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In 2020, Square Enix released an interesting 'stopgap' in the Octopath Traveler series called Octopath Traveler: Champions of the Continent. This free-to-play mobile game took the gacha approach to design, regularly launching new units and storylines to interact with as the years rolled by. The company wrapped up that initial version in January this year, but it decided to design a new standalone version for consoles: Octopath Traveler 0. Not quite a straight port of the original nor a brand new game, this fresh release converts a previously more fractured game into a cohesive traditional JRPG that features no online elements or microtransactions and feels more in line with what you’d expect from a proper numbered entry. And while it’s not the true successor to Octopath Traveler II, OT0 nonetheless stands tall as another great entry in the series. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Handheld/Undocked) The narrative here is arguably the most interesting aspect, as it somewhat bucks the series trend of offering various disconnected narratives following each of the primary protagonists. For one thing, there’s now technically only one protagonist (your self-insert MC) and everyone else is merely an incidental addition to the plot. And while there’s still a nonlinear, chapter-based system that allows you to pursue the main story at your leisure, each chapter is now focused on a specific antagonist. Even though intraparty interaction is still kept to a minimum, the storyline is nonetheless significantly more streamlined and in line with what you’d expect out of a typical JRPG. You begin as a resident of the cosy, friendly town of Wishvale, which is very quickly pillaged and razed to the ground by a nasty group of villains. After reconnecting with another survivor, you set out on a campaign of vengeance several years later, hunting key leaders of the attack, setting up the first arc of the overarching narrative. What I really liked about this storytelling approach is how much more personal and interesting it made the rogues' gallery of villains. Not only do the ensuing chapters explore some of the antagonists' moral greyness, but there are some genuinely surprising and dark plot twists that add to the satisfaction when you finally get a chance to punch these people in the mouth. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Docked) I was always a fan of the way the first two games handled their braided narratives, but choosing to centre the narrative this time on one protagonist and various villains that have made their life hell is an interesting and ultimately worthwhile change. That all said, the length of the campaign is a long haul. Given that this is based on a live-service gacha that grew quite a bit, there are literally years of storylines to experience—the developers themselves flagged that it should take you roughly 100 hours to clear, and that’s not including the mountain of optional side content. I wouldn’t say that this tremendous length is necessarily a mark against Octopath Traveler 0, but just be aware that the pacing and quality can vary over that time, as any narrative of that size can get unwieldy in some places. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Handheld/Undocked) Gameplay otherwise follows the standard formula of previous games, wherein you explore a sizeable open world, pick up quests, fight in turn-based battles, explore dungeons, and utilise Path Actions to interact with the various NPCs you come across. Initially, you only have two party members, but as you discover and explore new towns, you eventually grow the party to just over 30. All of which is to say, this is exactly how you’d expect a new Octopath entry to play, and while I would have liked to see more innovation on the gameplay side of things, it’s tough to argue that the team didn’t stick the landing with the execution of their gameplay loop. Combat remains largely the same, with a key difference being that you now have eight active party members instead of four. Only four of them are active during a given round, but when a party member’s turn comes, they can tag out to let their backline partner take an action instead. The backline is more than just a reserve in case someone gets knocked down, too, as all characters in the rear at the end of every round also gain HP and SP. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Handheld/Undocked) Though the eight-character setup doesn’t massively change the overall flow of combat that we’re well familiar with by now, I really appreciated the additional strategic depth offered by the extra members. You effectively build BP (Boost Points) twice as fast now, which can lead to some crazy combos if you plan out your team right, and there’s a lot more to think through as you consider the various skills and abilities of each member and plan in advance how you’ll place them in the overall formation. Do you put two healer characters together to maximise your healing output? Or do you pair one with a DPS character who will need to get cycled to the back to recover? The previous two games regularly asked you similar teambuilding questions, but here that more strategic approach is present to a much higher degree. On the other hand, individual character progression has been kneecapped a bit, and I'm not as much a fan of how it’s been implemented. The ability to multiclass in previous games kept character-building interesting throughout the whole experience as you constantly unlocked new class types and found new ways to combine different class abilities to lead to some units that truly 'broke' the game. Here, there are no second classes; you can only progress a character along their default assigned class. