I feel like the Neptunia series is mostly about preaching to the choir at this point, and in that capacity Sisters VS Sisters is a decent enough spin-off. The thing is, I’m not sure where to send people who want to get into the series at this point, and Sisters VS Sisters presents an equally awkward entry for such people. It assumes you already have some familiarity with the cast, and the emotional beats and twists heavily depend on that. The battle system is really bland, and I feel that the cut corners which are practically a staple of the franchise at this point are getting harder to ignore as the years pass. I had some fun with Sisters VS Sisters, but I was bored a lot more often than I’d prefer to be.

I think Wild Card Football is a decent starting point towards filling the void left by the long absence of NFL Blitz, but as it stands it doesn’t quite have what it takes to fulfill that role. This Switch version in particular struggles with some technical issues that will hobble anyone looking to take advantage of the online cross-play feature, which is a major problem when so much of the game’s experience rests on that mode. I think you can have a good time here, but you would likely have a better time on another platform. This might be the best football game the Switch has, but that speaks less for this game’s quality and more for the sad state of the genre on the platform.

The more I played Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX, the more I questioned who it’s supposed to be for. It leaves too much of the of-its-time original game intact to be a good choice for new players. It changes too many things that probably should have been left alone to work as a hit of nostalgia. With SEGA’s own fantastic SEGA AGES release of Miracle World available on the Switch for a fraction of the price, this game should have been free to take bigger chances on modernizing the gameplay as much as it updates the presentation. In the end, it’s a weird mid-point that may appeal to some (but not all) hungry Alex Kidd fans and very few others.

Level 22 is a delightful re-creation of some of the best parts of the retro stealth action games. It's mostly a "one and done" affair as there is little reason to return after you've completed it, but odds are you'll spend an entire afternoon playing through it.

While it is easy to be skeptical of free-to-play games like this, especially from a big publisher, Rival Knights winds up being quite the fun game.

If the concept of simply fighting enemies over and over without any interruption whatsoever, Infinity Danger may not be for you. But if you're a shmup addict, there's plenty here to test your mettle, and keep you interested for quite some time. Or at the very least, a perfect excuse to bust out your device and hone your skills.

I am a sucker for ARPG games, and I really was hoping Uprising would be able to evoke some of the feeling I get when playing my favorites. I think with some updates it has the potential to improve but until then Uprising is going to be in the 'miss' column for me.

I have my share of issues with NEOGEO Pocket Color Selection Vol.2. The untranslated games are a bummer. It’s extremely likely that if you’re interested in this, you’ve already bought some of the separately-released games. But as a whole, even counting out a few games for lack of translation or double-dipping, this is still a really strong set of games that show what the road less-traveled looked like on the handheld. The oddball nature of the line-up gives it a strong appeal for those looking for something a little different, warts and all.

With how polarized the reactions on the forums have been regarding the controls, it really seems like Touch Racing Nitro is a game that badly needs a lite version.

In some ways, the sheer depth of Cafeteria Nipponica acts as both a blessing and a curse.

Ultimately, Runaway: A Road Adventure is a beautiful looking, average sounding, and at times, many times, frustrating experience. It's a worthy addition to the collection if you're into the old 'point and click' and it certainly isn't bad… just keep in mind that it has a lot of flaws, some to do with the original design, some to do with the transition to mobile devices.

Overall, that’s the highest kind of compliment you can give for Gold Diggers, a game in a genre that often relies heavily on in-app purchases and cheesy grinding schemes to bring players back. If that’s enough to entice you to try another endless runner, then Gold Diggers has a lot to offer.

Even if it could stand to have more unique features, The Balloons - Endless Floater is worth trying, especially if you've grown tired of the increasingly annoying energy reliant titles.

Delightful to watch and wonderful to listen to, but not terribly interesting to play. It's a handsome exercise in the rote that falls short of what enthusiastic chin-scratching ambitions it may have had.

