Features

5 must-have Nintendo Switch games that aren’t Zelda

Published

April 14, 2017

Lukas Velunta

When the Nintendo Switch launched, one game dominated all conversation: The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The highly anticipated flagship title captured hearts everywhere with its “open-air” freedom and ability to approach situations from any angle imaginable. Gamers were transported back to their school days of sharing secrets and trading stories on the playground — “You did what to kill what?” and “I didn’t know you could use that to do that!”

But that was well over a month ago, and if you got the Breath of the Wild then, your time in Zelda’s fantasy world of Hyrule is probably winding down. Or maybe you’d like to put off beating Ganon and see what else the Switch has to offer. Luckily, the system has plenty of games to complement one of the greatest ever made.

Snipperclips

We included Snipperclips in our list of the best games of 2017 so far, and for good reason. The Switch exclusive is the other killer app of the launch lineup, and is able to provoke shouts of annoyance and delight in equal measure. You play as two pieces of paper that can cut each other into any shape to solve different puzzle types. The closest game to Snipperclips is Crayon Physics or Scribblenauts in the amount of leeway in solutions that it affords the players.

Snipperclips is ideal for two, and is the showcase for the Switch’s built-in multiplayer — even Snip and Clip, the player characters, evoke the shape of the Joy-Con controllers themselves. Because the game comprises a series of brainteasers, casual and even non-gamers can join the fun. Early on, the solutions to the puzzles were fairly one-note, although this could be indicative of our lack of creativity. Our solutions usually involved variations of turning each other into bowls or combining ourselves into one big bowl (see the screenshot above). But eventually, the game opens up with variety; you and your partner must use your lateral thinking abilities to the utmost. If you always have a ready Player 2, Snipperclips is essential for your Nintendo Switch library.

Fast RMX

Consoles have typically launched with a racing game that pushes the hardware; Fast RMX — a futuristic arcade racer like F-Zero or Wipeout — fits the bill for the Switch. Digital Foundry has called the Switch exclusive “perhaps the most beautiful portable game ever,” and it’s easy to see why. Fast RMX has twelve racing machines blitzing along at hundreds of kilometers per hour on tracks with tornadoes and thunderstorms. The visuals work in concert with the sound design and HD rumble (you can feel those tornadoes vibrating in a circle in your hands) for a multisensory spectacle.

The game is a technical marvel. In handheld mode, Fast RMX runs at the Switch’s native resolution (720p) at 60 frames per second. When docked, the game runs at a dynamic resolution (but mostly 1080p), still at 60 frames per second. Even more impressively, these specs are maintained when played in splitscreen two-player and even four-player modes, which is just sheer technological wizardry. If you’re going to buy one game from this list, get Fast RMX. Its full-fledged single- and (online!) multiplayer modes, with time attack in a future patch, provide almost infinite replay value. Not bad for something developed by five people.

Graceful Explosion Machine

Shoot-em-ups are perfect games to be entranced by, and Graceful Explosion Machine is a beautiful and engaging exemplar of the genre. A timed exclusive for Switch, the game is a side-scrolling shooter where you pilot a spaceship through four planets to get home — these aren’t games that you play for the story, but for the mechanics. And Graceful Explosion Machine delivers the mechanics in spades. It kits you out with all the gear at the start: a basic gun, a melee energy sword, screen-clearing homing missiles, and a long-distance Kamehameha-like blast. Then, the game leaves you to figure out how to chain together explosions with grace and efficiency.

The result is a score attack game as good as Geometry Wars and Resogun. The frantic, in-the-zone chase after the combo multiplier, as well the drive to be stylish in weapon use, is reminiscent of Bayonetta or any of Platinum’s masterpieces. It helps that Graceful Explosion Machine’s art direction is clean and easy to parse no matter how hectic the chaos becomes; HD rumble also provides a unique feel for each weapon. A ranking system (that peaks at S+ for a perfect run — no hits and an unbroken multiplier) plus global leaderboards round out the package. Earning an S+ and seeing that you’re only 27th in the world keeps you coming back for more.

Snake Pass

Snake Pass is a mascot platformer with a mascot who can’t jump. A 3D collectathon to rival Yooka-Laylee, Snake Pass puts all of its challenge in what is usually the most intuitive part of platformers: moving the player character. Every minute detail of controlling Noodle the snake’s movement is in your control, from the orientation of his head to whether he’s gripping a surface. It’s a puzzle platformer where your body is the puzzle — Banjo Kazooie and Captain Toad meet QWOP and Octodad.

