Ereban: Shadow Legacy is a fun and well-crafted stealth game that would eventually draw non-stealth game enthusiasts. It’s not even that tactical and breakdowns between stealth sections give a breather to the player, making it a narrative action game rather than a serious stealth game where you have to save a president or something. Sure, some bugs did occur during my gameplay, such as falling through the map geometry or watching Ayana getting clipped while crouching on stairs.
Thanks to One Last Breath’s interest in reviving this sort-of-forgotten subgenre, it was a refresher, at least for me. That doesn’t totally mean One Last Breath was a bit tedious to go to due to the simple puzzles, but hey, it was at least trying to put out an important message.
Between Horizons ends up being a nice proof of the “It isn’t broken, don’t fix it.” mentality, where the developers expanded what they knew about the detective genre. The game does not punish you for skipping some of the important bits while researching and rewards you for being right about your suspicions, which creates an even ground for both experienced and inexperienced players. If you are looking for a detective game with lots of in-depth and happen to have a fair share of clues to follow, then you should definitely check out Between Horizons‘ detailed adventure.
Outcast – A New Beginning came as a surprise as one of the releases for 2024. Although Appeal hinted at the sequel at certain points, it never caught my attention until now, of course. The graphics, lore, and story are pretty much settled in the Adelpha universe, and fluent gameplay pushes you to learn more about the story of natives and Cutter himself.
Zoria: Age of Shattering follows the rules of the staple medieval RPGs in the market, which is absolutely fine. The charm of the overworld and replay value in the game are immensely high, but some quality control might have led to a polished release. In terms of gameplay, it feels close to home but then feels clunky at times to put you off, so it’s better to approach Zoria’s world with a bit of a pinch of salt into your inventory.
Expeditions: A MudRunner Game is ultimately what players have known the MudRunner series for. And it is very great to see them employ the “If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.” mentality, where the game is already fun and engaging enough that it doesn’t require any changes to its core approach to off-roading. You can still find excitement and planning yourself ahead with the title and it’s ultimately one of the best simulators for the specific genre of automotive fans. It is highly recommended that give Expeditions: A MudRunner Game a shot if you like to play dirty- I mean, in the mud and rain of course.
With its short playtime filled with well-done gameplay, humor, and execution, Anomaly Agent is worthy of your time to go through, even if there are some lackluster moments you’d come across. I had to seriously sit down and play through whether it provides what it advertises, and I must say it is impressive for a newly established company. However, expectations should not be stretched to the moon as the gameplay does not bring anything new to that table unless you are below the said table, which means go ahead, absolutely try it.
BlazBlue Entropy Effect is quite a solid entry for the Roguelike genre. With a large number of characters to master, lots of skills to unlock, and properly generated runs every time, it plays like any other roguelike out there, but at least the quality you come across in this title is properly polished. I must remind you that the game is currently in Early Access, meaning the developers are still working on implementing new stuff and improving the game further, so you can expect it to become even more polished.
THE FINALS have brought some fresh vibes to the market, and people seem to like it for a good reason. It is dynamic, engaging, and is on the right path to provide players with content. Although some aspects do require focusing, like cheaters, the game itself already showcases great promise in upcoming years and has no way of being irrelevant soon.
House Flipper 2 clearly defines "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." The gameplay does not differentiate itself from the first game, yet people will find it more appealing as it uses the same formula as the first game. House Flipper 2 tends to be a facelift of the series' debut title, fancier graphics, and more up-to-date mechanics, and combined with a classic playstyle, it is still worth getting. But hey, if you are still having fun with the first game, that is acceptable; you are not missing much by getting House Flipper 2 late, but it would be nice to get it after you finish your adventures in the original game.
Born of Bread is clearly a game made with passion that includes many stories to unwrap and silly business along with it. The charm that the game gives is utterly important, and while trying to defeat the villains, you understand that characters aren’t just characters. They feel like important beings rather than just 2D images. Well, maybe, except for our protagonist, he’s just bread. Sorry for the lack of bread puns, but maybe playing Born of Bread will inspire you to come up with your own- and, yes, you will also have a great time experiencing it.
Orten Was The Case is a highly well-thought title with lots of never-seen artistic choices. It is undoubtedly one of the indie games of the year that leans to the better side with its visual representation, sound quality, impressive puzzles, and take on the time loop style of gameplay. If you consider yourself a veteran of ’90s story-ridden puzzle games, you could easily eat up Orten Was The Case, but if you are curious to check out the game, approach it with a pinch of salt.
Dreamworks All-Star Kart Racing is another go at the notorious kart genre, hoping to get things right. In some aspects, it does, but in some certain places, it fails the deliver to make it a worthwhile experience. The graphics, kart customization, and the interaction between characters are great.
Little Goody Two Shoes is a very cute RPG that holds quite a lot of secrets, and it will undoubtedly be worth your time to check out. It is uncommon to see a blend of different approach styles, but once in a blue moon, it appears and drops a unique experience. This title is undoubtedly one of them, and if you are looking for a JRPG that will invest your time in, I would say look no further than Little Goody Two Shoes.
The atmosphere and care given to RIPOUT make it a really likable title. The gunplay is great, options are viable, and a linear progression rate with unique ways of playing through the story will give a lot of replay value too. Not to mention, the coop mode is worthy of checking, too.
The quality of Land of the Vikings is all over the place. Sometimes, it provides quality game design; sometimes, it falls apart without noticing it. The generic gameplay with a Viking theme is a bit lackluster, too. I wish they focused on the Viking aspect by researching their proper ways to live in the Northern areas rather than just giving the theme of Vikings and turning it into any other city-building simulator with strategy elements. I see a lot of missed opportunities for the title, but I am sure the developers will start taking action when feedback about the 1.0 release starts rolling in.
The Fabulous Fear Machine does provide a unique take on the strategy genre as a whole. Instead of being the good guy everyone wants all the time, filling the masses with conspiracies and rumors to exploit them can also be great fun. It is recommended to check out the title if you are looking for an exquisite strategy game with its own personality and charm.
Warstride Challenges is a neat, solid, and somewhat missable FPS title with varying degrees of difficulty and complexity. Bunnyhopping and strafing are a must; if those are your fortes, give the game a shot. But do not expect the game to be supported for a long while, as the content is super niche, and it is better to just go for a bunnyhop map in Counter-Strike: Source, to be honest.
Hauma – A Detective Noir Story was a good change of pace in terms of crime-solving games. It is not dreadful, dragging, or painstakingly hard to get through, which makes it more appealing to begin with. There were no wrong choices or unsolved mysteries, every action taken by the player can be redeemed or understood later in the story. The explanations and gameplay are simple enough for someone who is uninitiated by these sorts of genres, and the game could be a nice, relaxing way to get away from stressful games.
Smurfs Kart was looking very promising until the gameplay and overall design of the game turned out to be a simple kart race with the Smurfs theme added onto it. Most of the effort was put into creating models and themes, but the rest feels like it was just taken from the basement of the developer’s studio and added little modifiers into it.