Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 26th, 2022. Today we are wrapping up the remaining releases for the week, with Pac-Man World Re-PAC, NHRA Championship Drag Racing, An Airport for Aliens Currently Run by Dogs, and many other games with lengthy titles arriving to the eShop. We’ve got summaries of all of them, plus all the latest sales and the weekend’s expiring discounts for you to check out. Let’s head out to the races!
New Releases
Pac-Man World Re-PAC ($29.99)
The beloved hit PlayStation game Pac-Man World makes its return in this ground-up remake. The Ghosts have kidnapped Pac-Man’s family, including long-time fan favorite Pac-Mom, and Pac-Man has to rescue them. It’s a 3D platformer that somehow finds a way to cram in a bunch of Pac-Man staples, and you can even unlock the original Pac-Man game if you’re diligent. I’ll have a review of this one soon but I will say that it suffers from some technical issues that keep it from being all it should be. More details soon.
NHRA Championship Drag Racing: Speed for All ($44.99)
It feels like it’s been a hot decade and a half or so since I’ve seen this particular brand in a console game. This one comes to us from Game Mill and features five NHRA classes, thirty-eight real NHRA drivers, a number of real-world tracks, and a few different modes of play including a robust career mode. While there isn’t any direct multiplayer, you can compete for times with other players via online leaderboards, which frankly makes a lot of sense for drag racing anyway.
Alice’s Warped Wonderland: RECollection ($24.99)
We’ve got a few visual novel games to check out today. This one is a horror-themed adventure, and as you can probably guess from the title, it’s a riff on the classic Alice in Wonderland story by Lewis Carroll. I’m not sure why this story gets picked so often for twisted takes. It’s already pretty twisted to start with. Anyway, there are multiple endings based on the choices you make, and if you work hard you may even find a happy one. Relatively speaking.
An Airport for Aliens Currently Run by Dogs ($19.99)
This is a very strange game, but I think it might be strange in a good way. You and your fiancee are the last humans in the universe, but you’re separated by a massive distance. You need to use a series of alien airports to reunite, but you can’t read the language printed on your tickets or on the signs. Indeed, the only ones you can understand are the random stock photo dogs and other assorted animals running the airports. Solve puzzles or just mess around as you like in these bizarre locales. I like the cut of its jib.
Pixel Game Maker Series ClaM KNight ($5.99)
Here’s a top-down puzzle action game where you play as a clam that is trying to clean up all of the puddles of water on each stage while avoiding enemies and other hazards. There are more than fifty stages to clear, with a nice difficulty ramp-up as you go. Once the character starts moving, they’ll keep moving in that direction until they hit a wall or turn a corner. A vague whiff of Pac-Man to the proceedings, to be sure.
Mixolumia ($15.00)
This is a falling block puzzler where the pieces slide into place when you drop them due to both their unusual shape and the shape of the well. Reviews for it on other platforms are really good, and this Switch version adds the ability to mess around with the color palette. Okay, that’s not a huge thing, but new features! And that’s fine, because the game itself is good enough to hold up its end even if there weren’t any new things in this port. If you like falling block puzzle games, this will be of interest to you.
Witch College Bundle ($8.99)
Gamuzumi has another visual novel game for us this week, or perhaps I should say two? It has bundled two of its shorter stories together into one for this release, along with all of their DLC content. The premise here seems to be that your main character is a university student living a normal boring life when something wicked his way comes. Some witch stuff. Who is the witch? That’s part of the mystery, but what I can tell you is that there will be smooching. Each game has multiple routes to explore and a number of endings based on your choices. I feel like the fact that one of the suspects is a new girl named Sam is a bit too on the nose. Might as well call one of them Sabrina while you are at it.
Aquadine ($19.99)
Gondoliers, mermaids, and love. That’s what this visual novel is about. The main character’s mother is hospitalized with an unknown disease and he takes a job as an incognito gondolier to make money. He somehow ends up meeting a mermaid, and that’s just the start of his story. There are multiple routes for each of the love interests, giving you a reason to play more than once. This one has decent reviews on other platforms, so if you like the genre and are intrigued by that premise, you’ll want to give it a closer look.
Tee Time Golf ($24.99)
This is a casual golf game that echoes the likes of Hot Shots Golf or Wii Sports Golf. Hm, that might be setting expectations too high. It’s fun, though. Up to four people can play together via local multiplayer, and there are nine different courses to challenge. As you play, you’ll earn coins and experience. The coins can be used to buy new outfit and gear pieces, while the experience will level your character up. This was once a VR game on PC, but it plays well enough to hold its own without the gimmick.
Mahjong Minimal ($4.99)
A minimalist take on Mahjong Solitaire. You get one hundred puzzles to solve, and you can play with buttons or touch controls. There are also a variety of color themes. And that’s about it. I mean, it’s right in the title.
Back Again ($2.99)
A low-cost first-person platformer from the folks at eastasiasoft and Dexter Manning. It’s really short and not very tough, but it’s certainly a stylish ride while it lasts. Not the worst way to spend a few bucks on the eShop today.
Viki Spotter: Undersea ($4.99)
Oh hey, I guess I overestimated how long it would be until we got the next Viki Spotter game. Spot the differences between the pictures, just like on a diner placemat. There’s an aquatic theme to this one.
