Try the Splatoon 2 Special Demo 2020!

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - ...Well... it might be a bit vicious.

After the free ARMS trial that ended at the start of April, Nintendo is continuing their online multiplayer game demo + free Nintendo Switch Online trial combos into May, with a slightly less-than one-week demo for Splatoon 2. (Specifically ending the morning of May 6.) This one is called the Splatoon 2 Special Demo 2020, as explained in this press release. While there isn't a tournament accompanying this, there is a 30% discount on Splatoon 2, making it $42. That's bigger than when they did this exact thing a year ago, but they only offered a 20% discount.

The demo gives you access to Turf War, Salmon Run, and ranked battle. It starts you off at level 1, but if you choose to buy the game, you'll be able to transfer your demo progress over to the real game. Unfortunately, it does not give you access to the single-player mode, which is what actually lets you understand how the game mechanics (particularly movement) work.

I don't recommend people who already have Splatoon 2 to play Salmon Run or ranked mode while the demo is a thing (unless it's with friends), because inexperienced players can make those experiences go poorly very easily, and that will ruin your rank. Turf War is pretty safe and low-stakes. I had a few matches today, and, uh, it was tough out there.

Somehow, I don't think sqjr is a legitimate new player who just started playing, despite what Level 7 may imply.
(He has 385 hours or more play time!)
I wonder how many other people who already have experience in Splatoon 2 are masquerading as new players to smurf?

The way that match-making works now, you probably won't be able to reliably bully new players. Splatoon 2 is just as likely to match you up with bad, new players as it is with experienced, competent players. ...But I guess people try to be vicious to the new blood anyway.

If Splatoon 2 isn't your thing, and maybe the Nintendo Switch in general isn't, may I interest you in Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy, which is 50% off on... the PlayStation 4, until May 8? Or 50% on Steam until May 6?


Ludwig wonders if there will be a similar demo for Mario Tennis Aces coming up. Remember that game? ...Anyone? There's going to be another Splatoon 2 article coming in May. Stay tuned for what that will involve. Ludwig rarely plays Splatoon 2 nowadays, mostly around once a week for Salmon Run.


Missed that Steam sale? How about until May 15?
Off the demo, there is a rerun Splatfest closer to the end of May.

Game Review: Calculation Castle: Greco's Ghostly Challenges

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - Are these math games a treasure?

Let's say you're a parent, and you're going through hard times right now. The schools aren't taking your children in during the day, so you need to stay home with them, possibly in addition to you having to work from home. The school district is trying to implement some kind of learn-from-home virtual classroom, but it's pretty shoddy. You need your children to learn reading, writing, and arithmetic. You can learn the first two on the Internet pretty easily (for example, on KoopaTV, you can read articles and write comments—though KoopaTV is outside the age range of “children”), but the math part might be difficult.

Fortunately, there are a variety of math products geared towards elementary-school students. Some of them are even videogames. For example, there's Donkey Kong Jr. Math, a Nintendo Entertainment System classic. Unfortunately, it's hard to come by, and it's not even included in your Nintendo Switch Online subscription. However, in Donkey Kong Jr.'s footprints, there is a mathematically-gifted demon boy named Greco, followed by a squadron of like-minded ghost henchmen, holed up in his castle of treasure.

Does Greco's four games, the Calculation Castle: Greco's Ghostly Challenge series, live up to its edutainment ancestors? I played through Calculation Castle: Greco's Ghostly Challenge "Division" (since division is my favourite math topic) to find out my answer and write a review on it, although my review on the Division title will also cover the other subjects/games as well.

This review will spoil the game's contents, but given the nature of the game, I don't think my spoilers will end up harming your experience.

