Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for July 2nd, 2020. In today’s article, we’ve got summaries of all of the latest releases. There aren’t as many as we usually see on Thursdays, but there are some news items and good discounts to help round things out. Well, no sense hanging around the opening paragraph waiting for things to happen. Let’s get down to business!
News
‘Minecraft Dungeons: Jungle Awakens’ DLC Now Available
Minecraft Dungeons came out not that long ago, and the consensus seems to be that it’s okay. One criticism that many had is that the game feels a bit too short, and yeah… it really is. Thankfully, you can now add a little length to the game with the Jungle Awakens DLC, which adds in three new missions where you’ll battle the Leapleaf and Whisperer en route to the source of the corruption in the jungle: the Jungle Abomination. Naturally, there are new gear pieces and artifacts to be found along the way. You can buy Jungle Awakens separately for $5.99, in a bundle with the other planned DLC via the $9.99 Hero Pack, or if you don’t have the base game yet get it all in one package in the Minecraft Dungeons Hero Edition for $29.99.
‘RPG Maker MV’ Coming to the West This September
Long before people were making Marios, one series was allowing players to put together their own epic adventures: RPG Maker. The latest console edition of the series hit the Switch in Japan a while back, and while it has taken a while it seems that it will finally be coming to the West this September. RPG Maker MV allows you to make and share your own JRPG-style games in style. The game will launch in North America on September 8th, Europe on September 11th, and Oceania on September 18th. Check the new trailer to get an idea of what kind of features are waiting for you.
New Releases
Biped ($14.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
I was trying to decide whether or not I wanted to stick this with the ol’ Highlight tag, but in the end its charm won me over. You, and ideally a friend, control a little bipedal robot and try to help it make its way through various levels. The gimmick is that each of your robot’s two legs are mapped to one of the sticks, so you have to coordinate things properly to get anything done. You can even dress up your little robot in various hats you can get by collecting treasures. Sadly there’s no online play, so you’ll need someone nearby if you want to indulge in the multiplayer mode. Just a very adorable game all around, and a great choice to play with the family.
Arcade Archives P-47 ($7.99)
Some of the stuff that Hamster digs up really is obscure. Jaleco’s 1988 shoot-em-up P-47 isn’t anything special by the standards of the genre, but it’s not too shabby. You can pull in another player for some two-player simultaneous action, and some of the stages have nice visual designs. The developer of this one was NMK, whose Saint Dragon is already a part of the Arcade Archives. P-47 actually got a follow-up in 1995, but I rather doubt we’ll be seeing that one join this line anytime soon. Anyway, Hamster has done its usual work here, so if you’re looking for a decent horizontal shooter or have some nostalgia for this game in particular, you can buy without fear that it’s been mangled.
Pool Slide Story ($14.00)
Oh, it’s another Kairosoft sim. Well, what can you do? Some things in life are inevitable, and the steady march of Kairosoft games that recycle the same near-20 year old assets is one of them. This one sees you making your own water park, and it works out more or less exactly like the other games from this developer that see you managing some kind of private business. Build your park, create food stands, and try to find financial success while pleasing your patrons. Don’t worry, it’s almost impossible to lose. If you aren’t sick of Kairosoft’s stuff yet, this delivers the quality you’ve come to expect. If you’re totally burnt out on them? This delivers the quality you’ve come to expect. And yes, you can get it a lot cheaper on mobile.
Digerati Indie Darling Bundle Vol. 3 ($50.49)
I like how there are three volumes in the series of bundles but they all have slightly different naming patterns, ensuring they wouldn’t show up together in an alphabetic list. Well, whatever. The games you get in this bundle include Omega Strike, Shikhondo – Soul Eater, Nefarious, and 1979 Revolution: Black Friday. I think it’s kind of pushing it to call them all “Darlings", but I’m not the mayor of Darlingtown so what the heck do I know? Like always, the bundle offers a slightly lower price than buying them all at full price separately, but all of the games go on sale so often that you need to be careful about which route you take and when. This bundle will also be on deep discount, likely by the time you read this. Shop smart.
