Don’t get me wrong, it’s not difficult. If you fail a few times in a row, it even asks if you’d like to skip that section. But it rarely feels like you’re properly in control. I can’t help but think that rhythm game mechanics would have worked better – particularly considering the musical essence of the game.

Had it been stripped away of some of its convoluted system, and instead focused on one or two features and story beats to go alongside its high level of polish and presentation, Unsighted would be a GOTY contender. But in trying desperately to be everything, Unsighted loses sight of the aspects that make it unique in an ever-expanding marketplace of retro-inspired Mentroidvanias. As a result, it’s an enjoyable, but ultimately forgettable experience.

Hypnospace Outlaw’s imitation of technology from days of yore is commendable, along with capturing the fallible, human ways we interacted with it. Although it may not be the most well-structured experience and is guilty of running its own well of novelty dry, it offers a mostly delightful few hours of misty-eyed laughs and surprises.

I can easily recommend this game — it’s enjoyable, attractive, and fleshed out. I do think having to wait around fifteen hours for an emotional hook might be pushing it (especially if, like me, you love story and character), but again, this could change as you push into your sixteenth hour and beyond.

The story makes the whole experience rich, and although it’s Unknown World’s first stab at fully acted and voiced cutscenes, the characters are well written, and voiced with nuance and warmth. It doesn’t add anything revelatory to the world of Subnautica, but there is still a sense of accepting the past, of moving forward—fitting for a game about exploring areas and mining material to build and survive, but with little incentive to return to them once they have outlived their usefulness.

Blake: The Visual Novel was a promising debut from Ori Mees; Blake made me laugh a few times, and stressed me out over making the right decisions at other points. I felt compelled to read it through to the end, which is more than I can say for other visual novels I’ve muddled through recently. Even though Blake definitely displays the tell-tale, first-project symptom of doing too much in too little time, it has definitely convinced me to keep an eye on the developer’s future projects.

The Vale is very much an experience, and it’s one I found interesting, even if it felt a little frustrating at times. The truth is, there just aren’t many games like this, and The Vale’s innovative take on accessible gameplay made it worth overlooking its flaws. It’s not perfect, but it’s interesting, and I’ll choose that over perfect every time.

In the last few years it’s become a running gag within indie circles that Metroidvania and soulslike games are the go-to genres to build your game around. Unfortunately, Grime wears that on its shoulder with pride, instead of doing anything remotely interesting. In essence, it’s the software equivalent of saying ‘only fans of the soulikes genre will enjoy this’.

Although I didn’t connect with most of Irony Curtain’s writing and references, I can see how someone would. If anything, the point-and-click puzzling style is good enough here to warrant a try.

The game is not forgiving, but if you are in the market for an environmental puzzler and enjoy splashing limbs every which way, then it may just be for you. It really makes you feel like Spider-Man if spiderman was a cybernetic murderninja set on saving the last vestiges of humanity from the ravage of poor architectural design.

Rune Factory 4 Special has so many layers to it that you can’t help but be fascinated by its charm. The town has a tight-knit feel to it, where each character has a unique, delightful personality. The variety in your side quests and the depth of each system can enthral you for hours. And while its combat is perfectly flawed, it’s a decent change to the life sim formula that other games haven’t quite nailed.

Svoboda 1945: Liberation is a game which explores how looking back at the past means different things for different groups of people. It’s a story about the difference between those who benefit from the act of looking back, and those who are punished and aggrieved instead.

In its quest to remove everything that ties it to the bigger games it emulates, The Pathless does lose something in the process. Purifying spirits feels slightly too brief, with their spectacle being overshadowed by the simplicity with which they are dispatched, and the automatic nature of arrow trajectory during puzzles can often make them feel little more than perfunctory at their worst. Nevertheless, The Pathless still excels in spite of these failings, simply because it attempts to tackle the homogenous open-world design in a novel way. Its use of scale imbues the experience with all the grandiosity of a 60-hour title, but the lack of friction and purity of vision means that it accomplishes its epic conflict in a tenth of the time and in doing so manages to leave a real impact.

With Hand of Gilgamech, Image & Form have shown that SteamWorld is truly a genre chameleon, moulding itself nicely into a CCG RPG.

While its level design is overly repetitious in both look and feel, Songbird Symphony still has plenty to be delighted about. A sweet story, fun musical stages and captivating animation make this avian adventure worth taking under your wing.

