Pokemon GO Crossover Code, PlatinumGames talk Star Wars

Free swag, but there’s a snag

Niantic is running another product placement campaign, this time offering up free avatar items branded with the logo of US telecom giant Verizon for Pokémon Go.

One of the included items is a Verizon facemask so you can be reminded that the world outside your door is a toxic hellscape crawling with deadly viruses.

• Verizon code: LRQEV2VZ59UDA

Corporate chic: Earlier promotional bundles have been a tiny bit aesthetically pleasing, like the North Face X Gucci gear or the One Piece straw hat. But hey, at least you have the option of dressing your avatar up like a Verizon-sponsored ninja barista with oxygen allergy: Just redeem the code in-game on Android, or via the Niantic code redemption portal on iOS.

Love conquers all: Pokémon Masters EX has just started its considerably more pleasant Valentine Day event called Baking Buddies, which adds the Serena & Whimsicott sync pair. Serena and Dawn will make cards and gifts for everyone during the event.

Which Pokémon episode was infamous for inducing seizures?

a) Beauty and the Beach
b) Electric Soldier Porygon
c) The Ice Cave
d) The Legend of Miniryu

The answer will be revealed at the bottom of today's issue. Join up with our community on Twitter and Facebook to discuss what the answer could be.

Mario and Rabbids needed a bit of opera

Ubisoft Milan recorded hiphop and heavy metal versions of the Phantom Rabbid’s song for Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle, but in the end they decided to stick with the operatic rendition.

The Mario Kart series was a huge influence on the game design according to director Davide Solinai, and the team also toyed with adding Rayman to the mix.

In the end, they decided against it since Rayman and the Rabbids had turned into different series at that point. The studio scrapped 13 ideas for Mario and Rabbids crossovers until they stuck with the tactical strategy one.

Join our community on Twitter and Facebook to discuss today's fact.

If PlatinumGames could make a Star Wars game, they’d make sure to annoy the fans

PlatinumGames big cheeses Atsushi Inaba and Takahisa Taura just gave an interview where they discuss hot topics like PlayStation 5, Sony neglecting Japan and Star Wars.

There's no news about PlatinumGames' new self-owned IP Project G.G, which will be their first major foray into self-publishing, but there's a bit of clarification about the future of Astral Chain. The IP is wholly owned by Nintendo, and the game sold over a million units, so there's a good chance it will be followed up.

Witches of the Old Republic: The pair also debate what they'd do if Disney suddenly called and offered them a Star Wars license. While they “would be honoured” and “it’d be a dream in some ways,”, they conclude that they would “just make the fans pi**ed” since PlatinumGames doesn't like playing by the rules and would definitely mess with the IP.

Culture clash: Another topic was Sony's declining popularity in Japan and lack of focus on Japanese studios and games for the domestic market. Kamiya said he doesn’t see it as a “Japan versus the US situation, but more about ‘culture A’ and ‘culture B’,”.

Animal Crossing: New Horizons x Mario?

Mario’s 35th anniversary is Nintendo’s big event this year, and the celebrations will even extend into Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

Rumours say a special Super Mario-themed event is being lined up for March 10th – Mar10 day, see? Nintendo hasn't exactly confirmed it, but their latest update video isn't exactly making a huge effort to keep it secret either.

Super Mario Cross It's a pretty good marketing move too: Animal Crossing is one of Nintendo's biggest series now, and has attracted a lot of new players that might not have a close relationship to Mario … yet. On the other hand, the timing is a bit strange since the games launched to mark Mario's 35th anniversary will go off sale in March.

And Mario for all: The latest Animal Crossing: New Horizons update launched yesterday, and the accompanying video features two iconic Mario staples right at the very end: A red mushroom and a star. We'll just have to wait and see when the next update launches in March.

• More games added to Xbox Free Play Days including Terraria, Naruto to Boruto and Madden NFL 21 for Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S
• Mega Charizard drawn in the style of Monster Hunter makes a strong case for a dark and gritty Pokémon reboot
• Housemarque’s PlayStation 5 exclusive Returnal delayed until April 30th
• Ultimate Epic Battle Simulator is free until February 1st so grab yourself a copy “while supplies last” and prepare for battle
• Looks like GoldenEye 007 is finally coming to PC thanks to the tireless efforts of hard-working fans

Which Pokémon episode was infamous for inducing seizures?

ANSWER: Electric Soldier Porygon!

The Pokémon anime has been running for over two decades, but no episode can rival the impact Electric Soldier Porygon (or Dennō Senshi Porygon in the original Japanese) had. Ash and the gang ventures into cyberspace to prevent Team Rocket from stealing Pokémon using a Porygon, and near the end of the episode Pikachu unleashes a thunderbolt attack that causes an explosion with rapidly flashing blue and red lights.

Japan’s Fire Defense reported 685 viewers were taken to the hospital after suffering seizures, while 150 viewers were admitted. Nintendo’s stock dropped by 5%, the episode never aired outside Japan and the anime went off air for four months. Remember, kids: Don’t induce epileptic seizures by strobing lights in the face of your audience!

Today's issue of DailyBits was written by Gavin Herman, Erlend Grefsrud, Simon Priest, and Jamie Davey.