Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for May 18th, 2023. We’ve certainly got a long list of new games to check out today, but it is mostly dubious. I suspect we’re still not quite out of that buffer zone other games were giving to The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom. And you know, that’s fair. I’m sure not playing anything else except what I need to for work. Let’s have a look at those games, the news, and some sales while we’re at it!
News
PowerWash Simulator SpongeBob SquarePants Special Pack DLC announced
The excellent PowerWash Simulator is getting a new collaboration DLC pack this summer in the form of the PowerWash Simulator SpongeBob SquarePants Special Pack DLC. This paid pack will include fix new maps, a new character model, 10 achievements, and more. The maps are Conch Street, The Bikini Bottom Bus, The Krusty Krab, The Patty Wagon, The Invisible Boatmobile, and The Mermalair. This DLC will be available for all platforms, and I bet Shaun is as excited as I am to play this. Hopefully this Nickelodeon collaboration pack is out sooner than later in the summer. It will cost $7.99 on all platforms.-Mikhail Madnani
New Releases
No One Lives Under the Lighthouse ($11.99)
I mean, I didn’t think anyone was living under the lighthouse until now. But as you’ve brought it up, I find myself suspicious. Guess I’d better play this game to find out what’s really going on. It’s another one of those PlayStation 1-style horror adventures, but one that has received considerable acclaim on other platforms for its strong atmosphere and mysterious setting. If you’re looking to get freaked out today, this is probably the stop you want.
Murtop ($4.99)
You might look at this and think it looks like Dig Dug crossed with Bomberman, and let me tell you this: that is almost exactly what this is. Flynn’s Arcade has a good eye for proper retro arcade throwbacks, and this is another fine one in the vein of Donut Dodo. You get 256 stages to play, and there is indeed a kill screen if you clear them all. Really my only big gripe about it is that the leaderboards aren’t online. Anyway, I’ll have a proper review of this one soon but if you like classic arcade games you’ll find this five bucks well spent.
Apploval ($29.99)
A roguelite action game that has, I think, made a typo in its own title. Head into the Tower of Approval and battle various monsters while looking for loot. Every time you enter the tower, the layout changes. As you play the game, the home village you start in will develop. The description refers to this as a “new sensation” but it all seems fairly ordinary to me. And yes, I’ve found it on Steam. The game’s name is Approval there. Well, what can you do? It’s not like it’s bad or anything, but thirty bucks is a big ask these days for something like this.
Chasm: The Rift ($19.99)
This is a rerelease of a 1997 first-person shooter and likely falls into that category we have decided to call ‘boomer shooters’ now. It’s the product of a small Ukrainian developer and has a lot of Quake energy to it. It’s a bit janky and it never feels quite as good to play as Quake, but there’s a particular charm to it that might work for some shooter fans out there.
Rubberduck Wave Racer ($19.99)
Well, at least it’s not another typical kart racer. This one takes place on the water, and it might remind you of Wave Race. But it should not. Anyway, sixteen tracks, twelve rubber ducks to choose from, and support for two players via local multiplayer. The description talks about playing with up to four; do not believe Ondore’s lies. There’s also a license here from Schnabels, a company that apparently makes real collectible rubber duckies? That authentic rubber duck touch for the discerning rubber duck fan.
Japanese Escape Games The House ($9.99)
Yes, that’s a Japanese escape game set in a house alright. Nothing new here, but it does its thing the way this series always has, and I have to believe that’s enough for some because the games keep on coming.
Arcade Archives Ark Area ($7.99)
A bit of an unexciting one this week, sadly. This is a multi-directional shooter originally released in 1987 by UPL, and serves as a follow-up to NOVA 2001. It’s been in the PlayStation 4 Arcade Archives for quite a while, and aside from the likely undoable (and unnecessary) Wonder Boy, is the last such game Hamster can draw on for an emergency week. It’s not a bad game, and like just about any shooter you can get a lot of mileage out of the online leaderboards, but it does feel like filler.
Love on Leave ($24.99)
Nothing new about a game where you play as a non-descript dude trying to romance one of a handful of ladies, but this one actually sets things up a little differently. Sure, you have your usual events with portraits and all, but you’re also free to wander around the countryside as you like. Go fishing, do some farming, hunt for collectibles, and pick up some gifts for the women you’re courting. I doubt it’s going to give Stardew Valley a run for its money or anything, but it’s nice to see something break out of the tight structure this genre typically rolls with.
