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SwitchArcade Round-Up: ‘Super Zangyura’, ‘Words With Freds’, ‘A Musical Story’, Plus Today’s Other New Releases and Sales

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for March 3rd, 2022. There are a whole bunch of new releases to look at today, with everything from rhythm games to word games to robot adventure games and everything in between. I say that as though every game genre is together on a linear scale. How silly. Nothing to be done about it now. Let’s get to those summaries and sales lists!

New Releases

Arcade Archives Dragon Spirit ($7.99)

SwitchArcade Highlight!

It’s Namco time again in the Arcade Archives, and they’ve got a good one for us this time. Originally released in 1987, Dragon Spirit is a vertical shoot-em-up where you play as a huge dragon battling your way through fantasy landscapes. You can use breath attacks to fire straight ahead or raze the ground, and a wide array of power-ups allow you to upgrade your shots or even grow extra heads. I love this one, and Hamster has done its usual excellent job bringing it over the Switch. Definitely a worthy pick-up for shoot-em-up fans.

A Musical Story ($14.99)

This is a rhythm game set in the 1970s that takes you through the memories of Gabriel, who finds himself in a position where he has time to reflect on his life. I have a feeling you might need to keep a tissue box handy for this one. The soundtrack features twenty-six songs, and yeah, they’re solid. The story is told without words with a striking art style, and the rhythm gameplay feels good. I’ll have a full review of this one soon, so keep your eyes peeled.

Words With Freds ($1.00)

Normally I would admonish someone for such a blatant copy, but I like Fred Wood’s other games and if someone was going to cash this ticket (and indeed it was inevitable) I am glad it’s him. So yeah, this is Wordle. You can play it on your Switch. It’s a dollar.

Old Coin Pusher Friends ($3.99)

Oh, it’s a coin dozer. It seems to have a vintage theme to it, with the backdrop being done up in old Japanese style and the coins in question being what appear to be Edo-era koban. Anyway, add more coins to make the dozer push the coins off, helping you earn coins. This one actually has online multiplayer for up to five players, plus a number of modes to enjoy. Unlock upgrades, collect prizes, and enjoy the primal pleasure of clinking coins falling into your bucket. Priced about right for what it is, I think.

Would You Like to Run an Idol Cafe? 2 ($9.99)

The Seaside Cafe has seen better days. Business is down, and things are looking grim. Luckily Yokoyama Naoya and his cute friend Ichigo have a plan: create an idol group who also double as maid waitresses for the cafe. Well, yeah. I guess that might work. As Naoya, you serve as the manager of the group and are responsible for making choices that may lead you to success or disaster. This is another Gamuzumi joint, so expect some risque content but not so much as the computer version probably has. I leave it up to you to decide if that is enough for you.

The Uncertain: Last Quiet Day ($14.99)

This is an adventure game where you play as a robot in a world without humans. Hm. Weird to have consecutive days with games with that exact same premise. Well, this one is different from yesterday’s Primordia in a lot of ways. Notably, you’re playing from a first-person view a lot of the time. The mechanics are a bit clunky but the story is interesting enough that you might be able to put up with the rough edges. It only takes a few hours to go through, but it’s worth the ride if you like a good interactive yarn.

Super Zangyura ($19.99)

Platine Dispositif’s challenging action-platformer Zangyura gets a beefy remake/remaster in the form of Super Zangyura. You play as the Maid, and you must go right. As you make your way through an ancient castle, you will find a lot of enemies and traps that are trying to keep you from moving towards your goal. Luckily, you’ve got a handy morning star. The castle and lengthy melee weapon call Castlevania to mind, while the Maid’s agility and dash remind me of Mega Man X. This one certainly has my interest.

CATch The Stars ($2.99)

You know that thing where I get annoyed because a puzzle game doesn’t give much explanation of its mechanics in its eShop description. Here we are again. Your task in each of the fifty levels is to create the constellation from the lines that are scattered on the screen. From the video it seems that you remove them in your order of choice, but I’m not really sure what the trick to it is. Something to do with the nodes of different shapes? Well, if you want to drop a few bucks to try and figure it out yourself, so be it. The reviews on Steam seem extremely encouraging, at least.

