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Kazuma Kaneko’s Tsukuyomi is a game that you can play if you want to see some redesigns for certain demons and gods. However, playing it has small issues that the AI issue alone is to blame. The map in-game is another enemy you wouldn’t think is against you until you reach a split path. Sometimes, you’ll have a good look at what lies ahead. While another you can only see two lines, but no idea which path carries more benefits. With that in mind, I feel this game is just a play until you get to the end and never touch again. This game has a lot of potential, but some of it even in this remake did not achieve the top floor, but only the middle. I give Kazuma Kaneko’s Tsukuyomi the Thumb Culture Silver Award!
The game is just rather meh, the story wasn’t really doing it for me, and the combat was okay. But most of the problems stem from the oddly long and repetitive segments. It also felt out of place with having Thompson deal with his own personal trauma, while everything was going on. I personally didn’t see anything that connected him to what he was experiencing in the hospital. More so when the player has seen what he is grieving. Sadly, without giving spoilers, It Reaches just comes across as odd in a few areas. And with the amount of motion blur and stuttering I have already mentioned. I am giving it the Thumb Culture Bronze Award. If the various issues are resolved, then maybe it’s a silver.
Hacked: The Streamer is a valiant effort by a new team, but it unfortunately falls flat. The narrative is convoluted and uninteresting. Gameplay is minimal and borderline unnecessary. And the game deliberately hides its actors, the most important part of an FMV game, behind Discord calls and AI art. There are signs of an interesting premise, but the delivery is wholly lacking. That’s harsh criticism, I know, but that’s because I can see the glittering of a solid game beneath all the ugly rubble. May this be a learning experience, and may their next project be an improvement. I give Hacked: The Streamer the Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
Pragmata has made me remember the joys of raising my nephew and then making a person like me want to raise a child of my own. This game like God of War, The Last of Us! and The Witcher 3 has the same element of storytelling. That family is important, and that when raising them to cherish their time and growth. I enjoyed this game and would be surprised if there was ever some kind of sequel that came out of it. If I had anything to grip about when it comes to the game, it would be the lack of fast travel. Sure you can go from the shelter to the any accessible you’ve unlocked. But the fact you can’t go between one ladder location to another from it is pretty insane. I give Pragmata the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
So where does Adorable Adventures rank in my games I’ve played this year. I’ll be honest, right at the top. Its been a lovely change of pace, something calm and explorative. Something that leaves a smile on my face, something that draws me back to play more. With so many cute little moments that I think will stay with me, its a wonderful story that is simply perfection. Adorable Adventures gets the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
As someone who didn’t play the game when it originally released, or even touch other versions, I was presently surprised with what I experienced with Myst. The puzzles aren’t stupidly hard, and when I cracked most of them it left me feeling accomplished. Although the story did feel lacking at the start, even after reading the four books we get. My mind was quickly changed, and left wanting more and can’t wait to start playing the sequel Riven. Would I say Myst holds to the test of time? For sure If you haven’t tried it, I highly recommend you check it out when you can. But I do confess that I used a guide for the tunnel puzzle, that one is probably the most difficult puzzle the game has. So with all that I am giving Myst the Thumb Culture Gold Award. Here is hoping Riven offers the same great experience.
