In the current Monopoly Go Ever After Album, we find ourselves immersed in a whimsical fairytale world filled with childlike wonder. Each fairytale narrative captivates Tycoons among us. Fittingly, this season's Tycoon Express adopts a Fairytale theme as well, whisking players away toward a trove of generous rewards.

Building upon the foundation of Tycoon Express, Fairytale Express introduces players to a brand-new ranking system and a unique method for earning rewards. Typically, the rewards you receive are determined by Class (or level) of your train car. In other words, the higher your car's Class, the more bountiful your rewards will be.

Now, let's take a closer look at exactly how Fairytale Express works!

How ​​Fairytale Express Works?

Just like the previous Pawprint Express event, Fairytale Express requires you to participate in in-game tournaments to earn Express Coins. This is because Fairytale Express exclusively accepts this specific currency. To ensure you accumulate enough Express Coins to facilitate your progress through the event, it is highly advisable to aim for the highest possible rankings in your tournaments.

If you don't earn enough Express Coins in a single day to upgrade your Cabin, don't worry - your progress accumulates! You can simply wait until the next day to earn the remaining balance needed. As long as your ranking on the leaderboard remains above the designated threshold displayed on the interface, you will be eligible for an upgrade.

By the way, while ranking is certainly important, finishing within the top 10 is generally considered an excellent result. Once you've reached that tier, you might want to conserve your Dice rolls and save them for future gameplay opportunities.

As you gradually upgrade your Cabin within Fairytale Express, the event will bestow upon you an increasing array of rewards. These typically include Emojis, Shields, Tokens, and Dice rolls. Furthermore, and this is a key point - your Cabin upgrades will also have a direct impact on the rewards you receive from standard tournaments. This means that your tournament prizes will become even more enticing!

Additionally, players should take note that even if you achieved an outstanding performance in the previous Car event, that progress will not carry over. 

Carriage Classes

Your train consists of a total of ten distinct carriage classes. Rest assured: once you have successfully upgraded to a higher Class, you cannot be demoted back to a lower one during the current season. Your journey of progression through the ranks should therefore be relatively stress free. As mentioned earlier, the higher your Class, the more attractive and valuable the rewards you receive will be. Let's take a look at the specific tiers and requirements:

• Tycoon Class: 5 Express Coins
• Premier Class: 20 Express Coins
• Deluxe Class: 40 Express Coins
• Elite Class: 65 Express Coins
• Supreme Class: 100 Express Coins
• Monopoly Class I: 140 Express Coins
• Monopoly Class II: 180 Express Coins
• Monopoly Class III: 220 Express Coins
• Monopoly Class IV: 260 Express Coins
• Monopoly Class V: 310 Express Coins

Set Monopoly Class V as your ultimate goal! With generous rewards on offer, believe in yourself - it's not as difficult to achieve as you might think.

How do you earn Express Coins?

If your Net Worth level in Monopoly GO meets the threshold required to participate in Fairytale Express event, you can start earning plenty of Express Coins.

Tournaments

Participating in tournaments is not only the best way to earn Express Coins, but it is also the only way. Don't worry that having just one method to earn Express Coins might mean you won't get enough. First, each tournament typically lasts 1 to 2 days; given their continuous nature, you can earn rewards through tournaments every single day. Second, as your tournament ranking improves - and since Express Coins accumulate over time - your total Express Coin count will only continue to grow.

Of course, if you want to achieve an ideal ranking, you'll need to employ some more efficient strategies.

Bank Heists

Bank Heists should be your primary choice for earning points. A single Successful Bank Heist can net you as many as 8 points. And what about at a 1000x multiplier? That's 8,000 points! This can help you effortlessly rocket to the top of the leaderboard. You can save this strategy for a final sprint during the closing stages of the event.

Other actions also yield substantial points. A Successful Shutdown earns you 4 points, a Blocked Shutdown earns 2 points, while landing on Bankrupt or a Failed Heist spot can still earn you 6 points.

Getting Placed in Easier Groups

To avoid running into players with vastly superior strength during tournaments, we can leverage the game's grouping logic to try and get placed into a relatively easier competitive group.

You can delay your entry into the tournament by intentionally waiting about 8 hours before rolling the dice. Once you do join, immediately check the leaderboard to see where you stand. If the top-ranked player in your group has a score of no more than 4,000 points, it means you've landed in the right bracket. Save up your dice and unleash them in a massive roll-off during the final moments of the competition - go all in for the win. This strategy is often enough to secure victory.

Maximizing Dice Efficiency

First and foremost, there is an optimal timing - based on probability - for rolling your dice. You should set your multiplier to its maximum level when you are positioned close to a Railroad space. Generally speaking, the ideal distance is 6, 7, or 8 spaces away.

Seasonal Resets

Fairytale Express journey will come to an end alongside the conclusion of the current album. Each time the event returns, it will feature an entirely new track layout. Furthermore, since each of us invests a different amount of effort and dedication, the final destination where we disembark will vary from player to player. This particular Fairytale theme adds an even more whimsical and magical flair to this core game mechanic.

So, cherish your journey aboard Fairytale Express; you still have ample time to upgrade your Cabin. We are also looking forward to seeing Monopoly GO introduce more cars and themes in the future, allowing players to unlock new Monopoly GO stickers and experience a wider variety of unique journeys.

Good luck during Fairytale Express!

Have you been holding off on stepping into the batter's box for MLB The Show 26 because the near seventy-dollar commitment feels a bit steep? If you're a Switch owner, there's some welcome news headed your way.