Pillar Builder Puzzle ($9.99)
This is the same idea as Tricky Towers, just not done as well. Use the pieces to build up a tower, making sure you don’t make it too unbalanced lest it fall. I recommend buying Tricky Towers instead as it has many more features including a multiplayer mode. This is just a hollow imitation.
Beach Boys: You and Me ($3.99)
Cooking & Publishing is hauling out this template again. The game will ask you a bunch of questions that you have to answer, then will ask you the same questions again. If you make a mistake repeating your answers, you will have a negative outcome. This time with an anime beach hunks theme!
The Viking’s Games: Madness Fight ($4.89)
I mean, that’s just Kratos. Come on now, Cooking & Publishing. This is an extremely poorly-made one-on-one fighter that was probably cobbled together from a Unity Asset Store template. It has support for two players locally, in case you hate someone and want them to never come over again.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
You know, I was expecting a bigger list. But hey, plenty here to enjoy. You could grab Crashlands or Levelhead! Or maybe you want to pick up SmileBASIC and indulge in some programming? With precious little going on in the weekend outbox, you can focus on the new stuff. Have a look through and see what pops out at you.
Select New Games on Sale
Crashlands ($9.74 from $14.99 until 9/1)
Levelhead ($12.99 from $19.99 until 9/1)
SmileBASIC 4 ($12.49 from $24.99 until 9/1)
Supermash ($1.99 from $19.99 until 9/2)
Knights & Bikes ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/2)
House Builder ($12.99 from $14.99 until 9/6)
Ashland Dossier ($6.99 from $10.99 until 9/6)
Unsouled ($7.99 from $19.99 until 9/8)
Skul: The Hero Slayer ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/8)
Metal Unit ($4.79 from $15.99 until 9/8)
Storm Tale 2 ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/8)
FishWitch Halloween ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/8)
Day of the Dead: Solitaire ($3.99 from $19.99 until 9/8)
8Doors: Arum’s Afterlife Adventure ($5.99 from $19.99 until 9/8)
Late Shift ($5.84 from $12.99 until 9/9)
My Last First Kiss ($17.49 from $24.99 until 9/9)
Pretty Girls Breakers! ($4.49 from $6.99 until 9/9)
Freezer Pops ($7.49 from $9.99 until 9/9)
Horatio Goes Snowboarding ($4.49 from $6.99 until 9/9)
Void Gore ($1.99 from $4.99 until 9/9)
El Gancho ($4.49 from $6.99 until 9/9)
Rogue Explorer ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/9)
Nuts ($11.99 from $19.99 until 9/9)
Soundfall ($17.99 from $29.99 until 9/9)
The Jackbox Party Pack 4 ($12.49 from $24.99 until 9/9)
The Jackbox Party Pack 5 ($17.99 from $29.99 until 9/9)
WRC 10 Deluxe ($29.99 from $59.99 until 9/9)
Alwa’s Awakening ($4.99 from $9.99 until 9/9)
Alwa’s Legacy ($8.99 from $17.99 until 9/9)
Cathedral ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/9)
Moonfall Ultimate ($3.89 from $12.99 until 9/9)
What the Dub?! ($3.99 from $7.99 until 9/9)
Hopping Girl Kohane Jumping Kingdom ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/14)
Dual Brain CE ($21.59 from $26.99 until 9/14)
Onirike ($4.49 from $14.99 until 9/14)
Sherlock Holmes Bundle ($24.99 from $49.99 until 9/15)
The Sinking City ($9.99 from $49.99 until 9/15)
Will: A Wonderful World ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/15)
Shadows of Adam ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/15)
Mercenaries Saga Chronicles ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/15)
Kuukiyomi 3 Father to Son ($2.49 from $4.99 until 9/15)
Stranded Deep ($17.49 from $24.99 until 9/15)
Deathrun TV ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/15)
Buildings Have Feelings Too ($4.99 from $19.99 until 9/15)
Cloudpunk ($8.74 from $24.99 until 9/15)
Timelie ($9.99 from $19.99 until 9/15)
Foreclosed ($4.99 from $19.99 until 9/15)
HoPiKo ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/15)
Bounty Battle ($3.74 from $24.99 until 9/15)
Gibbon: Beyond the Trees ($11.24 from $14.99 until 9/15)
Dino Galaxy Tennis ($1.99 from $9.99 until 9/15)
The Lightbringer ($7.49 from $14.99 until 9/15)
Monster Harvest ($6.99 from $19.99 until 9/15)
Alex Kid in Miracle World DX ($6.99 from $19.99 until 9/15)
Ponpu ($5.99 from $14.99 until 9/15)
XEL ($13.29 from $18.99 until 9/15)
Extreme Bike X ($4.97 from $7.10 until 9/15)
Sales Ending This Weekend
Blackguards 2 ($9.99 from $14.99 until 8/27)
Ultionus: A Tale of Petty Revenge ($6.49 from $9.99 until 8/27)
Liberated: Enhanced Edition ($6.99 from $19.99 until 8/28)
Rise: Race the Future ($8.24 from $16.49 until 8/28)
Werewolf the Apocalypse HotF ($4.95 from $14.99 until 8/28)
That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next week to see out August and welcome September, and I hope you’ve somehow tucked away some money because things are going to get wild in a hurry. I think the game I’m most looking forward to next week is the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Cowabunga Collection, but there’s going to be plenty of interesting things for everyone. We’ll have reviews, fresh sales, lots of new releases, and some news. But for now, we rest. I hope you all have a great weekend, and as always, thanks for reading!
