Games

Existential crisis as a psychedelic space odyssey

Why

• Brilliant start and finish
• Visuals never fall below spectacular

Why Not

• Drags a bit in the middle

Impressions

The Artful Escape takes you on a carefully curated journey through the cosmos and a teenage boy's attempts to get out from under the shadow of his famous uncle. You won't find any meaningful decisions here, and to be honest not much gameplay either, but there's just enough to keep you engaged and moving through the spectacular alien vistas Beethoven & Dinosaur have crafted, accompanied by an...

Solid with a smattering of spectacular

Why

• Detailed pixel art which improves in creativity as the game progresses
• Some very unique/mechanically stimulating boss fights
• Plenty of secrets, some creatively hidden/hinted at

Why Not

• Instakill lava
• Only one type of map marker
• Story is kinda just there

Impressions

Kingdom Shell starts off as bog standard as a Metroidvania can be, albeit with very detailed pixel art. You have some basic melee and ranged enemies to beat up, ability gates to bounce off and secrets to discover. This persists even after the first boss, where...

Number go up in its purest form

Why

• Great second screen game
• Very committed to its excellent blobby aesthetic
• You can have runs so broken that it doesn't matter where you launch the ball
• Probably not something you can sink hundreds of hours into

Why Not

• Probably not something you can sink hundreds of hours into
• (Seemingly) not that much strategic depth

Impressions

I put in about 2 hours of shifts at Nubby's Number Factory while watching League, and it did its job of filling in gaps in the action brilliantly. I like...

But why schoolgirls?

Why

• Extremely varied approaches to combat, almost immersive sim-like
• Detailed, dynamically lit pixel art
• Clearly a lot of care and attention to detail

Why Not

• You will feel the need to google 'how to hide games from my Steam friends'
• Seriously, the devs are just too goddamn horny

Impressions

Lost Ruins has a lot of interesting ideas, from realistic interactions between the elements and various aspects of the environment to survival-horror like item scarcity and lack of healing at checkpoints. The combat is just solid gameplay-wise but really shines in...

I'm starting to think I just don't like puzzle games

Why

• Beautiful painting-inspired art style
• Constantly introducing new wrinkles
• A lot of puzzles have very clever/creative solutions

Why Not

• Some frustration from platforming, even with rewinds
• You don't like puzzle games, not matter how many great ones you play

Impressions

Braid is clearly a great game and I can see why its one of the classics of the genre, but I just can't make myself finish it. My brain-rotted millennial attention span has me reaching for hints or even a guide after ~5...

Don't talk to me or my dragon son ever again

Why

• Unique, charming and funny in clever ways
• Fantastic aesthetic and soundtrack
• Never stops surprising you with how many layers a match 3 + visual novel can have

Why Not

• You need a lot of action to enjoy a game

Impressions

Titanium Court is a weird hybrid of visual novel and match three game, but never has 'more than the sum of its parts' been more appropriate. I was pulled in right away by its unique premise and style; then kept around by...

Sokovania? Metroban?

Why

• A Metroidvania with Sokoban-style gameplay is unique
• Plenty of variety, with new weapons & enemies introduced semi-frequently
• Character portraits in conversations are stylish, and overall a nice GBA-esque aesthetic

Why Not

• A lot of collectibles/story which I didn't have a reason to care about
• Map is janky and makes it hard to distinguish areas
• Very unclear where you should go for primary objectives at times

Impressions

Sliding Hero eschews the classic 2D platformer formula for Metroidvanias and instead asks 'what if the only way to move was sliding until you...

The psychedelic gardening metroidvania

Why

• A real sense of exploration, not just of the map but of systems
• The 'attack variety' mechanic puts an interesting twist on otherwise basic combat
• Incredible, psychedelic art direction
• The central time-loop conceit is a big swing

Why Not

• Lack of direction can be frustrating at times
• There are times where you know the solution but just need to wait for it to grow
• Time looping requires plenty of back tracking

Impressions

Ultros isn't content with having been designed by an art team eating LSD like it's food;...

Jack Sparrow, but sober and a woman

Why

• Gives you the tools to create crazy combat sequences
• And forces you to use them
• Writing is the perfect level of camp
• Art style is a perfect fit for this game

Why Not

• Forcing you into extended 1-1 duels for some fights seems against the spirit of the game
• A replay mode would be amazing

Impressions

En Garde is exactly what it sets out to be; a swashbuckling, improvisational romp through incompetent goons and scenery chewing villains. The combat allows for incredible highs straight out...