Fast Facts

Names

Calculation Castle: Greco's Ghostly Challenge "Division"

Calculation Castle: Greco's Ghostly Challenge "Addition"

Calculation Castle: Greco's Ghostly Challenge "Subtraction"

Calculation Castle: Greco's Ghostly Challenge "Multiplication"

Console

Nintendo Switch

Publisher/Developer

media5 corporation

Genre

Education, Math

Space Required

Approximately 450 MB each

ESRB rating

E

Number of Players

One

Manufacturer's Suggested Retail Price

9.99 USD per game

Demo?

None

Human Doctors Are Getting Laid Off; Dr. Mario Hires Dr. Goomba Tower

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - Just a contrast to think about. And many questions.

Even now, as I write this, coronavirus continues to ravage Earth. The threat of contracting the highly infectious COVID-19 is on people's minds, and where's an easy place to get it? Hospitals and nursing homes, where you're basically entering a lair of sickness and disease. People are putting off their doctor's appointments for another day. As a result, many Earth hospitals and medical practices are furloughing or laying off their healthcare workers, such as nurses and doctors.

Of course, coronavirus is an Earth phenomenon started by China. It's not a problem for the non-Earthly Koopa Kingdom or the Mushroom Kingdom, which is where fake doctor Dr. Mario has his practice. Since our 2019 investigation into his misdeeds, the dude has been on a non-stop hiring spree. He's even hired alternate forms of himself, including Dr. Baby Mario.

Just take a look at this recent recruitment video:
 

I guess it's fitting the video begins with “Please help, ANYBODY.” Because literally anybody is being hired as a doctor. In this case, somehow three Goombas stacked together counts as a doctor. One Goomba by itself is merely considered an assistant.

160,000 Hacked Nintendo Accounts and NNID Sign-Ins Disabled. Overreaction?

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - Plus, my thoughts on two-factor authentication.

At the start of last week, there were some murmurs of Nintendo Accounts being hacked. It's a topic I care about (and why I'm steadfastly against attaching credit card numbers to your Nintendo eShop account, and why I've shamed the Nintendo Switch Online trial process for forcing you to do so), but, eh, whatever, these kinds of hacks happen all the time (but you can take steps to protect yourself). It wasn't worth writing an article about.

Well, that is, until Nintendo announced their response: 160,000 Nintendo Network IDs (NNIDs) were hacked (which is a small fraction of the total, but...), and as part of their investigation, they are “discontinuing the ability to use a Nintendo Network ID to sign in to a Nintendo Account.” All other methods continue to exist, but those methods generally involve signing in via third-party platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Google. The NNID was the “log-in with” method that didn't involve having to also register with an untrustworthy California big tech company.

Quick, personal anecdote that illustrates my point: I once used the “log-in with Facebook” option for my Capcom Unity account. (Capcom Unity happens to be going away, as I wrote about last week, but this was back when it still kinda existed.) Then I got banned from Facebook (not because of behaviour issues but because they didn't think my real name is Ludwig Von Koopa). Guess what happened after that? I could no longer log-in to Capcom Unity! I had to go through a whole, very avoidable process with CAPCOM's tech support to get that resolved.

You don't want one set of services to be dependent on another. But that's what Nintendo is mandating because... SOME NNIDs got hacked. Not all of them. Mine wasn't. At least, I don't think it was!

Future Fitness Logs: Ring Fit Adventure's Extra Fitness Mode

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - How KoopaTV's Fitness Friday series will progress, and why.

Last week I completed the story mode of Ring Fit Adventure by 100%-ing all 23 worlds over the span of 23 weeks. It's been a long journey that I've dedicated a whole KoopaTV category to, and colloquially deemed it KoopaTV Fitness Fridays.

Rather than the game ending, I unlocked Extra Fitness mode. It's not a traditional new game+ mode in that you're still using your same file, but there's now an option in the Select World menu selection to go to the Extra worlds instead of the Main worlds. (You can switch between both, but obviously there's no new content in Main after 100%-ing it.)

EXTREEEEEEEEEEEEME ROUTINE.

