Welcome back to Part VIII of our ‘Games We Missed’ series. With so many Switch games large and small releasing every week, we’re eager to highlight great ones which slipped through our net — and thanks to you lovely people, this bi-annual feature can do just that.
As always, we asked you to send us nominations for Switch games that you think deserve highlighting, and you’ll find 28 candidates below.
We do our best to review as many of the intriguing-looking games launching on Switch every month, spanning titles of all sizes and genres, but gems inevitably fall through the cracks and we’re always keen to hear about them. Thanks as always to everyone who send their suggestions.
So then, 28 Switch titles (the same number as last time, coincidentally), in no particular order, as recommended by Nintendo Life readers. There’s a nice mix of fairly new and vintage games here, and each entry comes with a comment from whoever submitted the game and a trailer to convey more of the flavour.
And at the end, you’ll find a poll, which should help you decide where to begin if you’ve got eShop credit burning a hole in your pocket. All aboard for Part 8!
First up, Eloc Snave nominates Hopoo Games’ Deadbolt.
By the makers of Risk of Rain, this is a fun, semi-short little puzzle platform game. The levels are tightly designed, mechanics are well made and flexible, the atmosphere is amazing, and the music is wonderful. It’s got some teeth to the difficulty too, but there’s always another answer to each problem given by any particular stage or fight.
Note. The Deadbolt trailer is age-restricted and won’t embed, unfortunately — head over to YouTube to check it out.
KecleonFan is a fan not only of Kecleon, but also Skul: The Hero Slayer.
Out of every roguelike platformer on Switch, I can think of none more charming than Skul the Hero Slayer.
Flipping the typical script, you play as a skeleton fighting through an army of “heroes” to save the kidnapped demon king, with the central mechanic being replacing your own skull with others you find along the way, essentially becoming many different characters in one. And with the recent Dark Mirror update, now’s the best time to jump in!
If you’re a fan of games like Dead Cells or Rogue Legacy, you will find a lot to like here.
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Both Mike and Zverik recommended Frozax Games’ puzzler Tents and Trees, which has a demo on the eShop.
Tents and Trees is a great Picross-like game that seems to have gone completely under the radar. The rules are slightly different than Picross which I found enough to change things up from the endless Picross games on the eshop without the changes being too confusing. It has very calming music and multiple unlockable themes. Once you progress, you also unlock daily puzzles so you can have an endless amount of puzzles to attempt. If you like Picross, you should at the very least try the Tents and Trees demo on the eshop and see if you like it!
Mike
This must’ve been the most satisfying puzzle solving experience on Switch. T&T is a relatively simple puzzle reminding of Minesweeper, but everything it does, it does perfectly. Animations are smooth, colors match, music is relaxing, touch controls I think cheat a bit — I’ve never accidentally highlighted a cell I didn’t intend to. There are archievements that get you through the first 500 puzzles, and there are daily puzzles if you’re tired of going row by row with the standard ones. A little gem of a game from a sole devoted developer that should get more attention.
Zverik
JJ is gunning for shooter Binarystar Infinity.
I’ve had Binarystar Infinity for a few years now, and I recently started playing it again. I was surprised to discover Nintendo Life never reviewed it! Binarystar Infinity is a simple, challenging, retro-style shooter with a minimalist aesthetic and a sharp chiptune soundtrack. The core concept: shoot everything, collect power-ups, and recover power-ups if you get killed. Retro-style side-scrollers are a dime a dozen on the Nintendo Switch, but this one has lots of charm and is perfect for quick play sessions on the go. It’s cheap, too – on sale now for $2.75 USD and just $5 at full price.
A fan of many things besides chameleon-like Pokémon, KecleonFan is also partial to Here Comes Niko! And frogs.
Here Comes Niko! is probably one of the coziest games I have played in a while. You play as Niko who recently got a job with Tadpole Inc. in order to become a “professional friend,” helping many of the animal characters around the various islands you visit to make their days just a little better. Incredibly cute artstyle, some very fun platforming and a lighthearted story with some deeper heart to it all.
And frogs. Lots of frogs. Frog lovers will love this one.
FishyS sent in several recommendations, the first for a game this writer has an unopened physical copy of, but hasn’t gotten to yet…
The MISSING: J.J. Macfield and the Island of Memories is a mouthful of a name and the game is a brainful of an experience. Beautiful and gruesome, touching but bizarre. Essentially a side scrolling puzzle platformer with the character cursed to regenerate. Need to keep a button pushed? In this game, rather than find a convenient rock, a horrible trap will rip off your arm which you can then use as a weight. Which sounds horrible. But the puzzles are clever and the story is dark but emotional and somehow it all just works.
Both Mario Azevedo and Marcelo De Campos Barbosa recommended Skatemasta Tcheco. (It should be noted that Marcelo is the developer of the game, but we are partial to its 8-bit NES stylings. Take a look and see what you think!)
It’s an auto-scrolling arcade platformer with tight controls and beautiful graphics that happen to be NES authentic.
How is the game unique? Despite being NES authentic, the graphics were designed for 16:9 displays. That’s right, it looks correct when stretched to widescreen. That’s insane and I love it. It would be a moot point if the game wasn’t fun, but it is. It’s full of nonsense humor too.
It has cameos from other indie games such as Blazing Chrome, so it’s fun to discover the friendly faces.
It’s hard not to recommend it at that price range (cheap!). [Editor’s note: It’s $4.99 / £4.49]
Mario Azevedo
I would like to recommend my game “Skatemasta Tcheco”. It’s a short action game (can be completed in less than 40 minutes) and was made with the restrictions of the 8-bit Nintendo / Famicom.
The difference between this and other modern games with NES aesthetics is that I really tried to stick to the technical restrictions of the 1983 console – so much so that we even made a demo of Skatemasta for the NES itself and it was practically identical to the Switch game.
It’s an action and platform auto-scroller, but it’s not a runner! Despite the inspirations and references, this game is not a clone of another and tries to have original gameplay.
Thank you!!
Marcelo De Campos Barbosa
Pak-Man is enjoying the recently released (on Switch) Hero’s Hour.
Hero’s Hour is a must-play if you’ve ever enjoyed one of the Heroes of Might and Magic games. The overworld and city-building elements are all the same, but the battles take place in quick auto-battled RTS-style fights that you cast spells to intervene in. It’s streamlined, and it knows exactly what made HOMM fun.
Overzeal plays against type with this succinct callout for No Umbrellas Allowed.
This is a recommendation for No Umbrellas Allowed.
A short narrative game about running a pawn shop, not unlike Papers, Please.
_Figo_ singled out CometStriker DX for praise.
CometStriker DX is a really fun fast paced arcade shooter that’s really well balanced regardless of the difficulty level you choose, it never feels unfair
Very replayable too, each of the 5 stages has branching paths, there are 5 playable characters (4 of which you need to unlock first), a challenge mode and a “Labyrinth Mode” which is a procedurally generated campaign made out of remixed rooms from the main mode plus a lot of new ones
Really fun game that deserves more attention
Laura Adams is a tech enthusiast residing in the UK. Her articles cover the latest technological innovations, from AI to consumer gadgets, providing readers with a glimpse into the future of technology.
