In the end, the whole game really does rely on a single type of puzzle game play, which makes it feel rather cheap - almost like the entire game was programmed by a single person for a college programming project or something (complete with SoundCloud.com links showing up for the music's credit section). Thankfully, the developers agreed. At a $2.99 price point, the dedicated puzzle-lovers out there may want to think about picking this title up, as it is guaranteed to get your brain working at later levels. While this review is for the PS4 version (Energy Cycle is also out on Steam and Xbox One), I can't help but think this type of simplistic puzzle game is better served on mobile devices. It almost seems like wasted potential, honestly. Weird, right? Regardless, outside of die-hard puzzle lovers though, Energy Cycle is just too repetitive to really recommend to anyone.

Echoes of the Fey: The Fox’s Trail was an enjoyable surprise. I wasn’t expecting the sheer amount of ending variations and deep themes that unfolded within this three-hour mystery. I appreciated that despite this being the first episode, it was a complete tale. Woodsy Studios has proven the worth of the intriguing fantasy world of Oraz, and hopefully, they can continue to improve in developing the second part of this magical tale.

Super Rocket Shootout wants to be a good game, and it certainly has its moments. However, it’s held back by so many problems that kept me from fully enjoying it. Even for $10, it’s hard to recommend this game when you can spend a couple more dollars on Duck Game and have a similar experience with the addition of online multiplayer. Only get this game if you have friends to play local multiplayer with.

Maybe it doesn't have gore-drenched animated encounters between knights or copulating pawns, but Chess Ultra VR manages to check off just about every fundamental requirement, at least to some degree. Overall, though, it seems a bit bare-bones, with VR being its niche feature. It isn't necessarily a great tool for learning the subtleties of chess, but in most ways, Chess Ultra VR rises above baseline competence to something much better. And owners of virtual reality headsets can dust them off and enjoy a game that never loses its challenge.

There are more than enough indie games that involve survival and crafting. That Wrongworld can enter into this crowded genre and still provide an experience that is unique enough to be worth playing says a great deal. Despite containing many of the conventional trappings of a survival game and some significant flaws, it still feels fresh for at least a dozen or two hours. It isn't the most ambitious indie title on the market, but it is a tightly focused experience that is intelligently targeted to a specific audience. If you have reached the end of this review, then there is a strong chance that you lie within that audience. If so, then Wrongworld is a fairly easy game to recommend to you.

In the end, I didn’t feel that Bit Dungeon+ respected my time. Much of the gameplay is tedious, and the dungeons are very simply designed. The repetitive and annoying grungy chiptunes and the lack of story didn’t do anything to motivate me either. The roguelike structure is more stressful than entertaining, mostly because death can await at any turn, including via game-crashing bugs caused by errors in the programming. There are better dungeon crawlers and roguelikes out there, so while this is a cheap option, you get what you pay for.

Knock Knock is driven by a neat idea and an evocative presentation. It’s a shame, then, that its goodwill is hampered by gameplay that feels a little broken. To give it the benefit of the doubt, the issues I ran into seem to be a result of the game not going far enough to give the player a proper explanation outside a few needlessly cryptic notes in between stages. The game is equipped with the right scares but I found it hard to invest in the experience because of frequent, unknown fail states.

Trackless provides a glimpse into a fascinating world. Its intriguing lore and phenomenal soundtrack encouraged me to see the game through from beginning to end. Ultimately, however, its performance issues and rough difficulty spikes hindered it for much of the journey. Poorly optimized, buggy, and unwieldy, Trackless lacks the polish of the strong adventure titles it looks to emulate.

Imagine Soviet Union in the dark 1980’s, home computers being a scarce luxury. Maybe, just maybe, DreamBreak is a pastiche of those old Commodore 64 games that were pirated to behind the iron curtain. Due to a language barrier and lack of manuals, such classic games as Impossible Mission and Project Firestart - another obvious inspirations behind DreamBreak - must have felt exotic but strange and clumsy. DreamBreak mimics those nostalgic sentiments with its awkward gameplay married to a thin narrative. Nah, that would be just a bad excuse. The transient Russo-retro experience isn’t enough to carry the game and the final verdict is that DreamBreak just isn’t very good.

I’m happy that Naps Team is still around. I played their first game, a beat ‘em up Shadow Fighter on Commodore Amiga 23 years ago. It was a bit homespun but really thrilling and competent fighter. There’s some similar likable roughness to Iron Wings. The game needs some more ironing to its wings to get rid of the bugs and seriously tone down the ridiculous time limits to really take off. Then again, there is no air combat game quite like it around at the moment. For all its bents and bullet holes in the game design, there’s an indelible picturesqueness in the game's visceral action. Iron Wings is like a pulp novel. You know it’s a bit silly but it will entertain you nonetheless.

