Tag: Mini Reviews - Page 5
Mini Review ibb & obb - Another Co-Op Gem For The Switch
To ibb, to obb
Ibb & Obb is a clever 2D puzzle platformer in which you and a friend (or an online stranger) must work closely together in order to successfully navigate a series of increasingly complex levels. The twist here is that the levels take place across two opposing planes, each with their own gravitational pull. The two playable...
Mini Review NinNinDays - A Short And Sweet Visual Novel With Some Rough Edges
An everyday tale of near-naked ninjas
There are certain things those familiar with romantic comedy, slice-of-life visual novels have doubtless come to expect by this point: a scene involving a maid costume; a heroine who can’t cook; a date at an amusement park; and some sort of boob-based misunderstanding. NinNinDays from Qureate has all of these...
Mini Review Half Past Fate - A Great-Looking Rom-Com Adventure Brimming With Personality
NOT a Steven Seagal movie
If you’re in your teens or beyond, chances are you’ve probably found yourself falling head over heels in love with someone at least once in your life. We all know the feeling: you see a stunning stranger out of the corner of your eye, someone who you’re absolutely sure is way out of your league, but your eyes lock,...
Mini Review Oddmar - An Acclaimed Mobile Platformer That Just About Holds Its Own On Switch
Inspector Norse
When Oddmar hit iOS and Android in 2018, it prompted many to proclaim its beautiful cartoon graphics and tight 2D platformer gameplay worthy of the Nintendo Switch itself. Now that Oddmar has hit the Nintendo eShop, we have a chance to put those lofty claims to the test. Do you know what? Those people were right, at least for the...
Mini Review Spartan Fist - This ARMS-Style Brawler Fails To Pack A Punch
Not quite a knockout
Spartan Fist is described as a 'first-person puncher', and for better or worse, that's exactly what it is. Taking place within a series of procedurally-generated arenas, the game is reasonably fun for short bursts, but thanks to some dodgy controls and a distinct lack of variety, it ultimately fails to pack a punch. Taking...
Mini Review Ganbare! Super Strikers - Strategic Soccer Action That Will Be Too Sluggish For Some
Strategy fans will get a kick out of this
The beautiful game of football (or soccer for those across the pond) is generally known for its face-paced, high octane action. The players are constantly moving, constantly searching for that one crucial opening to find the back of the net. Ganbare! Super Strikers is an odd little duckling, then, as its...
Mini Review One Finger Death Punch 2 - A Brutally Rhythmic Brawler
Devastating left-right combo
For all of the hard work, physical preparation, and learned technique that goes into high-level combat sport, it's all about two basic things: hitting and not getting hit. It's an appropriate analogy with which to start a review of One Finger Death Punch 2, where an increasingly elaborate fighting game plays out through...
Mini Review Willy Jetman: Astromonkey's Revenge - A Fun Homage To The Classics Of Yore
Willy or won't he?
With a name like Willy Jetman, developer Last Chicken Games seems to be courting a nostalgic audience who fondly recall the ZX Spectrum adventures of Matthew Smith's Jet Set Willy and Rare's (née Ultimate Play the Game) Lunar Jetman. It's a tried and tested move to attract interest in a crowded digital marketplace, and frankly,...
Mini Review Tilt Pack - An Accessible Yet Shallow Arena Brawler
Smash Bros. stripped to its bones
Super Smash Bros. Ultimate is undeniably brilliant, but there's a fundamental disconnect at the heart of it. Despite its bright, inviting presentation, the series has traded its knock-about couch co-op appeal for an increasingly technical fighting system and reams of esoteric fan service. Don't agree? Start a game...
Mini Review EQQO - An Engaging Puzzler With A Deep Narrative
Eggcellent touch-based puzzler
EQQO (pronounced ‘echo’) is a touch-based puzzle game in which you take on the role of an unseen narrator, guiding her blind son through a sacred land filled with ancient temples, traps, and mysterious creatures. The game offers up several options for its gameplay, and you can mix-and-match depending on how you...
