We’ve waited ages for an excellent arcade racer, only for two to turn up at once. Typical! The low poly Hotshot Racing and the neon-drenched Inertial Drift are at least vastly different beasts.
Hotshot Racing recalls the days of Daytona, Ridge Racer and Virtua Racing. Reportedly, though, it plays unlike any of its major influences. Co-developed by Sumo Digital, it has arrived to a steady slew of 8/10 review scores. “It may have its quirks and it may turn you into a paranoid conspiracy theorist ready to tell tales of rubber-banding to anyone who’ll listen to you, but hey: that just adds to the authenticity of the era it’s based on. This is a fine racing title that truly nails its driving mechanics and delivers an exhilarating experience that will captivate newcomers and veterans alike,†said Nintendo Life.
Inertial Drift’s review scores are in the same ballpark. This racer favours drifting, complete with a twin-stick set-up. “Inertial Drift really is a unique racing experience. Its control scheme is incredibly intuitive, despite one or two minor issues when it comes to the Switch version specifically. Its visual novel-like story adds a little something extra, but can be skipped entirely for those wanting to just enjoy drifting around each environment, and it looks the absolute business with its anime-inspired visuals,†was God is a Geek’s verdict.
OkunoKA Madness offers speed running action, meanwhile. A side-scrolling racer, if you will. Be sure not to overlook this one – it garnered an impressive 9.0 from God is Geek and a 8/10 from Nintendo Life, who made favourable comparisons to Super Meat Boy.
Rhythm actioner AVICII Invector makes a belated appearance too. It seems the developers have taken the time to take advantage of everything the Switch has to offer, resulting in a top-notch conversion. Nintendo World Report deemed it worthy of a 9.5: “I may not have been very familiar with the work of Avicii before playing this game, but I think I can honestly call myself a fan now. If you like his music or just like rhythm games in general AVICII Invector is a game you absolutely should check out on the Switch.â€
We reviewed the one man murder spree Party Hard 2 ourselves, resulting in an 8/10. This is a bigger and better sequel, in every aspect, adding plenty of new ways to cause chaos as you set about eliminating targets. It doesn’t take itself seriously at all, and it’s much better for it.
The Switch also gets Wintermoor Tactics Club – a story about surviving high school, with gameplay inspired by tactical RPGs and visual novels – 2D indie character starring beat’em up Bounty Battle, the long-time-coming RPG Maker MV, and the accomplished looking cutesy party game Bake ‘n Switch. Pixel art shooter Meganoid might be worth a look too, being a sci-fi Spelunky alike.
Take a look at the full list of new releases below:
New Switch eShop releases
AVICII Invector – £15.99
Belt up and blast into the rhythmic regions of unexplored space in AVICII Invector.
Created in collaboration with the late superstar DJ, AVICII Invector is a pulse-pounding, frenetic rhythm-action experience.
Soar through vocal melodies, sweep each fade and attack every beat in 25 of AVICII’s biggest hits, including global chart toppers: Without You, Wake Me Up and Lay Me Down.
Fly solo or recreate the party feeling of an AVICII concert with heart-thumping, competitive gameplay.
Each track is built to perfectly match the on-screen visuals taking you through a musical odyssey of serene exploration.
Find your rhythm, feel the beat and keep the musical journey flowing.
Space Robinson – £7.19
After crashing into an abandoned colony base overrun with hostile life, you must find a way to survive the elements armed at first with only a gun and wrench. Find friends and upgrade your way to victory.
Wintermoor Tactics Club – £17.99
Wintermoor Tactics Club is a story about surviving high school, with gameplay inspired by tactics RPGs and visual novels.
It was hard enough for Alicia at the famed Wintermoor Academy before it erupted into a snowball war! Now her club’s only hope is to transform from nerdy nobodies into fantasy heroes.
Unravel a reality-bending mystery. Test your strategic mettle against an avalanche of colorful characters. And don’t forget to make friends!
Hotshot Racing – £15.99
Hotshot Racing is a blisteringly fast arcade-style racing game fusing drift handling, razor-sharp retro visuals and an incredible sense of speed to create an exhilarating driving experience.
16 racing circuits provide the twists, turns and straights conducive to searingly quick racing. Take in coastal, jungle, alpine and Las Vegas desert environments, with each course modelled with the most vivid colours and blue skies for miles.
Time Trial and Grand Prix modes cater to those who like to compete in classic racing formats, while ‘Cops and Robbers’ and ‘Drive or Explode’ modes offer exhilarating new ways to play.
Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York – £11.69
Vampire: The Masquerade – Shadows of New York is a stand-alone expansion and a companion piece to VtM: Coteries of New York. While Coteries was a general introduction to the world depicted in the 5th Edition of the hit tabletop role-playing game, Shadows presents a more personal and unique tale.
Bounty Battle – £19.99
Bounty Battle is the ultimate indie fighting game: a new 2D fighter, where you can pit your favourite Indie heroes against one another! Indie heroes from games like Guacamelee!, Darkest Dungeon, Flinthook, Dead Cells, Axiom Verge, Owlboy & more battle it out in this fighter frenzy.