Horace is the titular character in this morality tale centered around how he’s treated by his rich masters and outsiders, though the gameplay itself mostly consists of brisk and entertaining obstacle courses involving lots of running and jumping. Horace isn’t groundbreaking or anything we haven’t seen before, but it’s quaint fun.

Pretty. Inoffensive. Rote. Others might find the DNA of something pure that they want to pass on to someone close: a niece or nephew, son or daughter. Trine is a series that is well worth introducing to those just getting to grips with the medium. And this installment adds to that library of introductory possibilities. But it doesn’t use the platform it has to push boundaries and explore the unknown in fairytale video games.

Overall, Under Night In-Birth Exe:Late[cl-r] is a good fighting game, one that should help any interested players into the world of In-Birth, and maybe even bring back a few lost fans. That being said, it’s also effectively a remaster with a couple of small updates, so it stings a little to see it out in the world as a brand-new game. This is a great pick up if you’ve never played the series, but a far harder sell if you’re a long term fan who has bought every entry in the series so far, though you’ve probably already bought your copy if that’s the case.

Wintermoor Tactics Club is a lovely bit of escapism. Those looking for challenging strategy should look elsewhere, and its presentation lets it down in places, but this school-life D&D adventure has its heart in the right place.

As you progress through the levels, however, the game throws more and more obstacles your way – particularly barriers, which are difficult to telegraph and avoid, adding an unnecessary difficulty. Rather than keep the rhythm going, it frequently halts it, hindering the experience. Combined with Switch controls that make it hard to line up your ship properly, Aaero fails to impress.

If the game’s adventures were longer and more purposefully designed, they could be far more appealing. As it stands, Dicey Dungeons exists for players interested in its idiosyncrasies and punishing challenges.

There are a few quirks in Invector’s design, most notably that it forces you to play through the game on normal difficulty before it’ll let you attempt songs on hard – annoying if you’re a rhythm game veteran. I also struggled to set up the latency properly, with the in-built calibration tool setting it way off and requiring that I tweak it through trial and error. But this is otherwise an enjoyable rhythm game that gave me a new appreciation for Avicii’s music.

Valfaris will likely drive gamers to distraction and frustration with its series of brutal and difficult bosses and villains, crazy chase sequences, and general sadist design. Yet, the game’s pristine devotion to emulating a classic 16-bit side-scrolling shooter has a distinct charm. The weapons and enemies are diverse and fun, the world is twisted, and the sheer over-the-top action and storyline prove entertaining enough to work through the pain and still end up having fun. Mostly. When the game isn’t making you want to twist your controller in half.

Inertial Drift follows in the footsteps of Joy-con drift, meaning it has its issues. The game has great visuals, music and the drifting mechanic is a game-changer but it’s barebones gameplay apart from that makes this a game you’ll get bored of just as quickly as you learn to love. With some more refining, the ability to play against more racers and better and more varied game modes, this game could really be improved. I really wanted to like this game but for now, I’ll be keeping my eye out for an Inertial Drift 2.

Even with some messy execution on its political themes, Road 96 succeeds at capturing a fractious journey on the road and the turmoil of modern American politics. A deeper exploration of Petria’s history may give more context to the game’s narrative of taking change of your own destiny. But without this background, it ends up oversimplifying its premise by positing that the only barrier to equity and justice is a strongman in a suit. In reality, injustice runs far deeper.

Paper Beast is a memorable VR experience like no other, letting you play god in a world that feels godless. If only its puzzles – sometimes creative, but other times frustrating – didn’t get in its way, it would be an unconditional recommendation for lovers of bizarre escapism.

The gameplay is similar to other hidden object games, but the stylized look and groovy vibe give it a definite leg up. You’ll do a lot of tapping on things, object manipulation puzzles, and searching each room for hidden codes, safes and other secret things across a variety of locations and missions. Puzzles range from incredibly obvious to frustratingly obscure, but in general, Agent A is a solid little puzzler.

The level progression works particularly well, getting you used to the current mechanics and obstacles, and then just throwing brand news ones at you. Respawn points are generally conveniently placed, so constantly dying just figuring out what to do isn’t a particularly frustrating affair. The game is quirky, challenging, and clever enough to warrant a look.

