The Bradwell Conspiracy sounds so promising on paper. The game is made by people with a run of accolades, and the intrigue of the story has a way of pulling you in. As I booted up the game and started playing, however, I couldn't help but feel a sense of dread. Something wasn't quite right, in spite of putting my best foot forward to unpack every little detail. The Bradwell Conspiracy simply wasn't all that fun, and is just marred by painful issues that I couldn't shake.
Moving around in a first-person perspective, you are stuck in the Bradwell Stonehenge Museum. An explosion has set certain events in motion, and the only help from outside is Dr. Amber Randall. She is your rock in trying to escape as well as your guide in terms of the themes that the title gradually raises. The problem is that the story lacks any sort of payoff. It is a basic good versus evil plot disguised as something bigger. The game pretends to care about certain characters, but most of these plot points don't receive a proper conclusion. That being said, when The Bradwell Conspiracy sinks its teeth into a theme like mass surveillance, there are some solid points made. It becomes moody and entertaining, but those are fleeting moments rather than the norm.
The gameplay of Bradwell falls very much into the puzzle problem camp. There is a progression mechanic called Substance, and this is used to complete most tasks. You use it to alter various materials, repair broken tools, or open up new passages. Where it falls flat on its face is in how you control the Substance system. The attachment system is flimsy at best, with an error message constantly popping up that you're doing it wrong. The distance between myself and the object seems perfectly fine, but the game doesn't want to give it to me. I was constantly frustrated with getting simple tasks done. The puzzles themselves were mostly fine, but they lacked direction at times.
The Bradwell Conspiracy doesn't run great on Nintendo Switch either. The framerate issues in the game were rough to say the least. Not that it was completely unplayable, but it was far from acceptable either. To make matters worse, the title has some really spotty dialogue triggers. In more than one instance, dialogue started to overlap, ensuring that I was clueless about a situation. The Bradwell Conspiracy is very glitchy in general, even allowing you to go out of bounds in some places. For the most part, the game nearly hits the mark at every aspect, but never quite succeeds.
The Bradwell Conspiracy feels like a waste. The game pulls you in on a high, but falters every step of the way. The puzzles can be entertaining, but the Substance system is frustrating and cumbersome at its absolute best moments. The story makes a big deal out of various themes, but there are only fleeting moments where it all matters. I think that the biggest problem of The Bradwell Conspiracy is that getting through it is neither fun nor rewarding. There are so many frustrating moments to be had that I would simply rather play something else.
While I played through each of the previous Atelier games, I never found any of them to be must-plays. That’s not to say that they didn't have merit, but they were extremely daunting with their design choices. Systems upon systems were thrown into the mix and flattened my interest quickly. So when I was asked if I had an interest in trying out the new Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout, I was quite reluctant to do so. Ryza, however, is a new starting point for the series, meaning I could get into it without being overly lost. With that in mind, I played through Atelier Ryza and was hoping that there was something for me there. The answer, as it turns out, was quite surprising. As a matter of fact, I would call Ryza my favorite RPG of 2019.
The changes within this Atelier installment are felt within the opening hour. Players hop into the shoes of Reisalin Stout, nicknamed Ryza by her friends. Unlike the previous games in the series, this protagonist is not an experienced alchemist. In fact, she has never heard of alchemy until the concept is brought up to her. Ryza is much more of an adventurer who wants to see the world, which changes the entire dynamic of the game. She and her friends want to escape Kurken Island to see the world. Once the party finds an abandoned boat, they see their chance and quickly meet experienced adventurers that will help them along their way.
My problem with the previous games is that actual story progression didn't come very naturally. The characters were already established, and we had to deal with the consequences of that. Ryza and her friends Lent and Toa are much more blank slates who become curious as they see more of the world. Ryza has to learn to love alchemy, while Lent learns the ropes of being a well-trained fighter. They are excitable and charming as it’s clear they lived carefree lives before setting off. The outside world is new to them, and the adventure sees them grow into new roles within their party. Every time new story beats got introduced, I honestly got excited as it progressed the evolution of their lives as adventurers. Ryza doesn't come off as being as ''by the book'' as previous protagonists, which made the atmosphere feel very unique. The characters of Aterlier Ryza are easily some of the most well structured people in an RPG setting this year.
Where Ryza really shines is in its atmosphere. The Atelier series isn't known for having huge stakes, and that is certainly the case here. The journey is much more about finding your place in the world and moving away from your past. Although the characters do show shades of darkness, the story focuses on their positive elements. They are delightful as they explore towns, interact with NPCs and take on the next challenge. The world is quite a big one, with plenty of fun locations to uncover. The things you can do within those boundaries are much better and combine with tasks having more variables to them. Ryza is quite a resourceful character and can make tools simply to collect more items in the environments.
The attention and care carries on when it comes to the gameplay. The flow of combat is really fantastic as Atelier Ryza takes the approach of the Final Fantasy titles. The previous games were straight up turn-based affairs, but this new game implements a real-time system where the battle is constantly moving. The player is in control of selecting character actions and ensuring that everyone gets their attacks in. In the initial moments, it is important to perform your standard attacks and fill up an Action Points gauge. AP is needed to perform skills and special attacks and forms a single pool for the entire party. You can't simply throw your points at a problem and see if it all works out. In addition, by building up AP, your Tactics Level will slowly start to grow. Increasing its level gives you access to stronger attacks that can give you an edge in battle.
Due to the shift towards an active battle system, you won't be able to control all of the characters at once. By focusing on one character, you make the best of their moves and abilities and really explore what they can do. The other party members will be controlled by the AI, giving you plenty of time to explore every option. Once you're acclimated, you can quickly shift between characters and use the Action Points in a very dynamic matter. There might even be chances to do specific combos when another character asks for a specific move. The AI will immediately follow it up with an attack of their own, scoring a lot of damage in the process. It may sound like a lot to take in, but Atelier Ryza does offer difficulty sliders so that newcomers can ease into it more quickly. In either case, I felt constantly engaged during the battles which I am very pleased about.
The most divisive change within Atelier Ryza is likely the alchemy system. One one hand, I totally get that a different approach was bound to happen. The elements of the system have become unwieldy over the last number of games, leaving new players in the dust. At the same time, Atelier Ryza lacks the same depth of the previous titles, simply removing some functions that were there before. The new Item Synthesis has a branching skill tree where you throw in various elementals into nodes and develop recipes that way. The recipes have more time to build with new unlocked nodes, making them grow in importance. The strategy of the previous systems, where you had a lot of tools to play with, has been lost in the process. While I won't necessarily weep about it, there was surely a middle ground to be found here. Newcomers, however, obviously won't miss it.
As far as the presentation on Nintendo Switch is concerned, Atelier Ryza is quite the looker. With most of the previous games being ports, the amount of color present in them felt lessened as a result. It is clear that Atelier Ryza is built with the system in mind as the performance is top-notch. Framerate is rock solid, both in handheld and on the television. In addition, there are strides made in the color and animation departments, making for one attractive video game. The music is, as usual, strong and underlines the overall tone of the game well.
Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout is the best game in the series. With a brand new starting point and important changes to the game's mechanics, a larger number of players can come in and enjoy the journey. The battle system is challenging at first, but I got the hang of it pretty quickly. RPG veterans will likely feel the same, but there are difficulty sliders to give you more time to learn the ropes. While the alchemy system is lessened in scope, I think it benefits newcomers in a big way. Atelier Ryza is a journey about making the best of the here and now, and it is beautiful to behold for it. I felt incredibly engaged every step of the way, wanting to see the game through. I hope that this is the beginning of an engrossing new trilogy.
I’ve always been a big fan of the Brain Training franchise. From the moment they arrived on the scene, I found myself going through every training exercise to help improve my short-term memory. Since then, I have played every single game in the series, including the DSiWare and 3DS outings. Now that the series is making its way to a system like the Nintendo Switch, I have reason to worry. The previous games were made for a two screen set-up, and it’s hard to deny that simple fact. Despite those reservations, I had the chance to give the Switch game a long try at Dutch Comic Con, where a three day old save file was prepared for us to hop into. The results are far more promising than I initially expected.
Two distinct parts separate Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training for Nintendo Switch: Quick Play and Daily Training. Quick Play consists of six exercises where you put the system in its regular landscape position. The first three games (Rock-Paper-Scissors Test, Finger Calculations and Finger Drills) all make usage of the right Joy-Con's IR motion camera. The Rock-Paper-Scissors Test is a quick brain age check, testing your reflexes and focus. At first glance, it seems like you're playing a simple roshambo type of game, but there is a twist in play. At random intervals, you are asked to win or lose, constantly playing with your expectations. Brain Training doesn't want the player to go automatic pilot and glide through this check, which I quite appreciate.
Secondly, we have Finger Calculations. This game sees flashing a number of fingers into the IR motion camera. This goes from zero to five, but that doesn't mean the game makes it easy. On screen, the numbers are showcased with hands too, forcing you to stay on your feet and think quickly. My favorite challenge in the IR games, however, is Finger Drills. With your hand, you’re asked to make various shapes in quick succession. From an open hand to a thumbs up, Finger Drills focuses on your hand eye coordination with pinpoint precision. At the same time, it doesn't try to lose you and keeps the instructions on screen at all times.
This is, by far, the most novel usage of the Joy-Con IR Motion Camera I've seen on Nintendo Switch. While games like Ring Fit Adventure and Nintendo Labo use it for functionality, Brain Training actually manages to implement into a video game. Initially, and I admit this, it felt weird doing these motions as I was unsure about the simplest things. How far does my hand need to be from the camera? Am I even doing this correctly? As I got the hang of the set-up, it quickly clicked in a way I really didn't expect. The moves really test you in surprising ways, and the IR stuff proved a fun new way to interact with training exercises.
The other three games in Quick Play (Birdwatching, Flag Raising and Box Counting) have a distinct two player focus. Birdwatching and Box Counting are honestly extremely similar, with both games focusing on counting what is on screen. Players press ZL or ZR to count something, and press the L or R buttons to confirm the amount. The biggest difference between the two is the speed at which they move. The boxes are visible for a limited amount of time on screen, while you can take your time with the birds. That being said, the birds will move around and can completely throw you off your game. In Flag Raising, players have to copy the movement of a character on screen and move a flag in multiple directions. The minigame is like a far more complicated version of Simon Says with you having to follow the instructions to a tee. You won't get points otherwise!
Daily Training is where testing your brain actually matters, and will count towards the progression you want to make. In addition to the IR camera games I've mentioned, Daily Training offers a plethora of old and new tests that you can dive into. Unlike Quick Play, players will hold the Nintendo Switch in a Tate mode fashion and use the included stylus (retail release) to play Brain Training the classic way. The touchpen's size was honestly pretty nice in practice. As someone who hated the stylus size on the last few Nintendo 3DS models, this one feels great. There is enough room to wrap your fingers around it and hold it like a proper pen.
Before we hop into the games, I must give props for the extremely clean UI. Each part of the training has a big button with one line of information on the task. For example: Calculations x25 featured the line ''A speedy calculation time attack!'' while Germ Buster mentions ''Some post-training relaxation''. In addition to the clear cut information and a sharp image, the icons also feature your best personal time and an icon to clarify if you played the minigame today. The Brain Age Check icon even says your current age to even further embarrass yourself in point of your pals. Finally, the exercise will appear in your Daily Training menu in the order that you last played them, so it becomes easy to return to your favorites.
As I mentioned before, the file we were presented with was three days in, so it didn’t reflect on everything that is in the final game. The minigames we've seen in the menus are Calculations x25, Calculations x100, Germ Buster, Dual Task, Photographic Memory, Head Count, Reading Aloud, Sudoku, Masterpiece Recital, Finger Calculations, Finger Drills and Word Scramble. Some of you might remember from the older games in the series, like Calculations. You still write your numbers on the screen, just in the hope that the game accepts your handwriting. Other classics like Germ Buster and Sudoku sport a brand new look or new functions to support the new set-up. They are just as straightforward as they used to be in the Nintendo DS days, so not as elaborate as Devilish Brain Training/Brain Age: Concentration Training.
That being said, the new games are a feast for the senses. In Dual Task, you will be performing two tasks at the same time. In our demo, a little guy needed our help jumping over hurdles on top while we had to choose the highest number at the bottom. You really have to divide your attention, because screwing up at either end would give you six seconds on top of your final time. Photographic Memory requires you to remember a current photo and asks you about the photo you've seen before this. The exercise starts out extremely simple, but quickly starts to mess with you. Mirrored images will populate your field, and will completely throw you off your game. It is really intense, and forces you to take in details very quickly. Last but not least, we have Word Scramble. In this game, letters will float all across the screen. Your task is to find the words within the chaos, and quickly press on to the next screen.
Naturally, Brain Training offers the Brain Age test that the series is known for. The test focuses on three specific factors: Self-Control, Processing Speed and Short-Term Memory. During my first run of the Brain Age test, I felt pushed to the limit. Round one was clicking on the highest numbers, while the second part was counting loudly from 1 to 120. In the final round, the player has to remember 25 numbers and fill the boxes from memory one by one. Every Brain Age test throws different challenges into the mixture. There will be moments where you might be required to do the Joy-Con games or keep subtracting from a certain number. The challenge is meant to be played back-to-back, so don't worry if you fail them. Failing is simply a step to becoming better at training your brain.
Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training for Nintendo Switch leaves a fine first impression. Don't expect the game to overload your senses like Devilish Brain Training as that is not the intention. The focus is, just like in the old days, to focus on the task at hand and pushing yourself every day a little more. While that may not sound overly exciting for some, I'm really loving what their are doing with the exercises. The Joy-Con and new Daily Training offers are excellent additions, and broadens the scope of what the software can do for you. We won't have to wait long to start training the pink slab inside our heads as Braining Training for Switch releases on January 3 in Europe.
