Cubed3's Reviews
Wild Hearts S' deft art direction carries it through the down-porting process onto lower spec hardware. Despite some minor complaints, the main game offers a robust 30-40 hours of content, with seamless four-player co-op adding replayability. Hunting with friends is always fun, as coordinating Karakuri setups and weapon synergies elevates the chaos to new heights and offers a lot of bang for one's buck.
Please, Touch The Artwork 2 has a few original concepts, like making many paintings feel connected, but the gameplay is uninteresting, slow and sometimes annoying. It may be a game for art lovers, but gamers are probably better off looking elsewhere.
Soma's legacy lies in its bold exploration of consciousness and identity, its refined survival horror mechanics, and its lasting emotional and philosophical impact on players. It solidified the influence of Frictional Games in the indie horror space, which inspired community engagement, and set a high bar for narrative-driven titles. The Switch port is an excellent way to play it for the first time, or for fans who need an excuse to revisit it. Despite it technically having no replay value and thin gameplay, it's a compelling experience to return to for its engrossing and deep story. Its setting is dense with so much detail that even after replaying it multiple times, there are still ingeniously placed pieces of foreshadowing and clues hidden in plain sight. Soma on Nintendo Switch is a solid port, if a bit bare bones. There was a missed opportunity to include some exclusive features like gyro controls, but even without them, this is still one of the most haunting experiences of all time.
Despite a few questionable design choices, Pocky & Rocky Reshrined delivers a thrilling and satisfying experience. The blend of nostalgia and modern polish makes every stage a visual and mechanical extravaganza. New characters and stages keep replays fresh, while the core gameplay loop of dodging, shooting, and surviving remains as addictive as ever. It’s not quite as refined as it could be, and the difficulty spikes and locked modes may alienate newcomers. However, for those who relish a challenge and adore retro shooters with a unique cultural twist, this is a worthy revival of a beloved classic.
Filled with a blend of quirkiness and near-constant humour, Mado Monogatari: Fia and the Wondrous Academy is a breath of fresh air compared to the myriad of doom-and-gloom-themed RPGs on PS5. The minimal issues teamed with a jaunty soundtrack compliment the entertaining personalities whose journey is a pleasure to follow. The future of Mado Monogatari games looks extremely promising with unpredictable story twists and fun battle mechanics.
Dragon Breed easily stands as the crown jewel in this collection. Its innovative dragon-riding mechanics and striking post-apocalyptic visuals craft a near-masterpiece that rivals R-Type’s ingenuity. Mystic Riders follows with its vibrant fantasy aesthetic and local co-op, a rare treat that injects accessibility and fun, though its simpler patterns and repetitive enemies pale next to Dragon Breed’s depth. Mr. Heli, the weakest link, offers lite exploration and chunky-yet-cute visuals but stumbles with its punishing design, feeling like a relic even with modern tweaks.
A remarkably competent first game from another hugely promising Eastern developer, Wuchang: Fallen Feathers has charm and grit in spades. It creatively reinvents the genre’s character progression template and serves up some extremely accomplished high-octane action gameplay that’s rich in flashy skills, impactful magic and dance-like precision. The scope of what’s on offer is made all the more appealing by the low price point: one that does a disservice to the breadth of content offered by this immaculate experience. For fans of action RPGs, this is a no-brainer.
The biggest complaint could simply be that the developers didn't update the character sprites in a similar fashion to the rest of the game. In a landscape where remakes sometimes stray too far or cling too tightly to nostalgia, Star Ocean: The Second Story R finds an impressive balance. It stands as a definitive way to experience a JRPG classic—approachable for first-timers while packed with secrets and satisfying systems for veterans. With its blend of modern polish and heartfelt homage to the original, this is one adventure that shouldn’t be missed by fans of the genre and newcomers alike.
The remaster’s quality-of-life improvements, like streamlined menus and faster load times, are appreciated, but they can’t fully mask the game’s age. The story, while interesting with its mix of occult conspiracies and historical intrigue, unfolds at a sluggish pace, and the cast, outside of Raidou and Gouto, lacks depth to carry emotional weight. Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army is a solid effort to revive a niche gem, and its unique setting and demon-collecting hooks still shine. The repetitive and stiff combat and uneven pacing keep it from greatness, but it's still come a long way from its PlayStation 2 origins. It’s a nostalgic trip worth taking for Shin Megami Tensei fans or those curious about its lesser-known corners, but it’s not quite the rousing action game it could be.
Whether a longtime fan of games like Final Fantasy Tactics, Chrono Trigger, or Golden Sun, or just looking for a rich RPG with great combat and memorable characters, you owe it to yourself to give Chained Echoes a shot. It’s the kind of game that potentially reminds players why they fell in love with the genre in the first place.
Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army not only brings back a classic but reverently improves on it. The updated graphics and voice work create a more in-depth story from the original, and thankfully the Switch 2 can handle every aspect with little to no frame drops. With a fancy new move set and an extra battle partner to boot, solving the Capital’s supernatural threats is more refined than ever before. Set your pace with any difficulty and join Raidou Kuzunoha XIV and his trusty black cat to solve the case!
The remaster shines technically, but Dream Drop Distance’s narrative and 0.2’s brevity hold it back. χ Back Cover feels like bonus content stretched to justify the package and probably would have been better if it were axed in exchange for a proper port of 358/2 Days. The dreaded cloud streaming is an unfortunate reality fans will have to endure and is as unreliable as it ever was in every other cloud port on the console. Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue is a distraction that may please diehards and is at best supplemental material for Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix.
No Sleep for Kaname Date is a side-game that does not provide a lot new in terms of gameplay, instead acting as an additional, enjoyable bonus story for existing fans. As long as a player goes into this not expecting the next chapter in the AI: The Somnium Files story, but an addendum to the first two games, then they’ll have a good time hanging out with Date and Aiba once again.
Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom - Prince’s Edition is a marvellous JRPG achievement, boasting a gorgeous Ghibli-fied visual style, compelling story and engaging real-time combat. The transition from turn-based battles to a real-time action-RPG is a welcome one that pays off marvellously, culminating in a unique sense of style that’s as enjoyable as it is refreshing. For Switch 2 players, the excellent performance is another great reason to pick this one up, with a steady 60 frames per second serving to make this charming adventure all the more engrossing.
Starlight Legacy is aptly named, considering the legacy past RPGs have on today's adventures. It is accessible for both veterans and new fans who may be intrigued by older titles but don’t want to have infrequent saves. The use of quality of life improvements elevates the classic look of retro RPGs and creates a captivating humorous tale so good a sequel is hoped for.
Hitman: World of Assassination delivers easily some of the most entertaining gameplay of all titles released on Nintendo Switch 2 during its launch window. For all its ridiculously hilarious possibilities that go almost as far as imagination will allow for, this may well be the ideal recommendation for those after a solo game that will provide dozens of hours of enjoyment up until the next big release on the system. The one big caveat, however, is the online requirement that causes halts and crashes, and locks out a large chunk of content. It is a huge blemish on what is a cracker of a package.
It is clear that Serpentcoil Island was largely made for longtime fans of the series. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, and players who already love Shiren and can embrace the high-stakes risk-reward loop should welcome him back to the gaming landscape with open arms. Serpentcoil Island offers intense dungeon crawling with minimal frills, and there definitely is an audience that will gobble this up and come back for more. However, for newcomers or casual players, the learning curve will likely prove too steep and the payoff feels like too much of a trek to get to. Even experienced roguelike players who have come to enjoy the genre’s modern expansions may find this new Shiren a bit too dated in design to hold interest. It feels like it will enthrall certain audiences and bore others to tears, with very little middle ground between those two extremes.
The Nintendo Switch version of Kingdom Hearts HD 1.5 + 2.5 Remix suffers from its reliance on cloud streaming, which introduces input lag, connectivity dependence, and performance issues that undermine the series’ fast-paced combat and the Switch’s portable appeal. The high price, risk of server shutdowns, and failure to deliver native ports for games that could feasibly run on Switch hardware further sour the experience. While the cloud tech can be effective in ideal conditions, these conditions are rare, and this version pales in comparison to native ports on other platforms. Some of the entries in this compilation are classics on PlayStation 2. It was understandable that the demanding Kingdom Hearts III made in Unreal Engine 4 might not be feasible on Nintendo Switch, but there was no excuse for the much older titles.
Having transformed considerably since its early bug-filled days, Disney Dreamlight Valley provides dozens of hours of enjoyable play on Nintendo Switch. Regular events and a rotating shop of cosmetic additions mean there is always something new around the corner. Being able to fish with Donald and take walks with Minnie and Ariel in human form brings an immeasurable amount of joy, and looks set to do so for the foreseeable future.
The cloud version of Kingdom Hearts III + Re Mind on Nintendo Switch cripples its combat mechanics with input lag, unstable framerates, server disconnects, and visual compression, turning a kinetic, spectacle-driven system into a sluggish, frustrating experience. The issues are compounded by the inability to play offline, which clashes with the Nintendo Switch’s portability and the game’s reliance on precise, fast-paced inputs. While the core game remains engaging when it works, the cloud infrastructure’s unreliability makes it near-unplayable for many, especially in combat-heavy scenarios. For the best experience, Kingdom Hearts III is better played on anything else where native versions deliver the intended fluidity without these technical barriers. When it works, it almost works, but lag, stuttering, and connectivity issues make fighting Heartless feel like battling the servers instead.