The game does a wonderful job of capturing the past. From the visuals to the music and dialogue, it’s all very well done. The story is okay, but the ending seems a bit far-fetched. The pacing wasn’t bad, but I do think this game could have had a few more puzzles. I do wish there were some more areas to explore, instead of being in the same places for so long. The running button and lack of checkpoints were annoying, but the game is fairly short, and you likely won’t be playing a second time. The gaming world is full of fantastic games and amazing stories. While this might not make any of those lists, if you’re looking for a decent detective game with a very twisted ending, you may want to give this a few hours of your time.

If you like the idea of gathering resources and crafting while playing a metroidvania style game, you will likely really enjoy this. I actually love both genres. There is a decent amount of fighting enemies and a few bosses to find. Sometimes things can be pretty tough. You have infinite lives, but anything you gathered will be on your dead body, and you must go all the way back to where you died, which can at times feel miserable. There is too little space to really customize your base and put everything you want inside, but it’s still a great way to lose time editing and managing it. I didn’t mind that the hero is not much of a hero, but the story felt pretty generic. I completed everything and still felt like I wanted more, maybe because I had already invested a lot into building what I thought was an awesome base. You can really lose track of time while playing, and it’s one of those games that are hard to put down. Also, a fair warning, some of the achievements stop tracking, and so far, there has been no update to fix them.

Working at a gas station and spotting anomalies can be pretty addictive. Trying to complete every last one of them is part of the fun. This series has taken a lot of strides since the first installment, where you worked in the market. They added more mini-games versus mostly just putting things away or organizing signs. There could still be some improvements. The movement can feel pretty awkward. Some of the objectives can be hard to figure out. It’s one of those games that, if you’re hunting for achievements, it can be easily done while being somewhat of a grind at the same time. I can’t wait for what crazy job is in store if they bring in another installment, and what improvements we can expect!

This is a short but sweet mini-horror game that you can pick up for an afternoon or spread out over a few. There isn’t really much to come back to after you finish it, but this is fine because you’ll likely know what you’re getting into if you pick it up. Besides the cool horror part, they have decided to add some silly parts, like balloons falling when you make it through the job. This works fine in similar titles like the Before Exit series, but I’m not a fan of it being in something that’s supposed to keep you on the edge of your seat. Luckily, there isn’t too much of it. When it’s all said and done, the goal of the game was accomplished. To give you a short experience that you can think about and enjoy. To create a creepy atmosphere that has a few jump scares, but doesn’t go overboard.

There’s a lot of beauty to behold in this horror game. I can admit, maybe one of the best-looking ones I’ve seen (horror/walking sim). And while I did enjoy my time playing through it, there were some annoying bits that take you out of the atmosphere. There were a few puzzles that just seemed like time wasters. Being kicked out of the game at the menu was actually ripping me away from what I was enjoying (walking around the atmospheric horror). The story didn’t catch me as depressing, even though it was the main theme. I didn’t care about the character enough. The narrator was great at first, but eventually became an annoying philosopher whom I just wanted to shut up. He wouldn’t stop making everything have some deeper meaning. Then there were the words placed around for a puzzle. Like it would say “sound test” on the floor. It made me think of a pirated movie where the editing hadn’t been completed yet. It started off great and with promise, but then the need for the game to be “unique” threw it off the rails, not being able to be saved by the storyline.

Sometimes it’s fun to be the one making all of the decisions for a business. There are a lot of items you can order and place where you’d like. Besides running the store, there are a few side things to do, and they’re all going to fill your day. I had a lot of fun ringing people up and making sure I ordered the right items. However, there were some issues I had with ordering, specifically that it did not display how many items I had total, but what I had in the back (not on the floor). There was also the issue of attracting customers to the specific items I wanted, but I guess in the end that wasn’t too big of a deal. No pun intended. Besides a few flaws, there’s a lot to enjoy about the simple mechanics and the small town of people that make sure you know when they’re not happy customers. But that’s common when it comes to consumerism.

Even if you can beat the game pretty fast, there are a lot of reasons to start another week. Getting to see new situations as well as trying to complete every scenario can be a good time. It’s quite simple, though it will test your attention to detail and memory to do simple tasks (like turning the closed sign). Things can be funny, but maybe not laugh-out-loud funny. There are some scenarios that can be frustrating, but play them enough times and you’ll get the hang of them. There is a serious frame drop that happens near one of the doors, and it is annoying enough to ruin your overall experience. Every time I suffered through the slowdown, I wanted to just exit the game. And without even turning off the lights first.

I could not get enough of this game while I was playing it. I played for hours every day trying to get everything done. When I accomplished everything I could, I searched for more information on the third protagonist that hasn’t been released yet. It’s the first game in a long time that I couldn’t put down, and when it was time to, I had a hard time doing so. I couldn’t even cover half of what I wanted to in the review. There’s crafting, lockpicking, sneaking, extorting, TV night, poker, and the list goes on. There are so many great moments to experience, and many people will want to do every escape method and bond with every single character. The new game plus works perfectly, and with so much to do, you may spend as much time as I did while being incarcerated.

