Here is an in-depth overview of all the new Nintendo Switch game announcements that got overshadowed by the surprise announcement of Paper Mario: The Origami King.
As the announcement of Paper Mario: The Origami King took the Nintendo community by surprise - overshadowing all the other upcoming Nintendo Switch titles - a video by Nintendo Sphere has inspired us to bring you an in-depth look at all the games that were pretty much ignored due to the big Paper Mario news.
We start off with two games that were squeezed into May at the very last second. Red Wings: Aces of the Sky is an arcade-style flying game in which you play the role of the famous red baron as you soar through the sky and take down opponents in all your cartoony goodness. The game seems like a fun little history lesson about one of the most famous pilots of all time portrayed through a game with what seems to be a fun gameplay loop.
Second is real Myst: Masterpiece Edition - a remake of the original Myst. The modernised version of the 1993 game loses some of the nostalgia by improving the look and feel of the game, but it also adds as much as it takes away by bringing the iconic game to the new generation, 27 years after the original release.
Cyan Worlds
Next on the list is Immortal Realms: Vampire Wars, announced for August 2020. The best way to describe the game would be to say that this is what would happen if Total war: Warhammer and XCOM had a baby, but not quite. The game has you controlling armies comprised of all sorts of vampiric creatures and monstrosities alike, conquering territories and doing battle with pretty much anyone you come across.
The turn-based combat is mostly a strategic affair in which positioning means as much as the numbers do. Some more mobile units, like the archers, can flank your army and get at your soft underbelly with ease. This usually wouldn’t be so bad if every unit didn’t serve a specific purpose in the battle, but the bad news is that it does.
Luckily, a little helping hand are the special cards you can use during a battle with various effects, which is an interesting element that mixes up how you approach each battle depending on the cards you have on hand. On the whole, it looks like it is going to be a good fit for anyone who enjoys a bit of strategy, battle planning and vampires.
With sword and shield still in hand, we step on to the battlefield that is Ancestors Legacy - a real-time strategy game that takes you back in time to the medieval era. The game is set to be released on June 11, and although it's not a history lesson per se, it does use a historical setting to create an action-packed RTS experience, allowing for different styles of play depending on the faction you pick.
The four factions all have their key strengths that you can build your playstyle around. The combat in the game is pretty fair, and even though the pace might be a little fast at times - a good, well-rounded army can probably get you through most of the thick spots.
Regardless of how you chose to play the game, it should be a fun time for all those who enjoy a bit of the old RTS fun. Its story has enough variation to make every faction feel different, even though as we've said before, some parts of the game are not historically accurate at all, but the accuracy is traded for freedom which allows for very fun missions and engaging gameplay.
1C Entertainment
Let us hop back to the current era with Super Toy Cars 2, an arcade-style racing game that sees you drive a toy car through some very lively locations. If you ever had the fantasy of rolling around a supersized kitchen in a toy car, this is the game that you have been waiting for. However, if you prefer a Mario Kart like experience, you can play with power-ups, and for those who like the pure racing aspect, the gadgets can be turned off - then it's just you, your opponents and the tarmac, the table or floorboards.
The game is quite simple and straightforward with a bunch of cool maps and toy cars with which you can relive the childhood rush of launching toy cars over the house, but only this time - you are actually controlling the car.
Stay immersed in that childhood state with Nexomon: Extinction, one for the Pokemon fan in all of us. This is a monster-catching game that adds its own spin to the genre, proudly staking its claim to the monster-catching and battling gameplay mechanic that we all know and love.
After the brief nostalgia trip, let us jam out with No Straight Roads, a fun action-packed adventure in which you liberate Vinyl city from NSR with music. Now, if you are wondering what Vinyl city or the NSR is - here’s the short answer: they are the groundwork for an amazing story filled with colourful, fleshed-out characters and an awesome story.
You control the dynamic duo of Mayday & Zuke, two lovable characters with great energy on screen, facing the diverse cast of baddies that want to destroy rock and roll with EDM music. The game's amazing rhythm-based gameplay only enhances the punch that its story packs with the witty humour blending it all together into a nice, big ball of fun.
The great potential this game has is certainly going to pay off, especially when matched with the controls of the Nintendo Switch once it drops on June 30.
Sold-Out Software
Hopping on over to Urban Trial Tricky - the cartoony cousin of the Trials games which sports a brand new look with the same core gameplay. Keeping up with the times, it has adopted the new modern look popularized by Fortnite in an effort to appeal to the younger audience who would usually skip over the usual Trial game.
If you are familiar with the Trials series, you know what you are getting into. If not, a quick summary would be - you control a motorcycle through a set of obstacles to reach the end, preforming cool tricks wherever you can.
