Shots Fired – Q1 2018 – Another Indie
While top of the line graphics might mean the world to some gamers, Shots Fired proves it’s gameplay over graphics. From studio Another Indie, you’ll be set on a path of redemption, having one week to find the people who killed your wife, kidnapped your daughter and stole your TV. By day you’ll take assignments as a photojournalist – something of a time-limited Where’s Waldo, and by evening you’ll need to read a dossier on your next assassination target to take them down. It’s a very satisfying game that keeps you alert, and the developers have quite the sense of humor – putting themselves and several noted pop culture icons in the game as targets. It’s a highly amusing title and is sure to be great fun on the go.
Available on Switch and PC
Shovel Knight: King of Cards – Q1 2018 – Yacht Club
Shovel Knight returns with Yacht Club’s final campaign for the titular hero’s Treasure Trove story, King of Cards. The new adventure will bring about four new worlds to explore, King Knight’s fantastic new royal attire, and the classic gameplay that has earned the series a cult following. Shovel Knight has been an extremely popular character in recent years, with fans clamoring for his inclusion in the previous Super Smash Bros. game. It’s sure to be a massive hit and feels like a fitting end to the Shovel Knight story, albeit a skeptical one considering the extensive popularity of the series.
Available on every platform
Sleep Tight – Q1 2018 – We Are Fuzzy
What if in Pixar’s Monsters Inc. the monsters weren’t full of good intentions? From indie developer We Are Fuzzy comes a twin-stick shooter full of wholesome fun and good old Pixar feels in Sleep Tight. Players will create pillow forts, set up foam dart turrets, and more to make it through the night as oddly adorable monsters try to capture you in the darkness. This top-down twin-stick shooter is absolutely adorable and speaks to the child in each of us. Sleep Tight looks to be full of potential, we just need to see what else the game has to offer.
Available on Switch and PC
Wargroove – Q1 2018 – Chucklefish Games
Back on the Nintendo DS, fans of strategy were given a rare treat in the form of Civilization Revolution. It was a toned down, sprite-based version of Civilization that still carried the series’ addictive qualities. Chucklefish Games – the studio to bring us Stardew Valley – has recaptured what that portable Civilization and handheld classic Advanced Wars gave us in the form of Wargroove, a four-player turn-based strategy game full of whimsy and fantasy, no longer bound by the rules of history. Wargroove was also one of the titles announced when the Switch launched, and with online multiplayer and twelve campaigns, it has potential to set the bar for future turn-based strategy games to make their way to the Switch.
Available on Switch, Xbox One, and PC
A Knights Quest: Spirit Shield – 2018 – Sky9 Games
Developer Sky9 Games might be pushing themselves a little too hard on hitting their release date, but A Knights Quest: Spirit Shield is shaping up to be an interesting Adventure/ RPG in the same vein as Oceanhorn or the Legend of Zelda franchise. Players will control Rusty, a would-be hero who accidentally unleashes an unspeakable evil. With the power of the Spirit Shield, Rusty is able to remove his spirit from his body and use it for a variety of effects. The game has an emphasis on traversal and comedy as seen in the pre-alpha trailer below. The detail in the trailer gives me hope this will be a successful RPG to strengthen the Switch’s library.
Available on Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC
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