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Handheld/Undocked) There is some variation introduced by equipping Battle Skills and Support Skills gained from NPCs, granting boons like the ability to utilise wind attacks or increased healing output. However, these feel more limited than giving a character access to all the abilities that come along with a new class, and it leads to characters feeling pigeon-holed into the clear roles they’re designed to fulfil. There’s something to be said about having a roster of bespoke characters who become simply more of what they already are at the beginning, but I’ve always viewed the Octopath Traveler games as encouraging you to find ways to make party members overpowered by building them far beyond their initial loadouts and here that definitely feels reined in. Given that there’s technically only the one protagonist in this game, the Path Action system has been adapted. Now your protagonist can do all the actions (such as stealing, inquiring, or haggling) and the success rate is determined by how much you’ve grown their wealth, power, or fame stats by completing various quests and side quests. Which stat gets checked depends on what the character you’re talking to values most, and this also affects what path actions are available to use on them. Overall, this doesn't feel like a significant change, but I appreciated how it gave you reason to regularly return to towns, as many NPCs are clearly way above the levels you’re at when you initially meet them. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Handheld/Undocked) Perhaps the headlining new feature is the addition of townbuilding elements while you slowly rebuild Wishvale to its former glory. Simply talking to your carpenter friend, Stia, or interacting with a workbench will turn the overgrown ruins of the once-quaint town into a grid where you can place new buildings, paths, and decorations according to your liking. Some of these buildings have a more functional passive value, too, such as how the pub allows you to bring food and prep dishes to give yourself an edge in battle for a certain number of turns. As you find new towns, some NPCs will have the 'Invite' Path Action, which lets you invite them to Wishvale to contribute to the community. Every NPC has some sort of passive ability that can affect things like crop production speed or JP (Job Points) gain in battle, and housing them in your town lets you build these up over time. Plus, inviting more residents causes the overall town level to increase, unlocking new structures to build, and lets you place more homes where you’d like. I appreciated how the townbuilding managed to feel both instrumental and optional to the game’s progression. Though there are plot reasons for why you have to build up the town to a certain point, it’s something that you can otherwise choose to ignore if you’d rather just stay on the road and keep pushing on to the next quest. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Handheld/Undocked) On the other hand, there’s plenty to dig into here if you want to get in the weeds of building the most picturesque town possible as you regularly return to reap the rewards. And while there are concrete gameplay benefits from investing in and interacting with your town, they aren’t so enormous that you’re handicapping yourself if you choose to only return to Wishvale when necessary. As far as visuals are concerned, this entry falls neatly between the fidelity of the previous two mainline games. It's clear that it was built with many reused assets from the first Octopath Traveler, but there are some details and flourishes present that will remind you more of the second game. The Switch 2 version runs quite well, too, and seeing the action unfold at 60fps makes everything appear that much nicer. It definitely feels like a slight step down if you’re playing this right after putting a lot of time into Octopath Traveler 2, but overall the HD-2D art style here still holds up exceptionally well and looks gorgeous in motion. Captured on Nintendo Switch 2 (Handheld/Undocked) Much like how the visuals feel like a blend of the previous two games, the soundtrack offers a variety of tracks and remixes from its predecessors, with some new tracks thrown in there to accompany the new content. Though it’s a bit disappointing that we didn’t get a new full-fledged soundtrack for this release, the new music feels right in line with the previous tracks, which are just as excellent as they were when we heard them for the first time. ConclusionIn many ways, Octopath Traveler 0 feels like a ‘victory lap’ for the beloved series, remixing various elements that you’re familiar with from the past games while introducing some interesting new ones to spice things up a bit. Importantly, this prequel does not feel like a proper Octopath Traveler 3, but that doesn’t mean that it isn't still an incredibly good time and a much better JRPG than most genre peers. Even if it's a retread in some ways, though, an absolutely monstrous amount of content, interesting new gameplay elements, gorgeous visuals, and compelling storytelling all come together to make Octopath Traveler 0 a must-buy.

