Mailbox: Ninty Getting Its Freak On, Area Codes, The ‘Discourse’ – Nintendo Life Letters

And we’re back for another delve into the Nintendo Life Mailbox.

In our part of the world it’s summertime and the Switchin’ is easy. Most of us at NL (and I imagine many of you) are sitting back with Mr. D Kong this weekend, enjoying his first 3D platformer since the 64-bit days, possibly while supping a delicious summer beverage from a coconut. Smashing.

And if not? Well, perhaps perusing our monthly letters page will take your mind off not playing DKB. Got something you want to get off your chest? We’re ready and waiting to read about your game-related ponderings.

Each month we’ll highlight a Star Letter, the writer of which will receive a month’s subscription to our ad-free Supporter scheme. Check out the submission guidelines at the bottom of this page.

So, grab your drinks with jaunty cocktail umbrellas and let’s have a rummage…

Nintendo Life Mailbox – July 2025

“somewhat sour taste” (***STAR LETTER***)

In the first place I would like to thank you for being my main source of Nintendo news for over a decade now. I continue to enjoy visiting your website daily and the wholesome community you have built.

What makes me less happy, to my surprise, is the way the online discourse surrounding the Switch 2 can get to me. I try to tell myself to ignore it and just enjoy whatever Nintendo is cooking. But despite my efforts, I’m still left with a somewhat sour taste in my mouth. Normally, I’m a glass half full kind of guy (I loved Pokemon Scarlet despite its flaws) and trolls, attention seekers and mis/disinformation doesn’t really faze me, but now, with the launch of a new system from my favorite publisher, I can’t help but feel less enthusiastic and even kind of worried about the Switch 2’s future.

I can’t help but wonder if these feelings are grounded in reality or fed by online “haters”. Take Mario Kart World for example, while I have had a great time so far (managed to get 3 stars on every Grand Prix and Knockout Tour), I also feel kind of underwhelmed with it all; free roam in particular has left me hoping it had more, especially with an €80 price tag. Still, would I have felt the same way if the general online opinion (within my bubble) was overwhelmingly positive?

So my question to you guys is: In what way has the negativity surrounding Switch 2’s launch, pricing, Game Key Cards, screen, battery life, etc. affected your enjoyment of the new system and its games? How do you seperate your personal experiences from those of others and not let it get tainted? Are you in any way worried about its future?

PS: I was incredibly relieved with the quality of the Donkey Kong Bananza Direct and the positive reception thereof. I desperately needed some uplifting energy.
Jolteon23

Ah, the ‘discourse’. It’s definitely tough when you’re in the weeds, reading all the feeds to get a temperature check, looking for nuance but getting only gurning YouTuber thumbnails proclaiming that [insert popular game] is a crime against humanity, [insert new console] is a scam, [insert anything you quite enjoy] is total trash, and so on.

Jokes and depression at the state of bad-take culture aside, there are absolutely valid criticisms to be made of Switch 2, and outlets (and individuals) with remits to focus on very specific areas — tech analysis or repairability, for instance — should not be lumped in with vocal grifters stirring up controversy and weaponising followers because outrage is their business model. Refuse to engage with that rubbish and you’ll feel better about, well, everything!

As for the future, as ever, it’s all about the games. How to innovate with an extremely familiar hardware platform is Nintendo’s main challenge this gen. The system is solid but it’s lacking in novelty, so the software needs to pick up that slack. And from that perspective, Nintendo’s future is looking very bright; this firm has been pumping out genre-definers for nearly half a century, with a batting average so far beyond the competition it’s mind-boggling. Squeezing new ideas from old tech is a Nintendo speciality. – Ed.

“Orbulon’s Oinker”

While I like the variety of characters in Mario Kart World, I wish Nintendo included some characters from the Wario games. Characters like Ashley, Captain Syrup, Penny, or Mona would add more female variety. Dribble drives a taxi on a regular basis. He would be perfect for Mario Kart. Orbulon’s Oinker would be a cool idea for a kart. I’m hoping that some Wario Land or WarioWare characters might appear as DLC. They need more recognition.
SadGarlic Pizza

Yes. I agree. No notes. – Ed.

“sassy sauce machine”

So the Switch 2 is finally here, performing for you — at faster speeds than most expected, too. It’s a slick, safe, interactive upgrade, whose main surprises were the mouse controls and the remarkably beefy specs. (4K, 120fps and HDR are words I never associated with The House of Mario.)

My question is: when are Ninty gonna get their freak on? And don’t you tell me they ain’t got no more freak left to give. You know Nintendo ALWAYS got freak in the closet.

True, we no longer have the Everybody Votes Channel or Mooverse (that was a typo but I shall leave unchanged in the hope that Nintendo reads this and decides that if Cow can be a core character in Mario Kart then an entire social media service based around bodacious bovines is exactly what would ‘surprise and delight’ the world right now) but that didn’t stop Nintendo last gen.

We all thought they’d dialled down their freak with Switch 1 because it wasn’t built directly into the system, but then they dropped LABO and instead it turns out you build the system into _it_. The console is just one constituent of a cardboard whole.

So what’s it gonna be this time? How is Nintendo going to take the Switch 2 from being a safe, predictable upgrade and turn it into a sassy sauce machine with some completely whacko, off-the-wall idea?

My not so outlandish prediction would be some of fitness product that combines ‘Joy-Con as pedometers’ with a phone app that can track where you are, resulting in a something that’s a little bit Strava, a little bit Street Pass, and a little bit Pokemon Go.

