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Syberia Remastered feels like someone bought a shack, added a new sign, and called it a renovation. The smoother controls are welcome, but leaving the CGI untouched and no new voice acting means it never escapes the early-2000s feel. It’s a shame as there’s a wonderful atmosphere buried beneath and with a bit more care, it could’ve been special. Instead it a decent effort that polishes the past but never fully revitalises it. Even so, I still found a curious mix of old and new that’s easy to appreciate for it’s time but hard to love through modern eyes. For its half-baked execution, I’m just about awarding Syberia Remastered the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Honestly, my experience thus far with Skopje ’83 has been tedious, at best. My confusion trying to find any type of gear pick up, and lack of any direction, led to time looting sparse areas when I should have been trying to explore as much as possible. I don’t expect games to hold my hand, but some indication of where items and gear improvements could be found would have been helpful. For many reasons, Skopje ’83 is getting the Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
Whilst, yes, it does feel like a slightly less-polished version of a Burnout game, there’s no doubt that this is a lot of fun to play. As someone who put countless hours into Criterion’s long-dormant franchise, it’s refreshing to be able to play something familiar, yet with its own unique mechanics. With that being said, I’ll be giving Wreckreation the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
It’s great to see more studios bringing cosy, fun, couch co-op titles to players. It’s been a fairly neglected genre. I feel many publishers focus on MOBAs, Military Sims, and Hero Shooters as the main multiplayer attractions. Thankfully, Studio Mantasaur have seen fit to grace us with a game for gaming couples, friends, or even parents and children. I was impressed with the puzzle design throughout. Especially how different mechanics are introduced and eventually combined to make longer solutions which managed to stay pretty intuitive. If you can look past the slightly calloused skin, you’ll find yourselves in comforting hands. Don’t let this one slip through your fingers. All Hands On Deck grabs itself a Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Dispatch is honestly an amazing piece of storytelling. Probably the best we’ve had about superheroes in a long time. The game honestly had me gripped. I have been fully invested in the story and characters since first playing episode 1. For some that statement might mean nothing, but to those who played episode 6 it hits hard. I can’t wait to see where this will end and hope we might get a sequel. All I have to say to all our readers is, Keep Up. Here’s to more amazing storytelling games from AdHoc Studio in the future. In the meantime, I give Dispatch the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
Satisfactory is genuinely a marvel of a game. The idea of building up a factory and slowly making it automated didn’t really appeal to me on paper. However, playing this game has opened my eyes to a rather niche genre. Not that I’ll have time to go looking for something new, as I’m now hopelessly addicted to draining this alien world of all its resources and creating my own little industrial utopia! If the issues pertaining to the crashing and pop-ins were a non-issue, the game would easily get a Platinum Award from me. As it stands, though, I’ll be giving Satisfactory a well-deserved Thumb Culture Gold Award!
Jurassic World Evolution 3 isn’t just a bigger sequel; it’s the series finding its stride. It blends the managerial satisfaction of a city builder with the cinematic thrill of a monster movie, and for the most part, it succeeds beautifully. Sure, there are occasional rough edges, the odd pathfinding glitch or camera hiccup, the occasional overcomplicated menu, but those are small fossils in an otherwise living ecosystem. The game’s attention to detail, freedom of creativity, and pulse-pounding moments of chaos make it a worthy evolution of the franchise. For players like me who loved Evolution 2, this is the upgrade you’ve been waiting for. For newcomers, it’s the ultimate entry point, a perfect storm of management, beauty, and barely-contained disaster. So, build your park, open the gates, and pray the fences hold. Because in Jurassic World Evolution 3, life doesn’t just find a way, it finds every way. I give Jurassic World Evolution 3 the prestigious Thumb Culture Platinum Award!
Whether you’re a long-time fan of the series or a complete newbie, Simon the Sorcerer Origins has plenty to enjoy and will make you smile aplenty. Brimming with care and love, the game keeps its puzzly sarcastic roots. Whilst also bringing it warmly into the modern adventure game world. It has a number of jarring elements, but they are spaced out and rarely frustrating, giving way to its undeniable vibrancy and charm. Therefore it receives the Thumb Culture Silver Award! Be sure to share it with Swampling, eh Simon?
Bounty Star is a game with an interesting concept but age-old storyline that reads as dry as the desert outside. I came into the game looking for more intense combat than what I have encountered thus far. A lack of openness to the world to go out and explore hits pretty hard too. I’d much rather travel via foot than go instance to instance. It’ll be the Thumb Culture Bronze Award for this one.
I had a great time with Strange Antiquities, as it delivers an engaging and detailed story. Definitely more than I expected for a casual shop sim game. The plot was easy to invest in as Jupiter and I solved the puzzles and identified the numerous antiques. The puzzles are fun to solve once the game clicks, and they add layers to maintain the challenge level. It keeps the game from feeling repetitive and makes it so you can’t brute force or cheese your way through. I really enjoyed the detailed visual design, which somewhat alleviates that seeing the same perspective could get old quickly. However, the audio design was a little disappointing, with no audible character voices. The music and environmental sounds worked well, especially together. The replayability benefits from alternate endings and going back to see what you may have missed the first time around, and also having almost 2 dozen achievements to unlock. I am giving Strange Antiquities the Thumb Culture Gold Award and look forward to seeing what Bad Viking bring us next.
