Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for October 29th, 2020. Nintendo did a nice little stealth Direct yesterday, giving us some news and shadow-dropped games to enjoy. I’ll briefly go over that before heading into the tons of new releases we need to summarize today. There are also the usual lists of incoming and outgoing sales to look at. Plus, we’ll be doing a giveaway of two North American digital copies of Torchlight III for Switch through the TouchArcade Twitter account, so make sure to check that out. Let’s go!
News
‘Bravely Default II’ and More Feature in the Latest Nintendo Direct Mini
Nintendo dropped what it says is its final Nintendo Direct Mini: Partner Showcase for the year, and it had a lot of interesting things in it. We got a better look at Bravely Default II, which is now coming in February of next year. Two streaming games, Hitman 3 and Control Ultimate Edition, were announced, with the latter now available on the eShop. A new Story of Seasons was shown off, and Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity has a demo available now. There’s plenty to see in there, so do give that video a watch if you haven’t done so yet.
New Releases
No More Heroes ($19.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
Suda Goichi’s tale of a weirdo taking on the world’s top ten assassins makes its way to the Switch in grand style. This game was originally released on the Wii and if you want to maintain the motion controls of that version the Joy-Cons do a decent imitation. While this is definitely a beefed-up HD version of the game, it seems to be closer to the Wii version in most respects than the PlayStation 3 version. Trust me when I say that is a very good thing. Anyway, this is a really fun and charmingly unique game that is definitely worth the reasonable price they’re asking for here.
No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle ($19.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
The sequel to No More Heroes has, until now, only been available on the Nintendo Wii. It launched on that system in 2010, which means it didn’t quite get as much as attention as the first game did. Perhaps that might have you thinking that it is not as worthy a game as the first, but that would be a mistake. No More Heroes 2 is awesome. Three years after clawing his way to the top of the assassin world, Travis Touchdown finds himself tumbling all the way down to number 51. Making matters worse, another assassin specifically has it in for him. Can Travis get his groove back and survive to see another day? The game has been given the HD treatment and is looking its absolute best here.
Control Ultimate Edition – Cloud Version (Free, $39.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
Well, this is interesting, isn’t it? Realistically speaking, Remedy’s action-adventure Control was never going to make it to the Switch hardware as we know it. We’ve seen the limits of down-porting high-end games to the Switch, and it sits somewhere between The Witcher 3 and The Outer Worlds. So instead, 505 Games has opted to make a different sort of compromise. Control Ultimate Edition is a streaming game on Switch, which means you have to have a good, reliable internet connection at all times while playing. Your mileage will vary as to how well that’s going to work, but the publisher has been kind enough to let you test the first five minutes of the game for free to check before asking you to plunk down $39.99 for full access. I’m a little mixed on this, because while it certainly opens up options for games that would not have been possible on the Switch before, I really don’t like being chained to my internet connection. Fantastic game, though.
Cthulhu Saves Christmas ($9.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
After saving the world, what else could be next but saving Christmas? Join Cthulhu, Baba Yaga-Chan, the Snow Maidan, and Belsnickel as they seek to save Santa from the League of Christmas Evil in this holiday-themed JRPG from the fine folks at Zeboyd Games. This is a compact experience, running about four or five hours in total, but it is densely packed. A great combat system that advances on the one seen in Cthulhu Saves the World, much nicer visuals, a relationship system that lets you build bonds with friends and enemies, and more await. This Switch version also includes a New Game+ mode that allows you to max out all of the R’lyehtionship levels with everyone, which is quite welcome. I’ll have a review of this one next week, but I’ve yet to play a Zeboyd RPG that I didn’t like and this won’t be the one to change that.
Part-Time UFO ($8.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
This is an expanded version of the rather lovely mobile game released by HAL Labs a while back. You play as a cute little UFO who is trying to earn some extra money by taking on various part-time jobs. All of them involve using your UFO’s hook to pick things up and drop them, and you’ll often find yourself needing to stack some very oddly-shaped objects. This new version includes some extra modes, including a two-player simultaneous mode that can get pretty chaotic to say the least. I’ll have a review of this one detailing the new content early next week, so keep an eye out for that if you need more details.
Yuppie Psycho: Executive Edition ($16.66)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
And you thought your first job was bad? Brian Pasternack starts his first day at Sintracorp, one of the world’s largest corporations. His first job? Hunting a witch who helped the company become what it is and is now back to collect the debt. In this horror adventure, you need to find the witch before they realize you’re on to them, all while navigating an office building filled with weird and wild characters. Great puzzles, an excellent story, and a unique atmosphere make this a trip worth taking for fans of horror games or adventure games. Don’t let the cartoony look fool you: things can get pretty bloody. And they probably will. Good luck at the office! This game has great reviews in its PC form, and I imagine it will find a receptive audience on the Switch as well.
