retrogames

Friday, February 24, 2023

Atomic Heart Apologizes for Racist Cartoon, No Comment on Ukraine Statement

Editor's Note: The war in Ukraine is an ongoing, painful and emotive topic. IGN urges community members to be respectful when engaging in conversation around this subject and does not endorse harassment of any kind.

Atomic Heart's launch week has been surrounded by controversy, as developer Mundfish is facing backlash for its Russian ties in relation to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, and a racist cartoon present within the game.

Earlier this week, PC Gamer published a story about online criticism surrounding the presence of a racist caricature within Atomic Heart. The caricature in question was found in the game's Resident Evil-style save rooms, where players can take a breather from the action and watch old episodes of Nu, Pogodi!, or, Well, Just You Wait!, a Soviet-era cartoon that started in 1969.

The show can be summarized as a Soviet version of Tom and Jerry, starring a wolf who tries time and time again to get his hands on a hare. The issue is present in episode 12, titled Museum, which first aired in 1978. A statue is shown in the episode that's a racist depiction of an African tribesman. Folks on Resetera criticized Atomic Heart for including the cartoon at all, let alone without any warning or context.

Atomic Heart devs:

"The Mundfish team thanks the PC Gamer contributor for bringing this lack of sensitivity to our attention. We apologize if using the vintage cartoon or music has caused hurt or insult. We will edit the parts in question."

The clip: https://t.co/58SUMRXA7F
— Kat Bailey (@The_Katbot) February 24, 2023

Mundfish responded to the PC Gamer report in a statement, saying, "The Mundfish team thanks the PCGamer contributor for bringing this lack of sensitivity to our attention. We apologize if using the vintage cartoon or music has caused hurt or insult. We will edit the parts in question."

Ukraine government seeks to remove Atomic Heart

That's not the only issue Mundfish and Atomic Heart are facing this week. While Mundfish's official website now says the studio is headquartered in Cyprus, the developer's Russian roots and potential ties to the Russian government has Ukraine's Ministry of Digital Transformation seeking to remove Atomic Heart from digital storefronts in the country.

The ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine has seen many games and entertainment companies pull support in Russia, with many across the games industry calling for support for Ukraine. We've previously seen the Ukrainian government call on "all game development companies and esports platforms" to temporarily stop business in Russia.

Now, Atomic Heart has taken center stage regarding the games industry's role in the war. As reported by PCGamesN, the Ukraine government will write an official letter to Valve, Microsoft, and Sony requesting that Atomic Heart be removed from digital stores in Ukraine, with an additional request that these companies consider "limiting distribution" in other countries.

The Ministry of Digital Transformation said its stance comes from the "toxicity" of Atomic Heart, and allegations that the Russian government could see financial gain from the game's release.

“We also urge limiting the distribution of this game in other countries due to its toxicity, potential data collection of users, and the potential use of money raised from game purchases to conduct a war against Ukraine,” said Alex Bornyakov, Ukraine’s Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation.

This statement originally appeared on Ukrainian tech site Dev.au, with PCGamesN obtaining the English version directly from the Ukrainian government.

“According to media reports, the game’s development was funded by Russian enterprises,” the Ukraine government's statement continued. “Therefore, we call for all users worldwide to avoid this game. We also want to emphasize that the game developers have not publicly condemned the Putin regime and the bloody war that Russia has unleashed against Ukraine.”

Both Mundfish and Xbox had "no comment" when contacted about the Ukraine situation. Valve and PlayStation did not respond to IGN's request. IGN will update this article accordingly if we hear back.

Atomic Heart composer Mick Gordon recently revealed that he donated his fee to the Red Cross' Ukraine Crisis Appeal. Gordon said he was contacted by Mundfish studio in 2020, nearly two full years before the Russian invasion in February 2022.

Logan Plant is a freelance writer for IGN covering video game and entertainment news. He has over six years of experience in the gaming industry with bylines at IGN, Nintendo Wire, Switch Player Magazine, and Lifewire. Find him on Twitter @LoganJPlant.

Valiant Hearts: Coming Home Explores The Underrepresented Heroes of World War I

The Valiant Hearts series is a novel take on the familiar setting of World War I. Instead of focusing on armed skirmishes and large-scale battles, it hones in on the lives of those on the frontlines, the lingering trauma that war casts upon them, and the unexpected bonds found in dark times. Despite the smaller-scale storytelling, its more emotional take on living through war is a welcome change of pace.

