Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for July 26th, 2023. Today we break the usual Wednesday tradition by having a review for you to look over. It’s LISA: Definitive Edition, a rather unusual RPG that isn’t going to be for everyone. After that, we look at the new releases of the day. One of them is extremely good, provided you like puzzle games. After that, we look at the lists of new sales and expiring discounts for the day. Let’s get to it!
Reviews & Mini-Views
LISA: Definitive Edition ($24.99)
This is a tough one to review. I can talk about the premise a bit, and I can talk about the mechanics, but what really makes LISA: The Painful and LISA: The Joyful special is where the story goes. And telling you too much of that would defeat a lot of the point, because the story is one you should experience yourself as unspoiled as possible. So let’s go through what I can, I guess. The set-up here is a post-apocalyptic world where we follow a guy named Brad. Even setting aside the current state of the world, Brad has had a tough life. After an event called the White Flash, all the women in the world are wiped out. This basically throws the remaining men into complete chaos, a world as brutal as it is hopeless.
And then Brad finds some hope. While out and about one day, Brad finds a baby alone and crying. The child is a girl, and while Brad’s friends think he should sell her or hand her over to a greater authority, Brad wants to keep her and raise her as his daughter. He completely dedicates his life to keeping her safe, protected, and a secret. It’s all going fine until Brad comes back to his home and finds all of his friends dead and his daughter gone. With nothing else to live for, he sets out to find her at any cost. That’s as much as I will say outside of telling you to make sure you play them in order. The Joyful immediately spoils the heck out of The Painful.
This is an RPG, and the combat involves a bit of action along the lines of the Mario games. The world has plenty of areas to explore and all kinds of trouble to get into. It’s a tough game, but this new version includes an easier difficulty mode if you just want to see the story. Otherwise I advise saving often, as it is incredibly easy for things to go ca-ca. Even a mistake while platforming can send you back to your last save. You can also lose your party members by making some bad decisions. Don’t take it lightly.
LISA: Definitive Edition, taken as a whole package, is an RPG unlike any other I have played before. Sometimes that’s a good thing, sometimes it’s a bad thing. This is a very heavy, raw game in terms of its story. It hits on some very tough topics and it pulls zero punches. If you’re squeamish about violence or gore, or just aren’t into the idea of a very rough and frequently cruel narrative, you might want to hold off on this one. But if you’re okay with that kind of thing, I recommend playing this to see what it has to say.
SwitchArcade Score: 4/5
New Releases
Patrick’s Parabox ($19.99)
You know if Draknek is publishing, it must be something good. And indeed, Patrick’s Paradox is very good. Developer Patrick Traynor has come up with a devilishly clever twist on the old box-pushing Sokoban formula. You see, the boxes… they have boxes in them. Boxes in boxes in boxes. There are a few other tricks in here too, so if you enjoy this kind of puzzle but are tired of games that play it a little too straight, you’ll likely have a good time with this. You get more than three hundred and fifty puzzles to tackle, so you’ll be playing for quite a while.
Super Intern Story ($18.99)
This is a quirky platformer that relies on video game industry humor to separate itself from the pack. I’d imagine anyone who has done intern work or even entry-level jobs in an office should be able to relate even if they didn’t work specifically in games. For everyone else, all we can hope is that the gameplay is enough to carry it even if the gags don’t hit the spot. I haven’t had a chance to play it yet, so I can’t say for sure if it can live up to that.
The Bin Bunch
Hentai Uni 2 ($2.50)
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
Not an especially big list today, but there are a couple of things I will call some attention to. Warhammer 40k Boltgun is a very fun first-person shooter, and even if the discount is modest it’s a game that is worth buying even at full price. Those who like futuristic racers might find Flashout 3 more digestible at four bucks than its normal twenty dollar price. By contrast, the outbox is fairly large and full of cool things like Square Enix games and some great indies. Check both lists as always, of course.
