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Vampire Survivors is an arcade game packed full of things to do and just when you think you’ve had your fill, the game will somehow drag you back for one more game. Vampire Survivors is one game that I can fully get behind and would recommend to everyone… except vampires.
Europa isn’t quite the boundless adventure that I was expecting. The joyful aerial exploration is held back by portions of lead-heavy ground traversal, slowing the gameplay to a crawl and sapping enjoyment from the experience. The visuals are striking at a distance but fail to hold up to closer scrutiny, making the decision not to make the game an entirely fly-by experience all the more baffling. Underpinned by a meaningful message that’s delivered with real heart, and boasting an incredibly powerful soundtrack, Europa, sadly, feels like an agonising near-miss.
Caravan SandWitch is a small-scale open world adventure that delivers a tale that’s as heart warming as it is sombre; it’s filled with nuanced relationships and impressively deep lore, and I found it a joy to experience. There’s little to fault about the cosy, risk free gameplay except that it simply may not be to everybody’s taste, but for me, it makes a nice change of pace to a landscape that’s currently bubbling over with ultra-tough soulslike adventures. Pottering around in your beat up old van and doing good deeds for people feels genuinely rewarding, and exploring the final abandoned outposts of civilisation on Cigalo offers a sense of adventure that’s so much bigger than its 10-15 hour runtime.
During its 4-hour playtime, I realised that Life of Delta is perfect for those looking to make their start in the point-and-click genre. Some puzzles are decidedly unclear, which could frustrate newbies, but those who’ve tackled this type of game before might find the game easy when it comes to gameplay.
Overall, Monolith is a bit of an enigma of a game. Worth a go, for sure, but this might be one that really leaves you most with a feeling of disappointment. If you like ambient settings, some light hearted dialogue interspersed with some fascinating story arc ideas and absolutely loooooved what they did to the finale of Game of Thrones, it’s time to blast off and pick this one up! If you're someone who can’t stand a bad ending, maybe leave this one on the digital shelf - personally, I’d have preferred a Sopranos style fade to black… hole.
Dreaming Sarah is a rather nonsensical wander through a string of surreal environments and sadly never coalesces into much more than a hodgepodge collection of ideas. It’s a carefree and low stakes affair which may appeal to some, but with almost no story to speak of, and driven by only the tiniest sliver of gameplay, I found my attention span waning long before the two-hour runtime was up.
The Iron Rig DLC offers that trademark DREDGE spookery, a myriad of new tools, and shoals of extra species to lengthen the overall experience. This new tale isn’t as well told as The Pale Reach, but the extra gameplay content is much broader in scope, encouraging me to even polish off quests from the main game that I had previously consigned to the deep. If ‘more of the same’ makes you want to pull your waders on one more time then you won’t be disappointed, but players expecting vast new experiences may want to give it a miss.
Machinarium is a ‘straight off the lot’ point-and-click puzzler that excels through some wonderful world building, clever storytelling and adorable characters. Whilst never straying far from the standard formula, there’s still plenty to enjoy, not least the fantastic, rust-covered visuals and well constructed soundtrack. This is one I’d recommend to newcomers and veterans of the genre in equal measure - while old school fans might not get much brain stretching out of it, it’s worth everyone’s time for the chance to experience this wacky welded world for yourself.
Overall, Sword of Convallaria leaves me torn. On one hand, the stunning artwork, impressive soundtrack and detailed tactical combat are all huge positives that would normally propel the game to a much stronger recommendation. But on the flip side, the time-restricted gameplay, unbalancing gacha aspects and aggressive microtransactions are pretty sizable turn-offs. Perhaps more palatable to experienced mobile gamers than traditional TRPG fans, it irks me that so much potential is buried beneath so many unsavoury pay-to-win mechanics.
SCHiM is a sweet little platformer that takes a joyous childhood idea and turns it into a heartwarming story that’s engaging and enjoyable. It shows off some great silent storytelling that connects you to the main characters by way of a great introduction and finale, despite losing some steam in the middle. SCHiM showcases an undoubtedly wonderful mechanic against some striking backdrops, and while it doesn’t quite get into high gear, there can be no denying that this shadowy hop-fest is great fun, and that some of the finer details will certainly bring a smile to your face.
