Daemon X Machina (Switch)
At its core Daemon X Machina is a solid mech action game that controls well and gives the player a generous helping of customisation options. Its mission structure can get repetitive, and its plot is so difficult to grasp it may as well be soaked in grease, but as long as you’re willing to put up with these and get through its initially bewildering array of gauges and icons you should have a good time with it.
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (Switch)
This beautiful Switch remake of the classic Game Boy entry rebuilds everything from the ground up. On top of the beautiful new art style, it added modern conveniences, a dungeon creator, amiibo support, and lots of little quality-of-life improvements whilst infusing every single square inch of Koholint – every secret passage, Piranha, Pokey and Pig Warrior – with a level of detail and depth that totally reinvigorated both its timeless story and classic Zelda gameplay for a whole new generation of gamers.
If there's anything holding The Legend of Zelda: Link’s Awakening back, some minor frame rate issues might prove jarring for some players. Others may not even notice, but if you're sensitive to dropped frames it's possible you'll find yourself distracted from the otherwise absorbing gameplay. It's a little thing, but with the heritage of technical wizardry behind the Game Boy original, it is a noticeable chink in this game's otherwise glistening armour.
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (Switch)
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is an experience unlike any other on the Switch, expertly blending standard RPG tropes with a heartwarming story, innovative art style, and an immersive soundtrack composed by some of the best in the business. In more ways than one, this is a ‘dream project’ that’s very existence is a gift to fans of the genre the world over. That said, it also notably falls short of being an undisputed masterpiece, as pacing issues and shoddy AI drag down an otherwise pitch perfect experience. Those issues aside, this still proves to be lightyears ahead of many other RPGs. If you consider yourself a fan of the genre – or even if you’re just looking to get your feet wet – you owe it to yourself to give Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch a shot.
Dead By Daylight (Switch)
Dead by Daylight is an asymmetrical multiplayer horror game where one player takes on the role of the savage Killer, and the other four players play as Survivors, trying to escape and avoid being caught and killed. The Nintendo Switch version features loads of maps, characters and cosmetics, and a deep progression system to try out. The game creeps onto Nintendo Switch this fall.
Contra: Rogue Corps (Switch)
Contra's high-profile return to modern platforms landed with more of a whimper than a bang. Contra: Rogue Corps swaps out the side-scrolling shoot-em-up action for top-down twinstick gameplay; the problem is it's just not very fun to play. The shooting mechanics are far too inaccurate and the muddy textures and low resolution make for an ugly experience on the Switch. There are some good ideas here, but Rogue Corps is far from the Contra rebirth we were hoping for.
Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition (Switch)
Originally released for 3DS (and PS4) in Japan, the cumbersomely named Dragon Quest XI S: Echoes of an Elusive Age - Definitive Edition is one of the best games Square has ever put its name to, plain and simple — and this Switch release was a fine port, too. Featuring a heartwarming, well-paced narrative supported by a cast of fantastic characters, a dense and interesting overworld packed with dozens of hours of content, and one of the finest soundtracks we’ve heard in a JRPG, it all combines to make this an unforgettable modern classic. Whether you’re a newcomer to the series (or genre) or a returning vet, do yourself a favor and get yourself a copy of Dragon Quest XI as soon as you’re able. This is the epitome of a gift that keeps on giving, and it more than deserves a spot in your Switch library.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt - Complete Edition (Switch)
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt remains a masterpiece, and being able to take such a grand and engrossing adventure on-the-go is something well worth celebrating. The Switch's Complete Edition is a truly impressive achievement, and although performance isn't perfect, it's still an incredible and impactful role-playing experience. The Witcher 3 set the bar for modern RPGs back in 2015, and this port is a startling reminder that it has yet to be bettered.
Resident Evil 6 (Switch eShop)
Considered by many to be the point where the mainline series stepped too far away from its survival horror origins, Resident Evil 6's four campaign threads weave together the stories of Leon S. Kennedy, Ada Wong, Chris Redfield, and Jake Muller. Variable quality between the four player characters' scenarios didn't help, and the game arguably suffered from stretching the RE4 template to breaking point after every other third-person shooter had already picked its corpse clean.
RE6 has its defenders — and there's certainly plenty of it to reappraise — but this is generally considered to be the mainline series' weakest point.