Becastled is one of those games that reminds you why the RTS genre deserves more love. It’s approachable without being shallow, charming without being twee, and strategic without drowning you in spreadsheets. Yes, a campaign mode and a few quality-of-life tweaks would make it even stronger, but the foundations here are solid. From its delightful soundscape and inviting art style to its satisfying loop of daytime planning and nighttime panic, Becastled offers hours of fun. It’s a game that makes you smile even as your walls crumble and your villagers scream. If you’ve ever wanted a cosier take on medieval defence, Becastled is absolutely worth your time.
Well, I think that it’s clear I enjoyed Borderlands 4. It brings the tried and tested formula behind every other game of the franchise. It just ramps it up a little bit for the current generation of gamers. Giving you more content than you will ever need, the game aims to bring something new as well. The open world is gorgeous, and with the addition of it being seamless just increased the immersion for me. The last snippet of information I will leave you with is that when you see a dome appear… get in there! Borderlands 4 receives the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
GODBREAKERS is hands-down one of the best games I’ve had the pleasure of playing this year. It embraces the core genre mechanics without succumbing to the pitfall of a monotonous game loop. Quests that play alongside the story for things as simple as different cosmetics and abilities provide ample objective-driven gameplay. With its own namesake ability system, and not another character spewing bullets/abilities everywhere, this beautiful addition to the roguelite cabinet deserves the Thumb Culture Platinum Award. Be sure to check it out for yourselves!
All in all, the game absolutely nails the cosy, calming vibe it is going for. The core gameplay loop is fun and never really gets repetitive, even as you move through new islands doing basically the same thing as before. I do wish there was a bit more furniture available, but maybe that’s just me. While the price of £14.29 feels a little steep to me, the sheer amount of gameplay you get can make it worthwhile if you enjoy this type of gameplay, and it will probably go on sale eventually, too. Despite a few of its annoying quirks, Twinkleby is a very solid game that delivers what it promises, even if I still really feel like a little more content would have been nice. Here is hoping that some more furniture will be added down the road! But for today, I am giving Twinkleby the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Dicealot is a beautiful paradox: simple to play, yet capable of infuriating complexity the longer you roll. It’s brimming with charm, clever mechanics, and fantastic art direction, even if its repetition eventually dulls the shine. The missing polish around merchants and progression holds it back from true greatness, but when the dice start rolling in your favour, there’s nothing quite like it. It’s the sort of game that’ll have you swearing one minute and cheering the next, a cycle that’s all too easy to get lost in. It may not save Camelot, but it’ll definitely steal your evening. Dicealot gains the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Splatterbot is a fun, while it lasts kind of game. Without much depth to the game modes and maps, it’s always going to be hard to recommend it. However, if you have young children who want a fun game for a short while. It might be exactly what you need. Hopefully, more maps get released and even a difficulty setting for the AI bots, just to make it slightly more challenging. Splatterbot receives the Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
Train Sim World 6 may not lay new rails, but it keeps the journey running smoothly. The new random events and station announcements deepen immersion, while the visuals and audio remain among the best in class. Returning players gain the most from their existing content, but newcomers like me face a bare-bones experience that feels restrictive without extra investment. Dovetail Games shows that familiarity can still deliver a strong experience when executed well, but based on my time with the game, I have to award it the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Galaxy Grove exemplifies building sims well in Town to City. Buildings grow with your town whilst removing some of the annoying limitations that you see in other games. The lack of grid was one of the best things for me, as I hate not having full control over placements. I can’t wait to continue to develop my little town into a sprawling, ugly mass and see what else this game has to offer! Town to City receives a Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Before this review ends, I just want to showcase the amount of work that went into Accessibility. High Contrast mode allows players to customise the colour of the pitch to grey. It also gives options for teams, balls, and referees to be transformed into bold hues, making it easier for visually impaired players to differentiate teammates from opponents. This is the first competitive multiplayer PvP game to offer such a feature. Players can also disable shadows for teams and the stadiums, improving visibility and clarity. EAFC 26 is a well-rounded evolution rather than a revolution. However, bolder change will not occur until the old generation versions are retired. Meanwhile, Authentic Mode brings a more tactical approach, thereby offering fans a deeper, more immersive simulation. In addition, Pro Clubs and goalkeepers see major improvements. Although issues such as Ultimate Team monetisation and repeated trophy designs persist, they are minor blemishes on an otherwise polished experience. Overall, it is a solid, enjoyable entry that will appeal to both newcomers and long-time fans. It not only delivers refined gameplay, but also improvements across each mode, along with accessibility features that set a new standard. For players seeking a tactical, responsive, and visually stunning football experience, EA Sports FC 26 fully deserves the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Katanaut is a great and challenging addition to the roguelite space. However, apart from the setting and faster-paced combat and difficulty level, it doesn’t do much to distinctly separate it from similar titles. It does check that Steam Deck library box for me though and will remain on my deck for some time to come. Definitely deserving of our Thumb Culture Gold Award!