Nintendo Life

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Mar 27, 2023

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Have a Nice Death may not reinvent the wheel for roguelites, but this is a high-quality new entry in the genre. The brutal difficulty, creative theming, and satisfying combat all combine to make this a memorable and worthwhile experience, even if we wish it had better performance. We'd recommend this to anyone looking for another extremely competent and humorous action roguelite to add to their collection, though with the caveat that you should only take the plunge into this underworld if you feel confident in the sharpness of your skills. There's a lot to love about Have a Nice Death, but as the name suggests, the bony hand of the reaper will be the only one holding yours.

Nintendo Life

Roland Ingram·Mar 24, 2023

Critic80/100

Agreement—

With its encyclopaedia of over 125 fish, Dredge's bounty is a boundless as the sea, its action RPG upgrade compulsion loop as deep. That said, you get out what you put in – during the first couple of hours, anyway. Once you achieve the sweet spot of an upgraded boat, manageable difficulty and a story in full flow, it's magical. The excellent presentation of a terrifying ocean really hits home. The need to stretch the limits of safety to reach your next catch leads to edge-of-the-seat moments, while the slapping rain and eerie creaks of the sound design hardly help you to peace out. Interspersed with confidence-building angling in the sunshine and the fun of slotting oddly shaped creatures into your tight inventory, there's just enough encouragement to keep enjoying the horrors. A wonderful first effort from Black Salt, Dredge is absolutely the kind of game you mount over the mantelpiece rather than throw back into the water.

Nintendo Life

Will Freeman·Mar 23, 2023

Critic80/100

Agreement—

It might not be perfect, but if you have any affection for mecha and anime culture, classic action gaming, or shooters and run 'n' guns, Assault Suits Valken Declassified is very much worth strapping yourself into. The odd quirk aside, it's a very well-thought-through creation, defined by tight controls and movement, tidy level design, and a bounty of ideas. And then there's all those lovely archive materials. Tread carefully, though. This mecha is a beast.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Mar 23, 2023

Critic50/100

Agreement—

It feels like Blade Assault could be a good game with a few more years of focused, iterative development, but what we have today doesn't quite cut it. Its uninspired visuals, chaotic combat, and overall lack of identity all work against it in a popular and overcrowded genre. Though it passably executes on the basic blueprint of an action roguelite and it can be fun to buildcraft around its cast of playable characters, Blade Assault simply doesn't do enough to justify a spot in your library. If you're absolutely fiending for another roguelite and somehow haven't been satisfied by the extensive selection of excellent titles already on Switch, then maybe this is worth a punt.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 23, 2023

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Atelier Ryza 3: Alchemist of the End & the Secret Key ends Ryza's three-game run on a high note, serving up a heady mix of exploration, crafting and combat that benefits greatly from a narrative arc that's had time to develop and grow. The new key mechanics add more depth to combat, synthesis and exploration, the world is more seamless and diverse than ever before and the whole thing comes together to form a satisfying end for this hugely popular protagonist. We did have some issues with small text, no English dub and a little fussiness in how information is relayed, but overall this is Gust's finest adventure to date and a JRPG experience that long-term fans and newcomers alike will find plenty to delight in.

Nintendo Life

Lowell Bell·Mar 22, 2023

Critic80/100

Agreement—

While our hopes for some secret, extra-hard levels or some post-credits challenge were quickly dashed, Storyteller features a small tease of the possibility of more in the future, and after just this short taste, we sincerely hope Benmergui and Annapurna give this clever premise a sequel.

Nintendo Life

Roland Ingram·Mar 16, 2023

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Backbeat stands out among puzzle games for its attractive graphics and constantly pulsing, funky soundscape, but most of all for its impressive depth of mechanics. Juggling phrase lengths, bar markers, alignment, stagger, solos, and special moves – all in interactive levels full of moving parts – is like having a wah-wah pedal hooked up to your brain. Apart from a sometimes-fiddly interface and limited replayability, Ichigoichie has hit all the right notes.

