Kungfu Kickball is a bizarre blend of martial arts, football, and volleyball. You must outwit your opponent while beating them to death and scoring more goals. You traverse an array of arenas and take on the best kungfu kickball masters. It's fun to play with friends but becomes tedious and unbalanced against the computer.

I’m not familiar enough with the genre to compare its quality in the grand scheme of things. I found its pacing and localisation wonky, but perhaps these are things that VN connoisseurs actually enjoy about the genre, and to each their own. My hottest take is that I honestly would’ve preferred if they ditched the ARPG elements and invested more into the interactive driving the novel sections. I love narratives and choices, and would have liked to feel like a participant in the events of this world.

Ultimately, All in Abyss: Judge the Fake is a game that thrives on its concept more than its execution. It’s ambitious, stylish, and refreshingly different — but it can’t always live up to the narrative weight or mechanical depth it seems to promise. For those who enjoy poker and are looking for a fresh narrative twist on it, this could be a compelling, if uneven, experience. But players seeking emotional depth or a tightly designed tactical game may find its bluffs easier to read than intended.

Yuoni is a horror title that relies heavily on traditional jump scares. Furthermore, the world is too dark and the action lacks finesse. In theory, it should have been great, in reality, it sadly falls short.

Tape: Unveil the Memories is a game with an interesting idea, but unfortunately just falls a bit short. While the narrative and drip-fed creative puzzles kept me going, it became somewhat of a chore by the end. With some more variety in gameplay, and additional complex puzzles, this could definitely have been a big winner for me. While I wanted to love it, I just couldn’t quite get there.

Marko: Beyond Brave has a lot of potential, with its delve into Slavic mythology coupled with a lovely art style. Unfortunately, it has substantial issues with all of the main elements of a Metroidvania, giving it an unfinished feel.

Behind Closed Doors: A Developer's Tale is a story of two halves. You open with a slow and monotonous day-to-day life that will confuse you and put you off. This then evolves and you experience some weird and whacky gameplay about a game within a game. It had the potential to be fantastic, but its simplicity undermines it from the off.

Spacewing War is a simple retro shmup. Its basic approach and easy gameplay will leave you wanting. Fortunately, though, the additional modes add depth and challenge to increase longevity and replay value.

If you’re a fan of rail shooters and 90’s games this will definitely have some good times in store for you. However, those who aren’t may get tired of its gameplay, be unimpressed by its music, and only have some cool visuals and level design to enjoy.

Saints Row is a franchise that has its best days behind it. Consequently, the latest iteration is dull, dated, and lacking oomph. The open world is great, as are the side hustles. However, this doesn't make up for its many shortcomings. Fans of the franchise may overlook the tedium, but I could not.

Legends BMX is a casual racing sim that was missing something. Sadly, it isn't as in-depth as its peers and this holds it back. However, it is addictive and I liked playing it casually.

Pretty and full of heartfelt moments, it nevertheless struggles to engage with its rigid structure and frequently dull dialogue.

There is a solid foundation here for Flatter Than Earth to build from, and I’m certainly curious to see what their next game looks like. As it stands now though, Once Upon A Puppet leaves quite a bit to be desired, and I think one playthrough will satisfy any interested parties.

Book Quest is an old-school adventure RPG. It looks like Zelda but sadly, this is where the similarities end. There are plenty of minor issues that undermine the action, but with a few small fixes, this will be a great retro title.

The Last Oricru is a souls-lite title with a strong RPG edge. Furthermore, it has a dry sense of humour, a rich story, and interesting characters. However, poor acting, tainted visuals, and repetitive combat hold it back. Accordingly, you may wish to look elsewhere to get your Soulsborne hit.

Soccer Story is an unusual football-based RPG. With zany characters and colourful backdrops, this is a strange game to play. However, its reliance on simple quests and too much back and forth undermine its potential.

Space Chef should have been fantastic, but I couldn't get past the lack of multiplayer action. Although it has fun concepts, there wasn't enough to keep me hooked through the madness. Furthermore, the combat was disappointing.

Winter Ember is a bleak and dank isometric stealth game. You must search a vile Victorian world while crafting arrows, killing your enemies, and finding secret paths. Steal everything you find and uncover the truth behind the crimes of the past.

Asterix and Obelix Slap Them All! 2 is a spectacular-looking side-scrolling beat 'em up. However, this doesn't overcome the shortcomings. Sadly, the repetitive gameplay and lack of difficulty will annoy many gamers. Furthermore, it doesn't address the problems of its predecessor and this was unfortunate.

As a standalone, I’m not sure if I can recommend this one. There are too many hang-ups for me personally. I think LinD2 hits the mark for what I can expect out similar indie horrors. However, I’m struggling to see what this one does that so many others don’t already do, if not better. There are probably better similar indie horrors out there, even as a non-player of indie horror myself. I know it must be difficult to make something that truly stands out. Simply put, LinD2 is decent for what it is, but I don’t think it will leave a lasting impression.

Dark Envoy brings classic RPG mechanics with a skill-based combat system built on classes and specializations, and blends it with diverse tactical options of approaching your battles. You control a party of relic hunters in a tale of destiny set in a conflict-torn world. (developed and published by Event Horizon)

The Dragoness: Command of the Flame is just fine. With so many games out there, I would say you would need to be a huge fan of this game style to spend any amount of time on it. The city building is light, the combat is repetitive, and the UI needs simplifying and polishing. Despite all of that, however, the desire to take ‘just one more turn’ and learn more about the characters and the world is appealing. If you have an open slot in your game schedule, The Dragoness: Command of the Flame wouldn’t necessarily be a bad option.

Like I said earlier, these types of games are not for me. This could just be an example of “git gud” but the game does not feel compelling enough to try to. There is a certain level of micro-managing that Rise of Industry 2 does not successfully set me up for. Attempting to do the scenarios or try my luck in sandbox has a mountainously steep learning curve and makes the game feel like a chore rather than an enjoyable experience. If the actual gameplay kept my attention, I might be up for the challenge! Unfortunately though, I could do nothing but sit and stare as my industry collapsed and crumbled as the days went on, and on, and on.

No Son Of Mine is a short horror game that sets the tone extremely well but does not follow through on its gameplay. The mechanics are either inconsistent or not fully explored, and the monster is more annoying than scary. The narrative plays second fiddle and is not interesting at all. It is disappointing because there are some good and horrifying moments in the game, but the gameplay holds this back from being a truly great experience.

Time Walker: Dark World feels trapped between two genres. Too hands-off to be a proper RPG, too much inventory management to function like an idle game. I'm no lover of Auto Battlers but even disregarding that, Time Walker: Dark World's poor writing and overall blandness made it very unengaging.

Commandos 3 - HD Remaster retains fantastic levels of difficulty and a wonderful blend of missions. However, it is let down by poor controls and a woeful camera. I believe it'll be better on PC, but as a console gamer, I felt thoroughly letdown.

41 Hours is a Sci-FI FPS that is sadly lacking. With many shortcomings, you'll be left wanting. Furthermore, the poor graphics and audio create a horribly dated finish. However, I liked the core concept and the excellent stage design.

Touhou Genso Wanderer – Foresight can be a lot of fun, but you have to try and ignore a lot of things that other Dungeon games just do better. Whether it’s weird translation errors in the items, hub areas feeling dull and lifeless or even the main story, this title truly feels unfinished, as though Aquastyle rushed it out to make a quick buck from the diehard Touhou fans. And that’s a shame because there’s some great potential here.