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UFOPHILIA is just meh, all the work you do to uncover an alien’s spawn point just feels needless. And when it comes to snapping a photo, you need to get stupidly close. Which sucks since they are able to spot you easily and lock doors. I’m a little disappointed in the actual designs as well, due to me thinking there might be some cool looking aliens. That was not the case. The tutorials did not give me much hope to begin with, as some of the tools would not even spawn. It also comes across too much like a ghost hunting game rather than aliens. I do like catching footage of the aliens on camera, but the fact that it does not count towards evidences is just plain silly. Since the feed goes to the laptop, the same way as audio. In the end, the game just comes across as cheap, from the tools to the actual aliens themselves. So, I am gonna give UFOPHILIA the Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
HumanitZ feels like a great addition to a considerably-sized field of both theme and game genre. It blends in just enough realism to keep you in check, but provides the ability to change just how difficult you want those checks to be. Despite some initial frustrations, I was able to press on and find a good mix of playing survival and scenarios. If you’re someone who enjoys playing solo or with friends in games like DayZ, Project Zomboid, a 7 Days to Die, I think you would enjoy this one too. I’d have to give HumanitZ the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Ultimately, the horror elements of Cakey’s Twisted Bakery are weaker than other indie games on the market but for such a low price point I still think it’s worth giving a go. All things considered, I have to give Cakey the Thumb Culture Silver Award. Definitely a game to pick up if you’re looking for a short, uncomplicated horror game.
I’m not sure Cairn is going to be for everyone, it’s more likely to be a Marmite thing. Thankfully, the demo is perfect for giving you a taste of the full product, so do check that out. For me, the frustrations mostly enhance the realism. I certainly didn’t feel that always during those moments, but with some time to cool down afterwards I can appreciate mountain climbing should be difficult. There are great assist options available too if things do become to much of an annoyance. My misplaced pride wouldn’t allow my to fall back on those though, especially knowing that I’d like to tackle the harder difficulty. As I said at the top of this review, there isn’t another game like Cairn. It’s a unique experience as it stands and it comfotably earns the Thumb Culture Gold Award. Do check out the demo and challenge yourself to summit Kami if you enjoy that preview.
The Visions of Four Heroes DLC, does brilliantly to provide even more epic battles. But the four stories themselves felt underwhelming and short. With my biggest disappointment being Dong Zhou’s campaign, and a little bit of Lu Bu’s one. I think a whole DLC dedicated to the Jin army would have been a lot better compared to what we had, in more ways than one. The new strategic battles are a great way for the player to immerse themselves, and to feel like a true strategist. Although I would have liked more impact in the final fights. Maybe shorter missions due to the enemy having a smaller force, or weather events. As nothing really changes, and it comes across as padding to make up for less content. I mean, Zhang Jiao’s campaign itself is only four main missions long. The new weapons are okay. Out of the two, I would say the rope-dart feels and plays much better. I really did not get on with the bow, it felt like it didn’t offer the attack/skill variety that other weapons did. For example, most skills are buffs for the basic arrow move, but they don’t feel powerful. Lastly I hoped for more actual use of the Guardians of Peace’s vision abilities. However, it never appears beyond the introduction of the base game. In the end, as I mentioned, I think having a DLC based on the army of Jin would felt a lot better compared to what we got. As Visions of Four Heroes didn’t do much with the campaigns. So I will be giving it the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Easily another creative game, from Edmund, that you can stick 100s of hours into Mewgenics, thanks to how replayable the game is. The breeding system will easily sink its claws into the min-maxers out there, and combat is wacky, chaotic and filled with character. Just like The Binding of Isaac, you are offered so much content to unravel and secrets to find. Mewgenics is an easy game to play, but hard to meowster. And if you know Edmund’s other titles, then you know what to expect. Gameplay is all done with the mouse, but Mewgenics offers full controller support, which I preferred. When it comes to breeding, I am two minds about it. I like how it works, but I end up always feeling like I am doing something wrong. No matter how, I set up my house, or what cats I used. But I guess there is some fun in the frustration it brings, since when you do achieve a kitten with brilliant stats it feels so rewarding. I think Mewgenics fully deserves the Thumb Culture Gold Award. Mainly for providing a fun, and fresh idea. All while keeping his signature style, his fans (and myself) have come to enjoy.
