Maxxthetics
2022
Had a good time with this one but couldn't bring myself to finish it off due to the very long final stretch of gameplay that wasn't adding any new mechanics to a very short list that had already gotten a little stale.
Love the visuals and aesthetics. Loved how this is the first game on Playdate I feel like has taken full advantage of every single feature of the little handheld (I haven't had to tilt the console literally once for any other game woah) and I thought everything about it was pretty fun.
One major complaint I'd give is just variety. Potion making comes down to about 4 minigames, and you repeat those minigames a lot. One of the minigames in particular involved watching an unskippable 20-30 second cutscene that did not change every single time. A very nicely animated cutscene but one I really started getting impatient having to repeat.
I think this is still one of the better season games I've played so far.
Love the visuals and aesthetics. Loved how this is the first game on Playdate I feel like has taken full advantage of every single feature of the little handheld (I haven't had to tilt the console literally once for any other game woah) and I thought everything about it was pretty fun.
One major complaint I'd give is just variety. Potion making comes down to about 4 minigames, and you repeat those minigames a lot. One of the minigames in particular involved watching an unskippable 20-30 second cutscene that did not change every single time. A very nicely animated cutscene but one I really started getting impatient having to repeat.
I think this is still one of the better season games I've played so far.
2021
Finally won a run (on easy) so I'm counting that as complete although I'll likely keep picking this up for more runs.
Very smartly designed rougelite with an insane amount of unlockable content, and a very appreciated 'unlock everything' button for when you just wanna skip the progression AND you can undo it too. Gameplay is challenging and gets your brain working. Great as a mobile game and super cheap too.
Very smartly designed rougelite with an insane amount of unlockable content, and a very appreciated 'unlock everything' button for when you just wanna skip the progression AND you can undo it too. Gameplay is challenging and gets your brain working. Great as a mobile game and super cheap too.
2022
A neat concept. Ended with a high score of Level 84 after looping on the final zone a couple times, so I'd call that complete. It's engaging and visually well presented, and figuring out the puzzle of how to beat the crow bosses was fun.
2022
This one has a really nice presentation but mechanically was just really repetitive and uninteresting. Kept waiting for it to add new mechanics to the very simple puzzle, but it just keep making me do more of the one puzzle. Couldn't bother reaching the end.
2023
It's charming but just not very fun to play. In concept it's really cool but there's just not much mechanically there. Tying reversing your movement to a button instead of the d pad while expecting you to use the crank is a baffling choice. Visuals are good but the writing feels pandering and insincere. Can't complain too much considering it's free, but I'd just rather play Recommendation Dog again than touch this.
2022
Really like this one. A simple score-chasing arcade game that makes fun use of the crank and has just enough variety in challenges between the five stages. Aesthetically very cute too. Wish it had online leader boards like some other playdate games offer.
2023
It's like Ridiculous Fishing but on Playdate. Charming, fun use of the crank, very satisfying gameplay loop. Really appreciated the accessibility features to tweak the currency grind how you want and remove the kind of annoying crank-to-travel system. Wish the item progression was a little less linear. Had a pretty good time though.
Maybe the best free mobile game ever? Challenging, really deep, tons to do. Absolutely no microtransactions or ads pushed on you at all. Been getting updates for a decade. It's peak. I've never won a run and don't think I ever will but I come back to it regularly for another try.
2024
Lucas Pope doesn't miss. An extremely charming and light-hearted take on a Papers Please style gameplay loop with a small narrative that builds over the campaign. It's simultaneously short and longer than you'd expect. I think it sticks around exactly long enough to not overstay it's welcome. I didn't expect to get emotionally attached to your silly robot friend and his little bit of character growth.
This isn't worth the price of a Playdate, but if you own a Playdate I think you need to play this. It's fantastic.
This isn't worth the price of a Playdate, but if you own a Playdate I think you need to play this. It's fantastic.
2022
I wasn't expecting a visual novel as part of the playdate season. It's pretty quick and doesn't overstay it's welcome and apparently has tons of branching paths for replays. I think that's cool. I like when visual novels break things up with a little minigame and the marble rolling with the crank in this was a fun version of that. The writing was meh but not too annoying.
I think this is the most solid week of the playdate season so far. Two winners in my book.
I think this is the most solid week of the playdate season so far. Two winners in my book.
2022
Finished the main campaign with exactly 50 deaths which seems pretty okay. This game is tough but very fun and really polished for something completely free. Highly recommend to anyone with a Playdate and some patience.
2022
This one took my by surprise, I loved it. Ended up blowing through all 30 stages of the story mode in a day and really enjoyed how it kept mixing up the basic puzzle mechanics to keep it fresh. The story was simple but cute. Hearing the Summoning Salt music at the end was a shock. Will definitely keep coming back to this to play the other modes. This is a great game.
Another controversial playdate season opinion, but I'm not having much fun with this one. I'm 19 stages in and found out there's a whopping 50 STAGES. I think I've done enough to have an opinion.
I appreciate the weird aesthetic and really fun animation, and the way the game makes a unique use for the crank is really charming. I just find the actual puzzles often really frustrating. It's a lot more trial and error than actual puzzle solving.
I'm gonna keep trying here and there, but I feel like I'll end up abandoning this before the end.
I appreciate the weird aesthetic and really fun animation, and the way the game makes a unique use for the crank is really charming. I just find the actual puzzles often really frustrating. It's a lot more trial and error than actual puzzle solving.
I'm gonna keep trying here and there, but I feel like I'll end up abandoning this before the end.
2022
This might be controversial but... I don't think I like this. It's a fine minigame. It's a decent way to show off the Playdate crank out of the box I suppose. I just don't feel like there's a lot here. I gave it a lot of tries and even once I figured out how to really pick up speed it didn't feel like there was much to it. It's okay.
2023
This is held up as one of the best VR experiences currently and I feel like I'm being gaslit by the community at large by this sentiment. Maybe I just had the worst possible impression?
So this game is meant to be a rougelite. You're supposed to die pretty quick and then through repeated attempts unlock new gear and upgrades and learn how to play better until eventually you get the satisfaction of a perfect run to the end.
I uh, I beat it on my first run. Default rifle. It was really easy. Frustratingly so. It all looked and felt cool but had absolutely zero observable depth.
The first boss fight was okay. A big guy floating in the air and you shoot him a bunch and take cover. Sure. The second boss fight? One of the worst I've experienced in VR. So frustrating that by the time I was done with it I wanted to stop playing. I kept going though because I couldn't find a means to save and resume later.
Then I just went right to the third boss and won that one too. I felt nothing. Honestly the whole time I was tired because it was late and I was DESPERATE for something to kill me so I could hop out of VR and go to bed. This game was annoying.
I ended up refunding it. I don't get it.
So this game is meant to be a rougelite. You're supposed to die pretty quick and then through repeated attempts unlock new gear and upgrades and learn how to play better until eventually you get the satisfaction of a perfect run to the end.
I uh, I beat it on my first run. Default rifle. It was really easy. Frustratingly so. It all looked and felt cool but had absolutely zero observable depth.
The first boss fight was okay. A big guy floating in the air and you shoot him a bunch and take cover. Sure. The second boss fight? One of the worst I've experienced in VR. So frustrating that by the time I was done with it I wanted to stop playing. I kept going though because I couldn't find a means to save and resume later.
Then I just went right to the third boss and won that one too. I felt nothing. Honestly the whole time I was tired because it was late and I was DESPERATE for something to kill me so I could hop out of VR and go to bed. This game was annoying.
I ended up refunding it. I don't get it.