RayCarsilloWrites.com

It wouldn’t be a Nintendo console launch anymore it seems without a fun collection of minigames available to show off the system’s potential, and hopefully draw the entire family into the Big N’s warm embrace. 1-2 Switch features a handful of games that take full advantage of the Joy-Con’s variety of motion sensors while bringing out your competitive nature. One game requires you to listen for the sound of a ball smacking a paddle and to keep up with the rhythm in table tennis—minus the table. For all you wannabe cowboys out there, having to quick draw your Joy-Con and press the trigger in an old-fashioned duel at high noon might be more your speed. And the first game to fully take advantage of the HD Rumble, one minigame requires you to move your Joy-Con around and determine how many marbles are inside it—and, unbelievably, the sensors make it feel like there are actually marbles inside your controller. The most interesting thing about all these minigames is that they implore players to look away from their TVs and instead look at each other, livening up the play space and again driving home the potential portability of the fun the Switch has to offer.

Another new IP being introduced during the Switch’s launch window, the ARMS demo we played touted five different fighters, with a variety of titular appendages that you could snap into place, potentially providing a greater advantage on the battlefield. Each player requires a pair of Joy-Cons, with each representing a player’s left and right arm respectively. By turning the Joy-Cons you can move or block, and by punching forward you can send your spring-loaded arms forward at incredible speeds. You can even throw hooks by twisting your arms mid-attack, or throw your opponents off by punching both arms at the same time. Each armament touts different positives and negatives in terms of how powerful they are, and how many times they can potentially hit. The Trident, for example, shoots three finger projectiles out, while the BIG wrecking ball arms are slower but can do a ton of damage. Similar to many fighting games out there, each player has a lifebar, and each avatar also has their natural advantages and disadvantages in terms of health, speed, blocking, and other parameters you’d expect from a game such as this. Meanwhile, ARMS touts multiple ways to play: single-player versus the computer, local versus, and also online versus. Whether or not there’s an accompanying story to go along with ARMS is yet to be seen, but at the very least, if you can snag a second set of Joy-Cons, ARMS could be another game to potentially get the party started on the Switch.

FAST Racing NEO took the gaming world by storm by harkening back to the futuristic racing of games like F-Zero, and was a rare surprise hit on the Wii U. So, it was with great glee that I found that the original game is being ported over to the Switch with more tracks, more cars, and more modes than the original. Once again, players will hop into the cockpit of a futuristic, super-stylized, hovering race pod and will have to change the colors of their jet streams mid-race in order to get the biggest and best boosts possible if they want to exceed speeds of 1000 miles per hour. Impressively, you can play the entire game with only a single Joy-Con by turning it sideways, or use the Switch Pro Controller if you so choose. In another rarity, FAST RMX touts four-player local split-screen as long as you have enough controllers. There’s also 8-player online versus, and taking advantage of the Switch’s ability to connect with other consoles locally, even touts 8-player local multiplayer if everyone has their own Switch. If you missed FAST Racing NEO the first time around, this remix is a perfect time to test your racing mettle.

There was easily no other game that excited us more about the Switch than the newest chapter in one of gaming’s greatest franchises. After having played demos on both systems, I can attest that The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild looks better and plays smoother on the Switch over its Wii U counterpart. Playing with the Joy-Cons inserted into the “puppy dog” dock felt amazingly comfortable, and it wasn’t long before I was off trying to figure out the secret behind Calamity Ganon in the largest Hyrule yet. The map was absolutely massive, but I couldn’t wait to explore every single inch. Of course, the demo was quickly cut short after only 20 minutes, but I found everything to be easier in the Switch version, from managing my inventory to combat, and I believe again it’s in large part to the Switch controller being far more comfortable than the Wii U tablet. Of course, if I so chose, I could also snap the Joycons to the side of the Switch console and take it on the road. There’s a small loss of quality there—the 900p visuals becomes 720p on the console’s 6.5-inch screen—but the fact I could be flying across the country and playing a Zelda game makes up for that in spades.

Besides getting an obvious bump in visual fidelity on the Switch console, this latest version of everyone’s favorite kart racer is filled to the brim with content. Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is easily the definitive edition of this game. All previous DLC characters are unlocked from the get-go, along with a couple of new ones added to this version. New tracks are also included, again upping the content and replayability should you have played the original the first time around. The most telling addition, however, comes on the multiplayer side. Yes, like many of the other games on this list, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe touts a variety of local and online multiplayer options all depending on how many Switches and Joy-Cons you have available. You can even play 2-player split-screen locally with just a pair of Joy-Cons, with each player turning them sideways like NES controllers. But the biggest multiplayer addition is the inclusion of old-school balloon-popping battles in classic arenas that were noticeably absent from the launch of the original Mario Kart 8. With all these additions and new features, Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is almost an entirely new game, and a must have for fans of the series.

