If you’re curious about pre-installation on Android and PC, read the official announcement post here. If you haven’t checked out Genshin Impact yet, you can download it for free on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. The PC version is available on the official website here and the Epic Games Store. If you play on iOS, with iOS 14.5 or iPadOS 14.5 and later, you can use PS5 and Xbox Series X|S controllers to play Genshin Impact. We featured Genshin Impact as our Game of the Week when it released and awarded it our 2020 Game of the Year. I also featured it as one of the best iOS games to play with a controller. What do you think of Genshin Impact 3.7 so far?

Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated!

As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer.

Rytmos is split up into 7 solar systems that are each based on a certain style of music. Within each solar system there are 3 planets, and each planet is focused on a specific type of instrument. The planets are cube-shaped and so have 6 different sides each, and on each side is where you’ll find a puzzle to solve. Each solved side introduces a new sound, and as you solve more sides more sounds come into play, eventually creating a full song once all sides are solved. It’s very fun to see the music broken down in this way and makes you appreciate every note and beat that goes into creating an entire song.

The puzzles themselves are kind of like block-sliding puzzles where you draw a line from a starting point and must create a loop across the surface and end right back where you started. There are nodes in each level that will trigger a part of each song, and to earn Gold on a level you’ll need to incorporate each node into your line loop. Hazards, moving objects, and the layouts of each level make this much trickier than it might seem at first, but thankfully there’s no time limit or any reason to rush so you’re free to try as long as you like to figure out that Gold solution. Or you can settle for less than Gold and simply move on, coming back later to conquer the Gold if you wish.

I think that’s what I like so much about Rytmos, it is a very chill game to play and in a lot of ways feels just as much like a musical toy than a game. Some of the solutions to capture every node are very clever and satisfying to figure out, and it’s fun to do it against the backdrop of all this interesting music being created. Beating a planet also means you unlock a little interactive version of that planet’s specific insturment which you can play and even record little clips of if you want, further adding to the toy-like nature of Rytmos. This one is free to check out the first planet with a one-time $5 IAP to unlock the full game and I highly suggest checking out at least the free portion if you’re into unique interactive musical experiences.

News

A Trio of Mario Games Will Hit the Nintendo Switch Online Expansion Pass Next Week

Yes, I was wondering when or if we would hear anything about the Nintendo Switch Online retro apps this month. Well, here we go: Super Mario Advance, Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2, and Yoshi’s Island: Super Mario Advance 3 will be arriving in the Game Boy Advance app for Expansion Pack subscribers next week on Friday, the 26th of May. They’re joining the fourth game in the Super Mario Advance series, Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3, which launched with the service. Sure, they’re all slightly enhanced, altered, and sometimes downgraded versions of games already on Nintendo Switch Online, but it’s still neat to have them.

Humble Games Showcase 2023 Reveals Many Interesting Games and Updates

Humble Games had its Humble Games Showcase 2023 yesterday revealing new titles and also giving updates on existing announcements. The event also had new developers announcing partnerships with Humble Games for publishing their titles. One thing to note is that the games revealed either had no platforms announced or only PC mentioned. Humble Games’ titles almost always come to Switch, so I’m going to just assume that they will show up at some point in the future or be revealed for Switch in a Nintendo Indie World Showcase or a Nintendo Direct. The full presentation is available above, but the highlights include the reveal of co-op survival adventure game Lost Skies from Bossa Games. This one looks gorgeous, and I hope it has cross platform play support when it releases. Wizard of Legend 2 was also announced, but development for this one is being handled by Dead Mage. It will be a 3D game with 4 player online co-op.

Cataclismo from Moonlighter developer Digital Sun is a fortress building game featuring Jim Guthrie. Out of the remaining announcements, I’m really hoping Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical ends up on Switch at some point. If it doesn’t, my trusty Steam Deck is always here for indies. The showcase also saw first person Metroidvania Supraland Six Inches Under get released on PS5, PS4, and Xbox platforms. The Switch version will follow in the future. Hopefully 2023 sees more releases from Humble Games hit Switch and also mobile. Games like Unpacking are not only amazing on Switch, but they’d also be brilliant on iOS. -Mikhail Madnani

New Releases

Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril ($9.99)

New NES games are a dime a dozen these days, but back in 2010 it was a lot rarer of a happening. The first time I remember seeing a modern release for Nintendo’s 8-bit console with my own eyes was when I stumbled across Battle Kid: Fortress of Peril in a shop in Tokyo. And here it is! You can play it on your Switch! It’s a bit like Mega Man but blended in with a rage platformer, and that isn’t going to be for everyone. But for those who like to keep bashing their head against a brick wall of difficulty, it’s fine. The real issue with this release is that it offers next to none of the options we usually see with emulated games, up to and including save states. So, uh, have fun clearing this in one sitting.

Cyber Citizen Shockman ($5.99)

I just want to say how amazing it is that we are enjoying a time where a relatively obscure PC Engine/TurboGrafx-16 game can get picked up, translated, and officially released globally on modern consoles. Cyber Citizen Shockman originally came out in 1989, and it really feels like it. Whether that is a good thing or a bad thing is an exercise best left to the reader. It’s been tossed in the usual Ratalaika wrapper here, but there are actually a few little extras here like manual scans and production art. If you’re in the mood for a platformer that is TurboGrafxCore as heck, here you go.

Puzzle by Nikoli S Numberlink ($4.99)

Hamster’s got another puzzler for us this week. This time, it’s Numberlink. If you remember games like Pathpix on mobile, it’s somewhat similar to that. Draw lines to link the matching numbers, don’t cross over any lines, and don’t go out of bounds. You get a bunch of puzzles to play, so if you dig this type of thing it’s a pretty safe fiver to spend.

HEXAPODA ($12.99)

This is a really decent-looking bullet-hell vertical shooter. You take to the skies to battle an army of giant mutated insects across twelve different stages. You can choose from four different aircraft, and there’s an online leaderboard for each of the three levels of difficulty. Oh, and you can play with up to four players via local multiplayer. That’s kind of neat. The presentation is both easy to read and distinctive, and the audio is quite cool. Shooter fans, you’ll want to look into this one.

Mechanic 8230: Escape from Ilgrot ($14.99)

Hmm. This is a point-and-click style adventure game, and it’s decent while it lasts. Unfortunately, it doesn’t last all that long and seems to be a story in progress. A couple of hours carries you through the end of the episode, and that seems to be all you get for now. I don’t really like games that release with incomplete stories that have no guarantee of anything else coming, but your purchase is your business.

Legendary Tales: Stolen Life ($6.99)

Okay, look. Yesterday I said that the hidden object puzzle game that came out would have to last you a week. I’m going to have to walk that back. It only had to last a day. Here’s another one. I’m not sure how long before the next one. Could be a couple days, could be a week. Harrowing times. Regulate yourself as needed.

Sudoku: Casual Board Game ($9.99)

As basic a sudoku game as it gets, and wildly overpriced for what it offers. But it’s Megame, so what can you expect?

Theft Ride Legacy ($19.99)

Wow, twenty dollars? Okay. That’s bold but I guess you miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. This is a really, um, modest bicycle game that allows you to play splitscreen with another player. If it were cheap it might be good for a laugh or two with a buddy but I can’t under any circumstances recommend it as-is.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Apparently that Justice League: Cosmic Chaos is alright, so superhero fans might want to pick that up at its discounted price. Shooter fans should peep Graze Counter GM and Sophstar, and there are some rock-bottom prices on the Holy Potatoes games if you’ve got an eye for the quirky. Over in the outbox, there isn’t much going on. Check both of those lists as ever.

Select New Games on Sale

Beacon Pines ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/25)
Paradise Killer ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/25)
Neo Cab ($2.99 from $19.99 until 5/25)
Citizen Sleeper ($13.39 from $19.99 until 5/25)
Arcane Vale ($4.79 from $7.99 until 5/26)
Velocity Noodle ($8.44 from $12.99 until 5/26)
Marlon’s Mystery ($8.99 from $9.99 until 5/26)
Graze Counter GM ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/26)
DC’s Justice League Cosmic Chaos ($34.99 from $49.99 until 5/29)
Peppa Pig World Adventures ($31.99 from $39.99 until 5/29)
Gigantosaurus Dino Kart ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/29)
Heidelberg 1693 ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/29)
EA Sports FIFA 23 Legacy ($19.99 from $39.99 until 5/29)

Slime Rancher Plortable ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/30)
Taxi Driver The Simulation ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/30)
Forklift The Simulation ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/30)
Delivery Driver The Simulation ($8.99 from $17.99 until 5/30)
Sophstar ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/2)
Golazo 2 Pixel Soccer ($7.99 from $15.98 until 6/2)
Afterimage ($22.49 from $24.99 until 6/2)
The Pinball Wizard ($3.19 from $7.99 until 6/2)
SturmFront: The Mutant War ($2.99 from $).99 until 6/2)
Horror Tale 1 Kidnapper ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/5)
Bumblebee Little Bee Adventure ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/5)
The Testament of Sherlock Holmes ($19.99 from $24.99 until 6/8)
Wavetale ($22.49 from $29.99 until 6/8)
The Copper Canyon Dixie Dash ($2.24 from $7.49 until 6/8)
Lunch A Palooza ($4.79 from $15.99 until 6/8)

Source of Madness ($11.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Togges ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Far: Changing Tides ($6.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Mercenaries Rebirth CotWL ($15.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Cursed to Golf ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Flipping Death ($1.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Stick It to The Man ($1.99 from $11.99 until 6/8)
Broken Mind ($4.99 from $9.99 until 6/8)
Package Inc ($3.59 from $4.99 until 6/8)
Curious Expedition 2 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Paper Cut Mansion ($13.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
LEGO Bricktales ($20.99 from $29.99 until 6/8)
Firegirl: Hack n Splash Rescue ($7.19 from $17.99 until 6/8)
SteamWorld Quest HoG ($7.49 from $24.99 until 6/8)
Lonely Mountains: Downhill ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/8)
Holy Potatoes A Weapon Shop?! ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/8)
Holy Potatoes We’re in Space?! ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/8)
Holy Potatoes What The Hell?! ($3.00 from $15.00 until 6/8)

Sales Ending This Weekend

Boyfriend Dungeon ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/20)
Demon Skin ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/20)
Pupperazzi ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/20)
Strike! Ten Pin Bowling ($3.00 from $9.99 until 5/20)
Chronicles of Albian ($9.59 from $11.99 until 5/21)
Clutter 12 ($11.24 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Death’s Gambit ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/21)
Doki Doki Literature Club Plus ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Finding America: The Heartland ($6.99 from $9.99 until 5/21)
First Time in Rome ($8.39 from $11.99 until 5/21)
I Love Finding MORE Pups ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/21)
Ki11er Clutter ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/21)

Match Ventures ($8.99 from $11.99 until 5/21)
Montgomery Fox & TCotDN ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Montgomery Fox & TCotMB ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Montgomery Fox & TRoVD ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Overcooked! All You Can Eat ($15.99 from $39.99 until 5/21)
Puzzle Vacations Ireland ($8.39 from $11.99 until 5/21)
Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/21)
Smile For Me ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Tankorama ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/21)
Yooka-Laylee ($3.99 from $39.99 until 5/21)

That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next week with more new games, more sales, some reviews, and a bit of news if things line up that way. I’m going to do my last push on The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom this weekend, so you can look forward to my review early next week. I hope you all have a great weekend, and as always, thanks for reading!

How to grow your Reaper Corps

When you reach Master level 600, you can unlock the new Reaper Corps content. Here, consuming dedicated Reaper Souls or Reaper Crystals lets you activate them across the Peak, Gelidity, Windstorm, and Tenebrosity divisions.

Once you activate your Reaper within the Character menu, you can navigate to the Growth section and consume Reaper’s Gemstone acquired from the Blood Castle to grow your Reapers.

How to Promote and Awaken your Reaper

In order to boost your Reaper’s tier, you can spend [Reaper’s Sign] to Promote your Reaper. As for Awakening your Reaper, you can nab powerful skills by spending [exclusive Reaper Souls] based on your [Gelidity/Windstorm/Tenebrosity Reapers].

In particular, you can awaken [Peak/Gelidity Reaper] by consuming the [exclusive Reaper Crystal], which you can acquire by synthesizing 10/20 Reaper Crystals. On the other hand, you can score Peak/Gelidity Reaper Souls as well as Reaper Crystals from Personal Bosses.

Managing your equipment

There are 4 types of Reaper equipment (Crown, Sword, Shield, and Armour) with Magic, Epic, Unique, Legendary, and Transcendent grades. If you equip all three pieces for your sword, shield, and armor, you can take advantage of set options provided you’ve reached a certain rank.

You can spend materials on the same Reaper equipment as well to power up your gear using equipment that has the same tier or a lower tier. Plus, you can easily check the Reaper equipment that you already have in your Reaper Corps inventory so that you can tinker around with the right combination that suits your playstyle best (Reaper equipment can be switched out and removed at any time).

Boosting your Reaper Bonds

Each Reaper Bond has 2, 3, 4, 4, 4, 4 Reaper slots within each one. Enrolling Reapers within a bond will boost its base options, and you can also score a powerful Bond Talent Skill when you activate a 3rd/4th/5th Bond.

Ready to put your own Reapers to the test? If you’re keen on giving the new update a go, you can download MU Archangel on the iOS App Store and on the Google Play Store for Android devices. It’s a free-to-play game with in-app purchases.

If you use the PlayStation App and also PS Remote Play app on iOS and are wondering which controller is best for you, read my iOS controller buyer’s guide covering the PS5, Xbox Series X, PS4, and Xbox One controllers here. I also reviewed the Backbone One PlayStation Edition. Read my review of that here. If you’ve not gotten it yet, download the PlayStation Remote Play app here and the PlayStation App here. Do you use the PlayStation App and PlayStation Remote Play regularly?

Red Games Co’s Solitaire Stories brings in the Locally Grown story, Lavender Dreams event, Bells of Quasimodo event, The Card Catalogue event, and new accessibility options including quick game launch modes for offline play. Temple Run: Puzzle Adventure Mirror Story continues with 60 new puzzles and tournaments. An iPad rotation bug has also been fixed with today’s update. Sneaky Sasquatch adds in VR goggles, three new virtual characters, a new kind of virtual food, and more today with the developers confirming more updates coming soon. The final notable content update of the week is Castle Crumble bringing in a new weapon, 60 new levels in a new kingdom, and Amethyst King Challenges. Check out our forum threads for Solitaire Stories here, Garden Tails here, Simon’s Cat – Story Time here, Jetpack Joyride 2 here, Taiko no Tatsujin: Pop Tap Beat here, Temple Run: Puzzle Adventure here, Sneaky Sasquatch here, and Castle Crumble here. For all Apple Arcade related things, check out our dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussion on the service and every game included here. What do you think of Apple’s updates this week?

Oh boy! pic.twitter.com/Vyu3Evlyjh

— Tyrone Rodriguez ( ● ︿●) (@tyronerodriguez) December 5, 2022

The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth currently on iOS, is lacking compared to the full version on other platforms with DLC packs and updates. Since Rebirth debuted, Afterbirth and Afterbirth+ hit PC and console with The Binding of Isaac: Repentance being the newest version and expansion. The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth is currently still $14.99 on iOS. I’d recommend waiting to see how this new expansion or brand new version are handled on iOS before buying anything. We don’t know if The Binding of Isaac: Repentance will be a brand new game or an update with paid DLC for the existing release. The PS5 and Xbox Series X versions of the game were brand new full-priced releases. The Binding of Isaac: Repentance is available for $59.99 on Xbox Series X as a complete game with all content and expansions. I played Afterbirth+ a ton of it on Nintendo Switch, but I know I’d enjoy it more on iPhone assuming it is feature complete when it does arrive. Have you tried The Binding of Isaac: Repentance on any platform yet and are you looking forward to it hitting iOS in the future?

While the base of your characters are nothing more than spheres, you’ll be able to outfit these guys (and gals?) with gear that you can upgrade and improve over time, giving your team unique abilities as well as unique looks. You’ll be able to battle online against friends in head-to-head battles or against random opponents in ranked play. This seems like a good fit for mobile and given Itatake’s previous efforts I’m certainly interested in checking out Kloot Arena. The game is available for pre-order on the iOS App Store here and available for -pre-registration on Google Play for Android here with an expected release date of June 14th, so keep an eye out for it in just shy of a month’s time.

News

PowerWash Simulator SpongeBob SquarePants Special Pack DLC announced

The excellent PowerWash Simulator is getting a new collaboration DLC pack this summer in the form of the PowerWash Simulator SpongeBob SquarePants Special Pack DLC. This paid pack will include fix new maps, a new character model, 10 achievements, and more. The maps are Conch Street, The Bikini Bottom Bus, The Krusty Krab, The Patty Wagon, The Invisible Boatmobile, and The Mermalair. This DLC will be available for all platforms, and I bet Shaun is as excited as I am to play this. Hopefully this Nickelodeon collaboration pack is out sooner than later in the summer. It will cost $7.99 on all platforms.-Mikhail Madnani

New Releases

No One Lives Under the Lighthouse ($11.99)

I mean, I didn’t think anyone was living under the lighthouse until now. But as you’ve brought it up, I find myself suspicious. Guess I’d better play this game to find out what’s really going on. It’s another one of those PlayStation 1-style horror adventures, but one that has received considerable acclaim on other platforms for its strong atmosphere and mysterious setting. If you’re looking to get freaked out today, this is probably the stop you want.

Murtop ($4.99)

You might look at this and think it looks like Dig Dug crossed with Bomberman, and let me tell you this: that is almost exactly what this is. Flynn’s Arcade has a good eye for proper retro arcade throwbacks, and this is another fine one in the vein of Donut Dodo. You get 256 stages to play, and there is indeed a kill screen if you clear them all. Really my only big gripe about it is that the leaderboards aren’t online. Anyway, I’ll have a proper review of this one soon but if you like classic arcade games you’ll find this five bucks well spent.

Apploval ($29.99)

A roguelite action game that has, I think, made a typo in its own title. Head into the Tower of Approval and battle various monsters while looking for loot. Every time you enter the tower, the layout changes. As you play the game, the home village you start in will develop. The description refers to this as a “new sensation" but it all seems fairly ordinary to me. And yes, I’ve found it on Steam. The game’s name is Approval there. Well, what can you do? It’s not like it’s bad or anything, but thirty bucks is a big ask these days for something like this.

Chasm: The Rift ($19.99)

This is a rerelease of a 1997 first-person shooter and likely falls into that category we have decided to call ‘boomer shooters’ now. It’s the product of a small Ukrainian developer and has a lot of Quake energy to it. It’s a bit janky and it never feels quite as good to play as Quake, but there’s a particular charm to it that might work for some shooter fans out there.

Rubberduck Wave Racer ($19.99)

Well, at least it’s not another typical kart racer. This one takes place on the water, and it might remind you of Wave Race. But it should not. Anyway, sixteen tracks, twelve rubber ducks to choose from, and support for two players via local multiplayer. The description talks about playing with up to four; do not believe Ondore’s lies. There’s also a license here from Schnabels, a company that apparently makes real collectible rubber duckies? That authentic rubber duck touch for the discerning rubber duck fan.

Japanese Escape Games The House ($9.99)

Yes, that’s a Japanese escape game set in a house alright. Nothing new here, but it does its thing the way this series always has, and I have to believe that’s enough for some because the games keep on coming.

Arcade Archives Ark Area ($7.99)

A bit of an unexciting one this week, sadly. This is a multi-directional shooter originally released in 1987 by UPL, and serves as a follow-up to NOVA 2001. It’s been in the PlayStation 4 Arcade Archives for quite a while, and aside from the likely undoable (and unnecessary) Wonder Boy, is the last such game Hamster can draw on for an emergency week. It’s not a bad game, and like just about any shooter you can get a lot of mileage out of the online leaderboards, but it does feel like filler.

Love on Leave ($24.99)

Nothing new about a game where you play as a non-descript dude trying to romance one of a handful of ladies, but this one actually sets things up a little differently. Sure, you have your usual events with portraits and all, but you’re also free to wander around the countryside as you like. Go fishing, do some farming, hunt for collectibles, and pick up some gifts for the women you’re courting. I doubt it’s going to give Stardew Valley a run for its money or anything, but it’s nice to see something break out of the tight structure this genre typically rolls with.

Winter’s Wish: Spirits of Edo ($49.99)

Okay, so this is the more typical type of romance visual novel. A woman has the special ability to sense when disasters are coming, and she gets conscripted into a group of hunky dudes who were established to help maintain security, order, and the proper quota of hot guys for smooching. Will the heroine save the world? Destroy it? And who will she smooch? Questions abound, and I have a feeling our pal Mikhail will answer them sooner or later.

Nightmare Reaper ($29.99)

Yes, another boomer shooter today. This one is a relatively new game, having released on other platforms around a year ago. And yes, it’s pretty great. Tons of weapons, an upgradeable character, some minigames to play, lots of nasty creatures to blast away, and overall a really awesome chunk of meaty action. Definitely the first-person shooter pick of the day.

Fall of the New Age ($14.99)

It is the 2020s and there is time for hidden object adventures. Feels like at least one of them every single week, in fact. And here is this week’s! Savor it, as it has to last you around seven days.

Bio Prototype ($3.99)

Add another one to the pile of Vampire Survivors-style games looking to fill the hole of the game’s absence on Switch. It actually has a really solid system for customizing your build, and I think it will be of interest to most fans of the game it clearly pays homage to.

Bunhouse ($19.99)

This is a game about bunnies and greenhouses. You’re a bunny and you need to tend to your greenhouse, growing and selling plants, decorating the garden, upgrading your facilities, and so on. You can actually play with up to four players via local multiplayer, each person taking control of their own bunny. Arguably the finest bunny gardening game releasing on the eShop today.

Unalive 010 ($4.99)

A top-down roguelite twin-stick shooter that doesn’t seem particularly fancy. Yes, this is kind of a theme today. Explore a laboratory full of nasty monsters and try to live to tell the tale. There are upgrades, different kinds of ammo, and so on. You know how this kind of thing works. Middling, but for a fiver I suppose it can afford to be.

Undergrave ($4.99)

If you recall the game Red Ronin that QUByte released on the Switch a while back, here’s the latest from its developer. Like that game, this is a strategic roguelite game where every move counts. Like Red Ronin, this is rather enjoyable for the price. A mild recommendation from ol’ Shaun.

PI.EXE ($5.99)

An action-platformer set inside of a computer where you need to squash a virus the old-fashioned way: with a sword. Wait, that’s not how any of this works. Oh, video games. It’s a one-hit affair, so don’t get hit.

Bubble Monsters ($4.99)

Hey look, a complete rip-off of Puzzle Bobble. I would tell you to avoid this on principle even if you couldn’t spend a few bucks more and get the considerably better real thing. But you can spend a few bucks more and get the considerably better real thing, so do that.

Magic Bubble Shooter: Classic Bubbles Arcade ($9.99)

Megame isn’t really fooling anyone by tilting the action ninety degrees. This is just Puzzle Bobble again. Spend two bucks less and get the considerably better real thing. There’s no need to subject yourself to this nonsense.

911: Cannibal ($3.99)

An affordable hide-and-seek horror game with some light puzzle-solving. There are a million of these on the Switch and I honestly don’t see a single thing special about this one, but if they’re your thing then I doubt four bucks and some clown on the internet’s apathy is going to stop you.

Blackjack Waifu Tour ($4.50)

This is just a bare-bones blackjack game with saucy pictures of anime ladies on the cards. You could probably find a real deck of cards with saucy pictures of anime ladies on them and I suspect that would be a lot more enjoyable for you.

Find The Pairs: Classic Memory Puzzle ($9.99)

And now you can use those saucy cards to save yourself ten bucks on buying this garbage. The savings just keep piling up. As it says in the title, you’re just flipping over cards to find pairs here. A waste of digital space.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Some of those extremely over-priced matching puzzle games are finally down to more reasonable prices, in case you wanted some. Otherwise, it seems like a lot of the usual names. Perhaps tomorrow will bring more interesting sales? Not much of note in the outbox, either. Check the lists anyway.

Select New Games on Sale

Sail Forth ($15.79 from $19.99 until 5/25)
Riverbond ($7.49 from $24.99 until 5/25)
Cozy Grove ($8.80 from $14.99 until 5/25)
Deleveled ($2.12 from $9.99 until 5/25)
The Ambassador Fractured Timelines ($3.18 from $14.99 until 5/25)
Fracter ($2.18 from $6.99 until 5/25)
#Funtime ($3.18 from $14.99 until 5/25)
Roundguard ($6.24 from $19.99 until 5/25)
HunterX ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/31)
New Tanks ($2.99 from $5.99 until 6/1)
The Lost Labyrinth ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
My Downtown ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Santa’s Holiday ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Secrets of Magic 4: PM ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Secrets of Magic 5: BtS ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)

Queen’s Garden Sakura Season ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Lucy Dreaming ($16.14 from $18.99 until 6/1)
The Wardrobe ($4.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Age of Heroes: The Beginning ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Rayland ($2.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
The Letter: A Horror VN ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/2)
Tricky Thief ($3.49 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Queeny Army ($2.49 from $4.99 until 6/2)
El Gancho ($3.49 from $6.99 until 6/2)
Rule No. 1 ($2.99 from $5.99 until 6/2)
Project Starship X ($2.49 from $9.99 until 6/2)
Takotan ($2.79 from $6.99 until 6/2)
20 Ladies ($2.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Pretty Girls Escape ($4.19 from $5.99 until 6/2)
Pretty Girls Speed ($3.59 from $5.99 until 6/2)

Sephirothic Stories ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Frane: Dragons’ Odyssey ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/5)
Antiquia Lost ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/5)
Legend of the Tetrarchs ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Justice Chronicles ($8.99 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Ruinverse ($8.24 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Yum Yum Cookstar ($14.99 from $29.99 until 6/6)
RazerWire: Nanowars ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/6)
Crysis Remastered ($9.89 from $29.99 until 6/6)
Crysis Remastered Trilogy ($27.49 from $49.99 until 6/6)
Warlock of Firetop Mountain ($2.99 from $29.99 until 6/7)
To Be Or Not To Be ($2.09 from $6.99 until 6/7)
Here Be Dragons ($4.49 from $17.99 until 6/7)
Choices That Matter ATSWE ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/7)
Choices That Matter ATHWL ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/7)
Choices That Matter ATSWO ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/7)
Table of Tales: The Crooked Crown ($5.99 from $19.99 until 6/7)
Pill Baby ($3.75 from $15.00 until 6/8)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, May 19th

Ancient Islands ($5.62 from $12.49 until 5/19)
Autobahn Police Simulator 2 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/19)
Bridge Builder Adventure ($2.69 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Bridge! 3 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 5/19)
Build a Bridge ($2.69 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Car Factory Driver ($6.49 from $12.99 until 5/19)
Cyber Velocity Run ($2.79 from $7.99 until 5/19)
Drizzlepath: Deja Vu ($2.79 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Formula Bit Racing DX ($3.49 from $4.99 until 5/19)
Fur Squadron ($4.89 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Gematombe ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Gigapocalypse ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/19)

Golazo! 2 ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Live by the Sword Tactics ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Lucid Cycle ($2.79 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Marsupilami Hoobadventure ($10.19 from $29.99 until 5/19)
Mini & Michi ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/19)
MotoGP 21 ($4.49 from $29.99 until 5/19)
My Universe: Puppies & Kittens ($8.49 from $24.99 until 5/19)
Owlboy ($9.99 from $24.99 until 5/19)
Pretty Girls Breakers Plus ($5.24 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Scramballed ($2.79 from $7.99 until 5/19)
The Smurfs Mission Vileaf ($13.59 from $39.99 until 5/19)
Truck & Logistics Simulator ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/19)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining releases of the week, plus whatever sales accumulate in the next twenty-four hours. Phew, it’s really hot here today. I’m trying to save electricity but I am highly tempted to use the air conditioning already. Hang in there, Shaun! For great wallet justice! I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

League Bowling is another one of those early NEOGEO games, dating back to the console’s first year on the market. Its most impressive on-paper feature was its support for the NEOGEO Multi Link, which allowed four cabinets to be connected together for a whopping eight-player battle. In practice, I don’t think I ever saw four NEOGEO cabinets in one place together. But hey, cool idea. Each cabinet supports two players, and indeed even when you are playing solo you’ll only be working with half of the screen. The other half will helpfully display the extremely complicated set of controls for the game.

