Arcade Islands: Volume One is a bundle of over thirty borrowed ideas, spread across a range of themed islands that encompasses them. While some of these games do indeed relay a good degree of fun, several of them either handle poorly, serve as filler or prove to be more frustrating than they’re worth. There’s certainly some value and depth to this collection, but it’s a far cry from both quality and innovation.

The art style is quite good. Characters are well designed and everything is colorful and has a chucky look to it. Sadly, the game around it is just a poor attempt at following a trend in gaming. A good rogue-lite puts the fate of the player in their own hands; success or failure depends on your grasp of the mechanics. Here, unless you are really a fan of the X button, frustration soon gives way to boredom.

Out of the Box’s story is oddly compelling, with its characters just interesting enough to keep you going. Its gameplay loop leaves something to be desired, but if you can work through it, there is an enjoyable time to be had here.

Nefarious is a game that could have been much more than what it is. Instead, what we get is an adventure that does something wrong for everything it gets right. Despite its interesting bad-guy concept, Nefarious handles about as well as a lizard on ice. There’s some good ideas running through the game, but it’s ultimately bogged down by some poor design choices and an overall lack of refinement.

Less of a puzzle game and more of an experience that heavily relies on reflex and cognitive multitasking, Neonwall isn’t half bad, but it’s likely only going to appeal to a very specific crowd. There’s a few technical issues to contend with and some poor camera behavior, however, credit goes to the game’s distinct originality and its constant stream of interesting gameplay mechanics.

RGX: Showdown is a thrilling and wildly fast paced minute-by-minute racer. The game’s generous asking price is easily justified by its healthy content depth, and although some niggling issues hold it back from greatness, I cant think of any other racer on the market that offers this much fun for such little cost. Don’t be alarmed by its lack of promotion. RGX: Showdown is well worth your attention.

Speed Brawl is a fun and inventive take on the side scrolling beat-em-up. Encouraging fast combat by design, skillful play will see competent players likely performing amazing looking feats. Sometimes though, the game just takes the wind out of your sails, leaving you plodding along and scraping by for any chance to get going again.

Pillar’s drawback is that whatever message it’s trying to relay, is completely undermined by its overly basic puzzle design. I commend the developer for creating something unique and somewhat various, but in the face of its sheer simplicity and its vagueness, boredom strikes far sooner than intrigue. The end result makes for a game that seems as though it has a lot to say, but ends up saying very little at all.

Much like how gambling works in real life, if you throw your money at this, the only winner here is the developer.

Comparisons will no doubt be drawn to Overcooked, but to simply judge Catastronauts based on that alone would be somewhat of a disservice. High praise goes to the developer for their clever level design, and in particular, for how well the game’s diverse mechanics come together to produce such an engaging co-op experience. Short it may indeed be, but even so, Catastronauts is massively entertaining.

Jack N’ Jill DX offers quite a decent portion of content in return for its very generous asking price. I take issue with the game’s simplicity and its utter lack of difficulty, ultimately making for an adventure that can literally be completed with just one finger. However, with that being said and despite its repetition, its homage to the Game Boy era remains somewhat endearing throughout.

Armored Freedom is a waste of time, effort, money and HDD space. The sheer lack of gameplay depth, originality and innovation, grouped with the game’s clear focus on chance rather than skill, makes for an utterly underwhelming and overly frustrating experience. There isn’t a single aspect of Armored Freedom that I can commend. It’s a cheap cash grab, and nothing more.

The problem with Gnomes Garden is that, much like the recently released Gnomes Garden 3, its core gameplay loop just doesn’t evolve enough to maintain its initial excitement. There’s certainly enough content for its cheap cost, but even so, it’s content that doesn’t quite meet the standards that games of this type have been setting for years. Fun in small doses, but ultimately repetitive in the long run.

I’ll commend the game for its level detail and variation, but Spencer could have been a lot more than what it is had the developer spent more time refining the game’s mechanics. The game’s repetitive enemies, its rinse and repeat functionality, its disregard as to what makes the jump ‘n run concept fun, together with its technical issues, makes for an adventure that’s more often frustrating than it is exciting.

If you’re on the market for a simple rogue-lite that doesn’t demand too much focus and perseverance, Devious Dungeon will serve you well. If, on the other hand, you enjoy the intricacies that this type of game is usually known to adopt, you’re likely going to feel somewhat disappointed. Devious Dungeon is a passable game at best, but one that’s admittedly fun nonetheless.

