Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for October 24th, 2022. We kick off the week as we usually have of late, with a few reviews for you to enjoy. I have my evaluations of Persona 5 Royal and God Damn the Garden for you, and our pal Mikhail has his take on The Battle of Polytopia. After that, we look at a couple of wholly unremarkable new releases before finishing things up with the latest sales and outgoing discounts. Let’s get this party started!
Reviews & Mini-Views
Persona 5 Royal ($59.99)
I imagine anyone looking for a review of Persona 5 Royal on Switch is falling into one of two categories. Perhaps you are very familiar with the game and are wondering how it has transitioned to the Switch. You’ve played the game before, you know what it’s about, you already like it, and are perhaps looking to have it in portable form. The other group are those who haven’t played Persona 5 before at all but are considering picking it up now that it’s available on your hardware of choice.
The first group is an easy one to address. This is an excellent port of Persona 5 Royal that makes very few compromises for the hardware. I daresay this is the finest handheld port of a Persona game yet. It includes all of the previous DLC and both English and Japanese dubs right from the start, and in terms of content doesn’t lose against any other version. The resolution is a bit lower than other versions, and some animations seem to have been trimmed. In terms of framerate, it targets 30 fps and keeps to it for the most part. If you have an OLED Switch, the colors really pop on the screen. It reminds me of playing Persona 4 Golden on my launch model PlayStation Vita and really shows off how well OLED displays match with bold colors. All in all, this is an impressive port and a fantastic way to enjoy the game on the go.
Alright, now for the other folks. Somehow you have avoided playing Persona 5 in the last six years but are interested enough to be reading reviews of this Switch version. I feel you. I prefer to play these games handheld too. Likely you are familiar with the praise for this game and the many accolades and adoring accounts it has garnered over the years. With that in mind, I’m not sure what you need me to say here. Yes, it’s an amazing RPG. It’s stylish as heck, has an interesting plot full of twists and turns, is full of fascinating characters, and has genuinely good gameplay to back all of that. The unique and well-constructed setting and overall vibe of the game really does pull you in. As games of this genre go, Persona 5 Royal is an A+ student in every category.
Ugh, I should have saved that last line for the conclusion. That would have looked nice in a MetaCritic blurb. Oh well. Anyway, there are only two reasons I would think any RPG fan wouldn’t enjoy this game. First, you don’t like the whole vibe the game is putting out. This game leans hard on its style, so if you’re turned off by it there isn’t much I can say about it. Second, you’re not into lengthy games. Persona 5 Royal is a legit 100-hour game and many people will blow way past that. It’s not a light undertaking, so if you don’t have the time for something of that girth you may not want to pick this up. I think it largely justifies its length, but it’s long all the same.
Should you play Persona 5 Royal? Yes, of course you should. Should you play it on Switch? If you’re looking for the handheld experience or only have a Switch, absolutely. It’s a stellar port. If you’re playing on your TV there are probably better options in terms of visual fidelity, but this is a great way to enjoy one of the shining stars of the JRPG genre regardless of how you go about it.
SwitchArcade Score: 5/5
God Damn the Garden ($4.99)
Yeah, no. I give this game some credit for having a strong sense of style and good controls. I don’t know if I like the style in question, but it’s cohesive and obviously intentional. Anyway, beyond that I don’t have a lot of nice things to say about God Damn the Garden. It’s a first-person shooter with just a single weapon, samey-looking environments, cheap enemies that take way too many hits to kill in many cases, and humor that is trying way too hard. It’s a short game, but my time with it felt a lot longer because of how unpleasant it was.
While God Damn the Garden is affordable and isn’t completely without merit, I didn’t find it enjoyable at all to play. Irritating, perhaps. Frustrating, definitely. I know it has its fans, but I just can’t see any reality or circumstances where I would recommend buying or playing this over similarly affordable games on the eShop like DOOM or QUAKE. Yes, even if you’ve played those a million times before.
SwitchArcade Score: 2.5/5
The Battle of Polytopia ($14.99)
If you’ve followed TouchArcade for a few years, you likely know that we are huge fans of Midjiwan’s The Battle of Polytopia. The cute low poly aesthetic and addictive 4X gameplay blend in to be a superb package. Having played The Battle of Polytopia on iPhone and iPad over the years, I was curious to see how it would translate to Nintendo Switch for playing with a controller. Over the last few weeks, I’ve enjoyed dipping in and out of the civilization strategy game both docked and handheld on Nintendo Switch.