Mini Review Skellboy - An Amusing Take On Zelda That's Undone By Sluggish Performance
Don’t lose your head
In the once peaceful land of Cubold Kingdom, life is flipped upside down when the king’s court magician gets well and truly dumped by the princess. In a fit of rage, he unleashes death and destruction on the pixelated world, bringing forth a host of ferocious monsters. Unbeknownst to the magician, however, he has also...
Mini Review Sinless - A Cyberpunk Point-And-Click Adventure That's Over Too Soon
Sinful lens flare
The Switch most likely won’t be getting the cyberpunk game that everyone’s currently talking about (boo!), but that doesn’t necessarily mean that there are no examples of the genre available on the platform. Alongside titles such as Observer, Neo Cab and Astral Chain, Sinless is an
Mini Review Super Tennis - Calm Down, It's Not The Super Tennis You Think It Is
Double fault
Despite already appearing in the SNES library for Nintendo Switch Online, Super Tennis is ready to hit the court again with its very own eShop release. Boasting beautiful Mode 7 graphics and slick gameplay, Super… hang on… we’ve just got word that this isn’t the SNES game, but rather a completely new tennis title blessed with...
Mini Review Lydia - One Of The Most Emotionally Impactful Games On Switch
Some monsters can’t be seen
Lydia is a powerful game. It’s the kind of experience that, while very short, will make you stop and think about its story long after the end credits roll. It’s tense, funny, and heartbreaking all in one go, and with the option to purchase additional DLC in support of the Finnish A-Clinic Foundation, its underlying...
Mini Review Drunk-Fu: Wasted Masters - Plays Like Smash Bros. After A Few Too Many Drinks
You wanna take this outside?
Fighting games are generally known for their slick, precise gameplay. Even something like Super Smash Bros., well known for its accessibility, boasts a remarkable level of depth, perfect for competitive play. Drunk-Fu: Wasted Masters doesn’t quite match up (in fact, it really doesn’t), but its bizarre, physics-based...
Mini Review Ultimate Racing 2D - Accessible Action Which Sadly Isn't Much Fun
Stuck on cruise control
Top-down racers, whilst never boasting the same level of depth as their 3D counterparts, are reliably accessible. They tend to put a playful spin on what is otherwise an often daunting gameplay experience for newcomers, allowing almost anyone to dive right in immediately. Ultimate Racing 2D succeeds in this respect, boasting...
Mini Review Rush Rally 3 - A Cheap And Cheerful Rally Racer
Kicking up dirt
Rush Rally 3 is a pleasant surprise. Mobile racers that promise ‘console-quality’ graphics and performance rarely deliver on such lofty promises, but in this case, developer BrownMonster mostly pulls it off. It’s a solid rally game that delivers surprisingly authentic 60FPS gameplay and throws in a boatload of modes and...
Mini Review STEINS;GATE: My Darling's Embrace - A Typical Dating Sim With Series Trimmings
Just another Switch Dating Sim?
The Steins;Gate series is famous for several things: having a time-bending narrative, a dark world and engaging characters presented in a non-linear traditional visual novel format. It’s safe to say that it's a far cry from the deluge of other visual novels present on the Nintendo eShop, so is Steins;Gate: My...
Mini Review STEINS;GATE 0 - A Classy Follow-Up For Veterans Of The Original Visual Novel
A timey-wimey sequel
Let’s not beat around the bush, Steins;Gate is a very well acclaimed visual novel, and this follow-up, Steins;Gate 0 is a worthy entry into the main series. Adopting the same format, world and style as the original Steins;Gate, those looking for a lengthy time-twisting visual novel will not be disappointed. The story takes...
Mini Review Space Pioneer - Solid Gameplay Let Down By Repetitive Design
One small hop for mankind
Just in its name, Space Pioneer immediately conjures up an undeniable sense of awe and spectacle. There’s a feeling that you’re going to be embarking on an epic journey of discovery as you take your first steps on one of many exotic planets. Space Pioneer certainly has a whole bunch of planets to explore, but the only...