You’d think with the constant turn out of Pokémon titles that fatigue would inevitably set in, but here we are and I still look forward to them each and every year. I find battling trainers, exploring a new world and uncovering every nook and cranny is some real exciting stuff. That being said, no Pokémon games have yet to match the benchmark of the franchise that is HeartGold and SoulSilver. Not only are they top-notch remakes, but they added to the modern flavors of Pocket Monsters. The Nintendo 3DS generation was quite an enjoyable one, and I maintain that the Hoenn remakes are really great. Now we've arrived at the franchise's next destination: GameFreak's first big Pokémon RPG on a home console. While you could argue that the formula needs a change, for me this still feels like an evolution of previous iterations. Sword and Shield definitely lives up to the hype, but I would be amiss if I didn’t address some gripes with the latest instalment of this fabulous franchise.
I’ll just flat out say it: I really don’t feel that Pokémon Sword and Shield has much of a story. An argument can be made that a game about capturing pocket-sized monsters doesn't need a story, but I disagree. One of the reasons why the previous Pokémon games were so enjoyable is because of the stakes involved. Each iteration involved a big evil team, and rivals that would really push you with some other surprises along the way. Sword and Shield is a pleasant game with characters that I like, but nothing plays into the grander scheme of things. Sonia's segments where you learn about the history of Galar feel few and far between, and rival Hop mostly has one big character arc. The build up of these segments is fine, but you can see the end result coming from a distance. The legendaries on the box come in second place to a power struggle that is stopped shortly after it begins.
With that being said, what an enjoyable ride Pokémon Sword and Shield proves to be. The novel concept of traveling across a land, hopping into various towns and collecting Pokémon is still fun as ever. From very early on, you start collecting monsters and can have a full party even before receiving the Pokédex. That is what really helped me to stay engaged as new monsters are thrown in at regular intervals. In fact, I would argue that the first seven hours contains the majority of the Pokémon that remain in your party. After a quick opener, you are quickly thrown into the Wild Area, which gives you access to various Pokémon types and attacks that you end up using later.
Speaking of the Wild Area, that is likely the biggest new selling point in Pokémon Sword and Shield. It’s a widespread area, allowing you to pick up creatures in ever changing weather conditions. At every chance, I would hop in and ride my bike around to see what new monsters would appear. The Pokémon come in three flavors, with each more neat than the last. The regular wild Pokémon that roam the overworld and walk around in the grass are receptive to your movement, making it easier to see what monsters are available to catch. Other Pokémon appear on the roads and are mostly evolved forms of monsters you can find elsewhere. These are extra powerful, and might be very much above your current level. I got a Monster Hunter vibe from these, and I regularly had to decide if fighting them is the best idea.
My favorite new inclusion are the Max Raid Battles. By going in alone or fighting with up to three friends, players battle an enlarged Pokémon that is ''Dynamaxed''. The creature is an incredibly enlarged version of itself and every attack in their arsenal is massively more powerful. Luckily, one player can Dynamax their own Pokémon as well, allowing you to fight fire with fire. By combining both offensive and defensive moves across the board, you can down and catch a monster with a unique moveset that wouldn't be available otherwise. While connected online, random players or friends can freely join these raids, making for stellar moments in the process. In addition, you get access to rare items like one usage Technical Machines to teach your pals new moves.
Speaking of Dynamaxing Pokémon, this comes into play in another factor of the game, namely the Gym Challenges. At first glance it may seem like going back to the old gym format comes off as very stationary, but new challenges succeed in keeping the format feeling fresh. Similar to Pokémon Sun and Moon, not one gym feels exactly the same, and each offers a unique set-up with battles in between. In one moment, you might be moving around in a teacup while another challenge focuses on your Pokémon catching skills. After the initial challenges, you are presented with a battle inside a large stadium, filled with swaths of adoring fans. The stadium battles include the option to Dynamax your Pokémon for three turns, adding another layer of strategy to the competition. These battles are so incredibly entertaining, and really made the journey of playing through Sword and Shield worth it. Unlike Mega Pokémon and Z-Moves, they add an extra dimension to the battle flow.
Prior to release, the debate of how many Pokémon were to be included irked many people the wrong way. While I empathize with losing a Pokémon you personally desire, I have zero problems with the monsters they decided to include. Game Freak did a fantastic job of striking the right balance of including creatures you could potentially need. It’s evenly spread between a variety of types, allowing you to make a team that can hang with the best. Including Galarian forms, Sword and Shield offer 94 new Pokémon and 400 creatures in total. The early routes give you instant access to a brand new team, which I honestly preferred during my first run. In my second run, I relied on a combination of old and new, which still make for a diverse team. I adore the new starters and their evolutions, with each getting moves unique to their lineage.
The overall difficulty of Sword and Shield is very palpable. While there is some challenge depending on how you handle battles and challenges, the game is just overall very pleasant. Sword and Shield keeps the leveling of your Pokémon in check with the Experience Share permanently activated. While some will miss the days of grinding your Pocket Monsters to absolute perfection, it made it easier for me to just enjoy the ride. None of the game felt particularly challenging, but due to the changes made I was more inclined to stay excited. The Galar region's routes and locations have a really great atmosphere to them, and the arena styled battles add to the overall stakes in the Gym challenges.
The biggest moments of joy in the latest Pokémon title comes from the little things, like interacting with the monsters in Pokémon Camp. I felt more of a connection with my squad after playing with them or cooking a delicious curry for my team. While it isn't as in depth as Pokémon Amie, its usage felt far more effective and fun. The Wild Area opens up more as you progress through the game, so seeing the other side of the water streams made me instantly excited. Some really cool monsters and items await for you on the other side. That being said, I can't truly recommend playing the game twice. While the differences in Pokémon and Gyms between versions is fine, they aren’t as different as you may think. The Gym Challenges are exactly the same, with the only differences being in the trainers that you will face. Look at the Pokémon available, and decide on that front. One has unicorn, the other knightley duck. Take your pick.
Pokémon Sword and Shield looks quite nice on the Nintendo Switch. I wouldn't call it the best on the platform, but it is a big step up from Game Freak's previous work. The environments are larger and more pleasing to explore, and the character models are really nice with colors that really pop. Regardless of whether on the television or in handheld, entering new areas is very exciting. That being said, the Wild Area becomes sluggish when you connect to the internet. Once players begin roaming about and populate your game, it weirdly becomes janky and isn't as smooth as usual. The Y-communication system has no problem keeping up, but the many players make the Wild Area way less impressive. The music is the usual, terrific work that’s expected from the developers. I absolutely adore Hop's theme, and whenever I enter a battle with the guy, I get pumped all over again. It is that good.
Overall, Pokémon Sword and Shield is yet another entertaining Pokémon game. The story is way less impactful than in the last couple of games but the adjusted tempo made it more fun to progress. The experience went quickly travelling from gym to gym, which is fun but didn't leave enough time to give Galar more character. That’s a shame, because as a location, I really enjoy what this region has to offer. The Wild Area in particular is fun, though I mostly stayed offline due to it slowing down ever so often. What the new Pokémon does right is battling and in the smaller details. There are many little tweaks that keep the experience lighthearted, which I wouldn't have any other way.
Tarsier Studios are a creative bunch. After creating an interesting horror game in Little Nightmares, they set their sights on the colorful world of co-op working with Nintendo. The result is The Stretchers, a surprisingly fun one- or two-player game that sees you picking up patients and driving back to the medical centre. The game has a lot more going on beneath the surface than that relatively straightforward premise, though. The Stretchers is a surprise through and through and hopefully it won’t get lost in a busy stretch of Switch releases.
In The Stretchers, you play as two medics who have a serious problem on their hands. A weird phenomenon, named the Dizzies, is spreading like wildfire across Green Horn Island and only they can save the day. Players travel across the island, making various stops at a variety of destinations. With a stretcher and a rather unbreakable ambulance in tow, the goal is to accrue injured civilians and bring them to safety. At the hospital, the De-Dizzler 3000 brings them back to normal and combats the evil machinations of the goofily named Captain Brains. Yes, all the names are that silly and I love it.
The gameplay is intriguing in its physics-based insanity. After arriving at a location, the mission starts and the medical duo have to gather all the dizzy citizens at the ambulance within the allotted time. While you can continue playing beyond that point, you receive far less points for your efforts. Similar in a Crazy Taxi sort of way, it is important that you keep trucking. In one of the early levels, you have to find everyone within a sawmill farm, which is just as dangerous as it sounds. Luckily, there are ways to pull everything in your favor. Assembly lines automatically move bodies from one place to the next, minimizing the time you need to carry them on a stretcher. The trick is working within certain limitations and obstacles, and getting the most out of your time. By replaying stages, you can map routes perfectly, improving on your score in the process.
Every little thing that you do in The Stretchers gives you points. This starts by exploring a level to the fullest, and getting special items that are worth more points. The techniques of carrying citizens, interacting with objects and moving the action along can be critical in how you are rated. The game further encourages this within the pages of a sticker book that track special objectives to complete in each stage. A final push in points can be made while driving the ambulance. By knocking over signs or doing crazy stunts, you are rewarded further trinkets for your efforts. It is super rewarding to play.
That being said, I do feel that the game is better served as a co-op title. The Stretchers is totally playable alone (and with a Pro Controller) and it isn't as frustrating as it might sound. At the press of a button, one medic automatically follows the other around so you don’t need to control each medic with a separate analog stick all the time. That being said, in the moments it mattered, I feel that two heads will prevail quicker as they can each focus on their own initial tasks. While you technically play as two people alone, you are still doing one task at a time, which slows down the action. An important note is that multiplayer can only be enjoyed with two Joy-Con, so if your friends rather play with traditional controllers, that is something you can't do. All in all, though, it isn't as restrictive as Snipperclips and feels more flexible overall.
Regardless of the controller you play with though, I did have some trouble picking up objects a few times. The game wanted me to stand a certain way, which caused some frustration in the heat of the moment. In other places, the stretcher doesn't exactly want to work with you, throwing off all the patients in the process. These aren't things you can't deal with, but it did cause some annoyance when I wanted simply to get the job done.
The Stretchers took me about six and a half hours to complete. While the focus is on the core missions, some additional stuff is littered around the map. During your exploration excursions, it is possible to find hats for your characters or furniture for your home base. It isn't much in the grand scheme of things, but it added to the fun world building The Stretchers offered. I found myself constantly engaged with not a moment making the pace slow down. Speaking of slowdown, the presentation is pretty solid. The characters have this goofy look that I absolutely adore. The music and atmosphere really helps to sell that feeling overall.
The Stretchers is quite an enjoyable romp. It shows strongest in co-op, but the adventure is still strong overall, whether playing alone or with a friend. The various missions and interactive elements ensured that the pace never slowed down. The gameplay loop of riding to places, exploring a bit, grabbing patients, and moving back is extremely novel and engaging. With every mission introducing unique attributes, it is always a delight to see what curve The Stretchers throws at you next. There were a few minor problems, mostly with precise movements, but never anything that soured the fun. Overall though, I can't help but admire the things Tarsier Studios put in. The Stretchers is a good time.
A new iteration to the Mario & Sonic franchise is something I always look forward to. Some are better than others, but above all, they promise a good time with friends and family. A personal favorite is the version made for the Summer Olympics of 2012 in London. It was the first game to allow for button input, and added a variety of side content to keep you trucking. While this new game doesn't go that far in scope, this is the best since 2012 and easily the one I can see myself playing with the people around me. In my mind, the good Olympic video games are back in town.
Let's start with the big inclusion within Tokyo 2020: the Story Mode in this version actually includes a story. Shocking, I know. Our favourite crew of Mario, Sonic, Bowser and Dr. Eggman get sucked into a video game based on the Olympic Games of 1964. Their goal is trying to escape and return to the modern Tokyo, where Luigi and Tails are trying to find their own solution. You will switch constantly between the past and present with two maps, various activities and amusing interactions. The developers have actively tried to put in the effort, even if you're mostly going from mission to mission.
I'm pretty surprised with how Story Mode is set up. The map of each offers unique locations to visit and uncover. They are small areas where you can talk with anyone at hand. Not only did they recreate arenas, but also big Tokyo landmarks like Tokyo Skytree. It’s very neat, but never anything deep. You learn about your surroundings, participate in an activity and go onwards to the next location. Sometimes there are trivia terminals where you can learn even more, but that is mostly it. Personally, I would like the Story Mode more if the locations were a lot bigger and more explorable. You will see glimpses of the possibility, but Mario & Sonic Tokyo 2020 never goes truly all the way. That being said, Story Mode is a nice five hour rump with some nice flavor text between characters.
The ultimate goal in Story Mode is obviously to see the end, but you do earn some stuff as a result of playing. When competing in the various modern events, you will come across a new character. By winning against them, like Rouge in Sport Climbing, you will earn the right to play with them in all other modes for that one activity. Ten special minigames are sprinkled across the adventure, which are available after completion into the Game Room. It’s where you can freely enjoy these activities and experience longer versions of them. A highlight is the Bullet Train Blast, where Sonic tries to chase Dr. Eggman traveling in a Bullet Train.
Speaking of activities, the majority of folks will likely head straight into the Quick Play and enjoy the various sporting events available. Tokyo 2020 offers the normal 21 3D sports minigames, three Dream events and finally the ten brand new Tokyo 1964 offerings. That makes for 34 events that you can play on a whim, which is certainly impressive. The offerings are rather pleasant as they support both motion and button controls. While motion was okay, I found myself entranced by the button controls. Not only does it feel more accurate, it creates a more equal playing field. You get the hang of the buttons just a touch quicker, and it feels a lot nicer in practise. Not every motion controlled option feels exactly great, though the dual Joy-Con supported games are pretty neat.
I’ve stuck with the most basic Tokyo 2020 events so far, with Football, Skateboarding, Sport Climbing, Fencing and Rugby Sevens being the highlights. Events are short and snappy which ensures they don’t overstay their welcome and allow you to mix it up. You do have some control over how long some events are, such as adjusting the playtime or the amount of points required to win. In addition, the CPUs can put on a specific difficulty setting. While the selection is good, I do feel that some events from the previous title are oddly missing. Some enjoyable events such as Rhythmic Gymnastics, Beach Volleyball and BMX didn’t return. Honestly, I find that a little odd as the game rhythm game feel of gymnastics was always really endearing. Besides that, some of these events are in the regular Tokyo 2020 game, which makes it even weirder.