Bounty Battle features over 25 fighters from over 20 different Indie games! Each fighter comes with their own Minion companion and unique abilities. Battle across levels inspired from the fighters’ native game worlds with up to 3 other players.
Inertial Drift – £16.99
Set in a 90’s retro future, Inertial Drift is an Arcade Racer with a devastatingly unique handling model and unbelievably satisfying twin-stick drift mechanics.
Inertial Drift offers a whole new level of accessibility and challenge to the arcade racing genre – for a driving experience genuinely unlike anything you’ve played before.
WeakWood Throne – £4.49
Something bad happened in WeakWood Kingdom… furious beasts wandering in the fields, people getting more miserable each day… it all started since the new King reigns. Find out what’s wrong in the throne room!
Travel wherever you want by skateboard or boat, talk to the population, take quests and slay monsters to gain XP, upgrade skill points in strength, dexterity or magic, earn gold in secret chests, buy and loot powerful weapons and armors as well as potions or accessories.
You’ll need to boost up your stats and find your preferred combat style to prepare for the final journey East.. to the King’s castle! On this dangerous path, the enemies are even stronger but they’re just an appetizer for what awaits you in the ultimate fight!
Golf Zero – £4.99
Golf Zero is a cute, fun and original little game with a mix of clever golf platforming gameplay.
To sink a putt you must jump, sprint or slide while avoiding unconventional hazards like brutal boulders, whirling saw blades, or zinging bullets as the challenge increases.
Do you have what it takes to earn the Gold Medal?
RPG Maker MV – £44.99
An epic journey begins…with YOU! Become a master game developer with RPG Maker MV. With an arsenal of tools at your fingertips create elaborate, exciting, and memorable video games straight from your console! Then, share your adventures online with other players, who can enjoy your epic chronicles!
The possibilities are endless with the latest and greatest RPG Maker software. With hundreds of assets and an infinite number of ways to create your game, turn your dream tale into the next greatest video game!
Firework – £13.49
Follow Yan the Defective One through his fight against the Fire Troops and let him unveil the Facility’s mystery.
Dive into a modern tale written by David de La Rosa and developed by Ivan Zanotti.
Make your way through the Facility and face platform challenges. Repel the fire, extinguishing its flames and soldiers. Obtain hidden power-ups and special equipment.
The game finally arrives on Nintendo Switch in a revisited version and enriched by the brilliant Co-Op mode, perfect to be played with Joy-Con together with a friend.
Doodle Derby – £6.59
Doodle Derby is a devilish physics racing platformer inspired by smashing all the stuff from your childhood toybox into each other. Anything is possible in the least realistic car game ever. In Doodle Derby you must build the track before trying to reach the goal of the level. Complete your new cool track additions and push your luck! Can’t do it? Rebuild it.
Doodle Derby offers a single player campaign of ludicrous puzzle challenges next to some friendship-testing multiplayer modes.
Deleveled – £7.99
What goes up must come down… and what comes down must be bounced! Send momentum from one block to another to shoot them around the map. Cleverly conserve momentum to navigate around the map and flick all the switches but be careful; once you’re down there’s no way back up; this platformer has no jump button.
Each of over 120 levels features four pairs of switches, but which switch goes with which? Figure out which pairs need pressing and how to get there to solve each unique puzzle.
Push the limits of gravity as you explore 10 worlds with their own unique mechanics, bonus levels, challenges, and secrets!
Bake ‘n Switch – £24.99
It has been centuries since the Master Bakers left the World of Fla, the fabled lands of living Dough. But something is rising again. The Mould is back! More powerful and infectious than ever before. It’s spread to all corners of the World, gobbling up every species of Dough it comes across. Turning them sour. Changing their behaviors into twisted versions of their former selves.
As the World crumbles above, the ancient Guardians rumble below. Awoken from their slumber to fulfill their sworn duties to protect the Doughy creatures of Fla. However, hundreds of years of hibernation have not fared the Guardians well. They are hangry. Real hangry. With an insatiable penchant for baked goods. So, the Bakers must bake. Sacrificing the adoughrably cute Bun creatures to win favor with the Guardians; their only hope of vanquishing The Mould.
Join a crew of Apprentice Bakers on their journey to learn the unique abilities that set them apart. Get ready to face the Guardians of each World, unlock the story behind The Mould infection, and fulfill your destiny to become a Master Baker!
Mo:Astray – £11.39
Never before seen movements and abilities including sticking, ramming, parasitic takeover and even memory recall are used to further open up the story!
With a meticulous pixelated style and super-smooth movements, the game is set in a full-on otherworldly, science fiction atmosphere with stunning, life-like sound effects and music.
On the verge of death, players will need to use their minds to the fullest to find a way out. Wait, observe, plan out your path, and use your special abilities wisely.
Don’t think you can easily bully this jelly-like organism! In this sinister environment, using him to the fullest will be your greatest advantage.
Collect key materials to unlock more storylines and piece together what is really going on…
Drums – £8.09
Turn your Nintendo Switch into a portable drum set and learn to play anywhere, anytime.
Drums is a simple and fun game for kids and adults of all ages, that will teach you how to play the drums.
