SwitchArcade Round-Up: Reviews Featuring ‘Emio – The Smiling Man’, Plus Today’s New Releases and Sales

Hello discerning readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Roundup for September 5th, 2024. Already Thursday? Time flies! We're diving deep into reviews today, featuring Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate. Our contributor, Mikhail, also weighs in on Nour: Play With Your Food, Fate/stay night REMASTERED, and the TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK. We'll then cover today's noteworthy new releases and wrap up with the latest sales updates. Let's get started!

Reviews & Mini-Views

Emio – The Smiling Man: Famicom Detective Club ($49.99)

Resurrecting dormant franchises is the latest trend, mirroring Hollywood's practices. Nintendo's unexpected revival of Famicom Detective Club, primarily known in the West through a brief remake, has yielded a new entry. This presents a challenge: balancing faithfulness to the original with modern sensibilities. Emio – The Smiling Man retains the style of the recent remakes, creating a unique blend. The visuals are top-notch, and the narrative surpasses what 90s Nintendo would have delivered, yet the gameplay remains old-school. This significantly impacts enjoyment.

A student's death, marked by a smiling-face paper bag, unearths eighteen-year-old unsolved murders with similar calling cards. The legend of Emio, a killer promising eternal smiles, is raised. Is it a copycat, a resurfaced killer, or pure myth? The Utsugi Detective Agency steps in, employing classic investigative methods: exploring locations and questioning suspects repeatedly. The gameplay is reminiscent of Ace Attorney's investigation segments. Depending on your preference, this aspect might feel tedious. Certain logical connections could have benefited from clearer guidance.

Despite some criticisms of the narrative, I found it engaging, suspenseful, and well-written. Certain plot points may not resonate with everyone, but detailed discussion would spoil the experience. This is a mystery best experienced fresh. The positive aspects outweigh the negative, and the game truly shines when the momentum builds.

Emio – The Smiling Man is atypical of Nintendo, but any potential team rust is imperceptible. While its mechanics stick closely to the originals, the plot is mostly excellent, though the pacing occasionally falters or resolutions feel unsatisfying. These are minor flaws in an otherwise highly enjoyable mystery adventure. Welcome back, Detective Club – let's hope the next installment isn't so far off.

SwitchArcade Score: 4/5

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate ($29.99)

The Switch is accumulating a solid collection of TMNT games. From the Cowabunga Collection to Shredder's Revenge and Wrath of the Mutants, now comes Splintered Fate, offering a home console experience. More are on the horizon! So, how does this one fare?

Quite well, actually. If you've played the Apple Arcade version, you're familiar with the concept. Imagine a TMNT beat 'em up infused with Hades elements. Play solo or with up to four players locally or online. Online multiplayer functioned smoothly in our testing. The solo experience is decent, but multiplayer enhances it considerably.

Shredder's machinations involving a mysterious power endanger Splinter, prompting the Turtles to act. Combat involves slicing, dicing, and bludgeoning enemies, tactical dashing, perk acquisition, and permanent upgrades. Death sends you back to the lair. It's a roguelite beat 'em up, but with the Turtles, making it inherently superior. While not groundbreaking, it executes its concept effectively.

Splintered Fate isn't a must-have, but TMNT fans will appreciate this twist. The well-implemented multiplayer is a plus. Those unfamiliar with the Turtles can find better roguelites on Switch, but given the platform's competitive genre landscape, Splintered Fate holds its own.

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

Nour: Play With Your Food ($9.99)

The initial absence of Switch and mobile releases for Nour: Play With Your Food surprised me. It seemed ideal for touchscreens as an experimental food art experience. The PC version was enjoyable, but it's not a traditional game for everyone. If you appreciate playful sandbox experiences and food, you'll likely love Nour, but the Switch version has shortcomings.

For newcomers, Nour lets you interact with various foods across stages, accompanied by engaging music and over-the-top elements. It blends an interactive app with food and art themes. Initially, you have basic tools, but the expansive content allows for extensive food play. However, this highlights why touchscreen control isn't optimal.

The lack of touchscreen support on Switch is disappointing. Performance compromises are evident compared to other platforms, resulting in noticeable load times.