Bright but short lived

Why

• Clean visuals, especially the fire-related stuff
• Combat is solid & varied, especially for a short game
• Frequent checkpoints to prevent frustration

Why Not

• Very short, under 2 hours
• Easy to inadvertently miss secrets

Impressions

As with most people I got this while it was free to promote the sequel, and it was pretty effective at that. There's defnitely enough here to pique my interest in what the team can do with a longer, more ambitious game.

The focus of the game's world is fire and its role in combating...

An appropriately titled game

Why

• The memento puzzles are kinda neat brain teasers
• The premise of the game is an interesting concept

Why Not

• Somewhat incoherent story in a story-driven game
• They don't do as much as they could with the premise
• Nice pixel art ruined by constant filters
• Dialogue can be forced at times

Impressions

I've heard a lot of good things about this one but just don't get it. The premise is cool but underutilized in favour of a focus on characters who just aren't that interesting and their mountains of sad...

It's ok to just be ok

Why

• Charming pixel art & very nice water
• Which is used to creatively signpost some secrets
• The core combat/traversal mechanic is a cool idea

Why Not

• The core combat/traversal mechanic is more or less the only cool idea
• And it has a few drawbacks holding it back from carrying the game
• Didn't unlock a single achievement despite meeting the requirements...

Impressions

Sealed Bite is a short but solid platformer held back from being special by slight annoyances with its primary mechanic. Shortly after starting your journey a...

A whimsical fantasy metroidvania with Sanabi's gameplay but pacifist

Why

• Deeply weird in all the best ways
• Atmosphere really sells you being in a fairy tale
• Movement is much easier than it looks
• Boss 'fights' are fantastic, visually and mechanically
• Great use of achievements to signpost/hint at weird side content

Why Not

• You only care about the length of a game, not its quality

Impressions

Key Fairy is a surreal, unique experience which feels like a fairy tale come to life. Rather than fighting 'enemies' you liberate them from corruption by zooming...

Hyper-chaotic 1000xResist vibes with Persona's flair

Why

• Will definitely surprise you
• Also very good at the things you'd expect
• So much love & care was clearly put into it
• Banging soundtrack and visuals
• A multitude of cool little details

Why Not

• You're a cop

Impressions

I came into Unbeatable expecting a solid rhythm game with a unique style but ended up on a non-stop chaotic journey of emotion and philosophy. From Beat waking up in a meadow to escaping from police helicopters on a scooter and well beyond, I found it nearly impossible to...

Nothing Mid Beyond this Point

Why

• Genuinely unique approach to a metroidvania
• Basic but very evocative art style
• Combat system is a cool concept well executed
• Story is suprisingly interesting
• It just has the juice, couldn't put it down despite a frustrating start

Why Not

• Exploration can be painful until you get certain abilities
• Giving the second boss anti heal was certainly a choice

Impressions

This is not what I expected at all from a 580yen Metroidvania which looks like they didn't bother hiring a background artist. Nothing Beyond this Point is a great...

More like Planet of Mui

Why

• An rare brightly colored Inside-like
• Also considerably more hopeful
• Makes great use of its 'simple' art style
• Great framing/atmosphere, I took so many screenshots

Why Not

• You hate puzzles

Impressions

Planet of Lana takes the classic INSIDE-like formula and iterates on it with two great additions; non-monochrome colors and Mui, your dog-shaped puzzle solving companion.

The game kicks off with Lana in an idyllic looking fishing village, getting up to wholesome mischief with her sister Elo. Sadly some machines show up to interrupt their sisterly bonding time, capturing...

The longest pun I've ever heard

Why

• I liked the humour, pretty clever dialogue in places
• Cool aesthetic, fun minigames
• References abound

Why Not

• You'd better like the humour, because it doesn't change

Impressions

Later Alligator is a fun, silly game which accomplishes exactly what it sets out to. You play as a faceless but strongly mob-enforcer coded character who bumps into a hypochondriac alligator called Pat, who's convinced his family plans to kill him at a mysterious meeting they've set up that evening. You have the rest of the day to get to...

Paper Mario with bugs?

Why

• Combat is turn based but interactive, has some per-enemy strategies
• The art style looks basic at first but grows on you
• Light puzzle-solving and platforming mixes things up
• You can dodge random encounters/start with an advantage by attacking first

Why Not

• Nothing about it grabbed me in the first 2.5 chapters
• Pretty easy? I dodged a lot of encounters and never felt weak

Impressions

I grabbed this from an 'Overwhelmingly Positive' Humble Bundle which has definitely reminded me that 'buy stuff other people think is good' is not always...

