Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for April 1st, 2022. Happy April Fools Day! The joke for today is that there is no joke. A delightful surprise, I’m certain. We’ve got a bunch of new releases to check out today thanks to a few stragglers rolling in after I went home yesterday, and the expected flood of new sales. We also have a special news report from our pal Mikhail about the NGPX showcase. Let’s have a look at all of it!
News
‘Jack Jeanne’, ‘NIS Classics Volume 3’, ‘Dusk Diver 2’, and more announced at NGPX 2022
Over the last two years, the New Game Plus Expo has secretly become E3 for many smaller publishers. NIS America, Aksys Games, Idea Factory International, Playism, Natsume, and more have been announcing localizations, new games, and updates at the NGPX. Yesterday, NGPX 2022 took place with many Nintendo Switch game announcements and updates. New announcements include two otome visual novels from Idea Factory International in the form of Amnesia: Meories and Amnesia: Later x Crowd. The publisher also revealed action game Dusk Diver 2 for Nintendo Switch and other consoles. NIS America’s highlight for Nintendo Switch is the NIS Classics Volume 3 bringing La Pucelle: Ragnarok and Rhapsody: A Musical Adventure to Switch this year. NIS America also announced a remaster of the PS2 stealth game Kamiwaza: Way of the Thief for Switch and other platforms. Aksys Games is bringing the side-scrolling shoot ’em up Horgihugh and Friends to Switch this June alongside the big reveal of the visual novel Jack Jeanne from Tokyo Ghoul’s creator.-Mikhail Madnani
New Releases
MLB The Show 22 Digital Deluxe Edition ($99.99)
SwitchArcade Highlight!
For those who simply cannot wait to get their hands on Sony Interactive Entertainment’s first Nintendo Switch game, the Digital Deluxe Edition of MLB The Show 22 is now available on the eShop a few days ahead of its standard edition. Provided this isn’t a dramatic departure from previous games in the series, this is one mighty fine game of baseball. Certainly better than the previous MLB-licensed games on the Switch. You get a bunch of other fluff with this version of the game, mostly amounting to a good number of free packs and a nice chunk of in-game currency. Yes, there are microtransactions. It feels like that’s just how things are with sports games these days.
Super Cyborg ($6.99)
This game isn’t exactly sneaky about the classic it is paying homage to. A Contra (or perhaps I should say Probotector?) inspired run-and-gun, Super Cyborg features seven levels of shooting action for either one or two players. There are various weapons to collect and use, with alternate firing modes to give you the greatest choice in your destructive capabilities. This one looks very promising, but I haven’t had a chance to play it myself yet so I can’t say for sure whether or not it lives up to that.
Dieselpunk Wars ($14.99)
Build a vehicle from hundreds of different elements and take it out to complete missions in a rather linear campaign. This feels like something that should be a sandbox game, but it’s not. It also feels like something that should be multiplayer, but it’s not. The response to the computer version of this one hasn’t been terribly kind, but perhaps it can find a more receptive audience on the Switch.
9 Clues: The Secret of Serpent Creek ($14.99)
Artifex Mundi has another hidden object adventure game on offer, this time following a paranormal investigator who is asked for help from her friend who lives in Serpent Creek. The detective rushes there only to find her friend missing, the townspeople in a virtual trance, and the streets filled with snakes. What the heck happened here? That’s up to you to figure out.
Flat Kingdom Paper’s Cut Edition ($7.99)
How far can a striking graphical style take a platformer? This won’t even be the only game we have to consider that question for today. This one has a bit of a puzzle bent to it where you need to switch between different shapes to tackle various problems. The original version of this game got mixed reviews on other platforms, but I’m assuming this Paper’s Cut Edition makes some improvements. The soundtrack features music by Manami Matsumae of Mega Man and UN Squadron fame, so you at least know the tunes are a jam.
tERRORbane ($15.99)
Here is a game with a really clever premise that it only sort of delivers on. It’s an RPG with tons of bugs, but the bugs are intentional. You’ll need to catalog them and take advantage of them to get a leg up on the enemies and get one over on the developer while you’re at it. An interesting gimmick, but one that gets tiresome after a while. Still, if you’re tired of the same-old same-old in your RPGs, you might find this one to be just quirky enough to hold your attention.
