TheGamer - Indie Game Features

The Oppenheimer Discourse Has Me Thinking About My Favourite Indie Game About War

Tessa Kaur — Fri, 28 Jul 2023 16:16:20 GMT

Oppenheimer has been a very divisive movie for those without baseline media literacy. Some are boycotting it because it doesn’t feature the Japanese people directly affected by the weapons of mass destruction that J. Robert Oppenheimer created, but I think it’s clear we’re seeing the world through Oppenheimer’s eyes and that indicates his lack of willingness to fully face the atrocity that he abetted. Others inexplicably believe it is government propaganda, which is a wild take on a movie that is explicitly about finding a way to live with yourself after doing something so objectively horrible that it has irreparably changed the course of history.

I Tried Using A PS VR2 Meditation App And Got Stressed Out

Mike Drucker — Thu, 27 Jul 2023 17:00:20 GMT

There is nothing harder for me than trying to relax. Maybe losing a loved one, but who knows? While my loathsome body yearns to never move, my brain is like a pinball machine created by some sneaksby who hates me. Imagine having a roommate in your head who yells at you about dishes and then looks over your shoulder as you do those dishes telling you that you’re wasting your life. Fortunately, I’ve met with medical professionals and specialists who’ve helped diagnose and improve these issues. Unfortunately, they don’t take my insurance so that’s fucking stressful, too.

Three Years On, The Queen’s Gambit Finally Has An Official Chess Video Game

Ben Sledge — Tue, 25 Jul 2023 16:00:21 GMT

Rockwater Studio pitched a Queen’s Gambit chess game to Netflix before Netflix Games was even a thing. In fact, Rockwater found out about the ambitious project attached to the streaming service minutes before it was due to pitch its idea for the game. With that new information in hand, the studio’s head of marketing Jamie Brayshaw ditched all his meticulously prepared slides and pitch notes to grasp this new opportunity. His flexible approach worked, and Rockwater was working with Netflix.

It's Where’s Waldo?, But Waldo Is Bees In This Relaxing Indie Game

Andrew King — Sun, 23 Jul 2023 14:01:19 GMT

The creator of I Commissioned Some Bees 0 did what the title says. This tiny free indie game offers 10 pieces of art commissioned by developer Follow The Fun, each hiding dozens of bees in plain sight.

These Developers Are Making Games For The Love Of Art, Not For Money

Tessa Kaur — Sat, 22 Jul 2023 15:30:20 GMT

In the last few years, the use of generative artificial intelligence in the gaming industry has rapidly increased. Unity announced AI features to make developing games with its software easier (meaning it’ll probably repurpose existing stolen art and assets), games are increasingly using AI-generated art (such as High on Life), and voice actors are having their voices stolen and used in videos and mods without their consent.

Stardew Valley's Continuous Updates Are A Testament To Its Greatness

Jade King — Fri, 21 Jul 2023 15:30:20 GMT

Few games have the staying power of Stardew Valley. Since its release in 2016 the farming life simulator has sold millions of copies and been ported to every platform imaginable. This success will likely be replicated in the next project from developer ConcernedApe: Haunted Chocolatier. For now though, Stardew continues to receive lots of love through a constant audience of players new and old, alongside new content updates and a bustling modding scene. Seven years later, and few games in the world can equal its grandiose appeal.

A $2 Switch Game Is My Favorite Horror Game Of The Year

Mike Drucker — Thu, 20 Jul 2023 15:30:22 GMT

All it took was seeing the words ‘Dread XP’ in the publisher section to get me to buy Fishing Vacation on the Switch. Well, that and it only cost $2. The $2 part is probably what stopped me dead in my tracks because, if you’ve read anything else I’ve written, I consistently buy strange games that make no sense. If your game is under $5 and looks batshit, there’s a good chance I’m going to regret buying it.

One Of 2023's Best Games Is Also Its Ugliest

Stacey Henley — Thu, 20 Jul 2023 15:00:16 GMT

Saying that one of 2023's best games is also its ugliest seems pretty straight-forward: I'm telling you there's a game that is a lot of fun but looks like garbage, right? That's not really what this is. The game, for all those Saved You A Click accounts salivating, is Bramble: The Mountain King, and by no technical measure is it the best. It runs awfully, and not in the frame rate/stability sense that we're supposed to care about these days. It runs badly in ways games used to in the good old days, like how when you jump for a platform you'll clip right through it, or you'll pass through a doorway and the level won't load. This game is made of bubblegum and sellotape. Also it's very ugly. I know I'm not selling it well. But Bramble: The Mountain King is one of the best games of 2023, and by 'best', maybe you should think of it as 'interesting'.

For Me, Oxenfree 2 Was An Allegory For Substance Abuse

Tessa Kaur — Sun, 16 Jul 2023 14:30:18 GMT

I recently reviewed Oxenfree 2, and while the game has gotten criticism for not being able to let go of its past, that flaw made sense to me thematically. I don’t want to read too far into the developers’ intentions and draw connections where they don’t exist, but Oxenfree 2 is a game about cycles and choices. The game's core mechanic is time-looping, with many puzzles locking you in a situation until you do things correctly. Terrible things will happen over and over, in different permutations, until you figure out how to escape the cycle. Only you can do it, nobody else. You have to free yourself.

2023 Is The Year Of The Indie Fishing Game

Ben Sledge — Sat, 15 Jul 2023 17:30:16 GMT

My favourite fishing minigames all come from Zelda titles. I love the Red Lion’s silly cranking crane in The Wind Waker, despite the fact that it’s less of a minigame and more of a ‘press a button to dredge a treasure chest from the depths’ game. It was the rock of the boat as it struggled against the weight of your treasure and the sound of the winch creaking that made it feel so good. It also had the added bonus of being marked on an actual treasure map, which made it feel so much more exciting.

Dredge Has Just Fixed The Only Thing That Made Me Stop Playing It

Tessa Kaur — Tue, 11 Jul 2023 16:00:16 GMT

I’ve previously written about Dredge, and how horror games terrify me in general. Dredge isn’t that scary, but that’s largely because I fine-tuned my gameplay experience to ensure I’d play as safely and calmly as possible. In Dredge, you’re a fisherman who mostly, well, fishes. But you also run errands for a mysterious collector who gives you almost supernatural abilities in return, and each new area you venture to has a new kind of scary monster keen to kill you and gobble you up for dinner. It’s not just that – the game is Lovecraftian to its core, filling the waters with terrifying creatures. You can’t fight them, only flee them. There’s a mechanic where the more sleep deprived you get, the more paranoid you get, and the world gets more dangerous. Forget to sleep for too long and a ghost ship will appear and smash into you at full speed, or birds may steal your catch.

