Well, this is a nice surprise! Keen to make sure that nobody has forgotten about Splatoon Raiders, Nintendo has today revealed its release date. What’s more, it’ll have a trio of new amiibo in tow.
The new Shiver, Frye and Big Man (Splatoon Raiders Edition) amiibo will launch alongside the game on 23rd July.
The figures see the Deep Cut trio in new outfits — the ones that they’ll be sporting in the upcoming single-player game, no less — and seem to be available either individually or as a pack of three. Interestingly, the bases of these three amiibo fit together for a more unified display.
Here’s a closer look at the set:
So, there you have it! Splatoon Raiders exists! We’ll be keeping an eye out for more information over the coming months, but at least we have a better idea of the Summer schedule now.
Will you be nabbing these new amiibo? Let us know in the comments.
The older games in the Ys series have been slowly working their way to Switch in the form of Ys Memoire ports like last year’s Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana. This year, we have Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta. While the plot isn’t as good as other entries, the combat and characters pick up the slack.
Revelations in Celceta once again follows the red-headed adventurer Adol Christin as he goes on another globetrotting journey and somehow ends up saving the world (again). Celceta is also a reimagining of the 1993’s Ys IV: Mask of the Sun for Super Famicom, as well as the fourth chronological game in the series, taking place after Ys X: Nordics. Thankfully, Celceta, much like the majority of games in the series, is a standalone game, so you won’t have to play the previous ones to understand what’s going on.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
Unfortunately, this story is one of the weaker aspects. Adol washes on the shore of Celceta as an amnesiac, and has to recover his lost memories while preventing an ancient artifact from falling into the wrong hands.
The villains and their motivations are quite shallow, and the plot just simply isn’t very interesting. It doesn’t have the emotional pull of Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana or the heart of Ys Seven, which are considered some of the best in the series.
Thankfully, Adol’s companions like the cool yet collected Frieda and the cheerful Karna help keep Celceta’s story from being a complete bore. Character interactions between the main cast were always enjoyable to watch.
But what carries Celceta is its exemplary gameplay. As a real-time action game, you can have up to three people in your party at once dishing out constant damage against enemies on the field. You can attack enemies with basic swings, as well as map up to four different special moves to the face buttons and unleash them. Sure, it’s a button-mash fest sometimes, but battles end up being chaotic and exciting messes with the effects flying all over the screen.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Docked)
On higher difficulties, though, you’ll need to be a bit more methodical. Enemies and bosses hit hard, and you’ll have to master the Flash Dodge/Guard system. By dodging or guarding at the right time before an enemy attack connects, they’ll freeze in place (like Bayonetta’s Witch Time), letting you wail on them for extra damage. It’s hardly an original mechanic, but it fits perfectly with the frenetic hack-and-slash nature of combat.
Customisation is straightforward as well, which also matches the combat’s simplicity. When you find more powerful equipment out in the world or at a shop, you can just equip it to make your stats go up. There’s a bit more depth in the item crafting and equipment refining process, like finding enough materials to upgrade your things, but it’s overall still a simple process that’s easy to understand.
This Switch port contains a newly-recorded audio score, and Celceta’s music is excellent. I never got tired of hearing the blistering pianos combined with electrifying guitars that are littered all across the soundtrack.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
The graphics have also been touched up, although the game can still look a bit dated but that’s not entirely surprising given it was originally a PlayStation Vita game. Fortunately, the frame rate runs at 60fps, which makes combat and exploration feel smooth.
However, I do wish there was a bit more effort to put in additional quality-of-life features. With so many modern games having auto-save nowadays, I sometimes forget to manually create saves. An auto-save function would’ve been appreciated, but alas isn’t present.
Features like turbo mode are conspicuously missing from Revelations in Celceta too, even though the Oath in Felghana remaster last year had it. So I’m not sure why there’s a regression here.
Conclusion
Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta is a good entry in the long-running action RPG series, but it’s far from the best. Despite the game’s title, the plot is forgettable but the explosive combat, charming characters, and booming soundtrack are engaging enough to keep your attention until the credits roll.
Adol has had more memorable adventures on Nintendo Switch, but mapping out the Great Forest of Celceta is still a fun time.
After months of silence, Nintendo has finally remembered that Splatoon Raiders exists.
Showcasing a brand new trailer on Nintendo Today!, we now know the game is coming to Switch 2 on 23rd July 2026 and will cost £41.99 / $49.99 digitally. In the US, the physical version is $59.99 (UK pricing TBC).
