-
Ever wanted an RSS feed of all your favorite gaming news sites? Go check out our new Gaming Headlines feed! Read more about it here.
-
We have made minor adjustments to how the search bar works on ResetEra. You can read about the changes here.
Nintendo eShop - October 2019 | SchwarzeneggerERA |OT|
- Thread starter tolkir
- Start date
Yeah honestly Obra Dinn should be a no-brainer for anyone into puzzley stuff at all, it's excellent and unique and ends up asking you to think in a lot of different ways despite what it might initially seem like. One of those games that I'd love to play again blind.
I too picked up Doraemon Story of Seasons! I had been jonesing so hard for another engrossing farm sim game that I figured juggling both Doraemon and Gleaner Heights would be no problem. And maybe it wouldn't be if the games were of a comparable quality!
But alas, after only about ninety minutes with Gleaner Heights, I have no real desire to continue. Of course, that's an incredibly short amount of time for a game of this nature, so I'm well aware that I've only scratched the surface of Gleaner's content. The farming fundamentals are so mediocre though—especially when compared to Doraemon—that I can't muster the enthusiasm to trudge through the slog just to see the cool horror elements that drew me to the game in the first place.
- It's really jarring going from Doraemon to this, because while Doraemon is easily the most beautiful life sim game I've ever played, Gleaner Heights is decidedly the ugliest. The pixel art is far more rudimentary than even Stardew's, and the color palette overuses brown in a way that gives the world a mucky vibe. Perhaps that fits thematically with the darker aspects of the story, but it certainly doesn't make for an aesthetically pleasing world to spend fifty-plus hours in.
There are also no character portraits when talking to townsfolk, so your only impression of someone's appearance is whatever vague interpretation your imagination can draw from an art style this simple. This puts up a barrier to immersion, especially as it relates to the attachments you develop to the townsfolk. I also kept accidentally talking to the same people repeatedly throughout the day because they didn't look unique enough for me to realize I had already interacted with them earlier.
- The town layout isn't interesting, and the routing to get from point A to point B is stretched out far beyond what good pacing requires. There's too much running down long stretches of empty paths with nothing to do.
- The early game economy is stingy, which furthered my decision to not want to invest the time it would take to get to the game's good stuff. After buying a few seeds I was broke as a joke, so I spent my days aimlessly running around town and accomplishing nothing until it was time for bed.
- I eventually found out there was a mine, but it's probably my least favorite mining system out of any farm sim I've played. The locations is very dimly lit, and instead of clearly marked floor tiles/objects to break, you mine by hammering through walls. But due to the lighting and the rudimentary graphics, I couldn't tell whether certain pieces of wall were more lucrative to hit than others. I spent all my stamina hammering away, and all I got was about two pieces of ore (which ties back to the stinginess of the economy).
- Characters have no hitboxes. Many times I'd try to talk to a person, only to clip through them because I wasn't standing at the precise angle. Objects like weeds, however, do have hit boxes. For a game where the story of the townsfolk is supposed to be one of the biggest hooks, removing any tangible physical feedback when your character bumps into them adds yet another layer of abstraction that takes me out of the world. This is just one of many examples where the low-budget nature of the game really detract from the experience.
I didn't get to any of the horror elements. It's a shame, because the concept still seems so creative and appealing. I was reading the steam forums for this game, and apparently one of the early quests tasks you with
murdering one of the townsfolk
But I've also read that those events are few and far between. It seems like the vast, vast majority of your time is spent farming, and every now and then you'll trigger one of these M-rated side quests. I just can't put myself through dozens of hours of subpar farm grinding just to see the unique aspects this game has to offer.
Gleaner Heights may be 1/5 the price of Doraemon, but I'm undoubtedly enjoying Doraemon at least five times more (that's how math works, right?) If anything, Gleaner has made me appreciate many of the subtle ways Doraemon reduces friction for the player, so now I'm even higher on Doraemon than I was before.
A lot of people on Steam seem to really like Gleaner Heights though, so I don't want to flat-out say nobody should play this. If you have the patience for it and aren't already engulfed in another farm sim game, there's probably a lot of interesting content that's worth seeing for $9. And if this game had come out during some of the Switch's drought months in 2018, I would have been more willing to stick with it.
