Gaming

Arms Review: The Sweet Switch Science

Published

July 3, 2017

Lukas Velunta

I love fighting games. But I’m terrible at them. For all my desire to play a real-time game of chess, in which I predict and counter my opponent’s every move, I still launch into a Shoryuken when I meant to let loose a Hadoken. I am mechanically bad at the genre, so I have enjoyed fighting games only at the margins. Arms changes all of that.

Springing into action

Arms is exhilarating from the get go. The sick vocal samba track (which we recommend listening to as you read our review) amps you up for the bouts to come, punctuated (punch-tuated?) by the title screen that strikes with its graphic design. This is from a Nintendo infused with bold new blood.

The game pits people who woke up one day with extendable arms and decided to fight with them, to the adoration of fans worldwide. Just go with it. You control your colorful fighter — in my case, a Chinese woman named Min Min who has literal noodles for arms and a ramen bowl beanie — in over-the-shoulder one-on-one battles where you use your extendable arms as projectile fists. It’s boxing with Voltes V’s ultraelectromagnetic tops.

Mask on, mascots

The art direction in Arms speaks for itself. The characters are instantly recognizable. Hero games are all the rage (think Overwatch), and Nintendo enters the ring with this fighter that fuses the dev team behind Mario Kart with the freshness of Splatoon, proving again that they are the masters of creating video game icons.

Each of the game’s ten characters are instantly readable — you’ll never confuse Ribbon Girl with Mechanica. All thirty of the game’s titular arms (the weapons at the end of Min Min’s noodles) are also easily identifiable, and tell you if this particular fist is electric or fiery, heavy or light. The springiness of the characters’ arms communicates immediately whether your opponent’s attack will reach you, or whether you have enough time to slip in a counter. This readability is aided by the flawless 60 frames per second and 1080p/720p in docked/handheld mode, with antialiasing to boot. These visual elements combine to help you keep abreast of everything at any point during a match.

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee

Fighting in Arms feels great. I started off using traditional controls in handheld mode, and fell in love immediately. Nearly all inputs are one button, from dashing, jumping, blocking, and activating your super (here called the Rush). Left or right punches are thrown with the respective triggers. You grab by punching with both arms at once. The left analog controls your movement as well as allows you to curve the punch. That’s it. Its simplicity makes Arms not about complicated button combinations, but about spacing, movement, and timing: the fundamental fighter essentials distilled.

There is one egregious issue in the traditional controls — no button remapping. Block is mapped to clicking in the left stick (my least favorite input), which has led to the double-edged sword of me never blocking. This leads to Muhammad Ali-like weaves through punches, but also renders me vulnerable to Rush attacks that I’m unable to dodge fully.

His hands can’t hit what his eyes can’t see

Nintendo polishes a central mechanic to the point that it’s blinding. Grand Prix, the game’s single-player component, does a great job of putting it all together and serving as a tutorial for the brutality of online.

The mode has seven difficulty levels, which represents the most gentle learning curve I’ve ever seen. Ranked is locked behind beating Grand Prix at difficulty level 4, so upon beating the cakewalk level 1, I jumped right into 4… and immediately got annihilated by the CPU. But by taking it one increment at a time, I was trained in the game’s basics. By the time I made it back to level 4, I could stand toe to toe with the AI, and even managed to score a Perfect against the secret final boss.

The mechanics are such that every time you lose, it’s your fault, and the game shows you why. You can review a CPU match immediately afterward with the replay functionality. It lets you see things in slow motion from the opponent’s point of view, from an overhead perspective, and from a variety of cinematic angles. Even if you lose, it still feels good, because hopefully you’ll learn from it.

Rumble, young man, rumble

This positive reinforcement is good training for the saltiness of online. The Party Mode is good clean fun, with a volleyball variant (the ball is a bomb that explodes when it hits the ground) and a basketball minigame (your opponent is the ball, and if your grab succeeds, you dunk your opponent or get three points if you’re behind the line).