You’ll be playing as the Mechanic, exploring the Spirhalite Islands with the Deep Cut Trio from Splatoon 3. And on this beautiful, barren desert island, you’ll be ink-splatting some familiar creatures all while searching for treasure.
And, as you’d expect being a mechanic, you can make your own weapons and tools to deal with the creatures all across the island. And it seems like Frye, Shiver, and Big Man will also be usable in fights, too.
Those of you who love playing Splatoon with friends, don’t fret, as you can play with up to three others both online and locally.
Along with a release date, Nintendo has confirmed that the game is a single-player focused and that three new amiibo will be launching on the same date — one for each member of Deep Cut.
Pre-orders for Splatoon Raiders and the amiibo will be going live later today.
What do you think of Splatoon Raiders so far? Excited for 23rd July? Let us know in the comments.
If you thought that releasing on such a monumentally successful console like the Switch would dilute the game’s eccentricities, then worry not – it’s basically just as weird and wonderful as ever. But is it any good?
Well, yes, we thought it was actually the very definition of ‘good’ with our 7/10 review. Alana praised the game’s interactivity and bizarre sense of humour, but nevertheless felt that it became quite repetitive with some limited touchscreen implementation.
Here’s what she had to say:
“Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream is the strangest thing you’ll play from Nintendo, bringing with it laughs and creativity in abundance. But even with improvements over the 3DS game, it follows a familiar structure that isn’t always enthralling or hilarious.
“Tomodachi fans will certainly be living the dream with this new entry, but I’m not desperate to keep coming back to my island. A little more variety would’ve been welcome, but the customisation, and the thought of my cat being best friends with DMC’s Dante, will have me peep in every so often for a little pick-me-up.”
So now, it’s over to you. We’d like you to provide your own score for Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream in the below poll. Is it a straight-up 10/10 masterpiece? Or does it contain some frustrations that perhaps knock it down a peg or two? Let us know.
And don’t worry if you haven’t played it yet or you’re not ready to provide your score at this time. This article won’t be going anywhere, so feel free to bookmark it and come back when you’re ready. Alternatively, leave a preliminary score now and revisit it later if you change your mind.
What score would you give Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream (Switch)? (140 ratings)
10 – Outstanding14%
9 – Excellent26%
8 – Great34%
7 – Good11%
6 – Not Bad4%
5 – Average1%
4 – Poor1%
3 – Bad0%
2 – Terrible1%
1 – Abysmal6%
Thanks for voting! If you’d like to expound the reasoning for your score, then leave a comment and let us know what you think of the game so far.
If you’re anything like us, then BALL x PIT gobbled up a fair amount of your time last year with its super addictive Breakout-meets-roguelike gameplay. Well, it looks like Kenny Sun and Devolver Digital are back for more.
The team has revealed our first look at the upcoming ‘Shadow Update’, which is set to bounce onto Switch 1 and 2 next week on 27th April. And much like January’s Regal Update, there’s a lot to like about this one.
The headline addition is a pair of new playable characters, who each bring a unique skill to the table. There’s The Tunneller, whose shots burrow through the edge of the screen before reemerging on the other side, and The Tiptoer, who can remain undetected by close-range enemies.
There are also a bunch of new balls, passives, and a new building to look forward to. Aside from the teaser trailer above, Devolver shared the following update rundown on Steam:
Ball X Pit ‘The Shadow Update’ (27th April 2026)
2 new characters
The Tunneller is a scrappy miner whose shots don’t stop at the edge; they wrap around the screen and come back in from the other side, making just about every angle fair game.
The Tiptoer is a fragile but deadly ninja who stays undetected by enemies at close range at the cost of lower health and damage.
11 New Balls
Venom stacks up with each hit, slowing targets and chipping away at them until enough buildup finally locks them in place with paralysis.
Time leans into area control, dropping a timesnare that freezes enemies caught in its range.
Erosion cuts straight through foes, with each hit shaving off a percentage of their current health, making it incredibly nasty against tougher targets.
Time Bomb adds a bit of delayed chaos, planting an explosive that goes off after a short wait.
Timestop does exactly what it sounds like, freezing absolutely everything on the field for a few seconds before going on cooldown.
Warp keeps things unpredictable, blinking to a random spot on the field upon every enemy hit while ramping up speed as it goes.
