‘The Last Of Us' Composer Gustavo Santaolalla Talks Scoring The Hit Franchise Across Gaming & Television: ‘A Very, Very Special Thing In My Life'
Gustavo Santaolalla, composer and laureate of two Oscars, attends a press conference at the 18th ... More Film Music Festival in Destilo in Krakow, Poland, on May 28, 2025. (Photo by Klaudia Radecka/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
Most composers would never consider going into video games after a pair of back-to-back Oscar wins, but Gustavo Santaolalla isn't most composers. For the 73-year-old musician/producer, the medium is utterly irrelevant, so long as the story contains a wealth of emotional resonance.
Following a pair of Academy Awards for his work on Ang Lee's Brokeback Mountain (2005) and Alejandro G. Iñárritu's Babel (2006), the Argentine native was 'approached by several companies' with tantalizing job offers that he turned down, the composer tells me over Zoom. 'I knew what I wanted to do. I think that whatever success I have achieved has to do not only with the things that I've done, but [also] the things that I've said no to. So at the time, there was the possibility of these big projects, but I knew what I wanted to do wasn't in the market yet."
One thing he really wanted to see, for example, was a new breed of video game after years of watching his son and Bajofondo bandmates play games like FIFA. 'I always thought, 'Man, if somebody, someday connects in an emotional way with a gamer, aside [from]
His prayers were ultimately answered by Neil Druckmann, a creative executive and director at video game developer Naughty Dog, who pitched a title that would connect 'with the player on an emotional level,' Santaolalla remembers. That's how he came to score The Last of Us (2013), its 2020 sequel, and the current HBO series adaptation.
FEATURED | Frase ByForbes™
Unscramble The Anagram To Reveal The Phrase
Pinpoint By Linkedin
Guess The Category
Queens By Linkedin
Crown Each Region
Crossclimb By Linkedin
Unlock A Trivia Ladder
Set in a post-apocalyptic reality ravaged by a mutated strain of the zombifying Cordyceps fungus, The Last of Us quickly gained the status of a modern classic, with plenty of widespread critical acclaim aimed at its character development, weighty themes, palpable emotion, player mechanics, and music, of course. 'When we found out that some people were crying while playing the game, we thought, 'This absolutely works,'' says the composer who never really viewed the project as a mere video game.
'I've never felt that I was composing for a game,' emphasizes Santaolalla. 'You can tell a great story in any medium. That's why I think it works great in a [TV] series [format]. It would have worked as a puppet theater show because it's a great story … It really talks about human relationships; parent-child relationships, father-daughter relationships — all that stuff.'
Santaolalla, who likes to work on a project from the script stage, began scoring the original Last of Us about three years before the public officially stepped into the shoes of grizzled smuggler Joel and Cordyceps-resistance Ellie. 'In almost all the projects that I've worked on, I would say 80% of the music has been composed prior to anything,' he explains. 'I relate [to material]
The resultant soundtrack — which utilized everything from acoustic and electric guitars to more obscure instruments like the Bolivian ronroco, vintage Fender Bass VI, and common PVC pipe — was achieved by an almost paradoxical approach. 'I work a lot with silence,' Santaolalla continues. 'I'm talking about an eloquent silence. Not silence as in the absence of sound, but a contrary silence that can sometimes sound louder than the loudest note you can have with an instrument. The use of space, the use of imperfection, which is a something that I love.'
MADRID, SPAIN - JUNE 29: Argentinian musician Gustavo Santaolalla attends "Inteligencia Musical" ... More workshop at TAI University on June 29, 2023 in Madrid, Spain. (Photo by)
When the long-awaited screen adaptation finally got rolling at HBO under the eye of Emmy Award-winning writer Craig Mazin (Chernobyl), Santaolalla and series collaborator David Fleming knew they'd have to walk a narrow tightrope in order to please die-hard fans and newcomers alike. 'When things connect so deeply with people and you change it, they go, 'I liked the [original] much better!' notes the former. 'I think it was important to keep the themes [from the game], keep the sonic fabric. It didn't turn into an orchestral score … I think that was very important and and helped not to alienate the people who love the game and who have now embraced the series, too."
