Nintendo Life

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Oct 19, 2021

Critic80/100

Agreement—

The Crysis Remastered Trilogy arrives on Switch in a fantastic set of ports that deliver the full-fat super soldier experience with very little in the way of stutters, bugs or other technical failings. If you're picking this one up as a complete set, you've got a ton of excellent shooter action to blaze your way through in a trilogy of games that's aged remarkably well over the years and looks and plays great on Nintendo's hybrid console. Individually, however, things get a little more complicated, with the first two games easy recommendations, whilst number three is a little on the short side and feels rather threadbare without its multiplayer aspects to beef things up.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Oct 19, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Crysis 3 Remastered stealths its way onto Switch in a fantastic port that delivers super solid gameplay and very little in the way of noticeable technical issues. However, with its mutliplayer aspects completely excised, this is now a fairly slim package that ends up being the hardest to recommend of the three Crysis titles available on Nintendo's console, especially if you're considering picking it up as a standalone title. What's here is still top-notch stuff, it's just a little too short-lived.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Oct 19, 2021

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Crysis 2 Remastered is a super solid port of an excellent FPS that looks and plays fantastically well on Switch. Yes, you lose out on multiplayer, but there's still a generous single player campaign to get stuck into here that does a great job of funnelling you through its blockbuster setpieces whilst ensuring you get plenty of opportunity to tool around and experiment with your crazy Nanosuit powers. Crysis 2 may well be the very best entry in Crytek's franchise, and it's absolutely one of the finest shooters currently available on Nintendo's hybrid console.

Nintendo Life

Stuart Gipp·Oct 18, 2021

Critic30/100

Agreement—

Taking a balanced look at Aeon Must Die!, we really struggle to see exactly what anyone could get out of it. It's repetitive, ceaselessly uninteresting and frustrates on a fundamental level. We've certainly played worse games and it deserves credit on some level simply for having so many ideas, but none of them are good - or, at least, none of them are executed with the requisite level of skill that would make them work. It's a shame, because with more refinement, more of a tight clutch and a willingness to throw out what doesn't work, we feel like Aeon Must Die! could be pretty special. As it stands, there's no level on which we can enthusiastically recommend it.

Nintendo Life

Thomas Whitehead·Oct 17, 2021

Critic80/100

Agreement—

By the time the credits roll you'll likely still have some hidden paintings to find, and even if you leave them behind, this is a thoroughly pleasant and satisfying experience on Nintendo's system. With smart puzzles, beautiful presentation and a story full of emotive moments, Inked: A Tale of Love is well worth your time.

Nintendo Life

Kerry Brunskill·Oct 15, 2021

Critic50/100

Agreement—

Cotton 2, Cotton Boomerang and Guardian Force are a lot of fun, and let down not by their age but the quality of these Switch ports. What should’ve been a complete no-brainer purchase for anyone looking for more arcade action is now something to carefully consider first and possibly wait for a sale or a patch. There are many other shmups — retro, arcade, and brand new — on Switch that are all more deserving of your hard-earned money.

Nintendo Life

Kate Gray·Oct 13, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Gang Beasts' charm has always been its janky, unpredictable, chaotic physics brawling, and you'll either be pleased or disappointed to know that it hasn't changed too much since 2014. On Switch, it runs well in Local and Online mode, although the Switch's voice chat options make the latter a less appealing choice. If you're a fan of portable party games, though, this is a classic not to be missed.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 12, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Astria Ascending may not be a flawless release but the solid combat system, spectacular visuals, deep character skill building, and wealth of content make for an experience that JRPG fans will feel right at home with. We'd give this one a recommendation to anybody looking for an original RPG to sink their teeth into; the writing and plot could have done with more development and attention, but there's lots to love about Astria Ascending and we're eagerly anticipating whatever Artisan Studios does next.