Another point that I find really odd is that the character roster hasn't seen major changes over the last few installments. The same 20 characters as before are playable in all sports, while the other ''guest'' characters are exclusive to a singular sport. For example, do you want to play as Rosalina? Well, you will have to play Surfing in order to see her in action. Instead of adding characters, they have been removing them, as some participants are no longer in Tokyo 2020.
What we have lost in the regular sports, we’ve gained within the other events. The three Dream Events: Dream Racing, Dream Shooting and Dream Karate, are good fun and add a fun party vibe that was missing from Rio 2016. In Dream Racing, you ride on a skateboard down a course in the sky and grab Mario Kart-esque items. Dream Shooting sees you exploring the grounds of a Japanese temple as you shoot at targets and kites, with racking up combos being essential to stay ahead of the curve. Dream Karate takes place in the Mushroom Kingdom of Super Mario Odyssey. You will have to hit your opponents so that they end up landing on panels, changing them to your color and icon, and earning you points in the process.
Finally, we have the ten Tokyo 1964 events. These 2D events either bring classic sports to the table or provide unique twists on events you've already seen. These minigames can only be played with buttons, regardless of the controller you're playing with. The standout of these events is the 10 meter platform. It is here that you will jump from a diving board and then have to press a selection of buttons in time before reaching the water. Input them correctly and you are quickly awarded with more points. Another lovely game is Marathon. It is here that you have to keep up the pace by pressing A, avoid obstacles and pick up water to keep up your stamina. The minigame is smartly put together and easily brought a grin to my face, mostly due to how silly the characters roam about.
No shortage of options are available to enjoy Mario & Sonic Tokyo 2020. Beyond the single-player and single screen multiplayer is a Local Play option in which you can connect up to four Nintendo Switch systems and play on your own screen. More importantly, however, is the Online Play Mode. Not only can you share your records with the entire world, you can play against your friends. All the regular and Dream events can be played in three ways. You have a Ranked Match mode, in which you will be grouped with players of a similar skill level. By ranking high, you will climb the ladder.
If you prefer to play for fun, no worries at all. In Mario & Sonic Tokyo 2020, you can select an event and play with others who want to enjoy the same one as you. It’s the quickest way to hop into an online match and start playing. Players can also gather and play in rooms, similarly to how Puyo Puyo Tetris did it. You choose Worldwide, Regional or Friends and then select the max number of players allowed. Players can send each other messages to decide what you want to play, and then simply get started. The way the options are put together is simple, but it all works extremely well.
Tokyo 2020 looks great on Nintendo Switch. The title is filled with nicely detailed arenas, those big Tokyo landmarks and characters are a joy to behold. The loading times are a teensy bit annoying. Not overly much mind you, and it is clear that they put performance at the forefront, but you can't deny that they are there. The music is, without a doubt, one of the better aspects. The tunes of Story Mode in particular are real sharp with a mixture of Japanese and orchestral sounds. That being said, the individual activity songs aren't too shabby either.
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is a surprisingly fun game with a lot to offer. The Story Mode is somewhat amusing and easily goes by in five hours. While I wish there was more interaction with the modern world, I can't deny the effort at least. That being said, the real star of the show are the activities themselves. With 34 minigames to choose from, this is one of the most packed games in series history. It helps that the button controls work quite well, and help to sell the experience just that teensy bit more.
When Nintendo tries to do something daring, it is not hard for me to be on board. That being said, I was reluctant in this specific instance. As a guy born with a physical disability, exercising is a troublesome thing for me. I do my darndest to keep up with everyone around me, but I almost always lag behind. The only fitness games I could dedicate myself to playing for a reasonable amount of time were the Wii Fit games. They have a routine that is customizable and can be adjusted to your skill level. For this reason, I found myself dipping my toes back into that content over and over again. Honestly, I didn't feel that I got the most out of the experience, despite playing the Wii Fit games for hundreds of hours. It was demoralizing to not feel entirely supported. On the contrary, Ring Fit Adventure instantly set expectations for me. Yes, it let me participate in something I feel like I couldn't. Unlike other fitness titles, the game didn't give me stress. Instead, Ring Fit Adventure opened a lot of doors that I thought were previously closed.
The big thing I need to credit Ring Fit Adventure for is being welcoming. With other games, including Wii Fit, everybody would follow the same program. They wouldn't take your personal fitness and situation into account, which forced me to keep trying over and over. Ring Fit Adventure, as you boot up the Story Mode, wants to tailor the experience to you. Players can give certain details, but they aren't required to do so. Immediately, you will press in the Ring-Con and jog with the Leg Strap to your personal satisfaction. You can put the Leg Strap as low as you want, or raise it up for a more challenging workout for yourself. The game doesn't judge and goes along with what you prefer. In addition, you can go even deeper into the options, allowing you to distinctly make your handicaps known. You can even, in fact, change it fully to Silent Mode and keep doing short squats instead of moving your legs. There is nothing but love for these features, which felt long overdue.
Since we are already talking about the game's Story Mode, we might as well dive right in. The gist of the game is that Drageux the bodybuilding dragon escaped from a ring, and now terrorizes the world around you. You, the player avatar, will have to team up with a talking Ring, who becomes your makeshift coach and supporter, to conquer levels and overcome the challenges in every new world. While there is some dialogue here, the fact is that Ring is the only one who uses spoken words. Now, I do get the idea behind it. Ring is meant to be your guide every step of the way, giving you instructions on how to perform. That being said, I really think it wouldn't have hurt to put some of that personality into Drageux as well. You meet him more than enough times to warrant that, I feel. The voice-less boss encounters make the situation just a teensy bit weird.
Regardless, what a varied and warm bath Story Mode turned out to be. The player will travel through twenty worlds, each with a variety of things to do. There are levels where you will jog through and interact with objects, complete minigame sized challenges, visit various towns with quests, or focus solely on Ring Fit Adventure's battling system. The worlds don't follow a specific scope and scale, opting instead to create impactful levels that fit the flow of the game. By far, my favorite are the jogging levels, where I played half the time with Silent Mode enabled. With the Ring-Con in hand, players will use the device to shoot bursts of air or jump by pointing the device downwards and squeezing. While the stages themselves offer linear passageways, you feel constantly involved thanks to the various motions enabled by that special controller. Speaking of special, some stages offer unique sections where you use different kinds of transportation or climb stairs for example. In one moment you might be exploring a river, while another sees you moving a minecart left and right. No two stages feel exactly the same, which is what kept me going throughout my play time. The reward is seeing a new environment flourish and seeing everything to the fullest.
While running along, you will come across white blobs that will stop you in your tracks. This can only mean that Fit Battles, where you will fight colorful fitness gear monsters, are upon us. The battles aren't unlike regular turn-based RPG combat where you would pick a move and see the results of your labor. Instead of seeing what happens, however, you actively do the attacks yourself. The attacks, spread across four categories, vary in difficulty and intensity. That might sound daunting at first, but I wouldn't worry too much. I do think that roughly 40 moves is a little light, mostly considering not every option might fit your exercise profile. Even if your pickings are slim in the early goings, the recharge timer isn't anything too bad, meaning you can repeat the ones you're the most comfortable with. Despite my shortcomings, I found it fun to experiment with the options available and see where I would land. A good example is how I thought I wouldn't able to do any of Leg attacks, but I found one that I could perform decently well.
The Story Mode thrives not just at being a great fitness game, but an enjoyable video game in general. It excels at making every exercise feel different. The journey may seem linear on a television screen, but in my mind, I'm playing a fitness arcade game. What I found the most shocking is that I wasn't thinking: “I am playing a fitness game,” Instead, I was focused on the task at hand like I would in a regular title. The story elements are nice, but the gameplay loop is what really kept the ball rolling. With a game like Wii Fit, I got some pats on the back, but never felt fully satisfied after completing a run. Despite some of the exercises literally killing me, I had a big smile on my face because I was taking the next step in the journey. That is what makes Ring Fit Adventure such a rare specimen. I didn't feel spoken down to for my personal issues, but actually encouraged to do better.
In addition to the robust campaign, there are other elements worth highlighting. Quick Play offers tons of options to sink your teeth into, mostly to step away from the more structured Story Mode. With Simple Mode, you will train certain aspects of your body, forcing you to do the same movements within a very strict time limit. In the Pectoralis Major Challenge, for example, you will have to keep pushing the Ring-Con in and out to net yourself a strong highscore. In the beginning, these short burst challenges may seem simple to overcome, but I really started to feel them in the latter half. You can lose the pace very quickly, and perhaps end up with a disappointing score. I found that ramping up your achievements was key in getting the best score over time. It just felt extremely nice and refreshing to work them into a session.
Next up, we have the twelve Minigames available in the package. Similar to my approach with Wii Fit, I would usually play a few minigames as a warm up or cool down for my Adventure Mode sessions. There were moments where I played the minigames separately, but that was mostly to best the scores of my friends. One that I really adored was Robo-Wrecker, which is more or less a Ring-Con version of Whack-a-Mole. You would use the Ring-Con to steer two hammers and bash the heads of robots. Bootstrap Tower is another highlight. It is here that you push down the Ring-Con to climb a tower. Depending on how you push, you will climb a certain distance upwards, allowing you to earn points and climb the ladder. In all honesty, there wasn't one minigame I disliked, and they made for great party games. It is easy to hand off the Ring-Con and let others give it a go themselves.
Finally, there is the Sets option. It is here that you choose a selection of exercises, based on certain muscle groups, and perform them to the best of your abilities. Similarly to how you do them in the Fit Battles, you will have to do each individual exercise for a certain amount of time to complete them. When there wasn't a day with a lot of time to keep moving, I would use this option to train specific parts for the day. You can create your own custom workout with all the options available, allowing you to string ten exercises together at once. The great thing about Sets is that it scales to your ability. Players can pick from either a Casual or Hardcore option, allowing you to play at your own pace.
As far as looks are concerned, Ring Fit Adventure knows how to make a strong impression. Personally, I adore the visual look of the game with its stylized characters and lush backgrounds. Your main character's expressions can be a little goofy at times, but overall, Ring Fit Adventure is a colorful journey worth seeing through. What helps is that the music really helps to sell the world. The Fit Battle theme is one of my favorite tunes this year, and easily makes my head bop while choosing attacks.
Ring Fit Adventure is the real deal. In these initial weeks, I easily spent way too long getting through the worlds day by day. I was encouraged to do so as exercises were extremely inviting, and never made me feel left behind. While I would wish that the Story Mode offered a few more attacks, I can't deny how I adored exploring all the options available. In addition, Quick Play offers even more things for you to do, making the package extremely wide in scope. Even at that, however, Ring Fit Adventure never loses sight of its main goal: making moving your body accessible to players of all skill levels. In that sense, Ring Fit Adventure simply hits it out of the park and never looks back. I couldn't believe how well it scaled to my needs, which Nintendo deserves a lot of praise for. Spectacular stuff through and through.
The original Cat Quest provided some of the most fun times I've ever had. Myself and a mate would go through the game without stopping, and the memory of it brings a smile to my face. Cat Quest is a quirky and lovely action RPG that I found myself heavily invested in. We enjoyed the puns, simple combat, and overall intrigue of the product. Now with a sequel on the horizon, did I enjoy it equally as much? Well yes. It was certainly great.
In Cat Quest II, you control both a cat and a dog. These rulers of their respective empires have been flung away with tyranny having taken over. While the ultimate goal is to regain their thrones, there is a lot that goes on in building up to that point. The charm comes from the characters you meet, who deliver their lines with care. Some serve as nothing more than givers of quests, but developer The Gentlebros managed to give everyone a distinct role. Usually, I tend to focus on the action and the task at hand, but the puns would really break me. In a good way, of course.
The meat of the experience, however, is the action RPG gameplay. When it comes to controlling our fluffy friends, not much has changed. The player will roll, walk and attack with the same impact. There’s nothing wrong with that, though, as the original did its job extremely well. You could be fooled into thinking that the game hasn't added many mechanics, which is only sort of true. The brand new weapon types are a godsend, allowing you to use dual-handed weapons and magic wands. The former in particular are fantastic, allowing you to trade speed for power. As I am guy who relies on speed, adjusting to the flow of this style felt refreshing. If you are with a buddy, you can even combine certain strats.
And that is a point I have to make: the game never loses sight of being enjoyable. While your character has health bars and has to deal with enemies of various sizes, your punishment for failure is simply being pushed back a little. When working together, players can easily revive or heal each other, if they have the right tools at hand. When it comes to combat, you have one weapon and then four extra spells that will force you to use mana wisely. You can upgrade every possible option, try out different weapons, and find your own way to play. The only thing that made me feel ho-hum is your AI-based buddy. While it will attack and help you out, I felt I was doing better alone in single-player mode. It made certain bosses that teensy bit harder, which came with some annoyances.
Back to the positives, Cat Quest II just glides at a nice pace. The game now has two distinct worlds to explore, but that never feels like a hindrance. The maps offer densely packed overworlds with towns, characters, and enemies. They are also dungeons to find in which you will have to fight your way out and gather some important loot. Obviously for the dungeons and quests, you will need to keep your character's level in mind, but I found it almost daring to go into them while being underleveled. Most of the time I came out unscathed, due to having a sound strategy coming in. That is, I believe, the beauty of Cat Quest II. It isn't hard to get into, but if you want to dive deeply into its systems, you totally can.
Cat Quest II runs and looks great on Switch. The colorful visuals shine nicely on the system and highlight its continuous world. This isn't a huge surprise as the previous game performed just as nicely. In addition to being visually attractive, Cat Quest II has a nice selection of new music that really meshes well with the feline adventure.
Cat Quest II is a great improvement over the original. The game offers a teensy bit more variety and a bigger world, so it starts trucking almost instantly. I do wish that your AI co-op buddy was a bit more competent, but that’s a minor gripe. All in all, though, the time flew by and the smile stayed on my face through almost the entire playthrough. This action RPG promises a wonderful treat if you're looking for a pretty dense game.