Surprisingly souls-like

Why

• Nails the intangibles, feels better than it should
• Evocative pixel art
• Compact & fair, even on hard

Why Not

• Pretty short
• Not especially challenging, even on hard

Impressions

My expectations for this were right around Shantae given the similarities; retro pixel metroidvanias which at least from their store page look like they were drawn with one hand. In reality Momodora was more or less the exact opposite of Shantae; rather than being bright & cheery but clunky and frustrating Momodora sets a distinctly Dark Souls-like mood and plays with surprising...

See you fantasy cowboy

Why

• Well written & voice acted
• A gigantic, crunchy CRPG to sink your teeth into
• Turn based mode! Very cool they went back to add it

Why Not

• You don't have 100+ hours to sink into a single game

Impressions

This is absolutely a game I would've burned 100+ hours on back in my days of gaming freedom, but with a wife and soon kids I do not have 100+ hours to burn.

Right from the start, Pillars makes it clear you're in for the long haul. There's more lore...

Man I wish Valve still made games

Why

• The orignal but better
• More variety in scenery/the tools at your disposal
• A lot of interesting lore about Aperture/GLaDOS
• Humour is spot on just like the original, and more frequent

Why Not

• You hate thinking just as much as Wheately

Impressions

The original Portal was a really cool puzzle game with some light story and funny moments to keep you motivated, but there are only so many white-walled test chambers a mute can struggle through. The best parts of that game were when you broke out...

Waifus fight music

Why

• Pretty wide range of difficulties
• Songs play pretty differently to each other
• Enough tracks that there'll be a few which hit for anyone
• Monetisation seems very fair

Why Not

• Not incredibly fan-servicy, but there are some skins you wouldn't want your partner to see you using
• Some tracks require incredibly quick/well timed consecutive inputs, even on easy

Impressions

I took a flier on this since it was ~200yen and was pleasantly surprised; never tried rhythm games before but this probably won't be my last. The presentation and character designs are...

A bit too much lamp-rubbing in this one

Why

• Bright & colorful vibe is a nice contrast to many metroidvanias
• Has a lot of personality, even if not familiar with the (apparently established) characters
• Mostly chill & breezy gameplay...

Why Not

• ...but towards the end RNG takes a bit too much of a role
• Progression gates can be a little adventure-gamey at times
• The biome where every female character ends up in a Slave Leia costume wasn't strictly necessary

Impressions

I may not have finished it, but the 70%ish I did play of Shantae...

John Wick meets James Bond meets Pinocchio

Why

• Nails the frenetic, improvisational combat it's going for
• Also nails the cyberpunk disco vibes
• Never stops introducing new mechanics

Why Not

• Feeling as cool as it makes possible isn't easy
• Maybe a few too many mechanics to keep track of in a ~5 hour game

Impressions

You deflect a bullet with your bag, use your shapeshifting bat to combo down an enemy, pick up their gun so you can unload it into an elite then throw it at them and unleash a giant robotic fist to...

Why ask forgiveness when you can just murder god?

Why

• Side-scrolling, religion-inspired Dark Souls
• Nails the strong points of both souls/metroidvania genres
• Boss/core character designs are crazy
• Challenging without being punishing

Why Not

• Platforming is frustratingly clunky at times
• Getting all endings requires a second playthrough

Impressions

I cannot overemphasize the degree to which this feels like a Souls game but side-scrolling. The Game Kitchen nailed everything FromSoft's games do from the looping paths & shortcuts to the atmosphere and difficulty. Managing this while also making the game a great Metroidvania is even more...

Always read the Terms and Conditions

Why

• Genuinely funny, surprisingly good story
• Makes 'turn based' combat interactive & interesting
• Endless cool little details to discover
• Should be way more popular than it seems to be

Why Not

• You hate fun

Impressions

With over 19 000 games released on Steam each year it's inevitable some will get lost in the shuffle. It's an absolute crime Deathbulge was one of them though; its cant-miss humour may be subjective but the music-themed, far more active twist on traditional turn-based combat alone would make it worth playing. But...

Beats up your heart along with the baddies

Why

• Typically Yakuza drama with heart
• Side stories are also typically fun, the cabaret club in particular
• Deuteragonist structure used to brilliant effect

Why Not

• Bosses have a lot of health & huge difficulty spikes
• Kuze epitomises 'How many times must I teach you this lesson old man?'
• Majima is too much of a real person for later games to make sense haha

Impressions

After playing (and loving) Like a Dragon I decided to jump back to where it all began for some context on...

Light Souls?

Why

• Interesting, original IP and world in a big budget game
• Combat strongly encourages thinking & using abilities
• Strikes an ideal balance between combat, exploration puzzles & platforming
• Great aesthetic and worldbuilding, dark in tone not visuals

Why Not

• Surprisingly tough combat, don't assume it's a game for kids

Impressions

Kena looks like a children's game with bright visuals, beautiful vistas and cute sidekicks. Writing it off as such would be a mistake though, as the cheery aesthetics come hand in hand with a challenging combat system, satisfying puzzle platforming/exploration and a...

