Sascha Ritter

Overall, Dreadline Express is a very good game with an oppressive atmosphere that's sustained by its visual and audio presentation throughout. As someone who appreciates well-crafted narrative, I also really enjoyed the worldbuilding and characters—the dialogues are sharp and precisely written. Unfortunately, the cumbersome card dialogue mechanic breaks my immersion every single time with frustratingly frequent inputs. Especially in a game with such dense atmospheric storytelling, it's all the more disappointing to be pulled out of the experience by annoying—and avoidable—moments like these.

Review in German | Read full review

Dupery cleverly combines the two elements of detective investigation and random roguelite progression. It takes the core essence of clues and deductions and, using abstract rules and a complex web of roles and abilities, creates a difficult but deeply rewarding gameplay mechanic. In this way, Dupery recalls less games in the vein of Sherlock Holmes and more a digital version of Werewolf. Here, the game's subtitle is clearly a statement of intent. Tracking down the villains ultimately functions as a puzzle whose solution may sometimes seem a touch too complex or downright unsolvable, yet it creates one-of-a-kind gameplay moments.

Review in German | Read full review

Blackjack is a strange game. Luck sits at its center, as you try to bring your card values close to an exact number. No wonder it became so popular, especially in casinos. Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers tries everything to erase this fundamental characteristic of blackjack. The special playing cards, lucky charms, and the fast deckbuilding pacing give us a great deal of freedom to find and develop strategies early on. And later opponents demonstrate just how many possibilities lie within this roguelite. Yet randomness is very difficult to switch off. Many duels either have their moments or play out entirely according to a completely chaotic scheme in which strategy and deckbuilding can't come into fruition. On the one hand, that's frustrating when we end up losing in a tedious and uncontrollable way. Or it drains the fun when we defeat an opponent far too easily, without ever using the game beyond blackjack. Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers is a recommendation. But on the day you play it, you should have found a four-leaf clover beforehand.

Review in German | Read full review

Setting the technical hiccups aside, Alpha Nomos fails to distinguish itself from the vast multitude of indie roguelites. On the contrary, were it not for the musical core gameplay and the character design that captivated me, it wouldn't stand out in any way whatsoever. The roguelite design not only offers no surprises but features such a sluggish and monotonous start that veterans of the genre would rather move on to the next title on their list. Yet the fundamental combat system held enough potential. I may not be so skilled when it comes to tempo and rhythm, but I do recognize the concept of using these musical elements as a combat foundation as praiseworthy. It would simply have been better if Alpha Nomos had also forged an individual identity beyond that with more variance or interesting moments. As it stands, the memory of the game will fade far too quickly.

Review in German | Read full review

Like the protagonist Alan, two souls—well—dwell within my breast when I think of Time To Wake Up. On one hand, I have rarely played an ego-adventure that interweaves its gameplay so organically with level design and narrative. Even though the game plays out largely linearly and with little challenge, the shifting episodes in this trauma-processing dream provide a great deal of variety. On the other hand, Time To Wake Up hinders itself realizing its potential. Many elements only scratch the surface. The visual level design and large parts of the narrative lack the courage to give themselves a truly distinctive spin. And the narrative center surrounding the radical book falls far short of its possibilities. Nonetheless, while writing these lines, I promptly added Eye Blink Twice's upcoming project, Up or Down?, to my Steam wishlist. Because Time To Wake Up made it abundantly clear to me that we can expect quite a bit from this studio in the future, even if the adventure itself, standing on its own, still stumbles a little.

Review in German | Read full review

So my journey didn't end on that single night of disillusionment. At least, not when I wanted to accuse the game of its poorly-paced gameplay and meandering finale. Instead, the following days carried me further through the world of the Sisters, back into my own memories and those of the Allmother. Thanks to its excellent writing, 1000xResist matured into a genuine major highlight of the year for me. It resisted my initial thoughts yet built upon them, crafting a new perspective, a new world—a world with one of the finest narratives of recent years.

Review in German | Read full review

I'd really like to be kinder toward Dreamcards. I appreciated the underlying, highly complex systems. Particularly the separation between deck cards and the stock of additional creatures, as well as accumulating resources instead of engaging in combat activities, worked wonderfully well for me. And the wealth of ideas within its systems is impressive. At the same time, though, this approach steers Dreamcards into serious pacing troubles. Deckbuilding becomes enormously repetitive, and the few duels play out almost identically by the third attempt. Hardcore deckbuilding fans will find plenty to enjoy here; everyone else can look forward to future projects from Soneka Games.

Review in German | Read full review

With its numerous pacing issues and monotonous presentation, Donutal does a bit too good a job of masking its strengths beneath the adventure's surface. The worldbuilding—particularly the diverse alien cultures—is genuinely excellent and breathes real life into the characters. The duo interview system, which could certainly mature into an entirely gameplay highlight of its own in a (spiritual) sequel, offers unique moments on both the gameplay and narrative fronts. And when the game's messages and themes appear more important than ever in today's times, I can only wholeheartedly recommend Donutal.

