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It’s a real shame that YesterMorrow performs so poorly, because visually it’s a real treat, and it’s backed up by a pretty great soundtrack. More importantly though, its gameplay – while functional – can’t hold a candle to a game like Celeste, and we feel it really should have nailed this aspect if it’s to be successful. YesterMorrow may be worth a go if the severe technical issues get ironed out, but it’s by no means a must-buy.
No More Heroes is something very rare – a game that's actually better now than it was on its original bow, showing us just how little the gaming landscape has actually moved forward. It is certainly, avowedly not for everyone – and you get the impression that's just how director Suda51 likes it. Artier than most art games, more thoughtful than most think pieces, and cruder than crude oil, No More Heroes uses its own repetition to decisive, impressive effect. Glorious, gore-ious, gorgeous and gregarious, this madcap anime nightmare deserves your attention. If you missed it on Wii, buy it immediately. If you didn't, you most likely already have.
A fine sequel, Travis Touchdown's sophomore effort turns the mania up to eleven for an unforgettable blood-soaked thrill ride. While it's a little more generic in terms of its narrative, it makes up for this wholesale with brilliant pacing, fantastic minigames and a whole brace of new, ingenious assassins to cut to pieces. As confident a follow-up as you could ever want, this is Grasshopper at the top of their game. Another fantastic port of a fantastic title.
TENS! is very much like Sudoku; it’s the kind of puzzle game that is so immediately accessible to everyone, it’s actually quite difficult to pick out any significant flaws. Ultimately, your enjoyment of the title will come down to how much you want to play a game that’s essentially about adding and subtracting numbers. It’s not for everyone, but if you’re up for it, then TENS! will sink its hooks in you and won’t let go for a long time.
Control is, and always has been, a fantastic game – that's not in doubt. Remedy's skill when it comes to creating a highly-detailed game-world is world-class, and the gloriously dynamic combat is second-to-none – once you've unlocked the required skills in-game, at least. The Nintendo Switch may not be the absolute best place to play Control if you're looking for crisp 60fps graphics and rock-solid performance, but it's perfectly good if you've got a relatively stable internet connection and a Pro Controller.
Touhou Spell Bubble is a top-notch puzzler with a ton of content to enjoy. The wonky localisation is a little disappointing, especially from a well-established company like Taito, but ultimately it doesn’t hurt the experience to a significant degree – the mechanics are the real star here.
Bakugan: Champions of Vestroia attempts to shoehorn the long-running franchise into a Pokémon Let's Go-style affair aimed at younger players but does so with absolutely zero care or charm. This is a lazy, repetitive, basic game that slowly erodes your patience and goodwill with sloppy mechanics, a tiny roster of samey monsters and a world that reveals itself to be entirely devoid of character or life. Avoid.
Torchlight III is the sort of game that we can only describe as genre filler. It does absolutely everything that you would expect of an ARPG, and it often does these things extremely well, but it also doesn't do anything particularly interesting or revelatory. Those of you that love a good ARPG will find plenty to love here, then, just don't come into it expecting to be blown away by anything on offer. And while we'd sooner recommend that interested newcomers jump on Diablo III for their first experience, it's pretty tough to go wrong with Torchlight III. Despite some of its shortcomings, Torchlight III is a rewarding experience that we'd say is certainly worth your time.
The mobile version of Part Time UFO already had the charm of a Kirby game, the physics-based chaos of World of Goo and the compelling claw machine mechanics of Nintendo Badge Arcade. This new Switch port builds on top of that already impressive stack by adding a co-op mode that betters Snipperclips and chucks in an infinite mode that provides the sort of quick-fix joy that hasn't been seen since Paper Plane on DSiWare. It may be a game about picking things up, but the real challenge will come when you try to put it down.
Although The Last Blade: Beyond the Destiny is an excellent little thing, one must keep in mind that it is still a 2001 handheld fighting game, and very much of its time. On its original hardware, it was heaven-sent, but on your Switch you might be somewhat disappointed if you're going in blind. For SNK aficionados and Last Blade fans, it will delight purely on historical value, but those with no experience of the Neo Geo Pocket or the SNK library will likely feel better served buying the actual arcade ports of Last Blade 1 and 2, which are also available on the eShop. To that end, this is a better bet for fans, collectors, and those enamoured by gaming curios. It's dinky, it's charming, and it's a testament to the craftsmanship of old SNK. And, while imperfect, it plays like The Last Blade should. For certain gamers, that will be more than enough.
Like a lot of other releases in the Devolver line up, Disc Room is a wonderfully unique release that stands out well on the eShop. That premise of "a shoot 'em up without the shooting" seems silly at first, but very quickly shows itself to be an interesting idea that's taken in plenty of fun directions. Disc Room is tough as nails in all the right ways, and this combined with plenty of secrets, solid accessibility options, and an intriguing premise makes for an experience we can easily recommend. Don't pass this one up, it's definitely worth your time.
