Horace may appear to be yet another ‘me too’ 2D platformer in screenshots alone, but rest assured it’s anything but. This nostalgic adventure is one of the highest-rated games of the month, praised for its style and wit. It’s a very special game indeed.
Nintendo Life deemed it worthy of a 10/10. “If you have any interest in superb level design, excellent storytelling, terrific art, evocative music, great characters, hilarious situations and emotional gut-punches, Horace is a no-brainer. It’s moving without being manipulative, clever without being smug, and nostalgic without being a lazy rehash,†they said.
It also gained an 8/10 from The Metro. “If you’ve ever worried that modern games are becoming too generic and identikit, Horace will restore your lost faith,†was their final word.
It’s a surprisingly busy week for the Switch, in fact, with just over 40 new games due. These include the platformer remaster Asterix & Obelix XXL: Romastered, physics party game Supermarket Shriek – which we rather enjoyed on Xbox One – the strategic battler Transformers: Battlegrounds, and the loot-filled RPG Torchlight III.
They’re joined by the spooky PS2-era inspired platformer Skeleton Jack, and the promising sandbox puzzle adventure Supraland. As always, the full list can be found below.
New Switch eShop releases
Asterix & Obelix XXL: Romastered – £35.99
Rediscover the first XXL adventure of your favorite Gauls in this fully romastered version!
Toggle between Asterix & Obelix et travel accross various regions of the world such as Greece or Egypt to set free Impedimenta, Panacea, Getafix and the other villagers.
Fight all the Romans, pirates and Vikings who will stand in your way! Nothing can stop you with magic potion.
TRANSFORMERS: BATTLEGROUNDS – £34.99
With Earth under invasion and MEGATRON, leader of the Decepticons close to capturing The Allspark, BUMBLEBEE and the Autobots need a new commander to help them restore peace to the universe – you!
Assemble your squad and roll out, for a turn-based tactical war that will rage from Central City to Cybertron itself. You’ll need both strength and strategy to outwit the fiendish Decepticons. Choose the TRANSFORMERS characters and their abilities to dominate the battle ahead, with OPTIMUS PRIME, GRIMLOCK and more ready to join the fight. Use each environment to your advantage, taking cover in desert sandstorms, avoiding Cyberton’s Energon storms, and battling your foes in city streets. And fill up your Energon meter to unleash powerful Ultimate Abilities that crush the fiercest enemies. With intuitive controls and three difficulty settings, the size of the challenge ahead is up to you.
Then team up together in local multiplayer and put your strategic skills to the test in games like Capture the Flag, Horde, Last Stand and more. It’s the strategy action game TRANSFORMERS fans have waited an eternity for!
Death Ray Manta SE – £9.99
Death Ray Manta is a short-form twin-stick arena shooter where you blow up enemies using colourful laser beams.
You spawn in the centre of the screen, moments later the screen is filled with mines, robots, rabbits, and lasers from beyond the stars. Collect space gems for bonus points and shoot everything else.
With 32 screens of increasingly colourful and crazy laser firing mayhem, how far into fish space can you get?
Blackjack Hands – £0.89
Merge neighboring cards in the correct order to beat the Dealer. Enjoy and challenge yourself in this new experience.
HyperBrawl Tournament – £19.99
The universe’s greatest heroes have gathered to compete in a showdown for the ages; the legendary HyperBrawl Tournament!
Armed with unique weapons and a thirst for glory; smash, brawl and score your way to victory in relentless, high-adrenaline PvP arena battles for 1-4 players.
Outpost Delta – £18.99
An abandoned research station has gone unnoticed in the depths of space for years, until now. With an army of invasive aliens boarding the station, the outpost AI has rebooted its last remaining defense drone: Delta. Now Delta needs to repel the Klaath threat, save the outpost, and head out into space to search for answers.
Bullet Beat – £4.49
Available in the game:
8 different levels with unique tracks in the dubstep genre and more;
different types of control (classic or motion);
infinite mode with fortress protection;
dubstep electronic music!