Mini Review Tools Up! - An Overcooked Challenger Which Doesn't Quite Come Together
Undercooked gameplay
Let’s get one thing out of the way before we take a deeper look into Tools Up. Yes, it’s clearly a direct response to the phenomenal success of the Overcooked franchise, and no, it’s not quite as good. Nevertheless, that doesn’t make Tools Up a bad game, as such (it’s actually great fun when you get a few friends...
Mini Review Riverbond - An Undemanding But Pleasant Couch Co-op Hack And Slasher
An unbreakable voxel bond
Riverbond is perhaps one of the most easy-going, simplistic games you’re likely to play this year. Taking place within a beautiful voxel world, you’ll embark on a number of missions set within eight different environments ranging from idyllic sea resorts to dark, dingy caves. The gameplay is a typical hack ‘n’ slash...
Mini Review Raining Blobs - Can't Compete With The Best The Genre Has To Offer
Familiar territory
Anyone even remotely familiar with game franchises like Puyo Pop and Tetris will feel right at home with Raining Blobs. It’s a puzzle game in which you need to match up coloured globules that fall down the screen in order to wipe them from the board, scoring combos and points in the process. That’s more or less all there is to...
Mini Review Zumba Burn it Up! - Ring Fit Adventure Too Crazy For You? Try This Instead
Rhythmic calorie counting
Out of all of the family-centric games introduced during the lifetime of the absurdly popular Nintendo Wii, only a handful have seemingly thrived and continued into the present day. Perhaps the most prevalent is the Just Dance franchise, which releases every year like clockwork, but the Zumba series is just about hanging by...
Mini Review Neo Cab - A Memorable, Emotional Ride
Where to?
We all know just how awkward cab rides can be. After the initial greeting, there’s always that feeling - that dread - that you’ll be spending the next goodness-knows-how-long making awful small talk until you finally make it to your destination. Neo Cab takes this idea and runs with it, placing you in the shoes of a cab driver in a...
Mini Review 80 Days - A Wordy But Wonderful Jaunt Around The Globe
The road goes ever on
We’re going to assume you’ve not lived under a rock your entire life and are at least vaguely familiar with the concept of Jules Verne’s literary masterpiece, Around the World in 80 Days. It’s inspired a number of real-life imitations, movies, musicals, and – in this case – an incredibly well-written adventure from...
Mini Review Button Button Up! - A Perfectly Fine Platformer, And That's It
Stitch-em-up
Button Button Up! is one of those platformer games that can be described as being just ‘fine’. It’s not going to compete with some of the more accomplished games on the Switch like Celeste or Super Mario Maker 2, but nor should it be completely glossed over. It’s a perfectly serviceable platformer with cute visuals and fun...
Mini Review Ritual - A Nice Setup Let Down By Boring Gameplay
Set gameplay to 'auto'
Just in case there’s any confusion, Ritual is not an adaptation of the fantastic horror novel by Adam Nevill, though we’d almost prefer it if that were the case. Instead, Ritual is a top-down action RPG in which you play as a powerful Sorcerer who partakes in a quest of revenge after a failed sacrificial attempt from a...
Mini Review Arcade Archives Track & Field - Timeless Button-Bashing Fun
Old 'un athletic
Sometimes you just get it right the first time you try. This was the case when Konami released Track & Field in arcades and completely nailed its mechanics right away, then spent decades trying (and arguably failing) to better them. Now that original arcade title has made it over to the Switch as part of Hamster’s ever-growing...
Mini Review Golazo! - Knockabout Soccer Action Straight Outta The 1990s
A coin-op kickabout
It could be argued that the arcade football genre is more or less dead at this point. While these days FIFA and Pro Evolution Soccer take part in a constant two-horse race – the Celtic and Rangers of video games, if you will – the days when we were swimming in less realistic arcade-style football games are gone. Many...
