Wild Bastards' bite-sized first-person shooter showdowns were a treat, especially when I was able to put together pairs of characters who complemented each other and made for something more than a simple shootout. A traditional shooter it is not, but its original gameplay loop and striking visuals make it a helluva good time.
Ninza has quite a bit going for it, most being positive. Its take on combat is refreshing, albeit requiring some mental burdens in relearning PvP that requires solely utilizing the environment to smoosh an enemy into smithereens. While I might have some reservations over how its cast of characters are implemented in-game, the UI, and its future content, one thing is clear: Ninza is quite the fun and addicting platform battler.
Underneath its charming exterior, WitchSpring R is a JRPG…it's just not evident of that classification until the 20th hour. At that point, it doesn't matter what genre it is, only that it keeps you fully engaged. From the lack of necessary grinding, hidden depth within its crafting system, and piecemeal sidequests, there's quite a bit of unique things to do in WitchSpring R on Pieberry's quest for pie. Thankfully, that charm persists until the very end.
Like Aeternum Game Studios' prior work, Eden Genesis made me feel like I was a master of platforming – at least once I had spent enough time in each level patiently trying, trying, and trying again to get that S rank. Its platforming-meets-metroidvania is unique, but I just wish that there was greater effort made into giving each biome a unique set of mechanics to distract from the steep difficulty curve.
Dystopika is the epitome of chilling and building a cyberpunk city of my own design. The lack of stakes, instructions, and guidance instills an experience of simply doing and being rewarded for creative designs rather than carbon-copy cities that look and function alike. If you're in the market for a relaxing citybuilder to play in your downtime, look no further.
While it may have kicked my ass to kingdom come, Anger Foot is a creative approach to a chaotically simple FPS that's light on the shooting and heavy on the kicking. Despite the simplicity of its controls, it is a refreshing take on an FPS that encourages players to do something other than mindlessly shoot enemies. I cannot wait to see what else Free Lives and Devolver cook up!
In any other universe, I would balk at Nine Sols’ difficulty. Yet, I gave it a chance, and it more than rewarded me for giving it a moment of my time. Over 20 hours later, I came out of it bruised, battered, and wanting more Taopunk goodness.
Kitsune Tails is a charming 2D-platformer that I just adored playing. While it may have been more difficult than I had initially envisioned, completing the game to the end was worth it, if only to see Yuzu and her friends' stories come to a close in a heartfelt way. Kitsune Games and MidBoss have given players a wealth of tools to create some cool levels and minigames, and I cannot wait to see what players create!
I don’t consider Athenian Rhapsody to be anything like Undertale despite some of its similarities. It’s very well written, often getting me to audibly laugh because of its absurdist humor that surprised me time after time. I truly appreciated having agency to play as I liked in this RPG and the novelty of the Rhapsody system is enough for me to be excited about seeing other players play through to the end. While I have some reservations about the way the story has been constructed and the implementation of the Rhapsody system, there’s enough for players to enjoy if they are interested in a truly silly RPG.
The end result of The Rise of the Golden Idol is one of great success. In the midst of a multitude of puzzles and point-and-click gameplay is a gem that is worthy of the best thinky game of 2024.
Knowing the ending of FFXVI, The Rising Tide doesn’t change Clive’s outcome or add a meaningful impact to the world to warrant an emotional introspection like the main game’s story. Instead, it adds additional power to Clive’s Eikonic skillset, making him appropriately powerful for postgame content that will assuredly punish players and test their might in Final Fantasy Mode. It might be a weirdly timed expansion, but it adds enough meat to the core gameplay to encourage replaying.
Phantom Fury is a decent boomer shooter, albeit one that emphasizes environmental interactivity over an arcade-inspired killing spree in which everything is a weapon. The few moments of cinematic silliness are par for the course in the boomer shooter genre, but they’re not enough to make this any less of a slog.
Unicorn Overlord is a masterpiece of a strategy role playing game. Its presentation in giving players freedom to play as they like, go as strategically deep as they like, and the masterful onboarding of often-overly-complicated SRPG elements make it a compelling and beautiful experience. If you’re unfamiliar with SRPGs or are a longtime fan, look no further than Unicorn Overlord.
If Saviorless is Cuba’s first independent video game, then players are in for an aesthetically pleasing yet moody future of game design that touches on emotional elements that leave a mark on the psyche. Saviorless isn’t the best example of a platformer, but it’s a great start to something truly novel in the platforming space.
There’s more to Pepper Grinder than just digging. Ahr Ech successfully managed to cram fluid platforming and free-flowing traversal in ways that make its hallmark digging mechanics joyous while innovating in using the drill for other utilitarian purposes. Its 2D platforming is refreshing and rewarding when you settle into the groove of being able to move in every direction. I truly dug Pepper Grinder, and I sincerely hope that Ahr Ech continues to make fantastic retro platformers while also expanding the current universe of narwhal pirates. Hopefully those games come sooner rather than later.
South Park: Snow Day is dumb fun best played with friends. While it walks solidly down the middle of the road in terms of it being a roguelite and a beat-em-up mashup, it falls short in offering deep variance and complexity to make things feel fresh and worth the replay. It’s funny as hell, though, so that is worth the first playthrough. Hopefully additional content is on the way to freshen things up.
Metal Mind has a lot of promise, don’t get me wrong, it just underdelivers on the charm and depth of its twin-shooter roguelite competitors. The glossing over of nuanced gameplay systems, emptiness of its hub, and vagueness of the universe leads me to believe that some additional refinement is needed to fully realize its potential. Once you figure out its systems, the core gameplay is fun and challenging.
To that end, I wholeheartedly recommend Akka Arrh for those on the fence about VR. Or perhaps those wanting a laid-back arcade experience that incorporates VR in ways that most of us can handle without being overwhelmed. It’s a simple arcade game that doesn’t require much effort to learn, but is worth the psychedelic trip to master and replay over and over again.
I absolutely loved Berserk Boy – enough to want to come back for more thanks to its fast-paced platforming, fluid combat, incredible soundtrack, and nostalgia-bomb of SNES-era gaming. This 2D action-platformer is worth the ride so you can GO BERSERK!!
Corponation: The Sorting Process is an interesting, albeit well-designed simulation involving simple gameplay and a handful of minigames to break up the monotony of the corporate nonsense lifestyle. While it didn’t peak in terms of pulling on my heartstrings or senses of dread that usually accompany dystopian narratives, it sufficed in keeping me enticed with its gameplay.