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KARDS: Theaters of War is a great addition to an already enjoyable free to play card battler. The missions are challenging and feel satisfying to win, but they often put you in losing situations that are hard to crawl out of. Having to pay for an expansion to a free game may turn some players off, but there will be an option to purchase with in-game currency as well.
Ruiner is a cyberpunk-style, guns blazing, top-down shooter that pulls no punches when it comes to action. Where the levels lack depth and unique flair, the gameplay makes up for it with a diverse of ways to approach playing.
Trackmania is a nice entry into the racing genre that provides a free version, along with paid versions that offer more content. The simple, fast-paced gameplay and official tracks are good, but it's best in short bursts. Official content doesn't take long to complete, so player creations are going to be important in keeping this game alive.
nDreams has succeeded wildly with Phantom: Covert Ops. The visuals are gorgeous, the goofy premise works perfectly in context, and the mechanics are an intuitive and downright rewarding use of VR. While you may need a great deal of VR callus to deal with the smooth motion of the game, Phantom: Covert Ops is VR stealth done right.
Urban Trial Tricky is a biking game where your goal is to perform tricks and earn points. With a fair amount of cool and quirky tricks you can perform, this game will make you grin. It gets repetitive, so it's best enjoyed in short bursts, but even so, you'll only get a handful of hours out of it.
Overall, Eco Lifestyle has been an average experience, though to be fair I am not overly interested in the concepts presented in the expansion. In general I have a lot more fun in packs with nightlife, celebrity, magic, and supernatural concepts, and it has been that way for me throughout all of The Sims games. It is pretty neat that your actions have an impact on the map and you see changes, be it negative or positive, but I personally didn’t feel the need to do anything else once I had my neighborhood cleaned up. Evergreen Harbor itself isn’t a very interesting map to live on, and I don’t see myself continuing on with the Sim or game I started on it.
The Primate Observation Club has you watching monkeys as you struggle to pay for more cages while taking care of yourself. The balance between time and money is consistently engaging. The subject's lives are yours to watch. There is just one key rule: Do not feed the monkeys.
I recommend Waking to any player, of any skill-level, looking for a unique, emotional, and personal experience.
Night Call may draw you with its murder mysteries, but you'll keep playing to learn about its numerous, interesting characters. It's incredibly well written, if a bit pretentious in the best way. Unfortunately, it's numerous glitches may frustrate players too much to keep playing.
While it's over a bit too soon, Evan's Remains is a delightful little puzzle game. Its story builds up to some great lengths, and the puzzles are innovative and fun to solve.
The Wizards - Dark Times is great. It's absolutely a must-have if you're interested in VR spellcasting using only hand movements, and generally want to feel like a wizard. While there are some minor grievances with the gameplay, they pale in comparison to the level of fun and enjoyment you'll get out of this one.
At $17.99 on Steam at the time of writing, it's hard to beat up The Academy: The First Riddle too much. It's a lot of fun, it's value priced, and the developers are actively engaged with the community and prepping patches for much of the things I've mentioned. Could it be better at launch? Certainly. Does it deliver a compelling stack of puzzles that'll have you scratching your brain for hours? Absolutely. We have to give credit to Pine Studios for trying something new, even if they might have gotten a C on that "Debugging" class.
Brigandine: The Legend of Runersia is a wonderfully crafted grid-based strategy game with plenty of planning needed. Some battles will be tough, but winning is rewarding every time. There are times when you'll be frustrated by your units missing attacks while the enemy beats you down, but that just forces you to adapt.
Yes, Your Grace is an enjoyable hybrid game, filled with obvious lies, surprise twists, quirky characters, and lots and lots of needy petitioners. The pixel art is beautiful and writing is excellent, even if the game itself is rather short. It settles somewhere between a simulation game and an RPG, and while it’s a master of neither, it is an enjoyable little indie experience.
Danger Scavenger is a neat cyberpunk roguelike with some fun gunplay. Upgrading along the way feels great, especially when you become a powerhouse. The downside is that with how much you truly need to complete to finish a run, the roguelike aspect really hurts. You get punished more than you should, so be ready for plenty of hard fights and death.
The Almost Gone is a relaxing point-and-click exploration game with puzzle solving elements. The story unfolds through investigating the environment, so be sure to pay attention if you want to get answers. It won't blow your mind with the story or gameplay, and it doesn't take long to complete, but it's still worth checking out.
Rehydrated is a wonderful remake of an incredibly fun game. The humor and joyful platforming will have you smiling ear to ear, even if the game has more than a few technical problems.
Namco Museum Archives is a collection of the company's NES classics, no more, no less. While the emulation is great and the original games are a good touch, the "Museum" part of the title rings hollow.
Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics is a delightfully fun package that is a charming way to get anyone into traditional tabletop experiences. With a wide array of fun diversions and a beautifully made overall package, this is one title you should definitely pick up and play with friends.
My Beautiful Paper Smile Chapters 1 and 2 drop you into a world where children are forced to be happy, and punished for feeling anything else. It may unnerve some people, so keep that in mind. The gameplay is simple, but some sections can be annoying and feel unfair. You're left on a cliffhanger, but the final chapters will be released later on.