If anyone else here has been playing it, I'd love to hear other perspectives.
Thanks for your very thorough first impressions of Gleaner Heights. I think I'll stick with Doraemon SoS, which I too am really enjoying. It's hard to stop playing. "Just one more day." Yeah, right.
I'm avoiding the Doraemon |OT| because I don't want strategy spoilers. I'd rather figure things out myself (which means I lag behind everyone else).
at this point, you're good. the gimmick about the three layer switching is lost on non-3DS platforms anyway.
Basically played Obra Dinn non-stop for 2 hours and a half. What an awesome experience. I love the curveballs thrown in the middle, and getting stuff right is ridiculously satisfying.
Also, the sound design is top notch.
Also, the sound design is top notch.
Pretty much what Moon said. It was very interesting and fun on the 3DS, but then I bought the PC version years later and it's no fun at all without the 3D effect.
Preorder justified.
Is Doraemon actually good? Before this post and the one you responded to, I'm sure I'd heard nothing but bad things - although I don't recall specifics.
I'm hoping to get a chance to try it over the weekend, so I'll report back. I haven't played it elsewhere though, so I won't be able to compare.
do you mean on PC? Because the Switch version was delayed to November 20th
I was extremely skeptical going in because the Doraemon license looked dorky and off-putting. Part of the charm of life sim games for me is inhabiting your own custom character so you can self-insert into a different, more peaceful world. The fact that Doraemon forces you to play as a pre-established character who's a literal fourth-grader seemed wildly unappealing.
But I was so glad to be proven wrong! The game has an endless supply of charm, in part because the writing is far sharper than a game based on a children's anime from the 70s has any right to be. And I still can't get over how beautiful it looks. The way the waves of the ocean roll in and out is particularly mesmerizing.
There are still some missing features that I really appreciate in other farm sim games (primarily character customization and romance), but since a lot of the fat has been trimmed for Doraemon, I'm finding the gameplay loop to be hyper-focused in a way that I really appreciate. Sometimes the sheer amount of player choice in these types of games can be crippling, and instead of making steady progress toward one goal, you instead make incremental progress towards several. That approach has it's merits, but it can really hamper the pacing and overall flow.
In Doraemon, though, I already have several animals, maxed out stamina and storage, tools that have been upgraded several times, and a house that's currently on its second remodel—and I'm only in fall! The rate of progression is very satisfying and helps contribute to that "one more day" level of addiction that I adore about these games.
There are a lot of small but smart quality of life features too. One of my favorites is the ability to nap anywhere. Not only does this regain stamina, but it's super convenient if you want to pass the time until a specific shop opens. You can just plop down in front of the storefront and wake up when the owner is ready for business, which cuts out a lot of needless downtime. Similarly, there's also a fast travel system you unlock fairly early on that's implemented extremely well.
The game isn't without it's faults, of course. Festivals are pretty lackluster—especially the prizes for getting first place. The first hour or so is painfully slow. Character-driven cutscenes trigger when entering certain areas with more frequency than I would like, which interrupts the gameplay flow. And the upgrade economy skews a little too heavily on materials that can only be found in the mines.
But overall, Doraemon Story of Seasons is one of my biggest surprises of the year. I can understand the $50 price tag scaring people away, but I'm more than getting my money's worth. It's a perfect blend of serenity and addiction, and I'm so glad I took a chance on it. It will easily make my top ten list for the year, which is pretty impressive given how stacked 2019 has been on the Switch!
Nar the sequels haven't made it to Switch yet. It probably shoulda been like a collection of all 3 for the Switch release IMO. Still, the original is a fun little game by itself and not much of an entry fee helps too!
Good question! Coop player here too; depending on performance, I'll decide if I purchase or not.
Thanks for the detailed impressions! Definitely sounds like something I might enjoy. I doubt I'll bite at full price given everything else baying for my attention, but I'll certainly keep an eye out for a sale.