There are a lot of funny moments to experience. I really liked the humor, and it was wildly entertaining to run around and experience the interesting characters and the town. The game can be pretty difficult, with a lackluster hint system and too many items to interact with. The dream system was really clever, but at times, it could cause some headaches with figuring out what to do. A little adjustment with interactions and the hint system would have went a long way.

Finding a car in a parking lot has been a subject in a few other forms of media. Take, for example, the classic show Seinfeld, where the group can’t find their car, and a lot of funny things happen during their search. Then in other video games where you park a car and do a side quest, only to forget where you parked the car and run around the blocks looking for it. At least it’s happened to me. It’s not a strange thing to dream about, because there are times when some people can’t find their cars. It has happened to me at a concert, and I couldn’t find my group. But I have learned from these mistakes, and now I either mark it on my phone or I glance around for a landmark I can remember. So it hasn’t happened to me in a very long time. Besides what I liked and didn’t like in this game, there wasn’t much to do, so I didn’t have too much to talk about. The game is incredibly short and doesn’t place your car in a random location. It is always in the same spot, giving no real depth to what was already thin.

This might not be a great collection of games, but it is a collection. You can’t just go buy these all on their own in the Xbox store. The menu system is great, and the options to save anywhere and rewind, while not anything new, are appreciated. Some people will love the games I hated, and hate the games I enjoyed. If you have already played some of these, then you know what to expect. But it can also be a good time for newcomers to these titles.

While most of the game wasn’t too difficult, there were some challenging puzzles that might make you run to a guide on the internet. The story is pretty good, and the reading of journals was welcome. I really liked not having to worry about fighting things or jump scares. It lets you become engrossed in what’s going on and gives you the freedom to do the puzzles without too much stress. They took the game’s death to a step further by playing them out as a mini cut-scene. While I have some gripes with navigation and the ability to skip dialogues, most of the experience was great. If you’re a fan of point-and-click adventures with a love for sci-fi and horror, you won’t want to pass on this!

I enjoyed playing through the game and figuring everything out. There is some room for error, but it’s great that you can replay the day and get faster each time. The controls were all fine except when you had to input numbers. It was likely made more for a mouse and keyboard, and it was specifically more difficult to open the safe. You would click the wrong buttons often because of the movement of the cursor. I didn’t encounter any bad bugs, besides one that kept the hunger icon zoomed in once, even when I ate. It’s nice to experience it, but you may not be playing it long or ever again. But I don’t regret getting a chance to escape a kidnapping while needing to pay attention to details so that I could put everything back the way it was before I touched it. It might not be for everyone, but those who love attention to detail will find this game appealing.

This is a short, easy, almost mindless game. If you’re an achievement hunter, you will enjoy it more than the average player. The graphics aren’t bad, and neither are the sound effects. But without being able to run, backtracking or looking for notes with codes can be a little tedious. The puzzles are incredibly easy, using a trial-and-error method to figure them out. This is your average game, not attempting to pull out any surprises. It has a decent story premise, but doesn’t force you to live in it. You’re just visiting briefly. Some people will enjoy searching around the prison, while others will feel the game is missing more than just other people.

The aim to make the story sad was completely pushed onto the player without choice. The writing went a bit overboard with it, trying to make the player feel sad, at the cost of being over-dramatic. Too many characters were absolutely too cruel to be believable. I went from feeling sorry for Olive to absolutely hating her. Decisions just didn’t make sense when put into the real world, which is what this game was trying to demonstrate. As far as the actual gameplay goes, it had a few good moments. Some were entertaining, while other times it felt a little bit underwhelming. Running around in the house, in particular, was poorly designed, having a lot of breaks in the walls as you turned the camera. It was an okay experience with some enjoyment to be had, but with a story that had some potential but ended up being off-putting.

On the surface, the game looks nice, and the thought of playing inside someone’s story is quite awesome. But with so many bugs, annoying encounters, and obstruction of sight, there are too many flaws to make this very enjoyable. Also, a lot of what you do in the game is very mundane. Especially at the end, when you have to do chores. Get the plates, put them on the table, get the drinks, get the food, put the food on the table. Clear the table, get the coffee, and take the coffee to the people. That’s a whole lot of stuff to do that isn’t very entertaining. I also don’t understand why a group of people would drink coffee after having dinner and alcohol, at night, before bed. Pretty strange! Of course, there will be some people who enjoy it for what it is, similar to when people say art is subjective. There will be a few who adore it. But everyone else is a different story, one that Sid would not like reading.

If you love the idea of arresting people as a police sim, while having the action of an arcade sandbox experience, you won’t regret giving your time to the precinct.

This game is amazing for what it strives to be. It’s an escape room-like horror game where an evil puppet chases you and is filled with cheesy dialogue. The experience was so entertaining and I didn’t mind replaying some of it to get achievements I missed. Most people won’t even have to follow any walkthrough, which is a nice change of pace for games with puzzles. Overall, I did not go into it expecting it to be that great. There are tons of horror games out there that are sub-par and all seem very similar. Some monster or ghost is chasing you and it’s all very dark. Puppet House is different, and that is what I liked about it. While the story wasn’t all that special, it also didn’t take itself too seriously. It’s meant to pay homage to the older stuff, attempting to give you nostalgia (if you’re old enough). It was also paced very well, with a few little jump scares and a satisfying ending.