He continues: 'I'm always thinking about supporting and pushing, not overstating or manipulating. You are manipulating in a way because you are trying to make the audience feel things, but in a subtle way. You want to make sure you are doing things dramatically and not melodramatically. That's a big challenge when you go into live-action, especially in stories that have such heavy dramatic content. I've composed music for films [before], but I particularly like to be very cautious with the use of music.'
In terms of his working dynamic with Fleming, Santaolalla says the collaborative process was 'organic and natural" from the start, but even more so in the second season. 'We started to really exchange and infect each other's work. It's a great partnership," he adds, voicing excitement for what they'll come up with for Season 3. While not always the case, Fleming often gravitates towards action-oriented scenes, whereas Santaolalla prefers emotional and tension-filled moments.
Prior to boarding The Last of Us franchise, Santaolalla thought he'd pretty much seen it all in a professional music career that began when he was 17 over half a century ago. However, the video game truly marked the beginning of a fresh and "totally unexpected" chapter for him after decades of scoring many lauded titles.
'The way that people have connected with the music through the game is different. It has such an intensity … That I could suddenly be involved in a project that connected me with a totally new audience that is now opening its ears to other stuff that I've done? It's a fantastic present that life has given me,' he concludes, recalling a particularly memorable fan interaction during a meet and greet in Helsinki last year. 'This girl comes up to me and says, 'I'm 21 years old and I've been a fan of yours since I was 10. Now I play the guitar because my dad played the game all the time.' It's a very, very rewarding project, and a very, very special thing in my life."
Bella Ramsey, Gustavo Santaolalla, Alejandra Palacios at HBO's "The Last of Us" Season 2 Premiere ... More held at TCL Chinese Theatre on March 24, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Christopher Polk/Variety via Getty Images)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
43 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Billie Eilish Offers A Rare Look At Her Vacation Style With A Red String Bikini in Barcelona
THE RUNDOWN Billie Eilish was filmed on the beach with friends in Barcelona, giving the world a rare look at her bikini style. Although she's known for her signature oversize looks, Eilish has a history of wearing string bikinis and shared a photo of herself in a pink set last year. Eilish is currently on the European leg of her Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour and will resume shows in July. Billie Eilish is currently on the European leg of her Hit Me Hard and Soft Tour and took a little vacation in Barcelona ahead of her U.K. shows this July. She spent a night on the beach with friends—and gave a rare look at her vacation style in the process. The singer was filmed in the Mediterranean Sea, wearing a red string bikini. See footage here on TMZ. This isn't the first time Eilish has been seen in this style of swimwear. Last July, she shared a photo of herself in a pink string two-piece: View this post on Instagram A post shared by BILLIE EILISH (@billieeilish) And in June 2023, she appeared in a print string bikini top in her friend Annabel Zimmer's Instagram. View this post on Instagram A post shared by AB (@annabelzimmer) This April, Eilish answered questions from celebrities for British Vogue. Nicki Minaj asked Eilish about how she views herself, prompting Eilish to reflect candidly on her appearance. 'This may be an odd question, but you seem to be a bit uncomfortable with how beautiful you are at times,' Minaj said. 'I could be wrong. Many women from all walks of life have felt that their work was overshadowed by their beauty or their physical attributes. Was there ever a time in your career, or before you made it, when you wished people couldn't see you and that they could only hear the music, and really get a chance to just listen to the written words?' 'Nicki, this question made me tear up a little,' Eilish admitted. 'Well…like you said at the beginning of that question, I've never really felt very beautiful or seen myself in that way, so I definitely never struggled with the idea that it would overshadow anything, since I didn't even really see it myself. I've had to really convince myself that I am beautiful. Being a woman is hard.' She also spoke about how she unwinds while answering a question from Ariana Grande. 'I realized recently that I think my favorite thing in the world is to hangout,' she said with a laugh. 'Like, I just love being around people that I love, people that make me laugh and make me feel whole. You know: kindred souls. That's the stuff that keeps me sane. Laughing really is my cure.' ELLE Collective is a new community of fashion, beauty and culture lovers. For access to exclusive content, events, inspiring advice from our Editors and industry experts, as well the opportunity to meet designers, thought-leaders and stylists, become a member today Might Also Like Pyjamas You Can Wear All Day 10 Hand Soaps To Make Your Bathroom Feel Like A Fancy Hotel 8 Of The Best Natural Deodorants
