Epic Games is releasing Fortnite on Nintendo Switch… PHYSICALLY! For $30. As if having a custom console bundle with Nintendo for the holidays was not enough, they feel the need to get on even more store shelves. This one doesn’t quite add up, especially for the consumer!
“Exit the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Christmas
YouTuber Given a Switch by his Audience!
We did it. We banded together in secret and set Simeon up with his own Nintendo Switch. Simeon is a faithful YouTuber who has been creating Nintendo content for years, day in and day out. But 2017 hasn’t been easy on him and he hasn’t been able to afford his own Switch console. We thought that was wrong; as someone who reports on the latest Nintendo news, we thought Simeon deserved the latest and greatest. That’s why TBC viewers from all over the world pooled their funds to buy him a surprise package including the console, games, and accessories. A sincere thanks to all of those who have supported Simeon (and Scott) over the years. The Crew is the best.
“Exit the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Game Giving Gift Guide
Christmas is nearly upon us! I’m not sure where you live, but the Two Button Crew homebase is covered in snow and ice. It’s a good thing we have the Holidays to look forward to: quality time spent with family and friends, along with the exchanging of gifts.
Before you dash out the door to go Christmas shopping for your friend, make sure you’ve got the right game-plan in place!
Do!
1. Get something you can enjoy together.
You can give something more valuable than your money or another possession this Christmas; an experience. Your time is worth more than anything you could put in wrapping paper. Try to find a game that can instantly be started up and played together – especially cooperatively! This is how memories are made that can last a lifetime.
2. Go in as a group.
There is power in numbers. Sometimes, the best way to get your bestie something special is to gather a bunch of friends and pool your money. Instead of 4 separate games, maybe you give 1 console and make it a Christmas to remember! Or with your combined resources, maybe you can plan a PAX or Comic-Con trip for your lucky friend and cover everything. Together, you can expand your creativity and buy something more substantial.
3. Consider an accessory.
Your friend might be the kind of person who buys all the games they want. It can be difficult to shop for that person. But don’t forget about accessories! These “nice-to-have” upgrades like a carrying case, extra battery pack, console skin, or even an extra controller can help your friend get a lot more mileage out of the games and hardware they already have. Accessories don’t seen essential, so they can be hard to buy for yourself. But as a gift, they suddenly feel invaluable!
4. Ask them what they want.
Enough guess-work! Everyone has a Christmas wish-list, whether it’s on paper or simply unspoken. Ditch the risk of spending money on something that they don’t truly want by hearing it straight from the horse’s mouth… what would they like to receive? It isn’t lame to order something right off of your pal’s list; how happy would you be to get just what you want?
Don’t!
1. Don’t find the cheapest deal available.
I’ve been guilty of swooping down upon a deal. Retailers are all trying to offload their product as soon as Thanksgiving Day rolls around, so you’re going to see some pretty cheap games, guides, and gaming goodies galore.
Don’t fall for it! It’s a trap. It’s the easy way out. Besides, it’s on sale. If your friend really wants it, they’ll pick it up.
2. Don’t buy them a game you already have.
Yeah yeah, you have awesome taste in games. You buy the most exciting, most fun titles. That doesn’t mean you should look at your collection and get your friend one step closer to matching it. The reason is simple: you can lend that stuff out. Instead of allowing things collect dust on your shelf, let a friend borrow some games and get them something unique.
3. Don’t get them to finally try something.
You’ve been telling your buddy to try this new game; just to try it! But they’re not easy to convince. Christmas seems like the perfect opportunity to push them over the ledge and provide them with that sweet new experience.
I wouldn’t do this. Speaking from experience, there’s probably a good reason that friend has been reluctant to take your advice. They haven’t sprung for the new game because it just looks like it’s not for them.
Oh well—you tried! Instead, give a gift that they’re more interested in.
4. Don’t give them store credit.
Sure, everybody likes money… but it’s not exciting to open. It’s definitely not personal, and might suggest that you don’t know the recipient well enough. That’s not what you want to communicate on Christmas. Besides, the value on the eShop card is obvious and apparent, placing a pricetag on your friendship.
Got the Four ‘Do’s and Four ‘Don’t’s of the Game Giving Gift Guide?
Good! Go and give some great games.
Best Nintendo Christmas Present Reactions
Fun exercise for the day: Decide which children depicted in the videos you would adopt into your family.
