Don't take yourself out with this crowd. For unenjoyable baseball video games, maybe it should be one, two, three strikes, you're out. I don't care if it ever gets back.
I desperately want to love Treasure Stack, but as it is right now, it's a colorful sketch of a video game at best. Simply, there just isn't much of anything to do and a frustrating interface and a seemingly absent online landscape (including crossplay with Xbox One and PC) makes the future for this heavily online-focused game look bleak. Maybe someday this could be a richer, fuller experience, but it isn't right now.
The sublime style drips with funk, and the cadence of roaming through floors using my presents to try to avoid failure and find my ship parts is one that made for a charming experience. It didn't matter if I saw some of the same things several times over my multiple playthroughs. The whole thing is spectacularly goofy and weird, even if I eventually do figure out why the hell the yeti has a pencil.
Even with a few issues, Trials Rising is an excellent experience on Switch, filled with a slew of creative levels and a lot of reasons to replay and tweak your experience. Sure, the version on Switch might not be as pretty as other versions, but it's just as playable, aside from a few handheld framerate problems. Steady your hand and get to navigating the peaks and valleys of the world of Trials. Just make sure you're connected online.
If you can make hay out of the physics and not run into the maddening frustration that dominated my playtime, then Pumped BMX Pro might just stick the landing. But if you want something that's more freeing and interesting, you're better off checking out any one of the other similar games hitting Switch in 2019.
Taken as a whole, Evoland: Legendary Edition should probably be viewed as just including Evoland 2, since that game is, for the most part, totally alright. I'd look at the first game as a nonessential bonus. It's a solid gag, but that's about it. The second game also veers into that humorous minefield, but at least it can precariously hang with decent action-RPG elements and amusing writing.
The brief length can make it feel a little less ambitious, but I can't say I was let down by this whimsical short story of a video game. Lovely art, a cute story, and solid puzzle platforming help make The Liar Princess and the Blind Prince a pleasant ride.
Away: Journey to the Unexpected is a thoroughly abnormal game that triumphs when its oddities all click. When you're rolling out there switching between your little boy, robot bounty hunter, and drunk wizard and blazing through battles against colorful foes, it's excellent, but when the repetitive areas and roguelite malaise starts to creep in, it falters. If all works out, by the time you hit that point, you'll be rolling the credits.
undefined.We have multiple reviews of Swords & Soldiers, all positive, including Chuck Jose's take on the WiiWare release in 2009 and Zach Miller's equally charmed screed on the HD release on Wii U in 2014. I don't have much more to add that Chuck and Zach haven't already covered aside from I think Swords & Soldiers shows its age more. The spirit of it is wonderful, but if you want to check the series out, I'd more recommend you wait for the sequel to come out in March.
The references don't hinder the fun and this game stands on its own strongly. Etrian Odyssey Nexus is an elegant farewell to a series and a system. If this is the last we see of the Etrian series, this is a high note to go out on.
Some elements of these mystery dungeon-type games will always be inscrutable, but Tangledeep does the best job I've seen at making it playable for everyone. The Switch version might not be ideal thanks to the clumsy interface, but it's worth figuring it out because underneath the difficulty and few crusty layers lies a beautiful game with a ton of enjoyable RPG variety.
After years of hearing how cool Downwell is, it's great to see just how fantastic it really is. It's a straightforward, no-nonsense masterclass in design where it's super easy to sit down with the intention of playing for five minutes and walk away a dozen runs and more than an hour later. Now if you'll excuse me, I've got some gun boots to fire off so I can get to the bottom of this well.
Gabbuchi has its issues, primarily due to the character’s floaty jump and frustrating hitbox, but the puzzles nearly break through the problems thanks to their thoughtful challenge and clever design. It falls short of the engrossing majesty of similar puzzlers, but I hope h.a.n.d. makes more interesting games such as this. It’d be nice to see what they’ve learned after years of working with other company’s creations.
It captured me for a while though, as I tried to go through many runs to learn the ins and outs of these villagers as I planned out my sacrifices strategically to keep them all in the dark of the true machinations of my charlatan cult leader's goals. That is, if the cult leader is lying. I mean, the Chernabog isn't real, right? Right?.
FutureGrind is a brilliantly simple 2D application of extreme sports game concepts that offers a lot of variety packed in a relatively lean package. Surprise was at every corner of this game and the engaging trick system and enjoyable campaign made for an awesome time.
The experience might be muddied by a few rougher edges, like the consistently grating load times and some of the discomforting battle quirks, but more often than not, I came away impressed by how well everything came together in spite of some issues. The ambition and scope of this lengthy indie epic is impressive, taking big swings and, despite the numerous inspirations, carving its own distinct path. If you want your Japanese-style RPG to do to New Jersey what Shin Megami Tensei does to Tokyo, then YIIK is the closest you'll ever get.
Thankfully, even if it's a little weird and limited in some respects, Travis Strikes Again is a fun game that makes me excited for the future of the series. Spending time in the punk rock hellscape of No More Heroes isn't something I thought I'd get to do again. That trip might be through the lens of a bunch of fake video games, but all that does is add a welcome twist to Travis' escapades and add another quirk to Suda's legacy.
Snowboarding The Next Phase looks and plays fine, but it all fuses together to make a mundane and humdrum snowboarding experience. I wish more moment-to-moment creativity was in this game, as so much of it just feels like a boilerplate sketch of the snowboarding game legends like SSX and 1080 that it follows.
U DX is far less essential. The package is totally fine, and outside of Peachette leading to one of the most disturbing memes in recent Nintendo memory, the new character's addition is welcome. Aside from that, the only benefits of this release is that it can be truly played portably and it's on a console a lot more people own.
I had a good couple of hours of Pang Adventures, mostly because I find the concept enjoyable. It's a quick romp that only has legs if you get really into the co-op or leaderboards. If you miss Buster Bros. or just want a quick hit of arcade action, this Switch release is worth popping through. Just don't expect anything more than a good old-fashioned Pang time.