Feature Japanese Dev Legend Tak Fujii On His Switch Music Exclusive Gal Metal
"My dream is about increasing real band players from playing the game"
Tak Fujii is one of the most established and charismatic figures in the Japanese gaming industry today. He spent twenty years at Konami in Chicago and Tokyo, filled roles such as sound designer, director and producer, as well as playing guitar on the incredible Castlevania:...
Feature Four Horses Discusses the Process of Bringing Kid Tripp to the Switch
Not kidding around
Not long ago Kid Tripp arrived on the 3DS eShop, an auto-running platformer that offers snappy but challenging stages. Some balked at its mobile origins but that was to do it a discredit; in our view it's a well-constructed and fun game. Four Horses produced that version and is now working on a Switch port, so we caught up with...
Feature Zoink Games on Flipping Death, Fe, and Making the Move to Nintendo Switch
"We’re really heading towards some exciting times"
The Wii U eShop brought us plenty of memorable games, and one example was Stick it to The Man by Zoink Games. The Swedish studio earned plenty of fans with its unique art style and comedic storytelling, giving Switch owners good news when Flipping Death was confirmed for the...
Feature Learn More About Indie Pogo, a Quirky Brawler Featuring Iconic Nindies
Aiming for funding through Kickstarter
Indie Pogo, from developer Lowe Bros. Studios, is not only a love letter to Nintendo fighting institution Super Smash Bros. and similar brawlers, but is also the ultimate indie game collaboration; it features characters from many popular indie (and 'Nindie') games. The Kickstarter for the project is well under...
Feature From the Show Floor - A Chat With CIRCLE Entertainment / Flyhigh Works at TGS
"Nintendo trusts us, which is a precious thing"
Last week we went along to the Tokyo Game Show, Japan's best known and most popular games expo. Various publishers went all-in with live events and streams, such as Sony, Capcom and more, while Nintendo still opted for a low-key approach. It offered some support, however, for smaller publishers and...
A little big adventure
Of all the moves Nintendo has made over the last few years, from the baffling but brilliant to just plain baffling, an announcement regarding a new Nintendo Direct has become arguably as anticipated as a showing at Gamescom or E3. While expos are opportunities for players to get their hands on the games themselves, Nintendo...
Gallery Tokyo's Sky Tree Pokémon Megastore Will Rob You Of Your Fortune And Sanity
Will you make it out alive?
There are many Pokémon stores across Japan, from when you get off the plane at Narita airport all the way across Tokyo to the 'Megastore' in Ikebukuro Sunshine city, and beyond. If you're visiting Japan's capital city then you'll notice that one of the most recent attractions is the Tokyo Sky Tree, a 634 meter...
Review The Jackbox Party Pack 2 (Switch eShop)
The second party has started
Hot on the heels of The Jackbox Party Pack (actually released after the third instalment on Switch), is the second package in the (so far) trilogy on Nintendo Switch. In a similar set up to the other entries in the series there are five party games on offer in The Jackbox Party Pack 2; here is a breakdown of the games on...
Review Physical Contact: 2048 (Switch eShop)
Double up
Not long after the bizarrely-named and pretty dull card game Physical Contact: SPEED made its way onto the Nintendo Switch eShop with little fanfare in July, other than a weird and slapdash trailer, Collavier is at it again with a similarly (bizarrely) named sequel of sorts, this time focusing on the number puzzle genre. Despite sounding...
Gallery Cosplay At The Tokyo Game Show 2017
Bayonetta! Link! Mario! Tingle!
The Tokyo Game Show isn't just home to all the latest and greatest video games - like pretty much any gaming event these days, it also attracts hordes of cosplayers dressed as their favourite video game characters. This year's event has seen a bumper turn-out of Links, Marios, Princess Peaches and even Tingles, and...
Review NeuroVoider (Switch eShop)
Bye, robot
For all the genre tags liberally flung at the influx of indie games over the last few years, it could be assumed that a select few terms might have become faux pas, or even derogatory. Despite splintering off into many branches of sub category since its inception, uttering words like 'roguelike' or 'permadeath' can immediately engage as...
Feature Morphite Devs Explain Why It's Much More Than Just "No Man's Sky On Switch"
"Everyone has a soft spot for Nintendo"
Sci-Fi adventure Morphite is one indie title that has been on our radar ever since it was first confirmed as coming to the Switch, and with good reason - it aims to combine the likes of Metroid Prime and Turok, and has been compared to No Man's Sky for its striking, low-poly visual style. Those of you with...
