Hello everyone welcome to the very last Nintendo recap. This week NYXI released a new Switch controller that features a GameCube design and uses Hall Effect joysticks for no drift. But it’s so popular that it’s been hard to find it in stock. Additionally, some gamers discovered a brand new glitch in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild that makes Link invincible and gives him endless stamina.
In other news, Ubisoft released a financial report that revealed bad sales in 2022, which has led the company to cancel three unannounced titles and delay Skull and Bones once again. But on the bright side of Nintendo news this week, The Pokémon Company celebrated having over 1,000 Pokémon with a nostalgic video. There’s even more to discuss so let’s dive in.
Driftless GameCube controller for Switch selling out fast
Ever since the Nintendo Switch first launched in 2017, Joy-Con drift has plagued Nintendo’s official Switch controllers. Many third-party Joy-Con controller manufacturers have entered the market in order to combat this problem, but now a beautiful new gamepad known as the NYXI Wizard Wireless Joy-pad has stolen many Switch gamer’s hearts.
In addition to the nostalgic GameCube controller design, this gamepad also works as a detachable Joy-Con, whose sides can slide on and off of the Switch display. Plus, it uses Hall Effect joysticks, which in theory should never suffer from drift issues since the components don’t actually touch each other.
It sells for $69 and has been very popular, selling out almost instantly each time that it comes back in stock on NYXI’s website. Fortunately,if you’re interested, you can sign up to get notified when it comes back in stock, but you’ll have to jump on a purchase as soon as possible in order to secure one for yourself.
Zelda Breath of the Wild glitch gives Link unlimited stamina and invincibility
Last weekend, YouTube channel Gaming Reinvented posted a video explaining a previously unknown glitch in The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild that gives Link invincibility and unlimited stamina (thanks, NintendoLife (opens in new tab)). Getting this glitch to show up requires players to press buttons at very specific times, so it might take a few attempts before it successfully activates.
If successfully done, Link will still get smacked around when hit, but he won’t lose any hearts and his stamina wheel will never deplete. Players can even find themselves in this state after saving the game and reloading it. Additionally, this glitch allows Link to explore the Lost Woods without getting reset, explore the Gerudo Fortress in his usual clothes without getting kicked out, go to Eventide Island without losing his gear, and climb on top of Divine Beasts.
However, there are several things players cannot do while in this state or it will bring the game back to normal play. These things include: Opening treasure chests, talking to NPCs, entering shrines, pausing/unpausing, using runes, or switching items.
Gaming Reinvented explains that players need the following prerequisites to do this glitch:
- Upgraded Sheikah Sensor
- A save near a Goddess Statue
- At least 1 Hyrule Compendium Entry
- The Camera Rune (which should be active)
- Access to Hyrule Castle
You can watch the video to get the rest of the steps for unlocking this glitch, but note that it’s a long process that can be hard to successfully perform. Still, the thought of being able to go against Guardians, Lynels, and even powerful bosses like Monk Maz Koshia without worrying about taking any damage is a compelling one.
Ubisoft cancels several games after poor 2022 sales
In an official press release (opens in new tab), Ubisoft revealed that it had underwhelming financial results in 2022. The company specifically cited its “disappointment” in the sales of Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope and Just Dance 2023 even though both games received “excellent ratings” (thanks, NintendoLife (opens in new tab)). Due to this poor performance in the marketplace, Ubisoft went on to reveal that it had decided to cancel “three unannounced projects, on top of the four already announced in July 2022.”
That same day, the company also announced that its highly-anticipated open-world pirate game, Skull and Bones (opens in new tab), was getting delayed (once again) to the company’s next fiscal year, which starts after April 1.
The bad news doesn’t stop there. Shortly after these developments came to light, Ubisoft’s U.S. shares price took a 10.6% dive toward a 7-year low for the company (opens in new tab). Things really aren’t looking good for Ubisoft. However, if the upcoming Assassin’s Creed Mirage (opens in new tab) or Skull and Bones manage to sell well when they release this year, it could drastically change the company’s direction.
It’s especially bewildering to see that Just Dance 2023 didn’t perform that well considering that this has been a cash cow staple for Ubisoft for several years now. Meanwhile, it’s not too surprising that Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope hasn’t hit the high numbers Ubisoft was hoping for. While it’s a fantastic strategy game that I recommend to anyone, it’s also rather niche and doesn’t appeal as much to the wider Mario audience.
The Pokémon Company celebrates over 1,000 Pokémon
With the release of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, the total number of Pokémon in the catch-em-all universe has reached 1,008. In celebration, The Pokémon Company released a video that serves as both a nostalgic look at past Pokémon as well as an official showcase for Gen 9’s new creatures and evolutions. Everything was revealed including imagery of starter evolutions, Legendaries, and new Pokémon for Scarlet and Violet.
It’s crazy to think that this simple-yet-beloved series has reached such a high number of creatures since its modest 151 roster of Pokémon from the original Pokémon games 25 years previous. As of right now, Pokémon continues to be a major player across video games, TV shows, merchandise, and more, so this number will undoubtedly climb a lot higher in the following years.
cheese_string_man_walked_so_gholdengo_could_run from r/MandJTV
The video also paid special attention to the Gimmighoul evolution, Gholdengo, explaining that this golden new Pokémon is officially the 1,000th Pokémon in the series. Undoubtedly, the design for the 1,000th Pokémon was debated and refined for months. So it’s interesting that this “string cheese man” design is what was landed on. Some players love it and others really don’t like it.
