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Editorial Use only Mandatory Credit: Photo by Mark Madeo/Future/REX/Shutterstock (5694891v) A Vintage 1980's Commodore 64 8-bit Home Computer Vintage Computers At The Computer History Museum, Mountain View

Where did you get your start?

The evening Inbox suggests a compilation of the best Zelda dungeons, as one reader wonders how to pronounce the name Mario.

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Never too young

Just responding to Griggs on this mornings Inbox.

Me being the cool uncle introduced my nephew (when he was 3½) to my Switch and he absolutely loves it. Its a lot more durable than you think. I started him on Super Mario Odyssey, which we were playing two-player and managed to make some really good progress through the game together.

Despite some misgivings from his mum he got a Switch for his fourth birthday and is hooked. He still loves Mario but also plays Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker, Rayman (big, colourful and loads of fun), Mario Kart (with the drive assist on), Lego games, and even the occasional Zelda (although he doesnt really know what he is doing with that one).

What I love about it is that whilst he can play solo certain bits are just a little too hard so theres a really nice cooperative element as I help him past the particularly hard sections in some of the games.

His mum has also bought him a few of the Labo kits and they have had great fun building them up together and then playing the games.

I dont think there is any such thing as too young to play games as long as you are treating it as a way to spend time with him as part of a wide and varied set of activities!
Chris

Youthful patience

Im not a parent but my brother and I started playing games at three and four on a Commodore 64! The games were really hard (we usually played Oceans Navy SEALS or Terminator as they were on cartridge not cassette, which took hours to load!) and the joystick was difficult to use with small hands.

Even still, we loved it and have been gaming ever since, although getting a Mega Drive for Christmas the next year was a blessing! Getting a Wii for your boy sounds like a great idea.
Barry

Fit for purpose

Reading the recent Inbox and a letter from Griggs regarding when to start their child into gaming mirrored some of my own thoughts regarding my own children (now five and seven). Being a new dad I had dreams of marathon gaming sessions with my children the minute I saw the first scan but as they grew older realised the limitations such young folk have and where to start.

The Wii is a good starting point as there are a lot of child0friendly games. Wii Sports and Resort do require some reaction speed, my children found them fun enough regardless of how they did. They still regularly play the Wii including Wii Fit Plus, Just Dance, and the various Rock Band games. Super Mario Galaxy didnt fair so well…

My eldest has been dipping into other games recently and is quite keen on the Lego games and Bomberman.

If anyone is thinking of consoles for their kids I would recommend scouting out smaller controllers as this makes a big difference.
Jason L. Tompsett-Ince

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Little to large

Minor Annoyance: At kick-off in Rocket League, am I wrong to think the player closest to your teams goal-line should always stay put to save any shots that come in straight away? Every time the opposition score from kick-off I turn into Jose Mourinho, berating my virtual teammate for their naivety and lack of discipline.

Moderate Annoyance: Despite the reviews I took a punt on Runner3 in a recent eShop sale (£8). Runner2 is one of my favourite indie games of all time and one of the very few Ive ever been moved to attempt 100%. The reviews werent wrong about the difficulty on the sequel, even though I understand its been softened with more checkpoints since launch. Levels are frequently just trial and error and Im not particularly enjoying it, accentuated by the high bar set by its own predecessor.

Major Annoyance: First time playing Dark Souls. Just reached the infamous archers in Anor Londo. Enough said.
i.e.mcr (NN ID)
Currently playing: Rocket League, Runner3, and Dark Souls

Best and worst

While Zelda: Skyward Sword was a great game at the time on the Wii, using the motion controls for all the sword play I think it would need a good overhaul to play through it again if did come out on the Switch.

I was a little shocked to think that Skyward Sword is from 2011. I had a quick look online and the Wiis graphics havent aged well, with not being in HD.

The memorable parts of the game were the motion-controlled swordfights and the dungeons, which were fantastic. Lanayru Desert was my particular favourite, with its past and present mechanism changing its world being a particular highlight of the whole game.

