This game just needs a bit more to step above and beyond the competition.

In a lot of ways, playing Open Roads felt like I just experienced a bigger budget and more ambitious take on Gone Home that forgot what made me love that game in the first place. I wish the narrative struck the same chord with me, but it just felt haphazard in some areas. I don’t want to be too harsh on the game because I did like many things and enjoyed the overall experience, but it made me wish for more after all these years.

This isn't a game for the control freak, or for anyone looking for a truly deep experience, but for a nice, light death or two? Load it on up, and see how far it takes you.

As much as I liked Puzzle Dungeons, I can't help but wonder what it would have been like if it had been fleshed out a little more. The core is solid and can be a good time, but I think some story and the ability to share could have taken a good game and made it great.

With a decent quantity of levels and pretty tough difficulty curve, I had an enjoyable time with Tiny Empire. It’s probably not going to reach the high approachability or even enjoyability levels as an Angry Birds, but it’s good within its niche.

Beat da Beat doesn't break any conventions, though it does attempt some rather neat things with its musical focus. While I would have preferred a full-on Bit.trip-esque commitment to the rhythm aspect, most shooter fans will find a lot to like here.

Fans of Magical Drop will likely be satisfied with what Magical Drop VI offers, especially after what happened last time. That being said, I think more casual players can probably get their itch scratched more efficiently by grabbing the Arcade Archives release of Magical Drop III or popping in on the Super NES Switch Online app to play Magical Drop II. This is a good effort and it’s an impressive effort in many regards, but I can’t help but feel that in the attempt to add more things to do, the developers may have packed in too many things you have to do. Still, the core gameplay is done properly here, and that’s really what matters at the end of the day.

There's much to like about MixZle, and at a buck for a heaping biggie-sized helping of levels, the value proposition cannot be denied. It's not going to set the world on fire, but it's a smartly executed twist on a well-worn genre.

In its current state, Krimson desperately needs some accessibility options when it comes to the screen shake effect. I love the gameplay, level design, aesthetic, and music, but the aforementioned screen shake and clarity issues in some situations hold it back from being an easy recommendation. It also suffers from noticeable input lag and some unstable performance on Switch. I hope these can be addressed because Krimson deserves better. Right now, I’d recommend trying the demo on Steam to get a taste of the game before buying it.

Chrono&Cash is still a good time on its own, don't get me wrong. If you've played Super Crate Box and Spellsword and you still want more, this game makes for a refreshing (if minor) change of pace.

Broken Roads has improved quite a bit since I played it in early April, but still needs a bit more work to be an easy recommendation. In its current state, I can recommend it, but it is a few updates away from being something special. It definitely needs a demo because I can’t imagine many people will give it a shot at its current asking price given the launch reception.

While Sketch Breaker is colorful and charming, I wish it was more of a premium experience.

The Last Hero of Nostalgaia is an impressive take on Dark Souls, and one of the best you can find on the Switch. It suffers from some unfortunate technical issues that keep it from being a must-have, something I suspect Switch owners are getting accustomed to by this point in the console’s life. While I would push prospective buyers to pick it up on a platform with more power, those without other options or who prefer their Switch might still want to go for it. Proceed with caution, but it’s at least worth considering despite its issues.

If you love challenging puzzles, some of which feel like you need to be reading the developer’s brain to figure out, you’ll have a field day here. But I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t frustrating sometimes. Hidden breakable walls become so hard to spot that you start whacking every surface you come across. Logical leaps that probably made sense to someone during development but don’t work out so well for a player trying to figure things out. It can be utterly exasperating. But I still kept on playing it until I reached the end, which I think speaks to the underlying appeal of this game.

Overall, Voyageur is an ambitious attempt at a procedurally generated sci-fi interactive fiction whose lengthy playthroughs end up hurting it rather than helping it. There's plenty to explore and plenty to do, so it's worth at least one trip down the galaxy; unfortunately, you might not feel like going through it again after it's done.