ScourgeBringer – £15.29
Set in a post-apocalyptic world where a mysterious entity wreaked havoc on all humanity, ScourgeBringer puts you in the shoes of the deadliest warrior of her clan: Kyhra. Help her to explore the unknown and slash her way through ancient machines guarding the seal of her past, and maybe the redemption of humanity.
A Frog Game – £0.89
In this game you just have to catch flies. Nothing more, nothing less. But be careful, you are not the only hungry frog.
Eat special flies for better scores or time bonus. You also should know that not every fly is delicious!
CrossKrush – £4.99
Henry & Florence are a happily married couple, they enjoy music & have been dancing all their lives. But now, a noisy highway has been built right in front of their home, disrupting their harmonious lifestyle.
Defend your peaceful abode by blowing up as many cars in a row as possible, or whack and hack at them with your cane to finish them off.
Battle wave after wave of oncoming traffic as the challenge increases.
Double Pug Switch – £6.99
Take control of the Pug Otis, the loyal companion of the Professor! After an accident in the Professor’s lab involving the mischievous cat Whiskers and some Portal Fluids, Otis and Whiskers are sucked into an alternate dimension.
Challenge yourself with side-scrolling alternative dimension switching mania requiring lightning quick reflexes to jump, hop, and dimension swap your way to victory.
Hop, dimension swap and navigate your way through unique dimensions to chase down Whiskers and save him from his evil wrongdoings!
Fracter
FRACTER is an emotive, isometric puzzle adventure game set in a mysterious labyrinth of glowing black architecture. The game follows a veiled young hero who has set out on a perilous quest to dispel the darkness within. Players must explore this world of shadows, discover secrets hidden in the dark, and outsmart ominous creatures while solving each meticulously designed puzzle using their only force against darkness: light. Dramatic landscapes in shades of gray, an eerie ambient soundtrack and a poetic, self-reflective narrative await you on this emotional journey restoring light to a darkened world.
Galacide – £11.30
Galacide combines the frenzied action of classic space shooters with the focused, fast-thinking tactics of puzzlers. Choose from a variety of ships, each equipped with unique features and abilities. Embark on your mission to tunnel through the strengthening alien invasion, find the source, and save the galaxy!
Go it alone or assemble a squad of your friends to battle in the most unforgiving corners of the universe!
GONNER2 – £11.69
In GONNER2, our altruistic and unexpected hero Ikk is back! And this time Death needs his help. Her lair has been taken over by a mysterious presence and she needs Ikk to take it down. Journey your way through deep dark chaotic places with sparks of unimaginable colour and crazy bosses, all while trying to literally keep your head!! GONNER 2 is a procedurally generated platformer with roguelike elements that will keep you on your toes – now with more added, colour and chaos!
Grood – £4.49
Travel through woods, swamps, cities, frozen lands, deserts, and more to seek and destroy strange mechanical foes. There’s no time to rest and the sun will set before the battle is over: be ready to fight nights and days and under different weather conditions: rain, snow, strong winds…It will get hardcore and the Heavy Metal soundtrack will keep you alert and adrenaline-rushed.
GROOD blends a classic shoot’em up arcade gameplay with modern graphics. The vibrant effects of explosions, smoke, fire and projectiles will fully immerse you in a hellish battle. If you prefer to keep it old-school though, just switch on the “90’s love” option to get pixelated retro visuals.
Horace – £10.99
This masterpiece from Paul Helman and Sean Scapelhorn is a classic platformer that tells an emotional and surprisingly rich tale of self-discovery peppered with nostalgic popular culture references that will bring a smile to any gamer who enjoys the 8 and 16 bit era!
Made by just two people, Horace offers over 15 hours of exciting platforming and pushes the boundaries of the genre with profound storytelling and quirky and nostalgic pop culture references! A game made by videogame lovers for videogame lovers!
Adventure through hours and hours of varied gameplay. Overcome 2D platforming challenges with a unique twist, unlock new metroidvania inspired robot abilities, enjoy plenty of retro-inspired mini games and reunite Horace with his family.
