As mentioned at the beginning of the review, your appreciation of Star Wars: Episode I: Racer appearing on the Switch will heavily depend on the rose tint of your glasses. On the one hand, the presentation is especially rough, and the lack of difficulty for most of the campaign makes the task of unlocking everything a chore — at least until the final few races become competitive. On the other hand, the sense of speed in races is still present, and the track design isn't bad when you consider how fast things are going. While those who have played the game before might get a kick out of being able to play it again on a modern, portable machine, others may be fine leaving this one alone.
The concept for Cannibal Cuisine is fine: a grotesque spin on the Overcooked formula with some quality of life changes. However, there are enough issues here to sap away any enjoyment from the concept, especially if this is your first exposure to this type of party game. Unless you're a veteran of these games and want to deal with the artificial challenge, it'd be best to leave this one alone and opt for the more polished titles in the genre.
If you're a fan of first-person shooters on the Switch and have an affinity for the classics, you should have Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour.
Moving Out is a joyous experience. The chaos is ever-present, but the chill approach ensures that everyone is having a good time instead of gradually wanting to tear each other apart. The number of levels is just right, and the presentation is appealing. It serves as a perfect complement to other co-op titles and belongs in the library of anyone who enjoys the genre.
In the end, Dogurai makes for a nice enough retro throwback that can act as a snack between meatier titles. The game isn't too difficult, but it is simple to understand, and it apes the mechanics of older games well enough to earn that challenge. The length of the game is buoyed by the presence of two endings and a new character, while the aesthetic fits perfectly for those who want to treat the Switch as a portable rather than a home console. At $5, Dogurai is certainly worth it for those who want to scratch that retro action platforming itch.
There's a solid adventure game in Beyond A Steel Sky. The puzzles make sense and ease newcomers to the genre, the story is mostly on point, and the writing is robust. Whether you're a longtime fan of the original or just coming to its world now, there's plenty to enjoy in Beyond. The multitude of technical gameplay and presentation issues make it difficult to eke out all of the joy you can from the title. If you can deal with all of that, then you'll find a fine adventure game to sink your teeth into. Otherwise, you might want to wait for a few patches to see if the issues get ironed out.
While not overly amazing, Relic Hunters Zero: Remix is a fun roguelike twin-stick shooter. The campaign length feels just right, and the abilities brought in by the character roster make the game feel fresh even after logging multiple playthroughs. There's a great sense of progression, and the extra modes give the game some legs. It's a good complementary game to the other twin-stick roguelikes that are on the Switch.
While Spuds Unearthed isn't the worst VR experience out there, it is certainly one to avoid.
Your enjoyment for Stacks On Stacks (On Stacks) is going to be largely dependent on how much you can accept its randomness. The lo-fi graphics and sound work well, since they combine with the various random events to create an Adult Swim kind of manic experience. Its core mechanics could use some tweaking to be more accessible, but it still works well enough to keep you coming back again and again. Stacks On Stacks (On Stacks) is a puzzle game that's worth checking out if you want something in your collection that's out of the ordinary.
Despite its age, Burnout Paradise Remastered remains an absolute classic in the racing game genre.
It is difficult to recommend Sisters Royale: Five Sisters Under Fire, especially when the Switch has many solid bullet-hell shooters. The level design feels basic, and the combat isn't exciting. Even if you take the terrible cut scenes into account, the game is woefully short for something without an arcade origin. This may still be enjoyable for bullet-hell shooter fans, but most people won't be missing out if they pass on this.
Split archives aside, your love of Namco Museum Archives Volume 1 will be dependent on how much you love the NES and how you feel about this mix. Half of these games are better represented by their arcade versions, and depending on your platform of choice, you may already have access to them via the older Namco Museum compilations. However, NES originals like Splatterhouse and Dragon Spirit are as excellent today as they were decades ago, while the demake of Pac-Man Championship Edition simply has to be seen to be believed. For the investment price of $19.99, retro fans will like this title quite a bit.
Compared to the first volume, Namco Museum Archives Volume 2 feels like a better package of games all around. While there are still a large number of arcade-to-NES ports here, the genre variety is much broader, and fewer games have made appearances on previous compilations. There are still a few clunkers here, but most of the titles are solid, and while nothing is as sought-after as Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti was, there's still a good collection here. For the retro fans, this is worth checking out for $19.99.
Galaxy Warfighter is a better game if you're on iOS or Android. It wouldn't necessarily make it a masterpiece, but it is a more tolerable experience on devices that are made for your pocket. On the PC, however, the litany of issues plaguing the game design are too much to make this worthwhile when the platform has a near-limitless supply of better titles in the genre. Unless you really need Steam Achievements, pass on this one.
Brotherhood United is a game that you might want to play if you've run out of other run-and-gun shooters. The shooting may have been fine if the modern mechanics weren't thrown in, but the multitude of annoyances, from the bad pixel graphics to low customization and inability to easily convey vital stats to the player, combine to make for a terrible overall experience. Considering the vast library at your disposal, Brotherhood United is an easy pass.
The best compliment that we can give to Shinsekai: Into The Depths is that it feels like a well-done indie game. Exploration is the game's big hook, since the environments, secrets, and floaty movement encourage looking around, while combat works most of the time but isn't the main focus of the experience. There's a good balance between exploring at your leisure, maintaining your stats for survival, the boss fights, and the dwindling resources in the late game. Although the extras aren't enough to entice Apple Arcade subscribers to double-dip, everyone else will enjoy this adventure from beginning to end.
Disintegration is a game of would-have-beens.
Cat Girl Without Salad: Amuse-Bouche is a brief yet amusing shooter. The silliness works well, and the varied weapons make you rethink every attack to keep shooter fans on their toes. The shooting is fun for those not normally skilled in either traditional or bullet-hell variants of the genre, but it really takes some effort to not complete the game in one sitting. This isn't a fantastic game in the genre, but it's worth owning if you're down for short and satisfying side-scrolling shooter jaunts.
Nintendo-only owners can see what all of the fuss is about
BE-A Walker: Battle for Eldorado is needlessly cruel. The number of things you have to monitor due to the fragility of your craft, combined with the ridiculous cooldown times, make for one of the most off-putting opening levels a game can have. If you're able to power through, the rest of the game is monotonous, even if you get lucky enough to grab enough funds to mitigate the constantly depleting meters. Combined with a lackluster story and absent fun factor, it'll take someone who really enjoys masochism to power through to the end of the game. With the multitude of better shooters on the system, it's easy to skip this one.