Don't Sleep On Dave The Diver

Ben Sledge — Mon, 10 Jul 2023 19:00:17 GMT

Dave the Diver is a great guy. Just one look at him and you’re drowning in good vibes. When he dons his diving suit and takes a plunge into the ever-shifting waters of Blue Hole, you will him to succeed. I don't know if it's his earnest dialogue or little pixel art beard that does it for me, but I found myself rooting for Dave to succeed within minutes of loading up the game.

Geoguessr's Most Popular Map Has Been Deleted

Ben Sledge — Mon, 10 Jul 2023 18:00:17 GMT

You might not know the name Mapper, but it’s the moniker of a prolific game designer… in a sense. Mapper is responsible for millions of hours of fun thanks to his contributions to Geoguessr, the Google Maps based game where you have to figure out where in the world you are. It’s a deceptively simple game with a whole host of hard work behind the scenes to make it run smoothly.

Portal: The Flash Version Is A Reminder Of A Happier Internet

Ben Sledge — Sat, 08 Jul 2023 14:00:17 GMT

I’ve been feeling nostalgic lately. All the anti-consumer changes to the internet as we know it and the agonising death of Web2.0 have me yearning for that ‘00s online world. As I was writing about my experiences playing Line Rider and Runescape, frequenting forums and generally enjoying the freedom that the world wide web allowed me, I also played Portal for the first time. Except it wasn’t developed by Valve.

The Greatest Fighting Game Of All Time Is Only $4 During The Steam Sale

Mike Drucker — Sat, 08 Jul 2023 13:30:15 GMT

What’s the best fighting game of all time? Street Fighter 6? Sure, that’s alright. Mortal Kombat 11? Great game, if you’re into it. Super Smash Bros. Ultimate? Not bad at all. War Gods? You don’t even know what that game is, stop lying. Yes, these are all great fighting games. Except for War Gods. Which is terrible. Just painful. Awful way to waste your limited time on Earth. I give it a 7.9 out of 10.

Gylt Review - The Google Stadia Exclusive Breaks Free

Andrew King — Thu, 06 Jul 2023 17:11:16 GMT

When Google Stadia launched back in 2019, a little horror game called Gylt was notably the cloud gaming service’s only exclusive. The press wondered if Stadia could keep up with fast-paced games like Doom, and whether the potential to play games anywhere with only a controller and a Wi-Fi connection would outweigh the ridiculous a la carte business model which required users to buy each Cloud-based game individually. Now, Google Stadia and its terrible business model are dead, but Gylt remains.

The Internet Sucks Now, Play Hypnospace Outlaw

Ben Sledge — Wed, 05 Jul 2023 15:31:15 GMT

The internet is in ruins. Or at least, the free internet as we know it. I’m of a generation who remembers the internet pre-social media (just about), when forums dominated the web and you could only see tweets if you had a bird feeder. Well, hear tweets. You get the joke. Birds, grass, Musk, etc.

The Mystery Of A Missing Painting In Hercule Poirot: The London Case

Harry Alston — Wed, 05 Jul 2023 00:00:18 GMT

Poirot fiddles with his moustache, swooning over ladies and mysteries alike. The second Poirot game from Blazing Griffin studios, based in Glasgow, unites Poirot with his famous companion, Hastings, and sends them off on an adventure into pre-war London. Based on the ambiguous years before Agatha Christie’s string of novels documented the fictitious life of everyone’s favourite Belgian detective, the game has the freedom to dream up new mysteries, new characters, and new intrigue.

I Can't Wait To Solve A Murder Entirely Through Wiki Articles Later This Month

Tessa Kaur — Tue, 04 Jul 2023 16:45:17 GMT

I came across Neurocracy for the first time while scrolling on Twitter earlier today – surprisingly, I have not yet been rate limited, and thank god for that because it’s given me a new hyperfixation. Neurocracy is an entirely free, augmented/alternate reality browser-based game, originally released in ten weekly episodes from July to September 2021. You play by opening up omnipedia.app. You’ll see something that looks like Wikipedia. That’s fine. Just start reading.

New Escape Academy DLC Fixes The Finale Problem

Eric Switzer — Sun, 02 Jul 2023 23:24:16 GMT

It’s been interesting to watch the rise of escape room games, which were born out of the virtual escape room experiences concocted during the pandemic to keep the popular corporate team-building activity alive. Co-op puzzlers are some of my favorite games, and while it will take some monumental effort to dethrone the We Were Here series as my all-time favorite, I still have a lot of admiration for Escape Academy. Its focus on narrative elevates each level and gives the puzzles a purpose rather than a theme, which often makes them more memorable than the puzzles in other escape games. Often laugh-out-loud funny, Escape Academy sets a high bar for approachable and entertaining escape room games.

The Password Game Is The World's Most Sadistic Wordle

Andrew King — Sat, 01 Jul 2023 15:30:16 GMT

The Password Game will help you generate the strongest possible password. But, at what cost?

Annapurna Showcase Brings Creativity, Ambition, And Heart To The Forefront

Jade King — Thu, 29 Jun 2023 19:29:52 GMT

Annapurna Interactive continues to be the A24 of video games. While it might throw out the occasional stinker like 12 Minutes, most of its published games are striking, innovative, and unlike anything else you can find in the medium. It gives a platform to fantastic ideas that might otherwise go unnoticed, and in the process has become a name to keep an eye on.

Steam Next Fest Reminded Me Why I Love Games

Ben Sledge — Thu, 29 Jun 2023 15:00:17 GMT

Sometimes gaming gets you down. There’s nothing in particular that does it, but after dozens of hours pretending to be a Jedi, then slogging through a Hyrule I’d already explored, and then preparing for the next big release, I grew a bit tired. Triple-A games are too big and too long, and I was burning myself out.

Viewfinder Is The Most Innovative Physics Puzzler Since Portal

Ben Sledge — Mon, 26 Jun 2023 17:00:18 GMT

Viewfinder has a great premise. You snap a picture, and place it into the world you currently inhabit. Then, you walk into said picture. You placed the picture upside down? You’ll be walking on the ceiling. On a slant? You’ll go up it like a ramp. It’s an ingenious mechanic and, you can see exactly why early footage of the game was a viral internet sensation, but the implementation of said mechanic is even better than I could have imagined, simultaneously encouraging creativity and giving unique solutions to relatively simple puzzles.

Citizen Sleeper's Solo Developer Isn't Quite Ready To Let Go

Ben Sledge — Sun, 25 Jun 2023 17:00:18 GMT

“If I was doing a new game, I would never dare to do any of this stuff,” Gareth Damian Martin tells me while listing off all the Citizen Sleeper-adjacent projects they’re working on at the moment. Aside from the sequel (and its animated trailer that they were incredibly hands-on with), there’s the TTRPG, the vinyl, the physical art book, and Helion Dispatches, a series of in-universe audio transcripts aimed at bridging the gap between Citizen Sleeper and Starward Vector. Their fingers are in a lot of pies, ensuring that all-important Damian Martin fingerprint is firmly imprinted on anything coexisting in the universe they created.

