Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for July 13th, 2021. It’s a very quiet day today, friends. No new releases on the schedule. Very little news. A small list of new sales with only a few highlights in it. And somebody spend too much time playing Metroid: Zero Mission today, so he only has one review ready for you to read. I wonder who that was. Anyway, it’s more a shorter read today, but I hope you like what we’ve got regardless. Let’s get to it!
News
‘Minecraft Dungeons’ Gets New DLC and Update Later This Month
While it was a little thin on content at launch, Minecraft Dungeons found a solid niche with those looking for an accessible hack-and-slash action-RPG. Subsequent updates and DLC have shored up the amount of things to do in the game, and the next big drop is coming in a couple of weeks. The release of the Echoing Void DLC, which sees players taking the fight to The End, is scheduled for July 28th. Along with it will come a free update for all players, adding a new mission and an assortment of new enchantments. A new Ultimate Edition of the game will be released on the same day, collecting the base game and all six DLCs.
Reviews & Mini-Views
Ys IX: Monstrum Nox ($59.99)
I’m not going to lie, this old Falcom fan has been seeing more cracks in his faith in recent years. While Trails of Cold Steel wasn’t bad, I don’t think it was as good as prior games in the series. The developer doesn’t seem to do as many interesting side projects as it once did, and all of its games having been getting more and more wordy, losing the quick pace that once characterized its offerings. And while this isn’t on Falcom specifically, some versions of its recent games have been pretty rough from a technical standpoint.
That all being said, I just really love Ys. I haven’t played an Ys game I didn’t like, and even some of the worst versions of the games hold a bit of appeal for me. Friends, let me tell you: this Nintendo Switch port of Ys IX: Monstrum Nox is probably going to be the worst version of this game. I didn’t expect otherwise; this game ran horribly on the PlayStation 4 and it wasn’t going to improve on weaker hardware. The framerate is sometimes fine, sometimes disastrous, and often choppy. The resolution does that usual Switch thing where it’s often fine but occasionally isn’t. It’s all very noticeable to the point that I don’t see how anyone couldn’t see it. I’m sure the developer handling the port did its best, but it wasn’t meant to be.
So why did I have so much fun with Ys IX: Monstrum Nox on the Switch? Well, at its core this is just a really good game. Not even a framerate that if mapped to a graph would look like a roller coaster track at Canada’s Wonderland is enough to ruin that. The story is stupid in a good way and more than compelling enough. The new moves that Adol gains with his curse make combat and navigation even faster and more fun. There are some truly epic battles that manage to impress even when they turn into a slideshow. The characters are, at least for me, more likeable than those in Ys VIII. Indeed, the pace of this game all around is better than the last couple of games.
Aside from being able to play it on the go, this is undoubtedly the worst possible way to play Ys IX: Monstrum Nox. I’m not going to sugarcoat that. The technical issues are severe and frequent here. This isn’t one of those ports that will make you wonder how the developers pulled it off. You’ll see the sacrifices that were made, in excruciating detail. You’ll feel them. And yet, this is still an immensely enjoyable game. If this is the only way you can play this game or the handheld factor is extremely important to you, I think it’s still a good pick-up. It’s a snappier, more stylish, and more exciting game than its predecessor that holds up the reputation of the storied Ys line respectably.
SwitchArcade Score: 4/5
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
The most obvious thing to highlight here is that nice discount on Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne. This is its first post-launch discount, and brings the game to what I would feel is a more acceptable price for the quality of this remake. Beyond that, 2K Games is having a sale again. All the same games as usual, and they’re still just as good as ever. Buy them if you want, or wait a few weeks for them to go on sale again. Very little in the outbox worth caring about, but make sure you check out those lists yourself and see what grabs you.