Gizmodo
an hour ago
- Gizmodo
Nintendo Switch 2 Review: The Ultimate Handheld and It's Not Even Close
The Switch 2 "1-Ups" the groundbreaking original in every single way. 2025 After the massive flop that was the Wii U, consumers had every reason to believe the original Switch, released in 2017, would be yet another Nintendo gimmick that would push people to buy a PlayStation or Xbox instead. But the original $300 Switch's handheld/console design, with its detachable Joy-Con controllers, proved to be a major hit with gamers of all ages. The handheld and TV-dockable game system was inventive and could be understood immediately. It felt like another Wii moment for Nintendo, only this time the Switch was the game console's final form. How could the company that gave us Mario, Pokémon, and Zelda possibly top that? See Nintendo Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2+ Mario Kart World Bundle at Walmart Apparently, with a $450 Switch 2 that has just enough new hardware upgrades and nothing too wacky. You get more performance, a bigger and sharper screen, Joy-Con 2 controllers that now magnetically attach and support mouse controls for exciting possibilities in shooters and real-time strategy games, and GameChat video and voice communications. The Switch 2 hardware is iterative—a specs bump—but it'll also be the exclusive platform for Nintendo's biggest and most recognizable gaming franchises. If you want to play Nintendo's latest and greatest titles, like the now-available Mario Kart World or the upcoming Donkey Kong Bananza, the Switch 2 is the only option, even if you have a PS5 or Xbox Series S/X. In the same breath, Nintendo has also crafted a console that's more restrictive than any other similar device in recent memory. Only Nintendo could make game ownership so onerous when the hardware is this good and the top-quality games aren't available anywhere else. It's extremely frustrating that sharing games or managing game saves is so needlessly cumbersome on the Switch 2, and it's outright maddening that a company that's perfected making complex hardware easy to use—with arguably the best music and sound design—is also so reluctant to embrace how basic gaming features work on other, more open, game platforms. Nintendo Switch 2 The Switch 2 has just enough new things to keep it interesting, but most importantly it lets you play original Switch and modern games with higher fidelity. Pros Lightweight feel with solid controls Lightweight feel with solid controls Great display with HDR support Great display with HDR support Mouse controls offer new gaming possibilities Mouse controls offer new gaming possibilities Powerful enough for games like Cyberpunk 2077 Powerful enough for games like Two USB-C ports Two USB-C ports Access to GameCube games Cons LCD, not OLED screen LCD, not OLED screen 256GB of storage is low for 2025 256GB of storage is low for 2025 Subpar GameChat video and audio quality Subpar GameChat video and audio quality Way too much DRM The Switch 2 is the communal console for our current gaming era. There is no better system around for couch multiplayer—especially one you can easily pack up and take with you. The Switch 2 is its own beast, and it takes the 8-year-old design of the original Switch and allows it to compete—and beat—the growing number of handheld platforms available today. With more horsepower for high-fidelity games like Cyberpunk 2077 and a slate of already-announced Nintendo-only games coming this year and next, we have very little fear that there will be a dearth of compelling titles for the Switch 2. Nintendo's new game console is no Sony PS5/PS5 Pro or Microsoft Xbox Series S/X, but at least it now has the performance to last well into the future. The Switch 2 Looks Better and Plays Better Actually getting into Switch 2 games is more enjoyable than maneuvering around Nintendo's fascination with digital rights management, or DRM. Playing both new and old games on Switch 2 is a superior experience in every way. The 7.9-inch IPS LCD display is about 30% brighter than the original Switch's 6.2-inch screen, and it has wider dynamic range and higher contrast, which helps make games pop more. The screen also supports high dynamic range, or HDR (although the specifics are a bit more complicated), and can refresh games at up to 120Hz thanks to its variable refresh rate technology (VRR), which automatically adjusts the refresh rate based on individual content. However, VRR is inexplicably tied to handheld mode, and it isn't available when docked and connected to a TV or monitor. We could play a variety of games in handheld mode and not feel like we were missing much, other than support for 4K. When the Switch 2 is hooked up to a TV via its dock, the device becomes a quiet powerhouse (the new inclusion of a fan in the dock for cooling definitely helps), at least for those games designed for its unique hardware. You can huddle next to the Switch 2 in handheld