There’s a peculiar nautical theme to this week’s Switch eShop round-up. This is partly due to two similar games making their debut – both Port Royale 4 and King of Seas give the chance to live the life of either a pirate or a trader, and both are viewed from a similar camera angle.
Port Royale 4 went down surprisingly well on other consoles (the Xbox One version boasts an 83% Metacritic) but it’s yet to be reviewed on Switch. You may want to investigate King of Seas before purchasing – the first review out the dock is a middling 5/10 from Nintendo Life.
Maneater is the total opposite of these two – a shark RPG, with quests and an open-world structure. It’s surprisingly fun despite some blatant limitations. The Metacritic currently stands at 67%.
The Switch also gets Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne HD Remaster from SEGA and Atlus. Scores are slightly mixed, which was perhaps to be expected – it was a PlayStation 2 game originally. On the lower end of the score spectrum, it gained a 6/10 from The Metro. Then on the higher end, there’s an 8.5 from God is a Geek and a 9/10 from Nintendo Insider.
Wonder Boy Asha in Monster World is another remaster. This comes not from SEGA, but rather INN Games and Artdink. This lost Mega Drive classic has been given a thorough overhaul, sporting new 3D visuals. Both Nintendo Life and Eurogamer were left impressed. Look for our review soon.
Other noteworthy new arrivals include the voxel-based EARTH DEFENSE FORCE: WORLD BROTHERS – launching for an eyewatering £53.99 – fantasy RTS Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground, mutant soap opera Mutazione, and Very Very Valet – a car parking party game with puppets.
And as for joke shovelware titles – which is becoming a weekly tradition of late – there’s Skittles, Strike Daz Cans and (checks notes) Best Sniper Legacy: Dino Hunt & Shooter 3D. Now there’s a name that rolls right off the tongue.
New Switch eShop releases
Shin Megami Tensei III Nocturne HD Remaster – £44.99
What begins as a normal day in Tokyo turns out to be everything but, when the Conception – an ethereal apocalypse – is invoked. The remains of the world are swallowed by chaos, as a demonic revolution descends into a broken city. Caught between a battle of Gods and demons, the choices you make can bring life, rebirth, or death, and determine who triumphs.
Maneater – £39.99
Experience the ultimate power fantasy as the apex predator of the seas – a terrifying SHARK! Maneater is a Single-Player Action RPG, set in the unforgiving waters of the Gulf Coast. Fight to survive in the open ocean, with danger lurking at every depth. Your only tools are your wits, your jaws, and an uncanny ability to evolve as you feed.
The highly acclaimed ShaRkPG is now on Nintendo Switch! For the first time ever, the open waters of Port Clovis have evolved to go portable. Whether you’re on the go or in your home, you now can eat, explore, and evolve your way to the top of the food chain and become the Apex Predator of the ocean!
Aluna: Sentinel of the Shards – £13.99
From the heavens, mystic shards rain down upon the earth defying both time and space. Superstition, mysticism and fear of the unknown gave life to a path that went beyond the land of its birth. We meet our heroine Aluna, who as a child has was given the most powerful of these shards that is said to contain the heart of her mother, the goddess of Earth Pachamama. Through a series of circumstances, Aluna must leave her home and journey to the new world. Aluna is fulfilling her destiny, but so is the evil that seeks to fulfill theirs. Aluna’s past guides her future and her enemies will stop at nothing to steal the shard and take control of the world…
Sumire – £11.69
Sumire is an indie narrative adventure, featuring a one-day journey through a picturesque Japanese village. In this enchanted place, a disenchanted girl named Sumire meets a mischievous spirit who makes her a deal to fulfill her most desired wish.
But in order to see this wish come true, she must complete a series of tasks in return, before night falls and this special day reaches its end.
Pathway – £12.99
In 1936, Nazi influence has spread, along with rumours of secret excavations, mysterious artefacts, and gruesome occult rituals… Assemble a bold team of adventurers and journey through the desert-wilderness. Outwit foes in strategic squad combat and locate ancient treasures before they fall into the wrong hands!
