Reviews & Mini-Views

The Monty Mole Collection ($6.99)

While this was just announced for release next week in its home region of Europe, the rest of the world got this collection of classic computer platformers about a month back. I don’t talk about it a lot, but my first game machine of any kind I had at home was a Commodore 64. As such, I buy pretty much any Commodore 64 game that pops up on the eShop if only out of pure nostalgia. Not that any of these games are the ones I played on there, mind you. The North American and European software libraries for the Commodore 64 were very different beasts, I’ve come to learn.

Anyway, Monty Mole. I first played one of these games in the iOS Spectaculator app, which I think we can agree may not be the ideal way to play a highly challenging series of action games. I think it was Monty on the Run, because I remember that banging tune that plays during the game. At any rate, it seemed fine even if I couldn’t make much headway with it. With that in mind, it wasn’t difficult for me to fork over the seven bucks to grab this collection when it popped up on the eShop.

You get around half of the series here, with Wanted: Monty Mole (Spectrum and C64 versions), Monty on the Run (Spectrum and C64), Auf Wiedersehen Monty (Spectrum and C64), Moley Christmas (Spectrum), and Sam Stoat: Safebreaker (Spectrum). No Monty is Innocent or Impossamole. I believe the latter has some rights issues around it, but I don’t know why the former was left out. Maybe because it’s a bit of an oddball? Honestly, I was a little impressed that both Spectrum and C64 versions were included for most of the games. That’s a nice bonus.

The games play fairly well given their vintage, though they are very difficult by and large. I didn’t enjoy the C64 Wanted: Monty Mole, which is the one case of the Spectrum and C64 versions being extremely different from each other, as much as the rest of the platformers. Sam Stoat: Safebreaker can go fall into the abyss for all I care. Still, that means there are four rather enjoyable games on offer here. You get some basic display options, save states, and a wildly useful rewind feature. Nothing fancy, but it has what you need.

What it doesn’t have is any extra supplemental material for the games. You get what I think are the covers for each game, plus a brief description. No instructions, no explanations of what these games mean in a historical sense, or anything like that. These aren’t the most complicated of games, but it would have been nice to have a little something to establish some context. Also, Sam Stoat: Safebreaker really needs some directions. I had to look up instructions on the web to sort out how it worked. Likely not an issue for those who played these forty years ago, but those of us coming in somewhat fresh could use a little more to go on.

The Monty Mole Collection should please some of the largely underserved fans of classic microcomputer platforms. It’s a bit threadbare in some ways, but there are enough features here to enjoy this bag of Monty games as best as they can be in the here and now. I wish there was more in the way of extra materials, but I suppose they can’t all be Gold Masters. It’s also unfortunate that this falls just shy of being a full set of Monty games. In the end, what’s here is worth the asking price as long as you’re cool with platformers of this vintage.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

New Releases

The Spy Who Shot Me ($7.99)

This first-person shooter is a parody of James Bond and Bond games from the 1990s. You know which ones, I’m sure. It even throws in some weird mini-game levels to break up the shooting action. It’s more interested in being an amusing send-up than a good game, but for the price I think Bond fans at least will get a kick out of it. Just be ready for some serious frustration if you actually plan on finishing it.

Arcade Archives Mighty Guy ($7.99)

Once upon a time, back in 1986, there was a guy. A Mighty Guy. He was such a Mighty Guy that he decided to punch, kick, and psychoblast his way to the evil computer Zelda and destroy it to save us all. You can live the chronicles of that Mighty Guy in this reissue of the Nichbutsu “classic". Those who enjoy the weirder entries in the Arcade Archives line, come and pick up your game.

The Bin Bunch

Forbidden Ghost Photo ($3.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

A lot more going out than coming in today, but I suppose we could all use a break for our wallets’ sake. Eschatos and Parasite Pack are my recommendations in the inbox, while over in the outbox the Spelunky games and some of the S-Tribute releases are worth picking up. Check those lists carefully!

Select New Sales

Backbeat ($17.49 from $24.99 until 1/10)
Hexagroove Tactical DJ ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/10)
Eschatos ($16.19 from $26.99 until 1/18)
Catmaze ($3.99 from $9.99 until 1/18)
Intrepid Izzy ($5.49 from $10.99 until 1/18)
Parasite Pack ($3.19 from $7.99 until 1/18)
Long Live The Queen ($3.99 from $9.99 until 1/18)
Ninja or Die: Shadow of the Sun ($9.74 from $14.99 until 1/18)
Super Brawl Rush ($2.99 from $4.99 until 1/18)
Seduce Me: The Complete Story ($5.99 from $9.99 until 1/18)
Gastro Force ($4.19 from $6.99 until 1/18)
Save Room ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/18)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, January 5th

Abarenbo Tengu & Zombie Nation ($5.99 from $11.99 until 1/5)
Akai Katana Shin ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Another World Mahjong Girl ($7.49 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Aragami 2 ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/5)
Ashina: The Red Witch ($5.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Avenging Spirit ($2.99 from $5.99 until 1/5)
Batsugun Saturn Tribute Boosted ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Blair Witch ($7.49 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Bone Marrow ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/5)
Bounty Battle ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Bramble: The Mountain King ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Bridge Constructor Portal ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Bridge Constructor Ultimate ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Buildings Have Feelings Too ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Bulldozer Tycoon: Construction Simulator ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)

Chained Echoes ($18.74 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Cleopatra Fortune S-Tribute ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Cloudpunk ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Cotton 2: Saturn Tribute ($8.99 from $17.99 until 1/5)
Cotton Boomerang: Saturn Tribute ($8.99 from $17.99 until 1/5)
CrossCode ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Cry Babies Magic Tears: The Big Game ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/5)
Curse Crackers: For Whom the Belle Toils ($9.00 from $15.00 until 1/5)
Darker Skies ($2.69 from $17.99 until 1/5)
Death Becomes You ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/5)
Deathrun TV ($2.24 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Deathsmiles I-II ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/5)
Deathtrap Dungeon Trilogy ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Dr. Fetus’ Mean Meat Machine ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)

Elevator Action Returns S-Tribute ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Embraced By Autumn ($11.39 from $18.99 until 1/5)
FerroSlug ($2.26 from $5.67 until 1/5)
Foreclosed ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Fresh Start ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Game Tengoku CruisinMix Special ($8.97 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Gleylancer ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/5)
Guardian Force: Saturn Tribute ($8.99 from $17.99 until 1/5)
Gynoug ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/5)
Hirilun ($7.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Knight Squad 2 ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Lost Epic ($8.99 from $17.99 until 1/5)
Morbid: The Seven Acolytes ($3.74 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Moto Roader MC ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/5)
Mrs Cat Between Worlds ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/5)

Mugen Souls Z ($31.99 from $39.99 until 1/5)
Nape Retroverse Collection ($2.79 from $6.99 until 1/5)
Necrosmith ($1.99 from $7.99 until 1/5)
No Place Like Home ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Omen of Sorrow ($12.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Package Inc ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/5)
PAWfectly Designed ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Ping Pong Arcade ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Pumpkin Jack ($7.49 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move S-Tribute ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Rainbow Skies ($12.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Rogue Glitch Ultra ($9.59 from $11.99 until 1/5)
Rytmos ($6.00 from $15.00 until 1/5)
SENSEs: Midnight ($9.74 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Sephonie ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)

Slaycation Paradise ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Spells & Secrets ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Spelunky ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Spelunky 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Super Mabus Mania ($3.15 from $7.89 until 1/5)
The Bridge Curse: Road to Salvation ($19.49 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Time on Frog Island ($6.24 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Truberbrook ($1.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
UNBOX: Newbie’s Adventure ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Vaporum ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Venba ($11.24 from $14.99 until 1/5)
WarriOrb ($1.99 from $12.99 until 1/5)
Working Hard Collection ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/5)

That’s all for today, friends. This is where I would normally say that I’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining releases of the week and such, but to be frank, I’m not sure if I will be or not. I have an appointment with my doctor tomorrow and I might end up being hospitalized again, and if that happens, I won’t be back again for a bit. I sincerely hope to be writing for you all tomorrow, though. Have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Reviews & Mini-Views

EGGCONSOLE Review Spectacular

It’s a quiet day today, so I thought I would do something interesting. Recently, D4 Enterprise started releasing some vintage Japanese computer games on the Switch eShop. These titles are all quite famous in Japan, but most of them are either barely known in the West or not known at all. I figured I’d throw a little life preserver out into the water for those who are curious but not quite convinced. All of the games have the same set of features. You can make use of save states, read a bit of a quick guide to how to play the game, remap the controls, peruse a gallery of art and other goodies, and in some titles start from one of several pre-set save states that will allow you to see the game without playing through it yourself. There are also a couple of screen settings to choose from, plus rewind and speed up functions.

Here are Mini-Views for all five of the current EGGCONSOLE releases. Oh, and the letters and numbers after the title refer to the specific computer platform they were released on.

EGGCONSOLE RELICS PC-8801 ($6.49)

The first release in the series is something of a good luck charm for D4 Enterprise’s various retro game initiative. Relics was originally published by Bothtec in 1986, and it’s a relatively awkward action-adventure game that I would perhaps compare to things like Another World or Prince of Persia in how it plays. There’s a whole back story here that is unfortunately only presented in Japanese, but once you’re in the game everything you need is in English. There are multiple endings based on the actions you take while exploring the world, and if you want the true one you’ll have to figure out what walking the path of justice entails. Oh, and you’re a shade or ghost of some kind. You possess creatures you find along the way, giving you access to their abilities.

Relics is a very clunky game by modern standards, but if you’re patient with it there’s definitely something here to enjoy. The combat is terrible but you should be trying to avoid getting in fights anyway. Exploring the game world and trying to solve the various mysteries you’ll come across are fairly compelling, and the visuals have a real vibe to them that I’m into. I really appreciate the pre-set save states in this game, because it gives curious players a way to experience various parts of the game without having to deal with the cumbersome controls. Not bad on the whole.

SwitchArcade Score: 3/5

EGGCONSOLE THEXDER PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49)

Depending on your age, you might remember this one. It got a release in the West by Sierra back in the day, and I think it was somewhat popular for the era. There was also a reboot of sorts on the PlayStation 3, but I think that one was somewhat less successful. I have a lot of nostalgia for this game, albeit not in this PC-8801 form. I think it’s actually better here than it was in the version I played as a kid. Anyway, it was 1985 and robots that could transform into vehicles were about the coolest thing around. In comes Game Arts with Thexder, an action game about a robot that can transform into a spaceship. It can also shoot these super-cool homing laser beams. You’ll have to use your various abilities to make your way through labyrinthine stages filled with dangerous traps and enemies.

Thexder is certainly one of the easier games in the EGGCONSOLE line to pick up and play. Learning how to handle the transformation and flying the ship takes some practice, but that’s really the only tricky part of the controls. With that said, the game is very hard. Enemies will glom on to you and chew through your energy at rapid speeds if you let them get close, and it can be hard to shake them off. You’ll have to be very patient and make careful use of save states and rewind if you want to see the game through. If you’re okay with that, this is worth trying.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

EGGCONSOLE XANADU PC-8801 PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49)

Xanadu is an extremely important game in the history of the medium. This 1985 Nihon Falcom release is not only an ancestor to many of Falcom’s subsequent releases like Ys, but also a major influence on the whole side-scrolling action-RPG genre. The exploration component of the game features side-scrolling gameplay, while battles take place on a separate top-down screen. There are a lot of systems in this game, and it’s difficult to learn how they all work. Your goal is to explore a huge underground dungeon and defeat the evil that lays within. You’ll have to battle monsters, solve puzzles, avoid traps, and manage your food if you want to survive. This is a very primordial action-RPG, and it plays like it.

Is Xanadu worth playing today? Only for a certain type of player. You’re going to have to do some research and spend a lot of time learning how things work before you can really enjoy yourself. The ability to make use of pre-set save states helps you see more of the game if you can’t wrap your head around it, but I think this particular EGGCONSOLE release is only for students of gaming history and those who like to chew around complicated, merciless games. It’s presented as well as it can be, but there’s only so much you can do to make a game like this appeal in the current year.

SwitchArcade Score: 2.5/5

EGGCONSOLE HYDLIDE PC-8801 ($6.49)

This 1984 T&E Soft game is another one with a lot of historical importance, but it’s sadly likely best-known among Western players through the absolute evisceration of the NES port by the Angry Video Game Nerd. It’s unfortunate that the first chance Western players had to play this game was via the localized NES game in 1989, leading it to be compared to the games that wouldn’t have existed without it. This was one of the first action-RPGs ever made, and it influenced all kinds of games, from Ys to Metal Gear Solid V. Your goal is to rescue a princess who has been transformed into three fairies by an evil wizard. You play as a knight named Jim, and he’ll have to bump, bump, bump his way to a high enough level to save the day. There are a few puzzles to solve, one of which is completely obscure nonsense, but you’ll mostly be exploring the world and grinding.

There’s a certain compelling quality to Hydlide, but I think it comes down to whether or not you enjoy the grind. It’s kind of fun to wander around the world and see what there is to see, but you’ll find yourself in trouble very quickly if you aren’t adequately leveled. Still, I think this is a game that a person could jump into and have a decent enough time with. It’s tedious and finishing it can feel like a chore, but there’s a lot of satisfaction in climbing the rungs of power and taking on stronger and tougher monsters.

SwitchArcade Score: 3/5

EGGCONSOLE SILPHEED PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49)

This one will also probably ring a bell for some of you. The Silpheed series has popped up a few times over the years, but it got its start with this 1986 release. I suspect most Western players know it from the SEGA-CD remake, but the DOS version and PlayStation 2 sequel are other ways you might know it. This Game Arts-developed shooter uses a lot of nifty tricks to make it seem advanced well beyond its years. There’s an almost 3D quality to the game, and it’s very cinematic considering the limitations of the hardware. It’s funny, because at its core this is almost as basic as it gets. It’s a vertical shooter, complete with power-ups, enemy formations, and boss battles. Apart from the presentation, the main gimmick Silpheed offers is the ability to equip different weapons to your ship between stages.

That familiar shooting gameplay and cool presentation make Silpheed the perfect choice for those looking to dip their toes into the EGGCONSOLE waters. Sure, it doesn’t hold a candle to a modern shooter, but it doesn’t look bad by any means and it plays quite well. The difficulty is smooth enough that you probably don’t even need to use save states and the rewind feature, but those are there if you want. A very cool game for its era and I’m glad we’re able to play it on the Switch.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

As far as the inbox goes, the main item of note is the latest sale from Inti-Creates. I personally recommend the Blaster Master and Bloodstained games, but you won’t really go wrong with anything there. As for the outbox… well, a lot of sales are ending. Gather the goodies while you can, because the holiday sale is just about done.

Select New Sales

Garden Buddies ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/9)
Clumsy Rush: Ultimate Guys ($1.99 from $6.99 until 1/9)
Sprout Valley ($4.99 from $17.99 until 1/9)
Tiny Dragon Story ($1.99 from $12.99 until 1/10)
Gum+ ($1.99 from $7.99 until 1/10)
Cat Tales ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/10)
Cave of Past Sorrows ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/10)
To Leave ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/10)
It’s Kooky ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
Fluffy Horde ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
The Companion ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/10)
The House of Da Vinci 2 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
Gal Guardians: Demon Purge ($17.49 from $24.99 until 1/15)
Yohane The Parhelion: BitD ($26.99 from $29.99 until 1/15)
Dragon Marked for Death: AA ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/15)

Dragon Marked for Death: FF ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/15)
Azure Striker Gunvolt Striker Pack ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Azure Striker Gunvolt 3 ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/15)
Mighty Gunvolt Burst ($2.99 from $9.99 until 1/15)
Blaster Master Zero ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/15)
Blaster Master Zero 2 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/15)
Blaster Master Zero 3 ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/15)
GC: Luminous Avenger iX ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/15)
GC: Luminous Avenger iX 2 ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/15)
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/15)
Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon 2 ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/15)
Demon Gaze Extra ($23.99 from $59.99 until 1/18)
X-Force Under Attack ($2.00 from $10.00 until 1/23)
Game of Dragons ($13.93 from $19.90 until 1/23)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, January 4th

A Juggler’s Tale ($2.15 from $17.99 until 1/4)
AEW Fight Forever Elite Edition ($63.99 from $79.99 until 1/4)
Agatha Christie: The Orient Express ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Akka Arrh ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Among Us ($3.00 from $5.00 until 1/4)
Andro Dunos II ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Aragami: Shadow Edition ($5.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Astronite ($10.49 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & Secret Hideout ($23.99 from $59.99 until 1/4)
Axiom Verge ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Banner of the Maid ($4.24 from $16.99 until 1/4)
Big Pharma ($3.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
BlockQuest Maker Complete ($4.99 from $24.97 until 1/4)
Bomb Rush Cyberfunk ($31.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)

BROK the InvestiGator ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Cape’s Escape Game 3rd Room ($2.00 from $9.80 until 1/4)
Castle on the Coast ($2.24 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Catlord ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Cats on Streets ($1.99 from $3.99 until 1/4)
Corpse Factory ($7.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Createscape Town Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($2.00 from $4.90 until 1/4)
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion ($29.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Cult of the Lamb: Cultist Edition ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Dangerous Relationship ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Dark Deity ($6.24 from $24.99 until 1/4)
DC’s Justice League Cosmic Chaos ($13.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Destiny’s Princess: A War Story, A Love Story ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Diablo III Eternal Collection ($19.79 from $59.99 until 1/4)
Dicey Dungeons ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)

DoDonPachi Resurrection ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Dolphin Spirit: Ocean Mission ($23.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
DOOM 2016 ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Doraemon Story of Seasons ($9.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Dream Park Story ($7.00 from $14.00 until 1/4)
Dreamscaper ($7.49 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Dungeon and Gravestone ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Dungeon Village 2 ($6.00 from $12.00 until 1/4)
DUSK ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Earth Defense Force: World Brothers ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Effie ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Ephemeral: Fantasy on Dark ($18.99 from $37.99 until 1/4)
Escape from Mirrorland Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($2.00 from $4.90 until 1/4)
Espgaluda II ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)

Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection ($47.99 from $79.99 until 1/4)
Everybody’s Home Run Rush ($2.00 from $5.00 until 1/4)
Fall of Porcupine ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
FAR: Changing Tides ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Far: Lone Sails ($2.09 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Firewatch ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Forest Golf Planner ($7.20 from $12.00 until 1/4)
Forklift Simulator 2023 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
Game Dev Story ($2.80 from $14.00 until 1/4)
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective ($19.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Ginsha ($14.95 from $17.80 until 1/4)
Gloomhaven: Gold Edition ($39.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Gunscape ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Hana Awase New Moon ($29.03 from $36.29 until 1/4)
Hashihime of the Old Book Town Append ($30.82 from $61.64 until 1/4)

Heist Force ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
Hello Goodboy ($9.89 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Hypnospace Outlaw ($6.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Inspector Gadget: MAD Time Party ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Interrogation: You Will Be Deceived ($2.07 from $12.99 until 1/4)
It Takes Two ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Itorah ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Jack Jeanne ($39.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Kingdom Eighties ($8.99 from $11.99 until 1/4)
Klonoa: Phantasy Reverie Series ($9.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Kung Fury: Street Rage Ultimate ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Let’s Get Changed! Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($9.80 from $19.80 until 1/4)
Mail Time ($15.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Marco & The Galaxy Dragon ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
May’s Mysteries: Secret of Dragonville ($4.94 from $14.99 until 1/4)

Mercenaries Rebirth: Call of the Wild Lynx ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Minute of Islands ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Monster Harvest ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Mushihimesama ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
MythForce ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Neighbours Back From Hell ($4.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
NEO: The World Ends With You ($23.99 from $59.99 until 1/4)
NieR: Automata The End of YoRHa ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Nobody Saves The World ($9.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Nowhere Prophet ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Oaken ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Office Lovers ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
One More Island ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Orbital Bullet ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Ori & the Blind Forest: Definitive ($6.59 from $19.99 until 1/4)

Ori & the Will of the Wisps ($9.89 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Oxenfree II: Lost Signals ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Pizza Possum ($5.59 from $6.99 until 1/4)
Pizza Tycoon ($2.09 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Pocket Academy 3 ($7.00 from $14.00 until 1/4)
Prepare the First RPG Village Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($2.00 from $4.90 until 1/4)
Projection: First Light ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Pub Encounter ($6.79 from $16.99 until 1/4)
Punch a Bunch ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Rad Rodgers Radical Edition ($4.49 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Radiant Silvergun ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Rakuen: Deluxe Edition ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Regency Solitaire ($2.99 from $11.99 until 1/4)
Return to Monkey Island ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
River City Girls ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)

Rogue Legacy 2 ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 CE ($8.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Romancing SaGa 2 ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Samba de Amigo: Party Central ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Samurai Maiden Deluxe Edition ($44.99 from $74.99 until 1/4)
Secrets of Me ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Shantae ($6.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
Shantae & the Seven Sirens ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Shantae: Half-Genie Hero ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Sifu ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Sonic Superstars ($41.99 from $59.99 until 1/4)
Spidersaurs ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Spiral Memoria ($13.74 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Spirit of the North ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)

Spitlings ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Star Renegades ($6.24 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Steam Prison ($32.74 from $65.49 until 1/4)
Struggling ($4.49 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Super Bomberman R 2 ($34.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Super Planet Life ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
Tactics Ogre: Reborn ($24.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
THE Bass Fishing ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
THE Card Perfect Collection ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
The Creepy Syndrome ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/4)
The Crimson Flower that Divides ($23.44 from $46.89 until 1/4)
The Rumble Fish 2 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
The Testament of Sherlock Holmes ($8.74 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Theatrhythm Final Bar Line ($29.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Timelie ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)

Ultimate ADOM: Caverns of Chaos ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Unpacking ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Valkyria Chronicles ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Voice of Cards Trilogy ($34.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
War Tech Fighters ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Warm Snow ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Watch ($4.19 from $5.99 until 1/4)
Weedcraft Inc ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Whispike Survivors ($1.99 from $2.99 until 1/4)
Wonder Boy Anniversary Collection ($24.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Wonder Boy Asha in Monster World ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Zoo Park Story ($7.20 from $12.00 until 1/4)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with an unsurprisingly quiet Thursday, but we’ll at least have some new releases to look at. We’ll also have whatever sales and big news roll in, and if that’s not enough to make it all hang together, I’ll find another review in the couch cushions. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Now, as usual, Ben Brode of Second Dinner has a pretty funny video up explaining all the ins and outs in an entertaining way, and if you can give that a watch I do recommend it. But some of you can’t watch a video right now, so here is Shaun with all of the important info and none of the comedy. Some have the gift and some do not. Let’s start as usual with the new Season Pass card, since that is ostensibly the most important one.

It’s Skaar! You know, Hulk’s little boy. He’s not actually very little. Hulk’s well-fed boy. He’s a 6-Cost 11-Power card, which makes him a little less awesome than Dad but a little more awesome than his second cousin. But! But! Like She-Hulk, Skaar has a handy little ability. Basically, for every card you have with 10 or more Power, Skaar costs 2 less Energy to play. He goes very well with Hulks, in other words. And as you’ll soon see, he goes well with some other new playmates.

Next is Caiera, Skaar’s mother and the tragically deceased Mrs. Hulk. Or maybe he’s Mr. Caiera, I don’t really know. What I do know is that Caiera is a real game-changer. See, the problem with all of these beefy Hulks is that they are very susceptible to the monster-squashing powers of the notorious Shang-Chi. But with Caiera, Hulks have nothing to fear. She has the Ongoing ability of making it so your 1-Cost and 6-Cost cards at any location can’t be destroyed. Wowza. The 1-Cost thing makes her tricky to deploy in a standard destroyer deck, but I’m sure players will find plenty of uses for this 3-Cost 4-Power fighter.

Speaking of fighters, here’s Hercules. Hercules, hero of song and story, Hercules, winner of ancient glory. Wait, not that Hercules. The Marvel one. He’s a 4-Cost 6-Power card with an interesting ability. The first time another card moves to his location on a turn, he’ll move it to another location. Kind of a Fastball Special, and I think that move deck users will enjoy it. We’ve also got Miek, a 1-Cost 1-Power card who gains +1 Power and moves after any turn where you discard cards. Rounding out the move supporters is none other than the Grandmaster, a 2-Cost 0-Power card with an On Reveal ability that moves one other On Reveal card at the same location to the middle location and triggers its ability again. Neat.

Finally, there’s Beta Ray Bill. Yes, the horsey Thor. Nobody hates Beta Ray Bill, and Marvel Snap players will find a lot to like in him. He’s a 4-Cost 5-Power card with the On Reveal ability to add Stormbringer to your deck. As for Stormbringer, it’s a 0-Cost 1-Power card with the On Reveal ability to double Beta Ray Bill’s power. Better than Thor? Or a great new friend to Thor? I’ll let you all sort it out, but I foresee Bill showing up in many of the same places we see Thor today.

Finally, a couple of new locations. The Great Portal is another helping friend to people building power-heavy decks. It adds a random card with 10 or more Power to your hand, and that could be very interesting. The other new location is the Crown City, which is another location that rewards whoever controls it. In this case, if you’re winning you’ll get +4 Power at adjacent locations. Very nice if this one happens to be in the middle, but free Power is free Power wherever it lands. Throw in a bunch of new variants, bundles, and another set of Twitch Drops later in the month, and that’s about the size of the update.

Anyway, that’s it for the Planet Hulk season in Marvel Snap. It will be interesting to see which cards end up jumping out in the meta, because there are always some unpredictable outcomes. Many of the cards seem aimed at beefing up move-based decks, but Caiera looks like she could be the biggest spoiler of the bunch for decks of all kinds. Well, we’ll let the dust settle a little before diving into our January deck building guide. Look for that early next week, provided I can keep myself out of the hospital. What do you think of this new season? Let us know in the comments below!

Reviews & Mini-Views

Super Double Dragon ($6.99)

Super Double Dragon was a game that I really wanted to like back in the day. I was always a big fan of the Double Dragon series, and I wanted it to jump into the 16-bit era with enough style to hang with the many other beat-em-up franchises it spawned. Thirteen-year old Shaun had no way of knowing what was happening behind the scenes at Technos Japan, where things were basically starting to crash and burn en route to its eventual bankruptcy in 1996. The situation at American Double Dragon publisher Tradewest were even more dire. The long and short of it is that Super Double Dragon had to be out by the 1992 holiday season no matter what. And so it was, but not without great sacrifices.

It’s not that the game was buggy or broken, mind you. It just felt thin, and there were a lot of suspicious elements that pointed towards missing things. Riding in a glass elevator with a big crack in the side that… never gets shattered? Hm. Still, it did have some things going for it. The Brothers Lee have an interesting range of attacks to use, including a very cool one where you grab the enemy’s arm mid-punch. There are a lot of weapons to use, too. The difficulty curve was a mess, but what else was new for the series? The worst problem is that the game feels unbearably slow compared to its contemporaries. The Japanese version, Return of Double Dragon, fixes a lot of problems and is a much more playable game as a result, but the slow speed remained.

But we live in the future year of 2024, and we have the technology to right the wrongs of the past. I just got the Japanese Double Dragon Collection for Christmas. It includes this release, which you can buy on the eShop by itself. And in addition to a lot of the usual options for such things, like scan lines and save states, it also includes a speed setting. A speed setting! And it doesn’t mess with the audio! It just makes the game play faster, in increments all the way up to double speed. I wouldn’t go all the way on that, but somewhere around 1.5x makes the game feel like it probably should have. Oh, and you can pick whether you want to play Super Double Dragon or Return of Double Dragon. I recommend the latter.

Super Double Dragon is still an unfinished game in a lot of ways, lacking enemy variety, cut-scenes, or any kind of sense of tying the stages together. But with that speed setting, a middling beat-em-up with a few good ideas becomes something I would lightly recommend to fans of the genre. Of course, you can play the game as it was originally was if you like. It’s really the best of all worlds here as far as options go. I wish there was some documentary-style content here, but at this price point I can let that go. It’s worth a try, but remember to play around with that speed setting.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

Double Dragon Advance ($6.99)

It’s hard to pick the best game in a messy series like Double Dragon, but Double Dragon Advance is usually one of my top choices. By the time it released in 2003, Technos Japan was well into the rear-view mirror. A new company, Million, had picked up the rights to Technos’ IP, but despite the change in name there were plenty of familiar faces. For example, the designer of Double Dragon Advance was none other than Muneki Ebinuma, who had been the co-director of Super Double Dragon. This time he wasn’t quite so rushed, and the results speak volumes.

The game at first seems like a remake of the original arcade Double Dragon, and that’s not a bad place to start. There’s a certain ferocity to the combat in the original game that appeals greatly to me, and it’s replicated here. As you play more, you’ll start seeing some differences. Weapons that weren’t there before. New moves. And then you find yourself fighting a bunch of Agent Smith-style enemies and move into a level that seems ripped from Double Dragon II. All up, there are four large stages here that weren’t in the original game, all inspired by other games in the series. This release doesn’t have any genuine game-changing options like Super Double Dragon, but it also doesn’t need any. This is a satisfying brawler all on its own.

