Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for March 14th, 2024. Yes, it’s Thursday, and it’s a full-pants Thursday at that. We’ve got a ton of new games to look at today, and that’s going to make up the bulk of today’s article. After we go through all of those, we’ll roll on over to the lists of new and expiring sales for the day. I have a feeling a giant sale is about to pop and may have by the time you read this, but that’s tomorrow’s problem. Let’s get to today’s!

New Releases

Star Wars: Battlefront Classic Collection ($35.01)

Two classic Star Wars Battlefront games have been gathered together for this collection, allowing you to enjoy battles from across the first six movies. The games include bonus maps and there is support for up to two players via local multiplayer and up to sixty-four players online. For a change of pace, I’ll probably not be reviewing this Star Wars game. I don’t think I could spare up 33 GB of space on my memory card even if my life depended on it. But those of you with fond memories of these games should hopefully be served well here.

Dungeon Drafters ($24.99)

A decent little grid-based dungeon crawling roguelite, complete with a card-based battle system. The attractive presentation and clever mechanics make this an appealing choice if you’re looking for an RPG experience to poke at today. Reviews for the computer version that was released last year were decent if not amazing, so you might want to do some reading up on it before dropping your twenty-five bones. I might do a review of this one myself, but I haven’t fully decided on that yet.

EGGCONSOLE Ys II PC-8801mkIISR ($6.49)

It wasn’t too long ago that we got the PC-8801 version of Ys on Switch via the EGGCONSOLE series, and now we’ve got Ys II to finish the story. Like the release of the first game, all the in-game text is in Japanese here. You can get through using a walkthrough, use the chapter checkpoints to hop around, or rely on your familiarity with other versions of the game to get through if you’re inclined to. I’m not sure if we’ll ever get any other versions of the first two Ys games on Switch, so… do what you must. I will of course be reviewing this, as with all the other EGGCONSOLE releases so far.

Highwater ($19.99)

This is a hybrid of 3D exploration and turn-based tactical combat. You can just mix any old thing these days, it’s fine. A massive climate catastrophe sees the world in complete chaos. Highwater is a flooded region found between the two remaining dry regions of the world. One of those regions is perpetually at war, while the other is a walled city where the extremely wealthy take refuge. Things keep getting worse, and the only hope is a rumored rocket that will take some lucky folks to Mars to start a new life. You embark on a journey to reach and sneak onto that rocket before it leaves for good. You might have already played this on mobile via Netflix, but here’s a version you can keep. That’s nice, isn’t it?

GYLT ($29.99)

Oh hey, it’s that game that was on Stadia way back when. Remember Stadia? Good times. Anyway, this is a narrative adventure game set in a fictional mining town in Maine. It has puzzles! It has stealth! It has horror! And I’m out. But seriously, it’s one of those games where you’re exploring areas that are symbolic of the character’s trauma and fears. You have to avoid the creepy creatures, figure out what led to the mysterious disappearance of a girl, and try to escape the nightmare world you’ve found yourself in. It’s been out a while on other platforms and the overall consensus seems to be that it’s decent enough.

The Vale: Shadow of the Crown ($19.99)

Oh, cool. This is one of those audio games that we used to see now and then on iOS. This one is an adventure game with some RPG elements, telling the tale of an exiled prince who must make his way through a deadly valley known as The Vale. I’m pretty sure “Vale” just means valley, so… a descriptive name but perhaps not the most memorable. Anyway, explore the treacherous valley and stay live long enough to learn some dark truths about your family’s past. Nifty. It came out a few years ago on Xbox, and people seemed to enjoy it there. I suspect it will have no trouble finding more fans on Switch, too.

UNABLES ($12.99)

You get fifteen levels of quirky physics puzzle fun here. The gimmick is that you can manipulate the level to shake things around, which you’ll have to use to indirectly move around characters and objects to accomplish whatever goal has been laid out for you. It’s funny and relatively novel, so if you like the sound of it you might want to investigate it further.

Monster Tribe ($19.99)

You know, sometimes the eShop description for a game is so low-effort that I wonder how the person who wrote it expected it to sell the experience at all. And then there are descriptions that go all-in, and that’s what you’ll see for this game. It’s sort of a Pokemon-style creature-collecting RPG, with some survival/resource gathering elements tossed in for good measure. It’s clearly a project with a lot of passion behind it, but goodness gracious is it rough around the edges. I’m really not sure how I feel about it, but I don’t really want to recommend it at its current price.

Rebel Transmute ($19.99)

In case you need something to scratch your Metroidvania-style exploratory platformer itch today, here you go. Rebel Transmute‘s main gimmick is that it allows you to swap parts in and out to augment your character’s abilities. There are dozens of these parts, allowing a satisfying level of customization as you go through the game. Quite well-made from what I’ve played so far, even if it isn’t exactly reinventing the wheel.

