While Iris.Fall is a bit shorter than we'd like for it's $39.99 USD price tag it's still a journey we're glad we took! The game has some of the most innovative puzzles we've seen in a game on any platform! Couple the innovation that uses objects in the light and shadow worlds with some spectacular animation and you have a clear cut winner for one of the best puzzle games ever on the Nintendo Switch platform!
Vintage adventure gamers rejoice! Skunkape Games under the tutelage of some former Telltale Games developers has created a faithful Nintendo Switch version of this classic adventure game duo! This is Sam & Max as we remembered and it plays oh so well in undocked mode making it THE point-n-click adventure game for on-the-go! The visuals are satisfying, the music and voice-overs are crisp and the controls are impeccable. And hopefully, the Season Two and Season Three teases on Skunkape Games' website become reality for the Nintendo Switch and other systems!
El Hijo is just downright fun to play. It doesn't take a tremendous amount of thought to get through levels and the game is forgiving when you do get "caught". The inspiring of in-game children is a great motivational system that will entice you to replay levels to get 100% completion!
Jurassic World Evolution: Complete Edition on the Nintendo Switch is a surprisingly pleasurable port of a rather hefty console game. Whether you're a dinosaur fan or not there is plenty of fun here for fans and newcomers to the sim genre. It would have been naive to not assume that the graphics would take some loss as compared to the more powerful competitor consoles. If you can live with that and the abundance of small text to be read then the tradeoffs are worth the portability.
If you're a sentimental fan of G.I. Joe, then you are the most likely to truly enjoy this game. G.I. Joe fans will enjoy the characters, the things to collect, the Saturday morning cartoon-ish visuals, as well as the campy cartoony storyline. For all others, this will just come across as a run-of-the-mill third-person shooter game that will require some patience to find a control scheme setting you can work with.
If your fingers need a break from the shooter and platforming games and you have a flair for story-based, fantasy-filled role-playing games then you should take a look at Seers Isle. While considered a "game" it's clear that non-gaming young adult+ book readers can find something to enjoy here as well! What you'll find is a visually pleasing and interactive experience that can easily be enjoyed on the go. It's a "game" where your choices matter and they have a impact on the story's outcome. While relatively short, it encourages replaying through again where selecting different choices can reward you with multiple alternate endings!
If you're a fan of action RPGs, especially retro ones, then Ys Origin is worth your time to invest in. The action gameplay flows well and is quite rewarding. While the game is challenging it's not overly difficult. Your hero does seem powerful and that's a nice feeling. There's also plenty of environmental puzzles and platform jumping to break-up any monotony of button mashing. This one also plays extremely well in undocked mode and hist the mark of a great action RPG all around!
If you need a peaceful break from shooter games or the doldrums of fantasy-filled role-playing games then you can do no better than taking a look at Along The Edge. While considered a "game" it's clear that non-gaming mature book readers can find something to enjoy here as well! What you'll find is an engrossing visual, interactive experience that can easily be enjoyed on the go. It's a "game" where your choices matter and they have a visual impact on the source material. It certainly would make a strong candidate for anyone's "Book Club"!
Paradise Killer takes place in one of the most bizarre universes one may ever partake in. There are certain elements of the game that lend itself to a retro feeling detective game replete with a tasteful, customizable soundtrack. While the universe and its semantics might throw you a curveball once in a while you'll easily get lost in the large and beautiful open-world. Couple that with a rewarding exploration and puzzle system and you might just forget that you have a murder to solve!
While Atom RPG does capture the essence of the Fallout series this console port seems to fall short of the exceptional ratings it's seen on Steam. The unintuitive controls take some guesswork, almost to the point of being frustrating, Combat feels slightly awkward as well. The RNG gods seem irritated as trying to get through a battle, early on, unscathed is a challenge. On the flip-side, it is quite playable in undocked mode (on-the-go) but be prepared to read a "lot" of small-ish dialogue text. Nevertheless, characters are filled with engaging and witty dialogue to tell a great story.
Raji: An Ancient Epic is an action, adventure platforming puzzler that draws you in with its deep storyline built upon the foundation of Hindu and Balinese mythology. The action elements are diverse, challenging, and fun. While there are slower story focused interspaced between the action it's in these lulls that players can enjoy the beautiful aesthetics. With light exploration features and jumping/platforming mechanics that pay homage to the early Prince Of Persia games, you'll find a lot to like in this cultural gem!
Sentinels Of Freedom helps scratch that itch for a new superhero game, especially one that can run on the Nintendo Switch system. If you were hoping that this one would be the perfect "on-the-go superhero" tactics game then you might need to look elsewhere or invest in a set of magnifying eyeglasses. While the artwork is a bit cartoony the story pays homage to early comics and classic tabletop superhero games. Since this is only Chapter One in a series we'd consider this debut release a strong stepping stone to greater things in follow-up chapters!
While Gleamlight is beautiful visually to behold some of the developer's design decisions make the game frustrating to play at times. The game isn't exceedingly hard but there are times, due to its dark presentation, you're not sure which way to go. The design leaves too much to trial and error. The decision to use a "keep it clean" design for the user interface sometimes takes it a step too far. With this being said, the game does offer some fun for the better first half of the game, after that it grows a bit stale.
Darkestville Castle does the adventure point-and-click genre justice. It keeps true to the object hunt playstyle and the "use this object on that object" puzzle-solving design. The game is nicely voice acted and contains plenty of humour in an all-ages environment. The colourful graphics and humour are pleasing and give off a Tim Burton-esque vibe that is fun and rewarding to play.
The design concept behind Mittelborg: City Of Mages seemed to have a lot of potential. One can forgive the non-engaging gameplay but any enjoyment is quickly hampered by frustrating control and a no-brains, overt advisory information approach. The game becomes less about skill and more about random chance.
Cubicity is a family-friendly puzzle game that is full of cute little animal avatars. It packs in ninety-five levels of puzzle fun for a meagre price. It suffers from some repetitive music and gameplay and after awhile levels seem easy to clear for full credit. It definitely ranks well in handheld mode and makes for great stop-and-go on the go gameplay!
Goosebumps Dead Of Night won't provide the longest or most challenging experience for hardcore gamers. For most of us, it serves as a wonderful homage to the Goosebumps franchise. Its family-friendly content makes a game that households with younger gamers can enjoy with, or without, their parents. Even those not fully versed in the Goosebumps series will find plenty of characters here that seem awfully familiar. At the end of the day, it's an excitingly fun experience because who wouldn't find fun in blasting and being chased by life-size Gummy Bears?
If you're looking to relive some of those classic adventure game years look no further than this Anniversary Edition!
This remake of a Gameboy Advance classic will hopefully find some new followers on this newer system. The easy-going, laid back, open-world style might not be the perfect fit for everyone. The game's tried-and-true formula, with short calendar days, seems to be a prime fit for short gameplay stints, especially for people who have busy lives.
This whimsical, family-friendly title manages to join two unlikely game genres together quite well. The genres being platformer and puzzler. Neither of these areas is exceedingly challenging but just difficult enough to make you feel good about yourself once you get to the next save point. While the story is not a gripping tale of suspense the platforming moments will have you feeling some Super Mario nostalgia.