Roadwarden Review (Switch)

Roadwarden, originally came out on the PC in 2022 and was universally praised for it’s rich story telling and world building. Now, a few years later it has made the jump to the Switch. With the market flooded with Metroidvania and Rogue-like games it’s great to see something a bit different and it’s even better to see something forging a more original path that will actually captivate and engross you. Roadwarden is all these things and more, despite a few performance issues.

The basic premise is that the game is a sort of choose your own adventure, text based, game with some RPG element. You play a new Roadwarden, sent by the merchants’ guild to keep trade moving through a fantasy peninsula filled with monsters and strange happenings. You can pick from a few different variations of your character and then it’s off into the pixel illustrated world to investigate and carry out quests. Your overall goal can be decided on by the player from a host of different options and it’s really up to you to explore where you want over the course of forty days.

The play screen in the game is split into three sections. You get an illustration of your location on the left, the main text description and selectable options in the middle and then access to information about your status and other information on the right. This is navigated by using the Switch control stick or arrow buttons or pressing one of the shortcut buttons. It’s a bit clunky compared to the PC but it does work. We can’t help but feel some kind of virtual mouse cursor may have been a better option though.

Both the illustrations and text set the scene of the harsh fantasy environment well. The text is often lengthy but interesting and there are a normally a host of options to choose from. You can normally even pick from different tones and emotions to use in your replies, all of it adding up to giving the player different paths to follow. This tied to the forty-day time frame means there is a decent amount of replayability here for those who really get into the game and want to play for longer. You certainly can’t do everything or go everywhere in one play through, and the selectable goals also means different priorities are needed for each run.

Once, players leave a location they enter a larger map screen which fills in as they explore. It can feel a bit daunting, but characters are good at giving you information about locations that are in different directions and where you might want to head. This means you are rarely in a situation where you are unsure of where to go or what to do. Instead, the game relies more on a sort of risk versus reward system with the player knowing what’s ahead but also what they stand to gain or lose by doing certain things.

While you are traveling you need to keep an eye on a host of things to keep your character going. There is nourishment, health, tiredness, armour and even appearance which all tie into different aspects of the game and add or remove options if they fall too low. If your appearance is too dishevelled for instance characters are less likely to interact with you, but resting and cleaning takes up precious time which you may not be able to waste.

There are various skill checks and elements of chance you’ll have to face as well. This is very much in the mould of an old school dungeons and dragons RPG, just with a bit more direction. Whenever something which requires ‘chance’ is an option the game will highlight it for you, so you are always have the information you need before making decisions. A well implemented tutorial which pops up naturally as you progress also helps to gently integrate player with the various systems the game runs on.

If there is a criticism it’s that the game runs pretty inconsistently on the Switch, at least in handheld mode. We had a fair few start up crashes when trying to launch and the very first time we played there was even errant code on the screen and an error message about memory. Luckily these disappeared once it seemed to get running but anything that moves is jerky and moving around your options on the play screen comes with a certain amount of lag. It certainly isn’t running in the most optimal way, lets put it that way. Despite this though it remains incredibly engaging and interesting.

Overall, Roadwarden is something both different and rather excellent. The world and atmosphere the game creates with its pixel art and lavish writing really helps to build the feel of a living place. Each interaction is interesting and there is more than enough ‘game’ here to keep people happy who would shy away from other visual novels. It’s closest to something like a digital Fighting Fantasy book, just with more options and systems running. Even with performance issues we really liked it and at the modest price, it’s very easy to recommend.

Overall 8/10

Beat'Em Up Collection Review (Switch)

We love QUByte games here at Retro 101. It’s great when compilations and older releases are brought to new consoles and QUByte have a knack for picking games just outside of the mainstream to do it with. These tend to be less popular releases from the past but it’s great so many hidden gems are given a new life.

This time they are back with a collection of belt scrolling and platform beat’em up games. And it so happens that two of the games on here are two of our favourites from yesteryear. Before we get to that though, there are seven games compiled here in total and most have been released by QUByte is some form before.

The First and Second Samurai have already been released as a duo, as have Iron Commando and Legend. Though releases were very bare bones in terms of quality of life though. This just brings them together in a bigger package and adds proper quality of life features such as rewinds. cheats and a small host of extras such as the original manuals. The screen display has been much better optimised as well with the games adjusted to take up more on-screen space.

We’ll start with the filler, The Second Samurai is an incredibly basic game that really adds nothing to the collection. It is also not a patch on the first game and employs a more arcade style, scrolling beat’em up mechanic. Sword of Sudan is also dreadful. A slow moving, jerky game that most people will play for minutes. It did raise a chuckle that in the trivia for the game it says it wasn’t highly regarded on release for the Mega Drive and there’s a better Amiga version available. Full marks for honesty at least.

The rest of the compilation fairs much better though. The First Samurai is a hugely underrated platform action game. You control a samurai and leap around levels that scroll in all directions looking for bells which help to remove obstacles such as flames or waterfalls then take on an end of level boss. The Amiga version is the best, but we’ll let it go that we have the SNES version here as it’s the one we played when we were younger. It’s been smoothed out nicely as well with the flickering and slowdown present in the original all but gone, add in the quality of life features and this really is a great fun game that more people should play.

There are two solid belt fighters here as well. Gourmet Warriors is bright and colourful and gives you three characters to pick from. It doesn’t have the biggest range of moves but then these games rarely do. Enemies are varied and it runs at a good pace, it also has some unique tricks such as being able to summon a helper character for yourself which conjures a clone that the computer controls to aid you. Iron Commando is a game we have come across before on the Piko 1 collection for the Evercade. It’s also big and bold and creates a good sense of destruction and chaos. We will say though that having the rewind option and the ability to add cheats if required turned it into a far more enjoyable experience as it’s a bit of a tough one.

There’s another game here from the Piko 1 collection as well. The excellent Water Margin. Another belt fighter it’s full of great levels, flashy special moves and diverse characters. It even has some branching routes and different endings based on difficulty settings. It’s a really strong game and one that wasn’t originally localised for the west.

Our favourite game on the collection though is Legend. This a SNES game that we have a lot of fondness for. It’s closest in style to something like Golden Axe or the Capcom Dungeons and Dragons fighting games. But it is a lot more graphically detailed than Sega’s outing and there’s a real weight to all the moves. It’s another game that was very hard back in the day so being able to mess around in it now with the cheats and rewinds as a back up is great. This is especially true as there are a couple of branches you can go down, so saving allows for easier access.

