Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for April 21st, 2022. In today’s article, we’ve got a ridiculous number of new games to look at. Nothing truly big-name, but there are honestly about a dozen games worth considering here depending on your tastes. I didn’t have time to go into as much detail about some of them as I would have liked because there are frankly almost thirty games to talk about today. We also have the sales, as always. Let’s go!
New Releases
Roguebook ($24.99)
Richard Garfield, friends. He only went and created Magic: The Gathering, one of the most influential games of the late 20th century. And now he, along with the developers of Faeria, has a new game for us to enjoy. Roguebook sees you creating a team of two heroes, combining their strengths and abilities to battle evil. It’s a deckbuilding affair with a couple hundred cards, eighty special relics, and thirty gems that can be combined with each other for a massive number of possibilities. There are twenty difficulty levels to play through, so this one should keep you busy for quite some time. I’ll bring you more detailed thoughts on the game early next week.
Samurai Bringer ($9.99)
This is a stylish roguelite action game with a charming chibi look to its graphics. You play as Susanoo and need to gather your strength to challenge and defeat Yamata-no-Orochi. Collect combat techniques to customize your load-out and create a fighting style that suits you. You’ll battle against more than one hundred legendary figures from Japanese history and mythology, collecting new equipment as you defeat them. You’ll have to be at your best if you mean to take down the eight-headed Orochi. Seems pretty cool at first blush, but I’d need to put more time into it to say for sure.
Ganryu 2 – Hakuma Kojiro ($19.99)
Following on the release of Andro Dunos 2 not so long ago, here is another sequel to one of Visco’s NEOGEO games. Ganryu 2 is a side-scrolling action game with plenty of Shinobi vibes where you play as Musashi Miyamoto, a guy who is mostly famous for fighting with a sword in each hand. I’ve played a good bit of this so far, and it’s quite fun as these things go. I’ll have a review soon.
Edit: This Switch version has severe framerate issues that show up a little ways into the game, and I really can’t in good faith recommend it. More in the review later.
Super Mega Zero ($9.99)
One of those precision platformer deals. It has some interesting mechanics, with you picking up numbers that allow you to take as many actions as the number reads. Grab a one and you can jump or dash once, grab a three and you can go three times. Pick up an infinity sign and you can get seriously Flappy. It plays well and has hundreds of levels to play. This one is on the review docket as well, but I can at least say right now that I’ve really been enjoying it.
Rotund Zero ($1.99)
If you enjoyed last week’s Rotund Rebound, you will probably want to check out Rotund Zero. It’s a Game Boy-inspired take on the same “always bouncing" platformer concept, with more bite-sized levels and time attack challenges for more pick-up-and-play appeal. This is also a nice way to try out the core Rotund gameplay mechanics before dropping more money on Rotund Rebound. Really a decent choice at such a reasonable price, provided you enjoy platforming.
MotoGP 22 ($39.99)
We’re a few entries into this series at this point, so I suspect most of what this game is about should be known to anyone who is interested in it. You get your 2022 MotoGP season stuff, plus the new NINE Season 2009 to play through. It’s kind of an interactive reenactment of the 2009 MotoGP season. You’ll follow the story and the game will occasionally throw it over to you to race a little bit. Some changes have also been made to the physics. You can play alone, or if you have some friends with their own Switch units and games you can race with up to eight players via local wireless multiplayer. It probably won’t win you over if previous versions haven’t, but there does some to be some efforts at making various improvements here.
Lila’s Sky Ark ($14.99)
A rather trippy action-adventure game, Lila’s Sky Ark follows a girl named Lila whose world is threatened by a villain known as the Conductor. His goons seek to destroy the music and magic in the realm that Lila and her friends live in. Travel the world, discover secrets, battle foes, solve puzzles, and figure out the mystery behind the Conductor and Lila herself. It certainly has style to spare, but I’ll have to spend more time with it to deliver a verdict on how it plays.
Revita ($16.99)
This is a roguelite run-and-gun of sorts where you explore an underground subway line filled with weird characters, deadly monsters, and tricky traps. Your guns are controlled with a twin-stick set-up. Your goal is to reach the top of a distant clocktower in hopes of it offering answers for our amnesiac protagonist. I can see inspirations from a few of the notable games in this genre, but it feels enough like its own thing to get by. Fun, if not necessarily immediately striking.
Lumote: The Mastermote Chronicles ($19.99)
Explore an underwater world in this puzzle-platformer. You play as Lumote, a squishy little fellow that has the ability to take control of other inhabitants of the Great Depths. You’ll have to use them to solve a variety of puzzles en route defeating the powerful Mastermote and returning the sea to its normal state. The game takes place in one large world, and you need to fix it one puzzle at a time. There’s a nice atmosphere to it all, and the puzzle designs are solid.
