News

SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Metro Redux’ Review, ‘Bloodstained’ Swaps One Mode For Another, the Latest Sales Including ‘Football Manager 2020 Touch’ and More

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for March 3rd, 2020. In today’s article, we’ve got a full review of Metro Redux. I mean, that set is actually two games, so it’s a two-for-one review? There aren’t any new releases today, but there is a little news to recap. We round things out with a list of sales, and that’s pretty much the whole business. Let’s check it out, shall we?

News

Check Out A New Trailer for ‘Ty the Tasmanian Tiger HD’

Ahh, the PlayStation 2/Xbox/Gamecube era was a good time for fans of B-grade 3D platformers. We haven’t had it that good since, friends. Pretty much every company was putting out their own 3D platformer. Some had multiple different ones! And now we have almost none. One of the best ones outside of the big dogs at the time was Krome Studios’s Ty the Tasmanian Tiger. We heard a while back about the game getting an HD version on the Switch, and Krome has just announced that the game is now in submission with Nintendo. To celebrate, they’ve put out a new trailer for the game that shows off a lot of its features. I’m definitely looking forward to playing this one again, and that trailer only has me more excited.

‘Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night’ Scraps Roguelike Mode

The saga of Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night continues. After a slightly rough launch on other platforms and a really rocky one on the Switch, a number of updates managed to smooth out quite a few issues. That said, the Kickstarter that fueled the game’s development was very successful and that, as ever, meant a lot of stretch goals to fulfill. One such goal was the addition of a roguelike mode, which promised a procedurally-generated castle and adventure each time. The developer has announced that it will no longer be able to deliver that mode thanks to code incompatibility. Instead, it will introduce Randomizer Mode, which offers up a number of parameters that can be randomized to create a slightly different experience. The castle will remain fixed, but things like items, quest rewards, and so on can be mixed up. The game will prevent any impossible combinations. This mode will arrive alongside with the Zangetsu update.

Reviews

Metro Redux ($49.99 Pack, $24.99 Individually)

If for whatever reason you had confined yourself to handhelds or mobile devices for the past decade, the Nintendo Switch has proven to be a nice way to catch up on a lot of what you may have missed from the console and PC side of things. The latest refresher course to hit the platform is 4A Games and Deep Silver’s Metro Redux, which packs together remastered versions of Metro 2033 and Metro: Last Light. These first-person shooters were originally released in 2010 and 2013 respectively across a number of platforms, and earned a lot of praise for their strong sense of atmosphere and solid gameplay. The Redux versions shine up both games and present them in a definitive form, and the Switch ports we’re looking at today have come out very well indeed.

The setting is a big part of what makes these games so memorable. Set in a post-nuclear apocalyptic world, Metro tells the story of a human race driven underground by the poisoned surface world and roving mutants. We follow a man named Artyom who is living in one of the human communities that have made their home in the metro tunnels beneath Moscow. Even as human scavenge and scrape to survive, they continue to war among each other based on their individual ideologies. Artyom’s community is attacked by a mysterious group of creatures called Dark Ones, and our main character is dispatched to other metros to seek their help.

This story intertwines with the gameplay itself in many ways. You have to remember to wear your gas mask if you leave the safety of the tunnels. You’ll have to fix a lot of long-broken things to move forward. As a mere human, you’re ill-equipped to go toe-to-toe with packs of mutants. Supplies are scarce, and bullets are literal currency that you have to decide whether to fire at enemies or save for trading purposes. Darkness is both a friend and an enemy, as the shadows can hide you just as well as they can hide a vicious mutant or Nazi. This is particularly the case in Metro 2033, where the default mode requires you to play smart against overwhelming odds. Rambo types need not apply.

Or at least, that was the case originally. Metro: Last Light, the follow-up, famously and somewhat controversially cut back a bit on the stealth and survival aspects in favor of a bit more direct action. One of the best options in these Redux versions is the ability to play both 2033 and Last Light in either style. Do you prefer the tight supplies and measured pace of 2033? You can now play Last Light in a way similar to that. Are you stressed out by stealth and would rather hold conversations at the end of your gun? Metro 2033 can be played with a set-up closer to its sequel. It’s up to you. I’d recommend trying both games both ways!

From stories to set pieces, I generally prefer Metro 2033, but Metro: Last Light is no slouch either. The Switch isn’t exactly famous for quality first-person shooters, so having a pair of great ones making a smooth transition to the platform is extremely welcome. The controls work well, the narratives are engaging, navigation is enjoyable, and the action is tense. Both games are certainly worth playing if you haven’t before, and if you’ve only played the original versions I think you’ll find the Redux additions make for a good excuse to revisit them.

Now, as you don’t really save any money by buying the pack, I’d probably recommend picking up Metro 2033 Redux first and seeing how it goes for you. If you like it, you’ll almost certainly enjoy Metro: Last Light Redux as well. The Switch versions run really well and offer a variety of options for you to customize your experience, from motion controls to spoken languages to gameplay elements. Loading times can be a little long during the initial start-up, but that’s become fairly normal on this system by now. Otherwise, there’s really no serious reason not to play the Metro Redux games on the Switch. A pair of fairly-priced, solid ports of quality games in an oft-neglected genre for the system? Sure, sign me up.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

What an odd assortment we’ve got today, friends. Some interesting games in there, like Legrand Legacy, Cattails, and A Winter’s Daydream, but nothing necessarily must-have. It’s a similar story over in the outbox, where there are plenty of decent games but almost all of which are regularly on sale. But hey, if you really need to buy something today, you could buy something from here. I’m sure the developers would appreciate it!

