We have a sponsor for this episode! We are eternally grateful for Tursiops Studios, who you may remember as the creators of the awesome “wreck ’em up” The Day We Fought Space a few years ago, for sponsoring our podcast this week. Their new game is called Primrows, it’s one we’ve talked about before, and it’s available now on mobile and desktop. I give some of my early impressions about the game about halfway through this week’s show, but the game is free to play with a one-time premium unlock so there’s really no reason not to just go try it out for yourself. Head over to the game’s website using this link here to learn more and find links to all platforms. Oh, and here’s the trailer. Primrows is such a lovely little game, thanks again Tursiops Studios!
As for this week’s show, well, it was a hectic one. Internet issues caused us to split the recording into two parts with the first half recorded yesterday and the second half recorded today. It all worked out in the end, though. Topics include the Nintendo Switch 2, the Mario Kart Direct from yesterday, the PlayDate Season 2 announcement, retro handheld stuff, and much more. Oh, and we finally catch up on listener emails going all the way back to January.
Don’t forget to shoot us emails with any questions, feedback, or anything else relevant or irrelevant to [email protected]. We read ’em all, and love decoding messages written entirely in emoji. As always, you can listen to us with the links below… And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and/or drop us a review in iTunes. Much appreciated!
As a companion to this audio podcast, we also do a video version of the same show that is exclusive to Patreon which allows you to see us playing the games we’re talking about. Backers can view the most recent video episodes of the TouchArcade show by clicking here. Be sure you’re logged in to see the latest content. For everyone else who is curious, you can check out our public patreon posts to see older episodes of the video podcast. If you like what you see, consider becoming a TouchArcade Patreon backer.
April 19, 2025: Get your unique new DTI code for the Easter update by following the steps below.
What are the new Dress to Impress codes? Look no further if you want to strut your stuff on the catwalk with all the latest fashion accessories. The latest DTI codes grant you the hottest cosmetics to add to your ensemble and create a stunning new look, and it’s as simple as entering a code or two.
As the name suggests, Dress to Impress is all about fashion, collecting new clothes, and trying out different styles. Unlike most Roblox games, these DTI codes permanently unlock a set of items to add to your wardrobe. If you’re looking for extra freebies, we also have codes for some of the other best Roblox games such as Blox Fruits codes to help you get an edge on the competition. Alternatively, you can check out our list of Dress to Impress outfit ideas.
New Dress to Impress codes
Here’s a list of all the active Dress to Impress codes to redeem right now:
DTI Easter 2025 code – Spot the emojis and numbers in the map and use the emoji sequence above the leaderboard to decode your unique DTI Easter 2025 code (NEW)
BADDIES4LIFE – April Fools item
HAPPYNEWYEAR – Hanfu
YEAROFTHESNAKE – Snake Jewellery
LNY2025 – Cheongsam Dress, Tang Suit
1CON1CF4TMA – Dress
B3APL4YS_D0L1E – Doll
MEGANPLAYSBOOTS – Shoes
CH00P1E_1S_B4CK – Street-style outfit (shirt, shoes, and skirt)
D1ORST4R – Star-themed bag & hair bow accessory
S3M_0W3N_Y4Y – Gold-handled axe with a red jewel
UMOYAE – Blue corset-tutu dress
M0T0PRINCESSWAV – Gold red tiara with red jewels
KITTYUUHH – Caseoh’s kitty cat
KREEK – Kreekcraft’s hat
BELALASLAY – Off-shoulder jacket
C4LLMEHH4LEY – Free item
CHOOPIE10K – Free item
M3RM4ID – Free item
ITSJUSTNICHOLAS – Free item
LANATUTU – Skirt item
SUBM15CY – Necklace and eyelashes
LABOOTS – two pairs of boots
LANA – a new outfit (frilly pants, ruffed crop top, and legwarmers)
TEKKYOOZ – a handbag with a black bow.
LEAHASHE – Leah hoodie and Ashe pants.