Released in January as a Netflix Games exclusive, Valiant Hearts: Coming Home is the long overdue sequel to Ubisoft’s war-time narrative-adventure game from 2014. Along with the return of protagonists Anna and Freddie, the sequel also includes a new character whose story focuses on the African American service members in the famed 369th regiment, the Harlem Hellfighters.

We interviewed Ubisoft manager of inclusive games & content Maya Loreal, and product director Guillaume Cerda, about the making of Valiant Hearts: Coming Home and the potential video games have with bringing stories and underrepresented figures into the spotlight.

“It's in our game’s DNA to tell the story of these ordinary people becoming unsung heroes,” said Cerda about Valiant Hearts; Coming Home. “And what better example than the Harlem Hellfighters, especially with the feats and efforts they are recognized with, even after a century following the end of World War I. Their stories fit in well with Valiant Hearts. We’re always saying that it's not a war game, but it's a game about war, being caught up in the turmoil of it.”

Revisiting The Past

Coming Home picks up after the original game's events in 1917, with the United States entering the war and further expanding the scale of the conflict. As returning characters Freddie and Anna continue to survive with their fellow French soldiers, Freddie's brother James enlists in the US army to join the war effort, going against his brother's wishes. Along with facing the brutality of one of history's most chaotic wars, James and other Black soldiers in his unit also contend with daily encounters of bigotry from their fellow service members at home and abroad.

The strength of the Valiant Hearts series lies in its focus on the human condition, along with the bonds of family and friendship during times of war. Much like Freddie's experience from the original game – whose story was inspired by real-life WWI hero Freddie Stowers – James' story is about the experiences of a Black soldier during the early 1900s, and what unfolds is a tale that’s rich and emotional.

Aside from 2016's Battlefield 1, the Harlem Hellfighters have had little presence in other games focusing on World War 1. In real life, the Harlem Hellfighters, often known as the 369th regiment, comprised enlisted African American soldiers who wanted to join the war effort for the United States. However, the American military instead sent the 369th regiment to work with France, as American generals and other soldiers refused to work alongside Black servicemen in the racially segregated army.

The all-African American regiment was welcomed into the French military with open arms, and they would become a key segment of the French armed forces, helping to achieve victory in battles across Europe and in Northern Africa. The Harlem Hellfighters were not only exceptional in combat, but they also provided much-needed morale to the French and American military forces. In addition, several regiment members were talented Jazz musicians, and their music would lift the spirits of allied soldiers. It would also lead to the booming popularity of Jazz music in France during the 1900s.

A Fresh Perspective

James' story in Valiant Hearts: Coming Home is compelling, and it pulls from the real-life experiences of Harlem Hellfighter James Reese Europe. Europe was a Jazz musician before entering the war, and he experienced many hardships during the war as well as in the racially segregated United States. Yet, despite that, he brought humanity and comfort to his fellow servicemen with his Jazz music and upbeat attitude – so much so that he became a celebrity in France after the war ended.

Speaking with Maya Loreal from Ubisoft, she explained the work that went into bringing James to life, and honoring the members of the 369th regiment in Valiant Hearts.

“Right from the start, the team intended to represent the experiences and the struggles [the 369th regiment] towards equality in the context of racial segregation,” said Loreal about incorporating the experiences of Black soldiers into Coming Home. “We did a lot of research to ensure we brought those stories to life. We partnered with Dr. John H. Morrow Jr., who is a scholar specializing in the history of the Harlem Hellfighters, and with the non-profit The 369th Experience, which is continuing their legacy. We see this as a long-term journey to make sure that we were celebrating those who hadn't had a voice in history, and who had been overlooked.”

Coming Home delves into James' story from the beginning of deployment to the end of his time in the war, highlighting many Black soldiers' struggles in America. For instance, during a segment in James' training for the war, he has to face racist drill sergeants who bark orders at him while demanding he enter the Blacks-only side of the barracks for his orientation. While in gun and performance training, the White soldiers are given rifles to practice with, whereas James and other Black soldiers have to run drills with brooms and other bricks instead. The sequence ends with James watching White soldiers stand in formation and raising the American flag, while he has to clean up the obstacle course.

Valiant Hearts: Coming Home shows its Black characters finding their joy in bleakest of times, and it's a welcome and much-needed sight for video games.

Even with Valiant Hearts’ emotive and colorful art-style, you can sense the hostility and resentment that James experiences in his story. Thankfully, it's not just tragedy and humiliation that he faces. In Valiant Hearts: Coming Home's more hopeful and upbeat moments, we see James and the fellow members of the 369th division have pure and unbridled moments of joy amongst themselves, which is a rare sight for a game set during a war. Taking cues from the real-life James Reese Europe, the protagonist, and other characters come together to bond over a shared love of Jazz, which is an intractable rhythm-based sequence with music composed by musician and historian Jason Moran.

