Christmas always sees a slew of shovelware on the Switch eShop, and this year is no exception. The situation is even worse than usual as there are some rather brazen imitations of popular games, such as CloverPit Gamble – a near identical clone of the excellent CloverPit. Also lined up are feeble copies of PowerWash Simulator, Goat Simulator, Megabonk, and Asphalt GT. What a swizz. Te gaming equivalent of finding a bootleg Ninja Turtle toy in your stocking.
Although the pickings are slim this week, it isn’t as if there isn’t anything to snack on. Factorio – based around building and maintaining automated factories – is about to hit the Switch 2. The PC version from 2020 has ‘overwhelmingly positive’ reviews on Steam, praised for its addictive nature. A map editor and a cooperative multiplayer mode feature.
The Switch 2 (and original Switch) also gain Pritto Prisoner, a 4v2 asymmetrical party game entailing animal prisoners up against robotic guards, laying “peepee” and “poopie” traps to escape from a prison island. It’s also available on PC.
Then there’s Rugby League Raw from Australian publisher Tru Blu – whose lineage of rugby sims is traceable to the PlayStation 2 – the dungeon crawling inspired horror Caput Mortum, and puffies – a jigsaw style puzzler involving puffy stickers. Taxi Chaos 2 has made a surprise appearance too (only the PC version was scheduled for this week), looking more ambitious than the original.
Hamster has reached their 500th release milestone for the Arcade Archives series, which they’re celebrating with Space Invaders – a landmark title not just for arcades, but the gaming industry as a whole. Our prediction of a 3D Namco game, such as Alpine Ski or Alpine Surfer, was well off. Space Invaders Part II is set to follow next week.
This week’s EGGCONSOLE retro re-release may be of note too, being the 1991 MSX2 puzzler Carbuncle Pi. Yes, that’s the same Carbuncle who appears in Compile’s Puyo Puyo games.
Other releases to mull over with mulled wine include the four player detective party game Whoowasit, colourful kart racer Juiced Fruit Racing, the visual novel Nekomimi Days ~365 Days with You~ and the side-on viewed JDM Pixel Street Car Racing – which doesn’t appear connected to the JDM Japanese Drift Master series.
New Switch eShop releases
The city’s yours to rule once again!
Jump back behind the wheel as Vinnie and take on the wild streets of San Valeda. Pick up outrageous passengers, pull off high-flying stunts, and race against the clock in the ultimate arcade taxi adventure.
Rush through dense traffic, soar over rooftops, and find hidden shortcuts to keep the chaos flowing and the tips rolling. Master each ride’s handling, upgrade powerful abilities, and push your driving skills to the limit. Every second counts when speed, style, and destruction are all part of the job.
Deliver fares fast, chase high scores, and prove you’re the best driver this city’s ever seen.
Factorio – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition – £27.00
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.
PRITTO PRISONER – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition – £9.35
Unleash the mayhem in Pritto Prisoner, the cute and chaotic 4v2 asymmetrical party game where animal inmates lay poopie traps, spray peepee, and use special skills to outwit robot guards.
Inside a notorious island prison, the world’s cutest criminals, including a gangster rabbit, an influencer cat, and even a penguin chef, are locked in maximum security under 24/7 robot surveillance.
Will you scramble to freedom as a poopie-dropping prisoner, or hunt them down as a custom-built robot warden? Choose your side and jump into unpredictable escapes, chaotic chases, and laugh-out-loud clashes where no two matches ever play out the same!
THE FIRST RUGBY LEAGUE GAME ON NINTENDO SWITCH™! TOUGH HITS, RAW SPEED, AND NO LIMITS… THIS IS FOOTY AT FULL THROTTLE.
SWITCH FIRST: Take hard-hitting Rugby League anywhere, anytime.
CAREER MODE: Build a powerhouse squad, rise through the ranks, fight for glory every season.
BE A PRO: Strap on the boots and carve your own brutal path to greatness.
FANHUB: Create and customise players and teams, then unleash them online.
GAME MODES: From quick clashes to full comps, or go head-to-head in fierce 8-player online battles.
COMMENTARY: AI-driven commentary that hits as hard as the tackles.
Arcade Archives Space Invaders
“SPACE INVADERS” is a shooting game released by TAITO in 1978.
The origin of the masterpiece that once captivated all of Japan has finally arrived on Arcade Archives!
This title includes both the black-and-white and color versions, and the sound has been reproduced to the limit of
how it sounded back then.
Experience the timeless legend once again!
