Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for February 21st, 2019. As usual for a Thursday, today’s article is mostly covering the new releases that hit the shop today. I’ve got a bit of news and whatever sales have come around at the time of writing, but it’s all about checking out the tons of new games to see if any treasure can be found. Let’s hunt!
News
We’ll Know the ‘Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy’ Western Release Date Next Week
The Switch version of the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy came out in Japan this week, and as usual for that series, the Japanese release has full English support if you’re impatient. That said, you probably won’t need to jump the gun this time around, as Capcom is apparently going to give details about the Western release date next week. Something tells me that release date isn’t going to be too far in the future, but I suppose we’ll see.
‘VOEZ’ Gets Updated to Version 1.6, Adding 16 New Songs
Just like with the mobile versions of its games, Rayark keeps on offering up tons of post-release content for its Switch games. VOEZ is the latest beneficiary, with its latest update adding a whopping 16 new songs at no extra cost. That brings the grand total to 201 songs, all of which are available to anyone who buys the game. An amazing deal for a very good game, and I somehow doubt that Rayark is finished with it.
‘Assault Android Cactus+’ Will Release on Switch on March 8th
I am a sassy-pants. It is known. And one of the things I get sassy about is the number of twin-stick shooters on the Switch. There are a lot, friends. But it looks like we’re going to have to make room for at least one more, because the awesome Assault Android Cactus is coming to the Switch in the form of Assault Android Cactus+. The game will release on March 8th, but you can already pre-purchase it on the eShop with a nice discount. The normal price will be $19.99 but the current discount has it down to $14.99.
New Releases
Yume Nikki -Dream Diary- ($19.99)
The original Yume Nikki, developed in RPG Maker 2003 and released in 2004, was an important release in the Japanese indie game scene. A surreal adventure game that builds tension and horror in a free form environment, Yume Nikki was a one-of-a-kind experience whose influence can be seen in many games released since. It’s hard to leave anything beautiful alone in a medium driven by dollars and cents, however, and so we got this 3D remake/reboot a few years back. It’s one of those rare efforts that seems to have resonated with virtually no one. Fans were put off by how different it was from the original, and if you weren’t a fan of the original, you probably wouldn’t be looking at this thing in the first place. Sad as it is for me to say, I don’t think you should bother with this.
X-Morph: Defense ($19.99)
So many games out there have you playing as humans defending the world from aliens, but wouldn’t it be nice to walk in the other side’s shoes for once? That’s what X-Morph is all about. You’re playing as an invading alien force, taking over Earth one country at a time. Somehow, even though you’re the one on the attack, the gameplay is more like a tower defense game. Is this aikido? I don’t know. Anyway, this game came out on other platforms before and it seems to be generally well-liked, so as long as you’re down for some tower defense, you’ll probably want to give this one a go.
Warplanes: WW2 Dogfight ($9.99)
Sometimes titles are so on the nose that I’m not really sure what I can add. This is a game about warplanes, specifically the ones from the World War 2 period of history, engaging in dogfights. There are three different campaigns that will see you taking control of Great Britain, USSR, and Germany forces in missions with various objectives. Sometimes you’ll be protecting your structures from bombers, and sometimes you may find yourself piloting the bomber. Most of the action is naturally composed of aerial dogfights between the various forces, with more than 30 historical planes available to use. Hop in the cockpit of the Spitfire, the II-2 Sturmovik, the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk, and more. This looks more interested in presenting fun action than being a sim of any real substance, so be aware of that if you decide to pick it up.
The Journey Down Trilogy ($39.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
If you already own the three episodes of The Journey Down separately, this probably won’t be of much interest to you. For those who have yet to give this atmospheric and sometimes-humorous ode to point-and-click adventure games a try, though, this is a great option. The unassuming Bwana accidentally gets all wrapped up in a tale that seems way over his head at times, and his erstwhile companions don’t seem to be doing much better most of the time. The style of these games is incredible, even if the actual puzzles aren’t all that special. Certainly worth experiencing, regardless of where and how you decide to do it.
Surfingers ($4.99)
Surfingers comes from the same developer as the oddball Timberman, and like that, this is a simple experience that somehow ends up being pretty compelling. It’s an auto-runner, more or less, but rather than controlling the little hapless character, you control the waves they ride on. Change the height of the wave segments to keep your surfer safe from the obstacles ahead of them. It obviously works best with touch controls, so I’m not sure if you really want to be playing this on a TV with a controller in hand, but hey, that’s probably the way to go if you want to do the split-screen multiplayer. This is another one of those games that really is best played on a phone, in my opinion, but I guess you could spend the extra money here if you want to play with others.
Rotating Brave ($4.99)
This is a Downwell-inspired game where you have to constantly rotate your screen as you move through the levels. I have no idea at all how this works in docked play, or if it even does work in docked play. As you would expect, it originates on mobile, and it’s probably easier to enjoy that way because of all the rotating. It’s double the price here, but when we’re talking about a couple of bucks, I suppose it’s not that bad. It’s a decent game but unless you’re totally bored of Downwell and really need something like it but not as good, I’m not sure it’s anything to get all that excited about.
Raining Coins ($5.99)
Well, here’s the first game in today’s new releases that looks kind of like junk. In each level you just scoot back and forth trying to pick up the coins that are dropping from the sky. It’s like a mix between the old Activision game Kaboom and those bonus rooms in recent Super Mario games. Except, you know, it’s more low-rent and not as good. Oh well. It’s cute enough, I suppose, and it has 80 levels to play and unlockable clothes for the main character, so it may be good for the younger set. I don’t know. Not my thing, and even if it were, I’d probably play it for free on mobile instead of paying six bucks here.