There are three different modes of play in the game, and in all of them your goal will simply be to score as many points as you can. You can pull in a second player in this mobile version if you have enough external controllers to go around, but otherwise you’re just going to be bowling alone and trying to carve your place on the scoreboards. The first mode is Regulation, and it’s exactly what it sounds like. Bowl your ten frames and see how close to a perfect 300 you can notch. Flash mode offers up a timing-based bonus if you can throw a strike or spare, and the total here can go as high as a whopping 3,000 if everything lines up right. Finally, there’s Strike 90. In this mode, strikes earn you 90 points for the frame and spares get you 60. The maximum score here is 900 points.

After choosing your mode, you also get to choose which hand your bowler will use and how heavy of a ball you want. It adds a little depth to the game, but you can also just ignore it if that’s your preference. Then, it’s time to bowl. This is one of the more straightforward NEOGEO games control-wise, and it makes it a great fit for mobile players who are using touch controls. The stick moves your bowler left or right. One you’re in your preferred position, press the button once to stop the direction meter and again to stop the power meter. It’s all timing and knowing which throws you need when, so pretty much anyone can get the hang of it in a hurry.

And that, my dearest chums, is it. There’s nothing more to it. Get your best score, enter your initials, tell Hamster’s wrapper to submit your score to the online leaderboards, and have another go. You can choose between the Japanese and International version of the game, and you also have a Score Attack and Caravan mode as usual. The Score Attack mode is functionally the same as playing normally, as it’s always one credit for one game anyway. The Caravan mode gives you five minutes to get as high a score as you can muster. Realistically, unless you really dawdle, your game should always be over within three or four minutes. But hey, another leaderboard to compete on.

League Bowling has often been criticized for being a little too thin and a little too repetitive. But it’s bowling, isn’t it? If you try to jazz it up too much, you’ll just break it. Within an arcade setting, it was just about perfect. Waiting for your clothes to finish washing? Need to kill a few minutes before the movie starts? On a break from work? Pop in a coin and have a quick game. Its simplicity and straightforward nature are exactly what make it an excellent arcade game, and I’ll go as far as to say that it also makes it a great mobile game. Touch controls? No problem. Don’t have a lot of time to spend or don’t want anything to involved. It’s got your back.

The leaderboards add further incentive to keep improving, and you can always compete with your own scores as well. But it’s also just good fun to play a game or two, in and of itself. Who doesn’t like watching a ball speed down the lane and take down all of the pins? It’s one of those primal joys that jolts humans directly in the happy zone of our monkey brains. We throw a thing at a thing that is pretty far away, and we knock down that thing. Ah, that’s the caveman happy juice. And League Bowling will absolutely hook you up with it. Throw in some colorful, cartoony visuals, and the crisp sounds of the ball and pins, and you’ve got a great mobile sports game that isn’t going to shake you down for extra money. Well, not in this form anyway.

Now for the boilerplate ACA NEOGEO stuff. In addition to the two different versions of the game and the extra modes, you’ve got a wide assortment of options for the game, display, and so on that you can tinker with as needed. You can use an external controller if you would prefer to, and if you have an extra you can play multiplayer. This is the only way you can do so, however. And there is unfortunately no way to access the multiplayer modes for more than two players. It’s just how it is. The emulation quality is up to Hamster’s usual speed for NEOGEO, which is to say it’s pretty much spotless.

Simply put, if you’re looking for a great pick-up-and-play sports game for your mobile device, you can’t go wrong with League Bowling. It’s perhaps simple and streamlined to a fault, but the bowling action is precisely what it needs to be where it counts. It’s a great companion to Big Tournament Golf, and indeed might even be a better choice when time is of the essence. The light nature of the game suits this platform well, and it plays like a charm with touch controls. An easy recommendation.

The big Pokemon Home 3.0.0 update goes live beginning May 24th on all platforms. I’m surprised it took so long given Pokemon Scarlet and Violet launched back in November 2022. If you’ve not downloaded it yet, Pokemon Home is available for free on the App Store for iOS, Google Play for Android, and the eShop for Nintendo Switch. Details for the paid plans are available here. Check out the official Pokemon Home website here. What do you think of Pokemon Scarlet and Violet if you played it on Switch and do you still play Pokemon Legends?

Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition launched on November 11th, 2021 for Nintendo Switch, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC (Rockstar Games Launcher). The iOS and Android versions were originally scheduled for the first half of 2022, but we are still waiting for any price point or release window right now. The console version launched at $59.99, so it is going to be interesting to see what price point the games have on mobile, and whether they are sold separately or just as a trilogy bundle. The discounted bundle is still up on iOS. Until then, read our reviews of Grand Theft Auto III, Grand Theft Auto Vice City, and Grand Theft Auto San Andreas. What do you think of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition so far if you’ve played it on any platform?

BLACKPINK THE GAME (Free)

iTunes Description

Become BLACKPINK’s producer and manage your own agency, solve puzzles to clear schedules for BLACKPINK.
Customize your members with stunning outfits and play mini-games with your friends in BLACKPINK WORLD.

Forum Thread: BLACKPINK THE GAME (by TakeOne Company)

Campfire Cat Cafe (Free)

iTunes Description

A purrfectly relaxing game! Start your cafe in the forest. Hire adorable cat staff. Cook delicious authentic foods from around the world! Attract and serve cute animal customers and laugh at their furry funny stories. Relax and earn tips as your kitten staff works while you’re idle.

Forum Thread: Campfire Cat Cafe (by HyperBeard)

Lacuna – Sci-Fi Noir Adventure ($5.99)

iTunes Description

Here’s the deal
You are Neil Conrad, CDI agent. Awoken by the news of a murder, you rush into a case that will soon turn your life and the whole solar system upside down. Ask questions, collect evidence, and put the pieces together until the ugly truth reveals itself… or not.

Forum Thread: Lacuna – Sci-Fi Noir Adventure (by Assemble Entertainment)

League Bowling ACA NEOGEO ($3.99)

iTunes Description

LEAGUE BOWLING is a bowling game released by SNK in 1990.
You are able to select your dominant arm and ball weight, using precise controls to play just like real bowling!
Choose from one of three modes, REGULATION, FLASH, and STRIKE 90.
*Game sections requiring use of the connection jack are not included.
*It corresponds to up to 4 people using 2 controllers.

Forum Thread: League Bowling ACA NEOGEO (by SNK)

Merge Survival: Wasteland (Free)

iTunes Description

This is a story of people surviving in the post-apocalypse world created by environmental pollution and disasters.
Merge to create survival materials, and find any new resources or hidden locations by exploring.
Create an “Eco-Friendly Camp" to live in harmony with nature and other survivors.

Forum Thread: Merge Survival: Wasteland (by Sticky Hands)

Pokipet (Free)

iTunes Description

Raise and own a pet together with your friends.

Create a group pet with your friends, family, or co-workers and give your pet the best life possible.

Forum Thread: Pokipet (by MoonBear)

Redline Royale (Free)

iTunes Description

Redline Royale is a multiplayer Battle Royale with up to 20 players online. Fight your way through an engaging environment & online opponents. You better stay sharp as you move from zone to zone with one goal in mind – be the last racer standing. Join the full-throttle fun today!

Forum Thread: Redline Royale (by National Product Group)

Run Legends: Co-op Fitness RPG (Free)

iTunes Description

Walk or run outside to defeat the villainous Sappers who are draining humanity’s energy. Upgrade your gear, make new friends, and learn more about the world of Run Legends as you grow stronger in real life!

Run Legends is the first-ever fitness game that you can play synchronously with your friends, no matter where they are in the world. Your movement controls your character: head outside and unleash skills in battle by moving faster and slower.

Forum Thread: Run Legends: Co-op Fitness RPG (by Talofa Games)

Rytmos (Free)

iTunes Description

Rytmos is a relaxing puzzle game, where you create music by solving maze puzzles. Travel from planet to planet and discover new music.

Solve the puzzles on each side of the cubic planets and create small musical loops that slowly evolves into full music compositions. Unlock 20+ musical toys and jam on top of the planet music.

Learn a bit of rare music history while playing the game.

Forum Thread: Rytmos (by Floppy Club)

Soulworker Urban Strategy (Free)

iTunes Description

Co-op simulation played strategically

Fight with soul workers against endless lootings and destructions for survival in ruined cities.

Forum Thread: Soulworker Urban Strategy (by MOBIRIX)

SWAP : Mobile Edition (Free)

iTunes Description

A simple yet brutally difficult game that will undoubtedly frustrate and personally insult you. Uncover a story full of psychological manipulation and emotional warfare while banging your head against unfairly designed levels. Sound like fun? Great! Let’s see how that optimism is doing for you in a few hours.

Forum Thread: SWAP : Mobile Edition (by Sumi Labs)

Time Master Pocket Edition ($4.99)

iTunes Description

After the disappearance of his sister Sophia (which may or may not have been his fault),
talented wizard Zeno vows to never take up his wizard’s staff again.
That is until a mysterious voice promises that Zeno could get his sister back…
he only needs to take on a challenge created by the Ancients.

Forum Thread: Time Master Pocket Edition (by Crescent Moon Games)

Torecower ($2.99)

iTunes Description

Torecower is an arcade wave-based minimalist game where you build automatic turrets to shoot enemies. Each turret has an unique attack behaviour. After finishing a wave, you can get an upgrade on the skill tree. Choose wisely to make your turrets stronger.

Forum Thread: Torecower (by MAZETTE LTD)

Following its initial announcement in 2015, the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie ran into all sorts of trouble, blowing through directors and producers and movie studios like the victims in a horror movie. After announcing a sort of full reboot of the project in early 2017, we haven’t heard much about the movie since other than it’s still being worked on. Now the better part of a decade after its initial announcement and Five Nights at Freddy’s is finally ready to release later this year, as announced in this surprisingly awesome new teaser trailer.

I have no idea if the Five Nights at Freddy’s movie will actually be any good, and I have no idea if that’s what the creators even intend for it to be honest. Horror movies in particular shoot for a certain type of camp and humor rather than trying to win any awards for amazing storytelling. One thing I can say though is that this teaser shows just how well the movie captures the vibe and aesthetic of the Five Nights at Freddy’s games, which isn’t too surprising as series creator Scott Cawthon has been heavily involved in the movie since 2017 when they announced that production would be starting over from scratch. I’m not really that big into the games myself, but I’ll definitely be interested in how this movie turns out when Five Nights at Freddy’s hits theaters and Peacock streaming simultaneously on October 27th this year.

News

‘Pac-Man 99’ Sails Into the Sunset This October

After the success of Tetris 99, you can’t blame Nintendo for trying to apply the massively multiplayer idea to more classics. Super Mario Bros. 35 was a great anniversary game that seemed to attract a decent amount of attention, but Pac-Man 99 never quite seemed to click in the same way as its stablemates. Nevertheless, it enjoyed a bunch of interesting Namco DLC drops and has chugged along for the last couple years. Sadly, its time will be up later this year. Nintendo has announced that online service for the game will end October 8th, 2023. You’ll still be able to play the offline modes after that, and you’ll have access to whatever DLC you’ve bought. Speaking of, you’d best grab that stuff if you want it. DLC will be pulled a bit ahead of the shutdown, starting in August.

Reviews & Mini-Views

Strayed Lights ($24.99)

Strayed Lights makes an strong first impression. It has a stylish look to its visuals, the direction of the cutscenes is really good, and the music is excellent. The combat tutorial introduces its unique parry-based mechanics, which call to mind color-matching affairs like Ikaruga. The enemies adopt one of three colors, and you sport two. For orange or blue, you swap to the appropriate color and use good timing to parry. If the enemy turns purple, it’s time to dodge.

You can directly attack, but the quickest way to end fights is to parry until your meter is full and then pull off a special move or QTE to take down the enemy. Sure, the parry timing is a little laggy and hard to get the hang of, and I frankly am never happy to see a QTE, but it’s unique and it basically works. Defeating enemies earns you points you can use to unlock new moves and upgrades, and you can also explore the environments to find various goodies. So yes, seems promising.

The more I played Strayed Lights, the less I liked it. The combat soon became repetitive. Part of that is down to a general lack of unique enemies, and part of that is a result of how slowly new facets of the combat system are unlocked. By the time everything is available, the game is at its conclusion. The challenge was also uneven, with the most difficult bits being when you have to face more than one opponent at a time. There’s an ability that can help a lot with that, at least. There were also times where I had a lot of trouble understanding what I need to do to avoid an attack, but that’s most likely on me.

Exploration similarly got tiresome after a while. The platforming is clunky, with fuzzy collision detection being the main culprit. The game world is attractive, but it’s sometimes hard to figure out which direction you’re meant to go. I did like poking around for the collectible items, though. It added a bit of spice to the game even if it ended up killing me more often than any of the battles. The game’s atmosphere is compelling, and the wordless story leaves a lot of room for interpretation. I like that kind of thing, but your mileage may of course vary. I should mention that this review is based on a patched version of the game. Strayed Lights had a lot of technical issues at launch that seem to have been mostly fixed now.

Strayed Lights has a lot going for it thanks to its exquisite presentation and inventive combat mechanics. Unfortunately, its ideas start to lose their shine well before you reach the end of this several-hour-long adventure. It’s still a fun, unique game, but I couldn’t help but feel it suffers somewhat from being all dressed up with no place to go. If you really like the look of it, feel free to give it a chance. There is certainly something to it. That “something" got a little too played out a little too quickly for my liking, however.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

New Releases

World Championship Boxing Manager 2 ($14.99)

This is apparently a follow-up to a 1991 computer game, and I assume it must have been beloved by some to get a sequel thirty years later. This new game was developed by Mega Cat Studios, and it’s fairly typical of its work. The structure is about what you would expect from the title. You’re training and managing boxers, trying to help them climb to the top and win the championship. The publisher has gone and licensed Rocky Marciano and Sugar Ray Robinson for the game, in case you want to manage them instead of some no-names. It seems to have gotten a seriously mixed reception on other platforms, with a lot of criticisms pointed at how simplified and thin on content it is. Well, do what you will with it. Remember that Punch Club exists, if need be.

Under the Warehouse ($5.99)

A little exploratory adventure game for those looking for such a thing today. A client has directed you to find a special egg, and to retrieve it you’ll need to go… Under the Warehouse. There are multiple endings here, which I imagine depend on the choices you make while conversing with your co-workers. There are also plenty of puzzles to solve, if that’s your jam. Seems fine for the reasonable price it’s asking.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Well, that’s a very familiar list of sales. Nothing terribly thrilling there, even if there are several good games in the lot. Grab ’em now, or wait until they on sale again in a couple weeks. Some cool Square Enix games are finishing up their latest sales, so if you want to save five bucks on getting hooked on PowerWash Simulator, last call. Check both lists as usual, just to be sure.

Select New Games on Sale

Remains ($2.99 from $9.99 until 5/23)
Jump Challenge! ($6.17 from $6.86 until 5/23)
Sparklite ($4.99 from $24.99 until 5/28)
Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX ($6.79 from $19.99 until 5/28)
Monster Harvest ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/28)
Bounty Battle ($4.99 from $24.99 until 5/28)
Timelie ($5.99 from $19.99 until 5/28)
Cloudpunk ($6.24 from $24.99 until 5/28)
The Long Reach ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/28)
HoPiKo ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/28)
RIOT: Civil Unrest ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/28)
The Lightbringer ($4.49 from $14.99 until 5/28)
Ponpu ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/28)
Buildings Have Feelings Too! ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/28)
Deathrun TV ($5.09 from $14.99 until 5/28)

Spirit of the North ($8.49 from $24.99 until 5/28)
Foreclosed ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/28)
Vaporum ($4.99 from $24.99 until 5/28)
Slaycation Paradise ($6.79 from $19.99 until 5/28)
Hayfever ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/28)
Stranded Sails: EotCI ($6.24 from $24.99 until 5/28)
Time on Frog Island ($8.49 from $24.99 until 5/28)
even if TEMPEST ($34.99 from $49.99 until 6/1)
My Last First Kiss ($12.49 from $24.99 until 6/1)
Formula Retro Racing World Tour ($12.99 from $19.99 until 6/6)
Fury Unleashed ($4.99 from $19.99 until 6/6)
Clone Drone in the Danger Zone ($9.99 from $19.99 until 6/6)
Gang Beasts ($14.99 from $29.99 until 6/6)
Marooners ($1.99 from $14.99 until 6/6)
Plague Universe ($1.99 from $14.99 until 6/6)
Crash Drive 2 ($1.99 from $8.99 until 6/6)
Crash Drive 3 ($1.99 from $19.99 until 6/6)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Thursday, May 18th

A Place for the Unwilling ($1.99 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Arise: A Simple Story ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
Axiom Verge 2 ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
Badland: Game of the Year Edition ($1.99 from $5.99 until 5/18)
Blade of Darkness ($4.99 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Blocky Farm ($6.69 from $9.99 until 5/18)
Brave Dungeon + Dark Witch Story ($4.49 from $8.99 until 5/18)
Cafeteria Nipponica ($8.40 from $14.00 until 5/18)
Crime Secrets: Crimson Lily ($1.99 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Cube Life: Island Survival ($11.24 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Demon Hunter: New Chapter ($1.99 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Dungeon Village ($7.00 from $14.00 until 5/18)
Eternal Radiance ($9.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
Exitman Deluxe ($3.99 from $4.99 until 5/18)
Fear Effect Sedna ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)

Gamedec Definitive Edition ($4.99 from $29.99 until 5/18)
Gibbon: Beyond the Trees ($5.09 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Golf Club Wasteland ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/18)
Hot Springs Story 2 ($8.40 from $14.00 until 5/18)
ibb & obb ($1.99 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Kwaidan Azuma Manor Story ($4.99 from $24.99 until 5/18)
Last Beat Enhanced ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/18)
Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/18)
Life is Strange True Colors ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/18)
Local News with Cliff Rockslide ($8.99 from $9.99 until 5/18)
Lovekami Divinity Stage ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Lovekami Healing Harem ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Lovekami Useless Goddess ($9.74 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Murder on the Marine Express ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/18)
Myastere Ruins of Deazniff ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)

OBAKEIDORO ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
Onion Assault ($6.39 from $7.99 until 5/18)
Overloop ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Pool Slide Story ($7.00 from $14.00 until 5/18)
PowerWash Simulator ($19.99 from $24.99 until 5/18)
Sherlock Holmes Crimes & Punishments ($11.99 from $29.99 until 5/18)
Station Manager ($8.40 from $14.00 until 5/18)
Subnautica: Below Zero ($12.59 from $29.99 until 5/18)
Sword of the Vagrant ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/18)
Terror of Hemasaurus ($9.74 from $14.99 until 5/18)
The Hong Kong Massacre ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
The Legend of Dark Witch ($3.49 from $6.99 until 5/18)
The TakeOver ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
Valis: The Fantasm Soldier Collection ($31.99 from $39.99 until 5/18)
What Lies in the Multiverse ($1.99 from $14.99 until 5/18)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the big list of Thursday releases. It’s looking like the temporary quiet period around the release of The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is over, as the day is rather packed. We’ll have summaries of all of them, plus whatever sales and big news roll in. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

While the PC and Switch release of Rytmos was generally received positively, one point I’ve seen mentioned is that the game isn’t all that difficult. However, I think that was by design as Floppy Club aimed to have Rytmos be a relaxing puzzle experience with its focus on music, rather than something with hard time constraints or devious level designs. I’ve also heard that since there’s no crazy difficulty spikes where you may get stuck on a level it keeps the pace nice and breezy, which is something I can appreciate. Currently you can pre-order the mobile version of Rytmos on the iOS App Store, and an Android version is said to be coming sometime after the iOS release. It’s a free download with a one-time $4.99 IAP to unlock the full game, so be sure to check it out when it hits this Thursday the 18th.

Crying Suns from Humble Games is currently discounted as a part of the publisher’s anniversary sale. You can grab it on iOS and Android as a premium release now. Check it out on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Check out our forum thread for it here. Have you played Crying Suns on mobile, Switch, or PC yet and will you be checking out this update?

You can buy League Bowling ACA NeoGeo on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. As with prior releases on mobile, this costs half of what it does on consoles at $3.99. If you’ve not heard of the series or seen it in action on mobile yet, Shaun has reviewed most of the releases so far in the ACA NeoGeo series on iOS. Check out his reviews for Sengoku 2 here, Top Hunter Roddy & Cathy here, Samurai Shodown IV here, Alpha Mission II here, Metal Slug 5 here, Shock Troopers here, NAM-1975 here, ZED BLADE here, PUZZLED here, The King of Fighters 2002 here, Big Tournament Golf here, King of the Monsters here, Last Resort here, Aero Fighters 2 here, Burning Fight here, Robo Army here, Mutation Nation here, Twinkle Star Sprites here, Aero Fighters 3 here, Prehistoric Isle 2 here, Sengoku 3 here, Samurai Shodown III here, Ghost Pilots here, Stakes Winner here, Baseball Stars Professional here, Top Players Golf here, Ninja Combat here, Riding Hero here, Savage Reign here, and The Super Spy here. Check out the official website for the series on mobile here. What’s your favorite recent ACA NeoGeo release and are you grabbing today’s release?

So let’s start with that. Several weeks back, Kitty Pryde was added to the game. Due to a number of bugs, she was quickly removed pending some fixes. Well, she’ll be back with us this week, and everyone who has been playing the game will get a basic version of her card. Those who already had her should have already gotten a fairly nice bit of compensation. And as for new players? Well, you’ll find her in Series 5 for the time being. Her ability has changed. Her previous form allowed the player to return her to their hand and add +2 Power. Her current form sees her returning to your hand at the start of each turn, gaining +2 Power each time. For but a single point of Cost, that seems pretty strong. I guess we’ll see how things go from here.

Before we head far into the weeds on the balance adjustments, let’s talk about what else is in this update. There are now more cosmetic customization options for your decks. Before you could just pick the card back you wanted, but now you can associate avatars and titles to each deck. That way you can have your Rock avatar and title ready to go with your Korg/Rockslide/Debris deck without looking gauche when you swap back to your Sera Control one. Next, Ranked Mode. When you move up a Tier you’ll only get three bonus levels instead of five now, but getting a Rank Up now requires only seven Cubes instead of ten. That means if both players snap, someone’s ranking up and someone’s ranking down. Spicy!

Okay, time for those balance changes. Honestly, it’s not a lot this time. That makes sense, as it seems that the meta is quite varied and lively at the moment. Still, nerfs and buffs are as inevitable as Thanos, so there are a few to look at here. Let’s start with the buff, and there is only one. Crystal apparently is not a popular card. Will this buff help? I guess we’ll see. Her stats stay the same, but her ability changes from giving the player a new hand of three cards when played in the middle to simply causing each player to draw one card when she is played anywhere. Well, it might work.

On to the nerfs. Wave players, you knew this was coming. Stats stay the same, but the wording on her card has been changed such that all cards will cost 4 until the end of the next turn. Practically, this means that Death, She-Hulk, and others will cost 4 to play no matter what else is going on. RIP Death Wave decks. Death is getting a tiny buff as compensation for this, going from being a 9-Cost 12-Power card to an 8-Cost 12-Power card. The only other card change this time is an adjustment to the text on White Queen to make it very clear what her ability does.

Next, let’s look at which cards are moving pools. Moving from Series 5 to Series 4 are Master Mold, Negasonic Teenage Warhead, and Nimrod from last month’s Days of Future Past event. Hopping from Series 4 to Series 3 are Sentry, Silver Surfer, Dazzler, Shadow King, Sauron, and Ghost. It was expected that this time we would see Darkhawk and Knull move to the common Series 3 pool, but Second Dinner has decided that they’ll be staying in Series 4 for now. That’s fair. Darkhawk and Knull are probably both too powerful in their current forms to be unleashed on the masses, and I imagine the developers are trying to figure out how to balance them right before doing so.

There are a bunch of bug fixes rounding things out here, but we’ll draw a line under things here. It’s good to see Kitty Pryde back, a few decks have been completely blown out of the water by that Wave nerf, and it’s now open season on Silver Surfer. Not bad all around. We’ll have to see how things shake out with the overall meta, and we’ll have an updated deck guide for you in a couple of weeks as usual.

