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V Rising's surprising blend of genres manages to incorporate a vampire simulation no game has accomplished. Harvesting blood from foes and the innocent to not only strengthen your powers and your castle results in a satisfying, gothic fantasy.
Kitsune Tails is a charming 2D-platformer that I just adored playing. While it may have been more difficult than I had initially envisioned, completing the game to the end was worth it, if only to see Yuzu and her friends' stories come to a close in a heartfelt way. Kitsune Games and MidBoss have given players a wealth of tools to create some cool levels and minigames, and I cannot wait to see what players create!
Kunitsu-Gami: Path of the Goddess, developed by Capcom, brings good and stylish action to its gameplay, while incorporating strategy elements to slow it down. If you like a tactical side mixed with your action, then you’re going to love what this game offers. It felt a bit imbalanced for my taste, and I wanted more action to take the lead in this gameplay experience.
Indika unquestionably defies definition. A swirl of impactful narrative and visual decisions are meant to resonate with the player longer than they linger on screen. It may be offbeat to a fault but this brief journey is uncompromising in vision.
Killer Klowns From Outer Space: The Game excels in its uncomplicated experiment with asymmetrical multiplayer. Rather than bog players down in multiple systems, IllFonic and Teravision choose kinetic gameplay that always has players doing something. Such a stripped-down experience is made memorable by the campy nature of the film, quick matches, and fast leveling. Of course, the circus elephant in the room is how welcome the community will be towards embracing a game that leans more into thrills and less into horror. Will the Killer Klowns wrap us up in its sugary embrace or scare us away?
Zet Zillions from developer OTA IMON Studios is an addictive roguelike deckbuilder that doesn’t quite reach the likes of Balatro but certainly proves its worth in replayability and thick strategy. While it isn’t completely perfect in some elements of its design, it’s still one of the better games of this genre that I’ve played in 2024.
Hauntii is absolutely one of a kind, despite the familiarity players may latch on to. Moonloop Games creates a title focused on exploration that is visually riveting and packed with attention to detail. Incorporating puzzles both obtuse and clever, frustration and satisfaction may go hand in hand. But enough narrative heft and creative depth mean Hauntii is no mere specter that will fade into memory.
Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II from developer Ninja Theory and publisher Xbox Game Studios proves there is more story to tell from Senua’s journey, and that the story is still centric to the game. The sequel extends and expands Senua’s character, opens her world to more possibilities, and maintains its quest to replicate and address mental health issues and disorders caused by trauma. The gameplay mechanics and action are still essentially the same as the first title, although those elements appear to be far smoother in their execution and less of a drag to the story.
Kemono Heroes from developer Mad Gear Games and publisher JanduSoft is a fun action beat ‘em up that keeps the gameplay simple, delivers creative enemies and levels, and throws some good boss fights into the experience. While the upgrades are a bit restrictive with their progression, the game offers far more fun than not.
Lorelei and the Laser Eyes from developer Simogo and publisher Annapurna Interactive is a strange and wonderous new direction for Simogo’s post-Sayonara Wild Hearts success. It’s a beautiful mixture of thick narrative and difficult puzzles that ask a lot of the player but deliver an equal amount by the end. Some players may get frustrated by the beginning of the game as it gives you little direction on what you should be doing, but once they’re on the progression rails, the game rolls and gets better.
I don’t consider Athenian Rhapsody to be anything like Undertale despite some of its similarities. It’s very well written, often getting me to audibly laugh because of its absurdist humor that surprised me time after time. I truly appreciated having agency to play as I liked in this RPG and the novelty of the Rhapsody system is enough for me to be excited about seeing other players play through to the end. While I have some reservations about the way the story has been constructed and the implementation of the Rhapsody system, there’s enough for players to enjoy if they are interested in a truly silly RPG.
Crow Country is the perfect kind of nostalgic trip, one that doesn’t bait players along in hopes of being more of the same thing they remembered. The best games of its type work to wedge themselves into the library of classics they were inspired by. Crow Country looks, sounds, and plays similar to old 32- and 64-bit games because it is, not because it wants to be.
The end result of The Rise of the Golden Idol is one of great success. In the midst of a multitude of puzzles and point-and-click gameplay is a gem that is worthy of the best thinky game of 2024.
Knowing the ending of FFXVI, The Rising Tide doesn’t change Clive’s outcome or add a meaningful impact to the world to warrant an emotional introspection like the main game’s story. Instead, it adds additional power to Clive’s Eikonic skillset, making him appropriately powerful for postgame content that will assuredly punish players and test their might in Final Fantasy Mode. It might be a weirdly timed expansion, but it adds enough meat to the core gameplay to encourage replaying.
Stellar Blade is a welcome experiment to the PlayStation brand. Developer SHIFT UP has created an action game that should catch eyes for more than just its female protagonist. Though not a risky game in its own right, a complex web of combat skills and harrowing enemies breathe life into a mysterious world that provides just enough intrigue. Nostalgic in all the right ways and evocative of an era where the bizarre and bombastic thrived, Stellar Blade is a satisfying distraction.
Phantom Fury is a decent boomer shooter, albeit one that emphasizes environmental interactivity over an arcade-inspired killing spree in which everything is a weapon. The few moments of cinematic silliness are par for the course in the boomer shooter genre, but they’re not enough to make this any less of a slog.
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU accomplishes the difficult role of translating a deeply personal concept into the medium of gaming. With a lack of intricate backtracking and complex combat, Surgent Studios’ platformer is relatively simple. But the extraordinary narrative, paired with equally powerful visuals and audio provide an experience that is engaging enough to not commit the sin of forgetting it must also be fun and resonant.
Unicorn Overlord is a masterpiece of a strategy role playing game. Its presentation in giving players freedom to play as they like, go as strategically deep as they like, and the masterful onboarding of often-overly-complicated SRPG elements make it a compelling and beautiful experience. If you’re unfamiliar with SRPGs or are a longtime fan, look no further than Unicorn Overlord.
The remastered game represents the old one nicely without going too far or destroying any of the original game’s essence. While some of the 90s gameplay concepts in Croc – Legend of the Gobbos Remastered are still stuck in the 90s, some elements are improved. This may not hit with new gamers but it’s undoubtedly going to please those raised during that 90s video game era.
If Saviorless is Cuba’s first independent video game, then players are in for an aesthetically pleasing yet moody future of game design that touches on emotional elements that leave a mark on the psyche. Saviorless isn’t the best example of a platformer, but it’s a great start to something truly novel in the platforming space.