Here is the crucial bit: I'm doing all of this fitness and exercise because I'm participating in the Tokyo 2020 Olympics as a member of Team Koopa. Unfortunately, the Tokyo 2020 Olympics has just been delayed to sometime in 2021.

Logically, I should delay playing through Extra Fitness until 2021. In 2021, I can use Extra Fitness as my second chance at getting in Olympic-quality shape. The very existence of this second mode basically predicted that the Olympics would get delayed into a second year.

I don't know for sure, but from what I can tell, Extra Fitness has two key differences from the main game. One, there doesn't seem to be any town requests. I mean, look at the screenshot above. Do you see any? No. That basically makes worlds take half as long to complete, since you're doing everything once and not twice. And two, the dialogue is rewritten.

Dragaux now talks about how we're friends!
Which genuinely makes me wonder how they'll rewrite the dialogue for all of the other words.
Will we get further characterisation on the main characters? Then it's a must-play!

This is the first week in five or so months that Ludwig didn't work out at all. He physically feels like crap. He doesn't know exactly when in 2021 he'll start replaying Ring Fit Adventure, or what the fitness logs will actually look like by then since most of the interesting content has already been covered. This means that KoopaTV will have normal articles on Fridays again.


Three months later from not playing Ring Fit Adventure, and Ludwig's body is rapidly decaying. He hires a chiropractor to tell him to try Quick Play mode for Core exercises.
Ludwig regrets taking the time off, but come 2021, he is going to go through with Extra Fitness.
The first Extra Fitness playing of 2021 comes in Week 25 of KoopaTV's Fitness Fridays.
You've learned about Extra Fitness... but what about Fitness Master? Fitness Master is the THIRD playthrough to Extra Fitness's second playthrough, and it too has some unique aspects.

The Scarcity of Wooloo Plushies

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - One Koopa's quest to get a Wooloo... hasn't ended yet.

At the start of this week, I wrote an important article mentioning how the shipping industry has gotten pwned, and Nintendo has closed their online store. However, that's not reflective of every such online store we care about. For example, The Pokémon Company International's Pokémon Center online store is still open. In fact, they're offering free shipping on all orders... not only to the continental United States, but to Hawaii and Alaska, too! (Just don't have high expectations about getting your shipment in a timely manner.)

Once upon a time, near the end of 2019, they introduced a Wooloo plushie. It's 7.5 x 6.3 x 6.3 inches and $16. It sold out very quickly and hasn't been replenished. I've stated that I wanted one. I've also stated that Wooloo is my favourite Generation 8 Galar Pokémon. I still want it. The people who do have the Wooloo plushie have left reviews such as, “very fluffy! nice to cuddle. my favorite part is how he is shaped like a best friend”.

This reminds me of the mad demand for amiibo during the height of that craze, as well as the Wii console. People were accusing Nintendo of purposefully and artificially under-supplying amiibo or Wiis, in order to make them look like rare must-haves. And there's some evidence of this... 

Behold, a new product, introduced just last week. Meet Wooloo Squishy Plush! This Wooloo is 14.25 x 10 x 10.5 inches and $42.

The cheaper Wooloo is still out of stock, but don't worry, you can still get a Wooloo for around 262% more money! (And, to be fair, it's 5x the Wooloo if you treat Wooloo like a rectangular prism. Which you shouldn't. For Wooloo is ROUND.)

Oh, wait, you can't? The bigger, squishy Wooloo sold out immediately?

The Koopalings Are In Super Mario Maker 2

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - But... Uh... It's kinda awkward, you know?

The last time Super Mario Maker 2 got a big update, Nintendo added the Master Sword power-up to have a crossover with The Legend of Zelda. I thought that we'd be seeing more of those kinds of crossovers for Super Mario Maker 2's future.

Not only am I wrong about that, but this “final major update” (Super Mario Maker 2 version 3.0.0) puts ME into the game. That's being wrong in the most personal way possible. Oh, and all of my siblings, too. And the Mechakoopa. And many other course elements, as well as an overworld map feature where you can put many (up to forty) courses in one to eight maps, with warp pipes and diverging paths and everything. Pretty cool. But let's focus on the Koopalings, and specifically, me.

