Lacuna – A detective story set in the far future

Lacuna

Who doesn’t love a good “who done it” story? Lacuna brings that to a retro 2D platform and is the first release from DigiTales Interactive.

DigiTales Interactive is an indie developer that first released Lacuna directly to Steam and later to consoles and we had a chance to try it out. A few acts of terror threaten this dystopian world where things aren’t as perfect as they first appear. These acts sow the seeds of chaos and risk setting the universe in flames. This slippery slope begins with the death of a diplomat who was actively working to broker peace with your own nation and it is YOUR job to investigate the who, what, where, when (not so much this one) and why.

The game itself feels similar to those “Choose your own adventure” books where your actions and choices determine the outcome of the story. Graphically it looks and feels like some of the old 16 bit games from my youth and the gameplay very much solidifies this feeling. This was one of those titles that checks a lot of the boxes I look for in an entirely new experience but failed to hold my attention even with the promise of more action to come, many of the puzzles and investigation elements just felt tedious.

Transient Extended Edition makes it’s way to Xbox One

Transient

Our friends at Iceberg Interactive shared their remastered Eldritch horror title Transient for the Xbox One.

Iceberg Interactive updated their classic title, Transient, for the current generation of consoles with the Extended Edition. The game begins in the distant future, the world was nearly ended and a scientific effort strives to carry the world through the fallout. You wake up in a facility with a weird skull mask on your head and start on your adventure. With the music and the overall ambiance the game is very much meant to be a horror title but as you explore the world this adventure honestly feels mores like the game was more of a game of exploration.

The game is extremely linear but is full of puzzles to keep things interesting. Best part of these puzzles is that they feel organic, none that I have experienced so far felt forced. Any game that brings in inspiration from HP Lovecraft is worth a try in my book but when you add in a gorgeous world and engaging story and you have a game that is worth playing until the end.

Atari classic Gravitar returns with Recharged

Gravitar

Gravitar is the latest Atari title to receive the Recharged treatment for the current generation of consoles.

The last time I had even heard of Gravitar was in the days when Atari gaming was in its prime. Playing it then I never got very far but my dad had the patience and skill to pilot the ship to victory. Fast forward a couple decades and not much has changed on my end with this Next Gen release.

In both iterations of the game you play a lone pilot trying to get home. While the controller themselves are entirely different the experience feels very much the same. A little too much acceleration when pointing the wrong direction can spell certain doom for this pilot. Each map is a new solar system where you must complete various challenges before being able to move on to the next solar system via a massive black hole. The question remains, will I ever bring this pilot home? For the now the answer is easy, its not going to happen. I al simply too heavy handed when it comes to a game that requires so much finesse and because of that I have yet to complete the first system. Despite my many, many failures I found the game to be challenging but enjoyable.

Silver Chains from Headup games

Silver Chains

Headup Games brings us Silver Chains, a survival horror game in the first person perspective but is it creepy enough?

In Silver Chains you play as Peter, a traveler who’s car has broken down, as he explores a dilapidated mansion in hopes of leaving. Of course your first steps into the house to search for help ends being rendered unconscious. You awake in a bedroom with no memory of how you got there. Now, I am far from understanding what is happening in this house and even further from finishing the story at the time of writing but I have an early prediction. That Peter grew up in this house and had escaped but after he died elsewhere the house has called him home (this prediction was written only 10-20 minutes into the story).

This game absolutely requires playing with the sound loud enough to draw you in, it is a critical part of setting the tone. The building itself is wonderfully crafted in completes the atmospheric package. The different rooms you get into have a ton of detail between peeling paint, doll parts hanging from the ceiling and doors filled with cracked wood. The game is full of tense moments that are not helped by the monster chasing you. I feel like I spent more time hiding in wardrobes more than actually exploring and it seriously had me on edge. For anyone that enjoys a good horror title this will be a great addition to your library.

Mushroom Wars 2 makes its way to consoles!

Mushroom Wars 2

Mushroom Wars 2 has finally arrived on consoles, over three years after it’s initial release!

The mushroom kingdoms are at war and this time it isn’t between Mario and Bowser/Koopa. No, it’s not between Luigi and a bunch of ghosts either. This is a true war. Thousands of mushroom soldiers marching to battle. Lead by a mushroom themed general, these soldiers fight for their homes and for the sake of glory. Zillion Whales brings us Mushroom Wars 2 which has a unique take on the traditional RTS gameplay that was made famous by games like Warcraft and Starcraft. Your armies pour across the battlefield and each body ticks a point off of each structure it takes until the building becomes yours.

The pace of the game gets hectic quite fast as wave after wave of green mushrooms move across the screen you must think and react quickly. The tutorial takes it’s time with you to teach new tactics but they don’t pull their punches as soon as you learn new ways to kill the green mushrooms. I found the game to be simple but very enjoyable and looks even better on consoles than it did on computer.

Warhammer 40k Battlesector

Battlesector

Slitherine Ltd brings us the latest in Warhammer 40k console gaming with Battlesector, a fight between Blood Angels and Tyranids.

Our friends at Slitherine Ltd shared their latest game from the Warhammer 40k universe (Battlesector) with us and from launch it is already available for Xbox Gamepass members! We were able to receive this at launch but only recently got to try the game out due to some technical difficulties that required a hardware replacement. With the issue resolved we jumped right in. The tutorial is relatively extensive, showing many features of gameplay, plus there are several hard to earn achievements you can get here with very little difficulty at all as they are stacked in your favor!