If you like Touhou Project and can enjoy a relatively mindless action-RPG with rough edges all around, you’re in the best position to appreciate Touhou: New World. Keeping its scope in mind, it’s a decent way to spend a day or two of gaming. Just don’t expect it to get anywhere close to the quality of the games it’s paying homage to. I suppose that’s the nature of many of these Touhou Project spin-offs, but it’s frustrating when it gets as close to being more as this one does.

It has some strong points when it comes to overall presentation and the quick play (you can finish a level in under 10 seconds), but I really missed the ability to tilt my phone to help control PoPo. It just felt like a feature that was missing, and while the game is good without it, it could have been great with it.

Like most Gameloft's titles, it's a small-scale rendition of a bigger console experience that's worth playing for all the collectibles, missions, and upgrades, despite several shortcomings.

The truly unfortunate thing about Warheads is the lack of any kind of online scoring.

If you enjoyed the first Koumajou Remilia game and want another serving of the same, here you go. If you’re a big Touhou fan, this is above average in terms of the spread available on Switch. Perhaps you have happy memories of the original release from back in the day? Well, you might appreciate the few extras that have been added here. For everyone else, this is a very average side-scrolling action game with a very good soundtrack. There are better ways to spend your time and money.

The game's simplicity belies its lasting appeal-the timeless "just one more round" feeling is there with Razor, and it's because of that hook and a few of the game's small but important features that it can burrow its way into your brain and illicit the craving for earning just a few more Razorbucks.

For a few bucks, it's definitely worth it for fans of the characters, but if you're not a fan, you might want to pass unless you're really jonesing for another side-scrolling action game or you want to reward the developer for their pay model.

For just a dollar, Worm Run almost sells itself. Its lightning-on-ice movement speed and motivation to keep on trucking in the form of a gigantic carnivorous beast make for a nice alternative to the droves of autopilot runners available on the App Store.

On a mechanical level, Gunslingers & Zombies does its job. You have several things to consider, such as the range of your weapons, available ammo, the direction from which you are attacking, and whether to use your action points on taking the offensive or to save some for overwatch defense. Nothing you won’t have seen before, but it’s all competently implemented to provide a reasonably satisfying, light tactical experience. If you’re looking for a turn-based tactical Western-themed game on your Switch… well, buy Hard West first. But if you’re looking for a second one? This isn’t bad.

I don’t think Front Mission 2: Remake is a spectacular remake of the original game, but it’s not a bad one either. It’s on the good side of that line. The game itself is very enjoyable for those with the right mindset, though it hasn’t seen any mechanical changes here and feels very much its age as a result. The biggest fly in the ointment is the iffy English localization, which takes a game with an outstanding story and almost mulches its challenging plot. Still, it’s nice to have this game officially available in English at all, and the technical improvements over the original are very much appreciated.

I have to commend Adore for trying something different and largely succeeding with it. Adding action to the monster-catching formula is always a fun twist, and depriving the player of a method of direct attack in an action RPG certainly freshens things up. There’s something really special at the core of this one, but it feels like it just couldn’t carry that spark all the way to the goal. If you’re intrigued by the premise, I can give it a mild recommendation.

Without a doubt, the biggest thing that Star Wars: Cantina has going for it is how successfully it captures that Star Wars charm– from the music to the background art and the notorious characters you encounter– you almost expect Luke and Han to walk through the door next.

It really is a shame about the controls, because otherwise Dark Incursion would be a game worth checking out simply for its somewhat successful implementation of the Metroidvania formula on iOS.

2K12 needs a bit more to hold my attention over significant stretches of time -- I'd love to see some sizzle from anywhere and especially from the action on the court. That said, I'm not sure the point here was to give me thrills; this is a simulation to the bone and all of its struts and constituent parts support its sharp, through pretty strict "action." If anything, this is a good start for a series.

Aesthetically, Evertales is pretty good. It looks great, sounds good, and has some cute cosmetic upgrades for its heroes. Otherwise, it's bland and boring. I've always been pleasantly surprised by these studios in the past. Evertales was a surprise, but it wasn't pleasant.