My more outlandish prediction would be a successor to Wii Music in which various instruments are cobbled together from common household items + a Joy Con: sounds are produced by HD Rumble 2, but amplified and augmented by the objects themselves (for example, imagine sticking a bunch of discarded loo roll tubes together to great a weird Joy-Con powered oboe or didgeridoo). You could write music in-game using a Mario Paint style interface then have your instruments perform it as you conducted (with a Joy-Con, naturally) like Link in the Wind Waker. There would be built-in lessons teaching you about composition, music theory and music history, much like how Art Atelier taught you painting and Game Maker Garage taught you programming.

Anyway, those are my ideas. What are your wild fantasies for Nintendo’s upcoming freaky project this gen?
Maxz

I’m assuming everyone here tried reading Maxz’s second line DK Rap-style…and then went, ‘Hang on, “the remarkably beefy specs” doesn’t scan at all, let alone rhyme with “upgrade”!’

The return of Channels, huh? I could get into it. A successor to Wii Music?… Hmm, maybe I’ve still got time to pivot and work on my gurning thumbnail face.

Personally, I’d keep my eye on newly-appointed outside director Kazuhiko Hachiya if you’re into “unconventional” Nintendo stuff. They haven’t brought him into the fold for nothing. – Ed.

“area code”

Hi Nintendolife Team,

I am hoping you can investigate something in relation to the Switch 2 GameChat functionality that is affecting every Switch 2 owner here in the Isle of Man.

Having purchased a Nintendo Switch 2 and began setting it up. I have started the set up for GameChat.
When it brings me to the Phone Number Verification Required screen.
I use the QR code and where I am asked to enter my phone number.

I live in the Isle of Man, part of the United Kingdom. Our mobile phone numbers all start +44 (0) 7624
I entered my phone number. I selected United Kingdom (as there is no Isle of Man in the selection dropdown). This gave the correct area code of +44. I then entered my mobile phone number which starts 07624.
I pressed Submit and immediately got an error message stating “The phone number you entered cannot be registered”

A few friends also living in the Isle of Man have also tried to set up GameChat on their Switch 2 consoles and they get the same response.

Please do not tell us that as we live in the Isle of Man that we cannot use GameChat on our new Switch 2. Especially as this is a key function.

I truly hope this is just an oversight for all the Nintendo Switch 2 owners in the Isle of Man

Any help you can give us Isle of Man Switch 2 owners in helping us get an answer would be very much appreciated.

Enough of my waffling, thank you.
Andrew Reed (aka Laxeybobby)

I reached out to Nintendo UK and they’re investigating – I’ll let you know as and when I hear back.

Note. I’ve been in touch with Andrew, who managed to find a workaround using a family member’s UK mainland number to verify GameChat before removing that number from the account. Not something you should have to do, but apparently that works.

If anyone from the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands has run into this problem, let us know in the comments. – Ed.

“recent deductions”

With all the recent deductions about game key cards and digital games, I am increasingly feeling there should be a different definition between gamer and game collector like they are 2 different hobbies. There are so many comments saying ‘if it’s not physical I won’t buy it’ to me these aren’t gamers who want to play and enjoy a game but are only interested in collecting, value and ownership of games. I love gaming and have done so for over 40 years, but I love it for the playing and enjoying of the games in the moment not owning something to put on a shelf and pretend I’m into conservation.
Dgb

Each to their own. I understand the attraction of building a collection and I still buy physical media, but I don’t have the room to store it these days, and I went all-digital on Switch.

If someone enjoys the process of building a library, cataloguing their collection, and just having the stuff more than using it…hey, as long as they’re happy and not getting ALL CAPS in my DMs, crack on. – Ed.

“one person”

Okay, so I might seem a little crazy, but I can’t help but notice ever since the Switch 2 launched, reviews have gone from saying something like “We thought that…” as “I thought that…” and so on. Is this intentional, referring to something the entire site would look at as something just that one person would feel? Or has the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 forced everyone to split up to cover more ground, and that’s why? I’m not trying to criticize anyone for making this change, it honestly makes a lot of sense. I’m just curious.
Willax

I enjoy the idea that we all, every one of us on staff, have the infinite time and funds to play every video game we cover before (presumably) channelling our thoughts through the hive mind into a single, collective piece of text. Unfortunately, Jean-Luc and his Enterprise cronies destroyed our sexy, slimy queen and individuality has spread like a virus through the team…

Yes, you may have noticed that we’ve retired the ‘we’ in our reviews! Hopefully, it feels a bit more personable, less Borg-y, and reminds people that they’re written by actual, real-life human units. – Ed.

Bonus Letters

“Will you do a ranking of all 200+ songs in Mario Kart World?” – Kirbyo

Sure! Let’s see…

#1 Steam Gardens
#2 Steam Gardens (alt. harmonica version)
#3 – all the 200+ rest (with Dire Dire Docks somewhere in the top 10)

Next. – Ed.

“i had a game idea: Tingle: The Complete Collection
Featuring: Rupeeland, That Japan exclusive romance one, A Japan exclusive DSi Game that i cant remember the name of” – _xXharmless_yigaXx_

I own both the Japanese Club Nintendo Balloon Fight one and Rosy Rupeeland, and I’ve definitely played them both. Ahem. – Ed.

“Does the staff ever do game night? If so, what are some of your favorite games to play together?” – Mike

Not as much as we would like to, mainly due to different time zones and family stuff, which makes scheduling a real ‘mare. We recently created a GameChat Slack channel, though, so we’re hoping to make it a regular thing. – Ed.

“Perhaps they could have called the console the Nintendo Vvvrrrooommmm?” – YoshiTails

I would buy a Terry Cavanagh-licensed Nintendo VVVVVV. (Aside: We need Super Hexagon at 120fps on Switch 2. Please, Terry.) – Ed.

“This is definitely an unpopular opinion, but I think the Bubsy series has potential.” – Anchovies are totally delicious!

*gurns uncontrollably* – Ed.

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That’s all for this month! Thanks to everyone who wrote in, whether you were featured above or not.

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