Maybe I wouldn't like DnD after all

Why

• A lot of effort went into making a believable world
• Compelling characters with personality and their own stories
• Simple but effective art style

Why Not

• Swamps of dialogue with nothing to break it up
• No real sense of progress after 3 hours
• Trusts the player a bit too much

Impressions

I feel bad for dropping what's clearly a quality game so early, but three hours into what's meant to be a ~12 hour experience I need to feel more invested than I do here. I'm leaving...

Does this unit have a soul? Absolutely.

Why

• Nails exploration & world design
• Unique, beautiful artstyle with a matching soundtrack
• Modifiers allow for a variety of approaches to combat
• With Ground Healing on, platforming feels like budget Celeste

Why Not

• Runbacks are just unnecessary
• Brutal difficulty jump for the true ending

Impressions

Mio is an excellent Metroidvania which learns from its peers while adding enough to stand out. Despite a few frustrating design decisions I never wanted to stop exploring its incredibly designed and rendered world, eager to see what panoramas awaited.

The core...

What if world-building was the gameplay?

Why

• Your favourite part of games is learning about their world
• If 'intriguing' is a more attractive description than 'fun'
• You want something chill & different

Why Not

• Definitely slower paced
• If you care about literally anything other than learning about the world, there's not much here for you

Impressions

I briefly wanted to be a marine biologist when I was a kid, mostly because I thought dolphins were cool (they are) and I liked the idea of being away from my family for months at a time...

Beauty is only skin deep

Why

• Stunning 2.5D with plenty of care put into (most) environments
• Combat is pretty fun, if not particularly challenging
• Packed with personality/pop culture references

Why Not

• Story is laughably incoherent, plays out like bad fanfic
• Lots of dialogue, lots of it awkward (in English)

Impressions

"Frustration". If I had to choose one word to describe ANNO: Mutationem, that'd be the one. ANNO gracefully delivers a stunningly rendered cyberpunk world packed with cool character designs and fluid combat, then falls flat on its face the second it opens its mouth.

...

Drunk yes, Batman no

Why

• A great hook that I'd love to see as a full game
• Strong characterisation over a short runtime
• Thematic artstyle
• Style system incentivizes finding more creative/optimal solutions

Why Not

• Can be very, very short
• Not much to do if you just get to the end as fast as possible

Impressions

Man what a strange experience. This game has two characters and can take as little as 20 minutes to complete, but it does a lot with that time. Both Hank and The Unraveler pack a lot of personality into...

Beautiful but flawed

Why

• Stunningly detailed pixel art
• Hints of background lore are tantalizing
• Bosses make you think rather than git gud

Why Not

• The gameplay just isn't fun
• Never really felt challenged, I was just progressing
• Some unnecessary friction

Impressions

There's plenty of evidence Owlboy took even longer than Silksong to make. The absurdly detailed pixel art, clever enemy interactions with the environment and intruiging world building show the incredible care the devs obviously put into it over 9 years. Unfortunately the tiresome gameplay, unnecessary friction and inconsistent plot are likely also...

Unfinished, but doesn't need to be

Why

• Unique art direction looks amazing
• Bosses especially have cool designs, and some have interesting mechanics
• Cool lil' easter eggs to find in each level

Why Not

• Enemy placement is a bit Dark-Souls-2-like at times

Impressions

I took one look at the screenshots and knew I was playing this one, the sketched aesthetic of the bosses really appeals to me. The rest of the game's art didn't disappoint either; the small cast of enemies each have interesting designs and the background art matches the overall aesthetic while providing...

A Major swanSong

Why

• Feels like an alternate version of the main game
• Major Song is a badass in her own, completely different way
• Arguably more complex & difficult than the base game

Why Not

• Lacks the strong story which made the main game so special
• Set in a factory, so no stunningly detailed backgrounds to admire

Impressions

I was fortunate enough to play Sanabi after the DLC released, so I got to go straight from getting my ass kicked by Major Song to kicking ass as her. It's pretty shocking how differently...

Cyberpunk revenge Spiderman

Why

• Stunningly detailed pixel art
• Unique movement mechanics feel amazing
• Excellent pacing between gameplay and story
• The story actually rivals the gameplay for best part

Why Not

• There's definitely an initial adjustment period to the movement
• This is a cyberpunk setting, it's pretty dark

Impressions

I came into this expecting a fun action platformer, and for the first ~6 hours that's exactly what I got, with a bonus serving of amazingly detailed pixel art. The core mechanic of grappling feels amazing once you get used to it, thought that took me...

