Retro fans are in for a treat this week on Switch, especially those hankering for some side-scrolling shooting action.
Atari’s neon-hued Centipede: Recharged has been gaining positive reviews, the PSone classic G-DARIUS receives a HD remaster, while SUCCESS’ SEGA Saturn shooters Guardian Force, COTTOn Boomerang, and COTTOn 2 gain standalone releases at a modest £13.49 each.
There’s also ExZeus: The Complete Collection – a compilation of two obscure arcade-style on-rail shooters – and MELTY BLOOD: TYPE LUMINA, a new entry in the cult anime 2D beat’em up series.
Steel Assault, meanwhile, offers 16-bit style platforming, playing like a mixture of Contra, Castlevania and Mega Man. It’s allegedly short, lasting around an hour, but a blast while it lasts. There are reasons to return to replay it too. Nintendo Life dished out an 8/10 while God is a Geek opted for a 9.0.
As for releases somewhat more modern, Hot Wheels Unleashed is reviewing surprisingly well, with scores being a mixture of 7s and 8s. “Carefully detailed, highly customisable, and buoyantly uncynical, this toy racer defies all expectations with remarkable attention to detail, excellent track design, and an accessible handling model that still rewards high skill,” said IGN.
There’s also the investigative adventure Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The First Cases, THQ’s Darksiders III – which is yet to be reviewed, leaving us to wonder how it performs on Switch – and EA’s FIFA 22, which is another Legacy Edition, sadly.
Other new releases for this week include Natsume’s cartoony puzzler Connectank, magical action roguelike Dandy Ace, cinematic puzzle-platformer A Juggler’s Tale, and the dungeon crawler Mary Skelter Finale, which concludes the cult trilogy.
New Switch eShop releases
Darksiders III – £34.99
Return to an apocalyptic Earth in Darksiders III, a hack-n-slash Action Adventure where players assume the role of FURY in her quest to hunt down and dispose of the Seven Deadly Sins. The most unpredictable and enigmatic of the Four Horsemen, FURY must succeed where many have failed – to bring balance to the forces that now ravage Earth.
Includes Darksiders III and 2 DLCs: The Crucible and Keepers of the Void.
HOT WHEELS UNLEASHED – £39.99
Prove your skills by competing in awesome races and get ready for pure fun! Drift, charge the booster and launch yourself into spectacular loops. But be careful! If you’re too slow gravity will do its job.
The bigger the challenge, the greater the glory.
Race side by side with your friends in split screen mode for 2 players or face up to 12 opponents in online challenges.
Agatha Christie – Hercule Poirot: The First Cases – £34.99
Discover an untold crime story from the mysterious youth of the famous detective Hercule Poirot.
In his early years as a detective, Hercule Poirot is invited to a reception by the influential Van den Bosch family, for the announcement of their daughter’s engagement. But tensions amongst the guests run high as a snowstorm descends on the town, trapping everyone inside the manor. The happy event is soon marred by the murder of one of the guests…
In the right place at the right time, Poirot immediately begins to investigate. What buried secrets and deadly rivalries will he uncover?
MELTY BLOOD: TYPE LUMINA – £39.98
Melty Blood is reborn.
This is the latest addition to the series of 2D fighting games based on TYPE-MOON’s visual romance novel, Tsukihime.
The curtain rises once more on dramatic battles played out with familiar characters from Tsukihime -A piece of blue glass moon-.
G-DARIUS HD – £24.99
Take flight in the iconic Silver Hawk and immerse yourself in thrilling gameplay with both modern HD-visuals or authentic retro-arcade graphics.
Experience the conflicts between the Amnelia Kingdom and the merciless Thiima Empire that took place before the battle between the people of Darius and Belsar. During this conflict, the series’ iconic Silver Hawks were created to make use of the game’s unique capture ball system that allows you to forge your own strategy and gain an edge over the enemy!
G-DARIUS HD is the port of “G-DARIUS†in high resolution – developed by the masters of remastering at M2. The game can also be played in low resolution like in the original arcade version.
From the epic boss battles to the memorable soundtrack, G-DARIUS stood out when it first got released in the arcades and up to these days, critics and fans are praising this game as a prime example of how to bring a 2D game series properly to 3D.
Steel Assault – £11.99
Play as Taro Takahashi, a resistance soldier on a revenge mission against the dictator who lords over the ashes.
