Shadow of the Orient is a perfect blend of nostalgia and modern action-platforming. The difficulty might scare off casual players, but for those who love a challenge, it's an incredibly rewarding experience. Whether you're in it for the gorgeous pixel art, the tight combat, or the speedrun challenges, there's something here to keep you hooked. It's not just a game, it's a journey into a beautifully crafted world where every battle won feels earned.
On Your Tail is a refreshing game in the mammoth sea of what you normally see out in the wild west of gaming. You can easily tell that On Your Tail is a well thought out game filled with purpose and ambition. The games' fully explored ideas and established implementation of its mechanics effortlessly sells you on its intentions. The great graphics, character designs, and other elements of the gameplay like going on dates, delivering mail, making phone calls, collecting artwork, solving riddles, and finding hidden star constellations create a game with a lot of merit. Sadly, the Switch version is just not worth anyone's time due to uncompromisable issues that completely halt your experience making this game frustratingly unsatisfying.
Path of Fury is a very active game that will give you a serious workout given that the game is all about patience and perseverance. You can't go into it randomly punching; you need to be accurate and agile. The game takes full advantage of large playing spaces since you need to turn around and fully extend your arms if you want to use the game's mechanics properly. When the game works, it works really well, with you feeling like a martial arts master. When the game doesn't work due to odd inconsistencies with character placement, it is discouraging and can feel like an idle endeavor. This arcade-like game is snappy and flows deftly and while this is just episode 1, there is plenty of content here to mess around with. If you are a fan of action flicks or old-school martial arts movies, then picking up Path of Fury – Episode 1: Tetsuo's Tower is a no brainer.
Tiny Terry's Turbo Trip is a very special game. The simple outline of the story is entertaining and the way the game goes about telling it with its jarring obtuse jokes is unique. The blank stares of the characters and chaotic manner of events create a creative and impactful experience. An unruly camera and dreadful framerate seem minuscule in the presence of superb and effective gameplay. Tiny Terry's Turbo Trip draws you in with its novelty and silliness, but holds you with its charm and joyous disposition, making this high-speed trip with the adorable Terry a noteworthy adventure that all should partake in.
I thoroughly enjoyed Undying although it feels like it is missing an extra layer of something unique to make it innovative. There are so many different gameplay mechanics that it feels more like busy work than actually playing the game to have fun, especially since the story and the combat are uninspired.
Big Helmet Heroes is a really fun game with a cool cartoon style. The action never lets up as you are either going to be involved in imaginative fights or undergoing puzzling platform trials. The game can prove to be quite the challenge on harder difficulties and playing with a buddy definitely proves to be more enjoyable and successful during strenuous moments.
Eternal Strands is a big game with some big guts. It's awesome that this small team can make a game that stands tall on its own against other big names from the industry. Eternal Strands is entertaining, clever, and spontaneous. The game's different mechanics fold nicely into each other and produce a grounded gameplay loop that is super addicting. Exploring the extensive and differing lands never gets tiring and the voice acting that guides you are magnificent. Climbing is clumsy, controlling your character is incongruous, and multiple art design choices reads wrong, but everything woven together fabricates a game that is meticulous and endearing.
Everything about this remaster is incredibly true to the original, so while it may look cleaner and more crispy than the previous versions, it still plays the same. The framerate is better, character models aren't as low res, and the game looks brighter overall. While sticking to the source material is good for a lot of reasons, it is also bad for other reasons. Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles is a taxing game in a lot of different ways. The stiff controls are cumbersome and the game would feel a lot smoother if they were more snappy. Not only do unfair gameplay moments provide you with no challenge, but they also make the game incredibly boring to go through when you are losing in arbitrary ways. Star Wars Episode I: Jedi Power Battles has a decent amount of content and nonsensical entertainment with the co-op modes, but I find my lack of motivation to play this game disturbing.
Even though I love Donkey Kong, having the only games starring Donkey Kong released on the Switch being rereleases of older games is disappointing. Not only that, Donkey Kong Country Returns HD has the least amount of extra content to it compared to games like Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze and Mario vs. Donkey Kong. That doesn't dismiss the fact that this game is extremely fun and still has a great amount of content. If you haven't played the Wii or 3DS version of Donkey Kong Country Returns, then the HD Switch version is a must-play as it is one of my favorites in the series, but returning fans might not care for the touch ups that much.
Now is a good time to be a fan of VR. Arken Age has finally proved the point of why gamers should get into VR gaming. Phenomenal graphics, captivating combat, enthralling audio, and a passionately detailed world makes being involved in VR in this way a blast. A dull story and languorous music doesn't stop Arken Age from being any less entrancing or gratifying due to its engrossing gameplay. Arken Age is the pinnacle VR experience and is easily one of the best VR games to date. Tether to your headset and become untethered in this remarkable VR showpiece!
Alien: Rogue Incursion is a mandatory game to play and a perfect representation of a quintessential VR experience. It has an intriguing narrative that fans and newcomers can easily enjoy, incredibly fun and smooth gameplay, jaw dropping graphics with audio to match, and it does all of this by actually putting you within its domain. The horror elements are enticing and even if you are scared, the game makes you determined to keep playing and have fun without effort. Being in this world is comfortable and you will have a hard time putting this face hugging adventure down. Big things come from small beginnings, and as the most recent access point into the franchise, Alien: Rogue Incursion is definitely a big deal and a must play.