Select New Games on Sale

Legrand Legacy ($11.99 from $19.99 until 3/16)
Roof Rage ($8.99 from $14.99 until 3/9)
Energy Invasion ($1.01 from $2.99 until 3/22)
One Eyed Kutkh ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/22)
It’s Spring Again ($0.99 from $1.99 until 3/22)
Werewolf Pinball ($1.49 from $2.99 until 3/22)
Candle: The Power of the Flame ($4.99 from $19.99 until 3/15)
Mummy Pinball ($1.49 from $2.99 until 3/22)
Sigi ($2.49 from $4.99 until 3/22)
Halloween Pinball ($1.49 from $2.99 until 3/22)
Crimson Keep ($3.99 from $19.99 until 3/15)
Cattails ($7.49 from $14.99 until 3/21)
HoPiKo ($1.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Farm Together ($15.99 from $19.99 until 3/8)
Pirates Pinball ($1.49 from $2.99 until 3/22)


Mainlining ($4.49 from $14.99 until 3/15)
Ziggurat ($7.49 from $14.99 until 3/8)
The Tower of Beatrice ($3.29 from $5.99 until 3/22)
Pantsu Hunter: Back to the 90s ($8.70 from $12.99 until 3/22)
A Winter’s Daydream ($3.89 from $5.99 until 3/22)
Stranded Sails ($17.49 from $24.99 until 3/15)
Football Manager 2020 Touch ($29.99 from $39.99 until 3/9)
Rift Keeper ($7.49 from $9.99 until 3/22)
AvoCuddle ($11.04 from $12.99 until 3/10)
Binaries ($3.24 from $12.99 until 3/23)
Super Destronaut DX ($3.24 from $4.99 until 3/16)
Tetra’s Escape ($3.24 from $4.99 until 3/16)
FullBlast ($3.89 from $5.99 until 3/16)
Jack N’ Jill DX ($3.24 from $4.99 until 3/16)
I Am The Hero ($6.49 from $9.99 until 3/16)


Heroes Trials ($3.89 from $5.99 until 3/16)
Access Denied ($3.24 from $4.99 until 3/16)
Daggerhood ($3.24 from $4.99 until 3/16)
Peasant Knight ($1.94 from $2.99 until 3/16)
My Big Sister ($3.89 from $5.99 until 3/16)
Devious Dungeon 2 ($5.19 from $7.99 until 3/16)
Warlock’s Tower ($3.24 from $4.99 until 3/16)
ELEA: Paradigm Shift ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/23)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Wednesday, March 4th

AER Memories of Old ($9.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
American Ninja Warrior ($11.99 from $29.99 until 3/4)
Big Buck Hunter Arcade ($4.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Cake Laboratory ($1.49 from $2.99 until 3/4)
Cartoon Network: Battle Crashers ($4.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Chaos on Deponia ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Color Zen Kids ($3.19 from $3.99 until 3/4)
Cube Creator X ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Demon’s Tilt ($14.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Deponia Doomsday ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Edna & Harvey: Harvey’s New Eyes ($9.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Final Light, The Prison ($1.39 from $6.99 until 3/4)
Fred3ric ($8.99 from $9.99 until 3/4)
Glass Masquerade 2: Illusions ($9.59 from $11.99 until 3/4)
Goodbye Deponia ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Goosebumps The Game ($4.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)


kuso ($2.49 from $4.99 until 3/4)
LOVE ($0.89 from $2.99 until 3/4)
Morphite ($2.99 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Nice Slice ($0.99 from $1.99 until 3/4)
Nickelodeon Kart Racers ($11.99 from $29.99 until 3/4)
Peace, Death! Complete ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/4)
Pixel Action Heroes ($3.99 from $4.99 until 3/4)
Police Stories ($5.99 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Portal Knights ($11.99 from $29.99 until 3/4)
Pulstario ($0.49 from $0.99 until 3/4)
Rapala Fishing Pro Series ($4.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Shift Happens ($5.09 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Shovel Knight: Specter of Torment ($4.99 from $9.99 until 3/4)
Silence ($13.59 from $39.99 until 3/4)
Street Outlaws: The List ($19.99 from $39.99 until 3/4)
Tower of Babel ($1.19 from $5.99 until 3/4)
Wanderlust Travel Stories ($13.49 from $14.99 until 3/4)
War Tech Fighters ($9.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Xtreme Club Racing ($1.97 from $9.89 until 3/4)
Zombieland: Double Tap Road Trip ($19.99 from $39.99 until 3/4)

That’s all for today, friends. I actually got a bit confused yesterday, specifically with regards to the date. There were, in fact, no new releases today, but there will be a few tomorrow. That happens when you get older, I guess. Anyway, we’ll have summaries of those new releases tomorrow, along with whatever news and sales come along. I may have a Mini-View or two as well, but don’t expect any great games to be in the lot. That too sometimes happens. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!