LANABOW – Bow accessory
Expired codes
Player-specific Flamethrower code
CUPIDSCLOUD
M0T0PRINCESSWAV
FASHION – Sabrina’s Met Dress
SWEETHEART
4BILLION
NY2025
THEGAMES
REWARD4CLASS1C
How to redeem Dress to Impress codes
To claim the active Dress to Impress codes, you need to:
Go to the official Dress to Impress Roblox page and open the game.
Click the button with three stars on the left side of the screen.
Enter the code and click the tick button to redeem.
This will permanently unlock the associated fashion accessory, which you can wear at any point from then onward. To wear the item, click its icon on the code redeem screen, and your character should automatically put it on.
You can then tinker with the item’s color by using the color wheel on the screen’s right-hand side. You can take it off by clicking the hat icon on the right-hand side and then clicking the X underneath the item you wish to remove.
How to find more Dress to Impress codes
The easiest way to get more Dress to Impress codes is to bookmark and keep checking this page for when the next batch appears. This saves you from needing to sign up for any services and gets you new accessories as soon as they become available.
However, if you don’t mind going to get them from the source, your best bet is to sign up to the Discord server, which you can find a link to via the Dress to Impress Roblox page and by looking at the announcements tab. This will require you to watch some YouTube videos of previous developer streams to get the codes, and it can take a while to get to the point where you learn the codes, so it’s probably best to leave that busy work to us.
And with that, we’ve come to the end of our Dress to Impress codes guide. If you want more clothing that works across all Roblox games, feel free to check out our list of Roblox promo codes. We also have a list of Roblox music codes to claim now if you fancy spicing up the soundtracks to your favorite experiences.
Beaks is a Roblox game where you explore different environments and use a dart gun to safely collect birds by putting them to sleep. It shares similar mechanics with Fisch, focusing on tracking, aiming, and building up your collection. As you progress, you’ll discover new bird species and upgrade your gear to become a better collector. This Official Beaks Trello and Discord guide will help you join all the community HUBs
Beaks Trello and Discord Guide
Hunt them all!
Here are all the links you need to start your Bird gallery:
Sadly, Beaks doesn’t have a Trello board at the moment, and the developers haven’t shared a link yet. Since many Roblox games use Trello for FAQs and updates, there’s a good chance one might be added later. If not, a Beaks Wiki will likely be available instead.
The Discord server is a good place to start instead. You can ask specific questions in the Questions channel and get insights from Testers and experienced players. It’s also a nice spot to share cool moments in the Media channel and connect with the community. Here is all the information you can find on the Discord:
General Game Information
Links and Socials
Community Updates
All Birds
Community Rankings
Future Updates
Regular Developer Notes
It’s also a great place to keep up with the game’s progress. The announcements channel shares news about updates, and the sneak peeks give you a look at what’s coming next. You’ll also find occasional updates presented by NEKAMI. On top of that, it’s the best spot to find the latest codes.
That is all for our Beaks Trello and Discord guide. Check out our Beaks Codes article for some freebies that can help you progress through the game with ease.
The Escapist is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
More than a decade ago, Assassin’s Creed 3 came out, serving as the follow-up to a trio of well-received games featuring fan favorite character Ezio Auditore da Firenze. Set during the American Revolution and featuring a more stoic protagonist, far removed from the previous games’ roguish Ezio, AC3 garnered a reputation among many players for being a series misstep. Approached with fresh eyes and many years of hindsight, though, it’s easier to see that Assassin’s Creed 3 is perhaps the strongest AC to date thanks to its unique world design and strong story. Now, anyone looking for a cheaper alternative to the more recent Assassin’s Creed Shadows is in luck as AC3 is currently available at a steep discount.
Assassin’s Creed 3 takes the series’ stealth game design out of the European cities of the AC2 trilogy and into the forests, waters, and less densely constructed settlements of North America. Because of this choice, players spend as much time clambering between tree limbs as they do scaling towers, and, in one of the smartest expansions to the AC formula, take part in naval battles.
