SwitchArcade Round-Up: Today’s Nintendo Direct, ‘Action Arcade Wrestling’, Plus Today’s Other Releases and Sales

Hello gentle readers, and welcome to the SwitchArcade Round-Up for February 9th, 2022. Today we’ve got a few new releases to look at including Action Arcade Wrestling, Backbone, and more. There’s a bit of news about the Nintendo Direct scheduled for today, plus the usual lists of new and expiring sales. If it seems a little curt today, it’s because tomorrow’s article is going to be absolutely massive and I need to get going on it now. Let’s get moving!

News

Wow, It’s Nintendo Direct Time Again

Yes, there’s a Nintendo Direct incoming. Maybe it has already happened when you’re reading this. Either way, that video right up there is going to send you to the right place. It kicks off today at 2 PM Pacific Time, and will run for about 40 minutes. It will mainly focus on Switch games launching in the first half of this year, so you probably shouldn’t expect any deep dives on Metroid Prime 4 or Breath of the Wild 2. We’ll recap a bit tomorrow.

New Releases

El Gancho ($6.99)

Set in the same universe as Task Force Kampas, this is a platforming game that leans on a swinging mechanic. If you move quickly, you’ll leave a trail behind you that will damage enemies. There are ten different playable characters, fifteen upgrades to unlock and use, and six different bosses to defeat. You can choose to play in randomized stages or pop into the Challenge Mode for some pre-made stages. It looks alright. Very five-dollar Switch platformer, but with a grappling beam. That makes everything better.

Action Arcade Wrestling ($14.99)

As the years go on it seems pretty clear we’re not going to get anything terribly good from the professional wrestling licenses on Switch. But there are already a few good indie wrestling games, and here’s another one. Action Arcade Wrestling feels heavily inspired by the Nintendo 64 brawlers by AKI, and that’s a great place to draw from. If you’re looking for a fun wrestling game to play with your friends via local multiplayer, this will do the job. Just be warned that there really isn’t a lot to do if you’re playing solo.

Backbone ($24.99)

Furries and noir adventures seem to go hand in hand these days. This one is set in a dystopian version of Vancouver populated by anthropomorphic animals of various sorts. You play as a raccoon private investigator named Howard Lotor as he tries to solve his biggest case yet. Lots of dialogue to navigate and dig into, with a good dash of exploration. The presentation on this one is absolutely gorgeous, and the game itself is decent enough.

Letters – A Written Adventure ($14.99)

This is a somewhat unique adventure game where you follow a girl as she grows up through her writings. You have to manipulate the words to solve various puzzles. It looks cute, but it also looks like the kind of game you have to play to properly understand. I haven’t had a chance to put my hands on it, so I can’t really give any recommendations one way or the other.

Zombie Call: Trigger 3D ($9.99)

Another low-rent effort from the folks at T-Bull, but they keep making them so clearly folks are buying them. This is a very basic first-person shooter where you mow down zombies with fifteen different weapons. There are some light tower defense elements, and you do get the occasional boss fight to mix things up a little. Apropos of nothing, you can get some Resident Evil games for around ten dollars when they go on sale, which they do quite regularly. Just… just leaving that there.

Sales

(North American eShop, US Prices)

A small list with lots of usual suspects, but there are a couple of things worth noting. The big one is OlliOlli Switch Stance at an absurd price. West of Loathing, Lacuna, Iconoclasts, and Conduct/Fly Together all merit thinking about as well. There are some decent things in the outbox, but nothing we won’t see discounted again before too long. You may want to save some money to see what happens with the Direct.

Select New Games on Sale

Little Bug ($2.99 from $12.99 until 2/15)
#Funtime ($4.43 from $14.99 until 2/16)
Deleveled ($3.45 from $9.99 until 2/16)
Tumblestone ($1.99 from $14.99 until 2/16)
Roundguard ($7.91 from $19.99 until 2/16)
Fracter ($3.11 from $6.99 until 2/16)
Almost There: The Platformer ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/16)
Cozy Grove ($11.19 from $14.99 until 2/16)
Gurgamoth ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/16)
Space Otter Charlie ($9.68 from $14.99 until 2/16)
The Ambassador: FT ($5.18 from $14.99 until 2/16)
Breakpoint ($2.22 from $4.99 until 2/16)
The Bridge ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/16)
OlliOlli: Switch Stance ($2.24 from $14.99 until 2/16)
Metal Unit ($11.19 from $15.99 until 2/19)

Skul: The Hero Slayer ($13.99 from $19.99 until 2/19)
Last Encounter ($1.99 from $14.99 until 2/22)
West of Loathing ($6.60 from $11.00 until 2/22)
Iconoclasts ($7.99 from $19.99 until 2/23)
My Magic Florist Deluxe ($1.99 from $7.99 until 2/28)
Stealth ($1.99 from $4.98 until 2/28)
Conduct Together! ($1.99 from $19.99 until 3/1)
Fly Together! ($1.99 from $15.00 until 3/1)
Lacuna ($13.99 from $19.99 until 3/1)
The Forbidden Arts ($3.74 from $14.99 until 3/1)
Fhtagn! Tales of Creeping Madness ($3.99 from $7.99 until 3/1)
LEGO DC Super-Villains Deluxe ($11.24 from $74.99 until 3/1)
LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 Deluxe ($8.99 from $44.99 until 3/1)
LEGO Harry Potter Collection ($9.99 from $49.99 until 3/1)
Mortal Kombat 11 Ultimate ($17.99 from $59.99 until 3/1)

