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The style is lacklustre, the sound design adds very little to the overall package and it all feels very bland. This is one of those games where, when it loads I found myself uttering ‘Oh’ out loud, because it failed to capture any part of me. Had there been some humorous narrative, a few jokes scattered throughout, maybe even just some puns, I might have enjoyed my time with Puzzle Puppers. As it stands, it’s completely forgettable, which is a massive shame considering the wealth of memes and jokes that exist and the fact that the actual puzzle design is decent.
For every thrilling moment that you experience from the game’s cinematic aspirations and standout puzzle design, Max: The Curse of Brotherhood fumbles soon after. It’s an uneven adventure, but one that can still celebrate many successes – even if it fails to rival some already strong competition on the Nintendo eShop for Nintendo Switch.
Disc Jam offers the ideal balance of simplicity and depth you’d want from an arcade-like sports experience. The action is fast and matches often tense but sadly the overall package is let down by some rougher edges and gross microtransactions. Windjammers might still reign as king of the fake Frisbee-style sports genre but Disc Jam is a decent enough imitation for the Nintendo Switch.
Fe is unlike anything that I have played in a long while, rekindling memories of the games from which it has openly drawn inspiration. As brave a creation as it is emotive, it’s an experience that I won’t soon forget and a world that I will forever long to explore once more.
The amount of modes that Snow Moto Racing Freedom has to offer is great, but the most important thing is the gameplay and it is rather bland with some dubious controls and a big framerate issue. This is a genre of racing games that the Switch doesn’t have yet, it stands alone. So by default, it is the best winter racing game on the system. However, in no way does that mean that if you really love racing games of this ilk, you’re going to enjoy this one, because truth be told, you probably won’t.
Within these images, we see the steps of life being laid out. A man meeting a girl. Surprising her with a boat trip. Nothing in these images is interactive, but they each encapsulate a sense of wonder and nostalgia. They reward exploration and intrigue in the scenes. Small mannerisms and gestures from the central character, before and after these images are shown, add a wealth of personality to his two-dimensional form and go a long way to creating a rounded persona, and experience, that is entirely endearing.
Even after all these years, the original Bayonetta never fails to impress. It is stylish and sexy with a deep combo system for you to master. There’s so much to unlock giving you plenty of reason to go back, and the music is harder to get out of your head than putting a Rowntree’s Fruit Pastille in your mouth without chewing it. Needless to say, if you have never played the original Bayonetta, then what are you waiting for? For those who have, well, you probably already know how awesome the game is. So, again, what the hell are you waiting for?
Bayonetta 2 remains a phenomenal thrill-ride from start to finish, each new encounter you face more outrageous and epic than the last. The fact that you can now take this experience anywhere with you easily makes this ultimate version of the game. Sure, it may not dramatically alter the formula laid out in the original, but it’s still a bigger and better package overall and easily one of the best examples of its genre. The wait for Bayonetta 3 just got a whole lot tougher.
Your road to becoming a master of the piano in Frederic: Resurrection of Music is entertaining, but one that is riddled with shortcomings. While you may rally against the soulless music labels and mass-produced popstars that have hindered all creativity, more conviction is needed to deliver a more rousing performance. That, and more content is needed, because Chopin bows out long before the curtain call.
Night in the Woods is an incredible, heartfelt journey that goes above and beyond anything currently on Switch when it comes to its character development and storytelling. While the pacing might not be to everyone’s tastes, Night in the Woods is a truly unforgettable experience and one I’m sure we’ll be talking about for years to come.
Spellspire isn’t a bad game, it is simply let down by the fact that it hasn’t been adapted fully for consoles. It is still a mobile game at heart, just now without any in-app purchases. To me, that is what is most infuriating because I would recommend this game to most people if it meant you didn’t have to go back to each level multiple times and grind until you are strong enough to finally progress. For this reason, it’s hard to recommend to people unless you truly love word games of this ilk, because if you do, regardless of whether you care about doing the same levels over and over, you’re still going to have fun playing.
I will always applaud developers that try to make learning languages more entertaining and accessible, but Hiragana Pixel Party isn’t the right answer this time around. Japan is a truly beautiful country with an equally fascinating language, and if you want to start learning it I’d easily argue that flashcards or an introductory lesson would be a more productive way to spend your money.
That’s why Caveman Warriors is best played with others, muffled laughter carrying you through the experience as you rally around to topple Undine, Lodrack, Cavernator v2.0, and the game’s many other bosses. There are still moments that can entertain like riding atop a triceratops as you helplessly shoot enemies that are chasing you and when you are transported into the future, but the game largely feels underbaked and leans too heavily on its inspirations rather than looking to make its own mark on the Nintendo eShop. For that reason, it’s a little too prehistoric for its own good and perhaps belongs in a museum.
There’s no business like the cleaning business, and that’s certainly the case with Serial Cleaner. Distinctly unique from anything else available on the Nintendo eShop for Nintendo Switch, as you steadily accumulate evidence for your trophy collection, it’s hard not to recognise a job well done.
With hundreds of rooms to invert gravity in and a freely open-world environment in which to search for your crew members, even failure and repeat deaths never detract from just how enjoyable VVVVVV is to play. Whether that’s thanks to the smile that’s (nearly) permanently etched on Captain Viridian’s face, the minimalistic but effective 8-bit graphics, or the magnificent chiptune soundtrack that has been penned by Swedish composer Magnus Pålsson, the game is just as brilliant now as it was eight years ago.
Aperion Cyberstorm is a game that I really wished would work. It manages to tick the right boxes with its tight controls, bullet hell madness, plenty of weapon upgrades, and screens full of enemies to destroy. However, as we approach the Nintendo Switch’s first birthday we have had an army of similar arcade-style games hitting the Nintendo eShop, and some of which are, quite frankly, much better than what you get here and sit in a similar price range. While there is a lot of content to play around with here, there’s a certain magic that just doesn’t seem to be present on this occasion.
Dragon Quest Builders is a game that more than deserves your attention on Nintendo Switch. Your character may not be a hero, but the chance to rebuild ruined towns is not only brilliantly executed, but lends a sense of accomplishment that other games in the genre haven’t achieved as successfully. For once, we can leave more obvious heroics to one side and bask in our creative wonder.
Unless I’m missing something integral, I can only say that Plague Road became boring and repetitive. I wouldn’t mind so much if I was grinding mobs to level up or mapping areas, but after so many deaths I found I just didn’t want to play any longer. Which is annoying because the game has a great aesthetic appeal, some interesting options and when it flows, it does so with verve. If I did miss anything, I can only lay blame with the tutorial system, because it doesn’t really do enough to paint a full picture for players.
Just like the world of Salt, Dandara is full off ups, downs, lefts and rights. While it does try to have a crack at creating a unique Metroidvania experience, the very control mechanic that gels it all together can at times be its biggest flaw. Bouncing around in an empty room gives you a belief of a watertight control system, yet when facing a room full of foes and bullets all firing towards you in such an unorthodox pattern it gives you the sense that luck plays a part in the progress. As much as I liked the overall idea of Dandara, it did manage to provoke me in ways where I had to solemnly apologise to my little Nintendo Switch.
SteamWorld Dig’s biggest problem is that it follows in the footsteps of its bigger, better sequel – a game that has only been on the eShop for a few months now. Still, the core of what makes SteamWorld Dig so much fun as a series still shines bright enough in the original despite its scuffs and scratches.