Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for June 17th, 2021. In today’s article, we catch up on all of today’s new releases. Not so many as usual, and not many games as excellent or poor as we often see on this day of the week. We’ve got summaries of all of them for you to look over. We’ve also got a whole lot of new sales to check out, some of them spilling over from yesterday. All that, plus the outgoing sales! Okay, that was a wasteful use of an exclamation point. I apologize, and to make amends I’ll use one properly now. Let’s get to the good stuff!
New Releases
Rangerdog ($5.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
You know what kind of bugs me? Konami has got so many of its shooters available on the Switch, with almost all of its series getting at least one representative, but we’ve got zero Parodius games. Not even one! Well, I doubt it will remain that way forever. In the meantime, Rangerdog has scratched the itch a little. It’s colorful, cute, and full of wacky stages and enemies. It’s not as difficult or risque as Parodius and its power-up system reminds me more of Darius, but however you want to slice it, it works. I’ve been playing this for a bit now and I was actually surprised when I saw how low the price is. If you like horizontal shoot-em-ups, pick this up. You won’t regret it. Review is coming later, but you probably get the gist.
Pretty Girls Klondike Solitaire ($5.99)
Like I’ve said in the past, some titles do everything they have to. This is a Klondike solitaire game, one of many on the eShop. The distinguishing feature of this particular Klondike solitaire game is that it has anime ladies beside the cards as you play. There are ten such anime ladies, some of whom puberty was clearly inordinately kind to, and they all have different outfits you can unlock and choose at your leisure. There’s not much more to it than that, so I leave the decision to you.
Arcade Archives Seicross ($7.99)
Nichibutsu had a couple of games on the NES that somehow got a lot of attention in spite of not being terribly good. Magmax was one of them, and Seicross is just about as well-known. The two games even share the same unusual skewed angle. This is the lesser-known arcade version the NES game was based on, and it looks a lot better. Well, that makes sense. Even 1984 arcade games had more gas in the tank than the average early NES title. At any rate, this is an odd scrolling shooter where you ride a jetbike of sorts and try to defeat enemies and rescue good guys. Aside from shooting your opponents, you can also bash into them to knock them into walls and other obstacles. If nothing else, it’s interesting.
IdolDays ($7.99)
Well, here’s another one of these. In this visual novel you play as a recruiter at an idol agency trying to scout new talent. Almost ready to give up, he takes a rest on a park bench. Suddenly, he hears a beautiful singing voice coming from a young woman nearby. He tries to recruit her, but she isn’t having any of it. The next day he heads into work to find out the sponsor’s daughter has been given a job. She’s a bit a delinquent and has been fired from all of her previous jobs for fighting. The main character is surprised to find out that this woman is the same one he met at the park. He’s given the job of training her, but how will it all turn out? I think I can guess! This is about the same level of quality as all of the Days games, so if you enjoyed those you may like this one too.
Bakumatsu Renka Shinsengumi ($49.99)
It’s another otome visual novel about hunky samurai. Heck, it’s not even the first or second one based on the Shinsengumi in particular. Well, anyway, due to some unusual circumstances you’ve become the first female soldier in the Shinsengumi. In addition to the usual Shinsengumi business, you’ll also meet, flirt with, and eventually date one of the various handsome dudes in your group. There are several to choose from, covering most of the usual bases for a game like this. As you might guess from the price tag, the production values are a bit higher in this one than the typical entry in this genre. The story is the most important thing, but a nice presentation doesn’t hurt.
Luciform ($4.99)
This is a platformer with a color-based gimmick. You can only interact with things that match the color of your character, so you have to think quickly and carefully to avoid disaster. It’s a twist we’ve seen before in other games but, hey, it’s something at least. The usual five-dollar platformer energy is packed into this one, so I’ll leave it to you to decide whether you need another one of those or not.
