Nintendo’s winter line-up is coming together. Last week gave us Mario + Rabbids, while this week sees Bayonetta 3. We have a few weeks to wait until Pokémon Scarlet/Violet, which is something to be thankful for considering how busy the release schedules are.
The Bayonetta series has been consistently good, and Bayo 3 doesn’t break that trend with review scores mostly clocking in at 9/10. “Like its predecessors, this is destined to go down as a cult classic – a dizzying dance of demon-dicing delight. Its crude, whiplash-inducing narrative means it certainly won’t be for everyone, but the best things in life rarely are,” said The Guardian.
One series that has had a turbulent time is Oddworld – not every entry has been a belter. Oddworld: Soulstorm arrived to a mixed reception on PS5 back in 2021, with some reviewers dishing out scores as low as 4/10 due to the awkward controls and AI. It has received a few updates since though, and perhaps the side scrolling action will feel more at home on the Switch.
Nippon Ichi’s horror game Yomawari: Lost in the Dark seems to be going down well with critics, gaining a 9/10 from Noisy Pixel: “The delivery of atmosphere, tension, and jumpscares will have players at the edge of their seats while admiring the inherent beauty of the environment surrounding them. Further, the expertly executed sound design will immerse players in the loneliness of the night.”
Yomawari is one of many horror games hitting the Switch over the next fortnight. Also look out for the cloud version of Resident Evil Village, Charon’s Staircase – set in 1970, and involving a cover-up – puzzle-based walking sim Insomnis, the Italian folklore inspired Saturnalia, light retro FPS Bones of Halloween, and the dystopian sci-fi survival horror Signalis.
Not every horror game out this week is on the morbid and sinister side. Buddy Simulator 1984 grants you your own spooky buddy, looking delightfully daft, while the colourful Howloween Hero stars a canine out to bag the best candy. Garbage Pail Kids: Mad Mike & the Quest for Stale Gum more or less falls into this camp too, being a gross-out NES-era platformer.
The cutesy Pompom: The Great Space Rescue resembles a lost SNES game, meanwhile, looking quite creative. Here, you control the platforms rather than the game’s hamster star. The Steam release gained ‘very positive’ reviews.
Then there’s Arkanoid – Eternal Battle, from French outfit Pastagames. As recently revealed, it’ll include a 25-player online Battle Royale mode in addition to Retro, Neo, and Versus modes. It’s heading to retail too. Other new retail releases include the TV show tie-in Miraculous: Rise of the Sphinx and Asterix & Obelix XXXL – The Ram From Hibernia.
More new games to consider include the beer brewing sim Brewmaster, the resource management game Factorio, Aksys’ visual novel Paradigm Paradox, and the old skool RPG Live by the Sword: Tactics. The German Highway Code has made a pitstop on the UK eShop too, just in case you need something to help you sleep.
New Switch eShop releases
As 300 freshly liberated slaves celebrate their escape from the industrial megacomplex of RuptureFarms, a new menace rises. They will soon discover that, although their physical bonds were broken, they are far from free.
Join the revolution as you guide their savior, Abe, on an almost impossible journey to uncover the truth behind the generations of disinformation and misleading news that have brainwashed his people.
Scavenge for items and craft powerful tools, arm your followers and choose to attack the enemy head on or to take a stealthier approach to unlocking each of the four possible endings to this epic tale.
Will Abe find a way to heal his friends and finally win their freedom? What other horrors will they uncover on their deadly journey through dusty canyons, abandoned mines, immense container yards and cavernous train terminals? Is this merely the next step towards liberation or is it really the end of the line? Only you can give them the hope they need to find out.
Bayonetta struts through multiple locations in an all-new, over-the-top climax action game for Nintendo Switch. Sporting a wicked new ensemble and somehow familiar pigtails, the titular Umbra Witch must face a mysterious evil using her signature guns and time-slowing Witch Time ability. This time, invading man-made bioweapons called Homunculi find themselves in Bayonetta’s crosshairs.