NeonLore ($5.99)
NeonLore is a first-person cyberpunk adventure game where you explore a neon city, meet interesting people, and solve the occasional puzzle. It’s all very low-pressure, and there’s no way to put yourself into an unwinnable state. It sometimes gets very wordy and gazes a little too hard into its own navel, as the genre is wont to at times. It’s also important to keep your expectations level with that affordable price tag. Still, I could see some people getting a bit of a kick out of it.
orbit.industries ($19.99)
A space station sim is an interesting idea, to say the least. Build and manage your own station using a circuit board-style interface, then try to keep it running because even in space, capitalism never sleeps. Watch out for hackers, keep an eye on your production, and explore nearby planets in the game’s multiple modes of play. There are campaign missions to tackle, or you can just chill out in the game’s creative or endless modes. I have some concerns about the interface, which seems more built for computers than consoles, but I can’t really judge it too far based on what I’ve seen.
Arcade Archives Gaplus ($7.99)
Galaxian was a big hit for Namco. Galaga took it to a whole other level. If this trend continues… whoa! Well, we know now how things went. Gaplus, the third game in the series, just couldn’t maintain the popularity of its immediate predecessor. That doesn’t mean it isn’t a fun game, though. The major change from Galaga is that you can now beam enemies over to your side, increasing the size and firepower of your fleet as you go. This one doesn’t seem to get rereleased all that often, but we do have that lovely NES demake on Namco Museum Archives Volume 2. Hamster has done a nice job with this version as always, so Galaga fans will want to add it to their collections as soon as possible.
Metal Tales Overkill ($14.99)
A topdown roguelite guitar-based shooter. What more could you ask for? Details? You want details? Okay, fine. An evil god has possessed metalheads across the world, creating a legion of metal zombies. You are the only one capable of freeing the masses, unless you have a friend who wants to join you for local multiplayer co-op. Pick your favorite character from a group of four metalheads, collect more than fifty items, battles fifteen different enemies, have a showdown with eight guitar bosses, and make your way through six levels set across three different environments. As you make runs, you’ll unlock some permanent upgrades and abilities to take into the next fight. Well, the theme is creative, if nothing else.
In the Mood ($4.99)
It’s single-player Puzzle Bobble/Bust-A-Move, but with a bit of light platforming while positioning your shot. When you remove the bubbles there are sexy pictures of ladies underneath. Basically, it’s an eastasiasoft game. Ten girls, thirty levels, and a gallery for all the art you unlock.
CosmicBreak Gun & Slash ($19.90)
This is a spin-off of an online shooter called CosmicBreak. Choose your favorite character from a cast of twelve, most of whom are cute ladies, and engage in some surprisingly dull top-down hack-and-slash/shoot action. There are six stages that get stretched out a bit with some extra modes. Considering how many good top-down shooters the Switch has available, paying twenty for this kind of bland effort probably isn’t a great idea. But don’t let me stop you if you have your heart set on it.
Burger Bistro Story ($14.00)
It’s Kairosoft with another Kairosoft sim, this time with a burger shop theme. It’s pretty much the same deal as the other restaurant sims from this developer, just with hamburgers instead of ramen or what-have-you. Whether or not it will appeal to you is something you will probably be able to figure out yourself, but I would be remiss if I failed to note that you can buy this a lot cheaper on mobile and lose nothing in the process.
Deck of Ashes: Complete Edition ($24.99)
Hey, it’s another deck-building roguelite. It’s somewhat unfortunate this is hitting on the same day as Roguebook because, while it’s a decent enough game, I can’t really recommend this over that game. I really dig the art and it’s enjoyable enough up to a point, but it’s a bit grindy and the balancing just sort of falls apart in the late game. This complete version adds an extra character among a few other bits and bobs. Again, it’s not bad. It leans more good than bad, for sure. But the competition is fierce in the category, even on the Switch.
The Last Friend ($14.99)
A short and sweet lane-based castle defense game full of dogs. Lots of great dogs here, and if you’re a dog lover you’ll enjoy its enthusiasm for pups. You play as a guy, and you need to rescue some dogs. When you do, the dogs will usually join your side and help you out in battles from then on. Apart from its charming presentation and amusing premise, this one plays things by the numbers. That’s not a bad thing, depending on what you’re after. Even if you don’t love it, this is a fairly hard game to hate.
Sakura Angels ($9.99)
The Sakura series of visual novels continues with Sakura Angels. Two girls with magical powers have to guard a lonely boy from a mysterious witch. You see, his ancestors were the ones who sealed away a big bad, and the monsters of today think he might be the key to cracking that seal. Luckily, this hapless fellow has two literal angels on his side. And they may be interested in romance, depending on how he plays his cards. If you’ve enjoyed the previous Sakura games, this will probably do it for you as well.