Double Dragon Advance is Double Dragon doing what it does best. While it certainly isn’t among the best in its genre, it gives you some fun fighting skills and a wide array of enemies to use them on. And hey, it actually feels like a proper Double Dragon game. Neither a parody nor a naked attempt to cash in on nostalgia, Double Dragon Advance is good, pure brawling action. A great way to spend several dollars and a weekend afternoon.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

New Releases

The Bin Bunch

Moon Lander ($9.99)

Truck Simulator 2024 – USA Driver Zone ($13.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

It’s another NIS America sale, and you can grab good stuff like Labyrinth of Refrain/Galleria and Yx IX: Monstrum Nox at nice prices. Poison Control isn’t the greatest game around but for four bucks I would recommend it. Lots of other goodies in there to consider, including a rare Celeste sale, so have a good look. Give the outbox a look too, as some ININ games are wrapping up their latest discounts.

Select New Sales

Invisible Inc Console Edition ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/12)
Don’t Starve: Nintendo Switch Edition ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/12)
Don’t Starve Together ($5.09 from $14.99 until 1/12)
Mark of the Ninja Remastered ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/12)
Spiritfarer ($7.49 from $29.99 until 1/15)
Sundered: Eldritch Edition ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Jotun: Valhalla Edition ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/15)
Yatzi ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Labyrinth ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Dog ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Undead Horde 2: Necropolis ($8.49 from $16.99 until 1/15)
Saviors of Sapphire Wings/SoSC Revisited ($24.99 from $49.99 until 1/15)
The Silver Case 2425 ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
CRYMACHINA: Digital Deluxe ($55.99 from $79.99 until 1/15)
Prinny Presents NIS Classics Vol.1 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)

Prinny Presents NIS Classics Vol.2 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Prinny Presents NIS Classics Vol.3 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Ys IX: Monstrum Nox ($29.99 from $59.99 until 1/15)
The Princess Guide ($3.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
A Castle Full of Cats ($2.59 from $3.99 until 1/15)
SNK 40th Anniversary Collection ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Poison Control ($3.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Labyrinth of Refrain: Coven of Dusk ($19.99 from $49.99 until 1/15)
Labyrinth of Galleria: Moon Society ($29.99 from $49.99 until 1/15)
Sol Cresta ($17.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Sol Cresta Dramatic Edition ($22.49 from $49.99 until 1/15)
The Wonderful 101: Remastered ($17.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Gungrave G.O.R.E. Ultimate Enhanced ($29.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Egglia Rebirth ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)

Celeste ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
TowerFall ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
MeteoHeroes Saving Planet Earth! ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/15)
Helvetii ($8.49 from $16.99 until 1/16)
Nuclear Blaze ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/16)
Sophstar ($6.49 from $12.99 until 1/16)
For The Warp ($2.87 from $17.99 until 1/16)
Twin Mind: Ghost Hunter ($10.49 from $14.99 until 1/21)
Octo Curse ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/21)
Montgomery Fox & TCotDN ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/21)
Montgomery Fox & TRoVD ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/21)
Montgomery Fox & TCotMB ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/21)
I Love Finding Birds ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/21)
Clutter 12 ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/21)
Puzzle Vacations: Ireland ($1.99 from $11.99 until 1/21)
Chronicles of Albian: TMC ($1.99 from $11.99 until 1/21)

First Time in Rome ($1.99 from $11.99 until 1/21)
Big Adventure: Trip to Europe 4 ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/21)
Mahjong Woods ($2.09 from $6.99 until 1/21)
Vampire The Masquerade Swansong ($23.99 from $59.99 until 1/21)
Session: Skate Sim ($19.99 from $49.99 until 1/21)
TT Isle of Man ($4.99 from $49.99 until 1/21)
My Little Riding Champion ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/21)
Tennis World Tour ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/21)
Tennis World Tour 2 ($9.99 from $49.99 until 1/21)
Overpass ($5.49 from $54.99 until 1/21)
Monster Truck Championship ($3.99 from $39.99 until 1/21)
V-Rally 4 ($4.99 from $49.99 until 1/21)
WRC 10 FIA World Rally Championship ($4.99 from $49.99 until 1/21)
Shadow Gangs ($14.39 from $23.99 until 1/22)
Suicide Guy: The Lost Dreams ($5.19 from $7.99 until 1/22)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, January 3rd

Call of Juarez: Gunslinger ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Creepy Tale 2 ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Cursed to Golf ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Fury Unleashed ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Golazo! 2 ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Ib ($10.49 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Jitsu Squad ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/3)
Kickback Slug: Cosmic Courier ($5.99 from $11.99 until 1/3)
Lonely Mountains: Downhill ($7.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Puzzle Bobble Everybubble! ($29.99 from $39.99 until 1/3)
RayStorm X RayCrisis HD Collection ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/3)
Taito Milestones 2 ($31.99 from $39.99 until 1/3)
The Wardrobe: Even Better Edition ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Time Master ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Train Station Simulator ($5.49 from $21.99 until 1/3)
Turrican Anthology Vol. I ($10.49 from $34.99 until 1/3)
Turrican Anthology Vol. II ($10.49 from $34.99 until 1/3)
Turrican Flashback ($8.99 from $29.99 until 1/3)
Wavetale ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/3)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with a very quiet Wednesday, which means we might have a Bin Bunch game or two at best. I might review some other slightly older titles, if that’s something you’d like to see. Any news and sales that roll in during the next day will also be there. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

New Releases

Knights of the Rogue Dungeon ($9.99)

This game comes from Atooi, who you might know as the developer of Mutant Mudds and Xeodrifter. More relevant to this game, it is also the developer of Totes the Goat, a Q*Bert homage that offered decent arcade action. Knights of the Rogue Dungeon looks a lot like that game, with the dungeons taking the form of Q*Bert-style pyramids. You have to “paint" all of the block surfaces by stepping on them, with combos earning you armor upgrades that help you defeat the enemies that litter each stage. There are different characters to use, six dungeons to explore, and numerous upgrades to earn. If you enjoyed Totes the Goat or are just looking for another game with vague similarities to Q*Bert, you might want to look into this.

The Bin Bunch

Ski Simulator: Winter Sports ($9.99)

MisBloody ($9.99)

Fantasy Blacksmith Shop Simulator ($7.99)

Warzone Chronicles: Virtual Warfare Shooter ($11.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

We see Taito/ININ sales fairly frequently, but there are a few games here that I want to call some attention to. Specifically, the Darius Cozmic Collections are at new low prices. At their normal prices these are a bit tough for a lot of folks to swallow, but you can now effectively get the full set for a combined total of just over thirty bucks. If you’re feeling fancy, you can grab G-Darius and Dariusburst to round out your Darius set and get away with a total cost not far off from Cozmic Collection Console‘s regular price. Other interesting sales: Yggdra Union with its best price since launch, No Man’s Sky matching its lowest, and Cannon Dancer being at the Arcade Archives-adjacent price it probably should have launched at. Over in the outbox, the Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection is finishing up its sale, and so is Kao the Kangaroo. Check both lists to see what grabs you.

Select New Sales

To The Moon ($7.19 from $11.99 until 1/12)
Finding Paradise ($7.19 from $11.99 until 1/12)
Yggdra Union ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/15)
The Master’s Pupil ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/15)
Cogen: Sword of Rewind ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/15)
Cannon Dancer: Osman ($8.99 from $29.99 until 1/15)
Umihara Kawase BaZooKa! ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/15)
Taito Milestones ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Bubble Bobble 4 Friends ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Space Invaders Invincible Collection ($17.99 from $59.99 until 1/15)
Darius Cozmic Collection Arcade ($13.49 from $44.99 until 1/15)
Darius Cozmic Collection Console ($17.99 from $59.99 until 1/15)
G-Darius HD ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/15)
Dariusburst: Another Chronicle EX+ ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
The Ninja Saviors ($7.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
No Man’s Sky ($29.99 from $59.99 until 1/16)
The Forest Quartet ($3.99 from $9.99 until 1/19)
MisBloody ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/20)
Figment 2: Creed Valley ($11.24 from $24.99 until 1/22)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, January 2nd

Aireo FlightSimulator ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/2)
Bomb Chicken ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)
Born of Bread ($23.99 from $29.99 until 1/2)
BroodStar ($4.40 from $11.00 until 1/2)
Crash Drive 3 ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
Full Quiet ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/2)
Gem Crash ($1.99 from $5.99 until 1/2)
Golf With Your Friends ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
Gunbrick: Reloaded ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)
Headbangers: Rhythm Royale Deluxe ($22.49 from $29.99 until 1/2)
Howl ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)
Invasion of Alien X: Earth in Crisis ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/2)

Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection ($26.99 from $29.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo A Well Good Bundle ($13.19 from $32.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo Anniversary ($20.34 from $36.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo Bend the Roo’les DLC ($5.19 from $7.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo Oh Well DLC ($2.74 from $4.99 until 1/2)
Nora: The Wannabe Alchemist ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
Paper Dash: Ghost Hunt ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/2)
Undead’s Building ($1.99 from $5.99 until 1/2)
Wingspan ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
WorldWide FlightSimulator ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with a more usual article, featuring some new releases, reviews, sales, and perhaps some news. I hope you all enjoy the first day of the year, whatever you may be doing. As always, thanks for reading!

10. DRAINUS ($19.99)

While to the layperson all shoot-em-ups might all seem rather similar to one another, I would say with some conviction that each one has a character all of its own. DRAINUS is an incredibly polished example of the genre that is more beginner-friendly than the average entry. You have a lot of tools to keep yourself alive, and the longer you play the more powerful you’ll become. The shooting action itself is snappy and fun, and the boss battles are suitably epic. It’s a shooter I would recommend even to someone who doesn’t usually get into games from this genre, and that’s a rarer thing than you might expect. Another outstanding title on a platform that is swimming in great choices for the genre.

9. Meg’s Monster ($14.99)

You’ve probably noticed this game is appearing frequently in all of these year-end lists around here. That’s because I think it’s a really great game that everyone should try, but it’s also because not many others are going to mention it. This is the sad thing about how many games come out these days. Meg’s Monster is a powerful experience, one that hit me in my heart like a sock full of Canadian nickels. I will never forget this little story about a monster named Roy and the little girl he stumbles across one day. But somehow, even special games like this can be swept away by the relentless tides of new games. Don’t let Meg’s Monster be carried away from your shores.

8. The Making of Karateka ($19.99)

Building on the extremely well-executed Atari 50‘s foundations, this is an incredibly deep dive into a single game and everything that went into its creation. There are a handful of versions of the game in question that can be played here along with a few other bits and bobs, and they’re enjoyable enough in their own right. But having such rich context provided for each of them makes it even more compelling to dig into these historical artifacts. It doesn’t matter if you like Karateka or not – this interactive documentary is equally fascinating for any student of gaming’s past. I’m excited to play the next Gold Master Series game, and I hope to one day have a digital shelf full of these superb pieces of art.

7. Metroid Prime Remastered ($39.99)

I can still clearly remember the first time I laid my eyes on Metroid Prime. I thought it was going to be an absolute disaster. Turning my beloved Metroid into a first-person shooter? No sir, I don’t like it. Then I played it, and I shut my stupid mouth in a hurry. This is a genuine first-person, 3D take on the Metroid formula. The “remaster" here in particular really went above and beyond in updating the game, and it somehow manages to be one of the best-looking games on a platform three generations past its origin. If you’ve never played Metroid Prime before, this is an excellent way to do so. If you have played it before, there’s a good chance you’re about due for a replay.

6. Astlibra Revision ($24.99)

I really had no idea what I was in for with this game when I first started it, but I had heard a great deal of praise from others when it hit other platforms. And yes, this is indeed quite the specimen. It’s an action-RPG that goes on for a frankly absurd amount of hours, but the time just flies thanks to the solid mechanics and compelling character progression. If you’re looking for a game that will keep you busy for a very long time without boring you, Astlibra Revision is an excellent pick. I really couldn’t put it down.

5. Pikmin 4 ($59.99)

After the surprising success of the Switch version of Pikmin 3, it seemed pretty much inevitable we would finally see the promised fourth entry. And hey, it came. It looks amazing, it’s easier to get into than ever, and it remains one of the most charming real-time strategy games you could imagine. Along with the surprise release of ports of the first two games in the series, the Switch is now the ultimate home of Pikmin games and I couldn’t be happier about it. It’s a great series because each of the games has enough differences to make it feel like its own thing. I’m not sure if Pikmin 4 is the best of the bunch, but I know I had a great time with it.

4. PowerWash Simulator ($24.99)

It’s hard to believe, but I ended up pouring just about as many hours into PowerWash Simulator as I did Tears of the Kingdom this year. This is a great game to chill with, cleaning the many interesting settings the game throws at you with your power washer and a few handy nozzles. Every little thing you clean flashes and gives you a little “ding!", and you will soon learn to live for the “ding!". The free DLC is also incredibly generous, greatly extending the already robust main campaign. You get to wash Tifa’s bar! Lara Croft’s mansion! I don’t know why this works as well as it does, but it’s an utter vampire of time. I’d start playing before bed, look up at the clock, and realize I had to get up for work in a couple hours. Wild. Love it.

3. Suika Game ($2.99)

While this has been out for a couple of years in Japan, it suddenly went viral this year and that got us a North American release in the year 2023. It’s tough to describe all of the ways this game pulls you in, but I believe it’s a fine combination of a charming presentation, predictable physics that can still sometimes surprise you, and just the right amount of randomness to force you to adjust your plans on the fly. Going for a watermelon is always a solid challenge, and even once you’ve accomplished that you can always aim for a higher score. I don’t know if I’ll still be playing Suika Game in 2025, but we’re about to head into 2024 and I’m not tired of it yet.

2. Super Mario Bros. Wonder ($59.99)

The last time Mario and Link went head to head for a Game of the Year title, I wasn’t in the position of having to make the call for our site. If I had been, I probably would have picked Super Mario Odyssey over Breath of the Wild, but only by a whisker. This time I do have to make the call, and after a lot of thinking and hand-wringing, I’ve decided on the opposite, but again by the thinnest of whiskers. Super Mario Bros. Wonder delivers exactly what is in its title: wonder. When a Mario game clicks with me, I feel like I’m seven years old again, clutching an NES controller in my hands and dazzled by all the things that Super Mario Bros. and its sequels brought to the genre.

Super Mario Bros. Wonder has it. The feels-good playability of the first Super Mario Bros. game. The surreal design sense of Super Mario Bros. 2. All the wild energy of Super Mario Bros. 3. The interesting secrets of Super Mario World. The sheer creativity of the level set-ups in Yoshi’s Island. I like the New Super Mario Bros. games more than most people, but even I have to admit that this one makes it look like our plumber hero was on vacation from the 2D platformer space for the last thirty years. It’s fun like the way a video game should be. A truly magnificent game, and another jewel in the Switch’s absurdly heavy crown.

1. The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom ($69.99)

And so here we are, with the obvious pick. Sometimes that happens. Honestly, I thought The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom had it fully in the bag, no contest, back when it came out. It’s one of those games where you almost immediately feel that it’s on a level of its own. Then Mario had to roll in and make this an actual fight. Here I will note that I have selected Tears of the Kingdom over the insistent protests of our pal Mikhail, who would have preferred to see Super Mario Bros. Wonder up here. So why The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom?

Ultimately, I feel the new mechanics did some very heavy lifting in terms of making this world we’ve already seen feel fresh. The Ultrahand in particular totally changes the interactivity of the world, allowing us to have entirely new situations and “conversations" with familiar elements. So much of the fun in Breath of Wild was in how you started as a small speck in a big world and gradually became a force to be reckoned with. Tears of the Kingdom ups the ante on this progression, and you almost feel like a god of some sort by the end. Fortunately, it also throws an appropriate counter force against you so that you have a reason to push yourself further.

It’s not a perfect game, but that’s not really what any of this is about. It is, however, a tremendously fun game that shapes itself to the player’s imagination and creative whims, all while maintaining a nice balance of exploration, puzzle-solving, combat, and even a little story as a treat. I don’t know how the Zelda team is going to one-up this, and I don’t know if a return trip to this specific version of Hyrule would work again. But it certainly worked this time, and I’m just sitting here flabbergasted we got two Zelda games of this level of quality in a single generation of hardware.

And that’s the list for this year, friends. I really want to hear about some of your picks and favorites from 2023. Go ahead and drop them in the comments so I can give them a read. That wraps it up for me for this year, either here or in the regular SwitchArcade article. If it happens to be here, I will say thanks for sticking with TouchArcade and me for another year. We really appreciate every reader. I hope you’ve all had great years, and I wish you all the best for the coming year. Have a Happy New Year, and see you in 2024!

New Releases

Monster Loves You Too! ($14.99)

Oh hey, it’s a sequel to Monster Loves You. That’s cool. This is a choice-based game where you have to manage your three resources carefully so that you have what you need to take your desired actions. You’re a monster who has been captured and thrown in a dangerous city full of other creatures. Using your Brains, Guts, and Flesh you need to find a way to escape, thrive, or survive. Each of the aforementioned traits are represented as numerical values that you can accumulate and spend as you play. Don’t squander them or you won’t have them when you truly need them. Plenty of interesting characters to meet and outcomes to stumble upon. If you liked the first one, this is an easy recommendation.

Chico and the Magic Orchards DX ($4.99)

This is a cute homage to Game Boy puzzle games, and it reminds me most of all of Mole Mania. You’re a chipmunk who is transported to a magical land full of giant walnuts. Look on the bright side: you’re going to have a lot of food for the winter if you can pull this off. Roll the giant walnuts around to solve puzzles and make your way home. I like this one a lot, and if you enjoy puzzlers I think you’ll enjoy it too.

Kumamon Run ($5.00)

The only reason I’m not putting this mediocre port of a mediocre mobile game into the bin today is out of respect for Kumamon and the people of Kumamoto prefecture. You can find better auto-runners than this on any App Store and keep five bucks in your pocket. Kumamon, you need to watch what your agent is signing you up for.

The Bin Bunch

Battlefront Trench Warriors: Ops of Warfare ($11.99)

The Gardener Simulator – Plant, Grow, Decorate, Build Sim ($13.99)

Ultimate Moto Bike Simulator ($16.99)

Hilm ($1.00)

Wizard Hunter: The End of the Magic World ($6.99)

Nathan Jones and the Empty Century ($4.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Well. The Kids We Were, DREDGE, and The Oregon Trail are pretty good? Quite a lot in that outbox, let me see if any of it strikes me in a particular way. Arcade Paradise is a good get, and there’s always something fun in the NISA sales if you haven’t already filled your boots. Take a look through both lists and see if you want to make any last-minute purchases for the year.

Select New Sales

The Kids We Were ($7.99 from $15.99 until 1/6)
Alpha Particle ($6.99 from $9.99 until 1/9)
Casual Challenge Players’ Club ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/9)
Color Pals ($2.99 from $4.99 until 1/9)
Betomis ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/9)
Ball laB II ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/9)
Alive Paint ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/9)
Otoko Cross: Mahjong Solitaire ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/9)
Shape Suitable ($1.99 from $8.99 until 1/9)
Magic Exposure: Yuri Visual Novel ($2.99 from $4.99 until 1/9)
Terraformers ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/11)
Solitaire Collection ($3.34 from $7.43 until 1/11)
Backgammon Pro ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/11)
Akaiito HD Remaster ($7.20 from $11.99 until 1/11)
Aoishiro HD Remaster ($7.20 from $11.99 until 1/11)

Metro Simulator ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/12)
Professional Construction The Simulation ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Pineview Drive ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/12)
Mountain Rescue Simulator ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Joe’s Diner ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/12)
Firefighters: Airport Heroes ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Firefighters: Airport Fire Department ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Professional Farmer ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Firefighters: The Simulation ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Space Blaze ($5.99 from $29.99 until 1/12)
Airport Simulator: Day & Night ($6.99 from $34.99 until 1/12)
TheNightfall ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Professional Farmer: American Dream ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/12)
Forestry – The Simulation ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/12)

Thunder Ray ($9.74 from $14.99 until 1/17)
Depth of Extinction ($2.69 from $14.99 until 1/17)
Ugly ($13.39 from $19.99 until 1/18)
The Oregon Trail ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/18)
Dredge Deluxe Edition ($20.24 from $26.99 until 1/18)
Bot Vice ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/18)
Super Star Path ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/18)

Sales Ending This Holiday Weekend

CounterAttack: Uprising ($8.99 from $14.99 until 12/30)
Agatha Christie Collection ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
Alfred Hitchcok Vertigo ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Animal Kart Racer 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Arcade Paradise ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Arkanoid: Eternal Battle ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
art of rally ($13.74 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Bang-On Balls: Chronicles ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Boyfriend Dungeon ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Cabela’s The Hunt: CE ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/1)
Cricket 22 ($19.99 from $49.99 until 1/1)
CRYMACHINA ($47.99 from $59.99 until 1/1)
Disgaea 7 Complete Edition ($87.99 from $109.99 until 1/1)
Earthen Dragon ($4.00 from $9.90 until 1/1)
Elta7 ($3.09 from $15.49 until 1/1)

Everdream Valley ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Figment 1 + Figment 2 ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
GigaBash ($21.24 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Grand Mountain Adventure: Wonderlands ($10.49 from $34.99 until 1/1)
Hamster on Rails ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/1)
Heart Chain Kitty: All Screwed Up ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/1)
Hellboy Web of Wyrd ($18.74 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Hidden Gems: Volume One ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/1)
Horse Tales: Emerald Valley Ranch ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Immortal Realms: Vampire Wars ($9.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Kamiwaza: Way of the Thief ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Kind Heart Defenders ($3.19 from $3.99 until 1/1)
Kittengumi: The Sakaboto’s Thief ($7.49 from $9.99 until 1/1)
Lifeslide ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/1)
Light Fingers ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)

Little Friends: Puppy Island ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Mad Rat Dead ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Metamorphosis ($1.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Murder Mystery Machine ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/1)
My Universe: Cooking Star Restaurant ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
My Universe: Fashion Boutique ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Operate Now: Hospital ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/1)
Pupperazzi ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Railbound ($8.99 from $12.99 until 1/1)
Sandream ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Shooting Star Island ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/1)
Silt ($6.89 from $14.99 until 1/1)
Sixtar Gate: Startrail ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Smurfs Kart ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Survivor Castaway Island ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)

Syberia ($1.99 from $12.99 until 1/1)
Tape: Unveil the Memories ($8.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
The Gardens Between ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
The Last Worker ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
The Long Gate ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/1)
The Quest for Excalibur: Puy du Fou ($8.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
The Smurfs 2 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Tin Hearts ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
Tiny Troopers: Global Ops ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
TLoH: Trails into Reverie ($44.99 from $59.99 until 1/1)
TT Isle of Man RotE 3 ($19.99 from $49.99 until 1/1)
Vampire: TM – Shadows of New York ($2.59 from $12.99 until 1/1)
WRC Collection ($9.99 from $99.99 until 1/1)
Yum Yum Cookstar ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
Zumba Garden ($1.99 from $2.99 until 1/1)

Ahh, I get to say the thing! That’s all for today, this week, this month, and this year, friends. It’s been a roller coaster ride for me in 2023, and the last few months in particular have been pretty bad. But I’m still here, and that will do for me. The sheer amount of great games this year has been mind-boggling, too. Not just on the Nintendo Switch, but across all platforms. I want to take this time to once again thank you, dear readers, for reading these articles. You’re all great, and we couldn’t do what we do without your support. See you next year!

This is actually a pretty solid sale, especially by the recent standards of Kemco. Some of the included games are as much as 87% off the usual price, making these convenience store cheeseburger RPGs a highly digestible value. I’ll list out the games below, and then swing back around with the ones I would recommend the most.

• Alvastia Chronicles ($0.99) from $7.99
• Alphadia Neo ($3.99) from $7.99
• Asdivine Hearts ($0.99) from $7.99
• Asdivine Hearts II ($0.99) from $7.99
• Asdivine Kamura ($1.99) from $8.99
• Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom ($3.99) from $7.99
• Chroma Quaternion ($1.99) from $7.99
• Crystal Ortha ($1.99) from $7.99
• Heirs of the Kings ($1.99) from $7.99
• Marenian Tavern Story ($1.99) from $8.99
• Seek Hearts ($1.99) from $7.99

Now, as to my recommendations. Asdivine Hearts is my favorite of Kemco’s standard JRPGs, and it’s the one I usually recommend to people if they want a taste of what the publisher has to offer. Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom and Marenian Tavern Story are both interesting spins on the usual RPG format, having you manage a smithy and tavern respectively. Lots of gathering, crafting, and so on with that pair and they’re both rather well-done. And if you want one more somewhat traditional RPG with a slightly different flavor, Crystal Ortha is rather interesting.

With all that said, at these prices it’s almost worth picking them all up. Even if you don’t come close to finishing them, you’re almost certain to get your money’s worth out of it. And hey, it’s never too late in the year or too early in the next to start building up an impossible backlog. Thanks for the helping hand with all of that, Kemco!

New Releases

Pinball M (Free)

One thing that I recall being a moderate issue for Zen Studios when it took on the Williams pinball license was that some of the art and other content had to be altered to maintain the ESRB rating for the Zen Pinball/Pinball FX hub app. Maybe that’s why we’ve got this release, which offers up the same Pinball FX gameplay in an app that isn’t afraid to go M for Mature. Pinball M comes with Wrath of the Elder Gods: Director’s Cut as a free table, and currently offers four additional tables as DLC. Chucky’s Killer Pinball, Duke Nukem’s Big Shot Pinball, The Thing Pinball, and Dead by Daylight Pinball can be bought for $5.49 each or in one big bundle for $19.99. More tables will be added over time, and I imagine we will see some of those spicier Williams tables here down the line.

Arcade Archives Solitary Fighter ($7.99)

If you were perhaps hoping for the Arcade Archives release to save this tragic bunch of releases, I’m sorry. The final release for the year 2023 is none other than Taito’s Solitary Fighter, previously seen in the Taito Milestones 2 collection. It’s a fighting game, but one that had the misfortune of releasing around the same time as Street Fighter II. Without the benefit of copying some of that game’s better qualities, this is just a decently good-looking game with gameplay that feels ancient. If you’re looking for an oddity, this might scratch your itch. Otherwise, I’d give it a pass.

The Bin Bunch

Anime Girls: Highschool of Dead ($7.99)

Tiny Treasure Hunt ($3.99)

Found It! ($3.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Some last minute WB Games sales along with a few other odds and ends. Is that price low enough for Mortal Kombat 1 yet? Probably not. But that’s your call. Over in the outbox, the Piczle games are finishing up their latest discounts. And again, a few other odds and ends. Check both lists; it won’t take you but a minute.

Select New Sales

Venice 2089 ($4.89 from $6.99 until 12/30)
A Painter’s Tale: Curon, 1950 ($4.89 from $6.99 until 12/30)
Duck Race ($2.09 from $2.99 until 12/30)
Mortal Kombat 11 ($9.99 from $49.99 until 1/15)
Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate DLC ($9.99 from $49.99 until 1/15)
Mortal Kombat 1 Premium Edition ($65.99 from $109.99 until 1/15)
LEGO Star Wars: TSS Galactic Edition ($23.99 from $79.99 until 1/15)
LEGO DC Super-Villains ($8.99 from $59.99 until 1/15)
LEGO NINJAGO Movie Video Game ($7.49 from $49.99 until 1/15)
LEGO The Incredibles ($8.99 from $59.99 until 1/15)
LEGO Worlds ($5.99 from $29.99 until 1/15)
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 ($5.99 from $29.99 until 1/15)
Scribblenauts Showdown ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/15)
Ampersat ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/16)
Death Come True ($9.59 from $15.99 until 1/16)
Empire Invasion ($2.59 from $12.99 until 1/17)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 29th

BDSM Big Drunk Satanic Massacre ($5.19 from $19.99 until 12/29)
Diorama Dungeoncrawl ($6.99 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Dormitory Love ($26.24 from $34.99 until 12/29)
Fearmonium ($10.39 from $12.99 until 12/29)
Loco Parentis ($4.09 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Murder on the Marine Express ($1.99 from $4.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Cells ($1.99 from $4.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Colors ($2.49 from $12.00 until 12/29)
Piczle Lines 2: Into the Puzzleverse ($7.99 from $14.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Lines DX ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Lines DX 500 More Puzzles ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Puzzle & Watch Collection ($1.99 from $7.99 until 12/29)
Puddle Knights ($3.39 from $9.99 until 12/29)
RedRaptor ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/29)
Rento Fortune Monolit ($5.99 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Robotry ($4.99 from $12.49 until 12/29)
Tadpole Treble Encore ($4.49 from $8.99 until 12/29)
The Medium: Cloud Version ($27.49 from $49.99 until 12/29)
Twice Reborn: A Vampire Visual Novel ($7.49 from $14.99 until 12/29)
Vostok 2061 ($4.05 from $9.90 until 12/29)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with our final edition of the year, and barring any surprises in the sales department you can probably expect a similar showing to today’s. Do keep your eye open for the separate article covering our 2023 Genre Awards, and get suitably hyped for tomorrow’s overall Best of 2023 list. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Best Platformer Game

Super Mario Bros. Wonder ($59.99)

I was genuinely looking forward to reviewing this one, and then I landed in the hospital for ten days. Silver lining: we got to see Mikhail’s review. Other silver lining: I got to digest this amazing game at my own pace. I had thought Nintendo had essentially closed the book on 2D Mario with New Super Mario Bros. U and Super Mario Maker 2. What more could be done? A lot, it turns out. Bolstered by a fresh presentation and a busted fire hydrant of fun new ideas, Super Mario Bros. Wonder showed that this old dog can keep showing off new tricks all day long almost four decades on. And that, my friends, is wonderful.

