So the theme here is "lovecraftian". I was expecting a lot of these to focus on the actual mythos, but they ended up going through more interesting paths, and even the ones that sticked to Lovecraft's stuff managed to be really interesting. This one also starts the tradition of the launcher itself being a game, and I personally loved it.
This was made by Shatter's devs from the previous collection and you can tell because the visuals are top notch. I really liked it, puzzles are fun but not particularly tedious so you never get stuck, the house is fun to explore and the story is a good companion to it all, I didn't particularly care about it in the previous collection but the way it's framed here really gives it some weight.
12. Another Late Night
Yeaaah I don't get where this one is going, not interesting at all and the mystery doesn't even get any cool closure or something, it just sort of happens. Could've done more with that interface.
11. The Toy Shop
This one's sort of all over the place, it never gets particularly boring and the shooting part is actually nice, but only Cosmo-D can pull off that particular asset flip aesthetic in a cool way in my book. The story just sort of happens, idk, nothing memorable about it.
10. Arcadletra
This one's like, really weird (why does it happen in an arcade???), the girl's whimpering made me uncomfortable and I got jumpscared a couple of times but that's about it, not particularly cool or anything. I feel like it takes itself a bit too seriously despite how goofy it ends up being.
9. The Thing in the Lake
I respect this one but I just didn't enjoy it, the format and the progression felt more frustrating than anything and the payoff wasn't worth it. Visuals are cool tho. I probably won't enjoy World of Horror that much I see lol
8. To the End of Days
This one is just badass and has cool gunplay, I also like how they tied it to Carthanc. Nothing special but it's just really enjoyable. It notably has the same ending as Halo Reach.
7. Touched by an Outer God
Same as the previous one, just a really enjoyable shooter, but I like how the upgrade system and mechanics tie-in with the narrative. My jaw dropped a couple of times, I wasn't expecting it to develop like this.
6. The Diving Bell
This one's just nice, everything that happens in the ocean is more or less appealing to me and I like how the story plays out. Didn't scare me or make me uncomfortable, but I really like how it progressed.
5. Undiscovered
The concept is crazy cool, a found footage but it's a film from the 40s and you play it in 2nd person. The visuals are cool, Torple Dook just knows how to do it. It does look sort of silly however, and the skeletons talking in RE4 voice lines surely doesn't help, but it's enjoyable till the end.
4. Sucker for Love
Not really my kind of stuff but it's just so well made, the art is stunning, not only talking about the designs but also the interface, and the mechanics for you to make the rituals are pretty engaging. Didn't make me go crazy (heh) but it's p cool
3. Squirrel Stapler
It's just cozy, gameplay loop is a little addicting even if it gets hard in later days and it's silly fun. Not my favorite Szymanski game by any means and I would've preferred Pony Factory as a full release, but it's concept of "lovecraftian" is a nice break from everything you see up till then.
2. Solipsis
I've hated on Daniel Mullins before, I thought he was a hack that could only make the same game over and over again, tired creepypasta ARG bullshit. Even Inscryption, which I enjoyed quite a bunch, falls victim to this after the 1st third. But this one showed me that he can actually make some really cool stuff. Looks and plays ok but it's the "rationalize" mechanic that really ties-in the game nicely, it's a concept transported to mechanics in an absolute perfect way and gives one of the most memorable moments in the series (GO MAD). This is one of the few favs from these collections that I wouldn't like as a full game, I think the way the mechanics work just lends itself for a short experience like this.
1. Charlotte's Exile
Really damn engaging. The concept on itself is cool, it's despicted in the most basic and barebones way ever with the alien language being a 1:1 to english but with different symbols, but even then it's just so fun to look for each equivalent in different pages and play detective for a bit. Would love a full-release, a fully realized puzzle-logic game about figuring out an alien language. Loved it, amazing stuff.
