Games I Played in April 2026

Mario Kart World

Nintendo Store

I bought a Switch 2 recently and naturally that’s what I played a lot on this month. After debating with myself for a bit I did decide to go with the bundle containing a digital copy of the newest mascot kart rac- what? Excuse me, the newest Nintendo mascot kart rac- that one is even newer? I bought the new Mario Kart. At its core, this game still hits that perfect balance between serious and playful for optimal dorm room vibes. It’s such a good pick for when I want to chill out with the feeling of video game speed.^[1]

But of course, I’ve had 8 Deluxe for years, so what makes World the more appealing choice especially as someone who doesn’t have a group chomping at the bits to do versus racing in the newest entry? Well, most people probably already know this, but it’s the open world.^[2] The free roam mode is cool, but I’ve put very little time into that so my main interest is in how the actual racing is impacted by it. Knockout Tour handles it the best. Racing through up to 6 tracks continuously is exactly what I was hoping for when this was first announced, and while it’s a bit of a bummer that only the battle royale mode is loading-screen-free, it’s still great there. The way grands prix are handled, on the other hand, has been controversial. I do think the connections between tracks get a bit too much focus; I’d have preferred a connecting section that leads into two full laps rather than the usual one. But I do think the interconnectedness adds a lot to the tracks’ presentation, and I am not a good enough liar to pretend that I don’t get a huge kick out of that. Even if I’m not sold on the balance the game lands on, I do think there are more positives than negatives to the approach taken, and that’s without seeing some of the track connections not shown in the pre-defined grands prix.

Pokemon Pokopia

Nintendo Store

Yeah it’s maybe not surprising that this is why I got a Switch 2 during this season. I have a weird relationship with “cozy games.” I normally like them, but I don’t actually get into them very easily. The biggest exception is the Animal Crossing series, but even then I have never been quite as into it as a lot of other people, even before New Horizons’ release in 2020. So Pokopia wasn’t even on my radar until it actually released. And I don’t know how, but it captivated me.

The game has a lot of structure: there are specific ways to spawn each Pokemon, each major area has its own story quests showing you most of the major points of interest, and the environments are built in a way to encourage your rebuilding efforts while still giving the freedom to tear them apart and do your own thing. Something that illustrates that well is how paths are handled. When you build paths, it not only allows Pokemon to follow you more quickly, but they will then autonomously use them while they’re idling. So if you build paths all throughout an area, all the Pokemon will use them to interact with each other as you’re going around working on whatever your current focus is. It encourages you to have an intention with your rebuilding and makes the world feel alive.^[3]

I’ve also been surprised and impressed so many times while playing it. This is not a game that needs a lot of depth, but it does not force itself to be shallow either. It wants you to revisit your ideas and see in what ways you can change them as you unlock more options. Does the inclusion of Minecarts change things dramatically? No, but it does change enough for me to be motivated to see what I can do with them outside of the mines. And on the topic of surprise, this game’s roster is so good. Pokemon spinoffs have almost never featured every monster - a reality only more ever-present since Sword and Shield’s release - but I have continuously been surprised to see some of my less-common favorites get teased before I immediately rush to bring them into my world. Nostalgia can be a trap, but a little indulgence adds an extra layer to my enjoyment.

Tetris

Nintendo Switch Online

I played the original Tetris for GameBoy for the first time in a long-while. I’ve had many a tetris phase, and while I’m certainly no pro, I cannot see a future where I never go back to various versions. That said, I have let myself become very spoiled with newer spins on the game. The lack of a hold piece and the “more random, less fair” approach to spawning pieces throw me off more than I would expect. But it does give the original a sense of identity that’s actually a bit hard to come across now that there have been so many releases of a very simple game. It’s Tetris, it’s iconic. I don’t have much to add, but it doesn’t need me to speak for it, it needs me to play another couple rounds.