Well I saw a video of co-op footage and it was single screen co-op where player 2 can easily get lost off the screen instead of splitscreen as it is on the PC and saw a post suggesting split screen is not even an option.
Should I get Naruto UNS Trilogy for the Switch or Dragon Ball FighterZ? They are on sale atm for pretty good prices, but I can only get one now. Really want both, but I can't decide which I should get for PS4 and which to get for the Switch.
For DBZF, I'm not going to be playing online on the Switch since I'm not paying for the online yet. But I do have PS+.
I guess my question is which is the better port for mostly handheld play on the Switch
For DBZF, I'm not going to be playing online on the Switch since I'm not paying for the online yet. But I do have PS+.
I guess my question is which is the better port for mostly handheld play on the Switch
Last edited:
I haven't played any other versions to compare but I haven't noticed any issues with visuals or framerate. The faces can be a little hard to discern at times but I'm pretty sure that's part of the design.
I'll be the one to say it's still a fun platformer. If it's on as good a sale as it was when I bought it a month ago (think it was like a buck or two?) then I can recommend it. Personally wouldn't pay the full price though, just because I played on 3DS when it came out there.
...you had me excited for a second, stupid NA / EU differences :(
Been waiting for a sale on that since I found out it was on Switch, Ive wanted it on PC for ages.
I love it. It's like a PS2 era brawler with fun combat and a Majora's Mask time loop where you constantly reset the clock on the last day of the apocalypse.
I bought it last night and played for a bit. Didn't notice any issue. Fantastic game, my wife digs it as well.
I haven't played Inside, but I really enjoyed Black The Fall.
Wrote up a full review a long time ago - http://www.cubed3.com/review/4013/1/black-the-fall-playstation-4.html
It's probably not as polished as Inside though, so be wary of that.
Wait, is there an actual timer like Majora's Mask or do you play through the level and then it resets?
Okay, that's better. Majora's Mask and Outer Wilds are not for me cause those time restraints.
Yeah basically you have multiple characters to follow during the final day before the apocalypse, and there are branching paths to follow as you try to figure out the mystery and uncover more clues.
I highly recommend it. Great game.
Had a strange & paranoid situation yesterday: was in the process of updating several games & saw that they were done. So I turned off my wifi setting & then launched Witcher 3 (physical edition).
Then a pop-up window explained that the Switch needed to be updated. Clicked okay & in a few seconds the Switch restarted.
The odd part is, after tapping to the home screen... a few of my titles were updating again. But my wifi was off & they were just updated...?
Then the Switch suddenly shutoff & wouldn't turn on until a hard power-on (holding the Power button for 15ish seconds).
Argh...
Then a pop-up window explained that the Switch needed to be updated. Clicked okay & in a few seconds the Switch restarted.
The odd part is, after tapping to the home screen... a few of my titles were updating again. But my wifi was off & they were just updated...?
Then the Switch suddenly shutoff & wouldn't turn on until a hard power-on (holding the Power button for 15ish seconds).
Argh...
Help!
I had Rain City on my wishlist for a while and today I noticed that it's no longer available on the EU eShop?
Does anyone know why?
The publisher is Japanese (Orenda) and I can't figure out if they put out any news on what's happening with the game.
It seems the PS4 version is still available in EU.
It's still up on the US eShop too:
https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/rain-city-switch/
I had Rain City on my wishlist for a while and today I noticed that it's no longer available on the EU eShop?
Does anyone know why?
The publisher is Japanese (Orenda) and I can't figure out if they put out any news on what's happening with the game.
It seems the PS4 version is still available in EU.
It's still up on the US eShop too:
https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/rain-city-switch/
entirely depends on how clever you are at figuring things out :)
(8+)
I took around 9 hours. I'm guessing it varies on how much you're good at deducting things.
What if I'm bad at deducing but excellent at reading walkthroughs?
I had something similar. Got a notice I needed to update. So went to system settings and there was no new update. Fortunately I didn't have any of their weird WiFi issues and shutdown issues.
I'd probably question why you'd bother playing, as the game is all about the investigation and deductions; you're unlikely to get that much enjoyment from it if you're just filling in fates according to a guide.