There’s a more serious 1v1 fight mode, but it’s peppered in between the sports modes and the absolutely insane 1v1v1, 2v2, and 3vCPU modes. It’s a great way to practice against real people, and the lobby is refreshingly presented — there will be times when you aren’t matched up, but you can peek into the progress of ongoing fights via the bubbles in the lobby. As of the most recent patch, a proper Spectator Mode has been added, but that’s currently limited to four in a lobby — two fighting, two spectating (normal lobbies have a max of 10 players).

The real meat of Arms is in Ranked. It’s gated behind beating the Grand Prix at level 4, so everyone there should theoretically know how to play. I say “theoretically” because I rocketed from ranks 1 to 7 without losing a single best-of-three game (Ranked peaks at 15 for now). I’ve never been competitive at a fighter before, and there’s nothing like the mind game of prediction, counter-prediction, and reading your opponent.

It’s early days yet for Arms, and figuring out the intricacies and depth brought by the different characters and arms (each of the ten characters can use all of the thirty available arms) is exciting. By getting in on the ground floor, we’re building the metagame in real time. It’s a good start for Nintendo’s branching out into games as a service.

Fast casual

“Let’s play,” I tell Belle, my cousin. We’re waiting for our food at Pancake House, and I figure this is the perfect time to live out a Nintendo Switch commercial. For medical reasons, I’d never tried the motion controls before. Belle boxes in real life, so I know she’ll like this. I pop off the neon blue and red joy-cons and hand them to her, and take out another pair. They’re Arms yellow, vibrant as a highlighter.

She looks through the character screen with great interest. “Is she black?” says the palest, most privileged woman in our family who’s learning about social justice at the Ateneo de Manila University. She’s talking about Twintelle. “She uses her hair to punch? I want her.”

By this point, I’ve had Arms for a week and am deep into Ranked with Min Min. I use a different character for the first time — Kid Cobra, who’s tearing through the tier lists because of his innate advantages in the current metagame that is focused on charged attacks and dashes.

We play three best-of-three matches, and Belle wins every time. Maybe Arms makes savants out of us all.

[irp posts=”13796″ name=”Mario Kart 8 Deluxe review: The quintessential Switch game”]

Gaming

Stranger Than Heaven is a Yakuza prequel with Snoop Dogg

The story spans different eras and regions across half a century in Japan.

Published

May 7, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

In my review of Yakuza Kiwami 3, I groaned about how every new entry in the Yakuza and Like a Dragon franchise — original and remake — looked identical with each other. I ended that playthrough hoping desperately for a new era. Thankfully, those hopes did not fall on deaf ears. In its first trailer, the upcoming Stranger Than Heaven showed off an interesting reimagining of the Yakuza universe. Oh, and Snoop Dogg is in it.

First announced back in late 2024 as Project Century, Stranger Than Heaven has now confirmed itself as a prequel to the prequel to the Yakuza games. It didn’t start that way, though. When it was announced, there was hope that the then-untitled game featured a new story disconnected from Yakuza. It looks like the final game is making the best of both worlds.

Stranger Than Heaven chronicles the rise of the infamous Tojo Clan. Unless this is decidedly different from the Tojo Clan in the Yakuza series, this is the clearest sign that this is, in fact, a prequel.

Makoto Daito, a Japanese boy living in Chicago, escapes America to forge a new life in Japan. Along the way, he meets Orpheus, a smuggler played by Snoop Dogg, who drags Makoto into the criminal underworld. Eventually, Makoto decides to do things his own way by creating a new crime family called the Tojo Clan.

Unlike other games in the series, Stranger Than Heaven spans different eras and regions in Japan, starting with Fukuoka in 1915 and ending with Kamurocho in 1965. It will also have different fighting mechanics by mapping the left and right bumpers/triggers to left and right attacks.

Off the bat, Stranger Than Heaven looks like a new era for the series. It launches winter this year for all major platforms.

