Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for June 13th, 2022. In today’s article, we’ve got reviews for a couple of recent releases. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords from Aspyr Media and Lamplight City from Application Systems Heidelberg get their time in the chair of judgment, and both of them come out relatively unscathed. There are a few new releases to look at, but two of them are extremely dubious. We’ve also got a decent list of new sales to check out. Let’s get going!
Reviews & Mini-Views
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords ($15.00)
While it was once a near-heretical opinion, I think the common consensus is now at least willing to entertain the notion that Knights of the Old Republic II is better than the first game. Less iconic, certainly. But as far as I’m concerned, it’s a more enjoyable RPG with more satisfying mechanics and a better written story. The only thing holding it back is the rather troublesome fact that its development was rushed to get it to market, resulting in a lot of bugs and a fairly obvious cut-short ending. It was later modded to fix up a lot of those issues, and with that Restored Content mod applied it’s a far better experience.
That speaks to the odd state of this Switch port of the game at launch. The Restored Content update is coming to the game at a later date via DLC, but it isn’t here now. Moreover, your saves in this base version can’t be transferred to a Restored Content playthrough. There are also quite a few bugs here, and they’re not all old ones. Aspyr has had a consistent issue with this in its Switch ports, and to its credit it usually follows through on fixing things. But that’s yet another card stacked against playing this game right now rather than later. I suppose I’ll have to split the difference in my evaluation.
Is Knights of the Old Republic II worth playing in the default state it’s in at launch? Well, yes. It’s a fine enough game even without the Restored Content mod. But it’s a far better game all around with that mod applied, and as we know that it is coming it’s hard to emphatically recommend playing this game until then. That’s particularly the case with the somewhat buggy nature of this launch version. This will be a must-play RPG and likely the ultimate version of a game that deserves more appreciation, but right now it’s just a good one.
SwitchArcade Score: 4/5
Lamplight City ($14.99)
Add another excellent point-and-click style adventure game to the Switch’s pile. From publisher Application Systems Heidelberg and developer Grundislav Games comes this cool detective game. Apart from its immediately striking atmosphere, it starts off normal enough. By the time you finish the first case, both the story hooks and the unusual ways it goes against the typical adventure game grain are apparent. The plot really pulled me in, and it kept me engaged all throughout the game. The protagonist initially comes off a little too ordinary, but circumstances force him through a ringer that really takes him on a journey.
On the gameplay side of things, this is an adventure game where you can fail. That could be a positive or a negative thing depending on how you feel, but I think the presence of real consequences forced me to actually think about my detective work and how I was treating NPCs instead of just brute forcing my way through like I do in some other adventure games. You can do things early in a case that will absolutely leave you in a walking dead situation as far as reaching the optimal outcome goes. Save frequently and keep a number of different saves going. There are multiple endings to this game and the outcome for our hero can vary quite wildly.
Lamplight City is a compelling, challenging adventure game that has made the transition to the Switch quite nicely. The game is obviously designed around a mouse interface, but I never found it hassle to control and the text is actually readable in handheld mode. The story was interesting enough that I wanted to see how each case would end and where the overarching plot would go. The gameplay required some proper thought, and that was welcome as well. While the possibility of failure may turn off some players, I appreciate that the developers weren’t afraid to wander off the well-trodden adventure game trail for the sake of their vision.
SwitchArcade Score: 4/5
New Releases
LumbearJack ($12.99)
This bear has an axe to grind with humankind! Haha. That was pretty good. I should write ad copy. Oh right, the task at hand. Um, this game sees you playing as a bear with an axe who wants to take nature back from the humans who are wrecking it. He’ll do that by wrecking their stuff. With wild glee, I might add. Chop up all the machinery and other environment-damaging stuff you come across, solving the occasional puzzle by using the things around you and the assistance of your animal pals. Upgrade your chopping abilities to take on even bigger messes. The evil corporation will soon realize that this lumberjack is loaded for bear. Can’t stop, won’t stop.
JUMANJI: The Curse Returns ($18.99)
JUMANJI seems like such a natural fit for a video game it’s surprising we don’t see more of them based on it. Anyway, this one mashes up the board game premise with some card-based strategy and is ideally meant to be played with others. Up to two players can play locally, or up to four online. If you don’t have four players, the AI will take over the other roles. This one comes from the folks at Marmalade, who also made the Switch versions of The Game of Life 2, Battleship, and Clue. I expect this to be of similar quality.
Ignatius ($4.99)
Silhouette figures covertly battle depression and trauma in this puzzle-platformer. I could be taking about a dozen different eShop games, but this time I am talking about Ignatius. This one has a silent movie theme that helps it stand out a little, and it’s not bad as these go. It’s a thing you could play.
Prison Life Simulator 2022 – World Fight Battle GTA Ultimate ($14.99)
Wow, yes. Get into the sea, you absolute piece of crap. Literally no basement to the garbage Nintendo will allow on the eShop these days. None whatsoever.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
The most interesting thing going on in today’s list is Jupiter’s anniversary sale, giving us some strong discounts on a bunch of Picross games and one non-Picross title. Fill your boots, you’ll get around to all those Picross puzzles someday. Pinball fans may want to take note of Zombie Rollerz, which hits a new low price with its latest sale. Finally, Human Fall Flat has a new update and is having a sale to coincide with it. Nothing too exciting in the outbox, so feel free to focus on the new sales.