Overall, Hot Lava is a fun parkour/action game with a lot of potential. Once they fix things like the control design, it’ll become a solid game on Apple Arcade. Until then, Hot Lava remains as a great game for the people with the correct equipment, i.e. a Bluetooth controller. The environment and unique universe will keep you entertained from beginning to end, and thanks to the different starts and collectibles there are, you have a lot of reasons to keep playing this game.

Lunar Lander Beyond is… fine. I wish I could say it’s more than that, or that it has the capacity to do more than preach to the Atari choir, but I don’t think it’s quite there. Some of its attempts to add some complexity to the concept don’t really click, and while the graphics and sound are pretty good, it feels like the core gameplay can’t fully live up to the level of ambition seen in other aspects. Still, if you have the requisite fondness for Atari and/or thrust-based spaceship games, you’ll likely enjoy your time with this well enough.

My Time at Sandrock is an excellent life simulation game that improved on everything in My Time at Portia. It is bigger and better, and the recent updates have made it one I can recommend on Nintendo Switch as well. If you held off on it after hearing how rough things were at launch, you can now grab it. It isn’t as good as My Time at Sandrock on Steam Deck, but it is worth getting for handheld play now.

It’s pretty tough and I love its strange nature, but the gameplay itself can wear thin after a while. Definitely a case of style over substance, but at least that style stands out.

It's fun, it's deep (you've still got all the challenges and your personal records to break even after you've opened everything up), and it's free.

Sketch Nation Shooter is easily recommended simply because it does something no other app can do– it allows you to design competent games and share them with your friends.

Mikado Defenders is a lot of fun.

It's unusual to see such hand-holding near the end of a game. Still, Spacelings kept my interest, right to the final levels, with it's tractor-beaming action.

The one glaring issue with Dawn of Magic is with its translation. From the start, you'll find grammatical issues and a lot of strange sentence choices.

MST3K version is pretty entertaining. The game, however, is not.

There isn't much room left for new match 3s, and Tomb Breaker is bound to have a hard time breaking in. Being less manipulative and more challenging than the competition isn't exactly a winning combo from a financial point of view. It is, however, a great reason to check the game out. If you still have love for this overplayed genre but want to spend a little more time planning than panicking, Tomb Breaker will be worth your while.

Raceline CC is a fun game, and while it does only one thing, it does it quite well.

Trek to Yomi is something I would hesitantly recommend to fans of Kurosawa flicks or those looking for a stylish action game. It plays most of its gameplay cards too early and ends up being rather tedious for such a brief affair, but it’s worth the squeeze, if only barely, to see its various sights. That said, if you have any other options besides the Switch to play it on, I’d suggest doing so there. This is a game that is all about its visual presentation and the compromises the Switch version makes detracts from that.

The controls are passable, but nowhere near the likes of Street Fighter IV Volt, King of Fighters-i, or SoulCalibur on iOS.

It's disappointing that finding and collecting items is really all there is to do in 1000: Find 'Em All! though, as the game world is rich and detailed and screaming for further interaction.

The well-designed puzzles and ability to float objects, all within a physics-based platforming game, with retro pixel-art and a nod to H.G Wells, is a winning combination.

Afterimage is in that zone where nothing is outright horrible about it, but it’s just a little boring and plain. The strongest points in its favor come from just how much of it there is and the great art design. Add in some generally poor image quality, some clumsy interface choices, and the aforementioned lengthy loads and you end up with a game that is a little tough to enthusiastically recommend. This might be worth investigating on another platform if you’re a Metroidvania die-hard, but this Switch version isn’t the game at its best.

Alpha Mission II is hardly a must-have or a must-play, but a decent enough spin for the few bucks it’s selling for. If you enjoy classic shoot-em-ups, you’ll get a few thrills out of this. More importantly, it fits the mobile platform a lot more comfortably than its peers in the Arcade Archives line-up so far. The game plays quite well with the virtual controls, so even if you don’t have access to an external controller you can still have a really good time. If you want to see what these Arcade Archives releases are all about in the best possible light, this is the one to get.