Ah, Christmas. The most wonderful time of the year. We’re just a few days away from Nintendo fans all over the globe, tearing into neatly wrapped packages of NES Classic Editions, amiibo, and 3DS consoles. Before that time we’d like to take a few moments and reflect on the past, when some of the most excitable kids in existence received their own Nintendo gifts that left an unforgettable mark on history. We have these children to thank for entertaining us with their over-the-top displays of joy and gratitude. Let’s get in the Christmas spirit and eagerly anticipate the joy that Nintendo gifts bring!
Shot by Alex Campbell
“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Gamer Gift Guide: ThinkGeek 2016
Opening up a P.O. box before this episode would have been a great little piece of foresight.
Christmas 2016 is nigh upon us and many gamers are scrambling to fill out their wish lists with the right goods. Simultaneously, parents are scratching their heads wondering what to get their gamer children for the Holidays. We’ve got you covered and you can take care of this shopping trip completely online! Thanks to ThinkGeek, it can be your one-stop shop for some of the best Nintendo merch out there.
Super Mario Adventures Graphic Novel
Super Famicom
Shot by Alex Campbell
“Escape the Premises” Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/
Why the NES Classic Edition is Pure Genius
I’ve been playing a lot of NES Classic Edition around the Holidays, and it’s a big hit. I think Nintendo hit it out of the park for multiple reasons, and I’m going to go in depth on each one!
Brand Top of Mind (in Absence of Switch)
Nintendo wouldn’t be kidding anyone if they told us that they didn’t want the Nintendo Switch to be released this holiday season. The November weekend before Thanksgiving is their favorite day to launch their biggest hardware and software, year over year. Yet they couldn’t quite make it in time for the 2016 Holidays, so the Switch will be releasing on their second-favorite slot: March. That left kind of a gaping hole in November, so Nintendo brilliantly filled it with the NES Classic Edition.
What’s going to be on every Christmas list? What is going to get brought out at family gatherings? The NES, or even simply, “the Nintendo.”
The brand might not have the benefit of the buzz through their new console this winter, but everyone’s going to be repeating their name thanks to their throwback console.
Nostalgia is Big Right Now
Who knew that 2016 would be such a perfect year to be a ’90s kid? Everything that was old is new again, and gaming, film, and TV industries have all wizened up and they’re repackaging our memories of old and selling them to us all over again. Nintendo is no different. Their stable of IPs is in the top 5 strongest in the world, among the likes of Disney, Marvel, and Star Wars (or should I say, Disney, Disney, and Disney).
The NES Classic Edition was a very calculated move. Down to the packaging on the box and each and every commercial, the marketing has been a complete throwback. There’s not a young-to-middle-aged adult alive who wouldn’t want to pick up the perfect replica of that controller. Nintendo didn’t wait too long for this and they didn’t do it too soon – the timing is just right.
It’s Not Just 3rd Parties
Nintendo has been working on this console rerelease for quite awhile. Want to know how I know? Because of all the licensing deals that went into it! They could have scraped together 25 or 30 first-party IPs and shipped it out, but instead they held meetings and struck deals with other companies, allowing third-parties to get in on the action. In my experience, Contra has been one of the most recognizable names on the system (albeit in the game Super C), so it’s a good thing that Nintendo branched out and expanded the library through its partners. The Big N doesn’t get to keep 100% of the profits anymore, but I think it was well worth it. I’m just surprised news of the mini-console didn’t leak with other companies being brought into the circle.
It Has Spot-On Emulation
I didn’t realize just how bad the NES emulation was on Wii U until I saw it in contrast to the NES Classic Edition.
Trust me, if you haven’t seen the difference in emulation quality, you will be appalled. Nintendo didn’t do so hot with NES games on Wii U, but we really couldn’t ask for better than the Classic Edition. With the three different display options and the boost in brightness and clarity over Wii U, it just can’t be beaten.
It’s Literally a Stocking-Stuffer
This thing is so small. I know that the first image Nintendo released of this console, it showed the mini-NES sitting in a model’s hand. Still, my mind didn’t quite grasp the size. It wasn’t until I opened up the tiny box and held the even-tinier console replica that I understood just how small it is! It’s absolutely fun-sized. And I think it could actually fit in kids’ stockings this Christmas. This thing has the potential to be the #1 impulse-buy of 2016, if Nintendo could only just produce enough to fill up store’s end-caps.