Thankfully the slow, narrative focus of Adios means these issues shouldn’t get in the way of what matters; the thoughtful story and the melancholy atmosphere. If you want a refreshing perspective on the kinds of stories games can tell and how they tell them, Adios is well worth your time.

Remnant: From the Ashes is fun, but it doesn’t really do anything new. A lot of what you do feels familiar, like a constant sense of deja vu is following you along. There are some cool ideas here, and the story is entertaining enough, but if it wasn’t for the boss fights, the game would feel flat. Even then, they follow a similar formula each time. Of course, not every game has to reinvent the wheel, but it would have been nice to see Remnant try a bit harder to at least change the rims or something.

The pull of “just one more run” is the heart of roguelikes, but lacking even that makes Roguebook little more than just a distraction from better games. Like the junk food you eat between real meals or while bored, it’s enjoyable at times, but will ultimately leave you hungry for something more substantial.

While there are key, timed decisions you’ll make at pivotal points, most of the game’s interactive moments are perfunctory, mostly getting you to mimic Erica’s movements—be it turning the knob of a door or unbuckling a hefty briefcase. What this interactive thriller excels in, however, is its ability to keep you in perpetual suspense. It drives a compelling narrative for sure, but it also begs the question why it needs to be presented as a game to do so.

If you’re already a fan of the series then you’ll probably enjoy this, but you’ll also find yourself uncomfortably comfortable with it all, because with Orcs Must Die! 3, not much has really changed.

Stellaris is a good 4X strategy game, but its port suffers from the basic differences between console and PC gaming. It would be unfair to blame Tantalus Media, as it’s hard to think how these mechanics could have been improved with the tools at hand. For patient and true lovers of the genre, being able to play Stellaris on their PS4 or Xbox One might be enough to please them, but for newcomers to the franchise or the genre, the clunky and cumbersome controls will prove to be a big turn-off.

So, in the end, it’s easy to say if Blasphemous will appeal. Players who love intentionally difficult games will find a lot of value and horror fans who can muscle through will love the game’s visual and thematic design. Unfortunately, the game takes its masochistic themes of martyrdom too seriously, making the player feel like they’ve stepped into the retro gaming equivalent of a back alley S&M club they mistakenly took for an 80s video arcade.

Before Your Eyes ultimately suggests that happiness, fulfillment, that warm sense of a life well lived—that doesn’t come from other people’s perceptions. Rather, it comes from self-acceptance. And, incredibly, that’s something we do have control over.

On one hand, there are aspects that are brilliant and can fill you with great satisfaction when every piece of the puzzle falls into place. On the other hand, when the immersion is broken by obnoxious or random ways of finding the next clue, you’ll find your enjoyment of each case diminished.

Strangeland stands as an argument that players should know as little as possible in a horror adventure game to cultivate tension, yet it still manages to circumvent its own potential by trying to do too much.

I would recommend this as a quick jaunt for lovers of Korean horror and all things eldritch. It doesn’t offend or do anything wrong, per se. It’s a nice choice of art style with an intriguing narrative, but it is unlikely to become a classic. I can’t say this game was made with anything less than the full passions of those behind it, and when it hits the right notes it’s definitely a lot of fun, but The Coma 2 has a tendency to feel like a bit of a slog… until it somehow finishes all too quickly.

Visibility issues aside, Darksiders Genesis is a solid port of a solid action-RPG. It’s accessible for both Darksiders fans and those who’ve never played anything from the franchise before. While there’s nothing truly remarkable on offer here, Genesis nails all the fundamentals of satisfying demon-bashing.

It’s a neat, ambitious game that teases us with the silhouette of a rich, engaging mythology and the role of digital exorcisms in this particular world. Its stellar voice cast carries much of the game’s narrative momentum on their shoulders, especially Alex Grossman and Miguel Doucet, who play Brother Gideon. But even with all its ambition and aesthetics, Lucifer’s gameplay and narrative could have been refined into a leaner, meaner experience befitting its daemonic themes.

Before you saddle up to take on Bloodroots, you need to ask yourself one question. Do you like pain? The pain of being killed constantly while trying to time a perfect combo. The pain of having finally killed all the baddies, only to plummet to your doom because of a misplaced jump. The pain of being hit once and having to start that section of the level over again. Over and over.

The Surge 2 nicely scratches the itch for open-world action. Its less punishing flavour of Souls-like is easier to stomach, and it’s worth checking out for the gratifying combat and clever – albeit confusing – level design. Just don’t expect it to set the genre on fire or captivate you with its narrative.