Expectations aside, Dungeon Hearts can be great fun. Just don't let the battle music and cute little heroes convince you you're settling in for an RPG.

Infinite Warrior isn't subtle or deep, it's a game about being being being badass and making it look easy... and a little campy.

I ended up enjoying Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League a lot more than I expected, but it definitely has issues relating to variety and in some technical aspects. I also wish it ran better on Steam Deck. If you enjoyed the likes of Crackdown 3 and Sunset Overdrive, you will find things to like here, but it still is a hard sell at its current asking price. Hopefully the team continues to improve it through updates.

Sticky creates a mixed impression. On one hand, the levels, creatures and power-ups's are varied and creative, the artwork is hand-drawn and the controls are interesting and work really well.

If you're looking for a simple, weapons-based racer with multiplayer and don't care about customizability or excessive replayability, then Mad Wheels may be a title worthy of your attention. If you're looking for a game with more substance and depth, then Death Rally still remains the perennial favorite and recommended title.

Assuming you can handle the grind associated with its difficulty, by all means check out Fury of the Gods as its certainly worth playing.

It's just a shame because Dungeon Hunter 4 does a decent job putting the series back on track to its roots. Unfortunately, the emphasis on freemium elements puts a damper on the improvements made. Seeing how it's free, dungeon crawling fans should definitely check it out. However, the question remains whether or not its worth the investment required to plow through the entire experience.

The main problems in Twelve Minutes are to do with how annoying it gets experiencing the loops after a certain point. Powering through multiple loops and repetition for an amazing story would be fine, but Twelve Minutes falters even in its narrative. The finale and most of the endings here had some very off the rails twists that I didn’t expect. These will make or break your overall experience. This isn’t like Danganronpa V3 either, but genuinely confusing in some ways depending on what ending you get. I’d only recommend playing Twelve Minutes on Nintendo Switch once it gets discounted. This is sadly one of the few Annapurna Interactive games that didn’t blow me away like most of the publisher’s catalog.

Once the camera and movement controls are improved, Wobbledogs Console Edition will be an easier recommendation. Right now, it does a lot right, but falters in some key areas. I’ve enjoyed booting it up as a break from other story-driven games, and hope to see it supported for the near future. Animal Uprising and Auroch Digital have done a good job with this conversion, but some touchscreen support would alleviate a lot of my issues with the camera and controls.

If you have Netflix it doesn’t cost you anything to try the game, and if you’re a fan of the show and somehow aren’t that familiar with chess, I encourage you to give it a shot. Queen’s Gambit Chess will assuredly teach you how to play the game, so if that is what you’re looking for you’re all set. But it will only take you so far, choosing to show you what to do instead of teaching you what to do. Experienced chess players will probably find it a bit unsatisfying overall thanks to the low level of difficulty and excessive handholding. Throw in some fairly serious technical issues in the current version that deeply affects multiplayer and you’ve got a game that struggles to find its own winning move.

Difficulty spikes abound, movement through the world is slow even on horseback, and there’s a lot of cumbersome backtracking that is only made worse by that plodding pace. The voice acting is painfully bad, and that hurts a story that already isn’t the greatest. Bob and weave around all of that, and you may find things to like here. The battle system is excellent, and there is certainly a bit of clunky charm to the game. Promising, but in the end it falls well short of its potential.

Like most MOBAs, The Witcher Battle Arena is free to play, so of course you’re free to check it out on your own accord. However, I just don’t think it’s worth your time at this point.

It's not that it's a thoroughly bad game. In its own right it could have been a decent endless runner, as the visuals are sharp and the concept is sound. Yet it unequivocally fails to earn a place in the Zaxxon canon, and with only one game mode and a greedy in-app store, it struggles to demonstrate its value as a standalone title.

Mighty Switch Force! Hose It Down! isn't a bad game, but between its brevity and lack of interesting ideas, it's not a very good one, either.