A third-person roguelite horror adventure where you play as four characters, experiencing an intergenerational storyline tied to the haunting traditions of an ancient village in Sardinia, Italy, a region rich with unique folklore… The village itself is an elaborate maze with no two iterations being precisely the same—you will have to explore and solve the mysteries of the game largely unguided.
Die, and watch the village reconfigure itself into a new form. Solve puzzles and open shortcuts to new areas with tools and items you find along the way, unlocking every piece of the story with different characters, each with its own power and suited for another aspect of exploration and investigation.
Resident Evil Village Cloud – £32.98
Experience survival horror like never before in the eighth major installment in the storied Resident Evil franchise – Resident Evil Village.
Set a few years after the horrifying events in the critically acclaimed Resident Evil 7 Biohazard, the all-new storyline begins with Ethan Winters and his wife Mia living peacefully in a new location, free from their past nightmares. Just as they are building their new life together, tragedy befalls them once again.
This pack includes the following content:
Resident Evil Village Cloud
Mr. Raccoon Weapon Charm
Survival Resources Pack
Trauma Pack
Yomawari: Lost in the Dark – £35.99
A young girl must explore a haunted town and search for her missing memories in order to break a curse. She’ll have to rely on only her wits, cunning, and a well-placed hiding spot or two to evade the twisted ghosts that wander the streets.
Miraculous: Rise of the Sphinx – £39.99
Paris needs a hero! Once again, the city of lights is in trouble as it faces a new menace—the most threatening sentimonster ever created is about to take control! As you take on the personna’s of the globally renowned superheroez Ladybug and Cat Noir, you’ll need to unveil the diabolical plan hatched by archvillain Hawk Moth—and squash it! Immerse yourself into the magical world of Miraculous and level up your superpowers as you embark on your biggest journey yet!
Have you ever felt lonely?
Like you wanted someone to talk to?
A best friend perhaps?
Well, look no further!
Thanks to next-generation AI technology made in the new Anekom OS, BUDDY SIMULATOR 1984 simulates the experience of hanging out with your best buddy!
Escape String is a 2D puzzle game set in an undefined time and place. A small humanoid robot wakes up in the debris of a landfill inside a large factory.
He receives strange and enigmatic messages, from someone who apparently wants to help him. The robot’s purpose is to explore the large factory where he is in search of answers about who he and his mysterious remote helper are.
The player does not control the robot directly and in real time, but inserts movement commands above its display in order to tell the robot when it is time to jump, to crouch and more.
It is therefore a puzzle game based on perspective: the player must calculate the spaces between the robot and the obstacles. The obstacles are initially totally static, but as they advance they will be more and more dynamic and varied.
You are Anton Cornwell, a Californian farmer. Recently, your ranch house is prey to strange and unexplained phenomena. Invaded from all sides, you need to be reactive by using your mind to prevent any intrusions. Will you survive the eventful night ahead?
ALTERITY EXPERIENCE is a closed-door adventure game playable in first-person. The action takes place in present Lucy County, northern California, a region known for its unexplained phenomena. Many local farmers have found their farms covered in a mysterious purple substance.
In turn, you are confronted by the same phenomena. For some time, your neighbours claim to have seen them not far from your property. Your reactivity and a home automation application are the only weapons you have. An object of unknown origin might be the key to your survival; yet, it is hidden somewhere inside your home.
DARIUSBURST CS CORE + TAITO/SEGA Pack – £29.99
DariusBurst CS Core + Taito/Sega Pack features the CS and DLC modes from “DariusBurst Chronicle Saviours”, previously released on other platforms.
What lies beyond the bath curtain? A “hot” new entry into the hotel sim genre!
Features new baths exclusive to the sequel. Furnish your resort with Cauldron Baths, Footbaths, Open-Air Baths, and more. Create and customize your own world-famous hot springs resort.
Entertain visitors with tons of facilities, including Ping Pong Tables, Stores, and Oil Drum Baths. Don’t forget to provide first-class local cuisine! Thrill foodie guests with everything from humble Ramen Stalls to fancy Sushi Restaurants.
