Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for October 19th, 2020. It’s getting cooler around here, and you can feel the winter approaching closer with each day. I guess that means it’s time for lots of games to release! But not today. Today there are only a few new games to look at. As such, we’ve got a few Mini-Views to make sure you’ve got enough to read. This is a very big concern of mine, you see. Aside from the Mini-Views and new releases, we’ve got the usual lists of incoming and outgoing sales for you to consider. Let’s go!
Mini-Views
Prinny 1-2: Exploded and Reloaded ($59.99)
The two Prinny games offer very similar experiences to one another, so let’s do them in one shot. They’re clearly inspired by classic platformers, and if you’re a fan of the Ghouls ‘n Ghosts games you’ll be right at home here. The sense of humor is similar to that of Disgaea, and whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing is a matter for the individual to sort out. While they market themselves as ultra-tough games, the excess of lives (1000!) and generous checkpoints mean that most tenacious players should be able to get through without too much stress. These are more or less straight ports of the PSP originals, to the point that a lot of features you might expect to see in a 2020 Switch game aren’t here. There’s also a filter over the visuals that makes it very clear the game’s assets were blown up from a smaller resolution. Fine enough games, but hard to get too excited about.
SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5
Dead Z Meat ($9.99)
I’m not sure if it’s my mind playing tricks on me or not, but Dead Z Meat feels a little better to play than Mad Bullets, the previous lightgun-style shooter from this developer. Progression also feels a little better. You make your way through a variety of levels, shooting zombies and earning cash that you can then funnel into upgrades and new guns. You can’t play this game in handheld mode and the Pro Controller is not an option. Its reliance on the Joy-Con’s gyro sensor means that you’re constantly having to re-center the reticule, making it hard to really immerse yourself in the arcade experience. Better than the last game, but I remain unconvinced that this kind of thing can work on the Switch given the hardware limitations.
SwitchArcade Score: 2.5/5
Dadish ($10.00)
Dadish is a really nice platformer with a weird sense of humor, and there’s not much more to say about it than that. The controls work well, the level designs are short but satisfying, and the simple visuals are clear and pleasing. It passes by at a relatively quick pace, but when I reflect on it I really feel the game does a good job of exploring its mechanics and level gimmicks properly. I’m not sure whether there would be any merit in it being any longer than it is. I was pleasantly surprised at how the difficulty ramped up, as it seemed early on that it was going to be a walk in the park. It’s probably not going to stick in my brain all that long, but I had a good time with it. If that’s all you ask out of a platformer, give this one a go.
SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5
New Releases
Death Ray Manta SE ($10.00)
This game falls somewhere between Geometry Wars and a Jeff Minter game, and that’s not a bad place to be. It’s a twin-stick arena-based shooter with 32 levels that cranks up the colors and special effects to eleven. Lots of fun even if it’s not the most original thing you’ll see on the shop, but I can’t help but wonder why it’s ten dollars here when it’s only a couple of bucks on Steam. At a price point of five dollars or less this would be a very easy game to recommend, but for ten? Hm. It’s a solid Geometry Wars-style game, for sure. Whether that’s worth the asking price is up to you.
The Coma: Recut ($14.99)
The Coma is one of those games that seems to not review terribly well but still manages to be very popular in spite of that. A Korean survival-horror game, The Coma sees you trapped in a school at night with… something. Sneak, hide, and explore to try to find a way to survive and escape. The distinctive 2D graphics help this one stand out, and the story is interesting enough to keep you engaged. I don’t think it’s quite as scary as it could be, but it’s nevertheless a fascinating experience and a nice example of a theme we don’t see all that often in the Western game market.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
One of the disadvantages to only doing these articles on weekdays is that there are sometimes neat sales that only run through the weekend. One such is the Return of the Obra Dinn, which may or may not still be on sale as you read this. If it is still discounted it won’t be for long, so make sure you grab it if so. Aside from that, there are still lots of cool discounts with a bit longer to go before they expire. Fight Crab is weird and nifty. Sky Racket… not bad for that price. It’s never a bad day to grab some of the SteamWorld and/or Toki Tori games. Tangle Tower is fancy dining. The outbox is small in stature but there are some very good games in there you should consider picking up.