There are some redeeming qualities, such as the level design, puzzles, and the ability to replay levels at your leisure. However, the camera and jumping controls really make the game almost uncomfortable to play. The puzzles are fairly easy (minus one extremely difficult mirror one) and can be somewhat enjoyable. Each level serves as its own little world, keeping you from becoming bored. There may be some people who enjoy it, but the vast majority likely won’t have enough patience to complete the story (even thought it’s pretty short).

There’s plenty of horror games out there consisting of a lot of walking with heavy focus on atmosphere and the story. While this isn’t much different in those regards, it does shine above a lot of the others because of it’s use of lights and great graphics. The plot twist at the end will be worth the playthrough, and the multiple endings and collectibles give you something else to go for after finishing. Though this isn’t anything groundbreaking, it is quite impressive for what it is. While I have played many horror games similar, I quickly forget about them. But I believe this one will stick with me for a very long time.

It really isn’t a bad game, for what it is, it just lasted way too long. A lot of work is sadly overshadowed by the flaws where frustration can ruin the fun.

The game looks great, having a seemingly perfect choices in coloring and lightning. The music is void from being annoying and is so constant it sinks into your mind without you realizing it’s still in the background. Puzzles are casual but at the same time thought-provoking, giving you a sense of accomplishment when you finally figure out you were just overthinking things. I really liked the way the game handled jumping, but not so much with turning and putting in/taking out the shapes for the puzzles. They make you pause for a second and wonder what you’re doing wrong, which takes away from the otherwise great flow. You don’t have to worry about sinking hours into this title, as it’s short and allows those who don’t have much time to finish it in an evening. For those that have more time, it might have been nice to have another section of puzzles thrown in. A lot of the ending is the same chase sequence with what could be considered a boss, but there are little breaks between that allow you to go back to doing some puzzles. I really enjoyed my playthrough and even going back to do some of the areas over again to finish up on my achievements was quite welcoming.

You get exactly what is advertised, a casual game anyone can pick up and enjoy where you simply find items hidden throughout various levels. With a few shortcomings with the way things are displayed and interacted with, along with bad loading times, the pure joy of taking your time to find items outshines those. You get to sit back and relax, scanning the screen with your eyes and feeling accomplishment when you finally spot what you’re looking for. If you’re someone who likes to create your own levels, the tools you get to make your own will mean you will be playing for a hours after finishing the game. Either because you are busy making your own levels or just like seeing what others have created. This is the first hidden object game I’ve played like this on the console, and now it won’t be my last.

Without just playing it yourself, it is hard to grasp all of the options that are available in this game. It’s even weird to mention a lot of them because some are such small pieces of the game, yet are really well done. You have an arcade in the town, and you can build mini-games to play, for example. There are events like a Halloween themed one with hide-and-seek. If you like dancing they have that too. How about a blimp that drops random gifts and everyone tries to snag them first. There is so much going that you may feel almost stressed. There are a handful of side quests that are time-based, but everything else you can kind of do on your own. Just let the years pass and take your time if you’d really like. I just wanted to rush through it because my time in Sandrock was taking too long and I have other things to do. I say that after spending 8 full days playing it. If you choose to pick this title up, please remember to feed your cat if you have one. Your time starts to vanish as soon as you hit “new game”.

With a pretty good blend of puzzles and fighting, Brok the InvestiGator doesn’t have very many dull moments. People who don’t normally enjoy this genre might be pleasantly surprised! If you get stuck you can always get the hints, which will tell you exactly what to do next. The story is well-written and the voice acting doesn’t skip a beat. A big bonus is being able to go through the game multiple times to discover all of the endings and scenes. It makes it very replayable, and you actually won’t feel like you’ve completed the story until you’ve run through it a few times to find an ending that you are happy with. I like that there are multiple ways to progress certain encounters, and it was actually fun looking for the Ads which are the collectibles that can be used for hints. I do wish there were a few more cases though, as they kind of took a backseat to Brok’s family drama. Would I play a sequel or DLC? I definitely would. Hopefully, they are finished with this character.

Besides a few things I didn’t think were done right, I can’t argue the fact I kept going back every night to enjoy gathering items and healing what appears to be a very unhealthy group of citizens.

If you’re after a story, you won’t find much of one here but that’s okay because this genre is really aimed at having a fun time avoiding obstacles and getting to the finish line of a level. There was no real magic about it, and maybe there would be if this was made in the 90s instead.

This is not a good experience with a controller and I’m sure it’s much better with a mouse and keyboard where you have more control over what you’re doing at a faster pace. It’s a shame because it was briefly very fun and addictive. Just it wore out its welcome a bit early. If you’re a fan of strategy games you may be able to ignore the negative stuff, because it’s not a terrible game, just one I couldn’t find enjoyable as I progressed.