Maximum Utmost
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There are glimmers of brilliance in Dead Format, and a lot of it shines through. Unfortunately, the whole thing is uneven. Parts of it needed more refinement, or rather, needed to be rethought. Just brought entirely back to the drawing board. It’s breaking my brain trying to reconcile the high highs and low lows. I’d like to compare it to a B-movie, but it’s difficult. It’s mostly like Street Fighter: The Movie where I’m glued when Raul Julia is on-screen and then pull out the Rubik’s Cube every time he isn’t.
It lacks some of the frills that would normally make a roguelite into a long-term experience. There isn’t a tonne of unlockables, and it barely has a story, which also means no side diversions. While it lasts, it’s entertaining. It doesn’t know any tricks, but it’s still a good boy (or girl). Yes it is. Oh, yes it is!
A solid remaster of a decent game. I’m not going to make a The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly reference, but here’s a fistful of review points.
It’s a fun game to see, even if the whole thing is sloppy and dumb. Its humour certainly isn’t sharp, but it’s entertaining enough to stand out. The brevity is, at least, offset by the rather reasonable pricetag that Ratalaika has given it. $6 greenbacks or $9 Canadian loonies (fewer loonies on Steam for some reason). That’s, like, a Blockbuster rental circa 2005. I miss game rentals, but I… Sorry, I got distracted there. You could treat this like a rental for that price, is what I’m saying. Make it a bakage night.
But regardless of how other people might feel about it, Chulip is among my favourite games. I can hear and understand the criticism toward it, but I don’t care. And that’s how I feel about Stray Children. I’m not ready to put it among my favourite games. That will become clearer with time. For me, I know that despite all the trials, I walked away feeling I gained something. I’m not happy. I’m moved. The walls of my heart have been broken.
If GameMill had taken the Cruis’n Blast approach and added extra challenges and cars, it would be much easier to recommend. If they had tuned the game to offer something more than what you’d get with a pocketful of dollars at the movie theatre, it might be worth it. As it is, the fun in Fast & Furious: Arcade Edition is gone in sixty seconds.
I’m just here to tell you that The Procession to Calvary is the strongest. Four Last Things is in between. Death of the Reprobate is the weakest. Not by a measurable amount. In fact, based on this site’s rating system, all the games are getting the exact same rating, that’s how consistent they are in quality. But I’m a millennial. I was raised with the internet, and on the internet, we like ranked comparisons, so there it is.
Absolum is a spectacular follow-up to Streets of Rage 4. Dotemu and Guard Crush have crafted a roguelite brawler that is the epitome of “easy to learn, hard to master,” with surprising depth that is only matched by its incredible variety. I do hope more is added on top of the game’s foundation, as I don’t think we’ve seen the full potential of these underlying mechanics just yet. Still, this is easily one of the best beat-’em-ups I’ve ever played, and it offers more than enough entertainment to deserve both your time and money. Dotemu took a big risk by betting on a totally original IP with Absolum, and I sincerely hope this is only the beginning of our adventures in the world of Talamh.
I think that, perhaps, roguelite isn’t a great genre for Swery and Suda to be collaborating on. I get the feeling that the genre was just a means to get an idea that they put together across. That might be okay if the roguelite was at least enjoyable or benign, but it’s really unpleasant to play. The slow, gluey controls, repetitive enemies and environments, and overall clunkiness turn it into a really abrasive experience. On one hand, I hope this isn’t the last we see of Justine and Dr. Carnival. On the other, I kind of just want to forget this ever happened.
While there isn’t anything wrong with Easy Delivery Co., what I find irksome is that it’s clearly made with a love of something I find so appealing, and while it delivers in some aspect, it’s breathing on the neck of greatness. It has all the mechanics down – it feels great to drive the Kei Truck through the snow – but when it comes to conveyance, it lacks a punch. One might say, it doesn’t quite nail the delivery. Oh, wait, I made that joke already.