Select New Games on Sale
Fight Crab ($16.99 from $19.99 until 10/23)
Cyber Protocol ($1.99 from $9.99 until 10/23)
Sky Racket ($3.74 from $14.99 until 10/23)
Crown Trick ($17.99 from $19.99 until 10/23)
Fantasy Tower Defense ($2.49 from $4.99 until 10/24)
Zarvot ($9.99 from $19.99 until 10/24)
Tangle Tower ($13.99 from $19.99 until 10/25)
Deployment ($0.99 from $9.99 until 10/25)
Circle of Sumo ($4.99 from $9.99 until 10/26)
Beat Cop ($3.49 from $14.99 until 10/31)
Moonlighter ($8.49 from $24.99 until 10/31)
Treasure Stack ($3.99 from $19.99 until 10/31)
Curious Cases ($3.99 from $4.99 until 10/31)
Escape First ($3.99 from $4.99 until 10/31)
The Experiment: Escape Room ($3.19 from $3.99 until 10/31)
Children of Morta ($12.99 from $21.99 until 10/31)
Anthill ($3.99 from $9.99 until 11/1)
SteamWorld Dig ($2.49 from $9.99 until 11/1)
SteamWorld Dig 2 ($7.99 from $19.99 until 11/1)
SteamWorld Heist: Ultimate ($4.99 from $19.99 until 11/1)
SteamWorld Quest: HoG ($12.49 from $24.99 until 11/1)
Giga Wrecker Alt. ($12.49 from $24.99 until 11/1)
Conga Master Party! ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/1)
Speed Dating for Ghosts ($2.09 from $2.99 until 11/1)
Ninja Shodown ($2.99 from $14.99 until 11/1)
88 Heroes – 98 Heroes ($5.99 from $29.99 until 11/1)
Decay of Logos ($9.99 from $19.99 until 11/1)
Stick It to The Man ($2.39 from $11.99 until 11/1)
Hello Kitty Kruisers ($20.96 from $29.95 until 11/1)
Holy Potatoes! A Weapon Shop?! ($4.49 from $14.99 until 11/1)
Holy Potatoes! We’re in Space?! ($4.49 from $14.99 until 11/1)
Holy Potatoes! What The Hell?! ($10.50 from $15.00 until 11/1)
Slots of Poker at Aces Casino ($3.99 from $7.99 until 11/1)
Flipping Death ($3.99 from $19.99 until 11/1)
RICO ($9.99 from $19.99 until 11/1)
Wide Ocean Big Jacket ($3.19 from $7.99 until 11/1)
Red’s Kingdom ($2.99 from $9.99 until 11/1)
Curious Expedition ($10.04 from $14.99 until 11/1)
Storm in a Teacup ($2.09 from $2.99 until 11/1)
Two Parsecs From Earth ($6.39 from $7.99 until 11/1)
Trailblazers ($5.99 from $29.99 until 11/1)
Quest for the Golden Duck ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/2)
Rogue Bit ($2.49 from $4.99 until 11/2)
Windmill Kings ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/2)
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger ($11.99 from $19.99 until 11/3)
Rive: Ultimate ($1.99 from $14.99 until 11/5)
Toki Tori ($1.99 from $4.99 until 11/5)
Toki Tori 2+ ($1.99 from $14.99 until 11/5)
Swords & Soldiers ($1.99 from $7.49 until 11/5)
Drowning ($1.49 from $2.99 until 11/5)
Blood Waves ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/5)
Towertale ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/5)
Purrs In Heaven ($2.44 from $6.99 until 11/5)
Wurroom ($0.99 from $1.99 until 11/5)
Rift Keeper ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/5)
Hypnospace Outlaw ($14.99 from $19.99 until 11/5)
Kakurasu World ($0.99 from $2.99 until 11/5)
Robox ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/5)
The Tower of Beatrice ($2.99 from $5.99 until 11/5)
A Winter’s Daydream ($2.99 from $5.99 until 11/5)
Stellatum ($7.49 from $14.99 until 11/5)
Rock ‘N Racing Bundle ($5.99 from $19.99 until 11/5)
The Coma: Recut ($11.24 from $14.99 until 11/5)
North ($1.49 from $2.99 until 11/5)
It’s Spring Again ($0.99 from $1.99 until 11/5)
Sigi ($2.49 from $4.99 until 11/5)
Creepy Brawlers ($1.99 from $4.99 until 11/5)
Viviette ($6.99 from $9.99 until 11/5)
Swap This! ($1.99 from $4.99 until 11/5)
The Mooseman ($3.49 from $6.99 until 11/5)
Ploid Saga ($2.39 from $11.99 until 11/6)
I, Zombie ($1.99 from $4.99 until 11/6)
Death Squared ($2.99 from $14.99 until 11/6)
Rest in Pieces ($1.99 from $7.99 until 11/7)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Tuesday, October 20th
Aborigenus ($0.89 from $4.99 until 10/20)
Celeste ($4.99 from $19.99 until 10/20)
Croc’s World 3 ($0.99 from $4.99 until 10/20)
Diabolic ($0.89 from $4.99 until 10/20)
Island Maze ($1.49 from $2.99 until 10/20)
Madorica Real Estate ($8.89 from $14.99 until 10/20)
Pixel Gladiator ($1.39 from $6.99 until 10/20)
Sports Party ($4.99 from $39.99 until 10/20)
Swaps and Traps ($0.49 from $8.99 until 10/20)
Syder Reloaded ($10.19 from $11.99 until 10/20)
Tactical Mind 2 ($0.49 from $4.99 until 10/20)
Towerfall ($4.99 from $19.99 until 10/20)
Urban Flow ($8.99 from $14.99 until 10/20)
Wolfenstein: Youngblood Deluxe ($25.99 from $39.99 until 10/20)
Woven ($9.99 from $19.99 until 10/20)
That’s all for today, friends. Tomorrow will see a couple more new releases, and I may or may not have a review ready to roll for you. We’ll also have whatever news and new releases that come along in the next twenty-four hours or so. It should be fun. I hope you all have a solid enough start to your week, and as always, thanks for reading!