Reviews & Mini-Views

Skinny & Franko: Fists of Violence ($18.99)

This game is apparently a sequel to an Amiga game, but I haven’t played it or even heard of it until now. I’m therefore not in a position to say how faithful this sequel is or how it builds on the gameplay of the previous game, or even if it does. I can at the very least say that like its predecessor it is a beat-em-up that revels in its violence and adult themes, and it certainly leans on the Polish heritage of its developers. You play as one of the titular characters (or both with a friend) and basically make your way through the streets beating the heck out of everyone.

Your character has a decent set of moves including blocks and counters, and you can make use of a wide variety of weapons and other objects that you’ll find laying about. The enemies come in a variety of shapes and sizes, and they’ve got some serious potty mouths. They also come out with some really weird stuff that I assume is being lost in translation. They’ll crowd you pretty well and double team you if you let them, so… don’t let them. The levels run rather long, and are mostly straight shots with a few short detours if you feel like fighting more people. The basic fighting is enjoyable enough, but the dull and lengthy levels see you fighting the same guys over and over again for far too long. And if you run out of lives, it’s all the way back to the start because there are no mid-stage checkpoints.

Skinny & Franko: Fists of Violence is a competent beat-em-up with some design issues that keep it from being more than that. It’s brash and doesn’t really care who it offends, but is so odd about how it goes about those things that it almost comes off as nonsense in English. I can at least say that in terms of theme there is nothing else quite like it on the Switch. It’s not fit to even pick up Streets of Rage 4‘s dry cleaning, but those looking for a brawler with a quirky style and unusual setting might have a good enough time here.

SwitchArcade Score: 3/5

New Releases

LEGO 2K Drive ($59.99)

Mikhail described this one to me as “Forza Horizon with LEGO" and that sounds pretty cool to me. Explore Bricklandia, join races and other driving challenges, build vehicles from bricks, and so on. There’s plenty to enjoy on your own here, or you can pull in a friend for local multiplayer via splitscreen or wireless play. You can also head online and enjoy races with up to six players. Looks like a blast, provided the Switch port holds up its end.

Kargast ($9.99)

A narrative exploration game with a little bit of turn-based RPG tossed into the mix. Your character wakes up alone and has no idea where everyone went. They’ll have to explore a spooky location and try to figure out what is going on. There are multiple endings to find based on what you do. Well, you probably know what kind of game this is. They tend to come down to how well the story is written, and I haven’t had enough experience with this one to say one way or the other on that front.

Bubble Bird ($0.99)

So this is pretty much Flappy Bird but instead of going between pipes, you’re passing through bars of color. Your bird can only pass through the part of the bar that matches its color, so be careful. And that’s about it, but what can you expect for a buck?

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Wow, those are some crackerjack prices on the Metro Redux games. If you like first-person shooters, those are great pick-ups at those prices. Assault Suits Valken Declassified is enjoying its first post-launch sale, and I think it’s a more agreeable price for what it offers. Arcade Paradise is also at a new low price, and that is pretty much a must-have in this guy’s books. Not much in the outbox, but do check those lists as ever.

Select New Games on Sale

Metro 2033 Redux ($3.74 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Metro: Last Light Redux ($3.74 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Football Manager 2023 Touch ($26.99 from $44.99 until 5/23)
Meganoid ($5.39 from $8.99 until 5/23)
Space Grunts ($8.39 from $13.99 until 5/23)
Heroes of Loot ($4.79 from $7.99 until 5/23)
Heroes of Loot 2 ($5.99 from $9.99 until 5/23)
Groundskeeper2 ($2.99 from $4.99 until 5/23)
Stardash ($5.99 from $9.99 until 5/23)
Gunslugs ($4.79 from $7.99 until 5/23)
Gunslugs 2 ($4.79 from $7.99 until 5/23)
The House of Da Vinci 2 ($5.99 from $9.99 until 5/23)
Snake Core ($5.39 from $8.99 until 5/23)
A Day Without Me ($1.99 from $5.99 until 5/29)
Brotherhood United ($1.99 from $8.99 until 5/29)

Quest Hunter ($7.49 from $29.99 until 5/29)
Demon’s Rise War for the Deep ($1.99 from $6.99 until 5/29)
Blipz ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/29)
Assault Suits Valken Declassified ($14.99 from $24.99 until 5/29)
Game Type DX ($2.99 from $5.99 until 5/29)
Explosionade DX ($2.99 from $5.99 until 5/29)
Weapon of Choice DX ($2.99 from $5.99 until 5/29)
Pig Eat Ball ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/29)
Shoot 1UP DX ($2.99 from $5.99 until 5/29)
Ni no Kuni II: RK Prince’s Edition ($19.79 from $59.99 until 5/29)
My Hero One’s Justice 2 ($14.99 from $59.99 until 5/29)
SD Gundam Battle Alliance ($35.99 from $59.99 until 5/29)
Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series ($19.99 from $39.99 until 5/29)
Taiko no Tatsujin Rhythmic Adv. 1 ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/29)
Taiko no Tatsujin Rhythm Festival ($32.49 from $49.99 until 5/29)

Ultra Kaiju Monster Rancher ($34.99 from $49.99 until 5/29)
Naruto Ult. Ninja Storm ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/29)
Naruto Shippuden Ult. Ninja Storm 2 ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/29)
Dragon Ball Z Kakarot Deluxe ($29.99 from $74.99 until 5/29)
Captain Tsubasa RoNC Deluxe ($19.54 from $84.99 until 5/29)
One Piece Pirate Warriors 3 ($5.99 from $39.99 until 5/29)
One Piece Pirate Warriors 4 ($8.99 from $59.99 until 5/29)
JoJo’s Bizarre Adv. All-Star Battle R ($32.49 from $49.99 until 5/29)
Arcade Paradise ($12.99 from $19.99 until 5/30)
Tiny Troopers: Global Ops ($14.99 from $19.99 until 5/30)
Tiny Troopers Joint Ops XL ($2.59 from $12.99 until 5/30)
Harmony’s Odyssey ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/30)
The Last Worker ($14.99 from $19.99 until 5/30)
Lumote: The Mastermote Chronicles ($8.99 from $19.99 until 5/30)
The Falconeer: Warrior Edition ($10.49 from $29.99 until 5/30)

AVICII Invector ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/30)
Infinite Golf 2 ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/30)
Commandos 2 HD Remaster ($14.99 from $19.99 until 6/5)
Commandos 3 HD Remaster ($23.99 from $29.99 until 6/5)
TRIOS lofi beats ($2.79 from $7.99 until 6/5)
Feather ($3.49 from $9.99 until 6/5)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Wednesday, May 17th

Alfred Hitchcock Vertigo ($23.99 from $39.99 until 5/17)
Arkanoid Eternal Battle ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/17)
Asterix & Obelix XXXL TRfH ($23.99 from $39.99 until 5/17)
Garfield Lasagna Party ($23.99 from $39.99 until 5/17)
Overlanders ($1.99 from $24.99 until 5/17)
Retro Game Pack ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/17)
Stranded Deep ($17.49 from $24.99 until 5/17)

That’s all for today, friends. I’ll be back tomorrow with more new releases, more sales, at least one review, and perhaps some news. It is enormously hard to tear myself away from Tears of the Kingdom, and it is hitting my productivity hard. Perhaps it is the same for you. Well, there are worse problems to have. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

METAL SLUG 5 ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 With most of the more popular Metal Slug games having already been done on mobile by DotEmu years back, the ACA NEOGEO line was left with just two games to fill out the selection. Metal Slug 5 is the better of the two, coming in after SNK’s previous owner had reclaimed the company from its less-than-courteous caretakers at Aruze. While it doesn’t reach the dizzying heights of Metal Slug 3 or the tight, well-paced action of the first and second games, Metal Slug 5 is a great romp for run-and-gun fans and a pleasure for mobile players to dig into.

SHOCK TROOPERS ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 SNK was the creator of one of the most popular top-down run-and-gun action game franchises, Ikari Warriors. With that in mind, it’s perhaps no surprise that the NEOGEO has at least a few great games in that category. For my money, the best of the lot is Shock Troopers. It looks good, plays well, and has a lot of content thanks to its branching paths and large cast of distinct characters. It also handles quite well with touch controls, in case you don’t have an external controller handy.

BIG TOURNAMENT GOLF ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 Once known as NEO Turf Masters, Big Tournament Golf is a bit of a legend in the field of arcade golf games. It rides the line perfectly between casual pick-and-play appeal and the kind of depth that keeps players coming back, and it does it all with a great sense of style. This game plays great on mobile, whether you’re using touch controls or your controller of choice. Easily one of the most enduring NEOGEO games, particularly if you’re looking for something that doesn’t involve punching or shooting. I was going to say “doesn’t include violence", but we all know how golf games can go.

AERO FIGHTERS 2 ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 Given the long span of time and particular era the NEOGEO lived in, it’s somewhat striking how few great shoot-em-ups it played host to. Aero Fighters 2 is one of the better ones, offering some highly enjoyable vertical shooting action that should please newcomers and veterans alike. It’s wrapped up in a very silly story with some truly wacky characters, adding to the fun. More than most genres, traditional shoot-em-ups take to touch controls rather well. That means you can fully enjoy this on your mobile device without worry.

MAGICIAN LORD ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 One of the better early games on the NEOGEO was the side-scrolling action-platformer Magician Lord, and it’s still a blast to play. Indeed, it’s even better now that you don’t have to drop real coins into that slot to keep playing, because this game is really tough. You can use your magic to transform into a variety of new forms, adding a lot of variety to the action as you make your way through the large and sometimes winding stages. It’s better with a controller, but you can get by well enough with touch controls.

TWINKLE STAR SPRITES, $3.99 In the wake of Tetris and Puyo Puyo‘s success in arcades, publishers were scrambling to find new twists on competitive puzzle games. Twinkle Star Sprites is an interesting one, taking the broad structure of those puzzlers and substituting shoot-em-up mechanics in place of matching colors. Take out enemies effectively and you’ll send more over to your opponent’s side of the screen, hopefully crushing them and securing yourself the victory. There’s no question this is better with two human players, but there’s a fair bit of fun to be had on your own if you’re inclined to.

SAMURAI SHODOWN V SPECIAL, $3.99 Okay, we really need to talk about some fighting games now. It wouldn’t be much of a list of NEOGEO games without them, right? While each entry in the series has its merits, I’m going to pick Samurai Shodown V Special for this list simply because it’s a very good installment that a lot of people missed due to how late it released. Seriously, this game hit the same year the Nintendo DS and Sony PlayStation Portable came out. It fixes a lot of the issues with the standard Samurai Shodown V and offers up some colorful weapon-based combat that is flashy enough to enjoy even if you’re up against CPU opponents.

THE LAST BLADE 2 ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 Look, I don’t know if The Last Blade 2 is the best fighting game on the NEOGEO, but it’s definitely the best one that needs more attention. With deep mechanics, stunning backgrounds, great characters, and a truly distinct flavor, this game is tremendous fun to learn and play. While it can be a bit unwieldy trying to get multiplayer going in these mobile versions, consider this some solid practice the next time you stumble across a NEOGEO arcade cabinet and want to do a little hustling.

SENGOKU 3 ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 As with the shoot-em-up genre, it’s a bit curious how the NEOGEO ended up not having terribly many good beat-em-ups given the years it was in operation. Of the bunch it has, I think Sengoku 3 is the top of the pile. It looks amazing, has a very interesting roster of playable characters, offers up some unique mechanics to add depth to the head-bashing, and has some interesting environments and enemies to encounter. It plays nicely with touch controls, and even if you just credit feed your way through it, you’ll get your money’s worth out of the ride.

KOF 2000 ACA NEOGEO, $3.99 Okay, yes, we have to have a King of Fighters game. I hear you. Honestly, there are several entries in this series that I love. It’s hard for me to pick the one I like the most. So I’ll just toss a dart at my handy Kyo Kusanagi dartboard and… the winner is KOF 2000. This was the last entry in the series before SNK went bankrupt and was sold to Aruze, and you wouldn’t know the company was in trouble by the quality on display here. The Striker System sees some improvements, with lots of fun cameos from SNK characters. The main playable roster is large and full of familiar faces and a few intriguing newcomers. Overall, a great fighter and one that is still a decent game to play on your own.

And that’s the list! Of course, these are just our picks. Perhaps you have some favorites you would like to boost? Feel free to head down to the comments and let the world know. After all, we’re all just looking for more good games to play. Thanks as always for reading!

The games and store links are below, but keep in mind that some discounts might not have rolled out on all platforms yet:

• Streets of Rage 4 – iOS, Android
• Dead Cells – iOS, Android
• The Almost Gone – iOS, Android, Switch, Steam
• Northgard – iOS, Android

This sale is be live from now until May 23rd. Streets of Rage 4 was our Game of the Week when it launched. I also reviewed it and compared to other versions. Read that here. If you’re curious about Dead Cells on mobile, read my feature on it. I’m interested to see what Playdigious brings to mobile this year. What is your favorite game by Playdigious on mobile and will you be grabbing anything during this sale?

We’ve actually seen this sort of thing before, and off the top of my head the games Persephone and Sometimes You Die come to mind as games where you would use your own previous actions in order to help a future version of yourself. The idea is a very clever one and Time Master has garnered quite a positive reception on Steam, with players saying that it’s the type of game that will really work out your brain. The mobile version is officially called Time Master Pocket Edition and it’s available for pre-order in the iOS App Store right now for $3.99 with a planned release date of May 17th, just a couple of days from now. Keep an eye out for it later this week.

New Releases

Gekisou! Benza Race -Toilet Shooting Star- ($13.00)

First of all, this game only has Japanese language support. It’s a racing game so it’s hard to say how much that’s going to be a factor, but keep it in mind. Anyway, customize your toilet and head out for some toilet racing. Pull in a friend for some split-screen racing, or just work your way through the various toilet circuits on your own. It’s strange as heck, and it’s counting on that to sell it. But will you buy? Only time will tell.

Despot’s Game ($19.99)

A roguelite strategy game of sorts where you recruit and equip an army of characters to take part in a bizarre game of death. You can’t directly control your characters, so you’re more of a coach than anything. There’s a fair bit of humor baked in here, and it adds a lot of charm to the affair. Reviews on other platforms were decent if not overwhelmingly great, so I think it’s going to come down to how well you like the game’s concept.

Rainbow Runner ($19.99)

This is an odd one. It’s a party game mixed with a runner, and the idea is that you have to complete challenges or answer questions by running in the appropriate lane. Up to four players can join in via local multiplayer. It’s packed with lots of unlockable stuff to customize your character with, so that’s something. Not sure I would spend twenty bucks on this, but maybe you feel differently.

Death, Soul & Robots ($4.99)

Here’s an affordable Metroidvania-style platformer where you play a cat who is searching an alien planet in order find its soul and save Earth. You’ll make use of several different types of weapons, meet a bunch of characters, and explore six distinct, large areas. If you’re looking for a five-dollar pick-up today, this doesn’t strike me as a bad choice. It’s very, very indie but sometimes that’s the flavor you’re after.

Truck Climb Racing ($0.95)

One cannot help but be suspicious when a new game is priced at under a buck. The thing is, it’s really hard to say any game isn’t worth a buck. It’s such a paltry sum that even if it makes you crack a smile it has probably paid for itself. So I’m not going to tell you that Truck Climb Racing isn’t worth the price it’s asking. But I will say you can probably find better ways to spend that dollar. I mean, unless you really love driving trucks up hills.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Not a bad list of new sales, to be honest. I’ll call out a few as usual. Daily Dadish has its first deep discount, and I just can’t get enough of that series and its simple platforming charms. Brok the InvestiGator is an interesting beat-em-up adventure that seems have slipped under the radar of many, so grab it by the tail if you’re looking for something unusual. Unpacking is a nice chill game and that sale price is also very chill. Over in the outbox, the latest Ubisoft sale is finishing up. Some really great prices there if you’re looking to fill your boots.

Select New Games on Sale

Boyfriend Dungeon ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/20)
Strike! Ten Pin Bowling ($3.00 from $9.99 until 5/20)
Pupperazzi ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/20)
Death’s Gambit ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/21)
Doki Doki Literature Club Plus ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Smile For Me ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/21)
Yooka-Laylee ($3.99 from $39.99 until 5/21)
Carto ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Chinatown Detective Agency ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Infinite Guitars ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
BROK the InvestiGator ($18.74 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Void Bastards ($8.99 from $29.99 until 5/22)
Wizard of Legend ($4.79 from $15.99 until 5/22)
Ikenfell ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Slay the Spire ($9.99 from $24.99 until 5/22)

Unsighted ($9.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Wildfire ($5.99 from $14.99 until 5/22)
Crying Suns ($11.49 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Supraland ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Dodgeball Academia ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/22)
The Wild at Heart ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Flynn: Son of Crimson ($9.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Ring of Pain ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
A Hat in Time ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/22)
Forager ($6.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Wandersong ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Archvale ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/22)
Ghost Song ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Moonscars ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Temtem ($30.14 from $44.99 until 5/22)

Aegis Defenders ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Signalis ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Unpacking ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Prodeus ($17.49 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Midnight Fight Express ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
One Step From Eden ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
1993 Shenandoah ($8.70 from $12.99 until 5/26)
Cresteaju ($2.79 from $6.99 until 5/26)
Attack on Beetle ($2.39 from $5.99 until 5/26)
Kraken Smash: Volleyball ($2.00 from $5.00 until 5/28)
Synergia ($2.99 from $14.99 until 6/1)
New York City Driver ($7.79 from $12.99 until 6/2)
Farm Tycoon ($1.99 from $19.99 until 6/2)
4×4 Offroad Driver 2 ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/2)

Little Disaster ($3.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Dadish ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/3)
Dadish 2 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/3)
Dadish 3 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/3)
Daily Dadish ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/3)
Super Fowlst ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/3)
Super Fowlst 2 ($2.00 from $10.00 until 6/3)
Modern Combat Blackout ($1.99 from $7.99 until 6/4)
SongPop Party ($1.99 from $19.99 until 6/4)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Tuesday, May 16th

A Little Golf Journey ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
Airheart: Tales of Broken Wings ($2.69 from $17.99 until 5/16)
Assassin’s Creed Ezio Collection ($19.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Assassin’s Creed III Remastered ($9.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Assassin’s Creed Rebel Collection ($14.79 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Batman: The Enemy Within ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/16)
Blossom Tales II TMP ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/16)
BPM Bullets Per Minute ($17.49 from $24.99 until 5/16)
Brawlout ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
Circa Infinity UE ($1.99 from $10.99 until 5/16)
Colsword ($1.99 from $4.00 until 5/16)
Demon Turf ($14.99 from $24.99 until 5/16)
Family Feud ($7.49 from $29.99 until 5/16)
Immortals Fenyx Rising ($11.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)
Just Dance 2023 Ultimate ($42.49 from $84.99 until 5/16)

Lil Gator Game ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)
Monopoly ($7.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Monopoly Madness ($7.49 from $29.99 until 5/16)
Monopoly/Monopoly Madness ($14.99 from $49.99 until 5/16)
Monument ($1.99 from $7.00 until 5/16)
Multiversepool ($1.99 from $3.49 until 5/16)
Nirvana Deluxe Edition ($1.99 from $7.49 until 5/16)
Rayman Legends Definitive ($7.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Right and Down ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/16)
RISK Global Domination ($5.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
Shovel Knight: King of Cards ($2.99 from $9.99 until 5/16)
South Park TFBW Gold ($17.99 from $89.99 until 5/16)
South Park The Fractured But Whole ($11.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)
Starlink: Battle for Atlas ($8.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)

Starlink: Battle for Atlas Deluxe ($15.99 from $79.99 until 5/16)
The House of Da Vinci ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/16)
Trivial Pursuit Live ($6.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
Urban Trial Tricky ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/16)
Wheel of Fortune ($6.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more new releases, more sales, and probably at least one review. Maybe even some news, though there is a whole lot of silence in the wake of Zelda’s release that I expect to carry on for another few days. I hope you all have a magnificent Monday, and as always, thanks for reading.

TouchArcade: Tell us a little bit about yourself and Vertigo Gaming.

David Galindo: I’ve been making games for over 20 years now, though I didn’t really hit it big until Cook, Serve, Delicious was released in 2012. Since then we’ve grown our small team to six full time and twelve freelance employees! I used to do literally everything when making a game, so it’s been such a great pleasure to continually hand off parts of the game to other people that are far more talented than me.

TA: The original Cook Serve Delicious is now more than a decade old. It still feels weird to say that, but how has it been for you, working on this series for so long across four games, multiple ports, console versions, mobile versions, and more?

DG: I’ve had all kinds of emotions toward the series. I think if you were to ask me this once a month in the last few years I’d have a different answer. Interestingly, I had something come up that opened the door to potentially selling the entire IP, and the more I thought about it the sadder I got. I felt like we had built up our little franchise into something quite big, something that most indies find to be difficult if not impossible. The opportunity ended up not working out so I didn’t get to choose what to do, but by that point it was a bit of a relief, and I think it made me realize that I still love this series so much.

TA: Cook Serve Delicious was ported to mobile but not console. Cook Serve Delicious 2 and 3 were brought to consoles but not mobile. Are there any plans to revisit Cook Serve Delicious for modern mobile devices or bring it to consoles? I still think the original is worth playing and revisit it on my iPad Pro.

DG: I definitely want to return to mobile! That’s absolutely something that I want to do in the near future- I felt like Cook Serve Delicious 2 and 3 are too complex for the small screen, so whatever we do it has to be unique and original and not just a simple update for the old game. I am curious what the market is like for premium single purchase games because that’s the only way I’d do it. I just don’t have the energy to make an ad supported or consumable DLC game. Cook Serve Delicious 1 is barely supported by phones as it is thanks to its age. I think the Android port is officially unsupported by the newest Android OS. So yeah, I definitely want to return to that sometime.

TA: How do you and the team approach each new game in terms of keeping things fresh?

DG: Oddly enough I don’t really think of it in terms of “how do I keep things fresh” but rather “how do I change things up with this new game so I’m not horribly bored making it for the next two years?” Because if I’m bored with the fundamental mechanics, the audience will be too. If I were to do a sequel that just had new foods and little changes, I think that’d be very boring and clinical to make.

TA: I wasn’t familiar with Ore no Ryouri until I read about how you made two fan games based on it that led to Cook Serve Delicious being born. Tell us a little bit about how Ore no Ryouri led to today’s Cook Serve Delicious.

DG: I played the demo in a PlayStation 1 Underground demo disc back in the day as part of their Import section. I loved it so much and was fascinated by the way you could make food in that game. And so it just kind of led to us making our own spin on it.

TA: Have you had a chance to talk to the creators of Ore no Ryouri since?

DG: I don’t actually know too much about the game other than the demo I played! I kind of prefer it that way- I feel we’re in a place now where the games are very different from each other and I like doing my own thing. So I’m not sure who the creators are or what they’ve been up to since. I hope they’re doing well!

TA: When we covered Cook Serve Delicious 3, it felt like the best step forward for the franchise. How has the response to it been?

DG: Thank you! That game was one where I felt like I had nothing to lose. In fact that’s the entire premise that the game was built around- I’m going to go absolutely nuts and make this wild game, and if people hate it, then that means I can move on from the series. And if people love it, then it’s a great way to end the series. And as it turns out people loved it and the series isn’t ending after all- or at least, the spinoffs will continue!

TA: Cook Serve Delicious 3 built and improved over 2. Cook Serve Forever based on the demo is another nice step up and a lot more ambitious than I expected. Were there any ideas you had for prior games that couldn’t be implemented then, but are in Cook Serve Forever?

DG: With Forever we are just starting with a completely blank slate, which is both extremely exciting and terrifying at the same time. We toyed with the idea of a story in Cook Serve Delicious 3 but the game’s structure didn’t really support any kind of delivery system for story- you’d watch a two minute cutscene and then play about three hours of gameplay before you would see the next one. So it’s exciting to create a game built from the ground up to be able to tell a story. I think within the first thirty minutes of Forever you’ll realize just what exactly this game is trying to do.

TA: While I love the gameplay, the visuals and music are definitely highlights of the Cook Serve Delicious games. The soundtrack for 3 in particular is sublime. How has it been working with Jonathan Geer for so many years?

DG: He’s been absolutely incredible. We’re at a point now where I think we understand each other’s tastes and style. Way back when we were first starting, I’d send him dozens of references and examples and lots of feedback. Now I literally just say “hey can you do our soundtrack for Forever? It should sound like music from a radio, not necessarily gameplay driven. Feel free to go for full vocal lyrics.” and he sends me some of the best music I’ve ever heard. I’ve said this before but I’m absolutely not joking when I say I strive to make our games live up to the incredible music. It’s a tall order.

TA: What sort of difficulty should players of prior games expect in Cook Serve Forever? Are there accessibility options?

DG: This is a full difficulty reset. Cook Serve Delicious 3 in particular was so incredibly difficult that our metrics showed players falling off the game pretty quickly before they even got out of the first zone. That’s pretty normal usually, but the percentage was higher than normal.

The difficulty ramp here is much more gradual. I think in the first chunk you play in Early Access it’s about a low to medium difficulty, but it will ramp up the further in you get. And there will be ways to modify the difficulty to make it harder with more rewards if that’s what you want too.

TA: Have you done any special optimization for Steam Deck? I’m hoping to play Cook Serve Forever on Steam Deck from the start.

DG: We’re making sure the UI fits the Deck well and it’ll definitely be a great place to play the game right at launch! We want to go for Verified so expect more updates over Early Access to get to full Steam Deck Verified status!

TA: How has the team at Vertigo Gaming grown over the years?

DG: Generally I work with freelance people for years before realizing I don’t want them to leave and hire them full time (laughs). My goal is to hire two or so full time artists and then just roll with our team for the years to come. I don’t have any ambitions to have a 10+ full time staff because it gets riskier with each hire and as a good indie dev friend told me, you have to decide whether you want to coast with what you have and have security for the rest of your life, or risk it all to go bigger. Cook Serve Forever is the biggest risk we’ve ever taken as we’ve hired four full time people since we started making it. I don’t plan on taking more risk. I want to get back to sleeping soundly at night.

TA: How was it working on Cook Serve Forever during a pandemic without in person events for so long?