Couch Co-Op Bundle Vol. 2 ($45.99)
Did… did this one even have a first volume? Digerati, you’re killing me here. Uh, anyway, like the above bundle you get four games packed in together here. Black Paradox, Shikhondo – Soul Eater, Bleed, and Vertical Drop Heroes. They’re all actually pretty decent, though chances are good that you own at least one of them from a previous bundle if you’re bundle-inclined. The idea here, as the name implies, is that these are good games to play with a buddy in local multiplayer. I guess? I tend to think of most of these as cool single-player games, but whatever soaps your rope. As usual, be very mindful of the price of this bundle versus the separate releases as all of these games go on sale incredibly often.
Infliction: Extended Cut ($19.99)
This is a first-person horror adventure. Yeah, another one. What makes this one particularly interesting is that it is largely the work of a one-person team, and in that respect it’s impressive. It certainly has its fair share of scares, but it can’t hold a candle to titles like Amnesia thanks to its rather dull map design. It’s also safe to say that unless portability is a major selling point for you, it’s better to play this game on a platform with a bit more beef under the hood. Mixing metaphors sometimes produces lovely imagery, don’t you think? Anyway, Infliction isn’t bad overall, especially when you consider the circumstances of its development. But unless you’re really into horror games I’d probably give it a pass.
The Otterman Empire ($24.99)
This is a multiplayer third-person shooter with the main characters being otters with jetpacks. It’s described as a party game, so I wouldn’t expect the shooting mechanics to be all that deep here. As near as I can tell, the multiplayer mode supports up to four players but there’s no online play. That seems like a very odd choice for this kind of game, so perhaps there’s just something amiss with the eShop description. Anyway, you could spend a bit more money and probably get a better multiplayer shooter than this for your Switch, though you’d be hard-pressed to find another one with jetpack otters. So that’s something, at least.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
Lots of interesting games on sale today. Some of 2K’s line-up is discounted for the next couple of weeks, though it’s mostly the usual titles that pop up every month or so. Slightly less common in this lists is Nicalis, who seem to have all of their titles marked down to some extent. Beyond those two publishers, some decent games like Xeodrifter, Demon’s Tilt, and AngerForce are on sale. In the outbox, Capcom and Limited Run’s respective sales are coming to a close. Check through the lists carefully, but keep in mind that the biggest bunch is likely yet to come tomorrow.
Select New Games on Sale
Demon’s Tilt ($13.99 from $19.99 until 7/8)
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI ($29.99 from $59.99 until 7/13)
L.A. Noire ($24.99 from $49.99 until 7/13)
WWE 2K18 ($19.79 from $59.99 until 7/13)
NBA 2K20 ($19.79 from $59.99 until 7/13)
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 ($7.49 from $29.99 until 7/13)
Carnival Games ($9.99 from $39.99 until 7/13)
Wuppo: Definitive ($9.99 from $14.99 until 7/16)
Mutant Mudds Collection ($1.49 from $14.99 until 7/21)
Xeodrifter ($0.99 from $9.99 until 7/21)
Farm Expert 2018 ($20.99 from $29.99 until 7/21)
Suicide Guy ($1.59 from $7.99 until 7/21)
Suicide Guy: Sleepin’ Deeply ($1.19 from $5.99 until 7/21)
Them Bombs! ($9.79 from $13.99 until 7/21)