– Fast-paced 2D platforming: Dynamic, fluid sidescrolling combat with a stylish moveset and tons of enemies / bosses to fight
– 16-bit post-apoc style: A beautifully fleshed-out sci-fi world, rendered in detailed pixel art and backed by fiery FM-synthesized tunes
– Unique zipline action: A new twist on classic grappling-hook mechanics, opening up fun movement possibilities
– Classic gaming experience: Beautifully hand-crafted stage-based action with optimal screen resolution for CRT gaming
Antonball Deluxe – £11.39
The breakout title from Summitsphere, Antonball Deluxe is a retro, high-octane smorgasbord of brickbreaking arcade action! Starring a little red man named Anton – Boiler City’s top exterminator – Antonball Deluxe quite literally turns the breakout genre on its head, blending traditional brick-breaking gameplay with tight, intense platforming.
ConnecTank – £26.99
Making deliveries is never an easy job. But throw in huge and unique destructive tanks you have to battle into the mix? That’s life as a new courier for Finneas Fat Cat XV, one of the top tycoons in New Pangea!
Luckily, you’ll have a mammoth sized tank of your own when you go out on deliveries. Connect conveyor belts and blast enemy tanks with ammo you craft in the heat of battle. Fund new ammo and gizmos to take down even the most terrifying of tanks! Collect different parts from the tanks you defeat, and you’ll be able use those tanks too!
Do you have what it takes to become Finneas Fat Cat’s top fixer? And spread his name and wealth even wider? Finneas is counting on you, old bean!
UnMetal – £17.99
You play as Jesse Fox who finds himself imprisoned in a covert military base where he was arrested for a crime he didn’t commit. Jesse must now escape using his dry wits, quick words, improvised skills, arsenal of warfare, explosives, gadgets, and an elaborate explanation of how it all went down. If that all fails, he’ll use his fists.
Dandy Ace – £15.09
Dandy Ace is an over the top action game that follows this fabulous magician seeking to combine and use his magical cards, fighting and looting his way to defeat the Green-Eyed Illusionist and free himself from a cursed mirror.
Warp Frontier – £12.89
Vincent Cassini, decorated war hero, but still just a Captain in the police force he started, is patrolling the orbital slums of his home planet Cetus, when he stumbles across a lead in a war crime that resulted in the mysterious disappearance of thousands of Cetans, including his first wife and best friend. Captain Cassini and his robot partner MAC, must ally with morally questionable characters to stop an old enemy before their crimes are erased forever.
Players solve puzzles, in point and click adventure style, and navigate branching narratives to manage Vince’s relationships with his family, allies and enemies. Decisions players make in conversations and the order in which they undertake tasks result in outcomes that could cost the lives of thousands. Players actions ultimately decide what type of father, partner, friend, officer and saviour Vince will be.
Miners Races – £2.29
In Miners Races, you need to show that you are the ultimate miner as you try to acquire the highest score and as many diamonds as you can. This is not going to be easy, since you are against the clock and you need to do this as fast as possible. It’s a very engaging and fast, action-packed game where you really have to test yourself and your limits.
Every new mission is different, so you never really know where to go and how to achieve those goal. It adds to the difficulty of the game, while always encouraging you to have fun and experiment.
Show that you’re the better miner in Miners Races today!
BARRICADEZ ReVisited – £10.79
This is the Crafting × Tower Defense game you have been looking for. Gather materials and items to upgrade your base and protect a cradle after the collapse of civilization.
Bonfire Peaks – £15.09
Move onwards, move upwards, and leave nothing behind.
Bonfire Peaks is a puzzle game about closure, by Corey Martin and published as well as co-produced by Draknek, creator of A Monster’s Expedition and Cosmic Express.
Navigate over 200 expertly designed puzzles in a breathtakingly lovely voxel-based world. Filler content has been burned away to create a perfectly fine-tuned experience, filled with richly rewarding challenges and surprising new mechanics that’ll keep sparking your interest right through to the end.
Created by Pipe Push Paradise and Hiding Spot developer Corey Martin, co-designed with Alan Hazelden, and with art by Mari Khaleghi and Zach Soares.