Arctic Zoo isn’t the best value proposition for Planet Zoo fans, but it’s at least a good quality one. And if you’re keen to expand your menagerie, it’s your first and only opportunity.

There’s so much depth that a lot of people may find themselves drowning in it, but for a lot of hardcore tactics fans, they’ll be very much in their element. It’s all set against stunning artwork and a really interesting world, but the story can be a little lacklustre in places, and there are some pacing issues too.

Even if SuperEpic isn’t the most coherent game, the whole package still works well. With so many different challenges, puzzles and secrets to discover, it’s a worthy evolution of the Metroidvania formula. Using your smartphone is a clever addition, provided you want to use it, while the exploration and combat feels fluid and responsive to where you’re itching to see what awaits you in the next room.

Heaven’s Vault’s narrative is so good, though, that you don’t think much about the parts that don’t really work. The devs understood that the nature of the game and its identity is rooted less in its gameplay and more in its story. They decided to put more of its eggs in the story basket, which, in the end, pays off.

Pikuniku is relentlessly charming throughout its short-but-sweet several hours of play. Many of the more enjoyable moments aren’t even mission-critical, so you’d do well to keep your eyes peeled for bonus nonsensical hijinks rather than just speed your wobbly red appendages towards the conclusion. While not the most sophisticated experience, Pikuniku is a bonkers trip worth leaving your cave for.

I’m hopeful for Feudal Alloy. The style and mechanics are there, it just aches for a rebalancing of the introductory portion of the game. This is absolutely doable. And when it happens, it’ll be an unconditional recommendation. That doesn’t mean you should give it a miss now – just prepare yourself for a rocky start.

It’s charming and occasionally clever, but as a whole it all just feels kind of familiar.

At its best, God’s Trigger is mindless fun. It’s fast, gorey, and ridiculous. The action is a suitable stand-in for Hotline Miami, even if the style isn’t nearly as compelling. However, the pulpy tone and ridiculous aesthetic make it easier to look past its technical limitations and limited scope. If you don’t mind a bit of jank and a general lack of compelling personality, there’s a fast and frantic experience that’s generally a lot of fun. Play this with a friend or partner, if you can, and you’ll get a lot more out of its absurdity.

There’s plenty of fun in all the chaos, but it is, perhaps, a little too much going on at once. There’s quite a steep learning curve to this mix of genres and it’s more free-form and loose than other tower defense games, lacking the chess-like satisfaction of rigid grid-based maps. The story is minimal, merely a framework for the action, but the game looks great and runs smoothly on the Switch. It’s certainly solid enough to entertain for a good few hours.

The PS4 is far from the most powerful VR machine but this is where Vacation Simulator works well – its visuals are bright and colorful but not technically demanding, allowing for a smooth and crisp experience. While there’s not technically a lot of depth here, there are still a good few hours of exploration, whimsical play and escapism on offer. Get your annual leave booked – Vacation Simulator is a trip worth taking.

Overall, Police Stories is a game I give a hearty recommendation, all the heartier should you have a buddy cop to bring along. It strikes that same high-paced, repetitive problem solving note as Hotline Miami but in it’s own way. It’s more methodical, you have to stay on your toes. That can be stressful, but very rewarding when a level is completed and done smoothly.

If you’re a sucker for this genre like I am though, you’ll appreciate the ways Not Another Weekend fools you into thinking ‘80s adventure games were in any way approachable and enjoyable to play. After all, this game has successfully implemented several quality of life updates to a genre that desperately needed the refresh.

Though the process of playing it can occasionally drift into tedium, it’s worth working through the repetition to see the game to its eventual conclusion. In Grotto your choices matter. But they matter in the same way your choices matter in the real world: in ways you can’t see in the moment and may never see at all.

Overall, Project Wingman, or dare I say Ace Combat 8: Oh no not more rockets should absolutely fill the boots of those who have been looking for an arcade aerial combat game. Specifically of the Ace Combat genre.

As a horror game, The Medium doesn’t have enough resistance or solid scares overall, and as a tone piece, it often misses the mark with a lack of maturity and care in scripting. The core conceit of the game rears its head unexpectedly as it fails to reconcile its deep themes with its desire for shock, and its desire to create a horror experience without any strong mechanical grounding. The game doesn’t really provide anything to bridge its evocative artwork to its less than accomplished themes...For those that want to explore a fascinating looking interpretation of a spiritual world, however, The Medium is a rambling holiday in a wonderful macabre charnel house, but if you want something a little more bracing, you might want to look elsewhere.