Aside from the change in setting, Assassin’s Creed 3 stands out for an engaging exploration of its time period, which follows the birth of the United States from the perspective of a protagonist whose parents are Mohawk and British and whose personal journey across the game reflects the chaos of the era. The ‘present day’ plot line is as drab as most of the series and the game is still plagued by the repetition and bloat of many Assassin’s Creed entries, but, for those willing to overlook its flaws, there’s plenty to appreciate.
Assassin’s Creed 3 Remastered is currently available with a 75% discount, bringing its price down to $9.99 USD / £8.49. Grab a copy on Steam right here.
You can follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides. We’ve also got a vibrant community Discord server, where you can chat about this story with members of the team and fellow readers
Anime Rangers X is the hottest new Roblox tower defense game, and as usual, it’s more fun to talk about the Units than it is to actually play the game. Jokes aside, knowing which units to bring is extremely important, which is exactly why we made this Ultimate Anime Rangers X Unit Tier List.
Anime Rangers X Best Units Tier List
Image by TierMaker / Remix by The Escapist
We considered each unit for this tier list based on its cost, damage, and added ability. Most importantly, we asked ourselves which units we use more than others. We didn’t include every single unit in the game, so if you don’t see the one you like, it’s probably because we didn’t think they were worth adding. You’ll want to switch out every unit below Epic as soon as you can and focus on these best DPS, starter, and Ranged DPS units.
SS-Tier
Unit Name
Info
Limitless Sorcerer (Infinite)
Does amazing damage, can dodge attacks, and has overall great stats. A must-have!
King of Shadows (Monarch)
Its most impressive feat is its extremely quick basic attack, and that’s not even counting its abilities. The ultimate boss destroyer.
Molten Phantom
Amazing for crowd control, great stats, covers a wide area.
Solar Fist
The best DPSes in the game. If you make up for its shortcomings, this unit can carry you through everything in the game.
S-Tier
Unit Name
Info
Eclipse Sorcerer
Put him in the back and watch him snipe units from afar. Pretty handy to have.
Fire Fist
Many consider Fire Fist a meta unit. Pretty good damage and can soak up a good amount.
Legendary Saiyan (Super)
An absolute damage sponge. If you place five of these, you’ll create a wall between you and the enemies.
A-Tier
Unit Name
Info
Limitless Sorcerer (Basic)
Somewhat pricey, but very decent damage. Not as good as the Limitless version.
King Curses
Decent damage, decent stats, good ability, and only costs 800. Really great to have.
Shadow Knight
Does okay damage, but it’s a great unit at the very start of the battle due to how cheap it is to summon.
King of Shadows (Basic)
Almost the same as the Monarch version, but not as powerful. Still, a very decent unit.
B-Tier
C-Tier
Unit Name
Info
King Ant
We haven’t heard anyone say a single nice thing about this unit.
Knight King (Basic)
A very meh unit with meh stats and meh damage.
Cursed Fist
Everyone who used this unit says it’s awful, and we agree.
Green Tornado
Replace as soon as you can.
That’s all there is to it. We’ll update the tier list as the game gets new content and units. In the meantime, check out our Anime Rangers X codes for some cool in-game freebies.
The Escapist is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
If you’ve spent any amount of time on the internet as of late, you’ll have seen the big game on everyone’s mind: Marathon. It’s Bungie‘s next big release, and last week, the whole world was able to sit down and gorge themselves on new gameplay footage. The game looks pretty darn good, if I say so myself. It looks as though we might be getting a new avenue for that Bungie quality that has kept fans loyal all these years. But, some are skeptical. There’s good reason why, but after weighing up both sides, I’m still moving forward with optimism when it comes to Marathon.
I was shocked to find myself excited at the gameplay trailer. I have struggled more with extraction shooters than I’d care to admit. I came too late to Escape from Tarkov, only dipping my toes in when cheating issues were at their problematic height, and what time un-murdered I did spend in the game felt largely unappealing. The Forever Winter nearly won me over, with its doomed future of a world in the midst of permanent robot holocaust, but once the aesthetics wore off I grew tired of scavenging for scraps. This happened over and over, and each time I just could feel the same hooks others had in me. It seemed to me that it wasn’t meant to be.