Runner-Up: Curse Crackers: For Whom the Belle Toils ($15.00)

Best Role-Playing Game

Octopath Traveler II ($59.99)

This was an incredibly competitive genre this year, with plenty of great options that could easily slot in for this position without much argument from me. With that said, I wanted to highlight original titles over remakes, and in that regard I believe Octopath Traveler II to be the top of the heap. While the first game was the talk of the town when it launched, I feel like a lot of people slept on this one. It’s a shame, because I think this game does a better job of delivering on the promise of the first one. With excellent writing, intriguing gameplay mechanics, and a solid level of challenge, this is one to play for any RPG fan.

Runner-Up: Labyrinth of Galleria: The Moon Society ($59.99)

Best Puzzle Game

Suika Game ($2.99)

Hey, it’s new to North America this year. And importantly, this game that had quietly sat unnoticed in the Japanese eShop for a couple of years suddenly caught fire in 2023. It’s tough to describe all of the way this game pulls you in, but I believe it’s a fine combination of a charming presentation, predictable physics that can still sometimes surprise you, and just the right amount of randomness to force you to adjust your plans on the fly. Going for a watermelon is always a solid challenge, and even once you’ve accomplished that you can always aim for a higher score. I don’t know if I’ll still be playing Suika Game in 2025, but we’re about to head into 2024 and I’m not tired of it yet.

Runner-Up: Snakebird Complete ($14.99)

Best Action Game

Astlibra Revision ($24.99)

It was hard to find a place to fit this game, but I think the action component is big enough to put it here. I really had no idea what I was in for with this game when I first started it, but I knew Mikhail had praised it quite a bit after he played it on another platform. And yes, this is indeed quite the specimen. It’s an action-RPG that goes on for a frankly absurd amount of hours, but the time just flies thanks to the solid mechanics and compelling character progression. If you’re looking for a game that will keep you busy for a very long time without boring you, Astlibra Revision is an excellent pick.

Runner-Up: Vampire Survivors ($4.99)

Best Sports Game

EA Sports FC 24 ($59.99)

In contrast to other genres, this one was quite thin this year. I feel like this is the one category where the Switch sometimes doesn’t have a good option, and that leaves me with handing this award over to EA Sports FC 24 for actually trying for once. It’s not a hand-me-down from the PlayStation 3/Xbox 360 generation of consoles, and it’s not a Legacy Edition. Is it up to the version on more powerful consoles? No, of course not. But it’s a solid soccer game for Switch owners, and that’s enough to give it the nod in 2023.

Runner-Up: MLB The Show 23 ($59.99)

Best Racing Game

F-Zero 99 (Free with NSO Subscription)

I don’t think anyone would have seen this coming at the beginning of the year, but the winner of our racing award this year is an F-Zero game. An F-Zero game where you race against tons of other players, available for free through a Nintendo Switch Online subscription. In hindsight this is a very obvious candidate for Nintendo’s massively multiplayer line, and F-Zero works very well with this set-up. A great blend of the old and the new, and one that can please fans and newcomers alike.

Runner-Up: Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged ($49.99)

Best Fighting Game

The King of Fighters XIII Global Match ($19.99)

Another genre with somewhat slim pickings this year, but luckily SNK rolled in near the end of 2023 with an excellent port of The King of Fighters XIII. A few UI issues are the only real spots on this conversion, and the game itself is excellent. Just make sure you find yourself a decent controller or stick, because this can get gnarly in a hurry with the stock Joy-Cons. Note that while I have put Mortal Kombat 1 here as the runner-up, I really don’t recommend it on this platform if you have any other choice.

Runner-Up: Mortal Kombat 1 ($69.99)

Best Music/Rhythm Game

Theatrhythm Final Bar Line ($49.99)

In finally making a full break from the Nintendo 3DS and its stylus, Theatrhythm had the chance to make some big changes. Some will like them, and some won’t. But I think even if you prefer the previous game in the series, it’s difficult to argue with the value proposition of this game. Even if you don’t indulge in the DLC, you’ve got an absurd number of songs to play through, with just about every corner of the Final Fantasy universe getting at least some acknowledgement. Final Fantasy fans are sure to be pleased, and rhythm game fans in general will also have a good time.

Runner-Up: Trombone Champ ($14.99)

Best Party Game

WarioWare: Move It! ($49.99)

The garlic-breathed rotter came back to Switch for one more go with this follow-up of sorts to the Nintendo Wii Smooth Moves. Take on various stances and play a wide array of mini-games. My initial playthrough of this game was with my son, and we had a great time figuring out what to do each time and then trying to pull it off. Some of the asks are a little much for the tech, but all of the players will have to deal with that so it works out fine in a multiplayer context.

Runner-Up: Manic Mechanics ($24.99)

Best Metroidvania Game

Blasphemous 2 ($29.99)

The original Blasphemous earned a lot of fans with its blend of exploratory platforming and Soulslike combat, leaving its sequel with some tough shoes to fill. Fortunately, it was up to the task. If you liked Blasphemous, you’ll enjoy Blasphemous 2 just as much if not more. There are a bunch of new weapons, and each one really changes things up in terms of how you play. The world design once again stands out, and poking around to find all of its corners and secrets will keep you playing for hours on end.

Runner-Up: TEVI ($34.99)

Best Adventure Game

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom ($69.99)

Breath of the Wild isn’t just an excellent reinvention of a series that needed a shot in the arm, it’s also a game synonymous with the Nintendo Switch itself thanks to its launch title status. Following it up was not going to be an easy task, and the development team took several years to do the job. While the decision to keep Tears of the Kingdom in the same world means it isn’t quite as surprising or novel as its predecessor, the new gameplay mechanics and changed context for most of the familiar sites of Hyrule put a satisfying new spin on things. Add in the huge sky and underground areas, and you’ve got lots of good reasons to dive into the Switch take on Hyrule one last time.

Runner-Up: Cocoon ($24.99)

Best FPS/Shooting Game

Metroid Prime Remastered ($39.99)

I know, this is a weird place to put this game. It’s not really a first-person shooter in the traditional sense. You’ll do lots of shooting, and it does use a first-person view, but this is really a genuine first-person, 3D take on the Metroid formula. This “remaster" really went above and beyond in updating the game, and it somehow managed to be one of the best-looking games on a platform three generations past its origin. If you’ve never played Metroid Prime before, this is an excellent way to do so.

Runner-Up: DRAINUS ($19.99)

Best Narrative Adventure Game

Meg’s Monster ($14.99)

Meg’s Monster absolutely destroyed me. I had no idea what I was getting into when I started playing the game, but I had heard some buzz from Japanese players and thought the visuals looked good. There are some light RPG mechanics in play here, but it’s more of an adventure game with a heavy narrative focus. A little girl appears in a world of monsters, and it seems as though the world might end if she cries. A monster named Roy ends up taking her in to try to help her get home, and the journey is absolutely heart-wrenching. Meg’s Monster still lives rent-free in my head months after finishing it, and I think at this point it’s going to be setting down roots there.

Runner-Up: Jack Jeanne ($49.99)

Best Strategy Game

Pikmin 4 ($59.99)

Good year for Gamecube revivals, I suppose. After the surprising success of the Switch version of Pikmin 3, it seemed pretty much inevitable we would finally see the promised fourth entry. And hey, it came. It looks amazing, it’s easier to get into than ever, and it remains one of the most charming real-time strategy games you could imagine. Along with the surprise release of ports of the first two games in the series, the Switch is now the ultimate home of Pikmin games and I couldn’t be happier about it. Head on out and get exploring the surrealism of the mundane!

Runner-Up: Fire Emblem Engage ($59.99)

Best Collection

The Making of Karateka ($19.99)

Building on the extremely well-executed Atari 50‘s foundations, this is an incredibly deep dive into a single game and everything that went into its creation. There are a handful of versions of the game in question that can be played here along with a few other bits and bobs, and they’re enjoyable enough in their own right. But having such rich context provided for each of them makes it even more compelling to dig into these historical artifacts. It doesn’t matter if you like Karateka or not – this interactive documentary is equally fascinating for any student of gaming’s past.

Runner-Up: Wonder Boy Anniversary Collection ($49.99)

Best Simulation Game

PowerWash Simulator ($24.99)

It’s hard to believe, but I ended up pouring just about as many hours into PowerWash Simulator as I did Tears of the Kingdom this year. This is a great game to chill with, cleaning the many interesting settings the game throws at you with your power washer and a few handy nozzles. Every little thing you clean flashes and gives you a little “ding!", and you will soon learn to live for the “ding!". The free DLC is also incredibly generous, greatly extending the already robust main campaign.

Runner-Up: DREDGE ($24.99)

Best DLC

Xenoblade Chronicles 3: Future Redeemed ($29.99)

There was a lot of good DLC to choose from this year, but ultimately the Future Redeemed expansion for Xenoblade Chronicles 3 gets the nod. It’s the mark of a strong add-on if it becomes essential to the game, so what does it say when an add-on is essential to its entire series? Future Redeemed ties together the entire Xenoblade Chronicles trilogy, drawing things to a satisfying close. If you like Xenoblade, you need to play this DLC.

Runner-Up: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge – Dimension Shellshock ($7.99)

Best 1-2-Switch! Game

Everybody 1-2-Switch! ($29.99)

It was a stellar year for 1-2-Switch! games, as we got a 1-2-Switch! game. Everybody 1-2-Switch is undeniably the greatest 1-2-Switch! game released in 2023. If you’re looking for a new 1-2-Switch! game to add to your collection, there is no better choice this year than Everybody 1-2-Switch!.

Runner-Up: Everybody 1-2-Switch! ($29.99)

That’s a wrap for the 2023 Genre Awards, dear friends. If you’re looking for more along these lines, there have been plenty of Best of 2023 articles posted to the site this week. Tomorrow we’ll have our overall Best Games of 2023 list, so keep your eyes peeled for that. I hope you can find some games to enjoy among the many featured here, and if you have some favorites of your own to share, I encourage you to comment below. As always, thanks for reading!

News

‘Bill & Ted’s Excellent Retro Collection’ Will Be Delisted on January 1st 2024

Well, it’s a slow news day, so let’s talk about this. The big cheese of Limited Run Games, Josh Fairhurst, mentioned on Twitter/X today that due to the expiration of the license, Bill & Ted’s Excellent Retro Collection will be removed from digital marketplaces on January 1st, 2024. If you’ve purchased it by then it will continue to be available to redownload, but it will no longer be sold. For those who haven’t had their finger on the pulse of the hottest Bill & Ted news, the collection contains the absolutely dreadful NES game and surprisingly decent Game Boy game. It came out on the eShop in February of this year, and was also available as a physical set. Is it the greatest set of games? No. No it is not. But if you want it, you should grab it very soon.

Reviews & Mini-Views

Koumajou Remilia II: Stranger’s Requiem ($29.99)

Following in the footsteps of the first game’s remaster, here’s a spiffed-up take on the 2010 sequel. Like the first game, it’s a fangame based on the Touhou Project universe that is heavily inspired by the classic Castlevania games. You’ve got a new playable character this time whose moveset is more inspired by Alucard than the Belmonts, eight new stages to play through, and plenty of challenging bullet hell boss battles. It’s as tough as old boot leather, but you can adjust the difficulty setting if you want a slightly easier ride. While the game itself isn’t terribly long, there are a number of unlockable bonuses including an additional playable character that add a bit of value to the package.

Despite this game having a handful of improvements over the first game, I ended up enjoying it less. The novelty of having a game like this fifteen years ago probably helped give this whole trilogy of games an extra push, but the indie boom means we’re hardly thirsting for decent action games nowadays. While the visuals were admirable enough for their era, the inconsistency between the quality of assets in this remaster creates a rather unpleasant whole. The music is still straight fire, though. I genuinely bumped the score up a little because of it. Great music, decent but extremely difficult gameplay, and patchwork graphics. Hm.

If you enjoyed the first Koumajou Remilia game and want another serving of the same, here you go. If you’re a big Touhou fan, this is above average in terms of the spread available on Switch. Perhaps you have happy memories of the original release from back in the day? Well, you might appreciate the few extras that have been added here. For everyone else, this is a very average side-scrolling action game with a very good soundtrack. There are better ways to spend your time and money.

SwitchArcade Score: 3/5

New Releases

The Bin Bunch

Starship Showdown: Galactic Grand Prix ($9.90)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Slim pickings indeed. Full Quiet seems like an ambitious and creative NES game that might have been a hard one to punt on at ten bucks but perhaps easier to give a shot to at five. The various Telenet collections are wrapping up their latest sales, and so is that incredibly sweet deal on Monster Hunter Rise. Perhaps we’ll see more sales as the week comes to a close, but given how much is already on sale I wouldn’t count on too much.

Select New Sales

Full Quiet ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/2)
Nora: The Wannabe Alchemist ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
BroodStar ($4.40 from $11.00 until 1/2)
Deathtrap Dungeon Trilogy ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Finally, in Love Again ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/8)
Danmaku Unlimited 3 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
Cat Simulator ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/16)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Thursday, December 28th

A-Train: All Aboard! Tourism ($41.99 from $59.99 until 12/28)
Cat Quest ($3.89 from $12.99 until 12/28)
Dinobreak ($11.99 from $19.99 until 12/28)
Monster Hunter Rise ($15.99 from $39.99 until 12/28)
Monster Hunter Rise Sunbreak DLC ($23.99 from $39.99 until 12/28)
Syd of Valis ($10.50 from $15.00 until 12/28)
Telenet Shooting Collection ($40.49 from $44.99 until 12/28)
Valis II ($7.50 from $15.00 until 12/28)
Valis III ($7.50 from $15.00 until 12/28)
Valis IV ($10.50 from $15.00 until 12/28)
Valis: The Fantasm Soldier ($7.50 from $15.00 until 12/28)
Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection ($19.99 from $39.99 until 12/28)
Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection II ($31.49 from $44.99 until 12/28)
Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Megadrive ($10.50 from $15.00 until 12/28)
Valis: The Fantasm Soldier MSX ($10.50 from $15.00 until 12/28)
Volley Pals ($3.24 from $6.49 until 12/28)

That’s all for today, friends. Tomorrow is Thursday and that usually means a lot of new releases, but with it being December 28th I don’t think we’ll be seeing a whole ton. We’ll summarize whatever comes, plus rope in whatever news and sales roll in over the next day. And of course, we’ll also have a number of year-end SwitchArcade Specials for you to enjoy. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Curse Crackers: For Whom the Belle Toils ($15.00)

Some games just feel good to play right away, and you know you’re in for a treat when that happens. Curse Crackers: For Whom the Belle Toils looks as humble as it can, but as soon as you nimbly make your way through the carefully crafted stages, you’ll fall deeper and deeper in love with this charming platformer. It’s one of those games where you immediately feel powerful but keep finding new ways to get where you’re going even faster and more efficiently. Outstanding.

Astlibra Revision ($24.99)

I really had no idea what I was in for with this game when I first started it, but I knew Mikhail had praised it quite a bit after he played it on another platform. And yes, this is indeed quite the specimen. It’s an action-RPG that goes on for a frankly absurd amount of hours, but the time just flies thanks to the solid mechanics and compelling character progression. If you’re looking for a game that will keep you busy for a very long time without boring you, Astlibra Revision is an excellent pick.

Cocoon ($24.99)

The best adventure games are often the ones that keep surprising you with novel puzzles to solve and problems to overcome, and Cocoon does a fantastic job of that. Your world-hopping powers are used simply enough at the outset, but before long you’ll be untangling some absurd knots with your expanding skill set. It’s all wrapped up in a gorgeous presentation, which certainly doesn’t hurt matters. You’re best off going into this one without anything spoiled, but if you enjoy adventure games or figuring out puzzles, you’ll likely have a blast with this.

Vampire Survivors ($4.99)

With everything else going on and the absolute tidal wave of imitators, it’s easy to forget that Vampire Survivors only hit Switch a few months ago. I’m sure many played this game before then, but it suits the Switch just as well as it does any platform. The process of simply trying to survive enough to unlock a couple of things leading into essentially becoming the story monsters tell their kids to scare them is one of the more satisfying loops in recent gaming history. It feels like a steal to get so much game for such a reasonable price, but there it is.

DREDGE ($24.99)

Speaking of games with satisfying loops, here’s DREDGE. On the surface, it’s a simple game where you’re going out fishing to get some money to fix your boat. That’s what you’ll be doing most of the time, after all. Go catch some fish, sell them, buy some upgrades, and so on. This part of the game is actually quite enjoyable in and of itself. But as you play the game, little mysterious elements start piling up, creating a rather unsettling atmosphere. What’s really going on in these murky waters? The combination of the narrative elements and the simple yet pleasurable fishing mechanics creates a potent combination.

DRAINUS ($19.99)

Longtime readers will know that I love RPGs a lot, but the other genre that has my heart is none other than the shoot-em-up. While to the layperson they might all seem rather similar to one another, each one has a character all of its own. DRAINUS is an incredibly polished example of the genre that is more beginner-friendly than the average entry. You have a lot of tools to keep yourself alive, and the longer you play the more powerful you’ll become. The shooting action itself is snappy and fun, and the boss battles are suitably epic. It’s a shooter I would recommend even to someone who doesn’t usually get into games from this genre, and that’s a rarer thing than you might expect.

Meg’s Monster ($14.99)

Meg’s Monster absolutely destroyed me. I had no idea what I was getting into when I started playing the game, but I had heard some buzz from Japanese players and thought the visuals looked good. There are some light RPG mechanics in play here, but it’s more of an adventure game with a heavy narrative focus. A little girl appears in a world of monsters, and it seems as though the world might end if she cries. A monster named Roy ends up taking her in to try to help her get home, and the journey is absolutely heart-wrenching. Meg’s Monster still lives rent-free in my head months after finishing it, and I think at this point it’s going to be setting down roots there.

The Making of Karateka ($19.99)

Digital Eclipse is owned by Atari now, so this is going to be the last time it will be eligible for an indie game award from us. What a way to go out, though. Building on the extremely well-executed Atari 50‘s foundations, this is an incredibly deep dive into a single game and everything that went into its creation. There are a handful of versions of the game in question that can be played here along with a few other bits and bobs, and they’re enjoyable enough in their own right. But having such rich context provided for each of them makes it even more compelling to dig into these historical artifacts. It doesn’t matter if you like Karateka or not – this interactive documentary is equally fascinating for any student of gaming’s past.

A Highland Song ($17.99)

I think some of the most interesting stories are personal ones, and A Highland Song feels very personal indeed. I know it’s not a strict biography or anything, but someone who really loves where they’re from had to have been involved here because I can feel the familiarity dripping from every rainy rock and hill I stumbled over while playing this. What really pushed this game over the top for me was in how open-ended it was. I was expecting a fairly straightforward trip with a good story, but instead I got a decidedly non-linear journey with many good stories. Sure, the broad strokes are more or less the same, but this game truly believes that the journey is its own reward and hopes you agree. I know I do.

Snakebird Complete ($14.99)

Given this is TouchArcade, I’m sure most of our readers are very well-acquainted with the classic Snake game. It was a staple of Nokia mobile phones but its roots go back almost to the very beginning of our little hobby. Putting a spin on it that actually works isn’t the easiest thing to do, but that just what Snakebird did by adding some physics and a lot of challenging puzzle-solving to the basic action of eating and getting bigger. This Switch release brings all the Snakebird content you could ask for, and it suits the platform very well indeed.

And that’s a wrap for our ten best Nintendo Switch indie games for 2023. Are there any you’d like to add to this list? What do you think of our picks? You know what to do, my coolest of cats. Head to those comments and say your peace. I’ll be back tomorrow with our Genre Awards, and then again on Friday with the full-on Best of 2023 Awards. Thanks for reading!

Of all of the fighters SNK offered up on its new platform, Fatal Fury was the biggest success. It had a very different feel from its cousin Street Fighter II: The World Warrior, but it certainly wasn’t lacking in mechanical depth or interesting characters. It’s not hard to figure out why SNK fast-tracked a sequel for release in the following year, though it would have to make do without Nishiyama, who was already on to other responsibilities. Fortunately, Fatal Fury 2 would benefit from being able to borrow some ideas from Capcom’s ground-breaking title. The result was a fusion of the elements that made the first game so interesting and aspects that were quickly becoming codified within the genre.

The sequel addressed the biggest shortcoming the first game had when stacked against Street Fighter II by expanding the roster of playable fighters from three to eight. Among the new characters was a kunoichi named Mai Shiranui, whose bouncy personality and, er, other bouncy elements made her a big fan favorite almost immediately. Other major additions include the taekwondo master Kim Kaphwan and a new big bad named Wolfgang Krauser. It was another big success for SNK, but there were more lessons to learn from Capcom that would be picked up for the following year’s Fatal Fury game.

Capcom had hit it big with Street Fighter II, and it seemed hesitant to slap a new number on any follow-up. At the same time, there was money on the table and Capcom wasn’t about to leave it there. Thus, four iterative follow-ups were produced to keep the quarters flowing, each one taking what had already been built and adding a little extra on top. This was the approach SNK would take for 1993’s Fatal Fury Special ($3.99). This game uses Fatal Fury 2 as a basis and makes a number of improvements and additions. The boss characters from the previous game are now playable, and the three characters cut from the original game have been restored. The gameplay speed has been increased, and a new combo system has been implemented to bring things ever closer to the Street Fighter II standard.

There was also an interesting secret in Fatal Fury Special. The main character of one of SNK’s other popular fighters, Ryo Sakazaki of Art of Fighting, made a special guest appearance in the game. Should the player beat all fifteen opponents without losing a single round, they’ll face off against Ryo after felling Krauser. Defeating him added him to the playable roster, and it was this fun little trick that served as the seed for The King of Fighters ’94, a mega-crossover of SNK characters that kicked off SNK’s bread and butter series from then on. That was all in the future, of course. In the present, Fatal Fury Special was the most successful game yet in the Fatal Fury series.

In the here and now, I would argue there are better games in the Fatal Fury franchise, but Fatal Fury Special is certainly a great one. I’d certainly recommend it in a general sense. Of course, we have to deal with the usual Arcade Archives issues when it comes to fighting games. I’ll go through them again for the benefit of anyone who is new to these reviews, but if you’ve read one of these before you know what I’m going to say.

Using touch controls with any of SNK’s fighting games is always going to be a bit of a challenge. You can have some fun with it, but it’s less than ideal. If you have an external controller and don’t mind using it, then you have nothing to worry about. The game plays very well that way. Multiplayer is also limited to those who have the right set-up. You’ll need a couple of external controllers, plus a display you feel comfortable enough having you and a friend crowding around. No wi-fi multiplayer and certainly no online multiplayer.

As a result of these demands, I imagine most people who buy this game will be playing against the CPU with touch controls. It’s hardly the best way to enjoy a game like this, but I won’t say you can’t enjoy it. You can turn down the difficulty all the way if you like thanks to the robust set of options Hamster has included here, and you might get some extra enjoyment out of the usual Score Attack and timed Caravan modes. And hey, if you can beat Krauser with touch controls then you have my respect. That and a buck won’t even get you a can of Coke these days, but you’ll have it.

Anyway, that’s where we’ll park this one. Fatal Fury Special isn’t the very best fighting game we’ve seen in the ACA NEOGEO line so far, but it’s certainly in the upper tier. It unfortunately has to deal with all the usual problems that come with fighters in this line, but I didn’t exactly expect Hamster to solve that problem at this point. If you’ve found some entertainment in prior NEOGEO fighters adapted to mobile, you’ll likely get some here as well.

Reviews & Mini-Views

Born of Bread ($29.99)

Homage is tricky. There’s of course nothing wrong with building on the ideas of others; human civilization wouldn’t have made it very far if we had to reinvent everything from scratch each time. But inspiration can take many forms, and some are more desirable than others. Naked clones are annoying and offer very little artistic merit. Games like Undertale that manage to build a work that feels fully its own thing despite drawing from the work of another person are perhaps the ideal. And then there’s something in between those two, a sincere piece of work that is perhaps a little too in love with its source and can’t quite escape from its orbit. Born of Bread falls into that category, I think.

Born of Bread really loves the Mario RPGs, particularly the first two Paper Mario games. I think it loves them more than any game I’ve seen outside of maybe Bug Fables. It imitates many of the mechanics of those games, and even to an extent the presentation of them. I do not doubt at all the sincerity of its passion. But gosh, it cuts close a little too often. At no point in my time with this game did I feel like I was playing a distinctive work. It’s derivative, and I believe intentionally so. Whether that is a negative or positive is going to depend on what you’re looking for from a game. There are certainly worse games to borrow notes from.

Less ambiguous is the technical state of affairs. I’ll be frank: this game feels like it needed more time before releasing. It’s really buggy, sometimes in ways where you have to close out the game and restart. The areas you explore are too big for what they contain, leaving a lot of weird empty dead ends and such. The game balance also feels off to me. It’s incredibly easy, and the game’s efforts to carefully pace how often it doles out new skills are ultimately meaningless as a result. The writing quality is good, full of welcome humor, but the actual story itself doesn’t reach its proper potential.

Still, there’s something to Born of Bread. Even with all of its problems, there’s a certain pure affection and charm to how it’s put together. Similar its doughy protagonist, this game has a good heart that makes you want to like it. As long as you don’t mind dealing with some rough edges, you might find yourself really liking this game. That goes particularly so if you’re a big fan of the first two Paper Mario games. I think this developer has a good future ahead of it in this genre, even if this particular game has a few lumps in it.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

Fearmonium ($12.99)

If I were scoring a game solely based on its premise, Fearmonium would be having a very good day indeed. You play as a minor phobia inside of the mind of a child, and your goal is to become strong enough to be his main phobia. You are his fear of clowns, and that is used to add a lot of spice to the otherwise mechanically rote series of Metroidvania power-ups. Since you’re exploring the boy’s mind and battling his other fears and mental defenses, there’s a ton of creativity here in terms of area themes and boss fights.

Unfortunately, the execution bites this game and it bites it hard. The actual map designs just don’t flow the way you’d like to see in a game of this genre, and the story really didn’t click for me. Fearmonium wants me to be invested in Max’s struggles, but the writing didn’t endear me to Max or any of the oddballs living in his head. At least, it didn’t as far as I could play. There’s an unavoidable progression-stopping bug in the game at the moment, so I don’t know if it pulls its nose up in the second half. The publisher of this version is aware of the issue and apparently a patch is on the way, but I’ve waited as long as I felt comfortable before posting this review. The game is on the shop, people can buy it, I’m reviewing it. Once the bug is fixed, feel free to mentally add another half point to the score.

Fearmonium‘s creative premise and interesting themes help it stand out in the crowded sea of Metroidvania-style action-adventure games on the Switch. In practice, however, it’s never as cool to play as it is to describe. In isolation I could forgive its awkward writing, somewhat clumsy gameplay mechanics, or troublesome bugs. But taken all together, it hamstrings what would otherwise be a genuinely fascinating game. I feel confident a patch will fix the bugs, but the rest of it will proably have to lay as-is. A little disappointing given how much it got its claws into me with its set-up.

SwitchArcade Score: 3/5

Hammerwatch 2 ($24.99)

For a sequel, Hammerwatch 2 takes some mighty big swings. The first game was a fairly by-the-numbers dungeon crawling action-RPG, but this sequel makes it feel tiny by presenting you with a decent-sized open world to explore instead of just one castle. In many ways, it feels similar in scope to the move from Diablo to Diablo 2. That adds up to a lot of new features, like a day-night cycle, a more extensive NPC and quest system, and tons of optional places to explore. It’s a big step, and one that hasn’t been taken as smoothly as it could have been. There are a lot of inconveniences in this game added in for the sake of a more realized world, and some players may not appreciate that.

That day-night cycle often results in needing to kill time until daylight when everything opens up again. The wider array of situations means the character classes are totally unbalanced, particularly if you’re playing solo. Those optional places to explore rarely offer anything of value, which can make it feel like you’ve only wasted your time by doing so. Traveling distances can be tiresome and monotonous thanks to the size of the world. This aspect can be particularly vexing when you’re dealing with time-limited quests. If you like your games polished and tight in their design, Hammerwatch 2 is probably going to irritate you to your last nerve.

If, on the other hand, you have weird nostalgia for old computer RPGs, there are certainly going to be aspects of Hammerwatch 2 that speak to you. Those old days, before loot came with different colored text. Where you would explore and get in battles just for the sake of it. Look, I’m no fool. I know some of why I like this kind of thing comes down to happy memories of days where I didn’t throw out my back picking up a coin off the ground. But I don’t automatically dislike friction, even if it is largely pointless. If you feel the same way, you’re more likely to enjoy Hammerwatch 2 than the average person. There is a considerable amount of pointless friction here.

Alas, in what I can only describe as the theme of the day, Hammerwatch 2‘s Switch version is extremely buggy. It is actually possible to load into solid walls, and that’s the end of your character. Sometimes event flags don’t trigger properly. Characters or monsters who should appear, don’t. I genuinely can’t remember the last time I got soft-locked and forced to start over as frequently as I’ve had to here. And this is not a short game, either. It’s exasperating the game was released in this state.

Hammerwatch 2 is an interesting game that would probably be controversial enough on its own merits, but with frequent bugs of the worst sort and an interface clearly designed for computer users, it crosses the line into something I just can’t recommend in its current state. I actually enjoyed the game when it was working properly, but there are only so many times I can lose a dozen hours of progress before calling it a day. Maybe after a few patches this will be worth spending time with, but for now I’d avoid it.

SwitchArcade Score: 2.5/5

New Releases

Clue ($19.99)

Another adaptation of this classic board game from Marmalade Game Studio. This actually expands on the board game with some new features and content, and whether or not that’s a good thing is an exercise best left to the reader. Do note that it offers up a paid DLC expansion right from the get-go, in case you really want to dive into something new and different.

