The World Ends With You (Big It Up, Phones!)

Reviews are dropping for this and I'm really not sure about it, I like the art-style and the story is still good from reviews but it's near unplayable on a TV which means portable only and using the touch-screen.

Now I don't know if you use any buttons as well but I'm just thinking that's a long way to stretch over from the buttons to screen.

Balladeer wrote:

On the 3DS at least, very heavily.  Think this might be a handheld-only game in all but name.

JayMoyles wrote:

Yeah, massively so. It was all about swiping or tapping in combat and you moved Neku about by dragging the stylus where you wanted him to go.

I mean, I'm not entirely surprised.

I did agree earlier that making it work reasonably well with controllers would be the least they could do, but honestly I've changed my tune as we get closer to launch.  TWEWY made such good use of the touchscreen I can't see it being played any other way, so it's probably best they didn't try.  I'm more worried about how the lack of dual screen will work to be honest...

masofdas wrote:

Now I don't know if you use any buttons as well but I'm just thinking that's a long way to stretch over from the buttons to screen.

It doesn't. You use the touch screen to move Neku about in combat and attack with swipes and taps and things like that. The DS version used buttons, but they've stripped that out of the mobile port and consequently this version.

As such (this is about your concern Balla) from what I've read, it's just a bit easier than the DS version was all considering you don't need to learn how to fight using your partner.

My poor Switch has remained mostly free from being prodded and poked with touch-screen controls, but I guess this'll be the game that breaks that trend! I will mourn the dumbing down of the combat system somewhat, but it'll be worth it for the prettier graphics, better quality music tracks and the new content.

That makes me think about using the Switch as a tablet (no Joy-Cons attached), because it literally be the screen.

That's what I'll be doing. I think the Joy-Con would just get in the way, although I might keep the right one attached to click through the dialogue boxes.

Although, thinking about it, I could just have them not attached anyway to click through the dialogue box. But would that cause the game to think I'm wanting to use the motion controls instead? I guess I'll have to see how it works, I suppose.

Am I the only one who feels sadness at the loss of the DS version's lovely pixel art? Not that the higher res art is in any way bad

OrangeRakoon wrote:

Am I the only one who feels sadness at the loss of the DS version's lovely pixel art?

I've got it now, so I'd better enjoy it! Don't mind losing the partner too much, I could never get my head around that anyway.

OrangeRakoon wrote:

Am I the only one who feels sadness at the loss of the DS version's lovely pixel art? Not that the higher res art is in any way bad

I think it'll take a bit of getting used to - it's like looking at the pixel art from Ace Attorney and comparing it to the high-res art in the ports. It does lose some of its charm, but it's quite clearly better on a technical level.

My copy has been dispatched but hasn't arrived quite just yet, which is a blessing in disguise considering I'm so close to finishing off Octopath.

I'm gonna play this! Eventually! One day. Maybe . . .

I hope you do get around to it eventually!

I started this up last night - so far, the biggest thrill for me is the music being remixed. Some of those tracks are even better now. The hi-res art will indeed take a bit of getting used to, but the character designs and overall look still hold strong.

I think I'll need to invest in a stylus for playing this though as I've found using my finger ends up obscuring the action and I've found it tricky to move Neku around in combat. That's probably my muscle memory remaining from the DS days, though. It's fine in the early stages where the enemies are pushovers, but I can see it becoming a bit of a problem when the fights get tougher.

Hmm, as I've not played it on DS properly but I have found with touchscreen displays my hands blocking the screen. Why I was hoping the docked version was good, which it isn't.

I think this along with a few other Switch games at the moment, will go on the Christmas list.

You can pick up a stylus for the princely sum of like £4 on Amazon - I'd say it's worth it for any future touchscreen centric games on Switch too.

I've not tried the docked controls, so I can't comment on how effective they are.

Now I'm even less interested in this port. Having looked at extensive gameplay it's basically the old iPad version on Switch at a significantly higher price, with questionable pointer controls substituting for the now inconvenient touch controls (the Joy-Con controllers get in the way). They didn't bother redrawing a lot of the art assets for HD, so visually it looks inconsistent, and some elements still remain worse than the original DS game (shadows are basic circles instead of proper shadows from the sprites). The awkward translation in controls is a bit like Sushi Striker, proving not everything is best on Switch. Even with a stylus - DS's resistive touchscreen is very low-latency and combined with the small 3-4" displays prioritises precision over large sweeping movements.

