It’s half term in the UK, meaning kids will likely be restless by this point. There are at least a dozen intriguing new releases on the eShop this week to occupy minds both young and old.
We reviewed Marron’s Day, which is a short (1-2 hour) story entailing a plan to save a scrapped annual festival. It’s presented like an original Game Boy title, and due to its non-violent nature its ideal for younger gamers. Retro fans may get a kick out of 8-bit visuals too, clearly inspired by Zelda: Link’s Awakening and Pokémon Blue/Red.
One of the bigger releases of the week Godzilla Voxel Wars, published by Toho themselves. This 8×8 turn-based strategy game launched on PC in 2023 and managed to gain ‘very positive’ user reviews. Here, Godzilla is up against the Fungoids in battles taking above and below ground, with underground battles seeing an increase in difficulty.
There’s also Cabernet, a 2D narrative RPG set in 19th century Eastern Europe. It stars a young female vampire still becoming accustomed to the ways of the undead. The 18+ age rating suggest we’re in for a lot of blood and gore. This one definitely isn’t for kids.
Not to be outdone, there’s Desvelado – a cartoony vampiric precision platformer with Metroidvania elements, in which Vampy must turn off every light of the castle. Again, this amassed ‘very positive’ reviews on Steam. This one has a 3+ age rating, putting a comedic twist on the world of the undead.
Then there’s Piczle Cross: Rune Factory, featuring head-to-head puzzle battles and 60+ music tracks from the last three Rune Factory games. The £9.99 price point seems reasonable and screenshots suggest it’s welll-presented.
Stories from Sol: The Gun-Dog meanwhile is a visual novel inspired by examples found on Japanese computers in the ‘90s. Think along the likes of Policenauts and Snatcher. It boasts tidy looking pixel art, and utilises traditional point-and-click adventure mechanics.
BigMode are also back with the randomised top-down action shooter Star of Providence, which garnered ‘overwhelmingly positive’ on Steam back in 2017. Weapons can be equipped with over 50 modifiers, allowing for a diverse assortment of arsenal, and there’s plenty of retro appeal.
Also, on the retro side of things there’s X-Out: Resurfaced – an Amiga horizontal shooter remaster from ININ and Ziggurat – an EGGCONSOLE release of the 1989 Japanese RPG Burai: Jokan, low poly psychological horror The Backrooms: 1998, and the modern retro ninja action platformer Ninja Issen: The Scroll of Dimension. Launching a week ahead of next week’s Ninja Five-O re-release is a good call.
New Switch eShop releases
Stories from Sol: The Gun-Dog – £17.09
Stories from Sol: The Gun-Dog is a visual novel adventure in the spirit of classic PC-9800 titles. Featuring a vintage green screen aesthetic, Space Colony Studios strives to create an “era-accurate” game that exudes retro vibes in every way, from the text to the visual effects. As the Jovian patrol ship sails into the darkness among the stars, the players will feel like they are on an adventure in an 80s Sci-Fi as they solve the mystery they find themselves in.
From TOHO Games, subsidiary of the company that created Godzilla, and the up-and-coming game studio Nukenin LLC (winner of the Google Indie Game Festival 2021 TOHO Games Award) comes a new strategy puzzle game! Control Toho monsters as you save the world by repelling the invasion of the Fungoid mushroom menace! Progress through the stages to discover the truth behind these monster mushrooms!
Descending in the darkness of a long-abandoned facility, a lone ship searches for wealth, power and the scattered pieces of the past.
Star of Providence is a top down action shooter with procedurally generated elements. Explore a progression of floors as you make your way into the depths of the facility, encountering increasingly deadly enemies, fantastic weapons, upgrades, choices and revelations as you venture deeper towards a great and calamitous power.
Desvelado is the first Bed-Time-Vania game in history! Help our hero Vampy fight insomnia one last time by turning off every light in the castle before going to sleep in his cozy coffin.
Piczle Cross: Rune Factory – £9.99
Based on the world and characters of Rune Factory 3 Special, 4 Special and 5, work your way through hundreds of puzzles.
