New Releases: October 27th-November 2nd, 2022

This week, it’s time to return to Lady Dimitrescu’s personal chambers with Resident Evil Village’s first story-based DLC, while Star Ocean: The Divine Force is the sixth mainline entry in tri-Ace’s action-role-playing series. In neither of those align with your interests, both Arkanoid: Eternal Battle and Shatter Remastered Deluxe offer plenty of brick-breaking action, while Love Qi Tan: The Truth That Doesn’t Exist (pictured) offers a poignant perspective on adoration.

PlayStation 4
Arcade Paradise (physical, $24.99)
Broken Pieces (digital, $TBA)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (physical & digital, $69.99)
Charon’s Staircase (physical & digital, $34.99)
Commandos 2 & 3 HD Remaster Double Pack (physical & digital, $39.99)
Dungeon Munchies (digital, $16.99)
Hatup (digital, $4.99)
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga – Galactic Edition (digital, $79.99)
Missile Command: Recharged 2.0 (digital, $9.99)
OlliOlli World: Finding the Flowzone (DLC, $9.99)
Resident Evil Village Gold Edition (physical & digital, $49.99)
Resident Evil Village: Winters’ Expansion (digital, $19.99)
Rule No.1 (digital, $5.99)
Saturnalia (digital, $19.99)
Shatter Remastered Deluxe (digital, $9.99)
Signalis (digital, $19.99)
Star Ocean: The Divine Force (physical & digital, $59.99)
The Entropy Centre (digital, $TBA)
The Legend of Tianding (digital, $19.99)

PlayStation 5
Arcade Paradise (physical, $24.99)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (physical & digital, $69.99)
Charon’s Staircase (physical & digital, $34.99)
RPGolf Legends (physical, $29.99)
Star Ocean: The Divine Force (physical & digital, $59.99)

Switch
80 Days & Overboard! (physical, $29.99)
A Guidebook of Babel (digital, $TBA)
A Winding Path (digital, $6.99)
Ace Angler: Fishing Spirits (digital, $39.99)
Alphadia Genesis 1 & 2 (physical, $$39.99)
Alterity Experience (digital, $9.99)
Amazing Chicken Adventures (digital, $19.99)
Arcade Paradise (physical, $29.99)
Arkanoid: Eternal Battle (digital, $29.99)
Arkanoid: Eternal Battle: Space Scout Pack (DLC, $1.99)
Asdivine Collection (physical, $49.99)
Asterix & Obelix XXXL: The Ram From Hibernia (digital, $39.99)
Baldo: The Guardian Owls (physical, $39.99)
Bayonetta 3 (physical & digital, $59.99)
Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom (physical, $34.99)
Bones of Halloween (digital, $4.99)
Brewmaster: Beer Brewing Simulator (digital, $17.99)
Buddy Simulator 1984 (digital, $8.99)
Charon’s Staircase (physical, $34.99, digital, $31.49)
Citizens Unite!: Earth x Space (physical, $39.99)
CoComelon: Play with JJ (physical & digital, $39.99)
Cubic Parking (digital, $2.99)
DariusBurst CS Core + Taito/Sega Pack (DLC, $26.99)
Escape String (digital, $6.29)
Factorio (digital, $TBA)
Fantasy Blacksmith (digital, $9.99)
Halloween Shooter (digital, $9.99)
Harmony’s Odyssey (digital, $14.99)
Hidden Paws Mystery (digital, $3.99)
Horse Club Adventures 2: Hazelwood Stories (digital, $39.99)
Horse Tales: Emerald Valley Ranch (digital, $39.99)
Hot Springs Story 2 (digital, $14.00)
Insomnis (digital, $14.99)
Isekai Harem Saver (digital, $1.99)
JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R – Risotto Nero (DLC, $4.99)
Live by the Sword: Tactics (digital, $24.99)
Lonesome Village (digital, $19.99)
Midnight Remastered (digital, $1.99)
Missile Command: Recharged 2.0 (digital, $9.99)
Paradigm Paradox (physical & digital, $49.99)
Pixel Artist (digital, $14.99)
Rule No.1 (digital, $5.99)
Saturnalia (digital, $19.99)
SD Gundam Battle Alliance Unit and Scenario Pack 3 (DLC, $9.99)
Shatter Remastered Deluxe (digital, $9.99)
Signalis (digital, $19.99)
Silenced: The House (digital, $3.99)
Solitaire: Classic Card Game (digital, $9.99)
Sophstar (digital, $11.69)
Synaxarion: Acts Part 1 (digital, $4.99)
Temple of Horror (digital, $9.99)
The Pinball Wizard (digital, $7.99)
Vereda – Escape Room Adventure (digital, $8.09)