Sniper shots cut straight through enemies but burn out the moment they hit a wall or loop back, trading longevity for a boosted critical chance that rewards precise enemy line ups.
Heart Swallower gives each hit a certain chance to drain a bit of life and heal you for one while also weakening the target’s attack by a percentage, but remember each enemy can only be drained once.
Plus a few more that we won’t spoil just yet…
4 New Passives
Full Metal Rapier thrives on chaos with each ball scaling its damage based on how many baby balls and enemies are currently on the field.
Arrow of Fate flips defense into offense, making you immune to incoming projectiles and firing back a burst of baby balls whenever you’re hit.
Argent Stopwatch plays with momentum, starting balls off at 150% damage before shaving off 30% with every bounce, so timing and positioning matter more than ever.
Sword Breaker keeps things steady but scalable, lowering base damage to 75% while quietly stacking an extra 1% for every enemy in play.
1 New Building
Better start thinking of a spot to drop the Guildhall! This new building will allow players to re-roll previously chosen character upgrades.
What are you most excited to see in this update? Bounce down to the comments and let us know.
Toei Company, the Japanese juggernaut known primarily for its work in the film and television industry, has announced the establishment of a new gaming publishing brand: Toei Games.
Originally founded in 1951, Toei Company describes the establishment as a “new challenge” and aims to release games first on Steam before expanding into consoles like the Switch, PlayStation, and Xbox.
Its first game will be announced later this month on 24th April, but don’t expect any familiarity with the title; Toei Company confirms that its initial line-up will not be based on existing IP, but will instead be entirely new, original games from creators in Japan and around the world.
An official website is now live, but is understandably quite bare at the moment.
Toei Company is also the majority shareholder in Toei Animation, which has produced significant franchises such as One Piece, Dragon Ball, Digimon, Yu-Gi-Oh, and more.
So we’ll keep an eye out for whatever this new game is on the 24th. Like we said, it’s unlikely to be confirmed for Switch / Switch 2 immediately, but we wouldn’t be surprised to see a release later down the line.
What do you make of this? Are you excited to see some original works from Toei Games, or would you rather it work on existing IP? Let us know.
Capcom has commenced celebrations for Ōkami‘s 20th anniversary, so naturally, director Hideki Kamiya has shared a heartfelt message to commemorate the occasion.
Over on the official anniversary website, you can check out the first celebratory events for yourself. Capcom has invited fans to share their own messages, and you can even peruse some awesome Shikishi designs from key talent behind the iconic game.
For now, let’s see what Kamiya has to say:
It’s Ōkami’s 20th anniversary!
Looking back, I still can’t believe we got it out the door…but that’s a story for another time! Seeing the support you’ve all poured into Ōkami since its original release, together with my immense pride for having worked on it, could not make me happier to celebrate this milestone.
The enthusiasm and support you’ve all shown has helped sustain Ōkami’s legacy for two long decades, in which time the game has had a second adventure, a striking HD remaster, and a range of official products and projects that make me as excited as a creator as I would be as a fan. I think the affection the staff has for Ōkami can be seen— No, can be FELT in each and every one of the things they create. Me and my collection of Amaterasu figures and plushies could not be more thankful.
Ōkami’s influence can be felt in the connections people have built with the game, and with our continued support, I believe those connections will continue to deepen and expand well beyond its 20th anniversary. In the meantime, I’ll be putting my blood, sweat, and tears into the new Ōkami sequel that you’ve all been waiting for!
Until then, I hope you’ll all keep the love for Ōkami alive. Warm regards, Hideki Kamiya
The website also includes an awesome piece of celebratory art, which you can view directly below:
Image: Capcom
And finally, in collaboration with Capcom, Fangamer has revealed six new Ōkami products to celebrate the anniversary, including a desk mat, a pair of socks, a keychain, a t-shirt, a blanket, and a jacket. They all look wonderful, and they’re available for pre-order now ahead of a Q4 2026 release window.
We’ll keep an eye out for any and all news related to Ōkami’s upcoming sequel from Kamiya’s new development studio, Clovers. No platforms have been confirmed at the time of writing, but we’d be surprised if Switch 2 wasn’t included in the line-up.
20 years, huh? Time flies. Do you have any specific memories of Ōkami? Let us know with a comment down below.
