Eden Rising: Supremacy has an interesting premise, but it absolutely fumbles its execution. It combines awkward combat with a mediocre tower defense game and a bland open world that never feel connected. Add to that poor optimization and shoddy network stability, and Eden Rising squanders its unique free-to-play model and what sounded like an interesting multiplayer time sink.
The list of things I don't like about Rage 2 is much longer than the things I like about it, but the one thing it does better than I even expected is combat. Once you've filled up your toolbox of weapons and powers, you have seemingly endless ways to take on the game's foes. Unfortunately, its bland story, drab tone, and scattered open world drag it down, but the fierce firefights kept me engaged the whole way.
Falcon Age has some extremely interesting ideas at its core, but never gives them the chance to shine. It tells the story of an indigenous woman fighting back against colonial oppression by training a falcon in line with her cultural traditions, but hides the best parts of its premise behind repetitive combat and boring presentation. There are moments when Falcon Age let me feel the bond between my character and her bird or see the culture she was fighting for, but never enough to be satisfying.
Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen has already been released a handful of times on different consoles, and this port doesn't add anything new. The ability to play in handheld mode is great, but this version also comes with some pop-in and framerate drops not present in other releases. Still, it's worth it just to experience one of the most overlooked games of the decade again, or for the first time. If Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen's stellar combat, unique class system, and treacherous world hook you, its technical flaws are extremely easy to overlook.
Days Gone features some potentially interesting community-building mechanics and the appeal of a bikers vs. zombies game is hard to ignore, but it never lets its best ideas take center stage. Instead, it focuses on lackluster combat and a repetitive set of missions. It moves along on the kind of momentum that exists almost by default in big open world packed with activities, but I could never get fully engaged, partly due to its dragging pace, scattershot story, off-putting protagonist, and frequent bugs.
Steamworld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech is a creative infusion of card-based combat with a traditional RPG. It plays entirely unlike any other card combat game, and it's worth a look even for those who don't generally like the genre. While it's light on story, less replayable than other card games, and could use some refinement when it comes to building decks and equipping characters, it's still a fun twist on a familiar concept that's easy to recommend.
Katana Zero is a game that I loved playing, but I walked away from it with some major reservations. On top of its tight, excellent swordplay, fun time-shifting powers, and pitch-perfect soundtrack, Katana Zero packs some interesting storytelling tricks that I wasn't expecting. On the other hand, it uses its innovative structure to tell a story rife with ill-conceived takes on disturbing subject matter without a content warning in sight. Katana Zero is an extraordinarily fun experience for the few hours it lasts, but the bad taste it left in my mouth lingered much longer.
Unruly Heroes features a mix of platforming and combat with four characters that you can switch between on the fly. With a handful of interesting bosses and plenty of mechanical variation between levels, the game never locks you into one style of play for too long. Ultimately, though, I didn't find any part of it that much fun to play, which wasn't helped by its leaden controls and uneven difficulty.
Outward is an ambitious, uncompromising game, sometimes to its own detriment. There’s a lot to like about it, from its unique take on player character death to its focus on the mundane aspects of adventuring. But every moment when it really shined was surrounded by drudgery and frustration. Outward is sure to appeal to some players, but it often undercuts its own best features.
Windscape may look like a decent lo-fi adventure at first, but it doesn't have much to offer beyond its initial cartoony charm. With sleep-inducing combat and an absolutely skeletal crafting system, it just does nothing to keep your attention.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice manages to live up to its monstrously high expectations in nearly every way. Its high-risk combat system is as satisfying as it is punishing, and its level design begs you to explore every inch of the world. While its locations and enemies aren't as varied as in previous From Software games, you'll hardly notice when you're locking swords with opponents across several beautiful settings. Sekiro tells an intriguing tale about loyalty and mortality packed with surprises and easy-to-miss side stories.
Mana Spark is a middle-of-the-road roguelike that gestures toward a lot of interesting ideas, but doesn’t fully develop any of them. It’s a fun game at first, with a good combat system and a nice variety of unique enemies, but it doesn’t offer nearly enough to stay fresh on repeated runs through its samey dungeons.
Wargroove has the confidence to stick to simple, familiar gameplay with a few twists, rather than try to wow you with its novelty. While its charming graphics might make it look cute, it offers a vicious challenge that gets a bit uneven at times. If you get into its slower pace and high difficulty, it also offers plenty of alternate game modes and custom campaign creation tools to extend the fun.
Vane lets players shift from the form of a bird to a child as they explore a strange, hallucinatory world set to a fantastic synth soundtrack. But what starts as a liberating flight through a vast desert eventually devolves into a linear trek through cramped corridors. Vane is a strange, haunting game that deserves attention, but it abandons its most interesting ideas too early on.
Fitness Boxing doesn't have a lot of features to speak of, but it does provide a solid workout. Its exercise routines are challenging and enjoyable enough, despite their atrocious background music. Fitness Boxing isn't going to be the most fun game on your Switch, but it's worth checking out if you need a little extra motivation to get your heart rate up.
Bladed Fury doesn't break any new ground, but it's got its 2D hack and slash fundamentals down to a science. Its beautiful hand-drawn art style and great enemy designs bring its mythological rendition of ancient China to life, even when its story fails to.
Using only text messages, Bury me, my Love develops two relatable main characters and tells the engaging story of a Syrian woman's search for refuge in Europe after her sister is killed in a bombing. The game rewards multiple playthroughs with its compelling writing and interesting storylines, though replaying the same passages can be tedious.
Ashen uses the Souls-like formula to tell a very different, optimistic story about community. Whether you're playing alone, with an AI companion, or with another person, combat with the game's varied enemies and bosses is challenging and satisfying. Ashen's world feels real and lived-in, and getting to carve out your own settlement and watch it prosper is truly satisfying.
Below is a dark, mysterious game that invites you to illuminate its secrets, then punishes you for trying. While it does a great job invoking a sense of wonder, thanks in part to its sparse, tense soundtrack, its genuinely great moments are spread far too thin. Below will certainly be a divisive game, but it offers a compelling experience for players willing to put up with a good amount of frustration and tedium.
Gris is an incredible achievement, using its art, music, and gameplay to tell a thematically consistent story about a woman overcoming her grief. Despite the weighty subject matter, the way its protagonist's triumph over sorrow is reflected in increasingly fluid and diverse platforming makes it a joy to play. While Gris is low on challenge and impossible to fail, it still feels exciting. Even if it doesn't sound like your kind of game, Gris absolutely deserves a try.