How on earth is it that time of year again already? It feels as though we can still sense the tight elastic of our tiny Kirby swimming trunks digging into our fresh summer sunburn, and yet here comes Rolling Stone with its Best of 2025 list, because it's nearly Christmas. Brace for impact! Yes, Rolling Stone has dropped its 25 favourite gaming experiences of the year and, whilst the number one spot is absolutely no surprise (congratulations to Clair Obscur: Expedition 33), we've been tickled pink to see that good old Donkey Kong has managed to secure a number three spot via all that wrecking shop he did in Bananza. The big man has smashed his way onto a prestigious podium there, so well done, Mr. Kong. And nice tie! Elsewhere on the list, some 10 spaces down in fact, you'll spot another Switch 2-shaped mention in the form of Mario Kart World. Honestly, we probably wouldn't have expected that DK would outdo Master Mascot Mario in this way if you'd told us in the summer, but we'd tend to agree on the placement rolling (no pun intended) the great ape's way here. What else has delighted us in making the cut? Well, The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy dropping into a very nice 7th place is great, as that really was one of the year's big highlights on Switch, alongside the wonderful Absolum, BALL x PIT, and, of course, Hades 2, which has pulled off a blinder by snatching the number 2 spot. Images: Nintendo Life / Marvellous, Nintendo Life / Devolver Digital, Nintendo Life / Dotemu, Nintendo Life / Fellow Traveller Oh, and look at Silksong, all the way down (if you can be all the way down on a top 25 list) at number 12. That isn't perhaps where we'd have expected to see such a massively well-reviewed game, but personal taste is a wondrous and mysterious thing, innit! With a total of 11 of these games available on Switch consoles, it's still a very strong showing for Nintendo gamers - and hopefully we'll see Switch ports of some of these soon! Here's the full listing for your perusal, but check out the full article for details and reasoning: Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Hades II Donkey Kong: Bananza Dispatch Ghost of Yōtei Blue Prince The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy Death Stranding 2: On The Beach BALL x PIT Arc Raiders South of Midnight Hollow Knight: Silksong Mario Kart World SHINOBI: Art of Vengeance Battlefield 6 Ninja Gaiden 4 Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves Absolum despelote The Séance of Blake Manor Split Fiction Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector Rematch Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles Silent Hill: F See anything you disagree with making the cut? Think something is too highly/lowly-rated, or even missing entirely? Let us know!

Eight years on from its big reveal, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond finally arrives on Switch 1 & 2 tomorrow. To make sure that things are in tip-top condition, Nintendo has today released the launch day update, boosting things up to ver. 1.1.0 and adding a bunch of day-one features to boot. This update adds in amiibo functionality, some sweet cinematic controller rumble, an easily accessible upgrade path to the Switch 2 Edition in the opening menu, some gallery tweaks, and then the usual adjustments and fixes. At the time of writing, the patch notes have only been shared on the Japanese Nintendo Support website. We have included those below (via Google Translate), and we will sub-in the official English translation as soon as it is available. Metroid Prime 4: Beyond Ver. 1.1.0 (3rd Dec 2025)You can now use amiibo on the "amiibo" page in the pause menu. Controller now vibrates during cinematics. [Switch 2]: When you start up Metroid Prime 4 Beyond on Nintendo Switch 2, a "Switch 2 Edition" option will now appear in the menu after the title screen. Selecting this option will take you to the Upgrade Path page on the Nintendo eShop. The rating information for the rating system "ClassInd (Brazil)" has been updated from "12" to "14". The condition for unlocking some movies in the "Gallery" has been changed from "achieving 100% item recovery rate" to "clearing the game." In "Hard Mode," the difficulty of some enemies has been adjusted. Additionally, we have made some adjustments and fixes to improve your gameplay experience. "After 18 years of waiting, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond manages to replicate that magical sense of discovery from the GameCube original while pushing the series in some incredible new directions," we wrote in our 9/10 review, describing Samus' latest adventure as "quite possibly the boldest, most well-realised Metroid game to date". Just one more sleep to go!