The game features multiple difficulties but none of them seem to affect the achievements you can unlock, at least this early in the game and only affect gameplay difficulty. Visually the graphics are really good, especially considering the number of troops you may have at one time on the screen and that some move randomly like real soldiers would while waiting to receive their orders. The terrain on the maps match classic pieces we’ve seen on the tabletop as well with common Imperium iconography throughout but even better show a solid amount of detail, especially if you are zooming in.

Overall I found the game quite enjoyable, this easily fills the need for an electronic version of the table top game of Warhammer 40k. It fills this need so well that it actually feels like one of the most accurate adaptations of the game I have ever played. Of course some of the rules and mechanics are not a perfect comparison but it is similar enough that it feels like something I’ve been missing from my current gaming library. My only complaint so far, I am still rather early into the story, is that the only army options are Tyranids and Blood Angles. I hope we see some expansions that allow you to play multiplayer with other factions as well. If you are a fan of RTS games or the Warhammer 40k table top game and looking for a video game counterpart this game will scratch those itches.

Undungeon game review

Undungeon

TinyBuild brings another unique title to the gaming community, this time with Undungeon styled like RPGs from the 90’s.

In Undungeon you play as a Herald, a keeper of an artifact called the core. There are multiple Heralds, each with their own unique core. These cores keep you from dying. Any time your Herald dies the core activates and transports you to a specific location. This world you Heralds find themselves in is the result of a cataclysmic event that brought several unique versions of the world into one amalgamation of them all. There are seven Heralds and presumably seven unique worlds that were combined.

The game looks and feels like the one of the classic roleplaying games I would have played in the 90’s on either the Sega Genesis or the Super Nintendo. Beyond the nostalgic art style the controls are fluid and the combat is dynamic. The game looks simple at first but there is a large amount of options to fine tune your experience and a well fleshed out story makes this a must for old school roleplaying games.

Happy’s Humble Burger Farm

Happy's Humble Burger Farm

Happy’s Humble Burger Farm is a restaurant management simulator with a horrific twist. Will you survive?

Going into the new year TinyBuild brought us several new games and now that the new year is here we should see a few more based on their announcements in 2021. Happy’s Humble Burger Farm is one such game. Throughout the game you play a fast food worker that spends every day going to the Burger Farm, punching the clock, making and serving food. Once finished you return home to sleep and go to bed. Pretty straight, right? Not even close. In the real world the longer you take to make an order the more upset your customers will get. At the Farm it’s not clear if it’s the customers or something much more sinister. As you bumble your way through filling orders the longer you take first the lights start malfunctioning. This is the first sign to pick up the pace. Take even longer then you may see neon messages warning you to save yourself on the floor, a charred man will try to grab you or even one of the mascots will come and try to kill you. Sounds like any other day at a fast food establishment.

Graphically the game is subpar with today’s gaming standards as are the effects. Controls are overly simplistic and yet if your pointer is even slightly off target they won’t work. Spending a couple hours in this game I firmly believe this is intentional. It’s meant to be cheesy and the controls seem to give you a false sense of security because of how simple they are. Having completed several shifts making meals I noticed the game wants you to make mistakes, it even gives you achievements to entice you to screw up on purpose. I found the game to be oddly compelling despite it’s low budget, simplistic and cheesy feel. I was surprised at how much I wanted to keep going to see if I could learn more about the world and why these creatures keep appearing and trying to kill me.

Phoenix Point game and DLC review

Phoenix Point

In Phoenix Point you control a squad of soldiers on a desperate mission to rid earth of the alien menace that is threatening to mutate all life.

Phoenix Point is a hybrid of game styles featuring isometric movements and third person shooting mechanics. Visually the game is stunning and the transition between play styles is fluid, making me wonder why more games haven’t tried doing this. Snapshot Games have built a dynamic turned based adventure game that centers around an alien virus that is bent on mutating all life on earth. The virus adapts and grows based on your tactics, meaning it will grow defenses to counteract how you are already playing the game. This isn’t the first game to make this but the execution of it is much more natural than most.

When you progress far enough you will unlock the Geoscape, a worldview dashboard that allows you to plan research, construction and your next missions as well. Between the Geoscape and the dynamic mutations the claim claims to never offer the exact same experience twice. I’ve now started the game twice and each stage I played has ended with this claim seems to have proven itself true, so far. Neither play through has been completed but as I alternate between save files it seems to be the case.

Back 4 Blood is the spiritual successor to Left 4 Dead

Back 4 Blood

Besides sharing a naming scheme with Left 4 Dead, Back 4 Blood shares more than that with the cult classic.

Before we talk about Back 4 Blood let’s take a quick look at the Left 4 Dead franchise. Originally exclusives on the Xbox 360 both L4D and L4D2 brought the ultimate zombie killing experience. Offering more than just well crafted campaign writing the games featured a difficulty called Nightmare and offered Realism mode. The game was already intense before trying these two and together the difficulty was ramped up considerably. I invested more hours into that franchise than nearly any other title I have played. The first of the games did not offer any sort of melee weapon but when they were added to the sequel it was a game changer. Rumors of a third game and a feature film went around for several years before all news ended.

Out of nowhere Warner Bros Games started advertising the game in early builds on computer/steam and the hype started building. Immediately it appeared to be a sequel to the Left 4 Dead games. It wasn’t long before I learned why- some of the same designers were working on this game as well!

The game controls feel very much the same as what we were expecting, the hordes are relentless and the experience feels exactly like successor to the game franchise should feel. The difficulty is either insane or my skills are not what they once were. Despite being so much more difficult than I expected it is still a considerable amount of fun.