Warhammer Age of Sigmar: Storm Ground – £35.99
Become the commander of one of the extraordinary factions of Warhammer Age of Sigmar – a dark-fantasy universe where immortal knights ride heavenly stardrakes to eradicate Death across a multitude of realms. This is Storm Ground, a world of legends, heroes, hellish creatures and fearsome battles.
Lead your highly-customisable force in this dynamic and spectacular skirmish turn-based strategy game packed with fast-paced warfare. Victories allow you to collect and upgrade new types of units, powerful equipment, and unlock devastating skills.
Explore all the routes in Storm Ground’s non-linear campaign. During each new playthrough, overcome new odds to find unique units and gears. Build your legendary army and defy other players in epic online duels.
Skittles – £5.99
Skittles is a game of skill in which the goal is to score exactly fifty points by knocking down pins numbered 1 through 12 with a throw of a wooden stick.
Mutazione – £16.19
MUTAZIONE is an adventure game where the juicy personal drama is just as important as the high-stakes adventure part of the story.
Explore the community as 15-year-old Kai as she travels to the strange and secretive community of Mutazione to care for her ailing grandfather, Nonno.
Make new friends; plant musical gardens; attend BBQs, band nights and boat trips; and embark on a final spiritual journey to save everyone from the strange darkness at the heart of it all.
Over 100 years ago, the meteor “Moon Dragon†struck a tropical holiday resort. Most of the inhabitants perished, while those who survived began to show strange mutations… The rescue missions quickly retreated, and those who remained in the mutating environment founded the small and isolated community of Mutazione.
Fast-forward to modern day, where you play as 15-year-old Kai as she travels to Mutazione to help nurse her dying grandfather back to health. But things aren’t as simple as they seem… Nonno has other plans for Kai; secrets and betrayals simmer under the friendly community’s surface; and there’s a creepy bird-like figure who keeps on appearing in Kai’s dreams.
They can survive an apocalyptic meteor strike, but can they survive their small-town drama?
Very Very Valet – £19.99
1 to 4 players control an “elite” team of puppet valets, working together to overcome any and all valet-related challenges. It’s going to take teamwork and a certain “just park it anywhere” mentality to save the world from a severe parking crisis! It’s not enough to just be a valet – be a VERY VERY VALET.
King of Seas – £19.99
Cannon shots echo on the seven seas as on the horizon the sun rises on a new dawn of pirates. Drop your moorings, unfold the sails and launch yourself into the heart of the storm shaping your empire. The murder of your father will not be forgiven.
King of Seas is an Action Role playing game set in a deadly procedurally generated pirate world. In a ferocious plot you will fight to regain what has been taken away and embark on an epic adventure in a fantastic world, filled with battles, lost islands and treasures. A universe full of amazing characters and breathtaking missions will keep you anchored as you strive to become the king of all pirates.
Eat your letters – £4.49
Eat your letters is a new type of classic word search puzzle game. In this game, you have a plate full with exquisite letters and your duty is to find the right formulas to make great words and empty up your plate.
Lost Lands: Ice Spell – £6.29
Susan is back to Lost Lands in the middle of problems of epic proportions. Weather cataclysms, mythical creatures, ancient legends – these and more stands before the main heroine of the Lost Lands.
“Lost Lands: Ice Spell” is a fantasy-world adventure game with lots of hidden-objects, mini-games and puzzles to solve.
The cold has come to the Lost Lands in the middle of the summer. People are hiding inside their homes, trying to get warm. All the rivers are frozen, all the flowers are gone, the harvest is lost, all the living creatures flee to save their life. Old people say: “The spirit of the Frozen Mountains has awoken…”
But nobody expects the reason to be hidden deep in the ancient history of the Lost Lands. And yet an ancient force was awakened by the common from our world.
Off And On Again – £9.99
With the dawn of the internet the digital universe experienced exponential growth. The citizens basked in their new wealth and power, with access to previously unimaginable knowledge. For a while it seemed as if anything was possible.
This golden age did not last. Knowledge became corrupt, much of it was lies dressed up as truth. Fear, paranoia and hate infected the world with Programs becoming jealous of the resources allocated to others. Throughout this turmoil the real threat went by unseen.