11th March 2025 marked the 30th anniversary of Chrono Trigger. Square Enix marked the occasion by announcing that "various projects" would be coming our way over the next year, but so far, those projects have been limited to character popularity polls and planned orchestral concerts. Importantly, that's not the remake that we all want to see and have been chatting about for years. But we're still not ready to completely throw out all hope just yet. You see, in the latest episode of the 'KosoKoso Hōsō Kyoku' talk show livestream (translated by Automaton), Dragon Quest creator and Chrono Trigger supervisor Yuji Horii attempted to keep his lips sealed about where the series is heading — but in saying nothing, has he actually said everything? "I can't talk about that," Horii-san told the interviewer when asked whether the smaller anniversary events might be "foreshadowing" bigger developments down the line. He jokingly added clarifying statements like, "Wait, if I say that, you'll figure it out!," "Don't ask!," and "I'll get in trouble!" before the panel decided to move on with the show. Hmmm. It's far from anything concrete, and there's every chance that Horii-san was genuinely just trying to get himself out of a sticky situation, but we can't help feeling that the whole thing is a little suspicious. Hey, perhaps it's just wishful thinking on our end. Back in May, it seemed like Horii-san might have let the news of an upcoming remake slip during a panel at Napoli Comicon. However, it later turned out that it was just the translator bringing up the series, not Yuji Horii himself. D'oh. At the time of writing, the best way to officially play Chrono Trigger remains the wonderful 2008 DS port, which'll set you back a pretty penny if you try to pick it up on the resale market today. It has arrived on mobile and Windows in the years since, but come on, we all want to see it on Switch (2), right?

Believe it or not, the holiday season is almost upon us. Of course, many stores have been setting up the Christmas cheer for months now (this writer was seeing bedecked trees in shop windows back in October), but, as of today, the Nintendo Museum is finally following suit. As shared in a post on the museum's official X account, the lights will be on every night from 4pm JST until close (7pm), and they'll be sticking around in the grounds until the not particularly festive date of 27th April 2026. While it is far from the kind of display we might expect from Disney Land — or, perhaps more accurately, Super Nintendo World — there's enough Mushroom Kingdom flair here that our nerdy Christmas spirits are sufficiently warmed. Nintendo has only revealed the two photos of the display at the time of writing (one above and one below), but look! It's cute! Alongside the lights, the Nintendo Museum has also plonked a Super Mario Bros. 40th Anniversary plaque next to the warp pipe photo op, which feels like... a very Nintendo way of marking the occasion.

Mario Kart World is this week racing ahead with a brand new update, bumping this latest entry in the series up to Version 1.4.0. This new update for the Switch 2 exclusive adds a bunch of general changes. This includes the addition of "Custom Items" in the item rules, some music-related improvements, online updates, course changes for certain modes, and more. Along with this are fixes addressing various aspects of the game such as online play, problems related to courses and even items. So, here's the full rundown courtesy of Nintendo's official support page: Mario Kart World - Version 1.4.0 (2nd December 2025)General Added "Custom Items" to the item rules. This is a feature that lets you set which items appear. This is supported in "VS Race", "Balloon Battle", "Coin Runners", and "Room" in "Online Play" or "Wireless Play". Made it so that music track name and source title of the track that is playing will be displayed on the Pause Menu. Added "Music Volume" to "Settings/Controller". Made it so players who gathered in a "Room" of "Online Play" can participate in "Race", "Knockout Tour", and "Battle". Up to 4 players can participate in "Race", "Knockout Tour", and "Battle". Made it so you can join in with friends who are playing "Knockout Tour" from "Friends" in "2p", "Online Play" as well. Added "Restart" and "Next Race" in the Pause Menu for "VS Race" in "Single Player". Made it so you can select "Photo Mode" from the Pause Menu in "Race against Ghost" in "Time Trials". Changed the course layout of below courses for "VS Race", or "Race" in "Online Play" or "Wireless Play". Race that heads from "Koopa Troopa Beach" to "DK Spaceport". Race that heads from "Koopa Troopa Beach" to "Crown City". Race that heads from "Koopa Troopa Beach" to "Peach Stadium". Race that heads from "Whistlestop Summit" to "Koopa Troopa Beach". Race that heads from "Desert Hills" to "Koopa Troopa Beach". Race that heads from "DK Spaceport" to "Koopa Troopa Beach". Race that heads from "Crown City" to "Koopa Troopa Beach". Race that heads from "Peach Stadium" to "Koopa Troopa Beach". *Changed it so that, in all races heading toward "Koopa Troopa Beach", including the above courses, you will cross the finish line after two laps once you arrive