To add a slight downer on proceedings, neon signs adorning crumbling buildings and barren hills in the background rubbed us the wrong way. To be clear, Golf Club Wasteland isn’t a game for children thanks to the colourful language featured on the radio, but a few of the neon signs were just needlessly childish, if not entirely inappropriate. These featured seemingly random words plucked from the urban dictionary which completely pulled us out of an otherwise pretty engaging and deep narrative. Not enough to totally spoil our pleasant little post-apocalyptic walk, but enough to be irritating.
Secret Neighbor is, in theory, a meaningful and intriguing spin-off from Hello Neighbor, introducing multiplayer elements that really should work quite well. In practice, however, the game suffers from poor controls, unremarkable environmental design, and quite frankly, its own player base. Matches turn into insufferable spectacles of chaos, and even when players commit to the game's rules, it's still completely unbalanced, favouring the incredibly powerful Neighbor each and every time. Even if you're a fan of asymmetric multiplayer games, you're better off skipping this one.
All in all, Rush Rally Origins is a great little rally game if you keep your expectations of the graphics in check. From a gameplay perspective, it’s more than capable, and offers improvements over the original game in spades. Despite the easy vehicle handling, the game is nevertheless challenging with smart AI and strict time trial targets (which we’re told will be slightly altered in a patch, along with various other tweaks to visuals and performance), and is perfect if you’re after a fun, easygoing arcade driving experience.
Despite its obvious visual shortcomings art of rally is still a nice looking game regardless; the gameplay, of course, shines through brightest, making this one of the most authentic, challenging rally titles in some time. The incredible music makes the price of admission worth it alone, and if you’re after a surprisingly nuanced, deep rally game, this is the one to go for.
Greak: Memories of Azur is a solid platformer by Navegante Entertainment, delivering a well realised world with interesting characters, gorgeous hand-crafted visuals, and intriguing environments that beg to be explored. The combat can be a bit hit and miss at times, and the distinct lack of co-op play - despite the ability to switch characters at will - feels like a missed opportunity. As a story-driven adventure title, though, this one is absolutely worth a punt.
Despite the lack of any real challenge, Ayo the Clown is nevertheless a nice alternative to the usual go-to platformers on Switch. It’s got a wonderful, uplifting soundtrack, with several tunes you’ll be humming long after completing the game. Granted, if you’re a Coulrophobic and the mere thought of playing a game featuring a clown causes you to break out in a cold sweat, then you might want to steer clear. For everyone else, though, this is well worth picking up if you’re a fan of breezy, easygoing platformers.
Ultimately, the gameplay starts off strong, but quickly feels a tad 'samey' after a while. Exploration is encouraged, but the game's 'dungeons' normally require you to wipe out all enemies within one area before allowing you to progress to the next, leading to some lengthy and repetitive sessions of scouring every inch of a dungeon to find the boss. The game also often shifts into a scrolling 'shmup', with Colette riding on the back of a broomstick, but even these sections can lack variety at times.
With its unique use of portals, Unbound: Worlds Apart is a great platform title with a flutter of Metroidvania in the mix. The framerate can be a tad annoying, chugging along at frequent intervals, but thankfully it's never quite disruptive enough to ruin the experience. If you like portals (and come on, who doesn't?), then this is definitely a game worth checking out.
Out of Line tries to straddle the line between being an emotional narrative-driven experience and a consistently engaging, challenging puzzle game; unfortunately, it struggles to accomplish either. Far from a bad game, we'd absolutely recommend Out of Line for the younger audience who may want to dip their feet into the puzzle platform genre, but for those seeking something a bit more taxing, then you might be better off looking elsewhere.
Boomerang X features instantly gratifying gameplay that will get its hooks into you immediately. Its arena-based combat encourages you to keep moving and flying through the air in order to avoid death, with your boomerang acting as a kind of portable teleport or hook shot. The overall difficulty is a bit tame for the most part, which incidentally means the game is a bit on the short side, but there's plenty of potential for repeat playthroughs and speed runs thanks to the fun, addictive gameplay. If you're a fan of frantic, fast-paced first-person action, then this one will be right up your alley.
