LadiesGamers.com's Reviews
I couldn’t help dream about what this game could be. With the fun gameplay, the jet packs and swimming in water I pinned for a full blow 3D platformer with a bigger story and massive worlds to explore. Unfortunately game development is very expensive and the development team here clearly put a lot of passion into this project with limited resources. One hopes this game is a stepping stone to bigger projects down the road. Staring otters still – of course. The Otterman Empire will not be everyone’s cup of tea/coffee. If you’re able to look past some rough textures and gameplay hiccups there’s something quite special here to enjoy alone or with some friends. It has one major accolade to its name – its easily the best otter game available on Switch!
From the sweeping visual appeal, to the emotive and often soothing audio. The story will guide you through the ups and downs of a creature experiencing a world they cannot fully understand. Something I imagine many of us might be feeling at this moment in time. As such I can heartily recommend The Wanderer, not as a game, but as an experience. One to savour and enjoy with a warm cup of tea and a flickering candle at one’s side. Mary Shelley would be proud.
The length of this visual novel is pretty satisfying. I made it from the beginning to one of the endings within an evening. While that’s pretty short, the many endings give the game plenty of replay potential. In a visual novel with sparse mechanics, the story element of the game is key. However, the confusing world-building, unexpectedly dark tone and timeline jumping will keep me from picking the game up again.
Watching online playthroughs made me realize that other players were equivalently struggling. Admittedly, this made me feel a little less bad about my own failings. Seeing those players reinforced the two cores issues I have with Radio Squid. Coins as currency and lives combined with unforgiving gameplay that harshly penalizes the player for failing and lacking swiftier reflexes don’t form an experience worth investing in. All in all, I don’t think Radio Squid is truly an adorable lost cephalopod. There’s evident potential for fun here. Albeit with some significant tweaks to how the game plays and is overall constructed. If Radio Squid altered the item drop rate, made Upgrades available more often, and didn’t punish the player ludicrously severely for dying, this game could be something special.
A huge positive about the game is it only takes up 7.1 GB digitally on your Switch or micro SD card. This is pretty incredible for a game of this size and magnitude. There are so many games coming to the Switch that are clocking in over 40 GB. It’s welcoming to see developers take into account file sizes. Trails of Cold Steel III is an adventure well worth taking if you’re a fan of RPGs or just anime in general. It’s bursting with content and when I was actually playing the game I was not disappointed. For me the story became a bit much in places. Far too many dialogue sections interrupted the fun game play. This may suit some but I prefer to play a video game more than watch or read it. Despite this it’s hard to ignore that Trial of Cold Steel III is a great RPG and well worth going back to school to experience.
Railway Empire is a deep, engrossing simulation strategy game. Once you get the hang of the controls and the finer points of running a mega railway empire, you’ll spend many hours playing with trains. For train enthusiasts this is the game you need and for those of us that are looking for their next strategy simulation hit then look no further than Railway Empire! That only leaves me with one thing to say before I rush off to carry on building my vast rail empire across the UK and transport some much needed meat to those hungry folk in Kilkenny, my score is Two Thumbs Up.
This bring us to both collections’ biggest issue. Darius as a series must be programmed with some kind of rare metal because they always seem to command a very high price for entry. I noted this back in the day when I reviewed Dariusburst Chronicle Saviours for the Vita. This issue will be the main reason people will avoid a purchase, especially with current circumstances in the world. The other notable issue is that these collections are not complete collections of the Darius series. This is nothing new with retro collections in general, but the oddest omission is that of the first Darius game on the Console Collection. The reason it’s a bit fishy is that this game was released on the Mega Drive Mini which was also developed by M2 and yet is strangely missing from this collection. There are also a variety of other titles and ports missing that enthusiasts of the series may be disappointed not to have. Both the Arcade Collection and Console Collection are brilliant. M2 has once again outdone themselves and proved they’re the best at retro gaming on modern systems. It’s a shame the price is so darn high though, especially since I really couldn’t see owning only one of these collections. If you do take the plunge you have a brilliant collection of one of the best schmup series from ye old days.
