Review – UFO 50 on Switch

Compilation. Catalog. Compendium. These are all words that can be used to describe Spelunky developer Mossmouth’s UFO 50. But all three of those words fail to detail just how expansive a package UFO 50 is. True, there are 50 original games of differing genres included here. But the way they’re presented is through a setup full of heart. UFO 50 has touched down on the Nintendo Switch, a perfect fit for its collection of new, original retro games. 

I didn’t grow up playing video games in the ’80s; I wasn’t born until 1994. Yet I still recognize how genius it is to frame a collection of games as a box of dusty cartridges being found at a garage sale. This method also shrouds all 50 games in mystery. When you start up UFO 50 every game is represented by a grayed out NES-like cartridge arranged in rows. You don’t know anything about a game until, much like in real life, you select one, blow the dust off and watch the color come back to the lifeless piece of plastic’s artwork. This sensation is being described in such great detail because it communicates several things to the player: That these are old games that haven’t been touched in years, that the games are inspired by classic 8 and 16-bit NES/SNES titles, that the developers are showing you what gaming was like when they were kids, and that this entire experience is full of wonder. And this moment was my favorite in UFO 50, a video game full of great moments. 

 

 

All of us will have our own individualized experiences with UFO 50 and the developers realized this. There is a thoughtful meta narrative that shows a clear through-line of fictional video game company UFOSoft’s history in the order of the games’ release years, but it can be ignored entirely if you choose. Consider this as a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure book or a virtual library. You can play the games in any order you choose and there’s something so youthful about this that it’s hard to not feel excited. Every game boots up within seconds and can be as touch-and-go as you’d like. However, every game can also be completed (gold cartridge) and contains a goal (gift) that earns a decoration for the virtual garden. There’s also a hardcore achievement (cherry) for every game such as completing a game within a certain time limit. In other words, this rabbit hole goes as deep as you want it to. This is actually my second time owning UFO 50, so naturally I chose to go through it differently than I did the first time around. This review will highlight some of my favorite titles in the game. 

The strange beauty of UFO 50 is that when I first began it, I knew it contained some of my favorite genres (Racing, Arcade, Fighting, Search Action, etc.) and some of my not-so-favorite (Strategy, Point-And-Click Adventure, Deck-building, Simulation, etc.), but my expectations underestimated just how many games I would enjoy. To my surprise, it was the games that I didn’t think I would like that ended up being my favorites. And the first of those games was Bug Hunter, a tile-based strategy puzzle game that’s all about managing your resources carefully by picking up your energy cubes to use and purchase action tiles, thus eliminating bugs in the correct order. Bugs varied in size and some were paired with drones that rendered them invincible until destroyed. As the turns passed, more bugs showed up. Bigger bugs. Bugs that spawned eggs that, if hatched, meant an instant game over. The intensity of the game’s progression and the ease of its mechanics really stuck with me. I easily spent three hours on Bug Hunter before I even considered moving on to one of the 49 other games. Talk about a maximalist’s dream. 

 

 

I’m a sucker for golf video games and pinball, but aside from No Good Gophers, I’ve hardly seen the two combined. So I naturally gravitated towards Pingolf in UFO 50 and ended up having the best time. Combine a side-scrolling platformer with golf scoring and a dunk move that can cause the golf ball to bounce and ricochet like a pinball, and the result is an addicting concoction. You’re in control of the arc the ball will take with lowered ceilings causing you some occasional trouble. The ball reacts differently to the various surfaces, so it’ll immediately plop into sand and sink in water if a dunk is attempted. I found Pingolf as much of a physics-based platformer as I did an arcade sports game. With only nine holes, it’s easy to pick up and play. Not so much to put down, however. 

The last game I want to discuss is Planet Zoldath, a top-down Zelda/Metroid-esque hybrid adventure game. You’re a space traveler whose ship has crash-landed on, you guessed it, Planet Zoldath. Your goal is to find the pieces of your ship so you can repair it and be on your merry way. I didn’t expect to enjoy the slow movement, single-screen traversal system and aimless exploring. So why wasn’t I closing the game out and selecting another title? It’s simple, really — The discovery of figuring out how the random items you find interact with the world you’re exploring is so rewarding. You must walk a constant tightrope of only being able to hold two items at a time as well. Not only this, but the other creatures you encounter have their own purposes too. Though Planet Zoldath isn’t a conventional Metroidvania, its setup and alien world reminded me of my favorite 2024 game, Animal Well. 

 

 

I’d be remiss to not mention that UFO 50 contains some of the best multiplayer games I’ve ever played. Hyper Contender is a 2D take on Power Stone where the first to collect five rings in a closed-in arena wins. You and your opponent start with one ring each with additional rings materializing around the arena. Trying to grab a ring before it’s fully appeared will burn you, resulting in losing any rings you collected. The catch is that every character has a signature attack and their own form of jumping to get around. The hilarity that ensued when playing as the spaceman that boards an elevator to move up the stage instead of jumping was glorious and the game itself was plenty tense. Quibble Race takes the Chao Race minigame from the Sonic Adventure games and adds a gambling system complete with an entire underground of hitmen, intel, loan sharks, and sponsorships that can manipulate the race results. This dipped into the same sleazy tactics that one uses to steal stars in a game of Mario Party and with the racers and win streaks being randomly generated, it’s endlessly entertaining. And these are just TWO examples in a set of fifty games. 

You may be noticing that UFO 50’s games often combine several different ideas into a familiar-looking title that ends up being so much more than initially expected. Mossmouth has achieved the warm hug-like comfort that playing classic video games can bring with the innovation and creativity that the indie games the company is known for often delivers. With this approach, I often found myself thinking, “This must be how new and exciting console gaming felt in the ’80s,” a time which I wasn’t even here to experience. Though UFO 50 also emulates the same archaic growing pains that games from the NES era often came with, I guarantee you will find at least one game you enjoy here. And for a $25 entry fee, you cannot ask for a better bargain than that in 2025. The portability of the Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2 are a great way to experience UFO 50 for the first time or the 50th time. Either way, you’re not too late to get lost in this treasure trove of a game library. 

 

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