Advertised as a cyberpunk horror, I do feel that >observer_ falls short of that aim considering I only jumped three times throughout. What it did right is more than enough reason for any fans of the cyberpunk genre, fans of works centered around dystopias, and fans of vintage sci-fi to at least give it a shot. From the setting to diving into others’ minds, and then watching the lines between real and unreal begin to blur, it’s an unsettling walk through madness I’m happy I took.

The Escapists 2 definitely delivered on its promise: there's lots to do and many different ways to escape. However, sometimes this can feel overwhelming while playing single player, and so the game really shines when playing with friends or taking on the timed escape maps. But even when escape seems impossible, there's still something satisfying about playing as a prisoner and testing what you can get away with.

The DLC’s best effect, however, may be that it could bring back players who gave up on the game before all the above-mentioned updates and let them see how much the general gameplay has improved. This is, indeed, a pirate title that you should try out.

As my first entry into the series, Sudden Strike 4 is one of those RTS games that I'll actually remember a year from now. One where I'll be sitting there and go, "Jeeze, I think it's about time to play it again." I'm halfway tempted to go back and check out the older games, but Sudden Strike 4's campaign is just something sublime that I'm going to be revisiting frequently when I get the RTS itch. The shame is that I didn't enjoy the multiplayer as much as the single-player, as while the gameplay mechanics stay intact it loses a lot of that luster. A final note: the campaign, being only 21 missions along with the less enjoyable multiplayer, may not be enough for many people to pay out the $49.99 price tag. It's a bit steep, but I still say it's a must play for any RTS fan.

The fact that Creative Assembly has brought these back and added to them tells us a great deal about the creative license they are allowed to take with the source material. We might start seeing races that were never given full unit rosters or complete lore, suddenly given entire campaigns and story-arcs. This only fills me with anticipation for what rarely seen races and rosters the future DLCs might cover. But on the whole, as we move towards the second game and its combined campaign, this is the perfect swan-song for the first game and all those campaign memories.

Immortal Planet is fine in just about every sense of the word. It does most things decently well, but never does anything exceptionally. It has a few interesting ideas, but it’s got enough drawbacks to even them out. I respect the ideas and what I’m sure were the goals of the project by a small development team, but it’s only been a few hours since I stopped playing and I’m already over it. I don’t regret my time with the game, but I don’t feel the need to hop back in and don’t really have any stand-out moments to look back on. The game may be called immortal, but the experience proves to be anything but.

Original Journey has a lot of good going for it. You’ll meet characters you will like to talk to, see environments you will like to play through, and meet aliens you will like blowing up with all sorts of firepower. It doesn’t really re-invent the wheel, but it’s a great game to jump into for 20-30 minutes and revel in the cathartic bliss of blasting away some bad guys. As I type, I’m already looking forward to jumping back in and playing a bit more.

Galaxy of Pen and Paper isn't a game that'll change your life, but it's a blast to play and I found myself smiling and laughing the whole way through. It's a great game for anybody looking for something more focused on story rather than gameplay complexity, and especially for those who are interested in sci-fi popular culture. I personally loved the game, and it's likely that I'll check out the game's fantasy-based predecessor, Knights of Pen and Paper.

Crashday Redline Edition is most certainly a labour of love for the small development team, but it doesn’t hold up in a modern setting. There are games with better car handling out there, there are games with better car combat and there are games with much deeper and interesting story modes. Unfortunately, there just aren’t many reasons you would pick Crashday over them.

West of Loathing is the rare game that makes me want to explore every nook and cranny to find new quests, new texts to read and most importantly, new jokes to laugh at. It’s been a long time since I’ve laughed this much while playing a game, and I look forward to exploring West of Loathing again and again in the future.

Children of Zodiarcs sits you down, makes you feel at home, and presents you with bite-size mechanics that anyone could understand. However, behind the cutesy graphics, and the diorama board-game aesthetic, it is a surprisingly merciless tactical RPG.

I can certainly list the game’s qualities, but I can also list its flaws. But I think in the end what it comes down to is the fact that this game’s qualities feel individual, whereas I perceive its flaws belonging to the genre as a whole, which, to me, makes them far more forgivable.

On the whole I did enjoy Sundered; it’s an incredible looking platformer, and certainly one the most intriguing in terms of its artistic influences. It also has excellent boss fights, each stranger and more varied than the last. Unfortunately, the sections of grinding in between are what you will spend the majority of your time doing.

Solstice Chronicles may lack some of the charm that made the first game one of my favorites of 2015, but it still stands on its own two feet as a good game in its own right, held back once more by a weak narrative, weaker level designs, and a fear of throwing too much at the player at once. Please, throw more at me. Please.

Ticket to Earth is reasonably fun, particularly in short bursts. The combat system is extremely intuitive, and allows for some experimentation with various strategies. And with the variation in enemy types, different strategies will definitely be used from time to time. Ticket to Earth is full of colour which belies the serious tone of the game, but goes well with the more casual feel of the game. The strategic combat is anything but casual, however, requiring some thoughtful planning in the moves, especially if you're looking to complete all the mission goals for each scenario. Episode One only lasts around five or six hours, but with three more episodes coming soon, Ticket to Earth will keep us entertained for hours with its great blend of puzzle and strategy.

Redeemer is an excellent game coming out of Moscow and Kalingrad, Russia and I recommend it to anyone looking for a fast-paced, action packed gore fest that requires a little more thought than your average beat-em-up. Don’t expect much in terms of a story, though. It’s not bad, it’s just not unique enough to be a selling point either.