Menseki Genius ($5.00)

Everything sounds a little fancier in a foreign language. ‘Menseki‘ refers to the measurements of a room. Mystique destroyed. But how about the game? Basically, it’s math problems. No, don’t go away! Math is fun! Sigh. Anyway, your goal in each puzzle is to use the information you have to try to determine the values you don’t have. As for the other word in the title, it’s a reference to the fact that this is a collection of extremely challenging puzzles. Those starting out will probably want to play Menseki: Area Maze Puzzles first to get a feel for how these work.

Dexter Stardust: Adventures in Outer Space ($9.99)

Vreesians from Planet X arrive to destroy all life on Earth, and one young man named Dexter Stardust manages to escape. Twenty years later, Dexter isn’t exactly living large, but he is surviving. A robot from Planet X tracks him down and tells him that he is the key to saving both humanity and the Vreesians, but what does it all mean? Dexter and his friend Aurora head out on a wild adventure to find the answers. This is a point-and-click style adventure game featuring five episodes that take you across more than one hundred unique scenes. Meet weird characters, solve a lot of inventory puzzles, and explore to your heart’s content.

Ambition Record ($14.99)

KEMCO and EXE-Create have another JRPG for us today. It features rebellious counts, evil chancellors, a job change system, a heroic orphan, and all the usual fixings we tend to see from this pairing. I can’t imagine being hard-up enough for new RPGs right here, right now to merit picking this up. For dedicated KEMCOnnoisseurs only, I’d say.

Pretty Girls Breakers! ($6.99)

Publisher eastasiasoft serves up another helping of its specialty, merging a basic gameplay concept with mildly risque pictures of anime ladies. This time it’s the well-worn brick breaker, a genre with no shortage of options on the eShop in a similar price range to this. Play as a twin-tailed lady with a beam saber and bat the balls to destroy the blocks. There are more than twenty stages, with seven different ladies and plenty of costumes and images to unlock.

12 Labours of Hercules V: Kids of Hellas ($7.99)

With this being the fifth installment of the series to hit the Switch, you probably don’t need a whole lot of information to decide if this is up your alley or not. A new story, a few modest additions to the gameplay, and more than fifty new levels of casual strategy await those who want another adventure with Herc. Fifth verse, more or less same as the first.

Racing Xtreme: Fast Rally Driver 3D ($7.99)

Skin it however you like it, this is another one of T-Bull’s CSR Racing-like games. The theme this time is off-road racing in a post-apocalyptic world. Collect the cars (including actual licensed vehicles from Dartz Motors), upgrade as needed, and push the button at the appropriate moments while watching the race to pull ahead of your opponents. Plays like a free diversion, costs as much as several delicious Snicker bars. Your call.

Bus Driver Simulator Countryside ($14.99)

You’ve driven a bus before in a video game. You’ve even driven a bus in Russia before in a video game. But have you driven a bus in the Russian countryside before? I can’t see your Steam library, so I really can’t answer that question. This one comes from Ultimate Games, so set your expectations at the appropriate level. It’s certainly got a somewhat different feel as you’re not driving around in a city but rather the sometimes gravel roads of a small town. Could be good for a lark, but fifteen bucks for such a thing might be more than you’re willing to spend.

Counter Delta: The Bullet Rain ($14.99)

Here’s TROOOZE with another single-player third-person shooter of dubious quality. Shoot the terrorists in a few different modes of play, and get access to new weapons by leveling up. I assume some folks are really into these or they wouldn’t keep making them. I am not one of those folks. Perhaps you are, in which case you don’t need to pay any mind to my goofy opinions.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Good news! There’s almost nothing in the new sales list for today. You can save your money, unless you have somehow missed out on buying all the SteamWorld games. The outbox is a lot bigger, and there are some decent games in there but nothing that won’t be on sale again before too long. Still, check those lists just in case something in there is of interest to you.

