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WiiU

North America

Mighty Switch Force: Hyper Drive Edition

by Zachary Miller - November 20, 2012, 7:13 pm EST
Total comments: 5

9

Justice is still being served!

When I picked up my Wii U, the first game I bought was Mighty Switch Force: Hyper Drive Edition (MSFHD). Sure, I already have the 3DS original—which I love—and you should read the review and maybe these impressions to get a good idea of what the game’s all about if you don’t already know. This particular review focuses primarily on how MSFHD differs from its predecessor, and whether those differences justify a double-dip.

The most obvious change is that the game’s art assets have been entirely redrawn. Backgrounds and foreground objects don’t look so much entirely different as crisper and more colorful, but heroine Patricia Wagon, her Hooligan Sister quarry, and all the game’s enemies have gone from sprite-based to cel-based, akin to the animation style of A Boy and His Blob. You won’t believe how good the characters look now, and it’s hard to go back to the 3DS version’s graphics.

MSFHD has all the bells and whistles of the complete 3DS game, including a retry option and five bonus stages that are unlocked after completing the first 16. As always, the real goal of MSF is to beat each level’s “par time.” In most cases, this becomes much easier after you’ve played through the first 16 stages initially and unlock Patricia’s Mighty Gun. A single blast from this weapon destroys even the largest breakable blocks and every enemy. You’ll gain access to the Mighty Gun differently in the bonus levels—play through each one a single time to unlock the Mighty Gun for that level.

Lest you think this is just a prettied-up version of the original game, WayForward added some Wii U-exclusive content that made me absolutely giddy. Most importantly, completing the bonus levels unlocks Hyper levels, essentially remixed versions of all the normal and bonus levels. While the overall geography of areas remains the same, the block configurations, enemy placements, and par times are different. In fact, the par times are much tougher! The music is also remixed in Hyper levels.

If you manage to beat the par times for all the normal stages and the bonus stages, you unlock a new character model for Patricia Wagon—this one was a huge surprise, and something I’d been wanting in MSF from the beginning. I’d even begged Voldi Way and Matt Bozon to include it in a future update back at E3. This was before we knew that MSFHD even existed. I’m not taking credit for its inclusion; I’m just saying I like to think my suggestion was influential.

In case you’re curious, the GamePad merely displays a redundant radar pointing you toward the next criminal—there’s an on-screen indicator, too. There’s also a button you can tap that switches the action from your TV to the GamePad for when someone else wants to use the TV.

So if you’ve never played MSF, this is definitely the way to do so. For people who’ve already bought the game on 3DS, it’s a judgment call. I certainly don’t have buyer’s remorse thanks to the new content, but you will basically have to play through that of the 3DS game again to get to it. But with those pretty new graphics, who’s complaining?

Summary

Pros
  • New character model
  • New Hyper levels are challenging
  • Off-TV play
  • Redrawn graphics look amazing
Cons
  • Mostly the same as the 3DS game

Talkback

RazorkidNovember 22, 2012

Watched a video of the game for the first time on my WiiU through the eShop and my god, the hd sprites and animations are gorgeous! I'm definitely picking this up down the line.

AdrockNovember 22, 2012

No, I demand that you pick it up now.




Seriously, it's awesome.

OblivionNovember 22, 2012

What would you tell a guy that already beat the 3DS version?

SarailNovember 22, 2012

Also of note, the audio of MSF, when compared to the audio level of the main Wii U menu, is INCREDIBLY loud/higher. I had to immediately scramble for my audio receiver's remote to drop the volume level rapidly (to keep from waking my neighbors (I live in an apartment, and it was 2a.m.)

This portion of the game needs a patch to correct this issue. Other than that, the game is absolutely phenomenal.

RazorkidNovember 22, 2012

Quote from: Adrock

No, I demand that you pick it up now.




Seriously, it's awesome.

Have the 3DS version already. Waiting for those digital rebates to kick in to cash out.

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Genre Action
Developer WayForward Technologies
Players1

Worldwide Releases

na: Mighty Switch Force: Hyper Drive Edition
Release Nov 18, 2012
PublisherWayForward Technologies
jpn: Mighty Switch Force: Hyper Drive Edition
Release Sep 10, 2014
PublisherIntergrow Inc.
RatingAll Ages
eu: Mighty Switch Force HD
Release Year 2012
PublisherWayForward Technologies
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