Kunitsu-Gami: Path of The Goddess Review
Were you ever good at Desktop Tower Defense? I certainly wasn’t. But that didn’t stop me from soaking up hours of it on Kongregate or whatever Flash game website at the time. The tower defense zeitgeist at the time seemed to revolve around that dumb, simple game and rather than be on my PlayStation 3 I was probably idling away on it between Tumblr refreshes and browsing mp3 download si...[Read More]
Elden Ring Shadow of the Erdtree Review
Fifteen years feels like a long time to be trapped in this endless cycle of life and death. Yet that’s how long FromSoftware’s abyss of grueling, rewarding games have been in my life. I’ve been there since Demon’s Souls on PlayStation 3. But it took me awhile to adapt to the emergent genre that has taken to flooding every gaming event like a murderous deluge. You see, there...[Read More]
V Rising Review
Early Access has rapidly become a proving ground for developers to implement community feedback to grow and improve their games. Baldur’s Gate 3 spent a significant period in Early Access but only hinted at the windfall of content Larian would unleash on players. And while the moniker can be wielded in strange ways, it feels like a net positive for both players and developers who wish to sup...[Read More]
Save Me Mr. Tako: Definitive Edition Review
Save Me Mr. Tako: Definitive Edition is a shockingly accurate recreation of those cartridge games you would click into the back of Nintendo’s Game Boy and play through until the four AA batteries died or your road trip was over. As a kid, my Game Boy was attached to me, especially when I was away from my consoles. While the longest time I spent in a car was usually about an hour, I still rem...[Read More]
Indika Review
Between each new scene, Indika harshly cuts to black. The effect is a whiplash. Narratively. Mechanically. Technically. A fall down a hole or a jump through a window or a gunshot ringing out. Indika refuses to be cohesive, rejecting to make a complete circle of sense. Its most basic throughline becomes muddled with questionable events and indecipherable landscapes. The director framing the action ...[Read More]
Killer Klowns From Outer Space: The Game Review
Killer Klowns From Outer Space: The Game. What a time to be alive, right? In a few years gaming will likely have tapped the final keg of horror movie properties to borrow from. The asymmetrical multiplayer genre has been a relative boon for franchises that never could be molded into sensible games. Like many, I was victimized by Friday the 13th and A Nightmare on Elm Street for the NES. Those hone...[Read More]
Hauntii Review
Hauntii is one of those wonderful games that isn’t overshadowed by its intoxicating aesthetic. Undoubtedly, Moonloop Games’ debut title is one that could sell based on its trailer. Countless independent games over the years have battled for recognition through any number of quirks and often work to ensnare eyeballs through a sleek or–for a lack of a better word–haunting tra...[Read More]
Braid, Anniversary Edition Review
Reflecting on Braid‘s significance, one has to play with time. The landscape of 2008 was vastly different for gaming, for most media. In this moment I try to peel back the thick, foggy folds of time and remember August 2008, the month Braid released on Xbox Live Arcade. Poor aimless, hopeless Ben. Unlike Braid‘s main character Tim, I had no steadfast goal to cling to. Much like Tim, li...[Read More]
Crow Country Review
Crow Country is not a game meant for anyone who would look at it and think, “ew.” The blocky, polygonal characters. The scanlines eerily misting over the screen. The crunchy sound effects. It’s meant to shove players face-first into a nostalgic bath of PlayStation 1- and Nintendo 64-era trappings. When I was a teenager, I freebased this stuff. “The asylum I grew up in?̶...[Read More]
SaGa Emerald Beyond Review
It would be difficult to conceptualize SaGa Emerald Frontier to those, like me, who have no experience with the SaGa franchise. After the long, winding trail that was Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, Emerald Beyond wasn’t necessarily a polar shift. Certainly, like Rebirth, Emerald Beyond is packed with quaint characters that are distinctly 90s-era JRPG vessels. There’s a capacity for multip...[Read More]
Stellar Blade Review
Stellar Blade marvelously glistens when viewed through the lens of a Golden Age PlayStation 2 game. There is a distinct feeling that specific era evokes. One where a console manufacturer was at the top of its game and publishers and developers were churning out bombastic, diverse, incredible videogames. It was a vibe that fueled the cocky, experimental Wild West of the PlayStation 3 as well. I loo...[Read More]
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU Review
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU excels most at storytelling, enveloping players in a rich, emotional journey. Often, that may not be the sentiment one wishes to hear from a game, rather a film or gripping piece of music. But using a videogame as a delivery vessel, Surgent Studios and creator Abubakar Salim have accomplished a harrowing task. My time with Tales of Kenzera: Zau was bookended by the death of m...[Read More]