ExZeus: The Complete Collection – £11.69
Hostile alien forces have set their sights on Earth and will stop at nothing to wipe our civilization from existence. The invaders seek to use their advanced technology to annihilate humanity, but they weren’t expecting the people of Earth to counter with sophisticated technology of our own. Enter Project ExZeus, humanity’s last and best defense to repel the otherworldly menace and restore peace to our little blue planet using ultra high tech fighting robots! Take control of four different robots and blast those aliens back to where they came from in these action-focused high-flying 3D arcade style rail shooters!
UNSIGHTED – £17.99
After a long war with the humans, the few androids that remain in Arcadia are running out of Anima, the energy that gives all robots consciousness.
It’s up to you, Alma, to find a way to recover your memories and save your friends from becoming UNSIGHTED. Explore the vast ruins of Arcadia, using every tool you can find. Time is ticking. They need you, Alma.
Survival Z – £11.39
After the event, humanity lies on the brink while zombies dominate the landscape! You are a survivor. Armed with your wits and bravado, you are determined to save all who remain.
Your goal is clear: find survivors and seek out a way to exterminate the undead menace. Choose your way along randomly generated routes to build and battle your way through environments crawling with zombies.
Death’s Gambit: Afterlife – £17.99
The promise of immortality lies at the heart of Siradon. As Death’s right hand, challenge the undying guardians of the realm and endure the eternal struggle to purge their souls.
Death’s Gambit: Afterlife is the new and expanded edition of the original hardcore 2D RPG action platformer. Master the precise combat, utilizing a wide variety of weapons and abilities to confront the horrors that lurk within Siradon. Explore a mysterious and unforgiving world and uncover the true price of immortality.
Afterlife offers players a wealth of new content to experience on top of the original game, including 10 new levels, over 30 weapons, 5 new bosses, mechanical overhauls, and more. Your choices will affect the epic finale to Sorun’s tale.
THE Card Battle: Eternal Destiny – £15.29
THE Card Battle: Eternal Destiny is an epic card game inspired by myths and legends, featuring 600+ cards with delightful animation!
Build your own deck with various cards, and beat enemies with high-level strategy combining evolutions, abilities, and attributes.
Mini Car Racing 2 – £6.90
Race around in tiny vehicles in a giant household and experience amazing races with your friends up to four players or race alone and hunt the next best race time in 16 different race tracks! Complete championships to unlock new different tracks or race the arcade mode. Play with up to four friends in splitscreen and have a fun race experience! Race On!
Road Racing: Highway Car Chase – £6.99
Jump behind the wheel and race through the endless busy roads and highways! Make near traffic misses discovering unique locations! Be careful! Roads and highways are full of speeding motorcycles and cars – they can bother you!
Be also prepared to escape from the cops, who might even use a helicopter to catch you. Brace yourself for an action-packed run, filled with skin-of-the-teeth near misses. Nobody said that it’s easy to win!
Asdivine Saga – £13.49
In a world facing a sudden war, a mercenary by the name of Vyse finds himself seeking to uncover the evil machinations operating behind the scenes. Joined by a pair of royal princesses and shinobi, does success lie in the cards for this unlikely band of adventurers when danger seems to lurk at every turn…?!
Master the art of throwing and level monsters to the dust! Get powerful support from spirits that can be equipped to enhance magic, and upgrade weapons and synthesize rings to power up in battle. You can even get special endings by building up trust with other characters, and take on the strongest at the battle arena to enjoy this fantasy RPG in its entirety.
Guardian Force – Saturn Tribute – £13.49
The Guardians, a secret society wielding the power of the Force, have readied their tanks and intend on crushing the aspirations of the Hammerbolt Empire!
This is an auto-scrolling, multidirectional shooting game released by SUCCESS in 1998.
This masterpiece of the past is given new life using the specially-developed “Zebra Engine.”
The new features included such as game rewind, slow mode, and quick save greatly improve ease of play.
Online rankings have also been added!
Space Revenge – £9.89
Space Revenge is an action-exploration game. Get ready to assault the enemy’s base and get your desired revenge!
With a top down perspective, twin stick controls and a sci-fi mood to explore the enemy base full of dangers. The BSO will make you feel the tension of the game.
Aeon Drive – £10.99
Set in the neon-coloured landscape of Neo Barcelona, Aeon Drive is an action platformer with a speed running twist!
You’ll play as Jackelyne, a young space ranger from another dimension. Desperately trying to get home, she crash-lands her spaceship into the middle of a bustling metropolis, Neo Barcelona.
