Review: Tales Of Kenzera: ZAU (Switch) – An Emotional Metroidvania That Plays It Too Safe

Zau do you do?

The best thing we can say about Tales of Kenzera: ZAU is that it’s a decent gateway game into the Metroidvania genre. The Switch is so chock full of incredible titles at this point that it can often be difficult to know where to start (we can help with that too, by the way), but Kenzera provides a relatively breezy 6-7-hour experience that should give you an indication as to whether or not to dip your toes in a bit further. For genre veterans, however, while the gameplay is certainly good enough to see you through to the end, there’s little here that hasn’t already been done elsewhere… and better, too.

What elevates the game, however, is its setting and story. If you’ve been following Tales of Kenzera’s development at all, you’ll know that a great deal of the plot takes inspiration from Sugent Studio’s creative lead, Abubakar Salim, and his personal experience dealing with parental loss. Incidentally, Salim (a stage and screen actor and the voice of Bayek in Assassin’s Creed Origins) also provides the voice for protagonist Zau, and we have to commend the voiceover work as a whole; it’s brilliantly done throughout and helps the plot resonate a lot more than if we were merely reading lines of dialogue.

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Random: Here’s What’s Inside A Switch Cart

Hint: it’s teeny tiny.

If you’ve ever wondered what was actually inside a Nintendo Switch cart, then wonder no more, dear reader. Over on YouTube, Tinker Man Mick has uploaded a Short (okay, it was uploaded in July 2023, so we’re a bit late, but who cares) to demonstrate that some Switch carts actually have quite a bit of empty space.

Cracking open a copy of Let’s Sing 2021, you can see that the board within does indeed fill the entire casing, while a copy of Super Mario Odyssey actually has quite a bit of unused space. Now, the video is titled ‘Why Does Nintendo Do This?’, but we think it’s fairly obvious. Switch carts are pretty small to begin with, so making it even smaller would no doubt make it more difficult to handle while leaving much less space for publishers to attach their printed game labels.

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Shadow Of The Ninja Remake Emerges With Switch Release Date

Out of the shadows.

Publisher Natsume Atari and developer Tengo Project have revealed that Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn, the remake of NES action platformer Shadow of the Ninja, will be launching on Nintendo Switch, and other platforms, on 29th August 2024 (via Gematsu).

Tengo Project is known for its retro revivals, having worked on Pocky & Rocky Reshrined, and is now bringing its experience to another oft-forgotten classic from 1990. The remake brings new visuals, rearranged music, and new weapons.

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Guide: Best Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Games, Ranked – Every TMNT Game On Switch And Nintendo Systems

Every TMNT game on Nintendo consoles, ranked by you.

Updated with Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade: Wrath of the Mutants.

Remember, this is a reader-ranked list based on each game’s User Rating in our database, which means it’s subject to real-time change, even now. if you’ve played Wrath of the Mutants, or any other Turtles game below, you can rate it from 1-10 and influence the order. This recently released Switch game doesn’t have many ratings at the time of writing, so it’s all to play for. Enjoy!

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River City Girls 2 Is Getting “Premium” Double Dragon DLC This Summer

“The legendary Billy and Jimmy Lee return”.

Following a joke earlier this month, WayForward has now announced Double Dragon DLC for its side-scrolling beat ’em up River City Girls 2. Yes, the “legendary” BIlly and Jimmy Lee will be making a return as playable characters in “premium DLC” this summer.

According to the PR, a free update will also be made available to all River City Girls 2 owners at the same time – adding a new Double Dragon-themed motion comic, two new shops, new accessories, and “more”. Here’s some extra information about these characters and what you can expect from them in River City Girls 2:

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‘That Time I Got Reincarnated As A Slime’ Anime Gets The RPG Treatment This August

Brings two additional storylines.

Bandai Namco has today revealed that the anime and manga series That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime will be heading to Switch as a side-scrolling RPG on 8th August.

The catchily titled That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime ISEKAI Chronicles will mark the first game adaptation of the series and it promises to hit many of the same story beats as its source material including Rimuru Tempest and co.’s encounters with the Kijin, battles against Falmuth and many more. But that’s not to say that this will all be familiar territory for fans of the series, as the game will also contain new storylines and characters from the OG author Fuse.

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New Contra: Operation Galuga Update Is Heading For Switch, Here Are The Patch Notes

Out now on other consoles, “coming soon” for Switch.

Konami and WayForward have today announced that a new update is on the way for Contra: Operation Galuga on Switch. As was the case with the launch update, the latest patch is available today on PS4, PS5, Xbox and Steam, but we’ll have to wait a little longer before it comes to Switch.

We don’t have a precise date for the Switch release yet outside of “soon,” but we do know what it’ll entail. The major issues targeted this time are a forced quit error, game freezes and music bugs, though the development team has also made a handful of tweaks to most of the stages in the hopes of improving the overall experience.

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Avatar’s Prince Zuko Joins The Fight In New Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 Update

Here are the full patch notes.

A new update for Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 has punched its way onto Switch. While the patch night not be the biggest in terms of bug fixes, we do have a new fighter to try out (if you have the Season Pass, that is).

Yes, Avatar’s Prince Zuko is the next DLC fighter joining the fray. Those with the game’s Season Pass can now try out this Fire Bender as normal, or you can choose to pick him up as a separate purchase of £5.99 / $6.99.

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Capcom Issues Reminder About Monster Hunter Stories Switch Pre-Order Goodies

Unlock some exclusive outfits.

In case you missed it, Capcom is releasing a remastered version of Monster Hunter Stories on the Switch this June.

It’s now also issued a reminder about the game’s pre-order bonuses. If you order this title from the Switch eShop before 14th June 2024, you’ll get some exclusive “King” and “Queen” outfits for the Felyne Navirou. Here’s a quick look:

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