Tag: Treehouse

E3 2019: ‘Animal Crossing: New Horizons Ensures That No Animal Is An Island

by Josh Jackson

One of the more surprising omissions from the E3 show floor this year was Animal Crossing on the Switch. Originally announced during a Nintendo Direct at the later part of last year, the only thing more disappointing than a demo being unavailable was that the game was being delayed into next year. During the Nintendo Treehouse game play overview however, it’s clear that the extra time is being put to good use as the newly titled New Horizons is introducing so many firsts to Nintendo’s life simulator.

Taking us out of the town and onto an island, our new villagers are being sold on this uninhabited land by the money grubbing Tom Nook. Like previous games in the series, players will explore their town, collect items and interact with neighboring animals as they work towards saving money to pay off their crippling debt. 

Perhaps the biggest addition in New Horizons is how money can be saved and spent. Thanks to a new crafting system inspired by the mobile version, Pocket Camp, players can make their own furniture by collecting materials that would have otherwise disappeared in past games. For example, chopped trees can be used for wood to build materials when it would have just vanished before. As side quests are completed, a new currency called Nook Miles can be used to purchase premium items, giving us additional objectives to compete.

If the phrase “it takes a village” we’re taken literally, it would probably look like New Horizons, since you no longer have to take on this challenge alone. Past games allowed players to share towns at different times or visit through local or online multiplayer, but New Horizons allows up to eight players rummage through the same town at once. With new tools like the pole vault that lets villagers jump over water instead of wasting cumulative hours running to the closest bridge, movement is also looking like its receiving an unexpected, yet welcomed improvement. Aside from other humans, the animal NPC’s can be given invitations to move to your island, who can provide extra tasks to perform.  Players can even choose where new animals will have their homes placed, so gone are the days where your favorite cherry tree is suddenly steamrolled one morning. Overall, it seems like the community aspect in both single and multiplayer formats are looking even better.

As March 20 slowly approaches, it’s looking like we’ll have plenty to discover when Animal Crossing: New Horizons is finally in our hands. The expanded multiplayer and single player mechanics, the focus on crafting over buying and streamlined movement are just some of the reasons why we’re looking forward to our island vacation. Let’s hope that this news is just the first of many more positive updates as we eagerly await 2020.

E3 2019: Class Is In Session In ‘Fire Emblem: Three Houses’

by Josh Jackson

The next installment in the Fire Emblem franchise is right around the corner with Three Houses, the first mainline console game in the series since Wii’s Radiant Dawn in 2007, (or 2016’s excellent Tokyo Mirage Sessions if we’re including spin-offs). Ahead of its July 26 release, the strategy RPG’s Switch debut was heavily detailed during Nintendo’s E3 Treehouse presentation, showing off its school setting and the ways we’re able to interact with the students both both on and off the battlefield.
As Byleth, a professor at a military academy that enrolls students from three different kingdoms, players will take the unique role of mentor to their military units. Seemly expanding heavily on the social aspect of the game, each student can develop in a variety of ways depending on how you teach them. For example students will be inherently skilled at certain class types, such as magic, sword or axe wielding. However, if you feel like your current army is lacking coverage in a particular area, you can encourage your class to take up studying a new combat type. With enough lessons and a final examination, characters can eventually take up entirely new class types, replacing the Master Seal item that upgraded character classes in the past.
Beyond combat functions, getting to know your students has strong implications for both the present and the future of your time at the academy. Through optional conversations, figuring out the senders of confidential questions through a feedback box and addressing student concerns, their motivation in battle will increase alongside their trust in you. This is important going past graduation since as expected, the three kingdoms will eventually go to war following a five year time skip. As an attempt to avoid awkward and inappropriate classroom romance, it’s after the time skip that your character can romance their past students, which is still kind of creepy. Even creepier is that your relationship as student and teacher helps plant the seeds for future options, but this can be completely platonic. In fact, if you have students you were particularly fond of that are part of a house that you’re fighting, having enough influence with them can lead to them changing sides to fight at your side. This also goes for your faculty, since you can get to know other teachers and learn skills yourself from experts in areas you’re weak in.
If it wasn’t clear already, Three Houses will still be a turn based combat RPG at its core. The battlefield has also seen a variety of changes, both visually and through combat. When two units clash, the camera zooms in on the same location that they’re standing on, creating a seamless transition between the overhead grid and the combat animations. This also leads to more detailed environments during combat as opposed to the background changing to a generic field like in past games.
Speaking of past games, the combat borrows many mechanics from 2017’s 3DS remake, Fire Emblem: Shadow of Valentia. Like in Alm and Celica’s adventure, each unit will have special abilities that are tied to their weapon and class. Rather than drain HP, a controversial choice to say the least, weapon durability returns. This leads to weapons weakening when used, especially after using special attacks.
While Classic Mode returns, which brings back he permanent death mechanic that the series is known for, the turn wheel mechanic, now known as the Divine Pulse, returns. This allows you to rewind bad moves for a limited amount of times during a battle. This way, if an enemy gets a lucky critical hit that kills your favorite student at the end of an hour long battle, you can back up a few turns instead of losing the character permanently, (or soft resetting if we’re being honest). Or you can skip this problem altogether and turn off perma-death. Whatever.
Fire Emblem: Three Houses is looking like an almost overwhelmingly large game, making it the first time we’re looking forward to summer school! With so many characters to meet and teach, three story paths and multiple ways to tackle challenges, the series’ Switch debut is likely to impress.