Western Final Fantasy XIV Players Could Learn From The JP Loot System, But They Won't

Meg Pelliccio — Sat, 24 Jun 2023 16:00:17 GMT

This week, the Western Final Fantasy 14 community was surprised to discover that Japanese players utilise an incredibly fair system when it comes to looting in duties. Japanese content creator yabi yabi shared a video that explained the ‘Take from the Left’ system used in Party Finder, where the party all roll on one item at a time starting from the left, and whichever player wins the roll then leaves the party afterward to allow someone else the chance to bag the next prize.

If You’re Excited For Starfield, Play The Invincible Demo Right Now

Ben Sledge — Thu, 22 Jun 2023 16:30:17 GMT

You see sand, imposing cliffs, metal plants, and a giant gaping hole tunneling through the stone. You raise a complicated-looking x-ray instrument to your face, and see the plant’s metallic, sprawling roots run deep. Putting it away, you head towards the cavern. It’s perfect, too perfect to have formed naturally, but still you enter. Your Astrogator buzzes a warning in your ear from the safety of his orbiting ship. You enter anyway. You pass out immediately.

Can Journalists Make A Good Video Game?

Ben Sledge — Thu, 22 Jun 2023 16:00:17 GMT

It’s a well-known fact that games journalists are bad at video games. It’s why we’re constantly pushing for accessibility and approachability changes in the medium – not to help more people play more games, but for our own satisfaction. It’s why, in some circles, easy game modes are dubbed ‘journalist mode’.

These Are The Best Steam Fest Demos To Play This Year

Tessa Kaur — Thu, 22 Jun 2023 15:00:17 GMT

I love demos. They’re a great marketing tool for publishers, but even better for players who’ve had their interests piqued but are still unsure if they want to open their wallets and shell out for them. They’re especially great when it comes to indie games that might have unusual mechanics that players aren’t convinced will quite work. Steam Next Fest, which runs till June 26, celebrates upcoming games with a ton of free demos and developer livestreams, and there seems to be a demo for every kind of player. Some of the most interesting are listed below, but if none of these tickle your fancy, fret not. There are plenty more to explore.

Who Is The Actor In Layers Of Fear 2?

Matt Arnold — Wed, 21 Jun 2023 14:00:18 GMT

The second main story in Layers Of Fear (2023) is the full plot of Layers Of Fear 2. Players take the role of the Actor, a brilliant but troubled star of the stage and screen. Shooting a film on board a cruise ship under the watchful eye of a mysterious (and possibly inhuman) Director, the Actor dives into the past to build a character for the role.

Who Is The Painter In Layers Of Fear?

Matt Arnold — Wed, 21 Jun 2023 13:30:16 GMT

Layers Of Fear (2023) reveals its story in small pieces, often disjointed and subtle. Even if you play through the entire game, very little is actually spelled out for you; only by finding as many items as possible and paying close attention to the links between them can you assemble the tragic tale of the Painter and his family.

What Is Battlebit Remastered, The Popular Shooter That Definitely Isn’t Roblox?

Ben Sledge — Tue, 20 Jun 2023 18:00:18 GMT

Battlebit Remastered is currently the best selling game on Steam. It’s ahead of fellow competitive shooter Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, newly released F1 23, and Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered, which is not only on sale but also enjoying a renaissance thanks to the upcoming sequel. But you’d be forgiven for not having heard of Battlebit. It’s not got a global IP behind it like Spidey, it doesn’t have the years of FPS goodwill of CS:GO, and – let’s admit it – it looks like it was made in Roblox. So what is it and why has it suddenly exploded in popularity?

The Best Gifts For Every Villager In Stardew Valley

Christopher Padilla — Sat, 17 Jun 2023 17:45:18 GMT

One of the best ways to strengthen your relationships with characters in Stardew Valley is to give them Gifts. However, you can't just give them any old knick-knack: the people in Stardew Valley all have their own unique preferences, so if you want to be best pals with them — or marry them — you're going to have to make sure you give them something they actually like.

I've Never Played A Stranger Remake Than The 2023 Layers Of Fear

Andrew King — Fri, 16 Jun 2023 16:15:16 GMT

There has been no shortage of horror remasters, remakes, and resurrections this year. Dead Space, System Shock, and Resident Evil 4 all got glorious current-gen remakes, Metroid Prime got remastered for Switch, and Dead Island, Alan Wake, Diablo, and S.T.A.L.K.E.R. are all returning after a long time away. Still, of all the routes developers have chosen to revisit their spooky series, Bloober Team's path for Layers of Fear is the strangest.

Who Is The Academic In Darkest Dungeon 2?

Matt Arnold — Tue, 13 Jun 2023 12:31:15 GMT

Darkest Dungeon 2 is a story told by the Academic, the player character's former mentor. At first, you don't receive much in the way of details, only having a quest to save the world thrust upon you as if from nowhere. As you work your way through the game, though, you'll discover that there is much more to the Spreading Stain and its origins than you might have guessed.

Citizen Sleeper 2’s Pirate Radio Station Is More Exciting Than The Game Itself

Ben Sledge — Mon, 12 Jun 2023 16:15:16 GMT

We’re going back to the Helion System. I’m a little nervous about heading back into the universe of Citizen Sleeper as I loved the first game so much, but the excellent DLC quells most nerves. Creator Gareth Damian Martin has created a classic science fiction tale, and the announcement of the sequel comes with plenty of good news, as well as a pirate radio station that most people have missed.

This Game Pass FPS Is The Most ‘90s Boomer Shooter Yet

Andrew King — Sat, 10 Jun 2023 17:00:18 GMT

Slayers X: Terminal Aftermath: Vengeance of the Slayer is the rare game that opts for two colons in its title, and that excess is intentional. The FPS, which recently launched on Xbox Game Pass, is (as the in-game explanation goes) the product of the same person, two decades apart; started by its developer while in high school as ideas in a notebook, then picked up and finished when he was in his late 30s.

Rogue Trader Is The Warhammer Game I've Always Dreamed Of

Ben Sledge — Sat, 10 Jun 2023 15:00:17 GMT

Warhammer games are funny things. The most popular are the battlefield simulators, for obvious reasons. The Dawn of War and Total War series transfer your favourite units from table to screen, and the likes of Mechanicus and Chaos Gate: Daemonhunters add turn-based tactics to great effect. It’s like the game you play at your local gaming store, but from the comfort of your sofa and/or gaming chair.

The Summer's Big Indie Game Event Gets Shut Down, The Completionist Saves The Day

Eric Switzer — Fri, 09 Jun 2023 22:30:45 GMT

Following yesterday’s Summer Game Fest showcase, indie game collection The MIX was set to host an in-person event in downtown Los Angeles. Indie developers from around the world showed up to demo more than 40 new games for media and fans during the event, but just moments before the show opened its doors, the city’s fire marshal shut the entire thing down.