Unpogable ($7.50)

You play as a double-sided pogo stick creature, and need to make your way through a bunch of tricky platforming challenges to complete each stage. While there is a pre-built stage included here, the meat of the game comes from its procedurally-generated daily challenge stages. If you want more, you can also generate stages by feeding the game seeds. It seems amusing enough if you’re looking for an affordable platformer to get you through the next day or two.

The Bin Bunch

Cat Simulator ($14.99)

XMas Toy Merge ($2.99)

Super Kart Mini Car Race ($9.99)

Human Bowling ($0.99)

Gang Blast ($0.99)

Mystery Box: Escape The Room ($9.99)

Mystery Box: The Journey ($9.99)

Buddy & Friends: Santa’s Workshop Animal Party ($6.90)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Small lists today, friends. Time Master and Venba are worth considering, and pinball fans with an open mind might enjoy Zombie Rollerz. Over in the outbox, Baba Is You is ending its latest extremely rare sale. Mortal Kombat 1 isn’t a very good time on Switch, but if you want it then you should at least get it discounted. Not much else in there, but give it all a look anyway.

Select New Sales

Time Master ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Venba ($11.24 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Divinity: Original Sin 2 ($24.99 from $49.99 until 1/8)
Port Royale 4 ($19.99 from $49.99 until 1/8)
BIT.TRIP Collection ($2.39 from $9.99 until 1/14)
Children of Silentown ($8.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Wildcat Gun Machine ($2.24 from $14.99 until 1/15)
Unrailed ($4.79 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Godlike Burger ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Warpips ($3.79 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Life of Delta ($7.99 from $19.99 until 1/15)
Zombie Rollerz: Pinball Heroes ($2.84 from $14.99 until 1/15)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 27th

Baba Is You ($10.50 from $15.00 until 12/27)
Darkwood ($4.49 from $14.99 until 12/27)
Mortal Kombat 1 ($41.99 from $69.99 until 12/27)
Once Upon a Jester ($5.99 from $14.99 until 12/27)
Q Remastered ($2.72 from $6.80 until 12/27)
RiMS Racing ($4.99 from $49.99 until 12/27)
Super Toy Cars Offroad ($4.99 from $19.99 until 12/27)
Sword of Glory ($1.99 from $14.99 until 12/27)
Winds of Change ($5.99 from $19.99 until 12/27)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more reviews, some new releases, plus whatever sales and news roll in during the next twenty-four hours. We’re rolling out our end-of-year lists now, starting with Mikhail’s. I recommend checking them out to see if there are any cool games in there that might be to your liking. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

TouchArcade (TA): Hi, thanks for giving us your time today. Can you let our readers know a little bit about yourself? And, per TouchArcade tradition, tell us your favorite pizza toppings?

Chris Fernholz (CF): Hi, and thank you for the chance to talk to you! Argonwood is based in Cologne, Germany, and was founded by my brother Manu and me (Chris) 5 years ago and we have been working on Rising Lords full-time since then. We have been supported by a few freelancers but Argonwood is a very small team nevertheless. We originally studied electrical engineering and sociology, but we have been programming and drawing all our lives. Creating games can be very time-consuming, the rest of the time we often spend with our families or playing games ourselves. Manu likes his pizza very basic, with cheese, tomatoes, and mozzarella. I recently found a new favorite with Hollandaise sauce and Kebab, but you can’t really eat this more than once a week.

TA: Can you give us the quick pitch for Rising Lords? What should our readers be excited for?

CF: Rising Lords is a medieval turn-based strategy game with elements from board and card games. The story campaign for Rising Lords is certainly the thing we are most excited about. It brings our core game elements together perfectly along with a deep story and great artwork reminiscent of the medieval ages. It’s the perfect single-player experience, but you can also play sandbox matches with other players or against AI. With simultaneous region management and building as well as tactical battles with a well-balanced unit counter system, terrain, skill cards, morale, and more, this is especially exciting to play with friends.

TA: I’ve seen the classic Lords of the Realm 2 cited as your main inspiration for this game, but can you tell us about any other inspirations?

CF: We have certainly taken some inspiration from many different genres and games that we have played for more than 30 years, even pen-and-paper games and board games like Heroquest and Chess. HOMM, the Total War series and Civilisation certainly had an influence when talking about PC games. As you already mentioned, the spiritual prequel is Lords of the Realm 2, although we completely changed many aspects — battles used to be real time for example.

TA: What were some of the challenges involved in bringing this game to the Nintendo Switch?

CF: Making the game ready for Nintendo Switch was certainly a challenge. There is the limited hardware of course, and we had to reshape and rewrite a lot of core functions to match that. Also, strategy games are usually played with a mouse. Nintendo Switch has the advantage of touch controls, but even without those we were able to work with snapping points so that you don’t have to play with a joystick as a mouse; instead can select the relevant items and figures with the D-Pad.

TA: Are there any new or exclusive elements in the Switch version of the game?

CF: No. we wanted to make sure that the experience is the same across all platforms. On the other hand, this also means that the Switch version has everything included that the other versions have as well.

TA: What are some of your current favorite games in the turn-based strategy genre?

CF: Although technically only half of it is turn-based, our long-time favorite for strategy games is the Total War series. Rome, Medieval, Shogun, Warhammer — you name it. A must-have for us is a working multiplayer though.

TA: What do you think is the coolest thing about Rising Lords?

CF: We think Rising Lords takes the best aspects from different strategy games and merges them on an accessible level. Region management, story campaign, tactical battles, multiplayer, and so on. Much larger games feature some of these aspects in greater detail, but others are often not very approachable or pretty basic. Another thing that most people adore a lot is our unique art style.

TA: What was the thinking behind that distinctive art style? Any particular inspirations there?

CF: The original idea was to make Rising Lords feel like a medieval board game. That is where Lewis Chessmen came into play and served as an inspiration for our units. Other elements are based on medieval tapestry artwork from this time period. The medieval and even the ancient world were a lot more colourful than people think! Colours fade over time, but Rising Lords brings them back to life.

TA: Can you tell us about something you wanted to include in the game that just couldn’t be done?

CF: One of the problems we had with the game and the long development time was that we included a lot more things than we originally planned. If there was one thing missing that we had considered at one point, it would be dedicated sea battles with ships.

TA: Thanks again for speaking with us! Do you have any other message you want to give to our readers? This is your free space to do so!

CF: In our opinion, there are not many strategy games available on Nintendo Switch. There are even fewer medieval turn-based games. Time to shake up some stagnant mechanics and try something different! Especially for those looking for a relaxing gaming experience, alone or with friends. We have created a whole new medieval world for everyone to explore, filled with heroic adventures and lovable characters.

Thanks again to Chris for answering our questions, and for Derek at Hound PR for facilitating. Rising Lords will be coming to Nintendo Switch on January 18th, 2024. We’ll likely be doing a review of the game, so do look forward to that when the time comes.

New Releases

Trash Punk ($9.99)

Ironic that one of the few games not heading to the hefty Bin Bunch today would have the word ‘trash’ in its title. Not that you can expect anything fancy here. It’s a top-down twin-stick shooter where you’re playing as a punk… I want to say possum? Seems like a possum. Anyway, that’s what it is. Not trash, and today that counts as an accomplishment.

Bloopy & Droopy ($4.99)

Thirty stages, five bosses, two characters you can swap between, all dressed up in a Game Boy-style aesthetic. This has five-dollar Switch platformer written all over it, and it’s a lucky day for us because that is the price it’s going for.

Poppy Playtime: Chapter 1 ($4.99)

Explore an abandoned toy factory filled with vengeful killer toys in this horror adventure. This feels like an enormous ill-advised venture, but I suppose if the foolish protagonist had a shred of common sense we wouldn’t have much of a game here. You use some weird contraption with grabby hands to solve puzzles, which is the main gimmick in play here. This has been enormously successful on other platforms and I’ve little doubt it will find an audience on Switch.

Tanuki Sunset ($16.99)

Don’t mind the slightly misleading screenshot I picked. This is an endless runner style game where you play as a raccoon named Tanuki (like naming a human Gorilla I guess) who is longboarding across scenes that look like they gorged on the 1980s and barfed it all out. Not bad as these kinds of things go. Auto-runners that is, not raccoon longboarding games. I don’t have a baseline for the latter. Anyway, I’d recommend going and looking at a video of it. The game has been out for years on other platforms, after all. If you like what you see, then by all means.

Masarada Town Story ($10.00)

Rebuild a dying town by filling out a museum to attract tourists. You’ll do that by heading into the mines and digging up cool treasures. As you play, the town will slowly expand and attract new denizens who in turn might open up their own businesses. This doesn’t look particularly special for what it is, but it also doesn’t look like it’s dropping the ball significantly either.

Party Friends ($7.99)

Well, it’s a party game. Twenty or so minigames that can be enjoyed with up to four players via local multiplayer. Normally I just send people in the direction of Mario Party for this kind of thing, but the price on this one is fair enough for what you get that I won’t fully recommend people stay away from it.

The Bin Bunch

Kebab Bar Tycoon ($5.99)

Light-It Up ($4.99)

Pocket Foosball ($5.99)

Fashion World ($5.99)

Bowling Fever ($9.99)

Pocket Quest ($7.99)

Space Papers: Planet’s Border ($7.99)

Nothing to Declare ($4.99)

My Life: Farm Vet ($29.99)

Sherlock Holmes – The Hunt for Moriarty ($19.99)

3in1 Game Collection: Backgammon + Checkers + Mills ($19.99)

My Bakery Empire ($7.99)

Truckzilla – Monster Truck Mega Ramp ($11.99)

Hard Racing: Stunt Car Driving ($4.99)

Cute Critters Pet Kitty ($5.99)

Milk Seller ($9.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

A few decent games in the inbox today, and a couple decent ones in the outbox. I’m not going to go into as much detail today so as to have a little time to myself, so feel free to check those lists on your own.

Select New Sales

CounterAttack: Uprising ($8.99 from $14.99 until 12/30)
The Long Gate ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/1)
Born of Bread ($23.99 from $29.99 until 1/2)
Gunbrick: Reloaded ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)
Bomb Chicken ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)
Knight Squad 2 ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Garden Guardian ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/6)
Rice Bowl Restaurant ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Swoon! Earth Escape ($5.99 from $29.99 until 1/6)
Pipeline Panic ($2.99 form $14.99 until 1/6)
Draknek & Friends Puzzle Bundle ($37.49 from $74.99 until 1/7)
Cosmic Express ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/7)
Sokobond ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/7)
A Good Snowman is Hard to Build ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/7)

Bonfire Peaks Complete Edition ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/7)
Freak Crossing ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/7)
My Heart Grows Fonder ($6.69 from $9.99 until 1/8)
Army of Ruin ($5.99 from $7.99 until 1/8)
Flashout 3 ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/8)
Ziggurat 2 ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/8)
Running Fable ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/9)
Livestream 2 ($21.24 from $24.99 until 1/12)
Murtop ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/12)
Donut Dodo ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/12)
Sentry City ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/12)
Galacticon ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/12)
Colored Effects ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/12)
Hero Survival ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/13)
ALTF4 ($3.89 from $5.99 until 1/13)
Dorfromantik ($13.49 from $14.99 until 1/13)
Earthshine ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/13)
Fusion Paradox ($6.99 from $9.99 until 1/13)
2021: Moon Escape ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/14)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 26th

Alicia Griffith: Lakeside Murder ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
ASMR Slicing ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/26)
Assault Suits Valken Declassified ($9.99 from $24.99 until 12/26)
Astro Miner ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/26)
Big Adventure: Trip to Europe ($2.39 from $11.99 until 12/26)
Big Adventure: Trip to Europe 2 ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Big Adventure: Trip to Europe 3 ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Blade of Darkness ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Brightstone Mysteries: Paranormal Hotel ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/26)
Brightstone Mysteries: The Others ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Car Driving School Simulator ($1.99 from $15.99 until 12/26)
Chippy&Noppo ($14.99 from $19.99 until 12/26)
City Bus Driving Simulator ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/26)
City Driving Simulator ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/26)
City Driving Simulator 2 ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/26)

Cooking Festival ($1.99 from $10.99 until 12/26)
Detective Agency: Gray Tie ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Detective Agency: Gray Tie 2 ($8.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Idle Zoo Park ($5.99 from $9.99 until 12/26)
Match Ventures 2 ($2.39 from $11.99 until 12/26)
Monster Truck Arena ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/26)
My Lovely Pets ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Raft Life ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/26)
So Much Stuff ($5.99 from $14.99 until 12/26)
Street Racing: Tokyo Rush ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/26)
Tricky Traps ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/26)
Truck Simulator 2 ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/26)
Truck Simulator 3 ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/26)

That’s all for today, friends. I’ll be back tomorrow with a more usual sort of article. That means reviews, new releases, sales, and so on. We’ll also start rolling out our end-of-year coverage starting today, so be on the lookout for that. I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and/or happy holiday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Tiny Wings, $1.99 Let’s give out the coveted UMMSotW award right away, shall we? After all, it’s a day of giving. And this update certainly gives, friends. There are more than one hundred new birds to unlock, fifteen new missions to complete, some revised AI for the Flight School, and a lot of visual improvements. Oh, and if you feel like giving the developer a few more bucks on top of the two bucks you paid fifteen years ago or whatever, you can buy a special bird as IAP. Yes, I will give you that three dollars, Andreas. Even if it was just a tip.

Samba de Amigo: Party-To-Go, So far, Samba de Amigo Party-to-Go‘s updates have been going the way I’d hoped they would. There’s a new mode here in the form of the World Challenge, where you compete with others worldwide on three different songs every week. There are some new songs here, too. BTS’ Dynamite, Reach for the Stars (Re-Colors) from the recent Sonic Colors remake, and World New Year – Funky Party Mix. And while you’re getting funky, why not check out the new Space Channel 5 customization items? They’re just part of the fifty new customization items you can make use of. There are a few other bits and bobs here, but those are the highlights.

Super Mario Run, Free Super Mario Run doesn’t get updates or events often, but I suppose if ever there was an occasion to do so Super Mario Bros. Wonder‘s release would be it. For a limited time, Wonder Flowers might appear while you’re playing Toad Rally. Grab one and things will get… not as wild as they do in the real game, but there will be Gold Goombas all over the place. Take them out and you’ll fill out a stamp card that will give some prizes when it’s complete. Yeah, that’s fine. That will bring me back for a little while at least.

Sneaky Sasquatch, Would you trust your health to a sasquatch? If you answered no, then you’ve got more sense than the folks in this game. The latest update adds a hospital where you can do your doctor’s duty as you see fit, plus an ambulance you can drive if you feel like doing the paramedic thing instead. You also get some new music and other little tweaks, plus one big change to the gameplay mechanics: the sasquatch can now be hurt. Be careful out there!

Temple Run: Puzzle Adventure, I’m not really keeping track of such things this week, but if one wants to count something as the obligatory free-to-play matching puzzle game update this week, one could perhaps count this despite it being in Apple Arcade. This update offers up a new Mirror Story, complete with fifty new puzzles to play. There are also some updated Tournaments to challenge. Something to do, at least.

Crossy Road Castle, Oh, this is one of those updates that adds something significant that can be described with very few words, which always leaves me in a pickle in terms of making the paragraph big enough to not mess with the site’s formatting. Usually in these cases I do a little exposition before talking about the update, and it all works out. Crossy Road Castle now has an ultra-difficult mode called Rainbow Rift, and it absolutely is not fooling around. Kind of nice to see such a zesty new challenge to tackle.

The Oregon Trail, This is a robust update for The Oregon Trail, and I’m always happy to see new stuff in this game. We get full-on party customization in this version, which means that whenever you start a new Journey you can set up your party exactly the way you like. You can even name them. That’s fun. You can also choose traits, and those can have a wide array of consequences. So, you know, be careful which ones you go for. There are also some improvements to the UI with regards to food consumption. I’d imagine some bug fixes and other adjustments are in here too, as they always tend to be.

Goat Simulator+, This Christmas update to the Apple Arcade version of Goat Simulator is functionally fairly similar to the Halloween update. You get a level from one of the many spin-off games, this time the Winter level from MMO, and can go looking for some special collectibles in it to unlock a new goat. Cool Goat, in this case. And that’s probably fine, as Goat Simulator is more or less a finished game at this point. Anything along the lines of these limited events are purely a bonus.

Brawl Stars, Free Okay, this might be older than a week. I’m using it anyway. This update seeds events from now until February, so not all of it will be available from the hop. There are new Brawlers, new Hypercharges, a fresh Brawl Pass, and a whole lot more. Lots of free goodies to score if you keep checking in, but that’s how the free-to-play thing usually goes. Still, it’s a fun game and if you’re enjoying it anyway you might as well score the freebies.

Genshin Impact, Free And we’ll end things today with a look at the latest update for Genshin Impact. The Roses and Muskets update adds two new characters in the form of Navia and Chevreuse, some new events to take part in, a new Story Quest to complete, and of course some new weapons to play around with. There’s also a new Domain, the Crumbling Assembly. I do wonder how some of the recent changes in Chinese law are going to hit this game, but I suppose that’s beyond the scope of this article so I will leave it there.

That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!

New Releases

Moorhuhn Invasion – Crazy Chicken Invasion ($6.99)

There are lots of different kinds of Moorhuhn games, but it all started with a chicken shooting gallery game. This is another one of those, I suppose with a UFO/invader theme. Shoot as many chickens as you can in a minute and a half, try to uncover secrets, get the highest score possible, and then do it all again. Reasonably priced for your chicken blasting needs.

Synthetic Lover ($24.99)

A visual novel where the protagonist is a synthetic humanoid designed for the specific task of working in an adult entertainment center called Dollhouse. It’s set in the year 2066, which I guess shows where the yardstick is now for “far enough in the future for things to be pretty different, but not so far that it’s unrecognizable". Anyway, make your choices and arrive at multiple endings with two possible love interests. The usual business, really.

ONE. ($69.99)

Before the legendary visual novel team Key was founded, many of its important staff members worked at a company called Tactics. It mostly made adult visual novel games, and its most famous was the 1998 release One: Kagayaku Kisetsu e. It tells the tale of a young man who is slowly disappearing into another world and can only anchor himself in reality by forming a solid connection with others. In this case, the others are cute young ladies. That’s how it goes, I guess. This is an enhanced remake of that game, naturally with the saucy scenes removed, and I believe it represents the first official English release of One. Gosh, that pricing though. Over on Steam it is releasing today at $19.99. Well, unless you are here in Japan, where it is releasing on Steam at the approximate equivalent of $69.99. Which I suppose explains this Switch price. I think it’s a hard sell at this price. A very hard sell. It’s not even that long of a game, clocking in at under ten hours. Do what you will.

Dungeons & Doomknights ($19.99)

This is an emulated version of a somewhat recent release for the NES. It’s an action-adventure game with top-down and side-scrolling bits, and it seems to have been rather well-received when it came out in actual cartridge form a few years back. It’s always nice to see these games make their way to modern platforms for those who aren’t into keeping their old consoles around and maintained.

B.O.O.L: Master Labyrinth Puzzles ($19.99)

Pretty much a selection of sliding block puzzles. You know, like the ice puzzles in the Zelda games. Try to get the box to the exit in more than one hundred and twenty stages. You have a limited number of moves, and there are a fair number of gimmicks and obstacles that should keep things spicy. The price feels a bit high for what you get here, but if you love this type of puzzle and don’t need fancy production values, you might enjoy it.

Jinshin ($14.99)

Got time for one more KEMCO/EXE-CREATE joint before the end of the year? The theme of this one is ancient Japan with a fantasy twist, but otherwise it’s incredibly familiar if you’ve played any of this developer’s RPGs before. Maybe the somewhat uncommon theme is enough to sway you.

The Bin Bunch

Christmas Bubble Puzzle ($9.99)

Roman Empire Simulator ($14.99)

Military Combat Shooter Desert War ($6.99)

Dungeon Defence Simulator 2024 ($14.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

The Holiday Hits sale is on from today, and that means there are thousands of new sales to look at. I’ve made up a separate article with our favorite picks, but I’ll throw in a few more here to get you started. This list is nowhere near comprehensive. Check the eShop and your wishlist to see if the games you’re looking for are discounted, because they very well may be.

Select New Sales

Rakuen: Deluxe Edition ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
MythForce ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Cult of the Lamb: Cultist Edition ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Sonic Superstars ($41.99 from $59.99 until 1/4)
DUSK ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Return to Monkey Island ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Unpacking ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Pizza Possum ($5.59 from $6.99 until 1/4)
It Takes Two ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Shovel Knight: Treasure Trove ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective ($19.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Sifu ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Theatrhythm Final Bar Line ($29.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Diablo III Eternal Collection ($19.79 from $59.99 until 1/4)
Nobody Saves The World ($9.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Rogue Legacy 2 ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)

Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Romancing SaGa 2 ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
NEO: The World Ends With You ($23.99 from $59.99 until 1/4)
Tactics Ogre: Reborn ($24.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
NieR: Automata The End of YoRHa ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion ($29.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection ($47.99 from $79.99 until 1/4)
Kingdom Eighties ($8.99 from $11.99 until 1/4)
Akka Arrh ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Doraemon Story of Seasons ($9.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Axiom Verge ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Bomb Rush Cyberfunk ($31.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & Secret Hideout ($23.99 from $59.99 until 1/4)
DC’s Justice League Cosmic Chaos ($13.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Oxenfree II: Lost Signals ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)

Voice of Cards Trilogy ($34.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Firewatch ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
AEW Fight Forever Elite Edition ($63.99 from $79.99 until 1/4)
Jack Jeanne ($39.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Gloomhaven: Gold Edition ($39.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
Klonoa: Phantasy Reverie Series ($9.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Samba de Amigo: Party Central ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
DOOM 2016 ($7.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Andro Dunos II ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Banner of the Maid ($4.24 from $16.99 until 1/4)
Valkyria Chronicles ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Wonder Boy Asha in Monster World ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Wonder Boy Anniversary Collection ($24.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)
The Rumble Fish 2 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Super Bomberman R 2 ($34.99 from $49.99 until 1/4)

Star Renegades ($6.24 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Among Us ($3.00 from $5.00 until 1/4)
Chained Echoes ($18.74 from $24.99 until 1/5)
CrossCode ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Spelunky ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Spelunky 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Curse Crackers: For Whom the Belle Toils ($9.00 from $15.00 until 1/5)
Borderlands 3 Ultimate Edition ($29.99 from $59.99 until 1/6)
Red Dead Redemption ($34.99 from $49.99 until 1/6)
LEGO 2K Drive ($19.79 from $59.99 until 1/6)
Adore ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/11)
Oceanhorn 2 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/11)
Shakedown Hawaii ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/11)

Sales Ending This Holiday Weekend

Cats and the Other Lives ($16.99 from $19.99 until 12/23)
Elderand ($9.99 from $19.99 until 12/23)
The Unexpected Quest ($2.25 from $15.00 until 12/23)
Titanium Hound ($10.50 from $15.00 until 12/23)
Batora: Lost Haven ($9.99 from $24.99 until 12/24)
Before We Leave ($3.99 from $19.99 until 12/24)
Going Under ($3.99 from $19.99 until 12/24)
Greak: Memories of Azur ($3.99 from $19.99 until 12/24)
Narita Boy ($2.49 from $24.99 until 12/24)
The Escapists: GotY Edition ($4.04 from $26.99 until 12/24)
The Survivalists: Deluxe ($2.69 from $26.99 until 12/24)
Thymesia: Cloud Version ($14.99 from $29.99 until 12/24)
Worms Rumble: Digital Deluxe ($2.19 from $21.99 until 12/24)

Yoku’s Island Express ($3.99 from $19.99 until 12/24)
A Short Tale ($2.99 from $5.99 until 12/25)
Age of Sokoban ($2.09 from $2.99 until 12/25)
Alone Music ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/25)
Astebros ($9.09 from $12.99 until 12/25)
Ferris Mueller’s Day Off ($2.99 from $5.99 until 12/25)
FX Unit Yuki ($6.29 from $8.99 until 12/25)
Jigsaw Tetra ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/25)
Minepull ($2.09 from $2.99 until 12/25)
Octopath Traveler II ($41.99 from $59.99 until 12/25)
Retro Space Fighter ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/25)
Snow Madness ($2.09 from $2.99 until 12/25)
Super Cyborg ($2.09 from $6.99 until 12/25)
The Forgotten Room ($2.99 from $5.99 until 12/25)
Veritas ($5.99 from $11.99 until 12/25)

That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next Tuesday to resume the regular articles, and we’ll probably have some kind of Christmas treat for you on Monday. I hope everyone who celebrates it has a Merry Christmas, and to everyone else, enjoy the long weekend! As always, thanks for reading!

Metroid Dread ($41.99 from $59.99)

While I wouldn’t call Metroid Dread my favorite game in the series, it hangs comfortably with the rest of the 2D entries. Given just how good that particular run of games is, I believe that speaks volumes. It takes a lot of risks in service of creating its specific feel, but as long as you’re okay with having conventions challenged within a conventional framework, this should be an easy pick-up. I mean, it’s Metroid. It’s almost as safe as it gets.

Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection ($29.99 from $59.99)

Capcom has done right by the Mega Man Battle Network games with this collection for the most part. If you have happy memories of these games, you’ll likely be happy to revisit them again. The extras are welcome, though I think Capcom could have gone further here with things like save states or the ability to turn off random encounters. It’s great to see some of the lesser-tapped veins of the Blue Bomber’s history get a reissue, and you really can’t argue with the value in terms of how much there is to play here. Worth the pick-up for fans of Mega Man or RPGs alike.

Nintendo Switch Sports ($27.99 from $39.99)

It’s been a minute or two since Wii Sports rocked the gaming world with its simple, accessible motion control gameplay. Things have changed a lot since then, but I think we can all still have a bit of fun with motion controlled bowling. You get that here, along with five other sports. Soccer, volleyball, bowling, tennis, badminton, and chambara, and golf are the sports this time around. Attach those Joy-Con straps, find your TV’s warranty card, and get ready to party like it’s 2006. Play local multiplayer for up to four players, or hop online for some one-on-one. Definitely a fun one to play with family members over the holidays.

Trombone Champ ($8.99 from $14.99)

Barring some minor hiccups in performance, Trombone Champ is a true champ on Switch. It perfectly suits the system and the multiple control options, and is a joy to play. I know this year has been great for quality game releases, but if you own a Switch and want to try something interesting when it comes to music games, Trombone Champ is exactly what you need. -Mikhail Madnani

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury ($39.99 from $59.99)

Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury offers up two experiences in one package. One is a spiffed-up port of the Wii U Super Mario 3D World, an excellent platformer that is a blast to play in multiplayer. The other is the all-new Bowser’s Fury, a shorter and more experimental take on 3D Mario that has you earning Shines in a continuous open world. Being able to play with a friend or three helps this stand out among the other 3D Mario choices on Switch. Plenty of fun at a good price.

Batman: Arkham Trilogy ($42.99 from $59.99)

There’s no two ways around it: the port of Batman: Arkham Knight included in this collection is nothing short of disastrous. I wouldn’t call it completely unplayable, but even for someone like me who can overlook a lot of technical problems, it’s a doozy. But you know what? The other two games included here have been ported excellently, and with this sale in place I think it’s a more than fair deal just to have those games on your Switch.

Super Mario Maker 2 ($39.99 from $59.99)

With Super Mario Bros. Wonder around, it’s easy to forget about this great little sandbox. Make your own 2D Mario levels in a variety of styles, upload them for others to play, and download the levels made by others to try. You get a lot of interesting elements to play around with, allowing for a massive variety of stages to be created. If you’re into making things, you’ll get hours upon hours of entertainment. If not? Well, you don’t have to make levels to have a good time with the ones others have made, and there’s a rather substantial selection available. Worth having in the library, for sure.

EA Sports FC 24 ($29.99 from $59.99)

This is a big step for Electronic Arts, as it steps free of the FIFA license for the first time in a few decades. It’s also a big step for this series on Switch, as we didn’t get a hand-me-down or Legacy Edition this time. This is a proper Frostbite Engine modern EA Sports soccer game, with full feature and content parity with other versions. The only drawback is that the game runs at 30 fps now instead of 60 fps like the Legacy Editions, but it’s a small sacrifice in exchange for what you get here.

Undertale ($10.04 from $14.99)

Do I really need to write anything about Undertale at this point? I’m sure there are a few of you who haven’t played it, but I have to assume you have reasons not to have done so by now. Well, if one of those reasons was that you felt it was more of a ten-dollar game than a fifteen-dollar one, here you go. I personally consider this an essential game, and believe me when I say I went into it expecting to dislike it. I haven’t been won over so hard in a long time. Maybe it will win you over too?

Disco Elysium: The Final Cut ($13.99 from $39.99)

Disco Elysium – The Final Cut is a superlative RPG that I consider at par with Divinity Original Sin 2 and now Nintendo Switch owners get to experience both of these top tier RPGs on the go or at home. If you held off on buying Disco Elysium – The Final Cut on other platforms to get it on Nintendo Switch, your wait has been mostly worth it. Disco Elysium – The Final Cut has been adapted to the Switch really well with smart compromises and great tweaks to the interface and controls. My concerns about the UI and text were all put to rest after I launched it and played for an hour. A great version of the game. -Mikhail Madnani

Chicory: A Colorful Tale ($9.99 from $19.99)

This is a cute top-down adventure game set in a coloring book world. You can paint on everything. Cool. It even has support for touch controls. The story goes that superstar artist Chicory has gone missing and took all of the world’s color with her. You’re her number one fan, and you take it upon yourself to fill in for her. Use your painting abilities to solve puzzles, pick up new abilities to open new paths, and customize your character’s appearance as you see fit. You can play on your own or pull in a friend for some local co-op. This is a very good game. Pick it up if you like very good games.