Ultionus: A Tale of Petty Revenge ($9.99)
This is a run-and-gun platformer with some nice pixel art and a great soundtrack from Jake Kaufman. There are occasional side-scrolling shoot-em-up stages to break up the action, too. The actual gameplay mechanics have some serious MS-DOS action-platformer vibes to them. Is that a good thing? Is that a bad thing? I can’t decide that for you. This game has been out for years on Steam, so you should be able to find enough opinions out there to help you come to a conclusion.
Seashell ($3.99)
This is the kind of thing I like to see with these, er, more affordable games. You’re collecting seashells at the beach. Find them all, fill the pages of your journal, and earn all of your research badges. It’s a simple game that doesn’t last terribly long, but it’s certainly unique and appealing in its own right.
Hyper Drone X ($8.59)
An oddball price tag usually means a new SAT-BOX game, and yes, that is indeed what we have here. This one is a drone racing game with a stylish cartoony vibe to its visuals, as one would expect from this particular developer. There are twenty different drones to choose from and plenty of courses to race on. Up to four players can battle each other in local multiplayer, or you can enjoy some solo racing in a couple of different modes.
Floogen ($3.99)
Oh heck, is that claymation? Love it. More games should use claymation. Moving past the distinct look of the visuals in Floogen, we have a rather ordinary platformer. You can upgrade your character as you go, making this one of those games where it’s probably hardest right at the start. You can ultimately unlock and play as three different characters, lending the game some much-needed replay value as this is otherwise a very short affair.
Logistics Simulator ($9.99)
And it’s another vehicle simulator. This one is focused on heavy transport vehicles, but there’s also a business management aspect to it. Drive the various vehicles and take on tasks to earn money that can in turn be used to improve your business. Very much not my kind of thing, but I know some people out there are going to be right on this.
Bridge Builder Racer ($9.99)
Build a bridge while using as few resources as possible, then get behind the wheel of a car to see if you can use that bridge to travel from one platform to another. You get forty levels to play, with online leaderboards to compete on for high scores. Nothing particularly new, but some folks can’t get enough of these physics toys.
Dissection ($1.99)
Another first-person horror thing where you’re moving in and about a house trying to avoid and hide from a scary creature of some sort. Well, it exists. Nothing we can do about that now.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
A brief sale on some NIS America games, a rare sale on City Connection’s offerings, the usual discounts across Team 17’s library, and a few other goodies are the highlights of the inbox. The weekend outbox is a rather large one compared to the norm, with some fun games like the Atari Recharged series in there. Have a look through the lists as usual to see if there’s anything that tickles your fancy.
Select New Games on Sale
Ys IX Monstrum Nox ($39.99 from $59.99 until 4/4)
TLoH Trails of Cold Steel III ($29.99 from $59.99 until 4/4)
TLoH Trails of Cold Steel IV ($34.99 from $59.99 until 4/4)
Prinny’s NIS Classics Vol.1 ($29.99 from $39.99 until 4/4)
The Silver Case 2425 ($29.99 from $39.99 until 4/4)
Negative Nancy ($8.99 from $14.99 until 4/6)
Cotton 2 ($14.39 from $17.99 until 4/10)
Cotton Boomerang ($14.39 from $17.99 until 4/10)
Guardian Force ($14.39 from $17.99 until 4/10)
Abarenbo Tengu & Zombie Nation ($9.59 from $11.99 until 4/10)
Game Tengoku CruisnMix Special ($23.99 from $29.99 until 4/10)
Zero Gunner 2- ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Dragon Blaze ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Strikers1945 ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Strikers1945 II ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Gunbird ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Gunbird2 ($5.59 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Gunbarich ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Sol Divide ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Tengai ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Samurai Aces ($6.39 from $7.99 until 4/10)