DG: It’s more difficult than I thought. We were always a remote company but would always get together for conferences like PAX. And of course the pandemic shut all that down.

Most of the team met up last year in LA to do some voiceover recording sessions all week and then we celebrated by going to Disneyland and having a great time. It was one of the highlights of my life. I love everyone on our team and to be able to share that experience was incredible. I’m hoping Forever does well enough so we can do a similar trip in the future!

TA: Over the years, you’ve brought your games to multiple platforms and storefronts. Which one has been the easiest to work for on the storefront side and also on the hardware side?

DG: This sounds like a total cop-out, and it definitely is that but I will say the engine we use, Game Maker, allows us to port to any platform extremely easily. We can have builds running on all three major consoles in literally a week (before adding specific SDKs for each system and such, of course). Getting the game to run on those platforms is extremely simple, but the hard part is certification and making sure you support everything that is necessary, and so on. Each has their own quirks. I will say my least favorite is mobile, if only because you have to support so many screens and such a low amount of memory. But I’m still looking forward to getting back to it, as it’s still one of my favorite places to play games. I’m hopelessly addicted to Marvel Snap at the moment, gah!

Thanks to David Galindo and Vertigo Gaming for their time here.

Cut the Rope Remastered, Om Nom is escaping to the one place that hasn’t been corrupted by candy thieves – SPACE. There’s a new space board game with some fresh levels to play and prizes to earn, and a space postcard with some more new levels to enjoy. And that’s really about the size of it, but what more would you want from an update for this game than a bunch of new levels? Free money every time you tap a button? Well, that’s not going to happen, bud.

Asphalt 8: Airborne+, Speaking of updates that include things you’d want to see in an update, the latest version of the Apple Arcade Asphalt 8 brings the heat with a bunch of new cars. The Lamborghini Countach LPI 800-4, DMC DeLorean Neon Edition, and Bugatti La Voiture Noire lead the pack, giving you plenty of new rides to collect and upgrade. There are also some new decals, plus a free Morgan Aero GT for all players to celebrate the update. Nice.

Zookeeper World, Keeping the zoo, that’s what we do. And we do that by matching similar animals on various boards. This is how we do the work. In this update, you’ve got twelve new puzzle stages to play. They introduce a new gameplay element, hedges, and they’re not going to make your life any easier. There’s also some new rules for the Multi Puzzle Event, where you battle other players to get points and ultimately earn some rewards. Seems fine, if not terribly exciting.

My Little Pony: Mane Merge, In my opinion, one of the best uses of Apple Arcade is for parents to give their kids a wide range of games to choose from that won’t apply the usual shakedown or gambling tricks. So while I don’t play My Little Pony Mane Merge myself, I’m glad it’s around. This update includes a new book to play through, some new minigames, a handful of new features, a new weekly challenge, and a bunch of new stickers and achievements to collect. Wow, friendship really is ma… oh, that’s the other one. Um. This… this update really lets you… make your mark?

Gardenscapes, Free Time for the obligatory free-to-play matching puzzle game update for this week. It’s time to peek in on the Austinverse yet again, and apparently it’s all about skydiving of all things. Man, Austin is pretty epic. There’s also something here about an expedition to the Klondike, a story about saving a home from a sleazy businessman named Larry, and a new area with a new character named Balthazar. What secrets do they hold, and why is this game suddenly talking about ancient Egyptian princesses? Only one way to find out, I guess.

#DRIVE, Free Sure a lot of driving and racing games this week. HashtagDRIVE has a new season called Rust & Roar, and it has some new cars to collect and use. The Roamer, Old Moustache, The Billy, Das Satanwagen, The Borowick, Le Escargot, The Phantom, and Das Sprintwagen are the names, and I’ll let you handle the fun job of figuring out what they’re all references to. Heck, sometimes I think that’s more enjoyable than playing the game, and that’s not meant as a knock on the game.

Disney Magic Kingdoms, Free This is the way. The way to the Magic Kingdoms update, that is! Ha ha, I’m so devilish. Anyway, we’ve got a Star Wars tie-in this time, with characters from The Mandalorian and the broader Star Wars world sliding in. Emperor Palpatine is here, along with the memorable Moff Gideon and the Mandalorian leader Bo-Katan Kryze. You also get a new attraction in the form of Gideon’s Light Cruiser. Well, that all sounds fun. Let’s give this the coveted UMMSotW award for the week, just to get it done.

Magic: The Gathering Arena, Free A new mini set? Yes, that’s a nice update. It’s called The Aftermath, and it appropriately covers the aftermath of the dreadful stand against Elesh Norn. The battle was hard fought and victory came for the heroes of the Multiverse, albeit at a heavy cost. What will the survivors do as they pick up the pieces? You’ll have to play the game to find out, I think. Or wait until someone summarizes it. Either-or. The game is quite fun, though.

CSR 2 Drag Racing Car Games, Free You know, I never even noticed that Zynga bought this game. I guess that’s why it has a Purple Monkey Dishwasher name now? Well, whoever owns it, CSR Racing 2 just keeps on moving forward. It does so this time with several new events and a wide assortment of new cars, including the Ford Mustang GT, the McLaren Solus GT, the Volkswagen Electric R, the Ferrari 812 Competizione, and many more. If you want to see what else is there, you’ll have to hop into the game and see for yourself

MARVEL Strike Force: Squad RPG, Free It’s time for another update to Marvel Strike Force, and as usual it more or less just seeds the various events that will be rolling out over the next little while. New characters include Nova, Cosmo, Gwenpool, Thor (Infinity War), Korg, and Star-Lord (Annihilation). There is a new Skrull costume for Nick Fury, and a Ravager costume for Thor (Infinity War). As you would expect, there is also a bunch of new content in the form of raids, challenges, campaign challenges, and more. Throw in some UI adjustments, performance improvements, and bug fixes, and that will button things up nicely.

That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!

If you’ve not played Peglin yet, it is definitely worth trying out for free to see if you enjoy the flow of the game and the controls. I enjoyed playing it on iPad, but opted to play the full game on Steam Deck for additional speed up options. You can try Peglin on the App Store for iOS here and pre-register for it on Google Play for Android here. Check it out on Steam here for impressions around the PC version and to try the free demo. Check out our forum thread for more impressions and discussion around the iOS version. Have you played Peglin before or will you be trying out the mobile version today?

You can buy Forager on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Slay the Spire is available on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Crying Suns is available on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Make sure to check out our forum threads for Forager, Slay the Spire, and Crying Suns. What is your favorite of the three games and what Humble Games release would you like to see hit mobile this year?

As with prior updates, pre-installation will go live a few days before launch on iOS, Android, and PC platforms. If you haven’t checked out Genshin Impact yet, you can download it for free on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. The PC version is available on the official website here and the Epic Games Store. If you play on iOS, with iOS 14.5 or iPadOS 14.5 and later, you can use PS5 and Xbox Series X|S controllers to play Genshin Impact. We featured Genshin Impact as our Game of the Week when it released and awarded it our 2020 Game of the Year. I also featured it as one of the best iOS games to play with a controller. What do you think of Genshin Impact 3.7 so far?

I’m glad to see HandyGames continue to update and improve the game on iOS. We featured it as our Game of the Week when it launched. If you’d like to grab it, you can buy Wreckfest on mobile on Google Play for Android here and on the App Store here. The App Store page for Wreckfest lists different car packs and content bundles as in app purchases right now. Check out our new forum thread for the game here with impressions. The console game is priced at $39.99 on Nintendo Switch with additional paid DLC available. Check out Wreckfest on Steam here. Have you played Wreckfest yet on any platform yet?

Joining the ranks of Dark Talisman Tacticians, and adding a tough Viking aesthetic to the game, is Gunnar Nielson; a formidable sea-farer who promises to be an imposing force on the high seas. Gunnar will be helming the stunning, albeit foreboding vessel, The Hunter to the fray.

The 6th Anniversary update is also bringing a new casual block matching minigame, Blockblast, for whenever players need some respite from nautical warfare. Speaking of which, if you’re a fan of the movie series then you can play through classic battles from the movies in Shansa’s Cave.

The highly anticipated Battle Pass is also now available, awarding those that participate with the Coral Reef Palace Territory Skin. More rewards are also up for grabs via an all-inclusive Attendance event, as well as new social events like the Gem Sweepstakes on Facebook.

With the anniversary celebration and all the new features it brings, now is a perfect time to dive into the game, especially if you’re a fan of the movies. You can find Pirates of the Caribbean: Tides of War available to download for free on the iOS App Store and on the Google Play Store.

This is a game that launched on consoles and PC a couple of years ago, and earned all sorts of recognition at the time for being unique in a gameplay sense but also for its fantastic storytelling. However, this is one of those times where I’m going to say that this is the type of game that almost feels like it was designed for a touchscreen, and this new mobile release of Lost Words might be where the experience feels most at home.

That’s because part of the premise is that you’re exploring the diary of a young girl named Izzy, and you’re literally platforming your way through her thoughts and ideas as they appear as words on the page. Oftentimes you’ll need to rearrange those words to create platforms for your character, and dragging those around and placing them with your finger feels totally natural.

What is Izzy writing in her diary? Well she’s coming up with a fantasy story, a grand adventure that she can read to her grandmother who isn’t doing so well in the hospital. Much of the game is seeing Izzy’s thought process as she comes up with new ideas and characters for her story interspersed with her own real life events and inner thoughts. The adventure starts out as cute sketchbook drawings but can transform into a fully realized, absolutely gorgeous, fantasy world.

It’s this sort of story-within-a-story construct that makes the narrative in Lost Words so powerful and memorable. Izzy’s own real life situations inform her writing and there are interesting parallels between her adventures and those of the character in her story.

The pay model Plug In Digital has gone with for this mobile release is also quite pleasing, as the entire first 2 chapters are available for free with the remaining 6 chapters unlocked through a one-time IAP. You can test drive this experience with no risk and I think for those who enjoy this type of game you’ll have decided to unlock the full thing well before those first 2 chapters are over.

New Releases

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom ($69.99)

Trouble is afoot, and it’s up to Link to save the kingdom again. This time he’ll need to take to the skies above the vast land of Hyrule and explore its mysteries. We’re going to have a review of this one as soon as early next week, but I suspect most of you reading this have already made your decision on it.

Little Disaster ($4.99)

Here’s a puzzle-platformer with seventy stages to complete. The main gimmick is that your character explodes to get around, and you need to mind your timing because you can’t just explode willy-nilly. Nothing too fancy, but it has nice five-dollar Switch platformer energy going for it.

For a Vast Future ($14.99)

This is a surprisingly decent small-scale RPG with Game Boy-style aesthetics. Following a massively destructive war, the people are trying to pick up what remains of their lives and move on. Unfortunately, a corrupt government is building a secret weapon that threatens to spark an even greater disaster. It’s up a small group of outlaws to put a stop to these machinations and save the world. No bigs. It features turn-based combat and has a crafting system because those are the rules, pal.

Mr. Brocco & Co. ($4.99)

A living broccoli in some hot pants, a cape, and a mask teams up with his veggie friends to battle normal food in a highly standard 2D platformer. I guess I’ll give it some points for the unusual main character. Who buys games like these? Kids, I guess? If I was a kid I would never buy a game about broccoli, but maybe times have changed.

2021: Moon Escape ($4.99)

So this is an actual Game Boy game. You can buy a cartridge for your real Game Boy if you like, though this is certainly the more economical option. The idea here seems to be a sci-fi action-adventure, with more than a few cues taken from the Game Boy Zelda games. It has its share of rough edges, but for such a reasonable price I’m sure it’s going to land with some players. I like that you can choose to play it in portrait/tate mode to get that old “holding a Game Boy" feel.

Pixel Driver ($5.99)

Some games really don’t give me much to work with for these paragraphs. This is one of those endless driver games where you’re just trying to avoid traffic and pick up coins that you can use to unlock things. The description in the eShop suggests that playing this game is a good way to learn how to drive. I am going to strongly suggest that you not learn to drive by playing a crappy Switch game.

Secret Dimension ($4.99)

Collect the goobers and make your way to the exit in each stage of this isometric action-puzzler. It makes use of its perspective to set up tricks and obstacles, so you’ll have to use your spatial reasoning skills if you mean to get very far. Not bad for a fiver, though it’s extremely challenging in a way that often could be described as frustrating.

Heartbeat Hospital: Love, Lies, and Betrayal ($4.99)

Here is Cooking & Publishing with another poor attempt at a choice-based adventure game. This time it’s a romance set in a hospital, and while the art is decent the dialogue is absolutely dreadful. Make your decisions and you’ll arrive at one of the game’s multiple endings, though I think the best choice you can make is to not buy the game at all.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Not much interesting in the list of new sales today. Owlboy doesn’t come around terribly often, and the Telltale Batman games are a nice way to kill a weekend if you have a mind to. Not a lot in that weekend outbox either. It really does feel like the universe has aligned to allow people to just spend their money on the new Zelda and call it a week. Check those lists anyway, as you never know when something might grab your attention.

Select New Games on Sale

Batman: The Telltale Series ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/15)
Batman: The Enemy Within ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/16)
Axiom Verge 2 ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
Local News with Cliff Rockslide ($8.99 from $9.99 until 5/18)
Subnautica: Below Zero ($12.59 from $29.99 until 5/18)
Fur Squadron ($4.89 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Owlboy ($9.99 from $24.99 until 5/19)
Lost in Random ($5.99 from $29.99 until 5/23)
Need for Speed Hot Pursuit ($7.99 from $39.99 until 5/23)
It Takes Two ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/23)
Island Cities ($2.09 from $2.99 until 5/25)
Railway Islands: Puzzle ($2.99 from $3.99 until 5/26)
Vaporum: Lockdown ($7.47 from $21.99 until 5/26)
Rise: Race the Future ($6.59 from $16.49 until 6/1)
Samurai Maiden ($47.99 from $59.99 until 6/1)
Kuukiyomi Consider It ($2.49 from $4.99 until 6/1)
Xeodrifter ($5.99 from $9.99 until 6/1)
Totes the Goat ($2.99 from $4.99 until 6/1)
Milk inside a bag of milk inside… ($5.35 from $7.99 until 6/1)

Sales Ending This Weekend

Agatha Christie: Hercule Poirot TFC ($11.99 from $29.99 until 5/13)
Animus ($2.15 from $7.99 until 5/13)
Animus: Harbinger ($2.15 from $7.99 until 5/13)
Animus: Revenant ($6.20 from $22.99 until 5/13)
Beyond a Steel Sky ($15.99 from $39.99 until 5/13)
Bullet Battle: Evolution ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Bunker Life ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Car+Toon Race: RVC ($4.06 from $10.99 until 5/13)
Counter Crossline: Crime War ($5.54 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Counter Delta: The Bullet Rain ($5.54 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Counter Recon 2: The New War ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Counter Recon: The First Mission ($4.04 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Crime Busters: Strike Area ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Dark Water: Slime Invader ($4.04 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Dead Rain: New Zombie Virus ($6.59 from $10.99 until 5/13)

Demong Hunter ($2.15 from $7.99 until 5/13)
Dungeon Limbus ($4.04 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Girls Tank Battle ($2.19 from $10.99 until 5/13)
Grand Mountain Adventure: Wonderlands ($17.49 from $34.99 until 5/13)
Haunted Dawn: The Zombie Apocalypse ($4.04 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Haunted Zombie School ($5.54 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Haunted Zombie Slaughter ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Horse Tales: Emerald Valley Ranch ($23.99 from $39.99 until 5/13)
Kasiori ($4.90 from $7.00 until 5/13)
Last 4 Alive: Escape From Zombies ($2.96 from $10.99 until 5/13)
Modern War: Tank Battle ($5.54 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Moon Dancer ($13.99 from $18.99 until 5/13)
New Joe & Mac Caveman Ninja ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/13)
Oddworld: Soulstorm ($29.99 from $49.99 until 5/13)
Off the Tracks ($3.51 from $4.39 until 5/13)

Redden: 100denarii ($2.15 from $7.99 until 5/13)
Smurfs Kart ($23.99 from $39.99 until 5/13)
Space Genesis ($5.54 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Space Stella: The Unknown Planet ($5.54 from $14.99 until 5/13)
Super Shadow Break Showdown ($6.49 from $12.99 until 5/13)
Uchu Shinshuchu ($1.99 from $8.00 until 5/13)
World Class Champion Soccer ($6.59 from $10.99 until 5/13)
World War: Prologue ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/13)
World War: Tank Battle ($5.54 from $14.99 until 5/13)
XIII ($19.99 from $39.99 until 5/13)
Zombie is Planting ($2.19 from $10.99 until 5/13)
A Winter’s Daydream ($2.99 from $5.99 until 5/14)
Blood Waves ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Burn! SuperTrucks ($2.07 from $7.99 until 5/14)
FootGoal! Tiki Taka ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/14)
Megaquarium ($9.83 from $24.59 until 5/14)
Rift Keeper ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)
Stellatum ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/14)

That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next week with more new releases, more sales, some reviews, and some news. I’m going to be spending my weekend the way I imagine many of you will be: playing as much of Tears of the Kingdom as my schedule will allow. I hope you all have a great weekend, and as always, thanks for reading!

When the sale goes live, I’ll post about the prices and discounts for all the games and DLC packs. This sale will be live for a week from May 16th until May 23rd. We’ve covered all of Playdigious releases over the years. We featured Streets of Rage 4 as our Game of the Week when it launched. I also reviewed it and compared to other versions. Read that here. If you’re curious about Dead Cells on mobile, read this. It is going to be interesting to see what Playdigious has in store for us this year on mobile through premium releases and games in subscription services. What is your favorite game by Playdigious on mobile and will you be grabbing anything next week during the sale?

Let’s start with the premise. You’re the proud owner of a brand-new zoo. It’s not much of a zoo, mind you. You’ve got a hamster and a capybara. There’s also a bench, some vending machines, and a tree or two. It feels like perhaps you should have been a bit more prepared before opening your doors, but here we are. Hamster. Capybara. Vending machines. Bench. Let’s go. You wouldn’t think anyone would come to such a zoo, but people do. Your goal is to grow your zoo into something worthy of the name, filling your pockets with cash along the way. As you build, your zoo will earn stars towards a ranking. Your aim is reach five (and beyond), a job that will require you to check off a bunch of missions. Add more animals. Roll those campaigns. Earn those social media likes. Get. Paid.

I’ll be direct here: not much seems to have changed in Kairosoft’s world. And I suppose if it isn’t broken, why risk trying to fix it? Zoo Park Story could have come out seven years ago and it wouldn’t have seemed out of place in their line-up at the time. The visuals and sounds are similar, the UI is similar, and that familiar difficulty curve is here. A little slow, straightforward, and slightly challenging in the beginning, then you reach a certain point and the scales tip, giving you a comfortable cruise to the end of the game. You can actually mess things up in this one, which I suppose is new. But most likely, you won’t.

There’s actually a little bit more going on in this one that initially meets the eye. Obviously the main thing you want to do is add more animals to your park. A few of them will just roll in of their own volition, but most of them will be acquired the other two ways. First, you can just buy them from the Animal Hub. This will require you to either exchange items or Animal Points. The other way is by finding them and befriending them on expeditions. You’ll have to negotiate with them to befriend them, which involves tossing money, Animal Points, or higher regular food expenses. The latter is one way you can mess things up, by the way. Don’t throw your whole budget at a duck, is all I’m saying. Generally speaking, the more impressive the animal is, the more it’s going to cost you to keep.

Items! You can buy them with money, you can find them on expeditions, and people visiting the park will give you some now and then. In addition to using them to pick up animals in the Animal Hub, you can use them directly on the animals to improve their stats. The more friendliness they have, the more likes they’ll get on social media and the more customers they’ll attract. Upping their stats and improving their environment with decorations can also earn you more Animal Points now and then. Every animal has their likes and dislikes, and the boosts they’ll get vary based on that. Once you get more than one of each animal type you can merge their pens, and if they are of different genders there is a chance they will reproduce. As their friendliness increases, they’ll be able to interact with customers in new ways.

Aside from all of this, you can also run campaigns to attract visitors, add the occasional facility, and try to improve your zoo’s rank. You do that by completing specific missions, and they’re more or less things that will happen naturally as you play. At the end of each year, you’ll get a summary from a weird chimpanzee king and he’ll give you some other points you can exchange with him for various rewards. Compared to earlier games, Zoo Park Story feels like makes simple things unnecessarily complicated. There isn’t much depth here, and the pace can be really sluggish. All these extra currencies and mechanics do is make those basic tasks more convoluted.

I’m not sure if I just picked a bad one to jump in on or not, but Zoo Park Story just doesn’t click for me the way some of the older Kairosoft games did. Filling out the park just didn’t feel satisfying. My zoo didn’t feel like a proper zoo, and I felt like it was too penalizing to have the cool animals filling out the park. The road to success seemed to just involve jamming as many items as possible down the throats of the cheapest animals I could find. The game just didn’t expand out in as enjoyable a way as I hoped. The Kairosoft charm keeps things from being unpleasant, but this was probably as close to tedious as it gets for this kind of template.

No experiment should end after a single trial. I’ll probably look into the next couple of releases from Kairosoft before wandering off again, but I can at least say with some confidence that Zoo Park Story hasn’t made me rethink why I stopped reviewing this publisher’s games. It’s okay. If it was your first Kairosoft game, you would probably have a blast. But I feel like this concept could have made for a far better game than what we got here.

My Little Pony: Mane Merge 1.2.0 out now adds the Dragon Drama book, new mini-games, a set of new features, weekly challenges, 20 new stickers and a lot more. This is the game’s biggest update since launch. Cut the Rope Remastered heads to space with today’s update bring in the space board game with new levels, a new postcard, and more. The final notable update of the week is Asphalt 8+ adding in the Bugatti La Voiture Noire, Lamborghini Countach LPI 800-4, and a lot more in addition to a gift for all players, and new decals. With the updates done, head over to our forum threads for Asphalt 8+ here, Cut the Rope Remastered here, My Little Pony: Mane Merge here, Zookeeper World here, Frenzic: Overtime here, and Doctor Who: An Unlikely Heist here. For all Apple Arcade related things, check out our dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussion on the service and every game included here. What do you think of last week’s set of 20 releases and what do you want to see next month?

New Releases

Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 ($39.99)

Another serving of depression and despair, most likely. Fuga: Melodies of Steel carried on the Little Tail Brox series dutifully, and it seems to have done well enough to get a sequel. By and large you can expect more of what you saw in the first game, but some of the gameplay mechanics have been tweaked based on player feedback from the first. Naturally, it tells a whole new story too, with lots of choices that can lead to various outcomes. If you’re new to the series, start with the first Fuga. If you didn’t like that game, you probably won’t like this one. And if you did? You probably already preordered this.

Gunvein ($19.95)

NGDEV’s well-regarded vertical shooter comes to the Switch with this release. It’s a heavy bullet-hell game that rewards aggressive players, and it’s very good. If you enjoy Cave’s shooters, you’ll be right at home here. There are three different characters to use, several modes to play, and those ever-so-crucial online leaderboards to compete on. It’s also packed with various tutorials and challenges that will help you learn the ins and outs of the game.

TT Isle of Man: Ride on the Edge 3 ($49.99)

Nacon’s decent-but-not-spectacular motorcycle racer is back for another round. It features updated content based on the latest TT, and a new open world that allows you to ride around the Isle of Man looking for different modes and challenges. Given the performance issues of previous Nacon releases on the Switch, I fear for how that open world is going run on this platform, but I suppose we’ll know soon enough. Probably best to wait for some reviews on this one.

Arcade Archives Mazinger Z ($14.99)

Well, here’s a milestone: the first licensed game in the Arcade Archives line-up. And the price matches that, I’m afraid. This is a vertical shooter released in 1994 by Banpresto, based on the classic giant robot brand. Take control of the titular hero and blast away the baddies. Not the finest of shooters by any means, but it’s not too shabby either. Hopefully this opens the door to that dope Sailor Moon beat-em-up.

Murderous Muses ($13.99)

From the makers of The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker, The Shapeshifting Detective, and Dark Nights with Poe and Munro comes this procedurally-generated supernatural mystery game. Yes, it’s a bit different every time you play it, and yes, that kind of thing always makes me a little nervous too. Critic reviews of its Steam release were somewhat middling, but it seems to have gotten a slightly warmer reception from players. If you want to solve a murder mystery in an art gallery where the exhibits come to life, maybe give this a look. No one else is making a game for your very particular tastes, after all.

Elemental War 2 ($19.99)

Oh hey, another refugee from Stadia. This is a tower defense game, and it’s not particularly good. Not genuinely terrible either. It features eleven different maps to play on, and you can play with another player online assuming you can find anyone. Really the main thing it has going for it is the decent visual presentation, but it’s very hard to recommend with much vigor unless you truly want to play every tower defense game you stumble across.

Local News with Cliff Rockslide ($9.99)

I remember some years ago people telling me that there would never be any nostalgia for the early 3D era of gaming’s visual style. I think it’s safe to say that those people, who are probably made up, were wrong. Anyway, this is a first-person game where you’re controlling the camera. It’s up to you to frame the events that occur in the manner of your choosing. It’s a comedic adventure, so a lot of how well it lands is going to depend on if you find it funny or not. I dig the graphics, at least. We’ll have to see about the rest.

Leap From Hell ($9.99)

EpiXR is at it again, it seems. This publisher sure gets a lot of mileage out of its engine. Anyway, this one is a first-person platformer. Make your way through each level as fast as you can, enjoying the lovely hellscapes as you go. Not very exciting, but I’m sure some people will have fun with it.

Menseki: Area Maze Search ($4.99)

Another simple puzzle game in the Menseki series. This one has you hunting down shapes using a few hints and your own intuition. The presentation is, as ever, quite spartan. But the puzzles seem decent enough, so if you’re looking for a different kind of logic puzzle this might be worth your fiver.

Herodes ($4.99)

QUByte is fairly good at working well within its space on the eShop, publishing some interesting, highly-affordable games that punch a bit above their weight class. But a traditional side-scrolling shoot-em-up feels like risky business given that Arcade Archives offers more than a hundred great shooters for only a few bucks more than this. Fans of Life Force might enjoy this game’s biological theme, but it’s really just kind of middling on a platform full of top-shelf games in this genre even in this price range.