There are honest strategies for maximizing your sales each day, from updating your book selection to redecorating your exterior to fit the area, but making money really isn’t the point of Tiny Bookshop. It’s establishing yourself a member of this community, and as you’ll find out, it’s not the sales that matter, but the difference you make in the lives of your customers. As Roger Mifflin put it, “…when you sell a man a book, you don’t sell him just twelve ounces of paper and ink and glue—you sell him a whole new life. Love and friendship and humour and ships at sea by night—there’s all heaven and earth in a book…”
Yet, having completed the game, I can’t say I feel anything very strong about it. Certainly, I appreciate that it’s about robots surrounded by literal garbage who still find positivity in life. The art style and music is fab. But I don’t feel calmed, I don’t feel entertained, I don’t feel inspired. It’s clear that a lot of love went into it, and it kind of sucks to look at that and a bunch of bright-eyed robots and shrug. But, that’s what I have to do. It’s a positive shrug, though. It does a lot of cool stuff. So, if you were to play it, it would still be a net positive.
However, I love the character of Francis Morgan, and, as such, I love a lot of the insight into him that Deadly Premonition 2 gives (even though some of it isn’t particularly well-executed). He’s the most convincing reason to play this game at all, and it’s really great as a character exploration. That got me through to the end credits. And it could maybe get me through it again if I feel like reconnecting at some point. But the game itself is a bland, joyless slog. It’s almost unreal. And not in a good way.
And I think that sums up The Drifter nicely. “Effective” is the best word I can find to describe it. Everything it does, it does with style and confidence. Even the few missteps it makes just melt into the overall picture. Just a sterling poink adventure all around. Straight gilded. I’m not sure if or when I’m ever going to play it again, but damn, I’m impressed.
If we judged games solely on their tone and premise, then Shadow Labyrinth would be one of my favorite games of 2025. Unfortunately, once you peel back the novelty of “dark and edgy Pac-Man,” all you’re left with is a sloppy-yet-servicable Metroidvania. It’s a concept I love enough that I hope Bandai Namco gives it another shot, but for now, this one’s for enthusiasts of the genre only.
Nonetheless, at least Irem Collection Volume 3 is a compilation of three good arcade titles. Okay, maybe I didn’t really jive with Mr. Heli, but I don’t think it’s a bad game… probably. I just don’t think the price tag is representative of the package. If I had to guess, it’s because they want to keep parity with the physical release. But when you’re looking at it on a digital storefront between Taito Milestones and Capcom Arcade Stadium, it doesn’t look very tantalizing, regardless of how much you like Mr. Heli.
The Procession to Calvary is nothing groundbreaking, but it’s an extremely solid follow-up to the already great Four Last Things. I’m looking forward to grabbing Death of the Reprobate and capping off the series when I can afford it. Which isn’t right now, but hopefully soon. If you haven’t tried the games, however, you’ve got some catching up to do.
And that’s it. At an hour-and-a-half (in my sinful experience), Four Last Things hits hard and dances off over the horizon. It pokes fun at dead artists, the Catholic Church, and God. Plus, you get to sin, which is always a pleasure. It’s a great way to pass the time until your final judgment. Amen.
It’s a game that is interesting just in the fact it exists. I think it’s neat. You probably already know if you think it’s neat. However, it’s hard to give it a recommendation beyond that, since it’s so insubstantial. At the same time, it isn’t straight-up bad. It functions, it just doesn’t strive to do anything beyond that. If you’re curious, you can always buy the digital version of the game, rather than shelling out for the cartridge.
Clock Tower is one of those games where I’m not sure I really liked it much, but I’m glad I played it. I’m not even talking from a historical perspective. Yeah, it’s an important game, but it’s also a very unique one. An SNES game with such a dark presentation and such heavy atmosphere isn’t all that common, and Clock Tower does an impressive job of it. I just wish it was less of a chore to play.