Overall, though there are a couple of poor games here the three excellent ones and two solid tiles are more than enough to justify a purchase for retro fans looking to play something a bit more outside of the mainstream. We bought both Legend and First Samurai when QUByte released them on the Switch before, to have them bundled in with the excellent Water Margin just makes this a no brainer and we hope this generates enough interest to keep these sorts of titles coming.

Overall 8/10

System Shock 2: 25th Anniversary Remaster (Switch)

Long before Bioshock hit consoles, the landmark FPS horror game was System Shock 2. Tied to PC’s until now, it was a title that pushed boundaries and tried to merge multiple genres to create a unique, ambitious and unforgettable experience. Its mix of traditional FPS tropes, character-building elements and creepy atmosphere have gone on to influence many first-person games and push the boundaries of what we can expect.

The story is set upon the stricken starship the ‘Von Braun’. It is here, after some early training, that you awaken to find you have little memory and all hell is breaking lose. You are tasked with trying to get the ship back under control from a seemingly rogue AI with the help of Dr Janice Polito who guides you via radio.

The game may be set out as an FPS, but it is really more of an exploration and adventure game. The ship is a maze of fizzing wires, broken machinery and genetic horrors and it’s often best to explore slowly and carefully. Often, events will happen which helps build the environment through visual storytelling and the soundtrack also does an excellent job of getting you in the right mood.

 The environment is an interesting place to venture through but can be a little samey in terms of how it looks, so the included map is very welcome. Although, even in this remake there are no onscreen checkpoints or guidance beacons. This is very much the original game, just looking somewhat sharper. The same can be said about the controls. Originally designed for a mouse and keyboard set up, the controls are difficult to get used to. As System Shock 2 is far more than a basic FPS it requires a host of menus and pop-up options in order to play. During our time with the game this never became a natural process and quickly swapping between objects and weapons often ended in death with us trapped behind a menu we couldn’t get clear of to fight back.

The reason for this though is the game has depth. The mechanics that make the game unique are the way you can build and customise your character. Throughout the game you can pick up cyber modules that allow you to upgrade various skills such as hacking or combat as well as general strength and endurance. These are few and far between though, so you need to really think about the type of character you want to build. We struggled early on in the game as we hadn’t activated the hacking skill which meant security cameras became a major issue to pass. There’s a host of objects and weapons to pick up as well which then need to be fitted into a resident evil style inventory system box.

Combat really isn’t the games strong point though, with enemies just kind of running at you and then waiting to be hit in return. The constant spawning of enemies when you set off security alarms is also annoying as you’ll be attacked every few seconds by the same generic enemies – rather than it just alerting enemies in the area. They always know where you are as well so you can’t go and hide somewhere to wait out an alarm. You do have options for fighting though, there are no shortage of things to hit and shoot enemies with and the plasmids option gives you a host of other inventive things to play around with such as setting them on fire or using telekinesis to move objects.

Another thing to note is that the game is hard and relentless. The difficulty kicks in pretty much straight away, so getting used to the controls and menu system will have you dying multiple times early on. You can save whenever you want though (which we are pretty sure you couldn’t in the original), and there are also regeneration stations set up where you will respawn upon death. Just be warned if you respawn during a security alert enemies will rush straight to you again.

Overall, it is easy to see why System Shock 2 is held in such high regard in terms of its place in video game history. There is an awful lot here that sets it apart and you can see the influence it has had very clearly. But there ae a few sticking points. The controls are a pain and that may well put some people off as when coupled with the difficulty it can cause frustration and block progress. For fans of the genre, and especially those who love Bioshock this is pretty much essential though. If you spend the time needed to get it to click there is little else out there like it, even now.

Overall 8/10

Neon Noodles Review (switch)

 

It takes a lot to stand out from the ground these days. So, when we heard about a cyberpunk themed, automation game about making noodles it was intriguing enough to to take a look. The Switch has very few of these games so anything that isn’t another Metroidvania or retro themed platformer is welcome.

The plot, like many games with he ‘Cyber Punk’ tag sees you playing a character with no memory, thrust into a world run by shady corporations in a dark and satirical future. We reviewed the excellent Citizen Sleeper 2 and this, weirdly, had much the same premise. The big difference here though is you work for an automated food production company were your task is to set up a production line to create whichever food is required to progress.

The game unfolds with your character going through training and then gradually being allowed to make more and more complex dishes. As the dishes get more complex you get higher security clearance which drives the plot behind the scenes as you learn more about who you are and what has happened to you. Taking on a recipe sees you move into a small, top down, grid. Here you place everything you need to get an automation process going.

Recipes start out simple, with something needing to be cooked then cut. This is done by having a robot, drone or other helper take the food, process it in whichever way is required at the cutting or boiling station and then moving on to the next required element. Soon you’ll have conveyor belts and plating stations, sauces and frying stations all added into the mix. You’ll need to combine items as well, such as coating chopped chicken in lemon before moving it on to be fried or instance.

The difficult does ramp up pretty quickly from the tutorial but you’ll soon find that things that seemed overwhelming will become a logical sequence in your brain as you gradually move through the recipe. The controls also took a fair while to get used to but once we had it worked out we didn’t have any issues. It will undoubtably be a bit simpler with a PC mouse interface though.

Once everything clicked, we found the Neon Noodles to be a creative and addictive puzzle game. It certainly took some patience to get into, but everything works in a logical way and the controls work well, even if it’s easy to still press the wrong button from time to time. There are also lots of things to help the player such as an undo button and being able to move to specific points of a robot’s movement commands to make changes. This means no set up is ever a complete disaster, which is a good thing as you’ll need a lot of tweaks to get everything running smoothly.

Overall, Neon Noodles is an inventive and original game that gets better the more time you invest in it. The recipes get incredibly complex as you progress and it will really stretch players. Once finished you can go back and try and beat your previous scores as well and compare them against other players globally. This proved to be a real surprise and is well worth checking out for those looking for a puzzle game with a difference.

Overall 8/10

Neon Noodles Nintendo Store Link

Preserve Review (Switch)

 

One of the most surprising genres to have sprung up on the Switch is the digital board game. To begin with, we simply had digital versions of games such as Talisman, but now we have started to get games specifically designed from the ground up for consoles. Preserve kind of merges the idea of boardgames and deck building to create a surprisingly deep diversion.

