Big-name Switch releases are bountiful this week. In fact, it’s quite possibly the biggest week for the Switch so far this year – there’s a lot of good stuff on the table. Today’s foodstuff puns come courtesy of Atomicrops, incidentally.
From Nintendo themselves there’s the anticipated JRPG Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition – a remaster of one of the Wii’s finest hours. “One of the best Japanese role-players of last generation is still one of the best on current formats, with an excellent remaster that includes a generous amount of new content,†said The Metro before dishing out a 9/10.
It also gained a 9.5 from Destructoid. “Even if it didn’t have an extra chapter to conquer, Xenoblade Chronicles Definitive Edition deserves a third release. The Switch version has united this modern classic with the TV mode of the Wii original and the fully portable nature of the New 3DS edition. It’s truly definitive,†they said while awarding it a lofty 9.5.
Minecraft Dungeons offers a very different role-playing experience. It’s Diablo for the younger generation, pretty much. Some critics found it a bit too easy going for its own good, though, complaining about its fleeting nature.
“While the overall brevity and lesser level diversity is disheartening, Minecraft Dungeons is an enjoyable experience. It’s much harder to recommend as a solo player, but if you’re able to hang out on the couch and knock out some creepers with a pal or head online and smash up mobs with a buddy, the weaker elements can wash away. I had a good time playing Minecraft Dungeons. I just wish there was a little more to it,†was Nintendo World Report’s verdict.
From 2K Games comes seven(!) conversions. Borderlands Legendary Collection brings together Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition, Borderlands 2, and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel and a bunch of DLC, while BioShock: The Collection includes BioShock Remastered, BioShock 2 Remastered, and BioShock Infinite: The Complete Edition and all the single-player add-ons.
XCOM 2 Collection is loaded with DLC too, offering four DLC packs (Resistance Warrior Pack, Anarchy’s Children, Alien Hunters, Shen’s Last Gift) and the War of the Chosen expansion.
The hip swaying Shantae is back this week too. Shantae and the Seven Sirens gained an 8.5 from Nintendo World Report’s well-versed reviewer. “Having now cleared the game three times, thus securing all five ending screens (another Shantae standard), I can safely state that Seven Sirens, while different from Pirate’s Curse in many ways, is nonetheless its equal. If you like “Metroidvania†games in general or Shantae games specifically, it’s a can’t-miss,†they claimed.
Retro fans may also want to check out the feature-packed SEGA AGES Thunder Force AC. The shooter is going down a treat, gaining Nintendo Life’s recommendation. “Whether you’re a shmup fiend or a complete amateur, there’s fun to be had here,†was their conclusion.
That’s accompanied by a surprise release of Game Tengoku CruisinMix Special – a cult 1997 Japanese shooter featuring a cast of often-forgotten Jaleco characters.
There’s plenty of other games to get stuck into this week, including the colourful roguelite farming simulator Atomicrops, the Paper Mario-style RPG Bug Fables. tongue-in-cheek business sim Turmoil, Atari’s bargain-priced (£2.69) Missile Command: Recharged, and the 1920’s third-person adventure Adam’s Venture: Origins.
Take a look at the full list below…
New Switch eShop releases
BioShock: The Collection – £39.99
Experience the unforgettable worlds and monumental stories of the award-winning BioShock series with BioShock: The Collection. Journey to the cities of Rapture and Columbia across BioShock Remastered, BioShock 2 Remastered, and BioShock Infinite: The Complete Edition, including all single-player add-on content. Fight for your life and outsmart your enemies, be it deep beneath the waves or high above the clouds.
Minecraft Dungeons – £16.74
Fight your way through an all-new action-adventure game, inspired by classic dungeon crawlers and set in the Minecraft universe! Brave the dungeons alone, or team up with friends! Up to four players can battle together through action-packed, treasure-stuffed, wildly varied levels – all in an epic quest to save the villagers and take down the evil Arch-Illager!
Discover a trove of powerful new weapons and items that will help you defeat ruthless swarms of new-and-nasty mobs. Fight or flee through canyons, swamps and – of course – mines! Any adventurer brave or foolish enough to explore this blocky and beautiful world will need to come prepared. So quickly, gear up!
Turmoil – £13.49
Turmoil offers players a visually charming, tongue-in-cheek take on the simulation genre inspired by the 19th century oil rush in North America.