We realise it's not a popular outlook. Games should generally be appreciated for what they are rather than blasted for what they're not, but that's very difficult to do in this case. New 'n' Tasty is an acceptable imitation of Abe's Oddysee, but nothing more. It has its moments of inspiration – the Stockyards stage is so beautifully realised that it can momentarily trigger that "this is what I remember the original looking like!" false memory – but it's not enough to make up for the frustrations that come from the many, many unnecessary changes. Even the sound of Abe's chant, which once sounded mystical and otherworldly, now just sounds like babbling. We're very torn. As this is the only way to play Abe's Oddysee on Switch, we begrudgingly recommend it. But we do so with our arms folded, and pouting. Harrumph.
Green Hell is a brutally tough, deep and satisfying open-world survival sim. It suffers from the same inherent repetition and often infuriating difficulty as most other examples of its genre, but these are problems offset here by satisfying crafting and construction systems, clever smartwatch and body inspection elements and a story mode that easily trumps the vast majority of offerings we've come across in a survival sim. If you can make peace with the Switch's graphical downgrade, missing multiplayer aspect and some minor control issues, what's here is sure to satiate any cravings you may have for some seriously tough survival sim shenanigans.
Well-produced and undeniably fun, Angry Video Game Nerd 1 & 2 Deluxe will definitely lose something for non-fans, but it's a world above the turgid likes of PoopDie. This re-release elevates the workmanlike original to the point that it almost outshines its formerly-leagues-better sequel, but both games are good stuff. It's comfortably the best "YouTuber game", and this edition polishes it up in all the right places. If you're a fan of the AVGN, it's a must-buy. If you're not, you'll probably still enjoy yourself – Freakzone has crafted a meaty, responsive and rewarding pair of platformers that genre enthusiasts will get a kick out of. If you've already played both games, the extra chapter isn't lengthy enough to demand a double-dip, but it is a nice inclusion regardless, and this version is undeniably the better option. (Whoops, we almost forgot the best news of all – the Nostalgia Critic has been entirely removed from ASSimilation. Let joy be unconfined!)
It might be more old-school than other similar games, but Wallachia: Reign of Dracula still offers rewarding action, skilful level design, and some excellent music. With Konami seemingly content to sleep on its popular Castlevania series for the time being – outside of smartphone games, of course – this (alongside the likes of Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon and its sequel) might be as close as we're likely to get to a brand-new "old-school" Castlevania outing on Switch. It's a good job, then, that Migami Games knows Konami's franchise so well that it has created a truly convincing imitation – but one which has enough ideas of its own to stand out from its inspiration.
Visually, Pikmin 3 Deluxe doesn't push the boat out much further than the original Wii U version did. Where its changes lie are in its revamped control system and the addition of a new Side Stories mode. Neither are necessarily transformative enough to warrant double dipping if you're perfectly happy with your Wii U copy, but if you're one of the vast majority who don't have a Wii U copy, this Switch update is unquestionably the best way to play it.
Oceanhorn 2 is a decent game, albeit one that doesn't do enough to stick out from the crowd. Excellent presentation and a clear understanding of the mechanics underlying the Zelda franchise make for a game that is satisfying and ultimately worth the price of admission. At the same time, however, a slight pervasive shallowness in the various gameplay systems keeps it from ever becoming too engaging of an experience, as it never delves as deep as it could with many of its ideas. We'd give Oceanhorn 2 a light recommendation, but with the caveat that you might want to wait for a sale on this one.
Timberline Studio's debut game holds a lot of promise, with writing and animations that are both full to the brim with personality and wit. However, The Red Lantern's core game loop suffers from repetitive, punishingly random events that make the player feel passive and helpless to the whims of fate.
Transformers: Battlegrounds is far from the disaster you may expect; it delivers a fun, accessible turn-based tactical experience which is sadly a little too easy. It might make a good game for someone new to the genre, or kids looking to get involved, but we'd wager that even children might find this one a little too simple. It's a good effort and it does right by Cybertron's finest, but there's just not enough of it to justify the price. When it goes on sale, though, it'll be time to (ahem) roll out.
Vigil: The Longest Night isn't the toughest Metroidvania you'll encounter on Switch – nor does it possess the most interesting plot – but it has plenty of secrets to uncover even after you've finished it; it's just a shame that Switch owners have to endure a host of technical problems, such as long load times and an inconsistent frame rate. These unfortunate issues aren't enough to totally sink the game, however; if you're in the market for more Metroidvania goodness and you like your games dark, grimy and gothic, then it's certainly worth a look.