Coming from nowhere, we happened upon a trailer for the game and thinking it looked interesting decided to take a closer look. And we are really glad we did as this is a really lovely game with a sizable amount of content. The basic idea is that you need to build a habitat out of hexagonal shapes. You start with one landmass then as you place upgrades and animals it hits score barriers that then release more cards and more land masses that you can place as you head towards the overall goal of hitting a certain score to complete the level

Scoring works by putting different habitats down and trying to get them to twelve tiles. This then means they can contain three animals. Three of a kind gets you a decent bonus, but three different animals are far better. Of course, you don’t get all the animals you need released to you straight away so if you are going for the really big points you’ll need to be clever and keep things unlocking by scoring points in a different way. There is also a host of special cards and other elements to keep things interesting, but the basic game remains the game.

There are four different biomes to play around in. Continental is the starting point with the basic rule set with the Savanna biome working around rivers and the marine biome working around the ability to raise and lower the sea level. Wisely, a Dinosaur biome has also been included. All four are different enough to need to be played in different ways and add genuine variety.

There ‘s also a puzzle mode for each of the biomes which sets you up with specific land masses and cards. Here you need to try and create placements to hit a certain score and there is normally only a single solution. These start out simple but will soon require a real mastery of the game to understand as you will need to see ahead with near prescience to work out where to place each individual upgrade.

Initially, the controls seemed a bit tricky but after a while the interface became much more natural. We still struggled at times with the marine biome as the changes in elevation on the land can make it tricky to see what is where at times. But there are a host of zooms and swivels you can do to give yourself a decent view.

Overall, Preserve proves to be a charming game that acts as both a relaxing way to pass the time and something deep enough to spend hours ringing the last high score out of. It really draws you in and time will be flashing by before you know it. It comes highly recommended for anyone interested in deck games or those looking for something a little bit different.

Overall 8/10

 

Run ‘N’ Gun: A History of On-Foot Shooters Review

As much as we love the Bitmap Visual Compendium and Box Art books, it’s always nice when one of their more investigative releases appear. In the past we have had a host of great volumes such as The Games That Weren’t, From Antz to Zombies and A Secret History of Mac Gaming, which aimed to make us all instant experts on overlooked areas of video game history. Run ‘N’ Gun : A History of On-Foot Shooters falls more into this latter category as it aims to take us through the origins and thematic of everything running and gunning, while unearthing a fair few overlooked gems along the way.

As we’ve come to expect the cover art for the book looks absolutely gorgeous. Adorned with two sci-fi marines blasting robots, it perfectly captures the feel of classic games in the genre such as Contra. The pages inside are no different with a good mix of screen shots and text. The consistent and thoughtful colour palette used is also well judged to fit the mood while keeping text easily visible.

Contents wise, the book is exhaustive. There are of course too many Run ‘N Gun games for everything to be covered but you are getting over four hundred and ninety-five pages of curated coverage here. This covers pretty much every system from the Atari 2600 to modern day consoles (Or Atari to ZX Spectrum if you want to keep with the alphabet theme).

With such a wide area to cover the author has taken a logical approach to cataloguing all these games. Games are listed by decade with clear section dividing 1980-1989, 1990-1999 and then three more sections dividing up the 2000’s. the book goes right up to 2023 as well so the mix of old and new is excellent and gives a huge insight into the development of the genre.

The writing itself is of an exceptionally high standard. The Book opens with a well-judged preface by Dave Cook and then two contrasting forwards from Keiji Inafune and the team behind Cuphead. Again, mixing the old and new in a logical and interesting way. This then followed by a breakdown of what elements make up the genre and a look at how it developed. From then on, it’s onto the games.

The amount of games present is impressive. Many are spread across two pages, but these inclusions are bolstered by smaller looks at games split into four. This helps give a snapshot of certain decades and years while also focusing on the more iconic and historically important ones. Each decade also has a short summation talking about how the genre work throughout it. To add some variety there are also some looks at sprite work, characters and iconic moments from games as you go through.

Overall, Run ‘N’ Gun A History of On-Foot Shooters is an extensive and great looking highlight of the excellent Bitmap books catalogue. It’s an entertaining read that begs for you to go and start finding all the games to play. It’s definitely up there with the constantly sought after Point and Click and JRPG Books and is pretty much essential for anyone interested in video games.

Click here for store link

Worms Armageddon: Anniversary Edition Review (Switch)

You may be wondering why we are covering Worms: Armageddon now, when it was released last September. But since then it has had a few updates with the most recent adding a nice selection of other Worms games as bonuses to the package. It also fell through the gaps a bit with us on first release so now seems to the perfect to time to get back into throwing explosive sheep around.

There have been a huge amount of Worms games released over the years for pretty much every console and computer you can possibly imagine. Out of all of these though it is widely held that Worms Armageddon is the pinnacle of the 2D, original formula. It’s hard to argue with as well, as the game builds beautifully on the original, adds a few new elements and smooths and levels many of the bumps.

If you’ve never played a Worms game before, you need to know it’s a turn-based game where players use their team of worms to try and destroy the opponents. It developed from the very old artillery games where you had to put in co-ordinates to try and get your tank to shoot your adversary, with scenery and obstacles in the way. The twist here is that you have a whole host of weapons to use from bazookas and shotguns, to exploding sheep and concrete donkeys. You can also manoeuvre your worms around and use ropes and jet packs to traverse terrain.

Once you get the hang of everything the game is incredibly deep and satisfying. It’s also heavily geared towards multiplayer. Armageddon though does a better job of adding single player elements. There are specific missions to undertake and basic training to get you used to all the different weapons. The game would benefit from a wider explanation with regards to what buttons do in terms of general control though. It’ll all soon become second nature though and it’s hard to deny just how much of a classic party experience this is.

Aside from the main game there is a whole host of archive and bonus material here. Since the update you can now play the Megadrive and Super Nintendo versions of the original Worms and the Gameboy Colour version of Armageddon and the Gameboy Advance version of Worms World Party, effectively adding any titles that would have appeared in the Switch Online apps.

In addition to this a historical timeline is also present. This is packed with pictures and interviews about how the game was developed. It’s remarkably well put together as well and mimics the timelines scene in games like the Jeff Minter Collection and other archival ‘interactive’ documentary games. It shows how much care and detail has been put into really making this as definitive as it could be.

