Despite a few niggles, Space Otter Charlie is a delightful, creative and fun game. There’s so many old school influences shining through here – a splash of family friendly Conkers humour, a structure similar to classic Zelda, traversal that feels like a modern day take on the Spectrum classic Jet Pac – that this game reminds me of the ‘good ol’ days’. If you’re in the mood for an old school action platformer game that benefits from modern day games design, this is the one.
Blind Drive is unlike anything else out there at the moment. It’s unique, innovative and hopefully the start of something new. As a proof of concept, this game demonstrates that it’s possible to create an absorbing, exciting experience based purely on sound. As a game in its own right, it’s thrilling, funny and a triumph of audio game design.
Battle Brothers has remarkable freedom that’s rare to see in the RPG genre. It truly feels like your decisions and actions have weight and that the responsibility for your band of warriors rests in your hands – quite literally on the Switch. That’s backed up by a deep turn based battle system that’s deceptively strategic. Unusually long load times and a frustratingly steep learning curve, compounded by a lack of an adequate tutorial, means that some players will bounce right off this game however, never getting to experience its best aspects.
Carving a destiny through The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante is a surprisingly heart-rending and engrossing experience. It won’t be for everyone – it’s a text heavy game and it navigates some heavy subject matters – but if you have a soft spot for interactive fiction, this is one of the best examples of the genre for quite some time.
Despite a few issues, Wind Peaks delivers 2 hours of zen-like, chilled gratification like only a hidden object game can. Games like this aren’t traditionally ‘fun’ or engaging but they scratch an almost primordial itch to find the missing things. If you need a Switch title to fill a boring train journey, this one would fit that bill.
Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 is less of a monster truck racing game and more a celebration of the most famous of the colossal vehicles and the bonkers things they can do. Almost every game play mode feels underdeveloped, you can wrestle with the handling and lose, and the tutorial is very poor. On the other hand, you can race around a dog bone shaped race track in a truck shaped like a shark. It’ll please its intended audience but for everyone else, there are alternatives worth exploring.
The Dark Eye: Chains of Satinav has glimpses of ingenuity with its puzzle design, it looks great for its age and it has a satisfactory port of a point and click system on the PS4. Unfortunately, the story doesn’t pay off, often feeling disjointed along the way which isn’t helped by some uninspired vocal performances. Hopefully the sequel is better.
A few visual niggles and glitches aside, PUSS! is a challenging but equally rewarding game that’s utterly bonkers in all the right ways. An offbeat, eccentric art and music style, combined with an excellent risk/reward system, means this game gets a paw-sitive recommendation from me.
A great introductory game to the turn based strategy genre for younger gamers, Eldrador Creatures puts kids at the centre of its design. It probably could and should have been more than it is and this game won’t entertain TBS veterans but if you’re looking for something to entertain the kids in what remains of the lockdown, this game is worth a shot.
Monster Prom XXL is not your average dating game. The diabolic datable cast is bursting with character, the set pieces are outlandish and the endings go from the sublime to the ridiculous. That said, without a guide, the structure of the game will become annoyingly repetitive before you unlock the secret endings which are, by far and away, the best aspect of this game.
One of the best AA games to release in quite some time, Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood combines brutal combat, smart stealth and a well-developed lore into a 20 hour long action adventure campaign. It can get a little repetitive before the midpoint but there’s some excellent moments waiting for those that can push through to the end.
A symbolic exploration of the afterlife steeped in Peruvian culture, Arrog doesn’t do enough to put its story in the context it needed. It’s certainly pretty at times and there’s an interesting message about life and death buried deep in the figurative imagery for those that go looking for it, but compared to its peers, it struggles to tell its tale effectively.
An accessible and innovative shoot-‘em-up, Habroxia 2 does more than enough to stand out in a crowded genre. While it hasn’t turned the genre on its head and lacks leader boards, the combination of auto scrolling shmup, twin-stick shooter controls and RPG-lite elements make for a refreshing and exciting game.
t’s so unfortunate that so much of Teratopia between the boss fights feels like monotonous, repetitive filler. The platforming is basic, the combat often feels like just mashing X and the frame rate can occasionally tank which makes it uncomfortable to play. There was certainly potential hidden in this game but it falls short of being realised.
Override 2 is a different beast compared to the original. It’s easier to grasp, much faster paced and far more dynamic. Fans of the first game might not gel with these changes which make it more akin to a traditional fighting game. Despite the tweaks and a lack of game modes, this game manages to bombastically portray destructive kaiju battles in a very satisfying way.
It’s a 3D platformer that takes inspiration from the classics in the genre but doesn’t demonstrate an understanding of what made them so fun. Littered with design issues, a few technical hiccups and a narrative which is laughable (even to my 7 year old), it’s hard to recommend this game when it’s a shade of the games it attempts to emulate.
A magical, meditative experience that blends a surrealist painterly art style with majestic choral music and an imaginative narrative delivery, Sunlight is quite a special game. It won’t be for everyone but if you’re looking for a 30 minute diversion from the trials and tribulations of modern day life, Sunlight is a fantastic diversion.
Like trying to solve your way out of a puzzle box that’s persistently creepy and occasionally nightmarish, Darq is an artistic game that leverages perspective to have your cogs turning and your head spinning. There’s a number of puzzles that rely on trial and error and stand our as low points but the rest of the game, including the 2 additional chapters, make this an easy recommendation for puzzle game fans.
The quality of the mechanics, a cool take on those of 1982’s Pengo, are the star of Crawlco Block Knockers, a cheap, erotic puzzle game that’s only a few hours long. It’ll titillate its target audience and there’s some replayability here for them. For everyone else, a genuinely enjoyable puzzle game is combined with anime cleavage that’s poor, even for budget eroge standards.
Your mileage with NO THING will depend on how much patience and thought you’re willing to give it. There’s a story buried in a trippy, simplistic autorunner that actively works to frustrate the player at times. A cool vaporware aesthetic and a hand full of decent songs don’t make it any less aggravating to play or help the delivery of a tale that needed clarity.