Submit a news tip



Reviews

Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope review

System: Switch
Release Date: October 20, 2022
Developer: Ubisoft
Publisher: Ubisoft


Conceptually, there was really no good reason why a game as bizarre and audacious as 2017’s Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle should have worked – but it did. Not only did it somehow make a crossover between Nintendo’s most iconic cast of characters and Ubisoft’s most – er, divisive – not feel completely bonkers, but it also introduced an accessible and creative take on turn-based tactics to a console that, at that point, was light on quality options. I enjoyed Kingdom Battle so thoroughly that initially, I couldn’t fathom why a sequel would need to exist. But after spending over 30 hours exploring sprawling planets and battling every foe I’ve crossed paths with, I don’t feel like it’s an exaggeration to call Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope one of Mario’s finest outings to date.

NieR: Automata The End of YoRHa Edition Switch review

System: Switch
Release Date: October 6, 2022
Developer: PlatinumGames
Publisher: Square Enix


NieR: Automata has always shared something of a connection with Switch. When asked by Famitsu what his thoughts were on the system and its reveal presentation in January 2017, director Yoko Taro simply stated his memories vanished once he found out the console, along with Breath of the Wild, were releasing just one week after his game. Launching alongside such a titanic duo didn’t end up holding NieR: Automata back in the end, however, as it was both a critical and commercial success, leading to it becoming one of the most requested Switch ports of the last generation. More than five years later, the game has finally arrived on Nintendo’s platform, and this gripping tale of android vs. machine was certainly worth the wait.

Persona 5 Royal review

System: Switch
Release Date: October 21, 2022
Developer: Atlus
Publisher: Atlus / SEGA


2022 has been a year heavily laden with JRPGs for Switch, but while most of the releases we’ve seen this year are all new offerings, Persona 5 Royal is a bit late to the party with the original Persona 5 launching back in 2016 for PS3/PS4 and Royal following in 2019 specifically for PS4. While a Switch port was widely hoped for, the first taste Switch owners would get of anything related to Shin Megami Tensei would be the port of the Wii U’s Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE. Although the mainline series did make its way over soon enough, this is the first round of Persona on Nintendo’s hybrid console. After all these years, though, is it really worth the wait and the port-begging?

[Review] Tunic

Posted on 1 year ago by in Reviews, Switch eShop | 0 comments

Tunic review

System: Switch
Release Date: September 27, 2022
Developer: Tunic Team
Publisher:Finji


The gaming industry has certainly experienced a rise in the popularity of indie games within the last several years. From Shovel Knight to Undertale, Celeste, or Hades, these games have made a huge splash in the scene, and have coincidentally all made their way onto Switch. Indeed, the platform has found itself to be quite the reliable indie game machine, and as such it feels only fitting that Tunic, a little indie marvel that landed on Xbox earlier this year, would find its way here. It certainly feels right at home on the system, and I definitely enjoyed my time with it; the concept of an indie Zelda-like 2D adventure game remains novel and captivating, and I welcome more entries in the genre. Tunic is definitely a solid little title with some neat ideas, but it doesn’t quite break the mold in the way that the indie classics I mentioned earlier might have.

Chaos;Head Noah / Chaos;Child Double Pack review

System: Switch
Release Date: October 7, 2022
Developer: Mages
Publisher: Spike Chunsoft


The Science Adventure series by Mages has long been a popular series thanks to the explosive Steins;Gate that captivated audiences over a decade ago, but outside of Japan, it has always seen spotty launch schedules and with entries that aren’t necessarily in chronological order. Though this hasn’t been entirely problematic due to the mostly standalone nature of every entry, one of the most highly requested for some time was the game that began it all: Chaos;Head. With the Double Pack on Switch, we’re now finally seeing Chaos;Head localized for the first time with its updated Chaos;Head Noah version seen in 2009 packaged in with Chaos;Child which had been previously released in the west on PS Vita. As masters of the visual novel genre, Mages has once again provided a package that is must-have for fans of the Science Adventure series, and for those that have yet to play any of them, what better place to drop in than with the original games that started it all?

