February2024
Review Ufouria: The Saga 2 (Switch) - A Cheerful Throwback To Sunsoft's '90s Platformers
At your leisure
This is, for lack of a better descriptor, charming; a rekindling of an IP and a platforming vibe not seen rendered in such authentic fashion for some time. Ufouria: The Saga 2’s simplicity is to its credit, keeping it real to the source material and the vast catalogue of action platform games that informed much of the Nintendo...
Review Promenade (Switch) – Imperfect But Pleasant (And Punishing) Puzzle-Platforming
Cog-nitive
In games, we often talk about ‘levels’ and ‘levelling up’. Promenade takes that to the – ahem – next level. France-based Holy Cap Studios and Red Art Games bring us this 2D puzzle-platformer collectathon that connects a mix of lands via a Great Elevator. Inspired by other titles, it may not be the most original, but true to...
January2024
Mini Review Shinorubi (Switch) - A Curious Shooter That's A No-Go In Docked Mode
Not starring Joe Musashi
Shinorubi feels like a game that came about by providing prompts to an AI specialising in video game building (coming soon, no doubt), feeding it information on various historical works of a particular nature, and then publishing whatever it spat out. That might sound mean to the humans that created it, but it’s an apt...
August2023
Review Shotgun King: The Final Checkmate (Switch) - Chess With Guns? Definitely Worth A Shot
"We will send unto them... only you"
Chess is one of the most ancient games in existence, and while we continue to eagerly await the fabled release of the completely real Chess 2, it can be fun to see how modern game makers choose to iterate on the classic design. In Shotgun King, the latest release from Headbang Club and developer Punkcake...
June2023
Mini Review Skautfold: Usurper (Switch) - Doesn't Live Up To Its Castlevania-Inspired Key Art
We have Castlevania at home
If nothing else, you’ve got to give the Skautfold franchise credit for being unafraid to mix things up. After Skautfold: Shrouded in Sanity introduced the series as a retro-style survival horror, its sequels went on to span the Metroidvania, shooter, and RPG genres. Skautfold: Usurper, the latest release in the series...
April2023
Review Nuclear Blaze (Switch) - A Neat Little Action Platformer, Small And Cool
I don't want to set the world on fire
In April of 2021, the beloved Ludum Dare game jam took place with the theme of 'Deeper and Deeper'. Participants had 48 hours to throw together a game, and Sébastien Benard—known for working on Dead Cells—decided to give it a shot by making a firefighting game called Nuclear Blaze. After the competition was...
October2022
Mini Review Sophstar (Switch) - A Solid Shmup Bursting With Originality
Soft touch
Following the excellent Star Hunter DX, Raging Blasters, and Crimzon Clover - World EXplosion from Steam to the Switch eShop is Banana Bytes’ Sophstar, a vertically oriented bullet hell shoot-em-up with clearly delineated sprites set against simplistic rolling backgrounds. There are a whopping nine ships to choose from, all with...