Urban Flow has 100 levels in the core campaign but there’s always the incentive to replay levels to gain the 3 star rating. Getting more stars rewards you by unlocking a variety of things like new cars and buildings. As well as this, there are additional modes like endless mode to keep you busy even longer. This game is easy to dip in and out of even if you just need a really quick gaming fix. Who would have thought a game about controlling traffic lights could be so much fun. Well, Urban Flow proves simple ideas can still make incredibly good games. A good time alone but this game really came alive when I played with my wife and will now hold a special place in gaming memories for the two of us. I really enjoyed playing this one, as James mentions the music was great and it was easy to get to grips with. It added in some extra twists to keep you on your toes and to keep the levels interesting without becoming tedious. It also got your brain moving a lot more than you might think it would. I also would have loved it if you actually were the pigeons that got hold of the controller but then one can dream! Melissa
Ultracore feels like a Mega Drive rom just released onto Switch. To some this will be fine. Its a complete Mega Drive game that never got it’s time in the spotlight back in the day. Besides adjusted controls and soundtrack the game offers no quality of life improvements. No options to adjust the graphics, no save states, no gameplay modifiers. Whilst it’s absolutely nice to play it on Switch, this game package is really stuck in the past. Whilst I have my grievances I’m a retro guy and as an old Mega Drive game I did like this title. It’s just a shame more attention wasn’t given to this port. Retro lovers should absolutely look into adding this to their library, but I don’t think there is enough here to convince newcomers. For me, this took me back to the nineties playing my Mega Drive instead of the Switch. Nostalgic time travel at its best.
The Coma 2: Vicious Sisters is a wonderful survival horror game full of spooky demonic things, Lovecraftian-esque tentacle spooks, Korean legend stuff, and lovely artwork and sound. I haven’t played The Coma: Recut (the first game) but I read some brief reviews, and it seems like controls were the main sticky issue with that one. I honestly felt like the controls in Vicious Sisters were really good, nicely responsive and smooth. I noticed a character on the first game’s cover art that also appears in 2, so I’m sure if you’ve played the first game there will be lots of fun character and story things carrying over into the second game. Even without playing the first game, I would definitely recommend the second. It makes me want to play more mind games with myself and get back into the genre.
If you’re a first timer to the series or revisiting the ages of Myst again, this edition on the Nintendo Switch is definitely worth a replay or a first time visit to Myst. And with the added bonus of the Switch’s portability, you can take it with you where ever you go. If you have never played Myst, well, now is your opportunity to delve into the mystical and mysterious world of Myst. This is still a great game to play if you love exploration and puzzle solving.
This game was a bit like reading Harry Potter: Personally, I don’t care much for the main characters. However, in every chapter I was so engaged in the story, or fascinated by the side characters, that it overwhelmed the fact that I really didn’t care that much about the fate of Harry and his friends. Playing Collar X Malice was a bit like that for me. I wasn’t always very engaged with the protagonist or her partner, but the intrigue of the story, the way it tackled the issue of justice and how it can become entangled with the many grey areas of human emotions and experience, as well as the side characters and villains that cross and re-cross your path as you play through the routes, make it a title I can’t make up my mind about. My feelings on it are all over the map. This is a game where I suggest careful consideration before playing. I’m no stranger to difficult themes and stories in gaming, movies, or books, but this game is tough. For all of the above reasons, I’ll have to rate this:
While the idea is very simple, the game itself is anything but. Some levels are nice and easy, others are considerably more difficult, and the difficulty progression doesn’t seem to be linear. I’ll barely pass a level, then the following few will be a piece of cake – it keeps me on my toes! I wouldn’t call Pack Master a child-friendly game from a difficulty perspective, but I’m sure it’d help develop logical thinking abilities in older children. Pack Master is a very basic puzzle game that doesn’t try to push harder than it should. There’s an excellent balance between design and difficulty, and something wonderfully relaxing about the simple nature of the game. There’s not much to say about it due to its simplicity, but I’d definitely put it on the recommended list for a younger audience!
I can’t call The Almost Gone difficult, exactly, as the puzzles were generally easy to figure out, but it wasn’t an easy game either. There’s a lot of sequential puzzling, where the outcome from one is required to solve another, and a fair amount of non-linear thinking required – one puzzle required me to obtain numbers for a key-code lock, that were scattered not only across rooms but also across perspectives. The only time I really had difficulty was my own fault; I turned off on my Lite partway through the game saving, so once I loaded on my other Switch the core piece I’d just earned was no longer collected even though I thought it was, so I spent an extra hour looking for what I’d missed! While there are a couple of minor flaws, The Almost Gone was a beautiful and enrapturing point-and-click mystery exploration adventure that I can’t recommend highly enough. Be warned that there are a number of sensitive topics covered, so it may not be one for the easily upset, but otherwise it’s a truly enjoyable yet saddening tale that deserves a spot on anyone’s download list (and shelf if a physical is released – I’m praying!)