Eliosi’s Hunt is only $5. At such a cheap price, it’s worth picking up if you’re a hardcore fan of top-down shooters, you’re into speedrunning, or you just want a difficult game to play. But between mediocre shooting, mediocre platforming, and occasionally frustrating level design, there are certainly better options out there.

There really isn't that much to talk about, and I think that's what really makes this game unappealing. There isn't much to do outside of arcade and versus mode, and even the addition of Senko no Ronde DUO included in the game, it's not all too different from the new version for it to really make a difference. It's not that I think Senko no Ronde 2 is a bad game per se, but I definitely don't think the price tag is worth the few minutes of fun you'll have with a friend. It can be a fun game to play, but it's definitely not worth it at the current price point. Even if it were ten or fifteen dollars, I still don't think it brings enough to the table.

Framed with its narrow form of expression, the isolated cyber thriller story of Code 7 plays out like a radio drama of a chamber play. Convincing and emotionally involved voice acting breaths life beyond words to the unfolding events. It’s quite remarkable how little is needed to create an engaging entertainment; a good old mystery and the necessary gameplay mechanics to convey it. Tech noir sentiments of Code 7 are all very 80’s - rogue AI, hacking, spartan computer systems and dreams of a man colonizing Mars - but I wouldn’t call it a retro game as such. Rather, Code 7 is a new entry in an adventure game sub-genre which has been dormant for the last 25 years. The only thing damping the experience down is the developer’s estimate that it takes some six months for the next episode to arrive. Damn it, I want to solve the mystery of Alex and Code 7 right away!

Until such a time, though, Train Sim World: Great Western Express is beautiful and I'm impressed that it runs so well even on mid-range computers. But, just as Train Sim World: CSX Heavy Haul did, it doesn't really live up to the World part of the Train Sim World brand-name. I really hope that Dovetail won't repeat their thousands-of-dollars of DLC model from the Train Simulator 20XX series.

As it is, PS4 version of Trulon: The Shadow Engine is sadly broken. It’s a crying shame because I really liked the game up to that point. With its spirited attitude, it even evoked vibes of old Final Fantasies, which is always a positive feeling. So, I’m calling out Kyy Games to patch the PS4 version. You owe it the customers who bought your game in a good will. When that happens, I’m happy to return to Trulon: The Shadow Engine and give it a score it would deserve based solely on its gameplay and presentation.

In the end, Eventide 2: The Sorcerer's Mirror is another solid offering from Artifex Mundi, and fans of the genre will undoubtedly enjoy this title. The entire project however, just feels... a bit underwhelming, as the developer's usual effort just doesn't seem to be here (mainly in the game's short length, lack of a bonus chapter, and lack of alternate game modes). Still, if you're looking for a relaxing time with various puzzles and hidden object scenes to enjoy, Eventide 2 is ready to serve you up another dose.

While this is the sort of thing VR was made for, it’s hard to see Everest VR as anything more than decent piece of “experience it once” edutainment. The interactive sections of the game fail to generate much excitement as you very slowly climb up the mountain, listening to the breathy laments of your fellow climbers (and even see one of them die, which is treated rather flippantly). In the end, there’s not much here that’ll hold someone’s attention for longer than an hour, if that. An experience like this is a great idea--get players to explore places they may never have a chance to see in person--but it doesn’t do enough to really draw you into a strong sense of place.

Yup, there’s no online mode in Ninja Shodown. This means that as enjoyable as multiplayer is, it’s only playable locally in a living room. Combine this with the simple truth that Versus Mode is the only good part of the game, and you’re left with a product I just can’t recommend. If the performance issues were cleaned up and the price slashed down drastically, my verdict might look very different. That’s because, again, the game is surprisingly engaging when played competitively. Games aren’t necessarily outright bad when they’re too hard or even broken; it’s when they effectively don’t give you anything to do that they truly fall apart. And because it lacks an online multiplayer mode, Ninja Shodown fits that description for many players.

Abyss is painted in the usual colorful and lively Artifex Mundi style. There are lots of narrative cut scenes, some of which look quite rough with pretty hilarious mouth movement, but they still enliven the events nicely. Sadly, I found the music quite irritating as it’s looping all too brief pieces. The story could have used a bit more focus as some elements were underused. For example, in the beginning a lot of emphasis was put on a mysterious girl showing herself now and again but eventually her part was hastily exposed and brushed to the side lines. All in all, Abyss: The Wraiths of Eden is a solid Artifex Mundi casual adventure, offering the familiar entertainment values you’d come to expect from the company. The original PC version of the game is five years old and Artifex Mundi has released a constant stream of colorful adventures ever since. I hope that they will gradually shift to porting their fresher titles for console players’ enjoyment.

