FFVII has been the first of the franchise I got aware of, back in the days; the first one to make me aware of JRPG and thus, the one to seek out games like this before I had money to buy this. And yet, after distractions from other backlog games and attempted playthroughs, it is just after 27 years that I finally sat down and saw this game through to the end. And for that, it can now be crossed off as #1 on my gaming bucket list.

What can I say what hasn't already been said for this classic; a flagship product for Playstation back in '97 when 3D games were picking up and technology reached a new milestone?
Suffice to say, the Final Fantasy games were successful for their uniquely engaging story, with a world building that provided more experience for each playthrough I've done (unless I am off the attention for details); this seventh entry is a standout with at that point, with themes of ecology, science and psychology. It also helps that they have a colorful cast, most with the background stories holding some kind of charm, unfolding with the progression. My favorites would be those of Cid, Barret and the mutual bond of Cloud and Tifa.

Over time, turn-based combat mechanics can be a trying feature for players with less patience, especially for grind sessions, unless there is some feature that breathes life into the experience anew. Here, collecting and using materia for growing your options of magic and abilities add to the strategic element in battles, making them more dynamic in the long run of gaming.

Some imperfections are to be expected, even in the classics. Final Fantasy VII flows well in the initial part with Midgar and keeps the engagement for progress close to follow. But soon after you get to travel the world, somewhere along the way, the pacing gets bogged down. I noticed I had to decide to come back to pick up the journey between gaming sessions. It doesn't even help that some objectives lack hints on where I should go next, turning into a hide and seek game on progress. So clues leave more to be desired, but that game's from the time when strategy guide books were quite a thing for the less explorative audience.

To this point, I have seen fragments of scenes throughout the game and finally I've pieced them together by clearing Final Fantasy VII myself. That leaves me to pick up on Crisis Core and then start with the remake series, to get the best of the old and the modern presentation.

I can warmly recommend the original game so that you can get up to speed with what made this a masterpiece of its time, as much as there are a few stumblings in the overarching progression. Should you decide try the original game in before-hand, then you are in for the experience. I would mention getting a handful of mods to buff the graphics, the soundtrack and the quality-of-life aspects. Echo-S puts together well-done voiced lines for practically everything, adding more to the cinematic factor of the story itself.

The magic is still in here. Jevnation out!

For this time, this game wasn't played in its entirety by yours truly. My girlfriend has barely had any gaming experience, but she has an affinity for things like mushrooms. So I bought Smushi Come Home when I showed her the game at its imminent release date, and she already fell in love with the content and the premise.

After a few fun gaming sessions with her playing it through, I was happy that she found a new entry point into gaming because Smushi Come Home is a casual-friendly 3D adventure game with some platforming elements and optional challenges. We get to watch with glee the varied cast of characters ranging from mushrooms and plants to bugs and capybaras, those beings that we tend to share with each other on social media.

Even the music is memorable and not tiring on the long run, composed in a style that'd see itself belong in a Nintendo franchise. Hence, I bought the soundtrack for further revisits of the vibe in other contexts.

One case of inconvenience that this game momentarily suffers from is the camera control, which can obstruct the view of Smushi and his surroundings.

All in all, Smushi Come Home is a welcome addition to the game pool for those looking for a cute but generally appealing odyssey through nature, including dialogues with occasional, simple wisdom and a refreshing soundtrack that invokes the sense of adventure and curiosity.

I have earlier reviewed the freeware game "You Have To Win This Game". Afterwards, I just took on its sequel and felt like I had a blast with this one. Super Win The Game took and expanded the game features further for additional challenges and functionalities. Now there is a plot that unfolds as you progress and gives your character some kind of purpose as you interact with friendly NPC's.

The open-world exploration has been implemented and makes way for a greater terrain diversity, adding to the 8-bit game immersion that I already enjoyed in its prequel.

I would rather say that the game is slightly less challenging but there is so much content in it that'll reward you more through active puzzle solving and exploration. It's been a long time since I've played a game so addictive that I barely sensed the time flying by, so I'd say fans of retro/platformer games are in for quite a treat.

This is a half-baked attempt of a bridge construction simulator; a grid-based physics puzzle where each level challenges you to think out the bridge layout that can pass the stress test with various passing vehicles and natural disasters.

While I enjoy watching how my attempted builds collapse in spectacular ways, the game features could have been so much more for satisfaction. Considering there are no tutorials, which leaves you to learn by guides or figure it out by trial-and-error. Another problem is that the game's physics engine is unreliably rough and may provide different results if your bridge construction is borderline unstable.

That's why I've passed some of the bridge scenarios by luck of physics, after series of identical stress tests that failed. I would likely advise you to check other bridge simulator games instead, if you're looking to give mind-bending challenges a go for the right price and better features for your enjoyment.

It's mainly an FPS game with rogue-like elements, as you run through the levels inside the eponymous building, fighting various types of robots, turrets and traps. There are games with different contents and elements that has captivated me experience- or impression-wise and Tower of Guns does so in many levels. Every game playthrough, in their relatively short yet refreshing session, offers a different setup including random levels, a wide array of enemy types, powerups and silly dialogues (if enabled) to give each shooting session their own plot to follow. After many hours of playing this, I can say that my average session consists of airborne fighting, dodging through bullet hell situations, finding secret rooms for coins or crazy powerups and constantly hoping to survive insane ground battles if nothing else.