Bullseye ($12.99)
I saw a few people from the UK excited about this on my Twitter feed, so I presume this Bullseye thing is some sort of known quantity over the pond. But wait… aw heck, it’s Sabec? Spending that mad Calculator cash wisely, I see. Apparently this was or perhaps is a TV show where people throw darts and answer trivia questions. Kind of like Jeopardy mixed with Wheel of Fortune, maybe? There are 5,000 questions packed in here and up to four players can join in via local multiplayer. Dare I say it? This might be the first release from Sabec that could actually appeal to someone unironically.
7 Years From Now ($9.99)
This little narrative adventure makes its way over from mobile platforms with this release, bundling all of its extra purchases together in one up-front price. You play as a high schooler who lost his memory in an accident a long time ago. All he remembers is that he promised to meet someone seven years later. He doesn’t even know who he made that promise with, but he’s determined to keep it. Now back in his hometown, he’ll meet old friends and try to piece together what really happened years before. This is mostly a game about walking around and talking to people, and you can expect things to get very emotional in places. I don’t care for the art style, but the story is alright.
Rotund Takeoff ($7.99)
Chunky rabbits are all the rage these days, I suppose. In this game you play as Chubbit, who has never heard of that Big Chungus fellow. He’s always bouncing, so you just move him left and right as necessary to tackle the platforming challenges ahead of you. There’s an emphasis on clearing the stages as quickly as possible, with special medals awarded for speedily reaching the goal. Rotund Takeoff is apparently a remake of a Wii U game named Chubbins, and I certainly hope it has made some serious improvements because that game was more frustrating and unpleasant than enjoyable.
Metal Unit ($15.99)
I’m of two minds about Metal Unit. As a roguelite, it is woefully unbalanced. You’re too powerful too quickly, and the weapon balancing is all over the place. If you’re looking for that spicy sort of challenge that comes with your typical roguelite, Metal Unit probably won’t do it for you. That said, as a 2D action game it is very fun. Lots of enjoyable means of attacking and moving around the play area, interesting boss battles, and fun obstacles. For all of its efforts to follow in the footsteps of games like Dead Cells, it’s far more like Mega Man X and its ilk in terms of moment-to-moment action. And that is fine. Just be aware what you’re getting into.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
Okay I know I said yesterday that I was cutting things off at a reasonable two hundred sales or so, but I found some more good ones I wanted to share. That’s how it is. So yes, feast on them. With this many games on sale it’s hard to make heads or tails of the eShop’s limited methods of looking for games, so if I can help you find even one good game to pick up, I’ll be satisfied. Check the outbox too, while you’re at it.
Select New Games on Sale
Cyber Shadow ($17.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Alien: Isolation ($17.49 from $34.99 until 6/22)
CrossCode ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Shiren the Wanderer: TToF&tDoF ($15.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Indivisible ($7.49 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Horace ($8.99 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Minoria ($12.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Serious Sam Collection ($14.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Heaven’s Vault ($12.59 from $17.99 until 6/22)
The Long Dark ($20.99 from $34.99 until 6/22)
Raiden V: Director’s Cut ($8.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Puzzle Quest: The Legend Returns ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Vampyr ($17.49 from $49.99 until 6/22)
Ghost Parade ($19.99 from $39.99 until 6/22)
Root Double ($36.79 from $45.99 until 6/22)
Crimson Clover: World EXplosion ($15.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Spiritfarer ($19.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Paradise Killer ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Wrestling Empire ($15.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Undead Darlings ($23.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Huntdown ($11.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Owlboy ($14.99 from $24.99 until 6/22)