Meg’s Monster ($11.24 from $14.99)

Meg’s Monster is a fantastic narrative experience. While it’s not the most mechanically rich RPG around, it’s not really trying to be. It’s here to tell a story, and it does so wonderfully. The characters are memorable, the plot is engaging, the presentation is sublime, and it’s on the whole just a hard thing to dislike at all. I haven’t been on an emotional roller coaster like this one in a while, and I’d handily recommend it to anyone looking for a touching story to play.

Dave the Diver ($15.99 from $19.99)

Dave the Diver is an amazing game. I’m shocked at how well it keeps up its pacing of unlocks and new missions throughout its two dozen or so hours of runtime, and there’s just so much to do. I never got tired of playing it, but I hope future patches can address the long load times on Switch. Barring that, Dave the Diver is top tier, and essential for Nintendo Switch. -Mikhail Madnani

Vampire Survivors ($4.49 from $4.99)

Vampire Survivors on Switch is everything I hoped for in a port and more. While it has some frame rate issues, which version of the game doesn’t at this point? If you somehow haven’t played it through its Xbox, mobile, or PC release, this is it. Vampire Survivors is a perfect fit for Switch, and absolutely worth buying. -Mikhail Madnani

Sea of Stars ($31.49 from $34.99)

While I think the writing could use some serious editing and the game doesn’t quite nail its pacing, those things are easily forgiven by how well it does just about everything else. Sea of Stars fits in nicely with other indie RPGs like Cosmic Star Heroine and Chained Echoes, serving both as a high-quality traditional turn-based RPG experience and a display of genuine affection for the greats of the genre.

Hades ($12.49 from $24.99)

It’s not a massive surprise when Supergiant Games puts out a great game, but even by the usual standards Hades is something special. With superb action, an excellent metagame, outstanding writing, and all-around slick visuals and audio, this is a game that’s easy to fall in love with no matter how you usually feel about rogue-inspired games. The way Hades weaves together its mechanics and story genuinely drives you to keep on coming back again and again until you finally win. It’s hard to say whether the gameplay or the narrative elements are more important for driving this game’s appeal, but we don’t have to choose, do we? Of course we don’t.

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 ($29.99 from $49.99)

I feel like this game didn’t hit with quite the same impact the first one did, but if you love Super Smash Bros. and want a decent alternative, this series remains a solid choice. There are twenty-five characters drawn from various Nickelodeon-owned properties including the likes of Korra, Garfield, Jimmy Neutron, SpongeBob, Danny Phantom, Ren & Stimpy, and more. In terms of gameplay modes you get more options in this sequel, including a fairly robust single-player mode. You’ll have to overlook some performance issues on Switch, but as long as you’re okay with that you’ll have some fun here.

PowerWash Simulator ($19.99 from $24.99)

PowerWash Simulator is a very good conversion for Switch. The only downside is the long load times. Barring that, it is a fantastic way to experience PowerWash Simulator, and a perfect fit for portable play. The DLC only helps extend the fun, especially the two large free expansions. Out of all the “Simulator" games on the eShop, this one is special. –Mikhail Madnani

Persona 5 Tactica ($44.99 from $59.99)

Persona 5 Tactica ended up surprising me in a good way. I initially thought it would be a throwaway story like Persona Dancing or Arena games, but it is so much more. While it doesn’t reach the highs of Persona 5 Strikers even for music, Persona 5 Tactica is an excellent addition to any Persona 5 fan’s library. Just don’t bother getting it if you haven’t played that game yet. -Mikhail Madnani

Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 ($47.99 from $59.99)

I think Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 could have been better than it is, particularly with regards to performance and game options. Still, when I take what is in front of me for what it is, it’s an easy title to recommend. You get a bunch of absolutely top-tier games to play and some really cool extra materials to dig through. Sure, there isn’t much new here for people who have played these games before. But for those craving Metal Gear on the go, or those who somehow haven’t dug into these titles in the past, Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 is a fantastic value.

Naturally, there are many other games on sale right now on the Nintendo Switch eShop. If you’ve had your eye on any particular games, it might behoove you to pop onto the eShop and see if they’re also on sale. Happy shopping everyone, and as always, thanks for reading!

Let’s go over the nerfs first so that we can end on a happier note. The biggest of the bunch is Professor X. He’s a great ace to have up your sleeve, given he can completely close down a location and score you a decisive win. His ability isn’t changing, but his stats are. Charles gets out of our heads by moving from 5-Cost 3-Power to 5-Cost 1-Power. You can still use him the same way, but you’re not going to be able to count on his power to give you the win for the spot.

The next nerf comes for the relatively recently added, and extremely powerful, Werewolf by Night. He’s definitely become the shining the star of the Bloodstone cards with the way he can build power quickly. Like Professor X, his ability remains unchanged. His stats have been adjusted, however, making him a 4-Cost 4-Power card instead of a 3-Cost 3-Power card. This delays his entry into the game and also moves him out of the Surfer Squad. Looks like Brood’s back on the menu, kids!

Black Widow gets a mixed change. It feels more like a nerf than a buff but it isn’t fully one-sided. Her stats change from 2-Cost 1-Power to 3-Cost 3-Power. On the one hand, she now packs a little bit of a punch appropriate to her cost. On the other hand, it’s harder to play her multiple times now, so you won’t be able to trigger her effect so often. On the third hand, she now qualifies for the Surfer Squad. Swings and roundabouts.

Another mixed change that makes the character qualify for the Surfer Squad is Viper. She’s been used as a very strategic card in the past, and she quickly found a home with cards like Annihilus bolstering decks that mess with the opponent. Her ability is untouched, but her stats move from 2-Cost 3-Power to 3-Cost 4-Power. According to the developer notes, this is to help keep Viper and Havok from being too much of a spoiler. Yeah, I can see that. Fair beans.

On to the buffs. Martyr pretty much fell flat on her face. Her ability works against you, and even with her low cost her power just didn’t justify that risk. She gets one extra point of power from here on out, going from 1-Cost 4-Power to 1-Cost 5-Power. Will it help? I guess we’ll see. Gladiator gets a similar tweak, moving from 3-Cost 7-Power to 3-Cost 8-Power. Kind of awkward seeing two such recent cards getting balanced tweaked already, but at least they’re moving in a positive direction rather than a negative one.

Ronan the Accuser gets a big win this time. His ability stays the same, as with all of today’s changes. But his stats have gotten a very nice buff, moving him from 5-Cost 3-Power to 5-Cost 5-Power. Maximus has gotten a stat change too, and it’s being painted as a buff to support Ronan rather than a nerf to punish the Surfer Squad. Maximus moves from a Surfer-tastic 3-Cost 7-Power to 2-Cost 6-Power. And I’ll stuff the last buff in here, with the Punisher getting an extra point of power, moving from 3-Cost 2-Power to 3-Cost 3-Power. Perhaps he’ll make the Surfer Squad cut now.

That’s it for the balance changes in this Marvel Snap update. We probably won’t be seeing any news for the game until the new season drops in 2024, so if you happen to only read my work via these Marvel Snap stories, I guess I’ll see you next year. Good luck with all the Snappings and such!

New Releases

Pajama Sam 3: You Are What You Eat From Your Head To Your Feet ($14.99)

It’s been a while since a bunch of Humongous Entertainment’s classic kid-friendly point-and-click adventures hit the Switch, and I’ve often wondered why more of them didn’t follow. Well, I guess we’re picking things up again. Here’s the third Pajama Sam game, getting us one step closer to having the full series available on the platform. It’s just as good as the first two, so if you or your little ones enjoyed those than you can pick this up with confidence.

Freddi Fish 4: The Case of The Hogfish Rustlers of Briny Gulch ($14.99)

All that stuff I just said about Pajama Sam 3 also applies to this port of Freddi Fish 4. These games are terrific to play with younger kids, and I can only hope the rest of Humongous Entertainment’s catalog eventually makes its way out on the Switch. So yes, if you have some nostalgia for this game or just want something good to enjoy over the holidays with the family, here’s Freddi.

The Curse of Kudan ($39.99)

A yuri-themed visual novel about a group of girls investigating occult mysteries who come a bit too close to one in particular, with potentially fatal results. The art is really good in this one, and the story apparently offers some excellent twists and turns. What is the mystery behind the curse? What past secrets fuel this supernatural grudge? And can the girls figure it all out before it’s too late?

GeoJelly ($10.99)

A platformer with puzzle elements whose chief gimmick is that you can only jump. No standard movement here. You play as a jelly and need to escape from a laboratory while grabbing diamonds along the way to unlock more levels. There are more than fifty levels to play, which should keep you busy for a while.

100 Demon Fantasia ($9.99)

An extremely janky melee action game, but I suppose there’s a charm to that sort of thing. The dining won’t be anywhere near fancy, but for ten bucks you might have already figured that one out.

Three Minutes To Eight ($14.99)

This is an adventure game whose premise has a lot of pull. Your main character will die at 7:57. Is there any way to avoid this fate? That’s the question you’ll have to answer as you die, try again, and die again. If I had a nickel for every interesting time loop adventure game I’ve played on Switch this month, I’d have… well, I’d have ten cents, but it’s weird that it happened twice. Reviews are all over the board for other versions, so we’ll have to see how people take to this one.

Growth ($9.99)

Speaking of odd coincidences, here’s our second game this week that involves trying to bring back nature to barren land. You’re meant to connect clusters of nature to expand your map, using animals and their various abilities to facilitate this task. There are eight different animals and nine different types of tiles, and since the maps are procedurally generated you could conceivably just play this game forever. Well, I imagine the heat death of the universe will put an end to your fun, but close enough. And you might just want to, because this game is quite good. Definitely worth chilling with.

Backroom: Constructions ($9.99)

This game is… odd. It’s partly an isometric action game, and partly an isometric Minecraft-style crafting game. The art style is certainly distinctive. Well, that’s really all I can say about it. I haven’t had much of a chance to play into it, so it’s a big question mark and I think it wants to be. The only decision is whether or not you care to resolve that mystery by buying it and playing it.

20 Minutes Till Dawn ($4.99)

Well, it’s been at least a day or two since the last Vampire Survivors-style game released on Switch, I suppose we’re due for another one. This is a solid one, at least. It has a cool theme to it, though those who are photosensitive will want to give it a pass since it can be a bit flashy. If you need something to play while we wait for the latest Vampire Survivors update to hit the Switch version, this game just might scratch the itch.

Arcade Archives Mystic Warriors ($7.99)

While I’m sure some of you reading this have played this 1993 Konami game, I’m willing to bet many of you have not. That’s because this arcade game has never come to a home console until now. This is a wild four-player action game in the vein of things like Sunset Riders, and that’s probably all I need to say. If you like 90s arcade games, you’ll want to add this one to your collection.

Eggconsole Silpheed PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49)

It’s always nice to see a magic trick in action, and Silpheed is one heck of a show. This is a game from 1986, and yet it’s pulling off a fairly convincing 3D effect. Once you get past the visuals, this is a rather standard shoot-em-up. It plays well enough and the spectacle helps the entertainment value. Of course here in 2023 this isn’t going to knock off any socks, but students of gaming history will find plenty to enjoy with this.

Eggconsole Hydlide PC-8801 ($6.49)

Last week we had Xanadu, and now here’s another one of the grandfathers of Japanese RPGs: Hydlide. This series isn’t terribly well-regarded in the West, and I think that’s partly because the games it inspired ended up beating it to the market outside of Japan. You certainly don’t get the Ys series if this game hadn’t existed, and you can spot its fingerprints all throughout the history of Japanese action-RPGs in particular. Like most trailblazers, it can be a bit rough to play today. Nevertheless, it’s nice to have an official option to play it today. Perhaps it can wash the bad taste of the NES port out of the mouths of those who played it?

Rough Justice ’84 ($19.99)

Not sure how I missed the first eighty-three installments in this series. I hope I can understand the story. Oh, what? It’s referring to the year 1984? Well, I’m rather embarrassed now. Yes, in a novel turn this game takes inspiration from the 1980s, which is sure to please the underserved audience nostalgic for that era. This is a single-player game inspired by board games, which means you’re going to be using dice. Use the right agents in the right places to solve crimes, but be warned: it’s going to take a loose cannon to bring justice to these streets.

Bulanci ($9.99)

Pillows doing violence upon other pillows in this arena shooter for up to eight players via local multiplayer. You get a variety of modes and customization options, with a lot of weird humor packed in. Some might find this game familiar; it was originally released as a freeware game on computers back in 2001. Nothing I’d run down the street shouting about, but if you have regular gaming nights with lots of people this might be a good pick.

Cape’s Escape Game 6th Room ($9.80)

Welcome to Cow Moo Land!

SokoWinter ($4.99)

One hundred levels of ice block pushing fun, for those who can’t get enough of Sokoban-style puzzles. Played from an isometric view, just for that extra bit of challenge.

Cleaning Queens ($5.99)

Yet another hidden object game. This one looks a lot more modest than the usual fare in this genre, but I suppose the price is also rather modest. Do what you must.

Courageous Reasoning Nori 4 Crossing Sea Street 4 ($1.50)

A short visual novel that is presented exclusively in Japanese. I’d throw it in the Bin Bunch, but I continue to be amused enough by these oddly translated titles to keep it in the regular listings.

The Bin Bunch

Sniper – Elite Shooter Squad ($8.99)

Anime Tank Blitz – Warbound Legends ($11.99)

Bike Courier: Bistro Express Delivery ($11.99)

The World of War II: Frontlines of History ($13.99)

Santa’s World ($2.99)

I Seek! Where is “Picto"-San? ($8.99)

Aery – Calm Mind 4 ($9.99)

My Lovely Dog Adventure ($9.99)

Breakout Birdie ($2.99)

Breakout Birdie 2 ($2.99)

Breakout Birdie Adventure ($2.99)

Sales

(North American eShop. US Prices)

Quite the list there today. I’ll immediately point at the Arcade Archives games, as they rarely go on sale and most of them will only ever have one sale. Little Noah is at a new low price, and the arcade-like Raindrop Sprinters is also offering a decent discount. Check through both lists carefully, friends. You never know what might grab your eye. But if it does, tell it to put it back. Very rude to grab someone’s eye like that.

Select New Sales

Hamster on Rails ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/1)
Kind Heart Defenders ($3.19 from $3.99 until 1/1)
Mail Time ($15.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Dreamscaper ($7.49 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Hello Goodboy ($9.89 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Dark Deity ($6.24 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Gunscape ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
One More Island ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
War Tech Fighters ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Projection: First Light ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Spidersaurs ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
River City Girls ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Shantae ($6.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
Shantae: Half-Genie Hero ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Shantae & the Seven Sirens ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)

Death Becomes You ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/5)
The Bridge Curse: Road to Salvation ($19.49 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Mugen Souls Z ($31.99 from $39.99 until 1/5)
Lost Epic ($8.99 from $17.99 until 1/5)
Rainbow Skies ($12.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
SENSEs: Midnight ($9.74 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Another World Mahjong Girl ($7.49 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Omen of Sorrow ($12.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Working Hard Collection ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/5)
Sephonie ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Ashina: The Red Witch ($5.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Embraced By Autumn ($11.39 from $18.99 until 1/5)
Moto Roader MC ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/5)
Gynoug ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/5)
Avenging Spirit ($2.99 from $5.99 until 1/5)

Bone Marrow ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/5)
Gleylancer ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/5)
Mrs Cat Between Worlds ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/5)
Super Ninja Miner ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/6)
Gimmick: Special Edition ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Little Noah: Scion of Paradise ($5.24 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Backpack Twins ($8.39 from $11.99 until 1/6)
Camped Out! ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Prizma Puzzle Prime ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/6)
Lost Snowmen ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/6)
Nostalgic Train ($9.79 from $13.99 until 1/6)
Last Labyrinth: Lucidity Lost ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/6)
Pronty ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Arcade Archives Rabio Lepus ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
Arcade Archives Seicross ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)

Arcade Archives Saboten Bombers ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
Arcade Archives XX Mission ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
Arcade Archives Hacha Mecha Fighter ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
ACA NEOGEO Metal Slug 2 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
ACA NEOGEO Samurai Shodown III ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
ACA NEOGEO Aero Fighters 2 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
ACA NEOGEO World Heroes 2 Jet ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
ACA NEOGEO Blue’s Journey ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
ACA NEOGEO Real Bout Fatal Fury ($3.99 from $7.99 until 1/6)
The Atla Archives ($2.09 from $14.99 until 1/7)
Aeternum Quest ($2.49 from $9.99 until 1/7)
Wathitdew Record Game Studio Battlefield ($3.49 from $9.99 until 1/7)
Adventure Field 4 ($2.49 from $9.99 until 1/7)
West Water ($2.74 from $10.99 until 1/7)
Project Knight 2: Dusk of Souls ($2.24 from $8.99 until 1/7)

Raindrop Sprinters ($6.09 from $8.70 until 1/8)
Angel Whisper ($6.59 from $9.99 until 1/8)
Cyjin: The Cyborg Ninja ($2.99 from $9.99 until 1/8)
Primal Light ($4.49 from $14.99 until 1/8)
Lies as a Starting Point ($4.00 from $8.00 until 1/8)
Shinobi Non Grata ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/10)
Picontier ($22.49 from $24.99 until 1/10)
The Missing: JJ Macfield ($7.49 from $29.99 until 1/10)
Guilty Gear ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
Railed Up ($2.39 from $5.99 until 1/10)
Escape First ($3.24 from $4.99 until 1/10)
Escape First 2 ($3.24 from $4.99 until 1/10)
Escape First 3 ($3.24 from $4.99 until 1/10)
The Experiment: Escape Room ($2.59 from $3.99 until 1/10)
Curious Cases ($3.24 from $4.99 until 1/10)

Escape 2088 ($2.60 from $4.00 until 1/10)
Great Ambition of the Slimes ($10.79 from $11.99 until 1/10)
Worldless ($15.99 from $19.99 until 1/10)
Syberia 3 ($1.99 from $24.99 until 1/10)
Kamiko ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/10)
Stay Cool, Kobayashi-San! ($1.99 from $13.99 until 1/10)
Longhead ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
DEEMO ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/10)
Fairune Collection ($3.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
Transiruby ($10.49 from $14.99 until 1/10)
Once Upon a Time on Halloween ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
Mariozza Cops ($1.99 from $9.80 until 1/10)
emoji Music ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
UFS League ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
SubOcto ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)

Ninja Striker ($1.99 from $3.99 until 1/10)
Ninja Smasher ($6.39 from $7.99 until 1/10)
Alchemic Dungeons DX ($3.19 from $7.99 until 1/10)
Damascus Gear Operation Tokyo ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/10)
Fantasy Hero: Unsigned Legacy ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
Gear.Club Unlimited 2 ($1.99 from $24.99 until 1/10)
Santa Throw ($1.99 from $9.89 until 1/10)
Dissolved: Chapter One ($3.99 from $9.99 until 1/10)
The Smile Alchemist ($12.99 from $19.99 until 10/11)
RPGolf Legends ($14.99 from $29.99 until 10/11)
Cross Tails ($22.49 from $29.99 until 10/11)
Raging Bytes ($10.49 from $14.99 until 10/11)
Overrogue ($9.74 from $14.99 until 10/11)
Q.U.B.E. 10th Anniversary ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/11)
Jack Axe ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/11)
Gemini ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/11)
Birdie Wing: Golf Girls Story ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/11)
Rumble Sus ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/11)
Clive ‘N’ Wrench ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/11)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, December 22nd

4×4 Dirt Track ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)
4×4 Offroad Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
4×4 Offroad Driver 2 ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Archery Club ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Base Jump Wing Suit Flying ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Baseball Club ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Bike Jump ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Bomb ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Camper Van Simulator ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Camper Van Simulator 2 ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Car Dealer Driver ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Car Driver Ultimate ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)
Car Factory Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Car Parking Club ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Car Parking Simulator ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)

Car Racing Trials ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Cargo Crew Driver ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Carnage: Battle Arena ($1.99 from $15.99 until 12/22)
City Stunt Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
City Traffic Driver ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)
City Traffic Driver 2 ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Coast Guard: Beach Rescue Team ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Construction Ramp Jumping ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Construction Simulator 3 ($6.99 from $19.99 until 12/22)
Construction Site Driver ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)
Construction Site Driver 2 ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Crazy Plane Landing ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Detective Driver: Miami Files ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Drift & Drive ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Driving Quest ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)

Driving World: Aspen ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Driving World: Italian Job ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Driving World: Nordic Challenge ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)
EchoBlade ($4.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Emergency Driver Simulator ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)
Extreme Car Driver ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Firefighting Simulator The Squad ($27.99 from $34.99 until 12/22)
Gas Station: Highway Services ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Idle Inventor: Factory Tycoon ($1.99 from $10.99 until 12/22)
Inertia 2 ($3.70 from $4.39 until 12/22)
Jump Into The Plane ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Jump the Car ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Monster Truck XT Airport Derby ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)
Moving Out 2 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 12/22)
Mugen Souls ($31.99 from $39.99 until 12/22)

Multi Race: Match the Car ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Multilevel Parking Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
New York City Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Offroad Night Racing ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Paradise Island Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Quarry Truck Simulator ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Race Track Driver ($1.99 from $11.99 until 12/22)
Ramp Bike Jumping ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Rayland ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/22)
Roof Jump Stunt Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Shopping Mall Parking Lot ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Ski Resort Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Slingshot Stunt Driver & Sports ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Sports Car Driver ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)
Super Car Driver ($1.99 from $13.99 until 12/22)

Super Hero Driving School ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Super Hero Flying School ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Through the Years ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/22)
Under the Warehouse ($3.89 from $5.99 until 12/22)
Venice Taxi Boats ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/22)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow to wrap up the remaining releases and sales of the week, and if I have time we should have some specials for you soon as well. I really messed up my back somehow, so I’m not very mobile at the moment. I’m going to be glad to send this year packing, to be honest. It’s been a bad one. I hope you all have a nice Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

First of all, there are fourteen days of nice login rewards. If you’re finding out from this story, you’ve probably missed the first one. It was just 250 Credits, so don’t worry too much. Hop on there today and you’ll get 65 random Boosters, which is cool. Keep on checking in and you’ll get more Credits, some Gold, more Boosters, a few Variants, a new Title, and a new Avatar. Check the picture below for the schedule, complete with what rewards you can expect on which days. Free stuff! What a concept!

Next up, the Winterverse Shop Takeover. On Christmas Day and the day we in Canada call Boxing Day (December 26th), the in-game shop will be stuffed full of Winterverse variants. Abomination, Debrii, Devil Dinosaur, Ebony Maw, Patriot, Rock Slide, and Rogue will be properly dressed for the weather and waiting for you to add them to your collection. I already have Devil Dinosaur from last year and I can certify that he is absolutely adorable.

Lastly, there are some new Twitch Drops. Choose your favorite Marvel Snap streamer (you have one, surely?), and watch them for two, four, and six hours to unlock successive rewards. You’ll have to link your Marvel Snap and Twitch accounts to make it work, but it’s all relatively easy and painless. You’ll get random Boosters, Credits, and a random Variant for it. I suggest just putting it on in the background and minimizing it. You’ll have your goodies sharp-ish. I mean, unless you enjoy watching others play Snap. In which case this will be an easy one for you to clear.

That’s about it for the Winterverse event for Marvel Snap. There are probably a few other things, but they’ll likely cost big bucks. Such is how it goes. Something has to keep the multi-colored twinkling lights on. Still, that’s plenty of free stuff to enjoy as you pass the holidays trying to hide from arguments with your relatives. And isn’t that what it’s all about? Yeah. Yeah. As the man says, Happy Snapping!

Reviews & Mini-Views

Raccoo Venture ($14.99)

We see a fair number of 3D platformers these days, with even indie developers getting in on the action. They vary in scope and where they draw inspiration from, and some are certainly more successful than others. Raccoo Venture comes to us by way of developer Diego Ras and publisher QUByte Interactive, and it’s certainly a big swing for the latter. You play as a little raccoon who is on a quest to get all of his chess pieces and board back from some jerks who took them. It’s a very familiar pair of shoes if you were playing games during the collectathon heyday of the late 1990s and early 2000s, even if it doesn’t quite fit the mold in every way.

For starters, levels are a fair bit more linear than some of those classic games. Indeed, they feel a bit more like levels from Super Mario 3D World in how they play out. A little bit of room for exploration, but you’re largely going to be funneled from one little area to another. You can’t move the camera around, but the game is mainly designed in consideration of that. There are hidden things to find in each stage, and you’ll need to have sharp eyes, a bit of wit, and some manual dexterity to find them all. You can also get new costumes which are simply cosmetic but are still welcome.

Broadly speaking, Raccoo Venture plays well enough. The jumping is a bit stiff, and the ground pound attack feels a little awkward to use at times. The penalty for falling off an edge is fairly severe compared to taking hits, and it’s really easy to mess up until you become extremely well acquainted with how the main character moves. The way the enemy AI behaves is also a bit strange, something that again takes some getting used to. Still, once you do it’s all very workable. Nothing amazing, but you’ll have a decent enough time with it if you enjoy the genre.

That’s really how I would sum up Raccoo Venture on the whole. It’s a solid, but not spectacular, entry into the 3D platforming genre. I think if you’re a fan of 3D platformers, you probably won’t be disappointed with what you get here. Those less interested in the genre likely won’t find much to change their minds. I also don’t imagine it will stick in anyone’s memories all too often. It does its job, and maybe that’s enough.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

New Releases

Terra Nil ($24.99)

This game describes itself as a reverse city builder, and that seems like a fun way to sum it up. You’re trying to restore nature to a lifeless landscape using advanced eco-technology, and with procedurally generated maps you can keep on doing it as many times as you like. Create a balanced ecosystem and move on to the next place that needs your help. I’ll have a review of this one as soon as I can swing it.

Twin Mind: Murderous Jealousy Collector’s Edition ($14.99)

Yes, we just had one of these last week. No, this one doesn’t do anything different. Just another case for the twin detectives, this time involving a murder at a theater. Look for hidden objects, play some mini-games, you know how it goes.

All I Want for Christmas are Subgames CE ($9.99)

This is a collection of more than twenty mini-games with a strong emphasis on Christmas themes. Think things like crosswords, spot the differences, and other such fare from actual puzzle books. Might be what you’re looking for to get yourself more into the seasonal mood.

The Bin Bunch

Airport ($9.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

A few goodies today. RPG fans might want to look into Trails into Reverie, while shoot-em-up enjoyers would do well to check out RayStorm X RayCrisis HD Collection. Those who want to relive the Amiga years can grab the Turrican sets on the cheap, and if you like exploratory platformers but have somehow missed the Ori games up until now, you can get those at great prices as well. There are some things to see in the outbox, but I’ll let you deal with that on your own.

Select New Sales

Snow Madness ($2.09 from $2.99 until 12/25)
Age of Sokoban ($2.09 from $2.99 until 12/25)
Jigsaw Tetra ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/25)
Retro Space Fighter ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/25)
Minepull ($2.09 from $2.99 until 12/25)
Alone Music ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/25)
Zumba Garden ($1.99 from $2.99 until 1/1)
Silt ($6.89 from $14.99 until 1/1)
Little Friends: Puppy Island ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Lifeslide ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/1)
TLoH: Trails into Reverie ($44.99 from $59.99 until 1/1)
Mad Rat Dead ($23.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Kamiwaza: Way of the Thief ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
CRYMACHINA ($47.99 from $59.99 until 1/1)
Disgaea 7 Complete Edition ($87.99 from $109.99 until 1/1)

Jitsu Squad ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/3)
RayStorm X RayCrisis HD Collection ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/3)
Cursed to Golf ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Lonely Mountains: Downhill ($7.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Wavetale ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/3)
Taito Milestones 2 ($31.99 from $39.99 until 1/3)
Turrican Flashback ($8.99 from $29.99 until 1/3)
Turrican Anthology Vol. I ($10.49 from $34.99 until 1/3)
Turrican Anthology Vol. II ($10.49 from $34.99 until 1/3)
Puzzle Bobble Everybubble! ($29.99 from $39.99 until 1/3)
Ori & the Blind Forest: Definitive ($6.59 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Ori & the Will of the Wisps ($9.89 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Side View Golf ($4.79 from $5.99 until 1/7)
Pan-Dimensional Conga Combat ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/8)
Void Scrappers ($2.39 from $3.99 until 1/8)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 20th

A Knight’s Quest ($3.74 from $24.99 until 12/20)
American Fugitive ($2.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)
Autonauts ($6.79 from $19.99 until 12/20)
Beholder: Complete Edition ($2.24 from $14.99 until 12/20)
Bomber Crew ($2.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)
Chenso Club ($6.69 from $9.99 until 12/20)
Embr ($4.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)
For The King ($6.24 from $24.99 until 12/20)
From Space ($6.74 from $14.99 until 12/20)
Hotshot Racing ($2.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)
Hue ($2.49 from $9.99 until 12/20)
Human: Fall Flat ($5.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)
Just Die Already ($3.74 from $14.99 until 12/20)
LocO-SportS ($2.15 from $5.99 until 12/20)
Manual Samuel ($2.49 from $9.99 until 12/20)

Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle ($13.99 from $39.99 until 12/20)
Motorsport Manager ($3.74 from $14.99 until 12/20)
Pumped BMX Pro ($2.24 from $14.99 until 12/20)
Serial Cleaner ($2.24 from $14.99 until 12/20)
Smoke and Sacrifice ($2.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)
Space Crew: Legendary Edition ($7.49 from $24.99 until 12/20)
Space Warrior ($4.99 from $9.99 until 12/20)
The Swindle ($2.24 from $14.99 until 12/20)
Velocity 2X ($2.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)
When Ski Lifts Go Wrong ($2.24 from $14.99 until 12/20)
You Suck at Parking ($13.99 from $19.99 until 12/20)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with a handful of new releases, the usual lists of sales, and perhaps a review or some news items. I actually have to go to the fancy hospital tomorrow for a check-up, so my time is going to be a bit shorter than the average Wednesday. I’ll do my best anyway. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Reviews & Mini-Views

SteamWorld Build ($29.99)

This is certainly an interesting turn for the SteamWorld series, but one that somehow manages to fit well. This series has been all over the place in terms of genres. We’ve had a tower defense game, a digging game with Metroidvania elements, a turn-based strategy game, a Metroidvania game with digging elements, and an RPG. And now with SteamWorld Build we have a city builder with digging elements. Sure, why not? It’s set in the same world as the other games, which can best be described as a mix of Steampunk Western and Steampunk Sci-Fi. You’re building your own robot mining town, while also exploring the underground for fortune and the answers to a mystery or two.

