Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for May 13th, 2020. My time ended up being a little short today, and that means this article did as well. We’ve got a small slice of news to check out, summaries of all of today’s new releases including the excellent Super Mega Baseball 3, and the usual lists of incoming and outgoing sales. And hey, the next two days are going to be absolutely bananas, so if it’s text you want to read, hang in there. Let’s go!
News
A Shocking Tournament Arrives in ‘Super Smash Bros.’ This Weekend
Another week, another Super Smash Bros. Ultimate event. This week, it’s a tournament that focuses on characters that use electric attacks. That includes the DQ Hero, Pikachu, Ness, Zero Suit Samus, and Robin. The event kicks off on Friday and goes for the usual three days. Why electricity? I really have no idea, but it’s pretty wild how just about any particular trait you can think of will have at least a handful of fighters that possess it. Guess that’s what happens when EVERYONE IS HERE.
‘Panzer Dragoon: Remake’ Version 1.30 is a Huge Game Changer
I don’t think I was alone in finding the initial release of Forever Entertainment’s Panzer Dragoon: Remake a bit underwhelming. For as much as you could feel the love for the original game dripping from every bit of it, there were a lot of things that just felt… off. From the movement of the dragon to the way the aiming reticule worked to the speed at which you could rotate the view, a lot of little things added up to a very beautiful game that didn’t quite feel as good to play as the original. Luckily, Forever Entertainment and its development team mostly took the criticisms in stride and committed to addressing much of the feedback in a big post-launch update.
That update has now arrived. It would be difficult to cover everything it contains, but suffice it to say that they’ve absolutely fixed the game. Everything I mentioned above has been addressed to my satisfaction. Rotating is now snappy, the reticule behaves the way it should (you have to change it in the options though), and the dragon’s bobbing movement as it flies has been toned way down. One massive improvement is the excellent Performance Mode, which sees the game cutting back on visual detail in exchange for a gorgeous 60 fps framerate. The Pandora’s Box of extra options is now easier to unlock, and some new gyroscopic controls have been implemented.
Panzer Dragoon: Remake is now the game it should have been from the start. It plays great, and while it does look quite different from the original, we always knew that was going to be the case. A remake, not a remaster. Add in the fact that the game currently has a discount if you own certain other Forever Entertainment titles, and it’s an easy decision to grab this now if you were holding off based on the middling reviews. I’m not going to make a rule of this, but given how near and dear Panzer Dragoon is to my heart and just how crushed I was by the initial state of this remake, I’m going to assign the game a new review score.
SwitchArcade Score: 4/5
New Releases
Super Mega Baseball 3 ($44.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
Those not too caught up in professional league licensing may know that the Super Mega Baseball series is pretty much the best video game baseball you can play these days. Super Mega Baseball 3 ups the ante even further, adding in a multi-year franchise mode, even more options for multiplayer play in both online and offline modes, and a lot more. There’s just something about this series. It hits the line between deep and accessible just right, making it a satisfying, approachable, yet reasonably realistic take on America’s national sport. I’ll have a proper review of this one soon enough, but I’ve been playing it for a couple of weeks now and I can tell you that it’s very good.
Island Saver (Free)
At first I thought this was going to be an online multiplayer shooter of some kind, but no, it’s actually kind of an educational/promotional game for one player only. Some gorgeous islands have been trashed by creatures called Litterbugs who have left plastic waste everywhere. You need to clean it all up using your Trash Blaster. There are 42 “bankimals" to rescue, and oh yeah, this game is published by a bank. The National Westminster Bank, to be exact. And thus we get to the real plan behind the game, because you need to collect coins and learn about spending and saving. Yeesh, the whole idea of a bank using a cheap environmental message to “teach" kids about the value of savings accounts and interest is just so… 1990s. Why yes, there are in-game purchases. I need to go wash my hands, back in a sec.
She Sees Red – Interactive Movie ($9.99)
As it says on the tin, She Sees Red is an interactive movie. Basically a visual novel crossed with an FMV game. You make choices at particular moments, and your choices will eventually lead to one of the four different endings to the story. It’s a tale about a bunch of grisly murders at a nightclub, with your goal being to pursue the truth and solve the case, whatever that may lead to. There are two audio tracks: English and Russian, with the latter being the original. I’m not too big on these murder stories, but if you are and don’t mind the format, it’s at least cheaper than a movie ticket.
Travel Mosaics 3: Tokyo Animated ($7.99)
The strangest family in puzzle games is back, and they’ve got another big bag of Picross-style puzzles for you to work through. The setting this time is Tokyo, though as usual that doesn’t have much of an effect on the puzzles. You get 140 color puzzles, 20 bonus levels, and an extra virtual tour mode complete with trivia quizzes. Not too much different here in terms of mechanics or overall feel, which means it’s mostly just another decent entry-level Picross game.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
Well, there’s a little more here than there was yesterday. Nothing particularly rare, but some good stuff if you haven’t already grabbed it in an earlier sale. Hob and Torchlight II are both good games to sink some time into, and fans of arcade-style action will enjoy The Bug Butcher and Inferno 2. As for the outbox, there’s quite a lot in there. I’d at the very least recommend grabbing 2064: Read Only Memories as I doubt it will be this cheap again anytime soon. Most of the other stuff will be back on sale sooner or later, so if you want to put off buying it I certainly wouldn’t blame you.
