Everyone Is Out Playing Sims 4, Getting Ready For Destiny... And I'm Just Sitting Here Playing Hatoful Boyfriend (A Review)

Written By: Tyler
Platform Played On: PC

Visual novel games aren't something I'm entirely sold on most of the time. I'd rather just read a comic book more often than not, which I know means I miss out on some really good examples of the genre. If a visual novel offers me a lot of choices and I feel like I'm truly impacting the story, then it's fine. If I'm just sitting here clicking to read, that's more of a chore than anything.

Hatoful Boyfriend is a visual novel that has gotten a lot of attention since its original release in 2011, and even more now in its 2014 remake, because of its premise: You are a human girl in a school full of pigeons and you try to date them. Originally I thought you were pigeons dating pigeons, but no, the game has to make you question your own sexuality by slowly revealing your hidden desire to date birds.

I'm not different than a lot of other people. I know a weird concept is enough to draw me in. I'll buy into the hype, I'll eagerly anticipate something that's different than other things you see. That's the kind of person I am. I'm not entirely sure if I expected to like Hatoful Boyfriend or not, but it didn't really end up grabbing my attention when I finally sat down to play it.

Ignore the fact that you're dating pigeons and it becomes just like other dating sims. You make choices to try to date the pigeon that you've decided you like. This may or may not succeed. There are stats to manage like Wisdom, Vitality and Charisma but it's pretty unimportant and is more of an illusion to gameplay rather than truly being gameplay. I know it affects the game in a very miniscule way, but don't spend much time really thinking about that.

Hatoful Boyfriend consists mostly of putting you in places and making you decide what the best course of action is. Your choices do impact the game somewhat, and there are multiple endings to uncover, but was the plot really interesting enough to indulge in it numerous times?

That's the thing about Hatoful Boyfriend: Its narrative is deeper and more rich than one might think when looking at the game. The stock photos of birds and amateurish art work do a lot to try to hide the darker themes behind the cutesy visual style. This is not just a game about dating pigeons, after all.

You have to play through the game a bunch of times in order to unlock the true story. You may notice, even if you only play through once, that some things are odd and out of place, such as destroyed buildings or the fact you're a human (the only human by the way) and you live in a cave. Maybe you chalk these up to just being silly elements in a silly Japanese game, but they aren't, and once you unlock the final branch of the storyline, the game will clear up these issues and it becomes more intriguing than just being an adorable pigeon dating simulator that may or may not make you feel comfortable with your beastiality.

I also secretly want to be a girl so this game satisfies me.

I can give props to a game that takes a concept and then completely changes it around and gives us something we didn't expect. The plot does get more interesting and does show some good writing, and the parody leads into a legit complex plot about the school you're going to.

But if you're like me, then getting to the point that the plot unloads itself onto you is more of a chore than anything. It's simply not that much fun to play. You spend most of your time watching, and since you're expected to cover all the branching storylines, you end up slogging through it just to get to the good stuff. Why could they not just give us a way to unlock the story without doing this? It's lazy and and it's a poor excuse to force us to put more hours into the game than we might want to. Though I said above that you have choices, it's more superficial than a game like The Witcher 2 where your choices have impact... you do have choices but you have to end up making certain choices in order to progress in the game, ultimately. If I don't feel like I have real control in a game like this, it's simply not amusing to play.

It's not that Hatoful Boyfriend is terrible, it just seems more like a game you could get the same amount out of by simply reading a detailed plot synopsis on Wikipedia or something. I give respect for setting it up like a dating sim and then ripping the carpet out from underneath us to showcase something more expansive, but it's not a fun game. Defenders of the genre may take offense to that, but there are really good examples of this type of game out there.


Rating: 4/10
Verdict:  Has a plot that is darker and deeper than you may originally think, but it isn't an entertaining Visual Novel to play.

A Lethal League Review -- If Only This Title Had As Much Creativity As This Game People Would Like Me

Written By: Tyler
Platform Played On: PC

Anybody who knows me knows that I appreciate innovative games, or at the very least games that take an old idea and re-imagine it in original ways. It could be a terrible game and I would still give it props for trying something new. A unique idea is grounds for at least a three or four out of ten, regardless of how crappy the rest of the game may be.