Select New Games on Sale
Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne ($34.99 from $49.99 until 7/19)
Pizza Bar Tycoon ($1.99 from $4.99 until 7/19)
Breakfast Bar Tycoon ($1.99 from $4.99 until 7/19)
Food Truck Tycoon: Asian ($1.99 from $4.99 until 7/19)
Spider Solitaire ($1.99 from $8.99 until 7/19)
Deiland: Pocket Planet ($11.99 from $19.99 until 7/19)
Fates of Ort ($10.49 from $14.99 until 7/20)
Crazy Strike Bowling EX ($4.99 from $9.99 until 7/21)
Pix Jungle Adventures ($1.99 from $4.99 until 7/23)
Pure Pool ($10.49 from $14.99 until 7/23)
Snooker 19 ($13.99 from $34.99 until 7/23)
Ironcast ($5.19 from $12.99 until 7/23)
The Spectrum Retreat ($5.19 from $12.99 until 7/23)
L.A. Noire ($24.99 from $49.99 until 7/26)
WWE 2K18 ($19.79 from $59.99 until 7/26)
NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 ($7.49 from $29.99 until 7/26)
Carnival Games ($9.99 from $39.99 until 7/26)
Sid Meier’s Civilization VI ($19.79 from $59.99 until 7/26)
XCOM 2 Collection ($14.99 from $49.99 until 7/26)
BioShock: The Collection ($19.99 from $49.99 until 7/26)
BioShock Remastered ($7.99 from $19.99 until 7/26)
BioShock 2 Remastered ($7.99 from $19.99 until 7/26)
BioShock Infinite: Complete ($7.99 from $19.99 until 7/26)
Borderlands Legendary Collection ($19.99 from $49.99 until 7/26)
Borderlands: GOTY Edition ($11.99 from $29.99 until 7/26)
Borderlands: Handsome Collection ($15.99 from $39.99 until 7/26)
The Outer Worlds ($23.99 from $59.99 until 7/26)
PGA Tour 2K21 ($19.79 from $59.99 until 7/26)
NBA 2K21 ($4.79 from $59.99 until 7/26)
WWE 2K Battlegrounds ($15.99 from $39.99 until 7/26)
Tales from the Borderlands ($19.99 from $24.99 until 7/26)
Palindrome Syndrome: Escape Room ($3.99 from $9.99 until 7/26)
Tested on Humans: Escape Room ($3.99 from $9.99 until 7/26)
Invisible Fist ($1.99 from $9.99 until 7/27)
Rise of Insanity ($3.49 from $9.99 until 7/27)
Legends of Amberland: TFC ($9.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Death and Taxes ($5.84 from $12.99 until 7/27)
DREAMO ($7.49 from $14.99 until 7/27)
Charge Kid ($1.99 from $2.49 until 7/27)
Solitaire TriPeaks Flowers ($2.03 from $5.99 until 8/2)
Crowdy Farm Puzzle ($1.99 from $5.99 until 8/2)
Dark Arcana: The Carnival ($2.09 from $14.99 until 8/2)
Demon Hunter: Revelation ($2.09 from $14.99 until 8/2)
Moorhuhn Remake ($5.59 from $6.99 until 8/2)
Just Black Jack ($1.99 from $2.99 until 8/2)
Miniature: The Story Puzzle ($1.99 from $3.99 until 8/2)
Overlanders ($1.99 from $24.99 until 8/2)
Multi Quiz ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/2)
Super Loop Drive ($1.99 from $3.99 until 8/2)
Retro Game Pack ($1.99 from $4.99 until 8/2)
History 2048 ($1.99 from $4.99 until 8/2)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Wednesday, July 14th
9 Monkeys of Shaolin ($5.99 from $29.99 until 7/14)
Anna’s Quest ($15.99 from $19.99 until 7/14)
Ash of Gods: Redemption ($5.99 from $29.99 until 7/14)
Cast of the Seven Godsends ($2.59 from $12.99 until 7/14)
Cattails ($1.99 from $14.99 until 7/14)
Fire: Ungh’s Quest ($11.24 from $14.99 until 7/14)
Flatland Vol.2 ($2.99 from $3.99 until 7/14)
Mainlining ($2.99 from $14.99 until 7/14)
New Star Manager ($3.99 from $19.99 until 7/14)
Redeemer: Enhanced Edition ($5.99 from $29.99 until 7/14)
Rubix Roller ($3.19 from $3.99 until 7/14)
Spirit of the North ($12.49 from $24.99 until 7/14)
Stranded Sails: EotCI ($9.99 from $24.99 until 7/14)
Super Archer ($3.99 from $4.99 until 7/14)
The Count Lucanor ($2.99 from $14.99 until 7/14)
That’s all for today, friends. The good news is that tomorrow has a few new games on the schedule for us to look at. There will also certainly be some news to check out, and I fully expect at least a few sales to pop up. I’m going to try to finish Metroid: Zero Mission tonight so that I can move on to my replay of Samus Returns. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!