VEREDA – Escape Room Adventure – £6.99
Will you be able to solve the mystery of Vereda?
As an undercover secret agent, you never ask too many questions about your secret assignments.
But accepting your latest mission, you wished you had.
All you know is that a top-secret dossier was stolen two days ago. And you must find and recover it.
It has been located in a town where little is known about who or what is there.
So it is just down to you to use all of your puzzle solving experience to navigate the mysterious town and track down the missing dossier.
With this your mission begins…
Cubic Parking is a minimalistic parking based puzzle game where you need to move the double triangle block from right side of the field to the left.
There will be multiple blocks (one, two and three blocks shapes) on your way and you need to free the space by moving them. The directions you can move the block are limited and are indicated with arrows.
You can move the double triangle block only back and forward.
“3 people will lose themselves
My soul will join them in the end”
Noah finds himself being lonely, pressured by other people and generally lost. He doesn’t show up for a date he had planned, nor to do his job, not even to see his doctor. The man doesn’t know how to deal with anything that goes his way.
This story driven game features psychological horror, creepy atmosphere, gun combat, inventory system, various enemies, boss fights, extra narratives along the main storyline and it is partially a remake of the very first Timore game, with a full new tale about Noah – a man on the edge of his sanity, conscience and fears.
Ducky Quacky is 3D Platformer Game.
Our main character is a Duck living in Duckland.
He’s a Duckish!
You must collect all the keys in the levels,
Open the lock and go to the next level.
I think it’s a good idea to collect apples in levels.
We play the role of Mabus, a retro collector who must collect all the games that his wife has taken away from home, enter them on the computer and advance to the next level.
It’s a fun screen-to-screen arcade game where your goal is to collect all the games scattered around the level and bring them back to your computer.
On each screen we will find elements such as extra lives, cherries that will give us extra points and portable consoles which will divide our time in half, but will be essential to achieve the “happy end”.
Spooky’s Jump Scare Mansion: HD Renovation – £8.99
Can you survive 1000 rooms of cute terror? Or will you break once the cuteness starts to fade off and you’re running for your life from the unspeakable hideous beings that shake and writhe in bowels of this house? They wait for you, they wait and hunger for meeting you.
A spooky trick-or-treat adventure about a mischievous puppy on a mission to score the evening’s best candy. Create your costume, explore the neighborhood, and help your friends track down a menacing monster to save Halloween.
Insomnis is a first-person horror game focused on story, exploration and solving puzzles to advance through a terrifying atmosphere. Players take control of Joe Castevet, who will have to deal with a mysterious inheritance he has just received. Discover all the secrets of the Castevet mansion!
A physics-based platformer without a jump button. Walk, jump, climb and parkour by directly controlling each leg of a confused baby robot. Go from a glitching toddler to a somersaulting acrobat in the story mode, or share a multi-legged robot with your friends for extra chaos.
Each stick controls one leg of your robot. The body of the robot balances itself automatically. You can walk by taking alternating steps, or jump by pushing against the ground. Grabbing, throwing, kicking, climbing and cranking are also all built upon direct physics-based control.
Help the merry orange astronauts do cool science experiments on different planets as you chuck yourself around the cosmos! Walk, run, skip, hop and tumble through the campaign in single player or join forces with a friend or two!
Dire Vengeance Deluxe – £17.99
Depraved cultists have opened a portal to the Dark Realm and a demonic invasion has begun! Pandora ventures into the depths of Hell to slay the dark powers who threaten to conquer the World of Light. Collect Soul Orbs to upgrade your abilities and uncover arcane weaponry hidden perilously in the deepest dungeons. Run, jump and slash your way through frozen wastelands, lava filled chambers and living caverns made of putrefying flesh as you do battle with hordes of condemned monstrosities. Defeat the many merciless masters of each stage to reach the final showdown with the Devil Herself!