Earlier this month, I told you everything you needed to know about Luigi's Mansion 3. In the hands-on article, I laid out my general feelings and, to be honest, those really haven't changed too much. The big difference is that I can elaborate a bit on certain aspects and give my final thoughts on the overall experience. Luigi's Mansion is essentially a great game with some incredibly deflating moments. There are moments where I absolutely love what I'm seeing, but not every moment was created equal I'm afraid.
Luigi's Mansion 3 opens with Luigi and friends accepting an invitation to a fabulous hotel called the Last Resort. You will get introduced Hallen Gravely, the hotel’s owner, and even get to see the initial inner workings of the place. After those baby steps, Luigi's Mansion 3 goes deep into its ghost-hunting roots. King Boo shows up, traps all of Luigi's friends in paintings, and you have to rescue them. You quickly run into Professor E. Gadd, and together you make a plan to get to the top of the hotel. If you're expecting anything more than that, well prepared to be disappointed. The game plays its cards almost instantly and bets on gameplay for the majority of the adventure. There is something clean about that approach, but I do feel the hints could've been more spread out. When you know the eventual endgame, the journey toward it feels less impactful.
Where I think Luigi's Mansion 3 falters is in not pushing the envelope far enough. Don't get me wrong: it is an enjoyable video game, but I sometimes get the feeling that the developers left potential on the table. If you want a good example of this, you won't have to look further than The Dance Hall floor. While the set-up is incredibly neat—ghosts with groovy outfits swinging back and forth—it is nothing more than that and a boss battle. There is a hallway where you will do additional collecting, but the floor is over before you know it. On the flipside, however, I do honestly feel that there are floors to be admired in all of this. Paranormal Productions is also a tightly-knit floor, but it formed one long puzzle that was incredibly novel in concept. Another floor, the Garden Suites, sees you traveling up a gigantic staircase and entering a variety of rooms. And when I say variety, every single area does something fun and unique.
Luckily, there is enough that the adventure pulls off without a hitch. The various gameplay elements are really fantastic and put me right into the action. There is a fine line between battling and puzzle-solving that comes very naturally, without making a wrong step. The puzzles use mechanics like the Dark-Light, Strobulb, and the brand new Suction Cup. I wouldn't say I was overly challenged, but I always had to do a solid stroll around before picking up on the next step. An important note is that a good chunk of the puzzles require the help of Gooigi. Whether you're playing in co-op or not, you will need this even greener friend to get past certain challenges. It was far from a bother to me, but I do think it affected the difficulty just a tad. In any case, I do find solo and co-op play have their own specific benefits.
When it comes to controlling the game, I have nothing but nice things to say, frankly. Luigi's Mansion 3 uses the improvements made in the previous entry but builds upon them to further refine the journey. You control your green friends with the joysticks, use ZL and ZR to push air out and suck in, and use the buttons to activate all kinds of functions. What I adore are the details. When you suck up an item that you can shoot, you now have a reticle to showcase where you will be firing that item. Another grand inclusion is the Slam. The feature allows you to damage ghosts multiple times in quick succession. You can even hit other ghosts with the ghost you are currently slamming, making them lose hit points in the process. Even now, after wrapping up the game, I can't stop smiling about it.
If you are only planning to complete the story, Luigi's Mansion 3 takes roughly ten hours to complete. Within those ten hours, you will have seen every floor and fought every boss all the way to the top of the hotel. I found the length reasonable, though there are two asterisks. First, as I said earlier, the game plays its cards way too soon. Secondly, and more importantly, the endgame left me feeling a teensy bit flat. It wasn't bad in any shape or form, and the ending was kind of cute, but not as spectacular as the previous two games in the series. For completionists, there is mostly good news. Unlike Luigi's Mansion 2, where every level had multiple collectibles to snag, the Switch game has streamlined the entire process. Every floor has specific gem stones to find, while the entire hotel spreads around its fair share of Boos. It is a much better method of doing things, and some collectibles are very cleverly hidden.
In addition to the Story Mode, Luigi's Mansion 3 offers two more options to sink your teeth into. First of all, we have the ScreamPark. There are three minigames available in this attraction, and honestly they are just okay. In Coin Floating, players will blow up a floaty and try to collect as many coins as they possibly can. The trick is that if you touch just a single mine, you will lose all your progress and have to start collecting all over again. The trick is to blow up your opponents and have the playing field all for yourself. Ghost Hunt sees players defeating ghosts to earn points. Depending on the ghosts you collect, you will earn more points along the way. The monstrous red ones are worth 12 points, for example. This was likely my favorite minigame as it made fighting the ghosts a battle of who can do it the best. There are even items and hidden ghosts in gravestones to add an additional twist. Lastly, there is Cannon Barrage. You will load up cannons, shoot at targets and score points. The trick is to keep stealing your opponent's balls so that they can't make any progress. While I thought that the idea was cool, the scope was far too limited. With just two cannons, there is a lot of scrambling going on.
As well, and more importantly, we have the ScareScraper multiplayer mode. While this makes a return from the previous outings, the mode's scope has been heavily reduced. The version in Luigi's Mansion 2 had multiple modes to play through including Hunter Mode (where you solely collected ghosts) and Polterpup Mode (where you chase those adorable ghost dogs). In addition, there were updates you could get for your gear and rising stacks for up to 25 floors. The new version strips it down to the basics with four different objectives being mixed and matched. You will try to capture all the ghosts, find a certain amount of money, defeat a bunch of crows, or save four Toads. The number of floors you can climb won't go higher than 5 or 10, even if you pick the random option.
With mechanics out of the way, I do think that ScareScraper is still very enjoyable. The mode can be played over either local wireless or online, both with randoms or friends. It is even possible to bring a friend along and let them play as Gooigi, making this effectively an eight- player mode. In a lot of ways, I felt that ScareScraper was actually harder than the main campaign. The team really has to work together, give each other their own objectives, and finish the floor within the allotted time. There are traps and random events that you will constantly have to deal with, too. For example, you might experience a complete power outage, which makes the entire floor hard to see. To help you on your way, there are seven different objects that you can pick up. My favorite is the Power Star as it allows to destroy a ghost simply by touching them. Great stuff.
Luigi's Mansion 3 is absolutely on point when it comes to its presentation. The various character models, environments, and overall look really bring the hotel theme home. The expressive animations are adorable, and gave me some fuzzy feelings all the way through. Luigi's Mansion 3 runs without a hitch either, which makes the visual experience even better. Regardless of what you’re looking for with this game, it certainly knows how to make a first impression. The same goes for the music, which fits well with its various themes. The theme on the Dance Floor was absolutely hilarious, mostly due to the ghost feeling the groove and strolling along.
Luigi's Mansion 3 is a fun time, but not without its fair share of faults. While the gameplay and presentation deserve my highest praises, there are elements I'm less high on. The good and underutilized floors keep going back and forth without there being a real consistent pattern. It doesn't exactly help that the game gives away its conclusion too soon, way before you even come close to it. The ScareScraper is a lovely time as well, though with content being strapped back for a singular, clean game mode. Players who want to continuously enjoy the game might be better off trying to 100% the Story Mode. The collectibles are nicer to deal with now, which makes exceeding those initial ten hours not even a problem. Oh, and that Slam attack is pretty incredible as well.
Before I dive into Ring Fit Adventure, I should give some context about myself. While I'm a video game player because I like playing games, I also play for a different reason. From birth, my motor and balance skills have been lacking in a significant manner. From very early on, my parents realized that video games are a force of good in that regard. When Wii Fit arrived on the scene, the conversation became even better as I was able to grind out all of my needs. It may sound silly to hear, but Wii Fit U is one of my most played video games. Until the moment Ring Fit Adventure arrived in my grubby hands, I played it every two days. I did a variety of activities that were tailored to my specific needs. The big question for me was: can Ring Fit Adventure replace the schedule I held on to for six years? The answer is yes.
The significance of Ring Fit Adventure sits in its care. Right when you start up the game's Adventure Mode, the game takes the time to teach all the basics, the freedom of movement you have with the Ring-Con, and what you will do with it. The player gets to decide the strength they want, which was a godsend for me. You see, I had to adjust to what Wii Fit wanted out of me. This wasn't particularly easy, because skilled I'm certainly not. In Ring Adventure, I could set my level to 25 out of 100 and still feel I'm not spoken down to. I've always had a slight physical handicap, which I will gladly acknowledge, but this is the first fitness game where I feel I can take this into account. The lessened strength allows me to complete, play and enjoy the ride that the game provides. That feeling is awesome.
Where Wii Fit U feels like a grind, Ring Fit Adventure doles out constant reward. The game's Adventure Mode is one of the most joyous things I've played in a while. Every level is packed with different scenery, obstacles to deal with, and most importantly, variety. The levels themselves feels like a workout with you jogging between the various segments and battles. As someone who can't keep up jogging longer than 20-25 minutes, the adjustable sliders were enough to make a believer out of me. In those moments where I really couldn't take it, I switched the game to Silent Mode, where I did little squats to keep my upper legs moving. It felt I could still participate even in my moments of absolute weakness.
The battles are great in this regard too. While I can't do crazy stuff with my legs, for example in the yoga exercises, Ring Fit Adventure is totally okay with that. Before you go into the stages, you can pick which moves you want to bring into battle. While it may take longer when facing certain enemies, I really didn't mind the trade. In fact, it made me work harder within these harsher circumstances. It is a road to the top where you are constantly learning to make the best out of the moves available. There are moments where I unquestionably struggled, but it made me a better player in the long run. The thing here is that I keep pushing myself, which barely happens for me honestly.
Sincerely though, you can't do much else than push yourself. With Wii Fit U, I got a pat on the back even if I know I didn't do it justice. While the game tried to celebrate, I was a bit miffed in the back of my mind. Ring Fit Adventure's room for error is smaller, particularly when it comes to performing certain moves. You can't cheat your way out of a victory, and you have to work for it. Now, I know what some would say: ''can't you just lower the Ring-Con's difficulty to its lowest point?'' Here is the thing though: that is all on you. If you are actively participating and adjust it to your level, I have no reason to believe you can easily win. The Ring-Con and Leg-Strap work together to ensure that simply doesn't happen.
Ring Fit Adventure thrives not just at being a great entry fitness game, but an enjoyable video game in general. The game's Adventure Mode excels at making every exercise feel different. The journey may seem linear on a television screen, but in my mind, I'm playing a fitness arcade game. I have to run, time jumps, perform special moves and participate in the Fit Battles. Along the way, I have to keep up and blow up crates and attack certain objectives to keep the ball rolling. While I was playing, I wasn't thinking: ''I am playing a fitness game''. Instead, I was focus on the task at hand like I would in a regular title. The story elements are nice, but the gameplay loop is what really kept the ball rolling. Between the regular levels, you are even provided with special challenges and minigames to break the mold.
Speaking of minigames, all the other options are quite entertaining as well. You can train specific parts of your body with Tests, special weird moves with the Ring-Con in the Minigames and perform Sets of specific moves. You can even combine a variety of these exercises to create a fitness program on the fly. I found myself mostly attached to Tests. You will have to pull out all the stops on certain muscle groups and do them as many times as possible within a time period. It is very easy to challenge your friends that way and see who can do the moves the best. That being said, the minigames are pretty enjoyable as well. Some only use the Ring-Con, so they can be enjoyed in a more casual setting. There is a fun one where you have to blow up boxes and clear screens within a strict amount of time. The keyword here is variety. There is tons to do, and I haven't done all of it yet. Ring Fit Adventure is a big time sink, and I'm ready to put in the work!
All in all, however, I'm charmed by what I played of Ring Fit Adventure. Never did I dare to hope that a fitness product would be this fun. As a player, I felt actively involved in Adventure Mode. The various levels felt fun to play through, and the battling made for strong breakaway moments. What I'm more impressed by however is how versatile it is. The game plays to its overall strengths and does so like it is almost nothing. On that aspect alone, I can't help but be impressed at what they've done with Ring Fit Adventure. I can enjoy myself without being left out, which was frankly my biggest fear going in.
Luigi's Mansion is a Nintendo series that I really adore. When the original game launched in May 2002 in Europe, I couldn't stop playing. With my initial rounds, it took a while to see every little bit of the world. Every room did something unique, and the bosses were delightfully bizarre. I still have warm fuzzy memories when I think back on that first stepping stone. Luigi's Mansion 2 is one of my favorite Nintendo 3DS games ever. While there were a few control niggles, the game was loaded with content. I might be one of the few people that enjoyed the mission structure, and after replaying it half a year ago, I still think it’s worth your time and money. My experiences with the previous two titles are what got me excited for the new Luigi's Mansion 3, which seems to combine gameplay styles of the previous two titles. Is it everything I wanted and more? Not exactly, even if it is quite enjoyable.
In Luigi's Mansion 3, Luigi and friends accept an invitation to a fabulous hotel called the Last Resort. The player is greeted by Hallen Gravely, the hotel’s owner, and even gets to explore the hotel just a tiny bit. After the initial moments, the game goes into second gear and plunges fully into its ghost hunting mode. King Boo shows up, traps all of Luigi's friends in paintings and you will have to rescue them. You quickly run into Professor E. Gadd, and together you make a plan to get to the top of the hotel. Storywise, that’s mostly it. The journey hasn't really surprised me in any way, despite being streamlined and falling moment to moment squarely between the first and second games.
That is honestly my main complaint with Luigi's Mansion 3 so far. The game dips nowhere near an average experience and is even quite an enjoyable romp. That being said, I can't help but feel slightly disappointed. Not at the set-up, because I understand that a streamlined introduction makes it easier to pick up. There is, however, wasted potential when it comes to some of the individual floors in the hotel. Let's take the Fourth Floor, The Great Stage, as an example. If you solely plan to go through the story, the floor is basically a couple of rooms and a big boss. The boss is really solid though, seeing you fighting a musician ghost that does some neat tricks.
