Game Topz (gamtopz@gmail.com)

Back in May, software developer Panic, Inc. sort of broke the internet when they unveiled a quirky new handheld gaming system called the Playdate. Since Panic is a software company they actually teamed up with Swedish consumer electronics company Teenage Engineering to produce this bit of hardware, and boy to they have some different ideas. The one that’s front and center is that the Playdate features a tiny crank which can be used for gameplay in addition to its d-pad and two face buttons. The way games will be released for the system, at least at first, is also rather unique. There will be 12 games in the first “season" of releases that come included with the price of the handheld itself, and they’ll be slowly released each week over the course of about 3 months. While several of these games have been announced already, many more of them are a complete surprise and will remain that way until they release. I never thought I could be excited about a game release strategy, but here...

Simogo is one of the most legendary developers on mobile, and their library of games that they’ve released over the past decade has run the gamut of being utterly charming with unique mechanics to games that just straight up redefined what interactive entertainment even is. I think they are geniuses, but the mobile platform hasn’t been super kind to poor Simogo. Constant software and hardware changes have made keeping their existing games up and running a headache, and the nature of pricing on the App Store means that even their most critically acclaimed titles aren’t exactly ensuring they have a secure future in game development. So in December of 2017 Simogo more or less bowed out of the mobile arena , with their new game tentatively titled Project Night Road being developed exclusively for consoles and PC. They weren’t saying they’d NEVER make a mobile game again, but they just had to try out a different strategy in a different segment of the video game world. However, earlier thi...

Augmented reality is a tech that seems like it’s still trying to find its place in gaming. It’s not often you see it used in a more meaningful way other than “it’s the game, but projected into the REAL WORLD!" However, some developers are genuinely doing interesting things using AR, and one that I saw this weekend at PAX West 2019 is called Nibblity from developer Leaftail Labs. It’s a game where you’re unlocking an absurd amount of adorable little creatures and then helping them grow, outfitting them with cool items, and generally keeping them happy as if they were little virtual pets. The AR allows you to project these little guys onto your tabletop, floor, or any other flat surface, but the really interesting part is an object recognition technology that lets you scan actual real world items to beam them right into the game itself. Check out the video below for a nice demo straight from the developers to get an idea of what it’s all about, and Nibblity is currently in open be...

The idea behind the TouchArcade Game of the Week is that every Friday afternoon we post the one game that came out this week that we think is worth giving a special nod to. Now, before anyone goes over-thinking this, it doesn’t necessarily mean our Game of the Week pick is the highest scoring game in a review, the game with the best graphics, or really any other quantifiable “best" thing. Instead, it’s more just us picking out the single game out of the week’s releases that we think is the most noteworthy, surprising, interesting, or really any other hard to describe quality that makes it worth having if you were just going to pick up one . These picks might be controversial, and that’s OK. If you disagree with what we’ve chosen, let’s try to use the comments of these articles to have conversations about what game is your game of the week and why . Without further ado…   Dead Cells It’s been an embarrassment of riches in terms of hit indie games making their way to iOS rece...

I’ve written extensively over the past few years about just how much I love Hidden Variable’s mobile adaptation of the cult-hit fighting game Skullgirls (Free) . They did an amazing job of creating a mobile control system based around tap and swipe gestures but still retaining the kind of strategy and quick reaction gameplay that makes fighting games so fun in the first place. Hidden Variable has also done a tremendous job updating Skullgirls on mobile since its release more than two years ago, adding new playable characters, new modes, and just more of everything. However, there’s ONE big feature the Skullgirls mobile community has really wanted since the very beginning: Real-time competitive online multiplayer. I mean, that’s the heart and soul of fighting games, right? Direct competition? Well Hidden Variable is more than aware of this, and they’ve been quietly working away on implementing a real-time multiplayer mode into Skullgirls mobile, and the light is finally at the end o...

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 30th, 2019. Today we’ve got reviews of two new games, one of which is extremely good. In other business, we have summaries of all of today’s new releases, a single (but significant) news item, and a bunch of cool new sales to check out. Yes, it’s another big one, but you’ve got all weekend to digest it, so let’s start the meal! News NISA Will Bring ‘La-Mulana 1 & 2’ to Switch in 2020 The La-Mulana games are great 2D action-adventure titles that really nail that old-school feel for better or worse. The second game came out a little while ago in Japan on the Switch, and it looks like gamers in the West can look forward to a little extra mustard on top when NISA brings it out in 2020. Rather than just selling the second game on its own, NISA is putting out a set with both games included. Naturally, the publisher is putting it out digitally and physically, and there’s also a lovely limited edition that you’...