mode and not hear a mouse burp from the fans compared to the miniature jet engine you can occasionally hear blasting from a PlayStation 5. With the original Switch, Nintendo proved that stylized, artistic-minded in-game visuals were the remedy to the graphics realism of other consoles and PC gaming. Simply put, its performance was underpowered even compared to a PS4 or Xbox One, both of which came out four years earlier in 2013. Its custom Nvidia chipset was, at times, overburdened by The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild at launch. And when pitted against the current-gen PS5 and Xbox Series S/X, the original Switch was lapped hard. It's been eight years since the revolutionary Switch, so an upgrade was overdue. Performance matters so long as it makes games enjoyable. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom running on the OG Switch at all was a minor miracle, but rampant frame rate dips inevitably made the experience worse. We've played the game on both the original Switch and Switch 2 with the $10 enhanced edition upgrade, and there's no question Zelda on the new handheld—even when bushes and other foliage tend to 'pop in' or render only when you get close—is the better way to play the game. There's no way we can go back. Even games without a 4K upgrade, like Super Mario Odyssey, were a more enjoyable experience on Switch 2 at 1080p than the original at 720p. Would we buy a Switch 2 just to play original Switch games without upgrade packs? No, but we also know we have little reason to return to the 8-year-old handheld. One hardware spec that we were hoping for was an OLED screen. For the uninitiated, OLED (organic light-emitting diode) is a type of display technology that is desired for its true deep blacks. Unlike LCD screens that use a panel of backlights to illuminate pixels, OLED displays turn the individual pixels themselves on or off, allowing not only blacks that are pure black because they can be left off, but also the added bonus of power efficiency. Despite lingering love for the Switch OLED from 2021, it seems like Nintendo is saving the display tech for an inevitable mid-cycle refresh when sales for the Switch 2 start to slump. That will also likely make a $450 device even more expensive since Nintendo rarely drops the price of its systems. Case in point: Nintendo's still selling the original Switch for $300, the same price it cost at launch. It's better to have a Switch 2 available to start with rather than waiting to spend potentially $500 or $550 for a prettier screen. The Switch 2's LCD display, with its support for HDR, is more than sufficiently vibrant that we weren't eyeing our Steam Deck OLED with any subtle or not-so-subtle envy. All this makes it seem like we're settling. Instead, all you have to do is compare the Switch 2's display to devices of this size and price. Even if the screen is LCD, the Switch 2 has a larger, brighter, and better-looking display than many other LCD-based handhelds that cost more. Yes, once you go OLED, it's hard to go back, but when you're in the thick of a game, whether or not blacks are dark grays isn't going to be what breaks any suspension of disbelief. Oh, and don't peel off the screen's protective plastic layer or you might just shatter the whole thing. There are other delightful and easily overlooked improvements that Nintendo made to the Switch 2. The aforementioned Joy-Con 2 controllers connect with a satisfying click to the console using magnets instead of the sliding rail mechanism on the original Switch. Now, you just press the Joy-Con 2 release buttons located right below the ZL/ZR triggers, and they pull apart. Be careful, though, because accidentally pressing the release buttons when grabbing the Switch 2 from either side could mean dropping it. On several occasions, we caught our Switch 2 just in time before it took a hit to the ground. And speaking of the new magnetic attachment system—the SL and SR buttons tucked inside of each Joy-Con 2 are now larger, clickier, and made of metal. Additionally, while the U-shaped kickstand on the Switch 2 doesn't span the entire length of the backside like it does on the Switch OLED, it's at least not the flimsy gumstick-sized one on the original Switch. We're also glad to see the 3.5mm headphone jack didn't get removed, and it's nice to have a second USB-C port on the top of the device for charging or connecting accessories, along with the one located on the bottom. The built-in speakers are also audibly louder and fuller, producing clearer sound at higher volume levels compared to the crackling tinniness you got on the original Switch. See Nintendo Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2+ Mario Kart World Bundle at Walmart The Switch 2 feels good in hand, even if it's thinner than most other handhelds sold today. It's light, and we didn't have a problem sitting up with the device on a couch or bed for hours at a time. How many hours will depend on what game you're playing. For 2D games like the award-winning Hades, it'll last for a little more than four hours. For original Switch games like Super Mario Odyssey, we found the Switch 2 could go just