Ara Fell: Enhanced Edition ($5.99 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Deadly Premonition 2 ($24.99 from $49.99 until 6/22)
PixelJunk Monsters 2 ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Robotics;Notes Elite ($17.49 from $34.99 until 6/22)
Pandemic ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Nexomon: Extinction ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Megaquarium ($17.21 from $24.59 until 6/22)
Ion Fury ($17.49 from $24.99 until 6/22)
NAIRI: Tower of Shirin ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/22)
Prison Architect ($7.49 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Battle Supremacy ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/22)
Battle Supremacy: Ground Assault ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Battle Supremacy: Evolution ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/22)
Radiation City ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Radiation Island ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/22)
Sky Gamblers: Afterburner ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Sky Gamblers: Storm Raiders ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/22)
Tangle Tower ($11.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Volta-X ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Grimvalor ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/22)
Peace, Death! Complete ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/22)
Murder By Numbers ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Chameleon ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/22)
Oxenfree ($2.99 from $9.99 until 6/22)
Assassin’s Creed: Rebel Collection ($19.99 from $39.99 until 6/22)
Skullgirls 2nd Encore ($14.99 from $24.99 until 6/22)
Panty Party ($10.49 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Hero Must Die. Again ($19.99 from $39.99 until 6/22)
Quad Fighter K ($3.99 from $7.99 until 6/22)
Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath ($14.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Amazing Brick Breaker ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/22)
PixARK ($14.79 from $39.99 until 6/22)
Out There Omega The Alliance ($5.99 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Red Faction Guerrilla ($7.49 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Superliminal ($11.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Passpartout: Starving Artist ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/22)
Outlast Bundle of Terror ($4.99 from $24.99 until 6/22)
Outlast 2 ($5.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Bug Fables: Everlasting Sapling ($16.24 from $24.99 until 6/22)
Portal Knights ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Carrion ($13.39 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Shantae & the Pirate’s Curse ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Shantae & the Seven Sirens ($20.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
PC Building Simulator ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/22)
Reigns: Kings & Queens ($3.99 from $7.99 until 6/22)
Reigns: Game of Thrones ($1.99 from $3.99 until 6/22)
Sisters Royale: FSUF ($5.59 from $13.99 until 6/22)
Out of the Box ($5.24 from $14.99 until 6/22)
Journey to the Savage Planet ($11.99 from $29.99 until 6/22)
Pikuniku ($3.89 from $12.99 until 6/22)
Blue Fire ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/25)
LOVE ($1.99 from $2.99 until 6/27)
kuso ($2.99 from $4.99 until 6/27)
R.B.I. Baseball 21 ($20.99 from $29.99 until 6/28)
The Wonderful 101 Remastered ($27.19 from $39.99 until 6/28)
Anthill ($3.99 from $9.99 until 6/28)
Into the Dead 2 ($17.49 from $34.99 until 6/28)
Radical Rabbit Stew ($3.99 from $15.99 until 6/28)
Cardpocalypse ($12.49 from $24.99 until 6/28)
Yaga ($12.49 from $24.99 until 6/28)
XCOM 2 Collection ($14.99 from $49.99 until 6/28)
BioShock: The Collection ($19.99 from $49.99 until 6/28)
The Outer Worlds ($23.99 from $59.99 until 6/28)
Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion ($11.99 from $14.99 until 6/30)
Double Cross ($4.99 from $19.99 until 6/30)
Mable & The Wood ($3.74 from $14.99 until 6/30)
Joggernauts ($3.74 from $14.99 until 6/30)
Thea: The Awakening ($7.19 from $17.99 until 6/30)
Steamburg ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/30)
Tetsumo Party ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/30)
Die for Valhalla! ($2.39 from $11.99 until 6/30)
The King’s Bird ($4.99 from $19.99 until 6/30)
Bite the Bullet ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/30)
Adventures of Chris ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/30)