The Battle of Polytopia has a ton of depth despite starting out very simple. The base game package already includes the 12 regular tribes, and there is an optional DLC adding four special tribes that you can buy if you find yourself enjoying the base game. Having now played The Battle of Polytopia on mobile and Switch, the controller interface needs a bit of work with the cursor when fully zoomed in though. The snapping the cursor to the grid specifically doesn’t feel nice. Barring that, the team has done a very good job translating the interface to a controller while also allowing touch support.
When it comes to visuals and performance, The Battle of Polytopia runs and looks excellent on Switch. It also really shines on the OLED display in handheld mode. Loading is quick as well. Despite my issues with some aspects of the interface, The Battle of Polytopia on Switch is a fantastic way to experience this great game. Given the choice, I’d go for the much cheaper overall mobile version over the Switch release for sure.
If you’re looking for a polished and good introduction to 4X games, The Battle of Polytopia is more than worth it. If you, like me, weren’t sure how The Battle of Polytopia would play with a controller, download the free demo to see how you find the UI. The developers have done a good job with the scaling across docked and handheld, and having full touchscreen support for handheld meant I had a much easier time moving to Switch. -Mikhail Madnani
SwitchArcade Score: 4/5
New Releases
Construction Site Driver 2 ($12.99)
Yes, it’s another BoomHits driving game. And a sequel, to boot. That means the game can get away with being even less original than usual. You get seven different vehicles, a bunch of missions to clear, and a new map to drive around in. Will likely be sharply discounted in a matter of weeks.
Turret Lab ($3.99)
Ah, Weakfish Studio. Well. It’s a platformer. It’s not very good. But I suppose I must acknowledge that it technically functions, and for four bucks maybe that’s enough for some.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
Well, that is quite the substantial list of new sales for a Monday. My recommendations: Filmechanism is a great puzzler, Call of Juarez for two bucks is a great deal for FPS fans, and it’s never a bad day to buy Touhou Luna Nights. Over in the outbox, Frogun and Touhou Spell Bubble would be the ones I’d have my eye on. Check those lists carefully!
Select New Games on Sale
Supaplex Think! ($10.49 from $14.99 until 10/26)
Landflix Odyssey ($2.09 from $6.99 until 10/29)
Rainbows, Toilets & Unicorns ($2.09 from $6.99 until 10/29)
Milky Way Prince: Vampire Star ($10.49 from $14.99 until 10/29)
Ironcast ($5.19 from $12.99 until 10/31)
Snooker 19 ($13.99 from $34.99 until 10/31)
The Spectrum Retreat ($5.19 from $12.99 until 10/31)
Achtung! Cthulhu Tactics ($9.99 from $24.99 until 10/31)
The House of Da Vinci 2 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 10/31)
Zombies Ate My Neighbors/Ghoul Patrol ($7.49 from $14.99 until 11/2)
Shantae & the Pirate’s Curse ($9.99 from $19.99 until 11/3)
Filmechanism ($13.99 from $19.99 until 11/4)
Abarenbo Tengu & Zombie Nation ($9.59 from $11.99 until 11/4)
Layer Section/Galactic Attack ($23.99 from $29.99 until 11/4)
Cotton 2 ($14.39 from $17.99 until 11/4)
Cotton Boomerang ($14.39 from $17.99 until 11/4)
Guardian Force ($14.39 from $17.99 until 11/4)
Deathsmiles I-II ($31.99 from $39.99 until 11/4)
Hot Gimmick Cosplay-jong ($10.00 from $20.00 until 11/4)
Game Tengoku CruisinMix ($14.99 from $29.99 until 11/4)
Cultist Simulator ($3.99 from $19.99 until 11/4)
fault milestone two side: above ($5.99 from $14.99 until 11/4)
Super UFO Fighter ($9.59 from $11.99 until 11/4)
Kubinashi Recollection ($8.39 from $11.99 until 11/4)
