Kizma
2018
Just a hands down great arcade rhythm experience. Only downside is that it is very hard to access outside of US/Asia/OCE.
Also because of how odd the cabinet design is, a "controller" alone is gonna set you back USD $1,399 with shipping fees from $441 to $999 depending on your location.
Of course, if you go with the home controller option, you're gonna have to get your hands on a not-so-legal dump of the game files and run in on your PC.
It's fun enough that I've had 2 separate trips to England and playing maimai was a major reason for going.
Also because of how odd the cabinet design is, a "controller" alone is gonna set you back USD $1,399 with shipping fees from $441 to $999 depending on your location.
Of course, if you go with the home controller option, you're gonna have to get your hands on a not-so-legal dump of the game files and run in on your PC.
It's fun enough that I've had 2 separate trips to England and playing maimai was a major reason for going.
2019
Astroneer is the perfect space survivalcraft game.
Crafting feels like you're assembling a puzzle without the picture, a challenge that gives you the same satisfaction as seeing a properly cable managed server rack.
Exploring alien planets while expanding your oxygen tethers is very relaxing and rewarding, as once you've covered the planet with your blue air-spaghetti you can run around without a single worry while looking for resources.
Visually the game is extremely vibrant and toony. Very bold colors with extreme landscapes and complex machinery is a sight for sore eyes.
Overall the game is a very great experience for the people that want a survival exploration crafting factory building game. Think of Minecraft, Satisfactory and No Man's Sky mushed into one awesome game.
Crafting feels like you're assembling a puzzle without the picture, a challenge that gives you the same satisfaction as seeing a properly cable managed server rack.
Exploring alien planets while expanding your oxygen tethers is very relaxing and rewarding, as once you've covered the planet with your blue air-spaghetti you can run around without a single worry while looking for resources.
Visually the game is extremely vibrant and toony. Very bold colors with extreme landscapes and complex machinery is a sight for sore eyes.
Overall the game is a very great experience for the people that want a survival exploration crafting factory building game. Think of Minecraft, Satisfactory and No Man's Sky mushed into one awesome game.
2022
Amazing co-op experience but lacking in play time because of it being in early access. Eager to see what they have to add.
2012
Game Dev Tycoon (GDT) is one of the most addicting formulas I've ever experienced, and I've smoked cigarettes.
The gameplay for GDT goes like this:
You pick a platform, genre and topic for your game
You enter 3 different stages of development
On each stage you have to divide your development time between different aspects of the project (Engine, Gameplay, Story for example.)
Depending on the genre and topic combination you picked, there's a sweet spot where the game will get great reviews and you make a lot of money.
And that's the main gameplay for the most part, you get to twiddle around with some other things but it all feeds into that process. It's insanely addictive when first learning all the combinations and values, and then sort of loses that charm after around 2-3 playthroughs.
The first time I played this game around 2014, I stayed up until 5 AM on a school night and bombed a history test because of it, and I'd do it all over again if I could.
The gameplay for GDT goes like this:
You pick a platform, genre and topic for your game
You enter 3 different stages of development
On each stage you have to divide your development time between different aspects of the project (Engine, Gameplay, Story for example.)
Depending on the genre and topic combination you picked, there's a sweet spot where the game will get great reviews and you make a lot of money.
And that's the main gameplay for the most part, you get to twiddle around with some other things but it all feeds into that process. It's insanely addictive when first learning all the combinations and values, and then sort of loses that charm after around 2-3 playthroughs.
The first time I played this game around 2014, I stayed up until 5 AM on a school night and bombed a history test because of it, and I'd do it all over again if I could.
Loved it.
2001
It's slightly disappointing that they abandoned the adventure field aspect from the first game, but the storytelling and visuals more than make up for it.
2013
A very challenging but not frustrating zombie survival game. While it's daunting to get into, once you get the basics the rest is fairly trivial to understand.
2017
A Benchmark for a great 3D platformer.
Great mechanics that allow for skill expression while still managing to be friendly for younger players.
Extremely satisfying collectathon gameplay with the moons and coins. And unlike some other Mario games the coins are actually used as currency, which gives an actual reason to go out of your way to collect them.
The soundtrack is also top tier. I don't even need to say anything, just give a listen to Jump Up, Super Star.
Sadly the multiplayer is very wonky and feels like a last minute addition to advertise co-op. I'd much rather the game be without it, since it did get my hopes up just to disappoint.
Another weak point is the forced use of motion controls. I do NOT want to shake my controller to throw cappy downwards or in a spin throw. It feels ridiculous and is also inaccurate at times which can be incredibly frustrating.