All The Games You Missed At Summer Game Fest

Stacey Henley — Fri, 09 Jun 2023 14:04:57 GMT

Summer Game Fest started with a bang, giving us the surprise reveal of Prince of Persia followed by the one-two punch of Mortal Kombat 1 gameplay. We got a Spider-Man release date, a Lies of P release date, and release windows for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Palworld, and a host of other stuff. Nick Cage was there, and he even seemed to enjoy himself. There was a lack of diversity, with no women on stage whatsoever, but all in all, it was a fairly solid opening to the weekend of reveals. However, at that point a lot of people switched off. I stuck around for Day of the Devs and Devolver's showcase, and saw the Twitch viewer counter dwindle throughout the rest of the evening. Those of you who left missed out on some of the most interesting games showed off, so here's a quick rundown of the standouts.

Upcoming Ecumene Aztec Game Changes Entire Premise To Appease Nationalists

Stacey Henley — Tue, 06 Jun 2023 16:15:17 GMT

They say history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes. Ecumene Aztec however has to be one of the strangest examples of historical enjambment I have ever seen. Ecumene Aztec is slated for a 2025 release and had a relatively low key reveal recently, with a good old fashioned trailer on the internet rather than a showcase or at Summer Game Fest. It looked intriguing, but since then everything has unraveled quickly.

Blaseball Shutting Down Shows Why Games Play It Safe

Ben Sledge — Tue, 06 Jun 2023 15:30:16 GMT

If you haven’t been graced with the knowledge of Blaseball, no it’s not a typo. Blaseball was an absurdist game that loosely followed the rules of its real-life counterpart, except you could change the rules at will and some players were eaten by a gaping maw in the desert. Okay, it’s not at all like regular baseball, and it’s not much like a video game either.

Shardpunk: Verminfall Is Steampunk XCOM With Pixel Art Ratmen

Ben Sledge — Sun, 04 Jun 2023 14:31:16 GMT

I hadn’t heard of Shardpunk: Verminfall when I received an email telling me that it had won a gong at the Intel Pixel Awards Europe. In fairness, I hadn’t heard of the Intel Pixel Awards Europe either, and I’m usually pretty up to date on these sorts of things. There are hundreds of awards ceremonies going on all the time, but I started taking notice of this one when I read that Roadwarden had won multiple categories.

The Best Way To Find A New Game Is To Look

Stacey Henley — Wed, 31 May 2023 18:00:18 GMT

I’m in an incredibly privileged position, I know that. Sure, I was born in a country that speaks English, I have two parents who love me, I’m white, all that usual stuff. But also, I’m a games journalist. Video games are one of the most expensive pieces of media to buy regularly, and publishers email me every day with free games. Some big, some small, some medium sized. Good, bad, indie, triple-A, VR, RPG, FPS, TRPG, JRPG, CRPG, ARPG, all the letters. So I’m well placed to say to you - go find a game.

Neva's Lack Of Gameplay Made It Sony's Best Reveal

Stacey Henley — Fri, 26 May 2023 16:15:15 GMT

When I first watched the PlayStation Showcase, I came away thinking we hadn't been treated to very much game footage. Then as I listed all the games we had seen, I realised that most of them did come armed with some sort of gameplay, even if they were not the 12-minute spectacular we received from Spider-Man 2. I think part of the reason I didn't feel like I'd seen very much gameplay footage was because there wasn't much that impressed me. I don't mean that as a criticism of the games themselves, more the industry.

The Lord Of The Rings: Gollum's Digital Art Exhibition Is Better Than The Game Itself

Ben Sledge — Fri, 26 May 2023 16:01:18 GMT

The best thing, by far, about the Peter Jackson Lord of the Rings trilogy is the wealth of behind the scenes features that accompany the special edition. To this day, there is no better documentary of how films are made and the work that goes into them from legions of people in every possible department. 26 hours of footage cover everything from props workers delicately slicing rubber hosing to make chainmail, to the actual forge used to make weapons, to the room-filling ‘bigatures’ of Minas Tirith and Isengard, to the cutting-edge CGI technology used to create the Balrog and other beasties too big for Weta’s incredible workshop.

Decarnation Review - Surreal, But Not Much Of A Game

Tessa Kaur — Wed, 24 May 2023 14:00:17 GMT

Decarnation feels like bait made specifically for me. Its pixel art style reminds me of a higher-definition version of old Pokemon games, with its big heads and lovingly shaded characters, which makes you think it might be a wholesome story. It’s far from that. This story-rich horror game utilises its retro aesthetics expertly to take you off guard, creating an unsettling atmosphere that left the hairs on my arms raised. Its story is compelling, even thrilling, and I was rooting for its protagonist to survive, but the game’s art and music really carry it through to the end.

Planet Of Lana Review

Meg Pelliccio — Mon, 22 May 2023 12:00:16 GMT

A fateful meteor shower sees strange robots collecting villagers in their basket-like bellies and carrying them away into the night sky. People scream as they are abducted, larger machines stalk the waters behind your village, while smaller robots prowl the area to uncover any survivors that may be hiding. It’s easy to draw parallels between Planet of Lana and HG Wells’ The War of the Worlds, so much so that I was dreading the idea of later discovering that the collected humans were being squelched into some form of goo.

Mermaid Soulslike RPG Siren Could Be My Game Of The Year, If It Exists

Stacey Henley — Fri, 19 May 2023 16:16:17 GMT

Sometimes a game just gets you with its pitch. You don't need to see any footage or learn much about it. That quick, high concept elevator pitch has you sold. Saints Row 4's pitch was just 'we're adding superpowers' and that was enough for me. Any video game that ends '...with cowboys' will get me on board too. What is often most exciting though is when the genre isn't for you and there are red flags waving furiously everywhere, and yet there's still something about the idea that makes you root for it. For me, that game is the recently revealed Siren.

Times & Galaxy Lets You Roleplay As A Robot Journalist In Space

Tessa Kaur — Thu, 18 May 2023 16:00:15 GMT

I’m already obsessed with Times & Galaxy, and I’ve only played it for an hour. This adorable, almost comic book-style indie has you playing as the first ever robot reporter, starting an internship at the prestigious, award-winning Times & Galaxy. You can customise the look of your robot, choosing the colours of your chassis as well as your name and pronouns, before pulling up to a spaceship called the Scanner, a mobile newsroom that follows stories across the universe.

A Narrative Vampire RPG That Explores Addiction And Ethics? I’m In

Tessa Kaur — Wed, 17 May 2023 14:00:17 GMT

You’re Liza, a young woman in 19th-century Eastern Europe. You’re brilliant, one of the first female doctors in the country, though your family thought you might go another direction, career-wise. You fell ill recently, and were visited by a doctor afterwards. You died shortly after. Welcome to Cabernet.