Hot Gimmick Cosplay-jong ($16.00 from $20.00 until 4/10)
Fuga: Melodies of Steel ($31.99 from $39.99 until 4/11)
Noel the Mortal Fate ($17.49 from $24.99 until 4/14)
Slayaway Camp: Butcher’s Cut ($3.74 from $14.99 until 4/14)
Guild of Darksteel ($9.74 from $14.99 until 4/14)
Letter Quest Remastered ($2.99 from $11.99 until 4/14)
Black Paradox ($2.99 from $14.99 until 4/14)
Thea 2: The Shattering ($13.99 from $19.99 until 4/15)
Lost Artifacts: Time Machine ($2.99 from $9.99 until 4/15)
Strange Field Football ($1.99 from $6.99 until 4/15)
AVICII Invector ($10.99 from $19.99 until 4/15)
Grip ($5.99 from $39.99 until 4/15)
Vaporum Lockdown ($10.99 from $21.99 until 4/15)
Hob Definitive Edition ($3.99 from $19.99 until 4/15)
Close to the Sun ($7.49 from $24.99 until 4/15)
Sine Mora EX ($5.99 from $29.99 until 4/15)
Headspun ($9.09 from $12.99 until 4/15)
Sin Slayers ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/15)
Giana Sisters Twisted Dreams ($5.99 from $29.99 until 4/15)
OS Omega ($2.09 from $6.99 until 4/15)
Reflex Unit 2 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/15)
Bud Spencer & Terence Hill S&B ($2.99 from $19.99 until 4/18)
Evil Tonight ($13.49 from $14.99 until 4/21)
Goosebumps the Game ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/21)
The Bluecoats North & South ($11.99 from $29.99 until 4/21)
Archery Club ($2.39 from $11.99 until 4/21)
Toki ($2.23 from $14.99 until 4/21)
Rise Race the Future ($9.89 from $16.49 until 4/21)
Cartoon Network Battle Crashers ($2.49 from $9.99 until 4/21)
Hollow 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Pawn of the Dead ($4.99 from $9.99 until 4/21)
Moving Out ($6.24 from $24.99 until 4/21)
King of Seas ($9.99 from $24.99 until 4/21)
Yooka-Laylee ($7.99 from $39.99 until 4/21)
Yooka-Laylee 6 the Impossible Lair ($7.49 from $29.99 until 4/21)
Blasphemous ($6.24 from $24.99 until 4/21)
Moto Racer 4 ($2.23 from $14.99 until 4/21)
Nerf Legends ($16.49 from $49.99 until 4/21)
Gear.Club Unlimited 2 ($5.99 from $39.99 until 4/21)
Yesterday Origins ($2.23 from $14.99 until 4/21)
Asterix & Obelix XXL ($11.99 from $29.99 until 4/21)
Asterix & Obelix XXL 2 ($4.49 from $29.99 until 4/21)
Crown Trick ($5.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Monster Sanctuary ($6.79 from $19.99 until 4/21)
GI Joe Operation Blackout ($9.99 from $39.99 until 4/21)
Cooking Festival ($2.19 from $10.99 until 4/21)
Golf With Your Friends ($4.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Yoku’s Island Express ($4.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Overcooked Special Edition ($4.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Overcooked 2 ($6.24 from $24.99 until 4/21)
Worms Rumble ($3.74 from $14.99 until 4/21)
Worms W.M.D ($5.99 from $29.99 until 4/21)
My Time at Portia ($7.49 from $29.99 until 4/21)
Neon Abyss ($9.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Cobra Kai: Karate Kid Saga ($14.99 from $39.99 until 4/21)
Agatha Christie ABC Murders ($11.99 from $29.99 until 4/21)
Agatha Christie Hercule Poirot ($23.99 from $29.99 until 4/21)
The Escapists ($2.99 from $14.99 until 4/21)
The Escapists 2 ($4.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
The Survivalists ($6.24 from $24.99 until 4/21)
Zombieland Double Tap Road Trip ($7.99 from $39.99 until 4/21)
Kuukiyomi 2: Consider It More ($2.49 from $4.99 until 4/21)
Dino Galaxy Tennis ($6.69 from $9.99 until 4/21)
Street Outlaws The List ($7.99 from $39.99 until 4/21)
Street Outlaws 2 ($16.49 from $49.99 until 4/21)
Big Buck Hunter Arcade ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Rapala Fishing Pro Series ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/21)
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl ($19.99 from $49.99 until 4/21)
Nickelodeon Kart Racers ($7.49 from $29.99 until 4/21)
Nick Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix ($14.99 from $39.99 until 4/21)
The Sinking City: Deluxe ($12.99 from $64.99 until 4/21)