Caput Mortum is a short first-person horror experience inspired by retro 3D dungeon crawlers and survival horror games. Delve into a tower of forgotten nightmares, where every step could be your last. Overcome horrors from beyond death and unlock the secrets of forbidden knowledge.
puffies. is a puzzle game that reimagines the classic jigsaw experience with a charmingly nostalgic twist of puffy stickers. Solve engaging levels of varying difficulty by combining fun, hand-designed puffy stickers and building a stunning collection along the way.
JDM Pixel Street Car Racing – £7.99
Get ready to dive into the exciting and adrenaline-fueled world of JDM Pixel Street Car Racing, where legendary Japanese cars meet the thrill of high-speed street races and heart-stopping drifts. Whether you’re a die-hard car enthusiast or simply a lover of classic arcade-style racing games, this pixelated adventure promises endless fun and challenges. Build your reputation, fine-tune your vehicles, and show the streets who’s the ultimate drift master!
Nekomimi Days ~365 Days with You~ – £23.99
On a rainy night, Yuto, a freelance illustrator, encounters a mysterious girl named Milk with cat ears in a back alley. After taking in the non-human girl, Yuto’s once-quiet daily life becomes lively and warm. Milk’s pure and innocent reactions to modern civilization gently heal Yuto’s heart. As they spend time together, the two gradually form a bond as if they were a true family.
This is a heartwarming visual novel about the gentle connections that transcend species and background.
Includes Japanese voice acting.
Find the thief of the magical ring!
The castle is in an uproar: The king’s magical ring has been stolen! Only you can talk to the speaking animals – they saw the thief. Follow their clues, make clever deductions and unmask the culprit before the time runs out. Can you save the kingdom?
Crowded Mysteries 2: Winter Romance – £4.99
Winter’s chill has settled over the city, turning love into obsession and passion into crime. As a dedicated detective, you’ll uncover secrets buried beneath the snow — investigating shocking murders, robberies, and betrayals that test both your logic and your heart.
Hidden Cats on Christmas – £3.99
Celebrate the holiday season with Hidden Cats on Christmas, a cosy and charming hidden object adventure!
Search through beautifully decorated rooms, snowy landscapes, and festive scenes to find adorable hidden cats.
Each discovery brings joy and adds to your Christmas spirit. Relax, explore, and enjoy the heartwarming art and music as you uncover every secret and every cat hidden among the winter magic.
In Hypercar Racing you’ll enjoy the dirtiest, fastest, and most spectacular races at speeds over 200 Mp/h, avoiding multiple collisions against 8 adversaries. The game has different modes, such as Championship, Arcade, and 4-player multiplayer.
Online ranking chart where you can compare your best times with friends and players from all over the world.
Step into the world, where mundane tasks turn into little adventures and ordinary items provide so much joy. See everything around you in bright, new, vibrant colors and make things even more beautiful by adding fun patterns. Wake up your inner child and find the happiness in little things.
Each level of the game consists of a unique challenge, providing fresh, yet relaxing gameplay, that will make you curious for what’s coming next.
Unholy Adventure: Mystery – £8.09
If you like point and click adventure puzzle mystery games and narrative games with story mode – you’ve come to the right place.
Unholy Adventure: Mystery is a point and click adventure game with hundreds of storyline puzzles.
Each of our adventure point and click narrative story games is packed with mystery and secret stories.
Roguelike gameplay, with a different map with each playthrough.
Various guns can be picked up in the base. Make use of their features and plan your strategy.
“Do you know the story of Luminous?”
Uplifting music and an exciting work in which you defeat more and more monsters in the world of swords.
An impressive character advances through the ruins with the village’s treasured sword.
Up to 4 players can compete in spit-screen action. Party scoring means nobody is ever out of the game. Random tracks are picked until a player reaches 15 points. That means each round of fun can be from under ten minutes to as long as it takes to crown a winner!
EGGCONSOLE Carbuncle Pi MSX2 – £5.39
This game is essentially a Carbuncle version of the action-puzzle game ‘Nyanpi,’ which featured a cat protagonist and was included in ‘Disk Station #24,’ released by Compile in 1991. Players control Carbuncle to collect all the gems placed on the map, and then proceed to the girl’s location to reach the goal and advance to the next stage.
While the game rules are straightforward, conquering the game requires certain techniques. You must carefully consider Carbuncle’s movements, taking into account jump power and the route, sometimes even using the gems as footholds!
Since there is no game over due to a time limit and you can restart any number of times, this title allows you to settle in and play at your own pace. If you are a fan of puzzle games, you will definitely want to complete all 20 rounds.
Next week: Arcade Archives Space Invaders Part II, Adventure Reborn, ULTIMATE BATTLE SIMULATOR, Dunkirk – The Forgotten Soldier, and a bunch of horrible looking simulators.