Death Trick: Double Blind ($15.99)

Hm. Visual novel or adventure game? See, in this one you have a set number of turns that limit your actions, and which actions you take will determine how well your investigations go. So that feels like an adventure game. But then, you’re really just making choices, aren’t you? Well, I’ll let someone else sort it out. You control a magician and a private eye as they try to solve the case of a missing magician. Each of them will obviously have their own angle on the case, but you’ll need to make the best use of both of them to crack it. There’s a demo for this available on the eShop if you want to give it a go and see where you fall on this great debate.

CarX Highway Racing ($9.90)

I was going to yeet this into the Bin Bunch, but I took a closer look at it and it seems acceptable enough for a tenner. There are more than forty cars to use, various modes to play, and it all seems to work decently. I’m not going to run down the street shouting about it, but it’s at least nice to see an affordable racer that isn’t just a Unity Asset Store template flip on the eShop in these times. It’s free to try over on mobile, so give it a shot there and see if it agrees with you.

Arcade Archives Mouser ($7.99)

Donkey Kong sure was a big hit in the arcades back in the day. Such a big hit that it inspired many similar games, and UPL’s 1983 release Mouser is one of them. You play as a cat named Nyanta who has to rescue his girlfriend Maria from some nasty rats. It’s a fairly middle-of-the-road game, but its relative obscurity lends it a bit of novelty that might push it over the edge for you. Hamster has done its usual fine work with it, as you would expect.

Fantastical Mystery Adventure Ultimate Jumbo Jet Murder Case ($39.99)

Okay, that title is ridiculous. And this one is definitely a visual novel, so that’s one problem solved. Anyway, this stars the members of the streaming group Ultimate Jumbo Jet, and I can’t stay I have heard of them. But knowing the name of the group, the title makes a lot more sense. The story sees them participating in a real-life Werewolf game while on board a flying airship. When someone actually turns up dead, the questions begin to pile up. But what will the answers be? Play the game to find out. Probably best suited for fans of the group, so if any of you are out there, here is your moment.

Escape Game The Abandoned Hospital ($9.99)

Solve the puzzles and make your escape from… an abandoned hospital!

Tiny Tales: Heart of The Forest ($14.99)

Search for the hidden objects… in the heart of the forest!

Lazriel: The Demon’s Fall ($11.47)

An angel has fallen from heaven and needs to climb a tower to get back up. The problem is that the demon world is full of danger, and to defend herself Lazriel will need to make some use of demonic powers. If she leans on them too much, however, she will be corrupted. It’s a deckbuilding roguelite where you have to balance your use of weaker angelic abilities and more powerful demonic ones, and if you tip the scales too far in the bad direction there will be hell to pay. Ha, like that? “Hell to pay”. Earned my nickel there.

Lawn Mowing Simulator ($19.99)

Title checks out.

Garden Life: A Cozy Simulator ($39.99)

This one doesn’t, though. Calling yourself “cozy” is like calling yourself “cool”. That’s not how any of this works.

Re:Cento ($2.99)

A single-player card game where you draw cards from the player beside you, trying to empty your hand. Like a variant on Old Maid. This would probably be more fun if you could play with others, but for three bucks I guess you get what you get.

Balloony ($4.99)

Sixty-eight levels set across six worlds, and you can play alone or with up to four players via local multiplayer. Seems like a pretty basic platformer to me, but at this price point I suppose that’s enough.

Match Village ($4.99)

Something about this game seems familiar. Can’t quite put my finger on it. I’ll review this to see just how naughty QUByte is being, I suppose.

Darkness and Flame ($22.39)

Search for the hidden objects… in between the darkness and the flame!

The Bin Bunch

Pogo Joins the Circus ($9.99)

Sphinx – Riddles of the Nile ($9.99)

Anime Girls: Sun of a Beach ($7.99)

ToyBox Easter ($3.99)

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

Venba at a super-affordable price is the pick of the litter in the inbox today, but I wouldn’t look funny at you for buying Touhou Spell Bubble either. As I said in the intro, I feel very confident a large sale is coming and might already be up by the time you read this, so if you want to hang on to your wallet until tomorrow that might be advisable. With that said there are some nice goodies in the outbox, particularly the deep discounts from Rebellion. So… you know, check those lists. Do what you have to.

Select New Sales

Swords & Bones 2 ($1.99 from $9.99 until 3/20)
Tiny Dragon Story ($1.99 from $12.99 until 3/20)
Isle of Jura Fishing Trip ($1.99 from $13.99 until 3/20)
Chernobyl Origins ($8.99 from $14.99 until 3/23)
Touhou Spell Bubble ($27.49 from $54.99 until 3/26)
HunterX ($8.99 from $14.99 until 3/27)
Venba ($8.99 from $14.99 until 3/28)
Dateless Love ($9.99 from $19.99 until 3/28)
Princess Closet ($9.99 from $19.99 until 3/28)
Escape First Alchemist ($5.59 from $7.99 until 3/28)
Nephenthesys ($4.19 from $5.99 until 3/29)
Million Shells ($3.00 from $15.00 until 3/29)
Ball laB II ($2.99 from $4.99 until 3/29)
Moe Waifu H ($2.49 from $4.99 until 3/29)
Betomis ($2.99 from $4.99 until 3/29)
Escape From Terror City ($4.99 from $9.99 until 3/29)
Hell Pages ($2.96 from $8.99 until 3/29)
Quintus and the Absent Truth ($3.49 from $9.99 until 3/29)
Excessive Trim ($2.99 from $4.99 until 3/29)
Seduction: A Monk’s Fate ($2.79 from $7.99 until 3/29)
Assault Suits Valken Declassified ($9.99 from $24.99 until 4/4)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, March 15th

