Adam Riley's Reviews
Nicalis brings one of the toughest and addictive gaming experiences from almost every other format to Nintendo Switch, and the transition is seamless. With dastardly levels of difficulty, a quirky aesthetic, and an absolutely sublime soundtrack that has definitely stood the test of time, the major drawback comes from how short the experience is. Once accustomed to overcoming the challenges faced, there is not much left to do after rescuing everyone. Hopefully, an expanded successor is on the way.
Max: The Curse of Brotherhood is a triumph in design, both in terms of how stages are crafted and the way the smart puzzles contained within each world are put together. Held back by its control scheme in the past, the shackles have now been removed, making this the superlative edition thanks to the excellent touch screen system now employed on Nintendo Switch, leaving Cubed3 now hungry for an upgraded version of Max & the Magic Marker in the future.
The ending to Little Nightmares: The Hideaway is very creepy indeed, and looks to tie things together with the exploits of Six from the main adventure, perhaps in the next piece of DLC. For now, though, this finely crafted puzzle-platform-adventure is highly enjoyable and truly gripping and tense in places. More laidback than The Depths, though, this makes for a better experience overall as the whole atmosphere can be appreciated more. A few minor gameplay hiccoughs cannot take away from the fact this will definitely be a few quid well spent, and hopefully the wait for the next episode is not too long.
SteamWorld Heist: Ultimate Edition brings together everything that made the original release such a breath of fresh air in a crowded turn-based strategy field, and adds in all the post-release content to well and truly make this live up to its name. With perfect touch-screen controls throughout in handheld mode, added to the already excellent controller support from other iterations, this is easily one of the most accessible games in the genre, and definitely one of the most enjoyable on Nintendo Switch, full stop.
The coming together of two fantastic platform adventures, and a decent enough puzzle entry, means that Mutant Mudds Collection is well worth checking out for those that are up for a very strict challenge. It has some drawbacks in terms of how smooth the lead character jumps, but the majority of the game is so well constructed that those loving retro style outings will quickly become accustomed to the games' approach and quickly fall for its classic charm.
Absolutely sublime platform action from the team behind Banjo-Kazooie, et al. Yooka-Laylee is everything fans have been waiting for, transporting gamers back to the 3D adventure heyday of the Nintendo 64, but bringing a wealth of updates with it to help it feel not just familiar, but also equally fresh. Between Super Mario Odyssey and this, Nintendo Switch owners are certainly being given some amazing treats in the first 12 months of the system's lifespan!
What was already a fantastic package just got even better. The simple premise of cutting out shapes to solve puzzles is just as engrossing as it was upon release, and the addition of new puzzles for both single-player and multiplayer antics, as well as being able to revisit older puzzles with new pre-made shapes, make Snipperclips Plus: Let's Cut it Out, Together! the ideal treat for Nintendo Switch owners this Christmas...and beyond.
Perfectly accessible for friends and family to enjoy, yet also deep and challenge enough to give solo players great value for money.
Syberia 2 is an all-round success, improving upon the port of the original adventure in many ways. The core story may take a different slant to the previous one, and some puzzles may not live up to the high bar set in the first outing, but this is still a highly enjoyable journey throughout, with everything perfectly adapted for the Nintendo Switch setup, looking great in docked mode, but working even better when played in portable form using the touch screen. Kate Walker's third escapade cannot come to Switch soon enough!
Tequila Works has just about squeezed this beautiful game from other home consoles into the smaller form of Nintendo's Switch. Despite the chronic performance issues that are found throughout in this iteration, it all just about holds together well enough, and, thankfully, the core adventure shines through so brightly that gamers preferring to sample this on-the-go, whilst they are not getting the smoothest version, will be satisfied enough with the sacrifices made to make Rime work in the first place.
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 tries its hardest to match the grandest of grand RPGs out there on the market, attempting to become Nintendo's own Final Fantasy. In doing so, though, whilst still wonderfully vast in its scale, and gripping in how things play out for the most part, it has lost its way slightly, becoming bogged down by an overly complex pre-battle system, marred by fights that mostly feel too hands-off/automated, and some terrible character visuals and voice work. There is indeed a lot to love about this, yet so much that makes you yearn for something more.
An absolute classic, in all meanings of the word; Lumo tugs at the nostalgia heartstrings, and proves to not only look and feel as good as the '80s and '90s Commodore 64 and Spectrum golden oldies, but plays far better than the majority actually would if dusting off the old systems nowadays. Highly inventive, with secrets galore packed in, plus dastardly puzzles that provide a fantastic challenge - it is the sort of title that just keeps on giving and giving, and it is hoped that more Lumo is on the way in the near future.
Microids has done an excellent job of porting the classic point-and-click adventure to Switch. Kate Walker's epic first adventure in Syberia is every bit as gripping today as it was 15 years ago when originally on PC, and it fits perfectly on Nintendo's system, boding well for the impending releases of Syberia II and Syberia 3. Hopefully this is the first of many point-and-click adventures brought across to Nintendo Switch.
With new buildings to visit, more Pokémon to discover, plenty of extra challenges and mini-games included, and even a new villain to tackle, Pokémon Ultra Sun (and its counterpart, Ultra Moon) is the ultimate version of the already impressive Sun and Moon.
The wait is over; the pinnacle of 3D adventures has arrived in the form of Super Mario Odyssey. It beggars belief just how much Nintendo has packed into this latest outing, without compromising the core Mario goodness of the past. Just as with The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, the Mario series has now reached a special new level of greatness that will be hard to surpass in the future. The Nintendo Switch is fast becoming the hottest platform, crammed full of sublime quality gaming experiences like this fantastic new escapade.
Visual novels may not be everyone's cup of tea, but anyone that loves delving deep into the world of a great book will be right at home with this intriguing science fiction adventure, being drawn into the heart of the time travel tale thanks to narrative of the finest calibre and some first class voice acting to bring the excellent cast of characters to life.
Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga has not lost any of its charm over the past decade and a half, plus looks better than ever now on Nintendo 3DS thanks to its new lick of paint. Humorous, addictive, inventive - everything that made the Game Boy Advance original so addictive returns, with some handy touch screen shortcuts added into the mix, and a pleasant side game in the form of the Bowser's Minions RTS quest. With this, Paper Jam Bros. and Bowser's Inside Story, the Mario & Luigi series shows it is still going from strength to strength thanks to the genius team at AlphaDream.
Darkestville Castle never hides the source of its inspiration, but it matters not as this is no mere cheap imitation, instead proving to be a love letter to the classics in the point-and-click genre. It easily matches some of the best of yesteryear, whilst retaining a fantastic fresh feeling, bringing along very inventive puzzles, plus a humorous and engaging script, all wrapped up in a gorgeously presented package. Hopefully, this is not the last time Cid Threep…sorry, Cid the Demon gets to go on a zany adventure.
Fans of the previous two entries, though, will be overjoyed to see their favourite characters again in this well presented point-and-click adventure, and the desire to see how it all ends will keep people going, despite the flaws.
This almost out-Metroids Nintendo's venerable series - that is how good Image & Form's latest adventure is.