Soccer Slammers ($0.99 from $9.99 until 7/21)
Heroki ($4.99 from $9.99 until 7/21)
Flood of Light ($2.49 from $4.99 until 7/14)
Find The Balance ($0.99 from $4.99 until 7/19)
Hardway Party ($0.99 from $4.99 until 7/19)
Saboteur! ($1.00 from $8.00 until 7/21)
Saboteur II: Avenging Angel ($1.00 from $8.00 until 7/21)
Ethan: Meteor Hunter ($1.99 from $9.99 until 7/18)
Inside My Radio ($1.99 from $9.99 until 7/18)
A Ch’ti Bundle ($3.19 from $15.99 until 7/18)
Mad Age & This Guy ($0.49 from $4.99 until 7/21)
AngerForce: Reloaded ($6.99 from $9.99 until 7/14)
Construction Machines Simulator ($20.64 from $29.49 until 7/21)
Preventive Strike ($0.49 from $1.99 until 7/21)
Classic Games Collection Vol.1 ($0.49 from $4.99 until 7/21)
Sudoku Universe ($3.49 from $4.99 until 7/14)
Candleman ($10.49 from $14.99 until 7/14)
64.0 ($1.49 from $2.99 until 7/14)
SELF ($4.89 from $6.99 until 7/14)
Super Battle Cards ($1.19 from $5.99 until 7/21)
Lines XL ($0.99 from $1.99 until 7/20)
Heaven Dust ($5.59 from $7.99 until 7/14)
Lust for Darkness: Dawn ($10.49 from $14.99 until 7/21)
Wenjia ($5.59 from $7.99 until 7/14)
Sea Salt ($7.49 from $14.99 until 7/13)
Kentucky Robo Chicken ($0.99 from $2.49 until 7/21)
Tiny Gladiators ($1.49 from $14.99 until 7/20)
Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+ ($29.99 from $39.99 until 7/17)
Cave Story+ ($9.99 from $29.99 until 7/17)
Tiny Barbarian DX ($9.99 from $29.99 until 7/17)
Knight Terrors ($0.99 from $2.99 until 7/17)
VVVVVV ($4.99 from $9.99 until 7/17)
The End is Nigh ($9.99 from $14.99 until 7/17)
Subsurface Circular ($4.79 from $5.99 until 7/23)
Ikaruga ($9.99 from $14.99 until 7/17)
Code of Princess EX ($9.99 from $39.99 until 7/17)
Blade Strangers ($9.99 from $39.99 until 7/17)
Madorica Real Estate ($9.90 from $14.99 until 7/9)
Save Me Mr. Tako ($9.99 from $14.99 until 7/17)
RemiLore ($9.99 from $39.99 until 7/17)
Redout ($9.99 from $39.99 until 7/17)
Crystal Crisis ($9.99 from $19.99 until 7/17)
Umihara Kawase Fresh! ($9.99 from $39.99 until 7/17)
Stone ($11.99 from $14.99 until 7/6)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, July 3rd
Ash of Gods: Redemption ($20.09 from $29.99 until 7/3)
Breakfast Bar Tycoon ($1.99 from $4.99 until 7/3)
Cosmic Star Heroine ($1.99 from $14.99 until 7/3)
Double Switch – 25th Anniversary ($1.99 from $14.99 until 7/3)
Dragon’s Dogma: Dark Arisen ($14.99 from $29.99 until 7/3)
Eight-Minute Empire ($7.49 from $14.99 until 7/3)
Ghost Grab 3000 ($4.49 from $4.99 until 7/3)
Istanbul: Digital ($9.99 from $19.99 until 7/3)
Mega Man 11 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 7/3)
Monster Hunter Generations ($19.99 from $49.99 until 7/3)
Night Trap – 25th Anniversary ($2.99 from $14.99 until 7/3)
Okami HD ($9.99 from $19.99 until 7/3)
Old School Racer 2 ($0.79 from $7.99 until 7/3)
Pew Paw ($3.99 from $6.99 until 7/3)
Phoenix Wright: AA Trilogy ($14.99 from $29.99 until 7/3)
Redeemer: Enhanced ($11.99 from $29.99 until 7/3)
Revenge of the Bird King ($0.99 from $4.99 until 7/3)
Rolling Sky 2 ($10.39 from $12.99 until 7/3)
Saturday Morning RPG ($1.99 from $9.99 until 7/3)
Silk ($4.41 from $12.99 until 7/3)
Singled Out ($4.49 from $4.99 until 7/3)
That’s all for today, friends. Tomorrow is also looking a bit bare in terms of new releases so far, but I’m sure some surprises will pop up. They always do. We’ll have summaries of whatever comes, along with what will probably be a gigantic list of new sales. I hope you all have an excellent Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!
