With Elden Ring, The Duskbloods, Lords of the Fallen II, and Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty on the horizon, the Switch 2 is about to become a second home for Souls-likes. Kickstarting this trend is this week’s Lies of P: Complete Edition, which is going down well with critics, reportidly boasting smooth performance. Hopefully they aren’t telling fibs.
“By bundling the base game with the phenomenal Overture expansion, Lies of P: Complete Edition is the ideal way of playing this tremendous soulslike for the first time. There are some caveats, but performance on Switch 2 is largely solid, with multiple graphics settings available to choose from,” said Tech Radar.
The Switch 2 is about to get another older Final Fantasy, and it’s a big one – the almighty FINAL FANTASY XIV Online, complete with all the expansions. A few different versions are available, including a £11.99 starter edition, the £44.99 complete edition, and an £87.99 collector’s edition with a lengthy list of bonus items. If you’re curious, Square-Enix has released a 30 day free trial, which according to Eurogamer doesn’t require NSO.
On track to become one of the highest rated games of the year is Big Walk – aka what the Untitled Goose Game developers did next. The Metacritic for this online co-op jaunt – which true to its name, involves going on a big walk – currently sits at an impressive 93%. Communication plays a big part, with various ways to talk to friends, from whiteboards to walkie-talkies. Obstacles meanwhile can be overcome in various ways, lending a sandbox feel, and there’s plenty of potential for messing around.
Another game reviewing well is Kynseed, a life sim created by ex-Fable staff, and consequently rife with good ol’ British humour. “Kynseed is bountiful with tasks to do, NPCs to please, and lands to discover. Oftentimes that quantity seems to take priority over quality, though that doesn’t always detract from the pops of dopamine you get when you complete a microtask,” said Nintendo Life.
Atari are back too with Parkasaurus: Dinoluxe Edition – a colourful park builder, in which it’s possible to breed dinos, all while creating exhibits to maintain guest happiness. The Sea Monsters and Prehistoric Wonders DLCs are included.
Then there’s the creature capturing deck builder Montabi, mini-game package Grizzy and the Lemmings – Crazy Party, physics-based destruction game Limbot, roguelike adventure Talespinner, and the self-explanatory Spooky Spirit Shooting Gallery for Nintendo Switch 2.
If you purchased the Virtual Boy add-on, you’ll find two previous unreleased games to play: D-Hopper and Zero Racers. Both were cancelled following the VB’s poor sales, and so they’ve lingered in Nintendo’s vaults ever since. D-Hopper is a top-down action adventure that uses the VB’s illusion of depth to good effect, while Zero Racers is a F-Zero spin-off with flying vehicles and tunnels to traverse. Think along the lines of Red Alarm, only a racer not a shooter. Apparently, it has no music, which makes us wonder how complete it is.
Sunsoft’s Route16 – an arcade game from 1981 – is being dusted off for a new collection that includes the original, the 1985 sequel, and new entry ROUTE16R. They’re available singularly if you’d rather go down that…route. Another surprise re-release is the Famicom version of Rod Land – a much-loved single screen platformer. Features include a gallery, a rewind tool, the ability to record your best time, and “a little extra content after completing the main game.”
This week’s EGGCONSOLE release meanwhile is ELTHLEAD – a strategy game from 1988 – while the latest Arcade Archives release is Konami’s 1987 military training sim Combat School. ASCII’S UFO -A day in the life- from 1999 gains a Console Archives release too, in which you must rescue missing aliens while witnessing human interactions. Sadly, it remains untranslated. Combat School should be worth a look, though.
New Switch eShop releases
Big Walk – £15.99 – Switch 2
Big Walk is a cooperative multiplayer adventure about teamwork and talking.
Set out with your friends through a wide-open world full of challenges, puzzles, and discoveries. You’ll need to work together to find your way around, stay in contact using an assortment of tools and toys, and figure out new ways to communicate when you suddenly find yourself speechless.
Adventuring aside, there’s plenty of time to just hang out. Sit and watch the sunset, or steal your friend’s binoculars and kick them into the ocean. Spending time with friends is the best part of a big walk.
FINAL FANTASY XIV Online – £44.99
Begin your adventure in FINAL FANTASY XIV: A Realm Reborn
Create your very own Warrior of Light and embark upon a quest to deliver the land from an eternity of Darkness.
Take to the skies in FINAL FANTASY XIV: Heavensward
Take your first steps in the reclusive nation of Ishgard, locked in a seemingly never-ending struggle with dragons.
Rekindle the fires of hope in FINAL FANTASY XIV: Stormblood
Journey to the East and rise up against the might of the Garlean Empire.
Become the darkness in FINAL FANTASY XIV: Shadowbringers
Travel to a world where light ushers all unto oblivion. But hope is not yet lost, for where there is light there is shadow.
Journey to the very stars above in FINAL FANTASY XIV: Endwalker
A great calamity has been building – a second advent of the Final Days. The Warrior of Light must journey ever higher and stand firm as hope’s last bastion.
Set forth for new horizons in FINAL FANTASY XIV: Dawntrail
Blue seas, clear skies, and boundless possibilities await! Explore uncharted territories with familiar faces as hope’s light dawns once more.
Embark on a lifetime of adventure in a beautiful world of creativity and intrigue. Raise a family, customise your farm, run a business, craft items, and battle monsters!
Your actions and decisions matter in our adventurous story filled with purpose and promise. Lend a helping hand to villagers in need and discover the unique blend of creativity and choice that sets Kynseed apart. Come and join us – your legacy awaits!
