Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 6th, 2024. In today’s article, we’ve got a little bit of all the good stuff. Some news for the news-lovers, a review for the review-lovers, some new releases for the… the new release-lovers, and of course some sales for the sales-lovers. Lots of those out there, I’m told. Those new releases are some spicy meatballs, too. I like all of them, which is a rare condition this day and age. Let’s get to the goodies!
News
Check Out Zelda’s Tiny Horse in the Latest ‘Echoes of Wisdom’ Video
I don’t have too much to add to that headline. Look, there’s a lot of cool stuff in this latest video for the upcoming The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, but for me it’s all about that tiny horse. I love it. Give me an Amiibo of it, please.
Reviews & Mini-Views
Mars 2120 ($19.99)
This game… is clunky. Very, very clunky. The animations look jerky, the collision detection isn’t quite right, the enemy AI is all over the map, the sign-posting is really weak, and it doesn’t really have much to offer in a genre that is crawling with superb entries on the Switch. One has to wonder, is there room for a rough-around-every-edge Metroid-inspired game on a platform where sixty bucks and a Nintendo Switch Online subscription gets you six shots of the real deal? Well, I’ll leave the answer to that question to you, dear reader.
What I will say is that Mars 2120 has its moments. The atmosphere is good. I like the mix of ranged and melee that you can use, despite the game never doing much to push that outside of the boss battles. It’s occasionally cinematic. I like some of the environments a lot. And I will say, I have played worse Metroidvania-style games. The game functions, even if sometimes it seems like it’s coming apart. Heck, if you can keep yourself from remembering the existence of Metroid, you might even have a bit of fun with it.
Mars 2120 is definitely ambitious in many ways, but I wish that ambition extended to its design. For all the effort put into the production values, the game itself never quite shakes off the feeling of being the Dollar Store Metroid. A bit more polish for its fundamentals and maybe one or two interesting twists might have made this something special, but as it stands I think it utterly fails to make a case for itself against its many strong competitors in the Metroidvania genre.
SwitchArcade Score: 3/5
Select New Releases
Volgarr the Viking II ($19.99)
I’ll level with you: I didn’t think this game was ever going to get a sequel, and I am beyond thrilled to see that it finally has. Volgarr is an unapologetically tough action-platformer, but not one that can’t be learned through practice. There is a precision and satisfaction to it that few games in its genre can match these days, and I can gleefully report that this sequel offers up another heaping helping of that good stuff. I’ll have a review of this one early next week, so do look forward to that.
Natsu-Mon: 20th Century Summer Kid ($39.99)
Kaz Ayabe, the creator of Boku Natsu and that Crayon Shin-chan Summer Vacation game from a couple of years ago, is back. And this time, it’s… it’s another game about being a child and enjoying a chill summer vacation in the Japanese countryside. Look, he’s good at it and there aren’t many people doing anything like it, so I say let the man cook. In this one, you’re the child of the ringmaster of a traveling circus. You’ve pulled up in a small rural town and you need to enjoy your summer while the adults are working. There are all kinds of things to do and see. I’ll be reviewing this one soon, but I think a lot of you already know if this is your thing or not.
The Legend of Dark Witch Episode 2 ($9.99)
Wow, I didn’t think this was ever going to come. The first game hit the Switch years ago, but the second and third have remained MIA. For those who are unfamiliar with this series, it’s a slightly Mega Man-inspired side-scrolling action game with a Gradius-like power-up system. It feels very indie in some ways, and… I mean, it is indie. But it’s good stuff for Mega Man fans looking for something to chomp on.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
Well… I don’t know, not a very exciting list on the whole, but you can find some good things in there. Rush Rally 3 for four bucks? That’s sweet. 505 Games is finishing up its latest sale over in the outbox, so if you want anything from their line-up now is the time to act. Check those lists!
Select New Sales
A Street Cat’s Tale 2 ($11.89 from $13.99 until 8/12)
OverShoot Battle Race ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/12)
Warhammer 40k: Dakka Squadron ($1.99 from $19.99 until 8/12)
Rush Rally 3 ($3.99 from $14.99 until 8/13)
Jello ($9.79 from $13.99 until 8/13)
Blood Lines: Magicians’ Chase2 ($8.39 from $11.99 until 8/18)
Oxide Room 104 ($4.99 from $24.99 until 8/19)
Timothy vs the Aliens ($2.20 from $16.99 until 8/19)
Lotus Reverie: First Nexus ($2.07 from $15.99 until 8/19)
Naught ($2.59 from $19.99 until 8/19)
Quest Hunter ($5.99 from $29.99 until 8/19)
Anima: Gate of Memories ($2.59 from $19.99 until 8/19)
Chronicles of 2 Heroes: AW ($3.99 from $19.99 until 8/19)
Tropico 6 ($22.49 from $49.99 until 8/26)
Mortal Kombat 11 ($9.99 from $49.99 until 8/26)
We Need to Go Deeper ($5.99 from $19.99 until 8/26)
Blair Witch ($5.99 from $29.99 until 8/26)
Jet Kave Adventure ($1.99 from $19.99 until 8/26)
Dungeons of Dreadrock ($1.99 from $10.00 until 8/26)
Turnip Boy Robs a Bank ($9.74 from $14.99 until 8/26)
Strike Team Gladius ($1.99 from $9.99 until 8/26)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, August 7th
Afterdream ($6.59 from $10.99 until 8/7)
Anglerfish ($4.99 from $9.99 until 8/7)
Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night ($11.99 from $39.99 until 8/7)
Buddy Simulator 1984 ($4.99 from $9.99 until 8/7)
Crypt Stalker ($1.99 from $6.99 until 8/7)
Eiyuden Chronicle Hundred Heroes ($37.49 from $49.99 until 8/7)
Eiyuden Chronicle Hundred Heroes Deluxe ($51.99 from $79.99 until 8/7)
Grow: Song of the Evertree ($12.49 from $24.99 until 8/7)
Horace ($5.99 from $14.99 until 8/7)
Indivisible ($7.49 from $29.99 until 8/7)
Journey to the Savage Planet ($8.99 from $29.99 until 8/7)
Madshot ($1.99 from $19.99 until 8/7)
RPG Time: Legend of Wright ($8.99 from $29.99 until 8/7)
Serial Cleaners ($7.49 from $24.99 until 8/7)
Shin-Chan: Summer Vacation ($27.99 from $39.99 until 8/7)
Stasis: Bone Totem ($13.99 from $19.99 until 8/7)
Tales from Candleforth ($7.19 from $11.99 until 8/7)
Terraria ($14.99 from $29.99 until 8/7)
Witch on the Holy Night ($29.99 from $39.99 until 8/7)
That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with a usual Wednesday. That means I might have to conjure up a review to fill things out, but I suppose we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. I’m not quite back to one hundred percent yet, but perhaps by next week my hospital woes will be over for a month or two. I hope you all have a terrific Tuesday, and as always, thanks for reading!