Nintendo’s House of Indies gets dreamlike on Day 4

Dream to the beat, or beat your opponent

The fourth day of Nintendo’s House of Indies holiday event has arrived, and four more games have been confirmed for the Nintendo Switch. Whether it’s rocking through your dreams or rocketing the ball into the opponent’s goal, there’s a good variety of games here on the penultimate day of indie joy.

First up, the surprise drops. Dreamy rhythm game Melatonin is out today on Nintendo Switch, mixing a gorgeous art style with music specifically designed to flow with the visuals. It’s a dreamlike Rhythm Heaven, it seems, and I’ve heard some pretty positive buzz around Half Asleep’s new game.

But if you want something a little higher octane, Necrosoft’s Hyper Gunsport hits Nintendo Switch today too. Each team is made up of a keeper and striker, who shoot the ball to launch it into their opponent’s goal for points. Special weapons and stages make this a little more complex, though. There are also 1v1 and 2v2 options, plus single-player and co-op options for the story circuit. And of course, multiplayer. Lethal League and Windjammers fans should already be eyeing this one.

Don’t talk to the puppets

As for the future of Switch indies, two more have been locked in for 2023 launches today. Afterimage is a new action-adventure with definite ‘Vania inspirations. Non-linear levels and side-scrolling action abound, though the art style and general theme of time warping add interesting twists to Afterimage. We’ll see what Aurogon Shanghai and Modus Games have  in store on April 25, 2023.

Then for something a little off the beaten path, there’s Smile For Me. This adventure game uses camera nodding as an actual mechanic for conversation. Finally, all those years of machinima practice paying off. Solve puzzles, help out people, and probably uncover some dark and/or sinister secrets in this weird, weird world in spring 2023.

There’s just one more day of indies left, with likely only one more batch of shadowdrops due for the Switch. Tune in tomorrow to see what the final door of Nintendo’s indie advent calendar holds.

Eric Van Allen

Senior News Reporter