Select New Games on Sale
Numolition ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/1)
Call of Cthulhu ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/2)
Shady Part of Me ($5.99 from $14.99 until 8/2)
Curse of the Dead Gods ($7.99 from $19.99 until 8/2)
Othercide ($14.99 from $29.99 until 8/2)
Aeon Must Die! ($9.99 from $19.99 until 8/2)
A Plague Tale: Innocence Cloud Vers. ($19.99 from $39.99 until 8/2)
A Plague Tale: Requiem Cloud Vers. ($38.99 from $59.99 until 8/2)
Overlord: Escape From Nazarick ($14.99 from $29.99 until 8/2)
Warhammer 40k Boltgun ($17.59 from $21.99 until 8/2)
Warhammer Age of Sigmar Storm Ground ($6.99 from $19.99 until 8/2)
Dordogne ($15.99 from $19.99 until 8/2)
Mario + Rabbids: Kingdom Battle ($13.99 from $39.99 until 8/7)
Mario + Rabbids: KB Gold Edition ($20.99 from $59.99 until 8/7)
Just Dance 2023 Deluxe Edition ($31.49 from $69.99 until 8/7)
Cat Quest II ($4.94 from $14.99 until 8/8)
Flashout 3 ($3.99 from $19.99 until 8/9)
KURSK ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/9)
Chants of Sennaar ($17.99 from $19.99 until 9/5)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Thursday, July 27th
A Knight’s Quest ($3.74 from $24.99 until 7/27)
Actraiser Renaissance ($17.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Age of Heroes: The Beginning ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Balan Wonderworld ($7.99 from $39.99 until 7/27)
Beholder: Complete Edition ($2.24 from $14.99 until 7/27)
Burger Bistro Story ($7.00 from $14.00 until 7/27)
Chenso Club ($3.39 from $9.99 until 7/27)
Chroma Squad ($4.49 from $14.99 until 7/27)
Collection of Mana ($19.99 from $39.99 until 7/27)
Collection of SaGa FF Legend ($11.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Dungeon Village 2 ($7.20 from $12.00 until 7/27)
Final Fantasy IX ($10.49 from $20.99 until 7/27)
Final Fantasy VII ($7.99 from $15.99 until 7/27)
Final Fantasy VIII Remastered ($9.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster ($24.99 from $49.99 until 7/27)
From Space ($5.09 from $14.99 until 7/27)
Galaxy of Pen & Paper +1 Edition ($4.99 from $12.49 until 7/27)
Gang Beasts ($11.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Harvestella ($29.99 from $59.99 until 7/27)
JDM Racing – 2 ($2.49 from $4.99 until 7/27)
Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory ($29.99 from $59.99 until 7/27)
Legend of Mana ($14.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Lost Artifacts ($2.09 from $2.99 until 7/27)
Mega Mall Story 2 ($7.00 from $14.00 until 7/27)
My Downtown ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
NEO: The World Ends With You ($29.99 from $59.99 until 7/27)
NeuroVoider ($2.79 from $13.99 until 7/27)
Niche: A Genetics Survival Game ($4.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
NieR Automata The End of YoRHa ($29.99 from $39.99 until 7/27)
Nocturnal ($14.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Octopath Traveler II ($44.99 from $59.99 until 7/27)
Omega Labyrinth Life ($17.99 from $59.99 until 7/27)
Pankapu ($2.39 from $11.99 until 7/27)
Piczle Cross Adventure ($3.49 from $9.99 until 7/27)
Powerwash Simulator ($19.99 from $24.99 until 7/27)
Pumped BMX Pro ($2.24 from $14.99 until 7/27)
Queen’s Garden: Sakura Season ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Romancing SaGa Minstrel Song ($19.99 from $24.99 until 7/27)
SaGa Frontier Remastered ($12.49 from $24.99 until 7/27)
SaGa Scarlet Grace ($8.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Samurai Maiden ($44.99 from $59.99 until 7/27)
Santa’s Holiday ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
ScourgeBringer ($7.64 from $15.99 until 7/27)
Secrets of Magic 4: Potion Master ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Secrets of Magic 5: Back to School ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
Sherlock Holmes The Awakened ($26.99 from $39.99 until 7/27)
Sherlock Holmes: Devil’s Daughter ($8.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Spelunker Party! ($5.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Tactics Ogre: Reborn ($29.99 from $49.99 until 7/27)
The DioField Chronicle ($29.99 from $59.99 until 7/27)
The Lost Labyrinth ($1.99 from $19.99 until 7/27)
The Swindle ($2.24 from $14.99 until 7/27)
Theatrhythm Final Bar Line ($37.49 from $49.99 until 7/27)
Trials of Mana ($24.99 from $49.99 until 7/27)
Various Daylife ($14.49 from $28.99 until 7/27)
Velocity 2X ($2.99 form $19.99 until 7/27)
Voice of Cards Trilogy ($39.99 from $49.99 until 7/27)
Voice of Cards: The Beasts of Burden ($14.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Voice of Cards: The Forsaken Maiden ($14.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars ($14.99 from $29.99 until 7/27)
Work from Home ($14.99 form $19.99 until 7/27)
That’s all for today, friends. Tomorrow is Thursday, and that means tons of new releases. There’s a new Double Dragon game tomorrow! It’s one of almost twenty new games we’ll be checking out, along with whatever sales and major news items come our way. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!