Featuring a charming aesthetic and imaginative puzzle designs, it is unfortunate that the core element of PHOGS! feels rather frustrating at points. Though the co-op angle of playing a conjoined character is quite unique, that lack of free movement can prove quite limiting. It works fine as a solo game, but co-op is where it truly shines and that requires good communication with your Player Two. If you’re willing to give it that time and patience, this is still a wholesome experience that comes recommended.

In the end, Chernobylite felt a lot like scavenging for supplies in the Zone. There are certainly interesting things to unearth, but the laborious process of revealing them was barely worth the hassle. If Chernobylite is a loop, it is one that brings increasingly diminished returns with each completed cycle.

While the puzzles make up a big part of the game, it is the terrifying side of Song of Horror that makes it stand out. Playing just before bed wasn’t my greatest idea, and everyday things like putting the bins out at night aren’t as straightforward as they were last week. Still, I always came back for more, and I’ll continue to do so.

Ring of Pain understands what enamours roguelike fans to a new arrangement of rules and challenges. The focus on lateral movement and strategic interaction forced me to think ahead as I fought my way through a world full of beautiful and haunting creature designs. But an over-reliance on chance and an underdeveloped world cut the legs out from underneath all that polish and initial charm. Those hungry for something different will love the first taste, but I’m just not sure it will convince you to come back for a second helping.

Wattam’s main problem is that it’s simple to a fault. It’s essentially a sandbox that doesn’t give you enough worthwhile stuff to do within it. Ultimately, playing Wattam is like watching a baby’s TV show as an adult: its colourful visuals and fun music may initially captivate and its heart is in the right place, but there just isn’t enough substance to hold your attention for long.

The Ascent is mostly a mindless, violent jaunt through a meticulously rendered cyberpunk city; what little portrayal of the themes of depravity and inequality are merely set-dressing for the game. Yet for all its facelessness, what was most indelible was still its city, the disparity between the powerful and powerless depicted in its spaces: from the cramped, unsanitary alleys home to the ceaseless chatter of its most downtrodden, to the shine of the marble floor in the wealthier districts, soon to be sullied by the dead bodies you leave behind.

If anything, Spitlings is very relaxing to play. I can see it being great for people who are bored and need something light to occupy their time. While it may seem like it’d be a fun couch co-op game as well, there are plenty of other titles that come to mind that accomplish what Spitlings sets out to do much better. Despite this, the music is very fun to listen to as you button mash and watch all of the orbs of spit rain down and eliminate the evil goo on the screen, and the game is very aesthetically pleasing to look at. However, it leaves a bit to be desired in terms of engagement as the game goes on, and the novelty wears off pretty quickly.

The challenge presented by Skybolt Zack is entertaining to a point. But there are performative barriers and embedded frustrations that can sap the motivation of players. It’s at this point where the upbeat background music ceases its arcade nostalgic tone and grinds down further upon the player. Beyond engaging with Skybolt Zack on a performative level, it was of more interest to interrogate the gaps where the meaning of the game falls through – where a lot of players might find themselves residing.

Bum-Bo is repetitive, childish, revolting, and gratuitous – and most importantly, it’s a stroke of genius. The team behind Bum-Bo have thrown caution to the wind with this one, revelling in the stuff we all loved about The Binding of Isaac but didn’t want to admit. We’ve no need for a story when we have the basement-dwelling combo of tabletop gaming, semi-edgy humour centering on the grotesque, and fiendishly difficult completion tasks. The game is fun, irritatingly so. It makes no sense whatsoever, but you’ll be glued to it from the first trial run.

Lightmatter is a generally well-crafted experience which gently eases you into more difficult challenges and switches up the puzzles just when you’re getting irritable. Tunnel Vision Games have created a finessed puzzler with superb pacing.

Though the game posits itself as adorable and relaxing, a depressing vision of humanity arises through its narrative (or lack thereof), one in which the aspects of humanity represented are colonisation, environmental destruction, war, and work. The game tells us one thing but shows us another. A story woven into the chapters or levels of the game that develops these ideas might help address this contradiction. Until then, this game is merely a settler simulation with solid mechanics―a well-oiled machine that’s lacking in heart.