at "Koopa Troopa Beach". You will now dash when riding on Manta Ramp’s back. Made it so the player will not hit Dragoneel when transformed into Bullet Bill. Made it so the player cannot use a second Boo while already using a Boo, when holding two Boos. When Dash Food is taken by someone, shortened the time until that Dash Food reappears. When a coin placed on water is taken by someone, shortened the time until that coin reappears. Fixed Issues Fixed an issue where the dash time was not correct after a Charge Jump. Fixed an issue where the player would slip through a wall when being stomped on from above by a vehicle driving on the road. Fixed an issue where a player would be squashed when touching a Thwomp that had landed. Fixed an issue where a Bullet Bill would not be displayed after using it. Fixed an issue where a character would be blurry even when making "Focus" "Character" when taking a photo in "Photo Mode" on the Pause Menu. Fixed an issue where the screen would look distorted if entering a pipe at the same time as joining a Free Roam in "Online Play". Fixed an issue where player could not get in a UFO when multiple players tried to get in a UFO at the same time in Free Roam in "Online Play". Fixed an issue where a friend’s information would not be updated when looking at the list of friends in "Friends" in "Online Play". Fixed an issue where there would be a communication error when looking at a group ID in "View Room Info" when participating in a group in "Friends" in "Online Play". Fixed an issue where a player’s place would go down if retiring during "Knockout Tour" in "Online Play". Fixed an issue where a player that is seen when spectating looks like they are going off the course over and over during "Knockout Tour" in "Online Play" or "Wireless Play". Fixed an issue where the player’s own character or vehicle would change when starting "Online Play" or "Wireless Play" again after quitting a game after "Knockout Tour" in "Online Play" or "Wireless Play". Fixed an issue where a player would get stuck on a wall when using a Bullet Bill while falling off the course in "Sky-High Sundae". Fixed an issue where a Bullet Bill would go outside the course when using it on the final curve in "Boo Cinema". Fixed an issue where the player would slip through a bulldozer in "Toad's Factory". Fixed an issue where the player would get stuck on a spotlight in the race that heads from "Toad's Factory" to "Bowser's Castle" when transformed into Bullet Bill. Fixed an issue where if the player used a Bullet Bill or Spiny Shell in the first curve of "Desert Hills", it would get stuck on a rock. Fixed an issue where the player would get stuck on a tree when using a Bullet Bill on "DK Pass". Fixed an issue where, when the player was small because of Lightning, they would slip through the wall on the final curve of "DK Pass. Fixed an issue where the player would get stuck on a billboard when transforming into Bullet Bill in the race that heads from "Crown City" to "Desert Hills". Fixed an issue where the player would slip through the ring of stone when using a Bullet Bill or Mega Mushroom while falling in "Great ? Block Ruins" right before the final curve. Fixed an issue where the player would get stuck on the ground on the meadows near "Big Donut". Fixed an issue where the player would slip through the wall if rewinding after wall riding in the special room you can go to from a pipe in "Shy Guy Bazaar". Fixed an issue where the player would still fall into the lava even though they have "Smart Steering" ON in "Dry Bones Burnout". Fixed an issue where the player would go off the course when using a Bullet Bill while rail riding in "Wario Stadium". Fixed an issue where the player would not be able to glide if getting on a glide panel while gliding in the race that heads from "Wario Stadium" to "Airship Fortress". Fixed an issue where the player would get stuck on the ground while heading from "Wario Stadium" to "Airship Fortress". Fixed an issue where the vehicle would float up from the rail when the player did a rail ride after a wall ride in a bike-type vehicle in "Wario Stadium". Fixed an issue where the player would go off the course when using a Bullet Bill on the shortcut while heading from "Dandelion Depths" to "Cheep Cheep Falls" in the "Ice Rally" of "Knockout Tour". Fixed an issue where the player would go off the course while gliding, while heading from "Dandelion Depths" to "Cheep Cheep Falls" in the "Moon Rally" of "Knockout Tour". Fixed an issue where a green shell would get stuck on the ground while heading from "Airship Fortress" to "Dry Bones Burnout" in the "Heart Rally" of "Knockout Tour". Fixed an issue where the player would go off the course when they transformed into Bullet Bill on top of a building in "Crown City" in the below races: Race that heads from "DK Spaceport" to "Crown City". Race that heads from "Koopa Troopa Beach" to "Crown City". Race that heads from "Faraway Oasis" to "Crown City". Several other issues have been addressed to improve the gameplay experience. Since launching alongside the Switch 2 in June, Mario Kart World has now received seven updates. The last major one (Version 1.3.0) was released in September.

