Duskfade is a well-designed 3D platformer sporting quite a few intense platforming sequences and only few less exciting stretches. The weakest aspect of the game certainly are the fights against small enemies, but luckily they typically only last for a short while and rarely stands in the way of the game's flow.
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Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is an imaginative, meticulously designed Zelda-like game that comes highly recommended to anyone who enjoys the genre. Both the world and dungeon designs are captivating, and the yo-yo abilities bring a breath of fresh air to the subgenre.
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Valkyrie Saga is an unusual 3D open-world platformer that drives gameplay progression primarily through ability upgrades. In that regard, it’s somewhat reminiscent of Metroidvania games. It also features some really well-designed platforming sections, especially when you’re scaling great heights. Unfortunately, the technical execution and some level design issues—especially early in the game—significantly detract from the fun.
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Teeto is an entertaining 3D platformer which, whilst it doesn’t introduce any new ideas, does a good job of bringing together the familiar concepts of the genre and offers around eight hours of good entertainment thanks to its well-designed gameplay and solid level design. Due to its low difficulty level and simple controls, Teeto is also suitable for beginners and younger players.
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The Touryst is a laid-back, short action-adventure game which, in my view, takes the laid-back vibe a bit too far and features a few tasks that strike me as a bit like occupational therapy. The short dungeons and arcade-style mini-games, on the other hand, are well done. If the storyline appeals to you and you can live with the fact that the puzzle concepts aren’t fully explored, you can enjoy a few hours of stress-free fun with The Touryst.
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Unfortunately, Bolmn – particularly because of its nerve-wracking physics – fails to impress. Despite its low price and its rather charming style, I simply didn’t enjoy Bolmn at any point, and I find it hard to imagine that many players will feel any differently.
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#RaceDieRun is an incredibly intense, fast-paced yet highly precise game that puts racing fans and skill-based gamers to the test, without ever systematically overwhelming them. Despite some breakneck manoeuvres, you can almost always see a way to master and complete the short levels.
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Denshattack!! is a great arcade platformer with clear inspiration from Tony Hawk. The exaggerated style fits the unique and energetic gameplay perfectly and the game brings a surprising amount of levels considering its tight design. If you find the idea behind the game at least somewhat interesting, you should give it a try. Personally, Denshattack!! rivals Yoshi and the Mysterious Book as my favourite game experience of the year.
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Fire Emblem Mystery of the Emblem is a good mix of remake and sequel which offers a tremendous amount of content and features some really nice map designs. The game can at times be rather invoncenient, e.g. because of not offering a combat effect erstimate when on the offense (meaning you have to compute the expected outcome by hand), restricting the movement of the cursor by the movement range of the character you want to move and the unnecessary difficulties choosing a starting formation. This diminishes the enjoyment to be had with the game a bit, when compared to more modern sequels. Nevertheless, it is a very well-designed SRPG that will keep you occupied for a long time and offers a few great ideas in its map design, particularly in Book 2.
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Four Swords is an interesting experiment with some ingenious design ideas that, however, were only fully unfolded in the great follow-up game Four Swords Adventures. Nonetheless, it is undoubtedly worthwhile to play the first tentative steps of a multiplayer Zelda and to insert one or more entertaining rounds for two to four players. By the way, the single-player variant in Four Swords Anniversary also works surprisingly well, although its availability today is difficult to manage.
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Echo Isle is a successful homage to the GBC Zelda games, with compact level design that effectively conveys the gameplay experience, but does not develop the concept in any way. In this respect, it is worthwhile primarily for a short nostalgia trip for longtime Zelda fans.
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The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past is a brilliantly designed action-adventure that has had a lasting influence on the Zelda series and has not been surpassed to this day. The overworld is one of the best in the series, and the dungeons offer an excellent mix of puzzles, exploration, and exciting boss battles. An essential title, not only for fans of the series.
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The Disney Afternoon Collection is a successful collection of several genuine classics that, despite their age, are still worth both the time and the money today.
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Bubsy 4D is an enjoyable 3d platformer with a somewhat crude humour, that does not feel remminiscent of its predecessor Bubsy 3D, but that is probably for the better. Compared to the rest of the Bubsy series, Bubsy 4D clearly is the best game, but even when taken on its own as a 3D platformer, it is a well-made game. Demon Turf's influence on the game design is pretty apparent and I would rank Bubsy 4D in between the slightly better Neon Splash and the weaker original Demon Turf.
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Arcade Archives 2: Arkanoid is a successful adaptation of a thrilling arcade game; while it has a few minor quirks, it faithfully recreates the original experience on the Nintendo Switch 2. The optional mouse controls—provided you can get used to the ergonomics of the Nintendo Switch 2 mouse—are a welcome bonus that significantly improves the gameplay experience on the Nintendo Switch 2.
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Zelda II: The Adventure of Link is an unusual entry in the series, combining structural elements of the Zelda formula with action RPG gameplay. In my view, however, Zelda II is unfortunately a significant step backward compared to the first game and, due to its at times absurd difficulty level, can really only be recommended as a curiosity for dedicated fans of the series. I’m honestly glad that the third installment perfected the original formula and continued to explore it across many future titles instead of further pursuing the ideas introduced in the second game.
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Dracamar is a solid 3D Jump & Run with surprisingly long levels that, due to its low difficulty and straightforward level design, is particularly suitable for younger players and genre newcomers. Apart from a few cosmetic flaws, the whole thing is presented in a successful manner, making Dracamar a quite recommendable genre representative.
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Ereban: Shadow Legacy is a creative and well-designed genre-mix game that only has some minor flaws in the polish. Specifically, there are some shadow interactions that the developers evidently did not consider, which can lead to erroneous behavior – whether glitching through walls or sliding along geometry that has little to do with the represented geometry. These rare errors only marginally affect the gaming experience.
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What truly makes Donkey Kong Country Tropical Freeze an absolute must-play title for every Jump & Run fan is the again absolutely outstanding level design. Playing through the game normally, the levels are packed with secrets, tricky traps, and creative ideas.
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Donkey Kong Country Returns is a magnificent 2D Jump & Run for all player types except newcomers to the genre. The thoughtful level design and thoroughly improved game mechanics compared to the SNES games make the game an excellent choice. In the end, however, you can't go wrong with any of the versions.
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