Get a taste of the rush and rivalry of the time as you earn your way to become a successful oil entrepreneur. As you make money digging up and selling oil, the town will grow along with you.
Lease land at the town auction and search for oil. Build a rig, create an efficient pipe network and bring up the oil to store it in silos. Sell the oil at the best times to maximize profits. Then buy essential upgrades in town to cope with rock, gas and ice. Acquire more town shares than your competitors in a bid to become the new mayor.
“The Heat Is On” DLC is included in this version! Start anew with a brand new campaign with tons of oil to dig up and convert into cash. Discover a new town, new oil-rich maps, new resources, new drilling mechanics, new people, new treasures… New everything! A real All You Can Drill buffet!
Resolutiion – £17.99
Resolutiion is a fast-paced action-adventure created by two angry German brothers leading a band of vagrants who loaded it with lovely pixels, dirty jokes, deep ideas and badass emotional tunes for 20 hours of punishing combat, rewarding exploration, and layered storytelling. Will you be the player or will you be played? In the Infinite Empire nothing is as it seems.
Explore a fractured future, gathering weird weapons and stories, to piece together the past: a friend betrayed, a family broken, worlds at war.
To solve the mystery of the Cradles take on a multi-cultural-mashup of cynical gods, emotional machines, zealots, luddites, and furry critters in a world that doesn’t care if it confuses or kills you — oh hey, a kitty!
Hill Climbing Mania – £4.49
Drive over hilly tracks, collect stars, coins and pickups to upgrade your cars and get further! Also watch out for various obstacles! But you can also use them to perform some backflips… just watch your head! So, buckle up, driver! Drive from the start to finish in each level and collect coins to upgrade your cars.
Game Tengoku CruisinMix Special – £22.39
This major hit was originally released in the arcades in 1995. This is a new and upgraded game of the 1997 console version of 「Game Tengokuã€. The old school Jaleco characters are voiced by an all-star voice over-cast. The character were designed by the great manga artist「Tatsuya Soumaã€. This is the complete version of the comical shooting game that broke new grounds in the genre. With full VO and 4 original theme songs, enjoy the parody and multiple gimmicks in this chaotic action-packed shooting game. Casual users can use the auto bomb for easier gameplay. If you want a test your skills, play the time attack mode. See how you do on the online high score leaderboard.
Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition – £49.99
A sprawling RPG classic is reborn in Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition for Nintendo Switch. In the aftermath of a devastating invasion, embark on a journey that will take you beyond the horizon. Can you change the future, or is your race doomed to extinction?
Missile Command: Recharged – £2.69
Missile Command: Recharged is a re-imagining of the beloved classic with fast-paced, arcade action where players must defend their bases by blasting an endless barrage of missiles hailing from the sky. Launch counter-missiles to protect your base and target powerups to gain an edge at critical moments. Missile Command: Recharged will appeal to those that fondly remember playing the original or its many iterations, and a whole new generation of gamers that are looking for fast-paced, pick-up-and play, arcade goodness.
SEGA AGES Thunder Force AC – £5.99
“The retro horizontal shooter returns in SEGA AGES Thunder Force AC for Nintendo Switch!
Wield devastating weapons to blast your way through the armada of the evil ORN Empire. Change your ship’s speed to deftly navigate the treacherous terrain of five diverse alien planets on your way to the destroy the menacing ORN Base, all the while fueled by an epic chiptune soundtrack.
Originally released in arcades, the SEGA AGES version lets you relive those memories with an optional arcade cabinet display replete with ambient sounds. There are some surprises for seasoned Galaxy Federation pilots though, as you can now unlock ships from other Thunder Force games, and test your top scores in the online rankings. Rookie pilots need not fear though: this version also boasts save states and a Kids Mode to help you on your mission.
Adam’s Venture: Origins – £35.99
Start your adventure in Adam’s Venture: Origins. Set in the roaring 20’s, you play as explorer Adam Venture and go on a journey to unravel the secret of Eden. Together with your companion Evelyn, you explore ancient ruins and solve ingenious puzzles to find mysterious locales. As you travel to unique locations, you’re opposed by the evil Clairvaux company, who’s intentions for exploring artifacts could unleash chaos around the world.