I went into Perfect Tides: Station to Station not entirely sure what to expect, but I can honestly say this is a gem of a game. Mara is an entertaining main character that you can easily connect to even though you’re thrown into the middle of her story. Everything works in perfect tandem to create a truly fun experience. My favourite thing about this game is that your choices actually feel like they have some weight to them, unlike other choice-based games where things feel inconsequential. Perfect Tides: Stations to Station is an easy winner of the Thumb Culture Gold Award as it is an enjoyable little game, definitely worth the amount that it’s listed for. Check out the trailer below to get a better look at what’s in store for Mara.
I’ve enjoyed Nioh 3’s combat, but was not really a fan of the new styles. As I much prefer focusing on my specific play style. It is annoying that you are forced to switch between them when attempting to Burst Counter an enemy. Since there is a slight delay when trying to switch back. I felt the demon mode in Nioh 2 was a much better fit for the counter, and as an overall mechanic, compared to the two styles. As for the open world, it looks cool, but you can see that it was meant to be split into levels like usual. Which I think suits the game better. As running around feels empty now that it is larger. You don’t have anything to really uncover, as it is all laid out in front of you. Even the hidden collectables are visible on the map, once you level your exploration level at least one time in the area. For me, the new stuff they seem more like they just moved stuff around and called it “new” rather than actually do anything new. Take having two different weapons, it was locked until the second region. I would definitely return to it, my main issue is the needless changes like the two styles. So Nioh 3 does deserve the Thumb Culture Gold Award for attempting new things all, even if some don’t hit the mark.
I’d say the atmosphere for Rainbow Gate is fairly decent, but the animatronics lack the scare factor. IT improves when they emphasize them in darkness, but not really in gameplay, I find. The theme of being in a toy factory is pushed to the side too easily, as the whole building is just concrete everywhere you look. A weird part of this is the mine room segment. I really did not understand why this area was made. And why mines were scattered around. Notes you find, don’t offer that much in the ways of deeper lore. More so, just repeats itself. Some areas in general become rather tedious thanks to the animatronics camping around near a door you need to leave through. While other challenges like the revolving door section, which has you aiming to get to the centre, becomes infuriating. I dropped the game in the end parts of Rainbow Gate, as it just became boring and anger inducing. You are not able to truly hide underneath anything or in a closet. The only way is breaking line of sight. But in the Moon Bear segment, not even that will save you. I don’t think I had as much with fun this one as it is more of a saw-style, game than a casual mascot horror. The story isn’t really there either, beyond the initial letter at the start. So it is getting the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Escape from Ever After is not just an indie homage to Paper Mario, but a genuinely great game in its own right. From its charming visuals and range of likable characters, to its witty and often hilarious writing, there’s a lot to love here! Despite my attention waning in the later sections due to dragged out fights there’s no doubt the combat system is solid and enjoyable. If your a fan of RPGs, but want something a little less intense than titles such as Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, or have fond memories of the older Paper Mario games, then this is an easy recommendation from me! With all that said, I’ll be giving Escape from Ever After the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
MIO: Memories In Orbit was one of my most anticipated games last year after playing the demo, and I’m happy to say it more than lived up to the hype. For fans of the genre, this is a must-play. The art, the music, the vibes, the story, all hit the mark. Slowly unravelling the mystery of the slowly decaying Vessel, and witnessing the impacts of that first-hand, is an emotional experience. I was pushed towards my gaming ability limits at times, and my patience was tested, but with focus and determination I was able to overcome those hardships and felt a real sense of satisfaction. While there are a couple of assist options in the menu, to wear bosses down over time or heal Mio while on the ground, you are fully on your own in platforming. In fact, I had to really dial in to my old Celeste muscle memory to get past some of the trickier set-pieces. Even still, fans of the genre are sure to find a gem. I didn’t give out our top award last year, despite playing some great games. This year begins much differently, though, as MIO: Memories In Orbit receives a Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
We both enjoyed the game even with the little flaws here and there. Blitz mode really is a chaotic mess, but would only recommend if you all wanted to get one more round in. The game is fun to play with other while on a discord call. I’ve honestly placed this game into my rotation of games to play with Lucifera and others like Repo or Peak. Even though the game will start Early Access on Jan 19th, I’ might change the award depending when 1.0 comes out. I give Lunars the Thumb Culture Silver Award
Mutant Football League 2 is largely a fun time. Some underwhelming presentation and graphical issues aside, this is a fun, easy to pick up arcade football title that plays fast and loose with the rules of the sport. Even if you have only a fleeting interest in American football, chances are you’ll still get a kick out of all the explosive, anarchic mayhem on the pitch. So, with all that said and done, Mutant Football League 2 gets a Thumb Culture Silver Award!