Its world, art-style, exploration, and hack-n-slash combat are super fun, but these feel hampered by Tribes of Midgard’s key conceit as a tough tower defence game. Increasingly long nights mean you get little and less time to explore, and this is exacerbated by growing demands on resources. Instead, Tribes of Midgard would have made a better open-world game—its procedurally-generated Norse realm is so explorable. I would gladly play Tribes of Midgard more if I wasn’t bound to the settlement as much, and I hope that’s a mode that could be explored in the future.

The problem with AER is length. At maybe a couple of hours or so to beat, with a story that doesn’t feel entirely resolved, I wanted more. The gameplay and world are so enjoyable that AER deserves the epic treatment of a full-on adventure.

The simplistic gameplay comes to life thanks to vivid, heavily retro geometric graphics (think Atari 2600-stylings and you’re close). HoPiKo is oddly fun and even though it can get quite challenging, has a nice zen-like flow to the levels.

A game like this may have taken you a few weeks to grasp and explore in the ‘80s but faced with a modern society that deeply understands video games, it might only last a few hours. But, for those few hours, you’ll be whisked back in time to experience the origins of the modern platformer and better understand why the genre still exists today.

Iron Danger is a unique and rather wonderful little game set in a mythology we rarely get to see explored in video games. It’s charming, the characters are generally very likeable, and the systems are unlike anything else in gaming. It is, quite simply, good fun, and solving each of the combat encounters is intensely rewarding. It’s certainly worth a look if you want something just a little bit different, or if you just really like time-travel.

My Time At Portia makes up for its lack of polish with nearly everything else it has to offer. It has what seems to be an endless amount of content, so you’re definitely getting your money’s worth. It doesn’t quite reinvent the wheel, but it definitely gives the games it’s inspired by a run for their money.

Spirit Hunter: NG is an adequately playable visual novel overall, but the standards of its writing and presentation are sub-par for the hefty price of admission.

Dead End Job does manage to simulate that feeling of a ponderous, repetitive crappy job thanks to its grindy nature, questionable furniture placement, and not-quite-permadeath respawn system. The variety of goofy ghosts to bust and beefy amount of levels are the high points and for a cheap thrill, you could do worse—or a lot better.

Eastern Exorcist has a solid foundation, and launching in early access is definitely to its benefit. The game has some localization issues, as some key item descriptions were completely left untranslated from Chinese, which I couldn’t read (sorry dad). However, that didn’t impede me from progressing. With a bit of tweaking to its combat and polishing up on its localization, Eastern Exorcist can be an even better experience.

These puzzles are the bite-sized, whimsical charm that propel Where Cards Fall, but it could still do with cutting the fat off its mind-boggling puzzles. Each time you’ve completed one of them, you’ll be introduced to an unskippable and largely non-interactive cutscene on some pivotal memory of the teenage protagonist, which feels like an obligatory and unnecessary inclusion after a while. My attention wanes, and I’m quite ready to move on from whatever larger-than-life dramatics, tenderness and awkwardness of the protagonist’s teenage years.

The VR focus allows for a portrayal of human ennui and general hopelessness on a large scale; here is a whole subculture of people running from an unfavorable reality, hoping to eke out a marginally better virtual existence even if the only way to access it is to buy the equipment and pay for a subscription. It’s a good setting that I would be curious to see more of, even if Gamedec’s initial exploration of it stumbles out of the gate and comes alarmingly close to a total faceplant.

If you’re looking for a meditative city builder and enjoy resource management and problem-solving, you should absolutely give Before We Leave a go. But if you’re accustomed to some of the bigger 4X alternatives, you might feel as if what’s here is a little lacking by comparison.

While it’s going to be a little too simplistic for some people, it’s a very good game if you’re looking to introduce somebody else to strategy games, then it might well be the perfect chance to do so.

If you have missed flinging innocent people across shaky bridges for dubious reasons, this addition to the Bridge Constructor series is well worth the entry price with a lot of fun puzzles to be completed. However it doesn’t feel as good as its predecessors, and if you are yet to play those, perhaps try Bridge Constructor Portal first to see how you get on. If you are a Walking Dead enthusiast, this probably isn’t for you, despite the guise it hides under. It really makes you feel like Spider-Man if Spider-Man were a slowly decaying husk of Norman Reedus with a crossbow.