You Might Not Have Heard Of Them, But Some Of The Best Games Are Tiny Indie Games

Andrew King — Sun, 14 May 2023 14:31:15 GMT

Earlier this week, IGN posted a TikTok video featuring a discussion about why so many games reviewed at the site end up scoring a seven. If seven means good, shouldn't most games clock in below that? If most games are good, doesn't "good" stop having any meaning?

Do Not Sleep On The Case Of The Golden Idol DLC Bundle

Tessa Kaur — Thu, 11 May 2023 14:30:16 GMT

I love games that let me do some sleuthing. I love puzzles, I love drama, and I love complex narratives. I’d heard The Case of the Golden Idol has it all, but I’d never gotten the chance to check it out myself, so when I saw it was on sale with its new DLC, I took the plunge. This point-and-click title makes me feel like a real detective. Each scene is a freeze-frame, and you get to click in to see what people are carrying, saying or thinking, and their surroundings. You can see what’s inside drawers, what people are hiding under their beds, and what documents in the room might say. Oh, and there’s always at least one dead body.

I Can’t Get Enough Of The Mickey Mouse First Person Shooter

Ben Sledge — Wed, 10 May 2023 19:00:16 GMT

Disney isn’t happy. It’s likely writing up legal documents as we speak, speaking with lawyers and drafting strongly-worded letters. The company’s beloved mascot that has projected a beloved, family-friendly message carefully curated over decades, with the ears that brand millions of t-shirts worldwide, is now an action hero brandishing tommy guns and revolvers and popping heads in a retro shooter?

Scarlet Deer Inn’s Embroidered Art Is A Marvel In An Industry That Cuts Corners

Tessa Kaur — Fri, 05 May 2023 15:30:14 GMT

Footage of Scarlet Deer Inn went viral on Twitter in late April, attracting all kinds of attention to the upcoming indie adventure game. The tweet was captioned only “Hi, I'm making a game where all characters have embroidered animation.” and included a clip of the game’s creator Eva Navratilova sewing different character frames with a sewing machine. Scarlet Deer Inn’s character frames are painstakingly drawn, embroidered in real life by machine, then scanned and cropped, with shadows and lines added with software later. The Czech-based indie studio Attu Games is a husband and wife duo who write, paint, program, score, stitch, and publish all on their own.

Ocean Fishing Hits Different After Dredge

Ben Sledge — Mon, 01 May 2023 16:46:14 GMT

I’m out on the open water. A bright orange fishing line trails from the back of my yellow kayak, the only splashes of colour cutting through the grey ocean and rapidly descending fog. Suddenly, my lovely fishing trip at the edge of the Atlantic is beset by fear, a fear that wouldn't have ever entered my consciousness a couple of months before.

I Hope Remnant 2 Doesn't Get Lost In The Crowd This Summer

Eric Switzer — Fri, 28 Apr 2023 19:43:15 GMT

Remnant: From The Ashes is one of those games that most people know but no one ever talks about enough. When it launched in 2019 it consumed a hundred hours of my life in a matter of weeks, and it’s still my go-to game when I want to kill a few hours - or get killed for a few.

Epic Store Free Game This Week Is A Hidden Gem Of The Survival Genre

Eric Switzer — Fri, 28 Apr 2023 19:09:51 GMT

I don’t know how long I’ve been collecting free stuff on the Epic Game Store, but it feels like forever. I don’t remember the last time I actually played any of the free games, and it might be never. In fact, the only reason I even open the Epic launcher is to add a free game to my library, then I log off and wait for the next batch of freebies before I come back a week later and do it all again. The cycle repeats, and I leave these freebies to gather dust.

Who Are The Five Bishops In Cult Of The Lamb?

Matt Arnold — Thu, 27 Apr 2023 12:00:17 GMT

In Cult Of The Lamb, the protagonist's power is granted by an eldritch deity called The One Who Waits Below. Usually shortened to The One Who Waits (or simply him), the god of death has influence over the world despite being chained into his realm by the Bishops of the Old Faith.

Don’t Play The Cop Bodycam Game, Play The Horror Bodycam Game

Tessa Kaur — Sat, 22 Apr 2023 16:30:15 GMT

Everybody’s been talking about Unrecord since the game revealed footage that looked so real, people were unsure if the clip was actually built using virtual assets or if it was simply edited camera footage. That led programmer and co-director Alexandre Spindler to post a video of the game in the Unreal Engine 5 editor, showing the camera moving through the level. Despite this, some are still wary and asking for more proof.

The New Stardew Valley Update For Mods Might Finally Get Me To Go Back To It

Tessa Kaur — Sat, 22 Apr 2023 16:00:15 GMT

I never really got Stardew Valley. I’d previously played the game in my teens, but bounced off it. Then the pandemic happened. I’d sit in my room, curtains closed to block out every sliver of light, and blast lo-fi hip hop to farm to while I played hours on hours of Stardew Valley in bed. At the time, I didn’t understand what people loved so much about it. All I did was mine, fish, farm, sleep. I read every guide I could so I could maximise my in-game productivity and make as much money as I could. I was freshly unemployed when the pandemic hit and I had literally nothing else to do but play video games, and I wanted to feel like I was good at this one, not realising that wasn’t the point of Stardew.

Citizen Sleeper Creator Launches Physical Zine About Video Game Spaces

Ben Sledge — Sat, 22 Apr 2023 15:00:16 GMT

Heterotopias is the video game publication that your favourite video game publication reads. It’s different from the games writing you see every day. Here at TheGamer, we provide you with quick news, fun lists, and handy guides. You’ll find none of that in Heterotopias. It’s features top to bottom, essays from masters of their craft. While we do have features over here (hey! You’re reading one!), the time and care put into Heterotopias by true visionaries of the medium creates a volume of unparalleled criticism. This is the kind of writing I personally aspire to create, and represents the epitome of our craft.

KarmaZoo Interview

Meg Pelliccio — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 16:30:14 GMT

KarmaZoo is a cooperative platformer where players must work together to survive a loop of levels. The more you do to help your team, the more karma you earn. Though you start as a little blob, you can unlock different avatars with your hard-earned karma, with each new form possessing a different skill to help the team progress.

System Shock WASD Preview

Meg Pelliccio — Fri, 21 Apr 2023 15:31:14 GMT

Having never played the original, I had no idea of what to expect when I tried out the System Shock remake. The granular difficulty settings for all the different gameplay aspects gave me a clue, and while I felt safe keeping the puzzles at the normal level, I bumped the combat down to low. I’d just failed repeatedly at Dead Island 2, I didn’t need another ass-whooping.