Overall, Noreya: The Gold Project is a sprawling Metroidvania that offers 20-hours of nimble exploration amidst some simple combat and a somewhat fractured plotline. Despite sporting some lovely pixel art visuals, a wonderful musical score and an intriguing premise, there’s a general lack of polish that left me a little wanting. Established Metroidvania fans will find a solid addition to the genre with plenty to enjoy, but in the end Noreya might serve as a reminder that all that glitters is not gold.
In a vacuum, it’s hard to recommend the original We Were Here – it may be free, but it’s plagued by audio issues throughout and is decidedly simpler than the newer entries, inviting entirely the wrong kind of headache. But from the perspective of the franchise as a whole, it does offer a cool window into the origins of We Were Here, and it’s obvious that the seeds of many great ideas are already beginning to take root in this initial entry, shaky though it is.
Duck Detective: The Secret Salami is a send up of the detective noir, and it’s executed almost to perfection. The simple, yet highly effective mechanics do a tremendous job of steering you through the case, which is filled with engaging characters and bolstered by some wonderful voice-acting. The bright and playful visuals are adorable and almost belie the well-written mystery that plays out. Hampered only by its short runtime of 2-3 hours, I dearly hope this is just the first of many sleuthing stories for Eugene McQuacklin. Play it at the risk of being left with a serious hunger for bread… and justice.
On the face of it, Wild Seas seems like one of those cute indie titles that will be a calm and relaxing time. After a few minutes, you’ll understand that this isn’t the case and the game is surprisingly demanding, with elements of resource management and positioning of the defences taking priority. Sure, it’s over far too quickly and the God awful “music” can return to the sea, but if you’re in the market for a budget tower defence game that is fun and offers addictive gameplay then you can’t go wrong with Wild Seas.
There isn’t a lot to SokoMage and the levels are over far too quickly. It reminds me of the games that get churned out specifically for achievement hunters rather than having any kind of substance, which is a shame because what is contained in SokoMage is somewhat different in that respect. The puzzles get trickier, particularly as the game expects objects to be shuffled between screens and the introduction of multiple solutions lead to a few head-scratching moments. SokoMage is a super short experience that does delight but is over far too quickly and offers no incentive to replay it once you’ve cleared the game.
Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution is a sharp, well-written entry in the Hyperdimension Neptunia series. The plot is genuinely funny and if it was presented as a visual novel over a dungeon-crawling RPG, it would undoubtedly be one of my favourite games of 2024. Sadly, the boring dungeons and lacklustre combat killed any momentum that the story tried to build. The limited enemy pool and the lack of any challenge will put off any RPG fan, possibly even those who consider themselves Nep-Nep aficionados. Neptunia Game Maker R:Evolution is a game that tells people that it’s perhaps time for Compile Heart to slow down on the quantity of games and focus on the quality of the end product.
We had an excellent time playing PlateUp!, and have no hesitation recommending it for players with a hankering for a decent portion of multiplayer fun. The roguelike mechanics are both solid and tricky to master. It’s addictive to play, and you’ll find yourself laughing and squabbling with your buddies in equal measure, which is great fun. Whilst entirely understandable, the lack of cross-play is one of the only downsides, with perhaps some rather sudden spikes in difficulty coming as a close second. If you’re looking for an engaging, long term multiplayer challenge, tuck in your napkin and take a big bite out of PlateUp!, it’ll satisfy you nicely.
Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch is a lovely RPG that excels at drawing you into a well designed world with pretty visuals and some really well written lore. The gameplay is something of a hodgepodge affair, mashing together chunks from every other JRPG into its own clunky system that’s just unique enough to keep you engaged throughout. Ultimately, the fun story, well-voiced characters and Studio Ghibli visuals weren’t quite enough to overcome the repetitive and oft-frustrating combat for me, though there’s plenty here to recommend for established JRPG fans.
Isles of Sea and Sky is a tremendously fun puzzle game that weaves a grand fabric of mystery from the humble strands of gaming fundamentals harkening back 30-years. I’m amazed how well a collection of incredibly simple mechanics have been carefully layered on top of one another to eke out an ever-increasing difficulty in such a steady and measured fashion. With a polished NES-style look, engrossing score and a boatload of secrets, it’s a game that’s as addictive as it is enjoyable, suffering only mildly from some murky storytelling. Make no mistake, this is a victory for indie gaming and solo developers the world over.