Justin Nation's Reviews
All said I’m a big fan of Spy Chameleon and its fresh take on stealth action puzzling. Never settling in for too long each mission feels just about the right length before the game throws some new things at you to get the hang of. Later in the game the puzzle element really begins to kick in as you’ll need to work carefully and methodically to avoid detection in a variety of ways. If you love creative action Spy Chameleon could just sneak its way into your list of favorites.
All in all Earthlock is a solid JRPG experience that should be quite welcome on the platform since it is currently a bit lacking in the genre. While it’s hardly revolutionary it does a fairly good job of delivering on what’s most important in terms of combat mechanics and fun. While it may be priced a bit high for an indie title for the most part it’s a reasonably-good investment.
The developers additionally threw in provisions for co-op and even some 4-player battle modes as well but while these add some value the core experience is what defines the game for good or ill. As a platformer it has over 100 varied and increasingly challenging levels, some with just a simple time limit and some that the screen will stay on the move, forcing you to keep up. If the game had just focused on that it would be a reasonably good, if forgettable, experience. Unfortunately with the extra layer of menus, screens, and complexity to sort through it trips over itself while ultimately offering very little benefit for the investment. While Turtle Pop has some good ideas and novel gameplay, it is also a bit of a mess.
As a total package for roguelike fans Flinthook is among the most satisfying and challenging I’ve played in the genre. I love the flow and the variety of enemies, rooms, and traps you’ll need to learn to contend with. Getting good in this game requires some real investment and effort, the fact that there’s a system for progression sitting on top of the individual runs is just good design. Throw in a distinctive sense of visual style and a memorable soundtrack and you’ve got a terrific game that it right at home on the Switch.
All things considered for the pretty low asking price Midnight Deluxe isn’t too bad a game if this sort of experience is what you’re looking for. It will certainly take some time to get through all of the game’s 70 levels, and if you choose to go back and be efficient to earn 3 stars on every level (though I don’t see where that would be appealing), you could obviously extend its life further. Considering the previous iteration of Midnight on the Switch this is a far better implemented and polished, even if a bit bland.
Starting with the story itself, I’m afraid “ruining it” would take little more than two sentences...
I’ve personally had a great time playing Steredenn and would immediately recommend it to anyone who enjoys intense shooters and roguelike sensibilities. It’s a combination of bullet hell, crazy power-ups (you can get a sword that lets you stab enemy ships), and risk-reward decisions that most often ends in complete failure but still puts a smile on my face. If you’re up for pushing yourself, and don’t mind the taste of defeat, I heartily recommend it.
All said while the number of levels is a bit on the short side I, Zombie has quite a lot to like about it, especially at it’s very budget-friendly price. The mix of action, puzzle, and strategy elements is novel and can be challenging in places. While I wish there were more of the levels where you remotely control your zombies to bring your army towards you I found their inclusion to be a particular stroke of genius and am hoping people are inspired to make more of them. Assuming the community at least modestly supports the game with new levels I think it is a great value and well worth giving a look.
While the themes and subject matter the game is supposed to be trying to tackle are interesting the implementation of the product itself is poor without question. There are absolutely brilliantly-told stories using simple mechanics, a few that I’ve reviewed recently, that prove you can do a lot with a little. Unfortunately North’s ambitions didn’t extend to its execution, leaving instead a forgettable mess trying very hard to make a point.
If you’re a big run-and-gun fan there are very few titles on the platform that I hold in as high regard as Bleed 2. The action is intense, character movement is fluid, and there’s something new thrown at you at every turn. Perhaps more critically with multiple skill levels and a pretty lenient continue system the game is also surprisingly fair, and thus accessible, to gamers of just about any skill level. That isn’t to say beating the game on Easy is a cakewalk, you’ll still need to earn it, but with so many games that default only to brutal it is great to see a game that scales down effectively.
All said I was very pleasantly surprised by World Conqueror X and even impressed. While it isn’t everything this age-old Civilization fan was hoping for I realize that’s an extremely high bar for anyone to even attempt to reach. While its city management and world building are lacking it does a very respectable job of playing as a strategic World War 2 sim and is absolutely the only game in town if that sort of thing appeals to you. Add in the layer with leveling up your base units and managing various generals from throughout history and it is a pretty polished product strategy fans should check out.
While many times I find throwback titles like this to be tedious, failing to inject enough modern touches into classic gameplay styles, once I got rolling I found A Hole New World to be very satisfying. With some creative level layouts, a diverse set of enemies, and some memorable boss fights the developers behind it put very visible effort into giving you an incentive to forge on and get through the tough sections. If you’re itching for a mix of the old, new, and the unexpected A Hole New World is easy to recommend.
Taking it all in Mulaka is an attempt to do something fascinating, to use a video game as a vehicle for helping to preserve cultural history, and then manages to turn it into a compelling gaming experience. Rather than ending up being held back by using this as its base the folks at Lienzo have blended it together in a balanced way to be sure it serves all interests effectively. The result is an exploration of culture through a very competently made game. I look forward to seeing how they proceed from here after this promising start.
In some regards you could believe that any lesser combination of these modes could have been a stand-alone game so kudos to the developer for taking their idea and running with it to the fullest. While the style of play isn’t revolutionary each mode has enough variety that switching between them regularly kept everything feeling pretty fresh and challenging. With its presentation being clean and polished, a well-implemented hook, and a diverse set of challenges spanning a load of puzzles if you’re looking for something to test your mind it’s a solid option.
In order to help keep things a bit more exciting there are a few racing modes to choose from as well...
Having never heard of Little Triangle to this point I was a bit surprised at how challenging and deep it is. With very solid platforming mechanics, some challenging level designs, secrets practically everywhere you look, and some very challenging boss fights it is has a substantial amount of content for its price of admission. If you’re an old-school 2D platforming fan you owe it to yourself to give it a spin.
While there are various layers and trappings that sit on top of it to further complicate matters that’s what sits at the game’s core...
The time I spent working through the story of Subsurface Circular feels well-spent. I’d say it is just about the right length, neither being frustratingly short or passing a point where it felt like a chore to see through to the end. The story, its eventual choices at its conclusion, and the characters you talk to along the way were all well fleshed out and refreshingly different. If you don’t mind doing some reading while you play it is worth checking out.
Overall I had a blast with Bridge Constructor Portal and because of its very effective, and full, use of a terrific license it really goes to the next level for me. Using practically every element possible from those games it successfully manages not to be stale or predictable, instead there’s generally a new surprise around every corner. Married with controls that are spot-on perfect whether in docked or handheld mode, a sense of humor, and an unlimited budget I’m not positive how it could have been much better. Highly recommended!
Thoughtful types who enjoy a good head-scratcher and can take their time to execute will likely find Toki Tori 2+ to be a delight. It’s bright, cheery, colorful, and chock full of its own unique flavor of puzzle platforming that’s not for the faint of heart. People who err on the side of action will more likely want to consider giving it a pass though since you’re more of a facilitator than an action start in this adventure. All that said it’s a unique offering on the Switch and will provide hours of puzzle-solving enjoyment with a formula I haven’t seen before.