MLB The Show 26 is currently available at a reduced rate on Switch platform and, more importantly, is hosting a roughly week-long free trial period. Every ounce of progress you make during this trial is carried over to the full experience. So how does it actually hold up on Nintendo's hardware, and is it worth clearing space on your microSD card to give it a swing?

Free Trial Dates

The digital version of MLB The Show 26 is featured in a limited-time promotion. Those who secure the game for their library right now will benefit from a 25% reduction off the standard listing. If you happen to be a Nintendo Switch Online member, you can take the diamond for a test run before deciding whether to commit.

The free trial will run from 10:00 AM PT on April 23 to 11:59 PM PT on April 29 (1:00 PM ET on April 23 to 2:59 AM ET on April 30). Note that the promotion will end before the free trial closes, so please don't miss it.

Storage Footprint

The store listing for MLB The Show 26 suggests you'll need 28 GB of free space. However, once the base installation is complete and the latest update is applied, the actual footprint on your system settles in at a leaner 24.7 GB. That figure is even a hair smaller than last year's MLB The Show 25 (which took up 25.5 GB).

Core Modes

World Baseball Classic

Plenty of players have reported feeling a bit lost trying to locate World Baseball Classic mode on the main menu. Take note: it doesn't have its own standalone tile. You'll find it tucked away inside Diamond Dynasty.

Here's the path:

• Enter Diamond Dynasty.
• Complete the setup of your custom squad, uniform creation, and initial player card collection.
• Navigate to Play menu.
• Look under Single Player modes for Mini Seasons. That is where WBC experience lives.

One important quirk to keep in mind: When you opt into WBC tournament, the game will slot your created team into one of the real-world groups (A, B, C, or D). This effectively replaces one of the actual national teams in that pool. Make sure you're comfortable with this arrangement so you don't accidentally overwrite a club you'd rather keep in the mix.

March to October

The dedicated March to October mode has been retired in MLB 26. The development team has folded its signature key moment mechanics directly into Franchise mode instead. While managing your ballclub over a full season, you aren't just limited to playing complete nine-inning contests. You can now use Custom Entry feature to set the leverage of the situation and which inning you want to jump into.

The simulation engine will intelligently bypass the dull blowouts and drop you right into the high-stakes pressure cooker - runners in scoring position, late-game ties, you name it. Of course, if you'd rather manage every pitch of every frame, Full Game option remains readily available.

Daily Lineup

Daily Lineup feature syncs directly with the actual, real-world MLB starting rosters and schedule for that day. If you want to run a simulation or take the sticks with the exact arms and bats taking the field that afternoon, you can jump right into today's authentic matchup.

New Additions to the Toolbox

Challenge Calls

The real-world MLB Challenge Calls system makes its debut. You can contest a call on a ball/strike or a close play on the bases. Crucial Strategy Note: You only get two challenges per contest. Blow them early on ticky-tack pitches and you'll be kicking yourself in the ninth inning when a blown call at the plate costs you the game.

Pitcher Pressure Mechanic

In high-leverage moments (bases loaded, final outs of a tight game), your hurler will enter a state of heightened tension. When this kicks in, you can activate a slow-motion targeting aid to help you paint the corners more precisely. This isn't a bottomless resource; it must be built up through strong performance.

Pitching Control Wheel

Tapping a designated button while on the mound now brings up a new Wheel Menu, granting quick access to:

• Batter Analyst
• Substitution
• Bullpen: Manage warm-up pitches without diving through clunky submenus.
• Mound Visits
• Player Card: Check current batter-pitcher matchup stats on the fly.

PitchCom Audio Cues

The game integrates the actual PitchCom system used in the big leagues, where the catcher relays signs electronically. If you prefer silence or find the audio cues distracting, you can disable the catcher's voice by navigating to: Settings > User Settings > Audio > Pitching Delivery Audio (PitchCom) Toggle this to Visual Only or Off.

Performance on Switch

MLB The Show 26 runs on both the original Switch hardware and Switch 2. It's worth noting there isn't a bespoke, native version crafted exclusively for the newer console; Switch 2 runs the title via backward compatibility. The gap between the two experiences isn't night and day, though Switch 2 does pull ahead thanks to its extra horsepower.

MLB 26 targets 720p resolution on Switch. Compared to the experience on Switch 2, loading speeds are slightly slower on the older model, but still within acceptable limits. Regardless of the model, the core mechanics of hitting and throwing remain smooth and don't affect the core gameplay experience.

The most obvious shortcoming on the launch-model Switch is a visible frame rate dip during transitional animations - cutscenes of a batter walking to the box or a celebration after a big strikeout. This is an ongoing limitation tied to the original hardware's memory bandwidth and is par for the course with this series on the aging platform.

If you're playing on Switch 2, the game benefits from increased memory headroom and can run at 1080p when docked. More importantly, those pesky frame drops during cutscenes smooth out significantly.

When stacked up against MLB The Show 25, there isn't a massive graphical leap on the older Switch hardware. The differences you'll notice are rooted almost entirely in the new gameplay mechanics and updated rulebook rather than a visual makeover.

Should You Step In on an Older Switch?

MLB The Show 26 provides series fans with the core gameplay and rich modes they've been waiting for. The subtle adjustments haven't disrupted the game's smooth feel, and the new content brings a fresh experience. However, it's undeniable that the game's visuals have stagnated since its 2022 release on Switch.

While Switch 2 offers a smoother frame rate experience, it doesn't mask the disappointment of not having a native version developed for the new console. If you're only looking to update the player roster and experience the new Black League storyline, don't miss this discount.