After You ($6.99)

It’s another room escape-style puzzle adventure. The game is made up of three chapters, each with their own area to explore and puzzles to solve. You play as a character who wakes up and finds all of his family and neighbors missing. He needs to explore the empty environments and try to figure out what is going on. Fairly standard set-up for this kind of affair.

Pretty Girls 2048 Strike ($6.99)

Well, that’s 2048 mixed with the Pretty Girls branding alright. Play 2048, unlock progressively more sexy costumes for the ladies. It isn’t rocket science, but I’m relatively sure it will sell.

Matches Puzzle: Classic Logic Arcade ($9.99)

I mean, it’s just some of those old match stick puzzles. You can do these with some toothpicks or matches yourself. You don’t have to give Megame ten bucks for this nonsense.

Zombie Dead Smasher – World Simulator Kill Strike Gun Shooter 3D Poly Games 2023 ($9.99)

More junk from Midnight Works. You have to play it in handheld mode because it’s probably a half-butt mobile port and the publisher couldn’t be bothered to implement button controls. Leave it in the trash can from whence it came.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Looks like Square Enix is having a sale on what remains of its Western game line-up. I’m surprised they kept Fear Effect, to be honest. I would have thought that would have gone with the rest of Eidos. Well, at any rate, you can get PowerWash Simulator and a few of the Life is Strange games at a discount. Not too much in the outbox, so I’ll leave it to you to dig through it. Raging Blasters and Missile Dancer are both cool, at least.

Select New Games on Sale

PowerWash Simulator ($19.99 from $24.99 until 5/18)
Life is Strange Arcadia Bay Collection ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/18)
Life is Strange True Colors ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/18)
Fear Effect Sedna ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/18)
Truck & Logistics Simulator ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/19)
Bridge! 3 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 5/19)
Autobahn Police Simulator 2 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/19)
Oxide Room 104 ($8.74 from $24.99 until 5/22)
Timothy vs the Aliens ($2.54 from $16.99 until 5/22)
Heart&Slash ($2.24 from $14.99 until 5/22)
Anima: Gate of Memories ($2.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Anima: GoM – The Nameless Chronicles ($2.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Dance of Death: Du Lac & Fey ($11.99 from $15.99 until 5/25)

Piczle Lines 2 ($11.24 from $14.99 until 5/26)
Pretty Girls Four Kings Solitaire ($3.59 from $5.99 until 5/26)
In the Mood ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/26)
Z-Warp ($3.49 from $6.99 until 5/26)
The Dead Tree of Ranchiuna ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/26)
Thunder Kid: HftRE ($3.19 from $7.99 until 5/26)
Thunder Kid II: Null Mission ($3.19 from $7.99 until 5/26)
Sofiya & the Ancient Clan ($4.79 from $7.99 until 5/26)
Breakneck City ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/26)
Sakura Gamer ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/31)
Subway Midnight ($7.69 from $10.99 until 6/1)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, May 12th

A Maiden Astrologer Divines the Future ($4.35 from $8.70 until 5/12)
Book Quest ($4.19 from $6.99 until 5/12)
Finding Paradise ($8.39 from $11.99 until 5/12)
Flashout 3 ($14.99 from $19.99 until 5/12)
Gemini Arms ($6.64 from $9.49 until 5/12)
Haven ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/12)
Hopping Girl Kohane Jumping Kingdom ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/12)
Horatio Goes Snowboarding ($3.49 from $6.99 until 5/12)
Kid Ball Adventure ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/12)
KURSK ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/12)
Light of Life ($3.99 from $4.99 until 5/12)
Madoris R ($4.00 from $5.00 until 5/12)
Maggie the Magnet ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/12)
Magical Girls ($4.00 from $5.00 until 5/12)
Magical Girls 2nd Magic ($3.99 from $4.99 until 5/12)

Missile Dancer ($6.99 from $9.99 until 5/12)
Moncage ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/12)
Needy Streamer Overload ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/12)
Neko Navy Daydream Edition ($8.70 from $12.99 until 5/12)
Nono Adventure ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/12)
Otoko Cross: Pretty Boys Mahjong Solitaire ($4.68 from $6.99 until 5/12)
Project Highrise: AE ($7.99 from $39.99 until 5/12)
Rage Among the Stars ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/12)
Raging Blasters ($10.29 from $14.70 until 5/12)
Refreshing Sideways Puzzle Ghost Hammer ($16.79 from $27.99 until 5/12)
Repit ($2.09 from $2.99 until 5/12)
Slap the Rocks ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/12)
Smilemo ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/12)
Sushi Reversi ($9.99 from $13.99 until 5/12)
Ten Dates ($13.59 from $15.99 until 5/12)
To The Moon ($8.39 from $11.99 until 5/12)
Twice Reborn: A Vampire Visual Novel ($11.24 from $14.99 until 5/12)
Virtual Maid Streamer Ramie ($4.90 from $7.01 until 5/12)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining releases of the week, which is led by The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. We’ll also have a healthy list of sales to sift through, so do look forward to that as well. I hope you all have thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

I’m looking forward to when we get the official Wizardry Variants Daphne release date. It looks like it could be a great DRPG for mobile. It has definitely come a long way from when we just saw a brief teaser. This year saw one of the best dungeon RPGs in a long time finally release outside Japan with Labyrinth of Galleria: The Moon Society. Check out the official Twitter account for the game here for more information and details leading up to the launch. Have you played a Wizardry game and what is your favorite dungeon RPG on mobile or Nintendo Switch?

Fake Future (Free)

iTunes Description

What will happen when AI gains self-awareness and surpasses humanity? What choices will humans make when faced with the appearance of a new energy “Icey"? Countless complex clues point towards an unexplored “pixel" space – the [Fake Future].

The “future” it depicts is hazy yet mysterious, just like the desolation after the destruction of Earth, craving rebirth and exploration. Whether you’re a fan of cyber-pixel style or a sci-fi fanatic, you won’t want to miss this retro-futuristic pixel simulation game. Come and join us now!

Forum Thread: Fake Future (by Sentai Interactive)

Hero Making Tycoon (Free)

iTunes Description

Welcome, my commander, hurry up to develop your hero factory, create a powerful army, and fight against the invasion of monsters!

Different from the usual games, our main character is a cute sausage man!

Open up farms to mass produce sausage men, build automated assembly lines to equip them with armor and weapons, and make them into soldiers of all shapes and sizes!

Forum Thread: Hero Making Tycoon (by HOT GAMES CO)

Huebris Hustle ($0.29)

iTunes Description

Mobile games don’t have to be complicated and expensive. Huebris Hustle is a simple arcade-style game available for some of the cheapest prices on the Apple App Store. Earn points by flying as dangerously close to the game’s obstacles as you can without crashing! But watch out, because the pace escalates quickly into a frantic fight for survival! Earn those bonus points while you still can!

Forum Thread: Huebris Hustle (by Jonathan Curtis)

Knight Dungeons (Free)

iTunes Description

Ready to become a hero? Knight Dungeons is the perfect choice for any aspiring knight! Play through this intense action platformer and battle your way through a kingdom of enemies! With stunning graphics, challenging levels, and exciting boss battles, Knight Dungeons will keep you entertained for hours. Show off your skills and become the ultimate hero today! Knight Dungeons games are known for their tight controls and polish, and this game takes it to the next level.

Forum Thread: Knight Dungeons (by Limitless LLC)

Life Makeover (Free)

iTunes Description

Born in romance, makeover in life.

Life Makeover is a limitless dress-up and social simulation game where you can create your very own avatar, customize dress-up and makeup, design one-and-only garments by yourself, build your dream house, and chill with your besties!

Forum Thread: Life Makeover (by Archosaur Games)

literally – word game (Free)

iTunes Description

literally is a word game in which your main opponent is time. This is a race in which you have to collect words from letters so that the game does not end.

Forum Thread: literally – word game (by Oleksandr Kozlov)

The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-earth (Free)

iTunes Description

Fantasy and adventure come together in Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-earth, a strategy RPG game based on the trilogy of books by J.R.R. Tolkien. A New Ring has been discovered in Middle-earth that has the power to rewrite history. How the power is used is up to you. Will you wield it for good or will you succumb to evil?

Forum Thread: The Lord of the Rings: Heroes of Middle-earth (by EA)

Lost Words: Beyond the Page (Free)

iTunes Description

Discover an atmospheric narrative adventure where you navigate 2D worlds to solve a great variety of puzzles. Harness words to alter the environment around you in an entirely unique and refreshing style of platforming.

This game will mesmerize players with its unique blend of gameplay mechanics, striking watercolor aesthetic and its unique story crafted by renowned games writer Rhianna Pratchett.

Forum Thread: Lost Words: Beyond the Page (by Plug In Digital)

Mia and the Dragon Princess (Free)

iTunes Description

Mia dreams of adventure, but her feeling of responsibility to her workmates – who have become her surrogate family – keeps her working at a job she’s bored of, living a life she didn’t want. When a mysterious woman (Marshanda) turns up scared and on the run, Mia’s decision to take her under her wing and try to discover her identity leads her down a path of intrigue, mystery and danger.

The viewer’s choices will guide Mia through the adventure and will determine her fate, as well as that of the whole group. Throughout the game, your interactions could increase your knowledge around the identity of the mysterious woman, but the way Mia deals with the rest of the group will also have an impact, so each choice needs to be carefully considered.

Forum Thread: Mia and the Dragon Princess (by Wales Interactive)

Peridot (Free)

iTunes Description

Peridot fulfills your fantasy of bonding with a magical, brag-worthy creature that can fly through the air, always wants to be by your side, and might have a secret love for turkey sandwiches. With the power of AR, this pet simulation game places whimsical beings known as Peridots (“Dots" for short) in the real world with you. And with Peridot, playing with friends is better, simple as that. Meet up with your besties IRL to Hatch new Dots that will inherit the Traits of their parents, then snap a pic and share it with your friends!

Forum Thread: Peridot (by Niantic)

Poosh XL ($4.99)

iTunes Description

Poosh your way through the obstacles and see how far you can get in this one-touch arcade score chaser!

Just press the Poosh button when your power and angle is just how you want it but don’t wait too long or the floor will raise up and destroy you. Avoid hitting anything and survive as long as you can to make waves in the leaderboard.

Forum Thread: Poosh XL (by Adamvision)

The Super Spy ACA NEOGEO ($3.99)

iTunes Description

THE SUPER SPY is an action game released by SNK in 1990.
Punch, kick, and use guns to fight off terrorists as you make your way through the building to rescue their captives.
Defeating enemies earns experience, which can be used in a Role Playing Game-like feature to level up.

Forum Thread: The Super Spy ACA NEOGEO (by SNK)

TRANSFORMERS Forged to Fight (Free)

iTunes Description

Optimus Prime, Bumblebee and bots across the multiverse are in danger. Ready to build a team, shore up defenses and fight epic battles?

Join Optimus Prime, Megatron, Bumblebee, Waspinator, Rhinox, Grimlock, Soundwave and many more familiar bots in a battle for planetary supremacy. More than 30 years of Transformers history and storytelling comes together in this action-packed fighting RPG where timelines collide. Roll out!

Forum Thread: TRANSFORMERS Forged to Fight (by Kabam)

Turret vs Turret (Free)

iTunes Description

2 player retro artillery mini game!

One-button controls:
-Press and hold the button to lock barrel angle
-Release the button to lock force and shoot

Forum Thread: Turret vs Turret (by Otto Ojala)

Zoo Park Story ($5.99)

iTunes Description

Ready to build the zoo of your dreams? Depart on wild adventures to find exotic fauna, exploring all manner of environments from savanna to tundra, jungle and beyond! Give your new animal friends a home and take your zoo to the top of the industry!

Savor the thrill of opening day. Feed the animals in your burgeoning lineup—even give them the occasional treat to show you care! From apples to acorns, meat, and more, tailor your critters’ diet according to their natural habitat. On that note, do the same with the surrounding flora too!

Forum Thread: Zoo Park Story (by Kairosoft)

News

‘Gimmick! Special Edition’ Comes to Switch on July 6th

Fans of Nintendo’s 8-bit console will know the name Sunsoft for such hits as Batman, Blaster Master, and Gremlins 2: The New Batch. The publisher fell off hard after the 16-bit generation, but its IPs and games see revivals now and then. A couple of its NES games somehow failed to see release in North America back in the day despite being localized for the European market, and there are some real fine examples among them. One such game is Gimmick!, an impressive display of physics-based platforming that somehow only released outside of Japan in Scandanavian countries. Last year Bitwave Games announced it would be bringing out an enhanced rerelease of the game called Gimmick! Special Edition, and we now know when: July 6th. It’s looking to be the ultimate release of the game, and this one will be available globally.

New Releases

Garden Simulator ($26.99)

One of those games where the title does 95% of the heavy lifting for me, leaving me with precious little to write about in this summary. As you would expect, you’re growing and maintaining a garden here. Plant the seeds, watch them grow, decorate the garden, keep it clean, sell your harvests, buy some upgrades and new plants, repeat until you’re satisfied. You can lob garden gnomes around, which is why the price is a little high.

Sakura Gamer ($9.99)

Sometimes dialog choices in games make me laugh a bit. Look at that screenshot. There is a right answer there, and there is a goblin answer. Anyway, this one is a visual novel about a young woman whose dream was to develop a game. Unfortunately, like most people she abandoned her dream for the sake of mundane reality. One day, her childhood friend introduces her to someone that will drag that dream back from the dead, whether our heroine likes it or not. And in the end, there may be smooching. Depends on your choices, really.

Cabin Escape: Alice’s Story ($0.99)

A short and sweet room escape adventure from the makers of the Forever Lost series, set at a highly reasonable price. You could certainly pay more and get less on the Switch in this genre.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Nothing spectacularly unusual in today’s new sales, but there are some good games in there like Demon Turf, Blossom Tales II, SUPERHOT, and Death Road to Canada to consider. The outbox is quite a bit bigger and has more in it than I can reasonably call things out from. Just take a careful look through the lists and I’m sure you’ll be fine.

Select New Games on Sale

Demon Turf ($14.99 from $24.99 until 5/16)
Circa Infinity UE ($1.99 from $10.99 until 5/16)
Colsword ($1.99 from $4.00 until 5/16)
Nirvana Deluxe Edition ($1.99 from $7.49 until 5/16)
Monument ($1.99 from $7.00 until 5/16)
BPM Bullets Per Minute ($17.49 from $24.99 until 5/16)
A Little Golf Journey ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
Blossom Tales II TMP ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/16)
Lil Gator Game ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
Stellar Interface ($2.59 from $12.99 until 5/22)
Like Dreamer ($9.59 from $11.99 until 5/22)
Among Us ($3.50 from $5.00 until 5/23)

SUPERHOT ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/23)
Depixtion ($1.99 from $7.99 until 5/24)
Death Road to Canada ($5.99 from $14.99 until 5/24)
Shadow Gangs ($14.39 from $23.99 until 5/28)
Xiomei & the Flame Dragon’s Fist ($13.49 from $14.99 until 5/30)
Cook Serve Delicious 2 ($1.99 from $12.99 until 5/30)
Cook Serve Delicious 3 ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/30)
Cook Serve Delicious 2/3 Bundle ($2.99 from $24.99 until 5/30)
Spy Chameleon ($2.99 from $9.99 until 5/30)
Super Sports Blast ($7.49 from $24.99 until 5/30)
Formula Retro Racing ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/30)
Hope’s Farm ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/30)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Thursday, May 11th

#Funtime ($3.19 from $14.99 until 5/11)
A Juggler’s Tale ($3.59 from $17.99 until 5/11)
Alchemic Dungeons DX ($3.99 from $7.99 until 5/11)
Ambition of the Slimes ($2.50 from $5.00 until 5/11)
Azure Reflections ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/11)
Beacon Pines ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Bugsnax ($14.99 from $24.99 until 5/11)
Chinese Parents ($9.74 from $12.99 until 5/11)
Christmas Tina ($20.24 from $26.99 until 5/11)
Citizen Sleeper ($13.39 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Cosplay Love ($9.59 from $11.99 until 5/11)
Cozy Grove ($8.81 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Cytus Alpha ($24.99 from $49.99 until 5/11)
Dariusburst CS Core/Taito/SEGA Pack ($23.99 from $29.99 until 5/11)
Dark Witch Music Episode Rudymical ($3.99 from $7.99 until 5/11)

Dead or School ($8.99 from $29.99 until 5/11)
DEEMO -Reborn- ($15.00 from $25.00 until 5/11)
DEEMO ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/11)
Deleveled ($2.13 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Dying: Reborn ($7.49 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Eschatos ($18.89 from $26.99 until 5/11)
Fairune Collection ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
fault milestone two side above ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
fault StP Lightkravte ($10.79 from $17.99 until 5/11)
Figment 2: Creed Valley ($19.99 from $24.99 until 5/11)
Filmechanism ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Framed Collection ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Genesis Noir ($4.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Gensokyo Defenders ($5.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Gensokyo Defenders Plus ($2.09 from $6.99 until 5/11)

Gensou Skydrift ($7.19 from $23.99 until 5/11)
Glitchhikers: The Spaces Between ($8.44 from $12.99 until 5/11)
Horizon Chase Turbo ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
In Other Waters ($4.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Justice Sucks ($12.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Kamiko ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/11)
Keen: One Girl Army ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/11)
Kraken Academy!! ($7.19 from $17.99 until 5/11)
Kubinashi Recollection ($7.19 from $11.99 until 5/11)
Light Tracer ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Little Noah: Scion of Paradise ($8.99 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Lode Runner Legacy ($5.99 from $11.99 until 5/11)
LUNA The Shadow Dust ($14.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Marchen Forest ($10.49 from $34.99 until 5/11)
Meg’s Monster ($12.74 from $14.99 until 5/11)

Minute of Islands ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
MO: Astray ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Necrobarista: Final Pour ($16.49 from $21.99 until 5/11)
Neo Cab ($2.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
NeverAwake ($19.99 from $24.99 until 5/11)
Ninja Striker ($1.99 from $3.99 until 5/11)
No Longer Home ($5.99 from $14.99 until 5/11)
ONI: Road to be the Mightiest ($22.49 from $29.99 until 5/11)
Paradise Killer ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Pixel Game Maker Series Cat & Tower ($3.99 from $4.99 until 5/11)
Pixel Game Maker Series Loplight ($3.99 from $4.99 until 5/11)
Pizza Tycoon ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Pronty ($13.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Rascal Fight ($8.99 from $11.99 until 5/11)
Rhythm Fighter ($12.74 from $16.99 until 5/11)

Rhythm Sprout ($9.74 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Roundguard ($6.26 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Shio ($9.74 from $12.99 until 5/11)
Shirone the Dragon Girl ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Sifu ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/11)
Slime Tactics ($4.99 form $9.99 until 5/11)
Sol Cresta ($27.19 from $39.99 until 5/11)
Space Otter Charlie ($6.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
SpiderHeck ($9.74 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Episode I Racer ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Heritage Pack 2023 ($39.99 from $79.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Jedi Outcast ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars KotOR ($9.74 form $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars KotOR II: The Sith Lords ($9.74 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Pinball ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/11)

Star Wars Republic Commando ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars The Force Unleashed ($12.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
SubaraCity ($2.50 from $5.00 until 5/11)
Super Metboy! ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Super Mutant Alien Assault ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Super UFO Fighter ($8.39 from $11.99 until 5/11)
Suzerain ($5.39 from $17.99 until 5/11)
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines ($3.19 from $14.99 until 5/11)
The Church in the Darkness ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
The Future You’ve Been Dreaming Of ($8.99 from $17.99 until 5/11)
The Stillness of the Wind ($2.07 from $12.99 until 5/11)
The Wonderful 101 ($17.99 from $39.99 until 5/11)
Think of the Children ($2.59 from $12.99 until 5/11)
Tinykin ($16.24 from $24.99 until 5/11)
Touhou Genso Wanderer LL R ($22.49 from $44.99 until 5/11)

Touhou Gouyoku Ibun ($25.19 from $27.99 until 5/11)
Touhou Hyouibana ($24.49 from $34.99 until 5/11)
Touhou Luna Nights ($14.39 from $17.99 until 5/11)
Transiruby ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Ultimate ADOM: CoC ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
VOEZ ($12.50 from $25.00 until 5/11)
Wing of Darkness ($5.99 from $29.99 until 5/11)
Witch & Hero ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/11)
Witch & Hero 2 ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/11)

That’s all for today, friends. We’re only a couple of days away from The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, so tomorrow is going to be a different kind of Thursday than usual. Still, we’ll have all of the summaries like we always do, plus whatever sales and big news items roll in over the next day. I hope you all have a wonderful Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Wow. Life-changing. The world of fish will never be the same. While the trailer definitely gives me a chuckle, don’t be fooled into thinking that’s all this is about. Super Fishbird is legitimately a really good high score chaser. The physics feel really good and the fish is so unpredictably floppy that you get into all sorts of situations that run the gamut of performing some type of seemingly impossible acrobatic trick or suddenly ending your game prematurely due to a horrible bounce. The game is free with ads and you can unlock the ad-free premium version for $5.99 which also includes a fancy hat for your bird. If you aren’t immediately sold at “fancy hat" then I’m not sure what to tell you. Joking aside though, this really is a game worth your time and at least for now Super Fishbird is my current go-to time killer.

I’ve written quite a lot of reviews of these ACA NEOGEO games already, and I hope that one of the things I’ve managed to express is that this console’s early days were really bizarre and subsequently charming in a particular way. Before Street Fighter II laid out the path the arcade business as a whole would take throughout the 1990s, SNK didn’t seem to have any clear idea where to go with its new console’s library. Clearly, it wanted some games that would show off what the hardware could do. Beyond that, the library reflects a company throwing an awful lot of mud at the wall to see what would stick. Fatal Fury would show the way forward, but that didn’t come until deep into the NEOGEO’s second year of life.

The console was more than thirty games deep at that point, and we can see a lot of different kinds of releases in that early bunch. Sports games of various types are a given, and there were plenty of those. A couple of shoot-em-ups, a couple of platform games, a couple of beat-em-ups, a couple of puzzlers. But perhaps the most unusual of these early games was The Super Spy. It may also have been one of the more ambitious. You play as international man of mystery Roy Heart, who has been sent on a mission by the CIA to infiltrate a building that has been occupied by terrorists. Hey, I’ve seen this movie. This set-up could work for a bunch of traditional genres, but SNK decided to make a first-person beat-em-up.

For some reason, our boy Roy has entered the building armed only with a knife and a gun with twelve bullets in it. But worry not, as his martial arts skills are impressive. You’ll have to get used to them, as you’re going to be using them a lot as you make your way through sixteen floors filled with enemies. You’ll find weapons now and then by rescuing hostages that temporarily add some sizzle to the steak, and you can use your knife until it rusts from overuse (that’s not how that works at all), but most of your kills are going to be with your bare hands or well-toed foot. There is some extremely light exploration here as well, and I will say that this was all very dazzling to look at in this game’s time. Really big characters, decent scaling, lots of impact.

The hand-to-hand combat takes a lot of cues from Nintendo’s Punch-Out!!, with the ability to block and duck the attacks of your foes between your own swings and hooks. If you try to slug it out without making use of these features, you’ll end up emptying your wallet of coins in a hurry. You know, if you had to worry about that with this version. You don’t, you can feed virtual coins as often as you want to get through this sheer endurance battle of a game. But I beseech you to actually engage with that melee combat system, as if there is enjoyment to be found in The Super Spy it is through mastery of it. Once you get the hang of how it works, I dare say you might even start having some fun.

I wish I could tell you that fun lasts for the duration of the game, but we’re all too old to believe in faery tales. It gets monotonous after a few floors’ worth of similar-looking ninjas, and I’ll remind you that there are sixteen in total. Worse, things step into the realm of frustration a bit too often as enemies step out of the range of your dukes. Hope you saved some ammo. Once you learn the game and know when and where to make use of your limited weaponry, things can go a little brisker and more pleasantly, but I’m not sure how many people would set their minds to do such a thing unless they paid a couple hundred dollars for a cartridge.

Sounds like bad news for The Super Spy, then. Wrap it up, prepare a couple of stars, and we’ll all get on with our day. Except! Except Hamster has done what it usually does for its releases here, and one of those usual things actually makes The Super Spy a lot more interesting. The extra modes that the developer always adds are included here, complete with online leaderboards. That means you have a score attack and timed caravan mode to play, both of which limit you to but a single credit. And that in turn means that if you want to make any headway at all in these modes, you must come to grips with the game’s distinct mechanics and intentions.

It is in doing so that you’ll find that The Super Spy is a bit better than it sometimes gets credit for. Sure, beating the game is a bore and a chore, but I could say the same for Capcom’s 1942. Arcade games are so far away from their context here in 2023 (or whenever you’re reading this) that I think we sometimes forget that they weren’t necessarily meant to be beaten the first time you sidle up to the machine. You weren’t supposed to have infinite credits, dropping in another coin every time you fail instead of learning the game properly and building your skills. I’m not going to sit here and say The Super Spy is fine art, but I will say that if we appraise it under its original conditions, it’s alright. And Hamster’s stock extra modes force you to do that, albeit to an extreme.

I suppose it’s time to go through the normal bit. You can play with an external controller if you want, and honestly it’s a much better way to go about things if you have the option. The button layout isn’t especially complicated here, but the emphasis on dodging and replying with speedy timing can make the touch controls a little unreliable. You get a lot of options to play around with here, and we’ve already talked about the extra modes and online leaderboards. The emulation is good, but I’m sure we all expect that by now. A more bespoke set-up might have benefited The Super Spy, but I get how the whole business model works here.

The Super Spy is a game that is perhaps at its worst if you choose to play it by credit-feeding your way through its tedious campaign. I can understand why it wasn’t particularly well-liked by AES owners back in the day, and I similarly get why modern reviews don’t have a lot of nice things to say about it. But I don’t think it’s totally without merit, and the extra modes in this ACA NEOGEO mode make the game interesting enough to be worth tossing a few bucks at if you’re a curious retro gamer. It’s extremely Early NEOGEO Core, and if that sounds cool to you then I will give this a hesitant recommendation.

Brotato is available for $4.99 on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. Check it out on Steam here. I’ve been playing Brotato a ton on Steam Deck. It feels a lot nicer on Steam Deck compared to iOS right now. Hopefully the iOS version eventually reaches that stage for me. If you haven’t gotten Brotato or 20 Minutes Till Dawn yet, get the bundle here. Have you played Brotato or 20 Minutes Till Dawn yet on mobile?

