Kingdom of Nintendo’s Mario due to a technical accident. A mysterious programmer has designed a VR helmet capable of merging two objects together. 

While said programmer is away for a while, a group of time-traveling Rabbids in a washing machine arrive and snags the VR helmet before finding themselves in the Mushroom Kingdom of Mario. One of the Rabbids decide to don the helmet and begins merging everything it lays its eyes on. This literally mashes both worlds together: Rabbid combined with a piranha plant, one dressed like Luigi and another like Donkey Kong etc…

Most of the altered Rabbids are unhinged and troublesome, while hose dressed as heroes join forces with Mario to stop the chaos from spreading. It’s your job to undo the damage done by defeating the enemies and setting the world right again.

You have quite few characters to choose from which includes both normal and only vaguely related Rabbid-ized versions of Mario, Luigi, Peach, and Yoshi. You can only have 3 on you team at each time though.


With the right mash up of members in your team you get to be entertaining with the antics and humor the Rabbis bring into the game. Your chosen team members can do jump manoeuvres to launch a them across the map with the help of a squadmate, allowing them to reach adorably colorful sniper towers with ease.

The story is delivered through the dialogue of a friendly AI who is there to guide and help you, along with various familiar faces you come across such a Toad. The storyline is simple to follow though, and the game is easy to navigate with its simple presentation and a clean UI help to demonstrate the game concepts such as the combat mechanics, minor character customization and some basic puzzle solving.

Each time you level up, you get coins which you can use to purchase new weapons (use laser guns, hammers, and bombs) and also unlock new skills such as special abilities to maximize movement and damage. There are unique skill trees for all 10 playable heroes. You also get new enemy types constantly being added so it never gets boring doing the same moves repeatedly.

Besides finding Rabbids gone bad and conquering them, you can also indulge in simple puzzles, which involve flipping switches and pushing boxes, scattered throughout the Mushroom Kingdom, designed to break up the action between battles. I use the word “simple” but not all puzzles are straightforward, and you would have to use your brain quite a bit to it solved. The satisfaction is being able to move on in the story, unlock another character, weapon or item chests with collectables (often with music tracks and concept art).

There are also collectibles and some hidden challenge rooms, you can also explore the different sections with visual easter eggs, usually of Rabbids in various states of shenanigans which add life to the game.

Mario + Rabbids does an excellent job making the boss fights stand out: be it a giant Rabbid Kong who scarfs bananas to restore his health or a Phantom of the Opera parody who sings a hell of a song while you knock out the spotlights that sustain his ego, it never fails to make these battles unique and interesting. There are also minibosses (or “midbosses”) as it insists on calling them) which tend to be harder than the boss fights but equal in goofiness and fun.

Donkey Kong DLC

That’s just the Mario Rabbit Kingdom content. The Donkey Kong DLC is even more entertaining as you get different moves in a different world, and adds more hours to gameplay.

As you may have guessed, the gameplay is very much centered around Donkey Kong himself, but there’s so much more. The stages are entirely built and designed around the way in which Donkey Kong can be used, bringing with it a whole new way to strategize and organize team-based attacks. I enjoyed this a bite more than the Mario Rabbit Kingdom content.

This Donkey Kong world is split into 4 new areas, each with their own unique themes such as ‘Lagoon’ and ‘Jungle’. Although they are not as visually varied as the main game, they do have a new Donkey Kong twist that adds yet another layer of fun and love to proceedings.



Verdict

Overall, Mario Rabbids: Kingdom Battle is a very engaging and entertaining game that makes you work out your brain and have fun at the same time without the violence and gore of a typical tactical combat game; all at your own pace. There are some levels which might be tougher and involve some trial-and-error tries, but a good mix of enemies, objectives, weapon and character abilities keep things interesting. Some might find the Rabbids a tad too childish and irritating, but I find them adorable!

Additionally, the Donkey Kong Adventure DLC adds something fresh. It’s not as daunting as the main game, and there are some truly powerful characters often making short work of the slightly-lessened enemy onslaught. The lack of character selection is perhaps the only downside here, as it takes away some of the deeper strategy involved in the main game.


Controls for this game is also simple: press A to select / confirm something, the ZL/ZR to switch between your team, L/R buttons to select an action etc… There’s no need to simultaneously click on multiple buttons, something which might get daunting for new players.

While this game might be everyone’s taste if you are interested to get your own copy, I highly recommend stalking the Nintendo e-shop for their sales and getting the digital version for less than USD$20. It’s a steal since it contains 2 worlds (with the DLC) for you to try out your strategy thinking skills with adorable characters. Otherwise, you could consider getting the physical game for about S$39.90 without the DLC, or choose it get it via the e-shop at a later date. 




Have you played Mario Rabbids: Kingdom Battle? If yes, did you like it, and if no, are you planning to get it or why would you not be getting it? Let us know in the comments below!

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Tuesday, March 15, 2022

Starting the Gaming Journey with Nintendo Switch

March 15, 2022 0 Comments


The journey began with Animal Crossing New Horizons and the Nintendo Switch Lite. It expanded from just 3 games to 29 games in one year: Fitness Boxing 2, Pokemon Snap, Pokemon Shield, Pokemon Unite, Mario Odessey, Mario Origami King, Mario Rabbids, Just Dance 2021, Overcooked 2, Toki Tori etc….

If you haven’t guessed it by now, I enjoy games that are “friendly”, and easy to play and follow through. Easy in the sense that the mechanics and gameplay are easy to follow through: the animals, I mean Pokemon just faint and not die when you beat them and you take turns to fight, my Animal Crossing neighbors do not die of starvation if I haven’t visited them in a long while, and you don’t have to stress much about reaching a game objective. After all one plays to enjoy the process and relax, not get stressed out playing (some games do that to you)… or maybe that’s just me.

So what is the Nintendo Switch? It is a hybrid video game console, consisting of a console unit, a dock, and two Joy-Con controllers. Although it is a hybrid console, Nintendo classifies it as "a home console that you can take with you on the go".



You get the best of both worlds – when you want to play on a big screen or when you just want to laze in bed or play when you are out.

When playing on the big screen, you can invite friends over or have a family game night where everyone focuses on the same screen and plays together. Many multiplayer Switch games, such as Just Dance, support up to four players, while others like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate even support up to eight players.

For the portability part of it, the Switch has two removable oy-Cons, which, when turned sideways, become their own controllers. How neat is that! This makes it easy to hand over one of the Joy-Cons a friend when you are out on-the-go or at-home for some multiplayer fun (think Mario Kart 8).

The detachable Joy-Cons

Besides portability, the price is more friendly on the wallet than the Xbox or Playstation, and the Nintendo exclusives such as Pokemon and the Mario games (just to name a few) are fun to play (in a non-bloody kinda way). 

Of course if you want an even more budget friendly option and you don’t fancy playing on a big screen (at times), then the Nintendo Switch Lite might be the one for you. Or if you want better graphics while playing on the go, then the Nintendo OLED might be something which would interest you instead. It doesn’t make much difference when you are playing it docked to the TV, but apparently the graphics with that OLED screen are amazing when you are playing on the go.

Tip: If you want to get a Nintendo Switch / Lite / OLED cheaper do check out the double date sales or any sales for that matter. Shopee and Lazada are 2 good places to look at, where you can stack vouchers with bank card promotions and/or Shop vouchers. I managed to get my Nintendo Switch for less than S$350.


[S$431.00](▼10%)[Nintendo]Nintendo Switch OLED Console (White/Neon) Bundle/Standalone - 1 Year Local Warranty (Ready Stock)

WWW.QOO10.SG

Which is your favorite gaming device? 


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