XCOM 2 Collection – £39.99
The XCOM® 2 Collection includes the award-winning strategy game XCOM 2, four DLC packs (Resistance Warrior Pack, Anarchy’s Children, Alien Hunters, Shen’s Last Gift) and the War of the Chosen expansion all in one package. Activate any of the additional content (DLCs and the Expansion) or just play the base game.
Borderlands Legendary Collection – £TBA
Get three times the mayhem, three times the loot, and three times the action with the Borderlands Legendary Collection! Kill bandits and beasts, collect powerful weaponry, and maybe even save the universe in Borderlands: Game of the Year Edition, Borderlands 2, and Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel, along with piles of bonus add-on content for each game, adding 100+ hours of gameplay at an incredible value*.
*Borderlands 2: Commander Lilith & the Fight for Sanctuary add-content not included.
Flux8 – £7.49
Take control of Newt and Tess, or play split-screen with a friend! Navigate the factory floor attracting and repelling at will to avoid your untimely demise.
Test yourself with fiendish puzzles and avoid deadly traps as you head for freedom.
Collect loot throughout your escape to customize Newt and Tess with a range of fashionable accessories.
Create your own adventures with the in-built level editor.
Genetic Disaster – £13.49
1/ Play alone or grab some friends 2/ Pick a character and his mutations 3/ Fight your way out of the mad mansion!
Each of the 12 levels are procedurally generated for more variety and replay value.
Hordes of enemies are waiting for you but keep an eye on your environment, it’s dangerous and will adapt to your progress.
Upgrade your hero to build your own gameplay style and combine different ones to create the perfect team if you play with friends. Do you need a tank or a berserker? Make it happen!
Little Misfortune – £17.99
Little Misfortune is an interactive story, focused on exploration and characters, both sweet and dark, where your choices have consequences.
Led by her new friend, Mr. Voice, they venture into the woods, where mysteries are unraveled and a little bit of bad luck unfolds.
Sharing the same universe with the cult video game Fran Bow, created by the visionary dev-duo Killmonday Games.
WildTrax Racing – £7.19
In WildTrax Racing you will enjoy the wildest and most spectacular races in natural environments.
You will have several game modes such as Arcade and 4-player multiplayer.
You will also be able to compare your best times with friends and players around the world on the online ranking chart.
Indiecalypse – £11.69
Three stories, three outcasts, three nerds… and a single destiny: to make the best video game ever.
Indiecalypse depicts the crude reality of indie game developers and their struggles to get themselves together when it comes to releasing a video game.
Three misfits team up to design and produce their own indie game, finding themselves in a path of chaos, self-destruction and resentment. But there’s also space for crude humor, pop culture references, gratuitous and non-gratuitous violence… and fear. Fear of the dozens of lawsuits for copyright infringement, obscenity and profanity we’ll have to face if the game is finally published.
Not everything is what it seems in Indiecalypse, and we know for sure that no one will be left indifferent after playing it.
Climbros – £8.89
Climbros is an arcade game with an amazing gameplay. You can explore beautiful and diverse worlds by yourself or together in co-op mode. Climb, discover, cooperate and have fun. Test your skills in various conditions. Snowy rocks, enormous trees or drifting asteroids are just few of many challanges waiting for you. On your way you’ll find tons of unique locations and characters.
Despotism 3k – £9.89
Exploit puny humans to extract power and build your own empire! You’ll have to keep track of them to make sure they don’t succumb to exhaustion and hunger… although the weakest ones can always be thrown to the Bioreactor.
In other words, this is a resource management sim with rogue-lite elements, dramatic plot, and an abundance of pop culture references. Also, jokes. Slaughter has never been so fun!
#womenUp, Super Puzzles Dream – £6.19
Puzzles move onto the next level with ‘Super Puzzle Dream’, a mix between classic puzzles and a ‘Tetromino’-style dynamic mechanic.
#womenUp! is the ‘hashtag’ for this programme, which dedicates beautiful illustrations and emotive phrases to women on completion of every puzzle.
Two levels of play, ‘senior’ (for adults) and ‘junior’ (for children aged 3+), guarantee hours of entertainment for all.
Become an expert and finish the puzzles in the shortest possible time and you will find yourself amongst the best in the world on the online leaderboard.
Undead & Beyond – £9.89
Undead & Beyond is a game where you reanimate the death and cause chaos!