You can buy The Super Spy ACA NeoGeo on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here. As with prior releases on mobile, this costs half of what it does on consoles at $3.99. If you’ve not heard of the series or seen it in action on mobile yet, Shaun has reviewed most of the releases so far in the ACA NeoGeo series on iOS. Check out his reviews for Sengoku 2 here, Top Hunter Roddy & Cathy here, Samurai Shodown IV here, Alpha Mission II here, Metal Slug 5 here, Shock Troopers here, NAM-1975 here, ZED BLADE here, PUZZLED here, The King of Fighters 2002 here, Big Tournament Golf here, King of the Monsters here, Last Resort here, Aero Fighters 2 here, Burning Fight here, Robo Army here, Mutation Nation here, Twinkle Star Sprites here, Aero Fighters 3 here, Prehistoric Isle 2 here, Sengoku 3 here, Samurai Shodown III here, Ghost Pilots here, Stakes Winner here, Baseball Stars Professional here, Top Players Golf here, Ninja Combat here, Riding Hero here, and Savage Reign here. Check out the official website for the series on mobile here. What’s your favorite recent ACA NeoGeo release and are you grabbing today’s release?

You asked, we answered!

Our Co-Studio Head, Chris Plummer, dives back into graphics, optimization, and an update on our release date. Have more questions about #WarzoneMobile that you want to be answered? Drop them below

Full intel here https://t.co/S0qhCSd90P pic.twitter.com/XTO90Bj7Zf

— Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile (@WarzoneMobile) May 8, 2023

As revealed before, Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile will have shared progression. You can advance your battle pass, earn experience, and use similar loadouts across Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II on PC and console platforms. A common friends list will also be available letting you squad up with your crew from the console and PC game on mobile. If you’d like to play it at launch, pre-order Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile on the App Store for iOS here and pre-register for it on Google Play for Android here. Details for the various reward tiers and more info about the game are available on the official website. What do you think of Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile so far from the trailers and are you playing Call of Duty: Warzone 2.0 on PC or consoles?

New Releases

Dokapon Kingdom Connect ($49.99)

The RPG board game mash-up returns with this Switch entry in the series. If you’re familiar with the PlayStation 2 game, you’ll find this works more or less the same way. One nice bonus is that you can play multiplayer locally or online, and with up to four players. Find some friends and get ready to lock in for the long haul, because a single playthrough of this one can go as high as twenty hours. Definitely not for everyone, but those who enjoy it will probably like it a lot.

LA-MULANA 1 & 2 Bundle ($34.99)

I don’t normally cover bundles anymore, but it’s a bit of a slow day and LA-MULANA rules, so why not? This includes both the first and second game, and both of them are amazing challenges that reward the patient, clever, and courageous player. LA-MULANA 2 even had a recent update that adds more content to it. Never a better time or better way to pick these games up, so if you enjoy pulling your hair out and having fun doing it, then get on it.

King Jister 3 ($5.99)

This is the third in a series of reimagined versions of some Czech text adventures from the 1990s. Despite how it might appear, this is a point-and-click style adventure game where you’ll mainly be solving a bunch of puzzles. The description says that you can enjoy it standalone, and I reckon you’ll have to as the previous two games aren’t on the Switch. They do appear to be on the Google Play Store if you’re feeling adventurous, however. Ha. Adventurous.

Zombie Apocalypse: Survival Stories ($5.99)

A visual novel mixed with what have to be the stiffest-looking battles I’ve seen in a game in some time. Those people look positively bored out of their minds shooting at the shambling hordes. Anyway, the description makes it sound like the most vanilla possible take on the concept, and that isn’t great because this kind of thing has been done to death and back. Like the zombies themselves, I suppose. Six bucks isn’t a lot to ask if you’re more willing to take the gamble than I am, but it takes a pretty special game to get me off the couch for another zombie story and I somehow doubt this is it.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

I’d imagine most people interested in Shovel Knight have the Treasure Trove already, but if you’re buying them piecemeal you really can’t argue with three bucks for King of Cards. The Oregon Trail is also at a new low, and it’s a very enjoyable experience. Over in the outbox, The Kids We Were is finishing up its latest sale, which saw it at its lowest price yet. It’s a really cool game. Check those lists as always.

Select New Games on Sale

Ultionus: A Tale of Petty Revenge ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/15)
Shovel Knight: King of Cards ($2.99 from $9.99 until 5/16)
The House of Da Vinci ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/16)
Right and Down ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/16)
Namco Museum Archives Vol 2 ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/22)
Mr. Driller DrillLand ($5.99 from $29.99 until 5/22)
Sword Art Online Alicization Lycoris ($32.49 from $49.99 until 5/22)
Sword Art Online Hollow Realization DX ($7.49 from $49.99 until 5/22)
The Red Lantern ($9.99 from $24.99 until 5/23)
Voice of Cards: Forsaken Maiden + DLC ($22.79 from $37.99 until 5/22)
Voice of Cards: Isle Dragon Roars + DLC ($22.79 from $37.99 until 5/25)
Voice of Cards: Beasts of Burden + DLC ($22.79 from $37.99 until 5/25)
The Oregon Trail ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/29)
Elderand ($13.39 from $19.99 until 5/29)
Scribblenauts Showdown ($3.99 from $39.99 until 5/29)
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga GE ($31.99 from $79.99 until 5/29)
Mortal Kombat 11 ($9.99 from $49.99 until 5/29)
LEGO Worlds ($5.99 from $29.99 until 5/29)
LEGO The Incredibles ($8.99 from $59.99 until 5/29)
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 ($5.99 from $29.99 until 5/29)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Wednesday, May 10th

Battle Brothers A TBT RPG ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/10)
Bunny Must Die! Chelsea & the 7 Devils ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/10)
Collapsed ($2.25 from $15.00 until 5/10)
Earth Wars ($1.99 from $4.50 until 5/10)
Flying Girl Striker ($10.50 from $15.00 until 5/10)
Jump King ($6.49 from $12.99 until 5/10)
Little Bit War ($9.59 from $13.71 until 5/10)
Magic Scroll Tactics ($8.39 from $11.99 until 5/10)
Overlord Escape from Nazarick ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/10)
Panic Porcupine ($6.99 from $7.99 until 5/10)
Super Zangyura ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/10)
The Kids We Were ($8.31 from $15.99 until 5/10)
Touhou Fan-made Virtual Autography ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/10)
Touhou Sky Arena Matsuri Climax ($20.99 from $29.99 until 5/10)
VasterClaws 3 ($21.00 from $30.00 until 5/10)
Vazial Saga XX ($23.80 from $34.00 until 5/10)
ZombieVital DG ($10.01 from $14.30 until 5/10)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more new releases, more sales, and perhaps a bit of news if the universe sees fit to bless us. I have successfully stopped playing PowerWash Simulator again, though for how long remains to be seen. Truly a dangerous game for someone of my nature. The only answer might be to 100% complete it. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

The Cube of Repacity season brings with it a new seasonal gameplay mechanic, where you’ll be able to earn crystals from defeated enemies which you can then spend with the titular cube for various types of rewards following the defeat of a boss. The season also introduces a new here named Escapist Bing as well as a TON of new balance changes, fixes, and tweaks to the overall experience. You can get a more detailed rundown of everything new in this latest version of Torchlight: Infinite over on the game’s blog. It’s a lot of stuff, folks. As of this writing the new update is available in the App Store, but the servers are still down for maintenance ahead of the new season launch. It’s scheduled to go live at 8:00 (UTC+8) on May 10th, which if I didn’t screw up my time zone math, should be 8pm ET here in the US.

Blossom Tales: The Sleeping King ($14.99)

Despite how successful the series’ foray into the world of 3D has been, there’s something that just works about the classic top-down Zelda formula. If that’s the flavor you enjoy, it’s hard to beat the Blossom Tales games. There are two of them and they are both very good, so I’ll just throw the first one in here and let you do what you need to. It feels like a love letter to the 16-bit era, and it has all of the combat, puzzles, and exploration you’d expect from a game of this sort.

Tunic ($29.99)

One of the things that really drew people to the original Zelda on the NES was its sense of mystery and discovery. It was so cryptic at times and the secrets were densely packed. Tunic recaptures that feeling better than most games, and it’s truly one for the folks who like to solve puzzles and riddles. The combat is no slouch, either. If you remember unfolding the map that came with that shiny gold cartridge and thumbing through its manual, the in-game manual you collect the pages for here will hit your nostalgic heart with a bullseye shot. A great game all-around and a treat to play on Switch.

Darksiders Warmastered Edition ($29.99)

These days there are a lot of games that follow the Zelda format in one way or another, but back in the 00s it was a lot rarer of a happening. It was even more unusual when one of the games actually did it well. But against the odds, Darksiders pulled it off. It does its own thing for combat and it has a much greater focus on story, but any fan of the classic 3D Zelda games will feel right at home with its exploration and puzzles. If you enjoy this one, I’d also recommend its sequel.

Okami HD ($19.99)

Here’s the other popular riff on 3D Zelda from the 00s. Developed by Clover, the team that would largely go on to form Platinum Games, it blends a gorgeous art style, a unique setting, some interesting combat mechanics, and some great puzzle-solving and exploration into one package that is practically bursting at the seams with stuff. This is a lot of game for twenty bucks, probably more than most would ideally want, and as games similar to the 3D Zelda format go it is among the finest and most celebrated.

Death’s Door ($19.99)

If you want a little Souls mixed into your Zelda, that’s what Death’s Door has to offer. But don’t worry if you’re not super keen on From’s challenging spectacles. This one has a lot of map exploration too, and the battles aren’t as nasty as the reference might imply. The bosses will make you hustle more than most of the games on this list, but the gorgeous look, sounds, and gameplay in Death’s Door makes the occasional bits of pain worth pushing through.

CrossCode ($19.99)

Another indie effort, and another sensational game. Set in a fictional MMO, CrossCode uses its theme to create a lot of clever puzzles and situations. It’s a huge game and the puzzles require some genuine thinking to solve, so if you’re the sort that prefers combat to using your brain power this one might not be the best one for you. The battles are a lot of fun, of course. I don’t want to take away from them. I’ll also mention the incredible world-building, as this game goes all the way when it comes to fleshing out its setting.

Ittle Dew 2+ ($9.99)

The Ittle Dew games have never been the biggest darlings of the indie scene, and I certainly can’t deny that there are some rough edges to be found in them. But the puzzles really nail that Zelda feel, and the jokes are actually funny. There’s a lot of heart packed into these games. The first one is fairly short and feels a bit small in scope, but the sequel is a full-on adventure that is more than worth taking up if you have any fondness for the 16-bit Zelda framework.

Moonlighter ($24.99)

Here’s another one with one foot in another type of game. You get your Zelda-style action-adventure, and it’s quite well-done in all respects. But you also get a shopkeeping sim, and both of these parts bounce off each other to create a rather satisfying game. Head into dungeons, battle enemies, collect items, sell them at your shop, upgrade your stuff, and head out to do it again but better. It has that roguelite element that is all the rage these days, but I think it has a lot of appeal for Zelda fans.

Immortals Fenyx Rising ($59.99)

Perhaps you came to the Zelda party with Breath of the Wild, though? All of these games that take after the top-down 2D Zelda games or the classic 3D games just aren’t doing it for you? Maybe Immortals Fenyx Rising is what you’re after. Ubisoft wasn’t incredibly subtle here, but it does enough of its own thing with its theme that it doesn’t feel too close for comfort. Anyway, it has a big open world to explore, solid controls, fun puzzles, and a nice light tone that might be a little too jokey for some but certainly helps separate it from its obvious source of inspiration. It can often be found at ridiculously low prices, too.

Hyper Light Drifter – Special Edition ($19.99)

It’s hard to believe this game is more than seven years old now. It still looks great and the exact way it lays things out still comes off as fresh as the day it came out. A strong visual style and outstanding atmosphere gives it a singular feel, and the combat system is great fun to learn and apply. Odds are good you’ve already played this one if you’re a fan of The Legend of Zelda, but if you’ve somehow missed it, give it a shot. It’s well-known for a reason.

And that’s the list, friends. There are several others I could easily put on here, and the final cuts were truly heart-breaking. But ten is what I promised and ten is what I have delivered. You, however, have no such limitations. Hit those comments with your favorite Zelda-like games that didn’t make this list so we can all share in the good times.

Little Big Workshop is priced at $9.99 on mobile. It usually sells for $19.99 on PC and consoles. You can pre-order Little Big Workshop on the App Store for iOS here and pre-register for it on Google Play for Android here. Having never played it before, I’m interested to see how it controls on touch and also how it runs when things get hectic. I’ll be checking it out on my iPad Pro next month. Ahead of its launch, check out the official website here and Steam page here for impressions around the PC port. Have you played Little Big Workshop before or will you be trying it when it hits iOS and Android on June 13th?

Reviews & Mini-Views

Terra Flame ($19.99)

Developer Terarin is a shooting game fan who makes shooting games, and his output is both unsurprising and surprising with that in mind. On the one hand, his games have a lot of interesting mechanics to explore and are typically geared towards score attacks. Those who enjoy the genre and are well-versed in its history will find a lot to like in any of Terarin’s games, and Terra Flame is no exception. It’s a rare foray into horizontal shooting from the developer, and he takes the opportunity to riff on games like Thunder Force, Darius, and more. If you like aiming for high scores, you’re well taken care of here with a good scoring system, a Caravan mode, and online leaderboards.

What is less expected is that Terarin’s shooters are also rather beginner-friendly. The core gimmicks are usually easy enough to pick up and enjoy, and the difficulty on the lower settings isn’t overly demanding. Terra Flame isn’t as flashy as some of its peers in terms of visuals, but it looks good and the soundtrack is excellent. You get a nice variety of locations to travel through, the enemy patterns are fun to learn, and the boss battles are cool. The weapon switching mechanic at the heart of the game is as easy to use as remember which button is which, and it’s fun to figure out which one you should be using where. You can also power up your shot by laying off the fire button, adding another interesting twist to build into your strategy.

Whether you’re a hardened veteran of the shoot-em-up genre or a newcomer looking for a good entry point, Terra Flame is a solid choice. It looks and sounds great, the gameplay is nice and snappy, and the mechanics are interesting to play with. Just making your way through the eight-stage campaign is a pleasure, but with additional difficulty settings, thoughtful scoring mechanics, an intense Caravan mode, and online leaderboards, there’s plenty here to keep you coming back for more.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Gematombe ($14.99)

I like a lot of things about Gematombe. Its mash-up of brick-breaking and falling-block puzzler reminds me of Taito’s Puchi Carat, and that’s not bad company to be in. The presentation is charming and fits the era of gaming it draws inspiration from to a tee. You get a few different modes to enjoy, and there’s a fair bit here in terms of single-player content to go alongside the local multiplayer mode.

The idea of the gameplay is that you have a field of gems of different colors. You launch a ball at them to break them, and if you break a bunch in a row you’ll send some garbage blocks to your opponent. You have to catch the ball when it comes back, and if you miss you’ll end up with some extra gems of your own. The match is over either when one player clears their board or gets crushed by the falling gems. It works well enough, but as you play you might notice that the action never really heats up. Matches drag on for way too long, and the ball never speeds up. This is probably to make it so that it’s easier to catch, but I ended up finding it a little boring as a result.

If you don’t mind a slower-paced puzzler, Gematombe might be of interest to you. Its fundamental rules and gameplay mechanics work well, the art style is vibrant and appealing, and it offers a lot of ways to play. Those looking for a speedier affair might find this one a little plodding for their liking, and its lack of any sort of online multiplayer or leaderboards also hurts it a little. Not bad for a first attempt, but I could imagine a sequel that builds on things and really takes it to another level.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

Wild Dogs ($9.99)

It takes all of fifteen seconds to sort out what game this one pays homage to. This game is heavily inspired by Contra, with many mechanics from Contra III in particular popping up. It’s presented with a Game Boy-style look, and you can swap between a large number of palettes. Even the weapons are extremely familiar, and the spread shot remains king. There are a couple of times it breaks away from the run-and-gun formula to spice things up, but they’re not exactly the shining moments of the game. Still, the game plays well enough that run-and-fun fans won’t be disappointed.

Wild Dogs isn’t without its issues. The bosses drag on a bit too long thanks to their high HP, some of the gimmick sections aren’t terribly fun, and the game just can’t get out of the shadow of the game it’s paying homage to and lacks much identity of its own as a result. It’s also single-player only, which is unfortunate given how much of an appeal point that was for Konami’s shooter. But it gets enough of that Contra energy right that fans of the series will likely have a good time stomping through it, and maybe that’s enough.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

New Releases

Poosh XL ($4.99)

Adamvision Studios has a solid knack for making enjoyable, simple, arcade-style games and Poosh XL is another fine example. It’s a one-button game where you all you need to do is “poosh" with good timing. It’s an endless game where you’re trying to get an ever-higher score, so if you enjoy that kind of thing then you’ll want to give this a look. Like Adamvision’s Atari Recharged games, there are also a bunch of extra challenges you can complete if you’re looking for a little more spice. Good fun, good price.

Scrap Bolts ($9.99)

A simple platformer where you play as a little robot on a wheel who is trying to collect all the bolts on each stage. I don’t think I’d pick it up at ten bucks, but it seems prime to be a regular member of the deep discount club.

Van Van Up – Car Driving Games Ultimate Experience Simulator ($9.99)

Midnight Works has another simple driving game to add to the massive pile in the eShop. This one’s gimmick is that the roads are weird. Well, do what you will.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Not a very big list of new sales today, but Thalamus is having a sale on its full line and it’s all pretty much worth grabbing. I particularly enjoyed Millie and Molly and Death Ray Manta SE, if you want somewhere to start. Over in the outbox, a whole lot of RPGs are wrapping up their latest sales. The whole Atelier line and most of Square Enix’s catalog will be heading back to normal prices again very soon, so grab while the grabbing’s good.

Select New Games on Sale

Formula Bit Racing DX ($3.49 from $4.99 until 5/19)
Demon Skin ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/20)
Overcooked! All You Can Eat ($15.99 from $39.99 until 5/21)
Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/21)
Shape Neon Chaos ($1.99 from $30.00 until 5/26)
Lila’s Tale & the Hidden Forest ($3.49 from $4.99 until 5/26)
Gruta ($3.99 from $4.99 until 5/26)
Scrap Bolts ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/27)
Railbound ($9.74 from $12.99 until 5/29)
Cardful Planning ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/29)

Millie and Molly ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/29)
Lumo ($1.99 from $19.95 until 5/29)
LOVE: A Puzzle Box ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/29)
Destructivator SE ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/29)
Rainbow Laser Disco Dungeon ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/29)
Bezier Second Edition ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/29)
Rogue Aces ($1.99 from $12.99 until 5/29)
Word Forward ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/29)
Death Ray Manta SE ($1.99 from $10.00 until 5/29)
Buddy Simulator 1984 ($6.66 from $9.99 until 5/29)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Tuesday, May 9th

ActRaiser Renaissance ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Ayesha ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Escha & Logy ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Firis ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Lulua ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Lydie & Suelle ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Meruru ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Rorona ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Shallie ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Sophie ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Sophie 2 ($38.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
Atelier Totori ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Balan Wonderworld ($11.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Bridge Strike ($1.99 form $6.99 until 5/9)
Buried Stars ($13.49 from $44.99 until 5/9)

Children of Morta ($5.49 from $21.99 until 5/9)
Collection of Mana ($19.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Collection of SaGa FFL ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/9)
Dragon Quest Treasures ($35.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
Dungeon Encounters ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Dynasty Warriors 8: Xtreme Legends DE ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Fatal Frame: Maiden of Black Water ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse ($37.49 from $49.99 until 5/9)
Final Fantasy IX ($10.49 from $20.99 until 5/9)
Final Fantasy VII ($7.99 from $15.99 until 5/9)
Final Fantasy VIII Remastered ($9.99 from $19.99 until 5/9)
Final Fantasy X/X-2 HD Remaster ($24.99 from $49.99 until 5/9)
Final Fantasy XII TZA ($24.99 from $49.99 until 5/9)
Final Fantasy XV Pocket Edition ($11.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Harvestella ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)

Kingdom Hearts Integrum Cloud Vers. ($44.99 from $89.99 until 5/9)
Kingdom Hearts Melody of Memory ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
Legend of Mana ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Monster Rancher 1 & 2 DX ($20.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Moonlighter ($3.74 from $24.99 until 5/9)
Mosaic Chronicles Deluxe ($1.99 from $12.99 until 5/9)
Nelke & the Legendary Alchemists ($19.79 from $59.99 until 5/9)
NEO The World Ends with You ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
NieR:Automata The End of YoRHa ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/9)
Paranormasight: Seven Mysteries ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/9)
Rain on Your Parade ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/9)
Romance of the Three Kingdoms XIV ($41.99 from $69.99 until 5/9)
Romancing SaGa 2 ($7.49 from $24.99 until 5/9)
Romancing SaGa 3 ($8.69 from $28.99 until 5/9)
Romancing SaGa Minstrel Song ($21.24 from $24.99 until 5/9)

SaGa Frontier Remastered ($14.99 from $24.99 until 5/9)
SaGa Scarlet Grace Ambitions ($8.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Samurai Warriors 5 ($35.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
Spelunker Party ($8.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Tactics Ogre Reborn ($32.99 from $49.99 until 5/9)
The Centennial Case: A Shijima Story ($24.99 from $49.99 until 5/9)
The Diofield Chronicle ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
The Wreck ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/9)
Trials of Mana ($24.99 from $49.99 until 5/9)
Various Daylife ($19.13 from $28.99 until 5/9)
Voice of Cards: Beasts of Burden ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Voice of Cards: Isle Dragon Roars ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Voice of Cards: The Forsaken Maiden ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/9)
Voodoo Detective ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/9)
Warriors Orochi 4 Ultimate ($35.99 from $59.99 until 5/9)
Wild Romance ($6.99 from $9.99 until 5/9)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with more new releases, more sales, and perhaps some reviews and news. I spent way too much time playing PowerWash Simulator this past weekend. I really shouldn’t be allowed to load that game up ever. Oh well. I hope you all have a magnificent Monday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Next up is Lost Words: Beyond the Page. This is a really unique adventure game that launched on PC and consoles a couple of years back, and is now making its way to mobile courtesy of Plug In Digital. In it you’ll explore a fantasy world and manipulate actual words to solve puzzles and unlock parts of the narrative, and this is combined with a more traditional side-scrolling adventure where you’ll do a little bit of platforming and puzzle solving. I’m certainly not doing the game justice, but as you can see in the trailer below this is definitely a gorgeous game that has garnered all sorts of attention and accolades with its launch on other platforms, and it looks like it will be a great fit for mobile.

With the way scheduled releases work in the App Store, both of these titles should be available right now in time zones where the calendar has already rolled over to May 9th. You can find Lost Worlds on the App Store here, and Peridot on the App Store here. We are based here in the US, and so neither of these are available right this minute, but should be available at 11pm ET roughly 6 hours from now. These are both games that are quite different from one another, but both are ones I’ve really been anxious to check out, so I’ll be counting down the minutes until later tonight. If you want to discuss either of these new titles you can do so in the Lost Words thread or the Peridot thread over in our forums.

Marvel Contest of Champions, Free Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 was a really good movie. Even if you’re burnt out on the MCU, I hope you go and watch it. Heart for miles. Really looking forward to Superman Legacy now. Anyway, like other Marvel apps at the moment, Contest of Champions is running a Guardians event. It involves Moon Dragon, Adam Warlock, Drax, and all sorts of shenanigans. As usual it doesn’t try to follow the events of the movie, instead making up its own fun tale.

MARVEL Future Fight, Free Here is the other one I chose to highlight. It’s an intriguing one as I think it’s the first big event update for this game in a while that doesn’t add any new characters. Instead you just get new costumes for Star-Lord, Rocket, and Mantis to reflect their appearances in the latest movie. There’s also a new Tier-4 Star-Lord and a Tier-3 Rocket, plus some new PVP content and a new growth system. If you’re really into Guardians events, be sure to check out Marvel Puzzle Quest, Marvel Snap, and Marvel Strike Force as well. Excelsior!

Jetpack Joyride, Free Whoa… is this an actual new event in Jetpack Joyride? Not a rerun? Not an imaginary story? Not a dream? Cool! So what’s the topic? It’s… hygiene? Well. Okay, sure. It is very important to maintain good personal hygiene, after all. Collect hand soap tokens and you might be able to get your hands on some prizes, including a Profit Bird skin, the Sanitizer Jetpack, the Nurse costume, a Medic skin for the S.A.M., and some new level backgrounds. I can honestly say I never saw this one coming.

Merge Mansion, Free Here’s our obligatory free-to-play merging puzzle game update for the week. Sus Grandma is still pretty popular, and its large playerbase will surely be happy to have even more mysteries to uncover. This update sets up the game for the May Season Pass and all of the events it will contain. There’s a new area in the form of the Mansion Hallway, which admittedly isn’t the most exciting of possible locations. Well, I’m sure they’ll find something interesting to do with it anyway. Add in some bug fixes and various improvements and that’s the lot.

Real Racing 3, Free Real Racing 3 keeps on rolling, years after Eli caused an intergalactic conflict by giving it four stars in his review. It’s a usual update for the game, including new cars like the Ferrari Monza SP1, a bunch of new events, some returning events, and new videos in Real Racing TV. Plenty to keep you busy racing around and around, and maybe enough for some of you to toss a few more bucks into the fire…mint. Firemint. The developers, you see. If there was a point here, I’ve lost it. Let’s move along.

Sneaky Sasquatch, Let’s peek in on Apple Arcade for a quick second, because there are a couple of cool updates I want to slap in here. First up is Sneaky Sasquatch, which adds a new arcade game to play with plenty of new prizes on offer. You can get a portable cassette tape player that allows you to dance at any old time you feel like it, and a set of VR goggles that will help you find hidden items. Also newly added are some sick new sunglasses and nachos. Nachos! Back when I first moved out of my folks’ place, my new roommate’s younger brother would often visit and play some games with us. His favorite joke was “What do you call cheese that isn’t yours? Nacho cheese!" It sounds like a cute joke for a kid, but he was seventeen years old. But hey, I remember it, so the joke couldn’t be that bad I suppose.