Leap, duck and dodge through countless murderous traps. Use your trusty Viper Sword and magical ranged weapons to tear through demonic denizens who thirst for your blood in this classic style linear side-scrolling action game.
From the duo at MagicShotGames comes Dire Vengeance; a side-scrolling action platformer with gothic-themed visual designs and high-resolution graphics. This game is the spiritual successor to many 16-bit all time greats.
The inclusion of big boss battles, challenging levels, customizable power-up system, unlockable bonuses as well as a djent-tastic soundtrack adds both quality and freshness that modern day gamers expect.
Explore the atmosphere of ancient caverns, enchanting forests and busy settlements, help colorful characters, find the rain and unveil its magic. The Rainmaker awaits!
In a whimsical fantasy world, the rain has ceased to fall. The rivers are running low and the crops have withered. Seeking to uncover the elemental mystery, you find an enchanted lyre and set out on a magical journey to restore balance to the world.
Asterix & Obelix XXXL – The Ram From Hibernia – £44.99
The year is 50 B.C. Gaul is entirely occupied by the Romans. Well, not entirely. One small village of indomitable Gauls still holds out against the invaders…
Meanwhile, in Hibernia (today known as Ireland) Keratine, cheif Irishcoffix’s daughter, is calling Asterix and Obelix to the rescue as they need help to overcome the Roman invasion and bring back her father’s beloved golden ram. For this mission, you’ll control your favorite heroes and use your fists and any surrounding objects to make your way while throwing Romans in the air!
To progress in this pure action-adventure game, travel around the 6 new worlds and use objects around you to unlock access to hidden paths and, as usual, smash Romans that cross your way.
6 new worlds to explore from Gaul to Hibernia (Ireland) in an original story respectfully inspired by the iconic universe of our Gaulish heroes!
Paradigm Paradox – £TBA
High schooler Yuuki is as average as they come. She enjoys a mundane life of school, friendships, and generally being uninterested in boys, until one day she finds herself outside after curfew and face to face with a horrific monster. Just as all seems lost, Yuuki is saved by four female superheroes… and is invited to join their cause and protect the colony from the Vector threat!
Your soul, just like many others before, has been trapped in the Temple of Horror. It is an unreal place, filled with evil monsters, lost wandering souls, and forgotten evil that are trying to make their way out of the temple.
Escape the dangerous beings lurking in the dark dodge countless deadly traps and slowly unruffle the secret of the Temple of Horror while not just trying to survive but to find your way out of this hell. Are you ready?
Will you be able to escape this scary action adventure?
ARKANOID – ETERNAL BATTLE – £24.99
Arkanoid is an iconic arcade game, developed by TAITO Corporation in 1986. When the mother ship ARKANOID comes under attack, the small spacecraft VAUS manages to escape but ends up warped into another dimension. Wandering in an inter-dimensional labyrinth, VAUS must destroy blocks called “spacewalls” in order to defeat “DOH”, the creator of the maze responsible for ARKANOID’s destruction.
Arkanoid – Eternal Battle, developed by the talented French studio Pastagames marks the return of the iconic block breaker game.
For the first time ever, players will be able to compete against each other, offering an online experience thanks to the Eternal Battle mode, the main new feature of this game, brining the arcade experience to a whole new level. This Battle Royale mode offers the possibility to compete among 25 players online.
Arkanoid is one of the most accessible, if not, the most accessible game in the history. The concept remains simple, but you’ll will face level after level an increase of progressive difficulty.
Horse Club Adventures 2: Hazelwood Stories – £34.99
Are you ready for more adventures together? It’s autumn in Lakeside and the Horse Club™ is waiting for you! Ride off with the friends Hannah, Lisa, Sarah and Sofia and let them show you the small town of Hazelwood. The loveliest photos are wanted for a contest there – will you find the best photo motifs together and on your horses?
It’s not so easy, but luckily you meet up with lots of friends who help you, and afterwards you can play out a wide variety of stories with them: helping out at the riding stables, taking photos of birds, finding hidden treasures – apart from the thrilling main story, diverse experiences await you, too.