On the flipside, I do also believe that some floors are incredibly smart in their setup. My favorite of the bunch is the Garden Suites. While it may look like one floor on a digitized map, it is actually a huge staircase in which you enter various rooms. These suites are overgrown with nature, so you will have to suck up leaves and destroy watermelons along the way. By clearing out those rooms, you will slowly work your way to the top and prepare for the boss fight that awaits. The ultimate goal on every floor is getting a lift button, allowing you to access one location further up the chain. There is a constant drive to push onward and see that next floor as the lift button always remains clearly in sight.
Honestly, I do see the floors as a substitute for the missions in Luigi's Mansion 2 and not the mansion in the original. While you can freely move between floors, there is a buffer/loading screen before you enter the next section. There is some play between the various floors later on, but otherwise they are handled as separate entities. It is a solid compromise for those who prefer one of the previous games over the other, allowing them to enjoy this third entry in their own way. As for me, I am solely going for the story my first trip around the hotel. It keeps the action going and ensures that the journey feels like one continuous experience.
That being said, the collectibles got a significant overhaul as some didn't enjoy the way they were laid out in Dark Moon. All throughout the hotel are Boos hidden on specific floors. You will have to touch a specific object, after which a Boo will spill a one-liner. The way you catch these white entities is different now too, forcing you to suck up the tongue and swing them around like a ragdoll. In addition, every floor has a specific number of gems, giving you something to fall back upon. They are very deviously hidden, forcing you to use every gameplay trick available to you. Where Luigi's Mansion 3 wants to excel is replay value; long after you finish the main campaign there are still reasons to book another stay at the hotel. The trick is working for me so far as I keep hanging around on each floor to get every single collectible.
One thing that Luigi's Mansion games are known for is the puzzles. As far as Luigi's Mansion 3 is concerned, I do think they are quite enjoyable. A floor like Paranormal Productions is just one gigantic puzzle that forces you to figure out a specific pattern. Another ''A-ha!'' moment is seeing hidden rooms on the map and finding out how you can access them. You will need to use every trick in the book including the Dark-Light, Strobulb, and the brand new Suction Cup. They are never tricky per se, but they flow well enough without the feeling you're being treated with kid gloves.
An important thing to bring up is that a good chunk of the puzzles require the use of Gooigi. Regardless of whether you're playing in co-op or not, you will need the gelatinous helper to get past certain obstacles. Personally, I didn't mind this as much, but I do think it impacted the difficulty just a tiny bit. You can add or remove Gooigi as it suits you, creating some entertaining plays in the process. For example, if I was about to get knocked out, I would ensure that the boss would focus its attack on my green companion instead. When you're playing in co-op, I do think that some of these strategies come more naturally. In that regard, this is quite a good title to play with a friend on the same screen. Don't worry though, the game is perfectly playable solo.
The gameplay we've seen over the past months hasn't really changed, but I do want to say how wonderful it feels to play. Luigi's Mansion 3 has been built on the foundations of the previous entries, but it’s further refined to allow for variety in the proceedings. During my journey, I've been using the Pro Controller and it feels absolutely wonderful. You control your green friends with the joysticks, use ZL and ZR to out suck out and in, and use the buttons to activate various functions. The changes are in the details. When you bring an item closer to you, the game will now showcase a reticle to show where you will be shooting the item. This helps for the environmental puzzles where you have to find items, aim them correctly, and then carry on.
Another important inclusion is the Slam, allowing you to damage ghosts in quick succession multiple times. Even now, several hours in, I'm still in love with defeating ghosts with this ability. The way that you can hit multiple ghosts is honestly a lot of fun and a very clever mechanic. As mentioned before, the Suction Shot is a new way of solving puzzles. By shooting a plunger with the Y-button and then reeling it back in, you can open new doors for yourself or sometimes Gooigi. The Burst, another important ability mentioned at an early stage, isn't as utilized as you may think. That being said, by blowing all the enemies back at once, you do have a lot more crowd control, which is useful when multiple ghosts start to gang up on you.
The final addition to the gameplay is the Virtual Boo, a parody of the Virtual Boy. The device allows you to stay in direct contact with Professor E. Gadd, just in case you need a hint or two. In addition to the E. Gadd Hotline, you will find a comprehensive map of the entire facility as well as a guide for the finer details of the game. Most importantly, you can go back to E. Gadd's portable lab in the basement in a flash. Traveling back might be important for looking at the Gallery of collected ghosted or for purchasing items that can help you find Gems and save you from certain defeat. You can instantly travel back from your last location to the lab and back, without losing much time in the process.
In addition to the single-player campaign, there are two more options worth taking a look at. First of all, there is the ScareScraper multiplayer mode, which makes a return from the previous game. The mode can be played over either local wireless or online, both with randoms or friends. It is even possible to bring a friend along and let them play as Gooigi, making this effectively an eight player mode. Players will be tasked with climbing various towers, each with 5 or 10 floors each. The floors presented are different every time you play, and will come with a variety of objectives. This includes capturing all the ghosts, finding a certain amount of money or saving a bunch of Toads. Even without the boundaries of the presented objectives, the game may surprise you with the enemies you have to face.
In my experience, I found the journey through the ScareScraper a lot harder than the regular single-player campaign. You really have to work together to survive or you won't make it. The levels are filled with traps, like making you stuck behind a door or rolling you inside a carpet. Getting out of these jams will require the help of somebody else, so you better stay close to each other. On the higher levels, you might find yourself stripped of your Poltergust or facing a complete power outage. Sometimes you might want to go for big points yourself, and there are seven items that can help with that, such as the Dark-Light Goggles that allow you to see ghosts at any time, the Power Star that destroys them instantly, and the timer that extends the playing time on the current floor. With these and more at hand, you will have no problem surviving.
Finally, we have the ScreamPark. There are three minigames available, and frankly they are just all right. In Coin Floating, players will blow up a floaty and try to collect as many coins as they possibly can. The trick is that if you touch just a single mine, you will lose all your progress and have to start collecting all over again. The trick is to blow up your opponents and have the playing field all for yourself. Ghost Hunt sees players defeating ghosts to earn points. Depending on the ghosts you collect, you will earn more points along the way. The monstrous red ones are worth 12 points, for example. This was likely my favorite minigame as it made fighting the ghosts a battle of who can do it the best. There are even items and hidden ghosts in gravestones to add an additional twist. Lastly, there is Cannon Barrage. You will load up cannons, shoot at targets and score points. The trick is to keep stealing your opponent's balls so that they can't make any progress. While I thought that the idea was cool, the scope was way too limited. With two just two cannons, there is a lot of scrambling going on.
Luigi's Mansion 3 looks absolutely stellar when it comes to its presentation. The various character models, locales and overall look really bring the hotel theme home. The entire game runs without a hitch either, which is certainly nice to see. Regardless of what you’re looking for with this game, Luigi's Mansion 3 certainly knows how to make a first impression. The same goes for the music, which fits well with its various themes and battling the ghosts.
Luigi's Mansion 3 is a strong game, but I need more time to fully assess things. I'm not high on some of the floors and there is a decided lack of spectacle. Does that make it a bad game? Far from it. The gameplay is the best it has ever been, and it flows quite nicely overall. ScareScraper also impresses right out of the gate with harder gameplay and a focus on objective-based missions. The minigames are okay, but outside of being nice curiosities, they don't really change my mind on the overall package. These feelings are still developing and I will gladly tell you more later this month.
Becoming a DJ: it might be a dream for many who love mixing music together, but only a select few to get experience the dream for real. Now, everyone can feel the joy of sliding the loops into place with Hexagroove: Tactical DJ, which is a rather refreshing game that recently released on Nintendo Switch. Players use their DJ skills to seamlessly create songs and get the crowd pumping. From how weird it looks on the outside, the game got me invested all the way to the end.
Hexagroove: Tactical DJ sees you managing a circle with various loops within it. Each loop, representing an instrument, needs to be changed at specific points throughout your session. You will do this by selecting them, changing a loop with a face button, and timing the transition at just the right moment. Along the way, players will be introduced to new instruments and get thrown off by sudden changes. The public constantly wants to see shifts in the songs, and will make their displeasure known if you don't oblige. Luckily, you are free to throw in the loops you want. The only thing required of you is maintaining the timing and ensuring that everything flows nicely.
In the beginning, you will find that Hexagroove tries to teach you the ropes. Next to looping instruments, there are colors on the field you will need to pay attention to. If a loop is currently blue, you are doing the best job possible. In those empty moments, a ball will be thrown into the crowd that you will try to keep up high for extra points. That being said, eventually the loops will turn green, forcing you to take action and listening in for when it’s time to switch. This might not come naturally at first, but believe me, it is well worth learning all the way through.
The game sometimes breaks off, and forces you to change all your loops for one big shocker. At that moment, minigames will be offered where you earn perfect blue ratings. These minigames basically act like transitions to the next part of a song, so nailing them really helps. The first minigame is formatted like a typical rhythm game, where you have to press buttons in time with the music. The other sees you traveling across a line, moving the stick to stay on point with the directions. Neither of these is easy, particularly on higher difficulty settings, and may result in a frustrating moment or two.
Despite the various mechanics that you need to keep in mind, I think Hexagroove presents an incredibly satisfying gameplay loop. I felt happy when placing a loop correctly, nailing a minigame or getting the crowd pumped. Every small step requires precision and sees you increasing the end score in a big way. With various musical styles and over 420 musical loops, there was a feeling of excitement every time I booted up a new set. In addition, I found myself practicing with the various styles before doing a proper run, allowing me to create a track I found enjoyable myself. You will need to put in the time to learn Hexagroove's inner workings, but I wouldn't have it any other way.
The only problem with Hexagroove: Tactical DJ's campaign mode is that it’s rather short. With only a number of hours on the counter, I had played at every venue on offer. In the end, the game is highly replayable, but you will quickly go through all the places you can potentially visit. Luckily, the game offers a multiplayer mode where you can work together and create music, as well as a Freestyle option where you can do whatever you want.
Hexagroove: Tactical DJ may take just a little time to explore, but I found it super engaging. This music game requires you to think about every decision you make, and teaches you how you can play the virtual crowd. There are plenty of musical loops and timing elements to keep you replaying levels and going wild in Freestyle. The minigames may prove a little too demanding at points, but that is only a slight niggle in an otherwise superb journey throughout this musical experience. Overall, Hexagroove is a nice surprise through and through.
With the Gunvolt games, I’ve always found myself playing them in passing. Never was I really deeply invested, but the action was enough to keep me going. Personally, I was always more a fan of Inti Creates work on Blaster Master, which I praised any chance I got. Color me surprised when Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX instantly knows how to get me hooked. The action is instantly satisfying, and gave me an adventure that felt satisfying to a tee.
Copen, the main character, is a rather mysterious figure who doesn’t make his motives very clear. In the technologically-advanced world of Luminous Avenger iX, all humans are required to get special powers. Anyone who disagrees is executed by Sumeragi, effectively the ruling class. Copen objects to this reality and tries to take down whoever is willing to harm the common folk. Sumeragi proves a deadly threat that holds nothing back, employing their toughest bosses and a variety of enemies. The story doesn't go much beyond exploring the optics, which I do think is slightly disappointing, but there are plenty of twists and turns. The various characters introduced provide, at a minimum, a nice backdrop to the proceedings.
When it comes to gameplay, Gunvolt Chronicles is very much a winner. What got me particular hooked was the lock-on attack. By dashing into an enemy and then using your gun or special powers, Copen will directly attack that specific foe. It is a look of beauty to glide past a machine and then throw an energy-sucking ball at it. You can also take a few enemy hits before receiving damage thanks to the bullit system There is a certain flow to combat that I really adore, and I felt more in control than ever before. Speaking of controls, Copen moves in an absolutely stellar fashion. His directional air movement can make some impressive maneuvers happen. The mechanic allows you to jump off walls and mark enemies to get those crucial hits in.
For me, the previous Gunvolt games lacked level design that allowed you to play with the tools given. The tools and levels have never been more intertwined than in Luminous Avenger iX. The destruction of enemies is put at the center of the game's design language and doesn't break up the experience in the slightest. The game encourages you to get up close and personal with these enemies, and equips you with a special Overdrive Mode to reward good play. This will restore health, increase attack power, and just looks flashy. If you aren’t as strong a player, not to worry. When your HP hits zero, Gunvolt Chronicles can sometimes activate an Anthem mode. Companion Lola will give Copen access to all of his abilities and unlimited bullits.
The flow of the game is rather excellent. While the story mode is short, roughly three hours, I felt that I was constantly learning. It is the type of thing I was hoping for in this post-Mega Man X environment. You get new weaponry by defeating bosses, smarter at certain tricks, and perform perfect dodges in no time. It helps that the levels are 15 minutes at maximum, so a new flavor awaits you almost instantly. Beyond the story mode, players will get access to harder levels and score-focused options in the post-game. This kept me going for about 8.5 hours, which isn't too shabby.
The presentation is rather excellent when it comes to Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX. The pixel art looks all sorts of fantastic, with clean-looking character models. The levels and Lola tunes were great as well, and just got me in the right mood. Now where I can kick some more Someragi behinds?
Gunvolt Chronicles: Luminous Avenger iX was absolutely grand. While the game is somewhat on the shorter side, various gameplay improvements made this one the best in the series. It is clear that the developers focused on swiftness and getting to the cool stuff as soon as possible. The game flows well as a result, encouraging you to go back and improve your performance in certain stages. The level design and gameplay mechanics make for a very sharp 8.5 hours.
Rhythm games are my bread and butter, which has been a blessing for me on Nintendo Switch. From the crazy antics of VOEZ to the more traditional workings of SUPERBEAT XONiC EX, the selection has been great. So when another game comes around, my first question is always this: what does it add to the landscape? Muse Dash immediately answers that questions without hesitation.
Muse Dash, developed by PeroPeroGames, sees players jumping and slashing at anything that comes their way. The enemy and obstacle placement is layered over a music track, which is what makes the whole thing tick. This might sound straightforward, but you quickly find out that most notes aren't color coded. The enemies come in, and you have to assume where to go. This creates a unique challenge that I really enjoy. That being said, the game doesn't leave you completely in the dark as long notes and normal pick-ups are still clearly indicated.