To see this content please enable targeting cookies.
Yet, for some reason, Marathon has caught my interest. I am not a diehard Destiny fan. I played a bit of the game for work, and have enjoyed the odd exotic quest here and there, but I’ve never dropped more than a month or so into the game at a time, with yearly chasms between my sessions. I have always admired the work Bungie has done from afar, though, and I think maybe it’s some of that Bungie magic that could make all the difference. I should clarify straight away, I’m not referring to the magic that execs seem to believe their staff can use to put out a growing game while slashing budgets. I refer – of course – to the talent of their artists, combat designers, and countless others.
What we saw from recent Marathon gameplay is exactly what I expected from Bungie. A game that’s visually stunning, and not just in a “look at all that raytracing” kind of stunning. I mean like a real distinct art direction. There’s no game really out there at the moment that gives off the same vibe, certainly not one with Bungie’s budget. When hopping into a new genre and taking on the big hitters that’ve already fostered a community, you can’t just push out something that’ll blend into the crowd.
I mean look at this. You can’t say it’s not unique, and intriguing to look at. | Image credit: Bungie
The weapons, environments, and the characters themselves all scream out “hey look, I’m something new”. It all blends together an obvious futuristic aesthetic with hints of retro tech here and there. It’s set in what looks to be this far-future space dystopia, sure. But it contrasts that with a vibrancy that pops out and drowns out the sort of dreary misery you’d see from other developers looking to make a game in a similar setting.
The artists at Bungie have, through the Destiny series, proven that when given freedom to push the boundaries in a new setting that they can really release some extraordinary work. From the small glimpse we have, I’m getting that same wanderlust I felt back when I saw The Hive for the first time.
Then there’s the action we see. Tight, fast, co-operative first person shooting that makes good use of the setting with interesting abilities and quirky takes on modern weaponry. The gameplay trailer is sure to emphasize that Bungie is bringing its “best-in-class first person multiplayer action to the forefront”, and yeah while that stuck me as a little self-congratulatory for my British sensibilities this pat on the back isn’t exactly undeserved. Destiny has had absolutely killer PvP for years upon years. Many players don’t care for the raids and narrative Destiny is better known for (instead sticking to the Crucible), and it’s hard to argue they’re in the wrong for doing so.
This will only help Marathon. The extraction shooters we have right now are predominantly military sims, or at least somewhat grounded in realistic gunplay. What Bungie has is decades of sci-fi FPS experience that it can use to make sure Marathon doesn’t just look like something fresh, but that it feels like something fresh too. That, I feel, will be the bigger reason folks will stick around rather than hop back into more senior titles in the genre.
//
Bungie also has ample three player team experience too, which can only help with Marathon. | Image credit: Bungie
I think the game looks totally solid, I think Bungie has earned some trust when it comes to creating a FPS that feels good to play, especially in a futuristic setting. What I do concede may be the game’s biggest barrier is its price point. Look, it’s no secret that live service games have a hard time gaining a significant following. That’s been the case for years, as evidenced by an ever-growing graveyard of admirable attempts that have come out and wasted away.
It’s likely worse now than it’s ever been, with a potential recession coming on, consoles and PC parts potentially getting more expensive, and everyone pinching pennies. It’s not an easy thing to sell people on a multiplayer only game with no offline single player content whatsoever. Titanfall struggled to do it, and that was a game so good it should have defined a generation.
Here’s my counter argument. Bungie, through Destiny 2, certainly has had practice rolling out an engaging narrative through limited-time major updates. While many out there will jump into a major expansion, play the new raid and dip out, those who stick around know that the team can keep interesting threads going. These aren’t just for story nerds too, interesting new game modes come hot and ready from Bungie’s oven all the time. This, in spite of multiple waves of layoffs and a reduction in Destiny 2’s scope.
If there’s any FPS company out there who I believe has a good shot at actually making a live service extraction shooter with compelling enough updates to warrant a buy-in, it’s Bungie. Now, this is something the Marathon team will have to prove to people, and continue proving for months. I surely hope they’ve got staff working hard on post-launch plans as we speak. If they can walk the walk, with Marathon looking how it’s looking, I’ve got to say I’m officially excited for Marathon. Past experiences aside.