Project Warlock is an old but refreshing old-school FPS game that feels right at home on the Switch. If you’re not a fan of this genre, then this game is unlikely to change your mind. But fun gameplay with a welcome progression system make this an FPS not to be missed by fans of old-school shooters. The references to the past are great, but Project Warlock stands alone as its own game too. It’s a great little game to enjoy in handheld mode or blown up on the TV. Nostalgia guaranteed in all the right ways.
The main story will keep you busy for around 4 hours. The first time through, it may be shorter if you’re well-versed in this type of game. The story certainly left me wanting more as I enjoyed it so much. Absolutely short, but I can see myself replaying it again. The game does offer an Endless Mode, as well as additional challenges to complete which I was very keen to dig into. Spacejacked accomplished the impossible. It convinced an oldish dude that you can mix in some tower defense gameplay and it can still be a ton of fun. If you’re looking for a nice coffee game, something you can enjoy in handheld mode with a nice warm drink, you can’t go wrong with Spacejacked. It’s funny, enjoyable, and full of little surprises. The game’s main crime, though, was that its enjoyable story was over far too soon!
Megabyte Punch is a really neat and fun game to go through. It wears its inspiration on its sleeve and I love the game for it, even if I had to get used to the controls a slight bit. Team Reptile has quickly become one of my favourite Indie Game developers with titles like this and Lethal League Blaze. They are inspired and have a lot of style to them and knowing they are from my home country I can be 100% proud of them. I recommend this game to fans of Team Reptile and games such as Megaman and Smash Bros.
The game takes around 30 hours to finish but there are plenty of side quests and collectibles to find which will add to an already packed adventure. This really is a game you can sink your teeth into and get lost in for hours at a time. Like a really really long satisfying picture book. Bug Fables is a wonderful bug riddled adventure. In a good way not the gaming way. Charming characters with fun witty dialogue. It’s adventure that feels suitable for the entire family. The only trouble is, since it is single player, you may need to fight over who gets to play. Good thing the game provides additional files. While I struggled with pressing the right button many times I was constantly smiling while playing this game. A wonderful piece of gaming more people should discover for themselves. Don’t let it buzz you by.
The artwork is just as amazing as the story, and the music is cute and sets the mood for every single scene nicely. In common visual-novel-style, there are different choices you can make (do you want to make pancakes for Licia, or go buy her a crepe?), these choices will lead you to one of six different endings, making for plenty of replay value. On top of that, there are your standard artwork collectibles (which are all beautiful artistic creations) of the characters and your more-specific-to-this-game splendid drawings of food. I can feel how much love went into this game. The author clearly loves each character, and the artist clearly loves food! Ratalaika Games hits another home run for publishing this one, and the developer ebi-hime is an excellent author. Ebi-hime has other visual novels under their belt as well, and I am really looking forward to checking them out too. Strawberry Vinegar has such a modest price point that I would highly recommend it to any fan of visual novels. Also, I think it’s an excellent starting point for any young gamer looking to try out a visual novel.
The visuals in The House of Da Vinci are beautiful and striking, dark corners and moody lighting all add to the atmosphere of the game, it really is a class looking game. The music and sound effect are on par with the graphics, as you manipulate a puzzle there are various clunk and clank sounds from the machines. Again, all this adds to the atmosphere and complements the gameplay. As for the control’s, The house of Da Vinci can be played using the Joycon’s or the touchscreen. Neither system is 100% perfect, the touchscreen does work but there are times when it can be sluggish and other times it can be overly sensitive and can overlap with other areas when your trying to focus on one particular place. The style of writing in Leonardo’s notes is reminiscent of the era the game is set in, however I found that the font the notes are written in make it slightly harder to read and decipher on the Nintendo Switch screen. There is no getting away from the fact that The House of Da Vinci is very similar to The Room. The story is a bit flimsy and at times some of the puzzling does feel like a direct copy of The Room. That’s not to say it’s not an enjoyable game as it is and if you enjoy playing this genre of game, why not give The House of Da Vinci a try.