Lengthy title that should be shortened to just Snipperclips aside, this is another new IP that shows off the flexibility and creativity games on the Switch can potentially afford developers and players. This two-player game gives each player a single Joy-Con turned sideways, and sees them take control of living pieces of construction paper. By cutting your partner—and them cutting you—into a variety of different shapes, you must create the tools needed to solve puzzles of ever-increasing difficulty. No matter if you’re popping balloons, putting a basketball through a hoop, bringing a pencil over to a sharpener, or just matching shapes given to you, Snipperclips – Cut It Out, Together! will test your ability to collaborate (and maybe your patience) as you attempt to overcome all the challenges in your way.

One of the big things seemingly keeping the industry afloat at times is its regular reliance on nostalgia. When that nostalgia hits home, it’s hard to deny the impact it can have on a particular fanbase. Of course, when that same nostalgia leads to disappointment, the impact it has can be felt even more harshly in the other direction. Few franchises have seen both sides of this effect as clearly as Sonic the Hedgehog, with most recent entries falling on the unfortunate side of the nostalgia effect. It’s no wonder then that SEGA is turning an eye back to the beginning—to Sonic’s clearly-defined roots—and bringing the blue blur back home with Sonic Mania. A combination of the original Sonic the Hedgehog and an entirely new adventure, Sonic Mania combines the 16-bit breakneck speed that Sonic blasted onto the scene with with new worlds, harder levels, bigger bosses, and even the inclusion of his buddies Tails and Knucles this time around. While Sonic Mania is the only non-exclusive title to make this list, it needs to be mentioned that being able to play the game with only a single Joy-Con controller might feel the most similar to how it did when we were children as opposed to the larger, bulkier controllers of the PS4 or Xbox One. Considering Sonic only ever needed a couple of buttons, even the single Joy-Con might be overkill to some. To the rest of us, it is an extra tool in SEGA’s efforts to re-hone in on Sonic’s core, and bring his fans back to happier times.

Disappointment over the fact this wasn’t named Spla2oon aside, Splatoon 2 is doing everything you could hope for from any and every sequel. Aside from supporting both Joy-Con and Pro Controller play, and offering up local 8-player multiplayer if you have enough Switches, Splatoon 2 is coming at us bigger and better in every way imaginable. Just like in real life, two years time has passed in the world of Splatoon, and with it Squid-kid style has changed—along with their weaponry. New devices like the twin pistols allow for more accurate painting, and new modes, maps, and more are promised to bring the experience as a whole to a new level. I played a pair of classic turf war matches during our brief time with the game, and the core of bright colors and easy to pick-up gameplay remain centered on the Wii U’s biggest surprise franchise. We can’t wait to paint the town red (and blue, and green, and yellow, and pink) all over again this summer.

During the ending montage of Thursday night’s press conference where Nintendo really showed off the Switch for the first time, there were two things that I noticed. First was the confirmation of NBA 2K18, coupled with the earlier announcement of FIFA showing a clear sign of Nintendo finally supporting sports games again. But completely unrelated, and even more exciting for most of us, was the brief image of a familiar explosives expert who we hadn’t really seen in quite some time. The original Bomberman back in the day was one of those perfect little arcade-inspired adventures that flourished on the original NES. Over the years, the lore of Bomberman and his enemies was expanded upon, and he’s become a cult-classic for those of us who can’t get enough of his brand of demolition and destruction. Thus, Super Bomberman R was an extremely pleasant surprise that fantastically captures the essence of what makes Bomberman great, while giving us tough puzzles, persistent enemies, and just enough friendly fire to keep us on our toes when playing couch co-op. Another game that utilizes a single Joy-Con controller held sideways, Super Bomberman R is a great throwback for fleshing out the Switch’s launch-day lineup.

Another retro surprise, Capcom is giving fans what could end up being the final revision of Street Fighter II in the game’s over 25-year lifespan. Featuring two new (to the game) characters in Evil Ryu and Violent Ken, the roster of that fighting game classic is finally considered complete now alongside original additions like Cammy and T. Hawk. The game plays exactly the same, as you would expect if you caught the title the first time around, and features Pro Controller support, unsurprisingly. Besides the two new characters (that channel aspects of Akuma in different ways), the game can be played in two different visual modes. The first mimics the 16-bit sprites of the SNES days, while the other uses the new art UDON provided for the game’s HD Remix release, giving every character a gorgeous coat of anime-style paint that just leaps off the screen. As great as the game looks, the real question now is if it could join the professional fighting game circuit—and how long before we see Ultra Street Fighter II alongside Street Fighter V at tournaments like EVO.