You can get an array of powerful Traits and Sub-Traits in Anime Rangers X to boost your favorite unit’s damage, range, HP, cooldowns, etc. That said, if you’re starting out it can be confusing how to actually get Traits since the Trait NPC doesn’t tell you that. Here’s how to farm Trait Rerolls in Anime Rangers X.
How to Get Trait Rerolls in Anime Rangers X
Screenshot by The Escapist
Screenshot by The Escapist
Screenshot by The Escapist
You can get Trait Rerolls in Anime Rangers X in various ways and here are all of them:
Quests: Open the Quests menu on the right and scroll through the list of All quests. Some of them will offer Trait Rerolls as a reward. It’s going to be ones that are like “Defeat X enemies”, “Summon X units”, “Earn X Yen”, etc.
Challenges: Once you unlock Challenges at Level 15, most of them will offer Trait Rerolls as rewards.
Shiny Normalize: In the Summon building where you roll for units there is a Shiny Normalize NPC at the entrance. He’ll turn your Shiny units to Normal ones and give you Trait Rerolls as a reward.
Level Milestones: At each milestone like Level 5, Level 10, etc. you’ll get a Trait Reroll.
Codes: Once you unlock Codes at Level 5, check out our Anime Realms X codes to get free Trait Rerolls as well as Gems, Gold, and various other rewards.
Robux Purchase: You can buy 3x Trait Rerolls for 300 Robux or 10x for 500 Robux at the Trait Reroll NPC or the Store on the left.
You’ll need a lot of Trait Rerolls since there are a lot of mid or trash Traits so you’ll be rerolling a lot.
How to Farm Trait Rerolls in Anime Ranger X
Here are some tips for farming Trait Rerolls in Anime Ranger X:
Farm Challenges: You need to reach Level 15 ASAP in order to unlock Challenges for farming Trait Rerolls in the most efficient way. A lot of challenges offer them as both guaranteed or random rewards. Bring your best and highest level units, turn on Autoplay, and sit back.
Farm Story: You can get a decent amount of Trait Rerolls from Quests and the fastest way to complete Quests is to farm Story missions. Do it on Nightmare for the best results.
Stay Tuned to Our Codes Page: Bookmark our ARX Codes page above since we update it regularly with the latest Trait Reroll codes.
How to Get Traits in Anime Rangers X
To get Traits on a unit you need to:
Be in the Lobby.
Click on Areas on the left and select Traits or walk to the Trait Reroll NPC.
Select the unit you want to give traits to.
At the bottom, click Reroll which will use a Trait Reroll shard to give your unit a unique trait.
Check out our ARX Trait tier list to know the best ones. That’s it for my guide on farming Trait Rerolls in Anime Rangers X. Stay tuned for more ARX guides.
The Escapist is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
Guest characters are increasingly common in gaming, but we wouldn’t in a million years have guessed the nature of Diablo 4’s upcoming crossover. Blizzard has announced its dungeon crawler is teaming up with Berserk, the long-running fantasy manga that inspired the Dark Souls series.
As unlikely as this crossover might seem, it could be just what Diablo 4 needs. Blizzard has already confirmed that this action RPG’snext expansion won’t arrive until 2026, so we welcome anything that helps things fresh.
Blizzard’s Diablo 4 2025 roadmap did tease a tie-in with a well-known IP, but our money was on Doom: The Dark Ages, not least because Microsoft owns both properties. But the more we think about this crossover, the more it makes sense.
Like Diablo 4, Berserk doesn’t shy away from blood and guts. Its central character is, in fact, called Guts, which gives you an idea of what to expect. Known for its gore, this dark fantasy manga follows the violent exploits of a mercenary who battles humans, monsters and demons. And while Guts’ initial instinct is to simply survive, he wouldn’t think twice about ramming Diablo’s Soulstone into his forehead. The manga is currently ongoing and it’s been adapted into an anime several times.