I forgot Super Mario Maker 2 had a Super Mario 3D World style.
In return, it forgot about me, so I'm not accessible in it.
(Mechakoopa has the same deal.)

CAPCOM Spring Sale 2020; RIP Capcom Unity

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - Monthly sale, yippeee.

I have a big list of people that I need to personally alert to the fact that there is a new CAPCOM sale going on in the Nintendo eShop. And while it feels like this just happened (Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy was on sale last week on the Xbox One for the CAPCOM Summer Savings; and it was on sale last month for the Ace Attorney Franchise Sale; not to mention the also-in-March CAPCOM Greatest Hits Sale; and the CAPCOM Publisher Sale of February 2020), I've searched KoopaTV's archives as well as other people's websites for the truth.

There apparently hasn't been something specifically called a CAPCOM Spring Sale before. Ever. First time it's happening. Personally, I don't believe it, but that's what the data is telling me.

The Spring Sale lasts from today to April 29, 2020 2:59 AM Eastern time.

Of course, “the” Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy is here at 50% off (or $15). But other fan favourite games, like Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy for 3DS (60% off), Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice for 3DS (60% off), Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney for 3DS (50% off), and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies for 3DS (70% off) are also on sale! Those links will take you to a nintendo.com page where you can buy them from your browser and they'll start downloading to your system.

...As are many games that aren't Ace Attorney, such as Resident Evil, Devil May Cry, and Mega Man. (But not Mega Man Zero/ZX Legacy Collection. Not yet.)

Seems like all good news? Well, there's some sadness in CAPCOM land...

Two Years Later, We Won. You Are Avoiding Cardboard!

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - Glory to KoopaTV. We killed the Labo and changed your mind.

It was exactly two years ago (April 20, 2018) that the Nintendo Labo made its commercial release and attacked the world. It was also two years ago that KoopaTV declared war on the Nintendo Labo, due to a cardboard TROJAN BOWSER coming in and attempting to conquer and convert KoopaTV into its likeness. We likened it to many other current and then-defeated enemies.

I think now is an appropriate time to declare victory on our Labo war. There hasn't been a new Labo kit in over a year (with the Nintendo Labo VR Kit). The existence of the Labo-incompatible Nintendo Switch Lite has severely degraded the Labo's capabilities to control gamers.

The Labo is completely “sold out” now on Nintendo's store, including replacement parts. Any obliterated Labo won't be able to respawn. They're finite and depleting.

I've discussed before how the shipping industry is allied with the Labo by transporting around cardboard boxes (that are really Labo in disguise, ready to spread their insidiousness). I also wrote last week that spending on the shipping industry is down, and I said I'd talk more about that this week.

Source: The New York Times, citing Earnest Research.

So here we are. Let's go!

Ring Fit Adventure Fitness Log Week 23: Finalia

By LUDWIG VON KOOPA - The final showdown...

What will the future of KoopaTV Fitness Fridays bring? ...Let's wonder about that later. For now, we're playing in the FINAL world of Ring Fit Adventure, appropriately named Finalia. This is World 23. We're continuing where Week 22 ended. I'm on a personal difficulty level of 30, which is the highest one. I am READY for a week of intense, productive work-outs.

Hopefully you're ready to read them. 

I'm starting on Sunday night, and, uh, despite me just writing that I'm ready, my tailbone is in pain from my poor writer’s posture. Well, and gamer’s posture. I spent most of today playing Fire Emblem: Three Houses, and Claude's paralogue is kinda impossible on Maddening, so I'll just make that the last thing I do and proceed through the story as normal.

Erm, I'm supposed to be writing about Ring Fit Adventure's story. Well, after the page break. Warning... END-OF-GAME SPOILERS ARE AHEAD.