Resident Evil 5 (Switch eShop)
Although the game can be a drag if you're playing on your own thanks to some ropey partner AI, we recall enjoying our co-op playthough of Resident Evil 5 immensely back in the day and it's now on Switch to enjoy, too. Having a pal along for the ride neuters the survival horror somewhat, but also sidesteps the alternative horror of a bumbling, incompetent AI partner.
RE5 turns the action up to 11 and while it's not as fresh as its predecessor, it's still a blast as long as you have an actual human friend to lock-and-load alongside you.
Luigi's Mansion 3 (Switch)
Luigi’s Mansion 3 is not only a graphical powerhouse and showcase for Next Level Games’ unrivalled mastery of video game animation, it’s also an immense helping of spooky fun as well. The amount of care and consideration poured into every facet of the game is abundantly clear, and it all results in one of the most enjoyable and attractive Switch titles of the year. It's also the undisputed high point of a franchise which – following this sterling release – will hopefully get even more love and attention from Nintendo fandom, and the gaming community as a whole.
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 (Switch)
Its 34 events provide welcome variety and there are far more hits than misses in its line-up, but once you're finished with Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020's four-hour Story mode it becomes notably less enticing for solo players. With no real incentives or unlockables to aim for, this should be considered a strictly multiplayer affair if you want to still be playing it by the time the actual Tokyo 2020 Olympics roll around.
Just Dance 2020 (Switch)
Just Dance 2020 is a celebration of the series’ tenth anniversary in more ways than one, with years’ worth of releases all leading up to a formula that has truly been perfected and a decent new song list to boot. You’ll want to be subscribed to Just Dance Unlimited to get the most out of your purchase, however, and a combination of your needs, budget and access to previous titles makes the decision to pick up Just Dance 2020 much more difficult than it should be. Newcomers to the series won’t find a better experience out there, but seasoned players might want to think about saving some cash and sticking with their current setup.
Pokémon Sword and Shield (Switch)
Pokémon Sword and Shield succeed in bringing some new ideas to the table, although there are areas where it could be pushed further. What’s done right is done right, but there are also elements that feel like they've come from a decade-old design document. There are moments contained within that are the best the series has ever been, but this joy is occasionally spoiled by contrasting moments that left us disappointed. It's an experience full of highs and lows, from the unadulterated wonder and joy of seeing a brand-new Pokémon in a stadium full of cheering crowds, to the monotonous and dragged-out dialogue we just wanted to skip. The wonders of exploring the Wild Area feel like the true evolution of the series.
On the whole, Pokémon Sword and Shield were a very solid start to the HD generation of Pokémon games, although there's room for improvement.
Alien: Isolation (Switch eShop)
Alien: Isolation is a survival horror masterpiece and straight-up one of the very best horror video games ever released. It's a nerve-wracking affair – a slow, methodical game of cat and mouse against a brilliantly clever recreation of one of cinema's most infamous killers – but if you're up to the task you'll find one of the most satisfying gameplay experiences in the genre; a brilliant and beautiful homage to one of the greatest Sci-Fi movies of all time. Feral Interactive has done a stellar job with this Switch port and the excellent motion controls and inclusion of all previously-released DLC only go to sweeten the deal. This is essential stuff for survival horror fans.
Comments (37)
Amazing! Nintendo Switch is getting better and better every Month! It’s unstoppable!
Nintendo has murdered my budget.
Not sure my wallet can handle this either.
It's hard to keep up with so many interesting releases every month (or week) both in terms of money and time.
It just couldn't be better! (Yes, it always could, but you know what I mean)
So many games that I'm looking forward to! Let's count em up...
Mario Maker 2
Luigi's Mansion 3
Animal Crossing
Crash Team Racing
Witcher 3
Spyro
My Friend Pedro
Wolfenstein Youngblood (on both PS4 and Switch)
DOOM Eternal (also on both platforms)
Breath of the Wild 2
Contra Collection (which I already got!)
Resident Evil 5 and 6 (not very popular, but I'm happy to get to try them)
I will consider these games :
1. Animal Crossing New Horizons
2. Luigi Mansion 3
3. Pokemon Sword
4. Super Lucky's Tale
5. Trials of Mana
6. Super Mario Maker 2
7. Dragon Quest Builders 2
And some haven't bought yet Switch games such as :
1. Crash Bandicoot NSane Trilogy
2. Captain Toad
3. LABO toy Cons 03
4. Super Mario Party
5. Little Friends : Dogs and Cats
6. Earthlock
7. 99 Vidas
etc.