Overall, Worms Armageddon remains an essential multiplayer game and a stand out classic. If you have never got on with the series then this isn’t going to change your mind, but for fans looking for a nostalgic buzz that still plays beautifully there is little more that could have been done here to make it better.

Overall 9/10

Chronicles of the Wolf Review (Switch)

The Switch is awash with Metroidvania clones but that doesn’t mean that many of them aren’t both good, and also capable of putting new ideas into the mix. Chronicles of the Wolf falls very much on the Castlevania side of the spectrum and also tries to take influence from one of the more obscure titles in the series in Castlevania 2.

For the uninitiated, Castlevania 2 is the NES game that tried to create a sort of 2D adventure template where Belmont moved around the countryside and visited various towns. It’s not dissimilar to the second Zelda game or the more obscure Battle for Olympus. It was never universally praised but we have always liked it and playing it via the Switch makes the game an awful lot more enjoyable.

Chronicles of the Wolf keeps the template with information coming from villagers that points you in the right direction of areas of interest. There are often buildings or caves which then act as mini levels and give up an object that allows you to progress further after. There are also some light RPG elements with levelling and the ability to acquire and change your gear.

In its homage to Castlevania 2, it is mostly successful. The game looks great, and the music is excellent and varied throughout. The level of detail on the sprites is pretty impressive and there are a host of different enemies even in the early stages. It is incredibly difficult though. Normal enemies can easily take you down and this does add a grinding element to the game at times which is a shame. This is compounded by a sever lack of places to save. There needs to be at least double the amount of saves in the game and they are placed in really strange locations.

What it means is that after defeating a boss or travelling a large distance you will often die and then must repeat too much of the game to be comfortable. There is a fine balance to be struck with save points and here it’s simply a cause of frustration rather than one of challenge.

For a Metroidvania styled game, your progress is actually quite linear. Sometimes there are multiple routes you can go but one will nearly always end in a dead end pretty quickly, so exploring off the beaten track becomes a bit of a chore rather than something players are encouraged to do in order to find new shiny things. Couple this with the fact saves are spaced so far means it can be a costly and unforgiving experience.

The bosses are well designed and exciting battles though, and they are mostly significant in both their size, look and arsenal. They are also fair to deal with so it gives a good sense of achievement when you take one down. You can see the boss’s health bar as well so at least you get an idea of progress when you are repeatedly being killed. Early on you take on a giant hornet type creature who exemplifies the strong design, it looks great, has some varied attacks but also displays clear patterns for players to be able to work around while still being fairly weak.

Overall, Chronicles of the Wolf has a lot of competition in the market but still has a lot going for it. It’s different to a lot of the clones out there (and the official Castlevania games), in that it’s taking Castlevania 2 as it’s core inspiration and it’s clearly had a lot of care put into it. It’s also a different tone to games like Infernax so there really is room for everyone here. If you are a Castlevania fan it offers something a little different and is well worth checking out.

Overall 7/10

Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector Review (Switch)

The first Citizen Sleep was a resounding success, with its space styled cyber punk aesthetic and the mixture of rich storytelling and board game and RPG elements. In fact, it garnered a dedicated following and even had a card game version appearing. It’s not a massive surprise then to see a second game in the series.

There is no direct link to the story of the first game here. Continuity wise it is set a little later in the time period, but new players won’t feel left out if they start here first. To add to this, your character is a malfunctioning android who has no memory of anything either so it’s very much about discovering the world for the first time.

There are a handful of classes to choose from, and you can also upgrade skills and buffs as you get points from completing various missions and objectives. These then add modifiers to your dice or allow you do things like create rerolls or fix them should they become damaged.

The premise is simple, at the start of each cycle (or day) , you get a number of dice that are randomly generated with which to carry out actions. The higher the number of the dice mixed with your affinity for carrying out certain type of task will decide if you are likely to be successful at it. Once, you have used all your dice you can end the cycle and start again with a fresh set.

Of course, things are never that easy and there is normally some kind of cycle timer counting down to a major story event that you need to be aware of. Time is very much essential so resetting a day just because you have bad dice is never really an option. On top of this you need food and need to think about damage caused by stress to your body. There really are a whole host of things keeping you on the edge of anxiety and always watching the clock.

You’ll spend much of your time investigating around space stations or out on salvage operations. The interface is simple, pick the location to move to and then the options of what you can do will show up when you get there. There are options to work or find food, as well as hunt for clues or interact with the population. When you are off the station for salvage missions you need to also think about fuel and the amount of supplies you have with you. These missions are normally perilous as the hulks you try and get salvage from tend to breach and fall apart, just in case you needed yet another time clock to think about.

The initial goal is simply to stay one step ahead of the people chasing you. After that the mystery deepens and you’ll also encounter new characters and crew with their own skills and agendas to deal with. The human interaction element is key to the games philosophy as you will live or die by your network of crew. In this respect it’s important to think about how you are interacting as you’ll want as many options as possible as you venture on your space road trip.

Overall, Citizen Sleep 2 is a beautifully thought out and refined experience. It’s certainly tough but can be progressed through with careful thinking (and there are easier difficulty settings as well). It’s quite unique in its approach to the genre and still manages to stand out from the crowd. If you are looking for an immersive sci-fi adventure with a twist, then this comes highly recommended.

Overall 8/10

Yasha: Legends of the Demon Blade Review (Switch)

We reviewed Hades what feels like a lifetime ago now and remarkably few games of its type have appeared since. We were expecting a wave like the ever-enduring Metroidvania’s but it never came. Maybe that’s because Hades pretty much perfected the formulae or maybe it’s just taken some time for companies to catch on.

Yash: Legends of the Demon Blade does follow the Hades template; all be it in a slightly gentler way than its source material. It changes the ancient Greek setting for that of Japanese mythology, which is presented in some beautifully drawn and constructed environments. This game is certainly big on the looks department.

That isn’t to say there isn’t depth here. The rogue elements are very much in play. There are numerous long-term and short-term buffs and bonuses that can be acquired by defeating enemies or bought at vendors. The range of these is vast and covers simple things such as health boosts to bonuses relating to stacking attacks and general speed and agility. There’s also an element here of quick first time upgrades that soon become much more expensive when looking to expand them further.