Winter’s Wish: Spirits of Edo ($49.99)
Okay, so this is the more typical type of romance visual novel. A woman has the special ability to sense when disasters are coming, and she gets conscripted into a group of hunky dudes who were established to help maintain security, order, and the proper quota of hot guys for smooching. Will the heroine save the world? Destroy it? And who will she smooch? Questions abound, and I have a feeling our pal Mikhail will answer them sooner or later.
Nightmare Reaper ($29.99)
Yes, another boomer shooter today. This one is a relatively new game, having released on other platforms around a year ago. And yes, it’s pretty great. Tons of weapons, an upgradeable character, some minigames to play, lots of nasty creatures to blast away, and overall a really awesome chunk of meaty action. Definitely the first-person shooter pick of the day.
Fall of the New Age ($14.99)
It is the 2020s and there is time for hidden object adventures. Feels like at least one of them every single week, in fact. And here is this week’s! Savor it, as it has to last you around seven days.
Bio Prototype ($3.99)
Add another one to the pile of Vampire Survivors-style games looking to fill the hole of the game’s absence on Switch. It actually has a really solid system for customizing your build, and I think it will be of interest to most fans of the game it clearly pays homage to.
Bunhouse ($19.99)
This is a game about bunnies and greenhouses. You’re a bunny and you need to tend to your greenhouse, growing and selling plants, decorating the garden, upgrading your facilities, and so on. You can actually play with up to four players via local multiplayer, each person taking control of their own bunny. Arguably the finest bunny gardening game releasing on the eShop today.
Unalive 010 ($4.99)
A top-down roguelite twin-stick shooter that doesn’t seem particularly fancy. Yes, this is kind of a theme today. Explore a laboratory full of nasty monsters and try to live to tell the tale. There are upgrades, different kinds of ammo, and so on. You know how this kind of thing works. Middling, but for a fiver I suppose it can afford to be.
Undergrave ($4.99)
If you recall the game Red Ronin that QUByte released on the Switch a while back, here’s the latest from its developer. Like that game, this is a strategic roguelite game where every move counts. Like Red Ronin, this is rather enjoyable for the price. A mild recommendation from ol’ Shaun.
PI.EXE ($5.99)
An action-platformer set inside of a computer where you need to squash a virus the old-fashioned way: with a sword. Wait, that’s not how any of this works. Oh, video games. It’s a one-hit affair, so don’t get hit.
Bubble Monsters ($4.99)
Hey look, a complete rip-off of Puzzle Bobble. I would tell you to avoid this on principle even if you couldn’t spend a few bucks more and get the considerably better real thing. But you can spend a few bucks more and get the considerably better real thing, so do that.
Magic Bubble Shooter: Classic Bubbles Arcade ($9.99)
Megame isn’t really fooling anyone by tilting the action ninety degrees. This is just Puzzle Bobble again. Spend two bucks less and get the considerably better real thing. There’s no need to subject yourself to this nonsense.
911: Cannibal ($3.99)
An affordable hide-and-seek horror game with some light puzzle-solving. There are a million of these on the Switch and I honestly don’t see a single thing special about this one, but if they’re your thing then I doubt four bucks and some clown on the internet’s apathy is going to stop you.
Blackjack Waifu Tour ($4.50)
This is just a bare-bones blackjack game with saucy pictures of anime ladies on the cards. You could probably find a real deck of cards with saucy pictures of anime ladies on them and I suspect that would be a lot more enjoyable for you.
Find The Pairs: Classic Memory Puzzle ($9.99)
And now you can use those saucy cards to save yourself ten bucks on buying this garbage. The savings just keep piling up. As it says in the title, you’re just flipping over cards to find pairs here. A waste of digital space.
Sales
(North American eShop, US Prices)
Some of those extremely over-priced matching puzzle games are finally down to more reasonable prices, in case you wanted some. Otherwise, it seems like a lot of the usual names. Perhaps tomorrow will bring more interesting sales? Not much of note in the outbox, either. Check the lists anyway.