Although Nintendo is already focused on the next game Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, The Good Smile Company is today celebrating the series’ past with the reveal of two new figures based on Azura from the 3DS title, Fire Emblem Fates.
Pre-orders are now available in the US and Japan, with this window closing on 10th June 2026, and there’s an “estimated arrival” date between October 2027 and December2027. Here’s the official description for these figures and another look:
“From the Fire Emblem series comes the latest figure in a series of figures made by the developer of the series, INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS! From “Fire Emblem Fates” comes a 1/7 scale figure of Azura, the songstress at the mercy of fate! Raised as a princess of Nohr, yet taken away to Hoshido—Azura carries a past shaped by a complex and turbulent upbringing. Depicted in her White Songstress attire / Dark Songstress attire, this figure captures Azura as she continues to sing, defying the cruel fate that leaves her torn between two kingdoms.”
This latest Good Smile Fire Emblem figure follows on from figures for Byleth (Dancer), Lucina, Edelgard von Hresvelg, and more. You can see what else is on offer on the Good Smile website.
In some other Fire Emblem news, earlier this year Nintendo added Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance to the Switch Online’s GameCube library.
What do you think of this latest Fire Emblem Good Smile figure? Let us know in the comments.
After years of feeling left out, it feels like London is being treated to a bit of Nintendo store recognition, of late. First, we had the Westfield pop-up at the end of last year, and now there’s another surprise store in town, taking up floor space in an Argos, of all places.
Out of nowhere, the Tottenham Court Argos is now home to a bunch of physical Nintendo merch, covering everything from plushies to games, Switch 2 consoles to accessories. Heck, there are even a few items that you usually only see online — hey Alarmo, Talking Flower and amiibo!
Being the local lad that this writer is, we popped up to the store to see what it’s all about. It’s got to be said, we were impressed by just how much merch is on display, particularly since Argos stores are usually nothing more than a sea of screens (we miss you, catalogues).
Here’s a quick look at what’s on offer, because it’s always good to go in with a list at these kinds of things:
Let’s give a little shoutout to the lesser-represented Nintendo franchises, too. It may not be much, but it’s always exciting to see Pikmin and Metroid on the shelf!
A store employee told us that the pop-up will be sticking around for a while yet, so be sure to swing by if you happen to find yourself in the capital and have a hankering for some Nintendo merch.
Will you be heading to this Nintendo pop-up any time soon? Let us know in the comments.
“Zone Profile Fantasy”? “Zoom Port Focus”? Nobody knows whether ZPF is an acronym or not, except perhaps the three-man development team behind it: Perry Sessions, Mikael Tillander, and Jamie Vance. Prior to ZPF, Sessions and Vance created a contra-style NES demo called Cavity Destroyer for Vance’s brother’s dental practice. From there, the two joined with Tillander, a coder, to repurpose some of Sessions’ old graphics work for a new Mega Drive shoot-’em-up project.
ZPF was first teased all the way back on Christmas Day 2020, with a playable demo surfacing in 2023. Declaring itself a “Future Metal Fantasy”, it bears similar stylistic hallmarks to 1993’s Lords of Thunder for the PC Engine, marrying shooting action with fantastical landscapes and cyberpunk elements.
It also features a similar shop system, where accrued medals can be spent to boost ship power, purchase lives, or convert cash to points. Initially, there are three stages to choose from, and a further three to unlock. Once all are cleared, the seventh and final domain becomes available.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Docked)
ZPF is strict in that only one continue can be purchased from the in-game shop. It can’t be relied upon to see you through the game, but if you clear the first stage without dying, the shop can be almost completely emptied out early on. If you’re geared toward survival, your focus will lean toward powering up your ship and melee weaponry, or grabbing an extra life.
You can also halve the number of bullets on a stage, but this is perhaps better left for later in the game. If you’re in it for score, you want to be dipping on the ‘Medal X2’ as soon as the first stage ends, doubling the drop rate. The ultimate score challenge, though, lies in never buying anything from the shop at all, and instead converting all your accrued cash to points.
Visually, ZPF is a lucid, neon-drenched experience. Glowing with syrupy sunsets and fiery pits, it does impressive things with the Mega Drive’s relatively limited colour palette, and it’s easy to forget that it’s a 16-bit game when you’re being slapped with deep parallax scrolls, enormous bosses, and detailed techno-scenery. It journeys from fantasy realms filled with giant turtles, goblin castles and apple-green forests, to future space factories with decapitated astronauts floating in Zero-G.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
You can choose from a selection of three ships before starting each stage, all with different properties. Some have a more powerful melee weapon, like the Knight, and others a more powerful concentrated shot, like the Gold ship. Gladius sits somewhere in between, offering spread fire with good screen coverage, and is the best all-rounder for beginners. Part of the game’s strategy is figuring out which ship is most effective for each area, although it’s totally possible to just stick with one throughout.