The Dark Souls of snake-based games, Snake Pass is equal to From Software’s skill-based series in providing both frustration and relaxation. But once you get past this high initial learning curve — it’s a bit like driving a weird, heavy, ropey car — the game becomes more deliberate, and is a matter of planning where you want to slither next. Noodle’s ridiculous contortions are greatly enhanced by the game’s production values, which show the effectiveness of Unreal Engine 4 in rendering cartoon visuals (and the ease with which the Switch supports an off-the-shelf engine). A soundtrack by David Wise of Rare fame transports you to the Nintendo 64 era, when you played these games for the sheer fun that they entailed.

Lego City Undercover

The only non-indie on this list, Lego City Undercover is the best the Lego series has to offer. While other Lego games practically required you to be familiar with the fandoms they spoofed, Lego City Undercover shines on its own merits with an original story that stars supercop Chase McCain as he infiltrates the criminal underworld of the titular Lego City. The game is a Grand Theft Auto that, as trite as the phrase may be, truly is fun for the whole family. Its pop culture references range from Columbo to The Shawshank Redemption to, of course, The Matrix. Dad jokes abound.

Originally a Wii U exclusive, Lego City Undercover returns on the Switch with a bevy of improvements that include a 1080p presentation when docked, vastly improved lighting, and — perhaps most important of all for a Lego game — local co-op. You will need an extra pair of Joy-Con or a Pro Controller to get in on the two-player action, though. The open world of Lego City is nowhere near the breadth of that of Breath of the Wild, but sometimes it’s just comforting to play a game that tells you what to do. Best of all, the Switch’s portability makes Lego City Undercover the most complete handheld Lego game to date, and allows you to snap up the game’s hundreds and hundreds of collectibles wherever you are.

[irp posts=”12150″ name=”Demon’s Souls to Dark Souls III: Ranking the Series”]

Accessories

OBSBOT Meet Flip Hands-on

It’s tinier and folds this time

Published

August 14, 2026

Phones flip and fold. Now webcams do too.

Foldable screens have found their way into phones, tablets, and laptops in recent years. Now, OBSBOT is taking that idea in a considerably smaller direction: the webcam.

The OBSBOT Meet Flip is the company’s first foldable 4K webcam packing:

1/2-inch stacked CMOS sensor
intelligent audio
a collection of AI-powered meeting tools

All of these inside a body weighing just 37.7 grams.

A fold that does something, not just a gimmick

The OBSBOT Meet Flip isn’t foldable just to make it easier to throw into a bag.

Closing the webcam physically blocks the lens and puts the device into sleep mode. Open it when you want to be seen, flip it shut when you don’t.

A physical privacy cover isn’t novel in itself. What’s clever here is how it’s part of the folding design.

As someone with a love-hate relationship with data privacy, I almost always keep some physical barrier over my laptop webcam. And if I can avoid having a webcam there entirely, even better.

Serious camera hardware in a pocket-sized webcam

Despite its size, OBSBOT hasn’t treated the Meet Flip like a basic laptop-camera replacement.

Inside is a 1/2-inch Exmor RS stacked CMOS sensor with Quad Bayer technology, capable of recording 4K UHD at 30 fps or 1080p at 60 fps. It also packs an f/1.8 aperture, HDR, PDAF autofocus, ISO 100–6400, and up to 4x digital zoom.

At its core is a 1/2-inch Exmor RS stacked CMOS sensor with Quad Bayer technology.

It can record:

4K UHD at 30fps
1080p at 60fps

You also get:

f/1.8 aperture
HDR
PDAF autofocus
ISO 100–6400
up to 4x digital zoom

On paper, that gives the Meet Flip a better shot at handling the situations built-in laptop webcams often struggle with: dim rooms, harsh backlighting, changing lighting conditions, or simply moving around in front of the camera.

HDR helps keep faces visible against bright backgrounds, while PDAF autofocus continuously adjusts focus as you move closer to or farther from the lens.

The wider f/1.8 aperture should also help in less-than-ideal lighting.

The point is that once the Meet Flip is set up, you shouldn’t have to spend much time thinking about the camera itself.

It listens differently depending on the room setup

The Meet Flip also uses an intelligent dual-microphone system combining omnidirectional and directional microphones.