Q.U.B.E. 2 ($29.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
For whatever reason, none of the Portal games have ever come to a Nintendo system, and I really doubt the Switch is going to break that streak. But hey, we have Q.U.B.E. 2, and that’s… that’s something, isn’t it? It’s a first-person puzzle/adventure game and just as in the first, it involves manipulating blocks in various ways to open the path forward. The story lacks the humor and cleverness of something like Portal, and is almost throw-away in my opinion. But the puzzles? The puzzles are very good. My only knock on the puzzle designs is that there’s very little flexibility in terms of solutions, but the game is smart about sign-posting and limiting your options enough that you don’t have to be a mind-reader to solve them. It’s a pretty fun game, though you can feel the Switch struggling with running everything smoothly at times.
Hell Warders ($14.99)
This is basically a tower defense game where you are occasionally expected to put your boots on the floor and wade into the action yourself as a hero character. Said character will level up and become stronger over time, so it’s got a bit of an action-RPG flavor mixed into the more typical tower defense strategy stuff. It’s a really neat idea, but unfortunately the action component is a bit bland so I’m not sure it really works the way it ideally could. That said, it certainly has its fans on PC, and I’m sure it will find an audience on the Switch as well. I just wish it had a bit more depth to it, because the little taste of something more that it does give you really just tickles the appetite and little else.
Gigantic Army ($8.99)
If you remember a 16-bit game called Cybernator, you’ve got an idea of what Gigantic Army is going for. It’s a side-scrolling 16-bit style action-platformer where you control what is ostensibly a giant mech but is actually kind of a tiny little mech fella compared to the enemies. It absolutely looks the part, but it’s more okay than good, if you know what I mean. Still, if you liked Cybernator or the other games of its ilk (few of which ever released outside of Japan, I suppose), you’ll probably enjoy this. I really appreciate that the developers didn’t do the usual price-doubling thing that so many Steam-to-Switch games tend to embrace.
Devil Engine ($19.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
Hey, friends! Do you like the classic shoot-em-up series Thunder Force? Then I have got just the thing for you. Devil Engine is an outstanding homage to that franchise, featuring many similar mechanics and a snappy pace that immediately calls to mind the blistering pace of Mega Drive shoot-em-ups. But it’s not just a pure throwback, as there are a lot of unlockable extras that make it worth coming back to the game again and again. I’ll have a full review of this one in tomorrow’s article, but if you want the short version? I strongly recommend this to any fan of shoot-em-ups. Just make sure you have a good directional pad solution, because at least in the build I have, the joystick is a little bit fishy.
Aragami: Shadow Edition ($29.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
Well, here’s something you don’t see every day. This feels for all the world like a Tenchu-inspired game, and that is something I greatly approve of. You’re a sort of spirit of vengeance who has been summoned to take revenge on a bunch of invading mercenaries who have brought ruin to a town. But really, you’re a ghost ninja. And that is awesome. You can zip around from shadow to shadow and use a few other tricks, but it mostly comes down to watching the enemies carefully to find that exact moment when you can take them out without alerting their friends. If you get caught, you probably won’t be able to fight your way out the situation, so maintaining stealth at all times is of utmost importance. It looks stylish and as long as you’re okay with strict stealth gameplay, it’s quite a good game. I’ll be writing a proper review of this one tomorrow, also.
Almost There: The Platformer ($9.99)
Fans of super-hard precision platformers have their fuel for this week, it seems. Almost There looks simple enough, but it prides itself on its pure platforming gameplay. This game came out on other platforms a while back, and it seems to have gotten decent reviews. Not spectacular reviews, mind you, but good enough that if you think it looks interesting, I’m sure you’ll like it well enough. You can look forward to more than 150 stages of devilish timing and derring-do, and that’s plenty for the price, I think.
Sales
At least as I write this, there are only a handful of new sales. As far as highlights go, we’ve got the pre-order discount on Assault Android Cactus+, and a nice half-off sale on Old Man’s Journey. Even the outgoing sales are few in number today, which is good for my typing hands and also good for any sales procrastinators out there. I’m sure a huge dump of new sales will hit during the day today, so you can look forward to those in tomorrow’s article.
New Games on Sale
Old Man’s Journey ($4.99 from $9.99 until 3/12)
Assault Android Cactus+ ($14.99 from $19.99 until 3/8)
Superola and the Lost Burgers ($2.99 from $5.99 until 3/12)
Lost Sea ($6.99 from $9.99 until 3/14)
Voxel Shot ($5.60 from $8.00 until 3/14)
Desktop Soccer ($4.97 from $7.11 until 3/14)
Flowlines VS ($3.49 from $4.99 until 3/14)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, February 22nd
Quest for the Golden Duck ($4.99 from $9.99 until 2/22)
Access Denied ($3.99 from $4.99 until 2/22)
Space Lift Danger Panic! ($3.99 fromm $4.99 until 2/22)
That’s it for today. Good job, Parappa, you can go on to the next stage now. Wait, that’s a different thing, isn’t it? Oh well. Make sure to check back tomorrow for the latest news, a couple of reviews, a list of this week’s new release stragglers, some sales, and maybe even a little more. What are you all picking up this week? Comment below and let me know. As always, thanks for reading!
