DeVuego

Lamentum transported me to a place of nightmares that I didn’t want to wake up from. Its gameplay was spot-on and the world that Obscure Tales built was flawless. I wish there were more games in the genre like this. This was just the start-up I needed for the Halloween season and it’s sure to be in my line-up of titles to play every year. If you’re a scaredy-cat like me, you’ll especially feel right at home. While it maintains a horrifying vibe, it doesn’t traumatize you with un-needed jumpscares to make its point. This is a title that any horror fan could get into and enjoy.

Crisol: Theater of Idols is bold, brutal, and unapologetically creative. It takes risks that most survival horror games wouldn’t dare to touch—and every one of them pays off. Between its unforgettable setting, razor-sharp mechanics, and deeply unsettling presentation, this is not just another Blumhouse Games success—it’s a standout horror experience in its own right.

Endling - Extinction Is Forever is an impactful experience that is made as an entertaining survival game! I can see any animal-loving, survival game fan playing this game fully. There is always something special about getting a different perspective on tough situations and it isn’t often that someone wonders what the animals are going through in hard times. Starting the game off in the middle of a forest fire really put a serious tone on the game right from the initial load up and even as the game had relaxing explorative moments, the tone fittingly remained.

In the end, developer Tequila Works deserves heaps of praise for this truly magical experience that is not only fascinating but an absolute delight to play. It hearkens back to the first CD-ROM games I played back decades ago; a merging of technology and art in game format. I was mesmerized from the opening scene to the very end by what I saw, what I heard but more importantly, what I felt. Awe, wonder, and contentment were just a few things that washed over me as I climbed steep cliffs, swam with jellyfish, and ventured under the soft flicker of a green torch. As this grumpy, old gamer tends to get more jaded by horrible games being released every week, endless DLC and Season Passes, Rime is truly a diamond in the rough that needs to be experienced by every gamer. Truly, a magical gaming delight.

A Tale of Paper is a fantastic game that I think would appeal to anyone looking for something new to play for a few hours over the weekend or to unwind with after a long day of work. It offers a lot of intriguing and at times difficult gameplay that gives you a sense of pride as a player when you overcome it. The story while not a big theatrical feat is one of the most emotional stories I’ve seen in recent years.  If you’re a fan of puzzle-platforming games, this is a must-play!

After Us is a delightful breath of fresh gameplay in the game industry! I absolutely love the premise and being able to save the spirit of nature is an easy plot hook to catch my interest. While the gameplay is pretty entertaining, it does have its frustrations and challenges to it. Even so, I enjoyed my whole playthrough of this game and hope to see this team keep this style up in future titles. This is definitely a game that I recommend for adventurous players to try out.

In closing, I enjoy a good puzzle game and the challenge that comes with them. Professor Lupo and his Horrible Pets brings not only an amusing puzzle but a compelling story along with it that makes you want to keep playing. After a few chapters in I found myself compelled to want to learn more about the characters all while dodging new creative and fun aliens. While some levels will make you pause to really wrap your head around what you have to do, it is still an enjoyable process that is hard to walk away from. With a sub 20$ price tag, this is for sure a good choice to pick up, offering over a hundred levels of problems to solve all while keeping your cute little bald head about you.  

Stay provides a clever way to guilt the player into staying and help Quinn escape his own personal hell. Although the pixel-art graphics didn’t work out for me personally, the game’s overall atmosphere, which is made creepier by the fantastic soundtrack delivers a nail-biting experience, which is pretty much a new experience in the Nintendo Switch. 

Rise and Shine is a welcome entry into the 2D side scroller genre. It captures what made retro games fun and challenging (and maybe frustrating at times) but successfully maintaining that sense of nostalgia and entertainment. It falls short in replayability but makes up for it in a charming and humorous journey.

Tiny Lands is the perfect game to pick up every now and then to not only get the mind moving but to relax you at the same time. For the modest asking price and the serene experience, I can’t really think of another game with such offerings. Especially given the craziness that we’re living in, it’s nice to have games like this to rescue us. I think everyone needs to give this game a try no matter which platform you choose.

TAPE: Unveil the Memories serves as a new perspective on horror puzzle games! I really liked the concept of the game and the way the puzzles were presented. it had multiple moments that felt like solving puzzles I haven’t been presented with before. Pushing an innovative focus is always a grand step to take for the game industry. However, the downsides of the game can’t be ignored, but luckily, they can be overlooked to allow the game to be enjoyable. So, to that point, I would say I recommend this game to those looking for a bit of a unique experience with new puzzles to solve.

The game is fun, but not as difficult as I was hoping it would get to. I enjoyed my playthrough of the game and am likely to back to complete the time trial challenges myself, but was able to collect all the flies during my initial playthrough with little trouble. Excellent game that would be worth getting, but even better that it was a free game from Playstation! Thanks Sony!

Charon’s Staircase is an intriguing horror experience that does well with lore and building moments. If more focus would have went into the graphical quality of the game, it would be an amazing title to playthrough. The voice-over, puzzle style, and environment were all well set up to present a story that deserved to be a bit more fleshed out (mostly in the introduction) than we got. It is a very solid game that is worth checking out if you get the chance.

It is a fun game for sure. It is a good party game, especially when there are kids who want to play or there is a person that is hesitant about video games. The bright colors and overflowing cuteness are really entertaining, but the lack of single player altogether and general lack of content leaves this game feeling like those big chocolate bunnies from Easter, cute and tasty, but unfortunately hollow.

I love these kinds of games and I like the art style chosen, but there are just too many things that either create a hurdle for me, the player, or leave me scratching my head. The game couldn't really keep my interest. There were also a number of UI and mechanics issues that bothered me. In its current state, I may see myself “toying” with the game, but I wouldn't really say I enjoy every moment playing it. 

I desperately want to like this game! It’s got charm, it’s got an evil wolf god, and I can play as a rogue werewolf who uses they/them pronouns! There’s the potential for a fun, magical story here that I genuinely think I would enjoy. And I don’t think the game is “bad,” per se. I’ve played bad games, and I can’t wait to put them down and never touch them again. But I want to come back to The Waylanders six months from now and find that it’s a much better game than when I first played it. It’s not good yet, but it has the potential to be. As things stand today, it’s trying too hard to be funny and not delivering on the core aspects of what makes a game a game. I sincerely hope the developers are able to tighten things up; I would hate for this to be the final sentence on a project they’ve clearly put a lot of heart and soul into.