In spite of its various issues I’ve continued to play SEGA Heroes (Free) , SEGA’s entry into the free-to-play puzzle-RPG genre. As much as I’ve enjoyed the game, I’ve gotten nearly as much fun out of trying to guess which character will come to the game next. Each newly-introduced series gets four characters in the game, and trying to predict exactly which will make the cut can be quite challenging. I thought I had the menu for Altered Beast figured out, but the third character has just been added and it wasn’t one of my guesses. Rather than throw another Centurion our way, SEGA has instead added the game’s antagonist to the roster. Neff is here in his “Van Vader" purple rhino guise, and he’s pretty much here to make mince meat out of the Centurions. He’s an Epic Blue Striker, which means you need fifty character shards to unlock him. As always, the shards can be gotten from the new event or drawn from the event chest. He’s definitely going to be easier to come by than the Drag...

Agent A: A Puzzle in Disguise ($6.99) has had quite the journey through multiple updates over the years and now arriving on many more platforms. We really liked Agent A: A Puzzle in Disguise a lot when it debuted in 2015. Yak & Co. then announced that three additional chapters would be released for the game for free, with Chapter 3 “Ruby’s Trap" arriving in December of 2016 and Chapter 4 “A Narrow Escape" arriving in December of 2017. Episode 5 which is the final episode, has finally launched on the App Store and Google Play. Watch the trailer for the complete release below: Yak & Co. brought the complete adventure to PC and consoles as well yesterday and that caused a delay for the mobile version. The console and PC versions have launched complete with all chapters and the existing iOS and Android versions have been updated with Chapter 5 for free. Chapter 5: The Final Blow is now available through a free update on iOS and Android. The update also brings m...

For a little while, I thought SEGA was more or less done with the Hatsune Miku games since we had no real news on any console or mobile game from them for a while. My fears were put to rest when they announced the Nintendo Switch game Project Diva MegaMix and now with a new mobile game announcement . Colourful Palette is a new studio by Craft Egg (Bang Dream) that is working on the new Hatsune Miku mobile game. While I was secretly hoping SEGA would port the PS4 game Project Diva Future Tone to iOS in some form, I’ll give this one a shot when it releases. Watch the teaser trailer for it below: Project Sekai has just been revealed and barring the platforms, there isn’t much information available right now. It is set to release on iOS and Android in Japan in the future. If you’re interested in it, you can check the official website here . SEGA will reveal more information for this in the future. Considering SEGA has brought over every Hatsune Miku game in recent times (albeit some ...

A little while ago, a board game adaptation of the superb Reigns series of games was announced in the form of Reigns: The Council . Reigns: Her Majesty ($0.99) and Reigns ($0.99) are essentials on iOS on Android. Nerial even made the best game based on Game of Thrones in the form of Reigns: Game of Thrones . I’m very interested to see how this plays out because Reigns is something that could absolutely be brilliant as a board game. Check out how it will look below: For Reigns: The Council , Nerial is working with legendary board game designers Bruno Faidutti (Citadels, Diamants, and more) and Herve Marly (The Werewolves of Miller’s Hollow) and more. Reigns: The Council is now live on Kickstarter with just over a month to go for completion. The target for the campaign is $79,139. Check out the campaign on Kickstarter here to see the various reward tiers. Reigns and Reigns: Her Majesty are available on iOS, Android, Nintendo Switch, and PC platforms right now. Are you inter...

Kaigan Games who brought us Simulcara ($4.99) and Sara is Missing (Free) are back with a new game. Simulacra 2 is the newest installment in their “found phone" series featuring the two earlier games and is a immersive horror experience. My favourite of these kinds of games is still A Normal Lost Phone but I’m always excited to check out new ones to see how the formula is adapted and kept interesting. Watch the teaser trailer for Simulacra 2 below: Simulacra 2 features new apps for the smartphone interface and has a larger cast with a more complex narrative according to Kaigan Games. Detective Murilo is investigating a murder that was branded an accident. The key piece of evidence so far is the phone you end up using. Simulacra 2 will be playable at PAX West on the 6th floor in booth 6219. This will be the first public demo for the game. Simulacra 2 is set to release in the future on iOS, Android, and PC platforms. What is your favourite “lost or found phone" gam...