Choose from one of the 9 included classic drum practise tutorials 2/4, 3/4 and 4/4, that will teach you how to play them like a professional by tapping the highlighted drums. You will be surprised how easy it is to play something that sounds so amazing and so quick and with the autoplay feature you can listen to how it should sound.
Minoria – £15.09
Ink and blood stain the streets of Ramezia. Witches must burn and sins must be judged. Venture forth as Sister Semilla to burn down the pillars of heresy in Minoria, an action-platformer by the creators of Momodora.
The story takes place during the fourth Witch War. It is a time of fanatical religious fervor. The Sacred Office, a powerful organization leading an Inquisition against heresy, purges the sinners who threaten humanity. Those responsible for conducting a mysterious ceremony that contradicts the rules of the Church are labeled “witches.†Now, Sisters Semilla and Fran, missionaries in the Church’s service, set out to thwart the witches’ ceremony and protect the common-folk from heresy that endangers the status quo.
Tomoyo After -It’s a Wonderful Life- CS Edition – £31.49
Experience the full story of the budding romance between CLANNAD heroine Tomoyo Sakagami and protagonist Tomoya Okazaki in Tomoyo After -It’s a Wonderful Life- CS Edition.
Yuichi Nakamura, known for his acclaimed performance as Tomoya in the CLANNAD animated series, lends his vocal talents to complete the cast of this emotional tale.
Also includes the extensive dungeon-crawling RPG minigame “Dungeons & Takafumis” for countless hours of extra playtime!
Adventures of Pip – £7.69
Welcome to the next evolution of the classic side-scrolling action platform game! Journey with Pip as he sets out to save Princess Adeline from the evil Queen DeRezzia. Pip’s quest begins when he learns he can absorb the Bitstream from his fallen foes to evolve and devolve between three different forms – single pixel, 8-bit, and 16-bit! Each transformation provides different powers that Pip can use to solve environmental puzzles and blast through enemies. Pip’s tale leads players through five different stylized worlds with up to 10 hours of epic adventuring gameplay.
The Snake King – £7.19
Classic snake return to become of the king. Eat all apple and clear all rooms. With magical power-ups, achieve your glory. Conquer all dungeons and rule them all.
Takotan – £6.29
The world has been taken over by an alien invasion. On the eve of destruction, humanity calls out for help! Takotan is a retro shoot’em up inspired by 16-bit classics. Save the world from alien invasion by shooting and dodging your way through 8 action-packed levels with sinister bosses! Collect a variety of power-ups including lasers, bowling balls and ninja stars to take down enemies and defend the planet.
Ben 10: Power Trip! – £34.99
Ben Tennyson and his family are all set for a relaxing European vacation – until evil Hex awakens four mysterious crystals and summons monstrous visitors from the Void. Now it’s up to you to help Ben stop the master magician’s Hex-tremely fiendish plans!
So put on the Omnitrix and transform into Ben 10’s incredible aliens, as you adventure and battle through an action-packed 3D world. Take on some of the deadliest enemies Ben has ever faced in thrilling combat. Solve fun puzzles, use your skills to help out the townspeople you meet, and collect power-ups to upgrade your aliens. And explore the cities, forests and mountains of Europe on your way to the final showdown against villainous Hex.
Meganoid – £8.99
Meganoid is a challenging platformer, generating new levels on every play session. Find many items to enhance your character and his abilities while you descend down into the Meganoid space ship. Do you rush for the exit, or do you take your time to collect everything there is, barely escaping the security drones that will hunt you down if you linger.
OkunoKA Madness – £13.49
OkunoKA Madness is a platform game in which your reflexes and coordination are put to the test with more than 100 levels and 3 speedrun modes.
You will have to jump, run and overcome obstacles through unique and colourful worlds with more than 100 levels, go head-to-head with wacky bosses, find hidden secrets, lots of surprises to unlock and an even more difficult world: Madness!
Party Hard 2 – £17.99
Welcome back to the extended Party Hard universe! Choose from hundreds of ways of dealing with noisy partygoers, incidentally destroy a drug syndicate, and save the Earth from an alien invasion. May the chickens be with you!
You just want to get some sleep… But it’s 3am, and once again your neighbors are having a loud party. You have to finally put an end to it–by any means.
Valentina – £0.89
VALENTINA is a Brazilian indie game. Set in an enchanted kingdom, where Valentina, the player’s character, with her bow and arrow faces monsters and surreal beings to save her kingdom and friends.
Circuit Dude – £4.49
Help Circuit Dude build his ultimate secret invention by plugging in chips, pushing blocks, stepping on switches, rotating walls and so much more in this game featuring over 15 hours of gameplay over 120 levels. If that’s not enough, you can design your own master contraptions using the in-game level editor and even upload it to the internet for others to try out!
What is Circuit Dude building?
Finish the first 100 levels to find out!
Next week: Super Mario 3D All-Stars, WWE 2K Battlegrounds, Her Majesty’s Ship, Fight Crab, Active Neurons 2, Kingdom Rush Origins, Dog Duty, Journey of the Broken Circle, Endurance – space action, and Vampire’s Fall: Origins.