I think the SteamWorld games do a good job of being accessible and charming, and that’s exactly what you get here. Even if you don’t usually play city builders, you’ll find this one easy to get into. I also think the UI is quite well done for a console game, which is something a lot of games in this genre mess up when they make the hop to Switch. The tutorial walks you through everything you need to know, and you can skip it if you feel you don’t need it. The city building part of the game works very similarly to most other games in the genre, where you need to make use of your limited resources to try to keep your citizens happy along various parameters. As you go, you’ll unlock new types of buildings and what-not so that things are always staying fresh.

The underground part is an interesting twist. You’re basically having to dig out the mines to find materials and resources. But there are dangers down there, and you’ll need to build defenses to keep your workers safe. This ends up feeling like a cousin of the classic Dungeon Keeper, and that’s a peanut butter I’ll let into my chocolate any day of the week. The pacing is really nice in this game, and one thing always seems to lead into the next quite smoothly. There is an ultimate goal to the game, and it’s one you’ll get to almost inevitably in about ten hours. There are a few different types of maps you can play on, plus you can make the underground procedurally generate each time, adding a bit of replay value to the game.

SteamWorld Build is, like the other games in this series, a very friendly and well-paced game. I think that’s a double-edged blade, as veterans of the genre might find it all a bit too streamlined and deterministic. Still, the game is a really good time while it lasts, and I appreciate all the attempts to mix things up without losing the basic enjoyment this genre offers. The game plays really well on Switch, too. If you’re looking for a fun entry-level builder, you might want to give this a look.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

While the Iron’s Hot ($19.99)

I believe there to be a good idea at the core of While the Iron’s Hot. It’s an action-adventure game of sorts with a blacksmithing theme. It has really charming pixel art, and at first I really got into the way the game was progressing. There’s a pleasant mix of gameplay elements here, with a real attempt to keep things fresh by throwing some different mini-games and such at you. It almost has a puzzle-platformer vibe at times when you’re out gathering resources, and that’s something that could have been built on in interesting ways.

Unfortunately, I just found this game to get tiresome by a certain point. The story is one we’ve seen a million times before, the requests you have to fill for the NPCs just feel like an unending grind, and while the blacksmithing is fun it’s not really enough to carry the whole game on its back. Throw in a fair number of unpleasant bugs like randomly disappearing inventory items, and While the Iron’s Hot seems like it needed a bit more time in the fire.

SwitchArcade Score: 3/5

A Highland Song ($17.99)

It’s always comforting to see the inkle name on a game, because that is one publisher I know will never let me down. The visuals are going to be gorgeous, the soundtrack is going to be amazing, the writing is going to be excellent, and the gameplay will always be thoughtful even if it doesn’t fully click. A Highland Song is all of those things, and I’m happy to have it. At first I was expecting a good-looking narrative game, completely linear but a good enough ride that I wouldn’t care. But that’s not what A Highland Song is, really. Despite being a 2D affair, there’s a fair bit of exploration to this game and a lot of mysteries to uncover. While not exactly the same kind of thing, it gave me a lot of the same feelings that A Short Hike did.

You play as a girl named Moira who decides to run away from home after a letter from her uncle urges her to come to the lighthouse by the seaside where he lives. She sets off with only a few items in her backpack, determined to make her way across the highlands to see him. There’s a time limit in play, so you’ll not want to lollygag too much. At the same time, the path there isn’t as direct as you might initially expect. It branches at various points, and you’ll need to pick up hints and search out paths to find the best route. Some paths will only open after you solve puzzles, while others might require an item you could have found along your travels. You’ll come across little bits of lore and other points of interest, and can take in the view whenever you reach one of the many peaks of the Scottish Highlands.

Sometimes you’ll come across a deer, which results in Moira picking up speed and chasing after it. You’ll play a mini rhythm game of sorts as one of a selection of fine musical pieces plays. Successfully completing one of these will make Moira stronger, and they just feel good to play. But this isn’t simply a nice little outing. You’ll need to manage Moira’s health, stopping to rest when you can and sleep when you must. There’s a fair bit of rain that will make things a lot more miserable for Moira and might even prevent you from taking some paths.

You can’t just hunker down anywhere, either. You need to find proper shelter to sleep under unless you want to make things even worse. It’s possible you could get lost or wander around in circles, and once I found myself in a very tough situation due to Moira being exhausted and the way out being extremely treacherous. There’s a lot to see in A Highland Song, and not all of it will be along the optimal or easiest path. It is, nevertheless, worth seeing all of it. This is a case where the journey is the finest reward, and there are many different rewards awaiting those who poke around.

A Highland Song is another winner from inkle, and despite being a complete genre shift from 80 Days it has a lot of the same things going for it. It’s a beautiful game to be sure, and the writing is both meaningful and a pleasure to parse. But the gameplay itself uses what are fairly basic mechanics to create a surprisingly complex journey, one that offers so many secrets and branching paths that you’ll almost certainly want to play through it again the minute you arrive at the conclusion for the first time. A real joy, in every sense of the word.

SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5

New Releases

The Monty Mole Collection ($6.99)

Well, it doesn’t get more British than this. You get emulated versions of the original trilogy of Gremlin’s Monty Mole games, plus two Monty-related bonuses in the form of Moley Christmas and Sam Stoat: Safebreaker. I can’t be 100% sure which versions of each game are here, but the smart money is on all of them being the Commodore 64 ones given the developer behind it. I suppose I’ll know once it unlocks for me. (Shaun of the Future here. It includes the Spectrum and C64 versions of all games where such options exist.)

Gates of the Mind ($14.99)

This doesn’t look like particularly fancy dining, but I like do like to give the benefit of the doubt with publishers that don’t ring a bell. Anyway, this is just a 2D platformer. Its main stand-out point is that the main character is a Canadian logger, and that’s certainly unusual. Not sure I’d gamble that fifteen bucks on Canuck power alone, but you do you.

Fireball Wizard ($9.99)

Well, I guess it’s one of those days. This is a rather modest-looking game, but it plays fairly well. You’re a wizard who needs to make their way through more than forty stages spread across four worlds. You get new abilities as you go and can upgrade your wizard’s powers. You might have played this one before on mobile, and if you haven’t you can always use that version to get a little taste of what you can expect. Decent five-dollar Switch platformer energy, but you know how inflation is recently.

The Bin Bunch

Tennis 2024 Simulator ($5.99)

Escape From The Island ($9.99)

Hentai Golf ($21.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

That is one mighty list for a Monday, friends. Lots of new low prices to consider, particularly on a few games that maybe cost a little too much for some at their regular prices. I’ll let you decide which games those are as you scan through the inbox. To counter the massive list of new sales, we only have one wrapping up. Easier to read!

Select New Sales

Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection ($26.99 from $29.99 until 1/2)
WorldWide FlightSimulator ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)
Aireo FlightSimulator ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/2)
Corpse Factory ($7.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Timelie ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Monster Harvest ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Spirit of the North ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Aragami: Shadow Edition ($5.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Rogue Glitch Ultra ($9.59 from $11.99 until 1/5)
Blair Witch ($7.49 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Cloudpunk ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Bramble: The Mountain King ($14.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
No Place Like Home ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Hirilun ($7.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Bulldozer Tycoon: Construction Simulator ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)

Aragami 2 ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/5)
Pumpkin Jack ($7.49 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Dr. Fetus’ Mean Meat Machine ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/5)
Spells & Secrets ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Cry Babies Magic Tears: The Big Game ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/5)
Package Inc ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/5)
Time on Frog Island ($6.24 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Necrosmith ($1.99 from $7.99 until 1/5)
Vaporum ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Foreclosed ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Deathrun TV ($2.24 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Buildings Have Feelings Too ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
UNBOX: Newbie’s Adventure ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
Bounty Battle ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/5)
PAWfectly Designed ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)

Morbid: The Seven Acolytes ($3.74 from $24.99 until 1/5)
Ping Pong Arcade ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Slaycation Paradise ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Truberbrook ($1.99 from $29.99 until 1/5)
FerroSlug ($2.26 from $5.67 until 1/5)
Bridge Constructor Ultimate ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Bridge Constructor Portal ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/5)
Super Mabus Mania ($3.15 from $7.89 until 1/5)
Nape Retroverse Collection ($2.79 from $6.99 until 1/5)
WarriOrb ($1.99 from $12.99 until 1/5)
Darker Skies ($2.69 from $17.99 until 1/5)
Rytmos ($6.00 from $15.00 until 1/5)
Fresh Start ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/5)
Operation Wolf Returns: 1st Mission ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/6)

Vernal Edge ($15.39 from $21.99 until 1/6)
Mari & Bayu: The Road Home ($10.19 from $16.99 until 1/6)
Healer’s Quest ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Astrologaster ($3.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Skelittle: A Giant Party ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Ashwalkers ($8.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Burly Men at Sea ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Lost Phone Stories ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Foretales ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Pompom: The Great Space Rescue ($5.49 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Instant Sports Winter Games ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/6)
Instant Sports Plus ($16.24 from $24.99 until 1/6)
Instant Sports Summer Games ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Instant Sports ($4.49 from $14.99 until 1/6)
My Universe: My Baby Dragon ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/6)

My Universe: Puppies & Kittens ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/6)
Letters: A Written Adventure ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Ruggnar ($8.39 from $13.99 until 1/6)
Gravity Circuit ($16.49 from $21.99 until 1/6)
Skabma: Snowfall ($18.74 from $24.99 until 1/6)
Abandon Ship ($9.99 from $24.99 until 1/6)
Elypse ($14.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Nocturnal ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Ghost of a Tale ($8.74 from $24.99 until 1/6)
Linelight ($3.49 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Children of Zodiarcs ($3.59 from $17.99 until 1/6)
Before I Forget ($4.39 from $7.99 until 1/6)
They Always Run ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Double Kick Heroes ($8.79 from $21.99 until 1/6)
Alba: A Wildlife Adventure ($6.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)

Revita ($11.89 from $16.99 until 1/6)
Out of Space: Couch Edition ($2.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Piczle Cross Adventure ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
PictoQuest ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
ScourgeBringer ($5.94 from $16.99 until 1/6)
Lethis: Path of Progress ($6.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Chroma Squad ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Astria Ascending ($17.99 from $39.99 until 1/6)
The Dungeon of Naheulbeuk ($17.99 from $39.99 until 1/6)
Guild of Ascension ($7.64 from $16.99 until 1/6)
Cassiodora ($11.04 from $16.99 until 1/6)
Run: The World In-Between ($5.99 from $9.99 until 1/6)
Souldiers ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)
Iris and the Giant ($5.24 from $14.99 until 1/6)
Scrap Riders ($7.99 from $19.99 until 1/6)

Old School Musical ($2.59 from $12.99 until 1/6)
Spirit of the Island ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/6)
KnifeBoy Rebooted ($7.49 from $14.99 until 1/7)
Red Colony ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/7)
Red Colony 2 ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/7)
Red Colony 3 ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/7)
Killer Frequency ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/7)
Retro Revengers ($8.90 from $9.90 until 1/7)
Retro Mystery Club Vol.1: Ise-Shima Case ($8.90 from $9.90 until 1/7)
Menseki: Area Maze Search ($2.49 from $4.99 until 1/7)
Epic Chef ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/7)
Crown Trick ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/7)
King of Seas ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/7)
Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/7)
Neon Abyss ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/7)
The Survivalists ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/7)
Yooka-Laylee & the Impossible Lair ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/7)
Monster Sanctuary ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/7)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 19th

Retro Rollers Bundle ($2.99 from $9.99 until 12/19)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more reviews, more new releases, more sales, and perhaps some news. The weather has been all over the place lately, with some days I’d say have been nearly summer-like this month. Today, however, is quite chilly. I didn’t dress for it, so I’m the fool now. That’s how it goes sometimes. I hope you all have a magnificent Monday, and as always, thanks for reading!

GUBBINS — It's a word game, Free A cute little update for this cute little word game. There are some limited-time Christmas-themed stickers and postcards you can use. Some new accessibility options, a new Daily Streak counter, and some updates to the UI and dictionary. There are also a whole mess of bug fixes, which is nice to see. I didn’t really run into any so far, but now that they’re fixed, I’ll double not run into them!

Jetpack Joyride, Free And now it is time for the Jetpack Joyride Christmas event. Collect flying baubles to earn some cool seasonal prizes, like the Cozy Cuddles, the Holiday Hues Jetpack, the Party Crown, and of course, the Ugly Sweater. Everything is nicely decked out in holiday style, so put on your toque and down jacket and get collecting! Or just spend money! Both are appropriate for the season.

MARVEL Future Fight, Free Oh right, What If Season 2 starts airing on Disney Plus soon. Cool. Looks like Marvel Future Fight is the only game doing a tie-in with it, giving us the new hero Kahhori and some new uniforms for Hela, Wenwu, and Super Nova Nebula. Hela gets her Tier-4 advancement, and Wenwu goes Tier-3. A Kahhori-themed Event Battle has been added, and there’s a new What If themed comic card collection. No Spider-Mans though, so I’m keeping my coveted award for now.

Disney Magic Kingdoms, Free To introduce this update, that’s what I’m here to do, and so I’m very honored, to introduce to you… Kermit the Frog! And many other Muppets, including Rowlf, The Swedish Chef, Animal, and of course the elegant Miss Piggy. The new attractions include Kermit’s Swamp and Muppet*Vision 3D, and there are some new concessions in the form of the Animal Mask Stand and the Sam Eagle Sipper Stand. It’s all capped off with the Muppets Parade Float. I do love the Muppets. Might be a generational thing, not sure.

Injustice 2, Free An exceptionally rare Injustice 2 update, but I suppose with Aquaman 2 around the corner it was to be expected. There’s a new Realm Klash Solo Raid event that sees Scorpion crashing the DC party, some new Winter Login bonuses, some stuff related to the Aquaman movie, a new Legendary Hero in the form of Ocean Master Orm, and some bug fixes. Well, that should keep the engine purring until the next DC movie. When is that again?

Mortal Kombat, Free Mortal Kombat also got an update, which I guess is appropriate given what’s going on with its sister game. This update sees Edenian Blood Sindel join the game, finishing up the Edenian Blood team. She’s a nasty piece of work, so team her up with Edenian Blood Rain and Edenian Blood Kitana to see some sparks really fly. There are some new Kombat Pass seasons, returning Tower Events, a Holiday Advent Calendar, and a bunch of bug fixes and performance improvements. Sounds pretty good.

Diablo Immortal, Free A big update for Diablo Immortal, for those of you still playing. It’s called Splintered Souls, and it features a brand new zone to explore, five new Helliquary bosses to battle, a new event to join in on, some new mystical companions, and plenty of winter-themed shenanigans to partake of. Some of it went live last week, while other bits of it will spill out as this week goes on. Be sure to check in and see what’s new, if you’re that-way inclined.

Hello Kitty Island Adventure, Alright, time to use my executive powers here. I’m giving the coveted UMMSotW award to Hello Kitty Island Adventure this week without so much as looking at the update because I like the game so much. Let’s see what I’ve awarded it to. The Lighttime Jubilee has arrived on the island, and the whole gang is going to celebrate the end of year with a lovely light display. But to do that, you’re going to need a lot of lights. Explore the island and collect them to help out and you’ll be rewarded with some new furniture and decorations to fit the season. There are also some new visitors rolling up to the island: My Melody’s Mama, Papa, Grandma, and Grandpa to be exact. Ah, family for the holidays. Poor My Melody.

Angry Birds Reloaded, It might be winter, but these birds aren’t planning on heading south anytime soon. The Snowball Showdown episode gives you thirty new levels to play in the Secret Area, and Ice Bird and Matilda are dressed for the season with some new winter-themed skins. Throw in a jaunty holiday theme song and that’ll about do it for the Angry Birds for this year. Or at least, I think so?

Subway Surfers, Free Alright, let’s wrap this one up with a look at the latest version of Subway Surfers, which naturally sees the kids head to the North Pole. Clockwork Johnny and Captain Flash are the toy robots all the kids want, and you can unlock them and their sweet boards by completing some festive challenges. Bob the Blob also has some new threads to show off, and I think that’s adorable. There are various freebies and not-so-freebies available for the season as well, so fill your boots if you want.

That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Tuesday (I’m taking Christmas Day off) to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!

News

The ‘Super Mario Bros. Wonder’ Event in ‘Tetris 99’ Is On Now

The final Maximus Cup event of 2023 for Tetris 99 officially kicked off today. The subject this time is Super Mario Bros. Wonder, and the accompanying theme for it is pretty cool. A little distracting, but cool. As usual, you’ll earn event points by playing while the event is on, with the number of points corresponding to how high you rank. If you earn one hundred event points before the event finishes, you’ll get to keep the theme and use it whenever you like. The event runs through the end of this weekend, so don’t wait around too long to get it done if you want the theme.

New Releases

Hirilun ($9.99)

This is a first-person platformer with a distinctive style to its visuals. Each stage offers multiple routes, and your best times are saved so that you can try to outdo them on your next go around. Some power-ups add a bit of extra something-something to the fun. I haven’t had a chance to play it yet, so I can’t say if it’s as good as it looks, but I will concede that it does look rather nice.

Piyokoro ($8.99)

Oh hey, this is a cute one. You have these little round birds, and you have to roll them to the goal using various platforms and blocks. It sort of, extremely vaguely, reminds me of Kirby Canvas Curse, and that’s a good thing to be reminding me of. You an also make your own stages, if that’s a thing you like to do. Yes, this seems perfectly nice for what it is. Puzzle fans could do worse today, for sure.

All of Us Are Dead ($19.99)

A visual novel based on a webcomic series that was popular enough to have a live-action drama made of it. A bunch of students are trapped in their school after a zombie virus breaks out and turns their friends and teachers into the living undead. Make your choices and try to keep everyone alive. I’ve been over this kind of premise for more than a decade now, but if you still can’t get enough of zombies and enjoy visual novels, here you go.

Japan Train Models – JR West Edition ($13.99)

Like the previously released JR East Edition, this isn’t really a game so much as a virtual toy set of sorts. You can make little scenes and what-not using officially licensed Japan Rail trains and various other parts. This isn’t for me, but it’s definitely for someone.

Reef Escape ($14.99)

You play as a little worm in a bubble who is trying to escape from the reef it fell into after getting out of a fisherman’s bait can. Avoid the obstacles, search for secrets, and see if you can make it through without being eaten. This doesn’t look terribly fancy for the price, but that’s just my feeling.

Sakura Agent ($9.99)

Another Sakura visual novel, and I imagine we all know what to expect by now. The theme this time is that the cute ladies are secret agents, and there are some extra-dimensional forces attacking our world. I don’t know. Make choices, get smooches. Maybe save everyone? Your call.

The Bin Bunch

Stickman’s Arena ($4.99)

Poly Shooting Simulator ($7.99)

Never Be Afraid Slam Dunk ($19.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Lots of indies on sale today, and there are many more besides what I’ve put here. Head on to the eShop and see if anything from your Wish List is on sale, or sift through this list for some goodies. There is practically nothing in the outbox, so you don’t have to worry too much there.

Select New Sales

Tadpole Treble Encore ($4.49 from $8.99 until 12/29)
Loco Parentis ($4.09 from $9.99 until 12/29)
BDSM Big Drunk Satanic Massacre ($5.19 from $19.99 until 12/29)
Rento Fortune Monolit ($5.99 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Puddle Knights ($3.39 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Robotry ($4.99 from $12.49 until 12/29)
Vostok 2061 ($4.05 from $9.90 until 12/29)
Tape: Unveil the Memories ($8.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
The Last Worker ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Elta7 ($3.09 from $15.49 until 1/1)
Pupperazzi ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Tiny Troopers: Global Ops ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Light Fingers ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Tin Hearts ($17.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
Boyfriend Dungeon ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)

Hellboy Web of Wyrd ($18.74 from $24.99 until 1/1)
art of rally ($13.74 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Sandream ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Kittengumi: The Sakaboto’s Thief ($7.49 from $9.99 until 1/1)
Arcade Paradise ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Paper Dash: Ghost Hunt ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/2)
Golazo! 2 ($3.74 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Fall of Porcupine ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Ultimate ADOM: Caverns of Chaos ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Oaken ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Pizza Tycoon ($2.09 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Far: Lone Sails ($2.09 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Super Planet Life ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
Orbital Bullet ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
The Testament of Sherlock Holmes ($8.74 from $24.99 until 1/4)

A Juggler’s Tale ($2.15 from $17.99 until 1/4)
Castle on the Coast ($2.24 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Big Pharma ($3.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Effie ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Interrogation: You Will Be Deceived ($2.07 from $12.99 until 1/4)
May’s Mysteries: Secret of Dragonville ($4.94 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Weedcraft Inc ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Itorah ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Minute of Islands ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Dungeon and Gravestone ($4.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Ginsha ($14.95 from $17.80 until 1/4)
BlockQuest Maker Complete ($4.99 from $24.97 until 1/4)
DoDonPachi Resurrection ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Espgaluda II ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Mushihimesama ($11.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)

Whispike Survivors ($1.99 from $2.99 until 1/4)
Dolphin Spirit: Ocean Mission ($23.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Watch ($4.19 from $5.99 until 1/4)
Everybody’s Home Run Rush ($2.00 from $5.00 until 1/4)
Kung Fury: Street Rage Ultimate ($4.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Inspector Gadget: MAD Time Party ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Mercenaries Rebirth: Call of the Wild Lynx ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Heist Force ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
BROK the InvestiGator ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/4)
Earth Defense Force: World Brothers ($19.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Pub Encounter ($6.79 from $16.99 until 1/4)
Destiny’s Princess: A War Story, A Love Story ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Office Lovers ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Dangerous Relationship ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Secrets of Me ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)

THE Bass Fishing ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
THE Card Perfect Collection ($8.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Samurai Maiden Deluxe Edition ($44.99 from $74.99 until 1/4)
Forest Golf Planner ($7.20 from $12.00 until 1/4)
Dream Park Story ($7.00 from $14.00 until 1/4)
Pocket Academy 3 ($7.00 from $14.00 until 1/4)
Zoo Park Story ($7.20 from $12.00 until 1/4)
Dungeon Village 2 ($6.00 from $12.00 until 1/4)
Game Dev Story ($2.80 from $14.00 until 1/4)
Astronite ($10.49 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Neighbours Back From Hell ($4.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Spitlings ($2.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Radiant Silvergun ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Dicey Dungeons ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
The Creepy Syndrome ($3.49 from $4.99 until 1/4)

Createscape Town Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($2.00 from $4.90 until 1/4)
Prepare the First RPG Village Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($2.00 from $4.90 until 1/4)
Escape from Mirrorland Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($2.00 from $4.90 until 1/4)
Let’s Get Changed! Nyanzou & Kumakichi ($9.80 from $19.80 until 1/4)
Cape’s Escape Game 3rd Room ($2.00 from $9.80 until 1/4)
Marco & The Galaxy Dragon ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Hashihime of the Old Book Town Append ($30.82 from $61.64 until 1/4)
Steam Prison ($32.74 from $65.49 until 1/4)
Ephemeral: Fantasy on Dark ($18.99 from $37.99 until 1/4)
Hypnospace Outlaw ($6.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Nowhere Prophet ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/4)
The Crimson Flower that Divides ($23.44 from $46.89 until 1/4)
Rad Rodgers Radical Edition ($4.49 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Warm Snow ($13.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Agatha Christie: The Orient Express ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/4)
Cats on Streets ($1.99 from $3.99 until 1/4)

Sales Ending This Weekend

Demon Turf ($12.49 from $24.99 until 12/16)
Demon Turf: Neon Splash ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/16)
Sunwards ($7.50 from $15.00 until 12/17)
Yeah! Fighting Girl ($7.50 from $15.00 until 12/17)

That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next week with more reviews, more new releases, more sales, and perhaps some news. I suppose I’d better get to wrapping the presents this weekend. Time is ticking on that particular task. I hope you all have a wonderful weekend, and as always, thanks for reading!

If you’ve read any of my recent reviews of games that follow in this pattern, you can skip ahead to the next paragraph. This is just my general recommendation that you avoid picking up Dotemu’s conversion of Metal Slug 2 that at the time of this writing remains on the store. Yes, it’s a dollar cheaper. But it’s only a dollar, and I think the differences here more than make up for that extra buck you spend. This new version is not only likely to have a far longer future, but also is designed for modern devices and their displays, which are things we cannot say for the older version. You get more options and extra features with the new version, and greater compatibility with external controllers. Spend that extra dollar, you deserve the treat.

Metal Slug was likely a pretty big surprise to SNK when it released back in 1996. Nazca Corporation, the developer behind the game, was a team formed by ex-Irem employees who had left the company to pursue their ambitions. This was a seasoned bunch, having worked together on games at Irem such as Air Duel, Undercover Cops, GunForce II, and perhaps most famously, In The Hunt. Nevertheless, its first efforts as Nazca Corporation proper went far beyond most expectations. A pair of NEOGEO titles, published by SNK themselves: NEO Turf Masters and Metal Slug. The former is one of the finest arcade-style golfing games ever made, and the latter? Well, it soon became a staple of every NEOGEO MVS around.

SNK made what was for this time in its history a rare wise business decision: it bought Nazca Corporation lock-stock. You don’t want to lose talent like that. Its first mission as a wholly-owned subsidiary of the company was to follow up on the ultra-hot Metal Slug, a mission that it would more or less carry out for the rest of its unexpectedly short lifespan. But how can you top something as wild as Metal Slug without losing what brought people to the game in the first place?

Metal Slug 2 offers the same number of stages, with six in total. The game goes a bit more over the top with its themes than the first game, and there’s more variety in general. The playable roster has doubled with the additions of Fio and Eri. They play the same as the guys, but it’s nice to have the choice. There are a few new weapons, and one of the returning ones has been upgraded. The titular Metal Slug vehicles also see their selection expanded, with the SV-Camel, Slugnoid, and Slug Flyer showing up in set places during the game. The original SV-001 tank is here too, of course. There are some other fun extra bits in here too, like how your character can be turned into a mummy or how one of the prisoners will follow you around throwing fireballs after you save him.

All of this ambition comes at a cost, however. Metal Slug 2 is notorious for the severity of its slowdown when the action picks up. And pals, the action picks up often. It’s so bad that Nazca actually opted to revisit the game the following year, using the improvements of the engine of the then-in-development Metal Slug 3 to remove many of the technical issues plaguing the game. The team also added some new goodies in while they were at it, and that revised version became Metal Slug X. That is not this game, but I’m sure we’ll see it soon. This game is as it ever was, and that means you’re going to be running, jumping, and shooting through some molasses at times. History isn’t always pretty.

I think to a great degree Metal Slug X negates this game, but for the serious Metal Slug fan I think the differences can be interesting enough to make Metal Slug 2 worth keeping around. If you’re not into that kind of hair-splitting or aren’t planning to catch them all, you might just want to be patient and wait for Metal Slug X‘s ACA NEOGEO version. I imagine it will come in a matter of weeks, simply because Hamster and SNK don’t have too many other games to touch on at this point. From a gameplay perspective Metal Slug 2 loses to Metal Slug X in every way. On its own merits, it’s quite a lot of fun despite the issues. And hey, it’s not likely you’re going to have a second player on screen gumming things up even worse.

Yes, I have to bang my usual drums here. First up, playing this game with touch controls is not ideal. It can be done, and you’ve got unlimited credits to work with here so it doesn’t particularly matter if you keep on dying. But a challenging game like this really works best if you can use an external controller to play. If you have one, this is just as fun to blast your way through as it is on any other platform. You’ll probably have to go it alone, because multiplayer requires external controllers and a display you feel comfortable hunkering down around. Well, you could do a lot worse on iOS even with all this baggage in tow.

You get the usual ACA NEOGEO options here. Game settings, control mapping, virtual control adjustments, audio and video options, and so on. You can play the Japanese version with all the blood spurts or the Overseas version with all the sweat spurts, and you also get the usual Score Attack and timed Caravan modes. Those extra modes are pretty fun here, especially the Score Attack. This is a game you can get through on one credit if you practice enough, and it’s a good challenge to see how far you can go while accumulating the most points possible. You get your online leaderboards as well, allowing you to compare your feats with those of other players. The extras supplement the game well, even if the necessary sacrifices of the mobile format don’t.