Players Can't Decide If Unrecord Is An FMV, But That's Not The Point

Stacey Henley — Thu, 20 Apr 2023 16:30:15 GMT

Unrecord was announced around a year ago now, but recently revealed footage has finally gotten everyone talking about it. The game, shot from the angle of a bodycam, where you play as a cop hunting down criminals, has been praised for its visuals, leading to heavy discussion over whether the clip is made up of impressive graphics or is simply FMV footage with a HUD over the top of it. I can understand why people are drawn to that question, but it isn’t the one we should be asking.

PowerWash Simulator Is The First Thing To Bring Me Peace In Weeks

Tessa Kaur — Mon, 17 Apr 2023 14:00:18 GMT

I am a neurotic person, and I always have been. I get extremely grossed out at the sight of filthy things, and I won’t touch them even with gloves on. During the pandemic, I started using Tiktok, and got sucked into a weird niche of satisfying cleaning videos. Carpet cleaning videos, pool cleaning videos, people who spring cleaned the houses of people too depressed to do it themselves, I loved them all. I’m not a particularly neat person and I hate the chore of cleaning, but I hate dirt and spills and grime more.

There Is Nothing Like Project Zomboid’s Organic Storytelling

Harry Alston — Sun, 16 Apr 2023 15:30:16 GMT

Nancy Becker was a burger flipper. She woke up in an empty house with nothing but a spatula and two tins of corned beef in the cupboards. There were snarling zombies outside, a cooking show blasting from the TV, and a priest giving a sermon on the radio while being eaten alive by zombies. It’s July 9, 1993, in rural Kentucky. This is the frame, the canvas, the playing field, that Project Zomboid gives you. The rest is entirely up to you. Whether you play Indie Stone’s zombie apocalypse simulator alone, on an RP server, or with your friends, there is nothing like Project Zomboid’s brilliant organic storytelling.

Vampire Survivors DLC, Tides Of The Foscari, Is Just More Of The Same

Ryan Thomas Bamsey — Thu, 13 Apr 2023 15:00:15 GMT

Vampire Survivors is nearly endlessly replayable. The constant flow of dopamine as you anticipate those level-ups, the satisfaction of clearing an entire screen, the jazzy music as you open chests for instant upgrades - everything seems fine-tuned to satisfy. It has you chasing the dragon for bigger, better sensations. While most of the content added to the game is free of charge, we’re now onto our second paid (but still eye-wateringly cheap) DLC pack, Tides of the Foscari.

Ark: Survival Ascended Is Abhorrent, Heinous, And Sadly Not Surprising

Eric Switzer — Mon, 10 Apr 2023 20:23:18 GMT

Studio Wildcard, the creators of Ark: Survival Evolved, are about to pull one of the biggest scumbag moves in gaming history. Ark 2 has been delayed until next year, so in order to generate some much-needed profit, the company is releasing a new version of Ark made in UE5, called Ark: Survival Ascended. When it launches in August, the official Ark servers are shutting down for good. If you want to continue playing Ark online without paying for your own server, you’ll need to buy the Ark: Survival Ascended for $60. The news has been received as a giant middle finger to the community that is already well aware of Studio Wildcard’s history of dubious decision making. It’s a terrible move that deserves all the criticism it’s getting, but if you're an Ark fan, you’re probably not the least bit surprised.

The Best Early Access Games You Probably Forgot About

Eric Switzer — Mon, 10 Apr 2023 20:09:40 GMT

I’ve been reviewing Everspace 2 over the last couple of weeks and it’s got me thinking about early access games on Steam. Everspace 2 officially launched this week, but I first played it in January 2021 when it hit early access, and rarely thought about it since. It’s nice to revisit it now and see how much it has evolved over the years, but I wish I had checked in more often to see how it was developing along the way. I feel the same about Terraformers, an exceptional strategy game that left early access last month, and Boratrauma, a horror-tinged submarine sim that’s been around since 2019, but only hit 1.0 in March.

Dredge’s Secret Ending Shows The Power Of A Good Twist

Ben Sledge — Sun, 09 Apr 2023 15:30:15 GMT

You’d be forgiven for not realising that Dredge has more than one ending. The indie fishing sim stuck its puckered tentacles onto me last weekend and wouldn’t let go. Within ten hours I’d finished the game, completing nearly every achievement as I did so, before I heard rumblings of a secret ending doing the rounds on social media. Was this a Mew-under-the-truck situation, or was there a kernel of truth at the centre of this writhing monstrosity of a rumour?

Could You Conquer This Pokemon Escape Room ROM Hack?

Ben Sledge — Sat, 08 Apr 2023 18:00:15 GMT

Pokemon’s puzzles have never been too difficult. Maybe you got stuck on the Strength boulders in Ice Path, or struggled to work out the logic of Wallace’s Gym, but you were a child back then. Those kinds of things wouldn’t trouble you now. The Braille to unlock the Regis, on the other hand, was completely unfair, albeit easily solved with the help of the internet or a visually impaired friend.

Trombone Champ Is The Funniest Game Ever Made

Tessa Kaur — Sat, 08 Apr 2023 14:30:14 GMT

A friend of mine bought Trombone Champ last week and has been sending a steady stream of gameplay videos to our group chat. I am not exaggerating when I say that watching her play Supermassive Black Hole terribly gives me enough strength to get through the day. A few nights ago, my friends and I got drunk and she played us videos of her first attempts at Killing in the Name, Under the Bridge, and The Mandalorian Theme – I was wiping tears off my face by the time she ran out of recorded clips.

Dredge Makes Me Love My Steam Deck, Dredge Makes Me Hate My Steam Deck

Ben Sledge — Fri, 07 Apr 2023 18:00:16 GMT

I binged Dredge this weekend. It’s an excellent game with immaculate horror vibes, which I described before playing as Wind Waker meets Majora’s Mask. I was correct in more ways than I could have thought, which shows how on point the marketing has been. But I’m not here to talk about marketing, I’m here to talk about fishing. Kinda.

Citizen Sleeper Developer Gareth Damian Martin Wants To Do A Tabletop Version

Meg Pelliccio — Fri, 07 Apr 2023 17:30:14 GMT

Citizen Sleeper was last year’s sleeper indie hit (pun very much intended), with players falling in love with its classic tabletop RPG elements and rich sci-fi narrative. It was crowned TheGamer’s Game of the Year for 2022, and even after three DLC drops, fans are still clamouring for more.

I Need More Games Like Tchia In My Life

Josh Coulson — Thu, 06 Apr 2023 19:00:15 GMT

People play video games for an almost endless number of reasons. Thanks to The Last Of Us, a lot of outsiders are learning that some video games tell incredible stories. 2023 has also shown just how many people like to be scared by their games, especially ones they've probably played before, via the success of the Dead Space remake and the resounding reviews for Resident Evil 4 Remake. You might even play games for nothing more than competitive reasons, loving the thrill of battering someone on FIFA or picking up a Victory Royale in Fortnite.