Let the dice fall where they may

Why

• Well written characters with cool designs
• An interesting story with consistent themes
• Peaks and valleys of pressure make progress feel earned
• Role-playing elements are pretty strong

Why Not

• Themes are arguably a little too consistent if you zoom out a bit
• Success snowballs, you can be kinda OP by the start of the DLC
• Some DLC dialogue doesn't seem to change based on your choices

Impressions

Citizen Sleeper starts off as a pressure cooker. You wake up on a space station called 'The Eye' as a...

Feel the power of a petty bureaucrat

Why

• Makes inspecting paperwork somewhat interesting
• Plenty of fun little interactions to discover
• Tells some interesting stories (Jorji!)

Why Not

• Pretty hard to not lose quickly on Steam Deck/a trackpad without Easy Mode
• Difficult to play for long stretches

Impressions

Papers please is definitely an interesting game; if not a fun one. But I suspect that's by design. Every part of the game from the music to the washed out color palette, tedious document checking and arbitrary rules handed down from on high conspires to make you...

I've never had so much fun clicking sentences

Why

• Innovative (at least to me) detective gameplay
• Genuinely interesting mystery, delivered (almost) entirely through transcripts
• Surprisingly intuitive, no tutorial and it's not needed

Why Not

• You'll spend a lot of time staring at transcripts
• Only one mystery, I could definitely play a whole game of this

Impressions

I won't spoil the mystery, but essentially you're a traumatized old detective trying to pull together the details of her only unsolved case from the shattered pieces of her memory. There's a bit of dialogue at the start...

John Wick in watercolor

Why

• Every frame is a beautiful painting
• An emotional story supported by a stellar soundtrack
• A lot more 'gameplay' than Gris
• Movement and combat feel satisfying

Why Not

• You somehow hate the art style?

Impressions

This is the second game from Nomada Studio, the team behind Gris, another absolutely beautiful game telling an emotional story in watercolor. I really cannot overemphasize how beautiful this game is, the screenshots are impressive but still don't do justice to how it feels to play. If you were picky you could call Gris a...

Why

Why Not

Impressions

The best games I played in 2025, many of which were not released this year.

Honourable Mentions

Slay the Spire, which I put more hours into than Silksong (!?) this year, despite already having hundreds of hours in the Switch version.

Shady Part of Me for baiting me into playing a puzzle game with French voice acting and a cool art style.

Florence for getting me into short indie games with gameplay designed to elicit a specific feeling.

The List

10. Paradise Killer

For the PS1 era vaporwave vibes and charmingly sinister setting.

9. Inscryption

For breaking...

Somehow lives up to its tagline

Why

• Hades was a GOTY contender and this is a noticeable improvement
• Lovable cast of new characters plus some returning favourites
• Melinoe feels very different to Zagreus while keeping the same gameplay concept
• Amazing art, story and soundtrack
• Supergiant is great at making a roguelike that feels like it isn't
• Spectacularly well-handled difficulty curve

Why not

• The sheer amount of great content could be overwhelming in the early midgame

Impressions

Similar to Silksong, this is a godlike sequel. If you liked or were interested in the first...

Team Cherry does it again

Why

• The level of polish explains it taking 7 years
• Crests provide genuinely different playstyles and are all viable
• Every boss was at least memorable, and at least 5 are truly amazing
• Just moving around feels so good once you get a few abilities
• Hornet having a personality & dialogue adds a lot of character
• The sheer amount of content is ridiculous, it took me as long to finish as base Elden Ring
• Somehow, very very little of that content could be considered filler

Why Not

• People saying it's hard...

Florence but sadder

Why

• Nice artsyle/sound design
• Gameplay/story combine to really make you wonder what's going on
• Exactly as long as it needs to be

Why Not

• You don't like these kinds of narrative-heavy games

Impressions

and Roger is another game in the style of Florence, which got me into the genre, though it's definitely a lot darker. I won't spoil too much about the story, but where Florence mostly combined its beautiful art and music to elicit emotional responses, and Roger adds gameplay to the mix in a much bigger way. The...

Too wholesome for me

Why

• Pixel art conveys the differences in worlds well
• Nice music
• Background mystery seems like it would be interesting

Why Not

• 'Puzzles' are basic/tedious
• Story hasn't done much to pull me in after ~4 hours
• Moral of the story seems... obvious?

Impressions

Rakuen definitely has some strong points, but I think it's just not for me. You play as a (probably terminally ill) kid in a hospital, whose family conveniently happens to own a magical book granting access to a parallel world with a wish granting deity (the Morizora). Less...