These moments are spaced throughout the game, and they're always great moments of uplifting for the characters, showing that there is more to them and their stories than just suffering and hardship. Valiant Hearts: Coming Home shows its Black characters finding their joy in bleakest of times, and it's a welcome and much-needed sight for video games.

Finding That Joy In Dark Times

Even today, we often see stereotypes and other harmful depictions of what it means to be Black in media – whether in a fantasy realm or in contemporary settings. Regardless of the setting, depictions of Black characters in media come from a real-world basis. Valiant Heroes: Coming Heroes shows a level of earnestness and warmth for its Black characters, which carries so much weight when you consider the real history and even in our present times.

“What worked so well with the collaboration with the 369 Experience and the dev team was that it was such an organic back-and-forth,” said Loreal. “It led us to explore other paths and also to acknowledge the full cultural resonance of that moment in time [during World War I], and what it means today. Working with Dr. John H. Morrow Jr. also brought a lot of insight into the specificity of the voice we needed to bring to the African American soldiers during that time, and it provided so much authenticity to the game.”

Much like the original game, Valiant Hearts: Coming Home is a moving and effective narrative game that portrays a particularly brutal period of history with a bittersweet sense of hope. This sequel not only lives up to its original story and characters, but it also shows that video games have a growing potential for telling stories about marginalized groups, and getting players to empathize with the perspective of an outsider and how it connects to real life. Simply put, to play as a Black character in a game about one of modern history’s most brutal wars just hits different.

Even with games that have several times the budget of Valiant Hearts: Coming Home, this sequel to a 2014 game manages to give more honesty and emotion than so many other titles in its genre, and it’s admirable to see a game punch above its weight. There’s always that prevailing hope that a medium you enjoy will continue to evolve. Games like Valiant Hearts show that video games can indeed offer something more.

Alessandro Fillari is a news writer for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter and Instagram @afillari.

Best Nintendo Switch Games

If 2023 proves to be the last year the Nintendo Switch dominates the market before its successor arrives, then it is going out with a bang. The hybrid portable console has surpassed the PlayStation 4 and Game Boy to become the third best-selling console of all time with over 122.55 units sold, Nintendo Switch Online has added Game Boy and Game Boy Advance games, and Nintendo struck a 10-year deal with Microsoft to port Call of Duty to future Nintendo consoles if Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard gets approved. While Call of Duty fans wait for the first wave of ports, here are the 25 best Switch games you can play to hold you over.

This list was assembled by the entire IGN content team — including our resident Nintendo experts, the NVC podcast crew — and represents what we think are the best games to enjoy on the Switch right now, whether you're picking one up for the first time or have been a platform enthusiast since day one. So without further ado, these are our picks for the 25 best Nintendo Switch games.

More on the Best of Nintendo:

25. Ring Fit Adventure

Sure, exercising is good for you, but it’s got two pretty big drawbacks: one, it costs a lot of money to join a gym and, two, it’s kind of boring. Ring Fit Adventure fixes both of those problems by gamifying exercise and letting you work out from home while somehow making the entire experience feel like a fun, casual RPG.

By strapping the Nintendo Switch Joy-Con to your leg and with the strange, brilliant new Ring-Con peripheral, Ring Fit encourages you to use your whole body to battle monsters, collect coins, level up, and push past your personal bests — all while giving you a serious workout within the confines of your living room. It proves that exercising can be fun — especially whenF it’s thousands of dollars cheaper than hiring a personal trainer, too.

Ring Fit Adventure also made our list of the best Nintendo Switch exclusives.

24. Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition

Xenoblade Chronicles has a lot of history behind it. With a story from Xenogears director Tetsuya Takahashi and musical contributions from Yasunori Mitsuda, it forges a direct link to the days of classic PS1-era RPGs. Originally released on Wii in 2010, it received a comprehensive update in 2020 thanks to Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition, which we called the "best version of Xenoblade Chronicles we've ever had."

It remains the best entry in the series to date, featuring the strongest story without losing the sense of scope and freedom of the later games. Xenoblade Chronicles was a smart, forward-thinking JRPG with a first-class battle system when it was released on Wii, and it remains one of the best RPGs on the Switch. If you're choosing between Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition and its sequel, pick this one.

The series' latest entry, Xenoblade Chronicles 3, is now available. IGN named it the Best RPG of 2022.