Skyhill does a good job with its simplistic foundation, offering a core experience that doesn’t take itself too seriously. The constant uncertainty that looms overhead together with its randomly generated content, makes for some very tense moments. There’s a few issues with the game’s unbalanced systems, but with that in mind, Skyhill still manages to remain both challenging and fun throughout.

Midnight Deluxe’s reliance on its singular mechanic only makes for a repetitive experience overall. The game is too laid back for its own good, so much so that what little creativity it offers is often lost in the midst of its simplicity. That said, there’s certainly some fleeting fun to be had here and I do credit the game for its decent visual and audio design. All in all, Midnight Deluxe is passable, at best.

Super Volley Blast hardly goes above and beyond, but it does indeed offer a fun, colorful, and accessible arcade experience nevertheless. I take issue with its lack of depth and its somewhat incompetent AI when playing solo. However, with that in mind, the game just about manages to meet expectations through both its local multiplayer component and its quirky, play-it-safe concept.

Super Pixel Racers offers a fairly diverse and accessible top-down racing experience. There’s a harsh difficulty spike later on in the game that makes it somewhat harder to recommend to the casuals. However, overlooking both that and the already dead online multiplayer, it’s hard not to appreciate the game for its depth, its fast pace, and its simple yet alluring concept.

Gnomes Garden 2 plays like a cheap, run-of-the-mill Facebook game. There’s minimal depth on show here, and far too much hand holding for it to be considered even remotely challenging. I’ll credit the game for being both accessible and, for its cost, plentiful, but if you’re looking for a deep resource management experience, you wont find that here. Gnomes Garden 2 is just about passable, nothing more.

Gem Smashers fails to build on its otherwise decent core mechanic, ultimately making for a game that feels well out of its depth alongside its more sophisticated and robust peers. It doesn’t help that it’s just far too easy for its own good, which isn’t an ideal characteristic for any puzzle game to bear. Fun at first, indeed, but its lack of both innovation and depth massively holds it back from its potential.

Shadow of Loot Box is a poor joke. Furthermore, it’s a poor joke that costs money. I see nothing funny about a game that’s poking fun at controversial subjects, when in itself, it encompasses everything that makes a bad game, bad. On top of that and with its subject matter to the side, the game is extremely basic, lacks polish, and becomes overly repetitive far too quickly.

Agents vs Villain is a decent game that offers a lot of competitive fun. Its cartoonish design, together with its simplistic controls and its core accessibility, makes it a fitting title for players of all ages. There’s no denying that it’s a relatively bare experience as far as its content depth is concerned, but that said, it does very well with the little that it has.

Noir Chronicles: City of Crime isn’t the best that we’ve seen from Artifex Mundi, but it will indeed scratch that puzzle-solving itch, if nothing else. I take issue with the game’s shoddy voice acting, its lackluster plot, and its poor animation, but with that to the side, there’s little more to scoff at. If you’re coming here purely for the puzzles, you’re likely to enjoy what’s on offer. If you’re seeking more than that, look elsewhere.

World of One is far more frustrating than it is fun. Don’t be fooled by its decent Limbo-esque design, because for the most part, you’re either subject to cheap deaths, sluggish combat, or bugs that are seemingly game-breaking. There’s a few exciting moments and some interesting ideas thrown into the mix later in, but nothing that can be considered particularly redeeming.

I am the Hero takes elements from both the classic beat ’em up and the traditional 2D fighter. The end result makes for a slightly unusual brawler that seems especially out of place as far as its combo system is concerned. Bear with it though, because underneath its somewhat confusing design, rests an accessible, action-packed journey that’s as varied as it is stunningly detailed.

Eternal offers a pretty decent strategy card game at its core. However, the game’s monetary structure greatly holds it back, being that the game is chock-full of paywalls and microtransactions. This is normally acceptable for a free-to-play experience, but there needs to be a fair middle ground between grinding and expenditure. That sadly isn’t present here. You’re either all in or all out, for the most part.

Sitting between the concepts of both Tetris and Space Invaders, NeuroBloxs is a surprisingly decent game, if indeed one that proves to be overly frustrating and somewhat repetitive in the long run. There’s some baffling design choices as far as its difficulty variation is concerned, but if you can overlook that, a well rounded puzzle-action shooter awaits.