Kokoro Clover
Rating: 7/10
While most of the people who have nostalgia for Saturday morning cartoons are now full adults, they were obviously targeted towards children. Kokoro Clover is similarly targeting children, though plenty of adults will find plenty to love here as well.
While the presentation will clearly trigger tons of serotonin in older players, one can’t deny that the bright visuals and cartoon aesthetics are perfect for children as well. Kokoro Clover does a solid job of reaching out to both audiences, but the game will truly find its home with those who aren’t as familiar with platformers. It’s well made, but also incredibly simple and easy to play. There aren’t a lot of inputs for the player to learn, and the game’s platforming and combat aren’t challenging at all.
The end result is a solid experience that is made more fun if players remember these cartoons, but isn’t a pro gamer. If player go into Kokoro Clover with lighthearted expectations, they will have a wonderful time breezing through the simple levels and watching the cartoon episodes play out.
Cursed To Golf
Rating: 6.5/10
Cursed to Golf is another 2D arcade style golf game on the Nintendo Switch. If players are a fan of games like Golf Club: Wasteland or Golf Peaks, they will likely enjoy Cursed to Golf too.
It has an interesting narrative and some neat mechanics that make it stand out, even if that isn’t enough to turn the genre upside down. It mixes platforming and even roguelike mechanics into the formula to make it feel like a strategic affiar that occasionally requires skill. Players will hit a ball across the stage and over platforms while trying to reach the end before they run out of strokes. There are power ups along the way that help, but this is a straightforward experience. If it has one downside, it’s that it is much longer than it should be, and only fanatics of the genre will want to put in the needed time.
Farm Manager
Rating: 7/10
Farm Manager is a great example of a solid simulator/management game being held back by a poor tutorial. It’s deep and full of interesting things to do, but most players won’t get far enough to see how entertaining Farm Manager actually is.
When one gets past the steep learning curve, Farm Manager can easily be appreciated as one of the most realistic farming simulators on the market. It’s full of options to keep the gameplay fun and engagement, with many crops, animals, machines, and seasonal employees to hire. Players will have to manage seasons and income while also accounting for factors like weather and small disasters (Like fires and hail).
What’s most surprising about Farm Manager is how well it runs on the Switch. When one looks at the cheap price tag and how much depth there is here, one would expect tons of performing issues. While the frame rate does occasionally stutter and the load times can be long, Farm Manager performs as well as expected. It’s not full of bugs and while the controls would feel better on a mouse and keyboard, they are mapped fairly well with in-game wheels. As the game goes on, there can be a crash or two as the farm gets massive, which is the biggest performance issue players will experience. Still, anyone who has sat through tons of hours of Civilization V will easily weather this.
Lair Land Story
Rating: 7.5/10
I do love a good princess raising simulator, but there aren’t too many good ones out there. Fans of the genre were just graced with Long Live The Queen, which is a delightful but flawed raising sim. Otherwise, there aren’t too many other stellar options, just fine ones. Lair Land Story might be the best game in the genre on the Switch.
Of course, if players don’t care for visual novel storytelling in video games, Lair Land Story isn’t going to change any minds. Still, if players dig this kind of thing, everything from the story to the characters to the mechanics works, which is everything you could as for from a raising sim. There are tons of branching paths that lead to satisfying results and diverse endings, giving it the replaybiltiy that the genre demands. Players will be invested, and that’s more than enough for Lair Land Story to succeed and steal hearts.
Dusk Diver 2
Rating: 6/10
The first Dusk Diver had tons of neat things going for it when it came to potential and even mechanics, but the gameplay turned out to be too dull for the game to be enjoyable. Dusk Diver 2 had the potential to write those wrongs and make this a neat franchise, but unfortunately, it still comes with many flaws.
Once again, the story isn’t too creative and is rather dull. The characters might be interesting, and even full of charm, but they aren’t fleshed out enough to carry the narrative experience. The side quests fall short in both gameplay and the way they contribute to the overall narrative too. There are a few bright spots in the presentation, but they aren’t enough to cover up this boring package.