over three hours before needing a recharge. Playing a graphics-intensive game like Cyberpunk 2077, we ran out of juice at exactly two hours. The Steam Deck OLED will do slightly better on battery life overall, but you'd have to look at $800 handhelds like the Asus ROG Ally X with its bigger battery capacity for anything better. Future versions of the Switch 2 may improve on battery life, but Nintendo would likely charge more for that, like they did with the Switch OLED. You can improve battery life by limiting refresh rate and HDR, but let's be honest, most of us would prefer a higher-quality experience over playing for longer. If you're noticing really poor battery life and think something might be up, you may need to put the Switch 2 into 'recovery mode,' which should reset the battery indicator so that it's actually accurate. About the only thing that gives us pause is the joysticks. The Switch 2 was notorious for Joy-Con drift, a hardware issue that caused the joysticks to register movement even if you weren't touching them. Nintendo originally didn't acknowledge Joy-Con drift, but later began repairing them for free after widespread outcry. Considering we've only had the Switch 2 for two weeks, we can't say if drifting joysticks will be a problem for the Joy-Con 2 controllers. Nintendo could have used Hall effect joysticks to guarantee Joy-Con drift wouldn't return, but the company didn't. Instead, Nate Bihldorff, Nintendo's Senior Vice President of Product Development & Publishing, said the Joy-Con 2 were 'designed from the ground up.' Although we didn't experience any Joy-Con 2 drift, there are a relatively small (but increasing) number of reports claiming the joysticks still drift. The gadget teardown and repair experts at iFixit and CT scanning company Lumafield both independently suggest the joysticks, while improved, could still suffer the same issue with enough wear and tear over time; also, the magnetic attachment system may be the reason why Nintendo couldn't use Hall effect sticks. At the very least, Nintendo will repair any Joy-Con 2 controllers exhibiting the input problem for free. Cyberpunk 2077 Sets a New High Bar for Handhelds The biggest surprise to us was how well Cyberpunk 2077 plays on the handheld. We picked up a physical game card version, which meant the download took less than three minutes before we were in the game, though the load times are slightly slower than if you're booting it directly from the Switch 2's 256GB of internal storage or from a microSD Express memory card sold separately. (Note: microSD Express cards are not the same as regular microSD cards, so you will have to buy Express-speed ones.) Game environments remain colorful and detailed, perhaps even better than at 720p resolution on a Steam Deck LCD. This is the benefit of when developers work hand-in-hand with the console maker to optimize the game to get the most from the hardware. The Switch 2 can also make use of Nvidia's DLSS (deep learning super sampling)—an AI-based upscaler that also helps improve frame rates for crispier graphics and smoother performance. DLSS can create some graphical glitches and odd textures, but those flaws can easily be overlooked. Cyberpunk 2077 is a showcase for more than just graphics, but also how well the console can handle various control options—especially the new mouse controls. The feature has proved divisive, though not because the mouse sensor on the Joy-Con 2 is imprecise or you need a flat surface for the best results (they work surprisingly well on most pants, but the surface area won't be as large as a table). The cursor on menus and in games is responsive and quick, plus games like Cyberpunk 2077 offer a multitude of options for deadzones and cursor speed. The bigger issue is comfort. Most people won't find their hand can fully relax on top of a rigid Joy-Con 2 without room for the rest of their fingers. (GameStop sells a 'mouse shell' grip to make the Joy-Con 2 more ergonomic, but we haven't tested it, so there are third-party 'fixes' if you look for them.) Even with a grip that better fits a hand, you may find it hard to press any buttons other than the trigger without playing finger twister on the controller. We wouldn't spend hours using only mouse controls, but already upcoming games like Metroid Prime 4: Beyond promise you'll be able to easily swap between mouse and joysticks just by placing the Joy-Con 2 on a flat surface. Quick-aiming and then going back to motion controls seems like the perfect compromise for shooters. A few of the minigames in Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour—effectively a $10 interactive instruction manual for the console—explore how these controls could offer innovative games in the future (and it's why it's so ludicrous Nintendo didn't package the 'game' for free with the new console). The Switch 2's Joy-Con 2 controllers simply feel like larger versions of the original ones on the first-gen Switch. Nintendo's new console is thin and light, and if you don't like the feel of it digging into your palms, you need to consider other accessories that add more grip. The Switch 2 is a device that lends itself to