With StarVaders, development team Pengonauts presents itself with personality in the landscape of independent productions. After tastefully mixing Star Invaders with grid-based strategists, the roguelike deckbuilder made by the Montreal-based software house was able to engage and entertain us. Simple to approach and difficult to master, fighting extraterrestrial visitors offers a magnetic loop gameplay that is tastefully varied and deep. If you are a fan of its sources of inspiration, StarVaders is the exact definition of “one more game and then I'll quit...maybe.... maybe not.”
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With its characteristics resulting from a roguelike hybrid of old-school fighting game and shooter, KIBORG proved to be a compelling title full of surprises. Tense and violent combat mingles with a steady pace, where the sense of progression is assured and the content knows how to prove generous. However, the experience proves to be imperfectly balanced making Lee Morgan's brutal journey all too rough at times. Nevertheless, the allure of creating an unstoppable cybernetic fighter is a real cool thing not to be underestimated.
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Steel Seed is yet another demonstration of the talent of Italian software houses. Storm in a Teacup realizes a wide-ranging sci-fi adventure, combining a top-notch graphical presentation with a deep narrative as well as an absolutely exuberant gameplay mix of fast-paced combat, dynamic platforming and tantalizing stealth. This is a genuinely amazing product at times, but one that in its current state is flawed on the technical optimization front and the unevenness of some interactions. Get ready to help Zoe and KOBY: humanity's survival is at stake.
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FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves marks the dazzling return of the legendary SNK fighting game to the greats of the genre. If the production values are already evident from the title's aesthetic presentation, the depth of the combat system and the exuberant cast are exactly the reasons why all fans of fighting games will love it with vigor. However, we are faced with a product that is contradictory at times: the menus are dated and cumbersome, the modes present could have been more polished, the online is not always stable, and the tutorial is excessively sparse. It is precisely this last aspect that should point us to the title's greatest limitation: its high complexity, the result of a veritable sea of mechanics. With patience and dedication, the new journey to the city of wolves takes on the connotations of a galvanizing if not mystical experience. But the price to pay may not be for everyone.
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The Hundred Line -Last Defense Academy- is the perfect fusion born of the collaboration between Kazutaka Kodaka and Kotaro Uchikoshi. The result is a title that draws on the best features of their major productions (Danganronpa and Zero Escape, above all) to create a unique and incredibly ambitious product, especially on the narrative side. Kaleidoscopic, sprawling, and surprising writing makes it essential to play and replay a title equally challenging in its tactical RPG component. There are some structural limitations of game design and, inevitably, its thick verbiage may not make it a product for everyone. But if you have loved the previous works of the two Japanese designers, we warn you: this may be their magnum opus.
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MULLET MADJACK is a little masterpiece that draws on ideas already traveled over to create a magnetic experience with an overwhelming personality. A shooter that rides the wave of 90s anime cyberpunk, throwing into the mixer adrenaline-fueled, ultraviolent gameplay that exudes a visceral and authentic charisma. Part classic arcade and part modern roguelite, the title developed by HAMMER95 is a sinful fruit that is impossible to resist.
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Rusty Rabbit represents an interesting experiment, not so much for its specific features as for the background of its creative team. Putting aside visual novels, Nitroplus and Gen Urobuchi bring to life a classic-style metroidvania with an intriguing narrative bent and some interesting game design ideas. The overall experience proves to be quite intriguing and unexpectedly relaxing, although it has several naiveté issues that prevent Stamp's adventure from being truly memorable or at least capable of being able to stand out among the vast and ruthless competition.
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Star Overdrive is an ambitious project from Caracal Games, boldly taking cues from some of the best game design lessons of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The result is a product of great personality, a wide-ranging sci-fi adventure of acrobatics, challenges and puzzles. However, the desire to include a great density of play mechanics clashes with their not always well-defined implementation, resulting in an overall experience that is less fluid and dynamic than hoped for. Nevertheless, get ready to strap on your trusty hoverboard and plow through the dunes of Cebete: an amazing journey awaits you.
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The main success of South of Midnight lies in its unique identity. The new work from Compulsion Games showcases a modern stop-motion fable with dark overtones, drawing from the mysterious (and often tragic) charm of the folklore of the Deep South of the United States. The painstaking care taken in the artistic presentation (huge kudos to the marvelous soundtrack), however, does not find a similarly scrupulous realization in the game system. Although the linear structure is reassuring and welcoming, unfortunately the title never decides to explore its full potential, often leaving you with a bitter taste in your mouth. Net of its limitations, South of Midnight is a rich and meaningful experience that deserves to find a small place in the hearts of gamers.
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About ten years after its ill-fated debut on WiiU, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition reaches the planet Nintendo Switch giving new glory to the Monolith Soft masterpiece. An impressive JRPG today as it was then, exponentially improved in every respect: from graphics to sound, via gameplay. A title fully representative of the incredible talent of the development team, which even included juicy new content that will delight even those who already enjoyed it a decade ago. The Mira odyssey awaits us all: we are explorers, not guardians.