Great mechanics that allow for skill expression while still managing to be friendly for younger players.
Extremely satisfying collectathon gameplay with the moons and coins. And unlike some other Mario games the coins are actually used as currency, which gives an actual reason to go out of your way to collect them.
The soundtrack is also top tier. I don't even need to say anything, just give a listen to Jump Up, Super Star.
Sadly the multiplayer is very wonky and feels like a last minute addition to advertise co-op. I'd much rather the game be without it, since it did get my hopes up just to disappoint.
Another weak point is the forced use of motion controls. I do NOT want to shake my controller to throw cappy downwards or in a spin throw. It feels ridiculous and is also inaccurate at times which can be incredibly frustrating.
Honestly, I'm not sure why I love this game so much.
The writing is funny but impossible to take seriously.
The gameplay is alright, good for a hack and slash.
The soundtrack is to die for.
I guess I just have a huge soft spot for edgy games and overly cool characters.
The writing is funny but impossible to take seriously.
The gameplay is alright, good for a hack and slash.
The soundtrack is to die for.
I guess I just have a huge soft spot for edgy games and overly cool characters.
2016
Great experience for competitive players, it rewards great mechanics and great tactics equally which is a rare occurrence.
But with casual modes and game browser given so little time and thought by Blizzard, the game is impossible to enjoy casually.
I think the main focus of the game being a competitively balanced eSports title is what has kept it from growing to the size and popularity of Team Fortress 2.
But with casual modes and game browser given so little time and thought by Blizzard, the game is impossible to enjoy casually.
I think the main focus of the game being a competitively balanced eSports title is what has kept it from growing to the size and popularity of Team Fortress 2.
A fast paced 3v3 Arena shooter with a large emphasis on movement, abilities and classes.
You have the choice between Shift, Vector and Gunn. Think of these as the Light, Medium and Heavy classes respectively. With each class having its own abilities and movement properties, they all have their own purpose in the game(I'll be specifically talking about the CTF game mode, as TDM is a lot more loose with your choices).
Shift is a faster, smaller and harder to hit target. This combined with its healing abilities makes it a hard enemy to catch and eliminate, making Shift the go-to for assisting the capture of the flag.
Vector is the medium class, with abilities that assist in one-on-one combat as well as making its way around the maps. This guy will be the one doing the heavy lifting in CTF, as it can eliminate flag defenders in a quick manner using it's very combat focused abilities. One of the most potent and most versatile abilities, not only for the class, but for the entire game would be the grappling hook. Using the grappling hook, Vector can grapple onto enemies, pulling itself to melee range and deal a huge chunk of damage instantly. This combo of grapple + melee is definitely the bread and butter of the vector class, as it is the fastest TTK combo in the game and it also lets you pick up any health drops you might get from killing the enemy. The grappling hook can also be used to latch onto most surfaces in the game, which lets you start an extremely fast wall ride that is faster than the Shift class.
What you combine with your grappling hook depends on what you're going for, but for a very combat heavy combo that absolutely wrecks house, the damage booster ability takes 15/120 of your health and boosts your damage by 50% for 5 seconds. With your grappling hook and melee combo being your close ranged guaranteed kill, using damage booster with a longer ranged weapon can make you a threat at medium to long ranges as well.
Gunn is a big large tank, reminiscent of reinhardt from Overwatch or Heavy from TF2. As the designated defender class, Gunn is decked out with shields, traps as well as a pseudo-grappling hook that grabs enemies to you, which is another nasty way to melee someone right after. His traps also slow you down in an area, which leaves any squishy little flag grabbers vulnerable to your team.
As you may have noticed, my words for Gunn and Shift were very brief, that's mostly cause I've almost exclusively played Vector as it seems to be the most versatile and potent class as of the February 2024 Steam Next Fest open beta.
For movement, you have dashing, sliding, wallriding as well as rail grinding. Combining all these movement types can get you up to some ludicrous speeds when used right, namely the wallride doesn't seem to have an upper limit on speed. But when landing on a rail or starting a slide, they will take you back to a more sensible speed that isn't as crazy. Using all these to traverse the map gives the player near infinite choices when running for the enemy flag, or chasing down to get your own flag back.
To sum it up, Contenders: Arena, when mastered is an amazing experience that gets the blood pumping as you either defend your flag, chase down the enemy flag or just gun down opponents in the chaotic battlefield. The game has huge potential as a fun competitive shooter much like Unreal Tournament or Quake but for the modern audience.
You have the choice between Shift, Vector and Gunn. Think of these as the Light, Medium and Heavy classes respectively. With each class having its own abilities and movement properties, they all have their own purpose in the game(I'll be specifically talking about the CTF game mode, as TDM is a lot more loose with your choices).