Select New Games on Sale

OMG Police Car Chase TV ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/9)
Cyber Protocol ($1.99 from $9.99 until 3/9)
Clumsy Rush ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/9)
Nirvana Pilot Yume ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/9)
Urban Flow Extended ($1.99 from $16.99 until 3/9)
SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech ($8.74 from $24.99 until 3/13)
SteamWorld Dig 2 ($6.99 from $19.99 until 3/13)
SteamWorld Dig ($2.49 from $9.99 until 3/13)
SteamWorld Heist Ultimate ($4.99 from $19.99 until 3/13)
Anthill ($2.49 from $9.99 until 3/13)
Madness Beverage ($11.24 from $14.99 until 3/16)
Ghostrunner ($11.99 from $29.99 until 3/17)
Glam ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/22)
Soap Dodgem ($1.99 from $5.99 until 3/23)
Luminos ($2.49 from $4.99 until 3/23)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, March 4th

#DRIVE ($9.09 from $12.99 until 3/4)
4×4 Dirt Track ($5.99 from $11.99 until 3/4)
80’s Overdrive ($3.49 from $9.99 until 3/4)
99Vidas Definitive Edition ($1.99 from $9.99 until 3/4)
AAA Clock ($1.99 from $9.99 until 3/4)
Ambition Record ($13.49 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Art Sqool ($1.99 from $12.99 until 3/4)
Battleship ($9.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Black Hole ($2.99 from $5.99 until 3/4)
Blackberry Honey ($10.39 from $12.99 until 3/4)
Bladed Fury ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Boreal Blade ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/4)
Canceled! Puzzles Dream ($1.99 from $5.99 until 3/4)
City Driving Simulator ($5.99 from $11.99 until 3/4)
City Traffic Driver ($5.99 from $11.99 until 3/4)
Clue: Classic Mystery Game ($14.99 from $29.99 until 3/4)
Commandos 2 HD Remaster ($17.99 from $29.99 until 3/4)
Dogurai ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/4)
Driving World: Italian Job ($5.99 from $11.99 until 3/4)


Embracelet ($2.99 from $11.99 until 3/4)
Epic Word Search Collection ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Epic Word Search Collection 2 ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Ever Forward ($10.49 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Fifty Words by POWGI ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Fill-a-Pix: Phil’s Epic Adv. ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Flatland Vol.1 ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/4)
Flatland Vol.2 ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/4)
Gaps by POWGI ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Gnomes Garden: Lost King ($2.99 from $9.99 until 3/4)
Good Pizza, Great Pizza ($6.99 from $9.99 until 3/4)
Guts ‘N Goals ($10.49 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Hoa ($10.49 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Immortal Realms: Vampire Wars ($15.99 from $39.99 until 3/4)
Iris.Fall ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Maria the Witch ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/4)
Milkmaid of the Milky Way ($2.00 from $5.99 until 3/4)
Morphies Law ($1.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
MUSYNX ($20.99 from $29.99 until 3/4)
Mythic Ocean ($7.49 from $14.99 until 3/4)


Pic-a-Pix Deluxe ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Pic-a-Pix Pieces ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Pirates All Aboard! ($1.99 from $5.99 until 3/4)
Retro Highway ($4.79 from $5.99 until 3/4)
Rogue Star Rescue ($11.24 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Sports & Wild Pinball ($7.49 from $14.99 until 3/4)
Super Hiking League DX ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/4)
The Bunker ($7.14 from $12.99 until 3/4)
The Shapeshifting Detective ($7.79 from $12.99 until 3/4)
Trine 2: Complete Story ($4.24 from $16.99 until 3/4)
Trine 3 Artifacts of Power ($4.99 from $19.99 until 3/4)
Trine Enchanted Edition ($3.74 from $14.99 until 3/4)
TTV2 ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/4)
UBERMOSH:OMEGA ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/4)
UBERMOSH:SANTICIDE ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/4)
War Dogs: Red’s Return ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/4)
Word Puzzles by POWGI ($4.99 from $9.99 until 3/4)
Word Search by POWGI ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/4)
Yumeiri ($4.48 from $8.00 until 3/4)
Zen Chess Collection ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/4)

That’s all for today, friends. Tomorrow has some exciting things going on, with the release of Triangle Strategy being the highlight. You can also look forward to games like Gunborg: Dark Matters, Quest for Infamy, and What Lies in the Multiverse. We’ll have summaries of all of them, as always. There will probably also be a bunch of sales, in case you like those. I hope you all have a great Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!