The DioField Chronicle review

System: Switch
Release Date: September 22, 2022
Developer: Square Enix / Lancarse
Publisher: Square Enix


To say that Square Enix has had a busy year would be an understatement. Between high profile new IPs and the return of older games that few will have heard of and fewer still would have played the first time around, it was easy to overlook The DioField Chronicle, which was given somewhat muted fanfare despite the big names attached to it: co-developed by Lancarse (who recently co-developed Monark, but are perhaps better known for their work on Shin Megami Tensei: Strange Journey with Atlus), music by Ramin Djawadi and Brandon Campbell (of Game of Thrones fame), and with artwork by Isamu Kamikokuryo (Final Fantasy XII and Final Fantasy XIII), it seemed as though this would be one of Square Enix’s hits for the year. But is this a chronicle for the ages, or better left on the shelf?

The Legend of Heroes: Trails from Zero review

System: Switch
Release Date: September 27, 2022
Developer: Falcom
Publisher: NIS America

Crossbell was once a sleepy little town, but coming back from three years abroad, Lloyd Bannings finds it to be filled with the hustle and bustle more befitting of a larger city. Taking on a new special assignment at the local police department, he finds that a lot has changed since he left to become a detective. With Crossbell growing at a huge pace and the peoples’ faith in the police at an all time low, Lloyd’s assignment at the Special Support Section (SSS for short) couldn’t have come at a more pivotal time. Saving kids from sewers, finding lost pets, and walking old folks home may not be the most lucrative work, but with the media tearing the department down with every news article and many others desperate to see the SSS team fail, one kind of wonders what all is going on behind the scenes, and why people are so keen to see it fall…

Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris review

System: Switch
Release date: September 30, 2022
Developer: Aquria
Publisher: Bandai Namco


If you were into anime in the 2010s (and probably even if you weren’t), it’s likely that you’ve heard of Sword Art Online. An immensely popular series of light novels by Reki Kawahara, it has since spawned several shows, movies, and, of course, video games. The world of Sword Art Online seems to lend itself perfectly to a video game format, and the series has capitalized on its MMO premise to release several titles across various platforms over the years. Alicization Lycoris is the most recent game of the franchise, releasing in 2020 on other platforms, and has now finally made its way to the Switch two years later following Hollow Realization and Fatal Bullet. But if you pick it up, will you want to log out?

Splatoon 3 review

System: Switch
Release Date: September 9, 2022
Developer: Nintendo
Publisher: Nintendo

It’s hard to believe that such a fresh property like Splatoon has already been around for seven years, but Nintendo’s IP that introduced the cute little humanoid squids known as Inklings quickly resonated with fans despite being on the commercial failure that was the Wii U. It was when Splatoon 2 took off, however, that the franchise truly found its following thanks to the Switch’s success. Interestingly, the quick turnaround rate of two years for Splatoon 2 to release made the game feel almost too familiar. But to the uninitiated, Splatoon 2 gave those same feelings that Splatoon 1 did to those that owned a Wii U. Meanwhile, Splatoon 3 had a chance to marinate for years – five years to be exact – and has seen vast improvements to the overall structure of the game and its heavily-focused online portion that doesn’t feel anywhere near as dated, bringing the game and its multiplayer inking glory to the modern day while looking as beautiful as ever.

[Review] Temtem

Posted on 1 year ago by in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments

Temtem review

System: Switch
Release Date: September 6, 2022
Developer: Crema
Publisher: Humble Games

I’ve always wished I could be whisked away to a world like Pokemon or Dragon Quest Monsters – a place where I can collect creatures and build bonds. A world of adventure where friendships and hard work can lead to more and more epic battles with stronger and stronger opponents. Monster taming games will have to scratch that itch, for now, and Temtem’s island world has a ton of new creatures to meet and befriend, but will it become another destination for our “lets get reincarnated in another world and catch some monsters” dreams, or will this one be overshadowed by its acclaimed predecessors?


Manage Cookie Settings