On short notice, an April 2023 Nintendo Indie World Showcase was announced as recently as yesterday. It’s about exactly 20 minutes of smaller titles and game projects from around the world. It’s twenty well interwoven minutes we got, and as usual we want to summarize what we saw here in simple forms. This list goes by chronological release date, minus DLC/free updates, which end up at the bottom.
Shadows over Loathing
This sequel to the light RPG West of Loathing has been enjoying high ratings from critics and players alike since its release late last year. Now it’s the Switch’s turn to take part in this bizarre stick figure game. Shadows Over Loathing also gets a physical release this fall.
Teslagrad 2 + Teslagrad Remaster
Teslagrad 2 is released on all of its planned platforms today, and the Switch is no exception. It also arrives in the company of a remaster of its predecessor, complete with some new content in the form of challenges.
Five Nights at Freddy’s: Security Breach
The latest installment in this epic horror epic (well) is now coming to the Switch. I imagine that the iron is no longer very hot for this game series, but many people probably know that it is for them.
Crime o’clock
A detective game with a time-traveling dispute and a total of 40 cases to solve. Sounds like a challenge for the observant. Crime O’Clock is released on June 30.
My Time at Sandrock
The sequel to My Time at Portia, which ironically has just been ported to many platforms. This RPG/cave crawler game has a very unassuming appearance and plenty of easy tasks for those who want some more low-key resource management games. It will be released on an as yet unspecified date this summer.
Blasphemous 2
The sequel to its predecessor (the one without a second in the title). Joking aside: Blasphemous 2 is a slightly bloodier exploration platformer that obviously won’t let you walk by unscathed. It will be released in the summer. Until then, I highly recommend getting to know the predecessor. It’s a raw, unforgiving game with a unique darkness to it.
Oxenfree II: Lost Signals
The sequel to that little point-and-click game that just about everyone seemed to be talking about for a while. The trailer gives just as eerie vibes as you could wish for. Oxenfree II: Lost Signals clocking in on the July 12 release date.
Bomb Rush Cyberfunk
Came, was seen and disappeared quite quickly, but probably didn’t leave fans Jet Set Radio or Hover past. Games that look like graffiti in motion are still few and far between, and with good reason are gaining attention. Bomb Rush Cyberfunk has you skating and cycling in urban environments and performing various tricks. It will be released on August 18, just in time to extend the summer with its neighboring colors.
Paper Trail
A fairy tale from a pop-up book origami that got criminally little screen time in the presentation. One can hope that Paper Trail will show off little more than this when it’s released in August. The trailer is the definition of “small, but naggingly good”.
Chants of Sennaar
Cell-drawn point-and-click puzzler with religious overtones releasing loosely on September 5th.
Mineko’s Night Market
The cat game that kicked off the presentation. Mineko’s Night Market is a small exploration game with a business mechanic with a cute story about a mischievous cat. Cat people, hooray! The game will be released on September 26.
PlateUp
Overcooked on steroids with roguelite elements.
Quilts & Cats of Calico
Based on the board game Calico. Another game about cats, which here involves charming cats to you with the right combination of patterns on your patchwork. Cat people, hooray again! Incidentally, the developer’s cat is called Darwin. Quilts & Cats of Calico will be released this fall.
Escape Academy: The Complete Edition
You may have already played breakaway king in Escape Academy on any of its other platforms, but this fall you can also do it on Nintendo Switch.
Animal Well
A metroidvania-type exploration game where the layout seems completely open. The most astonishing thing, however, is the graphical style, which looks like old PC software mixed with the latest particle effects and scratch filters. Animal Well released this winter.
There was a lot of uncertainty around dates here, but that applies even more to these last games.
Rift of the Necrodancer
The step from a cave crawler to Zelda spinoff was not long, but to one Guitar Hero-inspired thing was all the more daring. The style is smart and stylish. But the release date is an unspecified 2023.
Bro tato
A two-pack shooter that also dropped by on iOS and Android devices recently. Is the developers first game and looks very easy bang-bang. The game will be released on the Switch sometime this year.
Little Kitty, Big City
This too a debut game for its studio (Double Dagger Studio) and this too a cat game. Cat people, hooray! Little Kitty, Big City promises mischief, play and mischief once it’s released, but we’ll have to wait until next year 🙁
Cult of the Lamb will get a free update on April 24th with more game modes and other nice content.
Shovel Knight Pocket Dungeon it’s also getting a free update with more characters and relics, sometime this spring.
A Little to the Left, which can almost be called the cleaning mania simulator, is getting paid DLC sometime this summer. This will contain more scenarios and illustrations – more of the good stuff A Little to the Leftsimply.
And that was the end of this evening’s broadcast. Nothing stood out right away, but seeing several titles get their more accurate release dates in these particular Nintendo Indie World Showcases is nice. At least for those of us who want to structure the release calendar well in advance.