Wallachia: Reign of Dracula ($14.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
One of the hard facts I’ve had to face over the last several years is that Contra and Castlevania are both effectively dead as ongoing brands. But we’re seeing a lot of games that want to try to recapture the spirit of those legends, to varying degrees of success. I think Wallachia is the first one I’ve seen that tries to capture the spirit of both games at once. You battle through seven levels to take down Vlad the Impaler. Your character wields a bow and a sword, and she’ll be making considerable use of the former as she makes her way through waves of enemies. The developer made some Castlevania fan games in the past, managed to swing an unlockable bonus costume from Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night, and even brought in Robert Belgrade (the original voice of Alucard in Symphony of the Night) as a voice actor. This game was well-received when it hit PC a couple years back, so I’m excited to see how it takes to Switch.
Barbearian ($11.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
This enjoyable hack-and-slash carved its way into our hearts when it launched on mobile a couple of years ago, and it’s still a lot of fun now. You play as a barbarian dressed like a bear who likes to solve problems with his axe. There are more than 100 levels of action, with loot, upgrades, and plenty of weapons to play with. Sometimes you rescue prisoners and recruit them to your army, but don’t worry that the focus will ever be taken away from the pure thrill of battle. Just minor detours on your path of destruction, I promise. Not much to add, really. This isn’t the most complicated of games, so my description can only go so far.
Crimzon Clover – World EXplosion ($19.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
Sometimes a screenshot tells just about everything you need to tell about a game, and that screenshot right there sure does say a lot about Crimzon Clover. It’s a vertical shoot-em-up of the bullet hell variety, and it wears that badge with pride. Multiple difficulty settings and play modes aim to give you a way to adjust the experience somewhat to fit your needs, but it’s obviously not going to change the basic hardcore nature of this one. As long as you’re willing to punch that particular ticket, you’ll find this to be an absolutely awesome shooter that will test your skills while delivering solid thrills. You’ll be chasing scores until the wee hours of the night, practicing again and again to overcome the stiff challenge of this intense title.
Touhou Spell Bubble ($54.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
Well, that’s a bold price. That’s Taito for you, though. Anyway, this probably looks a lot like Puzzle Bobble/Bust-a-Move, but it actually adds in a rhythm game element to make it feel like a whole different animal. And hey, Taito made Puzzle Bobble so I’m fine with cutting them some slack. You get a whole bunch of Touhou characters to choose from, lots of songs to play to, and a variety of modes to play. And yes, ZUNTATA is on the soundtrack. If the 48 included tunes aren’t enough for you, you can buy more song packs. It’s expensive, and frankly I think it’s somewhat overpriced, but if you’ve got the money to burn the game itself is definitely awesome.
Arcade Archives 64th Street ($7.99)
This week’s Arcade Archives release flashes us back to 1991, when Jaleco released a beat-em-up named 64th Street. It follows a mustachioed detective named Rick and his cap-wearing partner Allen as they bash their way through the streets to save the daughter of a company president. It’s more than a little inspired by Final Fight, but it’s amusing enough for what it is. A nice example of the flavor of the era, just before Street Fighter II caught fire and everything became one-on-one fighters for a long while. You could probably make the case that 64th Street ended up spawning Rival Turf and its progeny, which makes it at least a little noteworthy. Hamster did its job well as usual, giving you the finest 64th Street you could ever hope for.
Esports Life Tycoon ($19.99)
ESPORTS! Statistically speaking, some of the people reading this like or even love them. And maybe some of those people also love sim games, and would like to mash the two together into a sweet little ball of sweat and pride. Well, my fragrant friends, this game may well be for you! Hire the big stars, set their training as you see fit, join tournaments, and try to make the big bucks so you can roll them back into your growing team. Hang back and watch the matches play out or step in to make certain decisions at critical moments. This game has middling reviews on other platforms, but I feel like games targeting specific demographics like this does tend to do fine as long as they’re not completely terrible.
Demong Hunter ($7.99)
Anyone can hunt demons, but these heroes are a special sort that spend their adventuring days tracking down demongs. This is an action game with some light RPG elements, and if you feel like you’ve seen it before that’s probably because it’s the first of a series of games that have been on mobile for a while. It’s free-to-play there, with microtransactions for gold and characters. I’m not sure how that all works here in the Switch version, but I can say that there aren’t any IAPs in here according to the eShop description. It has its fans on mobile and I appreciate that they didn’t go completely bananas with the price here. Some cute art, too. Give the free version a try on mobile first to see how you like it before you drop the eight bucks on it, of course.