Levels+ Puzzle Game ($2.79 from $6.99 until 4/21)
inbento ($2.49 from $4.99 until 4/21)
Sales Ending This Weekend
A Knight’s Quest ($4.99 from $24.99 until 4/2)
American Fugitive ($4.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
Another Sight ($15.99 from $39.99 until 4/2)
Aqua Moto Racing Utopia ($7.99 from $39.99 until 4/2)
Asteroids: Recharged ($7.99 from $9.99 until 4/2)
Atari Flashback Classics ($19.99 from $39.99 until 4/2)
Beholder: Complete Edition ($2.99 from $14.99 until 4/2)
Black Widow: Recharged ($6.66 from $9.99 until 4/2)
Bomber Crew ($3.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
Breakout: Recharged ($8.99 from $9.99 until 4/2)
Centipede: Recharged ($6.66 from $9.99 until 4/2)
Embr ($5.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
Farmer’s Destiny ($7.99 from $39.99 until 4/2)
For The King ($7.49 from $24.99 until 4/2)
Hope’s Farm ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
Hotshot Racing ($3.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
Hue ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/2)
Human: Fall Flat ($5.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
Just Die Already ($5.99 from $14.99 until 4/2)
Manual Samuel ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/2)
Motorsport Manager ($4.49 from $14.99 until 4/2)
Narcos Rise of the Cartels ($5.99 from $29.99 until 4/2)
Peaky Blinders: Mastermind ($4.99 from $24.99 until 4/2)
PONG Quest ($7.49 from $14.99 until 4/2)
Premium Pool Arena ($2.39 from $11.99 until 4/2)
Pumped BMX Pro ($2.99 from $14.99 until 4/2)
RiMS Racing ($19.99 from $49.99 until 4/2)
RollerCoaster Tycoon Adv. ($24.99 from $49.99 until 4/2)
Serial Cleaner ($2.24 from $14.99 until 4/2)
Smoke and Sacrifice ($3.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
Snow Moto Racing Freedom ($7.99 from $39.99 until 4/2)
Space Crew: Legendary Edition ($7.49 from $24.99 until 4/2)
Street Power Soccer ($5.99 from $29.99 until 4/2)
Tennis World Tour 2 ($19.99 from $49.99 until 4/2)
The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
The Dark Eye: Memoria ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
The Flame in the Flood ($2.99 from $14.99 until 4/2)
The Last Survey ($1.99 from $14.99 until 4/2)
The Swindle ($2.99 from $14.99 until 4/2)
Truck Racing Championship ($7.99 from $39.99 until 4/2)
V-Rally 4 ($9.99 from $49.99 until 4/2)
Velocity 2X ($3.99 from $19.99 until 4/2)
When Ski Lifts Go Wrong ($2.24 from $14.99 until 4/2)
.cat Milk ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/3)
AER Memories of Old ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
Arcadia Fallen ($22.49 from $24.99 until 4/3)
Art Sqool ($1.99 from $12.99 until 4/3)
Dadish ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/3)
Dadish 2 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/3)
Edna & Harvey Harvey’s New Eyes ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
Edna & Harvey The Breakout ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
Felix the Reaper ($1.99 from $14.99 until 4/3)
Goat Simulator: The GOATY ($7.49 from $29.99 until 4/3)
Horror Pinball Bundle ($2.69 from $8.99 until 4/3)
Huntdown ($7.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
Shift Happens ($1.99 from $14.99 until 4/3)
Silence ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
Speed Truck Racing ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/3)
State of Mind ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
Steel Assault ($8.99 from $14.99 until 4/3)
Super Fowlst ($1.99 from $9.99 until 4/3)
Super Fowlst 2 ($1.99 from $10.00 until 4/3)
The Long Journey Home ($1.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
Touchdown Football ($1.99 from $3.00 until 4/3)
Unrailed! ($4.99 from $19.99 until 4/3)
That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next week with lots of new games, including the wide release of MLB The Show 22, plus big games like LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga, The House of the Dead: Remake, and Chrono Cross: The Radical Dreamers Edition. We’ll also have a bunch of sales, some reviews, and some news to go with those new games. I hope you all have a great weekend, and as always, thanks for reading!