23. Link's Awakening

With its charming, toyetic visual style and bizarrely dark undertones, the vast island of Koholint in The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening has never looked better than it does on Nintendo Switch. Link’s shipwrecked adventure on a mysterious island rife with eccentric characters and sprawling dungeons has always been one of the stranger Zelda stories, and this remake allows new audiences and aging fans alike to appreciate it on a modern system. It modernizes the classic beloved Zelda game with a shiny new coat of paint, some excellent quality of life improvements, and loads more hidden collectibles but, ultimately, its greatest accomplishment is retaining the weird, haunting, beautiful feeling of the original Game Boy game.

22. Chicory: A Colorful Tale

It's rare and delightful to see a truly unique spin on a genre so familiar as the top-down adventure, but by transforming its world into a giant paint canvas that ties in painting with puzzle solving, Chicory: A Colorful Tale is a welcome surprise. While its clever hint system, beautiful score, cute characters, enticing collectibles, and fascinating paint mechanics would be enough to recommend it, what elevates Chicory further is its heartfelt and earnest storytelling.

It's a game about imposter syndrome, mental health, and the struggles of being a creative, told with a grounded perspective blended with genuine hope and empathy, all of which is supported elegantly by its intense boss battles. It's art about art, and beautiful indeed.

The Chicory team is now working on its next game, which appears to star an adorable two-legged creature.

21. SteamWorld Dig 2

SteamWorld Dig 2 is a textbook example of everything a sequel should be: bigger, smarter, and just straight up more fun. Guiding Dorothy through SWD 2’s labyrinthine caverns searching for loot and upgrades is a challenging and charming twist on the classic “Metroidvania” style and has a gameplay loop that will undoubtedly keep you up into the wee hours of the morning for “just one more run."

Developer Thunderful has four new SteamWorld games in development, including co-op, third-person action-adventure SteamWorld Headhunter and city builder SteamWorld Build in 2023.

20. Splatoon 2

Splatoon 2 is one of those rare games you can play for more than a year and still not be tired of it. Many players hoped for a fast port to Switch to hit the ground running, but what we got was an impressive sequel with an all-new single-player campaign and plenty of incredible, and free, post-release content.

Switch owners can now get their hands on Splatoon 3. We awarded its single-player campaign a review score of 8 and its multiplayer component a 9. Splatoon 3’s Tableturf Battle mode is getting online play as part of the upcoming Fresh Season update.

19. Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle faced no shortage of skepticism before its launch. But Ubisoft Milan’s robust strategy game proved itself with some truly challenging levels and accessible but complex turn-based gameplay, while also finding a way of marrying the Rabbids and Mushroom Kingdom’s senses of humor into one, charming experience.

A "spiritual sequel" to Kingdom Battle, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, is now available. It won Best Best Sim/Strategy Game at The Game Awards. The Tower of Doooom, the first expansion for Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, releases on March 2.

18. Mario Party Superstars

While there is a limited number of Mario Party titles to choose from on the Nintendo Switch, Mario Party Superstars is the best option for all Switch owners. Unlike Super Mario Party, which is unplayable on the Switch Lite and does not support any controller outside of Joy-Cons, Superstars reverts back to the classic Mario Party formula fans know and love. While it is a collection of popular boards and mini-games from previous entries, Superstars does enough right to make it a worthwhile entry for old and newcomers of the series.

17. Paper Mario: The Origami King

Paper Mario: The Origami King may not a perfect game – or, in fact, not even the best entry in the Paper Mario series – but it is one of the most charming adventures on the Nintendo Switch. While most of the RPG trappings of the earliest entries of the franchise have been stripped away in Origami King, it’s more than made up for by an interesting new take on the battle system and one of the funniest, silliest stories in any game to date.

16. Pokemon Sword & Shield

Pokemon Sword & Shield finally brought mainline Pokemon games to home consoles - even if it's only by default, since the Switch is both a handheld and home console. Beyond seeing hundreds of monsters in HD on your nice big TV, Sword & Shield brought with it a slew of welcome changes, including several quality of life improvements, the removal of random encounters, and Gigantamaxing, which basically gave your favorite Pokemon the Stay Puft treatment.

It’s also the first game in the franchise to include post-launch expansion packs, The Isle of Armor and The Crown Tundra, which include both new and classic Pokemon to add to your collection.

The series' latest mainline games, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, are now available. In her review, IGN's Rebekah Valentine praised the games' shift to an open world but couldn't overlook the "numerous ways in which Scarlet and Violet feel deeply unfinished."

15. Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury offers two fantastic Mario experiences that compliment each other brilliantly. 3D World landed on the Wii U and gave fans a unique blend of 2D and 3D platforming, all of which could (optionally) be played with up to four players in a setup that worked better than the New Super Mario series accomplished. Inventive and just plain fun, it was too good of a game to keep stranded on the Wii U forever, and its port to Switch came with bonus online co-op capabilities, a photo mode feature, and more.

But the biggest draw for fans who had already played 3D World was Bowser’s Fury, a brand-new, open-world experience that lasts roughly 3 to 6 hours. Though only a small taste by series standards, this free-form experiment stands as a proof of concept that an open-world Mario game can be just as creative, exhilarating, and enjoyable as what we’ve seen in the franchise thus far. If this is the direction the next mainline Mario goes, it’s an exciting future indeed.

14. Monster Hunter Rise

Monster Hunter Rise has changed the course of the series in a way it may never be able to reverse. Monster Hunter World already started that process by removing loading screens in its levels and generally increasing the scale of its hunts, but Rise builds on those innovations in a way that’s truly exciting to see.

The new wirebug mechanic is revelatory, adding extra mobility and speed to your hunting tool kit regardless of which weapon you pick, making Monster Hunter faster and more accessible than its ever been before. The hunts themselves are still a thrill and the gear grind is still endlessly compelling, but where World opened the door for Monster Hunter to have a wider appeal, Rise has taken a confident step through.

13. Stardew Valley

Stardew Valley is a wonderfully open-ended farming sim. You’ll forge your own country path with fishing, fighting, farming, and falling in love. Additionally, being able to take advantage of the Switch’s sleep mode helps take some of the pressure off of not being able to save in the middle of a day, even if a few other bugs in the port are still waiting to be squashed here.

Stardew Valley creator Eric Baron revealed his next game to be Haunted Chocolatier.

12. Fire Emblem: Three Houses

Fire Emblem: Three Houses takes the series to new heights, deftly blending grueling battles with an expansive social hub that allows for near limitless customization as you recruit, train, and bond with the memorable characters on your team. Its unique take on a three-pronged story ensures that no matter which house you choose, the engrossing plot that unfolds always leaves enough mystery to make multiple playthroughs incredibly hard to resist.

The series' next mainline game, Fire Emblem Engage, is now available on Switch. IGN awarded it a review score of 9 and said Engage "proves itself worthy enough to be counted alongside the legacy it honors so well."

11. Slay the Spire

There’s something about Slay the Spire’s balance of strategy and randomness that makes it an endlessly replayable puzzle. Assembling that perfect combo of synergistic cards can feel incredible, but there’s also a joy in scraping your way to victory despite the odds never quite falling in your favor. With that potent package on the Switch’s mobile platform — with some fairly decent touch control options, we might add — it’s a miracle we’ve ever stopped playing it.

Slay the Spire made our updated list of the 10 best roguelikes.

10. Hollow Knight

Hollow Knight is one of the best modern MetroidVania’s available, using all the pieces that make the genre so great in the first place without feeling derivative of anything that came before it.

The expertly crafted map that is the kingdom of Hallownest has an absurd amount of paths to explore, bosses to fight, and secrets to uncover. That's all drawn in a somber but expressive art style that gives the adorable bug people who live their lives, and stories, of their own. It can undoubtedly be a challenging and demanding game, but what you get out of will be a reward worth far more than you put in.

A sequel, Hollow Knight: Silksong, is now in development. It will seemingly be released sometime before June 2023.

9. Celeste

Celeste is a surprise masterpiece. Its 2D platforming is some of the best and toughest since Super Meat Boy, with levels that are as challenging to figure out as they are satisfying to complete. But the greatest triumph of Celeste is that its best-in-class jumping and dashing is blended beautifully with an important and sincere story and an incredible soundtrack that make it a genuinely emotional game, even when your feet are planted firmly on the ground.

The developer's next game is Earthblade, a "2D explor-action game in a seamless pixel art world" due out in 2024.

8. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe

Mario Kart 8’s encore on Nintendo Switch didn’t just keep the online community alive and added returning favorites like Balloon Battle and Bob-omb Blast, we also got a brand-new “cops and robbers” team mode with Renegade Roundup, all of the great DLC stages, and even some guests from the Splatoon universe. It’s not a new game, but one so good, it deserved to reach a bigger audience on Switch right away.

It's the best-selling Switch game to date with over 48 million copies sold, and there's still more to come: The Mario Kart 8 Booster Course Pass will add 48 courses to the game by the end of 2023.