Select New Games on Sale
Sail Forth ($15.79 from $19.99 until 5/25)
Riverbond ($7.49 from $24.99 until 5/25)
Cozy Grove ($8.80 from $14.99 until 5/25)
Deleveled ($2.12 from $9.99 until 5/25)
The Ambassador Fractured Timelines ($3.18 from $14.99 until 5/25)
Fracter ($2.18 from $6.99 until 5/25)
#Funtime ($3.18 from $14.99 until 5/25)
Roundguard ($6.24 from $19.99 until 5/25)
HunterX ($10.49 from $14.99 until 5/31)
New Tanks ($2.99 from $5.99 until 6/1)
The Lost Labyrinth ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
My Downtown ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Santa’s Holiday ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Secrets of Magic 4: PM ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Secrets of Magic 5: BtS ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Queen’s Garden Sakura Season ($3.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Lucy Dreaming ($16.14 from $18.99 until 6/1)
The Wardrobe ($4.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Age of Heroes: The Beginning ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/1)
Rayland ($2.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
The Letter: A Horror VN ($7.99 from $19.99 until 6/2)
Tricky Thief ($3.49 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Queeny Army ($2.49 from $4.99 until 6/2)
El Gancho ($3.49 from $6.99 until 6/2)
Rule No. 1 ($2.99 from $5.99 until 6/2)
Project Starship X ($2.49 from $9.99 until 6/2)
Takotan ($2.79 from $6.99 until 6/2)
20 Ladies ($2.99 from $4.99 until 6/2)
Pretty Girls Escape ($4.19 from $5.99 until 6/2)
Pretty Girls Speed ($3.59 from $5.99 until 6/2)
Sephirothic Stories ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Frane: Dragons’ Odyssey ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/5)
Antiquia Lost ($6.49 from $12.99 until 6/5)
Legend of the Tetrarchs ($7.49 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Justice Chronicles ($8.99 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Ruinverse ($8.24 from $14.99 until 6/5)
Yum Yum Cookstar ($14.99 from $29.99 until 6/6)
RazerWire: Nanowars ($1.99 from $9.99 until 6/6)
Crysis Remastered ($9.89 from $29.99 until 6/6)
Crysis Remastered Trilogy ($27.49 from $49.99 until 6/6)
Warlock of Firetop Mountain ($2.99 from $29.99 until 6/7)
To Be Or Not To Be ($2.09 from $6.99 until 6/7)
Here Be Dragons ($4.49 from $17.99 until 6/7)
Choices That Matter ATSWE ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/7)
Choices That Matter ATHWL ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/7)
Choices That Matter ATSWO ($1.99 from $5.99 until 6/7)
Table of Tales: The Crooked Crown ($5.99 from $19.99 until 6/7)
Pill Baby ($3.75 from $15.00 until 6/8)
Sales Ending Tomorrow, Friday, May 19th
Ancient Islands ($5.62 from $12.49 until 5/19)
Autobahn Police Simulator 2 ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/19)
Bridge Builder Adventure ($2.69 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Bridge! 3 ($6.99 from $9.99 until 5/19)
Build a Bridge ($2.69 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Car Factory Driver ($6.49 from $12.99 until 5/19)
Cyber Velocity Run ($2.79 from $7.99 until 5/19)
Drizzlepath: Deja Vu ($2.79 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Formula Bit Racing DX ($3.49 from $4.99 until 5/19)
Fur Squadron ($4.89 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Gematombe ($11.99 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Gigapocalypse ($3.99 from $9.99 until 5/19)
Golazo! 2 ($7.49 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Live by the Sword Tactics ($2.99 from $14.99 until 5/19)
Lucid Cycle ($2.79 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Marsupilami Hoobadventure ($10.19 from $29.99 until 5/19)
Mini & Michi ($1.99 from $4.99 until 5/19)
MotoGP 21 ($4.49 from $29.99 until 5/19)
My Universe: Puppies & Kittens ($8.49 from $24.99 until 5/19)
Owlboy ($9.99 from $24.99 until 5/19)
Pretty Girls Breakers Plus ($5.24 from $6.99 until 5/19)
Scramballed ($2.79 from $7.99 until 5/19)
The Smurfs Mission Vileaf ($13.59 from $39.99 until 5/19)
Truck & Logistics Simulator ($27.99 from $39.99 until 5/19)
That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with the remaining releases of the week, plus whatever sales accumulate in the next twenty-four hours. Phew, it’s really hot here today. I’m trying to save electricity but I am highly tempted to use the air conditioning already. Hang in there, Shaun! For great wallet justice! I hope you all have a thrilling Thursday, and as always, thanks for reading!