With the power sword, teleportation dagger and unique skill to control time, Jackelyne has to find all the Drive Cores to fix her ship – and save the city from impending doom.
COTTOn Boomerang – Saturn Tribute – £13.49
There are team battles this time! Take full advantage of all the amplified action and push forward!
Set in the Pumpkin Kingdom which has lost its national treasure—the “Bluewater Willow,” this brain-stimulating action-shooter follows Cotton, a witch with the biggest appetite in the universe, and Appli, the most tomboyish girl in the royal family.
This is the fifth installment in the fantasy shooting game series featuring Cotton, one of SUCCESS’s most popular characters.
This masterpiece of the past is given new life using the specially-developed “Zebra Engine.”
The new features included such as game rewind, slow mode, and quick save greatly improve ease of play.
Online rankings have also been added!
COTTOn 2 – Saturn Tribute – £13.49
Set in the Pumpkin Kingdom which has lost its national treasure—the “Bluewater Willow,” this brain-stimulating action-shooter follows Cotton, a witch with the biggest appetite in the universe, and Appli, the most tomboyish girl in the royal family.
This is the fourth installment in the fantasy shooting game series featuring Cotton, one of SUCCESS’s most popular characters.
This masterpiece of the past is given new life using the specially-developed “Zebra Engine.”
The new features included such as game rewind, slow mode, and quick save greatly improve ease of play.
Online rankings have also been added!
Blaze and the Monster Machines: Axle City Racers – £34.99
On your marks, get ready to race with Blaze and his monster machine friends!
From Axle City’s colorful streets to the awesome Monster Dome stunt track, the world of Blaze is yours to explore! So buckle your seatbelts and take control of Blaze, Pickle, Darington, Zeg, Starla, Stripes… and even cheating Crusher! It’s time to race at blazing speed and go for the championship or compete with up to 4 players in couch split-screen mode!
The fun keeps on rolling. You can boost, drift, jump and pull off stunts around amazing tracks like Race to Eagle Rock, Stuntmania, and more! Power-up with the Wrench to activate your character’s unique skill and outsmart the competition. Customize Blaze and his friends in the garage. And with STEM education features, plus accessible control options like Auto-Drive Helper, younger players will have a blast discovering as they race for glory!
Mary Skelter Finale – £44.99
The last installment of the dungeon-crawling RPG trilogy reaches its stunning conclusion! Will the Blood Maidens finally get their happily ever after?
Jail – a living prison for humans, buried 666 meters underground. It appeared suddenly several decades ago, giving birth to monsters called Marchen and patrolled by madness-inducing Nightmares.
A group of prisoners, Jack and the Blood Maidens, were reincarnations of fairy tales who dared to escape. They climbed from the bottom of the tower up to the surface, filled with hope…
But outside were thousands of corpses soaking in a sea of blood. There stood beings known as Massacre Pink, smiling. In that moment, hope was destroyed. The group was torn asunder, with Jack and the Blood Maidens scattered to their own paths.
Separated, they are each drawn to the devouring Jail that floats in the sky…
This is the finale to the tale of the Blood Maidens.
2weistein – The Curse of the Red Dragon 2 – £17.99
All was peace and quiet in Asban and the whole land of Trillion – until that day on which the gates remained closed, as if by ghostly hand, and other strange things happened. The mean magician Godron has stolen the book „Mathematica“ from the creator of Trillion, and has cast an evil spell over the city: a ban on mathematics. Godron wants to gain power over the whole land and transform the world according to his will. But there are the brave heroes Bernard and Celestine with their friend 2weistein who want to put a stop to Godron to keep Trillion peaceful and beautiful, and no one is ever to be afraid again!
Doom & Destiny Worlds – £17.99
Stranded and naked on a shore of an unknown planet, four friends wake up afflicted by the most common video game disease: amnesia.
Who summoned them? Why are they here? How will they return home? What’s for dinner?
SGC – Short Games Collection #1 – £16.99
Time is running short but you still want to play meaningful games that leave you with a sense of accomplishment. Well, look no further! The SGC – Short Games Collection has gathered five amazing gaming experiences that you can play through from start to finish and still have time to enjoy other fine things in life.
Encased in a beautiful 3D menu environment created originally for the SGC you will find: The Good Time Garden; Swallow the Sea; A Game Literally About Doing Your Taxes; Ghostein; and Uranus.
These acclaimed gems are available on the Nintendo Switch for the very first time.
