Syberia on the Nintendo Switch is a reasonable yet inconsistent port of an enchanting genre classic. This is an absorbing, intricate story filled with melancholy, eccentric characters and mystery demands and deserves attention, even if the game shows its age technically in some places and demonstrates a lack of care in the porting process in others. For fans of the genre, or those willing to dive in and forgive some inconsistencies, there's an endearing and worthwhile adventure here.
Gal Metal is wild, weird and cool. If you can embrace the vivid and wacky art style of the comic panel segments and strive for percussive nirvana, there is a refreshing, deceptively deep and gratifying experience here. What stops it from being truly great are the minor inconsistencies of the motion controls, the completely bonkers alien invasion plot and the slow, text-heavy teen melodrama stories. Even so, the game mostly succeeds by subverting many stale genre tropes. It will take time to master your set list and the absence of more contemporary music is initially jarring, but this is a title that is rewarding as well as just really fun. For those who are about to rock, we salute you.
If Space Invaders floats your intergalactic boat, Super Destronaut DX will definitely scratch your itch and the attempts to nudge and wink its way through your fond memories of neon lights and electro tunes are admirable. However, unless you're a high score hunter or a multiplier maniac who has had their fill of more interesting shooters or music-based games on the system like Just Shapes And Beats or Lumines Remastered, Super Destronaut DX will end up being a brief time killer, but not much else.
Despite its unyielding nature and curiously juxtaposing approach to its characters, Bomber Crew is a sometimes thrilling and constantly rewarding title. Favouring roguelite progression, strategy and resource management over frantic arcade-style combat, if you can get past the simple, cute visuals and steep learning curve you'll find a rich, intense and satisfying experience here.
Overwhelming for newcomers and probably too generic for genre aficionados, Touhou Gensou Wanderer Reloaded is difficult to recommend to all but die-hard series fans. The beautiful hand-drawn presentation and high production values are hindered severely by a contrived and intrusive interface, unimportant dialogue with very little character development and derivative mechanics. It certainly looks the part, but there are more fun and interesting adventure roguelikes such as Crypt Of The Necrodancer on the eShop right now.
A sumptuous feast in multiplayer, but a bit bland and monotonous when going solo, Mushroom Wars 2 is nonetheless an accessible and deep and enjoyable real-time strategy experience. There is plenty to dig into, especially if you enter the online competitive arena. Although the game does show it's mobile roots on occasion as the single-player campaign is ironically 'by the numbers', Mushroom Wars 2 is definitely a dish best served cold, and with a group of fun guys or gals.
Charming, addictive but sometimes ruthlessly unforgiving, PixelJunk Monsters 2 has made the transition into 3D almost unscathed. While there is a sense of ‘if it isn't broken, don't fix it' in some instances, it's still a gorgeous, lovingly-crafted and action-packed tower defence game that despite a few annoyances, will delight, entertain and challenge in equal measure.
Despite a couple of blemishes, The FRAMED Collection is a clever and stylish addition to the Switch library. Inevitably, it's much smoother to play with touch controls, but it's worth seeing the bold characters and more vibrant set pieces play out on a big TV. A couple of iffy puzzles and a fairly short run time for both games shouldn't put you off too much, as there are some excellent ideas here and a refreshingly cool overall experience. If you've never played them before and you like puzzle games with a dash of charisma, you should definitely check them out. Hideo Kojima can't be wrong, right?
Goetia is a flawed yet engrossing point-and-click-style adventure for those looking for a challenge as well as an interesting story. Aside from the lack of a hint system resulting in the odd infuriatingly obtuse puzzle, it's a bleak, beautiful experience. It's certainly slow and more text-heavy compared to other titles in the genre on Nintendo Switch, but it's well-crafted and worth a look.
Zotrix: Solar Division looks basic, even archaic, compared to recent offerings, but there's something oddly compelling about watching the events unfold - especially if you get the balance of difficulty, speed and resource management tuned to your liking.
Sally's Law is an example of an already great game being improved and adapted to fit its new home. The adorable characters, heartfelt story and progressive mechanic of relying on each other is both a technical and thematic success. It is a short game, and once you've played through to get all the photos there's just the co-op mode to go back for, but Sally's Law is as much of a cherished, emotional solo experience as it is one you'll want to share.