Nour: Play With Your Food is worthwhile for fans of food, art, and interactive apps. While the Switch version isn't optimal, its portability is a plus, and hopefully, its success will lead to more DLC or a physical release. Games like Nour and Townscaper offer a refreshing contrast to more involved titles. -Mikhail Madnani

SwitchArcade Score: 3.5/5

Fate/stay night REMASTERED ($29.99)

Fate/stay night REMASTERED, released recently on Switch and Steam, is a remaster of the 2004 visual novel. This is arguably the best entry point into the Fate universe. Before discussing the game, let me share some background. My journey with Fate began years ago, leading to importing the Japanese PS Vita version. This remaster's English release feels surreal. But is it worthwhile? Absolutely.

Fate/stay night REMASTERED is a remaster of the 2004 visual novel following Emiya Shirou, the Holy Grail War, and more. It's a fantastic entry point into the Fate universe, especially for those familiar only with the anime or other games. Even with quality-of-life improvements, it's a 55+ hour experience, making the price astonishingly low.

For those who played the original Japanese versions, this remaster offers significant enhancements, including English language support and 16:9 aspect ratio. The visual improvements are substantial, though not as stunning as Tsukihime's recent remake. Comparing it to the PS Vita version reveals considerable effort in making it visually appealing on modern displays.

The inclusion of touchscreen support on Switch is a welcome addition. Playing it extensively on both Switch Lite and OLED models, including docked mode, highlighted its suitability for Nintendo's hybrid system. Hopefully, it will see releases on other platforms like iOS and PS5.

It also performs flawlessly on Steam Deck. The only drawback is the lack of a physical Switch release. Its success hopefully warrants one in the future.

Fate/stay night REMASTERED is essential for visual novel fans. Its availability in English on Switch and Steam, combined with its low price, makes it highly recommended. While not as visually impressive as Tsukihime's remake, it's a worthwhile experience. -Mikhail Madnani

SwitchArcade Score: 5/5

TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK ($49.99)

Having limited VR experience, I missed out on TOKYO CHRONOS and ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos. My VR-owning friends praised them for their narratives and immersive VR experience. The Switch release of the TWIN PACK finally allowed me to experience them.

The TWIN PACK lets you choose between the two games. TOKYO CHRONOS follows high school friends in an alternate Shibuya, involving memory loss, murder, and more. The narrative, while predictable at times, is decent. The visuals are good, and I'm curious to experience it in VR.

ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos, however, is superior in production quality, music, writing, voice acting, and characters. It surpasses the typical visual novel format, enhancing the overall experience.

Despite some narrative shortcomings, the Switch version has camera movement issues. These are minor inconveniences, however, overshadowed by the touchscreen support and satisfying rumble.

TOKYO CHRONOS & ALTDEUS: Beyond Chronos TWIN PACK is a great Switch experience, enhanced by touch controls and rumble. I'm glad to have finally experienced these stories without needing a VR headset. If you enjoy sci-fi, try the demo. -Mikhail Madnani

SwitchArcade Score: 4.5/5

Select New Releases

Fitness Boxing feat. Hatsune Miku ($49.99)

The title perfectly encapsulates the game's content. It's Fitness Boxing featuring Hatsune Miku, including 24 songs from Miku and friends, plus 30 more from the Fitness Boxing series. Mechanically, it resembles other games in the series. Pick it up if you want Fitness Boxing with Hatsune Miku.

Gimmick! 2 ($24.99)

A faithful sequel to the original, featuring enhanced visuals and challenging gameplay. Fans of clever platformers should check it out.

Touhou Danmaku Kagura Phantasia Lost ($29.99)

Combines rhythm game and bullet hell elements, appealing to fans of the Touhou franchise.

EGGCONSOLE Hydlide MSX ($6.49)

Another Hydlide version for dedicated fans.

Arcade Archives Lead Angle ($7.99)

A gallery shooter from 1988.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

No Man's Sky is a notable sale. Other games are frequently discounted.

Select New Sales

Sales Ending Tomorrow, September 6th

That's all for today. We'll return tomorrow with more reviews, new releases, and sales. Check out my blog, Post Game Content, for additional gaming insights. Have a great Thursday!