What I find grand about Muse Dash is the game's initial challenge. For every mistake that you make, you will lose health, which is very costly. You can only make a small number of mistakes before your run goes up in smoke. On the flipside, I felt thoroughly rewarded for staying in the zone as long as I possibly could. The huge combos will not only net you a big score, but also increase the Fever Meter. By maxing it out, the Fever Meter gives you status effects depending on the character and costume you play with. For example, if you are playing in Buro's schoolgirl outfit, you become invincible during that time frame. When Muse Dash initially came out on Switch, you couldn't manually activate Fever Mode. Recently, the game got an update to make this version the one to play.
What isn't a slouch either are the many control options available on the Switch version. Every controller is supported, with touchscreen controls present in handheld mode. While the latter will be very comfortable for those coming from mobile devices, I found myself really clinging to the button controls. The mixture of beat 'em up and music game just made it feel right to play this way. There was something about racing through the menus, selecting the things I wanted to have enabled, and quickly jumping into gameplay.
In terms of Muse Dash's progression system, I have to say that I quite liked it. By finishing up songs, players will earn experience points and steadily level up. This will give you access to new songs and other trinkets to keep the game constantly evolving. The harder difficulties will net you more experience, but I do feel that the easier options really help you to learn the songs. I found the final option, Master difficulty, extremely daunting though. The patterns made me really mad, and it only seems enjoyable for the most hardcore of players. Every song, every difficulty I might add, also offers challenges that force you to pull out your best moves.
Isn't there anything I don't like about Muse Dash? Well, there is one thing honestly. To get access to the costumes and special Elfin helpers, which both grant you special effects, you will need to seek out special items. The way you get these trinkets isn't well explained, forcing you to scramble to find them. Suffice to say, it was a grind to unlock some of these and get the most out of the game. Mind you, it doesn't hurt the gameplay for the most part, but it is something that left me hanging. The music gets you ready for another battle at least, and the game is constantly being updated with new songs to boot.
The presentation of Muse Dash is quite solid. The game has this fun animated style that almost immediately comes into its own. The action is quite well put together, and it really gets you in the groove. The experience is colorful, sharp, and just a joy to behold. That being said, I do think that some English sentences throughout the game could've benefited from a bit more polish. The musical balance of Muse Dash is quite strong. There are a lot of Asian tracks, of course, which you would probably expect from a title like this. Players can offset the balance to their liking, ensuring that they can hit any notes coming their way.
Muse Dash is an entertaining rhythm game that forces the player to constantly act. The notes coming your way aren't for the faint of heart, and there are challenges to keep you looking ahead. The music selection and various options are quite impressive, too, even if I wouldn't dare touch Master difficulty for the life of me. While the progression system is mostly sound, I feel that the grind towards stat-altering costumes is somewhat harsh. In addition, the English text lines could have used a little more editing. Those points aside, this is the most complete experience of Muse Dash yet with a constant stream of updates in the pipeline.
Dragon Quest is one of those RPG franchises that I really adore. A traditional battle system paired with constantly evolving mechanics make for highly entertaining experiences. That is the big takeaway here honestly: Dragon Quest can do no wrong. Nintendo players have certainly been treated to some enjoyable Dragon Quest games, but the main course was yet to arrive. Dragon Quest XI, one of the first games ever to be announced for Switch, has finally come to our doorstep. Is it everything we always wanted and more? Well, yes. It certainly is.
In Dragon Quest XI, the player takes control of the Luminary. The young hero, hailing from the village of Cobblestone, discovers on his 16th birthday a rather important detail. It turns out that he is a reincarnation of the legendary hero who once saved the world. That world, being the land of Erdrea, has been silently awaiting his arrival. A horde of monsters as well as an impending darkness are threatening the balance, and it is up to you to restore it. The journey see you exploring various towns, strongholds, and dungeons. Along the way, you will be joined by a cast of colorful characters that will help fill in the fact that the main character never actually speaks.
While I wouldn't call the set-up the strongest in the series, Dragon Quest thrives on characterization. Every person you meet is incredibly well defined and has motives that immediately become clear to you. In my humble opinion, Dragon Quest XI has some of the best moments in the series' history. You always know where you are by how the characters will speak to you, or how they react to certain elements within the story. While I don't want to give individual elements away, as they are just wonderful, there is a place where everybody talks in haiku for example. Every town does something unique this way, even if it feels nothing more than skin deep at certain moments.
Where the various locations succeed is giving you unique stories to discover. It made me excited for what was coming next, and I constantly felt the need to push forward. While the demo might have given the first true glimpses, the experience becomes fully engrossing just slightly beyond that point. The members in your party and key characters get more time to develop with quests allowing them to do so. They provide a huge backdrop to what the game is actually about: scope.
While the towns are nice and all, the real flavour comes from traversing the world and finding beauty there. The game is quite linear, but you wouldn't know that from a glance. There are passageways to explore, fields to admire, and different architecture that make Erdrea very much a living place. There is a variety in the proceedings, even if you are mostly going from place to place. Players will travel back and forth to the various locations, seeing unique elements with each visit. While I could mark the game down for not being this massive open world, the reality is that it didn't matter to me all too much. I felt constantly involved with what I was doing, which is something you can't say for every game out there.
Dragon Quest XI S can't just live on world building alone, and luckily it doesn't have to. With the game being a JRPG at heart, there are instantly things come to mind. The most important part to mention is that the combat is turn-based. Just like the previous games in the series, you will choose your actions from a menu and decide what is best in the moment. Most of the time, you will find yourself picking an option from the Fight menu and choosing from a variety of attacks, spells, and abilities. You can also choose tactics for the party to follow, where they will act independently, or you can control them yourself. The action is simple yet extremely clean in the process. The player learns as they go, and Dragon Quest XI S ensures that you're well equipped for the next step. The variety of monsters present won't make the challenges ahead easy, but the action won't wind down either.
What I like about Dragon Quest XI S is the sheer quality when it comes to your party. From all the Dragon Quest titles I had the pleasure of playing, I can't think of a more diverse selection than the characters present here. While the hero tries his hand in a little of everything as a physical fighter with offensive and support magic, every other party member is perfect for handling a specific task. Serena is better at healing, while Sylvando likes to fight up close and personal. While the balancing can be a little off sometimes—you can only have four characters in a party—this isn't something that hard work can't fix. Due to a plethora of quality-of-life improvements, grinding isn't as demanding as it once was. You can even let the characters do their thing while you watch, which isn't a bad deal.
An important thing, which isn't uncommon in Dragon Quest games, is that the game never leaves you in the dark. You see, Dragon Quest XI S constantly checks on you in the form of mini bosses, which will prep you for the journey ahead. If you pass with flying colors, no problem. If you’re too weak, it is basically a warning that 'you aren't ready for this part of the journey just yet.' In addition, the game tells you clear as day where to head to, so getting truly lost in this world is pretty much a non-issue. NPCs and even your party always give you clear indications, which doesn't leave much room to think things over yourself. That being said, there are ways around this aspect, allowing you to go and do stuff on your own.
With many ways to explore the world, it is easy to forget how side-quests are a driving force in keeping the game fun. Under normal circumstances, this is mostly extra content that you could skim over or ignore, and it wouldn’t overly hurt your progression. With Dragon Quest XI S, however, that might not be the best idea. The various NPCs will give you unique tasks to deal with, ranging from gifting them specific items to performing certain tasks. A majority of these side objectives will reward you with some pretty handy equipment and items, some even exclusive to the quests. It is totally possible to finish the game without them, but I don't think that it’s wise to do so. You will be missing out on crucial help that will make every next step easier to get through.
The fun doesn't stop there either. Throughout Dragon Quest XI S, there are two casinos where you can try your luck and earn unique prizes. Players can participate to the best of their abilities in Poker, Slots, and Roulette to try and win tokens. With a firm emphasis on ''trying,'' as with real gambling you will need some luck on your side. Another activity that I found really enjoyable is using the Fun-Sized Forge. In this crafting minigame, players will have to hit spots on the equipment with a set of tools, like a blacksmith forging a piece of armor or a sword. If you can manage to do this effectively, the player will be rewarded with better gear. Some special gear can net you a costume or two, which makes using the Forge even more entertaining.
While most of what I’ve said could be applied to the original version as well, I want to dive deeper into the Switch version specifically. The most important one is that both the gameplay styles of the PlayStation 4 and Nintendo 3DS versions are included. The PlayStation 4 style is the modern Dragon Quest style that we know and love, which started with Dragon Quest VIII. The player will explore 3D landscapes and see monsters freely roaming across the land. You also have a better idea of the world around you, which adds atmosphere. New to a console version for the first time is the 2D mode of the Nintendo 3DS version, which only released in Japan. By opting for 2D, players will experience a style that isn't unlike the 16-bit games of yesteryear. Battles are now randomly occurring, like in the original Dragon Quest games, and all the elements can be seen at a glance. I found myself constantly switching back and forth to compare the two views, even if there can be some backtracking involved. You can only start at the beginning of a previous chapter when you switch from one graphical style to the other. While moving across the map is so different in the two styles, you could still feel that this is the same world. At the end of the day, the style you choose depends on your preference.
The number of stories told throughout the journey has been markedly increased as well. There are quests in which you will travel to the worlds of past Dragon Quest, and here you are treated to familiar music and sound effects that aren’t normally found in the main game. Another big inclusion are brand new stories for each party member. There is a point in the game where everybody gets scattered around, but we never got to know what each character did to pass the time, at least in the PS4 and 3DS versions. Brand new stories in the Switch version see party members become the protagonist for a spell and experience some of their own unique adventures along the way. The characters will get their own unique party members to fight with, NPCs they haven't seen before, and some remarkable revelations. They didn't just make this the best version of the game, they added to it in a sizeable way.
To be completely honest, the thing I'm most impressed by is the dedication to make smaller changes. For example, the way Dragon Quest XI S controls is a lot smoother. There is increased movement speed as well as improvements made to the camera, which gave problems in the PlayStation 4 release. The swiftness of battles has also been increased, with a quick menu and a third faster option, allowing you to grind really fast. If you want to explore the world quicker, the player can now call on his horse at almost any time. In addition, there are more rideable monsters, including a Great Sabrecat. While I could go on and on, there are two additions that really made me happy. There is Photo Mode where you take pictures of the characters and place them however you like. More importantly, you can now set costumes on your party without them impacting your overall stats. In the original, this constantly forced me to move on and leave cool looking outfits behind. No more I say. No more!
From a performance perspective, Dragon Quest XI S is quite an impressive feat for a Nintendo Switch title. While it doesn't look as sharp as the PlayStation 4 version, the fact that it can run without barely a hitch is quite good. The game runs strong at 30 frames per second, and barely dropped a beat throughout my 90 hours with the game. The most surprising changes are found in the audio department. The Nintendo Switch version offers a brand new orchestrated soundtrack, which is a far cry from the MIDI music of the other versions. You can freely swap between the two arrangements, and the same goes for both English and Japanese spoken dialogue. It is clear that the developers put in a fair bit of work to make everything look and sound just right.
Dragon Quest XI S is one of the finest RPGs on Switch. With its classic yet refined battle system and plethora of side content, the game can easily keep you chugging along for 100 hours or more. While the world at large may not be all that open, it offers a lot of flair and interesting elements to experience. Everything from entertaining characters to amusing quests, it all comes together in a way such that the journey never slows down. I do feel that the game tries to hold your hand just a teensy bit too much. You can change it in the settings so that some NPCs will start lying to you, but even then, it was hard to really get lost. That is, however, a slight misstep in a game that I adored from beginning to end.
When it comes to Game Boy Zelda games, Link's Awakening is very much my favorite. The fantastical environments and a story that unchains itself from the staples of Zelda lore make for a fun experience. The game is weird and doesn't do anything to hide that fact in the slightest. Still, despite being a wonderful game, it did have its fair share of faults. After all, they did try to put the feel of a 16-bit Zelda into a two button handheld. This made item management a drag and slowed down the flow just a teensy bit much. Now that The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening has gotten a new lease on life with Nintendo Switch, you have to wonder what more has been changed. Indeed, this new version of Link's Awakening makes a lot of positive changes, but that doesn't make the experience a perfect one.
I've said it a few times, but the notion deserves to be repeated: the setting of Link's Awakening is second to none. Koholint island is such a grand place to explore, with unique characters at every step. From the beginning of the game, where you meet Marin and Tarin, the way the game opens up is inherently great. You start exploring your immediate surroundings in Mabe Village, participating in your first activities, and taking baby steps out in the world. You will see Chain Chomps roaming about, Ulrira hiding behind a phone, and even some children playing around. While the world is filled with danger, there is a relaxing feeling that comes from being in the towns and interacting with other characters. Even the ultimate goal, which sees you escaping from the island, doesn't seem that daunting at first. Above all else, the atmosphere created by Link's Awakening is unlike that of any other Zelda game.
What I find charming about Link's Awakening is that I don't have to be urgent. During 16 hours with the game, I found myself quickly going off the intended path. In my opening hour, and this is no joke, I would continuously farm for rupees so that I could fish and play the Trendy claw machine game. Both of these activities are simple by design, but quickly become entertaining due to their simplicity. Naturally, I go far away enough from the intended path as is. Collectibles are an important part of the Zelda mythos, and the Sea Shells and Heart Pieces are cleverly hidden. Sometimes you will have to go through a dungeon fully; other times you will stumble upon them by sheer luck.
Link's Awakening's main course is exploring the huge overworld and its various dungeons, which are the stars of the show. You could say that the overworld is a huge dungeon in itself as well. Koholint Island is a far more connected place than in the Game Boy originals, and almost seamlessly goes from screen to screen. The emphasis here, however, is on ''almost.'' You see, when the Nintendo Switch version tries to load in new areas, the frame rate takes a massive hit. It is basically sliced in half, which is a bit of a nasty problem. The dungeons are exempt from these issues as they load by room, which actually works quite well.
