Part action hero, part cupboard opening simulator. It’s very colourful and has catchy tunes, but also feels unfair a lot of the time. Ranged enemies always seem to be able to hit you before you can kill them (even from off screen), you can’t change weapon/grenade type and the jumping isn’t great, which means the instant deaths from bottomless pits or other obstacles becomes really frustrating. There isn’t much of a plot, the level sequence and enemies aren’t really cohesive and although there is variety in the enemies and weapons, there isn’t much. No modern conveniences like a map of where you’ve, or a key counter, but it’s still worth playing if you have the patience for it.
It really is one of the most innovative shooters I’ve played in years. The unique mechanic is easy to learn and difficult to master and the meta-plot and secrets means there’s a lot more to the game than at first glance. There are some annoying quirks, the simplistic graphics and style take some getting used to and as there’s no music there’s no atmosphere in the game, but it’s a memorable and fun game to play.
A functional horror themed adventure game with nothing particularly wrong with it, but nothing really stands out as great about it either. The voice acting’s a bit weak and the graphics and gameplay are quite basic, but the atmosphere is unsettling and unnerving and the plot and subject matter are interesting enough. The pacing’s quite slow and with no hint system can grind to a halt, but there’s some very good imagery and scenes. The chase scene felt unnecessary and did spoil the game a bit and the menu interface and pop ups are amateurish, but it’s got a good length and challenge to it and overall I enjoyed it.
A very atmospheric and intense horror game which unfortunately doesn’t actually tell much of a story. The 80’s nostalgia and old style computer programs as puzzles is great, as long as you can put up with all the inconveniences of these systems. The variety of interactions is good as is the way each episode gets longer and more complex, but it’s still a very short game and there’s no replay value. The graphics are also very good, as is the sound effects, although the voice acting quality varies. Overall, it’s just not that rewarding – the story’s reveal and conclusion isn’t that spectacular, and after all the effort of solving the “puzzles”, the ending is disappointing. I was expecting a lot more from the plot rather than just a jumble of events tied to an unrelated trigger event. The last episode does bring it all together nicely, but is rather dull in comparison to what it could have been.
A fairy-tale like adventure where you have to type words to remove obstacles and defeat enemies. It’s a fun game to play with a good challenge as the difficulty adapts to your typing ability, but it does get very difficult and stressful when the enemies close in on you and you can’t find the right keys! The origami artistic style is nice, but I felt it could have looked even better. The story isn’t anything special, but the narrator and music make it a charming experience. Gameplay is very limited, but the puzzles were a nice addition.
A fun and challenging minimalistic rhythm based platformer with catchy synthesized music and lots of colourful patterns. Simple gameplay and very challenging bosses, but it never feels unfair – you just have to get in with the rhythm. Could do with more levels, and at least a checkpoint before the bosses in the mirror levels!
A cute and funny game with a great relaxing atmosphere. It’s a bit slow to make progress at times, as everything seems to be slightly too small but other than that, it’s really enjoyable to play. Very colourful with simple gameplay and a cute and charming cast of slimes. The story and music are a bit lacking, but once you get into it, there’s plenty of depth and different things for you to do. More could have been done with the other gameplay modes, but Rush Mode offers a slightly different kind of challenge which is good for replayability.
A sad and emotional tale of a quirky family who literally have a house in their family tree. The stories are well told and cleverly put together and the graphics are good, but it lacks an emotional punch or any real closure at the end. It’s an interactive story rather than a game, with some atmosphere but very limited challenge and to be honest, I was expecting a lot more from it. Each story is told differently and in some inventive ways, but it wasn’t deep or thought-provoking enough for me.
A bizarre, colourful and downright weird little puzzle game which is very experimental in its design and execution. It's simple and enjoyable to play and the soothing music, psychedelic colours and inventive scenes make it an experience like no other, albeit a rather brief one. It’s not particularly difficult, some of the controls were a bit fiddly at times and it didn’t really awe or engage me after the first couple of puzzles, but it was different and fun while it lasted.
Mystery and intrigue quickly gives way to mundanity and aimless wandering in this odd adventure game. The game looks pretty and plays pretty well, although the control scheme is a bit rudimentary at times, but the lack of story/narrative, lack of direction, very few real puzzles and not much atmosphere makes it a bore to play rather than it being an involving and interesting adventure. It’s a very slow burner, with lots of exploration and teasing out the relevant information, and there are a number of poor design choices which spoil things. A few minor conveniences, like having a map, journey, objective list and not having to wait so long every time you swap worlds would have made it better.
