Nintendo Direct could be coming in February, and Switch outsells PS1

Plus, Pokémon Legends: Arceus released to mostly positive reviews across the board.

Hello all, and welcome to yet another Nintendo recap! This week, the long-anticipated Pokémon Legends: Arceus finally released, providing new ways to capture and battle Pokémon than ever seen before. It’s already a critical success, with mostly positive scores from users and critics alike. In other news, a leak seems to point to a Nintendo Direct happening in the first half of February. Additionally, the Switch passed an important milestone, having sold more units than the original PlayStation. There’s even more to discuss, so let’s dive in.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus

Pokémon Legends: Arceus leaked more than a week ahead of release, but its now officially launched and can be found both on store shelves and in the eShop. Reviews from around the critic table are mostly favorable, with some giving it a perfect score. At the time of writing this, it holds an 86 Metacritic score. Others have noted that the game is still a bit messy, but that this is expected from a game that decides to change things up in a 25-year franchise.

From my own experience, some of the mechanics aren’t as refined as I would like them to be, and the world looks both open and empty in many areas. However, Game Freak’s ideas are fun and well worth playing. I truly hope the company pursues this kind of open-world style Pokémon game in a continuing series and refines the formula to make something even better. I’ll be writing up my full review next week sometime, so check back for that.

Nintendo Switch reaches another milestone, surpasses PS1 sales

This week, we learned that the Nintendo Switch outsold the original PlayStation in worldwide sales. The original gray PlayStation from the 1990s was massively popular, and actually was one of the reasons that the N64 was a commercial failure in its time. In total, the PlayStation sold 102.5 million units and the Nintendo Switch just passed that, having reached over 102.81 million units sold. This is no small feat, and considering that the Switch is still popular and isn’t even at the end of its lifecycle, it will continue to climb.

The next big hurdle for the Switch to reach is passing the lifetime worldwide sales of the PlayStation 4, which was at 116.6 million units sold as of the last reporting. That’s a large gap to fill, and the PS4 is still on sale, but if the Switch continues to be as popular as it has been for the last several months, it could achieve this.

Nintendo update fixes water issue in Ocarina of Time

Back when The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time first released on the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack people were quick to point out several issues. A noticeable lag kept players from making the right movements, the controls on a regular controller felt clunky, and the reflections in the iconic Water Temple Shadow Link boss fight weren’t there.

Recent Nintendo Switch Online Update Slightly Improves Ocarina of Time Graphical Issues – Zelda Dungeon https://t.co/3jARa0G3lQ via @zeldainformer

— Zelda Dungeon (@ZeldaDungeon) January 22, 2022

Now, it seems that Nintendo has listened to player feedback and has made a few changes. For starters, the water is actually reflective now, although the fog is still missing. According to multiple players, the lag has also improved slightly but still needs some work. It might not be perfect, but it gives me hope that Nintendo will work to make this emulator more worthwhile.

Signs point to a Nintendo Direct in Feb

Last Sunday, @Dededaio on Twitter posted a picture of a Japanese gaming magazine called Nintendo Dream. When translated, the text explains a “new issue will release on Monday, February 21” and goes on to say that “a new game that we didn’t expect” will get announced. As @Dededaio states, this likely points to a Nintendo Direct happening in the first half of February.

even if new game is not kirby related, it means that likely we are getting nintendo direct in the first half of the month
because of new game reveal https://t.co/WO4XTOwikH

— ❄️ Klu 🐧(Comms are closed for now! 3/3) (@Dededaio) January 23, 2022

It would make sense since Nintendo often throws some kind of opening showcase at the beginning of the year to get fans excited. Hosting it just after Pokémon Legends: Arceus released makes the most sense. After all, there are several notable games on the horizon including The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2 and Bayonetta 3.

See you next week

That’s it this week for Nintendo news. I’ll be head down playing Pokémon Legends: Arceus on my Switch for the next several days and will get the review out sometime next week, so check back for that.

I hope you all are able to relax and play some awesome games this weekend.

Until next time.

– Rebecca Spear