GameChap

"Witness our power!" Pyra's moves in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition look pretty impressive compared to her Super Smash Bros Ultimate moveset from 2021.

"Burning Sword!!!" The remastered graphics in Xenoblade Chronicles 2 - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition are quite impressive.

Metal Mario was playable for the first time in 1999's Mario Golf (Nintendo 64). Players had to earn all 108 Birdie Badges to unlock him, but this was only possible in the Western releases of the game. His voice didn't have a metallic distortion effect, unlike later appearances.

In Splatoon Raiders on Switch 2, it's possible to emote "Booyah!" - even in solo play - by pressing Down on the D-Pad.

A nice detail in the Star Fox 64 remake on Switch 2 is the unique markings on each team member's Arwing. Fox, Slippy and Peppy's have paw/hand prints together with enemy ships downed markers on Peppy's, referencing his long career. Falco's, meanwhile, has a blue wing emblem.

Metal Mario first appeared in Super Mario 64 (1996). Almost invincible, he's one of Mario's strongest forms. He sometimes appears as his own separate character such as a boss in Super Smash Bros. The iconic powerup's techno music got a special remake in Super Mario Bros Wonder.

Splatoon Raiders on Switch 2 contains a variety of unlockable retro-style arcade games, including Mining, Hopping, Juggling and Landing. A surprisingly fun little diversion from the intensity of the main game!

Mario Golf (N64) is unusual among Mario games in that most of the main cast are "hidden" characters that must be unlocked, including Mario, Luigi, Yoshi, Wario and DK. Only Peach, Baby Mario and two guest characters are available from the start.

What's inside the press kit box for Splatoon Raiders, out today on Switch 2? Plenty of gear, that's what! (Big thanks @NintendoUK for sending us this!)

Koizumi: "When we made the first (Super Mario 64) prototype, Mario and Luigi were on a flat field. "(...) because of hardware limitations we had a choice between cutting Luigi or making more elaborate landforms. Then, in tears, we had to ask Luigi to leave." - Iwata Asks, 2013

Super Mario 64 DS was originally known as Super Mario 64x4, as can be seen in this early footage from 2004 featuring Mario, Luigi and Yoshi flying around outside Peach's Castle. Note the 3D modelled Nintendo DS with a slightly different design from the final retail version.

In Sector Z on Expert Mode of the Star Fox 64 remake on Switch 2, it's possible to acquire Hyper Lasers starting from the basic laser. It's done by intentionally taking damage, collecting a supply drop from ROB after repairing, then acquiring a laser upgrade from a downed enemy.

There's a variety of Gadgets usable as weapons in Splatoon Raiders on Switch 2, such as the Booyarang, Tether Wail and others. These are divided into three ink tank categories: Speed, Power and Tactical.

@Rooknroll64 In Mario Golf on the N64, too!

@GameChap Better than Mario Tennis gbc. You have to unlock MARIO in MARIO Tennis.

As of the 1.1.0 update, Mario Tennis Fever is now one of the very few Nintendo games where Mario needs to be unlocked; specifically, his classic outfit in this case. The secret costume can be acquired by earning all five medals in the game - no small task!

The Area 6 Commander gains a new dialogue line in the Star Fox 64 remake on Switch 2: "Do it! That's an order!"

If consoles like the next PlayStation and Xbox won't have a disc drive or exclusives, how are they any different from a mid-range PC running Steam? A unique controller? Branded hardware? Steam has both now. So what's special about consoles? I believe Nintendo understands what.

The Wii U holds the unfortunate record of selling the least units of any Nintendo home console (~14M) aside from the Virtual Boy. It did, however, lead us quite directly to the Switch so its legacy was ultimately highly successful. It also had excellent backward compatibility.

You can almost hear the tears in Rick May's eyes as he voices Peppy's elation at Fox's safe return in the ending of the original Star Fox 64.

Perhaps the most unpopular Mario Kart item, the Thundercloud appeared in only a single home console game: Mario Kart Wii. The ultimate "bad item", it spawns a cloud that eventually zaps and shrinks the unfortunate racer, unless they manage to bump another racer to transfer it.