Why Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen are still great 20 years later
Posted on 2 weeks ago by Ethan Gnau in Features, GBA, Switch eShop | 0 comments
Whether you love or hate the modern Pokemon era, it’s safe to agree that Nintendo Switch has a huge selection of games in the series to pick from. You’ve got Pokemon Scarlet and Violet for open-world gameplay, Sword and Shield for a more classic and experimental experience, Legends Arceus for a whole new take on the franchise, and Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl if you want to be bored out of your mind. But now, for the first time in several years, Pokemon has made two of its legacy titles available – and available on Nintendo Switch for the first time ever. By this point, many of us are growing tired of Kanto – we have full-price Kanto remakes on the system already, even – so the thought of playing FireRed and LeafGreen again wasn’t hugely exciting to me, even as a huge Pokemon fan. 35 hours later, though, and it’s clear to me that these games really are the definitive versions of Kanto. Whether you’ve played these games before and are coming back for more, or if you’ve never really gotten into Pokemon and want a good place to start, FireRed and LeafGreen are great options.
More: Game Freak, highlight, Pokemon FireRed, Pokemon LeafGreen, top
[Let’s Talk] Games you’ve tried with Nintendo Switch 2’s new Handheld Mode Boost
Posted on 2 weeks ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Let's Talk, Switch, Switch 2 | 0 comments
This week, Nintendo Switch 2 received what was its biggest system update so far. There was a good amount added and improved, but the most significant feature was the inclusion of Handheld Mode Boost. When turned on, it forces Nintendo Switch 1 games to be played as if they were docked when playing portably. If you’re primarily a handheld player, this is a significant feature as it can give you a better image on-screen.
Have you gotten around to trying out the Handheld Mode Boost on Nintendo Switch 2? Which games have you tested? Let us know in the comments.
The top 10 best Super Mario games ranked
Posted on 2 weeks ago by Ethan Gnau in DS, Features, General Nintendo, Switch, Switch 2, Wii, Wii U | 0 comments
Nintendo recently celebrated its favorite holiday, MAR10 Day – which means there’s no better time to rank the mainline Super Mario titles. For reference, this only includes games that the company considers to be “main series”, which generally includes 2D Mario and 3D Mario, but not Wario Land or Yoshi’s Island (even though the former was called Super Mario Land 3 and the latter Super Mario World 2). It also includes Super Mario Run, for whatever reason, and as you might expect that game is nowhere to be found on our list.
Before you read, keep in mind that this is of course a heavily subjective list, and it’s more to promote all of you ranking your own lists in the comments down below than anything else. Feel free to share your thoughts after you read our top ten!
Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Remake review for Nintendo Switch 2
Posted on 2 weeks ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch 2 | 0 comments
System: Switch 2
Release date: March 12, 2026
Developer: Team Ninja
Publisher: Koei Tecmo
There’s that first moment, in every great horror game, when the player reaches that dark room… you know, the one that’s just a bit darker than the ones that came before. You have to enter the room, of course; it’s the only place left to go. You’re running low on resources, so in the back of your mind, you worry something is going to jump out at you and finish the job. Reluctantly, you press forward… and nothing happens. Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Remake does this a lot. So, you breathe a sigh of relief, and enter the next room… and that’s when the exact thing you were dreading happens.
The Legend of Zelda 40th anniversary predictions
Posted on 3 weeks ago by Ethan Gnau in Features, General Nintendo, Switch, Switch 2 | 0 comments
This year, The Legend of Zelda series is celebrating its 40th anniversary. And today, we’ve got a bold prediction for what we’ll see for its big anniversary: absolutely nothing.
In all seriousness, though, the timeline doesn’t line up for there to be a new 3D or 2D Zelda anytime soon. Tears of the Kingdom was in development for well over five years, and it released in 2023. Given that games are only getting bigger and more ambitious since then, there’s no way a new 3D Zelda would be ready even within another five years – it’s likely going to take a little longer than that. Likewise, Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom released in 2024, and though we don’t have an exact development timeline, it’s safe to assume it started shortly after the Link’s Awakening remake wrapped up in 2019. That being said, it’s entirely possible that we see ports or a simple remake this year, though nothing has yet been confirmed at the time of writing. Some fans are even convinced that there will be a Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct – but there’s no way Nintendo has enough content coming up to pull that off, right?