handing off a controller for quick and dirty multiplayer, exemplified by Nintendo's premier first-party title, Mario Kart World, which was the perfect launch game. We've played more than a dozen hours in the game with various groups of friends—all of whom were jonesing to try the ultra-hyped handheld—and they all left with smiles on their faces. The Switch 2 is running a custom Nvidia chip, and it's ostensibly as powerful as some of Nvidia's lower-end Ampere-era GPUs from four years ago—or about equivalent in power to consoles from the PS4 era. Even if it's less impressive on paper than what you expect from today's PS5-level graphics, the more important thing is whether developers can mold their software to the hardware. For example, even Mario Kart World four-player split screen didn't show any noticeable frame rate drops, and as hard as we looked, we didn't get the sense that the graphics were dumbed down. Nintendo wanted to push the graphics capabilities for its new console, but it also offered an exclusive blast from the past for anybody willing to pay $50 annually for the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pack. The Switch 2 allows you to play a select variety of GameCube games, of which there are only three available at launch—F-Zero GX, Soul Calibur II, and The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker. All three are fun games in their own right, though none but Wind Waker are the kind of titles you 'must play' before you kick the bucket. Nintendo also sells a $65 GameCube controller exclusively through its online store. You can't play the GameCube games or use the revitalized controller on the original Switch. Still, we wouldn't suggest you run out and grab a Switch 2 right now for such a limited selection of nostalgic titles. The Switch 2 is as powerful as it needs to be for modern games. It supports current-gen features like ray tracing, at least to some small degree, and has DLSS to help it keep up with systems that are rendering games natively. How well it will stack up with future hardware from PlayStation and Xbox is a more difficult question. Game developers will need to program with the Switch 2 in mind, especially if they try to port any ultra-demanding title like Grand Theft Auto VI in the future. See Nintendo Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2+ Mario Kart World Bundle at Walmart GameChat Isn't All That As good as the Switch 2 is for local co-op in regular sessions of Split Fiction or Mario Kart World, Nintendo still hasn't figured out what players want from online multiplayer. Playing games with online video and voice chat is hampered by subpar camera and mic capabilities. The Switch 2's minuscule built-in microphone is supposed to pick up your voice even when you're a good six to eight feet from the TV. In our tests with a colleague, we found that you really need to be at least four feet from the mic for it to pick up your voice. On our colleague's end, he wasn't clearly audible until he took the Switch 2 off the dock and held it in front of his face. Hori's Piranha-shaped camera has a lower 480p resolution compared to Nintendo's official $55 Switch 2 Camera, but the fact that it can clip to the Switch 2's top USB-C port without a dangling cable or stand should theoretically make microphone pickup better. Nintendo wanted GameChat to be such a defining feature on Switch 2 that it put a 'C' button on all its first-party controllers. The button allows you to quickly send or receive calls and change video settings without going to the main menu. Of course, it's not as easy as it sounds. You can only send calls to friends over Switch Online, and you need to provide a phone number when you first try the feature. We used GameChat with the Switch 2 Camera, which users are expected to plug into the console when it's docked to a TV. Despite having 1080p resolution, its video quality is washed out in light, and it grows extra pixelated in low-light environments. Over GameChat, you have the choice of sharing your full video or your cropped-out body. The background blur software built into the Switch 2 is so poor that it makes early pandemic Zoom calls look like Google Beam by comparison. There's probably a generation of younger players who will be playing separate sessions of Fortnite who want to see each other's gameplay on their screen. GameChat is functional, but that's the best word we could use for it. You Don't Really Own Your Games We hold the Switch 2 in our hands with a sense of foreboding. Because of virtual game cards, the games you own are locked to a single system at a time. You can mitigate this by going into your account settings and turning on 'Use Online License,' which lets you have games on two consoles at once. The problem is, two systems with the same account profile can't play the game at the same time. Plus, your save data will remain tied to one system at a time—as we learned the hard way, moving a game save from one Switch to another deletes it off the original one instead of copying it over like how it works on every other game system. Either way, due to the proliferation of code-in-a-box and game key cards (a cartridge