Use the products of your research to create an army of the undead and cause havoc in the complex while you aim to accomplish your objectives to reach the next area. Use a wide range of methods to advance further, from creating undead that will attack the facility staff, to using gadgets or simply using stealth to pass through the guards without being noticed. But careful, the facility guards could call for reinforcements.
F-117A Stealth Fighter – £4.49
It’s the F-117A Stealth Fighter. And once you fly it, you’ll see why no other flight simulator compares!
Incredible 3-D graphics will keep you glued to your screen as you experience the same intense pressures that gripped America’s Gulf War pilots. Penetrate enemy airspace without being seen! Tangle with the enemy in treacherous dogfights!
Launch awesome firepower against fierce opponents! Your wait is over. The ultimate weapon has arrived. Now it’s your turn to pilot the real Stealth Fighter!
Fly Punch Boom! – £13.49
FLY PUNCH BOOM! is everything you’ve seen in your favorite anime fights.
Smash your friends so hard whole planets break in half. Ram skyscrapers, whales and asteroids in their face, chase them and unleash over-the-top super moves. It’s all about the joy of punching!
Ever got uppercutted with such gusto that you got kidnapped by aliens?
Wanna digest your enemy, then fart them out so hard everything explodes?
Wanna punch an Elvis lookalike bird until they shoot into the moon’s butt?
FLY PUNCH BOOM! says YES to all this, and more. Way more.
Ailment – £7.19
If you’re looking for a story-driven action-packed game with lots of guns, hordes of enemies, super intense game-play with horror ambience and sci-fi movie references, then Ailment is the perfect choice for you.
The main character wakes up in a med bay after being unconscious for three days and he sees that all of his crew became enemies. The last thing he remembers is returning from another spaceship where he had a rescue mission. But he arrived everyone on that ship was already dead… He has to remember what happened to him and find out the truth.
WinKings – £4.49
WinKings is a 1-4 player 2D platformer game which throws you in fantasy Vikings era. Different and unique worlds, characters, enemies and weapons makes gameplay even engaging.
4 Epic Viking characters
Up to 10 different weapons
Pistols, Rifle, Shotgun, Machine gun, Rocket launcher, Grenade, Flamethrower, Axe, Katana, Longsword, Sword
6 different worlds with 120+ co-op and versus levels
Campaign mode
Ant-Gravity: Tiny’s Adventure – £0.89
Ant-gravity is a 2D Platform game with puzzle elements in which you control Tiny, an ant with the power to control gravity.
Use your powers to explore the ever changing levels, avoid threats, overcome obstacles and find secrets in this classic 2D game.
Food Truck Tycoon – Asian Cuisine – £4.49
Time to explore Asian Food and become the best gourmet cooking master at your brand new food truck!
Take orders, make delicious dishes and be fast to serve the hordes of hungry customers who will queue in front of your counter!
Be careful not to burn the food!
Fulfill your dream of becoming the best food truck tycoon in the city!
Bug Fables: The Everlasting Sapling – £TBA
Bug Fables is an adventure RPG following three heroes, Vi, Kabbu, and Leif, as they embark on an epic quest in Bugaria in search of treasure and immortality! The game combines colourful platforming with the heroes’ unique abilities as they explore a wide variety of areas in the kingdom. Battles are turn-based and make use of action commands that can enhance attacks.
Atomicrops – £13.49
You own the last farm in the post-apocalypse wasteland, inherited from your late grandfather’s will mere moments before the surrounding countryside gets vaporized in a nuclear blast. Now as the only source of food for the local town, and constantly under threat from the local mutant wildlife, you do as any self-respecting farmer would: Farm. Marry. Kill.
Atomicrops is an action roguelite farming simulator. Armed with your hoe, a watering pail, and a fully automatic weapon, you must grow ultra-GMO crops to feed the local town… and make a hefty profit. Defend your land from the mutant pests and bandits that invade nightly to ravage your fields. Court and wed townsfolk to fight and farm by your side. Gather upgrades to increase yields, profit, and power. Befriend the local wildlife to help with the chores.
New Switch demos
- Ciel Fledge: A Daughter Raising Simulator
- Desktop Basketball
- Fly Punch Boom!
- Liberated
Next week: 51 Worldwide Games, The Outer Worlds, Liberated, Awesome Pea 2, Depth of Extinction, The TakeOver, Strawberry Vinegar, They Came From the Sky, Knight Squad, Super Holobunnies: Pause Café, and Potata: Fairy Flower.