A fun game to challenge yourself, beat your best time or try to take on the world's best. But if you don’t like to compete, have no worries as the game is plenty fun without the competition because you can stunt around the levels or just crash and enjoy the results. Whatever your definition of fun in a game like this is - you can probably find it.
Taking a retro-style choice is Panzer Paladin, a hack and slash platformer that will excite anyone looking for some really good, old-school fun. How Panzer Paladin differs from other games of its type is by having the player pick up the enemies weapons instead of beating bosses to unlock weapons of your own, meaning that, if an enemy is using it - so can you, much like a certain goblin slayer.
You play with the weapons you find scattered around the map and since they all have their durability, you are forced to use them strategically in order to defeat different types of enemies. You also have a shield that faces in the direction you are facing and protects you from certain attacks, making for a fun, thinking on-the-fly experience.
The retro style of the game's sound and visuals gives it a full nostalgia kick and is certainly worth checking out if you are looking for some real old school Metroidvania goodness.
Tribute Games
Do you like games with an anime art style? What about Roguelite Action RPGs? You do? Well, do we have a game for you. Zengeon is all of the above and more. It is a classic hack and slash game that has you controlling a wide variety of characters with different powers, allowing for a bunch of ways to live the experience. If this piques your interest, the release date is still not set in stone, but it is expected to come out sometime this year.
Next up is Protodroid DeLTA, a 3D action platformer that boldly takes the Megaman X theme and runs with it. The game has recently reached its Kickstarter goal and is going full steam ahead, with a very passionate team behind it which may just make it out to be a really good game that pays homage to the classics.
Rolling over to Skully, an action-adventure about a reanimated skull that rolls around an island in an effort to stop a feud between deities. The game has a fun premise and an enticing story, backed up by interesting gameplay where you transform into different clay creatures with special abilities to navigate the stunning environment and reach your objective.
What Skully lacks at first glance, that being a body, the actual game does not seem to suffer from the same problem, as it looks fully fleshed-out with meaty gameplay and succulent graphics that will certainly fit the taste of any adventure game lover. Releasing on August 4, it will certainly be a treat to spice up the summer.
Modus Games
Rolling away from Skully and onto Trollhunters: Defenders of Arcadia, a game based on the Dreamworks hit series, Trollhunters. The game is mostly story-driven with its side-scroller style of gameplay. It seems like something old-school fans of the series would have a much easier time getting into, than people having their first meeting with the series through the game.
But it could also be a means to introduce the younger audience who have not seen the show to this world and get them interested in the series. This release is expected sometime in September, so it will be a while until it joins the platform.
So now we come to the first real party game of the list, Aqua Lungers - a four player looting, stabbing adventure. While it is possible to play solo, there is no fun in that. The real fun comes from the hectic gameplay and the annoyance on your friends' faces when the scores come up and you get the golden spot on the podium.
The game sees you dive down for gold, stab your friends and the creatures chasing you around, and bring the gold up to the surface. Whoever has the most gold wins - a simple formula that surely promises a lot of fun. And broken friendships..
However, you actually like your friends, you might want to try Bonkies, a co-op builder party game where you work with your friends to build things in a certain time limit whilst controlling monkeys in space with jetpacks. As awesome as that sounds, the game does have a really nice flow if all the players work together, but on the other hand, what is more likely to happen is that someone will mess up and you will get into a worse argument than if you just played Aqua Lungers.
That aside though, it's a really nice and fun little game you could play with your friends, provided you are not a very competitive group and you genuinely enjoy each other's company. But don't say we didn't warn you.
Crunching Koalas
Next up we have Cassette Beasts, an open-world RPG that has you collecting all sorts of monsters you can transform into using old cassette tapes and battle other monsters. A fun feature is that you have a variety of human companions that can also transform into all kinds of monsters to help you battle your way through a vast open-world with many interesting creatures and characters.
You can also fuse with your companions to produce unique monsters and boost your power, which gives you special buffs and makes defeating the countless opposition you come across a world of fun. The animations look crisp and the game combines 2D sprites with 3D backgrounds to rekindle the fire of some old browser-based games from the 2000s. It is set for a 2020 release and will probably make a big splash once it drops.
And lastly, we have Harvest Moon: One World, a game that needs a few words to be explained properly. Starting all the way back in 1996, the Harvest Moon series has had many fans of all generations show it both love and hate. Many older players say that it is just not the same as it was, while the newer players claim that it's only got better with time.
It would be best to give the game a chance regardless of your own opinion and stance. Who knows, you might just find something special in the game. For those who have never played it before, the same advice applies - give the game a spin and you will most likely discover why it has garnered a cult following and earned its title of a true classic.
