Pure Nintendo

Gleylancer is a deep shooter that grew from a good shmup to a great one the longer I played it. To those in the know, this clever shooter’s a tour de force, and I can now see why. It’s smooth, addictive, highly replayable, and enjoyable, with rarely a dull moment. If you’re a genre enthusiast, consider this an essential addition to your gaming library. Kudos to Ratalaika Games for publishing this, and for only $6.99. If this game had co-op, it might’ve been a 10.

Travis Touchdown has grown in his “final installment” of No More Heroes. Because of this, the overall game has a different feel than previous entries and might be why it’s my favorite game in the franchise. Travis is a much more likeable character with some tangible realizations of action’s consequences.

Overall Don’t Touch This Button! is an incredibly average room-based puzzle game that probably isn’t worth your time.

One-Eyed Lee and the Dinner Party is a fantastic mystery game that eases you into its ominous yet colourful world and explores the essence of humanity through fantastical characters.

Ultra Age may not be a complete package, offering little outside it’s compelling combat. However, the moment to moment gameplay is incredibly enjoyable, even if the Nintendo Switch version of the game is noticeably stripped back.

Overall, Where’s Samantha? presents a cute puzzle-platformer featuring scraps of cloth as the main characters. The levels are cleverly designed, though sometimes frustrating, and the excellent narration is a bonus.

A Juggler’s Tale is a polished title, delivering a smooth gameplay flow that’s over too quickly for its launch price. Anyone can appreciate the visual presentation and voiced story. Meanwhile, enthusiasts will enjoy the blend of puzzles (albeit easy ones) and action. It’s a unique game in many ways and one that leaves an impression. But, it also leaves you wanting more. I hope to cheer on Abby in a sequel, one whose price better matches its length.

NBA 2K22 is another good entry in the fantastic NBA 2K series. Its reworked shooting mechanics, impressive visuals on Switch, and loads of NBA content will keep any basketball fan’s attention for hours on end. While many modes received no noticeable additions, and there’s a heavy desire for spending money on microtransactions, NBA 2K22 is still a must-play for Switch basketball fans.

In the end, G-Darius HD is a challenging shooter from a time when arcades were still relevant. It still looks good and sounds cool, but it’s not great as a standalone.

WarioWare has traditionally been one of the more bizarre entries in the Nintendo catalog, but it has always been a welcome one. And although the crazy microgame approach won’t appeal to everyone, WarioWare: Get It Together! freshens up the approach just enough to make sure longtime fans will want to check it out.

Hoa is a spirited adventure with a relaxing atmosphere. While I wish it were longer for its launch price (with optional challenges), I’m confident I’ll replay it. The desirable aesthetics combined with goal-driven gameplay are too enjoyable a combination. Did this puzzle platformer go unnoticed by you this summer? It’s never too late to give it the attention it deserves.

Overall, I did enjoy KeyWe, but it has some issues. Levels are a mixed bag, and there are some problems controlling the kiwis. I can’t recommend buying the game for online play. But, if you have someone to play with locally, you could find yourself having a decently good time.

A little stale outside of racing mode, and the game is hardest at the beginning because the three cars given to you are bad. Still, Rush Rally Origins is a solid racing game with above-average graphics.

Monster Train First Class combines a fun story with cool designs, challenging strategic gameplay and the excitement of unlocking and making the most of epic new features at a dream pace.

A Night at the Races does an admirable job of balancing difficult, twitch-style gaming with a narrative that’s unique to the genre. It’s not for everyone, but those who are up to the challenge will find it a bit more rewarding than most high-speed platformers.

When all’s said and done, though, Centipede is so classic that it’s almost always enjoyable on any system, and the same is true here. I hope Atari tries harder with future Recharged installments, but I can’t deny that this mixed version is still fun. If you have someone to play co-op with, grab the game and hope for Millipede: Recharged to follow.

At $24.99, I think Staxel’s priced a bit high, and I’d wait for a sale. But multiplayer can be lots of fun, playing with friends both locally and online. If you find the premise and presentation appealing, Staxel’s a cute, chill, but familiar title. It’s a game that can bore or relax depending on your thoughts about Minecraft and farming/new-guy-in-town simulators like Harvest Moon.

Virtuous Western is a quick, easy puzzle game with an 8-bit cowboy aesthetic and a speed run mode, but not much else to make it stand out from the wealth of similar games.

Townscaper offers little to keep players engaged and seemingly never will. I have to call it what it is, an early access Steam experiment trying to pass itself off as a full-fledged Switch release. Since the developer admits no DLC’s on the horizon to address expected features that are MIA, this incomplete title’s one to skip, even at just $5.99.

If it wasn’t for having to review this game, I would have never given Spelunker HD Deluxe a chance and discovered how fun and addictive it actually is. I still stand by what I said before, though; impatient players and those who aren’t willing to “go slow” probably won’t have much fun with Spelunker. But those of you looking for a challenging and fun single player game that’s packed with numerous multiplayer options should definitely check it out!

I give Badland props for its challenge, multiplayer, bold visual style, and content relative to its price. But it’s a game that wears its mid-2010s origins on its sleeves, warts and all. I feel it hasn’t held up as well as hoped and will have its work cut out for it to stand out on the congested Switch eShop. Want to play Badland in 2021? Do so on a mobile device instead. You’ll get touch screen support and more content that way.

Dreamscaper is a randomly generated dungeon crawler with fun combat, breath-taking design and a premise that is both moving and expertly woven into the mechanics and structure of the game.

WitchSpring3 [Re:Fine] – The Story of Eirudy is a port of a made-for-mobile, turn-based JRPG that should’ve stayed on mobile devices. It’s not bad, but it’s better played in short bursts where the game’s lack of a solid hook and issues with repetition are more forgivable.

Black Book could be accused of being slow at times, but it has so much to offer and is so dense that it’s completely necessary. It isn’t slow; it’s just intentionally paced. It’s not flawless by any means. At times there is quite significant pop in. I would often select the wrong item or not be able to walk towards what I had selected in the environment. But none of that is important when compared to the immersive world developer Morteshka has delivered. If you have even a slight interest in 19th Century Russia, Slavic folklore, or deck building games in general, Black Book is a game you must check out.

King’s Bounty II is a good adventure game with better turn-based combat. There are plenty of elements to keep the player interested, but the story does not have the depth you might expect, and therefore doesn’t warrant the $59.99 price tag.