Also, the price is perfect. You see that the thing is $60, you see that 30 games are included, you do a little quick math in your head and you exclaim “That’s only $2 per game!” That’s literally every consumer’s thought process. Everyone feels like they are getting a steal of a deal. If there were only 25 games included or if the console was $70, the story would be completely different. Nintendo hit the bulls-eye on this one.
I’m really happy about this product. I’m a huge NES fan and I’ve actually been wanting Nintendo to reproduce the system for many years. I never had the idea of it being miniature and coming with packed-in games, but they absolutely made the right choice with that design. There’s no bulky consoles or rows of cartridges taking up shelf-space, just this little joy of a system. I hope all the TBC fans who want one are able to find a console of their own! Nintendo really needs to stop playing so conservative with their supplies and just make more of these things. But Foxconn is probably busy making Switch parts, and I won’t complain about that.
Seasonal Gaming
With the autumn season upon us, what initially comes to mind? For most, probably colder weather, leaves falling, pumpkin spice x (where x = everything), hoodies, haunted houses, Halloween, and so on. I greatly appreciate the fall season and everything that comes with it. In fact, it’s probably my favorite season. But for me, it’s more than black cats and apple cider. It’s a time where I can enjoy certain types of video games at their best. Nintendo is absolutely fantastic at creating games that burst with seasonal energy. That is; games that display the best a season has to offer.
Of course, every game does it differently. Being the season that it is, I’ll start with the original Luigi’s Mansion for the GameCube. This game is built around one theme: a haunted house. My October would not be complete if I didn’t spend a weekend replaying through this game with the lights off. Not because it’s terrifying, but because for me, this is how the game should be played. I just get so much more out of it. Playing this game on a hot mid-summer night, or when snow is flying just doesn’t feel right. When running through the mansion vacuuming up ghosts and exploring dark rooms, I want to be able to look out my window and see colorful leaves. Another fall favorite of mine is Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door. Why? This answer why may not be as obvious, but here it is: the chapter “For Pigs the Bell Tolls.” Yes, I know that there is a chapter where Mario travels to a tropical island and where there is snow, but making the trek to the Creepy Steeple (about 5 times), to me, is the most defining chapter. Everything about that section: the music, the characters, the lighting, the setting, creates a perfect Halloween experience.
Admittedly, I am biased when it comes to what season a game should be played because some of it has to do when the game came out, and my nostalgia for a game always peaks based on what time of the year I played through it and enjoyed it for the first time. The Thousand Year Door was released in October (yes, I may be a bit weird about my timely nostalgia). But seriously, if you haven’t experienced this glorious gem, there is no better time than now, and when you get to chapter 4, you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.
And of course, there are games like Animal Crossing, where the game is set up to follow the time of year no matter what, so it can be played to the maximum level of enjoyment all year. This game has become immensely popular, and I attribute that a lot to what I referred to above as seasonal energy. It just feels right. Nintendo was brilliant to realize this and capitalize off of it. I remember playing the game and running around my town on Halloween looking for Jack, hearing my real world doorbell ring, and passing out candy to kids. This created a full 360° experience for me, and I’ll never forget it.
I won’t make a complete list of games I like to play during specific seasons, but here are just a few others that really stick out: Mario Baseball (spring/summer), Super Mario Sunshine (summer), Banjo Kazooie (fall/winter), Resident Evil 4 (fall), Splatoon (summer), Pikmin (any season – these games capture them all greatly), Wii Sports Resort (summer), Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (all but winter), and Kirby’s Epic Yarn (winter).
Lastly, the intention of this write-up is not to tell you when you can and can’t enjoy a game. Of course, this is 100% subjective, and everyone is going to have a different take. If you enjoy cleaning off Isle Delfino in the middle of winter to get some virtual sun and cure those winter blues, more power to you. I would love to hear comments about certain times of year you prefer what games, or if you don’t care at all and anytime is the best time. Now excuse me as I eat a freshly picked honey crisp apple and take on King Boo.
About the author: Matt has been a Nintendo fan since 1996 after his parents got him a Nintendo 64 with Super Mario 64. His love for gaming took off from there with games such as Diddy Kong Racing and Banjo Kazooie. When not playing video games, Matt can be found cycling, golfing, playing with his cat, reading math books, and partaking in anything nerdy. Once in a great while, he even may play a game that is… gulp… out of season.