The problem for me would stem from all the things I can think of even now that would put me off the game today. The three fights against The Imprisoned, the collecting of the tears in Silent Realms, and the three fights with Lord Ghirahim, which were such a chore for me. I really hated Lord Ghirahim and Im hoping he doesnt make his long-awaited comeback as a DLC character in Smash Bros Ultimate.

Skyward Sword would also be very linear compared to Breath Of The Wild, which I dont think it could hold a candle to these days.

I played through Ocarina Of Time on the 3DS after originally owning it on the N64 and with the small tweaks theyd made, notably the change to choosing the boots in the Water Temple, it held up brilliantly, the pacing was still flawless.

Maybe Nintendo could re-release a great version of Skyward Sword but I personally would rather that they focused on Breath Of The Wilds follow up for the time being.
Nick The Greek

Next gen resolution

Ive been gaming for the last six months on a really nice 27-inch 144Hz Samsung monitor that has those sexy-sounding quantum dots that are in the more expensive TV sets. I really noticed the improvement in colour reproduction and lighting straight away and when I decided to move the PlayStation 4 back onto my six-year-old LG 32-inch TV the other day I found the downgrade in these areas to be so noticeable I hooked it straight back up to the monitor.

HDR is often touted as a bigger game changer than 4K. Im yet to witness it but I can believe it based on this experience. 1440p, 60fps with a nice jump in graphics coupled with HDR sounds about the sweet spot for the next gen for me. I hope developers dont get bogged down in feeling they need to provide native 4K or it ends up being used as marketing blurb, like Microsoft has with the Xbox One X.

A full roll out of PC style graphics options that we see in a lot of Pro and X games would be good. I think Ill probably always mainly game on a 27-inch monitor. Id possibly change my tune though when I do finally get a big 4K TV but for now frame rate is my biggest next gen want.
Simundo Jones

Original presentation

RE: R-Type delights. Christmas has come early. I have just downloaded this before going to work (6:15am). Cant wait to get home to play it now.

I also see that Thunder Force IV is also available on the Switch. Have you played it as it looks like it has the ugly black borders?
Mattpat

GC: As a Mega Drive game it wouldve been made at a screen ratio of 4:3, so it has to have borders if you want to replicate the game exactly as it was. We havent played any of the Sega Ages ports on the Switch though, so we dont know if it they have any options to force widescreen.

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Dungeon pack

What would be great is if Nintendo released a Zelda dungeons game.

I think Nintendo have already done something similar with the retro racetracks in Mario Kart 8.

They could release packs of three or four dungeons at a time and charge £10 per pack. People would pay it, if it was done right. Maybe have one brand new original dungeon plus two or three remastered ones.

Full dungeons remastered to suit a playthrough that was independent of playing the dungeon as part of the game it originally featured in. Fans would love the nostalgia and surely its an absolute no-brainer in terms of a money spinner! If done properly fans be would be begging for more and full of suggestions of what dungeons they wanted next.

It gets me thinking which dungeons Id give the remastered treatment. Eagles Tower from Links Awakening would get my vote for a start!
FatysHenrys

Inbox also-rans

How do you pronounce Mario? Is it Mar-rio or Ma-rio?!
Jez

GC: Whichever implies the most exaggerated Italian accent.

RE: Bargain on PSN. Wonder Boy: The Dragons Trap is £7.99, usually £15.99. Just bought it as it is on my PSN wishlist.
Andrew J.

This weeks Hot Topic

The subject for this weekends Inbox was suggested by reader stanley71, who asks what do you think of the current generation of console so far?

The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 are five years old this month and both are expected to be superseded by next generation models within the next two years. So what do you think of them so far, in terms of their games, their hardware, and the changes theyve brought to the industry?

If you include the Wii U and Switch as well what do you think of the generation as a whole and is it better or worse than previous ones? How do you think it will be looked back on when all is said and done, and which companies have done the best and worst overall?

E-mail your comments to: [email protected]

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The small print
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