Dragon Caffi ($29.00)
This one is cute. You play as Margo, a fox spirit who was adopted into a family of dragons. She has a dream of becoming a world-class baker, and this game follows her as she embarks on the final stage of achieving that. Travel the world, meet characters, play a variety of minigames, learn new recipes, and use them to whip up more than a hundred different dishes. Getting those recipes will often require you to help out people with their problems, and solving those situations will take you on a number of misadventures. I really like the look of this one, but I haven’t had the chance to play it yet. I’ll let you know soon enough if it turns out to be something special.
Rainbow Yggdrasil ($13.50)
This is a port of a mobile game, and it really shows. The whole game is displayed in a portrait-shaped window in the middle of the screen, with the controls constantly displayed in the massive borders. It’s a fairly traditional take on the Japanese-style roguelike genre, and not a bad one overall. It implements a simple color-based system of strengths and weaknesses, working much like the elemental circle in some RPGs. There are thirty dungeons in total, and beating them all is a very difficult task indeed. I very much wish the developer had chosen to do something better with the extra screen real estate, though.
Japanese NEKOSAMA Escape -The Old Inn- ($9.99)
An escape room game set in a Japanese hot spring inn, albeit one with a very rough localization. This is no ordinary inn, mind you. After coming back from a relaxing soak in the springs, you find that everyone else in the place is a cat. Well, you know how this goes. Solve the various puzzles to escape each room. Not a bad way to kill some time, provided you enjoy poking at sometimes obscure riddles.
Evasion From Hell ($9.99)
EpiXR puts its Aery engine to use yet again for another game where you just kind of wander around and experience stuff. Explore the nine circles of hell to try to return to the world of the living. That involves a bit of platforming, as told in all the classic tales of Greek mythology. If you enjoy this publisher’s usual output, you might want to give this one a look. I’m personally a bit burnt out.
Anuchard ($14.99)
Phew. Okay. So this one is another action-adventure game, this time with you taking the role of a hero that uses a bell as their main weapon/tool. You need to explore dungeons, battle enemies, solve some very simple puzzles, and gather loot. The story and translation aren’t nearly as interesting as the premise, but the action is decent enough. Not spectacular, but decent. If you’re really itching for another game of this sort, it won’t let you down. But it feels more like a game that flirts with being great than one that ever actually achieves that target.
8 Ball Clash ($3.99)
A very simple and cheap billiards game where you need to complete each stage by sinking the balls in a set number of shots. Not much more to it than that.
Galactic Wars EX ($7.99)
This is a straightforward horizontal shoot-em-up with local co-op multiplayer for up to two players. There are three ships to choose from, and forty waves set across three different areas.
Horror Stories ($1.99)
A low-cost horror game with a top-down view. Each stage sees you avoiding a deadly killer, staying out of sight and hiding to keep from being killed. You need to gather the necessary items to build a trap that will catch them.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
A relatively short list of new sales with mostly the usual stuff, but there is one that is certainly worth mentioning: Dragon Quest Builders 2. It’s the latest Game Trial for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers, and as such it and its DLC are discounted for the next little while. It’s an amazing game, so make sure you pick it up if you haven’t already unless you’re totally repulsed by the idea of it. There are some good games in the outbox, with titles like Picross S Genesis & Master System Edition and Regency Solitaire primarily catching my eye. Check those lists!