Complete puzzles to unlock the real-world counterparts and use them to customise your farm, plant vegetables, recruit monsters, and choose your farm location to create your own unique Rune Factory 3D scene!
Play as Marron, a young bunny, and help the cute animal friends in town so that they’ll sign up for stalls at the town festival! Enjoy the cosy and retro pixel art graphics as you explore the town.
Bing in Wonderland Power Up Edition – £13.49
Bing in Wonderland is a fast-paced 2D action-platformer roguelike featuring quirky and humorous dialogue, a bizarre and imaginative world, a variety of unique enemies and environments, and a deep arsenal of weapons and equipment. Its distinctive “Butt Slam” ability adds an exhilarating balance of satisfaction and challenge to the gameplay.
Take control of your very own pro wrestling team, building up your members to seize the title of undisputed industry best! Diet, training, even the occasional R&R—every facet counts when you’re going for gold!
With your own team comes your own gym. Furnish it with a bench press, heavy bag, and other equipment of your choice, as you’ll need your wrestlers in tip-top condition come fight day. On that note, a colorful host of wrestling rivals await your challenge. Prep sufficiently and you just might get your hand raised! So fight hard, fight well, but also—fight with style!
Dodge, roll, block incoming cats!
Use power-ups to turn the scores. If you’ve always wanted to catch your friends with a giant laser pointer or shoot’em with a cheese cannon you can do it all! Just watch out for those flying yarn balls.
Ninja Issen (忍者一閃) : The Scroll of Dimension – £12.19
Kiba was a ninja of his clan, making a living infiltrating and assassinating, until one day, he was falsely accused of murdering his clan leader and chased off by a number of pursuers as a fugitive.
After a struggle to survive, he finds himself in the distant future.
Despite everything, he has no idea where he is, yet he jumps straight into battle, fighting for revenge as he digs deeper into the death of his leader in order to restore his good name…
Cabernet is a 2D narrative RPG set in a 19th century Eastern European inspired world, with a modern twist. Guide Liza, a young vampire struggling with her morality and the supernatural world she has been pulled into. Will you retain your humanity or descend further into the horror you have become? Prepare to explore a hidden world of political intrigue, class conflict, and decadent corruption.
EGGCONSOLE Burai: Jokan PC-8801mkIISR – £5.39
“Burai : Jōkan” is an RPG released by Riverhill Soft in 1989 in Japan. It features eight brave heroes, including pirates, fortune-tellers, and the leader of the dragon clan, and follows their heroic adventures. With as many as eight protagonist-level characters, it can be hard to become emotionally invested, but the game starts before the heroes meet each other. In the early stages, you’ll come to understand each hero’s background and circumstances, ensuring that you’ll grow attached to the characters.
2222 Abyss of the Universe – £7.99
In the year 2222, the Earth we loved has been devastated. We set out on an endless journey to search for a new planet to inhabit.
You will embark on a journey aboard a spaceship. The spaceship has evolved and requires fuel in the shape of rings.
Let’s aim for a new planet while collecting rings.
There’s nothing quite like a bit of creative, relaxing fun in the form of block-building ^^
Reconstruct three sets of islands in the Build Lands mode, or build and share your own ones in the Land Editor!
The Backrooms 1998 is a first-person found footage psychological horror survival game where it tells the story of a young teen after accidentally falling into the depths of The Backrooms in 1998.
Roam freely, mark, explore and try to unravel the story – however you are not alone.
Don’t scream.
Spot the Odd Pictogram! – £2.24
Can you find the odd one out? In this exciting spot-the-difference challenge, one pictogram character is moving differently from the rest.
Your mission is simple: find it before time runs out!
Immerse yourself in the enchanting world of Bee Flowers, a delightful puzzle game where you guide busy bees through hexagonal grids to pollinate vibrant fields of flowers. With its relaxing mechanics and progressively challenging puzzles, the game offers the perfect blend of strategy and serenity.
