Tag: Software

GUG is one of those games that immediately tries to mix different genres, and the results are quite interesting right off the bat. The main focus of this game is to bring you a creature collector aspect where you find and collect a variety of GUGs, but at the same time, there are also intense, fun turn based battles that you have to engage in as you play. I will say, right off the bat, the game doesn’t do a great job at explaining how you play and what you need to do. There are some tutorial elements, but I would personally like to see a lot more than that. Regardless, getting past the introductory part of the game and right into the battles felt seamless. GUG’s main ideal and marketing system focuses a lot on the idea of creating GUGs just by typing anything that you want. Based on what you type, the game will automatically spawn a GUG for you, which has its own stats and it’s definitely a very interesting idea to say the least. The fact that they have a plethora ...

This three-way war is not going well. I might have been too ambitious with my initial objectives, especially when considering that I did not start with a golem ready for battle. Now half of my mushroom force is dead, along with one enemy base, but the other two are still spitting out monsters. I place one of my rally markers next to the bonus hut that I’ve ignored before, while the other is right in front of my keeper. Basically, I’m playing defense, hoping to gain an advantage and enough Glymphstones to build enough Golems to turn the tide. Beyond the Grove is developed and published by Not a Duck. The game is in Early Access on Steam right now, allowing players to engage with it even as the team adds new content and features. The title combines real-time auto-battler ideas with a run-based structure. The story setup is easy to understand and kind of original. Players take on the role of a Grove Keeper who witnesses the tranquility of their patch of forest destro...

Ever since P.T. was released and people were impressed by its nuance and gameplay, a lot of developers tried to recreate that formula, while adding some of their own twist. Luto is a game that manages to do that, and, unlike other titles, it does so with great success. The main story here is relatable, but also terrifying, and sometimes it goes in rather ridiculous places. That being said, it continues to push the boundaries, and while it doesn’t redefine the horror genre, it does help take it to new heights. At its core, the main idea in Luto is that you play the role of a person who is stuck in a loop and an emotional rut. While role-playing Sam, you get to explore your home, and soon you realize that the same events and day repeat over and over. Clearly, you’re stuck in a loop, and that quickly becomes your nightmare. Soon after the first attempt to go through the day, you realize that things change, your hallways are a desert cavern, and you test your limits a ...

Liverpool is at the top of the Premier League, but it might be unsustainable. Van Dijk and Salah are injured, the latter for up to two months. There are another 15 players, including every first choice but Alisson, who are at high risk of injury. My choice to play a high tempo with a lot of tracking back for everyone is the probable cause for this issue. The solution to the problem is more rotation in the first eleven, coupled with a tweak to the tactical system. For the last five matches, the opposition’s goalkeeper was their best-rated player, even when we won by just one goal. So, the team also needs to become better at scoring, without losing any of its defensive teeth. It doesn’t help that Newcastle refused to sell Isak for a sensible fee and that Florian Wirtz, just like in the real world, is having trouble integrating into the squad. We have no clear replacement for Salah, but Harvey Elliot will have to work to fulfill the same role. It would also be nice if...

Jurassic World Evolution is one of those games that took a simple idea, and made it into an exceptional, fun strategy and management game. There are tons of titles where you can build theme parks, but Jurassic World Evolution is the only series where you can have a park filled with dinosaurs. Jurassic World Evolution 3 continues the work that Frontier has done for the past few iterations, and it adds some interesting things, such as cute dino babies, among a plethora of other things. Right off the bat, the thing that I liked the most about the campaign is that it’s diverse, challenging, but also quite lengthy. There are roughly 30 missions, all of which will impress you with their depth, along with the demanding situations you are put through every single time. Even if you’re new to the series, the gameplay is very easy to understand, and honestly, the first couple of missions serve as a good tutorial if you’re a returning player. Aside from missions and the game’s...

Simon the Sorcerer has always been a very popular, albeit niche series of games, and a lot of people didn’t get to experience the first title. With Simon the Sorcerer Origins, we finally get to see Simon the Sorcerer from a new, modern perspective, and a rather exciting plot as well. One of the first things that immediately caught my eye was the visual style, naturally, which is quite indicative of the old 90s games, but with a modern touch. On top of that, the story starts in a rather wild way, with a child on the backseat of the car, moving to a new spot. You have some familiar tunes, and then you enter the game’s tutorial which is not long, but great enough at letting you know how the game functions. Right off the bat, you will notice that the game has plenty of cutscenes, which can feel overwhelming at first. But I do think they are a nice addition for the game’s overall plot, as you do learn more about Simon and his character. The hand-drawn style fits the Sim...

I enjoy horror games where you get to explore a small, yet detailed world and where the story is peculiar and vague. It makes for some great storytelling, because you don’t always have the answers, and it becomes more and more difficult to figure out what’s going on. Radiolight is certainly a title in the vein of Firewatch and other story-focused games, which seamlessly combines exploration and puzzles. But this one also adds a horror element as well. Radiolight takes place in Ashwood Creek National Park. The action takes place in the 1980s in the US, and you basically explore the park and try to solve the disappearance of a local teenager. Your name is Ethan and your focus is on figuring out where the child went. Because there’s no real way of understanding where he is and what happened, nor any trace of him existing in the first place. You are using the radio to stay in touch with Chief Robert, your friend, and you slowly uncover new secrets found deep within the...

The deputy sheriff is currently using a ball setup that includes a combination of fire and ice, alongside an earthquake and a vampiric ball version. This allows him to deal with rows of enemies, some of them stacked or shielded, without much trouble, as long as I move at the right time to catch balls that are bouncing off the walls without doing much. I also have to pay attention to the many icicles flying in my direction, which will shave off some health, and, even worse, fix my gunslinger in place for a few seconds. Staying mobile is important, especially for a character that doesn’t have the best aim. I also have to focus fire at just the right time to break through the rows and get some balls into the back line, where they can do a lot of damage pretty quickly. The big question now is which two powers I will combine when the next nuclear rainbow orb drops. Electricity would complement my current setup well, but poison or bleed also offer interesting possibiliti...

We live in a time when roguelike games are extremely popular, and titles like Hades 2 have the potential to receive the GOTY title. However, a new roguelike just launched recently and as someone who plays most of these games, I can definitely say it impressed me quite a bit. The idea here is simple: you take one of the multiple characters available and try to finish your run without dying. Shape of Dreams has 8 characters to choose from, and you can level up each one individually. What I liked about the game is that you only have 2 available from the beginning, and to unlock all the other 6, you need to perform all kinds of challenges. These range from acquiring a certain number of stardust to healing allies or defeating a certain boss multiple times. It’s nice to offer an incentive, because all the characters play differently, and it’s worth it to unlock all of them. For example, you have Lacerta the hunter lizard, which is a great ranged character, and one of my ...

It was nice while the Chinese Hegemony lasted. My family might have started with almost nothing, other than an estate and a stable, but we managed to become one of the realm’s most powerful families.  A little after 50, I got through enough exams and amassed enough merit to be the best administrator in the land. The Emperor gave me control of a wealthy circuit, which I made even more prosperous. Sure, I embezzled a little to get money to grow the family estate. But as we debated the future paths for China and attended more Imperial examinations, the Mongols got powerful and decided to pick a fight. The Celestial Empire managed to put more than 50,000 under arms and still lost. The Emperor lost the Mandate of Heaven, and then we splintered into rival kingdoms. The Mongols have managed to take two down, with only the Jing and the Gan continuing to resist. Because their armies are superior, assassination is the way to deal with the threat. Unfortunately, my characters...