Mitch Vogel

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Dec 22, 2020

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Terry Cavanaugh has done it again with Dicey Dungeons; this is easily one of the best roguelike titles you can currently purchase for the Switch. Loads of gameplay variety, fantastic music, a high skill ceiling and friendly visuals make this a thoroughly gripping and fun experience you won't want to miss out on. If you like roguelikes or card games, we'd highly recommend you pick this up as soon as you can – and even if you don't, we'd still encourage you to check it out regardless.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Dec 15, 2020

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Mercenaries Blaze: Dawn of the Twin Dragons is the tactics game for fans of tactics games. It has an interesting story and a single-minded focus on just delivering a simple and easy to follow SRPG experience that's free of any extraneous plot or gameplay elements. This is its greatest strength, but it's also its greatest weakness. Those of you that need a little more something to go along with the deliberate and measured pace of a tactics game will be left wanting, as Mercenaries Blaze: Dawn of the Twin Dragons is just 'OK' in this regard. We'd give this a recommendation to anybody who's looking for a short and simple SRPG, but would also say that with the caveat that you manage your expectations before jumping in.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Dec 8, 2020

Critic50/100

Agreement—

It's difficult to land on a fitting score for Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon & the Blade of Light. On one hand, historical context is vital and you can't expect too much out of a thirty-year-old game. On the other hand, granting a generous score to a title as fundamentally flawed as this would be dishonest; by modern standards, it's really not a good game anymore. Considering the low cost of entry and the inclusion of new features, we'd say it's probably worth a look for long time Fire Emblem fans who are curious how it all began. If you don't fall into that category, we'd encourage you to look into more modern games for your strategy gaming fix.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Dec 5, 2020

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Star Renegades deserves to be in the conversation of the best games of 2020 that you've never heard of. Like a lot of indies, its primary sales pitch is how it fuses ideas from a bunch of popular and well-respected releases, but it succeeds where many others fail in actually making something inventive and compelling with those borrowed ideas. At its best, Star Renegades is a gorgeous, deep, challenging, and thoroughly gripping release that successfully delivers a fun and enjoyable experience. There are some technical issues that hold it back from perfection, but there's little else here that otherwise feels below par. Star Renegades is a title that absolutely belongs in your Switch library; if you're a fan of roguelites, RPGs, or strategy games, you owe it to yourself to give this one a shot.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Nov 30, 2020

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Even so, it’s clear that Jupiter Corporation has gotten its concept down to a science, and the addictive nature of these puzzles has never been more alluring. We’d give this a recommendation if you’re looking for a solid new puzzle game for your Switch, as the puzzle count and quality of the experience ensure that this is just about the best bang for your buck possible.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Nov 28, 2020

Critic60/100

Agreement—

So, should you buy Ghostrunner? Maybe. This is a punishingly difficult game by most metrics, but those of you who like a worthy challenge will find plenty to love here. Blink-and-you-miss-it gameplay and some light replayability elements make for a title that at least proves itself to be worth the price of admission. That being said, rough performance and some occasionally unbalanced difficulty can make for an experience that's often more frustrating than it is fun. If you have another console which can run Ghostrunner, we'd recommend you pick it up there unless you really want to play this one on the go. Otherwise, this game is worth your time – but perhaps wait for a sale before you rush out to pick it up.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Nov 20, 2020

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Is Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory for you? Well, that depends on a variety of factors. This is a game that's obviously designed as a love letter to longtime fans of the franchise, but it also bears almost no resemblance at all to the gameplay that made the preceding titles such a hit. As a rhythm game, it's a perfectly enjoyable and content-rich entry in the genre, but a substantial amount of its meaning and appeal will be lost on rhythm fans who don't have a background with the previous games. Either way, we think Kingdom Hearts: Melody of Memory is certainly worth your time. What we have here is a fun and engaging rhythm game with potentially hundreds of hours of replayability and a killer setlist of music to back it up.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Nov 2, 2020

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Torchlight III is the sort of game that we can only describe as genre filler. It does absolutely everything that you would expect of an ARPG, and it often does these things extremely well, but it also doesn't do anything particularly interesting or revelatory. Those of you that love a good ARPG will find plenty to love here, then, just don't come into it expecting to be blown away by anything on offer. And while we'd sooner recommend that interested newcomers jump on Diablo III for their first experience, it's pretty tough to go wrong with Torchlight III. Despite some of its shortcomings, Torchlight III is a rewarding experience that we'd say is certainly worth your time.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 31, 2020