With Lethal League, we have a new multiplayer based game that is an intriguing mixture of Pong and fighting games, with a hip-hop paint job all over it. And luckily, it is not a terrible game.

You can play with up to four players, but you can't actually hit each other like you would in a normal fighting game. Instead, there is a ball and you have to hit your opponents with it like you're playing dodgeball. The ball will fly around the screen, getting faster and faster, until eventually it's basically just a blur. Your basic attack is a normal swing, a volly swing that hits it up in the air, and a smash.

The core mechanics may seem simple, but don't think that there isn't depth here. Each character has a special ability, and there are a couple moves -- like parrying -- that you may not even know exist unless you read a tutorial (like me). You can power up your swings, and using the variety of attacks is key to being successful. It has a lot in common with Super Smash Bros in the sense that it may seem like it's just chaos on screen, but don't confuse dynamic with confusion. This game isn't about button-mashing, and a skilled player who is aware of their surroundings and the trajectory of the ball will beat someone less familiar with how things work more often than not. But at the same time, there is always a chance you can win.

You're going to want a controller if you play it because I found the PC controls really awkward. I generally don't think they work with fighting games anyway, but maybe some strict PC gamers will be able to handle it more than I could.

Lethal League is a little light on content, but unlike a game like Titanfall, it is not a full-priced game either. You can choose between five characters, each with their own ability, look and feel, and there are different skins for each that you acquire as you level up.

There are only two match types; one-on-one and a free-for-all with up to four players. The four player mode is infinitely more fun because I appreciate the organized ridiculousness of it all. It gets fast and hectic in a hurry, and it's when Lethal League is at its best.

There's a challenge mode that acts as a story only there isn't really a story, so you just go through a series of different fights, against the characters in the form of singles competition or even handicap matches. I do have to admit, that the final boss was a nice touch, but ultimately you play this once and then there's no real need to play it again.

I'm more forgiving of the lack of content because they're an indie studio, it's a cheap game, and I love the premise so much, but unfortunately it already seems to suffer from the same thing a lot of online indie games do: a lack of community. There are people who play it, but I tried connecting to a game for two minutes today and couldn't. This will only get worse as time goes on because it is not Call of Duty and sustaining a fanbase will be difficult. It's a real problem, but it's not one that detracts from the talent of the team or the game itself... it's just the reality of popularity or lack thereof.

Lethal League oozes style, and is one of the best games of the year in that regard. The way it blends music and visuals is a sight to behold.

Firstly, the music is incredible. It's an awesome mash-up of 8-bit chiptune and hip-hop, and sounds much cooler than that may seem. Or maybe you're the kind of person who likes Nerdcore and that sounds great to you anyway. It's not like that, but it's legitimately awesome and some of the music -- such as a track that starts with, I think (but could be wrong) Bulgarian chants -- really gets you in the mood to fight. I don't know if there's even been a fighting game with a soundtrack this good. That could be hyperbole, so maybe I should pull it back a little: there hasn't been a fighting game with music this good in at least five years. Maybe ten. Regardless, the soundtrack is awesome.

The visuals follow suit, with a sort of graffiti tinged animation style, also helping with a hip-hop feel. If you haven't noticed, rap is clearly an influence here. This is even more evident when you look at the bottom of the screen and there is a boombox. The Lonely Island would be proud.

There is a lot of variety in the few stages that you fight in. Be it a street, or outside of a factory, there is a lot of detail put into the environments that you Pong each other to death in. Look into the background and you will see buildings, or a sunset, all drawn carefully and lovingly. The developers knew what they were doing with the visuals. Luckily, everything flows together well, and character animations are fluid.

Lethal League is the type of game you should definitely seek out. While it is low on content, it is still an enjoyable game and I hope the developers end up adding more at a later date. It's a special game, one that messes with genre conventions to present a slightly twisted, stylish, unique take on the games it was influenced by.