The effortless and straightforward amusement that Dog Man: Mission Impawsible provides is greatly appreciated. While the game gets more demanding with having to pull off trickier and tighter jumps or having to use a bit more brain power on how to unlock a door, I never got tired of playing. The smart layout of the stages blend expertly with the characters movesets and powers making a perfectly well balanced and enjoyable game for all audiences. The fine quality of the games graphics and audio will keep you engaged and involved with the gameplay. Whether you are a fan of Dog Man or not, you will have a ball playing Dog Man: Mission Impawsible.
The Thaumaturge feels poetic. There is something about it that just feels confident and purposefully precise. It feels like there was a true passion and drive that is effortlessly showcased through the sophisticated story and gameplay elements. The concept of relying on others misfortunes, downfalls, misery, trauma, tragedies, and impurities to get what you want during this historical tension with Russian rule is captivating to say the least. The combat has a lot of neat ideas that prioritizes strategizing, but it feels like there are too many eggs in one basket and the many choices almost undermine the system to begin with, making fighting a bit humdrum. Some hiccups with the graphics don't deter you away from great aspects of the game like the attractive environments, mesmerizing soundtrack, and gripping decision making. The Thaumaturge is an easy recommendation for anyone looking for an intriguing story with intricate and entertaining gameplay.
Stray is able to pull some innovative ideas in neat ways. It is creative in how you can run around these levels and interact with your environment. There does seem to be some curing factor in just roaming the world as a cat. Inadequate challenge and reward mixed with the limitations of the hardware may sour your experience, but the attention to detail, fun designs, interesting narrative, and fantastic music lighten these burdens. Save the future by protecting the past in this pawsome tail of a time!
Squingle is an excellent VR game that is great for VR experts, amateurs, or dabblers. It provides an exciting challenge and the core design of the game is entertaining. The multiple options the game has is a huge plus in providing comfort and connectivity with the player. Playing can get tiresome at points with the difficulty of the gameplay mixed with the style of the levels, causing unnecessary issues, but the mechanics are very enjoyable and the game makes it satisfying when completing your objective. Squingle is a must play VR experience and is the epitome of design in how to create a fully immersive VR game.
As awkward as a game that Mario & Luigi: Brothership can be, you can't beat the entertainment you will have with it. The turtle-paced progression, quick gameplay gimmicks, and unwieldy concise worldbuilding can be disheartening, but when a game is fun…a game is fun! The extremely rewarding combat and layers of strategy is a blast. The graphics are impressive, the soundtrack is outstanding, and the moments where Luigi gets to shine are indubitably adorable. Anchors aweigh and cast off into the grand voyages of high-spirited and loquacious antics in Mario & Luigi: Brothership!
Miraculous: Paris Under Siege is a game about pure simple fun. From the generous checkpoints and no consequences when you lose all your health to the extravagant combat that feels awesome and the showboaty flair during traversal. The game is a perfect example of why the show is as popular and loved as it is and fans are lucky to get a game that is so genuine to the heart of the series. The only way you can enjoy Miraculous: Paris Under Siege more is to play co-op mode with a friend or family member for an even better miraculous superhero time. With fun gameplay, true to nature graphics, and valiant music, you can never lose with Miraculous!
Farmagia's unconventional gameplay mechanics are a hit while not being excessive or carrying the entire game on these procedures. The mix of gameplay elements is original, congenial for fans of the genre, and captivating for those who are curious. While the makeup of the environments and actually running around in this world may seem somewhat barebones and dry, the complexities and layers implemented in Farmagia make strategizing and actually participating in the game's functions compelling and gratifying. The anime style may be overdone, but experts in this field make this element bearable for the most part. Music that dominates, incredible voice acting, conceptually cool monsters, and substantial graphics and character designs make a game that's hard to miss. Farmagia harvests up the qualities that make a game great and triumphantly forms it in a way that flourishes into something special.
Drova – Forsaken Kin is a remarkable RPG about loss, struggle, and redemption. It's mysterious and captivating and its story is engrossing. Gameplay isn't complicated, but all of the game's mechanics are interwoven in a way that will always have you strategizing and formulating your next scheme. Combat is fun and inventive with multiple ways and facets to interrupt your opposition and take them down. Quests are abundant and it's entertaining traversing this relatable inhabited world full of colorful characters. While drab, music plays its part well enough and the varied sounds construct an interesting playing space. The abundance of bugs are unfortunate and the convenience of playing this on the Switch is diminished due to the bad framerate. Nonetheless, playing Drova reminded me of the days where I would spend all day in my room playing Champions of Norrath to level up and explore an exciting world. It is a great game that demonstrates an excellent feeling of exploration and adventure through its core gameplay.
While yes, this is just another Dragon Ball game, it stands in line with the best of the best in style, presentation, graphics, sound design, gameplay, and content. It is surprising how polished DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO actually is. Besides the sheer amount of things to do from the long story mode, bonus battles, and achievements you can strive for, the sophistication with the combat is fun to master and the actual gameplay feels buttery smooth thanks to new and improved systems. Even though a lot of the 181 characters are a bunch of different versions of the same character, there's plenty of variety in the selection right from the start. DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO is the perfect welcoming back into the franchise. Thanks Shenron! My wish has been granted!