Select New Games on Sale
Adventures of Pip ($4.99 from $9.99 until 4/26)
B.ARK ($4.99 from $9.99 until 4/26)
Detective Di: Silk Rose Murders ($2.59 from $12.99 until 4/27)
Buck Bradley Comic Adv. ($1.99 from $6.99 until 4/27)
Headsnatchers ($3.74 from $14.99 until 5/1)
Still There ($5.10 from $14.99 until 5/1)
Conarium ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/1)
Transient: Extended Edition ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/1)
STAB STAB STAB! ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/4)
Immortal Planet ($5.99 from $14.99 until 5/4)
Tetsumo Party ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/4)
Clumsy Rush ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/4)
Steamburg ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/4)
Die for Valhalla! ($2.39 from $11.99 until 5/4)
Thea: The Awakening ($7.19 from $17.99 until 5/4)
Dragon Quest Builders 2 ($29.99 from $49.99 until 5/4)
Dragon Quest Builders 2 Season Pass ($12.59 from $20.99 until 5/4)
Power Rangers Battle for the Grid ($10.99 from $19.99 until 5/4)
Power Rangers BftG Super Edition ($27.49 from $49.99 until 5/4)
Inferno 2 ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/4)
Luckslinger ($3.49 from $9.99 until 5/4)
The Bug Butcher ($1.99 from $7.99 until 5/4)
Lumini ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/4)
Jack ‘n’ Hat ($3.99 from $7.99 until 5/4)
Eufloria HD ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Demon’s Rise: War for the Deep ($1.99 from $6.99 until 5/11)
OctaFight ($1.99 from $5.99 until 5/11)
Palindrome Syndrome ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Between Time ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Tested on Humans ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Splatter ($1.99 from $4.98 until 5/11)
The Innsmouth Case ($2.09 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Trigger Dungeon ($1.99 from $3.99 until 5/11)
Jessika ($2.09 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Deadly Days ($2.08 from $18.99 until 5/11)
Encodya ($4.49 from $29.99 until 5/11)
Shakes on a Plane ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Figment ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Leisure Suit Larry WD Saga ($9.74 from $64.99 until 5/11)
Leisure Suit Larry WDDD ($3.99 from $39.99 until 5/11)
Leisure Suit Larry WDDT ($7.99 from $39.99 until 5/11)
Sector 781 ($2.99 from $5.99 until 5/11)
Duo Zombies ($3.99 from $7.99 until 5/11)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, April 22nd
112th Seed ($1.99 from $4.99 until 4/22)
80’s Overdrive ($2.99 from $9.99 until 4/22)
Azurebreak Heroes ($1.99 from $6.99 until 4/22)
Ball laB ($2.99 from $4.99 until 4/22)
Bishoujo Battle Mahjong Solitaire ($3.59 from $5.99 until 4/22)
Can Androids Pray:Blue ($3.49 from $6.99 until 4/22)
Choices That Matter: ATHWL ($3.59 from $5.99 until 4/22)
Choices That Matter: ATSWE ($3.59 from $5.99 until 4/22)
Choices That Matter: ATSWO ($3.59 from $5.99 until 4/22)
Crayon Shinchan Kasukabe Runner ($5.99 from $9.99 until 4/22)
Delicious! Girls Mahjong Solitaire ($3.59 from $5.99 until 4/22)
Destruction ($7.99 from $9.99 until 4/22)
Don’t Knock Twice ($6.24 from $12.49 until 4/22)
Double Pug Switch ($2.74 from $5.49 until 4/22)
Drunken Fist ($3.19 from $7.99 until 4/22)
Espacio Cosmic Light-Seeker ($2.44 from $3.49 until 4/22)
Extreme Car Driver ($5.99 from $11.99 until 4/22)
Five Dates ($8.44 from $12.99 until 4/22)
Football Manager 2022 Touch ($26.79 from $39.99 until 4/22)
Greedroid ($8.40 from $12.00 until 4/22)
Hot Wheels Unleashed ($24.99 from $49.99 until 4/22)
Immortus Temporus ($2.99 from $4.99 until 4/22)
Infectious Madness of Dr Dekker ($6.49 from $12.99 until 4/22)
Memories of East Coast ($2.99 from $4.99 until 4/22)
Mitsurugi Kamui Hikae ($7.14 from $11.99 until 4/22)
Moonfall Ultimate ($5.19 from $12.99 until 4/22)
Multilevel Parking Driver ($6.49 from $12.99 until 4/22)
Nelly Cootalot: The Fowl Fleet ($9.99 from $19.99 until 4/22)
Outlast 2 ($5.99 from $29.99 until 4/22)
Outlast: Bundle of Terror ($4.99 from $24.99 until 4/22)
Picross S Genesis & MS Edition ($7.99 from $9.99 until 4/22)
Poker Pretty Girls Battle: FW ($3.59 from $5.99 until 4/22)
Qube Qross ($4.89 from $6.99 until 4/22)
Ravva & the Cyclops Curse ($2.49 from $4.99 until 4/22)
Regency Solitaire ($7.79 from $11.99 until 4/22)
Tadpole Treble Encore ($6.02 from $8.99 until 4/22)
The House of Da Vinci ($5.99 from $9.99 until 4/22)
The Longing ($11.24 from $14.99 until 4/22)
The Pillar: Puzzle Escape ($3.99 from $9.99 until 4/22)
The Warlock of Firetop Mountain ($2.99 from $29.99 until 4/22)
To Be Or Not To Be ($5.59 from $6.99 until 4/22)
Typoman ($5.19 from $12.99 until 4/22)
Unforeseen Incidents ($14.99 from $19.99 until 4/22)
That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining releases of the week. I’m too tired to check what they are, so just use your imagination until tomorrow brings it all crashing down again. We’ll also have a big list of new sales, so that’s another thing to get excited about. I hope you all have a fantastic Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!