Away from upgrades to your character you can also unlock and upgrade a host of different swords. Again, these range from focusing on light or heavy attacks to those that require certain elements to function. There are no weak weapons so it’s all down to personal preference and two can be taken with you on any run. Once within the game temporary buffs can be applied as well, meaning there are a host of combinations you can play around with.

Combat is simple to grasp, with light and heavy attacks, a charge attack and the ability to dodge, parry and counter. These simple commands can be combined and manipulated into something much more devastating though so don’t be fooled into thinking this is a standard hack and slash affair. There is nuance here and you’ll need to get to know what swords work for you if you are going to progress past the first few areas.

One thing that is unusual in this genre is that the levels aren’t randomly generated. Each run sets you against the same environments and enemies with he same bosses at the end. There is only one exit out of each arena type level so things can get repetitive after repeated plays. That said, the longer you play and stronger you become and the quicker you slice through the earlier rounds, and we found we got further we each play through.

The bosses are big and colourful as well and varied in their style. You start out taking on a giant crab, but before long all manor of crazy demons are turning up with each behaving in a unique way. The boss battles really are a highlight and allow you to show off your skills without seemingly being unfair or insurmountable.

Overall, Yasha: Legends of the Demon Blade is a really nice surprise. The Japanese folklore setting lends itself perfectly to this type of game and it looks beautiful most of the time. The action is fast and slick and even the story is passable. It comes highly recommended to both hack and slash fans and those looking for more Hades style action that’s unique enough not to feel like a copy.

Overall 8/10

Sonokuni Review (Switch)

Every now and then you get something that appears out of the blue with little fan fare or hype that proves interesting enough to take a deeper look. A top down biopunk and Japanese mythology based, Hotline Miami, inspired indie game certainly fits the bill.

The Hotline Miami inspiration is obvious in terms of the games look and style. You enter buildings and move through the levels room by room in a series of sort of mini arena sequences. Each room contains a set series of enemies that all need to be approached in different ways to defeat them. This adds a sort of puzzle element as well as there’s normally only one way to get through without dying.

What is helpful is that if a certain enemy kills you too many times, then a video will pop up at your death showing how to deal with them. In terms of your arsenal, you have a spin attack, a deflection shield and the ability to slow down time for brief periods. Some enemies need shots deflected back at them, some need to be hit directly, while others may need to be dodged first or hit within a certain time. Knowing which order to do things is the key as one hit and you die and will need to repeat the room from scratch. The auto save is pretty good though, so you’ll be instantly back in the action without much time passing.

The biggest issue with the game though is the absolute crushing difficulty. Hotline Miami at least allowed some fluidity in how you could take enemies out. The closed arena nature of the rooms here really means it is a case of learning the pattern of each one and then making sure to execute it perfectly. And it does have to be perfect or else you will die and have to start again. This means if you do get stuck in a particular place it can soon start to get repetitive and frustrating quickly.

Some levels have boss fights as well. These tend to end up more like bullet hell shooter sequences where you must alternate between dodging attacks and deflecting and reflecting different colour bullets at the enemy. These are well handled and general walk the line well between challenging and fun.

There’s a good attempt at story telling and lore building as well. There are some great looking comic book style sequences and between levels you can explore a 2D village which acts as a small hub area. Here you can talk to other characters before heading off to the next level for more destruction.

Overall, Sonokuni is a fun attempt at trying to bring something a touch different to the Switch. It’s going to appeal to gamers who want games based on lightning fast reflexes and quick thinking. If the controls and pacing were tightened a little it would be an addictive masterpiece. As it is its good fun but veers more towards frustration than that ‘one more go’ ethos just a little too often.

Overall 7/10

Rendering Ranger Rewind Review (Switch)

The last few months have seen an increase in companies taking obscure retro games, giving them a lick of paint and then re-releasing them back into the world. As a result, we’ve had games that were never likely to appear on the Nintendo Switch Online Service brought back into the light. Rendering Ranger, one of the rarest and most expensive Super Nintendo games is the latest of these and another welcome addition.

Rendering Ranger is a side scrolling platform shooter similar in some ways to Super Contra. It’s not up there in terms of the legendary status but the general running, gunning and jumping are within the same area. There are also certain levels which move into a horizontal shooter where you pilot a ship. There’s also a basic powerup system where your weapons improve through pick ups but that’s about it. It was a simpler time.

Graphically, the game ties into the dystopian sci-fi aesthetic of the time in pretty standard fashion. There’s some cool enemy design and the game runs at about a million miles an hour as well so everything comes together in a slick and fun way. The action is intense and unrelenting, but the controls can be a little lose compared to other games which can lead to frustrating deaths. The game world does seem a bit cramped as well.

The levels themselves are also a little long and often have some repeated elements that verge on outstaying their welcome. There’s only so many times you want to go through the same loop of enemies and obstacles after all. Boss fights are well judged though with them being challenging without them falling into the realms of bullet sponges or being seemingly unfair.

Luckily, there are a fair few quality of life elements added to ease the old school difficulty. You can save and load at any point and there is also a rewind function. The game is fairly forgiving as well so all these combined mean players not used to older games should have a good chance of settling in and having a good time.

If you do die there is also a password system in place so you should be able to keep making progress. There are also a whole host of filter, screen size and border options to play around with and even the unreleased, European, version of the game has been included under the Targa title along with a music player and some museum options.

Overall, Rendering Ranger Rewind does an excellent job of presenting the very best version of the game and giving players the best chance of engaging and enjoying it. The game itself is just below the level of the cast iron classics of the time but is a fast paced and thoroughly enjoyable experience for retro game fans. We can also never get annoyed by companies spending the time to bring these more difficult to get hold of games to a wider audience.

Overall 7/10

Glover Review (Switch)

For a good few years now PQube has been tracking down and acquiring the rights to many cult hits and underappreciated gems across a host of retro platforms. The latest acquisition to be given a new lease of life is Glover, more specifically the N64 version of the game. The game also, impressively, has been released on the Evercade.

Glover follows the model of the standard 3D platformers of the day. You have fairly large, open levels to explore, lots of collectibles and a slightly frustrating camera to fight with. The game has been given a slight graphical overhaul which makes it look good enough on modern displays. The general blur vision of the N64 is long gone, so at least eye strain is kept to a minimum. This does of course make the levels look a bit empty and brown but then that’s just a sign of times.

