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The Sims 4: Enchanted by Nature is a charming and content-rich addition that brings the fantasy genre into a grounded, eco-friendly light. It doesn’t try to reinvent the game, but rather deepens it with new systems that encourage exploration, creativity, and storytelling. Whether you’re a builder, a legacy player, or someone who just wants to give their Sim a pet hedgehog made of moss (true story), there’s something in these woods for you. Is it for everyone? Probably not. If you prefer high-tech careers, fast city life, or ultra-modern aesthetics, you might find the flower crowns and crystal groves a bit too “woo-woo.” But for players who enjoy fantasy, natural beauty, and slow-paced immersion, this DLC is a woodland dream come true. So go ahead, grab your hiking boots, stock up on acorn tea, and prepare to get lost (in a good way). Nature has never felt so enchanting. The Sims 4: Enchanted by Nature gets the Thumb Culture Platinum Award!
At the start, I was interested and loved how Necromancer’s Tale sets up with building your character. But once past the prologue, I was starting to lose my patience. Most of the time I spent was running around trying to find what to do next. The journal offers a broad hint of what to do, but doesn’t log previous dialogue for you to skim through. Which then forced me to return to the previous NPC, run through all the chatter and re-select my words, just for a small hint. I’d recommend a log of things your character has discovered. For example, rumours, info on characters and what they’ve said to be logged as well in the journal. The game needs a lot of work on the UI and some of the mini-menus. Such as not having to apply my sword every time I re-enter town. Maybe add a toggle feature to holster your blade. And better ways to make money, instead of only allowing you to work once per chapter. How far I got After playing until chapter 10, it felt like not much had happened in my story. The fact that I wasn’t really feeling like a necromancer left me disappointed. I mean, one of the creatures I could control wasn’t even made by me. Story wise it is interesting, it just feels oddly drawn out for no reason. The gameplay is both too simplistic and complicated at the same time. It’s light on the combat, and enemies go between hitting you 5 times or just once, which is odd. Especially when they move closer to me from far away. All in all, Necromancer’s Tale runs okay, but in the end, I gave it the college try. I just couldn’t finish, as I lost interest after reaching the ballroom. I may continue at another time, but not now. It’s a hit or a miss for The Necromancer’s Tale, so I’m giving it the Thumb Culture Silver Award. It might be up your alley, just not mine.
I thought I’d review Fears to Fathom in its entirety because each episode is more based on your preference. But I love how the dev takes stories from the community and brings them to life for a wider audience to enjoy. Some are better than others, with episode one being the weakest. My favourite episode was Carson’s House, where we house-sat for our dad’s friend. It felt more eerie than the other episodes, and the twist got me. With each episode, you’re able to see the improvements that Rayll has made over time. I’m going to be looking forward to season 2. I’d highly suggest checking these out. That’s why I’ll give it the Thumb Culture Golden Award. The first two episodes are hit or miss for me, which lowers the rating.
I really enjoyed Unfinished Business—worth the price, and I’d love a similar yearly experience to scratch that itch. It isn’t innovative, but it doesn’t need to be. It’s perfect if you want a shooter where you don’t need lightning reflexes and a PhD in knee slides. It is my fourth directive to award RoboCop: Rogue City – Unfinished Business a Thumb Culture Gold Award.
In summary, Hell Clock is simply a great game. It has all the mechanics that make a roguelite great – beneficial progression between runs, variety of skills and RNG elements. Then it layers in ARPG elements and skill trees for extra touch. It also provides the player with plenty of options for how laid back or difficult they want to play through the game. With these in mind and for a game that also looks this good, I could give it nothing less than the Thumb Culture Platinum Thumb Award.
Even though Streetfighter 6 has been doing the rounds for the previous two years, it holds up incredibly well on the new Nintendo hardware. Yes, it has its limited graphical settings but the game is still crisp thanks to the incredible DLSS at work. With accessible control schemes that welcome even new players of the franchise, you will enjoy every fight, every special move, and every KO. Streetfighter 6 gets the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
The hype I had from playing the demo was definitely not let down in the full release. Powerhoof really surprised me with the direction in which they took this story and I truly loved playing it. Mick is a really interesting character and learning more about why he was a drifter was a unique experience that I’ve not really had in a point and click game. I’m so glad I got the chance to sink my teeth into The Drifter and would recommend it to anyone that was already a fan of the genre or looking for a way to step into it. It wouldn’t be fair to give The Drifter anything other than the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
As with all Sonic games, you get what you expect. Fast-paced, frantic action with a little dash of challenge. Sonic X Shadow Generations is no different. The game comes to Switch 2 with a mixed experience. Fortunately, the Sonic version of the game more than makes up for the inadequacies of the Ultimate Life Form. Sonic X Shadow Generations receives the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army is in my opinion the best way to remaster a game. Upgrading the art style, adding a few life improvements to certain mechanics, and giving a game that was once mute a voice, was absolute cinema. I was originally worried that they were going to only put on a new splash of paint and change nothing. Yet, I’m glad I was wrong on that front. Getting to see a game I loved when I was in high school was finally getting attention is wonderful. Hopefully the attention that’ll convince ATLUS to give us the 2nd game as well, with maybe a new third game to the series? I give Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
As mentioned already, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Prison Boss: Prohibition. There were a few physics glitches here and there but for the most part everything ran smoothly. I’ve personally recommended it to friends so we can enjoy the co-op mode together and I will definitely be keeping it in my library. I really thought long and hard about if to award this a gold or a platinum review. I feel in an ideal scenario, there would be a few more levels and a little bit more structure around goals and objectives. Ticking them boxes would absolutely give it top marks. Prison Boss: Prohibition receives the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Indie studios are consistently creating some fantastic games, and Star Overdrive is one such example. Caracal Games Studio is a small, Italian team of around a dozen people and, with the publishing help of Dear Villagers, have delivered a brilliant adventure. This was a really fun title to play, with some beautifully unique environments to explore. Whilst the combat is fairly basic and the puzzles not too taxing, Star Overdrive is, overall, a game definitely worth playing. That’s why I’m giving Star Overdrive the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
Cornerpond keeps things simple. Simple premise, simple gameplay, simple style, and honestly, that’s its whole charm. It isn’t trying to be anything more, and I appreciate and respect that. If you enjoy the vibe of the little idle pond at the corner of your screen, that is all that really matters. What’s more, its incredibly low price point of around 3 bucks makes it, in my opinion, an absolute steal. It will absolutely join my ever-growing collection of idle games that are running on my PC at every waking hour. At some point, I may have to go out and buy a fourth screen to house all of them… Anyways. Today, Cornerpond gets a nice and simple Thumb Culture Gold Award!