Lies of P: Complete Edition – £59.99
The ultimate soulslike experience arrives on Nintendo Switch™ 2. Lies of P: Complete Edition includes the multi-award-winning base game and the Overture expansion, delivering the full saga of Krat’s downfall and the legendary secrets that birthed the Puppet Frenzy.
Parkasaurus: Dinoluxe Edition – £29.69 – Switch 2
Experience the prehistoric hijinks of building your very own dinosaur theme park in Parkasaurus. Packed with adorable, mischievous dinos to discover, this tycoon management sim challenges you to design exhibits and conduct research that allow your herd to thrive and your profits to grow. Customize your park, hire employees, and create amazing exhibits your guests will love. But beware! These dinos love to escape and go on a rampage.
Assemble your team of Montabi to outsmart the bad guys and save the city!
If you’re going to be the big hero and save the city, you’ve gotta get some Montabi! Each Montabi has a unique set of skills, giving you endless combinations for team synergies. Collect equipment and charms and utilize them to chart the path to victory!
Grizzy and the Lemmings – Crazy Party – £35.99
Grizzy just wanted a little peace and quiet… but the Lemmings had other plans! Take control of these unstoppable little troublemakers and turn your living room into a total madhouse: unpredictable mini-games, boards full of surprises, and dirty tricks between friends, every round can flip in seconds. One goal: grab as much Yummy as you can before everyone else, and drive Grizzy up the wall.
Uncover the mystery while fleeing for your life! A pulse-pounding puzzle-horror action-adventure!
This time, the stage is set in a school, featuring two massive, star-studded scenarios!
Spooky Spirit Shooting Gallery for Nintendo Switch 2 – £25.99
The medal game combining the thrill of knocking down big prizes and defeating ghosts arrives powered up Nintendo Switch™ 2 !
Strategize and conquer in a brainteasing twist on a tabletop gaming classic! Mate’Morphosis is a chess-inspired puzzle game built around the concept of becoming the pieces that you capture. Outsmart each board, adapt to evolving mechanics and hunt down the rival king across every stage! Instead of commanding multiple pieces, you’ll need to navigate the board with a single player piece that transforms into the type of piece you’ve just defeated.
Welcome to Limbot, the ultimate physics-based city stomping experience where up to 4 players must attempt to pilot a person dressed as a giant cardboard robot! Embrace the chaos in a paper-craft metropolis designed to be crushed, smashed, and destroyed!
OBAKEIDORO 2: Chase & Seek – £16.99
OBAKEIDORO 2: Chase & Seek – £16.99 – Switch 2
A chase battle between Monsters and Humans! Round 2!
The new setting is Japan?!
You only have 3 minutes!
Run and hide. If even one person escapes, the Humans win!
FixFox is a wholesome sci-fi adventure game. Play as Vix, an unlucky space mechanic, who crash lands on a mysterious planet where tools are forbidden. Accompanied by her trusty toolbox Tin, Vix travels across the planet Karamel discovering hidden stashes left by pirates, repairing friendly household appliances, and sampling tasty local delicacies.
Enter a captivating realm steeped in the exotic and bizarre tapestry of Japanese mythology with Talespinner, a deck-building roguelike adventure. As the storyteller, you will guide your chosen hero through an ever-changing narrative shaped by your decisions and deck construction.
ROUTE16 COLLECTION includes two classic titles from the 1980s ROUTE16 series, along with the brand-new entry ROUTE16R.
The ROUTE16 series is a thrilling car chase action experience where you control your beloved car, MAD X, collecting all items while evading relentless enemy cars and monsters.
Mai: Child of Ages – Storms of Time – £6.29
The sudden appearance of a floating factory marks the beginning of a new chapter in the story of Mai: Child of Ages.
Explore brand-new dungeons set inside this colossal airborne structure, filled with ancient machinery, moving platforms, and forgotten experiments.
In Apocalypse ? No ! you play a survivor accompanied by his faithful dog in an apocalyptic world, survive against the creatures, help the characters of this world and face the Apocalypse.
EGGCONSOLE ELTHLEAD PC-8801mkIISR – £5.39
Originally released in 1988, this strategy RPG casts you as King Sieghart of Elthlead. Your mission is to defeat Bozel, the King of Velzeria, and restore peace to the continent of Gaia.
There was once a mansion said to be plagued by countless paranormal phenomena.
You, an exorcist, enter the mansion to put those disturbances to rest.
However, the spirits lurking within trap you inside the house.
To escape, you must calm every paranormal phenomenon haunting the mansion.
John Fox is an elite warrior and super soldier who saved the leaders of various States. He was a professional mercenary who retired with honor.
One day after getting out of the subway, John’s pet, Milo is killed by a toad. John Fox rushes in pursuit of the harmful toad and encounters an army of clone frogs, which flooded the entire city.
If the big toad manages to defeat John Fox, the world will be doomed to misery and chaos.
JALECOlle Famicom Ver. ROD LAND – £7.19
Rescue Mama from Maboots Tower!
Grab enemies with Magic Rods and create ladders with special shoes.
A stage-clearing action game for 1 or 2 players.
Next week: EA SPORTS Madden NFL 27, Duskfade, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, Plungeez, Blazblue Entropy Effect X – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, Skatesterre, CloverPit, Old Coin Pusher Gaiden, Choppa: Rescue Rivals, The Pirate Keko, Tyrant’s Realm, Lost to Time, Pets Survivors, Idle Immortal, Tower Dominion, and Future Knight.