System: Switch
Release Date: May 12, 2022
Developer: h.a.n.d.
Publisher: Square Enix
Say what you will about Square Enix, but it’s impossible to deny that they’ve got a knack for publishing offbeat experiences that few other major publishers would touch. Their latest oddity, the lengthily named The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story, is an ambitious interactive detective story framed almost entirely through full-motion video (or FMV) – a style of presentation that really thrived in the 90’s but is only now experiencing a small resurgence in popularity. Despite its niche presentation, the game delivers an intimate and intelligent mystery that is well worth seeing through to the end, if players can endure its slow pacing and only moderately interesting characters.
Odencat, the studio behind Bear’s Restaurant, today unveiled its next game Meg’s Monster. The adventure RPG has been confirmed for Switch and is set for release this fall.
Here’s an overview of the game with further information:
Lillymo Games has announced that it will release Super Perils of Baking on Switch early next month. The 2D platformer will be out on June 3, 2022.
Super Perils of Baking takes inspiration from titles of the ’90s. The game features a talented student-baker who’s on a mission to stop his brother, who has been enchanted by a cursed baking hat garnered from their school’s basement. The plot is written in verse with a storybook-like presentation.
Deadcraft, a new zombie survival-action game from the developer of Daemon X Machina, has received new gameplay. This follows the title’s release on Switch this week.
For more on Deadcraft, check out the following overview:
Gameplay has come in for Snow Bros. Special, a redone version of the arcade classic for Switch. We have 18 minutes of footage in total.
Learn more about Snow Bros. Special in the following overview:
The official Japanese website for Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series has opened, and it offers up key information about the Switch version – notably the game’s frame rate, resolution, and file size.
First up, Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series is confirmed to run at “up to” 60 frames per second on Nintendo’s console. Unfortunately, Bandai Namco doesn’t elaborate further. Other platforms essentially run at a constant 60 FPS, but it’s possible that the Switch version may run into a dip here and there.
Many recognize that Nintendo has been slow to adopt online play. It wasn’t until Mario Kart DS with the Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection that the Big N tried its hand at multiplayer over the internet, and even then things were rather limited. Nintendo has provided increased functionality since then, though you could still argue that it’s behind the competition.
During an episode of the GeekWire podcast promoting his new book, former Nintendo of America president Reggie Fils-Aime was asked if he has any regrets / lessons learned when it came to the company not pursuing online multiplayer more aggressively. One interesting note is that this was apparently “an area that the Americas and Europe constantly was trying to educate the company in Japan about the value of online play, investing in the online infrastructure which needed to be done in order for the experience to be a positive one”.
E3 might be dead – at least this year – but June is still primed to be a big month for gaming news, announcements, and presentations. Summer Game Fest will be back in action and at least some companies are expected to host events.
The big question is whether we’ll see a new Nintendo Direct next month. Generally speaking, we get three of these events each year: in Q1, then in June, and finally September. The June presentation always ties in with E3. But even though there’s no E3 in 2022, there’s nothing stopping a Nintendo Direct from happening.
Assuming a Nintendo Direct is on track for June, what are you hopes and dreams? What sort of announcements would get you excited for the future of Switch? And which titles do you think would be realistically shown? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
Following its debut on Switch this week, gameplay has arrived for They Always Run. We have 27 minutes of footage in total.
Find more information about They Always Run in the following overview:
