ActRaiser Renaissance's plastic look betrays a solid remake with a lot of new content, and plenty of heart.
Jett's heavy narrative is a perfect complement to its gameplay. Whenever you start feeling trapped, whenever things get a little too real, you can get into your jett and lose yourself in the little vessel's delightful speed.
It takes a little time to warm up to Tales of Arise's main characters (ironic, when two of them wield the powers of hell itself), but once you're over that hump, you're left with a charming JRPG powered by a battle system that never slows down.
Adol Christin shows us a good time as he grapples, glides, and wall-runs while mowing down innumerable monsters in Ys IX: Monstrum Nox-all while wearing some damn fine threads.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity isn't The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2, but it's a great musou game with a lot of content for starved fans of Breath of the Wild. Even if you're a Zelda fan who can take or leave musou games, Age of Calamity is worth taking. However, occasional slowdown and frame drops, especially in handheld mode on the Switch Lite, make it clear the Switch is aging quickly.
The Super Mario 3D All-Stars collection could stand a few more extras. Customizable controls would be great, as would sound options, design documents, or artwork. When you think about everything the original All-Stars offered-three graphically upgraded Mario games, plus a "lost" game-3D All-Stars is a bit lacking. That said, the games in Super Mario 3D All-Stars still hold up today. I'm surprised how fun Super Mario 64 still is, and Super Mario Galaxy remains one of the heroic plumber's best outings. As for Super Mario Sunshine, well, that's still up to personal taste.
Panzer Paladin adopts a bit of every NES platformer you played as a kid, and the result is a little chaotic, but a lot of fun.
If you're OK with Paper Mario's turn to action, you'll find an enjoyable game packed with humor, secrets, and unique boss battles.
If you're ready to slow down a bit on Animal Crossing: New Horizons, but you want to keep that good, warm feeling going for a while longer, Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics is worth your time and money. Its clean, charming interface guides you through a wide selection, including classic card games, complex board games based in deep traditions, and simple pastimes that let you fiddle with toys. Don't know how to play something? No problem: 51 Worldwide Classics will happily teach you. It's a great choice for single players and families alike.
The Wonderful 101: Remastered is the latest Wii U exclusive to be whisked from near-obscurity to land on modern platforms. It's a worthy rescue: Like the original game, The Wonderful 101: Remastered is funny, action-packed, and loaded with unique PlatinumGames charm. That uniqueness is simultaneously its best and worst asset: The trademark line-drawing technique that lets the Wonderful Ones turn their followers into weapons is awkward to pull off without the Wii U's gamepad. There's a lot to love about Wonderful 101: Remastered, but there's a lot to get frustrated over, too.
Trials of Mana is a strong remake of the classic 2D Super Famciom RPG that Western fans pined after for so very, very long. Its story is a bit weak, Charlotte's English voice acting might make you retch, and there's some notable repetition in the game's environments, but fighting through enemy hordes feels great. It's a considerable step above the 2018 revamp of Secret of Mana, so no worries there.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps serves up a balanced meal of combat and platforming that captured me immediately. I'm not a big fan of the first game, but Ori's weapon wheel and slick maneuverability turns Will of the Wisps into an irresistible ballet. Unfortunately, performance problems on the Xbox One S in particular bring down a game that is otherwise almost perfect.
Mega Man Zero/ZX Collection is a convenient round-up of some historic 2D platformers that, for the most part, hold up.
Whatever you think of port-begging, it's justified with Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore. Not only does #FE Encore give us a chance to play a great game that was overlooked on the Wii U, but it also adds a new dungeon, new songs, and content that was previously DLC. A lot of new Persona fans have been minted since #FE's initial release in 2015, and this is one song they should all enjoy.
Despite the controversy, Sword and Shield offers a great time.
Luigi's Mansion 3 occasionally suffers because of its fixed camera and a ghastly boss fight here and there, but the "goo" overwhelms the bad in this haunting adventure. Sucking up stuff with your Poltergust is still satisfying, and slamming ghosts into each other feels so right. Add buckets of charm, and you have a game that proves—yet again—that Luigi is the superior Mario Brother.
Trails of Cold Steel 3 resumes the series' magic-infused story of politics and scandal, and the unique battle system still holds up well.
Indivisible's unique blend of platforming and action-heavy monster fights will take some getting used to, but everything feels good once it clicks into place. Indivisible has some problems with its camera and map, but you'll be too busy marveling at its wonderful graphics to feel much of a sting.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening remake for the Switch improves most of the flaws from the original game while maintaining (or enhancing) everything that makes Link's Game Boy adventure a classic. Its shiny new coat of paint suits it well, even if slowdown issues pop up from time to time. A few hours of play is all it takes to remind you why Zelda fans love Link's Awakening so very much.
Dragon Quest Builders 2 is a quintessential example of a great sequel. It takes everything that's fun about the first game and adds more of the good stuff while removing the mechanics that didn't work the first time around. It's slow to really get started, but once it starts rolling, you never want to stop digging, building, and fighting. If you're curious about the Dragon Quest Builders series on any level, Dragon Quest Builders 2 is a good jumping-on point.