Review Kingdom: New Lands (Switch eShop)
The price is knight
Something of a cult hit when it appeared on Steam, and more recently on XLBA, NOIO and Liquorice games' (published by Raw Fury) Kingdom: New Lands makes its way to Nintendo Switch. A 2D sidescrolling micromanagement simulator in a pixellated medieval landscape, it tests attention, patience and strategy in equal measure. A...
Feature Digging Into The Design Process Of Twin-Stick RPG Blaster NeuroVoider
"Switch is one great platform to work with"
NeuroVoider is a twin-stick shooter RPG set in a futuristic world, and has a pretty striking preoccupation with robots and rocket launchers. It launched last week on the Switch eShop, so we though it would be the ideal time to speak to Flying Oak Games' Thomas Altenburger about the game...
Review The Jackbox Party Pack (Switch eShop)
The box seat
There is a pretty high chance that gatherings of family and friends inevitably result in reaching for a board or card game to maintain socializing, an attempt at team building, or even to ruthlessly compete against each other for some kind of bragging rights. Whether it be skill or trivia based, holding one's nerve or keeping a straight...
Feature Picking Apart The Mind Behind The "Delightful Dystopia" Of PikuNiku
"I really love the size of the Joy-Con controllers"
PikuNiku is one of the more interesting indie titles coming to Switch. Designed by Arnaud De Bock, the 2D platformer is set in a 'delightful dystopia' and boasts local co-op play on Nintendo's console. Keen to learn a little more about the enigmatic title, we tracked down its equally enigmatic...
Review The Bridge (Switch eShop)
Round the bend
Puzzle games by their very nature are designed to deceive and delight. Regardless of console or dimension, a good puzzle game has to strike a perfect balance between challenge and attainability. From making lines to jumping through walls, lateral thinking, logic and reflexes have been put to the test for gamers everywhere, and...
Review Physical Contact: SPEED (Switch eShop)
Not so wild card
The Nintendo Wii brought a new demographic to the world of video games. Suddenly, everyone from Mum and Dad, Nan and Grandad were subject to waggle, stray remotes flying into TVs, plastic balance boards and mini steering wheels. Unfortunately, for every Galaxy and Prime example of the console's library, the Wii was engulfed in what...
Feature Christophe Galati On The Long Road To Switch For Save Me Mr Tako: Tasukete Tako-San
"All the pieces fit together organically and I’m happy with the result"
Yesterday saw the surprise announcement of many upcoming Switch eShop games, one of which was of special interest to fans of the vintage Game Boy. However, despite looking every inch like a classic monochrome title from 1989, Save me Mr Tako: Tasukete Tako-San is the...
Save me, Mr. Tako!
Californian publisher Nicalis has announced the release of platformer / RPG crossover Save me Mr Tako: Tasukete Tako-San on Nintendo Switch, due out in the fourth quarter of this year.. From 23-year-old French developer Christophe Galati and composer Marc-Antoine Archier, Tako-San is a love letter to both the Game Boy...
Review League of Evil (Switch eShop)
Up the wall
Platformers are deceptively simple and addictive beasts. Ever since millions of '80s kids discovered the hard way that walking in to a brown, eyebrow-sporting mushroom was unceremoniously fatal, jumping, spinning, dodging and stomping has become as synonymous with growing up as lunch boxes and grazed knees. The genre has evolved, changed...
Feature Pixel Perfex On Why Earth Atlantis Is Ideal For Nintendo Switch
We chat about the BitSummit 2017 award winner
Set after a global catastrophic event that resulted in 96 percent of the Earth's surface being underwater and forced machines to adapt into various marine forms, Earth Atlantis is shaping up to be an interesting shooter on Switch. Your mission is to slay more than 20 'boss monsters' by choosing...
Feature Trying Biohazard Beverages, a Rockman Stew and More at the Capcom Café
One of the gaming treats in Shinjuku, Tokyo
Located opposite the famous 'Golden Gai' izakaya (bar) square in Shinjuku's Kabukucho district (Tokyo) is a small cafe dedicated to all things Capcom. Whether your franchise of choice is Street Fighter, Biohazard (Resident Evil), Rockman (Mega Man), or something a little more niche, there's plenty of...
Gallery Checking Out Yokohama's Pikachu Outbreak Pokémon Event
Painting the town yellow
From today until next week, various locations in the Japanese city of Yokohama will play host to the annual Pikachu Outbreak event. This year's event consists of merchandise stalls, parades, air ship flyovers and a number of Pokémon GO parks and stadiums, catering for fans of the phenomenally popular mobile game...