Chinese dev Seed Lab has officially announced that its upcoming cosy life sim, Starsand Island, is getting a Switch 2 version alongside the Switch 1 release when it launches next year. Scheduled for release in the nebulous "early 2026" and coming to all the usual platforms, that list also now includes Nintendo's latest console, where the devs will be offering two modes depending on your preference: Quality Mode, "targeting 45FPS in 1080p", and Performance Mode, delivering "60FPS in 1080p" in both docked and handheld modes. The Switch 2 version will also support mouse controls and GameChat during online multiplayer. You can check out the reveal trailer below if this one's passed you by thus far. Now, it has to be said that we're hardly lacking for great roguelike deckbuilders Metroidvanias cosy life sims on Switch, but last year a successful Kickstarter campaign amassed over $300,000 for this one, so there's clearly an appetite for more chilled vibes and harvesting on a handheld hybrid near you. Of course, Nintendo is bringing its island-based slow-life hit Animal Crossing: New Horizons - NS2 Edition to Switch 2 in January, so Starsand might want to avoid that particular part of 'early 2026'. (Then again, is there anyone reading this who doesn't already own New Horizons?)

After ongoing requests from players, NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa Edition finally got a compatibility update for the Switch 2 in November. With this game now functioning as it should on Nintendo's new hardware, another Square Enix title has now received a compatibility update. This time it's for the role-playing game Chrono Cross: The Radical Dreamers Edition, which was originally released on the Switch eShop in 2022. While it might not be the best remaster in Square Enix's library, there are still fans out there who have been wanting to experience this title on the Switch 2 without any problems. The good news is the issues associated with this game on Nintendo's hybrid system have now apparently been resolved. Since the arrival of the Switch 2, there were some start up issues, and while these didn't appear to be a massive problem for a lot of players, there were also some graphical glitches reported. While nothing is specifically mentioned on Nintendo's compatibility search page, as of 2nd December 2025, the game is now "supported" and the "game behavior is consistent with Nintendo Switch" on the Switch 2. The notes attached to this mention how the "previously identified issues have been resolved with an update". This follows a handful of compatibility updates last week after Nintendo released a new firmware update. Apart from NieR, several other titles received compatibility updates including DOOM + DOOM II. If you haven't already played the Radical Dreamers Edition of Chrono Cross, we said it was the "best and most convenient way" to relive this classic, despite its shortcomings in the remaster department. Will you be revisiting this game on the Switch 2 any time soon? Have you already tried it out on Nintendo's new hardware? Let us know in the comments.

For all the money it earns through GTA Online, you'd think Rockstar would put at least a little bit more effort into the re-releases of its past games. Apparently not, though, as the new PS5 version of Red Dead Redemption is probably about as barebones as you can get. Just like the older PS4 re-release from a few years ago, you get the single player campaign of Red Dead Redemption along with the Undead Nightmare expansion in this package. There's a free upgrade for current PS4 owners, and it's also available via PS Plus Extra and GTA+. Buying the game outside of any upgrade or subscription will knock you back £49.99 / $49.99, or there's a 10-day offer to utilise on the PS Store to get it bundled with Red Dead Redemption 2. Now enhanced for PS5, the current-gen version only takes advantage of Sony's console in the most basic sense. You get a 4K resolution at 60 frames-per-second, with improved draw distances, HDR support, and some "enhanced image quality". The improvements seem to stop there, though. Despite the PS Store listing for the title stating it supports "vibration function and trigger effect" in relation to the PS5's DualSense controller, our testing has found there to be no evidence of any use of haptic feedback or the adaptive triggers. While you can import PS4 save data to pick up where you left off, there are reports that the PS5 Trophy list isn't auto-popping to reflect your achievements in the old version. Because of this, the comments we made in our review of the PS4 version still ring largely true. It's great to have Red Dead Redemption native to PS5, but it's still a western open worlder that "deserves so much more".

