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Welcome to the tenth instalment of our ‘Games We Missed’ series.
Twice a year we round up a bunch of stragglers, many of which we had on our list to review but just couldn’t get to due to the sheer number of games launching every week, some of which totally slipped through the net.
As always, we asked Nintendo Life readers to send in suggestions for games they thought deserved platforming with a little love, and you’ve responded with 38 Switch releases old and new. While we can’t vouch for them ourselves, there are plenty here that we’ve got wishlisted, and even a couple sitting in the backlog.
Thanks to everyone who sent recommendations – you’ll find their names in their corresponding entries (sometimes multiple). You’ll also find a trailer where available, and a poll at the end so you can have your say about the games below you’ve played. We begin with something short and sweet…
Developer: Mister Morris Games
Release Date: 9th Sep 2022 (USA)
This one, recommended by darkswabber, launched at a very busy time when our review doc was absolutely jam-packed, and sadly fell by the wayside.
I was surprised you guys never reviewed Haiku the Robot. It’s a Metroidvania taking heavy inspiration from Hollow Knight and it’s fairly short. Heavy emphasis on dodging and using your abilities. Gorgeous pixel art.
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Publisher: Raptor Claw
Release Date: 17th Mar 2023 (USA) / 17th Mar 2023 (UK/EU)
KoiTenchi is a fan of FUR Squadron, a game “unapologetically inspired by the original SNES Star Fox.”
It’s not the deepest game and it’s incredibly short (only 30 minutes from start to finish) but I had a lot of fun. 2 more difficulties are unlockable which adds some replay but even then you can beat everything in around 2 hours. It may sound like it’s not worth much but considering it has been on sale for less than $3, it’s definitely worth that for Star Fox fans! Considering Star Fox games seem to come out only about once every 8 years now, this scratched that itch.
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Publisher: Arc System Works
Release Date: 26th Mar 2020 (USA)
2020’s Chaos Code -New Sign Of Catastrophe- is a fighter close to Vyacheslav333‘s heart
It’s a very good and underrated FG. It is the only one known FG that features otaku as the main protagonist, and an enjoyable one as well. It’s accessible, and great as SNK’s FGs of the NEO•GEO era.
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Publisher: Sonic Powered
Release Date: 11th Dec 2024 (UK/EU)
ozwally wants to flag a long-running air-traffic control series:
I’ve been enjoying a series on Switch for years now which probably has flown under many peoples radars called Airport Hero. Specifically their latest entry Airport Hero Centrair 20th Anniversary Edition has some great attention to detail, very nice graphics and offers up a great degree of (puzzle?) challenge. This series on Switch has just been improving year on year and I just feel now is the time I need to give this a big shout out!
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Publisher: Chubby Pixel / Developer: Chubby Pixel
Release Date: 25th Jul 2019 (USA) / 25th Jul 2019 (UK/EU)
Lauren Allbritain is advocating for Woodle Tree 2: Deluxe.
It’s an open-world collectathon with a cute art style. In it, you need to find 24 Water Tears, 3 in each biome, which will revive the 8 Tree Sages. There are also Red Berries to upgrade weapons and buy equipment and costumes. Blue Berries are used to buy moves for Woodle. Occasionally, you’ll stumble upon decor for Woodle’s house.
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Publisher: HAMSTER / Developer: Namco
Release Date: 26th Oct 2023 (USA) / 26th Oct 2023 (UK/EU)
OwenOtter sent in recommendations for both this Arcade Archives release and Nova2001.
Arcade Archives: Burning Force is a member of the Arcade Archives series I’d personally been longing for since Namco games began appearing there! The game is originally from arcades in Japan in 1989, though a US release of the Sega Genesis port did exist. It’s a fun take on the Space Harrier style of “super scaler” games, with the protagonist Hiromi using a hoverbike and fighter jet to pass a gruelling flight course to become a starship pilot! The music is fantastic, and the gameplay is traditional arcade tough!
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Publisher: astragon Entertainment / Developer: Mipumi Games
Release Date: 14th Nov 2023 (USA) / 14th Nov 2023 (UK/EU)
Another one released in a manic period, Chris Ferguson is a fan of Howl.
Howl is a fantastic puzzle/strategy game. Short, focused & playable in short chunks. A perfect game for busy parents like myself trying to squeeze in game time when I can!
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Publisher: aNCHOR / Developer: AGE
Release Date: 11th Jul 2024 (USA) / 11th Jul 2024 (UK/EU)
FX29 Luvs ’em some Muv:
The one game I’d like to highlight is a Visual Novel that isn’t unknown in the West but has a cult following in Japan called: Muv-Luv Alternative. It’s often considered to be one of the best Visual Novels of all time.
This is actually a sequel but I won’t focus on the original for now. Without spoiling anything it’s a Sci-Fi visual novel where the main plot is humanity is on the brink of extinction trying to fight against an alien race called the BETA. It has elements of alternate timelines and psychological horror. Despite the goofy name this is not a RomCom or dating sim and it can get very dark but has an interesting story to it.
I highly recommend it to anyone who likes visual novels as it has a great story, only thing that holds it back is you’ll need to play the first game to truely appreciate the sequel.
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Publisher: Nexon / Developer: Arc System Works
Release Date: 20th Apr 2023 (USA) / 20th Apr 2023 (UK/EU)
Another Arc System Works fighter, DNF Duel: Who’s Next is the pick of leo, who seems to have frame rates on the brain.
my gem is dnf duel. it is, dragon ball fighterz aside, the only 2.5d fighting game at the time that has local wireless and no frame drops. stellar music! absolute gem in my local wireless, lag and fps drop free ultimate collection of nintendo switch 1 games! for example xenoverse 2, re 6 and frogwares sherlock holmes games got deleted because in my collection theres no framedrops. but look how amazing alan wake, grid autosport and dying light look with their stable 30 fps!
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Publisher: Screenwave Media
Release Date: 25th Sep 2024 (UK/EU)
OorWullie enjoys a slice of Iron Meat, giving it “a strong recommendation.”
If you are a fan of run and gun games like Contra, you’ll surely enjoy Iron Meat. It has fantastic pixel art , perhaps some of the best I’ve seen for this style of game, it sounds great and has lots of gore and explosions.
It controls just as you’d hope a Contra like game would control. It is challenging but not to the level of Contra and is very generous with lives. Stages are quite long, with some areas almost puzzle like in how you approach clearing the enemies.
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Publisher: QubicGames
Release Date: 29th Nov 2024 (UK/EU)
Mason is a big fan of platformer Leo’s Fortune.
It’s so much fun, the graphics are beautiful and absolutely stunning for the hardware, and although a regrettably short experience (only 2-3 hours) you can get it for only $7, $3 when it’s on sale. Absolutely worth it. One of my favorite 2D platformers.
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Publisher: Cinemax / Developer: KO.DLL
Release Date: 19th Sep 2024 (USA) / 19th Sep 2024 (UK/EU)
Pixel-platformer BZZZT is definitely worth a look, says Jeff2sayshi.
It’s a precision platformer, though nowhere near as tough as Super Meat Boy. The controls are tight, the levels are just bite-sized enough that you’re always saying ok, just one more level, and when you die, restarts are instant. There are also extra collectibles to extend gameplay length.
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