I think I preferred the world of Riven as a whole compared to Myst. Exploring multiple islands, that are all interconnected offers a much more natural flow, rather than going back to a hub world. But Myst’s puzzles felt a little better. Riven, does provide a lot more story, and emphasis on exploring but a lot of the time this can become quite jarring to play-through. In the end though I did have fun and I can see why both Myst and Riven are loved. The animal totem puzzles was the one that probably ruined my mood the most. I will be giving Riven the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
I would say a lot of praise would most likely go to the world and item design. But story wise Necrophosis was okay, nothing amazing, but nice to understand. Gameplay is simple and offers you a liner style with puzzles for you to do. These puzzles aren’t particularly hard. I was under the impression that there were two different endings. Throughout the game it mentions continuing or breaking the cycle. But after playing, I don’t see anywhere in Necrophosis where the player would make any actually choices. The Subconsciousness level also does little to add anything to the overall story, although it was fun to play. If you are looking for something very eye-catching, then definitely pick up Necrophosis. Or maybe if you enjoy the Lovecraft Mythos. But if you are after more of a story heavy game this may not be for you. So I’m giving Necrophosis: Full Consciousness the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Directive 8020 is frustrating because all the right ingredients are in place, but they never fully come together. The paranoia, mistrust, unsettling body horror and occasional bursts of genuine tension all hint at something special. When the game commits to its identity, it delivers some of the strongest moments Supermassive has produced in the series. However, the central setting lacks personality, and some characters rarely leave a lasting impression, holding the experience back. The stealth mechanics also fail to develop, limiting the overall tension they are meant to create. There is still plenty here for Supermassive fans to enjoy. The branching choices lead to entertaining moments of panic, and the latter half of the game does show flashes of the tense sci-fi horror experience it is aiming for. Directive 8020 is a solid sci-fi horror adventure built on strong ideas. These ideas never fully evolve into something exceptional. Despite this, it delivers enough tension, intrigue and cinematic spectacle to comfortably earn the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
If I had to sum up NITRO GEN OMEGA in one word, that word would be “cool”. Its effortlessly stylish aesthetics and flashy animations took me back to watching shows such as Gurren Lagann or even Megas XLR. Nostalgia aside, though, this is an entertaining and often challenging RPG that doesn’t hold your hand. This is a very rewarding title that, despite a lack of an engaging story, had me hooked for the majority of the time. Some pacing issues aside, I’d highly recommend giving this one a try. There’s even a demo available, so what have you got to lose? For it’s stylish aesthetics, engaging gameplay, and everything else mentioned, NITRO GEN OMEGA receives the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
After I entered the 3 biome in Scale The Depths, it was becoming a little too repetitive for me. I enjoy fishing games, and the game-play loop isn’t terrible, but it also wasn’t up my alley either. Controls are simple, even more so If you stick to just using the mouse. And each environment adds something a little different. But it became stale too quickly with having to work towards the knife, rod, and hook, etc. I’m giving Scale The Depths, the Thumb Culture Silver Award. It’s okay, just not up my street.
Thick As Thieves, as it stands, is less of a game and more of a highly polished paid demo. Everything is decent, but nothing is spectacular. The core stealth loop is solid, but balancing around randomised co-op and a lack of combat removes some of the deeper gameplay and narrative systems that really make stealth shine. The art style is charming, but not especially memorable. The audio design is decent, but can be mostly ignored thanks to the more convenient X-ray system. And the game’s total content is too sparse to really be considered a full game, but large enough to not warrant a “demo” title. I enjoyed my short time with it, and I believe it could become solid down the line. However, as it stands, Thick As Thieves is more of a promise of a game. For now, I’ll be giving it the Thumb Culture Silver Award and my continued attention.
As much as I wanted to love it, I just don’t think Hydroneer is a title for me. From a personal standpoint, I didn’t especially enjoy Hydroneer‘s gameplay loop. Would an inventory system have alleviated this? Possibly, but then that would take away the one unique thing about the game. It’s just a shame that that unique feature isn’t something I clicked with. I can absolutely see why people would love playing this, and for these people, Hydroneer will no doubt be a blast. Unfortunately, for me, the unwieldy controls and slow early game left me too frustrated. There are other automation games out there that are more my speed, so, unfortunately, I don’t see myself returning to Hydroneer. For those reasons, I’ll be giving Hydroneer the Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
Vulture is a fun game with some straightforward and easy to learn combat. Although it can seem a little too easy at times, thanks to the knife’s upgrade that allows instant kills. As it made me sneak through whole levels just one-tapping zombies, except for the explosive ones. There is a nice variety of weapons and replaying levels doesn’t seem boring thanks to the shortness of each one. Atmosphere is excellent, but the horror side does lack creepiness. I still think Leopoldo should have something to make him shine a little more. Like maybe allowing him hit harder with a knuckle dusters or something. A glaring problem is that Vultures, suffers with way too many crashes, and if it wasn’t for the saves being set just before leaving a room I would have stopped playing entirely. The game also suffers with various smaller issues here and there as I progressed. Action commands would just stop working, and the whole list would turn grey. On enemy turns they wouldn’t move or doing anything forcing me to quit the game to reset the room. Which is a shame since I am really enjoying Vultures. Level designs offer up that nice grunge that I just love to see in horror games. Without making everything seem oddly clean at the same time. So if you are looking for a fun survival, Vultures – Scavengers of Death isn’t a bad shout. And hopefully the crashes will be fixed at one point too. So right now, I am giving it the Thumb Culture Gold Award! I’d love to see a sequel to this game in the future.