Choose-your-own-adventure Suicide Squad

Why

• Fantastic characters
• Nice animation & music
• Gameplay is actually pretty fun
• Story has some twists but a hopeful tone

Why Not

• You're a child/going to play in front of one
• If you only care about gameplay it's might not be for you

Impressions

Robert (Aaron Paul) is just a dude. Albeit a dude who's a renowned hero with a giant flying mech suit. Until his pursuit of revenge lands him without the suit or its macguffin power source, but with responsibility of dispatching his team of "reformed" villains to resolve...

Girlfailure makes friends

Why

• Focused, intriguing plot
• Small cast of characters you'll get very familiar with
• Visuals and music add a lot to the atmosphere
• Lots of personality jammed into the limited character illustrations

Why Not

• Essentially 'just' a book with pictures and music
• No choices if that's something you need in a Visual Novel

Impressions

Our POV character is Asya, a Russian high school girl with many friends who like to play pranks on her and a very strong grip on reality. One day a girl (sometimes) in her class is nice to...

I could hardly bear the despair

Why

• Wacky cast of characters you might actually end up attached to
• Ensures you have enough knowledge to solve mysteries while letting you make the connections
• Interesting minigames to make points during the class trials

Why Not

• Dialogue is often painful/repetitive
• Some of the mysteries are ridiculously convoluted/probably don't stand up to scrutiny
• Sometimes leans too hard on shock value/anime tropes

Impressions

Danganronpa has a lot of problems. The dialogue is generally so poorly written I skim-read 80% after the first chapter, it leans on shock value/edginess a...

2spooky4me

Why

• Seemed to have some creative mechanics
• Cool vibes, I definitely felt scared

Why Not

• Difficult (for me) to overlook the "checklist of stuff" gameplay
• You don't like horror

Impressions

Saw this on special for ~300yen and thought I'd give it a try to see if I'd like spooky horror games. Unfortunately it seems I don't; I definitely felt the tension and appreciated some cool ideas but overall it just wasn't an enjoyable experience.

Starting with the positives, there are some cool visuals here and it definitely nailed the spooky vibe for me....

We're all just flowers in a garden of her making

Why

• Book-quality story which wouldn't work in a book
• Every single character makes you feel something
• Respects your intelligence by giving you the opportunity to piece things together
• Always changes things up just in time to prevent getting stale

Why Not

• You absolutely need action in your games

Impressions

If you like story-driven games, or just good stories at all, stop reading and go play this. What a crazy journey, setting and incredible cast of lovable/hateable characters.

You're Watcher, one of many clones of...

Doesn't just jump the shark; plays hopscotch with it

Why

• Absurdly over the top, but can still get you invested in characters
• You never know what you're gonna get when you start a side quest
• Entertaining JRPG combat with depth and real-time elements
• Ichiban is strong candidate for my number one protagonist

Why Not

• Gets a bit grindier toward the end after mostly avoiding it well
• Some late game bosses are absolute tanks even if you're levelled appropriately

Impressions

Trying to predict where Like a Dragon will go next is an exercise in futility....

The most beautiful thing to make me want to throw my Steam Deck across the room

Why

• Distinctive art-style
• Nice music
• Some interesting puzzles/really beautiful areas

Why Not

• Platforming can be painful at times

Impressions

A beautiful little puzzle game aiming for a cozy, relaxing experience that lets itself down a bit with rage-inducing platforming.

You're a little girl minding her own business when a scary looking bug dude called the Oscuro comes along and steals the light that seems to make everything in this universe function. Since you and the bug are the...

Starting a new game taken literally

Why

• Just do it
• So much creativity
• More than it seems
• Even if it was only what it seems, would still be a good game

Why Not

• The idea of battling with card-shaped objects is abhorrent to you

Impressions

Yeah just go play this one. If it looks even slightly interesting to you from the store page, or honestly even if it doesn't, don't spoil yourself by reading reviews. Trust me bro and go buy it.

If you're not willing to blindly spend ~$20 on the word of...

High concept scribbles

Why

• Genuinely unique art style that somehow works
• Combat is pretty engaging/complex
• If you enjoy having absolutely no idea what's going on

Why Not

• You don't like the art-style
• You hate having to do multiple (short) playthroughs for all the content

Impressions

I bought this a while ago after being drawn in by the raw, sketchy art-style then forgot about it for a while. I had some reservations about how good the actual gameply would be since enemies being collections of abstract art doesn't really lend itself to visual clarity, but...