7. Hades

Roguelikes don’t always appeal to everyone, but Hades has somehow found a way to win over even those with a distaste for them. Fighting your way out of the Greek underworld is a ruthless and challenging affair, but every failure is rewarded in a way that somehow makes them exciting in their own right.

Instead of just notching up each loss and moving onto the next, the moments between each run push Hades’ excellent storytelling to the forefront, giving you opportunities to learn more about its charming characters and grow close to them – as well as improve the prince of the underworld’s abilities and weapons. It’s that meaningful mix of progression and infinitely repeatable escape attempts (coupled with genuinely fantastic writing, art, and action) that make Hades as delectable as Ambrosia itself.

A sequel, Hades 2, was announced at The Game Awards.

6. Luigi's Mansion 3

Luigi's Mansion 3 is essentially a FrankenLuigistein’s monster of the first two games, a mashup of both that creates the perfect Luigi's Mansion experience. Charming, clever, and absolutely gorgeous to look at, Luigi's Mansion is 17 levels of pure ghost-hunting joy. Working your way through each of the haunted hotels may never extremely challenging, but the creative boss fights and deviously hidden collectibles will keep you busy for a dozen hours or more. The excitement of getting to a new level just to see its theme (TV Studio! Sewer Maze! Egypt!) is well worth the price of admission, plus the game opens with Toad driving a bus. Priceless.

5. Metroid Dread

Metroid Dread had become a near-mythic game, a fabled DS entry that never saw the light of day by the time it was announced at E3 2021 as a Switch game. With nearly 20 years having passed since the last new 2D Metroid, expectations were sky high. Fortunately for fans, Dread met (and in many cases surpassed) expectations for what a modern 2D Metroid game could accomplish.

It’s easily the smoothest game in the series, running at a silky 60fps, and incorporates several new weapons and abilities the series now can’t live without -- the Flash Shift alone makes Dread feel entirely fresh. With high-production values, incredible game design that gently guides the player through ZDR’s labyrinthine corridors, and the most unflinching version of Samus we’ve seen yet, Mercury Steam hit Metroid Dread out of the stratosphere and brought the franchise back into Nintendo’s orbit.

Metroid Prime: Remastered, the upscaled port of the original 2002 Nintendo GameCube title, is available now.

4. Animal Crossing: New Horizons

Released on the doorstep of a global pandemic, Animal Crossing: New Horizons provided a much need escape to many, selling nearly 34 million copies to date. Routine and discovery play equally important roles as you plan the perfect layout for your island, make friends (or enemies) with all your villagers, and invite your friends to your own little utopia to trade items and swap secrets.

It’s brilliant in its simplicity and masterful in the way it encourages players to keep up with chores, redecorate and/or reshape entire plots of land, or burn dozens of hours trying to catch rare fish or find every last seasonal item. It certainly helps that all the writing is supremely funny and that, hundreds of hours in, you’re still able to chuckle at a random comment or find genuine inspiration in the places you’d least expect.

Taking a cue from many of Nintendo’s Switch editions of their long-running franchises, Animal Crossing New Horizons does little to completely reinvent the franchise, but it makes a great series even more accessible, more exciting, and more wonderful than it has ever been.

New Horizons is officially Japan's best-selling game of all time. Animal Crossing players can get even more out of it with the Happy Home Paradise DLC. Our reviewer Taylor Lyles called the expansion "a must-have for base game owners."

3. Super Mario Odyssey

A masterclass in 3D platforming, Super Mario Odyssey seamlessly blends the best elements from nearly every Mario game with an entire portfolio of new gameplay mechanics to create something both nostalgic and courageous. New players will adore stomping through the vivid and vast new worlds, while seasoned veterans will stick around after the credits to unlock the hundreds of challenges that await their skill and dexterity. To put it succinctly, Super Mario Odyssey is pure, sublime joy and one of the best Super Mario games ever made.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s final trailer will get a special Nintendo Direct on March 9.

2. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate

Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is exactly what its name implies: it’s the ultimate incarnation of Nintendo’s now 20-year-old brawler series. It’s a celebration of Smash Bros. as a whole, filled with more fighters and levels than ever before, and packed to the gills with over 1000 more characters from all across gaming. “Everyone is here!” may have started out as just another tagline, but it’s one that Nintendo has impressively backed up, and it’s made Ultimate the definitive Smash Bros. game for a long time to come. Add a 20+ hour single-player mode with full-on boss fights and huge world maps and it’s easy to get lost in Ultimate. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate had a lot to live up to with that name, but it has undoubtedly done just that.

1. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild

And lastly, the ultimate Best Nintendo Switch game is The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Let’s face it, the Zelda series was long overdue for a major change, and The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild offers an unparalleled sense of freedom and scale in the palm of your hand. Now widely considered one of the best games of all time, Breath of the Wild tells an epic story, as you glide, cook, and battle your way across a beautifully ruined version of Hyrule. It helped reinvigorate The Legend of Zelda in a way that fans had only dreamt of, easily propelling it to the number one spot on our list and in our hearts.

Breath of the Wild also topped our updated list of the 100 best video games of all time. The highly anticipated sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, is out on May 12.

Upcoming Switch Games

The first half of March will bring us two remasters. Rune Factory 3 Special, remastered and expanded from the 2009 Nintendo DS title, Rune Factory 3: A Fantasy Harvest Moon, will be coming out on March 2, with English localization provided by XSEED Games. Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, the fourth game in the Fatal Frame series that originally released on the Wii in 2008, will be out March 9.

Also coming out on March 2 is Fitness Boxing Fist of the North Star, a new boxing game featuring characters from the manga/anime series Fist of the North Star as your instructors.

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon, the storybook-style prequel to the Bayonetta series that was announced at The Game Awards 2022, will release on March 17.

January 27, 2022, updates:

Added: Metroid Dread, Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury, Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition, Monster Hunter Rise, Chicory, and Mario Party Superstars.

Removed: Astral Chain, Monster Hunter Generations Ultimate, Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze, Xenoblade Chronicles 2, Spiritfarer, Super Mario Maker 2

Position change(s): Link's Awakening, SteamWorld Dig 2, Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle, Paper Mario: The Origami King, Pokemon Sword & Shield, Stardew Valley, Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Celeste, Slay the Spire, Celeste

Did we miss anything? Is your favorite game too low? Let us know in the comments, and be sure to check back when we reconfigure this list again!

Baldur's Gate 3 on Xbox Series X|S Exists, Announcement Delayed Due to 'Technical Issues'

Baldur's Gate 3 finally got a release date yesterday, but fans quickly noticed that Xbox wasn't included in developer Larian Studios' launch plans.

In a statement to IGN, Larian Studios clarified the situation, saying the studio is "planning to release Baldur’s Gate 3 for PC, Mac, GeForce NOW and PS5." An Xbox version is in development, but Larian Studios has struggled to get splitscreen co-op working on Xbox Series X|S, which leaves the studio unable to ship that version at launch.

Check out the full statement below, where Larian Studios explains that there's no exclusivity deal holding back an Xbox version:

"Following yesterday’s PS5 and release date announcement, we’ve clarified that right now, we’re planning to release Baldur’s Gate 3 for PC, Mac, GeForce NOW and PS5. That said, we have no exclusivity for which platforms we can bring BG3 to, or when, and will announce support for additional platforms if and when we’re ready.

We’re seeing a lot of varied interpretations of what that means, so we wanted to clarify further. We’ve had an Xbox version of Baldur’s Gate 3 in development for some time now. We’ve run into some technical issues in developing the Xbox port that have stopped us feeling 100% confident in announcing it until we’re certain we’ve found the right solutions – specifically, we’ve been unable to get splitscreen co-op to work to the same standard on both Xbox Series X and S, which is a requirement for us to ship.

There’s no platform exclusivity preventing us from releasing BG3 on Xbox day and date, should that be a technical possibility. If and when we do announce further platforms, we want to make sure each version lives up to our standards & expectations."

- Larian Studios

The Baldur's Gate 3 trailer in this week's State of Play showed off character classes, shots of the splitscreen multiplayer, and revealed J.K. Simmons' role as antagonist General Ketheric Thorm. We also got looks at the game's Deluxe Edition and Collector's Edition.

Baldur's Gate 3 was first revealed in 2019, and it's the long-awaited follow-up to BioWare's classic 90s RPGs. The franchise is in good hands with Larian Studios, which is best-known for creating the incredible Divinity: Original Sin franchise.

Nintendo Confirms It's Missing E3 2023

After reports that all three major platform holders were skipping E3, Nintendo has confirmed to IGN that it will indeed be missing the event slated for June.

"We approach our involvement in any event on a case-by-case basis and are always considering various ways to engage with our fans," Nintendo told IGN in a statement. "Since this year’s E3 show didn’t fit into our plans, we have made the decision to not participate. However, we have been and continue to be a strong supporter of the ESA and E3."

IGN previously broke the news that Xbox, Sony, and Nintendo would not be formally taking part in E3 2023, with Nintendo pulling out due to a lack of major releases to promote. Xbox will be hosting its own event in Los Angeles, but it will not be at the Los Angeles Convention Center.