We were a bit surprised to see that nothing else has really been added here though. There are none of the normal extras you now find on pretty much all retro releases. So, there’s no rewind or filters and most importantly, there’s no quick save feature so you are tied into the game auto saving at checkpoints. This is disappointing as the Switch by its very nature is portable, so quick saves should be standard on pretty much anything.

The controls have been mapped well to the Switch though and the game doesn’t feel particularly awkward. It is arguably even a bit smoother than many of the games on the Switch Online N64 service. This is handy as the game is complex to navigate as you are controlling a giant glove moving a ball around.

A lot of the platforming and puzzles require you to get the ball to various places by batting it, bouncing it or walking on top of it. All these things require practice to get right and early on you’ll likely be frustrated as you watch your ball role away for the hundredth time. When you get used to it though, it allows for a far more original take on the genre than many other games.

Aside from the ball physics, the other main gimmick is that you can switch around what type of ball you are using. You start with a standard beach ball, but you’ll soon get others made of materials that break on impact or that can traverse certain terrains. You’ll need to work things out quickly though because every time a ball bursts you’ll lose a life, and you only have five which seem to degenerate quickly.

Overall, Glover is a perfect example of an interesting but flawed game. The concept is clever and original, but you’ll need to put time into mastering how everything works in order to really appreciate what the game has to offer. It certainly has a charm and if you stick with it, it becomes a rewarding and fun experience. A quick save would have really helped though.

Overall 6/10

I Have No Mouth And I Must Scream Review (Switch)

As point and click adventures go IHNMAIMS is certainly one of the darker and most out there ones. Based on the short story of the same name is follows the story of five humans who are held captive by an artificial intelligence known as AM. AM has destroyed the earth and now keeps the five humans alive for its own sadistic pleasure. They are held immortal and eternally tortured, so far, they have been tormented for 109 years.

The game works in the traditional point and click way. You move around with the Switch left analogue stick and click on items to pick up and things to interact with. There are dialogue trees to work though as well and unlike many point and click games you can die. AIM won’t let you really die though and instead will drop you back at the start of the adventure, so it pays to save often.

However, each of the chapters can be completed in numerous ways with different actions being carried out throughout. Your characters have a spiritual health bar which increases whenever they do something good and decreases when something bad happens. The state of the bar at the end of the level along with the route you have taken to completion results in determining if you have been successful or not (something you won’t know for sure until the final act).

Taking control of each of the five captives in turn, players must solve a mystery relating to each of them. These act as self-contained mini adventures and change dramatically in content. One minute you might be wandering around a fantasy castle making deals with the devil while another adventure is set in a prison camp where horrific experiments are being carried out on the inmates. The one thing that does stay consistent is just how dark it all is though.

There is no humour here and each of the characters must overcome nasty things in order to make it through their section. Everything relates to things in their past and they are certainly not for the faint of heart. One of the characters main aims is to commit suicide so that gives you a hint as to the tone. It’s also very easy to make mistakes which lead you down the darker sides of the adventure. A number of times thing happened that surprised us, or we didn’t even know could be avoided and this can be frustrating.

Frustration is one of the biggest problems with IHNMAIMS. It’s wildly changing frame of reference within the different setups for the adventures made us feel that much of the time we were simply fumbling our way through it instead of having great revelations. Often using items on things when you’re stuck can have a bad effect or bring the story to an end without any warning and when you are intricately trying to get something sorted it’s beyond annoying. In one scene we accidentally clicked on something in the background and our player was immediately dragged back to the hub world by AIM without any warning or chance to abort our action.

Overall, IHNMAIMS is a strange one. The story is excellent, and the dark tone and menacing atmosphere are something you don’t normally find in this type of game. The multiple routes are also good (in theory) and it does a lot right. However, it never really clicked with us. Without the humour it dragged a bit and the fragmented stories of the captives and changes in tone and design didn’t really help this. A lot of time we were solving things without really knowing why we were doing it, and I would be surprised if we dived back in to find the alternative ways through the game. It’s certainly worth playing through once though and one ever point and click fan should at least try.

Overall 7/10

X-Out Resurfaced Review (Switch)

Recently, we have been seeing the Amiga back catalogue brought back to life. The Evercade has had several Amiga carts released and a handful of other games have made it to modern consoles. Now, we have a remake of 30 year old X-Out, a side scrolling shooter in the style of games like R-Type.

X-Out has a few things that try and set it part from other side scrolling shooters. In terms of it’s design it is set under water so everything has an aquatic theme to it. The other key thing is that you have the option to buy your ships and equipment at the start of each level. This creates a unique risk and reward dynamic where you need to decide if buying one super ship is better than having three or four less equipped ones. And it is a key decision because once your last ship is down it’s game over. There are no continues.

On that note, it’s a real surprise that X-Out Resurfaced doesn’t really cater for new gamers in any way despite being rebuilt from the ground up. There are none of the concessions that most retro remakes now have. You can’t save, there is no rewind function, and you can’t alter any settings such as lives or money. While it’s refreshing to see something stick to its roots, it also makes the game crushingly difficult. Your ship has a life bar but will explode instantly on impact with anything so some of your playthroughs may last minutes to begin with.

The fact there’s no continue option or level select is also frustrating. It’s true that each time you play you’ll likely progress a little further, but it can take seconds to lose all your craft and then you are right back to level 1 again. It’s something that seems unnecessary, especially with a game that isn’t always the most fluid to control. A lot of these shooters at least have level trainer options once you reach certain stages, but not here. 

Overall, X-Out Resurfaced is a strong but crushingly difficult game. Fans of games like R-type will feel at home, but the game really needed some options to try and get new players to connect with it. Anything past the first level is a real challenge and it’s likely a lot of players will spend most of their time in the early stages before feeling they can’t progress. While we are glad to see the game on the Switch, is could have been a lot more fun with more options for players to tinker with.

Overall 6/10

 

Beyond Galaxyland Review (Switch)

 

The Switch is packed with RPG’s so it was always going to take something different to standout from the crowd. Most of Square Enix’s back catalogue is here so we are a little surprised to see a fairly low budget indie game step up and give the big boys a run for their money.

Beyond Galaxyland, is a game based on old sci-fi and B movies and has our hero Doug, taken off to the stars in order to save earth. The galaxy he finds himself in is inhabited by not only humans but normal earth animals which have now transformed into walking, talking versions of themselves and an array of other alien life. It’s ok though, as Doug has his newly transformed giant hamster companion to help him through.