Bayonetta 3 gets huge patch
Many people were upset when Bayonetta 3 launched in October because the game was plagued with performance issues. Well, now it seems that Nintendo has been listening since it released a massive patch on Tuesday that adjusted several aspects and corrected a number of bugs (thanks, NintendoLife (opens in new tab)).
It’s nice to see Nintendo taking feedback so seriously and patching the game up in so many different ways. If you were initially disappointed by how the game ran, you might want to give it another go.
These are all of the adjustments in Bayonetta Ver. 1.2.0 as listed by Nintendo:
Combat Adjustments
- Adjusted Viola’s activation window for “Block” and activation conditions for Witch Time.
- Block activation window added after releasing Block (during the release animation).
- Added an additional animation when Witch Time takes effect, making its activation easier to realize.
- The allotted duration of Witch Time, and its activation window have been lengthened.
- Now, when block is activated when player is attacked, player will receive damage effect, but block will succeed and activate Witch Time.
- Now, combo can continue (with Dodge Offset) when player uses Block to activate Witch Time.
- If the Block input is used repeatedly, the granted Witch Time duration will decrease.
- Adjustments made to prevent Viola’s evasive input and Cheshire’s summoning input from activating Assault Slave while maintaining invincibility if they are used in rapid succession.
- Weapons “Simoon”, “Tartarus” and Viola’s Charge Attacks can now continue to hold charge, even if dodged or blocked.
- Wink Slave can now be activated from the combos “PKP*” and “PKK*” for the weapons “G-Pillar”, “Dead End Express” and “Cassiopeia”.
- *P is Punch, and K is Kick
- When equipping the accessories “Infernal Communicator” and “Pulley’s Butterfly” to summon Devils and Butterflies, it is now possible to cancel the summoning motion by dodging or blocking.
Niflheim
The following Niflheim stage conditions were changed to lower the difficulty:
| Niflheim Stage | Changed Conditions |
|---|---|
| Chapter 2 Verse 5（Casual to Expert） | 120 second time limit changed to 150 second time limit |
| Chapter 3 Verse 4（Casual to Expert） | Two lives increased to three lives |
| Chapter 5 Verse 2 (Casual to Expert） | 150 second time limit changed to 180 second time limit |
| Chapter 6 Verse 8 (Casual to Expert） | Two lives increased to three lives |
| Chapter 9 Verse 8 (Casual to Expert) | 60 second time limit changed to 80 second time limit |
| Chapter 10 Verse 1 (Casual to Expert) | 140 second time limit changed to 160 second time limit |
| Chapter 12 Verse 5 (Casual to Expert) | One life increased to two lives |
Game Modes
- Conditions for obtaining the “Tricolored Keys” needed to unseal the “Old Picture Book” have been made easier.
- “Tricolored Keys” will be automatically available on the chapter select screen once it becomes possible to access the “Gates of Hell”.
- Even if the player already has access to the Gates of Hell, or has already obtained one or two keys, they will automatically obtain the remaining keys when going to the chapter select screen after applying the update.
Other Changes
- Adjustments have been made to the Golem Treasure Chests found in stages.
- Time limits have been increased, and difficulty has been lowered.
- Golem Chest fragmenting animation can now be fast-forwarded with the B-button.
- Adjustments have been made to reduce situations with poor camera visibility.
- Adjusted game balance.
Bug Fixes
- Fixed a bug in Verse 5 of Chapter 7 that prevented progress when certain actions were performed while controlling Cheshire.
- Fixed a problem with the accessory “Hymn of Durga” in which its effect was not being applied to some attacks.
- Fixed an issue where using Alruna’s “Bondage Whip (P or K* long press)” skill in certain situations would cause the enemies to to die instantly.
- Fixed an issue where the weapons using “Crow Within” (J* long press)” with “Scarborough Fair” and “Love is Blue” would cause player to move forward significantly under certain conditions.
- Fixed an issue where Bayonetta’s animations would not play correctly when switching weapons immediately after using the “Crow Within (J* long press)” with the weapons “Scarborough Fair” and “Love is Blue”.
- Fixed a bug that caused “Black Pearl Rain (Rotate L stick + S*)” for Infernal Demon “Kraken” to trigger “Wink Slave” with abnormally high attack power.
- Fixed a bug that caused “Devil Rodin” to be stuck for a time when using “After Burner Kick (↑K* in midair)” continuously, immediately after rising up with a prior “After Burner Kick (J・K*)”.
- Fixed a bug in which Viola’s Assault Slave was able to summon Infernal Demons in “Infernal Demon-prohibited areas”.
- Fixed an error in the hand symbol seen in Cutie J’s transformation sequence viewable in Side Chapter.
- Fixed other issues to make the game more enjoyable to play.
*P is Punch, K is Kick, S is Shoot, and J is Jump.
So long, farewell
This is actually my last week writing a Nintendo recap for iMore as I’ll be moving over to Windows Central to cover gaming over there. It’s been my pleasure to write about Nintendo over the last four years and I’m going to miss the wonderful people I’ve worked with here.
So far, 2023 is shaping up to be an incredible year for Nintendo with the upcoming releases of Fire Emblem Engage and The Legend of Zelda Tears of the Kingdom already pulling at our interest. Have fun enjoying these awesome games and more.
Farewell, Nintendo friends. Be excellent to each other.
– Rebecca Spear