Instead of relying on one pickup pattern for every situation, it offers four audio modes for different setups:

Directional Mode focuses on sound coming from the front, making it the obvious choice for solo calls.

Dual-Directional Mode listens to both the front and rear of the webcam, which could be useful for interviews or conversations between two people sitting across from each other.

Smart Omni Mode is designed for group meetings, picking up voices from around the room.

And Pure Audio Mode provides unprocessed left and right stereo channels for users who would rather handle the audio themselves in post-production.

Auto Gain and AI Noise Reduction also work across the first three modes, helping clean up audio without requiring much manual adjustment.

It gives the Meet Flip more flexibility than a typical webcam microphone, especially if you regularly switch between solo calls, interviews, and group meetings.

AI that doesn’t intrude

AI has become an almost obligatory addition to new hardware in 2026, but several of the Meet Flip’s features put it to work on real-world meeting annoyances.

AI Auto Framing keeps you in frame, with options for:

Group
Single Close-up
Upper Body
Full Body

Gesture controls can also toggle Auto Framing or adjust the zoom without reaching for a keyboard or mouse.

More interesting is AI Magic Notes.

Through OBSBOT Center, it provides real-time transcription and can automatically generate meeting summaries with key points, decisions, and action items. It works across Google Meet, Zoom, and Microsoft Teams.

Although AI Magic Notes is offered as a subscription service, every Meet Flip includes 120 complimentary minutes to get started.

MORE with OBSBOT Center & OBSBOT Live

There are plenty of other software features as well. OBSBOT Center includes:

Background Blur and Background Replacement
Real-Time Beauty Mode
Picture-in-Picture overlays
Smart Eye Tracking
Teleprompter support
Detailed image adjustments

The Meet Flip isn’t limited to laptops or desktops either. Through OBSBOT Live, it can connect directly to smartphones and tablets over USB-C for mobile streaming and content creation.

Flip it open. Fold it away.

None of those features reinvent the webcam on their own.

Taken together, though, they make the Meet Flip a more thoughtful take on a piece of hardware whose basic design and features have barely changed.

The flip may grab your attention first, but it’s how OBSBOT uses that design alongside its camera, audio, and software features that makes the Meet Flip interesting.

The OBSBOT Meet Flip is now available at US$ 119 and is currently available through OBSBOT’s official store, Amazon US, and select retailers.

Features

Getting the latest Samsung Galaxy Z Flip8 at 0% Interest with Maya Mini Payments

What convinced me to upgrade and how Maya Mini Payments made paying for it easier~

Published

August 11, 2026

MJ Jucutan

I don’t upgrade simply because there’s a newer model on the shelf.

Last year, I upgraded to the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip7 after spending three years with the iPhone 13 as my daily driver.

Even then, the decision wasn’t about chasing the latest release. It was about finding a device that better matched how I work.

I’m a firm believer that every upgrade has to earn its place in my pocket, especially when there are already perfectly capable phones sitting on my desk.

So when I decided to pre-order the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip8, the decision wasn’t simply about getting the newest device.

It came down to two questions: It came down to two questions: Is this a smart upgrade? And if it is, what’s the smartest way to own it?

The first question was answered by the device itself. The second is where Maya Mini Payments entered the conversation.

For me, the Flip8 addresses the reasons to upgrade. Maya Mini Payments addresses one of the biggest reasons people hesitate: big purchases that could be paid in 3, 6, 9 or 12 monthly payments.

Changing how I shoot and use my phone

I spend most of my day switching between shooting, editing, and posting, sometimes all within the same hour.

One of the biggest reasons the Galaxy Z Flip8 caught my attention is the cover screen. It’s finally useful enough that I can shoot, preview, and interact with content without constantly opening the device.

That may sound like a small change, but it makes a difference when you’re trying to capture candid moments before people notice a camera pointed at them.

It also makes everyday tasks easier. I can check a script, review a shotlist, reply to messages, or glance at notifications without unfolding the phone every few minutes.

For years, foldables often felt like they required some compromise. You gained a unique form factor and flexibility, but sometimes gave up a little on the camera experience. The Flip8 feels like it’s closing that gap.

Samsung’s improvements in low-light performance and stabilization are especially noticeable for the kind of run-and-gun content I create.

I haven’t spent enough time with it to call this a full review yet, but my first impressions have been positive. The experience feels more refined and more dependable than previous generations.