Presentation wise, the game is a side scrolling 2.5D affair. You can move in and out of the screen at various points as well to add depth to some of the locations. There are occasional puzzles and sections which require some object placement or basic platforming but it’s mainly about finding your way through the environments.

When you encounter enemies the game switches to a turn-based system not dissimilar to many other games of this genre. You have your basic attack option as well as being able to use special skills, items or summon any of the many creatures you can capture along the way. Combat has a small contextual and timed element to them on attack and defence to keep things a touch more interactive than fully traditional RPG games as well.

The capture mechanic adds a very light pokemon style element where you need to photograph the enemy, then try and entrap them in combat. Once this is done, they bring a special move to the party. Summons can also be levelled up and improved as the game goes on. There are a few other systems in play as well, with a crafting mechanic available for those looking to grind the best equipment.

The game also has an excellent quest and map system. Everything is organised clearly and it’s easy to work out what you are meant to be doing. If you get really stuck, you can have guidance to your next waypoint as well. Occasionally you’ll have some issues working out what level something is on but it isn’t often enough to frustrate for long.

What will likely divide players though is the graphical style used. There’s a heavy, old school, style pixel approach here that can make it hard to identify fine details at times. It’s also just a bit too dark at times, especially in some of the dungeons. Certain areas do look suitably impressive though when the visual clutter clears.

Above everything else though the main thing about Beyond Galaxyland is that it’s incredibly engaging. The characters and dialogue are well written and often humorous, so in your interludes between adventuring you are still keen to push forward and return to continue your adventure after setting the game down.

Overall, Beyond Galaxyland is another indie gem that deserves far more widespread recognition. It may be a touch rough around the edges but there’s so much here that works perfectly it would be remiss of any RPG fan not to give this a go. Those that do will find a fun and rewarding game that gives you hours of planets to explore.

Overall 8/10

The Thing: Remastered Review (Switch)

Of all the remasters of old games we were expecting, The Thing would have been one of our least predicted. Upon release on the PS2 and Xbox it garnered a warm reception from both press and gamers alike with it capturing the tone ands tyle of the John Carpenter’s movie well though so it’s not an unpleasant revisit.

The basic premise is that the game acts as a sequel to the 1982 movie with teams sent in to investigate what has happened at a remote outpost in the Arctic. You lead a team of four people, each of which has different talents such as medic or engineer and move through the facility carrying out various missions. The big gimmick for the time is that you don’t just have to worry about health but also the temperature of the environment and the sanity of your team.

Whenever you are caught outside a temperature gauge will drop. If it reaches zero, then you start to take damage from the extreme cold. On top of this when your teammates encounter weird phenomena they start to react in different ways. Sometimes they will begin to freak out and you’ll need to calm them down. The further in you get the more suspicious they will become when they see strange things and might start accusing other teammates of being infected. It adds a layer of tension to what is already a tight survival horror experience and it’s something different from most other games in the genre.

The Thing was never the best-looking game to begin with so it’s fair to say you are going to have to either forgive or get used to the look of it now. The textures have been cleaned up a bit but the game is pretty barren in terms of colour palette and much of the time you are in a snowstorm, the dark or a fairly generic looking polar base. It doesn’t really matter though as it matches the look of its source material and adds to the creepiness of the whole thing.

While fun and trying new things, the game always had a fair few flaws. The controls are somewhat awkward at best and when this is combined with the tight spaces it can make combat more frustrating than it needs to be. This is of course a trope of survival horror, but it doesn’t quite work as intended. Also, your squad AI is generally rubbish. A lot of the time you’ll just end up leaving them somewhere and trying to move forward on your own. It’s a nice idea which adds the suspicion element but if they were just a touch less annoying it would be much welcomed. The first time one of them mutates into a horrific monster you’ll still likely jump though.

There are other quality of life issues we would have loved to have seen added as well. A map or radar of some kind would have been most welcome. Even in mission one we had issues working out where we needed to go near the end to plant C4 charges. This isn’t helped buy the dim lighting and we must have spent over an hour looking for one of the bomb plant points as it was barely visible. The game also descends into to a bit of a meat grinder blastathon by the end as well, changing too much from the creeping dread of the early levels.

Overall, The Thing is an interesting game that works well enough to still be fun for survival horror fans. It does get a bit repetitive but remains one of the most original takes on the genre. It does the 1982 movie a good service as well so fans of that will find much to enjoy here. We would like to see a few more quality of life adjustments in future releases though. There’s nothing wrong with map after all.

Overall 7/10

 

Tetris Forever Review (Switch)

Digital Eclipse are back again with another one of their interactive documentaries, this time covering everyone’s favourite block stacking puzzle game. We’ve covered both their Jeff Minter and Karateka retrospectives before and found them to be informative and well worth looking at.

The mix of detailed documents and interviews mixed with selections of games is an enticing mix and when done well lifts these collections above some of the money grab compilations out there. It’s always trickier when collections surround one particular game though as you are effectively going to get multiple versions of the same thing, as is the case here, although there is more variation than you may be expecting.

Before we get on to that, it’s worth saying that if you are a fan of Tetris and want to know about its history then this has been expertly put together and curated. It follows in great detail the intriguing story that had people rushing around Moscow trying to get hold of the rights. A story so compelling it was turned into a half decent film. There’s also a lorry load of documents and interviews that cover pretty much every aspect of Tetris up to about 1999.

While the history is complete, it does show up some of the gaps in the game library. There always going to be rights issues and limits to what is possible when it comes to these documentary style compilations and unfortunately there was no way that Nintendo was ever going to release the rights to Tetris on the NES or Gameboy. This is of course problematic as the Gameboy version in particular is the one most closely associated with the franchise and the global conquering success that is had. All the information about it is present, but the game itself is nowhere to be seen. Nintendo has since released both the NES and Gameboy versions on its own Online service so at least they are out there somewhere.

If that doesn’t put you off though you get a sizable catalogue of block rotating action. There are 19 games in total, and they aren’t all Tetris in its traditional sense. You get a host of different versions of the classic title ranging from the Electronika 60 up to Super Tetris 3 on the Super Famicom. Along with this there are versions of the various spinoffs such as Hatris, Welltris, Bombliss and the Battle Gaiden versions. All of which have their own appeal and work the format well.