Look, if you’re going to buy Metal Slug 2 on mobile, this ACA NEOGEO release is the one you want. And if you’re trying to collect all the Metal Slug games or even all of the Arcade Archives releases, don’t let me stop you. But even setting aside the usual issues with Metal Slug games on mobile, I have to recommend the average player simply wait for Metal Slug X to get a rerelease. It’s everything this game is and more, with the improvement of the egregious slowdown being no small favor. A good game, but one made largely redundant by another entry that will be here soon.

News

PowerWash Simulator: Santa’s Workshop Free Update Coming January 8th

Well this is a bit awkward isn’t it? FuturLab and Square Enix will release a holiday themed update for PowerWash Simulator on January 8th for Nintendo Switch. I’m not sure what caused the delay, but all other platforms have this update out now bringing in a whole new map, festivities, and more in the excellent game. I hope future content updates arrive at the same time, and this gives me an excuse to beat the new level on PS5 and then replay it on Switch in a few weeks. Watch the trailer for it above. -Mikhail Madnani

Disney Illusion Island Keeper Up Update Now Available

The Nintendo Switch exclusive Disney Illusion Island just got a huge update today bringing in the Mavens of Monoth Time Trials feature, quality of life updates, new accessibility options, additional gallery unlocks, and more. I’m not sure if I’d call this a hidden gem of a game because Disney, but it definitely is one I think more folks should try out. Watch the trailer for the update above.-Mikhail Madnani

New Releases

Pokemon Scarlet & Violet: The Hidden Treasures of Area Zero – Part 2: The Indigo Disk DLC ($34.99)

The second and final part of the Pokemon Scarlet/Violet expansion, The Hidden Treasures of Area Zero, is now available for those who purchased it. In The Indigo Disk, you’ll travel to Blueberry Academy, a school built in the sea. Given that this is the last part of the DLC, you can count on it to deliver on the promise of the title. Do note that you have to have completed The Teal Mask before you can start on this one. It’s a linear story across the two parts. We’ll have a review of this one soon. I certainly hope it can nail the landing.

Palia (Free)

I don’t know a whole lot about Palia, but it’s apparently an MMO slow-life adventure. Some marketing people would call it “cozy". I’m getting tired of that word, so that’s the only place I’ll use it here. But yes, do some farming, fishing, and chilling out with a bunch of other players in a mysterious world. It’s free to try, so if you’re curious go ahead and do that little thing.

Metro Quester ($19.99)

KEMCO has a formula, if nothing else. So when I see something from the publisher that looks different from that formula, it grabs my attention. This is a turn-based dungeon crawler RPG, featuring twenty four characters and eight job classes. The world design was done by Kazushi Hagiwara, creator of the manga Bastard!!, and the gameplay system was created by Hironori Kato, most known in Japan for his work in tabletop RPGs. Throw in a very distinctive look and you’ve got a game I’m eagerly jumping into. When I come up for air, I’ll have a review for you to read.

Koumajou Remilia II: Stranger’s Requiem ($29.99)

While I wasn’t exactly bowled over by the Castlevania-inspired Koumajou Remilia: Scarlet Symphony, I didn’t have a bad time with it either. So I’m sure I’ll have a nice time with this remaster of its follow-up, which essentially promises another heaping platter full of the same Touhou action. I’ll have a review of this one as soon as I can make my way through it. If nothing else, it’s dressed to the nines.

Arcade Archives Aero Fighters ($7.99)

Aero Fighters 2 and 3 have been around on the eShop for ages now, but the first game in the series has been absent until now. That’s likely since it doesn’t use NEOGEO hardware and it has proven a bit tricky for Hamster to emulate in the past. Well, it’s here now and it’s working great. This is something of a historic game for the shoot-em-up genre since most of the team jumped ship after making this to form Psikyo. It’s not quite as silly as its successors, but the gameplay is excellent. Definitely one for the shooter fans.

EGGCONSOLE Xanadu PC-8801 PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49)

This 1985 Nihon Falcom action-RPG was a very, very, very big deal in Japan in its time. Pretty much every side-scrolling Japanese action-RPG of the era was inspired by this game, up to and including Zelda II: The Adventure of Link. It got a heavily modified NES port called Faxanadu, but don’t buy this expecting something as streamlined as that game. Like many pioneers, it’s not quite in the form you might expect for this genre. I like it anyway, though. Despite the fact that it was only released in Japan on the PC-8801, most of the text is in English. That means that although no new translation work has been done here within the game itself, it’s fully playable for English speakers. Neat!

Mechblaze ($9.99)

This looks like one for the Assault Suits fans out there. Control a mech and blast your way through six scrolling stages, using an arsenal of thirteen different types of weapons to blast away the invading alien army. I could think of far less amusing ways to spend ten bucks than this. Heck, that barely gets you half a ticket to a bad movie these days.

Pan’orama ($19.99)

This is a chill puzzle sim game where you lay down different tiles to build a little world. Kind of reminds me of Dorfromantik, and that’s good company to be in. As you place the pieces, you’ll form a pretty little animated landscape complete with animals you can interact with. You’ll get points at the end based on how well you did, though I’m not sure how the systems work here. Yes, it sounds quite a lot like Dorfromantik. Perhaps coincidence, perhaps inspired. Either way, we’re not up to our elbows in games like this so I won’t complain.

Rising Dusk ($9.90)

At first I read the title as Rising Duck, which might have been pretty cool. Well, we’ll just have to make the best of what we have here. It’s a side-scrolling platformer where you’re meant to avoid coins if you want to move forward. That certainly turns things on its head. There are more than twenty stages to play, with a nicely done supernatural Japanese setting to the action. Sure, it feels a bit like a five-dollar Switch platformer, but inflation is very real these days.

Raccoo Venture ($14.99)

QUByte’s been pouring a lot into this 3D platformer, and I’m hoping its efforts have yielded fruit. Collect special costumes for a fresh new look, solve puzzles, look for secrets, and enjoy the sights and sounds. I’ll be doing a review of this game early next week to let you know if it’s worth picking up.

Nekomin ($15.00)

This is an odd one, for sure. You have to use the Joy-Cons to play it, so handheld-only players will want to give it a pass. Basically, you have to use your Joy-Con like it’s a cat wand to guide the cats to their dens in each stage. I’m not sure how much staying power this has, but I’ll give it points for originality.

-Math, BFF, and Notes- ($19.90)

CyberStep is back with another poorly-localized visual novel. I mean, the word wrap issue still hasn’t been fixed, so I don’t think this publisher really cares. This one is about a guy who is only interested in older, married women. Perhaps unsurprisingly, there are a few such ladies hanging around in his life. Smooch your favorite, you home-wrecker.

Aztec Tiki Talisman ($5.99)

A 3D platformer, and I always get suspicious when they’re around this price point. You get fifty levels to play, set entirely in the same jungle-themed location, and specifically on and around what are meant to be Aztec structures. Regrettably, this one matched my expectations. Despite being highly affordable, the game just isn’t worth it. You’re better off holding on to your money to get something better. That’s my take on it, anyway.

Winter Games Challenge ($24.99)

It’s wild how reliable a concept this has been in video games for my whole life. Make a bunch of mini-games around a collection of sports, make sure it’s multiplayer-ready, then send it out. Up to four people can join in on this one via local multiplayer, and you get eight different events to play: freestyle skiing, snowboard, curling, giant slalom, alpine skiing, ski jumping, luge, and bobsled. I suppose it could be amusing to pull it out and play with family during the holiday season, should you need some manner of distraction from discussing who would win in a fight between Superman and Goku. That old talk!

Yuletide Legends: Who Framed Santa Claus ($14.99)

Artifex Mundi has a season-appropriate hidden object mystery for you to solve, should that be a way you want to spend your holiday time. Santa’s had his voice stolen and has been framed for a crime he did not commit. You’d think old Saint Nick would get the benefit of the doubt on such things, but apparently you have to prove he wasn’t engaging in petty pilfering and maybe get the guy’s voice back for him along the way. Well, have fun with that.

The Bin Bunch

ToyBox Christmas ($3.99)

Western Slot Machine ($4.50)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

There will probably be quite a few more sales by the time you read this, but the old time lag rears its head again. At any rate, there’s a rare sale on Baba Is You there in case you don’t have it yet. That’s probably the only thing in there I really want to call out, but do check the list yourself to be sure. As for the outbox, I’m afraid I’ll have to instruct my people to give no comment.

Select New Sales

Baba Is You ($10.50 from $15.00 until 12/27)
Q Remastered ($2.72 from $6.80 until 12/27)
Cat Quest ($3.89 from $12.99 until 12/28)
Twice Reborn: A Vampire Visual Novel ($7.49 from $14.99 until 12/29)
RedRaptor ($3.49 from $4.99 until 12/29)
Diorama Dungeoncrawl ($6.99 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Undead’s Building ($1.99 from $5.99 until 1/2)
Invasion of Alien X: Earth in Crisis ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/2)
Gem Crash ($1.99 from $5.99 until 1/2)
Golf With Your Friends ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
The Wardrobe: Even Better Edition ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger ($3.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)
Train Station Simulator ($5.49 from $21.99 until 1/3)
Regency Solitaire ($2.99 from $11.99 until 1/4)
Forklift Simulator 2023 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/4)
FAR: Changing Tides ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/4)
Hana Awase New Moon ($29.03 from $36.29 until 1/4)
Struggling ($4.49 from $14.99 until 1/4)
RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 CE ($8.99 from $29.99 until 1/4)
Catlord ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Punch a Bunch ($5.99 from $14.99 until 1/4)
Spiral Memoria ($13.74 from $24.99 until 1/4)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 15th

Ammo Pigs: Cocked & Loaded ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/15)
Catana ($3.49 from $6.99 until 12/15)
Circus Pocus ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/15)
Death or Treat ($13.32 from $19.99 until 12/15)
Dr. Oil ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/15)
Enchanted Portals ($13.32 from $19.99 until 12/15)
Evil Diary ($3.99 from $4.99 until 12/15)
Ghost 1.0 ($2.49 from $9.99 until 12/15)
Hyper-5 ($6.49 from $9.99 until 12/15)
Laserpitium ($9.74 from $14.99 until 12/15)
MADiSON ($24.98 from $34.99 until 12/15)
NASCAR Heat Ultimate Edition+ ($14.99 from $24.99 until 12/15)
Neko Journey ($6.49 from $9.99 until 12/15)
Restless Night ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/15)
Richy’s Nightmares ($2.49 from $4.99 until 12/15)
Starlight Drifter ($15.99 from $19.99 until 12/15)
Teratopia ($3.49 from $9.99 until 12/15)
The Sorrowvirus: A Faceless Short Story ($5.24 from $14.99 until 12/15)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining releases of the week, a healthy list of new sales, and whatever else rolls in over the course of the next twenty-four hours or so. I’m a little behind my schedule today because I went shopping with Mrs. Musgrave, but it’s important to take some breaks now and then. Make sure you give yourself a little break today, too. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Reviews & Mini-Views

Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion Remastered ($29.99)

Can an excellent remaster make an average game shine? And how should such a thing even be reviewed? Questions that need answers here and now, friends. I genuinely can’t find much negative to say about Nightdive’s work in remastering this Nintendo 64 game from the year 2000. It has kept up to its usual standards, and I can safely say that if you’re going to play Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion at all, you’ll want to do it via this remaster on your platform of choice. The Switch port has been handled well, so if this is the console you like to game on, you’re fine to do so here. The game looks and plays better than it ever has before, and you have all kinds of options to tailor your experience to your preferences. The multiplayer has been cut in this remaster, so do keep that in mind.

I suppose to the extent that there is any issue here, it’s that Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion itself isn’t a particularly exceptional game. You’ll notice there’s nothing about dinosaur hunting in the title, and that’s because you don’t do much of it in this game. Instead it feels a lot like Half-Life with a bow and arrow, thematically speaking. Add in the fact that it’s twenty-three years old, and this might not be something you want to jump to pick up at full price. It sits in that awkward zone between the speedy action-first games in the genre and the more cinematic style of game that focused on set pieces and open-ended encounters. The levels often feel like they’re too big for what’s in them, giving the game the feeling of being all dressed up with no place to go.

Part of the reason behind that, I suspect, is the unique idea of allowing the player to choose between two characters. One of them is more agile and has a grappling hook for getting around, while the other is more about hunkering down and crawling through dark spaces. It’s not a completely different game when you play as the other character, but I imagine the levels had to be carefully built to handle both of them. You get different cut-scenes with each of them, so it’s worth playing through with both. They also get different weapon upgrades, and that’s fun to mess around with. The weapons here aren’t quite as creative as those in Turok 2, but they’re still pretty good.

I don’t know. I think for its time and place, Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion is fine. It’s probably the least exciting entry in the trilogy, but if you can get yourself in the Nintendo 64 mindset, I feel it’s a good time to play through. It’s a shame it gave up just about every unique point of its identity, but there are certainly worse shooters from the era you could be playing. Compared to more modern games in the genre, even Nightdive’s extensive sprucing-up can’t quite get it up to speed.

In the end, I’ve decided to give this game a slightly stronger recommendation than I otherwise would have simply because of how good the remaster quality is. As a first-person shooter, Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion has never been anything more than decent, and it lacks much of the character of the first two entries. But I respect that Nightdive gave it the royal treatment to finish out this rather unexpected yet welcome set of remasters, and I think if you found a lot to love in its previous efforts with Turok you’ll find enough to carry you through this one as well.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Make Way ($14.99)

I have some affection in my heart for top-down racers. You know, the kind that went from Super Sprint to RC Pro-Am to Micro Machines to Rock ‘n Roll Racing and so on. Make Way certainly has the vibe of Micro Machines about it, and like that game it is at its best when you’re playing with others. You have lots of options for that, with support for up to four players locally or online. The game is actually quite thin in general, so if you’re going to play solo I’m not sure you’ll get a lot out of it. The CPU opponents can only go so far.

The main gimmick here is that you are building the tracks as you go. Each racer picks a piece from the random selection, then must quickly slap those pieces together to form the track. You’ll race on that short track, then go back to pick some more pieces and build the track out further. Repeat the process, and then head back out again. At each step you’ll earn points based on how well you placed at checkpoints, whether or not you won the race, and so on. At the end the racer with the most points takes home the crown. That’s it. Do it again until you’re ready to call it a night. You’ll unlock new things as you go, like new track pieces and additional features. This is kind of troublesome because you have to play a while to unlock some of the fun stuff that makes the multiplayer as fun as it can be. You might find yourself having to grind a bit solo.

Still, when you get the conditions just right, Make Way is a lot of fun. It’s not something you want to spend hours on at a time, and you’ll want to have some local players to play with because online is a bit of a ghost town at the moment. You’ll also want to play the game a bit on your own before you pull it out at a party so that you’ll at least have weapons, power-ups, and some of the more fun track pieces unlocked. But if you’re okay with all of that, Make Way makes for a pleasant choice to keep in the regular party night rotation.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

New Releases

Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator ($19.99)

This potion-making simulator came out last year on computers, and the general consensus seems to be that it’s one of those titles that grabs you hard in the beginning and is all-consuming for a while, but gets a bit repetitive before the end of the game is in sight. I haven’t played it yet, but it does look to be a rather clever crafting game, one that actually has you put some thought into what you’re doing and how you’re doing it. You will of course have to procure ingredients, whether it be by growing them or buying them, and you’ll also be looking to sell your potions to make a profit in the end. At least conceptually, it looks like a lot of fun to me.

Hell Well ($4.99)

I’m squinting at the footage here and it really looks like a Vampire Survivors-style game to me. There are some light tower defense components in the mix, too. You collect fallen spirits and resurrect them as demonic defenses, which is at least something to separate it from the pack. The usual upgrades and such are here, and you can also unlock new color palettes. I like when games do that.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

That’s a small list. Howl is a nice pick-up on sale, and Kao the Kangaroo has never been cheaper. The outbox looks equally tiny, but you might want to grab the slightly wacky Yeah You Want Those Games Right? if you in fact do want those games. Something tells me a big holiday sale is going to pop soon, so you might want to hold on to some of your money.

Select New Sales

Chippy&Noppo ($14.99 from $19.99 until 12/26)
GigaBash ($21.24 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Yum Yum Cookstar ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
Crash Drive 3 ($1.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
Howl ($11.99 from $14.99 until 1/2)
Wingspan ($9.99 from $19.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo Oh Well DLC ($2.74 from $4.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo Bend the Roo’les DLC ($5.19 from $7.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo A Well Good Bundle ($13.19 from $32.99 until 1/2)
Kao the Kangaroo Anniversary ($20.34 from $36.99 until 1/2)
Headbangers: Rhythm Royale Deluxe ($22.49 from $29.99 until 1/2)
Creepy Tale 2 ($1.99 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Ib ($10.49 from $14.99 until 1/3)
Fury Unleashed ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/3)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 14th

Georifters ($1.99 from $29.99 until 12/14)
Kid Tripp ($1.99 from $3.99 until 12/14)
Pixel Puzzle Makeout League ($5.99 from $14.99 until 12/14)
Samurai Maiden ($38.99 from $59.99 until 12/14)
Sherlock Holmes: Crimes & Punishments ($7.49 from $29.99 until 12/14)
Witch’s Garden ($27.99 from $39.99 until 12/14)
WW2: Bunker Simulator ($10.49 from $14.99 until 12/14)
Yeah You Want Those Games Right? ($7.99 from $9.99 until 12/14)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the big list of Thursday releases. I’m sure there will be plenty to enjoy there. Beyond that, we’ll cover any major sales or new items that roll in over the course of the next day. No more reviews for this week, though. I’m spent. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

To get the usual talk out of the way, let’s address the old app. It’s still on the App Store and still technically works, after all. Heck, it was just updated a year ago to be compatible with iOS 14. That doesn’t mean it’s a great experience on modern devices, though. Dotemu’s The King of Fighters ’97 ($2.99) came out more than ten years ago, and for its time and place it was a great port of the game. It played as well as it could, the emulation was sound, it had support for the kinds of external controllers we had at the time, and offered local wireless multiplayer support. It wasn’t exactly rolling in options, but it was more than good enough. Time has taken its toll, however. The biggest issue these days is that the virtual buttons didn’t grow along with the displays of devices, and it’s even tougher than usual to play on tiny buttons. I can’t recommend the Dotemu version anymore, I don’t think SNK should be selling two versions at the same time, and I expect the publisher to deprecate it sooner or later. Get the new one.

Anyway, The King of Fighters ’97. It came out in 1997 on the NEOGEO, so the title of this app certainly checks out. It was the fourth game in the series that had by this point become SNK’s most reliable franchise, and brought the Orochi Saga story arc to its close. In terms of gameplay, it introduced a system where you could choose between two playing styles before picking your team. The Advanced Mode followed in the footsteps of The King of Fighters ’96, albeit with some tweaks, while the Extra Mode takes after The King of Fighters ’94 and ’95. This addition not only did a great job of tying all of the previous games together, but also gave players greater customization and variety in how they played the game.

In terms of character selection, six characters from the previous game were dropped. Kasumi Todoh, Mature, Vice, Geese Howard, Wolfgang Krauser, and Mr. Big all hit the benches for story reasons. Chizuru Kagura moves from the sub-boss position into the regular playable roster, while fan favorites Blue Mary and Ryuji Yamazaki from the Fatal Fury series join Billy Kane to form a new team. Yashiro Nanakase, Chris, and Shermie are fully new faces and end up serving an important story role. Otherwise, the roster carries over. Popular characters like Terry Bogard, Kyo Kusanagi, Iori Yagami, Mai Shiranui, and Athena Asamiya are all here along with many others. Plenty of great characters to learn to use, like any game in this series.

The usual ACA NEOGEO gripes with fighting games in particular apply here. First, it can be really cumbersome trying to make some of the commands work with the virtual controls. There are no assists here, unlike the Dotemu version, so if you don’t have an external controller of some kind you’re just going to have to make the best of it. It’s also very difficult to get multiplayer going, as you’ll need a couple of external controllers and a display you’re comfortable rubbing elbows around. In other words, you’re probably going to be spending most of your time playing alone. The story here is certainly worth going through though, and you have plenty of options to tweak to give yourself as much of an edge against the rude CPU as possible.

If you don’t mind the multiplayer being hard to get at and have an external controller, this is a great experience. Just like playing the Arcade Archives release on any other device, but with a few bucks more in your pocket. You get the usual extra modes here, and they’re alright to mess around with. You can also choose between the Japanese and Overseas versions of the game, which is good if you enjoy blood and bounce, as the kids say. In terms of options, you can adjust the difficulty, remap buttons, tweak video and sound settings, and customize the virtual pad to your liking. Online leaderboards are also here, as usual. I don’t typically think of fighters as games to compete on leaderboards with, but if you get into that kind of thing, it’s here.

The King of Fighters ’97 is a terrific fighting game and another of the many feathers in SNK’s hat in this genre. If you have an external controller and plan to play solo, it’s easily worth picking up. Those stuck with touch controls will want to carefully consider what they are really looking for out of this kind of thing, but I’m just repeating myself here from prior reviews. Hamster has done a really good job with this release, also as usual, and I think it’s only a better set of multiplayer options away from being the best possible mobile port it could be.

Reviews & Mini-Views

Snakebird Complete ($14.99)

Over here at TouchArcade, we’ve been fans of Snakebird ever since it hit iOS in 2016. You can read our review of Snakebird on iOS here. Since that release, Noumenon Games released Snakebird Primer in 2019, a more accessible follow-up that built on the original with many more levels. Fast forward to now, Snakebird Complete has arrived on Nintendo Switch bringing both Snakebird and Snakebird Primer together in a seamless package for Nintendo’s hybrid system.

I’ve been chipping away at it since getting review code, and it has honestly made it hard to play my other review games. When I get sucked into a good puzzle game, I spend too much time thinking about levels and the game when I’m not playing. In fact, I spent 2 hours on it this morning when I wanted to finish writing about 4 other games then. Snakebird Complete is so good, I want to keep playing more of it instead of writing about it. Put that on the box.

If you’ve never heard of Snakebird before, your aim is moving like you would in the classic game, Snake, while collecting fruit to grow in size, but also trying to reach a specific objective or location in the superbly designed levels. The progression in Snakebird Complete is non-linear. You slowly start unlocking more of the map, opening up multiple puzzle options for when you inevitably get stuck and need to try something else or need a break. As you progress further, new mechanics and more birds join the action.

Beyond superbly designed levels and intuitive levels, I love the attention to detail in the little things. The animations are lovely, and the birds’ expressions as you reach the goal or are near a fruit are things most wouldn’t even pay attention to. This is all complemented by a relaxing soundtrack and charming sound effects.

If you do get stuck, there’s an interesting hint system, but I’d really recommend doing what I do when I get stuck in a puzzle game like this: go and do another puzzle or take a break. The solution will come to you. Give it time.

On Nintendo Switch, the game looks great, and I was very happy that touchscreen support is included. I played most of it with touch controls in portable mode, but also tried it docked. The controller support is well-implemented.

Snakebird was amazing on iOS, but Snakebird Complete feels perfect on Nintendo Switch. If you enjoy the likes of Baba is You and even A Monster’s Expedition, Snakebird Complete is essential. They nailed the touch controls and it looks so good on the OLED screen. If you still aren’t sold on it, try the demo. Snakebird Complete is the real deal. -Mikhail Madnani

SwitchArcade Score: 5/5

Fashion Dreamer ($49.99)

Fashion Dreamer‘s announcement left me conflicted. I was super happy to see syn Sophia back, but it didn’t seem like a new Style Savvy game. Since that reveal, Xseed Games has been slowly revealing more of what you actually do in Fashion Dreamer, and it finally hit me that this is a creativity focused dress up game with some online elements rather than a true follow up to Style Savvy, and that isn’t a bad thing, but the game’s current state leaves a lot to be desired even after its first major update.

Fashion Dreamer has you playing as a Muse in a world full of Muses. Your aim is to grow your influence with followers, your own brand, your own showroom, and more. There’s a lot of customization possible here, but I enjoyed interacting with random Muses to dress them up through what the game calls Lookits. You can also interact with a Muse to absorb the new clothes and accessories.

Speaking of clothes and accessories, the more you progress into earning more followers and doing Lookits, the more in-game items you get. These can be used to use the gacha machine or bingo tickets to unlock more items and basically the more you give Fashion Dreamer, the more you get out of it, but there isn’t really a story as I hoped when it was originally announced. The best analogy I have is Fashion Dreamer is the Happy Home Designer to Animal Crossing‘s Style Savvy.

The online mode is quite nice as well, but you can play Fashion Dreamer offline completely. Day one, I had complaints with the sorting and many aspects of the actual dress up part because you couldn’t even zoom in save sets properly. Those have been fixed, but the biggest non-performance related issue I have is the lack of being able to use any accessories and clothes on any body type. I don’t get why a game about dressing up limits this. As of this writing, I haven’t been able to test the time-limited event since it was taken down soon after the update hit.

Visually, Fashion Dreamer can look excellent, especially when you’re doing poses to show off your Muse and take photos. The rest of it looks a bit basic but nice and colorful. This isn’t an issue on its own, but the performance is not good. Scrolling through items or even walking across the area results in stuttering or freezing. I tested this on 2 Switch consoles to be sure. I hope this can be improved over patches, but right now some portions remind me of Pokemon and not in a good way.

After its first update, Fashion Dreamer still needs work. While the performance is my biggest problem with it, some design decisions need to be addressed like letting any body type wear any clothes or accessories. I’m going to revisit it through each update, but right now this feels more like what we got in Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer rather than a true Animal Crossing experience as an example. There’s a lot I like, but this needed more time. –Mikhail Madnani

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

Arcadian Atlas ($19.99)

You know, sometimes I think Final Fantasy Tactics doesn’t get its full due in terms of its importance in gaming history. It is certainly well-loved and considerably revered, of course. But if we consider that one angle of a game’s place in history is how influential it is, Final Fantasy Tactics is starting to look like it’s on some kind of short list. You don’t see many games in the turn-based tactical RPG genre in recent years that aren’t paying a debt to it in some form or another, and many of them are outright doing their best to succeed it. Unfortunately, like with its Square Enix stablemate Chrono Trigger, most of these love letters fall a bit flat in some form or another. Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but flattery will only get you so far.

Arcadian Atlas really has Final Fantasy Tactics on its mind, and in some ways that plays out really well. The sprites are fantastic, and indeed might be even more expressive and fun to look at than those of the game it pays homage to. The soundtrack is quite good, even if it doesn’t quite live up to one of the finest efforts of Hitoshi Sakimoto. The story has plenty of intrigue and is quite well-written. The battles are smaller in scale than those in Final Fantasy Tactics, but still big enough to be interesting. There is a satisfying number of character classes to play around with and a fair number of skills to make use of. Indeed, I think it does its job well enough that fans of the genre will be sufficiently entertained for their money.

But there are problems here, too. Features and elements that Final Fantasy Tactics had that would be welcome here but are nowhere to be found. The maps have a lot of details on them that make them look natural, but sometimes that stuff blocks your view. Unfortunately, you can’t change the viewpoint in this game so you just kind of have to deal with it. Same if any elevated parts of the terrain are in the way. There are certain complexities to the combat you would expect to find that aren’t in here either, and it’s all very unbalanced and not in the good way. I also feel like it’s far too content to be an homage, not really doing anything to reach beyond what the genre was doing twenty-five years ago. It reminds me a lot of the Mercenaries Saga games, for better or worse.

I think if you love Final Fantasy Tactics, Arcadian Atlas will give you something to chew on. It will also likely irritate you in a variety of ways. It’s every bit the game it’s trying to be, a passionate expression of adoration for one of the genre greats. It’s just a shame that it is content to only be that, since the sparks that do light up properly here show such promise. Perhaps we might see some of those become proper flames in the next game from this team, but for now this is really just one for those heavily thirsting for any tactical turn-based intrigue they can get.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

New Releases

Hammerwatch Anniversary Edition ($19.99)

This is a remaster of Hammerwatch, which has been available on the Switch for long enough that we now have a remaster to buy. It makes a number of improvements on the original version, but is that enough for you to drop twenty bucks if you already own that one? I’m not the guy to tell you yes or no on that, but I think if you really enjoyed Hammerwatch you’ll probably appreciate the improvements here to some extent. You may, however, want to save some money for the next item on our list.

Hammerwatch II ($24.99)

Hey, it’s Hammerwatch II. Go on some new adventures on your own, or team up with other players online in a group of up to four players. Explore an open world, complete quests, and build up your hero as you push back the forces of darkness. This has been out for a minute or two on other platforms and the general consensus seems to be that if you liked the first one, you’ll have a pretty good time here too.

Petit Petit Petit ($12.99)

A Vampire Survivors-style game that takes place inside of a body and tasks you with using antibodies to defend against invading pathogens and diseases. It’s a clever premise, but reviews of the game on other platforms have been fairly lukewarm. Proceed at your own risk, in other words.

Super Bear Adventure ($9.99)

I think this came out on mobile several years back, where it found an audience thanks to the relatively low number of 3D platformers around. I… don’t think it will enjoy such benefits here and now, but who knows? Maybe there is some hidden charm to it that I’m just not picking up on.

Twin Mind: Power of Love Collector’s Edition ($14.99)

Why yes, it’s another hidden object adventure game. The twin detectives are looking to solve yet another case. I have nothing much to say about any of these games at this point, but if you’re looking for one of them, here it be.