Nintendo Life

Chris Scullion·Mar 15, 2023

Critic70/100

Agreement—

DC's Justice League: Cosmic Chaos is a fun action brawler with a wide enough range of difficulty levels to appeal to both younger players and older superhero fans who aren't above watching funny cartoons. Its technical issues and lack of co-op let it down, but what's there is an entertaining game that'll last you a decent time.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 14, 2023

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon is a delightfully stylish origin tale that sees young Bayo take her first steps on the road to becoming the badass Umbra witch we all know and love. This is a graphically stunning fairy tale with plenty in the way of atmosphere and charm. However, long-term Bayo fans beware, it's also a game that's aimed squarely at a young/casual audience, introducing plenty of fun puzzle and combat mechanics but never really evolving them to a point where they become in any way challenging. Repetition creeps in later in the game and, although it ends with some bombastic sequences and a few nice shoutouts to the main series, it feels like a little more challenge and experimentation in puzzles and combat could have made this one absolutely essential for all ages.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Mar 13, 2023

Critic90/100

Agreement—

If you liked Dead Cells, it's a no-brainer that you must get the Return to Castlevania DLC as soon as possible. It may be brief, but this is a brilliantly intense and nostalgic trip to a spookier world that fits in well with the broader offering of content in the base game. This feels like it's primarily made for Dead Cells fans who also happen to like Castlevania - it's unlikely to convert Castlevania aficionados who don't get on with Motion Twin's roguelite. At any rate, we loved it and it's great to see Castlevania back in video games again. Let's hope that Konami takes notice and opts to give us a full revival soon.

Nintendo Life

Oliver Reynolds·Mar 11, 2023

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo is one of the most surprising games we've experienced in a good while. Its overarching narrative, while initially quite heavy on exposition, is wonderfully told, interweaving the lives of multiple protagonists and tasking the player with progressing their stories in meaningful ways. The puzzles are fantastic, the characters well realised, and the visuals top-notch, making those brief moments of horror and terror exceedingly effective. It's an experience we fully recommend going into with as little information as possible, as this will prove to be an incredibly memorable experience; one that can stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Switch's best visual novels.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 10, 2023

Critic50/100

Agreement—

Mato Anomalies is an ambitious indie attempt to create a Persona-like RPG romp through neo-futuristic Shanghai. There's no shortage of good ideas in the mix here, with flashes of inspiration in the fusing of turn-based dungeon combat, mind-hacking card games and stylish visual novel elements. However, for all the ambition on display, it's let down by uninspired combat, repetitive level design, clunky exploration, frustrating card mechanics and writing that just never manages to engage. This one's not entirely without merit, but overall it's an experience that'll test your patience far more than it manages to entertain.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Mar 10, 2023

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Figment 2 stands as a competent and creative action puzzle game with a lot of heart. Though it feels rather short, it's clear that a lot of thought and care went into making this charming world. Satisfying puzzles and excellent presentation are a big draw here, though they're let down by simplistic combat and undeniably rough, gameplay-affecting performance on Switch. We'll keep our fingers crossed for patches, and we'd still give Figment 2 a recommendation, though you may want to wait for this one to go on sale.

Nintendo Life

Trent Cannon·Mar 9, 2023

Critic70/100

Agreement—

It is difficult to score The Last Spell, because it's a game that does so much so well, from the music to the game balance to charming writing. If you can wrap your head around the counter-intuitive controls - which an eventual patch will hopefully sort out - there is plenty for tactical RPG fans to sink their teeth into. We enjoyed our time with the game, but the hasty feel of the Switch port keeps the game from reaching its full potential, though.

Nintendo Life

Oliver Reynolds·Mar 9, 2023

Critic90/100

Agreement—

All in all, Wave 4 features quite comfortably the best set of tracks so far from the Booster Course Pass, with only one proving to be a bit underwhelming. We’re loving the Tour additions, and Yoshi’s Island is destined to be an all-time great. If Nintendo keeps this up, then we’ll be in a great position for Waves 5 and 6.