Exclusive to this collection is a new version of the game called Tetris: Time Warp which is a fun take which occasional throws in random versions of retro Tetris games into the mix as you are playing, allowing players to earn bonus points. It works very well and while it’s probably not worth buying the whole collection for, it certainly is a very good and welcome addition to the collection that takes the sting out of some of the key versions being missing.

Overall, whether you need to get this collection rests on a couple of key things. That being, how bothered are you going to be that the most iconic versions of the game aren’t here, how much you care about the Tetris story and how much a new version of the game excites you. It’s enough for us to recommend it though as the whole package is so well put together.

Overall 8/10

Taito Collection 3 Review (Switch)

 

The first two Taito Milestones collection were a bit of a mixed bag. The first collection had ten games on it but lacked for the price that was being asked. The second collection fared better, having The New Zealand Story and a unique version of Darius 2 on it. While still limited to ten games, the third collection is arguably the strongest set of games so far.

Before we get into what’s on here it’s important to say that you now get all the expected game-based bells and whistles retro collections have started to accumulate. Save states, display settings, the ability to tweak in game options and online rankings are all here along with in game manuals. There isn’t much in the way of museum or archive material though.

Headlining this collection are the classics of Bubble Bobble and Rainbow Islands. Both are highly regarded arcade games that you’ll no doubt have heard of. They both play as excellently as you remember as well with their different takes on platforming still feeling fresh and fun, while also influencing so much that came after them. 

The Rastan games are also here.  The impressive Conan the Barbarian inspired sprites still hold up and the arcade style hack and slash will keep you playing longer than most arcade games have a right to. The second game is even more visually impressive with some excellent set pieces and huge graphics, but it lacks in terms of how it plays and will likely be skipped over after the initial wow factor has warn off.

The rare, third game in the Rastan Saga has also been included. Warrior Blade is Taito’s attempt at producing something like Golden Axe. It’s not been the easiest game to get hold of so it’s nice to see it here and it does a good job at creating a swords and sorcery hack and slash game. It has a pretty wide range of moves as well and three different characters to pick from so if you get tired of just hammering the attack button there are options to mix things up.

Championship Wrestling is an interesting choice, it’s a relatively fun take on the sport which looks great but lacks a few moves. It runs at a decent speed and all the different characters are visually different. They also have a few unique moves between them. As there’s a real lack of decent wrestling games on the Switch it could gain a bit of a cult following. It’s certainly fun in small bursts.

RPG/ Hack and Slash crossover Cadash has made the cut as well. You start by picking from one of four characters and then must press on against the clock in a side on adventure. Occasionally you’ll level up and have to continually find gold. It’s not a game that has aged massively well and will likely just become a curio as players look for something a bit easier to deal with. The same can be said for Runark (otherwise known as Growl), which is a fairly average belt fighter with a few cool elements and an interesting theme.

Luckily, Thunder Fox is much more interesting. It plays like a sort of cross between an updated version of Rush ‘n’ Attack and the arcade version of Shinobi. Levels are varied and it’s responsive and good fun. It has the basic structure of walking through levels and hitting enemies but the bosses are decent and occasionally you get to drive vehicles and blast things in jets. As an arcade experience it works well.

The collection is rounded off with Dead Connection a cool action game set across a single screen where you break into gangsters’ dens and shoot everyone. Levels are set up like a club or a restaurant and you must eliminate a certain number of targets to progress. Much of the environment is destructible and interactive as well which adds to the chaos. It’s a continual good time and a much-welcomed addition.

Overall, The third Taito collection is the strongest in terms of overall selection of games yet. There’s a good mix of well recognised titles and curios and most of them are at least fun to play in small amounts. There are of course always things we would have liked to see added. In this instance we would have loved to have more of the Bubble Bobble games on here, Bubble Symphony seems to never want to come out on anything again. The price may still be too much for some but in terms of quality you can’t really argue.

Overall 8/10

Irem Collection Volume 2 Review (Switch)

Irem’s rollout of it’s older Ip is certainly taking its time. The Switch is now home to a huge array of retro games and compilations but much of it has been released on other platforms before. Irem seems to be taking a different approach, and while their collections are small, they are also games that haven’t been released as often. They are also seemingly trying to avoid an overlap with their Evercade releases so there’s a focus on more original content.

As a result, we haven’t seen collections of games such as R-Type or Midnight Resistance but more obscure arcade releases. The original collection contained Image Fight, Image Fight 2 and X Multiply, and now we have Air Duel, GunForce and GunForce II. Like before, different versions of the games have been included. The SNES and Arcade versions of Gunforce are here (along with regional variants), GunForce II has it’s Geo Storm variant and the Japanese version of Air Duel rounds out the collection.

Air Duel is a vertical scrolling shooter in the same sort of vein as Capcom’s 1940 series. You control a plane or a helicopter and take on a variety of futuristic military enemies. There’s a fairly standard power up system which increases the power of your main gun, and you also have your smart bombs. The helicopter handles slightly differently, allowing the player to pivot their fire from side to side which is a nice touch. In general, this is a great fun classic example of the genre, even if it lacks some of the innovation of modern releases.

You get both the console and arcade versions of GunForce. Unfortunately, the SNES/Famicom version of the game isn’t a patch on the arcade. It’s nice to have it here for completionist sake but it merely tries to mimic the arcade experience without adding anything new to the mix. As a result, you are much better sticking with the arcade experience. The game is a side scrolling shooter which sits somewhere between Conta and Metal Slug. It’s a tiny bit slow but the action is fun and frenetic and there’s a wide range of powerups and vehicles to play around with and huge bosses to take down.

GunForce 2 ramps up the speed and firepower considerably. It makes the game have much more of a full-on Metal Slug feel than the original. It’s also much more over the top with your character carrying two guns and a faster, more streamlined approach to the sprite work and level design. It’s an excellent game and one any fans of scrolling shooters should go out of their way to play.

As is standard now, all the games come with save states, rewind features and options to remap and change the controls. There’s also auto fire options and you can play the games in casual or classic mode which limits certain options or allows access to online leaderboards. It is a shame though that the games don’t have any real sort of archive or museum material.

Overall, Irem Collection Volume 2 has three excellent games on it that are all individually worth playing. There’s still an issue regarding the price, and of course there could and probably should be more games in each volume, especially compared to what’s out there from other companies. But what’s here is good and presented well. If that’s enough then you shouldn’t hesitate to dive in.

Overall 8/10