These are the games I'm interested in, sorted by general interest and actual hype:
Hypelist
1. Fire Emblem Three Houses
2. Pokémon Sword/Shield
3. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild 2
4. No More Heroes 3
5. Hollow Knight: Silksong
General interest list:
1. Ni no Kuni
2. The Witcher 3
3. Trials of Mana
4. Astral Chain
5. Animal Crossing
6. Dauntless
7. Spyro Reignited Trilogy
8. Luigi's Mansion 3
Usually I have like 2-3 games from E3 that I like. This is insane lol.
Nintendo officially owns my gaming budget for the next few months. September is gonna be
when I declare bankruptcyamazing.I'm surprised they haven't shown off Crash Team Racing, considering that's coming out next week.
Swutch only game that will be a day one buy for me this year:
Mario maker 2
Marvel Alliance 3
Fire Elmblem three houses
Luigi's Mansion 3
Maybe astral chains if i got time
Pokemon sword baby!!!!!! And it will drag me all the way to animal crossing which will drag me all the way to breath of the wild 2 lol
Well better than before I guess. Luigi mansion and Hollow Knight: Silksong can fill a slot at some point. So far Pre-orders/100% buying
Jun:
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
July:
Fire Emblem
August:
Oninaki
Astral Chains
September:
???
October:
???
NOV:
Sword And Shield
DEC:
???
September is going to be rough... on my wallet!
Animal Crossing, both the DQ games, Luigi Mansion 3, Fire Emblem Three Houses and Pokemon are my most anticipated games for the next 365 days.
Edit: Forgot Super Mario Maker 2. My kids are excited for that one.
I want Ni No Kuni and Trials of Mana. Those look amazing.
Dead by daylight, have had a lot of fun with this on pc, suprised in a way that it's coming to the Switch.
That's a lot of games. Most of which I know. Much better than those weekly eShop lists.
@Agramonte Thanks for the calendar. Zelda is September 20. (Edit) MUA3 is July 19. Not 1st party but an exclusive, gotta treat those very few and far between exclusives right. Luigi should be October for Halloween, they probably didn't date it yet b/c it isn't done yet but surely that is their goal. Witcher 3 needs a date, which si an old port and not 1st party but if I were Ntineod I'd give it a wide birth. Same for Doom Eternal.
So between August 30 and September 27 we’re getting Astral Chain, Spyro Collection, Ni No Kuni, Dragons Quest XI S, Links Awakening and Daemon X Machina? Not to mention Gears 5.
Right kids, September is Beans on Toast month! Yaaaaay!
Wait, wait, Mario Maker 2, Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, Wolfenstein Youngblood and Fire Emblem are within 4 weeks of each other?!
Has their planning just completely fallen apart after a couple of delays?!
@Agramonte You know what, let me just fill that in for ya a bit.
And I know you were looking at 1st party, but Nintneod does need to give some 3rd party rooms some space, no reason to kill those potential sales.
Jun:
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night
SMM2 6/28
July:
DQB2 7/12
MUA3 7/19
Fire Emblem
Wolfenstien 7/26
August:
Oninaki
Astral Chains
September:
Spryo 9/3
DxM 9/13
NNK 9/20
Zelda LA 9/20
DQXIS 9/27
October:
PROBABLE LM3
NOV:
Mario & Sonic Tokyo 2020 Olympics 11/11
Sword And Shield 11/15
DOOM Eternal 11/22
DEC:
???
@rjejr well, I use Metacritic to keep track. Also the Mrs has a general idea the month I am going crazy on the spending - so not a surprise 😁
Switch
https://www.metacritic.com/browse/games/release-date/coming-soon/switch/date
PS4
https://www.metacritic.com/browse/games/release-date/coming-soon/ps4/date
@electrolite77 I think after 10 years of Wii and Wii U home console games going it alone Nintneod forgot how to spread about 3rd party support. The list does fill in quite nicely.
@Agramonte I pretty much only use NL or Google things myself. Of course it's easier for me I don't want all that much, and neither do my kids at the moment. Though looking at that list, hmm
@rjejr 👉 (🤔)
Jun:
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (100% SWITCH)
SMM2 6/28 (Cool, but Not My Thing)
July:
DQB2 7/12 (Cool, but Not My Thing)
MUA3 7/19 (got Spider Man at $20 - I'll wait also)
Fire Emblem (Pre-order)
Wolfenstien 7/26 (Pre-order - PC)
August:
Oninaki (100% buying on Switch)
Astral Chains (pre-order)
September:
Spryo 9/3 (Cool, But also skipped on PS4)
DxM 9/13 (waiting on reviews, lots of them)
NNK 9/20 (Finished it. Do not replay RPGs)
Zelda LA 9/20 (ZBOTW/Twilight Princess more "my zelda")
DQXIS 9/27 (GREAT GAME!. but Finished it like NNK)
October:
PROBABLE LM3 (I would love that!)