Ty the Tasmanian Tiger 4 originally came out eight years ago, and I imagine at the time it might have been nice to see any signs of life from the series. But since we’re this many years down the road without any follow-up, there’s no need to pretend this has any chance of being a Hail Mary that saves Ty and brings us the game we really want. This is a thoroughly average 2D platformer in every sense of the word, and while my mind can conjure up far worse things, I still can’t recommend this with any vigor at all.

There's quite a bit of fun to be had from playing Crazy Taxi: City Rush. It's buried deep under its heavily-monetized metagame, full of energy systems, wait timers, and currency systems, in a way that is extremely labyrinthine, and I wish the energy system wasn't there at all, or at least had a way to buy out of it, but they far from ruin this game.

Homerun Battle 2 has all the elements that made the original such a hit and more. It's fun, it's easy to learn and it'd keep you occupied for a considerable amount of time. Unfortunately, it also exemplifies everything that I dislike about this type of pay model.

Perhaps with updates, Gamevil will add more to Dark Avenger, and bring it up to a competitive level. It’s worthwhile to try because it’s different enough and free, but unless you’re playing on the subway or are bored at work and have nothing better to do, it won’t last you long.

With the advance we've seen from E2D 1 to E2D 2, I think the future looks pretty bright for this game franchise, and there are some areas they could pretty smoothly transition into. In the mean time I'm gonna go back to mashing up some zombies(and boxes).

Don't purchase R.B.I. Baseball 14 expecting a deep simulation, stat tracking or micromanagement. Do expect a terrific arcade style game that is simply fun and can be picked up and played whenever, that stays true to its source.

Back to Bed has a relatively small target audience with decisions that were made to emphasize visuals over gameplay, but for that audience there is a lot of appeal.

I love falling block puzzlers and there are a lot of good aspects to Dr. Fetus’ Mean Meat Machine. It looks good, the controls are responsive, and I respect that it tries something new in the genre. Unfortunately the core gimmick is also what sinks it. It’s too hard to focus on setting up solid combos when you have to deal with all the frustrating traps along the way. Survival often feels like pure luck, and I’m not a fan of that kind of thing in a game like this. Ultimately, I’d just rather play Puyo Puyo.

If you’re looking for an official way to play the NES Felix the Cat, this is certainly the most affordable way to do so. It’s a pricy cart in the aftermarket, so having it widely available again along with its Game Boy counterpart is welcome. The game itself is a pleasing romp, albeit not much more than that. Still, I can’t help but wish there were some extras here. Every game has a story behind its creation, and telling this one would have helped make the package more special. Alas, we just get the game and a couple variants of it in a plain brown bag. Not bad, but it could have been so much better.

Ubisoft dared to leave the rose-tinted glasses at home and made bold changes that prove the Prince of Persia license has lots of life left in it yet.

The gameplay is a little too simplistic for serious gamers, but it can still be fairly entertaining at times.

In the end, Jar on a Bar is a classic case of a puzzler with decent ideas hampered by some implementation choices.

Although it's clear a lot of thought was put into it, TITAN - Escape the Tower ends up being considerably more bitter than sweet, particularly for fans of the original.

While the actual score-attack-centric games are decent enough, I don't see anyone really playing this months, or even weeks down the line.

It’s bizarre that something that looks and reads like it comes from the younger generation comes off so utterly… boomer-ish. I normally get on well with Serenity Forge’s stuff, but this one just didn’t work for me. Maybe you’ll find it more relaxing than I did.

To sum up, I like every game included in this set, but I only truly love a few of them. That’s a problem in that I could just go and buy those few separately and keep twenty bucks in my pocket. I like the Arcade Archives quality, but I can’t help but feel a bit disappointed with how flavorless the package comes across as a whole. It’s ten Arcade Archives games dumped in a box with a simple menu to choose between them. A better selection would make this an easier recommendation, but as is I think it’s only suited for Taito die-hards and those looking for an Arcade Archives sample platter.

