For $9.99 this isn’t a terribly hard game to recommend but newcomers need to be aware of the hurdles they’ll experience
Ary and the Secret of Seasons might don the aesthetics of grand adventure games but it only ever glimpses the horizon it’s so clearly chasing.
A good heart and strong sense of design can’t elevate Adventures of Chris out of its lacklustre platforming and mixed messaging on body issues.
Mileage is very obviously going to vary on a game like Deadly Premonition 2 and I genuinely believe that should be embraced. For all of my (gameplay) criticisms, there will be another for whom they are points in the game’s favour and to them I say, have a blast.
Sakura Wars is a serviceable entry point for Western audiences but fails to deliver more than a modest take on what could have been a remarkable game.
Overall, Claybook‘s presentation isn’t bad, it’s just completely ordinary. Which is a brand that Claybook never really elevates itself above
Breathedge takes an interesting premise and shoves it out the airlock with an overreliance on tired jokes and half-baked survival sim mechanics. An admirable attempt to move the genre forward collapses under the weight of too much self-awareness and not enough polish.
Redeemer: Enhanced Edition is almost the game it wants to be, the game we all want it to be, but even this improved port can't change the fact that it simply isn't.
Ultimately a great soundtrack and immaculate controls aren’t enough to stop 20XX feeling like an overtly repetitive cycle of missed opportunities.
An ambitious blend of genres that winds up a jack of many trades but a master of none, Sunday Gold deserves credit for its aesthetics and goals but it's difficult to recommend this trip to the races.
Fobia – St. Dinfna Hotel lifts liberally from the best of the horror genre but its unsatisfying core gameplay loops leave you out in the cold. A nifty camera mechanic allows for some entertaining time-bending exploration and the game has a solid grasp on 2000s grunge aesthetics, even if the story at its heart is a little old hat.
Conway: Disappearance at Dahlia View has some worthwhile secrets to uncover but cases them in an unremarkable mystery.
A Juggler's Tale is an uneven medley of indie platforming tropes and philosophical chin-scratching but a beautiful art direction make it almost worth it.
The core narrative and its surrounding cast of characters is intriguing but unengaging quest design means it loses steam far faster than it ought to.
Rebirth‘s romanticised version of the genre is perhaps best forgotten
There are pockets of joy and engagement in Fallen Order, but ultimately it feels like a game developed a long time ago, before Star Wars moved on to brighter galaxies far, far away from this.
Ultimately the Amnesia Collection feels caught between essential and outdated
Sinner merely serves as a tempting taste of what could be but for those willing to sacrifice an already perfected formula, there is some redemption to be found in this new realm Dark Star Game Studios have brought to life
Pressure Overdrive is a fun, lighthearted romp of a game.
There is a good time to be had here, just don't expect to be going back to it again after you're done