Nintendo’s ‘Pokémon: Let’s Go’ Preview Answers A Ton Of Questions, Leaves Us Wanting More!

by Josh Jackson

Briefly: Nintendo’s Pokémon Let’s Go announcement from a few weeks back may have left us all foaming at the mouth with excitement, but it also left a lot of unanswered questions that had gamers everywhere concerned about just how similar to Pokémon GO things could end up.

During Nintendo’s exciting (dat Smash tho) presentation this morning, Ninty answered a number of pressing questions, while also leaving us with a ton more.

Naturally, it’s Tuesday afternoon, so if you haven’t had an opportunity to watch Nintendo’s lengthy coverage of the game, here are a few notes that should clear a few things up.

First up, Pokémon have both levels and CP – all of your Pokémon gain experience when you catch a Pokemon, with multipliers based on your throws. That danged circle also no longer stops shrinking after your throw, which has annoyed the hell out of us on more than a few occasions. This time around, different throwing techniques can be used, such as a diagonal or lob throw. This should be useful, as Pokémon will move around much more often and in different ways later in the game. At the same time, it looks like your actual throw and momentum will have little to do with how the ball moves when thrown. You’ll also see new aura’s around wild Pokémon, which let you know the size of the creature you’re trying to catch – a red aura means that Pokémon is larger, and blue is smaller.

Pokéballs can be a struggle in Pokémon GO, but Nintendo noted here that you’ll be rewarded with Poké-balls for winning trainer battles (and speaking of battles, thankfully linked battles between really people have been confirmed). Speaking of linked battles, you’ll also be able to trade and even participate in doubles battle (hopefully any of this functionality is added to Pokémon GO in the future). You’ll be able to use link codes made up of Pokémon pictures to link locally, kind of like a password.

Nintendo noted that “The Pokemon Box in your bag,” but we’re not yet sure if this means that you can change party members whenever you want. Nintendo has also added some new ways to find items – your partner Pokémon wags its tail when you’re near a hidden item, kind of like an adorable, living metal detector.

As for controls, you’ll only be able to use button controls in handheld mode, but you’ll still uses system gyro to aim before pushing the button, and if you’re using the Pokéball Plus, the front of the ball will act as a control stick. A sure-to-sell-out-in-seconds Pokéball Plus bundle is also launching with the game for $99. That Pokéball Plus even comes with Mew on it in case you haven’t been able to catch it yourself (we’ll only judge a little bit).

The game also features some neat sounding co-op, in that a second player can join at any time by shaking second Joycon. Synchronized catches net extra EXP, and that second player can even join battles with you.

Story wise, your new rival is Trace, but he’s kind and gets scared easily. There are new events and side quests are scattered through towns, and gyms may be completely different (like the bleachers added to Pewter Gym).  The Go Park replaces Safari Zone, and you can bring over all Kanto Pokemon and their Alolan variants. Dozens of Pokémon shown in the Park at once. They have higher CP, so they’re stronger, but harder to catch. Pokémon GO will also receive candy when your ‘Mons are transfered, but Pokémon can also be transferred to the professor for special candy like Quick Candy that helps them improve.

Overall, Nintendo cleared a lot of things up during that presentation. We’re still wondering how a lot of mechanics work or feel after the vast amount of changes made, but even with all of these non-traditional changes, the game looks fun as hell and we simply can’t wait to get lost in Kanto all over again.

Are you ready to pre-order this one yet? What are you still waiting to see from the game? Sound out below!

E3 2016: ‘Pokemon GO’ Release Month Revealed Alongside Pokemon GO Plus Accessory Pricing

by Josh Jackson

 

During Nintendo’s three day Treehouse streaming event, more details surfaced hinting at when we can expect to catch em all for real with Pokemon GO, the upcoming free to play mobile game that uses augmented reality technology to detect and catch Pokemon in our actual surroundings.

While a specific release date wasn’t mentioned, July seems to be the time we could expect the final game to be released if the details surrounding the Pokemon GO Plus accessory is anything to go by. Priced at $34.99, the pocket sized device will light up whenever a Pokemon is nearby, allowing you to use the button on it to throw Pokeballs without having to use up your phone data or pull out your phone every time you want to seek out new characters. What’s even better for 3DS players out there, is the confirmation that Pokemon caught in GO will be transferable into the main games some time in the future. During this portion of the conversation, it was revealed that the Pokemon GO Plus would release in July, right after the release of the app.

E3 2016 Pokemon GO Plus

Knowing that, it seems like we’ll be getting the game sooner than expected, especially since Nintendo and The Pokemon Company have been quiet with the details up until this point, even as the game began a second round of beta testing a few weeks ago. With the game right around the corner, are you excited to finally be the Pokemon Master you were meant to be within the confines of reality? Comment below and let us know!