The gameplay loop is the Zelda fare you know, but done in a profound matter. You will navigate through the overworld map, searching for clues and potential puzzles to solve. By completing a string of events, most of the time it will land you the dungeon key you need to enter its respective dungeon. From there, you will move from room to room and find the structure hidden within all the chaos. A key item or mechanic always plays an essential role, and seeing the patterns is equally important. By collecting enough keys, you will eventually find your way to the boss room where an unrelenting challenge awaits. The patterns are fairly doable, but you will need to figure them out as you go. At the end, one of the magical instruments awaits you, giving you the next hint that you require to progress.
What makes the gameplay more enjoyable than the original game is the change in flow. With the limitations of the Game Boy, you constantly had to swap out your equipped items. By the end of the game, this becomes an absolute pain and breaks away from what is generally a very endearing title. The Nintendo Switch release utilizes the full extent of the buttons with the sword, shield and items like the Power Bracelet immediately getting added to your arsenal. The Roc's Feather, which allows players to jump over gaps and obstacles, still has to be equipped. For the majority of the time, that and the item of the moment were the ones equipped. The later dungeons see you combining items in a specific way, but that is something that logical thinking can easily solve.
Speaking of fixes, I could keep talking for ages about them. One that really impresses me is the map screen. As you explore the world, more of the map gets filled in and you can see everything at a glance. It is very easy to zoom, and see what ground you’ve already fully explored. The game offers a memory section, too, allowing you to see the important notes that you’ve received. Koholint Island is equipped with some handy features as well. There are now more warp points than ever before, allowing you to traverse the map more quickly. The island is such a connected but compact place, so to spare you from seeing the same screens too frequently, Nintendo saw fit to simply include more warps.
When it comes to features, there are two big changes as well. First of all, the Photo Store from the Game Boy Color version is no longer there. Instead, we have the Chamber Dungeons. It is here that you can arrange various dungeon rooms together, and create some unique challenges for yourself and others to play. Don't expect a Super Mario Maker-esque mode here, but I did have fun playing through them for the rewards. Dampe constantly gives you new goals to meet, which encourages you to do better every time. Nonetheless, if you really want to share your layouts, you can only do so with an amiibo. A slight bummer, but the Photo Store never played a huge role either. The other added benefit is that Hero Mode is available from the start. By enabling this version of the game, players will not get heart pick-ups and fairies are really hard to come by. I only tinkered around with it a bit, but I do like the heart-pounding tension of Hero Mode.
The presentation of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening isn't perfect, but it is workable. The game looks stellar when it comes to its art style, and the world is beautifully recreated. There are some lush backdrops and almost claymation-esque characters to boot. And oh, Link's smile. How I love Link's smile. If that doesn't touch you, you might not have a soul. On the downside, there is that frame rate issue in the overworld. In addition, Link's Awakening has this weird blur effect at the bottom of the screen that makes everything it touches look odd. It likely ensures that certain elements in the overworld can respawn, but the effect in general really doesn't make me happy. The soundtrack, however, is on point. I adore Link's Awakening's music, and the love the composers have given the game is staggering. They use different flavors, like mixing Game Boy sounds with new instrumental elements, but I'm really behind it.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening, despite its share of technical mishaps, remains one of the most wonderful entries in the series. The charm, gameplay and world building are wonderful to behold and deserve to be seen. The selection of smart fixes makes the game less of a grind and mostly an experience that keeps on trucking. While I don't think much of the Chamber Dungeons and other added trinkets, the refinements made to the overall flow make the journey worth it. For newcomers or Zelda veterans, Link's Awakening is a hoot from beginning to end.
The Legend of Zelda titles on the Game Boy handheld line were my jam. I've played the Oracle games and of course Link's Awakening countless times over the years. If I'm being completely frank with myself, I've played the games so much to really notice how simple yet bold the design choices were. They took a thrilling no-filler approach, which still clicks with me to this very day. When the remake of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening was announced, you better believe I was excited. There are fuzzy memories when it comes to exploring Koholint Island, especially the finer points of the adventure. How does all of this translate to the Nintendo Switch version? Well, mostly in a profound way.
If you have never played Link's Awakening, you're in for quite an extravagant adventure. What makes the game so unique in the Zelda mythos is how weird it is. The game takes place far away from Hyrule: Koholint Island. These unique surroundings make for a journey filled with unique characters and otherworldly references that I still find immediately striking. The ultimate goal in Link's Awakening is to wake up the Wind Fish and escape the island safely. To do this, the player will need to go through various dungeons and collect magical instruments. It is entirely possible to head straight for the main objectives, but obviously there is a lot to see and do off the beaten path.
Outside of getting to the Wind Fish, you can easily lose yourself in what the island offers you. I quickly found myself swapping items with the various inhabitants as part of a sizeable trading quest or playing the Trendy Game claw machine. There are also Secret Seashells and the usual array of Heart Pieces to find. Personally, however, I absolutely adore the fishing minigame in Link's Awakening. You throw out a line, capture your target by reeling in as quick as you can, and earn a pretty penny doing so. The game gives you that freedom, too, as there are no restrictions on much money you can carry. There are other items that do have limited uses, but you will soon find that they are upgradable.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening glides along very nicely for the most part. You will explore the overhead map, find clues to the next location by solving overworld puzzles and head into various dungeons with all the swiftness you can muster. It must be said, however, that there is a difference of feel when you compare the overworld with the dungeons. The overworld is seen as one singular location in the game, tasking you with traversing large parts of the map. Link’s Awakening will try to load things in this large scale location, making the game suffer from some frame rate dips. The dungeons see you moving from room to room with a split second to transition. Overall, the interior settings of the game seems to run a lot smoother.
The various gameplay elements are the star of the show. Link's Awakening starts off with familiar staples, the sword and shield, and you quickly start building from there. For example, in the Tail Cave early on, you will get access to the Roc's Feather. Once equipped, it allows you to jump over gaps and find new ways to explore a dungeon. The Bottle Grotto introduces the Power Bracelet, which allows you to pick up and throw heavy jars, which is an important theme in this location. Every dungeon does something intriguing and plays with expectations, forcing you to use the new mechanics you just learned. The second dungeon sees you fighting a genie where the Power Bracelet is, naturally, a required piece of equipment.
That brings us to the biggest change in The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening: you don't have to equip much of anything anymore. In the original outing, you had two slots to equip any tools you needed in that moment. Outside of the feather, which requires a Y or X button press, everything is just stacked on top of Link's abilities. The Power Bracelet is a good example of this as you will now lift up anything when you get close and press the A-button. The general feeling is this change in the remake truly benefits the flow of the game. In the original, a good chunk of the adventure was spent rearranging your inventory slots, which has minimized in the remake. I see this solely as an improvement that makes the game more welcoming to all without throwing away its difficulty curve.
The map has been very much improved as well. As you go out and explore the island, the map will be slowly filled in, making it much easier to backtrack. You can zoom in, place markers at specific locations on the map and see where you need to go at a glance. In addition, there is a Memories menu. Here you can read the advice you were given by the Owl, Marin, and many other characters. You won't see the cutscenes again but are just given the information you need to remind yourself of where to go. The player will also be able to see all of the collected items, so you're completely caught up on where you're heading.
The appearance of The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening seems to represent two sides of the same coin. Personally, I think the game looks great from an art style point of view. The world has been delightfully recreated with lush backdrops and claymation-esque characters. The game just made me feel warm and fuzzy inside. That said, there is a decided frame rate issue in the overworld. In addition, there is this weird blur effect at the bottom of the screen that makes everything it touches look odd. It likely ensures that certain elements in the overworld can respawn, but the effect in general really didn't sit right with me.
All in all though, I am really enjoying The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening remake. Sure, this might be the straight up Game Boy Color DX version just in HD, but the game holds up surprisingly well. The room structure of the dungeons makes everything snappy and a joy to play. Add to that, the wonderful cast of characters and the various side quests you can undertake, and you’ve got a journey that is a real hoot. Naturally, the graphical mishaps are disappointing, but it didn't take away much of everything else that I enjoyed.
Just knowing that The Witcher 3 is coming to Nintendo Switch is very exciting. The open world action RPG is a meaty experience that gives with an absolutely expensive area to explore. The narrative, which is equally as impressive, gives you various branching paths that can lead you to 36 different endings. The Witcher 3 is a tremendous game with a lot going for it, and playing on the go is obviously very tantalizing. That being said, the big question is how it will run on a mobile platform. At Gamescom 2019, I finally got my question answered and the results were quite positive overall.
If you’ve never played The Witcher 3, here’s the deal. It’s an action game played from a third-person perspective. By controlling Geralt of Rivia, you get access to some well established combat options. There are two kinds of swords to play with, some melee combat and five magical spells. The Witcher 3 is all about using these, as well as your movement possibilities, to explore the Continent. The fantasy world sees all kinds of creatures co-exist, but a war is seemingly ripping the world apart. Geralt will be aided by various allies to uncover the Wild Hunt, a group of specialized warriors, as well as his adopted daughter Ciri. The world itself has countless things to keep you busy, with missions, minigames and NPCs waiting at every step.
Instead of focusing on features though, I rather discuss how the game performs on Nintendo Switch. The game was taxing on other platforms, something that won't come as a surprise to those with the technical know how. On Switch, the game normally sits around in the range 30 frames per second, particularly if you are playing while docked. In handheld mode, frames per second will dip by a slight margin once in awhile, but not by much. The draw distance, might be a bit less from the other consoles, but the amount you can see impressed me. Every enemy and NPC remains rendered as before too, though they will pop in once you're closer to them.
In the grand scheme of things, I am rather impressed by how the game scales to the system. While impressive ports are quite common on Switch, the compromises made didn't effect The Witcher 3 as much as I thought. In fact, when talking to the developers, they mostly said that it came down to working around the memory inside the hybrid console. It took a lot of time to ensure that cutscenes and such elements would perform to their high standards. Add to the fact that the entire game, plus downloadable content, fits on a singular 32GB card. I was just left very impressed with the work done by Saber Interactive, who made the game run on a less powerful system than it’s used to.
While playing on Switch, both docked and in handheld, I immediately felt transported back to The Continent. I've spent a silly amount of time on the Xbox One version, and everything felt like I remembered it. That being said, I found it hard to keep track of the enemies in handheld mode. As most are of equal stature as Geralt, they might become difficult to spot sometimes. Text, on the other hand, was surprisingly readable and gave me zero issues. On the television, you see the imperfections of the port a bit more, but the fact that I can pick it up and walk out the door with it remains incredibly novel.
The Witcher 3 seems to run quite well on Nintendo Switch. While certain elements needed to be changed, I can't help but be impressed with the work done. On a television, it runs on a solid 720p and 30fps, which really isn't bad at all. While handheld lowers the resolution to 540p and has some rougher edges, I couldn't help but devote even more hours to the title. It helps that The Witcher 3 is such an incredible game, with tons of stories and gameplay elements to explore. When the game launches on October 15, I'm ready to go all in.
Nostalgia is a powerful feeling. Those rose-tinted glasses are hard to put down when you’re returning to a familiar world that you grew up with as a child. For myself, the original Battle for Bikini Bottom is one of those nostalgic titles. Coming over to my friend’s house every day after school, we struggled our way through the world of Bikini Bottom. Collecting all the shiny objects, defeating the robotic versions of Spongebob’s friends and unlocking new powers for the yellow sponge and his friends. Of course, going back to the original game now, it’s not nearly as beautiful and smooth as I remember it in my mind. Luckily, the upcoming remake Spongebob Squarepants: Battle for Bikini Bottom – Rehydrated (Rehydrated from now on), has somehow made the game look the way I remember it.
Purple Lamp Studios, who are developing the game, have been very meticulous in their recreation of Bikini Bottom. This game is not just a simple port or a remaster. It’s a full remake from the ground up. This has been quite a challenge for the team, since they are working without the original source code or any of the old developers from the original title. Every single asset has been faithfully recreated to look exactly like the original, but they have been given a beautiful new coat of paint. The colors pop out and make the Jellyfish fields look like a scene straight from the cartoon.
But more impressive is the game’s feel. Spongebob’s attacks and movement always had a very specific weight to them. This allowed the player to combine these moves to move around the map like crazy. Combining the spin attack into the roll allowed Spongebob to do some incredible jumps. The developers are planning to allow for the same types of movement as in the original. Of course, you can also still play as both Patrick the Starfish and Sandy the Squirrel, who each have their own unique ability that allows them to explore new parts of the level.
As for new additions, the game will feature all the cut content from the original. This includes about four levels and a boss fight against Robo Squidward. There will be a multiplayer mode as well for two players. This mode can be played offline or with local multiplayer and will include a horde mode, in which you fight of waves of robotic enemies. For the switch port of the game, the developers are targeting a locked 60fps for both handheld and docked mode, but they could not fully confirm this just yet.
It remains to be seen how engaging Rehydrated will be for those who haven’t played the original. For me, it fills a void of 3D platformers that can be easily picked up and played. The game looks to be very accessible, but I’m wondering if the new levels will also bring a little bit of a challenge to the game. My nostalgic feelings for Battle for Bikini Bottom have certainly been met, but whether Rehydrated’s gameplay will keep me engaged for long enough remains to be seen.
Considering how prevalent the seasons are a part of our ecosystem, it’s interesting that few games have been made that fully explore the gameplay concepts that this offers. It’s not a surprise that Ary and the Secret of the Seasons looks like it’s pulling a few ideas from the most famous example, The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons. But don’t let this fool you. Ary brings plenty of its own unique identity to the table.
In Ary, you play as the titular character, a young girl who travels across the mystical world of Valdi which is divided into four areas, each corresponding to a specific season. Due to a curse placed on the world by an evil mage, the seasons are now shifting in each region. It’s up to Ary to rescue the world with the power of the seasons.
