I never quite know what I'm supposed to think, playing games of this ouvre; whether or not I'm the butt of the metatextual joke, or if I'm meant to be sincerely emotionally invested, or if there's some line between satire and sincerity that is being deliberately blurred. Either way, I found The Beginner's Guide hugely entertaining, so perhaps it doesn't matter - and it's less of a "joke" than The Stanley Parable, so I'm fairly confident that the emotional effectiveness of the narrative was deliberate. Probably.

I'm torn on this one. Because while it's undeniably impressive, a phenomenonal accomplishment coming from a one-man studio, it's almost disappointing in just how well it emulates AAA shooters. It's a great game, it plays brilliantly and is evidently beautiful to look at, but if you like this kind of first-person shooter... it's a niche being catered to. Bright Memory stands (mostly) toe-to-toe with the likes of Shadow Warrior 3 and Doom Eternal, but it obviously can't hope to surpass them - and, being honest, there's very little in the game that gives it an identity all its own, so faithfully does it follow in its peers' footsteps.

I value the authorial voice in indie projects, and while Bright Memory handily delivers on action spectacle, it doesn't aspire to much else. Which is completely fine! And it's absolutely amazing - a positive sign of things to come - that it all comes from one guy, an engine, and an asset store. Truly, it represents an exciting, inspirational moment in games development that this exists, and is handily on par with titles that cost hundreds of millions of dollars to make. It just leaves me wishing for something more fresh and unexpected! It's a stellar achievement, and I wish FYQD every success - but knowing, now, that bedroom programmers have these tools, I anticipate more than just a solid replication of what AAA studios already provide.