The Switch and PS5 versions of Bright Memory: Infinite ship with the cosmetic DLC included from the start, which definitely helps compared to the PC version that has them sold separately, but it is worth keeping in mind that you should expect about 2 hours for the campaign here and a story that isn’t really anything special. If that is ok with you, Bright Memory: Infinite is an impressive release for a one-man studio with its visuals and fun combat. It might be worth waiting on a discount, but if you’ve wanted something to satiate your desire for a new short FPS on Switch, Bright Memory: Infinite will give you that.

In many ways, this game is as generic as its protagonist. But much like how a bag of no-name potato chips still gives you your salty hit, this game will scratch the platforming itch for an evening or two. The difficulty ramps up relatively quickly though, so if you’re looking for something chill this probably isn’t it. Unless you feel chill through tension, in which case you won’t go wrong here.

Even with its flaws, Within the Blade is a solid 2D stealth game that pays homage to classic ninja games while also doing a bit more towards the actual concept than most of those past hits ever attempted to. The pixel art looks slick, the mechanics are enjoyable to learn, and the overall game is a really good time. While the stages can get a little dull in their layouts and the story doesn’t really go anywhere interesting, the moment-to-moment action makes this one well-worth picking up for ninja fans looking for their next shadow dancing partner.

I’m glad that Maquette finally hit the Switch, but it needed a bit more optimization work. I usually prefer playing shorter one and done games on portables, and Maquette would’ve been a perfect game to recommend on Switch without caveats if it didn’t suffer from technical issues. In its current state, Maquette is a game I recommend playing, but be prepared for technical issues on Switch. It isn’t perfect on PS5 either, but the issues are more prominent here.

Look, I know at least some of the people reading this share my odd affection for KEMCO and its games. If that’s you, you’ll want to check out Raging Bytes. It’s different from the norm for the publisher, and it’s competently done. Nothing about it is going to bowl anyone over, but it’s quirky, self-aware, and fairly enjoyable. That’s two KEMCO games now with ‘Raging‘ in the title that are different and better than the usual. Might be something to it.

If you are looking for an additional platformer to add to your collection or a game you can play with one hand while standing in line, Almost There will fit that role nicely.

When you get the conditions just right, Make Way is a lot of fun. It’s not something you want to spend hours on at a time, and you’ll want to have some local players to play with because online is a bit of a ghost town at the moment. You’ll also want to play the game a bit on your own before you pull it out at a party so that you’ll at least have weapons, power-ups, and some of the more fun track pieces unlocked. But if you’re okay with all of that, Make Way makes for a pleasant choice to keep in the regular party night rotation.

Road 96: Mile 0 is best taken as a prequel to Road 96 than a sequel to Lost in Harmony, but it’s interesting to see these worlds connect and find out what came after and before the last time we saw its main characters. Performance issues and a clumsy user interface really hurt this Switch version’s playability, dragging the experience down somewhat. This is a trip worth taking, but the Switch may not be the best car for this road.

It combines a simple, yet enjoyable gameplay experience with longevity features such as achievements, Game Center and OpenFeint support, and a fair amount of difficulties and game modes. Sure, the gameplay is a bit basic, but what it does offer is executed well.

If you've ever played a frantic cartoony platformer like Wild 9, or any other similarly classic PlayStation One game, you'll enjoy Space Octopuses. Before you dive in though, ensure you have a high-end device, and even then, you should prepare yourself for a few technical issues until the developer can iron them out.

If you haven't played the first game yet, I'd recommend going and doing that before you even consider this one. You will be utterly lost without it. After that, I'm not sure what to say. You could jump in on this admittedly good version of a decent sequel knowing that you're going to have to sort out the confusion of the missing plot elements from Corpse Party: Book of Shadows and completely spoil the plot of that game should it ever come.

Even though I was frequently aggravated by the inability to purchase practically anything from the over-priced IAP economy, I still had a blast just rolling my boulder time and time again down the omninous, yet colorful mountaintop.

If you're itching for a new puzzle game to speed through that's entertaining throughout, Amigo Pancho is a safe bet. But if you crave something that's more substantial than what's currently on offer here, keep an eye on its update schedule, because this game has a lot of potential.