Mini Motorways, Are you a Mini Motorways expert? If so, this update is for you. I mean, the name of the update is Extra for Experts. So keep on walking with your fancy “citation needed" nonsense. The update adds a new Daily Challenge per week that features the Expert Mode, giving you a weekly slice of spice to look forward to. Other than that, it’s a lot of bug fixes, performance improvements, and some stuff behind the curtains to make it easier for the developers to immediately address balance issues.

Fruit Ninja Classic+, Sensei has apparently decided it’s time to take to the seas in this latest update. Dive into the treacherous waters and see if you can come up with some booty, perhaps even the Crown Jewel Blade. The event is already in progress, and it will be running until the twenty-first of this month. Naturally, there’s also a new Blade Power you can get by upgrading your blade in Sensei’s Swag. Ahoy! Yar har har! I don’t know. Sometimes it’s hard to stretch these paragraphs out when the update doesn’t have a ton in it. Savvy?

Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On!, I think I’m going to run into the same problem here, but what can you do? Pocket Card Jockey has a new update, and like the last couple of updates, that translates to a bunch of bug fixes and a new horse. The new horse’s name is Schoolgirl, and I sure hope it’s a horse wearing a traditional seifuku because that would be hilarious. I haven’t checked yet, but you can by heading to the Loaners tab. It should be available there if you’ve won any G1 races.

LEGO® Star Warsâ„¢: Castaways, Why just celebrate Star Wars Day when you can celebrate Star Wars Month? Remember the reason for the season as a cool new Double-Bladed Lightsaber is added to the game, accessible to those who have unlocked the Force Adept class. For the entire month of May, you can earn double XP in the game and make use of unlimited Force Adept Skills energy too. That’s actually a really fun thing to do for players. Good idea, developers and/or publisher! I’ll give this the coveted UMMSotW award for enabling non-stop Force chicanery for one month.

That about wraps it up for last week’s significant updates. I’m sure I’ve missed some, though, so please feel free to comment below and let everyone know if you think something should be mentioned. As usual, major updates will likely get their own news stories throughout this week, and I’ll be back next Monday to summarize and fill in the blanks. Have a great week!

Dinosaur Polo Club confirmed that the July 24th Miniversary Update will be arriving for free to Mini Motorways on Apple Arcade, Nintendo Switch, and PC platforms via Steam and also to Mini Metro on Apple Arcade, App Store, Google Play Store, Windows PC and macOS through Steam, and Nintendo Switch. If you’ve not played Mini Motorways yet and subscribe to Apple Arcade, you can grab it here on the service, on Steam here, and on Nintendo Switch here. Check out Mini Metro here on the App Store and here if you have Apple Arcade. Head over to our forum thread for Mini Motorways here for more discussion around it. For all other Apple Arcade related things, check out our dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussion on the service and every game included here. What do you think of today’s major anniversary update announcements for both Mini Metro and Mini Motorways?

On Netflix Games, World of Goo Remastered will also feature additional localizations with the total amount of languages supported including: English, Spanish (Spain), Spanish (Latin America), French, German, Italian, Dutch, Polish, Hungarian, Korean, Japanese, Chinese (simplified), Chinese (traditional), Portuguese (Brazil), and Turkish. This version will also support modern screen sizes and cloud save support through Netflix profile. I’m sad to see the original get delisted, but this remaster will likely be the best version of the indie classic. I’m looking forward to playing it when it releases on May 23rd for iOS and Android. If you’d like to grab the original game before it is delisted on May 11th, use the link for iOS here and Android here. Have you played World of Goo before or will you be trying it through World of Goo Remastered on May 23rd through Netflix?

Note: The links on this page for World of Goo are for the original version. These links will likely stop working soon since the game is being delisted.

Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to podcast@toucharcade.com. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated!

As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer.

Show Notes:

• Apple Arcade Adds 20 New Games Today Including What the Car, TMNT Splintered Fate, and More
• A Good Video For Installing Decky Loader on the Steam Deck, Which I Am a Big Fan Of As Discussed On This Week’s Show

Laya’s Horizon is a game about flight. You play as the titular Laya who has just finished her flight schooling and received her very first cape, which allows her to fly through the air just like a wingsuit. The game features a large open world and after guiding you through a quick tutorial or two you’re pretty much set free to explore and accomplish missions as you see fit. Many of these are milestones you accomplish during flights, similar to the missions in the Alto games, and others are missions given to you by characters in the game. All of this contributes towards leveling up and unlocking new capes and trinkets which provide new benefits and abilities.

The core of Laya’s Horizon is the flying and it uses an extremely tricky but extremely gratifying control system. You’ll use two thumbs to mimic Laya’s arms and by raising or lowering them in various ways you can bank, drift, float, dive, and pretty much maneuver just like a bird. Like I said though, it’s tricky, and you’ll likely have some frustrating times coming to grips with this control system. I have certainly seen people turned off to it at first, but stick with it and before you know it you’ll be zipping around like it’s second nature, almost not even having to think of what your thumbs are doing, more just reacting naturally as you navigate the terrain.

It is overwhelmingly satisfying to get to that point, and controlling Laya in the game feels like a natural extension of yourself, if that makes any sense. I love it. The large open world and seemingly endless supply of things to do and accomplish mean that you’ll have fun just flying around but there’s also always some purpose to it, if you want, and always something new to explore or achieve. I’ve really only scratched the surface I think and I already can’t believe just how expansive this game is. If you’re a Netflix subscriber absolutely download and give Laya’s Horizon a try, but just keep in mind the learning curve and don’t be so quick to give up because the payoff is majorly rewarding.

New Releases

Gruta ($4.99)

You know it’s a quiet day when I’m headlining a plain old Ratalaika release. Gruta is a platformer with an interesting art style that attempts to tell a story without any text at all. Seems like an okay five-dollar Switch platformer, at least. I like how you can use your sword to bat projectiles back at enemies.

Dessert DIY ($4.99)

I could have used a screenshot that showed the actual gameplay, but how can I not use this one? Anyway, this is one of those games where you use the various ingredients to make orders for customers. Sometimes they don’t want you to make something delicious. Sometimes they want you to help them poison their ex. Well, at least that’s something different for this kind of game.

Tiny Dragon Story ($12.99)

I’m not going to lie: that looks more like a hippo to me. Well, I suppose it doesn’t matter if it’s a dragon or a hippo. This game has fierce five-dollar Switch platformer energy, but it costs thirteen bucks instead. Since it’s Red Deer it will probably see frequent discounts to bring it down to a price that is easier to swallow. Much like this hippo main character can use its massive jaws to swallow all manner of foods. It’s a hippo!

Swordbreaker: Origins ($9.99)

I guess the first one did well enough to finally merit a follow-up. This is a choice-based narrative adventure, just like the first. Make your decisions and arrive at one of eight different endings. It picks up where the first game left off, so you should probably play that one first before moving on to this one.

Demon Skin ($9.99)

This came out a couple years ago on computer, and the reception was… not good. Some of that was down to bugs, some of that was down to design choices. I would hope the bugs are fixed for this Switch release, but I’m less confident those design elements have been significantly altered. Well, this is all second-hand information and speculation. I haven’t played this Switch port yet, so I really can’t say much about it. It’s an action-platformer with a focus on challenging combat, and some people eat those up like caramel popcorn. Mm, caramel popcorn.

The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man Of Medan ($19.99)

What do you get when you take a somewhat middling horror game and port it in rather rough form to the Switch? This, apparently. The framerate is in the low 20s, but maybe you can pretend it’s just being more cinematic? It features multiplayer support for up to five players locally and two online, so you can at least enjoy the experience with friends. Proceed with extreme caution, if at all.

Shape Neon Chaos ($30.00)

Publisher Isaias Game Dev seems to have a new business plan: grab decent, cheap indie games from Steam, port them to Switch, crank up the price by ten or fifteen times, and count on deep sales to trick people. Shape Neon Chaos is an alright little Geometry Wars-style twin-stick shooter. A very agreeable game for the two bucks it sells for on Steam. For thirty bucks? No. Come on now. I know it’s a tough market out there, but this is just rude behavior.

Virtual Families Cook Off: Chapter 2 Farm Life ($4.99)

Well, you can see the screen shot. You know exactly what kind of gameplay you’re in for here. There’s a little decoration component between stages where you can deck out your family house with your earnings, but otherwise this is the same as the thirty other games time management cooking games on the eShop.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Some great games on sale today, and I will call out a couple as usual. Meg’s Monster is an unforgettable game so despite its sale not being particularly deep, I am going to recommend it. If you somehow missed out on every single Star Wars game released on Switch so far, that new Star Wars Heritage Pack is an absolute steal for forty bucks. Kao the Kangaroo is at a new low price, and one where I can finally feel comfortable recommending what is a flawed but somewhat enjoyable 3D platformer. The weekend outbox sees the latest sale from Limited Run Games wrapping up, so feel free to check out those wares as well. Maybe you want a Night Trap? Perhaps a Cosmic Star Heroine? Have a gander.

Select New Games on Sale

Rain on Your Parade ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/9)
The Church in the Darkness ($1.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Neo Cab ($2.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Think of the Children ($2.59 from $12.99 until 5/11)
Kraken Academy!! ($7.19 from $17.99 until 5/11)
Suzerain ($5.39 from $17.99 until 5/11)
Glitchhikers: The Spaces Between ($8.44 from $12.99 until 5/11)
Paradise Killer ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Super Mutant Alien Assault ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Genesis Noir ($4.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Beacon Pines ($13.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Citizen Sleeper ($13.39 from $19.99 until 5/11)
In Other Waters ($4.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Framed Collection ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
The Stillness of the Wind ($2.07 from $12.99 until 5/11)

Meg’s Monster ($12.74 from $14.99 until 5/11)
No Longer Home ($5.99 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Heritage Pack 2023 ($39.99 from $79.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars The Force Unleashed ($12.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Republic Commando ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Jedi Outcast ($4.99 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars KotOR ($9.74 form $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars KotOR II: The Sith Lords ($9.74 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Episode I Racer ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Star Wars Pinball ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/11)
Horizon Chase Turbo ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/11)
Repit ($2.09 from $2.99 until 5/12)
Needy Streamer Overload ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/12)
Overloop ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/18)
Terror of Hemasaurus ($9.74 from $14.99 until 5/18)

Golazo! 2 ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Cyber Velocity Run ($2.79 from $7.99 until 5/19)
Scramballed ($2.79 from $7.99 until 5/19)
MotoGP 21 ($4.49 from $29.99 until 5/19)
Live by the Sword Tactics ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Depth of Extinction ($3.44 from $14.99 until 5/24)
Kao the Kangaroo ($14.99 from $29.99 until 5/25)
Panzer Dragoon: Remake ($2.49 from $24.99 until 5/25)
Sunwards ($10.50 from $15.00 until 5/25)
Fishing: North Atlantic ($16.74 from $24.99 until 5/25)
Yeah! Fighting Girl ($10.50 from $15.00 until 5/25)
Kamikaze Veggies ($1.99 from $12.99 until 5/25)

Sales Ending This Weekend

Just Dance 2023 Deluxe ($31.49 from $69.99 until 5/6)
LIT: Bend the Light ($5.20 from $8.00 until 5/6)
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle ($19.99 from $39.99 until 5/6)
Milky Way Prince: Vampire Star ($4.49 from $14.99 until 5/6)
Phoenotopia Awakening ($8.99 from $19.99 until 5/6)
SnowRunner ($23.99 from $39.99 until 5/6)
A Fox and His Robot ($41.99 from $59.99 until 5/7)
Alfonzo’s Arctic Adventure ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/7)
Before We Leave ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/7)
Blasphemous ($6.24 from $24.99 until 5/7)
Chippy&Noppo ($17.99 from $19.99 until 5/7)
Commander Keen in Keen Dreams ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/7)
Corpse Killer 25th Anniversary ($3.74 from $14.99 until 5/7)
Cosmic Star Heroine ($3.72 from $14.99 until 5/7)
Cthulhu Saves Christmas ($2.49 from $9.99 until 5/7)

Double Switch 25th Anniversary ($3.74 from $14.99 until 5/7)
Dungeons of Dreadrock ($2.49 from $10.00 until 5/7)
Exertus Redux ($2.01 from $4.39 until 5/7)
Greak: Memories of Azur ($5.99 from $19.99 until 5/7)
Hazelnut Hex ($2.39 from $7.99 until 5/7)
Moving Out Deluxe ($8.24 from $32.99 until 5/7)
My Time at Portia Deluxe ($7.99 from $31.99 until 5/7)
Narita Boy ($4.99 from $24.99 until 5/7)
Neon Abyss Deluxe ($9.79 from $27.99 until 5/7)
Night Trap 25th Anniversary ($3.74 from $14.99 until 5/7)
Pictooi ($2.49 from $9.99 until 5/7)
Revenge of the Bird King ($2.49 from $4.99 until 5/7)
Saturday Morning RPG ($2.49 from $9.99 until 5/7)
Save Me Mr Tako: Definitive ($3.74 from $14.99 until 5/7)
Ship of Fools ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/7)
The House in Fata Morgana ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/7)
The Knight Witch ($15.99 from $19.99 until 5/7)
The Serpent Rogue ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/7)
Thymesia Cloud Vers. ($22.49 from $29.99 until 5/7)
Yoku’s Island Express ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/7)

That’s all for today and this week, friends. We’ll be back next week with more new releases, more sales, more reviews, and some news. Some kind of Zelda thing coming out next week, I’ve heard. You won’t know it by reading it, but there was a behind-the-scenes crisis that almost resulted in this article not being finished. It all resolved peacefully, however. A bunny and their robot fox saved me, and that’s all I can say about that. I hope you all have a great weekend, and as always, thanks for reading!

Note that most of these decks are the best of the best at this point in time. They assume you have access to a full range of cards. I’ll once again be including the five strongest Marvel Snap decks of the moment, and I’ll throw in a couple more decks that don’t need anything too hard to get and are just sort of fun to play with. You know, a little variety and all of that.

Since the last time we checked in, the big Shuri nerf rolled in and completely changed the meta in the blink of an eye. We’ve also got a new card in Nebula, and players are still figuring out where she’s going to fit in their builds as near as I can tell. Hit Monkey came in as part of the last season, and he is definitely present in a lot of up and coming decks. We even saw a wrench tossed into the works last week with an update that buffed Enchantress, countering one very popular recent deck. Well, let’s check out the five strongest decks for May 2023, plus a couple of decent decks that are easier to put together.

Control Sera

Included Cards: Sera, Nova, Angela, Hit Monkey, Zabu, Sentinel, Mysterio, Lizard, Bishop, Killmonger, Shang-Chi, Enchantress

Control Sera remains a powerful deck this month, perhaps even more so with Shuri knocked down and Enchantress buffed up. The ‘Control’ in this deck’s title refers to how you need to manipulate the turn order to make sure your cards are revealed last all the way up until the end. That means you have to make sure you’re losing until the very end. Do what you will for the first few turns but make sure you hang on to Killmonger for the last turn. Play Sera on the fifth turn, and deploy various combinations of Enchantress, Killmonger, and Shang-Chi to completely ruin your opponent’s party. The biggest change this month is that many players have benched Armor and are subbing in Hit Monkey. If you don’t have Hit Monkey, feel free to keep Armor in there. She isn’t as useful as she used to be, but she still has some value.

Thor & Lockjaw

Included Cards: Thor, Lockjaw, Wasp, Jeff the Baby Land Shark, Nightcrawler, Dracula, Jubilee, Jane Foster Thor, America Chavez, Giganto, The Infinaut, Magneto

Not even a Lockjaw nerf is enough to stop this deck from being very effective. Jeff the Baby Land Shark has pushed Iceman out of the deck thanks to his versatility and ability to get out of the way. The idea is the same as other Lockjaw decks. Get the pup out there, and start throwing your low Cost on On Reveal cards at him to try to draw out the big guns. A solid deck that doesn’t need too many fancy cards to work, but you are depending a little on the luck of the draw with Lockjaw’s teleporting.

Wave & Death

Included Cards: Death, Wave, The Hood, Squirrel Girl, Yondu, Bucky Barnes, Carnage, Killmonger, Deathlok, Aero, Doctor Doom, She-Hulk

Here’s an interesting twist on the usual Destroyer Deck archetype. It takes advantage of a unique element of Wave’s On Reveal ability. While it sets the Cost of all cards to four, it sets Death to four minus the number of destroyed cards and She-Hulk to four minus the number of unspent Energy from the previous turn. It’s best to hold Wave until the fifth turn, and depending on how the game goes you may well be able to play She-Hulk, Death, and another card on the sixth turn, all while messing badly with your opponent’s plans. Armor used to be the big spoiler for this deck, but with it dropping out of many decks in favor of other cards, this deck has climbed right back up again.

Wave & Doctor Doom

Included Cards: Doctor Doom, Wave, Korg, Zabu, Jeff the Baby Land Shark, Lizard, Mister Fantastic, Darkhawk, Enchantress, Rockslide, America Chavez, She-Hulk

There are a couple of things going on with this deck, but astute readers will notice there’s a Darkhawk deck at its core. But there’s also the same interaction between Wave and She-Hulk going on here that we saw in the Wave & Death deck. You’ve got Enchantress in there to counter Patriot decks, and the general chaos you’re causing your opponent can’t be discounted. Like the previous deck, you’ll want to play Wave on the fifth turn, hopefully giving you the chance to drop She-Hulk and another strong card. If you’ve been able to get Zabu into play, you’ll be able to drop a couple of strong cards even without She-Hulk. A bit all over the place, but that’s part of what makes it work.

Galactus

Included Cards: Galactus, Yondu, Daredevil, Electro, Wave, Shang-Chi, Spider-Man, Kang, Doctor Octopus, Knull, America Chavez, Death

This is one for the folks with lots of fancy cards, with two of the three perma-Pool 5 cards in its roster. It’s a really nasty deck that will catch a lot of players with their pants down, and you can probably sort out how it works. Get Galactus out there, then do whatever you can to make sure you own that remaining location. Everything in this deck supports that. Daredevil helps you see what your opponent will do on the critical fifth turn. Kang gives you a do-over. Electro and Wave help you get the big guy out earlier. Spider-Man and Doc Ock can help you manipulate where your opponents put their cards. Shang-Chi stops any final turn surprises. Knull, Death, and Chavez are your knock-out punches. Your opponent will hate you, but such is the life for the Devourer of Worlds.

And now, a couple of decent decks for those still climbing up the collection ladder.

Shaun’s Slobberknocker Mark 4

Included Cards: Wasp, Misty Knight, Mister Sinister, Shocker, Mystique, Patriot, Brood, Cyclops, Dazzler, Blue Marvel, Onslaught, Ultron

Ah, for a brief shining moment, Shaun’s Slobberknocker was high-tier. It started falling again after Enchantress got buffed, but I’m still tweaking it anyway. I’ve added Dazzler in because she can be a fun surprise if you can get a full house going and activate her ability. She’s not a commonly played card so she can catch some players off-guard. Just make sure you don’t play Patriot and Blue Marvel in the same place and Enchantress won’t be able to completely break you.

Devil Dinosaur Destroyer

Included Cards: Devil Dinosaur, Agent 13, Sentinel, Moon Girl, White Queen, Nova, Bucky Barnes, Carnage, Killmonger, Deathlok, Lizard, Shang-Chi

Nothing too fancy here. It just combines a basic Destroyer deck with a basic Devil Dinosaur deck. Do your usual Destroyer business, fatten your hand as much as you can, play Moon Girl to max it out, then drop a big red T-Rex where needed. With any luck the White Queen will give you a cool card to play on the last turn, but a pair of Devils can go a long way on their own.

And that’s it for this month’s deck guide. We’ll return with another one of these in June to see where things stand after this Guardians of the Galaxy event has fully played out and a month’s worth of balance changes do their thing. Happy Snapping!

I hope we get to see more from Ben and the Marvel Snap team showcasing these topics in the future. Check out all our Marvel Snap coverage here. You can grab Marvel Snap on the App Store for iOS here and on Google Play for Android here on Google Play. Grab it on Steam Early Access here. Check out the official website here. What do you think of Marvel Snap so far if you played it and what would you like to see added to it this year?

This new multiplayer mode is aimed at encouraging cooperation and competition with new players getting some assistance. This mode will feature blue coins to collect as you aim to earn the Super Trophy. If you’ve not gotten Horizon Chase 2 yet, read Shaun’s glowing review of it here. Horizon Chase 2 also has multiplayer across all modes right from the start. Head over to our forum thread for Horizon Chase 2 here. For all other Apple Arcade related things, check out our dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussion on the service and every game included here. What do you think of the this update and this week’s Apple Arcade releases?

New Releases

Urbek City Builder ($18.99)

Cities: Skylines has the gap for a SimCity-like experience properly filled, so one might wonder what another city building game has to offer? Well, Urbek City Builder takes a different route. There’s no money for starters. No disasters or really even any properly random elements. Instead it’s a game about using your resources carefully to plan out the city the way you want it to be. It ends up having a considerably more chill vibe as a result, and is perhaps more chill than some may prefer. Reviews of the computer version are mostly positive, at least.

Space Gladiators ($14.99)

Okay, so as near as I can tell this is a humorous take on the Dead Cells concept. Well, more humorous. That game has a nice sense of humor that I appreciate a lot. This one is a bit more on the wacky-for-the-sake-of-wackiness vibe, but the gameplay set-up is familiar. Roguelite platforming action, tons of enemies and bosses to battle, lots of items and gear to tweak your character, several different characters to choose from, and so on. It’s been out for ages on Steam and it’s pretty good there, so unless they biffed up the port here I think this will be of interest to fans of the genre.

Mia and the Dragon Princess ($12.99)

Another Wales Interactive FMV adventure, and it’s more or less set up like the previous ones. The premise sees a young woman yearning for adventure who gets her wish when a mysterious stranger shows up looking for somewhere to hide. This kicks off a series of events that might have our heroine thinking she should have wished for a bag of chips or something instead. Make your choices and arrive at one of ten different outcomes. I’m not really into games like this, but people who are seem to be fairly happy with this publisher’s output. So hey, here’s another one.

No Place Like Home ($24.99)

Oh hey, a farming game. Apparently in this one you’re a girl who is about to move to Mars but decides to visit her grandfather’s house on Earth one last time before she heads out. When she gets there, she finds him missing and his farm in a shambles. Rebuild the farm, fix up the house, explore the surrounding areas, befriend the local animals, and try to get to the bottom of things while you’re at it. You can have an animal party where pigs fly using balloons. I don’t know what more you need me to say.

Pathfinders: Memories ($2.99)

The idea with this one is that you have to draw the path to the goal in each stage, then watch the little character do it. If you mess up you’ll have to correct your plan and try again. Not a whole lot to this one, but I suppose you could guess that much just from the price.

Japanese Escape Games The Prison Underground ($9.99)

Well, I’ll grant that this is the kind of place a person would probably want to escape from. At any rate, this is the sixteenth game in this series and I think we all get the point now. Solve some puzzles to escape from the location du jour. I can’t really muster much enthusiasm for these at this point, but I know some of you are truly enjoying these and I hope you also have fun with this one.

I Love Finding Birds Collector’s Edition ($14.99)

Another hidden object game that you might think is about finding birds but is actually about finding all kinds of things. There are also a bunch of minigames you can play if you get tired of looking for objects.

Jigsaw Puzzle Fever ($7.99)

A truly basic jigsaw puzzle game. There are seventy-five pictures to play with, and four different difficulty levels that present the puzzles at two different piece counts. You can probably find a better, more option-packed jigsaw puzzle game on your Switch if you’re on the hunt for one.

Hola! Reversi ($6.99)

This offers up a basic-butt version of Reversi for one or two players via local multiplayer, and that’s something we’ve got plenty of on the Switch already. It also offers up two other modes that put a twist on the rules, and I actually appreciate the effort. Clubhouse Games is all the Reversi I need, but I imagine someone out there will be interested in this.

Escape the Prison: 3 Days to Freedom ($4.99)

Another Cooking & Publishing game where you just make a series of choices and see where it takes you. The premise is that you’re trying to escape from prison in three days. Don’t expect much in the way of quality writing here or anything.

War Tank Machine Battle Vehicle Simulator – Fight World Wars WWII Mechanic Troopers Royale Driving ($14.99)

More trash from INSTAMARKETINGANDGAME, a publisher who can’t even make trash that is trashily entertaining. No, this is just dull trash, and they have the pluck to charge fifteen bucks for it.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Well, that’s not a lot. But there’s already a fair bit on sale, so I guess it makes sense. Nothing in the inbox that I would assertively recommend, but if you’re even a little interested in playing The Stanley Parable you should act now because it’s hard to say when we’ll ever see it on sale again.

