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Previews

We played more games at PAX West this year than we have time to feature individually, but there were a ton of little surprises we had the chance to try that we’re looking forward to seeing on Switch. If you’re looking for some low-key games to unwind to after a busy day, here are five chill and relaxing games to keep an eye on!

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As someone new to the Star Ocean series, I had heard so many different opinions on the series over the years that I’d always been curious about jumping in, but not quite sure where to start. Well, apparently the second game in the franchise is regarded by many fans as one of the best, so I was really excited when Star Ocean: The Second Story R was revealed in a recent Nintendo Direct (alongside a jaw-dropping new art style). I was able to demo this remake at PAX West 2023, and left with an extremely positive first impression; exciting combat, old-school strategic depth and outstanding production values are all lining up to make this one of my most anticipated RPGs.

Sometimes, a game enters your life that is just so strange and charismatic that, even if you don’t quite fully understand it, you can’t help but smile and love it. That basically sums up how I felt after recently demoing Thank Goodness You’re Here, an upcoming comedy adventure game that feels like a Cartoon Network show come to life in all the best ways.

No Longer Human preview

No Longer Human – an upcoming fast-paced slash-em-up and the debut release of indie developer 0801 LLC – is one of the finest examples of pure sensory overload that I’ve ever had the privilege of playing. I moved and attacked at speeds that felt impossible, to a soundtrack that’s so agressive and distorted its almost indescribable, while watching geysers of pixellated blood erupt from my foes. The game has the aesthetic of vector-traced arcade cabinets of the olden days, if those games were made today and took place in a rave. It’s a one-of-a-kind experience that absolutely deserves to be on the radar of action game fans.

In the eleven years since New Super Mario Bros. U first released, 2D platformers have changed a lot. Not only are there a lot more of them overall – thanks to some very creative projects by small teams – I’d argue the genre has broadly shifted towards increasing the complexity of the overall experience. Many sidescrollers today embrace popular added-depth systems; rougelike elements, skill trees, sprawling and interconnected maps, Soulslike combat, or perhaps all of the above. These can all be great things, and I’ve certainly made some amazing memories with some out-of-left-field projects over the past decade, but sometimes it’s nice to experience a platformer where the joy comes not necessarily from overcoming a complex challenge or system, but from something simpler. For me, in the case of Super Mario Bros. Wonder, that joy came from being surprised. And in my recent 30 minute demo session with the game, I found myself being surprised at almost every turn. 

If you’re a longtime fan of Disgea, you’ve probably had the upcoming entry in the series – Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless – on your radar for some time now. It’s a series I’ve always been curious about, but my love for strategy RPGs is somewhat of a recent development, and so I’m still cutting my teeth on the genre as a whole. That’s exactly why I was eager to get a taste of this high-energy franchise at PAX West 2023, and while I only got to sample a small portion of the game, I’m already interested in playing more – if not a bit intimidated by the prospect of it.

Another Crab's Treasure preview

Over the years, I’ve made a few attempts at the Soulslike genre – most notably via Bloodborne and the recent Demon’s Souls remake – but have yet to find one that I truly want to sink a lot of time into. I think it’s just a matter of preference, as I don’t have much patience for games that don’t respect the player’s time or are needlessly opaque and difficult – but at the same time, I love games with moderately challenging, strategic real-time combat. It’s why I was so curious to try out Another Crab’s Treasure at Summer Game Fest; finally, here’s a Soulslike game that seems purpose-built for relative genre newcomers like me. After going hands-on with the game, I think this could be the first Dark Souls-inspired game I actually complete.

Little Kitty, Big City preview

Anyone who owns a cat is probably well aware of how quickly they can turn from cuddly, loveable fluffballs into zooming creatures of chaos. While I can’t say I always understand why they feel compelled to, say, scratch at our brand-new barstools or knock over a cup of coffee that I just placed on the counter, perhaps the upcoming sandbox-exploration game Little Kitty, Big City will give me some answers, or at least let me empathize with them a bit more. I was able to play 45 minutes of Double Dagger Studio’s debut game at Summer Games Fest recently, and I’m already floored with it.

Hot Wheels Unleashed 2 preview

2021’s Hot Wheels Unleashed was a huge surprise for fans of arcade racers and the die-cast toys alike; I had a great time with it when I reviewed it, even if I felt the game could have benefitted from tweaked vehicle handling and more variety overall. Now, two years later, developer Milestone is gearing up for the release of Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged on October 19, and I had an opportunity to check out an early build of the game at Summer Game Fest. While some of my critiques of the first game – like environmental variety – look like they may not be resolved at launch, I enjoyed some of the new mechanics and modes the team is adding this time around.

Fae Farm preview

It’s becoming more difficult for games in the increasingly crowded farming/life-sim genre to stand out from the pack. Fae Farm – the next release from Phoenix Labs, who previously released Dauntless – is trying to carve its own niche by embracing a magical setting and promising exciting features like drop-in-drop-out online multiplayer and combat-focused dungeons. The game has had some prominent marketing, but it would be unfair not to mention that several thematically-similar indies have also been announced recently, including Garden Witch Life, WItchbrook, and Fields of Mistria. After getting hands on with Fae Farm, though, I was surprised at just how massive this game’s scope appears to be – it seems poised to be one of the densest, most mechanically rich attempts at this type of game that we’ve seen in a while.


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