Naruto to Boruto: Shinobi Striker has both its good and bad moments. Unfortunately a lot of the bad moments for me was with the combat and constantly getting knocked down with barely anytime to defend myself when getting back up before the onslaught continued, but a lot of that I'm willing to chalk up to my own lack of skill. Still, the VR Missions are enjoyable once you learn the nuances of combat, but don't expect to see me floating around the online lobbies any time soon.
Brawlout is a pretty fun Smash Bros.-esque fighter that's quite a bit more fast paced. While the roster selection is small, and the unlockable characters are similar or just alternate versions of the original lineup, the fast-paced action and unique moves for each character make this a pretty fun game to play with friends, either at home or online.
The Lion's Song is a great point-and-click game that focuses mostly on the narrative. The choices you make in one chapter can not only impact the other chapters (both later and earlier chapters), but seeing all of these choices have connections to each other in the Gallery is a nice touch. With its unique art-style and use of music throughout the game, The Lion's Song was a great experience.
Okami HD is a beautiful and enjoyable game and I'm glad I finally got the chance to play through it. You now have three ways to use the Celestial Brush and each way has certain instances where it might work better than the other two. Between the great cel-shaded graphics and relaxing music and atmosphere, Okami HD is an amazing game that fans and newcomers to the game should check out.
Mega Man X Legacy Collections 1 and 2 are a great set of games featuring the history of X and Zero. While we don't have any stage challenges like the original Legacy Collections or the ability to rewind or use save states, the new X Challenge mode is definitely a challenge on normal difficulty and even on easy difficulty I enjoyed just whaling on Mavericks with just the X Buster. Overall, fans of the Mega Man X series should enjoy these collections, even more so on the go with the Nintendo Switch.
Overall, Sonic Mania Plus is a great game. While the Plus part really only gives you two new characters and a harder version of the game, current Sonic Mania owners will only have to pay five dollars for the DLC which isn't too bad. Even 30 dollars for those wanting a physical version is still worth it for the main game alone if you don't already have it. Either way, fans of Sonic who haven't played this yet should definitely pick it up at some point.
Pode is a fun and relaxing puzzle game that starts out simple and becomes more complex as the game progresses and you gain new abilities. While the game is meant for co-op play, it plays just as well single-player, though you will have to constantly swap between Glo and Bulder. Having a second player can also help with solving puzzles as you have a second person helping you out, but alone or with a friend, with its enjoyable art style and relaxing atmosphere, Pode is a puzzle game worth checking out.
I Hate Running Backwards is a fairly good game, but I can also understand people's mixed feelings about it. The game is basically a thirty minute top-down shooter (if you can survive that long), but the further you progress, the more difficult you can make it if you wish. Add in a dozen characters to choose from across Digital Devolver's games and there are plenty of ways to have fun taking down Mental's minions.
Antigraviator can be pretty challenging for those not familiar with anti-gravity racing games such as F-Zero. There aren't a lot of upgrades for your vehicle and requiring credits to attempt later leagues can be a bit detrimental as you might have to replay the first league multiple times just to grind credits. The traps are also not really my cup of tea and I could do without those personally. Beyond that though, Antigraviator is a solid game, but it's not for everyone.
Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection is a great celebration of Street Fighter's history. While I'd rather have seen Street Fighter IV as opposed to five versions of Street Fighter II, I can't really complain about having twelve games in one collection, though only four are playable online. I'm not too fond of the "random game" mechanic for lobby battles and I'm glad it doesn't extend to the other multiplayer modes, and the Switch's Joy-Cons are probably the least desirable way to play a fighting game of any kind. Beyond that though, if you're a fan of Street Fighter you'll likely want to pick this one up.
The tables in the Pinball FX3 Bethesda Pack are all pretty solid, though they can get complicated at times, namely the Skyrim and Fallout tables. While those two contain RPG-style elements to them to match up to their original video game counterparts, the Doom table is more of a traditional pinball table, though all three do have missions and quests to complete. Overall, eleven dollars for these three tables is a pretty good deal, especially given how complex Fallout and Skyrim can be.
Toki Tori on the Nintendo Switch is an excellent puzzle game. The difficult progresses naturally, the puzzles themselves will make you think about solutions other than what seem obvious, and the wild card and rewind functions are great for newcomers and veterans alike. If you have five dollars to spare, definitely give Toki Tori a shot.
If you like these kinds of games it's still worth checking out.
Dead in Vinland is a nice mix of RPG, simulation, and exploration elements. With nearly a dozen party members to recruit, multiple tasks to assign people to, and many different ways to interact with the island's inhabitants, there are multiple ways to go about playing the game and every decision you make will matter in the end.
Pit People is one of those games that I enjoyed despite being terrible at the genre. While the game can be simple compared to other games in the genre, the combination of the easy to pick up gameplay and the graphics and humor that The Behemoth is known for makes this a game worth checking out regardless of whether you've played other tactical RPGs or if this is your first one. Plus, who doesn't want to hear a giant space bear taunt you throughout the game?
Super One More Jump is a fun and addicting game that's simple to pick up and has a gradual difficulty curve. With over 100 levels to play and a few extra game modes to unlock, plus the two multiplayer options including two- to four-player co-op, Super One More Jump is definitely worth picking up.
Subsurface Circular has an engaging story with compelling characters that really makes you think about how you'll meet your objectives. While the game is short, clocking in at around two hours, the story itself is enjoyable enough that you really don't mind the short length. For six dollars, Subsurface Circular is worth checking out for the story alone.
Steamworld Dig is a fun game, but it's pretty short and can get repetitive after a while.
Aegis Defenders is probably one of the tougher games I've played in recent memory, and that's all thanks to the tower defense sections. Fans of that genre probably won't have too many issues, but newcomers playing alone might find those sections pretty daunting until they master switching characters, learning the arena layouts, and know what traps to use when. If you have a friend to play co-op, you'll likely have a much easier time. Still, it's a pretty good game for GUTS Department's first outing.
Although not playing the original, The Escapists 2 is still an enjoyable game, especially if you don't have a lot of time on your hands as it can be played in spurts with how the game and save mechanics work, each day lasting around fifteen minutes. However, the first prison you play through might take a while to escape if you're not familiar with how the game works. Though the tutorial level does help out a bit, there were still some things I didn't know about that would have made things a lot easier my first time playing.