Ary is the guardian of winter, which allows her to control the four seasons at any time by shooting pebbles with her slingshot. Whatever her pebble hits, is covered by an orb that contains the power of the element that you want to use. Each of the four seasons has its own property. In spring, vegetation will start to grow on surfaces. In Summer, harsh sunlight will cause heat. The winter brings ice and snow, while fall causes rain. The world of Ary has all sorts of puzzles that require you to switch seasons in order to explore and progress through the world. You can use the power of winter to create ice blocks in order to travel across bodies of water. But while shooting pillars of ice, you can create platforms that allow you to climb the pillar. In the winter area, you can use the summer pebbles to create an opening in the ice, to swim through the bottom of the lake. The amount of different uses for the elements is impressive. Enemies will change based on which season you fight them. A specific snow enemy will only appear if you fight them in a winter zone, but you can hit them with a summer element to melt them and defeat them easily.
While there is combat and a couple of boss fights, the game encourages exploration and discovery. There is not a complete open world, but in the hub area and the four cities you can meet other local inhabitants and complete certain side-quests and smaller story arcs. The game feels like a return to N64 collect-a-thons and other 3D platformers. But the mechanic of the seasons gives it a twist all its own. It’s more focused on puzzle platforming than combat, but that also gives the game its charm. The developers are still actively working on the title and optimizing the game for the Nintendo Switch, but hopefully we don’t have to wait four more seasons before we can play this game.
One of the biggest surprises from the E3 2019 Nintendo Direct was the announcement of a new Contra title. The classic series had always been a staple of hard-as-hell NES games, although now it is more known for popularizing the famous Konami Code. But Contra: Rogue Corps resembles the original games in nothing but name only. The focus has shifted from single-player side-scrolling action to an overhead team based twin-stick shooter. And after Metal Gear: Survive, it feels like Konami is looking to throw another one of its classic franchises under the bus.
Contra: Rogue Corps takes place after the Alien Wars from Contra III. You play as a member of the Rogue Corps who is sent out to investigate reports of alien activity. There are four characters you can choose from. A generic dude, a generic girl, an alien bug creature that calls himself The Gentleman, and a big Panda. You know, the classic Contra characters. During the presentation, I was told that the generic girl was a badass, because she has an alien in her stomach that she must stab occasionally in order to prevent it from taking over. Yikes.
The game takes the form of a twin-stick shooter and consists of moving down different areas in a 4-player co-op mode that can be played both online or offline. Each character has their own specific type of weapon. The Gentleman, for example, has a giant laser that he can fire as well a flamethrower to burn down enemies. Weapons don’t consume ammo, but can overheat if used too much, meaning you must regularly swap between weapons. In addition to power-ups spread throughout the levels, there are also specific one-time use weapons like gigantic bazookas, whirling helicopter blades, and bombs.
Visually, the game looks unappealing. The colors are muted and blend together with the dull background and uninspired character design. I could not tell you what the enemies look like since they all fall on the same zombie/alien/cyborg spectrum. Even the bosses feel like big bullet sponges, with very few original elements to them. Combined with the stiff and static animation, I had to keep reminding myself that I was playing a current gen game instead of a GameCube title. In the heat of battle there was also noticeable slowdown, which makes me fear for how this game is going to perform on the Nintendo Switch.
While I only got to play this specific co-op mode, there is also a single player mode, which sees you playing through those same levels. What might be more interesting is the local couch 4-player co-op mode, which has specific hand-crafted levels for four players that are designed without the third person camera. Even though we got to see very little of this mode, it looks more like traditional Contra co-op levels. Konami also wants to push a specific mode called Carnage League, which they have described as ‘Pinball arcade crazy action’. Here you play a twisted game of soccer where you shoot an alien ball into a grinder (though you can also shove your opponents into the grinder, if you’d like). The developers are really set on making this mode something of an eSport, since this mode will also include many cosmetic items and will be supported by a season pass and DLC.
Contra: Rogue Corps does not feel like the glorious return to the hard-as-hell games that it is known for. Instead, it feels like a cheap branding move by Konami where they have slapped the Contra name on a new team based overhead shooter. Branding aside, Rogue Corps does not seem to have a lot going for it. The unappealing visuals, the repetitive gameplay, and a slew of modes that all seem to blend together has made me quite worried that another classic Konami name will soon be put to rest. Better pick up a copy of Contra 4 for the Nintendo DS while you still can.
The original Yooka-Laylee was enjoyable, but not the best game I've played. I wanted to relive the Nintendo 64 era platformers without all the problems that come along with it. Unfortunately, a clunky camera and a barrage of smaller issues held the game back overall. Thankfully, Playtonic Games have no intention of sitting around and letting the wonderful universe they’ve created go stale. Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair continues the story of two, but in quite a different environment. The game, a 2D platformer in the style of Donkey Kong Country, brings a focused product in more ways than one.
In Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair, the unlikely pair are summoned by Queen Phoebee. Capital B has taken over the Bee Kingdom, using his evil Hive Mind device. The Royal Beettalion, which usually helps to keep the world from falling apart, have all flung into different levels and need to be saved. Well, technically. You see, Capital B has made his most devious invention yet: the Impossible Liar. He is also so confident that no one can reach the end that he left the door wide open. The liar, which is an actual level, is about four times longer than any stage found in the game. It also includes every enemy and trap that you will encounter throughout the adventure. Yooka, with the help of Laylee, can usually only take two hits before it is game over. To survive, the duo will need the bees as a way of protection, so finding every bee is the best play here.
Along the way, you will find that most of the original cast plays a new role within the Bee Kingdom. The humor was very enjoyable in the original, but even better here. The writing overall is sharper, and brings in no shortage of bee related puns. Between my time on both the private and public demos, Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Liar had me elated and hopeful that the game remains strong throughout its more focused running time.
This is also very true from a gameplay perspective. With the Impossible Lair being a 2D platformer, you take linear paths to the finish. As you might expect, the game takes a lot of cues from the Donkey Kong Country series, but only in the most positive ways. The action feels very fluid and mistakes made are always a product of your own choices, and nothing else. Players will run, jump, thwirl and roll themselves through a variety of environments. The rolling in particular is just a lot of fun as you can continue until you run into highly placed obstacles. There are a lot of momentum based moments here, and those feel incredibly satisfying to pull off. The placement of enemies is well thought out, and it’s easy to tell that they had platforms or certain points of interest in mind.
The biggest takeaway is that the focused gameplay is a lot more fun to replay. Not only do you get your moments of glory, but there are fun puzzles present as well. The stages offer multi-colored Quills that each offer unique challenges for more regular feather currency. For example, yellow Quill has a trail of feathers behind them, which you have to capture in time. If you are successful, a Golden Quill is rewarded as a result. To name another occurrence, the Red Quill will drop a large amount of normal Quills to throw you off. The trick is to keep following them so that they will burst and drop tons more across your immediate surroundings. Another collectable are five coins are spread across the map. They are sneakily put in hard to reach places, so some quick thinking will certainly be required to get the most out of the stage at hand. Directly in the first level, there is one coin that you can only reach if you don't destroy an enemy instantly and wait until the right moment to jump on top of him.
In addition to the 2D gameplay that I really adored, there is a 3D overhead map that is completely interactable. If you remember the HUB area of the original, you kinda know what to expect. The map in question is filled with hidden trinkets, additional challenges and even enemies to find out. This makes the road to the next level not static, and a rather nice diversion from the regular gameplay. By pulling off certain stunts in the environment, you can force the level to change completely as well. By freezing the book that a level can be entered from, it completely changes into an ice based stage. Another trick sees you throwing tons of enemies into the book, changing it into a speedrun level. The good news is that these souped up levels have their own bees and coins to find, allowing you to find new ways to play.
New to Gamescom 2019 build were the Tonics, which are the collectables in the 3D overworld. The Tonics are effects that can be applied to Yooka, which make a return from the original and add a lot more elements to change up the game. The effects of these drinks are both positive and negative, and will impact how much Quills you will be able to collect throughout a stage. For example, you can decide to make everything go at double speed, forcing you to handle the level in a different way. There are also filters including modes inspired by the Game Boy, NES or the silhouette levels from the more modern DKC titles. Other effects offer screen clearing moves, more room for error, a big head or a suit that straight awards you more Quills. With over 60 effects to choose from, there is a little something for everyone. The best part is that three effects can be applied at the same time, making for some highly entertaining results.
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Liar looks rather great too. The backgrounds and character models in particular look absolutely stunning while going through the levels. It is clear that a lot of time was spent brushing up the game, all the while getting the most out of the 2D platforming style they chose. The effects that the Tonics add are well polished too, ensuring that the level can still be viewed at a glance. Throw some fantastic tunes on top of that and add to the goofy attitude, and you get something that is worth paying attention to. This Yooka-Laylee follow-up just feels solid on every degree.
When it comes to third-party games on the Nintendo Switch this year, Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Liar is on the top of my list. I love the Donkey Kong Country style platforming, and this game leans real hard into that. It captures the spirit of those games, while adding the sillier attributes from the original Yooka-Laylee. The fun characters, Tonics and overall flair are well suited editions to the formula that I can't stop gushing over. Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Liar releases on October 8, and that day can't come soon enough for me.
DOTEMU are hard at work bringing back a game I truly love, Windjammers. Last year, I got my first look at the wonders of Windjammers 2. The game dialed up everything I loved about the first: smoother gameplay, character variety, and of course disc throwing. Now a new year is upon us and a lot of work has been done to experience a full featured one. Let me give you the lowdown.
The gameplay is as you would expect. You will dash and throw the disc, lob it straight back and use special moves when the timing is right. The goal is to toss the disc behind your opponent and score points depending on which colored wall you hit. Depending on your actions, you can score anything from two to five points on average. It is very much a momentum game, as timing every move can decide a victor fast.
The keyword of the 2019 build is variety. The demo had a whopping six characters with the final roster being ten in total. For the majority of the time, I gravitated towards speedy characters like the new S. De Lys. While she won't throw discs all too hard, the character has grand defensive options that can be used in a pinch. One of the developers mostly used H-Max, a Canadian powerhouse that was completely new to the demo. He would hit back with powerful moves that you will have a hard time ignoring. His Power Move, a new feature in Windjammers 2, is nothing to sneeze at.
When it comes to stages, Windjammers 2 is shaping up nicely as well. One of the stadiums, taking place in a construction zone, shortens the time you have to react. Unlike other maps, they only have a teensy bit past you to let your opponent score points. There is also one that resembles a tennis stadium. It is that the middle portion is smaller, giving you less time to react against attacks. Every locale has been spruced well with a lively environment and beautifully animated supporters to boot.
Windjammers 2 is coming along extremely well. The game has seen some clear improvements over last year, and is certainly heading in the direction of a full game. What will be in that full game remains to be seen, but the balance is currently at a right place. Hopefully we will learn a whole lot more in the near future!
I’ve never played a game of golf in my life. Luckily it’s a trait I share with the developers of WHAT THE GOLF?, a game about golf made by people who know nothing about golf. WHAT THE GOLF? has many different levels, but each with the same objective. Hit the flag at the end of the green. The catch? Each level introduces a new object to hit that has its own physics. This makes for a fun puzzle game that is much more about learning the trick behind each level than trying to actually play a game of golf. And it’s all the better for it.
Each level in WHAT THE GOLF? allows you to both control the angle and strength of your ‘shot’. I say ’shot’ because all objects you hit towards the goal handle quite different. From trying to hit a regular golf ball, to driving a car, to shooting a soccer ball while avoiding it being hit by kids who are chasing it, to shooting the actual hole to the hole. Each level made me smile or laugh out loud. It’s clear that the developers aren’t taking the game too seriously but are fully committed to delivering a fun experience that invites onlookers to also take a shot. Aside from the overhead levels, there are also a few 2D levels. Here the object also changes properties. One level has you playing as a tiny planet that pulls in other objects around it. It’s simple, but every level felt very clever to play once you mastered the trick to the object you’re shooting around the green.
The game can be played by almost anyone, since the mechanic is so easy to grasp. This is helped by the fact that both a traditional controller as well as touch controls are supported. I think this experience is a great introduction for people who don’t play a lot of video games, while also being a fun game to relax or pop in during your commute to work. There’s a lot of surprises to be found in every level, with both references to all sorts of films, television series and even other games. It’s sure to putt a smile on your face.
I certainly enjoy a weird puzzle-platformer from time to time. While the Nintendo eShop is littered with titles from the genre, certain developers just know how to make the best results happen. Case in point, I really enjoyed what I played of frecle's Youropa. It showcases a torn apart world, with very European landmarks, and where to use gravity defying techniques to pass by. The result is a refreshing demo that I simply can't stop thinking about.
You, the main character of Youropa, is very much a player avatar. As you explore the wider world, the player will see the world through his eyes. These eyes, and his entire face for that matter, can be created and customized. Right from the get go, it gives your run of the game a unique twist that is very much welcomed. What makes You such a grand character aren't just little grunts and screams, but also his well balanced move set. With suction cups for feet, the little lad can climb up walls and explore the levels in his own entertaining fashion.
Youropa makes usage of You's abilities as he will walk up walls a fair amount. To activate switches or get clues on the area at hand, it is important that you explore all sides of a level. Sometimes the points of interest can only be reached a certain way, forcing you to jump and climb from all angles. Beyond the thinking cap elements, you will also need to avoid enemies and get environmental elements to press on. It adds to the variety of the proceedings and makes for an engaging romp.
Youropa challenges you constantly by providing new tools to play around with. It didn't take long to be given access to a zoom out feature, allowing you to see the world at a glance. It even gives you pointers on where to go, but doesn't tell you how to get there. Youropa never makes you feel lost, and yet forces you to think about the moves necessary to continue onward. The developers told us that these smaller developments are what the game thrive. It constantly makes me pleased to hear that they will keep throwing you curveballs.
Youropa is still a little ways off, but I’m already curious and simply want to learn more. The set-up is ingenious and forces you to think about every move you can make. In addition, the various puzzle types at hand will make it quite a varied journey too. Whatever will stand in my way, I already plan to see it through as Youropa is scheduled for a late 2019 release.
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