NOV:
Mario & Sonic Tokyo 2020 Olympics 11/11 (Gift for my Niece 😃)
Sword And Shield 11/15 (Pre-order)
DOOM Eternal 11/22 (Pre-Order - PC)
DEC:
This was an insane week. Witcher 3 and Ni no Kuni, Alien Isolation and The Sinking City, RE 5 and 6 and the Mana collection, BotW sequel announced and Astral Chain starting to feel like Platinum's take on Shin Megami Tensei vibes... looks like Switch eShop will remain my primary shopping place for months and months to come. And getting such a Direct on the same day as a new Frozen 2 trailer was a borderline overkill.
Im sad shin megami tensei 5 still hasn't made an appearance but their presentation was the best along with square imo.
@Agramonte Wow, I'm still trying to figure out the dates and you got it all figured out.
The only ones I know for sure are SSM2 for my son's and Luigi whenever he releases, unless it's December then it's under the tree. MUA3 releases the day before my birthday so it might be a fun family game that weekend, my wife never knows what to get me, otherwise I'd wait on a sale as well. It is a Switch exclusive so that sale may take awhile. Most of the rest I've played or own on PS4 oe earlier systems, so not for me, but it is nice to see so many games. I also need to see some game play for God's & Monsters, preferably be fire it releases in Feb. My family has no interest in AC. Though I do have 9 AC amiibo adorning my shelves, they were cute.
This would've been a much better E3 if more of the upcoming Switch games ran at 60fps!!! There's an enormous number of crappy 30fps games on their way. I admit I'm thrilled about BotW 2, and it is among the 30 fps games, but way too many of these should be smoothly clicking along at 60fps! I count about 13 or 14 major releases that appear to target 30fps, which sucks badly. Only about 4 seem to target 60fps!!! Mario Maker 2, Collection of Mana, Contra Anniversary Collection, and Cadence of Hyrule seem to all be 60fps. Well, we can strike 3 off the list because they're already out! So, one game that is coming out in the future is 60fps, and everything else is unknown or appears to be choppy. And they overwhelmingly appear to be targeting 30fps, not unknown. It even appears that the 2D pixel art mode in Dragon Quest 11 S is running at 30fps. That's freaking horrible! Spyro, Daemon x machina, no no Kuni, dragon quest, super Lucky's tale, Witcher 3, dragon quest builders 2, Doom eternal, Wolfenstein Young blood, marvel 3, fire emblem, astral Chain, and Trials of Mana all appear to be 30fps games. This sucks! I wish TV's only went up to 600p!
0_o I must have missed something, because nowhere do I recall seeing anything about a psychotic man taking orders from a murderous banana.
Contra is the main surprise for me, and a definite purchase. Panzer Dragoon has some interest, and obviously Animal Crossing looks great. No doubt it was delayed until 20 March 2020 so the game's in-game season is spring, leading into summer. Who wants to camp during dreary winter, as would be the case for the original late 2019 tentative release? Mario & Sonic Olympics looks surprisingly quite good. Just as long as it waggling isn't compulsory. The new Zelda BOTW is so far into the distant future (likely March 2022) that the "in development" announcement was pointless. There's always a Zelda in development. They release one, start another. That's how it works. The fact Nintendo felt obliged to make such an announcement highlights the weakness for big news in this Direct, especially regarding big games to be released this year.
Honestly a real solid showing of games coming to Switch.
No real need to pay attention to PS4 or Xbone. Not for me anyway.
Not everything I wanted or expected, but that never happens. lol
Yes, Nintendo had a solid direct, and no one can deny that.
@60frames-please Obviously, 60 fps is important to you. It's your screen name after all. Maybe you'd be more satisfied with a PC, as that's the only way to have your games be consistently at 60 fps. You can even do BoTW at 60 fps on PC. Just make sure you buy a legit copy first. The Switch is basically a six inch tablet. Dedicated consoles struggle to hit those frame rates. The Switch doesn't run games horribly. Your expectations are just too high for what Switch actually is. It runs games great for those who don't mind sacrificing power for convince. These are the concessions necessary to run portable versions of console experiences. Ocarina of Time on N64 had a very low fps. It was still enjoyed by millions. It looks like you setting yourself up for disappointment.