Touhou Hyouibana: AoCF ($24.49 from $34.99 until 11/4)
Touhou Genso Wanderer LLR ($22.49 from $44.99 until 11/4)
Azure Reflections ($12.49 from $24.99 until 11/4)
Touhou Luna Nights ($12.59 from $17.99 until 11/4)
Gensokyo Defenders ($5.99 from $9.99 until 11/4)
Gensou Skydrift ($7.19 from $23.99 until 11/4)
Devastator ($2.79 from $6.99 until 11/4)
Pecaminosa: Pixel Noir Game ($5.99 from $14.99 until 11/4)
Crawl ($7.49 from $14.99 until 11/4)
A Pretty Odd Bunny ($1.99 from $4.99 until 11/4)
Jack ‘n’ Hat ($1.99 from $7.99 until 11/4)
Hell’s High Harmonizers ($8.39 from $11.99 until 11/5)
Super Shadow Break Showdown ($9.09 from $12.99 until 11/5)
Dungeon Warfare ($2.49 from $9.99 until 11/6)
Brutal Chase Turbo ($3.49 from $13.99 until 11/7)
Ampersat ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/8)
Crowalt: Traces of the Lost Colony ($7.89 from $9.99 until 11/8)
Moonrise Fall ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/8)
Collapsed ($3.75 from $15.00 until 11/11)
Quarry Truck Simulator ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/11)
Crypt of the NecroDancer ($3.99 from $19.99 until 11/11)
Calm Colors ($1.99 from $3.99 until 11/11)
Jump the Car ($2.99 from $9.99 until 11/11)
Call of Juarez: Gunslinger ($1.99 from $19.99 until 11/11)
Save Koch ($2.00 from $20.00 until 11/11)
Car Dealer Driver ($3.99 from $9.99 until 11/11)
Not Tonight: Take Back Control ($2.49 from $24.99 until 11/12)
Hypnospace Outlaw ($6.99 from $19.99 until 11/12)
Descenders ($9.99 from $24.99 until 11/12)
Nowhere Prophet ($12.49 from $24.99 until 11/12)
Yes, Your Grace (2.99 from $19.99 until 11/12)
Farm Tycoon ($3.99 from $19.99 until 11/12)
Saboteur! ($4.80 from $8.00 until 11/13)
Saboteur II: Avenging Angel ($4.80 from $8.00 until 11/13)
Saboteur SiO ($6.59 from $10.99 until 11/13)
TEMPUS ($5.94 from $6.99 until 11/13)
Lust for Darkness Dawn Edition ($8.99 from $14.99 until 11/13)
Discolored ($2.99 from $9.99 until 11/13)
West Water ($6.04 from $10.99 until 11/13)
Stranded Deep ($17.49 from $24.99 until 11/13)
Mind Maze ($2.49 from $4.99 until 11/13)
Blood Waves ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/13)
GraviFire ($2.49 from $4.99 until 11/13)
Dull Grey ($2.49 from $4.99 until 11/13)
A Winter’s Daydream ($2.99 from $5.99 until 11/13)
The Mooseman ($3.49 from $6.99 until 11/13)
Arkan: The Dog Adventurer ($2.49 from $4.99 until 11/13)
Rift Keeper ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/13)
Escape From Tethys ($4.99 from $9.99 until 11/13)
Project: Knight 2 Dusk of Souls ($4.94 from $8.99 until 11/13)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Tuesday, October 25th
Big Dipper ($1.99 from $4.99 until 10/25)
Frogun ($11.99 from $14.99 until 10/25)
Guardian of Lore ($1.99 from $13.99 until 10/25)
Gum+ ($1.99 from $7.99 until 10/25)
Gunkid 99 ($1.99 from $6.99 until 10/25)
Henchman Story ($6.69 from $14.99 until 10/25)
Kaichu: The Kaiju Dating Sim ($6.99 from $9.99 until 10/25)
Little Bug ($1.99 from $12.99 until 10/25)
Merrily Perilly ($1.99 from $4.99 until 10/25)
Pompom: The Great Space Rescue ($8.99 from $9.99 until 10/25)
Potion Party ($1.99 from $9.99 until 10/25)
Redo! ($4.49 from $9.99 until 10/25)
Sheepo ($4.89 from $10.99 until 10/25)
Space Raiders in Space ($1.99 from $12.99 until 10/25)
Spy Chameleon ($2.99 from $9.99 until 10/25)
Syndrome ($1.99 from $24.99 until 10/25)
ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove ($1.99 from $14.99 until 10/25)
Touhou Spell Bubble ($27.49 from $54.99 until 10/25)
That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with a couple more reviews, a handful of new releases, some sales, and perhaps some news. I hope you all have a fantastic Monday, and as always, thanks for reading!