The melee attack deals heavy damage but requires you to get up close to use it. It’s particularly effective on larger enemies who can soak more bullets, but there’s a risk-reward element involved in nose-to-nose approaches. Equally, not all melee weapons are equal in power, and as such you need to have a game plan prepared if you’re going to be using them regularly. You’re given three considerably powerful bombs, but spend them wisely as only one is replenished with each cleared stage. Elsewhere, bonus lives can be obtained, usually carried by special blue falcons.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
In terms of its visual impact and scale, ZPF is impressive for a Mega Drive game. The sprites are large and robust, and the crafting is nicely handled, and while there’s some slowdown in places, there’s rarely a sprite flicker. It’s enjoyable to learn and to weed out its secrets, but can prove frustrating while you get to grips with its pitfalls. Certain tiny bullets (particularly prominent in the Goblin Castle) are almost invisible in the Switch’s handheld mode, and the ultra-colourful backgrounds often make it tricky to see incoming fire.
In terms of bullet patterns, the game spits out slow, random bursts alongside floaty aimed shots that head in your general vicinity. It sits midway between Japanese-style shoot-’em-ups and ‘euro-shmups’ — as they’re known amongst aficionados — making it feel somewhat unique. It has an unusual segmentation, too, where the screen will flash white several times a stage, changing the background scenery and enemies. It’s a little odd at first, but it kind of grows on you.
Contrary to popular belief, ZPF isn’t all that difficult, it’s just uneven, sporting sudden spikes and excruciating sniper pot shots that require pre-emptive learning. It’s also screaming out for a ship speed toggle. As it stands, your movement tends to be slightly too quick for such large bullets, making annoying accidental collisions commonplace.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
There are minor niggles, too, like the shop select screen being active before it’s actually revealed on screen. This means if you’re tapping the button to get through the stage introduction, you can easily convert all your medals to points by accident, leaving you with an empty wallet. The developers obviously spotted this issue, but instead of resolving it by default, you need to head to the options and turn ‘Shop Zipper’ off.
Elsewhere, it’s difficult to know which sprites are destructible and which aren’t, like the carriers that appear in the Space Infestation stage. Bosses look fantastic, but their patterns range from aimless and easy to abrupt and thankless, eagerly blindsiding you with attacks that have little in the way of foreshadowing.
While these road bumps can all be overcome with practice, the critical problems reside more with the Switch port itself. There are no screen filters and no screen size adjustments, locked in a 4:3 aspect even in handheld mode, which isn’t ideal. The control setup changes are clunky, assigned to an exterior menu, and there are no save states or rewind functions.
Captured on Nintendo Switch (Handheld/Undocked)
All you really get is the game itself, and that’s okay if it ran 1:1 with its Mega Drive counterpart, but it doesn’t. While there don’t seem to be any lag issues, the port suffers from persistent intermittent scroll judder. It’s noticeable immediately on stage one, and the worst part is it seems to impact the actual game controls, too, so when it judders, your movement is affected just enough to occasionally throw you off. The larger the screen, the more pronounced it is. On a TV in docked mode, it’s incredibly aggravating; on a smaller, 16” screen, it’s still present but feels better; in handheld, it remains present but appears largely diminished.
I also had a crash on the stage one boss where I was forced to restart the game, as he no longer would take or return fire.
Conclusion
ZPF is an interesting new Mega Drive shoot ’em up that, with its key-collecting secrets, hidden bosses, stage variety and fantasy theme, feels unique. It’s been put together with a lot of love, and while its clear the development team aren’t expert shoot-’em-up designers, they’ve still done incredibly well with the hardware. It’s frustrating at times, and many will be put off by not having continues or any method of practice, but those who persevere will find an enjoyable route to high scores and one credit clears.
The issue primarily is the bare-bones Switch port that has zero additions or quality-of-life features, and suffers from a juddering issue that really damages the experience. If you’re buying on Mega Drive — and it’s recommended you do so — add a point to the scoreline.
