It’s in these moments that charm of Aegis Defenders rises to the top. The visuals are sumptuous and eye-popping with colour. The design of the worlds and characters could have played into the tropes we’ve seen a thousand times before, but each feels wonderfully original. This accompanies a gentle and subtle soundtrack that perfectly fits the overall style and package. This is definitely a game worth exploring, more so if you have a second person to grab a Joy-Con and join in, but it’s worth keeping in mind that the two styles of gameplay differ wildly and while they’re both steeped in quality, should one of them not appeal, it might lose some of its shine.
Slayaway Camp: Butcher’s Cut is ridiculous fun, but more so if you’re a fan of the old school horror films it imitates. Nothing here is taken seriously, except for the puzzles themselves which are often fiendishly difficult, but always fair. As a package, it manages to evoke an odd nostalgia on top of genuine laughs, a wealth of unlockables and head-scratching puzzles. There’s a killer soundtrack to boot, which fits nicely into the background of each movie, punctuated by outlandish cartoon sound effects. This is bite-size puzzle gaming at its finest.
Even the game knows how crazy this is stating the mode is “totally unbalanced – just for fun.” I think that sums much of the game, although the balance elsewhere is on point, Bleed 2 is simple, unadulterated fun.
Most of my time with Devious Dungeon saw me walking through levels destroying everything in sight for coins, then buying the next best gear I could get, before grinding through the next batch of levels.
Toki Tori 2 is a perfect little game for playing over time not only because of the format, but because it’s practically impossible to forget how it plays and how Toki Tori moves. It’s easily a must buy for the system if you want a puzzle game to fill your time.
Toki Tori is a charming little character who, when left idle, expresses himself in a number of ways that add another level to his personality. The whole game is a saccharine little gem, which has been said many times before, but is always worth saying repeatedly.
Midnight Deluxe needed more; more levels, more variation, a better control system – why can’t I aim with the stick and use a moving power meter that requires button presses, like a golf game? Yes, the game looks gorgeous. I’m clapping for the designer, each level, while similar, does look lovely in a dark and bleak way. It’s atmospheric and spooky, made from a palette of blues and greyscale. Games like this are wonderfully simple, which makes them incredibly accessible, in the right circumstances, but they often need more depth. This is one of those games.
Tiny Troopers Joint Ops XL is one of those games which is perfectly fine. It isn’t a bad game and it isn’t going to blow the doors off of the barn. It’s an ideal game to burn ten minutes in between other experiences and there are some nice little moments throughout. Playing isn’t going to change your life or deliver any deep narratives, but if you want to blow stuff up and shoot mindlessly for a while, you could do a lot worse.
The style is lacklustre, the sound design adds very little to the overall package and it all feels very bland. This is one of those games where, when it loads I found myself uttering ‘Oh’ out loud, because it failed to capture any part of me. Had there been some humorous narrative, a few jokes scattered throughout, maybe even just some puns, I might have enjoyed my time with Puzzle Puppers. As it stands, it’s completely forgettable, which is a massive shame considering the wealth of memes and jokes that exist and the fact that the actual puzzle design is decent.
Within these images, we see the steps of life being laid out. A man meeting a girl. Surprising her with a boat trip. Nothing in these images is interactive, but they each encapsulate a sense of wonder and nostalgia. They reward exploration and intrigue in the scenes. Small mannerisms and gestures from the central character, before and after these images are shown, add a wealth of personality to his two-dimensional form and go a long way to creating a rounded persona, and experience, that is entirely endearing.
Unless I’m missing something integral, I can only say that Plague Road became boring and repetitive. I wouldn’t mind so much if I was grinding mobs to level up or mapping areas, but after so many deaths I found I just didn’t want to play any longer. Which is annoying because the game has a great aesthetic appeal, some interesting options and when it flows, it does so with verve. If I did miss anything, I can only lay blame with the tutorial system, because it doesn’t really do enough to paint a full picture for players.
This is a game that has no right to be as much fun as it is. It should be one of those titles that’s ultimately forgettable – something that feels ported from mobile devices, but Super One More Jump is a bunch of fun with one player or more and it has that perfect ‘one more go’ attribute.
Aside from the story, there are local multiplayer and challenge modes. The latter does offer some really interesting game types like a horde mode, a boss challenge and a type that asks you to protect a flock of sheep. But, for me at least, I didn’t find any urge to pick up my Switch and play Brawl. This could have been a great game, but it tries to sell players something that we’ve already seen done much better and a style that just doesn’t merge all that well with the idea.
A part of me wishes there was more to sink my teeth into with InnerSpace – a proper narrative, maybe, but that takes away from what a lovely experience it is. It takes away from how it looks, sounds and moves. Most of all, it would make the game something very different and that would be a real shame because this is a very charming concept fleshed out with a great eye for detail.
I would feel disheartened, but Celeste has taught me, in a short time, not to feel this way. The game has guided me, through Madeline, to strive for my goals, to take time and breathe, to take chances and venture out of my comfort zone. The story that eventually plays out is a powerful hit to the solar-plexus and is very welcome in the current field of video games.
There’s variation in the areas as winding paths and multiple lines of marbles are introduced. There’s an extra hard difficulty if you want a challenge or to grind your teeth into dust with frustration. It’s not a bad game at all, it just does what it says on the tin and while that’s fine, it doesn’t stand up above other games – many of which flood the Nintendo eShop each week – to steal your attention away.
There’s no doubting the enjoyment that’s possible in Crawl. I would love to have seen a proper story mode that allows the unlocking of items, etc, because the universe the devs have created is intriguing. There’s a lot here to love, but a lot that can lower the experience. It doesn’t have the draw of an Isaac or Gungeon and it won’t beat out ARMS or Mario Kart 8 Deluxe when you have friends round, but it’s worthy of time because it does so many things differently.
It’s clear that the developer has a wonderful vision and creates something that feels it could have achieved a level of wonder seen in its obvious inspiration, Alice in Wonderland. However, there are too many small issues and the lack of any solid narrative makes the game, well, boring.
It’s an unmissable game that truly feels at home here. And whether you’re playing for the first time or the 896th, it feels exciting, fresh and unique. Enter the Gungeon has always been a game that you must play, now, on the Switch, it’s a game you must OWN.
Everything feels very budget. The sound isn’t great, the visuals are only okay and the idea of a single player campaign only goes as far as a few races in each cup which ends with a message thanking you for playing. It could have been so much more and all I got from my time with the game was a hankering to break out my SNES and find a copy of Super Off Road, which did it all so much better… in 1992.