Select New Games on Sale
New Terra ($12.24 from $24.99 until 6/15)
City Bus Driving Simulator ($4.19 from $13.99 until 6/17)
Detective Driver Miami Files ($3.59 from $11.99 until 6/17)
Gas Station Highway Services ($3.59 from $11.99 until 6/17)
LEGO Jurassic World ($7.99 from $39.99 until 6/20)
LEGO DC Super-Villains ($8.99 from $59.99 until 6/20)
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes ($19.99 from $39.99 until 6/20)
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 ($5.99 from $29.99 until 6/20)
LEGO City Undercover ($5.99 from $29.99 until 6/20)
Super Cyborg ($3.98 from $6.99 until 6/21)
Picross S Genesis & Master System ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Kemono Friends Picross ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Picross Lord of the Nazarick ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Picross S ($5.59 from $7.99 until 6/25)
Picross S2 ($6.29 from $8.99 until 6/25)
Picross S3 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Picross S4 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Picross S5 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Picross S6 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Picross S7 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/25)
Working Zombies ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/25)
Super Mega Space Blaster ST ($2.49 from $4.99 until 6/27)
When Ski Lifts Go Wrong ($2.24 from $14.99 until 6/27)
The Swindle ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/27)
Human Fall Flat ($6.79 from $19.99 until 6/27)
Smoke and Sacrifice ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/27)
Bomber Crew ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/27)
For The King ($7.49 from $24.99 until 6/27)
Velocity 2X ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/27)
Pumped BMX Pro ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/27)
American Fugitive ($1.99 from $19.99 until 6/27)
Hue ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/27)
The Flame in the Flood ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/27)
Motorsport Manager ($4.49 from $14.99 until 6/27)
Beholder Complete ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/27)
Cattails ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/27)
Serial Cleaner ($2.24 from $14.99 until 6/27)
Embr ($5.99 from $19.99 until 6/27)
A Knight’s Quest ($4.99 from $24.99 until 6/27)
Just Die Already ($5.99 from $14.99 until 6/27)
Hotshot Racing ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/27)
Vampire The Masquerade Bundle ($9.85 from $28.99 until 7/1)
The Padre ($3.49 from $19.99 until 7/1)
Zombie Rollerz: Pinball Heroes ($7.49 from $14.99 until 7/1)
Crypt of the NecroDancer ($3.99 from $19.99 until 7/1)
Train Station Simulator ($2.19 from $21.99 until 7/1)
AER Memories of Old ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/1)
Wildcat Gun Machine ($9.89 from $14.99 until 7/1)
The Skylia Prophecy ($3.49 from $6.99 until 7/1)
Horse Stable Herd Care Sim ($3.19 from $7.99 until 7/1)
Minigolf Adventure ($1.99 from $4.99 until 7/1)
The Suicide of Rachel Foster ($4.99 from $19.99 until 7/1)
JARS ($1.99 from $14.99 until 7/1)
Shopping Mall Parking Lot ($6.19 from $12.99 until 7/1)
Car Parking Simulator ($8.44 from $12.99 until 7/1)
Driving World Nordic Challenge ($5.59 from $13.99 until 7/1)
City Driving Simulator 2 ($5.59 from $13.99 until 7/1)
Car Driver Ultimate ($6.99 from $13.99 until 7/1)
Dragon Hills ($4.00 from $8.00 until 7/3)
Dragon Hills 2 ($8.50 from $17.00 until 7/3)
Aliens Drive Me Crazy ($3.00 from $6.00 until 7/3)
Pyre on Fire: Ten Pages ($1.99 from $10.00 until 7/3)
Discolored ($4.49 from $9.99 until 7/3)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Tuesday, June 14th
A Place for the Unwilling ($10.04 from $14.99 until 6/14)
Beat Cop ($1.99 from $14.99 until 6/14)
Bit Orchard: Animal Valley ($1.99 from $6.99 until 6/14)
Children of Morta ($6.59 from $21.99 until 6/14)
Foregone ($4.99 from $19.99 until 6/14)
Monster Prom XXL ($4.95 from $15.99 until 6/14)
Moon Raider ($2.99 from $9.99 until 6/14)
Moonlighter ($4.99 from $24.99 until 6/14)
Niche: Genetics Survival Game ($6.99 from $19.99 until 6/14)
Nirvana ($1.99 from $6.99 until 6/14)
Old Man’s Journey ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/14)
Pendula Swing Complete Journey ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/14)
Talisman Digital Edition ($1.99 from $19.99 until 6/14)
This War of Mine: Complete ($1.99 from $39.99 until 6/14)
Wild Pinball Bundle ($2.69 from $8.99 until 6/14)
That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with a few new releases, a review or two, and whatever sales and news roll in. Hopefully, anyway. I have to go visit a family member in a hospital in another prefecture and I’m not sure how long it will take, so there very well may be no article at all. Surprises are fun, right? I hope you all have a magnificent Monday, and as always, thanks for reading!
