Blizzard Arcade Collection Switch NSP + Update + DLC (eShop)  Free Download Romslab

Blizzard Arcade Collection Switch NSP + Update + DLC (eShop)  Free Download Compilations are released at varying levels of quality. The bare minimum has been collections of ports that are little more than the old games crammed into a single package. The better ones include some options like a rewind feature, save states, or other quality of life features that let a new player experience the classics without the frustration of foregone conventions.

The best re-releases act like a historical document—the games are released in their best form, with those quality-of-life features, and a wealth of special features for the long-time fans. Thankfully, the Blizzard Arcade Collection is the latter: a love letter to classic titles The Lost Vikings, Rock ‘n Roll Racing, and Blackthorne that all released on the Super NES and Sega Genesis. ROMSLAB.COM Best Switch Games

Blizzard Arcade Collection Switch NSP + Update + DLC (eShop)  Free Download Romslab

The Lost Vikings is a side-scrolling platformer with a unique twist. You play as three Vikings: Eric the Swift who can run and jump quickly, Baleog the Fierce who can attack with a sword or bow and arrow, and Olaf the Stout who carries a shield that can deflect projectiles as well as make a platform for Eric the Swift to jump on.

Rather than selecting one to play as in each level, you use all three in tandem to solve puzzle and platforming challenges by moving one at a time to stage them in the correct places. To win each level, all three Vikings must make it to the end point, running through monsters, avoiding lasers, and pressing switches to open the path. The Lost Vikings is a fun and quirky game that holds up well, with a surprisingly funky soundtrack and characters bursting with personality.

A collection of classics that puts its best foot forward.

Blizzard deserves high praise for the love this collection has gotten. Each game not only has the Super NES and Sega Genesis versions (or a 32X version for Blackthorne), but also a definitive edition. Those definitive editions are aptly named, both enhancing the graphics, improving the sound, and adding features absent from the originals such as improved multiplayer options for The Lost Vikings, a local 4-player versus in Rock ‘n Roll Racing, and an additional map for Blackthorne. DOOM Eternal Switch NSP

The original releases are great for those who want to play the versions they grew up with and also allow for an interesting compare and contrast between the graphical and music differences in the different versions. Beyond that, however, I’d argue the definitive editions are the most ideal versions to play. Each of these games have both a save state option not present in the originals (which used passcodes before) as well as a rewind feature, which are welcome additions for the platformers as they can get difficult later on.

Blizzard Arcade Collection Switch NSP + Update + DLC (eShop)  Free Download Romslab

Beyond the games themselves, there is a treasure trove of special features. A healthy dose of concept art, magazine advertising prints, box art renders, character animations, and even photos of the developers’ workplaces had me poking around longer than I expected. Several video interviews with key creators of these games provide a glimpse into the concepts they were working with, their steps in producing the games, the landscape they were being released in, and how they were unique for their time in Blizzard’s history. There’s even a space to listen to the game soundtracks, although you unsurprisingly won’t see Rock ‘n Roll Racing there given the circumstances.

Blizzard’s pre-Warcraft library is one worth revisiting

As part of Blizzard’s 30th anniversary, the company famous for Diablo, World of Warcraft and Overwatch has released a collection of three of its earliest games, from a time before live services and loot boxes; The Lost Vikings, Rock N’ Roll Racing and Blackthorne. And while these three games have been available for free in their most basic form through Blizzard’s website for some time, Blizzard Arcade Collection is anything but a quick cash in. Co-developed by preservation experts Digital Eclipse, it’s a rich and loving tribute to three ’90s gems you don’t often see revisited, filled with thoughtful additions and interesting historical context. Double Dragon Neon Switch NSP 

Blizzard Arcade Collection Switch NSP + Update + DLC (eShop)  Free Download Romslab

For starters there are three versions of each game included; the one originally released on Super Nintendo, the one originally released on Sega systems and a newly modernised Definitive Edition debuting here for the first time. The retro games get some helpful features like save states, the ability to rewind, and various options for video filters and scaling, making them more palatable in 2021.

Multiple versions in one place

In the main menu we have rare behind-the-scenes files, promotional materials from the time in very high resolution, magazine s, SNES and Mega Drive cartridge inserts, concept art of the characters and their designs in testing phase, various animations in draft, among many others content made especially for fans. In addition, photos of the initial studio and the teams involved in the three games can also be found here, as well as interviews in videos that were made especially for this collection, telling a little more about the creative process. In another section there is the music player, not only containing the original Rock ‘N’ Roll Racing soundtrack , which is strange since licensed songs are present during the game. DRAGON BALL FighterZ Switch NSP

Blizzard Arcade Collection Switch NSP + Update + DLC (eShop)  Free Download Romslab

All three titles have a version selector, which includes the SNES, Mega Drive/SEGA 32X and a definitive one that mixes the best features of both and creates a unique game, with additional features, language in Brazilian Portuguese and extra phases in some cases. Rock ‘N’ Roll Racing Definitive Edition, for example, features high-quality music and a widescreen video format with remastered graphics. Unfortunately The Lost Vikings and Blackthorne didn’t get the same 16:9 screen treatment, and get a background image to soften the square screen effect. Despite that, even today all three titles are a pixel art show , with gorgeous animations and a tasteful art direction. Dragon Quest XI S Echoes of an Elusive Age Switch

Add-ons (DLC): Blizzard Arcade Collection Switch NSP + Update + DLC (eShop)