With E3 roughly three months away, uncertainty continues to hover around the event as publishers weigh their options. Ubisoft recently announced that it would attend E3 if the event went forward, but otherwise IGN understands that little has changed from a month ago, with few publishers being willing to full commit to attending.

E3 2023 is currently slated for June 13 to June 16 in the Los Angeles Convention Center. It is unclear whether Nintendo will hold a Nintendo Direct to match, as it has in previous years.

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.

Question Block: NVC's Essential Switch Games

It's time for another Question Block edition of the weekly NVC column. This week, we're answering what seems like an easy one, but it turns out it's NOT easy. Shane Dowley wrote us at nvc@ign.com and asked the following question:

"For new Switch buyers, what would be your top 5 essential games that you would tell them to buy?"

First off, we answered this during this week's episode of NVC, but we're getting a little more formal with the answers. Much as Wheel of Fortune automatically gives players in the final round a free R,S,T,L,N and E, we answered this question with the most common games as give-ins: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe, and Super Mario Odyssey. The remaining picks are below.

Reb Valentine

Assuming you have some other device to play multi-platform games that are nonetheless superb on the Switch already (like Hollow Knight or Celeste), then obviously you need a trove of Switch exclusives. Animal Crossing: New Horizons is an essential cornerstone of the Switch library for its ability to suck you in for hundreds of hours alone as well as incorporate joyful, social play. Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle introduces a genre many Nintendo enthusiasts might be less familiar with by painting it with a familiar and family-friendly veneer (and it is, I argue, better than Sparks of Hope!). Luigi's Mansion 3, easily one of the best games on the system, deserves a spot on sheer charm. And there's literally nothing in the world like Ring Fit Adventure, one of the most unique RPGs I've ever played and with absolutely no peer on any other system anywhere. For my fifth pick, obviously you'll need the NSO Expansion Pass for all the games it comes with (yes, even though I regularly quip that no one actually plays them), but more importantly for the Mario Kart and Animal Crossing DLC.

Peer Schneider

I usually start my recommendations with SteamWorld Dig, but I’m gonna mix it up this time! Switch has a strong lineup of wonderful co-op multiplayer games – some ported from other platforms like Diablo III, New Super Mario Bros. or Donkey Country: Tropical Freeze, but many are unique to the system. My number one Switch Essential pick – and a co-op delight – is Luigi’s Mansion 3. Seriously, it’s fantastic. Next up, it’s Splatoon 3. It’s just a ridiculously good competitive shooter. You can lose hundreds of hours to this game in competitive and co-op modes, or just have fun for a weekend with the campaign mode. For my final three picks, I’m going with a trio of top-tier remakes/remasters: the charming handheld classic The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening, multi-scenario Square JRPG Live A Live, and most-likely prettiest game on Switch forever Metroid Prime Remastered.

Seth Macy

This is a tough one, and so I'm going to cheat right off the bat by recommending the Nintendo Switch Online expansion pass. It costs as much as a game – granted, a game you have to buy every year – but it has so many great games included with the service it's totally worth it now. After that, I have the controversial pick of Minecraft for Nintendo Switch. Yes, you can play Minecraft on a TI-89 calculator at this point, but it works so great on Switch and there's something extra special about playing it handheld. After that, things get trickier for me. I'm going to say Bayonetta 2, even though it's originally a Wii U game. It's better than its sequel and just feels so damn good to play. Metroid Prime Remastered is also another absolute must-play, and while you probably can't get it as a physical cart anymore, it's on the eShop (and cheaper that route, too). Finally, and this is just me being weird, I'm going to say if you have a Switch, you should also have Axiom Verge 2. You don't need to have played the first to enjoy the second, and it's probably my favorite Metroidvania of the last decade. It's super good!

So what are your picks for the five essential Nintendo Switch games (that aren't Breath of the Wild, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe or Super Mario Odyssey)? Start the arguments in the comments!

IGN UK Podcast 685: You Kang Make Me Whole Again

Atomic Heart is out and Cardy, Mat, and Dale have been having a dabble with it as well as dipping into the PS VR2 waters. That isn't all, though. Dale has some thoughts on Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Mat has been enjoying Like a Dragon: Ishin, and Cardy has had a blast with Kerbal Space Program 2.

Got a game for us to play, or just want to tell us the weirdest thing you've eaten for breakfast? Drop us an email: ign_ukfeedback@ign.com.

IGN UK Podcast 685: You Kang Make Me Whole Again