Everything sounds cooler en français

Why

• Creative and sometimes challenging puzzles
• Distinctive art-style and beautiful soundtrack
• Creepy vibes and story
• Easy to pick up & put down for quick sessions

Why Not

• Essentially a puzzle game, so if you dislike those it might not be for you

Impressions

It's crazy to me that this only has ~650 reviews at the time of writing, it's an absolute gem. The art style and music really drew me into the vague story, which is slowly revealed by conversations between a little girl, her shadow and a mysterious...

What if INSIDE was a noir movie?

Why

• Very atmospheric & cinematic
• <2 hours to finish

Why Not

• You're playing on Steam Deck & don't like slideshows
• <2 hours to finish
• Missing the tension/sense of danger from INSIDE

Impressions

This is my first INSIDE-like after enjoying that game and its predecessor LIMBO quite a lot earlier this year. You're a helpless little raven girl in a big scary noir-style world which hates birds, only able to walk, jump and climb ladders.

While INSIDE puts the pressure on right out of the gate by having...

Mobile games are... good?

Why

• Absolutely mindbending
• Beautifully crafted levels
• An chill soundtrack with a lot of attention given to sound effects

Why Not

• You only like games with action or conflict

Impressions

The Monument Valley series is 3 chill, beautifully designed puzzle games about (sometimes) lone wanderer traversing the ruins of an ancient civilization who played fast & loose with geometry. I played the original on one of my first smartphones and loved it, so when I saw the first two 90% off on Steam I jumped at the chance to relive my...

Interesting ideas don't stop it becoming a victim of 'Not Slay the Spire' syndrome

Why

• You want a bit of story in your roguelite, but not too much
• You like the idea of being able to fight or negotiate, and have different decks for each
• Or cards levelling up with use

Why Not

• For a game focused more on story the characters are pretty one-note
• I feel like sticking to a single deck might've allowed for more intersting/creative archetypes

Impressions

I got this for negative money in a bundle with Shogun Showdown so...

Killing god(s) with the power of teenage angst

Why

• Everything about it is slick, stylish and choreographed
• You will get deeply attached to at least a few of the characters, probably most
• It never feels stale over a 100+ hour runtime
• Has a low complexity floor, but Excel spreadsheets worth of ceiling
• Finishing it made me genuinely sad to say goodbye to a bunch of pixels

Why Not

• You despise anime, JRPGs or long stretches of dialogue

Impressions

There are so many great things about P5R, but its flair is likely the one that'll...

A genuinely unique 'card' battler

Why

• Deep gameplay and plenty of replayability
• Makes some big changes to the card battler format that pay off
• Cool pixel art and varied scenarios

Why Not

• You want a game with a clearly defined/visible endpoint
• You're heavily motivated by story

Impressions

This is a great game which clearly lives up to its overwhelmingly positive reviews, but after ~3 hours I'm dropping it.

It's not the game; it's me. The gameplay is great; moving from the typical many cards/few upgrades to few cards/many upgrades (and cooldowns on cards rather...

Maybe not a good sequel, but a great game.

Why

• You want a different but familiar take on Dark Souls
• You enjoy being thrown into ridiculous situations and fighting your way through
• You like power-stancing to the same unhealthy degree as one of my coworkers

Why Not

• The only reason you liked Dark Souls was the interconnectedness of the world

Impressions

This one didn't pull me in to the same degree as the original; I took two long breaks to play other games (Ender Lillies/Magnolia, then Persona 5) and I think that's the biggest...

Since I'm doing something unusual by playing a game on release, I decided to compound the bizarreness and use a journal-like format for this review.

I've grouped my thoughts by area, in the order I encountered them, which might not necessarily be the order you encounter them in. If you need to get pastan area you haven't seen without spoilers to see one you have, clicking the table of contents on the right should jump you to the area you want without revealing anything above it. It might reveal stuff below it depending on screen-size/paragraph-length though, so probably don't do...

An unexceptional story, exceptionally told.

Why

• Beautiful art, animation & music
• An emotional story with a message
• Plenty of delightful little details to discover

Why Not

• You need games to have plenty of action/player agency

Review

Florence is a visual novel where rather than selecting dialog options you interact with the world as the titular character, much more effectively putting you in her shoes.

These interactions take the form of simple mini-games, designed more to align you with Florence's state of mind at that point than to provide any sort of challenge. I don't...

What if Jesus where a blue haired teenage girl?

Why

• Cozy game which doesn't ask too much of you but provides some nice worldbuilding and story
• Fun core gameplay loop
• Your journal has a cool art style and offers background on the world, incentivising collectible hunting
• Overall art direction is a good fit

Why Not

• A little janky at times
• Combat feels like an absolute chore, apart from one specific enemy type

Impressions

First impressions were great, it's clearly not meant to be challenging but the movement feels fluid, voice acting and art are...