Features alone don’t convince me to upgrade. They have to solve a real problem. The more useful cover screen, the improved camera experience, and the overall refinement were the first signs that the Flip8 was offering something I’d actually use every day rather than another feature to add to a spec sheet.

The battery and multitasking finally match my day

The less exciting reason I’m upgrading is also the one that affects me the most.

Between filming, reviewing footage, answering emails, coordinating campaigns, and managing social media, my phone is constantly working.

My old device usually drops into battery-saving territory before dinner. It gets the job done, but I spend too much time thinking about charging instead of working.

The Galaxy Z Flip8 feels better equipped for that reality. The battery efficiency is improved, and multitasking feels more natural when juggling multiple apps throughout the day.

Those aren’t flashy features, but they’re the kinds of upgrades that quietly improve everyday productivity. They’re also the features that convinced me this wasn’t simply a want. It was an upgrade I could actually justify.

Once I was convinced the Flip8 was worth upgrading to, I realized the decision wasn’t really over. A smart upgrade also deserves a smart way to pay for it.

Making a big upgrade more manageable

Of course, deciding a device is worth upgrading to is only half the equation. The other half is figuring out how to pay for it.

The Galaxy Z Flip8 is a premium device, and for most people, the upfront cost is what gives them pause. That’s often where upgrade decisions get delayed, even when the device itself makes sense.

That’s why Maya Mini Payments stood out to me. Any Samsung purchase paid with a Maya Credit Card can be converted into Mini Payments directly through the Maya app, making it easier to spread the cost into monthly installments instead of paying for everything upfront in one go.

You can choose installment plans of up to 12 months at a fixed monthly add-on interest rate of 1%.

For Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 and Galaxy Z Flip8 purchases, cardholders can enjoy a 3-month Mini Payment plan at 0% interest, making the upgrade more manageable without additional interest costs on the installment plan.

What I like about the concept is that it mirrors the reason I like the Flip8 itself.

The Flip8 makes it easy for me to shoot, edit, communicate, and multitask throughout the day. Maya Mini Payments makes it easy to purchase by turning one large expense into a payment plan that fits more naturally into a monthly budget.

Both are practical solutions to real-world problems. Also, the entire process can be managed directly within the Maya app, making it easy to track and manage installment conversions without additional paperwork.

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Still on the fence?

The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip8 feels like one of the strongest cases yet for upgrading to a foldable.

For me, the cover screen is more useful, the camera experience feels more capable, and the battery and multitasking improvements better match how I actually work every day.

If you prefer a larger screen for productivity, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold8 follows the same philosophy while giving users even more room to multitask and create.

If you’ve already decided Samsung’s latest foldables are your next devices, there’s also a smarter way to make that upgrade happen.

All your Samsung purchases made using a Maya Credit Card can be converted into a 3-month Mini Payment plan at 0% interest, with zero processing fees until September 30, making it easier to enjoy Samsung’s latest innovations without one big upfront payment.

Pre-orders run until August 13, with devices available in-store beginning August 14.

Tutorials

How to set up Apple Pay on your iPhone

It’s as easy as a single tap.

Published

August 4, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Apple Pay is officially in the Philippines!

Pushing the country forward into a cashless and cardless future, Apple has now brought its contactless payment system to the Philippines. As with other countries, Apply Pay will work seamlessly and easily even for those who have problems with technology.

Now, despite how easy it is, sometimes we need to be pointed in the right direction. Here’s how you can set up Apple Pay on your iPhone:

Everything starts with the Wallet app. First, open your Wallet app. Tap the “+” button on the top and select “Debit or Credit Card.”

Normally, this is where you can input your card details (which you can still do, by the way), but the default method now is to just tap your card on the back of your iPhone. Your phone does the rest. You might need to confirm with your bank, but it’s as easy as a single tap.

Pick which cards to use. Once you have your cards online, you might need to change which one is the default card. Again, it’s easy. Just drag your preferred card to the front.

Afterwards, you can tap to pay in supported stores by priming the Wallet app for use. Tapping to pay is also available for Apple Watch. Meanwhile, online transactions can also work on MacBook.

Secure, all the time. If you’re worried about your security especially with online transactions, Apple keeps your information only between you and the seller. They don’t store your data.

Also, it’s not easy to make a transaction without your consent. You need Face ID, Touch ID, or your password. If you lose your phone, you can easily shut your phone down with the Find My app to prevent malicious parties from making transactions.