Youropa is a special puzzle game that manages to do enough memorable things to keep you interested and invested. Smart puzzle designs make the game a fun challenge to complete, along with clever new abilities you unlock as you play. The big miss here is its painting mechanic, which it describes as an important aspect, but rarely ever uses the feature. Youropa offers plenty of variety to keep you playing throughout its adventure.

Overall, Lone Ruin is a tough twin-stick shooter that hits the spot. The runs are quick and satisfying, with leaderboards and multiple weapons to encourage replay. It looks great and plays smoothly; just don’t get too comfortable because it will all be over soon. Until you play again.

Overall, Herdling is a wonderful adventure. It’s a little rough around the edges in terms of framerates and hit detection, but it presents a unique outing that captures the loneliness of a child and the herd he inherits and protects. If you’re after a sweet journey set among lavish landscapes, this one is worth checking out.

Shuten Order is so all over the place that its eShop listing doesn’t even provide a genre. But don’t take that as a lack of focus; this game knows what it wants to accomplish, and does so effectively. Players seeking a text-heavy adventure with uncomfortable choices to make are in for a wild (albeit occasionally overlong) time.

World War Z is another example of an impressive “I can’t believe they got that on Switch” game. The entire experience is fully fit onto the Switch, with tons of zombies on screen and plenty of action all around. World War Z suffers from being very repetitive and, at times, boring, with a story that is fairly generic and uninteresting. It’s also less fun to play alone than it is to play with friends. That said, if you’re looking for a decent zombie shooter than will technically impress, then World War Z may be your game.

The theme, gameplay, and the excellent visuals in Raji: An Ancient Epic make for a fun session every time you fire it up. The limitations are minimal, and the very few critiques I might have are not major detractors. This is a good game and worth a playthrough.

Overall, it’s another point in click game, with unique puzzles. It lacks anything too special, though, making it hard to recommend for those non-enthusiastic about the genre. If you are a puzzle game fan, and can’t seem to find another alternative, this one is definitely worth a look. That being said, if you aren’t a puzzle game fan, or already have your fill of puzzling action, this game is not for you.

Truth be told, this is an extensive package of quality shmups that are sure to keep genre enthusiasts in a frenzy for hours. That said, there are a million shooters, and this package doesn’t offer anything that hasn’t been done already. Still, Psikyo Shooting Stars Alpha is a more affordable way to get all these games at a lower cost.

Beat-em-ups are a dime a dozen, but 9 Monkeys of Shaolin is at the very least different from many of the other offerings on the Switch. From the complexity of the combat system which offers plenty of potential for variety in gameplay, to the inspired visual presentation, it’s easy to recommend to any fan of the beat-em-up genre.

Earth Defense Force: World Brothers is a good third-person shooter that’s a little on the light side in terms of graphical style and humour, but don’t be fooled – there are many missions to conquer and plenty of characters to unlock as you seek your ultimate team. The fast-paced action should keep you busy for hours.

Cat Cafe Manager is a cafe management sim in which you adopt cats and run your very own store. Serve your customers, build bonds with your regulars, adopt your choice of cats, and just generally enjoy life in a cute and friendly town.

While some of its puzzle flow can be hit-or-miss, The Sundew delivers an entertaining graphic adventure. While I hate to see the sound design miss the mark so badly, genre fans should enjoy pointing and clicking their way through this tale’s surprises.

Overall, Mario and Sonic at the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is the best game in the franchise for newcomers. The game offers an abundance of events and a charming story that’ll give younglings insight into the history of the Olympic Games. If you are looking into becoming a competitive athlete online, then this game will not be for you. However, it is perfect for any get together with friends and/or family, due to the game’s short session mentality.

The Church in the Darkness takes the unsettling approach of realism. It’s convincing as a story of a 1970s cult, and Freedom Town is a chilling look inside an isolated cult in the middle of the jungles of South America.

There’s certainly something to be said for a game that leaves me thinking about it and wanting more. Wind Peaks definitely grew on me. But, reaching the end after playing for just over three hours (and getting all achievements) is a tough pill to swallow for a $14.99 game. I hope the sequel plays it less conservatively.

Curious Expedition 2 is pretty to look at and fun to play for an hour or so. However, any longer than that, the gameplay gets repetitive and dull.

Creepy Tale 2 retains the dark and foreboding style of the original, with a longer story and mostly more intuitive puzzles to solve. If you’re a fan of point-and-click games with horror elements, check it out.

Vagante is a moody RPG/platforming roguelike looks neat, if dark and gloomy, and plays well. It’s not groundbreaking, but there’s enough to keep genre fans busy with the copious amount of items to try out. It’s a little on the tough side, but that’s also the idea.

For those familiar with this long-time simulation/strategy series, Nobunaga’s Ambition: Awakening may feel like a warm welcome home. But as a newcomer, I found the game a confusing mess, and the Switch version frustrated my every attempt to enjoy playing it.

Gordian Quest is an ambitious fantasy RPG that offers a vast campaign, exciting auto-generated maps, and turn-based combat that offers near endless hours of gameplay with its broad selection of battle decks.

Clock Tower: Rewind provides an effectively creepy tale, especially if you’re a fan of 16-bit adventure gaming, throwback puzzle solving, or…David Argento? This “rewind,” however, would need to be more of a “remake” to appeal to most modern gamers.

Kitaria Fables is an incredibly fun RPG that combines the exploration and fighting style of Zelda with the farming and village gameplay of Stardew Valley and the cute animal characters of Animal Crossing. I played this for hours at a time, unable to put it down.

Akane is a delightful twin-stick shooter that focuses primarily on melee combat, and wants the player to use their firearms sparingly. Mix this with the delightful graphics and upgrades, and there is a lot of fun to be had with this game.

Oddworld: Soulstorm – Oddtimized Edition is a darker take that tests the titular Abe in a much bigger quest. The high-quality cinematic style is impressive, and the game plays well overall. It’s less humorous than the original, and lacks that nostalgic factor fans of the ‘90s versions may have. Yet it’s still a challenging and entertaining platformer that will test your patience and prowess.

#DRIVE is a low-key simulation game with pretty backdrops that will relax you but may not keep you entertained for long.

Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion will thrill fans of mech-based combat. There’s no shortage of customization options or enemies to pound down with your optimized loadouts. Those looking for a more narrative adventure, however, may eventually tire of the explore, fight, rejuvenate/optimize loop.

While coming in at the end of the 11th story arc of the show might feel like an odd starting point, the game does a good job with a quick introduction of the characters. While it may leave some questions if you are unfamiliar with the series, it still gives enough information for newcomers to enjoy; Fairy Tale enthusiasts will certainly have no trouble knowing what is going on. Fairy Tale is certainly a solid game on the Nintendo Switch.

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team DX is exactly what you expect it to be: it’s a fun dungeon crawler with a cute art style, all your favourite Pokémon and an overarching message of love and friendship that is generally best suited to younger players.