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Like a lot of other releases in the Devolver line up, Disc Room is a wonderfully unique release that stands out well on the eShop. That premise of "a shoot 'em up without the shooting" seems silly at first, but very quickly shows itself to be an interesting idea that's taken in plenty of fun directions. Disc Room is tough as nails in all the right ways, and this combined with plenty of secrets, solid accessibility options, and an intriguing premise makes for an experience we can easily recommend. Don't pass this one up, it's definitely worth your time.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 28, 2020

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Oceanhorn 2 is a decent game, albeit one that doesn't do enough to stick out from the crowd. Excellent presentation and a clear understanding of the mechanics underlying the Zelda franchise make for a game that is satisfying and ultimately worth the price of admission. At the same time, however, a slight pervasive shallowness in the various gameplay systems keeps it from ever becoming too engaging of an experience, as it never delves as deep as it could with many of its ideas. We'd give Oceanhorn 2 a light recommendation, but with the caveat that you might want to wait for a sale on this one.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 17, 2020

Critic50/100

Agreement—

It's difficult to score a release such as Ben 10: Power Trip!, as it belongs to a unique class of games that are known for being half-baked and it's primarily marketed towards children. As far as tie-in games go, Ben 10: Power Trip! is pretty decent. The character variety makes for some nicely varied control styles, while the open-world design allows for a strong gameplay loop centred around chasing quest. That said, Ben 10: Power Trip! also has several glaring flaws – like shallow gameplay and poor performance – that really sink its image. If your child happens to be a fan of the show, Ben 10: Power Trip! has enough redeeming qualities to be worth the punt, but we'd advise everyone else to take a pass.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 13, 2020

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Despite minor flaws with presentation and control, UnderHero proves itself to be a rewarding experience that frequently surprises with its ingenuity and writing. This isn't exactly a 'go out and buy it now' kind of gam, but if you like the sound of it, you likely won't be disappointed by the content on offer here. It's not perfect, but a well-paced story, engaging combat system, and beautiful world make UnderHero a game that rarely disappoints, and we'd recommend it to anybody looking for a good 'deep cut' for their Switch library.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 6, 2020

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Castlestorm II is a mixed bag; a combination of some equally intense highs and lows which almost feels worse than if it was simply not a good game. The issue is that it is a good game on a fundamental design level. The integration of several strategy elements alongside the hands-on gameplay makes for a thrilling and fun experience that is truly unlike anything else out there. That level of quality and innovation, however, is hamstrung by frequently poor controls, performance, and presentation which dramatically lowers the pedigree of the experience. Unfortunately, Castlestorm II feels like a step back from its predecessor, as it acquires more new problems than it fixes the old. Even so, we still feel it's worth a light recommendation as a 'buy it on a deep sale' title. There's always a chance that patches will fix up the rough edges, and if you can get past the issues in execution, there's a legitimately great game to experience here.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Sep 29, 2020

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Alwa's Legacy is an excellent example of how to do a proper sequel; it takes everything that the original did well and builds on it, adds in a few new ideas of its own, and corrects the issues that were previously present. It may be a little on the short side, but Alwa's Legacy is the special sort of game that only comes around once in a great while, reminding you of the kind of quality that's possible when a dedicated crew puts in the time to make a polished and tightly designed final product. The best Metroidvania on Switch? That's entirely subjective, of course, but those of you who enjoy the genre owe it to yourselves to give this a try.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Sep 22, 2020

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Though there are plenty of other well-made SRPGs on the Switch today, Othercide does more than enough to differentiate itself from the pack and carve out for itself a unique identity. The striking art style, endlessly punishing gameplay and esoteric storytelling ensure that this one will likely only appeal to longtime fans of the genre, but it's more than worth the effort. Despite the difficulty, Othercide is quite a rewarding experience, and this coupled with its well-built gameplay systems makes for a game that we can confidently state is worth your time. Don't let its frequent struggles in the performance department or its intimidating challenge dissuade you; Othercide deserves a spot in your Switch library.