Honestly, there’s very little to fault with Justice Sucks. In fact, there are only two things I can honestly think of that stood out: first, the controls aren’t particularly intuitive, though they start to click after a while; second, the game is a bit on the short side, though it does make up for that by offering a lot of load out options with abilities and perks to make replaying levels entertaining. Overall, Justice Sucks is a solid, wild romp. It’s the vengeful, murderous rampage through the eyes of a Roomba that you didn’t know you needed.
Tunic is intuitive gameplay at its finest, requiring you to figure things out as you go. You’ll either sink, or you’ll swim, and though I sank far more often than I swam, I still couldn’t get enough of this game. If you need a little Dark Souls with your Zelda, this is one of those games that you don’t want to pass up.
I don’t have too many complaints about The Witch’s House MV. Yes, the game is short, and sure, the story is lacking. But when this game is on point, it’s really on point. The Witch’s House MV expertly utilizes its creepy atmosphere, unsettling sound effects, and delightful jump scares to ensure at least a few moments of increased adrenaline. While I wish the game was longer, there is a decent amount of replayability, with the newly added difficulty mode offering different puzzle solutions and an ending you’ll definitely want to obtain. For such a short and simple game, it was certainly a memorable experience.
I didn’t realize how much I needed a game like Doraemon Story of Seasons: Friends of the Great Kingdom until I started playing it. The gorgeous watercolor visuals, soothing soundtrack, relaxing gameplay, and loveable cast of characters makes it an easy game to keep coming back to. If you need a break from brutal dungeon crawlers and difficult deck builders like I did, or if you just need something peaceful to float away with, I couldn’t recommend Doraemon Story of Seasons: Friends of the Great Kingdom more.
With a game like The Oregon Trail, there’s always the concern that it’s simply a cash-grab banking on nostalgia of Millennials and Gen Xers. I’m quite happy to report that isn’t the case here. While there’s clearly a lot of nostalgia to be found, this iteration of The Oregon Trail proudly stands on its own. With one foot in the past and one in the present, it brings together all the best aspects of the original, and adds modern flourishes to give us a near-perfect game. Add in infinite replayability, as well as several different play modes, and this game is an absolute must-have for anybody who grew up with the original.
I’ve played a lot of retro-inspired games this year, and Chained Echoes easily stands out as one of the best – and it’s not even particularly close. With gorgeous artwork, addicting mechanics, and a world that blends steampunk with high fantasy seamlessly, Chained Echoes is a loving homage to old-school RPGs while still managing to proudly blaze its own path. If you’re looking for a challenging (but not punishing) RPG with an engaging story, enjoyable characters, and mechanics that will keep you coming back for hours at a time, Chained Echoes is an absolute must.
There are few things to complain about in Catacomb Kitties outside of what I’ve already iterated above. Really, the only other complaint I can think of is just a shortcoming of the genre itself: playthroughs are just a little too short and a little too repetitive to make you want to invest in more than a half-dozen playthroughs or so. Still, there’s a solid foundation for fun in Catacomb Kitties, with bite-sized runs that can be completed in a single sitting. The unique stats and abilities of each playable cat gives you at least enough replayability to spend more than just a couple hours on the game as well.
I know I’ve said a lot of negative things about Burrow of the Fallen Bear, and I want to make it clear it’s not because of the content. I previously reviewed a furry visual novel and actually loved it, and I have zero problem with adult content. It’s just that none of these things were done well in this game. Burrow of the Fallen Bear has potential, too: there are some heavy topics, like racism, genocide, religion and cults, and grappling with one’s dark past. The experience could have been so much richer if even just one of these topics had been given some real time. Unfortunately, Burrow of the Fallen Bear is just not a good game, bogged down by a poor translation, an uninspired story, flat characters, and clunky sex scenes. If you’re needing a furry and/or explicit visual novel to scratch any particular itch, you’re better off looking elsewhere.
I absolutely adored Cuddly Forest Friends. While clearly aimed at a much younger crowd, it’s so wholesome, so feel-good, that I think it’s got a very broad appeal, especially if you’re in the mood for something that’s just… cute, gentle, and sweet. With an adorable art style, cheerful music, and silly minigames, Cuddly Forest Friends is just a fun game all around. I honestly don’t think there’s an age limit on this game; give it a try if you just want something that makes you feel warm and fuzzy.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Brave’s Rage. It was a refreshing take on the already crowded deckbuilder genre. With engaging, unique mechanics, plenty of unlockables to encourage repeated playthroughs, various challenges, and plenty of character combinations to explore, there’s a lot to draw in fans and newcomers to the genre alike. While it’s not the easiest or most accessible of deckbuilders out there, I definitely found it to be one of the most unique and enjoyable I’ve encountered in a while.
There are some real fault lines running through Redemption Reapers that are hard to look past. The story and characters just aren’t given enough history to make anything feel particularly meaningful; there’s no real driving force. Early difficulty spikes are extreme and frustrating, and poor stat growth, coupled with extremely low hit points for many characters, makes it feel like the odds just grow increasingly insurmountable – at least until you can go back and grind to obtain experience points, which you won’t be able to do for the first part of the game. While the dark atmosphere, gorgeous visuals, and haunting soundtrack are promising, and while the combat mechanics have some real potential, the balancing issues, difficulty spikes, poor AI, and flat storytelling simply bog Redemption Reapers down too much.
Overall, I absolutely loved The Pillars of the Earth. With its beautiful score, deeply developed cast of characters, excellent voice acting, and stunning artwork, this massive work of historical fiction has been brought to life in incredible, addictive detail. While slow at times, it’s nowhere near as slow as the several decades the story encompasses, and the slow burn is more than worth it. Trust me. I’m a historical fiction convert now. In fact, I have to head off now to finish reading the novel. And then on to the rest of the trilogy.
Labyrinth of Zangetsu is a solid, addicting, enjoyable game. Yes, there are some annoying shortcomings, but the story and art style are both intricately connected, with the story being surprisingly engaging for a first-person dungeon crawler, and the art style likewise remarkably deep and beautiful for the genre. Exploration is addicting, and character classes can be changed or upgraded as you progress through the game, giving you access to advanced classes. First-person dungeon crawlers can often be a bit of a slog, but Labyrinth of Zangetsu manages to avoid that particular pitfall by being a reasonable length. While the difficulty can, at times, be quite steep, it’s worth the occasional pain and suffering.
There’s little to complain about in Ash of Gods: The Way. While the difficulty can, at times, be frustrating, it increases at a reasonable rate and sometimes the problem is more trying to get through a match too quickly rather than thinking strategically. Really, my biggest complaint with the game is that the enemy all too frequently has an unfair advantage, which, while it typically skews things in their favor, it also seems at odds with the narrative, that these games are used to determine who’s who. Shouldn’t they be even matches? But I digress. Overall, Ash of Gods: The Way is an extremely enjoyable entry into an extremely crowded field, and that holds true whether you view it more as a deckbuilder or as a tactical/strategy game. Gameplay, on the whole, is engaging, challenging, and addicting, the story is fairly deep and does a good job of driving gameplay forward, and the promise of multiple endings is a strong draw for repeated playthroughs.