De: Yabatanien ($13.99)
This is something of an escape room puzzle game where you need to make your way out of a mansion with more than 100 rooms. You will come across girls caught up in a variety of traps, and your actions will determine if they will live or die. The ending you receive at the end is connected to how many of the girls you manage to save. The pixelated, cutesy graphics put a disarming face on what is actually a pretty disturbing game at times. I’m not a big escape room guy, but if you’re into them you might find De: Yabatanien to be an interesting, slightly different take on the genre.
Wonder Blade ($14.99)
Wonder Blade was a fun homage to Castle Crashers when it arrived on mobile a couple years back. I know Jared really loved it, and I think many of our readers did as well. Here it is on Switch! It’s pretty much as you remember it, but without the IAPs. Can this game thrive on the same platform as Castle Crashers, selling for the same price? I don’t know, but it’s nice to have the option to just pay an extra ten bucks and not deal with microtransaction nonsense if nothing else. Personally, I’m not a huge fan of Castle Crashers so I’m not really the sort that is going to chase down similar titles.
Diamond Girl *An Earnest Education in Love* ($19.99)
Otome visual novel time? Otome visual novel time. In Diamond Girl, you play a so-called love-allergic girl who lays about the house and doesn’t even bother to properly get dressed. That is, until you suddenly find out that you are in fact the heiress to an enormously wealthy trading company. You’re whisked away to a mansion where you need to learn the ins an outs of your new role in life, finding yourself in contact with a charming and protective butler, a moody and arrogant fiance, a cool and strict brother-in-law, and an airheaded bad-boy cousin. One of these men will be your smooching target, but you’ll have to make the right decisions to make it happen. Nothing particularly outstanding about this one, but if you’re hungry for what it’s serving, don’t let me stop you.
#Halloween, Super Puzzles Dream ($5.99)
This is the third Super Puzzles Dream game, and aside from the Halloween theme it’s basically the same deal as the first two. Kind of a falling-piece jigsaw puzzle game, which is a cute enough idea. If you enjoyed the first two games and are hungry for more, particularly with a theme that will be past its sell-by date in three days, you won’t be unhappy with this. Pull in a friend or family member and you can enjoy the puzzle-solving action cooperatively and competitively. Not a whole lot more to say about it, so I won’t.
Super Puzzle Pack ($29.99)
There are four different types of puzzle game in here, which initially sounds like a pretty good deal. Let’s see what you get. First, a match-3 game with 100 levels and a pirate theme. Oh, there’s another match-3 theme here too. Well, that’s fine. Jigsaw puzzles, 200 of them. Not very exciting, but okay. Some people dig these digital jigsaw puzzles. Next, a 2048 game. Mmm. The last game is a match-5. Alright then. Some of the games have a local multiplayer option in case you want to do some competitive 2048 or cooperative jigsaw-puzzling. So how much is this, about ten bucks? Thirty?! That’s… good luck with that, I suppose.
Detective Puz ($5.99)
An odd little puzzle game that at first glance reminds of Square Enix’s classic GO games. But a second glance reveals that the first glance was largely mistaken, I’m afraid. Gosh, I would love to have those games on Switch. Oh well. Detective Puz tasks you with completing 40 levels where you need to collect diamonds and defeat enemies in turn-based strategic gameplay. There’s a decent idea at this game’s core, but it feels just a bit too slight in the end even at a fairly reasonable price.
The Last Blade: Beyond the Destiny ($7.99)
Here’s the fourth release in SNK’s NEOGEO Pocket Color collection, and it’s another fighting game. This time it’s The Last Blade, and it’s fine. Definitely stripped down from the rather technical NEOGEO original, but it’s a solid handheld fighter for its era. There are lots of unlockables in this one, so there’s a lot of fun to be had even if you don’t have a second player to join in. Of course, it’s better if you do have a friend. The unusual tempo of The Last Blade isn’t for everyone, but if it’s your bag you’ll probably appreciate this handheld take on it. The nice people at Code Mystics have given this the same treatment they did the other three Switch releases, giving you the nicest possible presentation of the game you could expect.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
This is the calm before the storm as usual, with the rest of the sales likely coming in after I write this but before you see it. We’ll catch up with the remainder tomorrow. What we have already isn’t too shabby, though. Lots of new games on there, plus a rare discount on SmileBASIC 4. Vampyr for twenty bucks is quite a treat for fans of Western RPGs. The outbox is somewhat small, but there are some good games in there to consider as well.