Gaming

Star Wars: Galactic Racer launches October 6

Pre-orders now live

Published

May 4, 2026

Rodneil Quiteles

Star Wars: Galactic Racer is set to launch on October 6, 2026, bringing a new high-speed twist to the Star Wars universe. The game is published by Secret Mode and developed by Fuse Games. It arrives on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC with support for up to 12 players.

Pre-orders are now open across Standard, Deluxe, and Collector’s Editions. Pricing starts at $59.99 for the Standard Edition, with both digital and physical versions available depending on platform.

A different kind of Star Wars story

Set in the lawless Outer Rim, the game introduces the Galactic League—an unsanctioned racing circuit where skill matters more than destiny. You play as a mysterious pilot named Shade, navigating a single-player campaign built on rivalries, alliances, and unfinished business.

There’s no Force or prophecy here. Instead, the focus is on build strategy and racing mastery. Players can customize three types of repulsorcraft and even take on classic podracers, blending familiar Star Wars elements with a more competitive, arcade-style edge.

Multiplayer supports online races where players can test their builds and driving skills against others.

Pre-order bonuses and editions

All pre-orders include a bonus livery usable across vehicles, with platform-specific colors, plus a Player Banner background for multiplayer.

The Deluxe Edition adds three extra vehicles, exclusive Arcade events, a livery pack, and cosmetic upgrades like new player banners and insignias. It also includes a digital art book featuring early designs of characters, locations, and vehicles.

Collector’s Edition for dedicated pilots

For collectors, the physical Collector’s Edition bundles a model of the Kor Sarun: Darc X landspeeder, themed patches, a printed art book, and a steel case housed in premium packaging. It also includes all Deluxe Edition digital content.

Star Wars: Galactic Racer launches on October 6, 2026, for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC, with pre-orders now available.

Gaming

PRAGMATA is not for the faint of heart

Already a Game of the Year contender for all the feels

Published

May 4, 2026

Gab Orlina

Six years and a few notable launch delays. That’s what it took for Capcom to finally introduce a new franchise in 2026. They already have legacy franchises getting new releases. However, the biggest question looming over their head was whether or not they dare to explore something new. What makes it more challenging is an entirely new team is working on its development. That comes with its own sets of risks and rewards.

This was the story of PRAGMATA, another exciting title finally getting its time in the spotlight on all modern platforms. Looking at trailers, screenshots, and even demo highlights, I already got the sense that this game may just be at par with a ton of sci-fi-inspired RPGs. The expectation on my end was clear: all action, all exploration, with a storyline that will tie everything together seamlessly.

I was not prepared for the storm of emotions and action that came my way.

Maximizing your brain power

PRAGMATA operates like most action-packed RPGs with how combat works: you point, you shoot. To set that up, you play as Hugh. He is an engineer sent to a moonbase called the Cradle to investigate comms being down. As you enter the Cradle, something already feels off. Before you even get a chance to blink, you’re already plunging into danger as the AI that keeps it safe has gone rogue. By the time you come to, you’re attacked by one of the bots that helped you out. From there, must fight your way throughout the game to survive.

Luckily for you, a support android named D-I-0336-7 fixes you up. The android willingly helps you fight the rogue AI by hacking through them. Not only will the hacking deal additional damage, but it will help you identify enemy weak spots to exploit. However, to achieve the perfect hack, you are required to solve a puzzle-like board with nodes mid-fight. Essentially, you’ll be doing two things at once to survive and fight your way through the Cradle.

It’s the kind of mechanic that feels unique as the level of difficulty escalates with every encounter. Oftentimes, the hacking and the shooting are separate mechanics that are done to calmly set you up for the fights. Now, it’s do-or-die with the hacking increasing your odds of success immensely. Enemies are hard to defeat simply on the gunplay alone. And you will need to keep that in mind as you progress through the game.

Expansive world to complete and unlock

Speaking of progression, as you get out of that initial skirmish alive with D-I-0336-7, who Hugh cutely gives the nickname “Diana” to, you end up in a tram to the Shelter. Effectively, the Shelter serves as both your base of operations and a rest spot to retool before combat. As you go through every area of the game, you unlock newer features. These are REM Replicators, upgrades to your health, firepower and hacking skills, and access to more weapon schematics and nodes. Also, you can even set up matching suits for Hugh and Diana before heading out into the world again!