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We can confirm it: Atomfall is an ambitious gamble, successfully won by Rebellion. Set against the backdrop of an imaginary quarantine zone inspired by the real Windscale nuclear disaster in northern England, the British developers' new title succeeds in offering an experience somewhere between exploration, survival and action. Above all, it is a hymn to the sense of discovery in all its declinations thanks to a narrative deconstructed in favor of the maximum possible freedom granted to the player. It is a title that knows how to be both unexpectedly ruthless and utterly rewarding, even minus a few technical smears and some mechanics that are perhaps all too punishing. What mysteries will you discover?
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Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land represents a potential turning point for Gust's long-running JRPG series. It is a large and ambitious production, with an emphasis on more immediate and accessible gameplay accompanied by a story with a more mature slant. Exactly like a complex alchemical formula, the developers have managed to combine the saga's identity features with the novelties included. At the same time, it is a formula that can be further refined and improved. But one thing is certain: the path is definitely the right one.
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Two Point Museum is yet another triumph of a saga born out of the success of the spiritual sequel to a cult title. Building the museum of one's dreams is a rewarding and fun experience, within the reach of all audiences thanks to the perfect balance of playful features. The franchise's stylistic signature is still marked by irony and levity, which is also reflected in a tendentially permissive gameplay that may not be appreciated by devotees of more challenging management games. But beyond that, this is a title not to be missed. New loves may even blossom toward this genre, we guarantee.
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Trails through Daybreak II is a great little paradox signed by Nihon Falcom. On the one hand, the new installment of The Legend of Heroes refines and enhances the excellent achievements marked by its direct predecessor, representing for all intents and purposes a step forward. On the other hand, it presents a less flawless script than expected with the accompanying return of the related atavistic problem of the stringent and propaedeutic need to have prior knowledge of lore and characters. Van Arkride's new adventure thus experiences a dual nature: a practically unmissable product for those who loved the first Daybreak, a production hardly advisable for all those who have not had the opportunity to approach it instead.
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Sid Meier's Civilization VII represents a chapter destined to mark a new era for the legendary strategy franchise. Ambitious is the will on the part of Firaxis Games to aim toward a revolution such as to simultaneously please fans of the saga and new audiences. Not as impeccable, however, is its implementation, with some choices that risk creating disappointment and discontent especially with the most loyal users. The seventh installment of the 4X king is once again excellent, full of brilliant and intriguing insights. Beware, however: some new features may not be very welcome.
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Turbo Overkill is a frenetic and unscrupulous FPS, at times exhilarating in pace and variety. It is precisely its excesses, however, that may make it less appealing than expected to more purist shooter fans. Indeed, the relentless pursuit of exaggerated escalation of violence ends up leaving some aspects by the wayside that make the title less compact than hoped for, especially in the context of the home console adaptation. And so, the control system ends up showing the side of some excessive nervousness and some features are inexplicably absent. Regardless, it remains a must try for fans of the genre and a commendable debut for Trigger Happy Interactive.
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Avowed represents quintessential game design according to Obsidian Entertainment. While not offering a radically new experience, the return to the world of Eora is an exciting action RPG, graced by the traditional care the development team put into the script. Free to be able to create one's alter ego among a thousand opportunities for customization and to direct it indiscriminately toward the paths of good or evil, Avowed puts players within a setting that is the antithesis of the dispersive risk of an endless open world, with gameplay devoted to action and fun. It may not be a revolution, and technically some hiccups are there, but for all fans of the genre it is a must.
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NINJA GAIDEN 2 Black marks the unexpected return of Ryu Hayabusa, when he now seemed to be confined only to the memories of a few video game generations ago. Instead, here he appears out of nowhere as a warrior who makes shadows his calling, with Team Ninja remastering him for us in Unreal Engine 5. Gallant and entertaining perhaps more so today than in its time, abetted by a landscape that has seen the rarification of pure action, we are faced with a perceptible step forward from Sigma 2. At the same time, however, the features that made the chapter released for the Xbox 360 unforgettable have not been reproduced, effectively materializing a missed opportunity to make the true definitive edition of the title. NINJA GAIDEN 2 Black remains, in any case, a glorious return for the franchise as we look forward to welcoming the fourth chapter at the end of the year.
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Is a product inspired by niche classics itself intended to appeal to a small audience? This is an inevitable rhetorical question that Moons of Darsalon does not shy away from. But this is not necessarily a bad thing. After a long development path, the strategic adventure from Dr. Kucho! Games also arrives on consoles repurposing all the gaming charm of forty years ago (argh), enhanced by modern technologies. It won't be an experience for everyone, that's for sure. But for those who grew up on Lemmings, this could be a very tasty trip down memory lane.
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Big Helmet Heroes is a scrolling beat'em'up that makes the ironic representation of chivalric imagery its strong point. But above all, beyond the production's evidently humorous figure, Exalted Studio makes a genuinely entertaining title, capable of making people smile thanks to its likeable protagonists grappling with sizzling hand-to-hand combat. Certainly, this is not the title of the month and it is not within its ambitions to be so. Nevertheless, it does not detract from the fact that if you want to spend a few hours in merriment, perhaps with a friend on the same couch, this is a title to keep in due consideration.
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