The Assassins Creed 2 of video game sequels.

Why

• All the stuff that made Ender Lilies amazing, with the rough edges sanded off
• New setting and new (slightly) less depressing vibes
• Stronger connections to all your summons as characters
• Satisfyingly links the two games in the same universe

Why Not

• Can feel a little too similar to its predecessor, at least when played back to back

Impressions

A fantastic sequel which takes the medieval fantasy foundation of the original and brings it into the steampunk-ish future. The basic gameplay and premise are the same,...

Breaking out of time loops with the power of friendship.

Why

• Distinct and interesting gameplay for each crewmate
• Having three for each run + meaningfully different ships opens up a lot of possibilities
• Funny/charming story & characters

Why Not

• You don't like card games, roguelites or quirky animal-like characters.

Impressions

As someone whose time to play games is more limited these days, my favourite thing about Cobalt Core was that it had a story with a clear and satsfying endpoint; which left me feeling I'd experienced all the game had to offer. That's not...

Smol girl with big スタンド.

Why

• You like metroidvanias, beautiful art and great sound design
• You like having varied styles of combat, without any real penalty for switching it up
• You're annoyed by never knowing if you found every secret, but don't want your hand held
• You're looking for a focused 15-25 hour experience that leaves you wanting more

Why not

• You don't like metroidvanias

Impressions

For some reason I went into this one with kinda low expectations, and man was I wrong. The first hour or so pulled me in with the visuals,...

Charming cultists conspire, cockily causing calamities.

Why

• You like cool collectibles, world building and the feeling of an answer slowly revealing itself
• Stylish cult in a pocket dimension trying to revive dead gods vibes
• Strong characters, both lovable & hateable

Why not

• You only like games which require a lot of action, or mechanical skill
• You want a mystery which requires strong deductive skills to solve

Impressions

If you like collectible hunting, you'll love this game. Right after being given unrestricted access to the world I inadvertently jumped over a railing instead of heading...

Doom's modern return is the best kind of power fantasy.

Why

• Very, very fun
• Weapon/enemy variety is great and perfectly staggered
• Frantic pace, all mechanics encourage you to constantly move
• Looks & runs great on Steam Deck

Why not

• Bosses can be a weak point
• You're squeamish
• You strongly dislike violence

Impressions

This is very different to the games I usually play. Some of my favourites are Baldur's Gate 3, Divinity Original Sin 2, Slay the Spire and obviously souls-likes. All fairly slow paced, deliberate games with excellent story telling and characters. Doom does...

A story-driven roguelike deckbuilder based on Arthurian legends.

Why

• Interesting lore, fully voiced
• Wide variety of playstyles and mechanics

Why not

• A little easy?
• Mechanics aren't explained well after first class
• Exacerbated by janky feeling UI

Impressions

This is a neat little game, and if I played it before Hades/Slay the Spire/with more free time I probably would've finished it. As someone with a full time job and hundreds of hours in two of the best roguelikes made though, nothing about this one stuck out enough to keep me playing.

I unlocked 4 or...

Implementation Notes

• 'who should buy' matrix at start

Impressions

• Very frantic at the start, absolutely no idea what you should be doing if not prepared
• Can see a lot of people taking their time and ending up way underlevelled/not knowing why
• Very interested to see solo difficulty
  • lack of other people means less pressure to play 'optimally'
  • not ruining some else's run if you just explore/try stuff
• Upgrades are not exciting, at least at start
  • Have heard character-specific ones from story are better tho
  • they are, more interesting/stronger
• wall jumping can...

Will do less damage than other characters, but does it more consistently and can set up the whole team for more damage. His passive helps everyone find rarer items, he can quickly/safely apply status effects and the mark from his character skill gives big staggers/bursts of damage.

Also, he's one of the characters whose final rememberance mission is killing the final boss. Just an FYI as it isn't mentioned in the Journal anywhere.

Build

• has high arcane so bows with status are good
  • same for the relic that gives your starting weapon poison/boosted attack on poison
...

A murder by crows

Why

• Charming/stylish artstyle
• Characters brimming with personality
• An interesting mix of souls/Zelda level design
• Surprisingly satisfying souls-like slaying

Why Not

• You're looking for something really difficult

Impressions

In the world of Death's Door, Grim Reaper is a job like any other (as long as you're a crow). The soul harvesting business is slow these days though; at least until a mysterious older crow steals the surprisingly powerful soul you just claimed.

Needing it to meet your quarterly KPIs, you end up on a quest across three biomes to defeat the...