Connor Nichols's Reviews
Mutant Mudds Collection is a fantastic collection of two high quality platformers, both in one package. While the original Mutant Mudds Deluxe lacks the high quality level design that its sequel has, both games are lengthy, enjoyable experiences to 100%, and are well worth purchasing the Collection for that alone.
Steamworld Dig 2 is by far the biggest surprise from 2017, and while it took a while for me to get to this title in the queue, I’m really happy I eventually did, as this quickly became one of my favorite games to come out during the entire year of 2017! Expanding a concept that I saw great potential in three years ago, and letting it grow into a behemoth of a Metroidvania with lots of love and polish makes this game an adventure that everyone really should give a shot, even if you haven’t played the first one.
Super Ping Pong Trick Shot is a fun little physics game with a decent local multiplayer mode. There’s not much to this game outside of completing every single player level and their optional objectives, along with trying out the hectic multiplayer mode with a friend, so you’ll get a decent challenge out of it that’s well worth the $5 price tag.
While it does lack the engaging stories found within the Untold series, I was still surprised that I enjoyed the game just as much as I did with Untold, despite the lack of a developing plot. The little additions, from the improved character customizations, the in-dungeon sidequests and Union Skills also help to fit within the series, and I hope all of those features return for future installments.
Soldam is a very impressive remake of a fun Arcade gem, doing a great job at bringing an obscure hi-score chaser to the modern age. However, it didn’t really add much new stuff to the mix, and outside of the puzzle levels and the Plumidex, the only goal is to get a high score in single player over and over again. No online leaderboards, no VS COM mode, and the online community for this game is really, really dead despite the game launching several weeks ago.
Chicken Wiggle is a fun action platformer, with an average length Single Player mode and a moderately enjoyable level editor for you to be creative in. While this game does have one major advantage from the 3DS Mario Maker in that you can actually share your levels online, there really isn’t much of a point to the level editor outside of checking out some new levels every now and then to extend your playtime, but your mileage could heavily vary on the quality of the levels.
Considering the fun that can be had from local multiplayer, Arcade mode and the minigames, WindJammers is still a decent game to pick up if you’re a fan of arcade sports games. The trophies are really the only main objective outside of beating Arcade mode on the hardest difficulty and playing ranked matches online, so while there isn’t a lot of variety or depth to this game, what’s here is crisp and good old retro fun that’s worth a look.
This may be an OK game to pick up if you’re seeking out every strategy RPG on the 3DS, but for those looking for a good strategy RPG on the 3DS I recommend that you just stick to the Fire Emblem games, or if you’re just wanting a good RPG in general I insist that you check out Justice Chronicles instead, since Legna Tactica is as middle-of-the-road as you can get.
In conclusion, LifeSpeed is a pretty boring racer, with a really short story mode, no multiplayer to speak of and some tracks that go on a lot longer than they really should. While the controls are solid despite the auto-acceleration, and there is satisfaction from narrowly winning a race thanks to a helpful bomb, the game didn’t hold my interest for very long, and the decision to make the leaderboards score based just baffle me.
I had a blast with Puzzle Adventure Blockle. My only real gripe with it comes from the fact that you can’t skip a level that you’re stuck on, meaning that if you’re unable to clear one level at all, you can’t progress with the game whatsoever, which is a bit of a shame as the game could easily throw a roadblock at you later on if you aren’t prepared.
Shift DX is as basic as puzzle platformers can get, with the simple premise clearly meant for casual players who spend a short amount of time clearing levels while they’re out and about. It can get challenging at times, and the level editor does offer a world of opportunities via QR Code sharing, but for the most part once you get the hang of things and clear the main levels, there’s really no other reason to go back to this game outside of improving your records through the Challenge mode.
Still, for RPG fans looking for a fun strategy game with LOTS of content, or just someone wanting a long Switch game after having enough of Zelda, Disgaea 5 Complete is a must own, especially if you’re new to the series, since the story doesn’t connect with any of the prior games and you won’t need to worry about getting lost if you start here, or jump from an earlier installment like I did!
For me in particular, instead of the randomness being a factor to make me replay the game over and over again to see what changed, it just made me frustrated and unsure what the difficulty curve was going to be like next. Make no mistake, this game is many times harder than Zero, even on the first level.
Wonder Boy Returns is a remake that plays it safe. While it does add a few new additions like different playable characters and an improved difficulty balance, this is pretty much the same game you remember but with a coat of paint that may or may be not appealing to you.
For $20, you’re getting an absolute steal due to the huge amount of content to play, and combined with some Steam Achievements that’ll take a lot of work to obtain, you’ll certainly get a good amount of content for the price.
DotEmu did a great job at bringing this obscure entry to consoles, and for the most part the game made a smooth transition from PC to console. Outside of the annoyance with charged attacks and the lackluster analog movement, this game felt right at home on the PS4, and for the $20 pricetag I think it’s certainly worth a buy considering the amount of replay value that’ll come from the challenging trophy list and the multiple characters.
DriveDriveDrive is a rather confusing racer to explain. At first the concept of multitasking different race tracks sounds like a stupid idea to pull off, but the team at Different Cloth managed to do it quite well, thanks to tight controls and managing to make the chaotic nature feel fun.
Alwa’s Awakening is an incredibly accurate throwback to the NES games of old, and despite it focusing a lot on authenticity rather than trying anything new, it manages to hit all the right notes for a Metroidvania. With a lovely soundtrack, several routes to take on your journey and more, Alwa’s Awakening managed to engage me more than I was expecting it to, and for the $10 price tag I can easily recommend this without hesitation to fans of Metroidvania titles.
Continuing the trend from RCMADIAX’s recent titles, Brick Race aims to be a short but sweet high score experience. Being on a portable system, the game feels more at home here on the New 3DS than it would on the Wii U. On the other hand, the game doesn’t do much of anything to take advantage of the New 3DS at all, only powering the engine that runs this game.
While I usually admire the simplicity and enjoy titles like Vegas Stakes or the Pokemon Game Corners, this game feels cheap to the point its like they did the bare minimum with this title, which is a depressing shame.