If Found… – £9.99
If Found… is a video game from DREAMFEEL about searching for connection.
On December 31st 1993 in the crumbling ruins of a mansion on Achill Island, Kasio destroys her diary.
It tells the story of her return home to the West of Ireland, her conflict with her family, the friends she makes, and the challenges she goes through.
Everything leads to this night when a black hole will destroy the entire world. Where did it come from? Is there any way to stop it?
Lord of the Click – £4.49
Lord Of The Click — it’s the game for those who outgrew meaningless shooters and tiresome endless RPGs.
Lord Of The Click will give you the unsurpassed feeling of allmightyness by controling the huge army with only one muscle of your body (Well, maybe two muscles…)
Lord Of The Click — it’s the game for those who knows the true purpose of their thumbs.
Lord Of The Click — it’s more than just a game, it’s a whole training system for your fingers created by the best scientists from Kazakhstan!
When King Arthur removed the sword out of the stone, he did a huge mistake! It would be enough to remove the finger out of his…
LUNA the Shadow Dust – £16.99
LUNA The Shadow Dust is a fully hand-animated puzzle adventure, brought to life through wordless storytelling, beautiful cinematics and a breathtaking original soundtrack.
Maze – £6.29
It feels like you really are the part of the Maze. Don’t get tricked! Or the Maze will devour you and your fantasy adventure will be ended. Remember, do not be fooled by beauty and seductive scent. Everything here wants to kill you.
Do not rely solely on your desire to win, but keep your eyes wide open. Use tips and mark your path with runes. Follow the crumbs!
Nullum – £1.79
The goal is to eliminate all tiles by creating matching numbers.
Rules: A tile can only be moved onto an adjacent tile. If they have the same number, both are eliminated; otherwise, they’re added together.
Make the right sums and eliminations to clear the playfield and unlock the next challenge!
Outbreak: Epidemic – £13.49
Featuring the great Outbreak series gameplay with greater mobility, crushing difficulty and more camera options than ever before. Alone or in 2-player local co-op, fight through the Campaign story mode, the wave-based Onslaught Mode and all new Experiments Mode scenarios.
Choose your survivor, class and level up to unlock new buffs for your survivor as you face the nightmare. You’ll need to manage your inventory and supplies carefully, so make every bullet count!
Kakurasu World – £2.69
Kakurasu World – beautiful puzzler, great addition to your logic game collection.
Select squares until the row and column totals match the clues.
Pumpkin Jack – £24.99
Pumpkin Jack is a spooky scary 3D platformer in which you embody Jack, the Mythical Pumpkin Lord! Dive into an Epic Adventure through otherworldly landscapes and help the Evil annihilate the Good!
Restless Hero – £5.29
You are about to be a part of an adventure of the Dark Age. Follow Rick in his damned path of vengeance and help him to redeem his soul.
The life of your beloved is in danger. Hurry up and make a wise choice. Along the way complete challenging platforming levels and upgrade your powers.
Unfold the story by reading dialogs and finding crucial items on the levels. Items are key to the puzzle of the story. There are a variety of obstacles for you that can be destroyed
with the help of power. Castle has 3 floors with its set of enemies and obstacles. Find a key to defeat each enemy. Explore the castle and find all of the hidden chests!
Rusty Spout Rescue Adventure – £6.29
Rusty Spout is a lonely but honest pirate. He sails around the world looking for new adventures and always helps people in need.
Cocco the evil pirate has kidnapped all the children from Rusty’s village. Now, he needs you to help him defeat Cocco and his monsters.
Navigate with Rusty Spout through five different beautiful worlds, each one with 10 amazing levels.
Beat Cocco’s monsters at the end of each world in an epic boss battle.
Free all the children to unlock special characters. You can use them in either Endless or Battle mode.
Supermarket Shriek – £16.99
Join the unlikely duo of man and goat in this unique (shopping) kart racer, as they traverse precarious obstacles and complete deadly challenges inside a range of shops, boutiques and supermarkets. An outlandish solo adventure and a truly one-of-a-kind co-op experience!