Indie Roguelike Ravenswatch Could Be The Next Hades

Ben Sledge — Thu, 06 Apr 2023 18:00:16 GMT

There are probably a hundred games that have already been described as, “the next Hades.” But none deserve that title more than Ravenswatch, an indie roguelike from Curse of the Dead Gods developer Passtech Games. Ravenswatch feels like Hades in countless ways, from its art style and presentation, to its version of boons, to its launch into early access this week. And it might just have what it takes to replicate Supergiant’s success.

Mindhack Preview

Meg Pelliccio — Wed, 05 Apr 2023 14:00:15 GMT

Stylish cartoon-like graphics and a dark, dystopian world in the form of a visual novel with hacking elements — that’s what attracted me to Mindhack. You find yourself in the role of the Doctor, a Mindhacker you never see other than their ever-present, twitching gloved hands on the screen before you.

Fans Are Reviving The Best Lord Of The Rings Video Game

Ben Sledge — Tue, 04 Apr 2023 15:30:15 GMT

The number of Lord of the Rings games being made is rapidly increasing. Movies, too. We’re verging on the MCU-ification of Tolkien’s work, and frankly, I hate it. There are still good Rings games, but we’re getting to the point where quantity is taking precedence over quality.

I'm Still Waiting For Warhammer PowerWash Simulator DLC

Ben Sledge — Mon, 03 Apr 2023 16:30:14 GMT

PowerWash Simulator is great. Simulator games often are, I’ve gotten lost down the rabbit holes of lawnmowing, construction working, and Euro trucking rabbit holes before, and I dread to think what a sorry state my social life would be in if I downloaded PC Building Simulator or got into Farming Simulator esports. Yes, that’s a thing, and it’s just as exciting as CS:GO or League.

Mobile Game Advertisements Need To Chill Out

Tessa Kaur — Sat, 01 Apr 2023 18:00:16 GMT

In the last decade, mobile game ads have gone from annoying to downright insufferable. If you’ve ever had a guilty pleasure, free-to-play mobile game that subjects you to advertisements between each and every level, you probably know what I’m talking about. I have the bad habit of getting hooked on mobile games that function in this way, so I’ve seen enough to rot my brain – they’re all terrible in different ways.

The Mageseeker Is Going To Be 2023's Sleeper Hit

Eric Switzer — Fri, 31 Mar 2023 12:10:14 GMT

The Mageseeker, an upcoming Riot Forge game set in the League of Legends universe, was just announced in January, yet it already feels like it’s getting lost in the shuffle. Ever since Riot revealed its major publishing ambitions during 2019’s ten year anniversary event, it’s been hard to keep track of everything coming out. But before you write The Mageseeker off as just another one of ‘those’ League of Legends games, take a closer look. Digital Sun’s pixel-art brawler game may wear its inspirations on its sleeves, but it has the potential to be one of the year’s biggest and best action games.

PAX East: Warstride Challenges Preview

Andrew King — Thu, 30 Mar 2023 17:30:16 GMT

In Warstride Challenges, it's rare for one of the titular challenges to last longer than 10 seconds.

Dark And Darker's Copyright Explained, And Why It Matters

Stacey Henley — Wed, 29 Mar 2023 14:30:14 GMT

The case of Dark and Darker is a messy one, and there's very little to go off when determining who's right and who's wrong. However, even with the slivers of information we have, it's a fascinating case that raises the ethical question of who exactly owns an idea. Let's start with the facts we have, and go from there. A few years ago, Korean studio Nexxon was working on a variety of prototypes which it codenames with Ps; P1, P2, and so on. There's a Dark and Darker-style game called P3. Nexxon decides instead to make P7, so several of the devs working on P3 leave and form the studio Ironmace to make their own game - which, as you might have guessed, is Dark and Darker.

Pax East Preview: Goodbye Volcano High

Eric Switzer — Tue, 28 Mar 2023 19:02:17 GMT

I remember the existential dread of finishing high school. Even though those weren't exactly my golden years (I haven't even begun to peak) my little friend group of oddballs was very precious to me, and in my 17 short years I couldn't imagine what my life would be like without them. The adults in my life who dragged me to college visits and ACT prep classes seemed way more concerned about my future than I did. All I really wanted to do during my senior year is watch Jerry Springer reruns with my friends, play Left 4 Dead, and pretend my life wasn't about to change.

Kana Quest Failed To Teach Me Japanese

Meg Pelliccio — Tue, 28 Mar 2023 18:00:15 GMT

Last year I decided that I would start learning Japanese. It’s always been something of a bucket list item for me, despite the fact I’ve always struggled with learning other languages. I failed miserably at French and German at school, and, despite my best efforts, I tend to butcher pronunciations in the worst ways possible, leaving me lacking in confidence to even try.

Dredge Can Be A Cozy Fishing Sim If You're Smart

Tessa Kaur — Tue, 28 Mar 2023 16:00:15 GMT

I’ve never done well with horror games, which is strange because I adore horror movies. As much as I want to play Resident Evil 4 Remake, I know there’s a real possibility my heart will give out – just playing the demo took me ages, because I had to keep pausing to pace around my room out of pure stress. I once attempted to play Outlast 2 and had to stop after half an hour, because I kept jumping so hard that the controller would fly out of my hand. I’m hesitant to play the Dead Space remake or Metroid Dread, because I know it would take all my dwindling courage to finish them. For me, horror games are a spectator sport. I make my friends play them while I watch, because it’s the interactivity that makes my heart rate spike.

Gareth Damian Martin On The Past, Present, And Future Of Citizen Sleeper

Ben Sledge — Tue, 28 Mar 2023 15:30:16 GMT

I chat to Citizen Sleeper developer Gareth Damian Martin over a video call, but it feels more like we’re tucked in a small corner of a bustling cafe. It’s less of an interview and more of a philosophical discussion, and Damian Martin is a talker, answering questions with digressive tangents and discursive ideas - fitting, for the range of life experience they bring to Citizen Sleeper’s team.

Bloodborne Fans Are Going To Dig Mina The Hollower

Eric Switzer — Mon, 27 Mar 2023 18:13:07 GMT

Building a follow-up to Shovel Knight must be a daunting task for Yacht Club Games. Over the last ten years the Blue Burrower has ascended from a classic side-scrolling send-up to an iconic video game character in his own right, and now the studio is embarking on a new journey to canonize a retro-inspired hero in Mina the Hollower. Director Alec Faulkner has proffered that if Shovel Knight is the studio’s Mario, then Mina the Hollower is its Zelda. After playing a chunk of the game at PAX East this past weekend, it’s hard to dispute that.