Experience the most psychedelic and thought provoking games anytime and anywhere.
Takorita Meets Fries – £4.99
In the Tako Kingdom deep under the sea, soup is the only mundane meal everybody eats. But Princess Takorita is deeply dissatisfied with this, and she demands a tasty new dish to spice up her life.
She decides to venture up to the land, where the culture is different and surprising. Once there, she has her fated encounter with the french fries!
Princess Takorita continues her adventure to make the fries more and more tasty!
Colsword – £2.99
Logic puzzle game in which you have to paint the cubes in the desired sequence using your colored magic swords.
Sports & Adventure Pinball – £13.49
Enjoy 6 games in one with the perfect reproduction of real pinball machines, with all kinds of graphic details and sounds.
If you prefer, you can also purchase them separately in the Nintendo eShop.
Kyle is Famous: Complete Edition – £11.00
Take Control of Kyle in this Text-Based Adventure. . .
—————–
Make decisions for Kyle that will affect every part of his day. Take Kyle’s hand through 117 unique endings, each determined by what Kyle has done and who he has interacted with. He needs you. Be kind.
FIFA 22 Nintendo Switch Legacy Edition – £34.99
Powered by Football, EA SPORTS FIFA 22 Legacy Edition on Nintendo Switch featuring the latest kits, clubs, and squads from some of top leagues around the world. It will also feature some of the world’s most famous stadiums, including some brand new to FIFA 22. Gameplay features and modes will have parity with FIFA 21 on Nintendo Switch.
Centipede: Recharged – £7.99
The original bug-blasting arcade game is back! Centipede: Recharged has been reimagined for modern gameplay, with vibrant visuals designed for modern screens, a 16:9 field of play, and an original soundtrack from award-winning video game composer Megan McDuffee.
Aim for a high score in the old school arcade mode and earn bragging rights with your name at the top of the leaderboard. Or test your skills and rank on the boards in one of 30 intensely creative challenges, which twist the gameplay in new and exciting ways.
A dozen new power-ups can give you an edge by introducing abilities like screen-clearing explosions, rail guns, and even slowing down time. Every mode and level is playable in local co-op mode with a friend.
A Juggler’s Tale – £12.99
A Juggler’s Tale is a cinematic puzzle-platformer. Play as Abby, the marionette, and make your way through a medieval fairy tale world to find freedom. Use the puppet’s strings in unique puzzles, find your way around obstacles, and evade the relentless cut-throats that are hot on your heels – while the puppet master holds the strings firmly in his hands.
DroneRidge – £6.99
Welcome to DroneRidge, the ultimate skill game!
Navigate your drone through 20 atmospheric levels, featuring cool retro graphics and a truly unique urban soundscape. Skilfully avoid obstacles to reach the landing zone… if you can!
Levels range from easy to very hard, and can be played, or re-played in any order… so you can keep improving your skills and scores!
Meteoroids 3D – £8.79
Meteoroids: when the simplest is the most addictive.
Eighties of the twentieth century. The golden age of 8-bit video games. We were leaving school, and we were going to spend our precious coins in the arcade machines.
Math Classroom Challenge – £8.89
Math is boring, so they say. Well, no more.
Math Classroom Challenge is an educational game in first person view, with the mission of solving the different random mathematical exercises proposed. To do this, you have at your disposal a water hose, with which you must water the numbers and the appropriate solutions. All this in a safe environment to learn mathematics in a fun and enjoyable way. It’s also the kids version of Math Combat Challenge.
Math Classroom Challenge is designed for children over the age of four. In the game the player can do several activities: learn the numbers that fly, learn how to throw the water, solve the static panels looking for the corresponding numbers, and solve the dynamic panels that appear suddenly with three solutions. Always throwing the water from the hose to the correct solution.
Next week: Metroid Dread, Knockout Home Fitness, Tetris Effect: Connected, Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania, Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl, Rainbow Billy: The Curse of the Leviathan, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes, Toroom (Roguelike), Bouncy Bullets 2, Lyrica2 Stars Align, Creepy Tale 2, The Lightbringer, No Longer Home, Lotus Bloom, Panmorphia, SMASHING THE BATTLE GHOST SOUL, Jack Axe, PandaBall, Drum Box, InfiniteCorp: Cyberpunk Card Game, The Marauder Chronicles: Curse Over Valdria, and Toree 2.