Shift is a faster, smaller and harder to hit target. This combined with its healing abilities makes it a hard enemy to catch and eliminate, making Shift the go-to for assisting the capture of the flag.
Vector is the medium class, with abilities that assist in one-on-one combat as well as making its way around the maps. This guy will be the one doing the heavy lifting in CTF, as it can eliminate flag defenders in a quick manner using it's very combat focused abilities. One of the most potent and most versatile abilities, not only for the class, but for the entire game would be the grappling hook. Using the grappling hook, Vector can grapple onto enemies, pulling itself to melee range and deal a huge chunk of damage instantly. This combo of grapple + melee is definitely the bread and butter of the vector class, as it is the fastest TTK combo in the game and it also lets you pick up any health drops you might get from killing the enemy. The grappling hook can also be used to latch onto most surfaces in the game, which lets you start an extremely fast wall ride that is faster than the Shift class.
What you combine with your grappling hook depends on what you're going for, but for a very combat heavy combo that absolutely wrecks house, the damage booster ability takes 15/120 of your health and boosts your damage by 50% for 5 seconds. With your grappling hook and melee combo being your close ranged guaranteed kill, using damage booster with a longer ranged weapon can make you a threat at medium to long ranges as well.
Gunn is a big large tank, reminiscent of reinhardt from Overwatch or Heavy from TF2. As the designated defender class, Gunn is decked out with shields, traps as well as a pseudo-grappling hook that grabs enemies to you, which is another nasty way to melee someone right after. His traps also slow you down in an area, which leaves any squishy little flag grabbers vulnerable to your team.
As you may have noticed, my words for Gunn and Shift were very brief, that's mostly cause I've almost exclusively played Vector as it seems to be the most versatile and potent class as of the February 2024 Steam Next Fest open beta.
For movement, you have dashing, sliding, wallriding as well as rail grinding. Combining all these movement types can get you up to some ludicrous speeds when used right, namely the wallride doesn't seem to have an upper limit on speed. But when landing on a rail or starting a slide, they will take you back to a more sensible speed that isn't as crazy. Using all these to traverse the map gives the player near infinite choices when running for the enemy flag, or chasing down to get your own flag back.
To sum it up, Contenders: Arena, when mastered is an amazing experience that gets the blood pumping as you either defend your flag, chase down the enemy flag or just gun down opponents in the chaotic battlefield. The game has huge potential as a fun competitive shooter much like Unreal Tournament or Quake but for the modern audience.
2022
Valheim is an amazing open world survival game with some QoL hiccups that can be easily remedied with mods.
In addition to most of your actions having XP and Levels, Valheim has the classic loop of: Gather materials > Upgrade your Gear > Fight Boss > Gather better materials with upgraded gear, rinse and repeat. A very addicting dopamine cycle that feels rewarding.
And for those who want to unwind, the game also provides the player with simple yet effective landscaping tools and a surprisingly complex building system. You can't just place blocks anywhere willy nilly, everything has to have a foundation or support to stay where it is placed. This turns building a large/tall structure into a bit of a puzzle, trying to turn your vision into an actually stable building. There's also farming and animal husbandry that goes hand in hand with landscaping and building to create some visually stunning AND functional bases.
The combat in the game is also fairly good, but has some issues that make it frustrating from time to time. The balance of using stamina for both attacking AND running makes it hard to kite enemies effectively, which makes some fights very exciting. And when you've got a shield, this lets you do one of my favourite moves in video games, parrying! If you time a block right before an enemy attack lands, you parry their attack which stuns them for a short duration. During this stun, your attacks do critical damage as the reward in addition to the enemy being unable to attack during the stun.
The issues that make fighting more annoying are height difference, where if you're fighting on a hill and the enemy is either below or above you, your attacks will very rarely land. There's also surrounding objects, since nearly everything in Valheim takes damage, including buildings, walls, the ground, bushes etc. and doing damage to multiple targets in one attack spreads your damage out, this leads to combat in tight corridors or small buildings a lot slower since your damage is being spread out to random walls or trees.
With Valheim having such a huge open world, it uses portals to aid with long distance back and forth travel. This is incredibly useful to save some time and make the game less of a walking simulator. But for some reason, some of the most important materials that you spend a lot of your time gathering from far away locations are excluded. You cannot bring ores or smelted bars through the portals with you. I can't think of a great reason for this decision other than encouraging multiple bases near some more dangerous areas, but the people that don't wish to do that will simply just build a boat to fill and use that to transport the metals to their home base. And depending on the wind, that trip might take anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes of doing barely anything. Thankfully this is easily addressed with mods that make metals transportable through portals, but I wish the vanilla game had at least a command or world setting where it allows you to choose what can go through a portal.