That pesky Yuji Horii's at it again, getting Chrono Trigger fans all riled up over a potential re-release. This time, the Dragon Quest creator — who was a supervisor on the original Chrono Trigger — has raised eyebrows with comments that he made during a recent Japanese broadcast (as reported by IGN). When asked about all of the remaster and remake rumours that have surrounded the RPG's 30th anniversary for months now, Horii replied: "I can't say", "you shouldn't ask that", and "I'll get told off!". Of course, this has been enough to reignite all kinds of hopes and dreams. Unless Horii comes out and says that a revival categorically isn't happening, then this is always going to be the case. Indeed, the legendary developer did something similar back in May, when his words were somewhat misinterpreted. He did, however, say that he wanted to "do something" with Chrono Trigger, and that he was "starting to contemplate" what that something could be. In this latest case, we think it's pretty clear that Horii's having a laugh. He might even be referencing the kerfuffle that his previous comments caused — and he simply doesn't want to get into trouble again. Still, these rumours will persist until we get something concrete from Square Enix. Just look at the seemingly never-ending Final Fantasy 9 remake saga. Do you think we'll ever see Chrono Trigger return? Travel through time in the comments section below.

Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road has had another update to bring it up to version 1.4 following the recent 1.3 patch. This new patch brings all of the tweaks and additions made to other versions of the game (which we reckon is really very good, actually) to Switch 1 and 2, so there's total parity across all versions. That means the Switch releases have received the CPU Ranked Match mode, the new "Advance Win" feature — which allows you to call time on matches with huge leads (as well as some anti-cheat measures for online) — and a bunch of other tweaks and fixes to boot. The game's executive producer (and Level-5 CEO, lest we forget), Akihiro Hino, dropped the full deets on social media, although we are still awaiting some more detailed patch notes. Here's the tweet, plus the machine translation below: With this latest update, alongside 1.3's added ranked level cap and bug fixes, Inazuma Eleven: Victory Road is certainly in good shape, and looking and playing every bit the soccer star that it is!

We have been keeping an eye on Mina the Hollower for some years now. This is the GBC-looking Zelda-like from Yacht Club Games, the studio behind Shovel Knight, that launched on Kickstarter back in 2022, and only recently missed out on its initial release date thanks to a last-minute delay. It feels like it has been a long time coming, a fact that Yacht Club is reportedly painfully aware of. In a new report from Bloomberg (paywalled), studio founder Sean Velasco described Mina as "make-or-break" for the future of Yacht Club Games. In the time since Shovel Knight, the studio has downsized, faced a global pandemic and divided its teams into two — later reforged into one — and delays don't come cheap, either. “If we sold 500,000 copies, then we would be golden," Velasco told Bloomberg, "If we sold even 200,000, that would be really, really great. If we sold, like, 100,000, that’s not so good”. According to the report, the game's inception came back in 2019 by designer Alec Faulkner. Yacht Club initially split its staff into two teams — one focusing on Mina, and the other on a 3D Shovel Knight follow-up — though the former project quickly grew in ambition, with Faulkner reportedly struggling to operate as the game's director. Seeing that the system wasn't working, the studio laid off some staff to cut expenses and re-combined the teams to focus purely on the Mina project, with Velasco stepping into the director role. According to artist Sandy Gordon, had the team stuck together right from the jump, "we would’ve finished it two to three years ago". "If Mina flops, we'll still be around," Velasco told Bloomberg, though he's quick to clarify that they would "need more money". The studio is already taking steps to cut back on this front, moving fully remote at the end of the year and shifting its attention to only working on one project at a time. From the little of Mina that we have seen so far, we remain cautiously optimistic that the full game will deliver the goods. There's a free demo now available on the eShop (sporting 120fps on Switch 2, no less), and it plays every bit as much like a 2D Zelda game as you would hope. A delay is never a welcome sight, but our fingers are crossed that we don't have to wait too long to see things hit their full potential.