A silent invader watched and waited, planning its attack. The war that followed was brief and devastating. Now there is but one hope. A hero must reboot the system, to turn it “Off And On Again” resetting time to before the corruption ever began. Are you that Hero?
Strike Daz Cans – £2.99
Aim! Strike! Knock Down! The target of the game is knocking down the cans with as less throws as possible.
This may sound easy, and it is early levels, but you’ll have to cope with moving objects in higher levels making the game increasingly difficult.
The game stores your progression in persistent storage allowing you to suspend a play and take it over whenever your want.
World’s End Club – £35.99
Renowned game writers Kotaro Uchikoshi and Kazutaka Kodaka return with a brand-new game that’s easy to dive into and full of twists and turns. This charming and vivid story of friendship and mystery will captivate new and experienced players alike!
The “Go-Getters Club,†a group of misfit students from all over Japan, find themselves trapped in a strange theme park during a class trip. In order to unravel the mystery of their circumstances and find an escape, they must take part in a “Game of Fate†that will test their bonds of friendship! With colorful visuals, charming characters, accessible gameplay, and a compelling story, this is an experience you will never forget!
3D Arcade Fishing – £13.49
Good Fishing! Prove your skill in handling the fishing rod at lakes around the world that are rich in fish (e.g., Loch Ness). When hunting the fish, keep calm so that the prey doesn’t escape from the hook at the last minute. Pull bigger and bigger fish to land – this will increase your experience level. This way you can unlock new bait and buy better equipment in the tackle shop.
Port Royale 4 – £44.99
Set sail and join the colonial powers of Spain, England, France and the Netherlands in their fight for supremacy of the Caribbean in the 17th century.
In ‘Port Royale 4’ you will take control of a colony as a young and ambitious governor who is eager to learn what it takes to manage and grow his small settlement into a bustling trader city.
BEAUTIFUL DESOLATION – £17.99
Mark and his brother Don are flung into a futuristic era ruled by highly advanced technologies both revered and reviled.
The inhabitants of this African apocalyptic world will help or hinder you as you make discoveries and navigate the spectacular landscape. Negotiate your passage with local leaders, healers, and warriors, or find yourself embroiled in a battle against nanite swarms, enormous scorpions, and rocket-equipped robots.
From thriving villages to crumbling cities, petrified forests, and bone-dry ocean beds, this strange new world holds a multitude of terrains to uncover, all beautifully rendered in 2D isometric art. Explore, solve puzzles, and be prepared to face many tough choices that will shape this land long after you complete your journey.
Trenga Unlimited – £5.39
Choose the right pieces, place them into the tower and solve the puzzle! This is Trenga, a relaxing 3D puzzle game with a unique yet familiar mechanic. Help Kate Nemo and the cute sea creatures, challenging your friends and family or even your own brain, to complete tricky missions in the 3 beautiful worlds of this captivating underwater adventure
LOVE – A Puzzle Box Filled with Stories – £19.99
LOVE is a puzzle game about finding the things we’ve lost in ourselves and the people who help us find them.
Through interactions in both the past and present, get to know the people that live in your apartment building and the moments that define their lives – and then change them.
LOVE is an experiment in storytelling that combines the rich experience of a diorama with puzzles inspired by point-and-click adventures. LOVE creates opportunities for empathy and reflection, as well as moments of classic head-scratching puzzle goodness.
Long Ago: A Puzzle Tale – £8.49
Long Ago: A Puzzle Tale is a relaxing puzzle game combined with a modern fairy tale told in rhyme. Experience a beautiful colorful world and follow the story of a brave princess striving for freedom and adventure when everyone around her tries to keep her in line with the status quo.
Crossbow Crusade – £4.49
You are the legendary monster hunter on a mission to survive the slaughter through the Dead Kingdom. Armed only with a trusty crossbow and old-fashioned trench coat, you have to reach the bowels of a dying country riddled with hordes of blood-soaking monsters. These scoundrels have to be hunted down!
In Crossbow Crusade you will have everything needed from instant platforming classics — challenging enemies, hard and rewarding fight system, 90’s-style pixel art and responsive controls. All these features make for a great platforming experience suitable for new gamers and genre veterans alike!
