Mitch Vogel

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Dec 24, 2025

Critic90/100

Agreement—

The Rogue Prince of Persia stands as both an excellent and innovative entry in the long-running series and a worthy follow-up to the developer's previous work. The smooth action, gorgeous visuals, and addictive loop all come together to make for the kind of game that's tough to put down.Though skilled players may be a bit put off by the easier difficulty relative to roguelite genre standards, this is still a very easy recommendation for anyone interested in a more approachable roguelite that doesn't have a massive learning curve. Evil Empire has done a great job in crafting an impressive, approachable action game here.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Dec 11, 2025

Critic80/100

Agreement—

All told, I’d say that this version is certainly worth the punt if you’re invested in playing this on Nintendo platforms - the Switch 2 Edition fixes the issues that were holding this game back from being truly great. Unfortunately, owners of just the Nintendo Switch won’t benefit from these optimisation improvements, but if you already own this game and have a Switch 2, the $10 upgrade feels like a reasonable price to pay for such a notable leap over the old version. I’d suggest picking this up, if only to experience what a great kart racer not made by Nintendo can be like.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Dec 3, 2025

Critic90/100

Agreement—

In many ways, Octopath Traveler 0 feels like a 'victory lap' for the beloved series, remixing various elements that you're familiar with from the past games while introducing some interesting new ones to spice things up a bit. Importantly, this prequel does not feel like a proper Octopath Traveler 3, but that doesn't mean that it isn't still an incredibly good time and a much better JRPG than most genre peers.Even if it's a retread in some ways, though, an absolutely monstrous amount of content, interesting new gameplay elements, gorgeous visuals, and compelling storytelling all come together to make Octopath Traveler 0 a must-buy.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Nov 11, 2025

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Goodnight Universe is an enjoyable and quirky narrative adventure game that feels like a satisfying follow-up to the deeply emotional experience of Before Your Eyes. Isaac's supernatural adventures are as entertaining as they are heartwarming, and though it isn't terribly long, it makes full use of every moment.The only major drawback here is that the Switch 2 doesn't support the eye and face tracking control style of the PC version at launch, which notably does take away somewhat from the core experience. All the same, I'd suggest you pick up Goodnight Universe if this one has already caught your eye. It provides a memorable narrative journey and is the sort of game that you'll still be thinking about long after putting it down.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Nov 5, 2025

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Double Dragon Revive is the sort of game that's just damningly mediocre. It doesn't fumble the ball too hard in any significant way, but neither does it really excel at offering a fun and engaging beat 'em up. Interesting gameplay ideas are held back by uneven execution, and the uninspired graphical style kind of takes some getting used to.This will have its fans, and it's worth purchasing on a deep sale someday, but it's definitely nowhere close to the list of games I'd recommend to someone wanting to expand their beat-'em-up collection. Perhaps Billy and Jimmy will wow us with their inevitable next outing, but this one is just 'alright'.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 29, 2025

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake is a deeply satisfying follow-up to last year's remake project, closing out the Erdrick trilogy on a fittingly high note. A gorgeous art style, tons of new content and quality-of-life updates, and a wonderful soundtrack all combine to make this one an easy recommendation for any retro JRPG fans.If you're interested in RPGs, I'd suggest you pick this up at your earliest opportunity. These games stand as excellent reminders of why Dragon Quest is so highly respected today.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 8, 2025

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Yooka-Replaylee, in most ways, feels like the game that Yooka-Laylee was always meant to be. The core experience has remained the same, but much has been added or tweaked to make for a significantly more confident and streamlined experience.Though the technical issues hold it back a bit, at least on Switch 2 at launch, this is still a clear improvement over the original and a game that no fan of the 3D platforming genre should miss out on. Even if you played the original to completion, I'd say Yooka-Replaylee is still very much worth your time and money.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Aug 26, 2025