The main appeal for Toll Booth Simulator is the fact that it isn’t just another store sim. It goes far beyond just working at a toll booth as well which means its got a bit more going for it. It’s a nice, chill time with a few aliens thrown in for good measure. Giving Toll Booth Simulator the Thumb Culture Gold Award was an easy decision.
Space Haven heavily reminds me of games like Rimworld, and Lords and Villains. You have to take your time and find out what works best, and with every mistake you learn to do it better next time. It rewards you for your failure in small amounts. I do think the space station mode is a lot more challenging compared to the normal one. As most of the time, I spawned in with barely any materials; however, I am also too stubborn to lower the difficulty. I’m not sure if someone who has a better grasp of these types of games will love it. But like me, I can see a few new players getting some fun out of it for a while. So if you do like games similar to what I said, Space Haven might just be another that takes most of your time. That is why I am giving it the Thumb Culture Gold Award. I’m going to be playing this on and off for sure in the future to come.
I only recently got into the series, so Coffee Talk: Tokyo marks the first release I’ve had to wait for. Thankfully, Chorus Worldwide has brewed up something special. The presentation is smooth with the atmosphere continuing to roast up some cosy charm. More importantly, the fresh setting and stronger personality helps it stand out from previous instalments. Tokyo proves to great as a backdrop, giving the series a fresh flavour while still serving up a comforting atmosphere. The addition of iced drinks and stencil art gives players more to do. The excellent character writing once again proves why the series continues to resonate with players. It is a rich, story-filled blend that fans of cosy games and visual novels will drink right up. Sometimes, all you really need is a drink, good conversation, and somewhere to escape from the noise of everyday life. For that reason, Coffee Talk: Tokyo easily earns the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
I found Hotel Architect a little easier to wrap my head around compared to other management sims. I liked making and decorating rooms, although it was tricky to actually get my desired quests. I also struggled to keep the happiness level up for both staff and guests. The hotel does become chaotic rather quickly without having a way to slow down the influx of customers. That is what usually messes up my play-throughs, but that is all part of the fun when it comes to these games. A good thing this game has is zoning, It makes it easier to visualise each section I create. If I could suggest something, maybe more filters on the furniture, so that we can focus on certain customers. It gets tedious having to hover over each item and see who prefers what. It may seem small, but when you try doing a whole refurb to tailor your hotel, it becomes tricky. Hotel Architect’s campaign allows the player to learn more at their own pace. All while not holding your hand so much that you are spoon-fed. Take the start of the game, you get a nice and easy run down, then level two just says “oh yeah you need a bar now.” I did enjoy doing the level objectives. If you are looking for a new sim, then Hotel Architect is a good first choice, so it’s the Thumb Culture Silver Award from me.
The Spell Brigade is a surprising game to come across our board to review and I’m glad I picked it. It’s a fun survivor game to pick up and invite others to play with. If you have a controller, this game allows people to use either control stick. You don’t need to explain yourself, just know you have the option to make that choice. So pick up a copy and see if you get assistance from a celestial wizard like myself popping in to rid the forces of Cthulhu. Or you can do it yourself. I give The Spell Brigade the Thumb Culture Platinum Award
Whirlight: No Time To Trip is a brilliant little adventure game that feels like a genuine love letter to classic point-and-click titles without relying purely on nostalgia to carry it. The puzzles are clever, the writing is funny, the characters are genuinely lovable, and the presentation is fantastic from start to finish. More importantly, it’s just consistently enjoyable to play. Even when I got stuck on a puzzle, I still wanted to keep exploring the world and spending time with the characters. ImaginaryLab has clearly put a huge amount of care into this game, and it shows in every part of the experience. From the detailed environments to the sharp dialogue and inventive puzzle design, everything feels crafted with real passion. If you’re a fan of classic adventure games, this is an easy recommendation. And honestly, even if you’re normally not into point-and-click titles, Whirlight might still surprise you. It’s funny, charming, weird in all the right ways, and most importantly, it remembers that games are supposed to be fun. I give Whirlight: No Time To Trip the Thumb Culture Platinum Award!