One of the coolest games to release in 2017 was Stranger Things: The Game (Free) for mobile. Not only did it offer up some major fan service in the form of side stories featuring the famous characters from Netflix’s hit show, but once season 2 of the series launched a few weeks after the mobile game dropped a big content update arrived that added in a ton of stuff from the new season right into the game. It was just a masterfully executed tie-in game with a major IP, which historically are always awful, and to top it all off it was entirely FREE. The game’s developer BonusXP partnered up with Netflix once again to do something similar for the third season of Stranger Things, and last December during The Game Awards they unveiled Stranger Things 3: The Game . While it wasn’t officially announced as coming to mobile at the time, all signs pointed to that being the case, though the mobile version wouldn’t launch day and date with the third season as it did on other platforms back on J...

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for August 29th, 2019. As the month nears its end and summer winds to a close, we’re soon going to be heading into the busy months of game releases for the year. Yes, these last few months were supposed to be the slow months. Ha. We’ve got a few news items to check out today, a rather large number of new releases to summarize, and a pretty nice list of sales. Let’s check it out! News ‘Samurai Shodown’ Hits the Switch in Japan in December SNK’s revival of Samurai Shodown has gone over fairly well on other platforms, with many fans happy to see the series back in good form. The plan was always to bring the game to the Switch once the dust had settled on the initial release, and it looks like we’re getting a bit closer to knowing exactly when that will be. Well, we do know exactly when it will be as far as Japan is concerned. The game hits Switch in that region on December 12th of this year. I can’t imagine the Western r...

Dreamfeel based in Ireland has been working on If Found… for a while now. The upcoming interactive visual novel finally has platforms and more confirmed. Today, Annapurna Interactive announces that they are publishing If Found… for iOS and PC platforms. Dreamfeel and Llaura Ash McGee come together for an experience full of exploration, connection, isolation, and more. You play as Kasio who is destorying her diary on New Year’s Eve. Your aim is to erase everything. Watch the trailer for it below: You explore Kasio’s world through her memories moving from location to location. This includes a punk show, Kasio’s house, and more. When it comes to the visuals, it has hand drawn art by Liadh Young and has music from 2mello (one of my favourite composers in recent times), Eli Rainsberry, and more. Check out the official website for dreamfeel here . If Found… is being published by Annapurna Interactive and is targetting a release next year for both iOS and PC. So far, Annapurna Interac...

Originally announced a while ago, the Romancing SaGa 3 remake from Square Enix was back in the limelight at E3 2019 when Square Enix announced a localisation . Romancing SaGa 3 is a remake of the original in the style of Romancing SaGa 2 ($17.99) which debuted on iOS and Android before seeing console ports. Romancing SaGa 3 is one of the few games that is releasing on PS4, Xbox One, PS Vita, Nintendo Switch, Windows 10, Steam, iOS, and Android at the same time. Watch the E3 trailer for it below: While news around this release was basically silent after E3, Romancing SaGa series director Akitoshi Kawazu had some more information about the game and mentioned news to be revealed TGS 2019 in Japan. It looks like Square Enix wanted to get the news out sooner because they announced a release date for the upcoming remake earlier today. Watch the Japanese release date trailer for it below: Romancing SaGa 3 releases for all consoles, PC, and mobile systems on November 11th in Jap...

Less than two weeks ago, Bandai Namco Entertainment announced Sword Art Online: Alicization Braiding for iOS and Android devices in Japan. This is a brand new mobile RPG that would likely tie into the mainline console and PC release Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris . Today, the company has confirmed a worldwide release for the mobile game and confirmed the English title with pre-registrations now live. Watch the debut trailer for the English release below: Sword Art Online: Alicization Rising Steel blends moments from the Sword Art Online series with traidtional RPG elements for a mobile game. It will feature animations and special skill showcases from the anime. You will be able to control the likes of Asuna, Kirito, and more here. The story here will be an original take on the Sword Art Online: Alicization arc. The pre-registration campaign for it is now live with different rewards based on the number of tiers reached. The rewards include Diamonds, Armor, characters, and...