Lost Words: Beyond The Page (Switch eShop)

FishyS returns with a good word for Lost Words: Beyond The Page, which was written by the excellent Rhianna Pratchett, no less.

Lost Words: Beyond the Page is by far the best Visual Novel slash Platformer hybrid I have ever played. The game is deeply touching, with the character literally platforming on words in her own diary in-between more traditional platforming sections where she is essentially in a fantasy world metaphor using certain words as abilities. Lite puzzles, lite collectathon, heavy feels, and very satisfying experience.

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Intrepid Izzy (Switch eShop)

Kisrah is a fan of Senile Team's Intrepid Izzy.

This indie game blends 2D platforming, Metroidvania, and beat ‘em ups, and does it well. Though short, there is a lot to explore, with different outfits giving you special abilities for fighting, and getting around. It’s colourful, humorous, has a great soundtrack, and fun boss fights. Easily one of my favourite indie titles.

Shadows Over Loathing (Switch eShop)

The follow up to West of Loathing, PikaPhantom's been enjoying Shadows Over Loathing.

It's brimming with wit and charm, much like West of Loathing, but has a significantly stronger soundtrack with some killer songs, a really distinct setting as a result of picking a less common era depicted in media (1920s Prohibition) and throwing in Lovecraftian horror, and a lot of really distinct setpieces. Combat is still solid as well. It's West, but bigger and better.

Super Hiking League DX (Switch eShop)

mcbremakes recommends Super Hiking League.

It's a game that is technically very well-made in all aspects (graphics, sound, gameplay, design).
It can be played solo, but it's a competitive game between two players.
It features a very innovative mechanic, which is the use of a rope to climb mountains.
The winner is the one who reaches the top of each mountain first. It's arcade fun at its finest!!

Flowing Lights (Switch eShop)

Al O puts a spot on GFaUmNe's Flowing Lights.

This one’s certainly a hidden gem. It’s a puzzler, shooter, and physics-based game with beautiful, unique graphics. It’s tricky to explain since so much revolves around gravity but there’s nothing else like it on the eshop.
Trying to simply shoot your way through every level won’t work; you need to analyze the terrain (your shots may have difficulty going over a large hill, for example, since gravity will pull it down before it reaches the top). A lot of other brilliant factors, too, but I won’t spoil it for you. This game has never left my Switch, which is saying a lot.

Lunar Axe (Switch eShop)

Jasper didn't elucidate his two picks beyond calling them both "underrated favorites", so we'll slip some eShop blurb in for you. First up, the very recently released Lunar Axe...

Lunar Axe is a point-and-click adventure game with locations and story inspired by real places with incredible hand-drawing art. Investigate, collect, match clues and objects through various puzzles and HOG scenes. Find historical items that will help you understand the mystery that surrounds the city. Explore different locations based on real environments that offer a perfect combination of legend and history, learning more about the real facts that inspired the game with a gallery of references.

Interrogation: You will be deceived (Switch eShop)

...and then Critique Gaming's Interrogation: You will be deceived.

Interrogation: You will be deceived is a narratively immersive convo-puzzle game that challenges common preconceptions about highly relevant contemporary subjects like terrorism, police brutality and the power imbalances between citizens, the state and large corporations. The game follows in the footsteps of games like "This War of Mine", "Papers Please", "This is the Police" and "Orwell" in that it tries to raise important moral, ideological and practical questions in the minds of the players.

Silent Hope (Switch eShop)

FishyS couldn't keep shtum about Silent Hope.

Silent Hope is in some ways a typical dungeon-runner roguelite. You go to semi-random levels, kill monsters, die, and repeat, slowly getting stronger and making progress. However, the story is charming with a princess narrator, the characters are adorable, and in the home base you can cook, craft, and pet the cow! The game is pretty, forgiving for the genre, and has 7 characters with different abilities you can swap between in interesting ways. The gameplay is relatively simple but satisfying. If you want a nice easier rogue game, this is a great pick.

Punch a Bunch (Switch eShop)

DiamondCore reckons Punch-a-Bunch is a hit.

It’s the first game of the same indie developer who made “A Difficult Game About Climbing” and this first game is a pretty fun one, it has some challenging bosses, the boxing mechanics are pretty alright, the art style is charming, and it honestly makes for a solid experience!

Process of Elimination (Switch)

Lizuka likes NISA's Process of Elimination, which has a demo on the eShop.

It's a visual novel taking cues from Danganronpa with a wonderful cast and engaging story that works quite well as its own thing, though the gameplay segments seem a bit love it or hate it so it would be nice to see that spotlighted in more detail for people unfamiliar with the game.