Xbox One
Broken Pieces (digital, $TBA)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II (physical & digital, $69.99)
Charon’s Staircase (digital, $31.49)
Commandos 2 & 3 HD Remaster Double Pack (physical & digital, $39.99)
Gunfire Reborn (digital, $19.99)
Hatup (digital, $4.99)
LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga – Galactic Edition (digital, $79.99)
Live by the Sword: Tactics (digital, $24.99)
Lonesome Village (digital, $19.99)
Missile Command: Recharged 2.0 (digital, $9.99)
OlliOlli World: Finding the Flowzone (DLC, $9.99)
Paper Ghost Stories: 7PM (digital, $3.99)
Resident Evil Village Gold Edition (physical & digital, $49.99)
Resident Evil Village: Winters’ Expansion (digital, $19.99)
Saturnalia (digital, $19.99)
Shatter Remastered Deluxe (digital, $9.99)
Signalis (digital, $19.99)
Silenced: The House (digital, $3.99)
Sophstar (digital, $11.69)
Star Ocean: The Divine Force (physical & digital, $59.99)
The Entropy Centre (digital, $TBA)
The Legend of Tianding (digital, $19.99)

PC
Against the Storm ($TBA)
Arkanoid: Eternal Battle ($26.99)
Asterix & Obelix XXXL: The Ram From Hibernia ($39.99)
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare II ($69.99)
Doraemon Story of Seasons: Friends of the Great Kingdom ($49.99)
Lonesome Village ($19.99)
Love Qi Tan: The Truth That Doesn’t Exist ($4.49)
Paper Cut Mansion ($17.99)
Resident Evil Re:Verse ($29.99)
Resident Evil Village: Winters’ Expansion (DLC, $19.99)
Sackboy: A Big Adventure ($59.99)
Signalis ($19.99)
Star Ocean: The Divine Force ($59.99)
The Pinball Wizard ($7.19)
The Unliving ($TBA)

Rob’s Pick: Far too much bandwidth is devoted to one small part of Bayonetta 3’s production rather than the merits of the Umbra Witch, so let’s get back on track. PlatinumGame’s series has consistently balanced style and substance, focusing on hyperkinetic action that’s easy on the eyes. Platinum probably could have coasted, with Bayonetta 3 sticking to formula.

But the team took some interesting risks. From a comprehensive overhaul of the franchise’s weapon system to a plotline set spread out across a multiverse, Platinum nails most of them. Yes, they stumble with some kaiju boss battles, but it’s a small blemish on the otherwise absorbing experience.

Dungeon Munchies is worth a look if you’re grown tired of gaming cliches. Yes, it’s a metroidvania, but it’s also rather linear, getting rid of the conventional cartography and zone-gating. There’s crafting but the irritations of scouring areas for key ingredients and the slow progression of technology are largely absent. While there’s an incentive to try the most recent addition to your inventory, you’re free to use your preferred weaponry. I’m one of those jerks who enjoys watching enemies slowly succumb to poison, and Munchies supports my cowardice. Plus, developer maJAJa provides some clever writing. Lastly, Shatter Remastered Deluxe might be one of the best Breakout clones ever. Apologies to Arkanoid!

Matt S’ pick (editor, DigitallyDownloaded): I cannot believe how much fun I have had with Star Ocean: The Divine Force. Firstly, because I really thought that after Square Enix’s wave of releases I would be too tired for this one, and then secondly because, after the last Star Ocean missed the mark (unlike many I enjoyed it enough but… yeah, it missed the mark) I wasn’t expecting it to come back this strongly. But the developers absolutely nailed it. In so many ways The Divine Force feels like what Star Ocean 3 would have been in 2022, and that’s just a delight.

Top-tier waifu too, as an aside. Very top-tier. Best since Reimi.

And then there’s Bayonetta 3 which is, of course, essential. It’s Devil May Cry with sass. It’s the biggest, grandest, most action-y action you’re going to find on your Nintendo Switch. It tells a great, fun story and gives you some incredibly creative enemies to beat up. Unlike Rob I don’t think PlatinumGames pushed things too far with Bayonetta 3 – I found it to be iterative and simply looking to build a better experience over its predecessors – but I also think that taking risks would not have been in the game’s interest. What people wanted was a bigger, brasher extension of what they already got, and they did get that!

Ryan’s pick: Star Ocean: The Divine Force gets my vote this week as I have always enjoyed this franchise, especially the battle system. There’s a lot to like about the art and design of this game, as the environments are really detailed, and the same can be said about the character models and effects. The action in the game is quite fast, so I can easily see myself sinking a lot of hours into this one. Speaking of sinking hours into games, Genshin Impact’s 3.2 patch hits next week with a new archon, so I know I’ll be sinking some primos to try and get Nahida. She’s voiced by Tamura Yukari, the same voice actress who played Furude Rika in Higurashi When they Cry, so I’m definitely willing to part with some primos for a chance to wish for her.

I do also want to make sure I suggest Resident Evil Village Gold Edition. I’m one trophy away from the platinum in that game, so I absolutely loved playing through it multiple times. My favorite was playing it with just the knife. I haven’t tried the DLC as I vowed to continue to get the SS rank on all the post-game challenges before I splurged, but if you haven’t picked this game up yet, please do yourself a favor and try it out. However, if you are not a horror fan, I would maybe abstain from this one, as at times it is absolutely terrifying.