Nintendo Life

Kerry Brunskill·Oct 12, 2021

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Whatever the mode, there’s no doubt Gleylancer’s a brilliant 16-bit shmup. The game’s fantastic use of parallax scrolling adds not only speed but excitement to its varied eleven stages; taking you down through icy depths, weaving between small gaps in tight tunnels, slowly looping around a gigantic battleship, or hurtling through an asteroid field. The ways your Movers — the floating gun turrets that follow your ship — can behave are so different from one another they have a direct impact on how you tackle everything from “popcorn” enemies to end of level bosses, and the newfound flexibility of Modern Mode feels like the perfect twist on an already brilliant idea. Gleylancer is as fresh and thrilling as it’s ever been, only now it’s as authentic — or accessible — as you want it to be too.

Nintendo Life

Oliver Reynolds·Oct 11, 2021

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Disco Elysium: The Final Cut is an absolute triumph. The narrative and dialogue, which is already wonderfully compelling on its own, has been given a massive boost thanks to the excellent voice acting introduced for the Final Cut. The gameplay features a host of branching paths for you to explore, and while the slow, methodical approach may turn a few people off, this is nevertheless one of the most well-told stories in any medium from the last few years. The performance issues at the time of writing slightly took the shine off things - and we hope they're ironed out soon via updates - but even with them present, Disco Elysium: The Final Cut stands as one of the best RPGs available on Switch.

Nintendo Life

Mitch Vogel·Oct 10, 2021

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Beast Breaker is the epitome of a hidden gem, and we would highly recommend you give it a shot. Like its main character this game may be small, but it proves to be exceedingly effective at what it sets out to do. Creative, engaging gameplay and a surprising amount of depth combine to make for an experience that may surprise at just how much it hooks you.

Nintendo Life

Oliver Reynolds·Oct 10, 2021

Critic60/100

Agreement—

At just two - three hours in length, A Juggler’s Tale is a lean experience with little fat on the bones (though may still be a tad on the short side for some). Nevertheless, it’s a shame that the developer leant on the same type of puzzle for much of the game, as it makes certain areas feel repetitive as a result. If you’re a fan of games like Limbo and Inside, this is a nice alternative; just don’t go expecting a game of the same calibre or quality.

Nintendo Life

Alex Olney·Oct 9, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is a solid platform fighter with an awful lot of hidden depth, and also an unfortunate lack of polish outside the fighting. If hardcore gameplay is the number one concern you'll have a wealth to sink your teeth into here, but expect to be underwhelmed by various elements that surround it. There's a grand old time to be had, but it's no Super Smash Bros. (damn it yet again).

Nintendo Life

Roland Ingram·Oct 9, 2021

Critic60/100

Agreement—

More sophisticated curation would have made this a genuinely new way to engage with games and gaming: a prompt to see all games in a new light, promote the whole indie game proposition and popularise the appreciation of gaming as – ugh, dare we use the word? – "art". But the star feature is instead just an animated menu. As it stands, Short Games Collection is great if you can bring some inquisitiveness and insight of your own to the table – the games themselves are worth the time – but it's nothing more than the sum of its parts.

Nintendo Life

Damien McFerran·Oct 8, 2021

Critic100/100

Agreement—

Tetris is one of the greatest video games of all time, and Tetris Effect: Connected is perhaps the best iteration of the classic puzzler yet. While this Switch port doesn't offer a great deal over existing versions in terms of features, it delivers the one key ingredient that its rivals cannot: portability. Sure, some will argue that Tetris Effect: Connected's unique brand of synesthesia only really comes alive when played on PSVR or an Oculus Quest headset, but we'd argue quite passionately that this game benefits far more from the ability to pick it up and play whenever, wherever. Just as the Game Boy and Tetris combined to create an irresistible, world-conquering fusion back in 1989, Tetris Effect: Connected has finally found the hardware that allows it to truly shine, making this an utterly essential purchase for all Nintendo Switch owners. Just don't forget those headphones.