Blizzard has released an animated teaser, which you can watch above, but it has yet to reveal the exact nature of this crossover. That’s not Guts in the teaser, so it’s unlikely he’ll figure heavily into things. But we’d expect there to be cosmetics, the odd event or two and maybe some ridiculously oversized swords.
In the meantime, if you’re battling your way through Diablo 4 and need a little help, we’ve got you covered. To give you a head start, we’ve rounded up the best Diablo 4 builds and the best Diablo 4 classes.
You can follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides. We’ve also got a vibrant community Discord server, where you can chat about this story with members of the team and fellow readers.
Between Civilization 7, Kaiserpunk, Stellaris, and Commandos Origins itself, I’m still torn between which type of strategy game I like most. 4X is the biggest and bulkiest, but the longer a playthrough goes on, the more you can get lost in the micromanagement. City builders are more focused, and I’m a sucker for good road-building tools, but, by their nature, these games are limited to one type of strategy. So maybe it’s the RTS – challenging but accessible, tactical but faster-paced, the return of Commandos also marks a comeback for one of the genre’s best. Origins may have struggled a little so far, but if you’ve stayed away, the big new update could be enough to win you over.
Tough, intense, and an occasional test of your patience, our own Commandos Origins review explains precisely where the new RTS game shines and where it could use some improvement. Behind Enemy Lines, Commandos 2, and Destination Berlin are all legitimate PC classics – Commandos Origins naturally has a lot of expectation on its shoulders. But alongside our 7/10 rating, the response from players has so far been solid, and the WW2 game has a reputable ‘mostly positive’ rating on Steam.
However, a few key performance issues and problems with crashing have held Origins back. Released on April 9, if you’ve been cautious about playing the strategy game up until now, the new update could assuage your concerns. There are 29 general fixes, alongside 18 fixes that target issues specific to Commandos Origins’ campaign missions. Until now, some of the game’s foliage was inexplicably causing sharp drops in performance and there were cases where the framerate could slow to a crawl.
Those have both been remedied, alongside other “rare” crashes, and a significant problem where using the Marine’s abilities could also send you back to the desktop. The user interface has been tweaked and improved, and there is no longer a problem with broken achievements. It’s a big fix and it arrives just over a week since launch – hopefully, any other issues with Commandos Origins will also be promptly addressed. If you want to give the game a shot, you can get it here.
You can follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides. We’ve also got a vibrant community Discord server, where you can chat about this story with members of the team and fellow readers.
The Nintendo Switch 2’s dedicated Direct has come and gone. Games were revealed, a release date was set, and there was no pricing information (though this hit the internet, and everything is quite expensive). But how do the games PLAY? Thankfully, yours truly was part of a select few who got to play the Switch 2 at a special New York event. I tried out a good mix of first-party titles and came away impressed by most of what I experienced.
Mario Kart World
Of the titles I played, Mario Kart World was the one I spent the most time with. For the first section, I played two two-player exhibition races on the television screen and two single-player matches on the handheld, meaning I got a feel for the Switch 2 Pro Controller and the Joy-Con 2. Playing on the television racing against an attendee next to me and the various CPUs was thrilling. Every track was new to the series. There were various character options, including the amazing Moo Moo cow. Many outfits were selectable, too.
The Switch 2 Pro Controller was a joy to hold and control. It and the Joy-Con 2 felt more comfortable for people with big hands, which was great for me. Races start a little differently now: instead of waiting at the starting line, you drift into the race with everyone else, though Lakitu still shows up to count you down and you can still boost if you hold the gas at the right time. Lunch bags are a new pickup you can grab; doing so will cause your character to eat a snack and change their outfit during a race. I noticed some new powerups: a Gold Shell that launches forward and drops many Gold Coins (these boost your speed) and a wand-like item that calls in the sorcerer Kamek to do some damage.
The best part of Mario Kart World was Knockout Tour. 24 racers, back-to-back courses flowing together seamlessly, and if you don’t place high enough by the time you reach each of the five checkpoints, you’re eliminated. It’s the most frantic I’ve ever seen Mario Kart; people were downright bloodthirsty. The race allowed you to go anywhere, meaning falling off a track or going off the beaten path wouldn’t necessarily spell your doom. Getting to each checkpoint felt exhilarating. I placed fifth overall!