11111Game ($1.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Adventure Academia: TFC ($23.99 from $39.99 until 3/15)
Archetype Arcadia ($23.99 from $29.99 until 3/15)
Astria Ascending ($17.99 from $39.99 until 3/15)
Astro Flame: Starfighter ($5.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Battlezone Gold Edition ($6.99 from $34.99 until 3/15)
Bishoujo Battle Mahjong Solitaire ($2.39 from $5.99 until 3/15)
Borderlands 3 Ultimate Edition ($29.99 from $59.99 until 3/15)
Bright Lights of Svetlov ($5.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Creepy Tale: Ingrid Penance ($5.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Crime Opera: The Butterfly Effect ($3.49 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Die After Sunset ($15.99 from $19.99 until 3/15)
Earthshine ($2.99 from $4.99 until 3/15)
Fusion Paradox ($5.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Gravity Circuit ($16.49 from $21.99 until 3/15)

Gravity Heroes ($2.24 from $14.99 until 3/15)
GTA The Trilogy DE ($29.99 from $59.99 until 3/15)
GyroGunner ($5.76 from $7.20 until 3/15)
Hero Survival ($2.99 from $4.99 until 3/15)
L.A. Noire ($24.99 from $49.99 until 3/15)
Lair Land Story ($8.24 from $14.99 until 3/15)
Moon Dancer ($13.29 from $18.99 until 3/15)
NBA 2K24 Kobe Bryant Edition ($11.99 from $59.99 until 3/15)
Neko Secret Homecoming ($5.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
NeuroVoider ($2.79 from $13.99 until 3/15)
Nihilumbra ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/15)
Ori & the Will of the Wisps ($9.89 from $29.99 until 3/15)
Pankapu ($2.39 from $11.99 until 3/15)
Piczle Cross Adventure ($1.99 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Pixel Cafe ($5.19 from $12.99 until 3/15)

Poker Pretty Girls Battle: FW ($2.39 from $5.99 until 3/15)
Pretty Girls Mahjong Solitaire G/B ($2.39 from $5.99 until 3/15)
Professor Lupo & his Horrible Pets ($2.99 from $14.99 until 3/15)
Professor Lupo: Ocean ($1.99 from $4.99 until 3/15)
Raging Loop ($14.99 from $29.99 until 3/15)
Red Dead Redemption ($34.99 from $49.99 until 3/15)
Revenge of Banana ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/15)
ScourgeBringer ($5.94 from $16.99 until 3/15)
Skater XL ($33.99 from $39.99 until 3/15)
Sniper Elite 3 UE ($8.74 from $34.99 until 3/15)
Sniper Elite 4 ($9.99 from $39.99 until 3/15)
Sniper Elite 4 Deluxe ($14.99 from $59.99 until 3/15)
Sniper Elite V2 Remastered ($8.74 from $34.99 until 3/15)
Splash Cars ($1.99 from $6.99 until 3/15)

Star Gagnant ($22.80 from $38.00 until 3/15)
Strange Brigade ($6.99 from $34.99 until 3/15)
Strange Brigade Deluxe ($11.99 from $59.99 until 3/15)
Super Daryl Deluxe ($2.99 from $19.99 until 3/15)
Tears of Avia ($4.94 from $14.99 until 3/15)
The Dragoness: Command of Flame ($13.49 from $17.99 until 3/15)
The Plane Effect ($3.74 from $14.99 until 3/15)
Twice Reborn: A Vampire Visual Novel ($5.99 from $14.99 until 3/15)
Until the Last Plane ($4.49 from $9.99 until 3/15)
Valthirian Arc: HSS 2 ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/15)
Vernal Edge ($15.39 from $21.99 until 3/15)
Vigour ($1.99 from $3.99 until 3/15)
Zengeon ($3.99 from $19.99 until 3/15)
Zombie Army 4: Dead War ($14.99 from $49.99 until 3/15)
Zombie Army Trilogy ($8.74 from $34.99 until 3/15)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with another very healthy helping of new games to finish the week off with, plus the expected large list of sales and whatever big news items that might roll in. I’m playing a lot of Contra: Operation Galuga and I really wish the Switch port was as good as the game because the game is very cool. Oh well. I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!