Sales Ending Tomorrow, Thursday, February 10th

#RaceDieRun ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
A Hole New World ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Airheart: Tales of Broken Wings ($2.69 from $17.99 until 2/10)
Akuto Showdown ($1.99 from $7.99 until 2/10)
Arcane Arts Academy ($1.99 from $7.99 until 2/10)
Assassin’s Creed III Remastered ($14.79 from $39.99 until 2/10)
Assassin’s Creed: Rebel Collection ($14.79 from $39.99 until 2/10)
Badland GotY Edition ($2.99 from $5.99 until 2/10)
Banner of the Maid ($8.49 from $16.99 until 2/10)
Barbarous: Tavern of Emyr ($1.99 from $7.99 until 2/10)
BIT.TRIP Series, Assorted ($1.99 from $4.99 until 2/10)
Blazing Beaks ($2.99 from $14.99 until 2/10)
Brawl ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
CHOP ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Coffee Crisis ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)

Cris Tales ($19.99 from $39.99 until 2/10)
Death’s Hangover ($1.99 from $4.99 until 2/10)
Depth of Extinction ($4.99 from $14.99 until 2/10)
Despotism 3k ($2.19 from $10.9 until 2/10)
Dex ($1.99 from $19.99 until 2/10)
Door Kickers ($3.99 from $11.99 until 2/10)
Dragon Question ($1.99 from $3.99 until 2/10)
Dragon Snakes ($1.99 from $3.99 until 2/10)
DungeonTop ($3.99 from $13.99 until 2/10)
Epistory: Typing Chronicles ($5.99 from $14.99 until 2/10)
Escape Doodland ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Family Feud ($9.99 from $29.99 until 2/10)
Flat Heroes ($4.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Georifters ($1.99 from $29.99 until 2/10)
Ghoul Boy ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)

Goblin Sword ($1.99 from $4.99 until 2/10)
Good Night, Knight ($3.99 from $11.99 until 2/10)
Gravity Rider Zero ($1.99 from $6.99 until 2/10)
Here Be Dragons ($5.39 from $17.99 until 2/10)
HIX Puzzle Islands ($3.95 from $7.90 until 2/10)
HyperParasite ($1.99 from $17.99 until 2/10)
Immortals Fenyx Rising ($14.99 from $59.99 until 2/10)
Immortals Fenyx Rising Gold ($24.99 from $99.99 until 2/10)
In Celebration of Violence ($2.59 from $12.99 until 2/10)
Just Dance 2022 ($29.99 from $49.99 until 2/10)
Just Dance 2022 Ultimate Edition ($52.49 from $74.99 until 2/10)
Kid Tripp ($1.99 from $3.99 until 2/10)
Koloro ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Mahluk Dark Demon ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Mail Mole + Expansions Bundle ($11.99 from $14.99 until 2/10)

Mario + Rabbids KB Gold Edition ($19.99 from $79.99 until 2/10)
Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle ($14.99 from $59.99 until 2/10)
Mini Trains ($1.99 from $5.99 until 2/10)
Monopoly ($9.99 from $39.99 until 2/10)
Monopoly Madness ($23.99 from $29.99 until 2/10)
Nosferatu Lilinor ($13.71 from $17.14 until 2/10)
Old Man’s Journey ($4.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
One Strike ($1.99 from $4.99 until 2/10)
Pianista ($19.99 from $24.99 until 2/10)
Pirate Treasure: Island of Mazes ($1.99 from $2.29 until 2/10)
Polyroll ($1.99 from $5.99 until 2/10)
Rimelands: Hammer of Thor ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Rustler ($16.49 from $29.99 until 2/10)
Scott Pilgrim vs. The World ($7.49 from $14.99 until 2/10)
Sky Races ($1.99 from $3.49 until 2/10)

Soulblight ($3.74 from $14.99 until 2/10)
Space Commander: War & Trade ($5.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Starlight Shores ($6.99 from $11.99 until 2/10)
Sudoku Classic ($2.49 from $5.99 until 2/10)
Sudoku Relax ($1.99 from $4.99 until 2/10)
Super Hero Fight Club ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Tharsis ($2.99 from $11.99 until 2/10)
The Gardens Between ($4.99 from $19.99 until 2/10)
Timothy & the Mysterious Forest ($3.99 from $7.99 until 2/10)
Tiny Lands ($2.99 from $5.99 until 2/10)
Treasure Temples ($7.19 from $7.99 until 2/10)
Trine: Ultimate Collection ($9.99 from $49.99 until 2/10)
Unit 4 ($1.99 from $14.99 until 2/10)
UNO ($3.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Utopia 9 Volatile Vacation ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Welcome to Primrose Lake ($1.99 from $7.99 until 2/10)
Wind Peaks ($8.99 from $14.99 until 2/10)
Wondershot ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)
Wreckin’ Ball Adventure ($1.99 from $4.99 until 2/10)
Zombie Blast Crew ($1.99 from $9.99 until 2/10)

That’s all for today, friends. We’ll be back tomorrow with… ugh, thirty-five or so new releases? Unbelievable. Almost impossible. But almost impossible still means possible, so I’ll have summaries of some kind for everything. Sigh. Oh, and sales. Those too. Plus anything super-interesting from the Nintendo Direct. Yeah, this is going to be a wild one. I hope you all have a great Wednesday, and as always, thanks for reading!