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution is an interesting 'new' entry in the beloved indie franchise, a curious fusion of old and new design philosophies. Its creative world-cycling gameplay mechanic, sharp 32-bit visuals, densely packed overworld, and charming narrative all come together to make for a worthwhile experience, even if some more outdated elements like the lack of a map hold it back.I'd recommend this both to series veterans and to newcomers-even if this isn't Shantae at her greatest, Risky Revolution is a solid adventure.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Jul 24, 2025

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Wild Hearts S is a satisfying, if unspectacular, addition to the Switch 2's early library. The monster hunting and equipment building is just as rewarding and addictive as you would hope, and there's tons of replayability here whether you're playing solo or with friends.That being said, the technical performance is just okay, while the lack of any significant content additions to this re-release feels like a missed opportunity, especially if you previously played this on other platforms. I'd still give Wild Hearts a recommendation, as its blemishes don't ultimately take too much away from its many strengths, but perhaps this is one to wait for a sale.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Jul 22, 2025

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition is a decent port of a decent game. The branching dialogue options, deep character customization, and wealth of content to discover make this an appealing offer to CRPG fans, but the occasional glitches and overall jankiness prevent it from becoming an all-time great or an easy recommendation for anyone. If you were a big fan of this back in the day, I'd say this is certainly worth picking up just to see it a little more polished up, but if you're a newcomer, I think it might be better to wait for a modest sale before taking the plunge.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Jul 9, 2025

Critic30/100

Agreement—

Tamagotchi Plaza is a dull, vapid, and utterly unsatisfying minigame collection that rapidly overstays its welcome. Though charming and visually competent, the underlying gameplay is undercooked, unrewarding, and shallow with its 'free mobile game'-like design.There may be a valid case here for playing with very young children for some very light and simple entertainment, but even then, the price tag is comically high for the shallowness and quantity of content you're getting. I'd suggest you steer clear; it's worth neither your time nor your money.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Jun 18, 2025

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army is a wonderful retread of a forgotten classic, smartly polishing up its best parts and modifying its worst parts to make for an overall more enjoyable experience. Though the visuals are just 'okay' and the detective gameplay can be a bit plain, the action-packed combat, reworked demon fusion, and interesting story all come together to make for a gripping adventure.I'd recommend you pick this one up if you're curious and you think it may be up your alley. I've never played anything quite like Raidou, and it offers a very unique take not just on the standard SMT formula, but action RPGs on the whole.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Jun 4, 2025

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo is a masterclass in retro Zelda-like game design, expertly fusing classic mechanics with creative new ideas to make for a thoroughly memorable and worthwhile experience. Occasional difficulty spikes aside, we'd highly recommend you pick up Pipistrello at the next available opportunity, especially if you're a Zelda fan who prefers the top-down design of games such as The Minish Cap. Much like its title character, this one has a lot of cool tricks up its sleeve.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·May 21, 2025

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Labyrinth of the Demon King does a great job of providing an authentic action-horror, dungeon-crawling experience that feels like it's straight out of 1997 in all the best ways. The eerie, lo-fi visuals, punishing combat, and disorienting dungeon layouts all combine to make for a maze worth solving. We'd give this one a strong recommendation to any fans of Soulslike games who want to try something with similar traits, but that also feels different in some key ways. This is a great experience if you're willing to stick it out and learn its intricacies.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Mar 14, 2025

Critic70/100

Agreement—

In most respects, Atelier Yumia is an impressively ambitious and strong new entry for the long-running series, blazing a trail to parts unknown much like its titular protagonist. Things like the darker story, action-heavy combat, and increased focus on exploration gameplay all work well in its favor. The only major complaint is that this was clearly designed with much stronger hardware than the Switch in mind, and while its performance here is just about acceptable, it's very far from ideal. At any rate, we'd give this one a recommendation not only to long-time Atelier veterans, but also to fans of other vast JRPG adventures such as the Xenoblade series. Atelier Yumia is a bold step forward for this franchise, and it stands as a strong indication that the Atelier series has a lot of life left in it yet.