When Nintendo announced a secret play test with 10,000 players Of course, with a project shrouded in NDA, there was wild speculation. While something to do with the impending reveal and release of the Switch successor seemed to be the most popular idea, others wondered if it was perhaps some sort of extension to the Switch Online subscription. Places were filled within secondsOf course, since the participants were sworn to secrecy, it was only a matter of time before the details came to light.
The first person to break the rule, an X user named Ethan_ThisGuy, I posted some pictures reveal the nature of the project, which have now inevitably been removed. This followed an update from Nintendo The playtest pageonly visible to those who were among the 10,000 chosen, allowing them to download the unnamed “trial software” on both the phone and the Switch.
And what kind of testing software is this? It is reported by The edge that the now-deleted screenshots originally showed images of Nintendo’s first attempt at an… MMO.
Of course it’s a huge disappointment. These things are always like that.
Still, it’s at least interesting in and of itself that Nintendo is making an MMO some 15 years after anyone was interested in it. And we’re not talking about fighting orcs and buying mounts, but rather something that looks like a fever dream that Peter Molyneux might have after playing too much Minecraft.
“In this game,” says the text under a section headed “The Purpose of the Game,” “the goal is to work with others to fully ‘develop’ a huge, sprawling planet using creativity and agricultural skills The accompanying image (which we will not publish) showed a large sphere covered with an extensive grid, some squares of which were filled with varying amounts of blue. The description continues: “As you progress on the planet, you will discover new lands, enemies and resources that will be crucial to your journey.”
A second screenshot showed something that looked tiny Minecraft Worlds in glass bells, with the words:
During your adventure, players will receive special tools called beacons. These beacons radiate a healing light that purifies and develops the land. The higher your beacon is placed, the wider its beacon zone will be. You can do your best work within your beacon zone.
Players repeat the process until their current planet block is considered fully developed.
The latest leaked information is titled “The Dev Core” and shows a large room made of blocks in which autumn boys-Esque figures walk around, one carries a block over his head. It says that this is “a space separate from the planet that you will develop.” Think of it as a social gathering place where you can hang out with other players.” It will also be the place where you can upgrade your character, get items, “communicate with others, and more.”
Beyond what we have seen ourselves, The edge adds that there is a description of “UGC (User Generated Content) features,” but intriguingly people can only share them with others if they pass some sort of in-game test “to show that “You understand the importance of respectful communication.” Oh, poor, sweet Nintendo.
This all seems to add up to a giant, collaborative version of something like this MinecraftEach sphere presumably has its own 10,000-person server, but any details beyond that would be wild speculation.
It’s interesting that “communicating with others” seems to be an important part of this game, as Nintendo games certainly go out of their way to prevent this to ensure a child-safe environment. It’ll be interesting to see if this is limited to emojis and the like, or if Nintendo is just figuring out how much they never want open chats anything.
Another thing that seems worth mentioning is the look of the character graphics in the Dev Core image terrible. If it’s not a placeholder, then…erk.
Of course, this is just the first leak of probably many more. Apparently the software won’t be available to play until Wednesday. Then Nintendo has to pull out all the stops because the copyright to the countless screenshots and videos that appear is at risk. Although participating means you’ve given your Switch Online details to Nintendo, it’s likely that there will be serious consequences for anyone who isn’t careful. After all, we’re talking about Nintendo here.
Update 10/21/2024 4:42 p.m. ET: A User named Sky has since evaluated the playtest and revealed all sorts of additional clues about Nintendo’s secret online Switch game. This includes the fact that it is produced by Nintendo EPD Production Group No. 4 is manufactured, which has produced Labowill include mechs, user-generated content and PVP, as well as a character creator.