The gameplay is more refined this time around, but it still isn’t deep enough to stay enjoyable for the entire experience. It doesn’t take long for the lack of enemy variety and the unfulfilling flow of combat to hit the player hard. There are moments where the gameplay looks and feels great, but these are often completely overshadowed by disappointing monotony.
Horgihugh
Rating: 6.5/10
It doesn’t matter how many shoot ‘em ups there are, the Nintendo Switch could always use more. The niche genre is full of short experiences that manage to keep players coming back for more. Horgihugh is a little shoot ‘em with side-scrolling presentation and cute pixel visuals.
Players get to play as a dog flying an airplane as they go through fairly typical shoot ‘em up stages. The cute visuals are deceiving though, as Horgihugh is actually a challenging experience, even for genre veterans. There aren’t any noteworthy new mechanics in this game, but everything that players would expect is handled well. The level design is creative and flows well. The backgrounds are captivating. The sense of progression feels significant. Everything comes together to make Horgihugh an enjoyable if not generic experience. Anyone itching for another side scrolling shooter will want to consider Horgihugh.
Gerda: A Flame In Winter
Rating: 7/10
The most memorable video games about war aren’t the ones where players are soldiers with rifles. Games like Valiant Hearts and This War of Mine are much more impactful and stick with the player’s heart much longer than Call of Duty does. Gerda is the most recent game in this vein.
Gerda takes place during World War II in which players control Gerda, a nurse during the war. Players will make many difficult decisions that will branch out to multiple endings. It mixes RPG methods with its storytelling, making every choice not only feel significant, but also interesting. The gameplay isn’t too active or meaty, but players who enjoy experiences that prioritize the narrative will be intrigued by Gerda.
Kaichu: The Kaiju Dating Sim
Rating: 6.5/10
Dating simulators really only appeal to a certain audience, but every now and again, a specific dating sim hits the market that might reach out to a few more players. Kaichu: The Kaiju Dating Sim is one of those, giving fans of giant monsters a little something to enjoy.
Players are Gigachu, a kaiju who is looking for love. To do so, players will take other monsters on dates around the world to enjoy famous landmarks and find the one. Unfortunately, the dating aspects of Kaichu are a bit underwhelming. Most of the dating is in the form of answering multiple choice trivia questions. It’s a different way to get to know your suitor, but it doesn’t feel authentic. It doesn’t take long for this charming game to lose its luster.
Fortunately, the writing is genuinely funny and charming, while the art is cute and cozy. It might not last long, but it is a game that will leave the player grinning for as long as it lasts for them. If players can grab Kaichu on a sale, it’s worth a look.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Burst Forth!! Choro-gon☆
Rating: 6/10
It can certainly be surprising when certain anime get full video game adaptations. Even when they are as popular as Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid, one wouldn’t think that the slice of life genre could sustain a game outside of the mobile realm. Guess we are sometimes wrong though.
Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Burst Forth!! Choro-gon☆ is a more than competent shoot ’em up experience. The stages are mapped decently, and the various enemy patterns and upgrades keep it enjoyable. It’s certainly not exceptional, but it can be a fun time, even for those who aren’t a fan of the series.
If a player happens to like both the genre and the franchise though, this game is full of value. There are many nods to the series, with tons of fanservice to satisfy. In the end, the presentation is about everything that a fan could one. For the harcore crowd, Miss Kobayashi’s Dragon Maid: Burst Forth!! Choro-gon☆ falls a bit short. The game has leaderboards and high scores, but the way the game plays isn’t hardcore enbough to prioritize those things. THis is more of a casual experience for the fans that can just barely sate the hunger of those who are always looking for the next great shoot ’em up.
Cult of the Lamb
Rating: Avoid Until Patched
Our full review of Cult of the Lamb will soon be available, but it will only cover the PlayStation version at this time. For Switch owners, Cult of the Lamb is a delightful experience that combines settlement management and action-adventure dungeon crawling. While there could certainly be more dungeons for players to explore, this is a satisfying time.
Where the Switch version falls short is the performance. The game will look fine early on, even with the choppy framerate. As players progress, more and more bugs and crashes will hamper the experience. Combat starts to get frustrating, and the settlement mechanics just don’t work. The developers have promised to remedy these issues, but for now, players should avoid this version if possible.