They Are Billions is certainly an impressive game that can be on PS4. Whether it should, or at least whether it should yet, is another question. The port feels fairly rushed overall, with little consideration given to the changes in control dynamics and player setup that come into question when running on console.

Following the breakout success of Beat Saber, Harmonix are no longer the trendsetters in rhythm games. Audica clearly takes influence from the popular VR note-slasher while differentiating itself with shooting mechanics. Unfortunately, said mechanics don’t fit quite as well into the rhythm format. But a chunky setlist makes Audica worth checking out when you tire of its mêlée-focused rival.

In spite of all its flaws there’s something about Shakedown: Hawaii that’s quite addictive – probably the fact as players we love numbers increasing and Shakedown: Hawaii does it in a moreish way. Whether intentional or not, VBlank Entertainment Inc. has nabbed aspects from GTA and although it misses the mark, it’s still impressive how it’s condensed such an experience to fit within such a tiny world.

In short, Astroneer is a calming, vibrant, genuinely enjoyable experience until you start to set goals for yourself. At this point it becomes a bit of a chore and strays into frustrating grind territory that has no real guarantee of tangible results – and suddenly the buggy menu system, tangled controls, and lack of resources culminate in an inevitable fit of rage. Luckily, if you need a bit of post-anger stress relief, we have just the game for you… have you played Astroneer yet?

All in all, Out of Line isn’t a terrible experience; I only wished there was a stronger emphasis on establishing its odd setting, along with something more that I could point to as being exceptional.

Mutropolis shows tons of promise and is undeniably funny and charming. Beautiful to look at with an interesting story and likeable characters, point-and-click fans will find lots to enjoy here. It’s a strong debut from Pirita Studios, a definite step in the right direction and hopefully a sign of good things to come.

Where other games insist on non-stop explosions and chase scenes, The Longest Road on Earth calibrates each moment to be poignant and profound, and although the results are quieter and artsier, they also aren’t much less exhausting. And yet, emotional exhaustion seems as viable of a takeaway as any. After all, the small things we use to get through our days, to cope with the perpetual thrum of unexcitement in lives lived conservatively, do eventually fade into routine. We grow tired of the phone game we bought or that playlist we made and we find ourselves ready for the next thing, which tends to be similarly fleeting. By the time the credits roll for The Longest Road on Earth, I was more than ready to move on, but maybe that doesn’t have to be a criticism because it speaks to its own sort of emotional truth.

Overall, while a few design decisions miss their mark, Exception is a thrilling, breakneck platformer with solid level design that begs to be rerun until you dominate the leaderboards.

Overall, Unspottable is a joyful experience to have with friends and relatives on the same screen – as long as you can – and throw one or two (digital) punches at them with no real-life consequences – unless they are sore losers.

Perhaps Hoa is meant to be a vehicle for the art, and if so, there should be an option to nerf the reverse-control section so that we can appreciate said art without wanting to claw our eyes out. It’s also pretty funny how often you get Steam achievements—within the first few minutes of starting the game, you get three achievements including one for literally starting the game and another for moving to the next area (Steam achievements, of course, mean nothing). It’s a nice way to pass the time if you want a relatively stress-free platformer that’s easy on the eyes, but even as Hoa demands little from you as a player, it also offers little as an escape.

While there’s some comfort in the repetitive routine of mining and seeking refuge back in your space liner, as you gradually chip away at your objectives, its endless gags and space jokes do get tedious very quickly.

It’s just pure gameplay, and sometimes, that’s all you need in a game. Unfortunately, it does suffer a little bit from repetition. While it’s nice to see this style of game back again, it’s a shame it wasn’t a full remake, as the technical limitations of the older consoles can be felt in some of the level designs.

If you’ve grown tired of Map Painting Sim #400392 but still want to get a compelling fix, this is a great place to start. The storyline is sensitively written, well animated and filled with agonising choices that will have you questioning yourself pretty harshly.

It’s clear The Sinking City tries to punch its weight with triple-A’s but overstretches itself. The fundamental lack of polish is problematic in light of its blockbuster RRP. But if nothing else, I feel it has the makings of a new cult classic.

It’s not for everyone, and the ending could be a bit smoother, but the experience is still a good one if you’re looking for something a little bit different to dive into and don’t mind not sleeping for a few weeks.