Trine 5: A Clockwork Conspiracy follows the formula and pleases, but it doesn't decide to take a step forward in its structure, nor in the shallow combat. Even so, the triad formed by the beautiful settings, the platform design with puzzles and the cooperative mode continues to be its biggest attraction, guaranteeing fun for veterans and newcomers to the saga of heroes who work as a team.
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Beautiful, intelligent, compelling, challenging and deeply human, Chants of Sennaar was to me a unique experience through its many faces. The concept of linguistic puzzles doesn't make it an adequate recommendation for every person, but those who like to explore the form and meaning of words, even if not through formal studies, should find satisfaction in deciphering the languages and its peoples who are simultaneously the lock and the key to this mysterious world.
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During its best moments, Jusant is simultaneously beautiful, memorable and deep. The short adventure brings few new mechanics beyond the initial ones but it's exactly this brevity that makes it not an issue and avoids pushing the game down into monotony. Climbing the Tower is a narrative progress that further compelled me to find out what was on the top; I must say I left this adventure satisfied and moved.
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Even with some mechanics that make gameplay more difficult, Laika: Aged Through Blood leaves a trail of intense emotions as you maneuver a motorcycle through the desert against a relentless army. The contrast between the raw violence and the beauty of the designed scenarios and, especially, the songs with vocals, converges to the representation of human tragedies in the fight for survival in this unique, bloody and beautifully melancholic metroidvania.
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Enjoyable, undemanding gameplay combines with absurdly humorous storytelling and excellent voice acting to make SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake a fun and charismatic campaign that will be enjoyed by kids, fans of the characters, and anyone who enjoys straightfoward 3D platformers. It can also be a great way to share the experience with the little ones, whether it's passing the controller to them or just having the kids watch you play.
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Contemplative and profound, SEASON: A letter to the future is a work of art that invites you to discover and record an era that will soon vanish in transition to an unknown world. Traversing the open world with your camera and notebook should appeal to those who want a beautiful, immersive experience of aesthetic creation and philosophical storytelling.
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Tin Hearts combines puzzle and 3D platforming to create ingenious challenges that will require paying attention to the environment and the resources that can be used. The narrative lacks better pacing and swings between the endearing and the cheesy. Even so, the plot collaborates with the charming setting of toys and systems that need to be set in motion. This mix is enjoyable and thought-provoking, which makes it recommendable to anyone who likes to twist their brain in creative environments.
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Modest, beautiful and simply human, Boxville offers a point and click adventure that needs no words to satisfy the puzzle gameplay and emotional connection. The story of a tin can looking for its missing dog takes us on a short walk through the daily life of a handmade city and hits the setting with its beautiful hand-painted art, but that can lead to the frustration of eventually getting stuck in puzzles and compromising the fluidity of progress – a common problem in the genre.
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Everhood: Eternity Edition brings to PlayStation platforms intense rhythm challenges, good electronic music, surrealist story and a lot of psychedelia. Fortunately, difficulty options help make this trip more accessible to those who want the dreamlike experience without suffering (too much) from the required reflexes. It may not be for everyone, but its peculiarities will fall in the taste of the target audience.
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In Cocoon, the strangely beautiful alien setting is a meticulously well-done job that, in general, compensates for the minimalism of the almost non-existent narrative structure. The journey is filled with puzzles that work with the elegant cohesion of a living organism, flowing into an experience that, on the one hand, is harmonious and rich, but on the other, is simpler and more restrained than it should be.
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The Last Faith enters the ambivalence of familiarity: while it delivers on its promise to blend metroidvania and soulslike competently, it never surprises or innovates. The campaign is challenging, but its good pace of shortcuts, fast travel points, and leveling up propels us to advance further and further through the melancholy world of beautifully detailed gothic pixel art.
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Hidden Through Time 2: Myth & Magic brings a more of the same comfortable and fun hidden object search. I missed the aesthetic evolution, but the ambition was invested in the Architect mode for the creation and sharing of new levels, greatly increasing the possibilities of enjoying this lovely and relaxing game that, even if it is for only one player, can be enjoyed with the whole family.
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Although it slips on some technical issues and the repetition makes it seem longer than necessary, the balance of Dead Space is quite attractive: immersive atmosphere, sinister story, detailed graphics, intense action and many scares raise the quality of the experience for anyone who wants to revisit the game or experience it for the first time.
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Vernal Edge delivers polished boss battles but ends up lacking in enemy variety. It's enhanced by offering a semi-open world unlike the usual metroidvanias but should have smaller areas and a better map system. Weighing the pros and cons of the game, I conclude there are more good things than bad, enough to recommend it to any fan of the genre who has the patience to brave a world with no directions.
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Short but well-paced, Nuclear Blaze focuses on the urgency of the fire to create an intense experience. The game benefits from the great use of effects to enrich the simple pixel art and add to an atmosphere of mystery that, even if it's not deep or surprising, gives fuel to keep the flame burning bright for as long as it lasts. The heat gets intense in Hold My Glass mode and it can be frustrating, but the difficulty adjustments make the game accessible to any audience, even very young children, who can also enjoy the Kids Mode, designed especially for them.
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Layer upon layer, Buddy Simulator 1984 extends its mystery by following the maxim that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. With that, it allows itself to vary by different designs that form an unexpected and gradual evolution to explore the good, the bad and the ugly that there is in friendship. The textual adventure's slow start makes sense within the bigger picture, but it's a relief that the gameplay prefers something more dynamic for the rest of the game. Behind the simplicity, the nonsense, the cuteness and the macabre, a subtle mystery awaits those who want to venture into this fable of an artificial intelligence endowed with human anxieties.
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The rich setting of a city that has succumbed to its own ambitions is a great highlight in Lies of P, even though its potential is partially undermined by the gray and opaque look that permeates the landscapes. Likewise, the commitment to refined level design loses some of its luster due to the strict linearity of the campaign. The biggest problem lies with the bosses, their fights are always long and disproportionate to all the challenges posed by the region under their control. Therefore, it is difficult to recommend it as a gateway to soulslike, a genre famous for its punishing combat, but enthusiasts will certainly enjoy wandering around Krat in search of secrets and dangers.
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Paleo Pines hits the mark by putting its main attraction at the center of everything: the dinosaurs. Opening up more areas and finding out new dinos makes the campaign have a natural rhythm to it, always advancing a little more. Though the visuals aren't generally anything special, the cute design of the prehistoric animals charms us with its charisma and works in harmony with the lighthearted management.
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Rising Dusk treads its own 2D platformer beats with a fresh perspective on the collectible coins that have populated the genre for decades. The execution is as good as the idea, and the concept of “anti-currencies” is used to create intuitive puzzles and replayability through secrets, secondary paths and alternative exits. The visuals may not attract attention, but the lo-fi songs take a calming beat to drive a campaign with a flexible structure that will please fans of 2D games.
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Fulfilling the promise of elaborate traditional animations, Cookie Cutter aims at the target of the metroidvania formula without the intention of innovating it. It's a precise, debauched and bloody hit, without a doubt, but it still leaves the feeling that the adventure and the songs are not in the same rebellious tone as the vigorous personality displayed by the protagonist in her fluid and brutal movements.
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