The sound design are well distinct and adds to the cel-shaded machine environment and the fight n' fly experience. Even the easy-going, electronic soundtrack are intricately composed and sets the mood for players going through the ominously huge facilities with big packs of enemies waiting to ambush them, all credits due to Mike. Considering the fact that his brother, Joe, handled the game development, took the pre-existing FPS gaming to ridiculous levels and succeeded to release one mixed candybag of a shooter; it makes a bold statement that video game projects can only have so much limits to what you can achieve as a single developer.

A different, short adventure game with some depth dug into an obscure, Swedish mythology. You set out on your first Year Walk, which the purpose is to gain a vision into the future. You interact mostly with mythological creatures and have to solve certain puzzles to reach your goal. Although you are provided with an encyclopedia to get an insight into Year Walk, as well as the creatures involved to help you along, the adventure is riddled with some harrowing experiences due to the unpredictable natures for the players getting into this for the first time.

Having played through this, I admit having this game haunting in my subconscious while I slept and although I'm no big fan of horror games, this game has a fascinating lore in its fragile state of existence, based on the research data compiled by a Swedish teacher (and his journal which becomes increasingly unsettling upon reading it). Recommended for thinking players but also for fans of mystery/mythology who might need a bit of walkthrough on this.

One fellow reviewer said it best: "It's Pong on steroids." The main point of the game is to clear the levels of bricks with your ball and beat the boss in each chapter. There are different types of bricks and level shapes (horizontal, vertical and spherical) that add to the variety of gameplay, along with powerups and some special abilities for you to affect the gameplay. Cool techno soundtrack, too!

There are a couple of other game modes that you can also compete in global scores with. The score-based achievements for those were too challenging for me, so you might just consider if you aren't particularly competitive or don't have a friend to give a go with during co-op modes.

Overall, it's a good-looking game with a fresh take on the good, old Pong concept

It's a puzzle game, all right, which you can pick up when you want to chill while solving your way forward in its imaginative and gorgeously illustrated world. It has some hidden objects elements while also challenging you with different types of puzzles to flex your brain muscles a bit.

There isn't much to the story, besides the intrigue being about piecing the world back together jigzaw style and there is a central character re-appearing in certain puzzles and more... The game feels short but there is a warm charm that gives the playtime some lasting value.

P.S. The chill music is a worthy keeper!

Venturing on an alien planet following a losing space fight, you take upon your mission to fix up your starship and intercept Grigori, the enemy commander. This game has neat puzzle mechanics revolving your teleport gun, which takes some planning to pass through the obstacles.

It's pretty short with barely 2 hours to beat it yet there are hidden objects and secrets that allow you to explore the game further to improve your equipment or completing achievements. The soundtrack is well written; I could sit around doing something else for a long while and still not feel like the music wears old.

The free platformer game takes the antics of PC gaming from the 80's to provide a totally retro experience (besides the UI) for the curious players. Explore the ominously fascinating underground place, overcome tricky obstacles while avoiding your enemies, unlock powerups and, for its namesake, reach your goal of the game.

Some challenging obstacles can take a number of tries and new thinking but are not as impossible as they look. After all, the game rewards exploration as you get to find items of value for your game score (rewarded with an achievement for full score).

One notable thing to mention about the game would be the graphics, despite depicting the rocky environments, are lush and colorful by the 80's video game standards, which can make the game world feel immersive to a certain level.

The game that screams "We love the classic point n' click!" The graphics tells much of it as well, in its pixelated but highly detailed presentation. In a Twin Peaks-esque setting, the plot revolves around the titular character digging for answers about her grandfather's death and the mysteries rooted in her hometown.

The story is mature and multi-faceted, although to a point that I have some troubles getting hooked on its lacking intrigue. Half-way through, though, the pacing picks up enough to get things rolling well. Every character is memorable and have their own personalities (Goober is such an apt comic relief!), especially thanks to well-made voice acting and dialogues.

The fact that this mod - available on Steam store for free - centers during the events of the first Half-Life game entices the old fan in me.

Your daily duty as the security guard in the Black Mesa research facility takes an intense turn when an experiment goes wrong and you have to fight your way out. It's a rough piece-of-work featuring much of non-official assets; the models, the enemies, the weapons etc. The levels are detailed and pretty varied, though the gameplay flow can get a little bogged down at a few places (especially the driving scene which overstays its welcome in the beginning), which still doesn't hurt the gaming experience.

I've read that this mod was currently developed by a single person, which is impressive considering the results being delivered this far. At this stage, there are still some later levels being under development, which makes this beta release end in a cliffhanger. I am happy to experience another take on the world of Black Mesa while I'm waiting for the completion of BM: Blue Shift along with Operation Black Mesa, and at best, getting tempted to play the full Wilson Chronicles, one day.

Fans of King's Bounty and Heroes of Might and Magic will recognize this type of game, only made in a watered-down fashion with chibi character stylings. The main story campaign will let you gather your forces following a raid attack by bandits, to build, upgrade and fight your way to the source of the conflict.

Albeit predictable story, it has a bit of its own depth, what with new dialogues that appear in every encounter you make across the campaign. Can be played for the way it is; easy to pick up and make your progress in your free time.

This is a bit more on the casual side of the genre, so players who search for strategy games with considerable depth better look elsewhere but it's a decent game nevertheless.