Wonder Boy Asha in Monster World – £31.49
For Wonder Boy – Asha in Monster World, the original staff from the former Westone Bit Entertainment gathered together to create a game that stays true to the spirit of the original games. The team is led, and directed, by the creator of the Wonder Boy series, Ryuichi Nishizawa and supported by Shinichi Sakamoto (sound), Maki ÅŒzora (character design) and Takanori Kurihara (creative management). You can’t get more Wonder Boy than that
Family Mysteries 3: Criminal Mindset – £13.49
Take on a role of a famous scientist drawn into a dangerous game, where the goal is to save the mankind and uncover family secret. Get ready for a pulse-pounding adventure in the world of experiments, mysteries and espionage!
You are Nancy Bradford, a talented daughter of famous scientists who died under mysterious circumstances 20 years ago. Your recent studies, concentrating on mind control, draw attention from a prestigious Neurotech Institute as well as the CIA, which resulted in an unusual offer. Continuing studies within the walls of a top-secret laboratory and getting a huge grant is surely enticing, spying on the other hand sounds like a risky job. Brace yourself as it’s just a kick-off for a deadly game!
Third instalment of the Family Mysteries series plunges you into a sea of action, double agents, brainwashed patients, murky experiments, nerds and conspiracy theories. A thrilling example of spy fiction with upfront overtones of X-Files, that should satisfy even the pickiest fans of the genre as the story unfolds at a breakneck pace and keeps you immersed to the very last minute!
Avoid being uncovered, save the mankind and discover the old family secret, which will shed some light on the past!
A Little Lily Princess – £11.99
In British-controlled India, Sara Crewe was raised like a princess, always given the best of everything. Now that she is old enough, she must be sent away to boarding school in a foreign land, relying on her love of books and fairy tales to help her make friends.
But not all smiles can be trusted, and fortune can turn cold and hard at any moment. What would happen to a little princess if she lost everything? Choose activities to build Sara’s resources and change the direction of the story.
Which girl will she form the strongest emotional bond with?
Color Dot Connect – £4.49
Dot Connect is a simple fun line puzzle game. The goal is to connect all the same colored dots by drawing a line through the grid. All dots must be connected and all spaces on the game board must be filled with color to complete the level.
Horse Club Adventures – £34.99
Visit the famous Lakeside Riding Stable and experience thrilling vacations full of adventure together with Hannah, Sarah, Lisa, Sofia, and their horses!
Horse Club Adventures carries you off to the wonderful world that revolves around the Lakeside Riding Stable. Together with Hannah, Sarah, Lisa, Sofia, and their horses, you experience lots of thrilling adventures! There is an amazing amount to discover in this open-world game. The popular Horse Club™ game characters and the lovingly designed locations at Lakeside, such as the café, the caravan and the riding stable, are brought to life here.
Horse Club Adventures is an excitement-packed action adventure with numerous quests, popular mini-games, intriguing secrets to be revealed, and loads of unlockable items, as well as collectibles and customization options.
Crying Suns – £19.49
In this story rich experience, each successful run will uncover the truth about the empire…and yourself as well.
Connect Color Dots: Fun Water Flow Pipe Line Art Puzzle Game – £8.89
Connect dots with matching colors to create a pipe connection. Pair all dots with the same color and cover the entire board with pipes to solve each puzzle. But watch out, pipes will break if they cross or overlap!
Play through more than 2000 puzzles. Ranging from easy 5×5 and 6×6 grids to hard, mind blowing 13×13 and 14×14 grids and everywhere in between. This game is simple and relaxed to control, but can be challenging and frenetic as you advance. So don’t wait any longer, give it a try and clear your mind like water!
O—O – £3.19
You are the result of a project codenamed O—O, the alter-ego, the mechanical expression of a particle of your soul. You traverse the corridors of digital reality in order to destroy the enemy of the system.
The main rule of the game is not to die. Each contact of the core with the object causes your annihilation, which means returning to the last checkpoint. The number of lifes per location is limited.
Fishing Fighters – £17.99
Fishing Fighters is a unique competitive experience sure to lure not only fishing enthusiasts, but friends and family as well.