Review in German | Read full review

In the end, Elden Ring is a game that divides opinion. Some simply can't come to terms with the Soulslike principle itself. Some wish there were more Dark Souls in it. Others, less Sekiro. And so on and so forth. Yet for all Nintendo Switch 2 owners, especially those who haven't yet gotten to play the game, it's worth a look. Whether in handheld mode or docked, both ways of playing are fun (for me), and technically the game has been solidly ported. Elden Ring is without a doubt one of the greatest games of this generation. And with the Tarnished Edition, more gamers can now form their own opinion. Personally, I can only recommend it.

Review in German | Read full review

The intent here is twofold: to spark interest through association and to provide a loose framing story. And both of these The Alighieri Circle achieves with its template drawn from the literary masterpiece. Yet anyone hoping for more of a "Divina Commedia" (like myself) will be bitterly disappointed. Gabriele's journey into the Inferno is a solid, yet superficially narrated work with clichés and an abstract, but ultimately too monotonous game world. At least the few trials we must face are quite entertaining in terms of gameplay and fit well into the game's atmosphere. However, what's missing are memorable highlights or more courage in exploring the existing elements in order to stand out from the crowd.

Review in German | Read full review

Sovereign Tower is a game operating on a very high level. I enjoyed much of the writing, and the characters earned special places in my heart. Despite some sluggish moments in the later stages, the gameplay loop of managing audiences and roundtable affairs represents a highly unique evolution of the "Confidant systems" already familiar from other genres. I just wish the inconsistent time travel had a greater impact on the gameplay or the narrative.

Review in German | Read full review

Orpheus: To Hell and Back has a good concept, and I really liked the retro art style as well. And that’s despite some inaccuracies in the adaptation of the mythological story! But the monotony combined with the lack of challenge—both of which are partly due to the game’s length—didn’t do much for my enjoyment. The game’s technical shortcomings were just the icing on the cake.

Review in German | Read full review

The numerous plot twists—as well as the shifts in our own perception of the events—would likely not be possible if we simply had to read the story in its written form. That’s why The Incident of Galley House has become one of my favorite games of the year.

Review in German | Read full review

Dinoblade has never managed to move beyond its status as a meme from four years ago; the narrative and gameplay hardly build on this whimsical idea at all. Instead, the game becomes repetitive, loses its appeal over time due to its boring level design, and is more frustrating because of its technical shortcomings than because of any clever game design.

Review in German | Read full review

Maseylia has some damn good ideas in terms of level design, and the world-building is solid. The non-linearity also comes into play more as the game progresses. But especially at the beginning, I think the game could just as easily have been a linear platformer. My biggest criticism, however, is that Maseylia just doesn't feel right, whether it's combat or platforming.

Review in German | Read full review

Copa City uses its football theme like a jersey one puts on just to somehow be part of the football world because there’s something to celebrate right now. But it cannot convey the emotions that millions of fans around the world connect with the sport.

Review in German | Read full review

It is not a puzzle game that will go down in the annals of the genre. But it is definitely one that I would recommend to someone looking for a few hours of relaxed and enjoyable entertainment.

Review in German | Read full review

The light we followed as Will ultimately turned out to be a will-o'-the-wisp. Will: Follow the Light has some good ideas, and the gameplay variety in particular is not lacking. I could happily have spent an entire game sailing in the way it is implemented here. But aside from its strong opening and a few recurring motifs that run throughout the game, the narrative leaves much to be desired on almost every level. Above all, the emotional core simply fails to land because the storytelling and presentation lack the necessary craftsmanship. Everything is in part there, but much like the town at the beginning, the remains of a solid story can only be glimpsed beneath a landslide.

Review in German | Read full review

There are therefore only two ways to look at Zero Parades: For Dead Spies. Either I view it as a kind of successor to Disco Elysium, in which case Hershel's adventure is a far weaker and more superficial version of the “original.” A version that lacks the essence, the “it,” the “special something” — which serves as an indication of what ZA/UM really lost when fame and success arrived and eventually descended into chaos. Or I look at Zero Parades for what it ultimately is. The second project of a highly ambitious studio that may not have been able to repeat its success. But one that, despite its narrative weaknesses, can establish itself as a serious player within its niche with a solid second title.

Review in German | Read full review

In my opinion, this is probably Infinity Sweeper’s biggest flaw. The game is built on a puzzle format that only partially accommodates the random chaos of a roguelite. As a result, Infinity Sweeper strays too far from the classic minesweeper feel, yet at the same time fails to make its new gameplay experience exciting enough. In the end, there were simply too many of those recurring “impossible” moments. And in many places, the added mechanics don’t seem well-thought-out enough to allow for proper builds. Especially when I consider how many roguelites I’ve played this year alone, there are numerous other titles that have handled these tasks better. Infinity Sweeper has only superficially met my expectations for a Minesweeper roguelite.

Review in German | Read full review