We love free stuff, and Sky: Children of the Light is perhaps the best experience you can get for free on the Switch to date. The visuals are simply stunning, whether you're playing in handheld mode or on the big screen, and the variety of the game's different worlds provides more than enough incentive to explore. The social aspect is solid, and the game's unique ability to foster bonds with complete strangers is frankly a marvel. The only real downside is that the gameplay is so simplistic in nature, so we're not certain it will keep players around for long to experience any future updates. If it does grab your attention, however, then a magical experience awaits.
Worms Rumble is a reasonably fun game in its own right; the battles feel fast, the weapons pack a decent punch, and the addition of zip wires make traversal a blast. The problem is that in transitioning to a multiplayer-focused battle royale style game, much of what made Worms so iconic in the past is now gone, with far fewer weapons and absolutely no destructible environments. Add to this a rather limited selection of levels, and you've got an experience that may well be fun for a short while, but certainly won't keep you engaged for the long haul.
Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights is one of the strongest Metroidvanias of 2021, and easily one of the best examples of the genre on Switch to date. It boasts excellent visuals throughout, with bursts of colour lighting up the otherwise dreary kingdom, and a wonderful soundtrack that we guarantee will live rent-free in your head for hours. All of this is held together by strong gameplay, with a particular focus on customisable load-outs via the spirit abilities. It's a tough game at times, and the minor frame rate dips hold it back from true greatness, but with a respectable playtime of roughly 15 hours this is an experience you'll be glad to try out.
With so many games featuring death and destruction, Alba: A Wildlife Adventure is a breath of fresh air. Much like Pokémon Snap, its focus on observation is a welcome change of pace, and it never feels like the underlying message is being shoved down our throats. At 2-3 hours in length, our only wish is that it lasted a bit longer, but with its relaxing tone and simple gameplay, this is one we suspect you’ll go back to again and again.
Ultimately, the gameplay just feels a bit slapstick, with messy movement, erratic ball controls, and shoddy AI. Its simplicity is immediately appealing, with quick matches allowing for short sessions while you’re out and about, but even with its quirky visual style, the liberties taken with its gameplay makes Super Soccer Blast: America vs Europe a tough game to recommend.
DC Super Hero Girls: Teen Power could have easily been a disaster; a cheap cash-in with little or no merit. Thankfully, it's actually a surprisingly comprehensive and satisfying experience that fans of the show will absolutely love. There are plenty of characters to interact with, an excellent shopping feature, and lots of fun little tasks to keep you occupied. Don't get us wrong, the game knows its target audience and caters to that younger demographic, so older gamers may not gel with the overall tone and simplistic gameplay. However, kids who might not yet be ready for the 'grimdark' ("MARTHA!") DCEU, this might be the perfect alternative.
Other than the overly chaotic nature of the action, Mighty Goose is a visual treat, oozing style with its character and environmental design. The companions are also well realised, and can actually be played by a second person via co-op, although their abilities are arguably far inferior to Mighty Goose itself. Regardless, whether you play on your own or with a friend, Mighty Goose is a blast, and while it’s a bit short-lived at three-to-four hours, it’s definitely worth a shot if you’re up for some over-the-top run 'n' gun action.
With a great variety of environments, simple gameplay, and a strong line-up of enemies, Astalon: Tears of the Earth turns out to be one of the more successful action platformers we’ve seen in recent months. It will likely only last a handful of hours, but there’s a lot here to love, and it's a relative no-brainer if you’re a fan of high fantasy Metroidvanias.
Super Bomberman R Online joins many of its peers as the latest classic franchise to receive a battle royale twist. It's not entirely successful, with technical issues including freezing during gameplay and awfully long waits to get into matches alongside a battle pass and microtransaction system that just doesn't fit in with the nature of the game. Underneath all the added padding, however, is the same classic Bomberman gameplay that's tweaked to fit 64 players, making it an experience that you should, at the very least, download and try out. It's free Bomberman, after all.
When it comes down to it, There Is No Game: Wrong Dimension is a bit of a misnomer. There is certainly a game to be found here, and it's a ruddy good one. If you're not a fan of point-and-click style adventure games, then you may want to look elsewhere, but with an experience packed with ingenious puzzles and excellent self-aware jokes, this is one of the strongest examples of the genre in recent years. It's right up there with the best; don't miss out.