Select New Games on Sale
Hob: Definitive ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/20)
Torchlight II ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/20)
Dimension Drive ($2.98 from $12.99 until 5/25)
The Bug Butcher ($2.95 from $7.99 until 5/25)
At Sundown: Shots in the Dark ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/26)
Back to Bed ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/25)
Inferno 2 ($1.49 from $4.99 until 5/25)
Lumini ($5.99 from $9.99 until 5/25)
Never Again ($11.19 from $13.99 until 5/19)
Animal Up! ($1.49 from $2.99 until 6/1)
Vampire: Coteries of NY ($14.99 from $19.99 until 5/19)
What The Golf? ($14.99 from $19.99 until 5/28)
The Deer God ($1.35 from $7.99 until 6/2)
Croc’s World ($0.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Jewel Fever 2 ($0.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Airfield Mania ($0.79 from $5.99 until 6/2)
Subdivision Infinity DX ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/2)
Pacific Wings ($0.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Yellow Fins ($0.79 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Jewel Rotation ($0.99 from $5.99 until 6/2)
League of the Shield ($1.05 from $7.00 until 5/20)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Thursday, May 14th
2064: Read Only Memories Integral ($2.99 from $20.64 until 5/14)
99Moves ($1.01 from $2.99 until 5/14)
99Seconds ($1.01 from $2.99 until 5/14)
99Vidas – Definitive ($0.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Abyss ($1.01 from $2.99 until 5/14)
Aldred Knight ($0.19 from $1.99 until 5/14)
Amazing Brick Breaker ($1.49 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Arcade Fuzz ($0.19 from $1.99 until 5/14)
Behind The Screen ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Bit Dungeon Plus ($1.79 from $8.99 until 5/14)
Blossom Tales ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Box Align ($0.19 from $1.99 until 5/14)
Butcher ($2.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Chronus Arc ($6.49 from $12.99 until 5/14)
Cinders ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/14)
Colorgrid ($0.49 from $0.99 until 5/14)
Cosmonauta ($0.09 from $0.99 until 5/14)
Cyber Protocol ($1.39 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Darkwood ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Darts Up ($1.01 from $2.99 until 5/14)
Debtor ($1.99 from $2.99 until 5/14)
Deep Diving Adventures ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/14)
Defoliation ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Doodle God: Crime City ($1.60 from $6.99 until 5/14)
Doodle God: Evolution ($2.29 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Fairy Knights ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Family Tree ($3.19 from $7.99 until 5/14)
Ghoulboy ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Gnomes Garden 2 ($0.99 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Grizzland ($3.49 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Hand of Fate 2 ($11.99 from $29.99 until 5/14)
HexaGravity ($0.99 from $1.99 until 5/14)
Illusion of L’Phalcia ($7.79 from $12.99 until 5/14)
Joe Jump Impossible Quest ($0.99 from $2.99 until 5/14)
Knight Swap ($0.49 from $0.99 until 5/14)
Legend of the Tetrarchs ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Lichtspeer: Double Speer ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Lost Sea ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
MachiKnights -Blood Bagos- ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Monster Puzzle ($0.99 from $4.99 until 5/14)
MouseCraft ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
My Memory of Us ($5.24 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Neon City Riders ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/14)
Nicky the Home Alone Golf Ball ($0.09 from $0.99 until 5/14)
Oceanhorn ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath ($19.99 from $29.99 until 5/14)
OMG Police ($3.99 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Panty Party ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Perils of Baking ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Pong Quest ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Princess Maker -Faery Tales Come True- ($23.99 from $29.99 until 5/14)
Princess Maker Go! Go! Princess ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Rack N Ruin ($9.09 from $12.99 until 5/14)
Rally Rock ‘N Racing ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Sacred Stones ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Saints Row IV: Re-Elected ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/14)
Save Koch ($12.00 from $20.00 until 5/14)
Sea King Hunter ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Season Match ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Season Match 2 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Secrets of Magic ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Sinner: Sacrifice for Redemption ($9.49 from $18.99 until 5/14)
Tales of the Orient ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/14)
The Bridge ($1.49 from $9.99 until 5/14)
The Bullet: Time of Revenge ($3.99 from $4.49 until 5/14)
The Unholy Society ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Timber Tennis: Versus ($0.59 from $1.99 until 5/14)
Time Carnage ($7.79 from $12.99 until 5/14)
Tumblestone ($2.24 from $14.99 until 5/14)
UBERMOSH: OMEGA ($0.49 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Unepic ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Unlock The King ($0.49 from $0.99 until 5/14)
Vasara Collection ($0.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Venture Kid ($1.49 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Wide Ocean Big Jacket ($3.99 from $7.99 until 5/14)
Without Escape ($3.49 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Wonder Boy Returns ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Wuppo: Definitive ($9.99 from $14.99 until 5/14)
Yodanji ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Zen Chess Collection ($1.99 from $3.99 until 5/14)
#KillAllZombies ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/14)
That’s all for today, friends. Tomorrow is Thursday, and that means a bunch of new games will be hitting the eShop. Titles like Oddworld: Munch’s Oddysee and Ion Fury will be there, and we’ll have summaries of all of them. I hope you all have a superb Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!
