James Cunningham's Reviews
Deadfall Adventures isn't actually a terrible game. The dialogue is dumb, AI companions have an unnerving tendency to teleport behind you, it's far glitchier than it should be, but somehow it's also not unlikeable.
Rusty Rabbit is a story-focused, level-based Metroidvania, which admitted isn't really how Metroidvanias tend to work.
Everhood 2 is all over the place with changing art styles, a unique combat system and a plot that somehow makes more sense as it's getting weirder.
The thing that sets Enotria: The Last Song apart from other games in its genre is that it's set in a theater-fantasy version of Italy.
Phantom Abyss is a trek into a lost and trap-filled temple that constantly has you on your toes. Each room is filled with several ways to die, or at least take a good amount of damage, and the constant pressure from the guardian means you have to think while moving. While there's something to be said for tearing through the level at top speed, the rooms are frequently interesting enough that it would be nice to stop and look around for a minute without being pushed forward. The secrets are highly satisfying to find, and when a guardian is dropping poison bombs or just relentlessly advancing that can feel like it's working against the necessary concentration or experimentation needed to reach them. A lot of the time it can feel easier to just dash on through, ignoring the intricate room design to reach the door to the next one, and the next and the next until finally reaching the exit. Every once in a while, though, Phantom Abyss manages to balance the speed and exploration, and that's when it's at its best.
While rough in places, Cookie Cutter manages to brawl its way to the top thanks to a strong combat system and wonderfully-bad attitude. The story and world-building are surprisingly well done, and Cherry is a strong hero despite being on a rage-fueled spree of bloody vengeance. While the ending has everything but a "To Be Continued..." dialogue box, the game is a satisfying first entry that does a great job of introducing its cast and detailed setting. Cherry's world was broken long before she was created, but that's not really her problem. Doctor Fallon's abduction destroyed her in more ways than one, and if the world of Cookie Cutter is improved by a rage-fueled robot's ultraviolent rampage, then that's just going to be a bonus.
Bore Blasters may have one rough edge in terms of its time limit, but the rest of the game is a solid blaster through a large series of fully-destructible levels backed by a pounding soundtrack. Each biome has its own hazards, like growing blocks that can regenerate right in your path, or lava blocks shooting fireballs, and all the firepower in the world isn't going to be a substitute for paying attention to the level hazards. Even a failed Bore Blasters run is a lot of fun packed with satisfyingly-explosive moments, but there would be a lot more them if there was time to amble to the end rather than sprint.
Expeditions: A Mudrunner Game has a lot of tidying up to do to become what it should be, but there's a wonderfully-rewarding game in there once you've learned its quirks.
Oddly enough, though, that's kind of the charm.
Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun is a solid throwback FPS that makes up for being too generous with the resources by its excellent weapon, monster and level design.
The Knight Witch is excellent in a lot of ways despite its forbidding difficulty, the kind of game you'll be glad to have beaten even if the journey to completion is sometimes a bit much.
Even with the story not living up to previous entries, Yomawari: Lost in the Dark does a good job continuing the unique horror series.
The basics of TombStar are well done, with nicely-frantic action that keeps the bullets flowing at a good pace.
While I found my playtime kneecapped by the physical hardware, Loud has nice tunes playing in sync to plenty of fun note tracks. Astrid’s tale isn’t particularly deep (what happened to her band?), but she’s a likeable character who grows into her music over the three years of the story. The twelve tracks have plenty of replayability thanks to the multiple difficulty levels, and there’s even an extra-hard bonus tune awarded in the free-play mode after game completion. Loud is a capable little music game with a lot of heart, but be aware you need either small hands or maybe a Pro Controller to get the most from it.
Skeleton Crew is currently broken in a way that makes it hard to recommend.
There's a lot to love about The Gunk even if the core gameplay rarely rises above being pretty OK. It's a good adventure through a unique and pretty alien world, filled with character and life.
While Asteroids: Recharged is a decent update of the classic game and is a welcome return for the series, it's also not as effective at tugging on the nostalgia strings as the previous Recharged games.
Among Trees is a game that ends up being more pretty than good, but then again it's incredibly pretty so that's a high bar to clear.
Even with the annoyance of the narrator being so utterly clueless, there's no question that Maquette is effective at illustrating the pain of a good relationship gone bad.
Solas 128 is an intricate sprawling mass of puzzles, slowly building in intricacy from managing a single beam to untangling multiple colors and filters with only a handful of reflectors.