that's a 'key' to downloading a game from the eShop and must be inserted in the Switch 2 to play said game), Nintendo has made owning your games far trickier. Features like GameShare are amazing for playing titles with friends who don't own them or don't even have a Switch 2, but since it only supports a mere six first-party games at launch, the feature is overshadowed by Nintendo's leering gaze that mandates you can't have your games—or even your game save data—in more than one place at a time. Games now come in four flavors: game card, game key card, code-in-a-box, and digital download. Games installed on the Switch 2's internal storage will load the fastest, but with only 256GB, it'll run out fast. You may be thinking 256GB—eight times the 32GB in the original Switch—seems like plenty, and maybe it is if you're sticking to smaller indie games, but the Switch 2 operating system eats up about 10GB and games like Cyberpunk 2077 hog up 60GB; Split Fiction uses close to 70GB. Other third-party titles like Street Fighter 6 and Yakuza 0 will take up almost 48GB and 54GB, respectively. A microSD Express card, especially if you're planning to install Switch games and Switch 2 titles, helps alleviate these issues at a cost (we paid $60 for 256GB Samsung one), but the lingering problems with virtual game cards mean it's that much harder to own your games and easily swap them between friends. You can't simply offer your account to your friend so they can play your games on their Switch or Switch 2. Both consoles have to be nearby, and you can only give them a two-week trial to play that game, which also temporarily removes it from your own account. Changing your license settings keeps you from sharing virtual game cards in this way. Nintendo Wins Without Reinvention Nintendo will sell consoles because fans can't get enough of its exclusive games. At the time of this writing—two weeks after launch—all signs already point to the Switch 2 being a mega mushroom-sized success. People worldwide turned up on launch day in record numbers—many even attending midnight launches—to buy Nintendo's new game system. Nintendo's already shattered global sales records with over 3.5 million Switch 2 units sold within its first four days of going on sale. That's a lot of damn Switch 2 units sold just to play a refreshed version of Mario Kart and Cyberpunk 2077, a game that came out five years ago. Do we yearn for the days of Nintendo introducing a new gimmick with every new console release? Yes, but the Switch 2 is the familiar sequel to the original Switch, as the iPhone 3G was the successor to the first-gen iPhone. The Switch 2 is more powerful, and games run better in every way, but Nintendo routinely proves that if you design games specific to hardware, you'll get more out of them—not just in graphics but in controls and gameplay. The Switch 2 is the console that we'll keep with us often, perhaps even closer than our Steam Decks because we may bring it out for a single session on the go or share it with friends in various ways that you can't with a PS5, Xbox, or PC. There were few wholly new, must-have games on launch day, but they're coming. Nintendo knows a steady release of games featuring its most beloved characters will keep the Switch 2 momentum going. Third-party developers have been dying for more power to port their typically more graphics-intensive games to Nintendo's consoles—and now they're getting just that. So long as there's no drought of big game releases—like there were in the dark GameCube and Wii U days—Nintendo may just '1-Up' itself with the Switch 2. See Nintendo Switch 2 at Walmart See Switch 2+ Mario Kart World Bundle at Walmart
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
'We need to protect our trans siblings and be a community more than ever'
Lucy Spraggan rose to fame as a contestant on The X Factor in 2012, she has since become a successful musician in her own right. She joins Yahoo's Queer Voices to discuss her experience as a queer singer in the music industry, why Pride should be a protest again, and her affinity with the transgender community. Her new album Other Sides of the Moon is out now. I think it's important for us to be a community now more than ever. We all practise authenticity and love and being ourselves, and I genuinely think being there for our trans brothers and sisters now — like they have always been there for us — it's about allyship and it's about protecting each other. And I don't think that fight is finished yet. I think it's very important to still be fighting that fight. I do believe Pride should always be a protest that I feel like there's so much — as a community, we have so much to do for trans rights across the board. Pride should always be in protest. I have had real issues locally recently trying to drive the message through to people that trans people are all individuals. They're all different, we're all different, we're all authentic, so maybe we should just let people be themselves. But it's really hard, it's hard to push a message through to somebody who's ignorant and I just feel all I can do is support my trans friends and trans people I've never met