The central roguelite mechanic of the game is the weakest one and most frustrating - when you turn it off, Windbound is an enjoyable experience that's just held back by technical flaws. The story, however, partly makes up for that and Windbound has moments with the most remarking atmosphere.
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Road to Guangdong left me impressed with its atmosphere and the family story told - while its gameplay never gets boring but remains rather shallow. The game is a good choice for an evening of relaxing and atmospheric entertainment but doesn't have enough fuel for the longer term.
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Kandagawa Jet Girls is a bit like a playable anime: It's enjoyable and delivers surprisingly many insights into Japanese culture. As a game, it's very light and, above all, very easy.
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Popup Dungeon tends to put players' creations in the focus - and it really prospers from that. Without them, it would merely be a mediocre dungeon crawler - nothing spectacular. But with Donatello (yes, from the Ninja Turtles), Donald Trump (yes, the President) and Zarya (yes, from Overwatch) in a team, I just had the biggest fun. Popup Dungeons brings a solid game, great developers tools and all that in a neat package. I hope there'll be a huge community!
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Necronator: Dead Wrong hasn't evolved as much as I would like it to. Mirabella's deck is much more balanced and useful than the other protagonist's, and at times, the game unfolds its full potential here. There's a lot of things to be frustrated at still and fairness isn't always a thing. Necronator shows typical weaknesses of procedurally generated games and also the technical issues haven't been fixed completely. It's fun again and again, but also the frustration comes back.
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Tiny Racer is a nice little game to play now and then. It's fun, hard, a little bit frustrating from times to times but still fair. There are some technical issues and the courses are rather flat. The focus of the game is the fun to steer a toy car - apart from that, there's not too many great things about the game. All in all, the name says it all.
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Ghost of Tsushima is an platform exclusive like it should be and it reminds me why I'm still a PlayStation child at heart. It depicts a wonderful world with deep variety, detail and atmosphere, tells a lot of stories that never disappoint in quality and has a complex gameplay that seems polished and made with a lot of love. Even with a few flaws regarding bugs and some repetitive elements, Sucker Punch have proven that they've been so ready for something new!
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Paws and Soul starts off with a big promise but doesn't really delivery it: There aren't that many secrets to unfold in the world and the story is, while being told solidly, really predictable and not exciting. The worlds are wonderful, yet the meditative experience is being thrown back by a nice, yet repetitive soundtrack. Some flaws in controls and gameplay also make the experience less enjoyable.
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Naughty Dog could concentrate on its true strenghts next time to create an absolutely remarkable game. The Last of Us Part II illustrates one of the best virtual worlds ever seen in a videogame and it even gives you a glimpse at a game that it could have become. A game full of emotions, ups and downs and diverse exploration and combat gameplay. The overall experience is let down by a few holes in the narrative as well as the general Naughty Dog gameplay formula that's been refined since 2013 but still hasn't aged very well.
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I wanted to love Waking. It's approach and the first minute are as special as they are unique. Which game makes your first pet to your companion and a bit of soil from your hometown to your special weapon, after all? However, I wasn't able to find the genius in the chaos. In the beginning, I thought I could find it, but in the end, I had to take Waking for what it is: A mess. It has that unique approach that could it make so special but the game around it is just not very good.
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More games like Beyond Blue should be out there: Even if it cannot unfold it's complete potential, it's a mighty, worthwile and teaching game about the world's oceans, wales and dangers that are threatening the world's most important ecosystem. Beyond Blue is a shortish experience but it's worth every minute.
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Deck of Ashes is a card game as it should be: It has a lot of variety and deep mechanics. The beautiful game world is also great. Four different characters with their own story and a reasonable roguelike system complete the package.
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Island Saver is a great game for kids and for parents looking for a good program for their children to play and learn at the same time. Island Saver does a good job in teaching about money, taxes and currencies and is, at the same time, a funny and worthwile experience.
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Storm Boy is a game that I find really hard to recommend. It's really short, for sure. You'll complete it in around 30 minutes. It could still be a nice adventure for families as it's an atmospheric and visually good experience. The minigames, however, don't work very well and it's somehow also missing the deepness of Colin Thiele's story. Storm Boy: The Game can be a solid addition to the 2019 film, but not much more.
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SnowRunner is an exciting game - despite it being so slow. It's a game for hardcore players with patience and endurance. Even the last mile can mean a stop to your journey. The game gives you a lot of freedom - three open worlds are yours to explore with many quest to fulfill. It's up to you which you tackle first, but you need to decide which upgrades or new vehicles are necessary to get first. SnowRunner has beautiful environments with a great atmosphere - there are some technical hiccups like small fonts and complex menus but it's overall an enjoyable experience for everyone who likes this kind of simulation.
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I was surprised by A Knight's Quest: I didn't expect the game to be so big. The world is a bit static at the beginning but later on it convinced me with big areas, enough to do and a good design. The protagonist learns step by step and you unlock more to do as you go. There are some technical flaws, bugs and not every quest delivers a clear indication about what to do. The storytelling is also very simple - however, I enjoyed Rusty's journey.
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Operencia: The Stolen Sun shows how a really compelling game can be created with rather simple methods. It's doesn't really exceed in any area, but Zen Studios makes the best out of every element it uses. Combat is demanding, exploring is fine and the puzzles are varied and logical. The world is beautiful and also the Switch port deserves praise.
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Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a fresh experience when you look at its narration, gameplay and story. It's visually beautiful and combines two stories in a very creative manner. It also depicts the creative process very well. But every story needs a good editor - there are some annoying mistakes in the German translation and some mechanics don't work as intended. Also, the game doesn't seem to be too optimized for the powerful Stadia platform. Google's acquired a good game as a timed exclusive, however, time for polishing was obviously missing.
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Many other games can learn a lot from A Plague Tale: Innocence. It features a superb story with realistic characters and nice coming-of-age parts as well as a world with a superb atmosphere. While there are some mechanic hiccups here and there, gameplay is a well-done mix of the elements and remains fresh. There's also a top-notch visual and technical quality that I would like to see in more games.
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Iron Danger prides itself in its combat and time manipulation system. It does so well deserved. The game's second highlight is the wonderful world. Levels are small, but varied and just beautiful. It's a pity there aren't more interaction possibilities outside of combat and that the narrating remains rather dull. Friends of tactical gameplay (and great worlds) shall take a look at Iron Danger!
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