Games Inbox: Will the Nintendo Switch 2 be at The Game Awards?-GameCentral-Entertainment – Metro

Will it be unveiled tonight? (Nintendo)

The Thursday letters page hopes for an Xbox vs. PlayStation face-off at The Game Awards, as a reader looks forward to MachineGames’ Quake reboot.

To join in with the discussions yourself email gamecentral@metro.co.uk

PLEASE NOTE: We are currently preparing our content for over the Christmas period and will need a number of Reader’s Features, so if you’ve been meaning to write one but never quite got round to it we could do with as many as possible before Monday, December 23.

The big night
I’m cautiously optimistic about The Game Awards this week but I’m not really sure what to expect. All the hints are so vague it’s kind of annoying that they’re taunting us and yet experience teaches me that it could all amount to nothing. One person’s big news is another man’s nothingburger, or something.

The impression I get is that they’re hinting at something to do with Sony. but I really don’t know what? Surely not new hardware but if it’s a bunch of new single-player games then I’ll be very happy. If it’s just Wolverine and Ghost of Yōtei in more detail, that’ll be more like a minimum expectation.

The other obvious guess as to what they’re hinting at is a Switch 2 reveal, but I just can’t picture that happening. Like you say, something’s only a tradition until you stop doing it, but I cannot imagine Nintendo ever unveiling their new console at someone else’s event. Metroid Prime 4 maybe, since we’ve already seen a bit of it, but that’s all.

I’ll settle for a good surprise above all of that though, so here’s hoping it’s all worth staying up for. (I’m not staying up for it.)
Cranston

Return to war
So it’s The Game Awards tonight (or Friday morning, it’s kind of confusing writing this on a Wednesday) and… I have no idea what to expect. All the confirmed games so far are kind of boring, except maybe Split Fiction, but hopefully that’s just the bottom level of what we’re going to get.

I’m not going to try and predict anything but what I hope is that this truly becomes the successor to E3 in the sense that we see Sony and Microsoft trying to outdo each other with big announcements. We gamers always benefit from that kind of competition and with the Xbox Series X floundering we haven’t really had that much this generation.

I don’t expect Nintendo to have much or anything to show so this becomes an old school two-way battle, where both companies try and win gamers’ favours by… making really good games, then everyone’s a winner.
Nougat

The Marvel factor
I can’t really see Marvel Rivals being a long-term hit. I played it and it’s fine, but it is so generic I lost interest after a few hours and have no desire to return, even though it’s free. The characters might be more appealing than Concord but they don’t play any better and the action all feels very floaty and weightless to me, even with big characters like Venom and Hulk.

Not to repeat people from earlier in the week but the reason these live service games keep failing is because not only are there too many, but they all play the same. The Marvel theme and constant advertising (which must cost a fortune) will give the game a boost for now but I doubt we’ll be hearing a lot of it by the time next year gets going.
Tacle

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Out of time
I wondered if you’re planning to review the Little Big Adventure remake that was released recently. This game was such a huge part of my childhood back in the mid-90s and the first game I’d ever played with an element of freedom and fully voice-tracked (rare at the time for a non-point ‘n’ click game!).

The team behind the remake are hoping to also move onto its brilliant sequel and a new third game if sales enable this and I’m hoping some of the GC community remember this gem as well! (Original was on PC and PlayStation back in the day)

Have a fab Christmas and new year when it comes.
Kanbot (gamertag)
PS: Loving the recent in-depth topical gaming articles you have recently been running as well.

GC: It was one of our favourites too, back in the day, but we couldn’t get hold of the developer or publisher in order to organise the review in time. We might try and come back to it but it’s kind of missed its slot now.

Quake hub
I’ve really been enjoying Indiana Jones And The Great Circle but I have to admit that is basically exactly the same as every other MachineGames game in terms of the way it uses the open world hubs and the dialogue. I like it, but they haven’t exactly pushed themselves out of their comfort zone.