Everdark Tower ($2.74 from $4.99 until 7/2)
Liege Dragon ($11.99 form $14.99 until 7/2)
Space Ribbon ($1.99 from $4.99 until 7/7)
Doggie Ninja Burning Strikers ($2.50 from $8.00 until 7/7)
Doki Doki Literature Club Plus! ($13.49 from $14.99 until 7/7)
Arrog ($2.79 from $3.99 until 7/8)
Duel on Board ($5.59 from $7.99 until 7/8)
Heaven Dust ($3.99 from $7.99 until 7/8)
Wenjia ($5.59 from $7.99 until 7/8)
The TakeOver ($6.99 from $19.99 until 7/8)
Never Breakup ($6.99 from $9.99 until 7/8)
Cruel Bands Career ($2.79 from $3.99 until 7/8)
Candleman ($9.99 from $14.99 until 7/8)
64.0 ($1.99 from $2.99 until 7/8)
SELF ($3.49 from $6.99 until 7/8)
Sudoku Universe ($3.49 from $6.99 until 7/8)
Devil Slayer Raksasi ($9.99 from $14.99 until 7/8)
Pretty Girls Klondike Solitaire ($4.79 from $5.99 until 7/8)
Farm for Your Life ($12.99 from $19.99 until 7/8)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, June 18th
1971 Project Helios ($20.99 from $29.99 until 6/18)
9th Dawn III ($8.79 from $15.99 until 6/18)
A Little Lily Princess ($11.99 from $14.99 until 6/18)
Apparition ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Arcane Arts Academy ($5.99 from $7.99 until 6/18)
Bear’s Restaurant ($11.69 from $12.99 until 6/18)
Bob Help Them ($3.99 from $7.99 until 6/18)
Body of Evidence ($3.49 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Brawl Chess ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Cake Laboratories ($1.99 from $2.99 until 6/18)
Connection Haunted Server Error ($2.49 from $4.99 until 6/18)
Cryogear ($8.95 from $19.89 until 6/18)
Cyber Complex ($6.74 from $14.99 until 6/18)
Cycle 28 ($1.99 from $6.99 until 6/18)
Destropolis ($3.99 from $5.99 until 6/18)
Don’t Knock Twice ($6.24 from $12.49 until 6/18)
Drag Racing Rivals ($2.99 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Dream Alone ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Ego Protocol: Remastered ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/18)
Espacio Cosmic Light-Seeker ($2.44 from $3.49 until 6/18)
Golden Force ($11.99 from $19.99 until 6/18)
Graviter ($4.49 from $7.99 until 6/18)
Headspun ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/18)
Hob: The Definitive Edition ($11.99 from $19.99 until 6/18)
Little Mouse’s Encyclopedia ($9.74 from $12.99 until 6/18)
Lost Artifacts ($2.99 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Luciform ($4.49 from $4.99 until 6/18)
Make War ($2.49 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Moonfall Ultimate ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/18)
Neighbors Back From Hell ($9.99 from $14.99 until 6/18)
Nonograms Prophecy ($1.99 from $3.99 until 6/18)
OlliOlli: Switch Stance ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/18)
Picklock ($2.99 from $7.99 until 6/18)
Pirates: All Aboard! ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/18)
Pool Pro Gold ($2.49 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Powertris ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/18)
Rollin’ Eggz ($1.99 from $2.99 until 6/18)
Silver Falls Episode Prelude ($5.99 from $7.99 until 6/18)
Sky Mercenaries Redux ($6.75 from $15.00 until 6/18)
Snowball Collections Bubble ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/18)
Splashy Cube ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/18)
Star Horizon ($2.49 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Steel Rain ($6.74 from $14.99 until 6/18)
Strike Force Kitty ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/18)
Super Arcade Soccer 2021 ($5.60 from $8.00 until 6/18)
Tanuki Justice ($8.99 from $14.99 until 6/18)
The Adv. of Elena Temple: DE ($1.99 from $4.99 until 6/18)
The Solitaire Conspiracy ($9.59 from $11.99 until 6/18)
Through the Darkest of Times ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/18)
Tiny Lands ($4.79 from $5.99 until 6/18)
Torchlight II ($11.99 from $19.99 until 6/18)
Torchlight III ($19.99 from $39.99 until 6/18)
Wallachia: Reign of Dracula ($9.99 from $14.99 until 6/18)
Warplanes: WW1 Sky Aces ($6.99 from $9.99 until 6/18)
Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles ($14.09 from $29.99 until 6/18)
Zombie Apocalypse ($2.39 from $3.99 until 6/18)
That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow to finish off this wild week with a look at the remaining releases. Only a small batch on the schedule at the moment, but you know how these things can blow up sometimes. Few or many, there will be summaries for all of them as usual. I hope you all have an excellent Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!