Overall an awesome game with some very minor issues.
In addition to most of your actions having XP and Levels, Valheim has the classic loop of: Gather materials > Upgrade your Gear > Fight Boss > Gather better materials with upgraded gear, rinse and repeat. A very addicting dopamine cycle that feels rewarding.
And for those who want to unwind, the game also provides the player with simple yet effective landscaping tools and a surprisingly complex building system. You can't just place blocks anywhere willy nilly, everything has to have a foundation or support to stay where it is placed. This turns building a large/tall structure into a bit of a puzzle, trying to turn your vision into an actually stable building. There's also farming and animal husbandry that goes hand in hand with landscaping and building to create some visually stunning AND functional bases.
The combat in the game is also fairly good, but has some issues that make it frustrating from time to time. The balance of using stamina for both attacking AND running makes it hard to kite enemies effectively, which makes some fights very exciting. And when you've got a shield, this lets you do one of my favourite moves in video games, parrying! If you time a block right before an enemy attack lands, you parry their attack which stuns them for a short duration. During this stun, your attacks do critical damage as the reward in addition to the enemy being unable to attack during the stun.
The issues that make fighting more annoying are height difference, where if you're fighting on a hill and the enemy is either below or above you, your attacks will very rarely land. There's also surrounding objects, since nearly everything in Valheim takes damage, including buildings, walls, the ground, bushes etc. and doing damage to multiple targets in one attack spreads your damage out, this leads to combat in tight corridors or small buildings a lot slower since your damage is being spread out to random walls or trees.
With Valheim having such a huge open world, it uses portals to aid with long distance back and forth travel. This is incredibly useful to save some time and make the game less of a walking simulator. But for some reason, some of the most important materials that you spend a lot of your time gathering from far away locations are excluded. You cannot bring ores or smelted bars through the portals with you. I can't think of a great reason for this decision other than encouraging multiple bases near some more dangerous areas, but the people that don't wish to do that will simply just build a boat to fill and use that to transport the metals to their home base. And depending on the wind, that trip might take anywhere from 5 to 20 minutes of doing barely anything. Thankfully this is easily addressed with mods that make metals transportable through portals, but I wish the vanilla game had at least a command or world setting where it allows you to choose what can go through a portal.
Overall an awesome game with some very minor issues.
2016
OneShot is the perfect example of emotional investment.
While it's very difficult to give a proper review without spoiling the puzzles or the story, I'll give a general idea of the feeling of the game.
Gameplay:
The gameplay of OneShot is going to be the most divisive thing about the game. The game is a top down, slow paced environmental puzzle game. No skill based mechanics, no high adrenaline action and lots of slow methodical thinking.
Story:
The world and lore of OneShot is delivered through lots of dialogue and environmental storytelling. The storytelling is subtle yet profound, the game encourages players to explore and interact with the environment. It’s a narrative that respects the intelligence of its players, never spoon-feeding easy to understand information but instead inviting them to uncover the lore at their own pace and really think about what's going on around them.
Soundtrack:
To fit the slow gameplay and dark gloomy world, the music in OneShot is very melancholic and gives a feeling of "the world is ending, and I've accepted it" that fits with the defeated feeling you get from interacting with the characters. (https://youtu.be/mmxLcw0oH4w)
Overall:
OneShot is a one-time experience that leaves a long lasting impression on the player, I don't think I'll ever forget Niko.
While it's very difficult to give a proper review without spoiling the puzzles or the story, I'll give a general idea of the feeling of the game.
Gameplay:
The gameplay of OneShot is going to be the most divisive thing about the game. The game is a top down, slow paced environmental puzzle game. No skill based mechanics, no high adrenaline action and lots of slow methodical thinking.
Story:
The world and lore of OneShot is delivered through lots of dialogue and environmental storytelling. The storytelling is subtle yet profound, the game encourages players to explore and interact with the environment. It’s a narrative that respects the intelligence of its players, never spoon-feeding easy to understand information but instead inviting them to uncover the lore at their own pace and really think about what's going on around them.
Soundtrack:
To fit the slow gameplay and dark gloomy world, the music in OneShot is very melancholic and gives a feeling of "the world is ending, and I've accepted it" that fits with the defeated feeling you get from interacting with the characters. (https://youtu.be/mmxLcw0oH4w)
Overall:
OneShot is a one-time experience that leaves a long lasting impression on the player, I don't think I'll ever forget Niko.