Rating: 8.5/10
Verdict: Low on content, but the gameplay, visuals and music are all outstanding and interesting. Unfortunately the strength lies within the online realm, and it's an indie game, so the community will not be big for very long... if you can even call it big now.

A Super Time Force Ultra Review -- It's Time To... Die, And Then Be Joined By Ghosts Of Our Former Selves

Written By: Tyler
Platform Played On: PC

The indie scene has a tendency of shitting out games that look similar to this one. There is a nostalgia associated with 8-bit and 16-bit games at this point, and it often charms us into thinking a game is better than it really is. There are games that pray on our weaknesses of looking to the past, and then there are games like Super Time Force that allow us to embrace both history and the future.

In STFU -- get it? Of course you do, every site points this out -- you play as one of many soldiers, each with their own unique pros, cons and different abilities. You are part of the Super Time Force, a time-traveling military lead by Colonel Repeatski. The basic goal here is the same as most games, except with time travel: you have to save the world. Whether this means going into the future or back to the dinosaurs, you have to do it because it is your civic duty.

The story is silly. Let's just get that out of the way. It's also important to note that the game is extremely self-aware (so self-aware that it may become sentinent, if you leave it alone), so the ridiculousness of the plot only helps the experience. Throughout the game, you will be treated to the mostly clever and quirky comments of all the characters involved, as they rip on stereotypes and ride the novelty of the story as far as it can go. It's not the funniest game ever developed, but if you're anything like me it will make you chuckle a couple times, or at the very least, put a smile on your face.

The graphics are gloriously old-school. They won't appeal to some people who can only deal with modern graphics, but for those who appreciate different art styles and don't just see this particular kind as an attempt to cash-in on nostalgia, there is a lot to like here. The character models are fairly detailed, given the circumstances, and levels are alive with colour. This isn't a drab, dark game... it gleefully uses a whole arsenal of colour. There is also a lot of things going on at any given time, like bullets flying at you, enemies jumping around, four of your characters all dazzling us with their gunplay and footwork. It gets really hectic but the game never looks bad because of it... just a little confusing.

Not only that, but the levels themselves are carefully crafted. Look at the background and you will surely see something going on, which makes the world feel bigger than the 2D stages that you exist in. You can see rust on objects, splatters, the whole nine yards. Some people think that creating a game with these types of visuals is easy, but it's not. It takes a different type of skill set to truly bring this brand of pixels to life. Super Time Force clearly had a lot of attention put into not just making a game that appeals to gamers from the late 80s and early 90s.

The music helps reinforce where the roots of this game lie. You're not going to hear an orchestra as you're blasting baddies. You're going to hear all the bleeps, bloops and blomps that you would hear in an NES game. It wouldn't really make sense to do it otherwise in this case, since the game is so entrenched in where it came from, but it's reassuring to know that -- like the visuals -- there was a lot of care put into making the music good on its own. It's not Shovel Knight good in this regard, with memorable track after memorable track, but it helps aid the experience. Unfortunately, as I played, there was so much going on the screen at a time that I didn't have a lot of time to actually concentrate on the music. I had to listen to the tracks as I wrote this review.

The most important aspect of Super Time Force is the one that sets it apart from other games of its ilk. It's Contra having a baby with Braid: only it's not as fun as Contra and doesn't have the emotional depth to support its gimmick like Braid.

I'll admit that the game looked like a lot of fun when I watched videos of it. I admired Capybara's attempt to redefine/innovate the classic 2D side-scrolling shooter by introducing a feature where you can rewind time at any given point, providing you still have some rewinds left (you get 30 each level). I still admire them for this, but I think the actual execution is a little bit lacking.

What you will most likely find out quickly, if you don't already know, is that it leans more on the puzzle side of things than the action side. Sure, you jump around, shoot things, platform to different ledges, shoot more things, fight a boss, kick some ass... but perhaps more importantly is how you manage time. You will die, and you will die lots, but dying is a learning experience here rather than a penalty.

This isn't even the scary part.

Every time you die, you can just rewind time and restart that particular area. Only something is different when you come back: the old version of you fights beside you, mimicking your own actions when you played as that particular character. What this means is that you could have a bunch of different "yous" on your screen at any given time, laying waste in a much quicker and efficient way than you would by yourself.