Get hooked on a new type of party game as you compete in fierce fish-offs with up to 8 players or simply relax and enjoy your favorite fishing spots together.
Catch the game’s extensive Story Mode where you take on challenging rival battles in search of the elusive legendary fish.
Select from an ocean of options, including deep sea, river, and lake fishing, along with a boatload of bait, lures, and equipment.
Enjoy authentic angling realism with the motion sensor and rumble features of the Nintendo Switchâ„¢ Joy-Conâ„¢ controllers.
Who will become the next fishing legend?
Mini Car Racing – £7.19
Mini Car Racing is an arcade fun racer up to 2 players locally. Choose between different cars and tracks. Compete in the championship mode and unlock new tracks, get the best time in time trail or just play an arcade round.
Eight Dragons – £7.19
Crooked businessman KANE has taken over the city. Can the Eight Dragons take it back?
Using fists, feet and whatever weapons come to hand, the Eight Dragons must fight their way from one end of the city to the other, to reach their ultimate showdown. But each Dragon has a different path – it’s only when they come together that their true destiny is unlocked, as their stories intertwine and the full epic fight is revealed!
Pecaminosa – a pixel noir game – £13.49
Pecaminosa blends the charm of pixel art and the mechanics of an Action RPG with the atmosphere of film noir. You have not seen and played anything like it. Interrogate suspects, explore a city dominated by crime and sin, and never hesitate to use your fists and guns. These are hard times in a very tough city.
Customize your character’s appearance and equipment and have it evolve through the L.I.F.E. system, distributing experience points into four different parameters: Luck, Intelligence, Force and Endurance. Play Blackjack to earn extra money, visit the liquor store, socialize with the scum, visit the police station and the brothel, in addition to other venues recreated with great graphic detail… and don’t trust anyone. There is a bullet with your name on it, and it’s eager to meet you.
Best Sniper Legacy: Dino Hunt & Shooter 3D – £5.39
What kind of legacy do you want to leave as the last sniper leaving on Earth? Breathe in and ready your weapon!
Have you got what it takes to bring down wild dinosaurs and bloodthirsty zombies in the ultimate hunting game?
A failed experiment has created monstrous creations that roam Earth’s post-apocalyptic wasteland. As an elite shooter, you must now hunt to survive. Complete missions to unlock powerful new weapons and become the ultimate sniper.
Kontrakt – £6.29
Kontrakt is a hyper-violent action-adventure game about schizophrenia with a dark and twisted story. You will assume the role of a hitman involved in mysterious contract killing, while uncovering the dirty truth and secrets behind the City of Light.
The rush of adrenaline coming after each kill will slow down time for you, turning you into an unstoppable monster. Choose the weapon of your choice and plan the assassination carefully, because quick reactions won’t be enough.
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE: WORLD BROTHERS – £53.99
A new EDF adventure begins! Only this time, the action unfolds in a parallel world where the Earth is made of digital blocks. This world has befallen into chaos, as the once peaceful square Earth has been shattered into pieces. Shape aside, it is an Earth nonetheless which needs to be defended. It is now up to the EDF to restore peace to the square planet.
Siebenstreich’s Nerdventure – £13.49
RPG group looking for hero to save Mirrormore realm. Benefits of the job include reasonable work hours, your own towel and a moderate chance of resurrection in the event of your untimely demise.
Family Vacation: California – £8.99
Join the Simmons family as they embark on their Family Vacation to sunny California in this family-friendly adventure.
Hit the beach, take in a ballgame and ride the rollercoaster at the theme park all before helping the family compete on the game show;
Help Barb win the main prize and whole family to celebrate their great trip to California!
Next week: DC Super Hero Girls: Teen Power, The Last Kids on Earth and the Staff of Doom, Skellboy Refractured, Basketball Pinball, Winds of Change, Motif, Stray Cat Doors2, Sunblaze, Astalon: Tears of the Earth, Wicce, Sludge Life, Dungeon Escape, Grand Slam Tennis, Pyre on Fire, Carnivores: Dinosaur Hunt, and Justin Danger.