Wood Guy ($9.99)

This is absolute borderline Bin Bunch stuff, but it seems like it could be an actual earnest effort so I’m not going to stick it in there. Yet. Anyway, it’s a pretty clunky action game with hundreds of levels and a local co-op feature if you want to exercise it. There’s also a battle mode in there so that they can technically say the game is for up to four players.

The Bin Bunch

SNQZ ($1.49)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

There are a bunch of games hitting new low prices today, and while I don’t know that any of them are ultra barn-burners, the prices are low enough that you might want to bite anyway. Over in the outbox, there’s almost nothing going on. Some days are like that. At any rate, check both lists such as they are and see what catches your eye.

Select New Sales

RiMS Racing ($4.99 from $49.99 until 12/27)
Shooting Star Island ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/1)
Earthen Dragon ($4.00 from $9.90 until 1/1)
Heart Chain Kitty: All Screwed Up ($1.99 from $4.99 until 1/1)
Hidden Gems: Volume One ($3.49 from $6.99 until 1/1)
Sixtar Gate: Startrail ($19.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Operate Now: Hospital ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/1)
Railbound ($8.99 from $12.99 until 1/1)
Figment 1 + Figment 2 ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Murder Mystery Machine ($1.99 from $9.99 until 1/1)
Alfred Hitchcock Vertigo ($5.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Syberia ($1.99 from $12.99 until 1/1)
Metamorphosis ($1.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Agatha Christie Collection ($11.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
The Quest for Excalibur: Puy du Fou ($8.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)

Smurfs Kart ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
The Gardens Between ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
My Universe: Fashion Boutique ($2.49 from $24.99 until 1/1)
My Universe: Cooking Star Restaurant ($2.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
Immortal Realms: Vampire Wars ($9.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Arkanoid: Eternal Battle ($2.99 from $19.99 until 1/1)
Vampire: TM – Shadows of New York ($2.59 from $12.99 until 1/1)
Survivor Castaway Island ($20.99 from $29.99 until 1/1)
Everdream Valley ($12.49 from $24.99 until 1/1)
WRC Collection ($9.99 from $99.99 until 1/1)
The Smurfs 2 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
Bang-On Balls: Chronicles ($14.99 from $24.99 until 1/1)
Grand Mountain Adventure: Wonderlands ($10.49 from $34.99 until 1/1)
Horse Tales: Emerald Valley Ranch ($15.99 from $39.99 until 1/1)
TT Isle of Man RotE 3 ($19.99 from $49.99 until 1/1)
Cabela’s The Hunt: CE ($4.99 from $9.99 until 1/1)
Cricket 22 ($19.99 from $49.99 until 1/1)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 13th

Football Cup 2023 ($2.99 from $9.99 until 12/13)
Glitch’s Trip ($1.99 from $12.99 until 12/13)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more new releases, more reviews, more sales, and perhaps some news. This was another one of those days where I didn’t get as much done as I would have liked to, but I suppose there isn’t much you can do about that. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Previews

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy (Coming January 25th)

We’ve had the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy on the Nintendo Switch for what feels like ages. It’s a decent set, including the well-loved first three games in the Ace Attorney series in their shiniest form yet. They look pretty spiffy for games born on the Game Boy Advance, to say the least. We also got the pleasant surprise of the two Great Ace Attorney games on Switch, and they’re just great. But there’s still plenty of cases left for the court to hear, and at the top of the list is the franchise’s second numbered trilogy. Capcom was kind enough to let us take an early look at Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy ahead of its Switch release on January 25th of next year.

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy collects the fourth, fifth, and sixth games in the series. The fourth game was initially released on the Nintendo DS under the title Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney, while the other two were Nintendo 3DS releases under the names Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Dual Destinies and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney – Spirit of Justice. Despite the Phoenix Wright bit in two of the titles, this storyline starts and ends with Apollo Justice and his development as a character. Phoenix has a strong presence in all of the games in some form or another, but the title of the set is certainly apt. On top of the main games, this collection also includes the DLC for the fifth and sixth games, adding an extra case and some fun costumes to the mix.

I was expecting this to follow in the footsteps of the original trilogy’s release on the Switch, offering the games and not much more than that. I was surprised to see that this has gotten a much nicer treatment. The three games are here, of course. You can pick them from the menu and they all have nice little animated scenes that play on their respective pages. There’s also a museum mode where you can listen to music in the Orchestra Hall, check out art and movies in the Art Library, and even set up your own scenes with the different characters and animations in a limited Animation Studio. There are achievements called Accolades, and each game includes a wide array of options you can toggle. There’s even an option called Story Mode that automatically solves puzzles and answers questions for you, effectively turning the game into a visual novel.

Getting into the games, they look and sound terrific. Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney is a 2D game, but its origins being on the Nintendo DS means its art was already a step up in terms of detail and resolution compared to the Game Boy Advance entries. Dual Destinies and Spirit of Justice used 3D models to start with, and they look really clean here. The games play well, of course. You can use the buttons or touch screen as you like to play, just like on the original consoles. While this second trilogy got a slightly more mixed reception than the first, I’ve always been a fan of the bold swings of the fourth game and the follow-up games seemed to be more crowd-pleasing in general.

Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy will release on the Nintendo Switch on January 25th, 2024. That’s next year, but it’s not so far away. It’s almost Christmas, after all. We’ll have a full review of the game when the time comes, but I think things are already looking very good for this set.

Reviews & Mini-Views

Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince ($59.99)

My experience with Dragon Quest games has been weird over the years. I actually finished Dragon Quest Heroes on PS4 before any mainline entry in the series, and then ended up loving Dragon Quest VIII on 3DS which I consider one of my favorites of all time. I’ve also played every single Dragon Quest game on PS4 and Nintendo Switch now, with Dragon Quest Builders 2 and Dragon Quest XI S being my favorites. On the mobile side, I’ve been dipping my toes in the older games through the ports that Shaun has reviewed over the years, but I hadn’t really tried the Monsters series.

Last year, Square Enix released Dragon Quest Treasures on Nintendo Switch which many told me was Dragon Quest Monsters Lite. I ended up loving that despite its flaws, and replayed it on Steam Deck a few months later. Now, Square Enix has released Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince for Nintendo Switch worldwide, and it feels weird to even consider this a spin-off. I feel like it is a middle ground between a big main game and a spin-off because of how much of the main games it includes, but has a different focus that I’ll get to in a bit.

I wasn’t sure what to expect in the narrative, but I found Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince‘s story to be memorable and ended up liking the major characters a lot. Having some context from Dragon Quest IV helps elevate this, but it isn’t essential for newcomers. I almost stopped focusing on the story to build my dream party of monsters in Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince, and that’s where the gameplay comes into the picture.

I’m floored at how well thought out the mechanics feel here. It is very much Dragon Quest, but the season mechanic in locations (that act like large sandboxes), hundreds of monsters including new ones, and combat make me want to keep playing it or have it suspended on my Switch so I can get some synthesis or combat in when I have some free time. Synthesis in Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is like Shin Megami Tensei, and there is just so much you can do with skills here.

While the game doesn’t have the same scope as Dragon Quest XI or even VIII, the areas you can explore are quite massive. The season mechanic is interesting because the biomes you’re in have seasons change without loading as you’re exploring or battling. A new season brings new points of interest, changes to the map, and more. As an example, a water body will freeze in winter letting you explore further.

Combat is turn-based, and the focus of Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is actually letting your monsters use tactics (like in Persona 3 before Persona 3 Portable) rather than direct commands. You can issue commands, but the game pushes to go for a more auto battle approach initially or at least against fodder enemies. During battles, instead of just focusing on defeating enemies, you should scout them so they can join your party making you stronger overall with more monsters on your side. Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince includes online multiplayer, but I haven’t been able to test it much. If I end up spending some time on it in the future, I’ll write about it separately.

Visually, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince is a mixed bag. It can be gorgeous and looks superb on the OLED screen, but it can also look very dated and inconsistent even by Dragon Quest standards. If you were ok with Dragon Quest Treasures, this will be fine for you. Just expect performance issues, slightly long load times, and animation culling in addition to a low draw distance. These aren’t remotely as bad as modern Pokemon games, but they are noticeably annoying and bring down an otherwise spectacular game from getting a higher score.

On the audio side, Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince doesn’t have too much voice acting, but the little it does have is very good. The music seems almost completely reused from older games with the same midi songs included. One day Square Enix will give us orchestral versions in a modern non mainline game. That day is not today, sadly.

If you’re completely new to Dragon Quest, let alone Dragon Quest Monsters, I’d recommend trying the free demo. If you already did that and are set to buy it, in this case I feel like the Deluxe Edition content is really good so I’d recommend considering it if you’re planning to min max and want to do as much as possible in this game. It is a good time saver if you buy two of the DLC packs. They aren’t essential, but they help.

Since Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince has DLC available, I hope it does get some updates to address performance issues. Barring that, I look forward to dipping into it for a long time, and playing any potential ports it gets. This one is special.

Despite my issues with the performance, and I’m more annoyed by technical issues than most, I ended up adoring Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince. It joins Monster Hunter Stories 2 as my two favorite monster collecting games. It has heart, charm, and one of the best gameplay loops in a monster collecting game. I hope we see some patches improving the performance though, because that’s the only thing holding this back. -Mikhail Madnani

SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5

TEVI ($34.99)

I loved CreSpirit’s Rabi Ribi, so I was excited to play the newest game from them in TEVI. I didn’t follow much of TEVI, but a few of my friends praised the demo quite a bit. I didn’t bother playing it since I knew I’d be reviewing it, but I was curious about how the team would follow-up Rabi Ribi in depth and quality. It turns out TEVI was everything I had hoped for, and more. Not only did it surprise me constantly, but it feels so good to play on Switch.

TEVI blends action games, Metroidvanias, and visual novels together, but in a very unexpected way. When I started playing, I found it quite slow and pretty standard with its flow. I soon started discovering how awesome the action and combat focus was, then how the story is an important part of the experience. If you’re here to just explore on your own and not pay attention to the plot, I’d recommend against TEVI right now. You will need to progress the story to play more of the game.

While the combat is awesome, boss battles are full on bullet hell mayhem, and amazing. I couldn’t believe how well TEVI managed to hold my attention for dozens of hours. There are loads of upgrades and you constantly unlock more. The controls are intuitive and I was surprised at how well TEVI runs on Switch. You might wonder why I would be worried about a game that looks like this having issues, but I’ve been burned too many times on bad Switch ports of 2D games. Thankfully, I have no complaints with how TEVI looks and runs on Switch in both handheld and docked mode.

The one complaint I have, barring the opening hours feeling a bit slow and some levels not making it obvious when something is breakable or climbable, is the font size of certain elements. In handheld mode, the game’s UI needs a bit of work because even elements during dialogue are a bit too small. Some folks might not like the aesthetic, but I liked it and the character portraits all the way.

TEVI has only Japanese voice acting, but it is very good. This is complemented by the excellent soundtrack that is quite varied through the game. The team did a really good job here.

While the asking price might seem high for some, TEVI is absolutely worth it. There are a few issues holding it back like some visual clarity ones for certain parts of levels or the slow opening hours, but this is a superb Metroidvania experience that I hope gets a physical release. I adored it on both Steam Deck and Nintendo Switch. -Mikhail Madnani

SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5

Gothic II Complete Classic ($29.99)

Piranha Bytes games have a certain style to them, and it allures some people and repels others. You could, if you were being uncharitable, call them B-game takes on things like The Elder Scrolls, but I’m not really fond of that approach. Certainly, not as many resources went into Piranha Bytes’ games as the big AAA games of their era, and there are a lot of rough elements to them. The visuals are generally where you can spot this the most, and I think that’s the area of least concern when we’re looking at a rerelease of a twenty year old game. In terms of gameplay, I think you get a very earnest effort in each Piranha Bytes game, and in the context of their time I think they hang well in this regard with their peers. Of course, that’s the part where the age of the games can be more strongly felt. Tank controls, here we go.

Gothic II was the second game released by Piranha Bytes and it’s where the developer really broke out. The Big Bad of the first game, the Sleeper, has been vanquished. Unfortunately, with his dying breath he summoned pretty much every evil creature around. Even worse, your character has lost most of his power laying near-dead in the ruins of the Sleeper’s temple. Xardas pulls him out of there, explains the situation, and we’re off to the races. Your main goal is to get your hands on a powerful artifact called the Eye of Innos, and it’s quite the goose chase. A very fun goose chase, mind you. One that feels every bit of its two decades of age, but one worth embarking upon.

The Switch port of Gothic II delivers the game more or less as-is, plus the Night of the Raven expansion. There are some new motion controls here but I wouldn’t really recommend them. For better or worse, this is the game. If you enjoyed the port of the first game, you’ll like this even more. If you didn’t, you might want to step cautiously. There are a lot of things you’ll have to deal with in this game to properly enjoy it, and only some of those are due to it being a game from the turn of the millennium. If you can get used to the quirks endemic to this series, however, the rewards are many.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Orten Was The Case ($14.99)

This game took turns intriguing me and infuriating me. At a fundamental level, this is an adventure game that involves taking advantage of time loops to unravel the ultimate mystery it presents one step at a time. You can reset the loop anytime you like, and given you only have less than a half hour to sort things out, you’ll be doing that a lot. The whole thing is set in a town (district?) called Orten, and people will be going about their business as you go about yours. Going back in time naturally reverses anything you did, but you keep your knowledge and any clues you might have figured out. The course of the game will see you spending some time with each of the many colorful characters in the neighborhood, and the whole thing wraps up within a few hours depending on how quickly you can sort out what you need to do.

Figuring that out can be tricky at times, but that’s the usual business with adventure games. You can only carry two items at a time, and that can be annoying at times since it can result in required backtracking. The real issue here is that the game tries its hand at some action bits, and it’s never good. There was one combat sequence early on that almost had me quit the game right on the spot because of how poor the collision detection was. Adventure games don’t need action, so unless it can be done well I’d prefer it just be left out. There are several mini-games in here, and I actually don’t mind that. It makes the world feel more alive. But when it’s required to complete one for progression, that’s when things can get rough.

If you enjoyed doing time loops to help out all the people in Clock town in The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, you’ll probably have some basic appreciation of how Orten Was The Case is set up. It’s certainly an interesting game, and it does a great job of investing you in its little neighborhood and the oddballs who reside there. Some awkward puzzles pull the experience down a little, but what hurts it the most is the unnecessary addition of action sequences that just fall flat. Those who can forgive a few serious rough edges might find this a decent evening’s entertainment.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

Rogue Glitch Ultra ($11.99)

This game feels loose and messy a lot of the time, and I often don’t get on well with games like that. The procedural generation can result in some very awkward level layouts and enemy placements, and it’s really easy to take hits when you think you’re safe. And yet somehow I had a good time anyway. It’s an easy game to dip in and out of, and I’ve always got room for those in my life. Since your character auto-attacks, it starts to feel like there’s some Vampire Survivors chocolate in the bite-sized platforming peanut butter. There is a ridiculous amount of weapons to find and use, and some unlockable characters to provide that meta-progress flavor all the kids enjoy.

Rogue Glitch Ultra is in a lot of ways as standard a roguelite platformer experience as you could imagine. That isn’t to say it doesn’t have distinct elements, but it scratches the same itch that most games of this sort do. I like how easy it is to get into, and the online mode certainly adds some extra spice if you can set it up. It can be frustrating when you take some hits that feel unavoidable due to the way things are generated, and it can sometimes be too chaotic for its own good, but I enjoyed Rogue Glitch Ultra well enough.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

DREDGE: The Pale Reach DLC ($5.99)

The Pale Reach gives you a little more DREDGE to enjoy. An hour or two, which isn’t too shabby for the price. It adds another island to the game, more or less, and that means more fish to catch and a few more quests to complete. The gimmick here is that it’s very frosty, and you’ll have to break through the ice. You can do this content at any time, but it’s best to do it before the end game if you can. The rewards don’t mean a whole lot otherwise. What’s here is well-done, with the same slightly sinister atmosphere that makes the main game stand out.

I can’t help but wish there was a little more meat on the bones of The Pale Reach, especially with this being the first proper paid add-on for the game and all. I don’t mind its brevity this time, but if this is what we can expect from any future expansions, I’m not sure how many I’d be up for. just doesn’t feel essential or substantial, and I like to see at least one of those two in any expansion I pick up. Still, if you want to extend your enjoyment of DREDGE with another slice of well-made stuff, The Pale Reach will do that much for you.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

New Releases

The Bin Bunch

Zumaji Delux ($9.99)

City Bus Driver Simulator ($11.99)

Bulldozer Tycoon: Construction Simulator ($9.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

The folks behind the Piczle games have a new one coming out soon, and I imagine this latest sale is in anticipation of that. Why not catch up on them, if you’ve got some time and money? I recommend the Puzzle & Watch one for its really cool presentation. Over in the outbox, the latest Arcade Archives sale is wrapping up. As usual, most of these games will never be on sale again. Even the ones that repeat might be years before seeing another sale. Shop accordingly.

Select New Sales

Super Cyborg ($2.09 from $6.99 until 12/25)
The Medium: Cloud Version ($27.49 from $49.99 until 12/29)
Fearmonium ($10.39 from $12.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Colors ($2.49 from $12.00 until 12/29)
Piczle Cells ($1.99 from $4.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Lines DX ($2.99 from $14.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Lines DX 500 More Puzzles ($1.99 from $9.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Lines 2: Into the Puzzleverse ($7.99 from $14.99 until 12/29)
Piczle Puzzle & Watch Collection ($1.99 from $7.99 until 12/29)
Murder on the Marine Express ($1.99 from $4.99 until 12/29)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, December 12th

ACA NEOGEO Real Bout Fatal Fury 2 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
ACA NEOGEO Shock Troopers 2nd Squad ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
ACA NEOGEO The King of Fighters 2001 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
ACA NEOGEO Top Player’s Golf ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
ACA NEOGEO Zed Blade ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
Arcade Archives Frisky Tom ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
Arcade Archives Penguin-Kun Wars ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
Arcade Archives Super Volleyball ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
Arcade Archives Task Force Harrier ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
Arcade Archives Thunder Dragon ($3.99 from $7.99 until 12/12)
Chasm: The Rift ($7.99 from $19.99 until 12/12)
Farming Simulator 23 ($34.99 from $44.99 until 12/12)
Growbot ($13.99 from $19.99 until 12/12)
Headbangers: Rhythm Royale ($14.99 from $19.99 until 12/12)
Lamplight City ($10.49 from $14.99 until 12/12)
Mutropolis ($12.99 from $19.99 until 12/12)
Nelly Cootalot: The Fowl Fleet ($9.99 from $19.99 until 12/12)
Sonority ($13.99 from $19.99 until 12/12)
The Longing ($11.24 from $14.99 until 12/12)
Unforeseen Incidents ($13.99 from $19.99 until 12/12)
Venba ($11.99 from $14.99 until 12/12)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more reviews, more new releases, more sales, and perhaps some news. I actually fell asleep holding my Switch last night, which is about the state of trying to catch up on my reviews. I’ll get there soon enough. I hope you all have a magnificent Monday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Note that most of these decks are the best of the best at this point in time. They assume you have access to a full range of cards. I’ll once again be including the five strongest Marvel Snap decks of the moment, and I’ll throw in a couple more decks that don’t need anything too hard to get and are just sort of fun to play with. You know, a little variety and all of that.

Higher, Faster, Further had a big effect on the Marvel Snap meta, and spotlight card Ms. Marvel was only a small part of that. Werewolf by Night, a latecomer to the Bloodstone season, has also been ripping and shredding. Most of the cards from Loki for All Time seem to have been nerfed to the point of not being so domineering, but there are all kinds of new balance issues that Second Dinner is going to have to sort out. And that’s not even getting into whatever the Hellfire Gala event will bring. For now, let’s have a look at this month’s picks!

Annihilus Bounce

Included Cards: The Hood, Spider-Ham, Korg, Nico Minoru, Black Widow, Shadow King, Rock Slide, Werewolf by Night, Beast, Darkhawk, Sentry, Annihilus

I’ve been running into variations of this deck ever since Annihilus dropped, and it is a real pain in the butt to deal with. That means it’s a great deck for you to be playing, if you can. You’re basically throwing out cards to irritate your opponent and block their moves, while setting up a move that sees Sentry not only adding his 10 Power to your side but also sending the Void’s -10 Power to your opponent’s side via Annihilus. Werewolf by Night should also add a lot of Power to your side by the end, and the classic tactic of stuffing your opponent’s deck with junk and playing Darkhawk is as useful as ever. A truly demonic deck, and it’s easy to see why it’s dominating the meta right now.

Galactus

Included Cards: Nico Minoru, Psylocke, Jeff, Electro, Wave, Shang-Chi, Ms. Marvel, Hobgoblin, Professor X, Alioth, Galactus, Orka

Guess who’s back? You can’t keep a good planet devourer down for too long, it seems. This deck has the usual tools for getting Galactus out as early as possible, with Wave, Psylocke, and Electro giving you extra Energy for the purpose. You also have some useful cards for controlling locations here, and Shang-Chi and Alioth are there to make sure you can close the deal after Galactus has done his thing. Another one that will catch a lot of players with their pants down as long as you aren’t too obvious about what you’re setting up.

Darkhawk Double Up

Included Cards: Korg, Quinjet, Black Widow, Zabu, Ravonna Renslayer, Mystique, Rock Slide, Darkhawk, Moon Girl, Ms. Marvel, Iron Lad, Iron Man

Another returning classic, and one that should be pretty familiar for many long-time players in terms of how to deploy it. Your aim is stuff your opponent’s deck with the likes of Korg and Rock Slide, get your Darkhawk out, try to copy it if you can with either Mystique or Iron Lad, and then double your Power with Iron Man and one of the copiers. Zabu and Ravonna should help you get those cards out earlier, and the Quinjet and Moon Girl will help supply you with the cards you need.

Loki & Werewolf by Night

Included Cards: Maria Hill, Nico Minoru, Quinjet, Snowguard, Mirage, The Collector, Falcon, Sentinel, Rogue, Werewolf by Night, Shang-Chi, Loki

Loki might have slipped his grip a little this month, but he’s still a mover and shaker. This deck gives you a lot of ways to win, whether it be by feeding The Collector, ripping off your opponent’s cards with Loki to use against them, scooting the Werewolf around to beef up, and gumming up the opponent’s works with Shang-Chi and Rogue. The Collector will be the main card to hang your hat on, but the rest of the lot are no slouches either.

Sera Surfer

Included Cards: Forge, Nova, Okoye, America Chavez, Brood, Silver Surfer, Killmonger, Nakia, Werewolf by Night, Sebastian Shaw, Polaris, Sera

You can’t keep the classics down this month. Sera Surfer is back in the top runnings, with new cards Sebastian Shaw and Werewolf by Night adding nicely to the usual trick of playing a bunch of 3-Cost cards, rolling Sera on turn 5, and then sending out the Surfer at the very end to buff everyone up. America Chavez got totally reworked and she now fits this deck like a glove, too. An intersting twist is adding Forge and Nova to the selection along with Killmonger, allowing you to boost up the Power of your cards even further while also freeing up those places to put stronger cards in later.

And now, a couple of fun decks for those still climbing up the collection ladder or who simply want to try something different.

Electro Ramp

Included Cards: Nebula, Psylocke, Jeff, Electro, Wave, Iron Lad, Black Panther, Sandman, Arnim Zola, Leader, Doctor Doom, Odin

I’ve been playing around with this deck style recently to get a feel for it, and I’ve found it an interesting change from my favored decks that involve spamming a lot of weak cards. Use Psylocke, Electro, and Wave to get your big cards out early, and see if you can pull off that Black Panther/Arnim Zola trick that throws a wrench in just about every opponent’s strategy. If you can’t get that going, take solace in the fact that you can still play things like Doom into Odin as a back-up plan.

Budget Control

Included Cards: Iceman, Rocket Raccoon, Scorpion, Armor, Storm, Killmonger, Enchantress, Jessica Jones, White Queen, Gamora, Spider-Woman, Odin

I’m starting to run out of good themed decks that only use beginning cards, so I’m revisiting an old one with slight adjustments. One of the important things to learn in Marvel Snap is how to take advantage of control – which is to say, taking control of the game through things like location baiting and manipulating turn order. If you want to consistently win at Marvel Snap, being a mind reader helps. In lieu of that, you can trick your opponent into playing cards in certain locations and take advantage of that with cards that get stronger from it, like Rocket Raccoon and Gamora. Turn order is particularly important on the final turn, but it can be useful on any turn depending on your set-up. Playing a card like Killmonger as the final action in the game can really mess up your opponent. This deck will help you learn about those things, so it’s a good idea to give it a try while you’re learning the ropes.

And that’s it for this month’s deck guide. We’ll return with another one of these in January to see where things stand after the Hellfire Gala event has fully played out and a month’s worth of balance changes have done their thing. The remaining cards for this season are certainly interesting, and I can only wonder if we’ll see any Annihilus-level disrupters pop up. Happy Snapping!

Teeny Tiny Town, Free We’ve got a couple of games that were in last week’s article making another appearance this week, which suggests to me that the developers need to take a nice vacation over the holidays. Don’t work too hard! Anyway, this update allows you to bring back the original view and rendering style if you prefer. The rotation button is also back. Another update rolled in earlier today, but as near as I can tell it is just a general bug fix and improvements affair. Well, that’s fine. It’s always good to see a developer with its ear open to the community.

Junkworld TD, This week has a couple items of good news for tower defense game fans. First up, the Apple Arcade Junkworld TD has received its Underground update. That translates to some new trap-filled stages, some new missions to clear, a couple of highly familiar new enemy types, and a new hero. A rat hero. Could it work? Some experts say it is so, but this reporter believes the public will never accept a heroic rodent! Not unless he’s wearing white gloves or is some kind of awesome ninja rat, at least.

Marvel Contest of Champions, Free The season is shifting for a few Marvel apps, and I want to look at Contest of Champions first. The Event Quest this time is called Party Foul, and it sees Kitty Pryde and Bobby Drake inviting the Summoner over for a nice private holiday celebration. Unfortunately, someone spilled the beans and now all heck is breaking loose. Who decided to ruin the party? Play and find out. Aside from that, there’s a Side Quest involving Red Guardian. He’s tired of being confused for Santa, and he decides to gather up some buddies to try to put a stop to Christmas. Even the roast beast? Those are just the two headliners in this update, so be sure to check the game itself for more.

MARVEL Strike Force: Squad RPG, Free Okay, stop the presses. This is our coveted UMMSotW award winner for this week. The actual update itself only added small things on top of the big one from a couple of weeks back, but right now there’s an event going on where you can get the J Jonah Jameson version of the Spider Slayer, complete with the screen on top showing Jonah’s face! Amazing. It takes a lot of moral courage to show that ridiculous character in this day and age, even updated and modernized, and I for one can’t help but applaud. More JJJ, less Wolverine. Trust me, the money will flow.

Disney Heroes: Battle Mode, Free There’s no real way to frame this latest update to Disney Heroes as a holiday-themed affair, but let’s see what I can come up with. Imagine if you loved cats, but you especially liked them very large and stripey. What kind of present might you ask for? A tiger, of course! And when you think Disney tigers, you think… Tigger. Hm. But if you were to think of two Disney tigers, you would think Tigger and… Rajah. Right. But suppose you were thinking three? That third one just might be Shere Khan from The Jungle Book, and that’s exactly who has joined the Disney Heroes roster this time. Wow, what a present!

Merge Mansion, Free Here’s the obligatory free-to-play matching puzzle game update for this week, and it’s Merge Mansion. We have to keep an eye on Grandma, after all. This is a Christmas-themed update, with a new event called Deck the Halls, Clear the Webs. I mean, half of that sounds like normal holiday fun. There’s also some business called The Fa-la-la-la Follies, and plenty of season-appropriate adornments abound. This latest version also sets up a new area that will appear in early January, the Gallery. That all sounds exciting enough for our purposes. Well, let’s move on.

Honkai Impact 3rd, Free Another update for Honkai Impact 3rd, and it more or less follows the usual pattern for such things. There’s a new SD-type battlesuit called Cosmic Expression that uses a brush as a laser saber to put the hurt on enemies. A new Earthbound Order story chapter is incoming, a new event called Starry Voyage: Strike Back! is happening, and some new outfits and equipment have been added. A fairly robust bunch of additions, I’d say.

Mini Motorways, Aurora Borealis? At this time of year? At this time of day? In this part of the country? Localized entirely within Mini Motorways? May I see it? Oh, I can? Nice. We get a brand new map in this version, Reykjavík, and your chances of seeing those Northern Lights in the game are pretty high even if you can’t spot them in your own kitchen. There are also some new achievements and challenges to go with that new map, plus the usual works of bug fixes and performance improvements. Yes, it’s a tired meme. I still like it. I’m old.

Bloons TD 6, $6.99 Do note that this update applies to all versions of Bloons TD 6, so feel free to fire up your Bloons TD 6 of choice and enjoy. The Colossal Holiday update adds a new hero named Corvus the Spirit Walker, some new map editor props, a new Expert map called Glacial Trail, a new Boss Challenge feature, and some new quests, achievements, and other goodies. That should keep players busy through the holidays, or at least for a couple of solid days of hiding from annoying family members.

Outlanders, We’ll finish things up this week by peaking in at another Apple Arcade game, Outlanders. The updates don’t come too often for this one, but when they do they’re usually quite substantial. This time we’ve got a new volume of Outlanders Chronicles, giving you a whopping six new levels to play that follow the lives of four new characters. Naturally, you can play around with these levels in the Sandbox Mode if you feel like that. Is home really where the heart is? Play this new content and see what it has to say on the matter.

That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!