Definitely better than the previous one overall, the main theme being more defined allowed for more connection in-between the games, the quality of each of them is also improved with only a couple of them that I consider truly bad and the playable launcher is the cherry on top. Sets the standard for future entries, which may be a good or a bad thing depending on how you look at it.
This was made by Shatter's devs from the previous collection and you can tell because the visuals are top notch. I really liked it, puzzles are fun but not particularly tedious so you never get stuck, the house is fun to explore and the story is a good companion to it all, I didn't particularly care about it in the previous collection but the way it's framed here really gives it some weight.
12. Another Late Night
Yeaaah I don't get where this one is going, not interesting at all and the mystery doesn't even get any cool closure or something, it just sort of happens. Could've done more with that interface.
11. The Toy Shop
This one's sort of all over the place, it never gets particularly boring and the shooting part is actually nice, but only Cosmo-D can pull off that particular asset flip aesthetic in a cool way in my book. The story just sort of happens, idk, nothing memorable about it.
10. Arcadletra
This one's like, really weird (why does it happen in an arcade???), the girl's whimpering made me uncomfortable and I got jumpscared a couple of times but that's about it, not particularly cool or anything. I feel like it takes itself a bit too seriously despite how goofy it ends up being.
9. The Thing in the Lake
I respect this one but I just didn't enjoy it, the format and the progression felt more frustrating than anything and the payoff wasn't worth it. Visuals are cool tho. I probably won't enjoy World of Horror that much I see lol
8. To the End of Days
This one is just badass and has cool gunplay, I also like how they tied it to Carthanc. Nothing special but it's just really enjoyable. It notably has the same ending as Halo Reach.
7. Touched by an Outer God
Same as the previous one, just a really enjoyable shooter, but I like how the upgrade system and mechanics tie-in with the narrative. My jaw dropped a couple of times, I wasn't expecting it to develop like this.
6. The Diving Bell
This one's just nice, everything that happens in the ocean is more or less appealing to me and I like how the story plays out. Didn't scare me or make me uncomfortable, but I really like how it progressed.
5. Undiscovered
The concept is crazy cool, a found footage but it's a film from the 40s and you play it in 2nd person. The visuals are cool, Torple Dook just knows how to do it. It does look sort of silly however, and the skeletons talking in RE4 voice lines surely doesn't help, but it's enjoyable till the end.
4. Sucker for Love
Not really my kind of stuff but it's just so well made, the art is stunning, not only talking about the designs but also the interface, and the mechanics for you to make the rituals are pretty engaging. Didn't make me go crazy (heh) but it's p cool
3. Squirrel Stapler
It's just cozy, gameplay loop is a little addicting even if it gets hard in later days and it's silly fun. Not my favorite Szymanski game by any means and I would've preferred Pony Factory as a full release, but it's concept of "lovecraftian" is a nice break from everything you see up till then.
2. Solipsis
I've hated on Daniel Mullins before, I thought he was a hack that could only make the same game over and over again, tired creepypasta ARG bullshit. Even Inscryption, which I enjoyed quite a bunch, falls victim to this after the 1st third. But this one showed me that he can actually make some really cool stuff. Looks and plays ok but it's the "rationalize" mechanic that really ties-in the game nicely, it's a concept transported to mechanics in an absolute perfect way and gives one of the most memorable moments in the series (GO MAD). This is one of the few favs from these collections that I wouldn't like as a full game, I think the way the mechanics work just lends itself for a short experience like this.
1. Charlotte's Exile
Really damn engaging. The concept on itself is cool, it's despicted in the most basic and barebones way ever with the alien language being a 1:1 to english but with different symbols, but even then it's just so fun to look for each equivalent in different pages and play detective for a bit. Would love a full-release, a fully realized puzzle-logic game about figuring out an alien language. Loved it, amazing stuff.
Definitely better than the previous one overall, the main theme being more defined allowed for more connection in-between the games, the quality of each of them is also improved with only a couple of them that I consider truly bad and the playable launcher is the cherry on top. Sets the standard for future entries, which may be a good or a bad thing depending on how you look at it.