Kingdoms and Castles is a whimsical city builder and perhaps a bit of a lightweight. This is good news if you just like making artsy 8-bit medieval towns and don't want to get bogged down with heavy menus in order to build and maintain your empire. Seasoned players looking for a little more substance and complexity will probably bore fairly quickly. Yet if paying 10 bucks for perhaps short week's worth of distraction sounds acceptable, then by all means, give this one a go.

A good city builder provides a constant balancing act between keeping your people fed, happy and healthy. That should be doubly so for a city builder set on an alien planet with countless unknown dangers lurking in every corner. Aven Colony does little to deliver the struggle of a space colony, or any colony really, and that is a missed opportunity if I ever saw one. Even if you’re not looking for that experience, there is little to recommend it as a regular city builder - it’s just too easy.

It could've had a substantial plot, it could've been more than just functional, it could've been a lovely outing trying to get things under control deep in dino territory. But as it is, it's a hot mess. Ending right after the plane crash, would've been a blessing. I hate to be so scathing, but I've lost my patience seeing good ideas take a backseat to rushing to release.

There’s a lack of variety in the way you play Serial Cleaner which makes things disappointing. You move around, hide in cupboards, clean up the blood, and carry the bodies back to your car. The only real option you have beyond that is setting up a noise distraction which will cause nearby guards to come running. Cleaning is a dangerous, yet apparently mundane job, but someone has to do it.

Get Even is one of the most atmospheric games I have played. The music and sound effects do a remarkable job in setting the tone and the story proceeds nicely as your detective skills and memories build the narrative. It is primarily built around exploration and discovery, but does it in a way that is wonderfully entertaining. The combat elements work well, and the sleuthing and stealth all combine to make the game a fulfilling experience, one that has you sitting on the edge of your seat until you reach the conclusion.

I respect that Micro Machines World Series is an ambitious game that attempt some legitimately cool ideas, some of which bring it pretty close to being a really cool game. I do believe that there was a legitimately high amount of thought that went into this game, and it’s a shame that most all of these good ideas are ultimately fruitless due to the nature of the game itself, buckling under its own design. Perhaps if there was a more lively online community it’d be worth finding a group of friends to develop some tactics and strategy with, but as it stands this is a title that’s going to be disappointing for most.

In reality, there’s nothing new to be found in Next Jump: Shmup Tactics. It has very basic turn based combat, and a space traversal system that lacks the options and variety of FTL: Faster Than Light’s five year old method. It’s cheap though, so it could be worth a couple of hours of your time if you’re looking for a quick blast of action.

While the game’s art is decent, if not particularly exceptional, the level and environmental designs suffer from a drought of creativity. Things change a bit in each of the game’s few different areas, but none are particularly interesting or unique. Environmental obstacles, a core part of the platforming experience, don’t fair any better. For example, there’s open electricity everywhere.. I had to sit and ponder a few moments what to even call the things, because they aren’t real things. They aren’t even electrified floor tiles or fence. They’re just two little protrusions that can be on just about any surface, always uniformly spaced, with open electricity flowing between them. I understand that it seems like a strange, small thing to get caught up on, but in a platformer the environments and obstacles are a major part of the experience, and having the screen constantly flooded with lazy, uninspired obstacles grew tired before I even got through the tutorial level. Tangentially, speaking of presentation and design, the writing’s pretty rough. The story, focused around a mad scientist that controls people through addiction, is fine, but the dialogue extremely unnatural, and there are a number of grammar and word errors that I spotted. The humor didn’t hit for me either, rarely getting funnier than Hey there, how good does my hair look?

If I was to give Crimson Earth any praise, the gore and dismembering effects are rather satisfying. Chunks of zombie flesh will fly off individual limbs in a surprising amount of detail. However, this is a miniscule glimmer of hope in a product that just shouldn’t be sold. There might be a possibility of future updates, but it isn’t an Early Access title, so I wouldn’t keep your hopes up.

Given the problems especially with flight physics modelling and the focus on shooting, I cannot say that I enjoyed my time with the game very much. There’s no joy in flying when the plane does not behave as it should behave and you don’t get to land and take off the pretty things. On the other hand, I can see this title having potential: a few fixes here and there and proper flight stick support for my Thrustmaster T.16000m (and other joysticks) and this could become a very nice game. Unfortunately, it is not there at the moment and I am reviewing the product as it is here and now - as it is, there are other flight combat games out there that are more enjoyable to play, even if they lack the kind of story Iron Wings offers.

Rising Storm 2, like its predecessors, is a tight, realistic multiplayer shooter with a robust community of players and balanced asymmetrical gameplay that feels fair. The sound design creates a suspenseful atmosphere while the iconic rock music of the era sets you squarely in the time period. Graphically, the game is not the best looking title around, but it's good enough not to adversely affect one’s enjoyment of the action. While not exactly noob friendly, the community will help you get your swamp legs and, as a team-based game, you will have to communicate with others if you don’t want to simply be in the way. If you are looking for something more realistic than Call of Duty or Battlefield, but faster than Arma, look no further than Rising Storm 2. I will see you in my sights.

Were it not for the use of echolocation, Perception would be indistinguishable from the hordes of horror games that have seemingly flooded the market in recent memory. But that central mechanic fails to create an impact in the gameplay, making Perception a well constructed game that lacks in scares and surprises.