You are an adventurer, the last of the Seekers of Cats, and you are tasked with an important job. Scattered on those islands are little cats, some of them are cold and hungry and yet still hoping someone will find them. Others don’t really care about you or your quest but meow insistently anyway so you should probably stop for a moment and pet them too.
Oh, young Apprentice! Atop the Mountain of Shadow, at the foot of the castle tower, the wisdom bestowed upon you shall come to pass. A pinball dungeon crawler awaits to test your skill!
The Pinball Wizard is an arcade adventure game where the main character is propelled into action by a set of flippers, like the ball in a pinball machine. Each level of the game is a contained area inside a tower. The goal of the game is to survive and get to the top of the tower.
Searching for dreams inside of a nightmare
Awaken from slumber and explore a surreal retrotech world as Elster, a technician Replika searching for her lost partner and her lost dreams. Discover terrifying secrets, challenging puzzles, and nightmarish creatures in a tense and melancholic experience of cosmic dread and classic psychological survival horror.
Unleash your inner artist and create beautiful works of art. Choose a blank canvas from one of the 8 categories and paint by number. Fill your art gallery with over 100 paintings of different shapes and sizes. Need an extra hand? Use boosters or play with friends in local co-op multiplayer.
Factorio is a game in which you build and maintain factories. You will be mining resources, researching technologies, building infrastructure, automating production and fighting enemies.
In the beginning you will find yourself chopping trees, mining ores and crafting mechanical arms and transport belts by hand, but in short time you can become an industrial powerhouse, with huge solar fields, oil refining and cracking, manufacture and deployment of construction and logistic robots, all for your resource needs. However this heavy exploitation of the planet’s resources does not sit nicely with the locals, so you will have to be prepared to defend yourself and your machine empire.
Join forces with other players in cooperative multiplayer, create huge factories, collaborate and delegate tasks between you and your friends. While the core gameplay is in the form of the freeplay scenario, there are a range of interesting challenges in the form of Scenarios. If you don’t find any maps or scenarios you enjoy, you can create your own with the in-game Map Editor, place down entities, enemies, and terrain in any way you like.
CoComelon: Play with JJ – £34.99
Come over for a fun CoComelon playdate with JJ at his house. You’ll get to meet JJ’s friends and family, play musical minigames, and have fun with shapes and numbers!
There are lots of fun interactive objects to pick up and play with, you can sing along to CoComelon favorites like Yes Yes Vegetables and Wheels on the Bus, and not least – build your very own CoComelon sticker collection along the way!
CoComelon Play with JJ gives kids the chance to play inside their favorite show. With simple, interactive minigames, little ones will have hours of learning fun with JJ!”
In the 1970s, a totalitarian regime known as The Ministry ruled with an iron fist. They committed numerous inhumane and sinister acts during their reign, but those days are over, as they now aspire to join the European Union.
You play as an agent codenamed: ‘Desmond’, sent by The Ministry who is tasked with retrieving and destroying classified documents from the Oack Grove estate, that reveal the horrifying activities that happened in the past. Your journey, however, leads you to an unpleasant and gruesome discovery – Project Alpha.
Any plans for weekend? There is a great place to escape from hustle and bustle of the city and daily routine! We promise unique experience of horror and despair… if you stay alive, of course.
The old house is hiding something. This dark empty rooms are full of secrets. Blind windows are staring at you from the deep darkness. Do you hear them? Are you ready to talk to them? Because if you are not, you better go away, run, hide your hysterically beating heart from the claws of insanity. Why do you want to find the truth if you know that it will kill you? You must scream, you must cry, you must find your dead voice in this silence.
Meet Ashley, our Visual Novel main character. She and her classmates want to celebrate the birthday of their mutual friend, a famous teen idol of the school Grace. That will be fun. But there is no time to play games. Because tonight Ashley will have some work to do. The ghosts of the past will pay her a visit. She must survive the night in an old abandoned house and complete an ancient ritual to get rid of the vengeful spirits. Welcome to the world of fear and madness. Lonely mysterious place awaits you to step in the dark realm of nightmare. Will you help Ashley complete her mission? Will you survive?