I think I'm going to track down a second DS card so I can replay it without nuking my save. Playing the DS game on more modern hardware - the glorious DSi XL - is good enough an upgrade for me over playing it on the DS fat ten years ago.

I'm not sure whether I should be more disappointed with Square Enix not putting Jupyter back on development duties, or them scrubbing their name and staff from the opening credits of the game - that's all been replaced with h.a.n.d staffers who handled this version of the game.

Well I've got the damn thing, so I'm bally well going to try to enjoy it, port or no!

Hearing that you're advised to pick up a stylus is a bit of a pain though. Let me know which one you get, Jay, and whether you recommend it or not.

I've not felt a need for a stylus yet for what it's worth.

It's worth a bit!  I'll try first off without the stylus and see how it goes. Cheers Andy.

Solo Remix was never designed to be played with a stylus on iPad, and Final Remix is a port of that, so I wouldn't bother.

A stylus also makes considerably less sense on a larger display - remember that the DS had a 3" bottom screen which is about 1/4 of the size of the Switch's one. The stylus was a necessity there to ensure precision and speed. You're unlikely to be any faster or precise using a stylus on the Switch's big screen.

fronkhead wrote:

A stylus also makes considerably less sense on a larger display - remember that the DS had a 3" bottom screen which is about 1/4 of the size of the Switch's one. The stylus was a necessity there to ensure precision and speed. You're unlikely to be any faster or precise using a stylus on the Switch's big screen.

I've found using a stylus to be far more comfortable and much easier to control than using my finger so far. I found my hand was obscuring a fair chunk of the action - that could be lefty syndrome in full effect, mind - and I found that the game was having trouble recognising that I was trying to move Neku when I had one of the dragging pins equipped, like the fire one. It's been much more fun since getting my stylus. I can see the action much more clearly and I've not ran into any confusion with gestures or swiping.

I think you'd get on fine with just using your finger, but considering the amount of time I've spent playing TWEWY with a stylus, I found it a bit unnatural.

In regards to the game itself, I'm enjoying seeing how they've remixed some of the battles to incorporate the lack of a second screen. The "master of A-East" was pretty fun, even though I've rinsed that boss countless times before on DS.

If I got this I'd definitely get a stylus. Finger touch is always imprecise and, worse than that, results in plenty of screen smudges. I like my screen staying shiny and clean thanks.

JayMoyles wrote:

OrangeRakoon wrote:

Am I the only one who feels sadness at the loss of the DS version's lovely pixel art? Not that the higher res art is in any way bad

I think it'll take a bit of getting used to - it's like looking at the pixel art from Ace Attorney and comparing it to the high-res art in the ports. It does lose some of its charm, but it's quite clearly better on a technical level.

I don't agree it's better on a technical level as that suggests the art is more accomplished. It's only more demanding of hardware capability. This is a good article I read recently and I think is relevant: http://www.dinofarmgames.com/a-pixel-artist-renounces-pixel-art/

The state of my screen after the first couple of sessions with this were another factor in getting a stylus, so you're right there!

Yeah, "technical" wasn't the right word to use - great article, by the way (god, KoF XIII is a pretty game) - but perhaps "smoother" or "cleaner" might have been a better term. I think the cleaner look works well for this version without losing any of the character from the game's overall design and feel.

My screen is getting dirty playing this

I've had to deal with finger smudges too when playing Severed on Switch recently but a wee fiber cleaning cloth after yer done playing does the trick though.

Jas' post has lifted a weight off my mind! I have a screen protector, but was worried about potential smudgies. (p.s. How are you finding Severed? Perhaps let me know in another thread.)

As someone who never played TWEWY (and refuses to pay full price for a DS game that's 100 years old): is the Switch port worth it, now that a few of you have spent a few days with it?

Yeah, I'd say it's worth it Rummers.

It trades a more complex and fulfilling battle system for a simpler albeit still fun one, but gets in its place a slew of new tracks, better visuals in my humble opinion and some new content to boot. Worth it.