#184: Your Nintendo Update
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Black Lives Matter. 
Issue 184 — June 7, 2020 
Hi , issue #184 of your weekly Switch digest here, with the week in Nintendo news. Before we get into the usual gaming chatter, it’s important that we recognize the activism, demonstrations, and protests that are taking place all over the world following the murder of George Floyd. It’s an undeniable truth that the colour of your skin dictates your human experience. Staying silent, particularly as a white male ( with this email soapbox of sorts ), is not an option here. This moment is an opportunity for many to acknowledge how the status-quo benefits some and constantly pushes others to the side. There are a handful of links in this week’s issue regarding gaming and the Black community, I hope you take the time to click through and read them. Black Lives Matter . My thoughts are with all those fighting for this cause. Switch Weekly has made a donation to the NAACP , and I’ll be doing further reading on the systemic injustices which so many have endured for so long. Nintendo of America shares statement on Black Lives Matter Nintendo of America on Twitter The video game industry has no clue how to respond to protests — ” the statements of solidarity with the black community have all come too little, too late “. Gita Jackson // Vice Video game companies only stand for what you make them stand for — ” corporate statements of solidarity are the beginning of the conversation, and not the end “. Joshua Rivera // The Verge Where are our Black gaming journalists? — ” Journalism has never been diverse, and correcting the issue requires figuring out what the problem is in the first place “. Jeffrey Rousseau also wrote this 2018 piece looking at characters of colour in Nintendo games. Jeffrey Rousseau // US Gamer Game companies say they’re supporting Black Lives Matter, but few are offering specifics Ethan Gach // Kotaku Current African American Portrayals in video games Terril ‘Rell’ Fields // Blerd (Published in 2019) Fear, anxiety and hope: What it means to be a minority in gaming Zaveri, Menghistab, Beltran & Celii // The New York Times (Published in 2019) Video games: How big is industry’s racial diversity problem? Rahil Sheikh // BBC (Published in 2017) ‘Animal Crossing’ and ‘Splatoon’ communities are embracing digital protest Gita Jackson // Vice Animal Crossing’s escapist fantasy is getting a reality check Patricia Hernandez // Polygon REVIEW Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics — A little PSA first: This has two slightly different names depending on where you live. I picked this up and have to agree that the entire compilation of games on offer are ” presented with charm and warmth ” that’s typical of Nintendo. The Verge called it a ” comforting collection of classics “. Chris Scullion // Nintendo Life REVIEW The Outer Worlds — This Fallout-style space RPG reviewed very well on other consoles, but it looks like the Switch version doesn’t quite hit the mark, chiefly due to performance issues. GameSpot said it’s ” full of great characters and layered questlines, but techincal limitations make combat suffer on the Switch “. The always great Digital Foundry also took a look and deemed it ambitious, but not good enough . Edmond Tran // GameSpot REVIEW Shantae and the Seven Sirens — ” a highly polished and roundly enjoyable Metroidvania that, even in light of its pacing issues, is easy to recommend “. Abram Buehner // Nintendad REVIEW Liberated — ” a peculiar game. While it explores some interesting concepts around surveillance, people’s privacy and how societies react to terrorism, I’m not sure any of its ideas are helped by being a video game “. Noah Graham // The Indie Game Website REVIEW Indiecalypse — A scathing appraisal from Nintendo Life: ” a deeply unpleasant game about games ” that’s also described as no fun to play. Jon Mundy // Nintendo Life What games are still stuck on the Wii U, and will they ever be liberated? Joseph Stanichar // Paste INTERVIEW The making of Streets Of Rage 4, by the people who made it happen Stuart Gipp // Nintendo Life Everything you need to know about Borderlands Phil Myth // Nintendo Village New print magazine Ninty Fresh — I’ve mentioned the print magazine Switch Player a few times here, and now the same team is working on a bigger publication that covers the entire world of Nintendo, past and present. The magazine is currently doing great on Kickstarter. I’ve backed it, and if you miss the days of Nintendo Power or Official Nintendo Magazine you may want to back it too. Ninty Fresh // Kickstarter I went on the radio to talk about Switch Weekly — Yours truly was on BBC local radio the other week, talking about Nintendo and this very newsletter. I’ve chucked the audio up on YouTube if you want to hear me bang on about Super Mario 64. Chris Brandrick // YouTube
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⚡️ Quick Links: 🖤 Get over 700 games ( yes, for PC ) from $5 and support racial justice and equality . 🎭 This new YouTube series recreates Pokemon scenes in Animal Crossing. 💳 Had problems buying stuff on the eShop last week ? Nintendo have fixed it. 👀 Squint and yup, this is your first look at No More Heroes 3…sorta. 🎲 ND Cube, the Super Mario Party devs, are also behind Clubhouse Games . 🖌 Painting app ‘Colors’ is heading to the Switch. Here’s an interview with its creator . ❤️ Switch Weekly is ad-free and sustainable thanks to the support of my lovely Patrons, including: PC, CapnGoat, SB, FrozenTrout and others — join them . |
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