To the Moon: Sigmund Minisode 1 (Holiday Special) – £2.69
Return to the world of To the Moon in this heartfelt spin-off that dives deeper into the lives of Dr. Eva Rosalene and Dr. Neil Watts. During a holiday season filled with both festive cheer and public protests against the Sigmund Corporation, this minisode explores the ethical dilemmas and emotional challenges behind their wish-fulfillment work.
To the Moon: Sigmund Minisode 2 (Holiday Special) – £2.69
Step into the next chapter of To the Moon with Sigmund Minisode 2, a poignant holiday-themed spin-off that offers a deeper look at the lives of Dr. Eva Rosalene and Dr. Neil Watts. This part continues to explore the personal struggles, mysterious secrets, and ethical dilemmas faced by the doctors of Sigmund Corporation.
Jupiter Hell lets you become a hero in a classic 90s-flavored sci-fi universe. It’s you and your trusty shotgun (or chaingun, railgun or even a chainsaw) against hordes of demonic and alien enemies. All to the shine of CRT monitors. Just like in the good old days. But the graphics are much better.
Anime Dance-Off – Space Party – £8.99
Dive into the vibrant world of an enthralling anime idol dance game that invites you to join the journey of nine unique idols, each with their own dreams, outfits, favorite locations and favorite songs.
In this captivating adventure, you’ll have the chance to dance alongside your favorite characters through 35 mesmerizing levels, each offering two distinct difficulties to challenge and delight players of all skill levels.
Lulu’s Temple challenges you to venture inside a deep horrifying pyramid, filled with dangerous foes, traps and mysteries.
Play as a curious archaeologist who foolishly traps himself inside a temple after stumbling his way in.
Use your powerful gun to blast the undead and your torch to light your path ahead.
Please Be Happy is a comfy, slice-of-life visual novel set in a fictional version of Wellington, New Zealand.
Born as a fox in the forest of Korea, Miho carries with her the memory of a traveller who showed her kindness and spoke of home. Now more human than fox, Miho has spent a long, long time searching for her person. She arrives by airship to Wellington, one of the jewels of the floating island of New Zealand.
Welcome to a world of strategic card-based RPG, where you are tasked with liberating the forest kingdom from the tyranny of the Mad King.
Your story begins with the main character, once close to the royal family, who becomes a victim of false accusations. When the King’s daughter, the princess, mysteriously disappears, he descends into panic and starts suspecting a conspiracy among his subjects. As a result, numerous innocent people face harsh persecution and imprisonment.
Lone Fungus is a true Metroidvania set in a world built by mushrooms where you play as the last mushroom alive. Explore an ancient world, acquire new abilities and discover secrets!
Explore ten distinct areas, each with its own unique set of challenges. Uncover secrets and well deserved rewards in the form of Relics, Emblems and Upgrades. You will need all the attacks skills, Emblem powers and magic you can get your fungi hands on as you fight and parry your way through tons of enemies including 33 boss fights!
DAMN! is an electrifying twin-stick shooter that propels you into a whirlwind of action and intensity. Dive into an immersive experience with lightning-fast gameplay that will keep your adrenaline pumping and your reflexes sharp.
You thought they’d come from space? Wrong!
It’s up to you alone to stop an alien invasion from the depths of the ocean in this legendary, home computer era shoot ‘em up, dredged up and faithfully rebuilt for modern platforms – X-Out: Resurfaced!
Next week: Yu-Gi-Oh! EARLY DAYS COLLECTION, Glover (QUByte Classics), Justice Ninja Casey, Omega 6 The Triangle Stars, Ninja Five-O, Freddy Farmer, Mycelium Heaven, Foto Boy: A New Job, Lost and Hound, Fable of Fairy Stones, Taiji, Blackbeard’s Treasure, Vertical Kingdom, Prison Loop, Antipaint, Crime Opera Fandisk: The Caterpillar Candids, Rabbit Raid, Crime Opera II: The Floodgate Effect, I See Red, Party Poppers, and Jumper Jon.