So, should you be picking up Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S? Definitely, whilst you might not want to pick it up at full price and wait for a sale. I can guarantee that wherever you pick it up from, you will have a lot of fun with this one. Puyo Puyo Tetris 2S gets the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
All in all, what do we think? The game sure has a lot of content, but the pacing can be a bit slow if you are impatient like me. The gameplay itself is fun and doesn’t feel too repetitive or grindy, at least not for me, even though you basically do the same thing every day. Some of the customers can be a little stupid, but let’s be real: that only makes it more realistic. Now, this is not to say that the game has no flaws. There are some controversies around this game related to its art, which has (allegedly) got a very strong AI feel to it. A lot of people seem to be bothered by this, especially since the use of AI would need to be disclosed on the Steam page. However, this has not really been confirmed and is still a bit up in the air. Another big issue is the fact that there is no key remapping, so unless you change your keyboard language, the game is near impossible to play on certain keyboards. This is also quite an accessibility flaw, as some people prefer to remap keys for comfort or convenience. For me, this game doesn’t stick out all too much among the countless other simulation games that dropped in the past year, but it’s definitely up there with the better ones. It delivers what it promises, has a fun gameplay loop and gives you a good chunk of content. That being said, today I am giving Supermarket Simulator the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
The only reason I gave Fruitbus a Thumb Culture Gold Award last time was because of how aggravating it was having to rebuy a shovel over and over again. I’m a console girl at heart so maybe that was why I enjoyed Fruitbus even more this time around? It was so much fun getting back into my little bus and meeting all the NPCs again. Because of the improvements the dev has made, it seems only right that this time Fruitbus receives the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
All in all, Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping is a great, calm game to unwind or relax with. Its cute art style and charming sound design create a wonderfully serene atmosphere that just fits the vibe perfectly. I loved trying to discover as many fish as I possibly could, and I really spent a good amount of time trying to get a lot of the unique fish. Needless to say, I will absolutely keep playing this game to try and complete my FishDex (and for the seasonal events, of course). If you are looking for a nice little game to chill, or you just like watching little fishies swim around all day, this may just be the game for you! But if you’re still unsure if the game is for you, there is a Demo you can play on Steam, and even better your progress from it carries over to the full game! Imagine my reaction when I saw all of my poor fishies that had been neglected for months waiting for me… I give Tiny Aquarium: Social Fishkeeping the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
FBC: Firebreak brings the action back into the Control universe with a different perspective. Still, all the crazy amount of paranormal things you’d expect, though, and sometimes more. Is it worth your time to check out? I’d definitely say yes if you love the lore and setting from Control and enjoy some co-op nonsense. Just be aware that it’s fairly straight into the fire and may be rough to get going. I recommend bringing along some friends. It could do for some minor improvements such as more accurate matchmaking and a robust player stats area. However, Remedy Entertainment has already put out a patch addressing some of the major gameplay issues brought forth by the community. FBC: Firebreak is definitely worthy of the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Rooftops & Alleys: The Parkour Game is a decent game that just doesn’t have quite enough content to keep me going back for more. Whilst the multiplayer is undoubtedly the most enjoyable aspect, the single-player mode’s lack of activities does let it down. If you’re as starved for extreme sports games as I am, then this will satiate your appetite somewhat. Best to grab some friends for this one, though. Rooftops & Alleys: The Parkour Game get the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Getting to explore Ruffy’s entire world through so many wacky and yet charming eyes was honestly an amazing treat. Getting to explore different methods or finding out what works with swapping one another is both fun and aggravating. There are times I wish that my swap ability either lasted longer or we had a bit more freedom on swapping anything into anything. Although I feel the developers had that first thought and realize that it’s not a great idea to do. If you’re a big collectathon/platformer enjoyer or want to play another game that Banjo-Kazooie/Paper Mario inspired, then play Ruffy. Just know that the fights aren’t the grizzly and your biggest enemy is just yourself… but only “bear”ly . I give Ruffy and the Riverside the Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
As a casual, short, and rewarding experience, I highly recommend A Building Full Of Cats 2. Actually, the whole Full of Cats series, if hidden-objects games and/or cats are your jam. You can’t go wrong for the price, and you’ll be supporting an important cause, as a portion of money from each game goes towards rescuing, fostering, and adopting cats. A Building Full Of Cats 2 gets a Thumb Culture Gold Award. Go wishlist of purchase on Steam now, there’s an introductory 10% discount until June 30th.