This is important because you only have sixty seconds per level, so you're always racing against the clock. There are ways to slow down time or add ten seconds onto the clock, but it is a very quick and stressful experience. Super Time Force aims to constantly put you on edge, with makes rewinding time a little hectic because you don't really have time to breathe.

Some will truly love that element of the game, but they contradict one another and lessened my enjoyment with the game. It's sad to admit because I am a guy who constantly gives praise to innovation because we're at the point where games that try something new should be encouraged, but I think I would have preferred if Super Time Force had less time manipulation and less Contra.

The mechanics are solid, and the game is extremely polished, but I felt myself getting frustrated more often than I had hoped. It's a pretty challenging game, but that's not my complaint. It's that this race against time spits in the face of the puzzle aspects. You may be thinking, "But Tyler, when you're rewinding time you can essentially take all the time you need in order formulate a proper plan," but that takes away from the action. Braid worked because it never shifted tones like this: it was always just a puzzler. Contra worked because it was non-stop action and required skill. Super Time Force is stuck in some kind of purgatory where sometimes it fumbles over the very mechanic that got it glowing endorsements originally.

That's not to say that the time mechanics aren't sometimes fun. Early in the game, you have to save someone, and this is an excellent usage of the core mechanic because it slows the game down and makes you solve a real puzzle, as opposed to making you just spawn different versions of yourself in order to complete a level. It was thrilling when it was used like that, but those moments are few and far between.

Super Time Force Ultra also includes bonuses that the original release did not. Namely, it has fifty challenges where the focus is on the puzzle aspect more than the shooting, for the most part. This is a little more rewarding because it's more straight forward and picks a side rather than flirting with both.

I know some people will think that I didn't enjoy the game as much as I had hoped because I suck, but that's not the case. I'm not awful at the game, but I'm not great. The problem was that I didn't feel a desire to get better because of the constant shifts between wanting to be an action game and wanting to be a puzzle game. I'm sure there is a way to make this work better than Super Time Force did, but I'm not reviewing a possibility, and as it stands, STFU is a completely solid game that can be really really frustrating.


Rating: 7.5/10
Verdict: It has its flaws, and the core mechanic of rewinding time actually makes the game stumble a bit more than it should, but it is still a fun game. We should praise it for trying something different, even if it's not something we'd prefer.

A Review Not Read or; A Road Not Taken Review

Written By: Tyler
Platform Played On: PS4

Don't tell me you can't do something PS4!

Rating: 7.5/10
Verdict: Road Not Taken is a good puzzle game with a simple idea that mostly works. The visuals are gorgeous, the story a bit lacking, but all-in-all it's a good experience.


The Roguelike is an insanely popular genre in the indie community, along with platformers. You don't see many large studios dipping into their genre, but some may say that the indie scene is flooded with them. I agree, somewhat, but the beauty is that you don't have to play them. I know, it's a crazy concept.

When I first saw Road Not Taken, I thought it looked like a charming take on the genre, and it was one of the few Roguelikes that caught my attention. With that said, I was still a little cautious going in because I wasn't sure if the pendulum would swing towards the positive or the negative in how it plays.

It has a novel concept; you are a Ranger and you go into the forest to save children. It has a cartoonish/fairy tale art style, you walk around on an isometric grid and it avoids a lot of the conventions of Roguelike by not being turn-based and not actually allowing you to fight... or at least in the way that we've grown accustomed to. It also is a puzzle game first and foremost.

In Road Not Taken, your only "weapon" is your ability to pick up objects (up to four around you) and toss them in a straight line. You can also pick them up and walk around them but it subtracts from your energy (your life) when you do so, so it's a more feasible option just to chuck things around. Which applies to real life too. It's a game mechanic that indie games can get away with since they're generally smaller in scope and aren't full-price -- it's free for PS Plus members this month -- and it does put an interesting spin on the typical Roguelike proceedings.

