Resident Evil and No More Heroes creators join long list of devs who think Metacritic is bad for game dev

Goichi ‘Suda51’ Suda – of No More Heroes and Killer7 fame – reckons a focus on Metacritic scores is bad for creativity. Speaking to GI.biz recently alongside survival horror genre maker-upper Shinji Mikami, Suda expressed his frustrations with the review aggregator platform’s cultural cache.

“Everybody pays too much attention to and cares too much about Metacritic scores. It’s gotten to the point where there’s almost a set formula – if you want to get a high Metacritic score, this is how you make the game,” Suda51 told Gi.biz.

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Splatoon 3 Regular Updates to End 2 Years After Launch, Nintendo Says

Switch exclusive Splatoon 3 will no longer receive regular updates, Nintendo has announced.

Nintendo signaled the end of these updates for the Switch exclusive in a tweet that reassured players that the game will remain online, and that Splatoween, Frosty Fest, Spring Fest, and Summer Nights will continue with some returning themes. That suggests fans will get four seasonal Splatfests a year from now on.

Updates for weapon adjustments will be released “as needed,” and Big Run, Eggstra Work, and Monthly Challenges “will continue for the time being.”

Nintendo’s announcement comes two years after Splatoon 3, a third-person team-based shooter that revolves around firing ink-based weapons, launched on Nintendo Switch. As of the end of March 2024, Splatoon 3 had sold an impressive 11.96 million copies.

The end of regular updates for Splatoon 3 comes ahead of Nintendo’s hotly anticipated reveal of its next-generation console. Nintendo has indicated the Switch 2, as it’s called by the community, won’t be released before April 2025. Given the popularity of the Splatoon franchise, it seems likely that another game in the series will be released at some point.

While Nintendo has yet to say anything about the Switch 2 itself, it has said it expects to have plenty of stock available for launch, which in turn will hopefully combat scalping. Recent alleged details on the power of the Switch 2 weren’t the first rumors to spread about Nintendo’s new console. Other allegedly leaked details have suggested that the device will feature magnetic versions of the Joy-Cons and maybe even let players use their old controllers. If these recent rumors are to be believed, you’ll also be able to enjoy your physical and digital games on the Switch 2, including Splatoon 3.

For more on what may eventually become the Switch 2, you can read everything else we know about the company’s next console.

Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.

This action roguelite’s demo has more stuff in it than some full games, plus some very good goblins

For all the nightmarish enshittification modern life throws at us, we can at least feel warm and fulfilled about the resurgence of demos. Bountifully they await on Steam, like a friendly worker offering you toothpick-skewered cheese chunks at your local supermarket. And, oh, would you look at that: this cheese has some guns in it. Deeply customisable guns! SULFUR is a shooty roguelike with some excellent goblins and a deep RPG equipment system. And, if the Steam reviews are to be believed, some players are squeezing out dozens of hours from the demo alone.

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Daily Deals: SMT V: Vengeance, 8BitDo Pro 2, ASUS ROG Strix Gaming Desktop, and More

The weekend is officially here, and we’ve rounded up the best deals you can find! Discover the best deals for Sunday, September 15, below:

Save $450 Off This ASUS ROG Strix Gaming Desktop

Walmart has a great deal this weekend on this ASUS ROG Strix Gaming Desktop. Packed in is the Ryzen 5 7600X, alongside the GeForce RTX 4060 Ti DUAL. Additionally, you’ll have access to 32GB of DDR5 RAM, a 1TB PCIe G4 SSD, and more. One of the best features of this desktop is the case, which has a built-in handle just in case you need to transport it somewhere. With the very expensive PS5 Pro just announced, this can be a great option for just a few hundred dollars more.

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance for $29.99

Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is at a new all-time low price this weekend! SMT V: Vengeance is an enhanced version of the former Nintendo Switch exclusive SMT V, launched in 2019. The biggest feature available in this upgraded re-release is the all new Canon of Vengeance route, which is essentially 40 hours of new story content. At $29.99, this is a steal for what will likely end up being one of the most popular RPGs of the year.

Anker MagGo Power Bank for $29.99

This Anker MagGo Power Bank is perfect for charging your phone on the go, wherever you are. The MagGo has support for Qi2 Certified Charging, allowing your iPhone to charge at 15W. The adjustable angle also allows for you to sit the device on a desk and charge it without the need to prop it up. You can expect around 50% battery life in just 45 minutes of charge with the MagGo.

Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children Complete 4K Blu-ray for $15.50

Yesterday marked 19 years since the original release of Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children. This 4K Remaster of the Complete edition packs in multiple bonus features, in addition to the revised cuts and over 25 minutes of added content throughout the movie. Advent Children is a critical piece in the Final Fantasy VII Remake project, and there’s never been a better time to check it out.