Considering the source material, there probably was a lot more potential in terms of story or characterisation but when all is said and done, shooters don't tend to dwell too much on nuance. Tesla vs Lovecraft is a competent top-down, twin-stick shooter and arguably the most polished title in the developer's catalogue. Taking the fun but limited template of Crimsonland and building an entertaining and visually striking, but familiar and repetitive experience. It's unlikely to get pulses racing in terms of original gameplay, however, the perks system, crazy weapons and relentless explosive action should spark enthusiasm among fans of the genre.
Make no mistake about it - Flinthook is a really well crafted, charming and fun experience. To a certain extent, however, it feels impeded by the constraints of its genre. It is one of tightest action platformers and addictive rogue likes around, but due to the randomly generated levels, you will encounter the odd frustrating spike in difficulty or structurally very similar areas in close proximity. These complaints are reduced to niggles though due to its charm, personality and action packed gameplay. This trek across the galaxy is sometimes a tough and repetitive one, but it's also incredibly enjoyable.
A competent and authentic 8-bit experience, A Hole New World will be enjoyed by many a retro fan out there, but the some of its mechanical elements are faithful almost to its detriment. Travelling between the dual worlds is cool, but utilised without much ambition or variety. While certainly not a bad game, the methods employed to enforce difficulty feel cheap and frustrating, rather than motivating or rewarding. A few of the bosses are visually impressive, but there isn't much here structurally or gameplay wise that particularly stand out . If you're looking for another title with more nostalgia and 'traditional' challenge rather than sadistic, fast-paced, twitch-based platformers, then A Hole New World is an adequate game that will bring back many memories of the 8-bit era, for better or worse.
Frederic: Evil Strikes Back is a pretty 'by the numbers' sequel, and despite the (still quite low) track list being superior to the first, the characters, dialogue and presentation niggles still remain. There's plenty of personality to the tracks, and seeing Chopin go up against stadium rockers is strange yet amusing, but the satire and parodies from the first game miss the mark more often than not this time round. The visuals are still bold, and you'll have an enjoyable experience if you can overcome its shortcomings. While Deemo and even VOEZ are still the best of the genre on Nintendo Switch, Frederick: Evil Strikes Back's mix of interesting reinterpretations of classical compositions and sometimes charming art style are still worth a go.
There's a decent amount of fun to be had with Earth Wars before a degree of monotony sets in. What starts out as a pretty slick, if straightforward 2D side-scrolling brawler fleshed out by a huge wealth of loot to gather, weapons to customise and skill stats to unlock, It never moves the needle far enough in either variety or innovation to truly hold interest for extended periods. Sure, there's just enough nuance in the combat and giant bosses to slay to you keep coming back, but the uninspired missions and derivative characters never let it realise its full potential.
Celeste is an exemplary amalgamation of style, mechanics and character. A devilishly brilliant action platformer with enough skill required to excite genre purists and the speed running community, while at the same time featuring a breakdown of gameplay elements to customize and cater for all audiences. While the game mechanically is great, if familiar, the art style and narrative are truly special, showing both a visual and emotional range and depth that will resonate and inspire. Celeste is the absolute peak of personal exploration and discovery on Nintendo Switch.
Even if it sounds cliché, Gunhouse really is a game of two halves. On the one hand you have an immensely attractive looking title with a wonderfully unique art style, some amazing music and over the top characters. After a few rounds though, it feels like they are trying to mask what is underneath - a simple and sometimes frustrating sliding block puzzle game. The rules seem a bit too restrictive given the interesting melding of genres, especially how the controls in docked mode aren't ideal compared to using using the touchscreen in handheld mode. When things do click though, and there's a barrage of crazy firepower at your disposal. If you can embrace the craziness and forgive the missteps, the game becomes an immensely satisfying and addictive experience.
While Baseball Riot has a simple, quirky, challenging and meaty campaign, there is a real sense of deja vu. The art style and core mechanics are virtually the same as its prequel, and although it is aesthetically vivid and satisfying to beat a difficult stage or line up a perfect shot to obliterate a row of nasty foes, the grind you go through to beat it might deplete that addictive nature that puzzle games such as this strive for. All in all, the game ends up being a solid, but often frustrating and wholly unoriginal experience.
Azkend 2: The World Beneath does everything it can to spice up the 'match 3' puzzle genre, boasting a narrative thread, power ups to collect and different objectives at every turn.