Once you have everything you need, you will venture out into areas in the Cradle that need to be restored. A lot of the areas are incredibly expansive. This allows you to explore and grab as many freebies lying around as you can. From the Lunafilament used for upgrades to newer weapons at your disposal, the game scatters these for you to find and harvest from the overworld. Of course, you’ll run into the occasional swarm of enemies but you have Diana, and Diana has you!

Diana’s hacking even extends into these as you progressively acquire new skills. As you progress, you’ll be able to remove map hazards, clear traps, and scale structures effortlessly. This fully allows exploration to be less of a drag. There are newer pathways to areas you previously couldn’t explore or made it easier to backtrack. Plus, there are stations that can be activated as save points and hangars to return to the Shelter that Diana can activate.

It’s a large hub to explore. You’re encouraged to get and know everything because this next part will have you strapped.

Building bridges back to Earth

Without completely spoiling too much, PRAGMATA‘s storyline is one you gradually feel and resonate with. Earlier, I mentioned that the whole reason Hugh and his team were in the Cradle was to investigate its unresponsiveness. In an unfortunate turn of events, Hugh gets separated from his team and has to go through the entire Cradle looking for a way to get back to Earth. Along the way, Diana resurrects Hugh from certain death and accompanies him throughout the excursion mostly to be a guide and helping hand.

Throughout the game, Hugh and Diana develop a strong bond that already borders a father-daughter dynamic. Originally, Hugh didn’t really consider himself as a parental figure since he doesn’t have kids of his own. However, he goes out of his way to ensure Diana’s safety and overall wellbeing – effectively giving human compassion and love to an android. Oddly enough, Diana almost certainly feels more human and would even want to join him back to Earth.

As you explore throughout the game, you also pick up schematics of real Earth objects that are processed in the Shelter’s REM Replicators. These are neat trinkets that Diana actually gets to play with, even to a point of bonding with Hugh through them. It’s the kind of heartwarming moments in between the chaos that reflects the dynamic that many people will truly appreciate.

Struggles picked, sacrifices made

Remember how the game encourages you to explore to know everything? All of that was intentional for Hugh and Diana to get down to the bottom of what really happened at the Cradle. As it turns out, the AI mainframe of the Cradle, IDUS went into disarray after the moonquake that separated Hugh from his crew. Along the excursion through the Cradle, the pair discovers and meets up with another android called Eight who has the answers to effectively contain IDUS through Diana.

Only for them to realize that there are far graver dangers ahead. So now, the objective is to survive till the end, get back to Earth and stop anything that gets in the way. All throughout, you as Hugh will be tested on not only keeping Diana safe, but also ensuring that she gets to experience Earth with or without him. For the parents and parental figures out there, you know this feeling all too well.

A GamingMatch Made in Heaven?

No matter how you slice it, PRAGMATA nailed everything in my list of expectations: the right mix of exploration, easy-to-master combat mechanics, and an emotional story that transcends culture and hits right in the feels. It feels like Capcom continuously revitalizes the RPG experience with newer concepts and mechanics that truly test players at the core. Matching it with characters that allow you to have an emotional investment in, and the game hits right in the feels in more ways than one.

It’s a game that gradually keeps you engrossed in the experience from start to finish. From approaching tougher and larger enemies to traversing the overworld to collect resources, every instance feels wholly unique. Furthermore, the game incentivizes rest and reset without fully losing progress in your adventure.

More than anything, it offers a fresh take on character dynamics that will leave you in an emotional mess. Whether you like it or not. Admittedly, the bond between Hugh and Diana is one that a lot of people simply resonate and potentially aspire to have. It’s a reminder of how deep the human connection can truly transcend. And even be the ultimate key to survival against all olds.

Not only does PRAGMATA get a Swipe Right, but this game truly deserves to be up there for Game of the Year contention.