Donkey Kong Bananza
We haven’t had a new 3D Donkey Kong title since Donkey Kong 64 so Donkey Kong Bananza is a pleasant surprise. It’s reminiscent of Super Mario Odyssey, except you’re collecting and eating Gold Bananas instead of nabbing Power Moons. Donkey Kong is a simian with one philosophy: punch everything in his path. He can punch forward, punch downward, and even slam the ground from the air. The amount of destruction he can wreak is unparalleled; you’ll be leaving craters in the ground and smashing through terrain. Donkey Kong can even grab a rock slab and ride it like a surfboard. He can also pick up explosive purple crystals and lob them at enemies or rock formations. Donkey felt great to control, especially while climbing the scenery (no Stamina Wheel, thank goodness). My only gripe was that the A button was jump and the B button was ground pound. It was hard to get to grips with but you can remap the buttons.
Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
As a big fan of the Metroid series, I had to make a beeline to the Metroid Prime 4: Beyond play area. The game did not disappoint. It’s gorgeous, running at a full 60 FPS in 4K Quality Mode and an astounding 120 FPS in 1080p Performance Mode. If you’re a Metroid Prime expert, everything will click into place: you have a dedicated button for Morph Ball mode, a button to switch to the Scan Visor, a jump button, a missile button, and a button for shooting and charging your beam. Prime 4 looks to follow Prime 3 in the way it presents its plot: there are other characters you can interact with and a bevy of cutscenes. It’s a different feel from the original Metroid Prime, which evoked a feeling of isolation, so whether you like this approach or not depends on your preference. The best part of the gameplay was realizing you can switch from standard controls to gyro aiming by just flicking your wrist and aiming at the screen, no menu changes required. It certainly helped with the demo’s boss fight, which required shooting different points on its body.
Drag x Drive
Nintendo wanted to show off its mouse functionality with the Switch 2, so it’s no shock to see a game run hog wild with that gimmick. Drag x Drive is that game. There was an extensive tutorial for this title, and for good reason. It takes time to get acclimated to the controls, especially turning left and right, since you use the opposite Joy-Con 2 to turn in that direction. You can’t expect to go fast in short bursts, either, as you need to do long strides with the controller to build up speed. Once you get used to the layout, it’s fairly intuitive. The 3 v 3 match I was thrown into after the tutorial seemed to last for less than five minutes, but it was fun to pass the ball and use the Joy-Con 2 to angle shots at the basket. It was entertaining, but I had a huge flat surface to glide my Joy-Con 2 across. I wonder if the game will feel as good in tighter spaces or on different surfaces.
Kirby and the Forgotten Land – Nintendo Switch 2 Edition + Star-Crossed World
This is the only enhanced Switch 2 Edition game I played, but it’s great. The demo throws you right into the Star-Crossed World expansion, and the game runs at a smooth 60 FPS now, improving the gameplay, especially with setting up your dodge rolls. The new spring powerup feels great, bringing to mind Rattly the Rattlesnake from Donkey Kong Country 2 (though using the timing from that title will cause you to miss your jumps and plummet to your death). For all you completionists out there, this add-on has you covered, with many hidden paths and collectibles to uncover. No word yet on how long this expansion will be, but hopefully it’s hefty.
Gameplay-wise, I was impressed with the Nintendo Switch 2. All the peripherals felt solid, and many of Nintendo’s first-party games are stellar. However, the price of the console, accessories, and games is frankly unaffordable, so I believe the Switch 2 will not reach the heights of its predecessor. Hopefully, prices will go down in the future.
The Escapist is supported by our audience. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn a small affiliate commission. Learn more about our Affiliate Policy
![Ultimate Anime Rangers X Unit Tier List [RELEASE]](https://histream.ir/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/Anime-Rangers-X-Unit-Tier-List-Cover.jpg)
Published: Apr 17, 2025 08:27 am