Select New Games on Sale

Roundguard ($6.26 from $19.99 until 5/11)
#Funtime ($3.19 from $14.99 until 5/11)
The Ambassador: Fractured Timelines ($3.19 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Deleveled ($2.13 from $9.99 until 5/11)
Cozy Grove ($8.81 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Space Otter Charlie ($6.49 from $14.99 until 5/11)
Lucid Cycle ($2.79 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Drizzlepath: Deja Vu ($2.79 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Mini & Michi ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/19)
Pretty Girls Breakers Plus ($5.24 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Figment 1 + Figment 2 ($25.99 from $39.99 until 5/25)
IIN ($8.00 from $10.00 until 5/25)
Goroons ($8.00 from $10.00 until 5/25)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, May 5th

Aces of the Luftwaffe: Squadron ($1.99 from $14.99 until 5/5)
Arcane Vale ($5.59 from $7.99 until 5/5)
Bus Driving Simulator 22 ($13.99 from $27.99 until 5/5)
Don’t Starve ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)
Don’t Starve Together ($1.99 from $14.99 until 5/5)
Drift & Drive ($6.49 from $12.99 until 5/5)
Driving School Sim ($2.47 from $9.99 until 5/5)
Dying Light: DE ($9.99 from $49.99 until 5/5)
El Hijo: A Wild West Tale ($7.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)
Fashion Friends ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/5)
Golazo! 2: Soccer Cup 2022 ($8.78 from $15.98 until 5/5)
Griftlands ($10.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)
Invisible Inc ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)
Little Big Workshop ($6.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)
Mark of the Ninja ($4.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)

Minabo: A Walk Through Life ($13.49 from $14.99 until 5/5)
Neighbours Back From Hell ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/5)
One Hand Clapping ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/5)
Pile Up! Box by Box ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/5)
Pocket Witch ($3.49 from $4.99 until 5/5)
Police Sim 22 ($9.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)
Real Driving Sim ($4.95 from $9.90 until 5/5)
Skydrift Infinity ($9.99 from $19.99 until 5/5)
The Stanley Parable Ultra Deluxe ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/5)
Truck Simulator USA ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/5)
Venus: Improbable Dream ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/5)

That’s all for today, friends. I’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining new releases of the week, plus whatever sales and major news items come in during the course of the day. I totally recommend Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 if you liked the other movies. It’s a great capper for the trilogy, and it has a lot of heart. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Bugsnax is priced at $24.99 on PC and console platforms. While a price point hasn’t been announced for iOS yet, I imagine it will be around $9.99. I’ll be sure to write up any details we get about Bugsnax on iOS. As of this writing, an Android version hasn’t been confirmed. If it does arrive, I imagine it will be much later than the iOS version. Bugsnax on PC and consoles got a big free content update that debuted alongside the Xbox and Switch versions. I hope the iOS version runs better than the Switch version did on modern iOS and iPadOS devices. Until we get a Bugsnax iOS release date, check it out on Steam and Switch. I will definitely be reviewing this as soon as possible. Hopefully it isn’t too far away. Have you played Bugsnax on any platform yet?

New Apple Arcade Originals for May 2023

What The Car?
TMNT Splintered Fate
Disney SpellStruck
Cityscapes: Sim Builder

New Apple Arcade App Store Greats for May 2023

Chess Universe+
Disney Coloring World+
Disney Getaway Blast+
Farming Simulator 20+
Getting Over It+
Hill Climb Racing+
Iron Marines+
Kingdom Two Crowns+
LIMBO+
My Town Home: Family Games+
Octodad: Dadliest Catch+
PPKP+
Snake.io+
Time Locker+
Very Little Nightmares+
Temple Run+

There are about five games on that list I’m going to definitely play today. The rest I either own already on iOS or have no interest in. I’m curious to see what’s next after this. Check out our dedicated Apple Arcade forum for discussion on the service and every game included here. What do you think of Apple’s new shadowdrop releases for this month?

One thing to note is that both Star Wars: KOTOR and Star Wars: KOTOR 2 haven’t been updated in a while. I hope they get new updates to optimize the games properly for modern iOS and iPadOS devices. Read our review of Star Wars: KOTOR here and our Game of the Week feature on Star Wars: KOTOR 2 here. If you’re curious, the cut content mod for Star Wars: KOTOR 2 is doable on mobile. Details for that are here. Make sure to head over to our forum thread for the game here for port discussion, the mod, and more. Have you played Star Wars: KOTOR or Star Wars: KOTOR 2 on other platforms or mobile before or will you be grabbing them today?

Dumb Ways to Die 4 (Free)

iTunes Description

Dumb Ways to Die 4 delivers even more of what you love: exciting and challenging minigames, new areas to explore, all your favorite Beans to rescue – and much, much more!

Challenge your friends and family to see who can survive the longest and become the ultimate champion of Dumb Ways to Die!
Collect coins to purchase upgrades and unlock new areas and score sweet prizes as you try to survive! Are you Bean-enough for the job?

Forum Thread: Dumb Ways to Die 4 (by PlaySide Studios)

Family Bash (Free)

iTunes Description

Family Bash tells the timeless story of the Family – the one we love, cherish, insult and despise. You arrive in the village hall of a small French town out in the sticks in Normandy to celebrate your grandfather’s birthday: he’s 90 years old, still “all there” and is the living memory of your family. Just as the party is shaping up to be fun, you find yourself at the centre of an intergenerational conflict with unforeseeable consequences. You begin to uncover the dark secrets and ulterior motives of the various members of your family. In Family Bash, a seemingly insignificant choice can change the relationships between your family members forever. So explore your surroundings and make choices, talk to your cousins, confront your uncle and find out about that mysterious will – for better or for worse.

Forum Thread: Family Bash (by ARTE Experience)

Fran Bow ($9.99)

iTunes Description

After witnessing the gruesome deaths of her parents, a peculiar young girl named Fran is imprisoned in Oswald Asylum. To survive the asylum’s cruel experiments, Fran self-medicates, giving her the ability to see a sinister alternate world, the Ultrareality.

Follow Fran on her epic journey through the Ultrareality to uncover who killed her parents, reunite with her missing cat Mr. Midnight, and return home to Aunt Grace, her only living relative.

Forum Thread: Fran Bow (by Killmonday Games)

Jabberwordy ($4.99)

iTunes Description

JABBERWORDY is a fun word game where you unscramble tiles into words using tile colors that hint at proper placement. Super easy to learn. A must-have for anyone who loves word puzzle games! Word puzzles come in 40 different shapes & sizes! Play puzzles à la carte, or enjoy the PAR COURSE CHALLENGE released daily & weekly – a set of 9 or 18 puzzles presented as a group where you try to beat “PAR" for the course! Have competitions by sharing completed scorecards with your friends, or just relax and play by yourself. Great fun, and highly addictive!

Forum Thread: Jabberwordy (by Storm Turtle LLC)

Laya’s Horizon (Free)

iTunes Description

Master the art of flying. Dive off mountains, weave across forests and glide over rivers to unlock new abilities as you explore a vast, peaceful world.

Use the ancient power of the Windfolk’s enchanted capes to hone your skills, take on challenges and fly through obstacle courses that will make your heart soar. Explore an expansive island in this open-world adventure inspired by wingsuit flying.

Forum Thread: Laya’s Horizon (by Snowman)

LEGO Bricktales ($4.99)

iTunes Description

In LEGO® Bricktales, discover an innovative brick-by-brick building mechanic to design puzzle solutions from your own imagination. See your creations brought to life in a beautiful LEGO world where every problem has a constructive resolution.

Forum Thread: LEGO® Bricktales (by Thunderful Publishing AB)

Lovecraft’s Mythos Run (Free)

iTunes Description

Lovecraft’s Mythos Run is a free to play pixel art 2D action endless runner based on the Lovecraft’s Untold Stories roguelike. Get money, buy items and unlock characters.

LLC Blini Games have developed Lovecraft’s Mythos Run, an entertaining free to play 2D action endless runner with pixel art graphics based on their original and successful roguelike multiplatform game, Lovecraft’s Untold Stories, released in 2019 for PC, console and mobile platforms.

Forum Thread: Lovecraft’s Mythos Run (by Blini Games)

Mines of Moria ($0.99)

iTunes Description

You are tasked with slaying the Balrog deep within the Mines of Moria. A translation of Robert Alan Koeneke’s (1957-2022) Moria into a touchscreen first experience.

Choose one of six playable classes with a randomly selected race. New players are recommended to play as a Warrior.

Forum Thread: Mines of Moria (by Rufe.org LLC)

Mouse Trap – The Board Game ($3.99)

iTunes Description

Mouse Trap is back with a snap! It’s the chaotic board game you remember, on your mobile! Join your friends and race to collect the most cheese.

Are you ready? Welcome to the cheese board of your dreams. Choose your mouse, and your outfit, and GO! Strategise as you play. PICK-UP cheese, STEAL cheese, HOARD cheese, and WIN with the MOST cheese! When your friends get too bold, trigger the action contraption and watch the famous chain reaction unfold. Will it work? Hold your breath and feel the tension!

Forum Thread: Mouse Trap – The Board Game (by Marmalade Game Studio)

Super Fishbird (Free)

iTunes Description

Get ready to fly high and do crazy tricks with Super Fishbird! Take control of bird and keep your fishy friend out of water for as long as possible.

It’s not just about knocking around a fish though – it’s about doing it with style! Pull off flips, tail stalls, fin shakes, faceplants and other acrobatic maneuvers to earn points. Then, compare your best scores with friends and others around the world!

Forum Thread: Super Fishbird (by Dan Forstinger)

Urban Cards (Free)

iTunes Description

Urban Cards is a deck-building roguelike where earning money is the key to staying afloat in an unfair world. Build businesses, hire workaholic employees and thieves to steal from the competition. Create the perfect deck and work your way to the top!

This is a satire-themed game with 3+ factions and playstyles to choose from.

Forum Thread: Urban Cards (by Hues Games)

Early last year Pokemon TCG Live began soft-launching in select countries, and slowly rolled out into a full scale soft launch throughout the year. That means that many of us have already been playing this new game for quite some time now, which might make today’s news a little lackluster. The Pokemon Company is now ready to officially launch Pokemon TCG Live globally this coming June 8th, and on that day you’ll be able to play the brand new expansion Scarlet & Violet—Paldea Evolved in the game as well.

That’s not all, though. While typically new games will have pre-registration rewards for players leading up to a game’s launch, due to the weirdness of this being a game that’s already available to everybody, you can actually earn rewards for the global launch by simply logging into the game between today and June 6th. These rewards will be “special customization accessories, including a coin, card sleeves, and deck box" according to the press release.

This forthcoming official launch also means that time is up for Pokemon TCG Online, and that game will be removed from app stores on June 5th at 9am PDT, so start saying your goodbyes now and be sure to transfer your progress. Pokemon TCG Live can be downloaded on the iOS App Store, the Android Google Play Store, or on PC and Mac through the game’s website.

New Releases

Minit Fun Racer ($2.99)

A cute little racing action game spun out of the rather good Minit. Apparently all of the proceeds from this game will go to charity? That’s cool. There are lots of wacky elements to keep this from being just another Sunday drive, so if you’ve got a few bucks to blow and want to have some quick fun, here you go.

Arcade Archives Tecmo Knight ($7.99)

Phew, here’s a deep cut. This is a 1989 beat-em-up from Tecmo (obviously), and it’s very rare to see it get rereleased. One of the speculated reasons why is down to how wildly gory it is, easily holding pace with the likes of games like Splatterhouse. I can’t be completely sure Hamster preserved it all, but it seems to be intact. It predates the release of Final Fight so in terms of playability it is probably closer to the Double Dragon side of the line, but it’s enjoyable enough. This one is more about the Conan-style blood-and-guts journey than the gameplay mechanics, though.

Weeping Willow ($4.99)

This is a kinetic visual novel, which means you don’t have any choices to make. Just a story to read as it plays out, so don’t come in expecting anything beyond that. The story sees the main character’s husband disappear only to come back a few days later. Seems like it’s all good, right? Just one problem. The main character knows that isn’t her husband, but everyone else seems to believe that it is. As you might expect, some big things quickly go down. Affordable enough if you’re looking for something to read.

Super Dungeon Maker ($19.99)

Some folks have asked for a Zelda Maker along the lines of Super Mario Maker for a long time, and I don’t think Nintendo is going to be doing it anytime soon. Perhaps it will fall to indies to fill the gap, then. Super Dungeon Maker won’t let you make a full-on Zelda game, but it will let you make some very Zelda-esque dungeons. You can then share them online, which of course means you can play the dungeons other people have built. This kind of thing tends to live or die by its community, and it’s really impossible to say whether or not one will properly form here. Jump in if you feel like being bold.

Color Pals ($4.99)

I feel like we saw a game very similar to this recently, but the title has escaped my Swiss cheese brain already. Anyway, it’s a platformer where the gimmick is that you can only touch surfaces that match your current color. There are fifty stages to play, and a three-star system is in place to add a bit of replay value. Pretty standard five-dollar Switch platformer fare, but that might be what you’re after today.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Some sales worth noting today, I think. A number of Ubisoft games are hitting their lowest prices yet, including Starlink and Rayman Legends. Also hitting a new low is The Kids We Were, a game I cannot recommend enough. There are a few things in the outbox, but I’ll give a special call-out to Jupiter’s line of Picross games. You can never have enough of those, right? Right. Check those lists!

Select New Games on Sale

Wild Romance ($6.99 from $9.99 until 5/9)
The Kids We Were ($8.31 from $15.99 until 5/10)
Overlord Escape from Nazarick ($17.99 from $29.99 until 5/10)
Bugsnax ($14.99 from $24.99 until 5/11)
Megaquarium ($9.83 from $24.59 until 5/14)
Touhou Spell Bubble ($27.49 from $54.99 until 5/15)
Just Dance 2023 Ultimate ($42.49 from $84.99 until 5/16)
Assassin’s Creed Ezio Collection ($19.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Assassin’s Creed III Remastered ($9.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Assassin’s Creed Rebel Collection ($14.79 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Family Feud ($7.49 from $29.99 until 5/16)
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope ($29.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)
Rayman Legends Definitive ($7.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)

Trivial Pursuit Live ($6.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
South Park The Fractured But Whole ($11.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)
South Park TFBW Gold ($17.99 from $89.99 until 5/16)
Monopoly ($7.99 from $39.99 until 5/16)
Monopoly Madness ($7.49 from $29.99 until 5/16)
Monopoly/Monopoly Madness ($14.99 from $49.99 until 5/16)
Starlink: Battle for Atlas ($8.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)
Starlink: Battle for Atlas Deluxe ($15.99 from $79.99 until 5/16)
Immortals Fenyx Rising ($11.99 from $59.99 until 5/16)
Wheel of Fortune ($6.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)
RISK Global Domination ($5.99 from $19.99 until 5/16)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Thursday, May 4th

Antigravity Racing ($2.96 from $8.99 until 5/4)
As Far As The Eye ($4.99 from $24.99 until 5/4)
Chasm ($9.99 from $19.99 until 5/4)
Fates of Ort ($5.99 from $14.99 until 5/4)
Flight Sim 2019 ($4.95 from $9.90 until 5/4)
Kao the Kangaroo Bundle ($18.14 from $32.99 until 5/4)
Marco & the Galaxy Dragon ($11.99 from $19.99 until 5/4)
Pachi Pachi 2 on a Roll ($2.39 from $7.99 until 5/4)
Pachi Pachi on a Roll ($2.09 from $6.99 until 5/4)
Picross S8 ($7.99 from $9.99 until 5/4)
Project Nimbus: Complete ($3.99 from $19.99 until 5/4)
Sable’s Grimoire: Dragon’s Treasure ($4.79 from $5.99 until 5/4)
Samurai Maiden Deluxe ($59.99 from $74.99 until 5/4)
Sherlock Holmes & Hound of Baskervilles ($5.19 from $12.99 until 5/4)
Ship Sim 2020 ($2.47 from $9.90 until 5/4)
Sir Lovelot ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/4)
Sumire ($1.99 from $9.99 until 5/4)
Void Scrappers ($3.19 from $3.99 until 5/4)

That’s all for today, friends. I’m going to go watch a movie with Mrs. Musgrave tomorrow, but I think I’ll still be able to have an article ready for you all. Assuming I can keep my word there, we’ll have a number of new releases and sales to look at. I hope you all have a terrific Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!

Today’s update brings in new weapons, items, relics, character slots, and a lot more. The update also brings in Multi drop chests, a new hero, 2 new challenge cores letting you speed up the game and increase enemy difficulty, faster level-ups, and also a fixed joystick control option. Ultra Blade is available now on the App Store for iOS here for $2.99. Check it out on Google Play for Android here. If you’ve not played Immortal Rogue from Kyle yet, read our original review here. The official website for Ultra Blade has some GIFs showcasing the animation and gameplay in motion as well. Check out our forum thread for Ultra Blade here. What do you think of Ultra Blade so far if you’ve played it?

It’s not as though SNK didn’t have its occasional miss, particularly early in the console’s life. What makes Savage Reign‘s shortcomings so interesting is that the game came out in 1995, well after SNK and its development partners had figured this whole fighting game thing out. It is improbable that a game of Savage Reign‘s quality should come out at the time that it did, but it most certainly did. The idea behind it was sound, at least. Add another weapon-based fighter to the SNK line-up, with a modern flavor to contrast with the medieval Japanese Samurai Shodown series. Add in a new gimmick in the form of a second tier fighters could battle from. Like Fatal Fury but with boomerangs and dodge balls.

Yes, I said dodge balls. The weapons most of the fighters in Savage Reign wield are… unconventional to say the least. And that’s appropriate, because the characters are pretty unusual themselves. There doesn’t seem to be much of a consistent theme here, and it hurts the game’s identity. A cyborg, a cheerleader, a clown, a martial artist, an old guy dressed like a beach bum, a cop whose top is way too tiny with some Zangief-like chest hair, and a few other oddities populate the game’s ten-character roster. Each of them has their own stage that fits their specific theme, but it’s really hard to figure out how any of this fits together. And sure, none of this affects how the game plays. But that lack of consistency makes this game sometimes feel like a plate of leftovers from other SNK fighters at times, and it has a hard time standing out among the many other options the NEOGEO had to offer.

I don’t want this to sound like a total disaster, though. Savage Reign isn’t a bad game, and if it were the only fighting game you had around, you could do a lot worse. It looks good, with plenty of details in the backgrounds and well-animated characters. It does that characteristic NEOGEO zooming, particularly when you start hopping around to the second tier of each stage. The gameplay is functional enough, playing a bit like the earlier Fatal Fury games thanks to all the lane-hopping shenanigans. The weapons are mainly projectiles but get incorporated into melee attacks in some fun ways, and some of the stage designs handle their second tier in a very unusual fashion.

The issue with Savage Reign is more that this is a very average fighter that lacks a proper focus. There are a lot of different pieces thrown in here from other games, but they don’t really mix well together and it ends up feeling like an odd hodge-podge as a result. So too does the roster of characters, and again it isn’t really in a good way. I think there’s certainly room in the genre for a bunch of wacky misfits, but this game feels like it’s trying a little too hard to check things off of some list of awesome ideas someone had. Does it matter? Well, yes. It’s trying so hard to be so many things, it never really drills deep on any of its ideas. It’s about as shallow a fighter as you could find at this stage of the NEOGEO’s life, more akin to the kinds of things that came before Fatal Fury found its footing.

With all of that said, I think we have to look at the current context in which we are viewing Savage Reign. This is a low-cost mobile port, one that you will probably be mostly playing in single-player. It’s likely you are using touch controls, though there is of course external controller support for those who want to take advantage of it. My assumption is also that anyone who has read this far into a review of the mobile version of Savage Reign is at least interested enough in NEOGEO to have played all of the more famous fighters from SNK. So let’s see how that measures up, then.

Unlike NEOGEO console owners back in the day, you won’t need to justify a $150 cartridge purchase or whatever here. The last boss isn’t nearly as nasty as the usual SNK boss, and the wacky spectacle of it all makes for some amusing single-player bouts. The lack of depth means you can get by without too many fancy combos, which makes it easier to play using the touch controls. And this is certainly one of the less-celebrated fighters from SNK, which means you might not have played the wheels off of it yet. With all of that taken into account, I suppose I can’t tell you to completely avoid this release. It’s only a few bucks, and I expect you can get that much fun out of it.

The usual Arcade Archives boilerplate. You get a robust list of extras and options, including additional modes and online leaderboards. The emulation is sound as a pound. Is a pound sound anymore? I don’t know. But the emulation is good, is what I’m trying to say. You can only play multiplayer if you have an extra controller, as there are no wifi or internet play options available. You probably know this already, because I say all of this every time. It hurts every single fighter in this line-up that multiplayer is such a difficult thing to get going, but it is what it is at this point.

Savage Reign is incredibly mediocre by the standards of SNK’s NEOGEO fighting game line-up, and as with other ACA NEOGEO fighting games the poor options for multiplayer make this one of the worse ways to experience it. But you might find something endearing in its quirky nature, and there aren’t many fighting games that let you beat someone into unconsciousness with a dodge ball. I sure wouldn’t make this a high-priority purchase, but there may just be a few bucks’ worth of button-bashing fun for some of you here.

Reviews & Mini-Views

Smile For Me ($14.99)

I’m still not entirely sure what I played, but I think I liked it. Smile For Me is a first-person adventure game of sorts where you find yourself waking up in a special facility designed to make people smile. There are a bunch of characters populating the place, each with their own issues. Your goal is to help them solve those issues. You can interact with them by nodding or shaking your head to tell them yes or no, or by using items on them. There are a variety of things you’ll have to do to make everyone happy, and you might find that not everyone is happy with your efforts.

So yes, this is kind of an odd one. The story is something that’s best left to you to experience yourself. I think it’s stronger at building its atmosphere than its narrative, but there’s certainly something engaging about The Habitat (the game’s setting) and its quirky inhabitants. There’s a decent logic to the puzzles, and it’s neat seeing all the different connections building between the characters as you go. It’s not a very long game, but the length feels about right. Smile For Me is a unique experience, and one that adventure game fans looking for something a little different should really enjoy.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Shadows Over Loathing ($23.00)

If you liked West of Loathing, you’ll like Shadows Over Loathing. It’s that simple. You’ve got a whole new setting with new characters to meet, quests to complete, and gags to laugh at. But at its heart, this is just more Loathing. I think that’s a good thing, mind you. West of Loathing is one of the rare comedy games that I actually found funny, and the gameplay might seem chaotic at the best of times but it somehow works really well. It doesn’t play quite like any other RPG I can think of, but it is most certainly an RPG. But yes, this game plays it safe in terms of mechanics and presentation, or at least as safe as you could call a Loathing game.

The higher buy-in price this time around means that I’d probably still recommend West of Loathing first to someone new to this series. That said, if you’ve already played that game the odds are good that you’re more than willing to pony up for Shadows Over Loathing. I ended up enjoying it just a little less than West, but that’s likely down to it being more of a known quantity to me now. Overall, another clever, well-written RPG that feels like a breath of fresh air in the same way its predecessor did.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Afterimage ($24.99)

The first time I started this game up, I legitimately thought my Switch had gotten hung up. The initial load when you fire this game up is monstrously long, legitimately running over a full minute with a little sleeping goober in the middle of the screen and no indication it’s actually loading. Not a good first impression. None of the in-game loads are that bad, but this game will definitely make you wait if you choose to play it on the Switch. My second impression was more favorable. The controls are snappy, the art design is strong, and it feels good to play.

Unfortunately, my third impression was the enduring one, and it ended up dragging the game down a lot. This is a Metroidvania with a big Hollow Knight vibe, and like that game its world is massive. Unfortunately, the progression isn’t designed as well as that game, and it leads to a lot of jogging back and forth across massive environments. The combat, while initially seeming fine, doesn’t fan out the way I had hoped it would. It’s not like simple combat will necessarily sink a game, but the enemies really need to pick up the slack in cases like this and they just don’t here.

Afterimage is in that zone where nothing is outright horrible about it, but it’s just a little boring and plain. The strongest points in its favor come from just how much of it there is and the great art design. Add in some generally poor image quality, some clumsy interface choices, and the aforementioned lengthy loads and you end up with a game that is a little tough to enthusiastically recommend. This might be worth investigating on another platform if you’re a Metroidvania die-hard, but this Switch version isn’t the game at its best.

SwitchArcade Score: 3/5

Nuclear Blaze ($14.99)

There aren’t many games about firefighting, and somehow almost all of them are good. Or maybe they’re just good to me, I don’t know. Nuclear Blaze is the latest, and yes, it’s very good. The marketing touts that one of the folks behind Dead Cells was on the team for this one, but I feel like that might plant the seeds of some wrong ideas in people’s minds. This isn’t a roguelite. It’s not a Metroidvania either, though I’ve seen some want to call it one. And I suppose that is because it feels like you’re exploring an interconnected world, getting new abilities, finding secrets, and so on. But really, this is a stage-based action game with some light exploration and an expanding set of moves. You never really go backwards, only deeper into the facility. The difficulty grades up like a stage-based action game, too.

You proceed through each area, putting out fires, finding secret cats, and just doing whatever you need to do in order to move forward. As you make your way through, you’ll get snippets of info about what was going on in the facility you’re exploring, which are some nice sprinkles on top of a sundae that probably could have gotten away without them. It’s a very compelling game, one that is quite agreeable to play through in a single shot. And that is where the unfortunate part comes in, I think. This game is only a couple of hours long, and it really does feel like it could have kept going. There’s an extra hard mode and I certainly recommend giving it a go, but even with that you’ll be finished with Nuclear Blaze on the quick-ish.

Provided you don’t mind the fact that Nuclear Blaze ends just when it feels like it’s really getting going, this is an enjoyable action game I wouldn’t be shy about boosting. It looks good, plays well, has a lot of clever ideas, and really great pacing. There are some moments of frustration, but they’re fleeting and add texture to the experience. I wish there were more to it, but that’s really mainly down to how much I like what is already here.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

New Releases

Toziuha Night: Dracula’s Revenge ($4.99)

About as straightforward of an homage to classic Castlevania as it gets. Whip your way through the enemies as you make your way to the big vampire himself, Dracula. Pick up sub-weapons to help you fend off your foes, and tackle tough boss battles. The choppy scrolling in this one kills it for me, but you might have a better time with it.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Wow, a sale on Baba Is You! That is a rare sale on Switch indeed. I’ll also point out Cadence of Hyrule, at a low price to celebrate it being the latest Free Game Trial for Nintendo Switch Online subscribers. Great game. Regency Solitaire is at a new low price, and those looking for something a little less Victorian can indulge in some Gal*Gun deals. As for the outbox, it’s .cat Milk. That’s it.

Select New Games on Sale

Baba Is You ($10.50 from $15.00 until 5/8)
Voodoo Detective ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/9)
Sifu ($29.99 from $39.99 until 5/11)
Haven ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/12)
Uchu Shinshuchu ($1.99 from $8.00 until 5/13)
Kasiori ($4.90 from $7.00 until 5/13)
Taiko no Tatsujin Rhythm Festival DE ($37.94 from $54.99 until 5/15)
Dragon Ball Z Kakarot LE ($60.49 from $109.99 until 5/15)
JoJo’s Bizarre Adv. All-Star Battle DE ($45.49 from $69.99 until 5/15)
Tales of Vesperia ($7.99 from $49.99 until 5/15)
Steve Jackson’s Sorcery ($12.49 from $24.99 until 5/15)
Flippin Kaktus ($4.79 from $11.99 until 5/15)
Tears of Avia ($8.24 from $14.99 until 5/15)
Quantum Replica ($3.49 from $9.99 until 5/15)
7 Years From Now ($3.49 from $9.99 until 5/15)