The developers promise us new levels in the future (called "Courses, heh), and I have to say I am looking forward to the chance to spend more time with this unique title.

It's still not the prettiest game around, but it's not the ugliest either, and overall Ghosts 'n Goblins Gold Knights II is a huge improvement over the first thanks to the overhauled performance and controls.

iOS games can be made with love and joy, they can be funny and charming. Those are things the Katamari series has had in spades, and it's a shame they're missing here.

In the end, I find Batman: Arkham Origins to be a very frustrating piece of software in multiple ways. Perhaps unfairly, I don't like that even though the hardware is capable of more, we keep getting these increasingly cut-down experiences from Warner Brothers.

While playing, I thought a lot about game design in general, how it empowers us and enforces the notion that we can accomplish greater things if we work hard enough and stick to a given task or dream. I wish this game actually pounded away at this notion.

A simple, arcade-style game that should appeal to a wide variety of high-score fans. It has a surprising amount of production value for a game of its type, most of the objects are animated, the character deaths feature amusing flying people and the shadows from clouds and planes add a nice touch.

It's unfortunate the puzzles in Touch Detective aren't better, because the presentation of the game alone makes it worth checking out.

I've had a good time with Plushed Gold Fever, but on the whole it falls flat.

Gleamer doesn't aim too high, but as a result, it feels very grounded and straightforward, with a unique visual style to boot. You know exactly what you're getting into here, and the precision platforming holds up despite a few design flaws.

A bit like watching a Monty Python marathon where you remember the fish slapping, but not all the weird animations.

If you're snowed in and not completely snowed out on winter sports, it's worth a bit of your time.

The graphics are great, the controls are nice, and there's a lot of content. The problem is that with the way things are set up right now, Flashout 2 feels like a free-to-play game, and not a particularly fair one at that.

This game, like many Warhammer games, gives plenty of signs that there's a huge, interesting universe, it just needs to do more to be welcoming to someone who's curious enough to find out more, but wants some guidance. And the rest of the experience isn't good enough to really justify non-Warhammer fans checking this out.

Ultimately, Redout 2 is a solid futuristic hovercraft racer. It’s fast, challenging, beautiful, and loaded with content. The Switch version dulls some of the visual shine and framerate issues can affect the gameplay, so you’re probably better off playing the game on other platforms unless the portability is a make-or-break feature for you. Given how infrequently we get games of this type that are even a little good, you may want to bite on it despite its technical issues.

It’s not unplayable or anything, and the battle system can sometimes be quite engaging. But it isn’t something I would really recommend to anyone either unless they have a lot of time on their hands and have already exhausted better options.

After its first update, Fashion Dreamer still needs work. While the performance is my biggest problem with it, some design decisions need to be addressed like letting any body type wear any clothes or accessories. I’m going to revisit it through each update, but right now this feels more like what we got in Animal Crossing: Happy Home Designer rather than a true Animal Crossing experience as an example. There’s a lot I like, but this needed more time.

If you can accept its scope, accept that it falls short of its intentions almost as often as it realizes them, there is something in Monark to enjoy. The way it explores the ideas of personality traits and the dangers of excesses can be very intriguing, and the combat can be satisfying for a while. The localization is solid, with some sharp bits of writing here and there. And yes, there is just enough of a whiff of Persona about it that it might at least lightly scratch the itch for more Atlus-ish RPG enjoyment. But one can’t help but wonder what this could have been if the developers had had more resources to play with.

Dream:scape is so close to being amazing that it's hard for me to say this, but the problems just killed what enjoyment I would have otherwise had.

True, the gorgeous visuals certainly warrant consideration (especially on newer iOS hardware), and the battle system is filled with potential, but the controls are a huge black mark on the entire experience.

It’s certainly worth checking out but at this point, I don’t think it has enough for long-term viability.

Despite the aforementioned issues, the art design in Plushed is wonderful, the level design was ultimately fun, and the in-jokes and pop culture references delightful.