Whitethorn Games Is Building A Cozy Game Empire

Eric Switzer — Sun, 26 Mar 2023 17:14:15 GMT

I love a publisher that stays on brand. There’s plenty of successful publishers with great track records out there, but if you asked me to name my five favorite games from 505, Focus, or Daedalic Entertainment, I wouldn’t have a clue. That’s why I’m smitten by Whitethorn Games, an up-and-coming indie publisher that specializes in all things comfy and cozy. When you browse Whitethorn’s catalog you know exactly what you’re going to get, and if you like any of its games, there’s a good chance you’ll like all of them. I went hands-on with a selection of Whitethorn’s new and upcoming slate at PAX East this weekend, and they ended up being some of my favorites from the entire show.

Amanda The Adventurer Will Ruin Your Childhood

Eric Switzer — Sun, 26 Mar 2023 16:11:55 GMT

I’m becoming a DreadXP fanboy lately. The indie publisher has quickly established a great track record for bizarre, experimental horror, and even though I’ve only seen a few minutes of its new game, Amanda the Adventurer, I’m already obsessed. DreadXP’s game seems to be made exclusively by mid-00s Creepypasta writers that graduated to game design, and I’m here for it. If you spent countless hours of your childhood reading about abandoned Disney resorts or searching for the real Squidward’s Suicide, Amanda the Adventurer is will be right up your very traumatized alley.

You Probably Haven’t Played The Best Game Of The Year

Stacey Henley — Sat, 25 Mar 2023 14:00:16 GMT

Whenever someone mentions the lack of video games in any given year, someone in real thick glasses pops up and says "akshully..." with a list of games you never heard of. I'm not here to do that. 2023 has yielded a disappointing return so far, and there aren't too many major games on the docket for the rest of the year - Zelda and Spider-Man need some buds. Games have always moved through peaks and troughs, but the pandemic and ballooning development times (which often still result in mediocre releases) is a major problem that we can't fix just by talking about great indie games. We need strong triple-A releases for the medium to flourish, and we should be worried that we can seemingly no longer rely on that. But while we're all busy worrying about that, let me look through my real thick glasses and give you a list of games you never heard of. Just give me a second to get into character. “Akshully....”

Storyteller Falls Into All The Narrative Pitfalls

Stacey Henley — Fri, 24 Mar 2023 18:00:16 GMT

Over the past few years, indie games have been the ones I've thought about the most when I've put them down, or when reflecting on my favourite games in any given year. Immortality, for example, was not my Game of the Year last year but it is the one that will stay with me for the longest. Triple-A games are engineered to give you hours of fun, and the best ones do it successfully, but only on a rare occasion do they leave much of a lasting impression beyond enjoyment. Because of this, while my most anticipated games of the year are big, meaty triple-As like Spider-Man 2 or Resident Evil 4, I also have my eye on indie games that I hope will linger long after the credits. This has already paid off with Paranormasight, but in the case of Storyteller, I've been left wanting.

Indie Fishing Sim Dredge Is Wind Waker Meets Majora’s Mask

Ben Sledge — Fri, 24 Mar 2023 17:30:17 GMT

I haven’t played Dredge yet. I wasn’t assigned to review it and my guide writing days are long behind me. But I’ve seen a lot of it. Probably more than you, at a guess. That’s because I’ve followed it closely, since Dredge’s premise immediately intrigued me when it was revealed – an indie fishing sim with a dark, Lovecraftian side that emerges at night.

Disco Elysium's Kim And Harry Kiss Is Desperately Uncool Pandering

Stacey Henley — Tue, 21 Mar 2023 14:30:15 GMT

Disco Elysium is one of the most critically acclaimed games of all time. In this industry, it feels like anything even half decent is known as a masterpiece, but in a world of masterpieces, Disco is king. It doesn't have phenomenal sales records smashed, with millions upon millions of copies sold to its name. It's probably the closest gaming gets to a real hidden gem, not just a Mad Max decent game that was okay and if you played it you'd probably like it, but a truly special game that takes you to places few other games do, and that once you've played it, you feel part of something. It's not just a great game because it's fun or because the combat is intuitive or anything like that. It's great because it means something, and that's rare. Except now the characters can kiss each other, and it all means nothing.

Aethermancer Looks Like The Roguelite Monster Tamer I've Always Wanted

Ryan Thomas Bamsey — Sun, 19 Mar 2023 15:00:15 GMT

I don’t know what it is about the monster tamer RPG subgenre that compels me so strongly. Maybe it’s the emphasis placed on build and team crafting, the ability to form a party of adorable creatures, or simply the satisfaction I get from filling up yet another encyclopedia of critters. Perhaps Pokemon was simply that formative an experience for me. Who’s to say? All I know is that for me and many others out there, monster tamers scratch a very particular itch.

Myst Is Now An FPS Game

Stacey Henley — Sun, 19 Mar 2023 14:00:16 GMT

Myst was one of the first games to be unilaterally declared one of the greatest games of all time, and of every game to hold that title with some degree of seriousness, it might be the most forgotten. Though remembered fondly by older gamers twiddling their thumbsticks in the ‘90s, Myst has not endured. Now though, it’s back - only it’s an FPS.

Mortal Sin Is Exactly The Kind Of Indie Game I Need Right Now

Harry Alston — Fri, 17 Mar 2023 16:31:15 GMT

Whenever you see a game on Steam and it has a single person’s name listed as the developer, you might be about to play one of the best games of the year. Obviously, this logic doesn’t always apply, but for games like Manor Lords, Vampire Survivors, and now Mortal Sin, it’s not an awful rule to follow. Mortal Sin is a stylish action-roguelike developed by solo dev Nikola Todorovic. It’s fast-paced, brutal, has an extremely unique art style that looks better in execution than it does in a YouTube video, and a banger of a soundtrack that perfectly harmonizes with the dismemberment of your enemies.

The Wreck Review - A Sensible People Carrier

Stacey Henley — Tue, 14 Mar 2023 14:00:16 GMT

Video games often try to mimic movies, but none do it quite as literally as The Wreck. The game is told via a screenplay, with the protagonist a strange mix of narrator, creator, and star. It's a bold risk that I'm not sure either works nor justifies its odd structure, but it does display the levels of creativity The Wreck is hiding, which only become more layered as the narrative unfurls. Unfortunately, it's also emblematic of the game getting in its own way a little too often. There are clever ideas and intimate storytelling here, but the execution is as likely to frustrate as it is to intrigue.

Infinity Nikki Is Breath Of The Wild Meets Dress Up Games

Stacey Henley — Sun, 12 Mar 2023 17:30:13 GMT

I feel like I’ve been waiting all my life for a serious dress up game, and now two have come along at once. There’s Fashion Dreamer, an evolution of Style Savvy by the same team, and now there is Infinity Nikki, which blows the doors off everything. Infinity Nikki asks ‘what if Breath of the Wild was also a dress up game?’, and the answer is a startling gorgeous adventure that combines my favourite games from my childhood which always felt disrespected and cheap, as well as the best games around right now.