@HexagonSun I hear you. Everything you said makes sense. I also enjoyed the N64. I can't enjoy N64 games today though, unless they're improved. Well, F-Zero is fine, but everything else should be boosted massively in frame rate and at least modestly in resolution. GameCube was awesome in comparison. So many games ran at 60 fps on that system!
I'm not even using my PC, which I originally bought used to play games, for gaming. My PC can run many games at 60fps, but it's just a clunky energy hog. I love the versatility of the Switch as well as it's form. It's practically the only game system I play. I love that there are hundreds of games on Switch that run at 60fps, and wish there were more. I understand that AAA games from the current generation won't run at 60fps on Switch, but it would be nice if they did! Nintendo has a pretty good record of releasing games at 60fps, or trying to (I've heard Mario Sunshine ran mostly at 60fps, but they couldn't optimize it perfectly so they settled for 30). Recently we've gotten Darksiders, Yoshi's Crafted World, Super Mario Bros U Deluxe, Super Smash Bros Ultimate, Tetris 99, Cuphead, and Labo VR all running at 60fps. After watching a bunch of E3 footage it looks like hardly anything coming out in the second half of 2019 is going to run smoothly at 60fps. I'm just bummed about that. I wish Luigi's Mansion 3, Astral Chain, Pokemon, Daemon X Machina, and Dragon Quest Builders 2 ran at 60fps. I'm holding out hope that Link's Awakening, Animal Crossing, Panzer Dragoon, Minecraft Dungeons, and No More Heroes 3 will run at 60fps. We'll see...
@60frames-please I'm really glad framerate isn't something I really notice, unless something is running sluggishly. Before the updates, BoTW was slightly bothersome. It sounds like you could use a Switch Pro. Hopefully performance improves for older switch games. This is just the beginning of hybrid consoles really being a thing. I'm sure they'll get to a place where most everything runs smoothly. We're definitely getting to a point where each new console generation has diminishing returns for the increase in power.
@rjejr Well, some of them I had already made up my mind when first announced. "MUA3 Family Birthday Bash weekend" sounds awesome 👍
"my wife never knows what to get me"
HAHAHAHA!, She always complains I buy everything I want long before Birthday/Christmas/Hanukkah shows up!
So now, she just always gets me my PS+ renew and a game from my list for the following year. Only keeping Cyberpunk 2077 free to "help her decide" 😉
@Agramonte "She always complains I buy everything I want long before "
Yeah, I get that too. Sometimes I'll not want anything in July and buy something for myself in Sept and she'll be like "Ok, there's your birthday gift." Apparently for Father's Day she got me a cordless hedge trimmer. 😂
@HexagonSun Yeah, I went to Korok forest recently and it's horrible! That's the only place they haven't fixed the frame rate. Since I only play docked with my smart TV dejuddering the 30fps up to 60fps it ends up looking like the game is going from 60fps down to 20 or 25fps. A Switch Pro would be awesome. Yeah, but if they keep increasing he resolution of TVs we'll never get smooth frame rates... Aside from NES and SNES, the best generation was the GameCube/PS2/Xbox one. Almost every single NES and SNES game runs at 60fps, or targets it and has some slowdown. NES, SNES, Genesis, and TurboGrafx 16 are the best systems based on graphics in my opinion. So far, the GameCube and PS2 generation is the best in terms of 3D graphics. With the low resolution TVs of that era they could get many games running at 60fps. I wish we could get rid of 4K and 8K TVs! I have played Wipeout Omega Collection at 4K and 60fps. It's great, but hardly any games reach that smoothness, so I'd rather trash all resolutions above 1080p and keep games smooth. Maybe in 20 years we could move up to 4K.
My wallet hurts, seems that Nintendo owns my gaming budget for the rest of the year now, and probably into next year. I've preordered Mario Maker 2, Luigi's Mansion 3, Astral Chain, Daemon X Machina, Fire Emblem Three Houses, and Legend of Zelda Links Awakening, and that's all coming out this year still! I'll probably pick up Pokemon this year still too. I'll be preordering games coming out next year when the release dates are a little closer.
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