Select New Games on Sale
Gibbous – A Cthulhu Adventure ($16.99 from $19.99 until 11/3)
Poltergeist Crusader ($4.79 from $5.99 until 11/3)
Esports Life Tycoon ($11.99 from $19.99 until 11/3)
Worse Than Death ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/4)
Othercide ($29.99 from $39.99 until 11/5)
Vampyr ($19.99 from $49.99 until 11/5)
Call of Cthulhu ($15.99 from $39.99 until 11/5)
Seven Knights -Time Wanderer- ($15.99 from $19.99 until 11/5)
SmileBASIC 4 ($22.49 from $24.99 until 11/5)
Tropico 6 ($44.99 from $49.99 until 11/6)
#Funtime ($8.99 from $14.99 until 11/6)
Roundguard ($10.99 from $19.99 until 11/6)
Deleveled ($6.99 from $9.99 until 11/6)
Hidden Folks ($5.99 from $11.99 until 11/6)
Touhou Spell Bubble ($49.49 from $54.99 until 11/9)
Glitch’s Trip ($9.99 from $12.99 until 11/10)
Bright Paw ($9.99 from $12.99 until 11/10)
Save Your Nuts ($7.49 from $14.99 until 11/14)
No More Heroes ($17.99 from $19.99 until 11/15)
No More Heroes 2 ($17.99 from $19.99 until 11/15)
Street Outlaws: The List ($9.99 from $39.99 until 11/17)
Hidden ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/17)
Rapala Pro Fishing Series ($4.99 from $19.99 until 11/17)
Big Buck Hunter Arcade ($4.99 from $19.99 until 11/17)
Goosebumps the Game ($4.99 from $19.99 until 11/17)
Cartoon Network: Battle Crashers ($2.49 from $9.99 until 11/17)
Neverlast ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/17)
American Ninja Warrior Challenge ($7.49 from $29.99 until 11/17)
Nickelodeon Kart Racers ($7.49 from $29.99 until 11/17)
ZOMB ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/17)
Zombieland: Double Tap Road Trip ($9.99 from $39.99 until 11/17)
War Tech Fighters ($8.99 from $19.99 until 11/18)
Minesweeper Genius ($1.99 from $5.99 until 11/18)
JackQuest: TTotS ($1.99 from $9.99 until 11/18)
Siegecraft Commander ($2.99 from $19.99 until 11/18)
Kid Tripp ($1.99 from $3.99 until 11/19)
Descenders ($22.49 from $24.99 until 11/19)
Pity Pit ($2.49 from $4.99 until 11/19)
Habroxia ($3.19 from $7.99 until 11/19)
Family Tree ($1.99 from $7.99 until 11/19)
Ghost Blade HD ($5.99 from $14.99 until 11/19)
Lost Sea ($3.99 from $9.99 until 11/19)
112th Seed ($3.49 from $4.99 until 11/19)
Crowdy Farm Rush ($2.99 from $5.99 until 11/19)
YesterMorrow ($14.99 from $19.99 until 11/19)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, October 30th
Aggelos ($5.99 from $14.99 until 10/30)
Aokana: 4 Rhythms Across Blue ($25.49 from $29.99 until 10/30)
Arcade Spirits ($15.99 from $19.99 until 10/30)
Battleship ($9.99 from $19.99 until 10/30)
Captain StarONE ($4.99 from $9.99 until 10/30)
Cat Quest ($1.99 from $12.99 until 10/30)
Cat Quest II ($10.04 from $14.99 until 10/30)
City Bus Driving Sim ($5.99 from $11.99 until 10/30)
Clue ($14.99 from $29.99 until 10/30)
Danmachi: Familia Myth Infinite ($29.99 from $39.99 until 10/30)
Evergate ($15.99 from $19.99 until 10/30)
Grip ($7.99 from $39.99 until 10/30)
Mega Man 11 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 10/30)
Mega Man Collection ($10.04 from $14.99 until 10/30)
Mega Man Collection 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 10/30)
Mega Man X Collection ($9.99 from $19.99 until 10/30)
Mega Man X Collection 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 10/30)
Mega Man Zero/ZX Collection ($22.49 from $29.99 until 10/30)
Rescue Tale ($1.99 from $9.99 until 10/30)
Songbird Symphony ($11.38 from $16.99 until 10/30)
SubaraCity ($2.50 from $5.00 until 10/30)
The Outer Worlds ($47.99 from $59.99 until 10/30)
The Rainsdowne Players ($0.07 from $3.99 until 10/30)
World Tree Marche ($5.99 from $11.99 until 10/30)
That’s all for today, friends. But gosh, I’d hope that would be enough to slake your bloodthirst. There’s so much there! If you buy all the games I recommended today you’ll be in the poor-house. Even scarier: there’s a bunch more games coming tomorrow, along with a ton of new sales. We’ll be back with all of that stuff tomorrow, of course. I already said it up at the top, but make sure you keep your eye on the TouchArcade Twitter account today for your chance to win one of two North American digital copies of Torchlight III for your Switch, courtesy of the nice folks at Perfect World. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!