The Green Cities expansion pack contains a lot of nice buildings and a very welcome change to the traffic system, but it doesn't introduce anything to necessitate what it offers. That being said, it's being sold at a reasonable price, and the changes it offers are fun to tinker with in their own right. And by not taking any risks with altering the pollution mechanics, you can feel free to boot up any old city you have without everyone becoming sick and the air filling up with vaporized sludge. Plus, it's kind of awesome to have a new library of slick buildings and tourist attractions (the climate research station being a personal favorite). It does what it promises, and I will say that if you see it on sale, you really might as well pick it up.

It’s a commendable effort to make a mystery-solving adventure without narrative structure but the game simply lacks pizzazz for anyone but the keenest investigators. Even I, who utterly love detective stories and games, was often frustrated by how little the game is willing to help the players wanting to solve its case. The Painscreek Killings has an exciting murder mystery hidden somewhere but it’s buried under all the extra baggage of technical issues and awkward game design.

I went into this game hoping for an example of a well-made arcade hunter. And with Glu’s record, that was a reasonable desire. I take no pleasure, then, in acknowledging that Deer Hunter: Reloaded is simply atrocious. It’s ugly, sluggish, obtuse, counter-intuitive, and brimming with game-breaking bugs. Its few positive qualities are directly negated by some of its many, many faults, resulting in what sits among the weakest functional video games I have ever played. Maybe one day we’ll get a nice version of what this game was trying to bring to consoles. Regardless, I am confident that we won't get anything worse.

Pro Series is one of those games that I really wanted to enjoy beyond its actual quality. With its multitude of lakes, fish species, and upgrades, the developers clearly put in a good amount of effort. But its core gameplay mechanics just don’t match its content. Ironically, this is a fishing experience that will bore you not because you can’t catch anything, but rather because you all-too-easily can. It’s still somewhat satisfying to catch a big pile of floppers and watch your cash pile up, but it’s all done in this omnipresent cloud of disappointment. That’s Rapala Fishing: Pro Series for you; not bad, but disappointing.

The train simulator market is not exactly burgeoning, but there are other games in the same space as Train Simulator 2018, most notably Trainz: A New Era, which features new graphics and physics engines and a slightly less -- though only slightly less so -- egregious DLC model. Still, the enthusiast has choices. While Train Simulator knows its trains and offers (at a price) a lot of available content, its outdated visuals, bland presentation, bugs and technical issues and inflated-price DLC make it hard to get on board with.

It’s great that pinball is back, and it’s even better that Zen Studios seems to be back to form after the time off. The Universal Classics are just that, and while they don’t check all the boxes, particularly in the voice/sound department, the looks, complete with higher resolutions and crisper textures, and table accouterment are enough to make these a worthy buy.

If you’re playing singleplayer - which, until the update, you most often will be - then that’s how to best enjoy Hammerwatch; short bursts. It’s nice to sit down every now and then and just relax with something charming and humble. Yes, it will take weeks to complete its two six-hour campaigns this way, but every time you come back, you’re a little stronger, maybe a little faster, and definitely richer. In singleplayer, it’s a good game. In multiplayer, it’s something more. Keeping in mind that the PC version already has online multiplayer, I am confident that Crackshell are being honest about the forthcoming update. So if you're on the fence, at least keep an eye on this one.

The presentation is of a high-quality throughout, even if some cutscenes are technically a bit muddy. The graphics paint sinister yet colorful vistas of the pirates’ immortal realm. I also liked the representations of Davy Jones and the ghost girl. They were easily better illustrated and rendered than characters in most other Artifex Mundi games. I’m almost certain, though, that the backing music was already heard in the first game in the trilogy! Within Artifex Mundi’s staple, and casual adventures in general, Nightmares from the Deep 3: Davy Jones is an enjoyable and relaxing diversion to daily chores. No sudden deaths or time limits, just an involving mystery with plenty of ghost pirates. That’s quite a nice mix, I’d say.

Terra Feminarum is like a handwork. A unique take on a well-worn concept and turned into a piece of art, quite like no other. It takes some nerve, though. It can be frustrating to lose a life to a momentary lapse of concentration but rarely it’s the game’s fault. Basically, I’m saying; buy Terra Feminarum for that itching arcade shooter fix! I might be biased but I have all the reasons to be so.