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Voyage is a beautiful cinematic adventure game and a good first start for developer Venturous. While I enjoyed my short time with it I wish it had a bit more variety to the gameplay, lasted a bit longer, and let the characters move a bit faster. You should also be prepared to figure out everything on your own whether it be the story or how to play. If you’re OK with all that then you’ll find an enjoyable world to explore in Voyage either alone or with a local friend.
Wayward Strand is a great narrative adventure game but its experimental nature won’t be for everyone. The gameplay is rather basic, topics may be uncomfortable for some to listen to, and the lack of clear direction won’t gel with everyone. I didn’t mind these things as the characters and stories they had to share were enough to draw me in and keep me interested until the end. Even now, I’m still thinking about certain moments from it and I want to go back to play more to see what information I missed the first time.
Aquadine is a colorful and feel good visual novel with a great cast of characters to spend time with. It won’t ask for a lot of your time but it also doesn’t have things like choices and branching paths that some visual novel fans may be looking for. If you’re fine with that and enjoy stories focused on teenagers then you’ll most likely enjoy this.
The Dark Prophecy tries to capture some of that magic that old school adventure game had but ultimately falls well short. The visuals and music are actually the best part of this game and while the gameplay is solid it just doesn’t have satisfying puzzles or writing to make it fully worth recommending.
Midnight Fight Express is another great beat ‘em up in a year where we’ve already seen quite a few. The combat system is beauty in motion and levels are highly replayable thanks to the ranking system, diverse amount of attack options, and online leaderboards. It stumbles a bit due to some sections needing to be balanced a bit more but overall this is one to check out for any fan of beat ‘em ups or action movies.
Kid Ball Adventure doesn’t do anything special to stand out as a platformer but it is a solid one nonetheless. The cutesy visuals and simple control scheme will be approachable for anyone and there are plenty of levels here to bounce your way through should you want to.
Are You Smarter Than A 5th Grader? has a charm to it and can be fun with friends locally but is a bit of slog at times too. The game’s presentation factor gets in the way too often which can cause these shows to go on longer than they should. Playing solo is an option but will likely get repetitive pretty fast for those who choose to do so. If you have some local friends and family to play with then there is a good amount of questions on hand to provide some trivia fun but there are also better alternatives you can choose from should you want.
Destroy All Humans! 2 – Reprobed should please any fan of the original or those who enjoyed the remake of the first game a couple years ago. Everything about it is bigger and better than that game but it still has some outdated design and humor that may not hit with everyone. I was a fan of the original so I enjoyed my time in Crypto 138’s boots and I hope to see more from this series going forward whether it be a new game or a remake of the third entry.
Maggie the Magnet is a cheap and pleasant physics-based puzzle game that can provide some short-term enjoyment. It will mainly be geared towards those who enjoy these small bite-sized casual games as anyone else will likely want a bit more out of it.
Rick Henderson is a fun retro shoot ‘em up that provides plenty of bang for your buck. It controls like a game in this genre should and the random levels always throw something different at you. Some people may not like the fact that the levels aren’t curated and that is fair criticism for sure as that is something that had made many other shmups memorable. For just a handful of dollars though you should have a pretty good time with this one.
Dyna Bomb 2 is an easy to pick up and play platformer but challenging at the same time. I don’t think I can whole heartedly recommend it though as nothing about it stands out from the level design to the visuals and audio. If this was priced similar to games that we get from Ratalaika Games then it would be easier to say go for it but for $15 you can find many other platformers that will bring much more enjoyment.
After Wave: Downfall doesn’t do anything to stand out as a shoot ‘em up but it can still provide some fun, frantic action for fans. I would wait for a sale personally as I think that for a bit of a lower price you’ll be getting a pretty decent game here with some fun modes that you can play alone or with a friend.
Pac-Man World Re-Pac is another fun blast from the past 3D platformer but one that I would say isn’t a must-play. The game plays well and the visual improvements are excellent but those who like challenge in their platformers or imaginative level design will likely find themselves disappointed in this. If you are a huge Pac-Man fan or just enjoy platformers in general and missed out on the original version then this is the best way to experience it.
SD Gundam Battle Alliance is a fun action-RPG with a ton of love packed in from various Gundam universes. While the missions can get a bit repetitive over time, the gameplay loop of wanting to unlock more mobile suits and upgrade them kept me wanting to play and you can do it by yourself or online with a couple friends. We’ve had to go through a few rough Gundam games to find a good one but SD Gundam Battle Alliance finally delivers what the series deserves.
Sofiya and the Ancient Clan’s art style is pretty nice but everything else about it just feels average at best. The gameplay is mindless and forgettable and what is left of the fan service doesn’t even make much sense in its dumbed down form. This is another game from eastasiasoft for the trophy hunters as anyone else is better off finding one of the many other platformers out there for their fix.
Digimon Survive tells a captivating, dark, and emotional story that kept me wanting to see what would happen next. The focus on being a visual novel first won’t be for everyone as if you value gameplay in your Digimon games you won’t get a ton of that here. I wish the combat was a bit deeper in this game but I still had fun with it and I was always trying to get new Digimon on my side. If you are looking for a bit of a different Digimon experience I highly recommend Digimon Survive.
Arcade Paradise is an awesome management sim that shows a lot of love to the era of arcades. I really enjoyed balancing running both businesses and trying out all the different arcade games even if it got a bit repetitive at times. It’s got a lot to do, a great look, and some really good tunes and it’s highly recommended by me to check it out.
Arsonist Heaven fails in executing its ideas and because of that you should probably skip this retro platformer. Taking cheap hits in games is one of the most un-fun things to me and it happens a lot here. Not only that but making it so that your ammo and jetpack fuel runs out too quick leads to even more frustration. If you’re in it for some easy trophies you might be able to get them all before getting fed up with the game but if you have no interest in that then you can safely look past this one.
Pretty Girls Four Kings Solitaire is another solid entry in the Pretty Girls line of titles and the new ruleset does help it feel different from the rest. It requires a bit more skill and planning in order to come out on top. The rest of the package is a bit slim on the offerings with there not being a ton to unlock and keep you playing. Still, if you’ve enjoyed these casual card games in the past and feel like spending a couple hours with a new one then you’ll likely enjoy your time with it.
Endling – Extinction is Forever is a beautiful, heartfelt journey but one that is also tragic and cruel. It really goes into how man’s actions on the environment have far reaching consequences and I applaud Herobeat Studios for building a game around this message. The only downside of it to me is that I wish it had a bit more variety in some parts. If you love animals and are looking for a game that will hit you right in the feels then Endling is a must-play.