Indie game developer Retro Style Games is bringing a new Roguelike in the form of Codename Ocean Keeper to Steam. Players get to pick up the mantle of Space Pirate as they search an underwater planet looking for ancient artifacts and other goodies to make some money.
Drew has pledged to slowly but slowly churn his way through his sizeable stack of Nintendo Switch games for his 'Beat the Backlog' feature. Check out his main article to see what games he's completed already!
Amidst the current climate of national turmoil and financial woes, it can feel at times like we’re living in our own brand of survival game, where the only safe place is our home, away from… people. Jumping into the survival genre has titles that come with its own unique styles and construction mechanics, with personal favourites being Valheim and The Forest. That is until Enshrouded threw its hat in the ring, where before I knew it, tens of hours had passed before I had even left the tutorial area. Whilst still in its early access, the team over at Keen Games has developed what is shaping up to be one of my FAVOURITE survival games, and the beauty is, they are only making it better.
Every once in a while, a game comes across your desk that just snatches your attention and won’t let go. In 2023 for me, that was a little indie title that was still in development called Akurra. I stumbled upon it while scrolling the #indiedev community on X (formerly Twitter) and was immediately enamoured by its throwback art style and intricate puzzling. Solo developer, Jason Newman, kindly provided me with a demo at that time and from minute one I was absolutely enthralled by it.
Assassin's Creed Shadows has been officially unveiled by Ubisoft. The latest entry in the long-running franchise will be getting a release on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series consoles towards the end of the year. To whet the appetite of players, Ubisoft has shown the game's Japanese setting and given a glimpse at the two newest assassins in action.
If I were to present to you an image of the grey, concrete brick-looking relic from the 90’s that is the Playstation One console, and was to ask “name the first games that pop into your head?”
Hidden Through Time 2: Myths & Magic is the second instalment in the series brought to us by Rougeside. The game is very much an interactive gameplay version of a Where’s Wally? book and one that we looked to review from the viewpoint of my daughter who was aged 5 at the time of playing. Thinking it’d be interesting to get a take on the game through her eyes, seeing what she enjoyed and what struggles she encountered along the way. The game is rated PEGI 3 so was the perfect age rating for her to play.
What do Hoover, Coke and Picross all have in common? They’re all brand names that are thrown about instead of the real names. Why is this relevant you ask? Well, that’s because I didn’t know that ‘Picross’ was a brand name owned by Nintendo until Piczle Cross: Story of Seasons downloaded onto my Nintendo Switch and I booted it up. With a name like Piczle Cross, you’d be forgiven for thinking this was the Wish-DOT-COM version of the popular puzzle game that was trying to avoid a letter from the Super Mario lawyers.
When I think of Monty Python, the first thing that pops into my head isn't one of Eric Idol’s ditties or John Cleese’s sarcastic punchlines, but Terry Gilliam’s amazing artwork. While I got a kick out of skits like the fish slapping, coconut clacking and “Jesus, Sir”, it was the offbeat artwork that made me a fan. It’s no surprise then, that when Inkulinati crossed my path, with its art style that looks straight out of the mind of Gilliam, I just had to give it a go. It’s not often I play a game based solely on how it looks, instead I rely on a bit of research, like the previous works of the developer, or what genre the title sits in. After all, I don’t want to be stuck playing a turn-based strategy game, do I?
I love the monochrome look - it’s stylish in a way that’s simply timeless. Crisp black on pure white will never not be cool. You know what’s cooler though? Black and white with a slosh of colour - especially when that colour is blood red… Think Sin City or MadWorld and you’ve got it right.