Live by the Sword: Tactics – £18.89
Live By The Sword: Tactics is an unashamedly old school tactical RPG with modern gameplay ideas. Set after the fall of the land, you control two brothers who must traverse the kingdom to stop it from falling back into the darkness of conflict. It’s a journey that will test their brotherly bond and the player’s tactical skills as they form a team and go on this heroic quest.
The game is a new take on Tactical / Strategy gameplay. Characters do not gain experience points and you cannot collect overpowered equipment to easily bypass difficult fights. You, the player, must become more skilled to achieve victory. Are you up for the challenge of becoming a true Tactician?
You awaken in a dark forest near a castle and quickly realize that you’re being hunted by grotesque pumpkin skeletons risen from the grave.
They’re after more than just your Halloween candy. Shoot down as many enemies as you can! You’ll have to deal with a myriad of monster attacks including arrows, lasers, fire, and explosions.
Choose from multiple gameplay modes and different challenges, and gain access to powerful weapons. Be careful with fortune cards! They will have either good or bad effects on your fate.
Sub-Lieutenant Soph has lived in Galanian for her whole life, having no memory of when her existence started, and no idea of how she developed her teleporting powers. But after being sent for a recon mission, all of what she knows about herself is about to change.
Sophstar is a vertical arcade shoot’em up with heavy inspiration from the best games of the genre from the 90s, while adding new-exciting features and regular game modes for both casual home players and hardcore arcade fans.
You thought this was going to be another peaceful Halloween until a loud explosion sound came from the basement. An interdimensional portal has just appeared!
A vast labyrinth lies beyond the portal packed with zombies, mummies, and other terrifying monsters. Will you be able to clear it up before your family comes back and scolds you for keeping your basement so untidy?
Bestanden! Dein Weg zum Führerschein – £26.99
Discover the best way to learn the German Highway Code! Prepare for the exam, test your knowledge, and challenge your friends in exclusive mini games. Enjoy every mode in solo or with other players, overcome your blind spots with special quiz series. Your future driving license is right around the corner!
Garbage Pail Kids: Mad Mike & the Quest for Stale Gum – £8.99
In the 80’s, the world was ruled by two things: the NES and Garbage Pail Kids cards. These lovable grossout monster children could be found in the lunchboxes of every latchkey kid, juvenile delinquent, rascal, and brat in your neighborhood. At the same time, the NES was taking over living rooms all across America. So, it only made perfect sense when these two dominant forces of 80s pop culture came together… right? Right?????
Well, here’s the thing: that never happened. Until now.
iam8bit Presents, alongside the developers/time-travelers at Retrotainment and our friends at Topps, are proud to present this Long-Lost, All-New Garbage Pail Kids NES Game: Garbage Pail Kids: Mad Mike and the Quest for Stale Gum.
Brewmaster: Beer Brewing Simulator – £14.99
Discover, learn and master the art of homebrewing in the ultimate celebration of craft beer.
From perfecting authentic, chemistry-driven brewing techniques to naming, bottling and labelling – refine your craft to become the ultimate Brewmaster in the first ever realistic beer brewing experience. With all the tricks of the trade and the best equipment at your disposal, follow a recipe, or experiment with a huge variety of real-world ingredients to hone your skills. Enter friendly competitions, earn beer tokens, and upgrade your equipment to become an even better brewer.
Next week: HARVESTELLA, It Takes Two, Missile Command: Recharged, Shatter Remastered Deluxe, Totally Accurate Battle Simulator, Run Box Run, From Space, Fantasy Blacksmith, Horse Tales: Emerald Valley Ranch, My Life: Riding Stables 3, Mecha Ritz: Steel Rondo, How To Say Goodbye, GARFIELD LASAGNA PARTY, Pilgrims, MIDNIGHT Remastered, Lonesome Village, and Bratz: Flaunt your fashion.