as much as I can. Sometimes that feels like it's about literally, physically standing in front of them at protests. When I was on X Factor, I'd already been out for years. I came out and I was really young, so I remember one of the producers or press teams saying: 'Are you gonna like, come out?' And I was like, 'everybody already knows I'm gay'. And one week on The X Factor, we did the covers, I did a Gold Digger cover and everybody had backing dancers and I said 'Can mine be female backing dancers?' And they were all twerking up against me and it was absolutely amazing, and I remember feeling quite confident in being my queer self then. Things are so much more different about being queer now than when I was on X Factor. There's so many more people to see, there's so many more platforms to see queer people on. I love that about social media, it's one of the few things I love about social media — that you can see so many of your people. All of my music is inspired by my real life experiences. My new album is called Other Sides of the Moon, which is a song about my wife and how we fell in love with each other. So I guess there's intrinsic queerness throughout my entire album, but it's all about things I've felt or observed. I can't wait for it to come out, there's a collection of older songs on there that have been reborn in some ways and it's kind of a message to people: Think about the past or something they can change. And I looked at a lot of songs from the past and actually thought I'd like to give them new life. My favourite thing about being a musician is the culture and the community that there is at my shows. There's just so much diversity and my favourite thing is that music has brought all those people together and just being a part of it, I don't feel like a leader of it or anything like that, I just feel immersed in this community, and I love it. Whenever I think of Pride I think of being a 15-year-old living just outside of Manchester and going to Manchester Pride and just looking around and seeing so many people that just felt like family. And I remember that so vividly, walking around with my mouth open the whole weekend just thinking this is life. And I still feel that at Pride events now. My advice to young queer people is do your thing. Live your best life and protect each other and the whole phrase of 'blood is thicker than water' is actually the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb, and that means that the the bond between nuns is actually thicker than the bond of those in in family situations. So if you need to create a new family, if you need to look for other people, go for it because that bond is thicker than it. I always go back to the storyline that I loved most on television, which was Coronation Street with Hayley Cropper, the trans character. It was so long ago, and it was so left field for that that time, and I went into school and they were asking what we wanted to be when we were older and loads of people were saying, 'firefighter', 'I wanna be a policeman' or actor and I said I wanna be a transsexual. I just thought it was such an amazing story, they used transsexual then on television because it was so dated, I think it was 2008. But I spent from age well late toddler to about 10 being called Max, I was a boy until puberty and so I didn't realise that [transitioning] was really possible until I saw it on television and I was like, 'Oh my God'. And now you get to see transgender people so much more, and I wonder if I'd have had access to the world in the same way that we do now if my choices would be different growing up. There's so many shows I wish I had. I remember watching Queer as Folk growing up, my mum was obsessed with Queer as Folk, and there's so much more now on offer. Before being gay was kind of like it was about how being gay meant you had to be part of this scene, and now there's so many things that represent being gay or being queer. You can just be a normal person and be that, and I like any shows that has that in it. In terms of my queer role models, growing up my mum's best friend Kathy is a trans woman and I remember just always feeling so empowered by her. Not just Kathy, but actually my mum was such a pioneer, she always surrounded us with artists and creatives and queer people — she's a real pioneer. I feel like there's room to improve when it comes to the platforms for queer people, I think there's always more to be done. I think within our community the amount of creativity and just fabulousness, it's always pouring out of the community, and I always feel like there could be more places for that art to be distributed. Not even necessarily in terms of more celebrating, but more more areas of industries that hone in on queer people and whatever that means for that. There's more avenues and more funding for people, especially young queer people, to express themselves. I think the future of queer storytelling is gonna be how it always has been. From Oscar Wilde right up until now, everyone's always gonna tell their story and it's going to be remembered because there's been so much adversity in this community for thousands of years.
