Don't Die, Mr. Robot! is soundly made with simple enough gameplay to draw you in and provide some brief entertainment in any given run. If attempting to improve your high score with each run interests you, it may be worth a look for you. For me, while the fundamentals were there and keeps Mr. Robot from an untimely death, a lack of variety and polish keeps him from making it out unscathed.
Titan Quest has a story, setting, and characters that end up being completely forgettable. That said, it fills a gap in the genre offerings on Switch, and if you're looking for something to scratch that itch until something more recent gets announced, it'll fit the bill.
The core flight feels good and each mission is an appropriately brief length that lends itself well to casual, quick play sessions. That makes it easy for me to overlook that it didn't land without some turbulence.
Terror of Hemasaurus is a great "remember when?" kind of game. The way most good indies do, it takes that foundational experience of an underserved genre and tries to flesh out the experience to make it more substantive while retaining the good feelings from playing its inspiration. But with limited gameplay options and a game which can't handle more than one person on screen, this'll be relegated to the "fun if you like this kind of game" category.
The slower paced gameplay won me over as I learned to use that limited toolset to outright embarrass the other teams. The rogue like campaign, as threadbare as it is, does give the game a sense of longevity that's sorely needed. You'll be in for a fun time, if not for a long time.
Fae Farm is a game where the developers have successfully streamlined the more tedious pieces of farming, chores, dungeon crawling, quest completion, and exploration so the player can quickly dive into the features and figure out their sim life rhythm. The sheer number of things to do keeps the experience fresh and for the most part limits the tedium that this genre can be guilty of. Beyond the glaring technical issues, Fae Farm has a lot to offer for both new and experienced players of the farm sim if you can forgive it.
The crisp anime art style works for the backdrops and character designs, but loses something in translation when the characters are in motion. Despite what grievances I have, The Rumble Fish 2 is a foundationally strong fighter which makes it easy for me to overlook the blemishes to enjoy what lies underneath. This won't grab the casual fighter fan, but the devotees should give it a look.
In essence, Arietta of Spirits plays out like a pleasant introduction and first chapter of a larger story yet untold. It has a protagonist who is easy to root for and the framework for development into a larger scope story, broader cast of characters, and a larger variety of combat tools that this game currently lacks. Arietta of Spirits keeps those issues from becoming more glaring thanks to a brisk game length, but I hope her next adventure is a tad more, well, adventurous.
All that said, I can't fault #Funtime for being overly familiar within the twin-stick shooter genre when the core of the game feels so good to play.
It's worth noting the developer announced a bugfix update is in the works, but tread with caution if you decide to buy-in beforehand. But all that said, those demerits weren't enough to sour my experience with Raji: An Ancient Epic. The well-worn game structure is adorned with a decorative style that's wholly unique in video games; a striking soundtrack with heavy sitar notes and an ancient Hindu history lesson compel you to see this personal story of sister and brother to its conclusion. Even with performance caveats in mind, there's a lot of beauty to uncover here if you give it a chance.
Overall, the core experience in this collection is sound enough to overlook the wild swings in presentation quality.
For better or worse, Pandemic on Switch is little more than a digital recreation of the hit board game that you can enjoy solo or grouped-up. The lack of features, side modes, online play and presentation are disappointing, but at its core this is still one of the more fun cooperative board games I've ever played in a compact form on the Switch for a reasonable price.
There are a few games that are tough to go back to, but when they're good, they're really good. The worst I can say is that it doesn't reach the heights of fan service some of the aforementioned collections do, but comparing Wonder Boy to those standard bearers might be a bit unfair. If you enjoy 2D platformers, liked a game in the series and want to explore more, or just have a curiosity for lesser known classic games, then The Wonder Boy Anniversary Collection is something worth looking up.
Curse of the Dead Gods could have easily been an also-ran to solely capitalize on an upcoming release that has a lot of buzz (think Antz to A Bug's Life). Instead, I've been greeted with a roguelike that, while definitely sharing DNA with other dungeon crawlers, has enough interesting backdrops with a few neat combat ideas to make it its own. Curse of the Dead Gods' unique features don't all hit dead-on, but what's here is a game that while not as refined is still plenty of fun in its own right.
It won't win any awards for its visuals and could certainly do well by limiting battling. That said, it hit the mark with tranquil digging, incentivizing crafting with small goals in its missions, and gradually pushing you along to explore the wider world around your starting grounds. If you like your crafting but want a guiding hand for your experience, Aground is a good place to start.
Context of the original really can inform what level of accolades someone might give Oddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty. Without it, you might find the game a bizarre, competent, if clunky, 2D platformer with a few extra tricks up its sleeve. Looking back at Abe’s Oddysee, it couldn’t be clearer how much refinement was done in the action, and how much effort was taken to make it visually pleasing insofar as this world can be. There’s an undeniable charm in its oddness that provides a flavor to this Switch port either way, which makes it easy to recommend. Just make sure to give your fellow Mudokon co-workers a friendly hello.
If I have a grievance with European Conqueror X, it's that there's an enjoyable, robust, and competent turn-based strategy game at its core surrounded by nothing distinguishing. It satisfies that itch for its genre, but its dry presentation and impersonal nature might keep you from wanting to play for more than short intervals.
I persevered and beat the level in five days of off and on play, and rather than it turning me away, the frustration compelled me to respond with "just another run" to do better. The VideoKid is a short visit, not an extended vacation, into a quirky nostalgia-packed arcade run. I enjoyed my brief stay, but for you it might depend on your fondness for The California Raisins or The Thundercats.
While it wears the inspiration on their sleeve, Freedom Planet 2 struck out to build something grander in scale with a panache I have respect for. Even if the ambitions to make a play-your-way experience ends up flattening the experience a bit, it's a minor quibble to my overall positive impression of the experience. Freedom Planet 2 accomplishes the most important test – it is FUN, and the extensive character and environmental diversity makes this adventure a worthy one.
The developer knew to keep the focus on the fundamentals - multiple game modes to keep things fresh, a way to play with friends, leaderboards, and a clean look. If you're not a fan of brick breakers, then this won't convert you. But if the last one you played was Arkanoid, then you're in for a fun revisit.