Starfield Special Edition 2TB External HDD for $79.99

This Special Edition Starfield 2TB External HDD is perfect for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and even PC. File sizes for games have grown drastically over the last few years, as you can now quickly fill your internal storage with minimal effort. An external hard drive can allow for all sorts of games to be offloaded or stored directly on the device. This drive specficially is themed after Starfield, with a custom logo and RGB lighting.

Guilty Gear -Strive- GG 25th Anniversary Edition for $69.99

Next up, Woot has the Guilty Gear Strive 25th Anniversary Edition for $69.99, which is $40 in savings. This package includes the Guilty Gear Strive game for PS5, the first three seasons of DLC, a digital soundtrack and artbook, the original soundtrack on CD, a tin case, and a special 25th-anniversary box. If you’ve yet to dive into Guilty Gear’s latest entry, this is the perfect package for you.

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 for $19.99

Great news for stealth action fans: Amazon has Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 available for $19.99, which matches the previous low we’ve seen since this game released. This is a great package with the first three Metal Gear Solid games, in addition to Metal Gear and Metal Gear 2: Solid Snake. If you’ve yet to play through the Metal Gear series, the Master Collection is how to do so on modern platforms.

32″ Samsung Odyssey G80SD 4K OLED Gaming Monitor + Free 27″ Monitor for $999

This Samsung Odyssey monitor is one of the best on the market, with a 4K UHD OLED display. A 240Hz refresh rate is even supported, and you can get up to 250 nits of brightness. In addition to $500 worth of savings, Samsung is bundling in a free 27″ Samsung Odyssey G3 FHD monitor if you purchase the G80SD.

Logitech G915 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard for $159.99

Amazon has the Logitech G915 keyboard on sale for $159.99 this weekend, marking a $90 discount. This full size keyboard is extra slim, offering a wireless experience without the bulkiness that some gaming keyboards bring. The G915 uses GL Linear switches, which have the same speed, accuracy, and performance as standard mechanical switches at half the size. As for battery life, you can expect around 30 hours on a single charge.

Save $10 Off the 8BitDo Pro 2 Wired Controller

This 8BitDo controller is perfect for Nintendo Switch, PC, and other devices. Some of the features included with this controller include two pro back paddle buttons, custom profile switching, custom button mapping, modifiable vibration, adjustable hair triggers, and more. If you’re looking for a new controller that won’t break the bank, the 8BitDo Pro 2 is perfect for you.

Borderlands 3 Ultimate Edition for $18.99

The Nintendo Switch version of Borderlands 3 Ultimate Edition is available right now on Amazon for just $18.99. There is easily over 100 hours of content in this package, with plenty of mayhem to be had with friends. The game itself runs quite well on the Switch, with only occasional FPS drops in high-volume areas. If you haven’t yet played Borderlands 3, this is the perfect time to do so.

Guide: Best Power Rangers Games, Ranked – Switch And Nintendo Systems

Every Power Rangers game, as ranked by you.

Go, Go Nintendo Lifers! It’s Morphin Time, folks, because we’re about to run through the very best Power Rangers games on Nintendo systems as ranked by you lovely lot.

If you grew up on any console from the SNES to the Switch, then the chances are that you will have stumbled across a Power Rangers game at some point. For a brief spell in the early 2000s, these games were churned out on a yearly basis, with fresh faces adorning the box art to correspond to whatever series happened to be out at the time.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

What’s on your bookshelf?: Firaxis, Hindsight, and Life Is Strange writer Emma Kidwell

Hello reader who is also a reader, and welcome back to Booked For The Week – our regular Sunday chat with a selection of cool industry folks about books! This week, it’s writer on Marvel’s Midnight Suns, Hindsight, Life is Strange Season 2 and more, Emma Kidwell! Cheers Emma! Mind if we have a nose at your bookshelf?

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Poll: Box Art Brawl – Duel: Contra 4

A duel of dual spirits.

Hello folks, we’re back once again for another edition of Box Art Brawl!

Before we get started, let’s take a look back at how things played out last week. We checked out the GameCube classic Pokémon Colosseum, originally released in Japan in 2003 before making its way West in 2004. All three covers were admittedly pretty similar, so the scores here were relatively even. In fact, things ended in a draw between North America and Europe, both of which scored 37% of the vote.

Read the full article on nintendolife.com

One Million Checkboxes players hid binary, QR codes and rickrolls among the boxes during its two week war

Back in June, Edwin covered One Million Checkboxes, a website with one million checkboxes that players could check or uncheck, with any change visible to all other visitors of the site. It became an obsession for some in the two weeks the website was online, as players fought to fill all the boxes, or undo the work of their peers.

The fight was far more complicated than it seemed, as the developer recently explained, with some players finding ways to encode hidden messages in the checkboxes.

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