Jamie Ward

“As somebody who loves 2D Zelda, I am always searching to see what other games pop up of its type. Master Key wasn’t one that was initially on my radar. However, from the moment I picked it up, I instantly knew it was going to be one of the better ones. After rolling the credits, my initial impression turned out to be correct. With an unexpectedly dense map to explore, brilliant dungeons to conquer and secrets to be found, it scratches many itches. This is certainly not one to be slept on.”

“DYING: Reborn had the potential to be a decent game. Nevertheless, with its lack of real horror elements, bad translation issues and nowhere near enough good puzzles, all of the things you would want, it is hard to recommend.”

“Considering Nintendo fans don’t have Hotline Miami to fire-up on their Switch, 12 Is Better Than 6 cocks its gun and shoots its way up towards the top as one of the best in its genre. You don’t want to miss out.”

“Bendy and the Ink Machine is a very intriguing game. It has an incredible visual style that is unique and certainly has some good horror elements going for it, but it, unfortunately, lets itself down in other areas. Straightforward puzzles, unwanted fetch quests and a clunky combat system really hurt the enjoyment in a big way. However, it is an interesting take on the horror genre and can still be thoroughly enjoyable in the right hands. I do think little more time in the oven was needed.”

“Football Manager 2019 Touch on the Switch is a bit of a weird one. On one hand, you have what will be considered the best management sim to ever grace a console. On the other hand, it could have taken much greater strides than it has done to be a truly fantastic experience.”

“It isn’t often that I would recommend a port of a mobile game, but The Room is an exception. It is a game that simply works on the Nintendo Switch, regardless of whether you play it in Handheld mode or on the TV. The puzzles are clever, unique and engaging. Once you start, you will not want to put your Switch down. Its only real problem is I simply want more.”

“The Escapists: Complete Edition is not a game that everyone will enjoy and I doubt it will be on anyone’s must-buy list. It suffers, to begin with, and you may think it’s a very one-dimensional sandbox game. But, give it time and it will show you just how much fun you can have planning a prison escape in an 8-bit world.”

“Infernium is a game that’s all about memorisation and trial and error, which might very well be more towards your taste than mine. I felt like sometimes I would just have to die in order to progress as I made a slight error, but I grew tired of the mundane way the game forced me to respawn and get all the way back to that point again.”

“Goetia is a mixed bag. There are some wonderful moments in here such as the story, which certainly kept me going, and the visuals and soundtrack which do their best to keep you engrossed, are certainly impressive.”

“Once all is said and done, I can’t help but feel like Garage could have been so much more. It has some great aspects, don’t get me wrong, but the potential is there for all to see and maybe some extra development time was what the game needed to finetune certain things.”

“The Nintendo Switch is starting to build up a nice library of horror titles and, as with Outlast 2, this is one of the better offerings the console has to offer. But, it’s not without its problems. Coming in at around five hours for the base game and another two hours for the included Whistleblower downloadable content, you have yourself a game that doesn’t outstay its welcome. However, it must be said that there is a huge difference in fear, enjoyment and overall quality during the first half of the game compared to the second.”

“It isn’t the complete package version of Football Manager, no, but it is the version that best suits the Switch. Touch screen controls mixed with the good use of the Joy-Con and on the go playability make it a winner. It may go unnoticed but being able to play for 5-10 minutes at a time to continue to progress through a season is a godsend.”

“I have to say, a game like Hollow has so much potential and it could have been one the best horror games on the Nintendo Switch had some basic aspects had been right, such as the movement and combat. But what it ends up being is a game that doesn’t have many redeeming features or qualities. It’s too slow and lethargic, the display is a little off-putting after a while and it doesn’t run well playing in Handheld mode, which is a major feature of the Switch. If you’re looking to fill your horror gaming needs, put this down towards the bottom of the list.”

“A highly recommended game if you grew up with point-and-click adventures of yesteryear and whilst it won’t be for everyone, even if you’ve never experienced one of those types of games before you can do a lot worse than choosing this one as your first. The Darkside Detective was yet another surprising indie title on the Switch in terms of quality. A really funny and quirky adventure that I thoroughly enjoyed playing from start to finish, it just doesn’t last anywhere near as long as I wanted it to. So my advice would be to treasure it and hope this isn’t the last we see of The Darkside Detective as a series, as there is so much potential in any future sequels.”

“Layers of Fear: Legacy is more about the story than anything else, so make sure you’re prepared for that when you go in. It’s a game that if you allow it to, will just completely grip you and won’t let go, and because it is up to you to uncover a lot of the story by searching around, you will want to explore the mansion for just that bit longer. It is also very creative and clever with its use of set-pieces and, on the face of it, random room setups, which helps the game from ever becoming overly dull or boring. I can now say, with ease, that the Nintendo Switch has its first great, proper horror game. It may also be one of the best horror games of the last few years on any platform.”

“Ultimately, The Coma: Recut’s biggest problem might be that it is a bit too simple in design and maybe having a few other gameplay elements would have pushed it a level higher. But in the end, I never expected to like it as much as I did and I thoroughly enjoyed my five or so hour playthrough. With a sequel teased, I’m eagerly awaiting what is to come because they have a base already there to make something truly wonderful.”

“So, a Wave Race substitute this is not. Aqua Moto Racing Utopia tries to imitate Nintendo’s classic racer but it never comes anywhere close to it in all honesty. Which is a massive shame because this could have filled a gap for a lot of Nintendo 64 and GameCube era Nintendo fans like me. This is an improvement on the developer’s other recent racing game, Snow Moto Racing Freedom, but I think that might only be because racing on water with a jet-ski is much better than racing in the snow on a snowmobile. The main thing that this game does more than anything, is that it makes me want a new Wave Race game more than ever.”

“The amount of modes that Snow Moto Racing Freedom has to offer is great, but the most important thing is the gameplay and it is rather bland with some dubious controls and a big framerate issue. This is a genre of racing games that the Switch doesn’t have yet, it stands alone. So by default, it is the best winter racing game on the system. However, in no way does that mean that if you really love racing games of this ilk, you’re going to enjoy this one, because truth be told, you probably won’t.”

“Overall, I enjoyed my time with Völgarr the Viking and I think a lot of that came down to the nostalgic feeling it gave me whilst playing. Certain areas in the game were a bit bland and uninspired, but the gameplay is smooth and responsive, load times are non-existent so anytime you die you get straight back into the action, only to probably die again. But I think that you simply have to ask yourself if you are ready for the challenge at hand because at times it’s very unforgiving. If you stick with it, you will eventually have tons of fun.”

“Overall, Runbow Pocket is just as fun as it was on the Wii U with plenty of content, plenty of costumes and characters to unlock as you go through. There is just the one pretty big omission from this release that stops it being a good replacement for other versions, that being the local multiplayer. If you can get over that or if you are only looking to get the game for its single player component, then there is plenty to enjoy about Runbow Pocket. It’s a fun, colourful game that is worth jumping in and out of, which is what the New Nintendo 3DS is great for.”