Those without pre-existing attachments are probably going to feel a bit lost here, and it’s hard to recommend the games to that sort of person as a result. That said, if you are a fan of this manga/anime, I think you’ll enjoy what’s on offer here. It’s all pretty modest in scope, but the characters are served well enough to satisfy. I think those who weren’t pleased with the canon ending of the series will find some additional joy here as you can choose a different path for our hapless hero. Not an especially ambitious or intriguing take on the genre, but good enough.

Still, while Uppercup Football is perhaps too chaotic for my tastes, there's still fun to be had with the core soccer play, the many references to pop and gaming culture with the many opponents are amusing, and even the elements that make the game chaotic are still fun to play with, just not all the time.

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.

Casual gamers looking for a well-done take on the strategic line-drawing game should definitely check out Rescue City – especially since the first fifteen missions are free.

The story mode is long and throws enough novelty out in the form of equipment upgrades and new visual themes to keep things interesting, and the survival mode is a lot of fun

If you’re interested in the idea of fighting fires and are open to playing with others online, I think you’ll have a good time with Firefighting Simulator – The Squad. It plays well and figuring out how to work together to put out a fire is a change of pace from the usual multiplayer fare. If you’re planning to go it alone, it’s a slightly tougher call. With the AI squad not being very helpful, things take a lot longer and the missions can start to feel just a little tedious as a result. Still, that core idea and its implementation has a fair bit of water in the hose.

As an overall package, Hot Wheels Unleashed is better than you might have expected. It does its license justice, and the racing action is more than competent. I’m not really a fan of how much luck plays a role, in terms of what cars you get from the Blind Boxes, in how well you’re able to tackle the campaign. If you get bad pulls, grinding for more chances can take forever. I also feel like some of the longer courses are a little too long, running for several minutes in some cases. Again, there is a big update coming very soon and likely more to come in the future, so some or all of these points could eventually be fixed. I can only review what is in front of me, and that’s a game that is quite good but with its fair share of flaws.

Panda Picnic is pretty cute, and I admit I did enjoy the gameplay. Ultimately, however, I would wander away from it because it took so long for people to make moves.

Whether Five Nights At Freddy's clicks for you or not is heavily reliant on how well it manages to shake you. If the atmosphere doesn't get to you, all that's left is a very simple game of red light-green light.

Cat on a Diet may feel like an all too familiar amalgamation of slicing and contraption games, but it's still a lot of fun all the same.

You'll assuredly get your money's worth in fun out of its unusual premise and tight controls, but after you've run through the short list of events, there's not much to keep you coming back.

With entertaining gameplay, a multi-season franchise mode, an excellent homerun derby mode, and endless possibilities for card collection and customization, 9 Innings: Pro Baseball 2011 is the strongest entry in the baseball game genre to date.

The overall visual design looks really rough and low-cost, with the only relief coming from switching over to the classic style where possible. There’s a solid tribute to the original Boulder Dash here, with plenty to keep you busy for hours on end, but you’ll have to ignore a lot to enjoy it.

If you’re a fan of narrative fiction, and feel a bit nostalgic, you cannot go wrong with Paradox Factor.

Right now, I like Gloomhaven‘s digital console release a lot despite the few issues, but would not recommend it on Switch if you have access to another platform. It isn’t terrible on Switch, but the cutbacks to visuals, longer load times, and interface issues are exacerbated in the Switch release. Maybe some of this can be improved with patches, but right now it isn’t good enough to be the sole way you experience Gloomhaven. This is a fine additive release to an existing version of Gloomhaven you play so you have an option to also play it on the go until we get an iPad version.

Play it on your TV and you’ll enjoy this fish fry well enough, but those who primarily play in handheld will want to proceed with caution.

Right now, there's a solid package of soccer gameplay, just one that could use a lot more tweaking and finalization, even though it's in general release.

Even with all of its problems, there’s a certain pure affection and charm to how it’s put together. Similar its doughy protagonist, this game has a good heart that makes you want to like it. As long as you don’t mind dealing with some rough edges, you might find yourself really liking this game. That goes particularly so if you’re a big fan of the first two Paper Mario games. I think this developer has a good future ahead of it in this genre, even if this particular game has a few lumps in it.

SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake looks and sounds like a modern game, but it very much plays like something from the PlayStation 2 era. Fortunately, it plays like a good 3D platformer from that era. I think fans of the show or the classic SpongeBob SquarePants: Battle for Bikini Bottom will be satisfied with this effort, while those hoping for something grander may be unimpressed. It’s good enough to be worth playing for fans of 3D platforming games, even if it may not thrill those who aren’t so into the genre.

This is a decent game, good enough to be worth a JRPG fan's time if not necessarily anyone else's.

Tower defense fans should be delighted by the zombie-slaughtering good times that lay ahead.

You probably won't want to set down roots in Twisty Hollow, but it's a heck of a good place to visit for an afternoon.

Gopogo is a great hardcore game bogged down by a questionable monetization scheme. I had a lot of fun learning its ins and outs, but after being bombarded with ads throughout I had to take a break.

Bottom line, if you want the fullest possible package of Turrican games, pick up Turrican Anthology Vol. I and Vol. II. There are still a few games missing, but it’s as good as you can get right now. If you want to play the games with the most features and extras, the Anthology volumes are again your friend. But if you want the best bang for your buck, I think I’m still going to recommend Turrican Flashback. You get most of the games that matter and it costs less than a single Anthology volume. It’s also the only way to get all three of the main games in one set. I’m glad digital buyers have a chance to buy a more complete set by picking these two volumes up, but they’re a hard sell in terms of value when compared to Flashback.

If you have access to an iPad, I’d definitely recommend subscribing to Apple Arcade for Football Manager 2023 Touch. It is excellent there and one of the best recent releases on the service. Having now tested Football Manager 2023 Touch across all available platforms, the Switch version is one I’d recommend if you want to play it on the go, but don’t have an iPad. I’m not a fan of the controls on the iPhone despite being glad that SEGA brought over this version to the smaller screen for the first time here.

It's a tiny, handheld version of a game that's already a bit scaled big from its originals. Still, it's one of the first truly different experiences of the Sims in a while and although it's a more directed experience, it offers enough new to keep casual players happy.

The heart of Corpse Granny is trial and error, and it works as long as you like to play in bite -sized bits and puzzle your way through how to solve each level. This game is chock-full of personality, and it also uses OpenFeint to track scores and such so you can compete with your friends.

One could certainly argue that there’s a far amount of monotony in other Assassin’s Creed titles as well, but at least those have large open worlds to provide some variety. That key is missing from Pirates and keeps it from being a better offering.