They’ve been hinting about doing a Quake reboot next and I’m totally happy to see that but, let’s face it, you know exactly what it’s going to be: lots of shooting and lots of wandering around hubs talking to people. That will be kind of interesting for Quake though as the original idea for it was that it’d more of a role-playing type game than what it ended up as.

I hope they make it Lovecraftian again though, rather than dumb space aliens, and give it that creepy atmosphere that the original game had but they never really did again. There’s a lot of potential there and I’m really looking forwards to seeing it.
Ratzo

Mission complete
Been a very prolific gaming year for me, with the Steam Deck helping me get out of a slump which then spurred me to play more games on my home consoles and PC. Finished off these games in the last few weeks:

Ghost Of Tsushima (PS4) – Gorgeous looking, with fun combat and a decent plot. Too much filler and I hope they make the side quests more unique and engaging in the sequel. (7.5/10)

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 (XSX) – Again absolutely stunning, with the best depiction of all-out war I’ve seen since… the original game. Generally, very fun throughout but a few rough edges with the gameplay hold it back. Looking forward to trying the co-op. (7.5/10)

Dishonored (Steam Deck via Epic Games) – Loved it, loved it. The open-ended gameplay, the logic in the game world, the novel setting, the Blinky stabbing. Don’t know why I didn’t play it years ago, just excellent. Holds up very well today (9/10)

I’ve got Doom Eternal and Stellar Blade lined up for PlayStation 5 and Bayonetta 2 on the Wii U. I’m basically Beethoven in the mall in Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure, but with consoles.
Magnumstache

Random idea
How difficult would it be for FromSoftware to incorporate randomiser lists and maybe bingo rule sets for online players in their next game?

I mean from scratch on consoles? The bingo might cause them problems, but I think a randomiser after beating the game would be a nice touch.
P.Ella
As in bargain basement Yoda, not the Spanish fish and rice dish.

GC: As in changing the position of items and enemies? It should be pretty to easy do; we’d be surprised if there wasn’t a PC fan mod that already did it for one of their games.

The console trap
From the recent glut of Switch 2 leaks it does look like everything is lining up to the new device being the ‘same but more’. Like most handheld PCs and the last decade’s worth of smartphones I’d imagine the huge size has been forced on Nintendo to get a more powerful device with a big battery to run it, while keeping the price competitive.

I wonder how an even bigger and heavier console will go down? Especially in Asian markets where there is still a desire for small electronics. A Switch 2 Lite, given the expected power is probably many years away, if at all possible. That is a shame as the original Switch Lite is arguably the perfect size for a portable gaming device. Bring back consoles that you can slip into your pockets I say!

Also, I wonder if this will be enough to drive upgraders? What do you do with, say, Mario Kart 9 or the next Smash Bros. to persuade casual Switch owners with the current versions to say, ‘OK Nintendo here’s my £400 for the console and £60 for the game’? I don’t think ‘the same but more’ is the answer to that quandary. It feels like an awful lot is banking on the rumoured (if not likely) new 3D Mario launch title to showcase what this can do. The pressure is on the little plumber to bring a level of ‘best game ever’ impact now.

In the longer term though I don’t see how Nintendo don’t fall into the same trap as Sony and Microsoft, of diminishing returns this generation. Market inflation thanks to the pandemic was behind a huge chunk of the original Switch sales after all and a lot of those gamers are happy just playing live service titles with content parity on that old machine.
Marc

Inbox also-rans
Why is it the makers of Days Gone, a game that underperformed in terms of sales and reviews, is still going but Japan Studio got shut down? Doesn’t seem fair.
Matador

I guess you’re probably watching The Game Awards tonight, GC. So… thanks for taking one for the team there. Ain’t no way I’m staying up till 4am for a video game trailer.
Ulio

GC: Thanks, we’ve already got the Red Bull in.

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The small print
New Inbox updates appear every weekday morning, with special Hot Topic Inboxes at the weekend. Readers’ letters are used on merit and may be edited for length and content.

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