Mini Review Sydney Hunter And The Curse Of The Mayan - Indiana Jones In All But Name
“Why did it have to be snakes?”
Given the sheer rate at which the Switch’s eShop is expanding on a weekly basis, it almost seems inevitable that an Indiana Jones game will eventually make its way to owners. Until then, Sydney Hunter and the Curse of the Mayan is about as close as we’re going to get – but that’s okay because this...
Mini Review A Duel Hand Disaster: Trackher - A Uniquely Taxing Twin-Stick Shooter
Double vision
The Switch is home to some fairly unique games, but A Duel Hand Disaster: Trackher is undoubtedly one of the most bizarre titles to hit the console since its launch. It’s also one of the most stubbornly difficult games to wrap your head around, and without thoroughly studying the optional tutorial, newcomers will find it equally...
Mini Review FUZE4 Nintendo Switch - A Powerful Package That's For Serious Coders Only
Binary basics
Let’s get one thing straight: FUZE4 isn’t a game. Yes, you can play small snippets of games contained within, but it’s really more of an application focused on coding. It’s designed to teach newcomers the basics and allow seasoned coders to flex their coding skills right on the Switch. It’s not the kind of thing you’ll want...
Mini Review Legend Of The Skyfish - A Poor-Man's Zelda
Hook, line and stinker
You don’t need to look very long at Legend of the Skyfish to know which series it takes influence from. Heck, the clue is in the name itself. Taking place on a set of islands, you take on the role of Little Red Hook, a girl with a particular talent of traversing the land and vanquishing foes with – of all things – a...
Mini Review Creature In The Well - You've Never Played A Pinball Game Like This
Deflect and energise
If you’ve ever been fond of the classic game of pinball, then Creature in the Well may well be up your street. In a curious twist on the traditional dungeon-crawler, the game sees you take on the role of the last remaining BOT-C unit, a robot engineer, in a desolate world where sandstorms reign supreme. You’re tasked with...
Mini Review Whipseey And The Lost Atlas - A Kirby Clone That's Over In The Blink Of An Eye
You'll whip through it
“Jump and whip your way through this epic adventure,” begins the opening blurb for the Whipseey and the Lost Atlas listing on the Nintendo eShop. It undoubtedly does feature jumping, yes, and there’s certainly a decent amount of whipping to be found, but calling it epic is a bit of a stretch; we’ve had hiccuping spells...
Mini Review Invisigun Reloaded - A Tense Action Title Blessed With An Ingenious Twist
Can you see me now?
The stealth genre has always been a bit of a love-hate affair. Some people relish the thought of sneaking past oblivious guards and knocking on walls, whereas others find the very concept of keeping schtum completely repellant. There’s rarely an in-between, but Sombr Studio has crafted an experience with Invisigun Reloaded that...
Mini Review PC Building Simulator - A Surprisingly Decent Rig
Have you switched it off and on?
The Switch is home to a vast variety of games encompassing all sorts of genres from first-person shooters to visual novels, but we can probably all agree that PC Building Simulator is a game that none of us were expecting to see pop up on the eShop (then again, we got Car Mechanic Simulator, so apparently anything's...
Mini Review Gravity Duck - Finite Flashes Of Fowl Fun
Quack and easy
Gravity Duck is an odd little game, but a rather enjoyable one. It’s a 2D, pixel platformer in which you play as a duck gifted with the power to control gravity. After being promised riches in exchange for some golden eggs, the duck sets off to find those eggs in dozens of gravity-bending levels. The gameplay in Gravity Duck...
Mini Review Never Give Up - The Game That Wants You To Fail
Adorable brutality
Never Give Up wears its inspiration on its sleeve. Displaying quirky visuals and rock-solid gameplay, Armor Games' new platformer directly calls back to the surprise hit Super Meat Boy. However, Never Give Up takes the basic premise of Super Meat Boy and tweaks it just enough to avoid feeling like a carbon copy. You're tasked...