The core gameplay and aesthetic of Demeo x Dungeons & Dragons: Battlemarked is present. There is definitely some room for improvement though to keep it from just being a DLC or D&D reskin of Demeo. I love the concept of keeping it simple, but in this case having more depth to the game mechanics is a need. A more robust storyline would also add depth with additional choices for variety rather than just an option of which map to do first. With this in mind, it receives the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
A Game About Digging A Hole is proof that not all games need to have 50+ hours of content to be great. In fact, the short length actually works in its favour, giving players just enough content before the admittedly repetitive gameplay grows stale. Trophy hunters may be disappointed at the lack of a Platinum Trophy, but, for the price of a coffee, this is well worth playing! Thus, I’m awarding A Game About Digging A Hole, a Thumb Culture Gold Award! Isn’t that fitting?
I Am Future: Cozy Apocalypse Survival manages to successfully blend the post-apocalyptic survival genre with a stress-free gameplay loop. There were times when I found the constant back-and-forth journey for resources a little slow, and other times when I wanted to skip the corny dialogue. But, overall, I had a lot of fun! I would easily recommend it to anyone looking for something that — whilst perhaps not genre-defining — is easy enough to get to grips with and isn’t bogged down with a myriad of complex systems. Therefore, I Am Future: Cozy Apocalypse Survival gets the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
I can understand the divided reviews to a degree. This isn’t an arcade style beat-em-up. You can’t just rock up without learning the core mechanics and expect to land a load of knock out blows. Plenty of times, it felt like my swings barely affected my opponent, while they could just step into my character model and unleash a barrage of heavy hits before I had a chance to back up far enough to even see them. It feels a lot more like an actual boxing simulator. The training videos suggest that you’ll be rewarded for actually fighting like a real boxer, rather than just flailing your Quest remote toward your opponent’s head. But I like what it’s trying to do. A game where improving your physical abilities will let you be better at the game is exactly what VR should allow. I’m going to keep playing, working out, trying to improve my own abilities. For this reason I’m happy to award Thrill of the Fight 2 the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Netherworld Covenant is a game with clear intent and uneven execution. When its systems align, particularly in higher-difficulty combat, it delivers a tense, satisfying rhythm that rewards patience and learning. When they don’t, repetition, audio issues, and balance problems chip away at that momentum. Netherworld Covenant does not hold your hand, nor always respects your time, but it does offer moments of genuine strength and identity. Upgrades make you feel powerful without breaking the world entirely, and its visual style commits fully to its bleak fantasy. With refinement, particularly in sound design, map variety, and balance, Netherworld Covenant could stand taller among its inspirations. Thumb Culture Silver Award
Dead Format starts off strong with the mystery and worlds, but quickly ends up tedious and the story lacking. Which does suck some of the fun. The stalker is too aggressive at times, and with the amount of portals for her to enter the world from, it seems rather annoying to avoid. Especially during the end segments of the game. I’d probably say the highlight of Dead Format is definitely in the presentation, rather than its game-play. Although the game-play is fun with the minor puzzle moments it has. Yeah, I Would suggest checking Dead Format out, as the game has a noticeable amount of love in it. And I feel it deserves the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
The was an enjoyable experience in the first half, but because of bugs and my hard drive sounding like a engine because of this one game. Even with the many issues I was dealing with, I still had some fun. Hopefully, they fix these issues and maybe add a few more things to the game after beating it. But, that’s just my opinion. I give This Ain’t Even Poker, Ya Joker the Thumb Culture Silver Award