More: highlight, The Legend of Zelda, top
[Let’s Talk] What are you playing? – March 2026
Posted on 3 weeks ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Let's Talk | 0 comments
A new month started up a couple of weeks ago. Now that we’re in March, we want to know what you’ve been playing.
Have you joined in on the Pokemon Pokopia phenomenon? Are you playing other recent releases like Monster Hunter Stories 3, Pokemon FireRed/LeafGreen, Resident Evil Requiem, or Blue Prince? No matter the case, let us know in the comments below.
Interview: Patricia Summersett on voicing Princess Zelda for nearly a decade
Posted on 3 weeks ago by Brian(@NE_Brian) in Interviews, Switch, Switch 2, Wii U | 0 comments
Believe it not, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is almost ten years old. It was a massive game for many reasons – it launched alongside Nintendo Switch, was a new take for the series by going fully open-world, and introduced various aspects like voice acting in a mainline game for the characters.
Patricia Summersett has been the voice of Princess Zelda since 2017. After working on Breath of the Wild, she returned for Tears of the Kingdom as well as the Hyrule Warriors titles Age of Calamity and last year’s Age of Imprisonment.
Pokemon Pokopia review for Nintendo Switch 2
Posted on 3 weeks ago by Ethan Gnau in Reviews, Switch 2 | 0 comments
System: Switch 2
Release date: March 5, 2026
Developer: Koei Tecmo
Publisher: Nintendo
As someone who loves Pokemon, Animal Crossing, and Minecraft, Pokemon Pokopia sneaked its way onto my radar when it first revealed in the September 2025 Nintendo Direct. On paper, this had a chance to be Nintendo’s lightning in a bottle – Pokemon, Animal Crossing, and Minecraft are some of the best-selling franchises of all time, and Pokopia promised to combine elements from all three to create the next big life simulator game. It’s strange, though – the game always looked charming and interesting on the surface, but I never found myself hyping up its release. I didn’t see a ton of hype online, either – most likely, none of us really knew what we were getting into. Pokemon fans are always hopeful that the latest game is a good one, and often times they find themselves disappointed with major releases like Sword, Shield, Scarlet, and Violet. I myself was cautiously optimistic going in… which is to say, I already have 50 hours, it’s completely consumed my life, I can’t imagine life without it, and this is the Switch 2 system seller Nintendo has been looking for.
More: highlight, Koei Tecmo, Pokemon Pokopia, top
Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection review for Nintendo Switch 2
Posted on 3 weeks ago by Ellie Lutes in Reviews, Switch 2 | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: March 13, 2026
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
For many years, Monster Hunter has been about slaying towering creatures and using their parts to slay even more massive behemoths. The Monster Hunter Stories series flips that idea on its head, instead letting players befriend, raise, and fight alongside those same creatures. Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection continues that tradition, offering a new perspective on the world and culture that makes the series’ universe so compelling – but is the world just as thrilling when the goal isn’t to slay monsters, but to bond with them?
More: Capcom, highlight, Monster Hunter Stories 3, top
Donkey Kong Bananza’s Emerald Rush is one of Nintendo’s best and most underrated DLCs
Posted on 4 weeks ago by Ethan Gnau in Features, Switch 2 | 0 comments
In this day and age, there are plenty of controversies surrounding video games – and it feels like there’s a new Nintendo-adjacent controversy every other day. To be fair, though, many of those controversies are valid – some recent ones that come to mind are Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition’s poor upscaling on Nintendo Switch 2 and the sky-high prices for amiibo.
One Nintendo controversy that wasn’t justified in my opinion, however, was Donkey Kong Bananza’s DLC. When I reviewed Emerald Rush a few months ago, I had played the new mode for somewhere around 15 hours and wasn’t quite hooked. Nearly six months later, however, and that’s changed – I find myself going back to Donkey Kong Bananza every month or so to play the new in-game events. Super Mario Odyssey had a somewhat similar system with Luigi’s Balloon World, but that doesn’t compare to Emerald Rush at all – I remember a ton of balloons in Luigi’s Balloon World being placed out-of-bounds, so the mode wound up more like a showcase of game knowledge (including technical strategies and especially glitches). Emerald Rush, however, is where the bulk of Donkey Kong Bananza’s challenge lies. And it’s a very rare case of a 3D platformer that’s kept me coming back six months later without replaying the story from the beginning.