Scream like a man! Scream like a goat! Scream together!
Supraland – £17.99
Embark on a valiant quest to save your toy village in the hit first-person open-world puzzle platformer!
Roam and explore a huge interconnected world. Unlock powerful new abilities and combine them to overcome imaginative puzzles or uncover shrouded secrets. Defeat charging hordes in fast, frenetic first-person combat as you battle your way towards an audience with the Blue King.
The Red Lantern – £19.99
The Red Lantern is a story-driven, rogue-lite, survival game where you and your team of 5 sled dogs, lost in the wilderness, must navigate the ever-changing encounters of the Alaskan bush to find your way home.
They Bleed Pixels – £13.49
As an anonymous student of the Lafcadio Academy for Troubled Young Ladies, you must battle through your nightmares to defeat a curse that’s slowly transforming your body into a clawed demonic form.
They Bleed Pixels balances a perfect mix of fast-paced acrobatic platforming and fierce, one-button, slash’em up combat. By suppressing your urge to button mash in favour of focusing on stylish and smart kills, you are rewarded with checkpoints you can choose when to place for safety… or try your luck by holding onto them for extra bonus points.
THO Simulator – £4.49
“Technischen-Hilfs-Organisiation†THO, examine damage, ensure safe roads and carry out a controlled blasting!
It’s your job to coordinate the all special units
and transport heavy equipment with different vehicles,
so that the realistic course of the operation is ensured.
Complete various mini-games to advance the scenario.
The new THO Simulator is perfect for people on the move
and can be played without any previous knowledge – suitable for everyone!
Toolboy – £11.29
A story of a repair robot who during the weekend, instead of enjoying his free time watching a speedball game on a planet nearby, has to go to work and fix a malfunction in one of the corporate buildings, as he’s usually the one to be called in such cases.
By accident, he discovers a corporate management plot regarding a new project related to the department of power. Unfortunately, the conspirators notice they are being overheard. Toolboy attempts to escape by solving more puzzles, and the more he solves, the more skills as superpowers he gains. Our bot also has an ally in the form of an old computer disconnected from the main system. Toolboy uses special information points to communicate with him and to get more clues.
Torchlight III – £35.99
It’s been a century since the events of Torchlight II, and the Ember Empire is in decline. In Torchlight III, Novastraia is again under threat of invasion and it’s up to you to defend against the Netherim and its allies. Gather your wits and brave the frontier to find fame, glory, and new adventures!
Travel the Frontier – Brave the vast wilderness of Novastraia and all of its dangers either alone or with a group of friends!
Collect Epic Gear – Whether it’s armor, weapons, or even new pets…there’s always more to find as you battle through dungeons and take on dangerous foes.
Truck Driving Simulator – £10.79
Drive carefully, connect to trailers and complete delivery jobs for clients at the Shipping Docks. Earn your seat in bigger and better trucks to access more advanced jobs, with longer loads, bigger trailers and more valuable cargo!
Zombie Hill Race – £8.99
The only option is to find the car and make your way through the hills full of chaos …
New Switch demos
- Game Dev Tycoon
- Kirby Fighters 2
- WHAT THE GOLF?
Next week: Pikmin 3 Deluxe, Angry Video Game Nerd 1 & 2 Deluxe, Mad Rat Dead, Clea, CASE 2: Animatronics Survival, Slither Loop, The Language Of Love, Freddy Fazbear’s Pizzeria Simulator, Dungreed, Gnome More War, The Bluecoats North & South, Carto, INSTANT Chef Party, Star99, Gibbous – A Cthulhu Adventure, Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm, Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, Super Puzzle Pack, Red Rope: Don’t Fall Behind +, Yuppie Psycho: Executive Edition, #Halloween, Super Puzzles Dream, Barbearian, Crimzon Clover – World Explosion, De: Yabatanien, and Haunted: Poppy’s Nightmare.