The game takes place over fifteen years, which each level being a year. Your energy that remains carries over to the next year so it pays to plan your moves accordingly and intelligently so you don't gimp yourself. The levels are procedurally generated which means when you die you won't have to repeat the same puzzles over and over, but I don't find that they change enough to warrant me replaying the game repeatedly. The situations do change, and at first there is a lot to explore and figure out, but when you die and have to do the early years it's a bit tedious. When things get tedious I tend to zone out and my lack of concentration due to that only hurt me later on.

The developers promise a lot to uncover, and they're right. There are a lot of things going on in this deceptively simple-looking game. There are a lot of different items that you can create by combining different objects on the map (by throwing objects into each other). Enemies and objects react in interesting ways and your book keeps track of how to create things. For example, throw an axe at a tree and it creates wood. Put together two pieces of wood and you make a fire. Throw a kid into the fire and it will follow you. The last one makes sense because if you abuse your child it loses its self-esteem and becomes dependent on you. Other reviews have knocked and made fun of that little tidbit, but I chose to rationalize it.

Even though when you die you have to start fresh, you don't lose the secrets that you've discovered, so subsequent playthroughs give you a bit of an advantage because you have all the knowledge of what you've learned before documented. That's great because my memory is terrible. What blog am I writing for again?

Some of the things don't make a lot of sense, but I guess the game has its own logic. It doesn't matter because once you bump into things it'll write down how to make it, if you can, so you don't really have to think. It is fun seeing what the world has to offer, and the first few times I had to restart I discovered some neat areas, such as the Yeti early on:

The problem is that due to the limitations of energy that you will no doubt face, it doesn't really pay to take the risk and explore some of these areas. Say you're seven years in and there's an area you want to check out, but you know you're getting low on energy and have a lot of years to go, will you really take that chance? I didn't.

Unfortunately the game does reveal itself to be a little more shallow than it would lead you to believe rather quickly, so as much fun as it is to discover things the first little while, it becomes pretty routine and less interesting. Doesn't change the fact though that at first I loved the game. Had I written the review over the first couple hours, I would have given it an 8.5 at least.

The visuals are a high point for me. Like I said above, they have a fairy tale quality to them and it's beautiful to look at. The evil spirits look intimidating, the animals look cute. Even the blocks that don't move have character. It's a world that is designed well and expertly brought to life with gorgeous artwork, and it proves that you don't need complex graphics to unleash a rich world on gamers.

Being able to throw things actually makes for some interesting puzzles. Over the last few years I've been fascinated more by puzzle games with simplistic hooks but compelling gameplay. Catherine, for example, was an incredible game and all you had to do was move blocks. Road Not Taken has that affect on me, though to a lesser extent. The gameplay is easy to pick up, but due to energy, you have to really think about all your moves, especially when you have spirits following you.

There are a couple annoyances, namely the fact that once you pick up an object you can't just put it down which I deem artificial difficulty... meaning it's a bullshit way to make the game harder like the computer literally just cheating in older games. There is also a problem of having to backtrack because a specific area requires something that isn't on this screen. This means that you will have to try not to block yourself off when proceeding to the next area because heaven forbid you have to return later. I get what they're trying to do, but this just reeks of poor design.

Outside of being in the woods looking for kids, you can walk around the very small village and make friendships by giving gifts to the people you talk to. In Road Not Taken, you can also do this, because the developers know that the only good friendships are superficial friendships based on presents. When you give them gifts, they will go from Acquaintance to Friend to even possibly Marriage.

You can also go into your house and equip a few items to make your experience easier, or ban up to two things from the map... but there are so many possible obstacles in this game that two doesn't really seem like very many. It's still a nice feature to have, because some areas can get really frustrating.

There's a story here but it's pretty mild. Like I said above, you are a Ranger and you save kids. There's potential here for a pretty touching plot but that's not really the point of the game. In fact, it's pretty disposable, except for the ending which actually does a good job of portraying emotion despite the fact that the rest of the game lacks it. I can criticize a game for not doing something but a good scene is a good scene and the ending, though incredibly short, is a good scene.

I quite like Road Not Taken, and I think it's a worthwhile entry into the Roguelike canon because it is a little bit different and ambitious, while keeping some of the mechanics that fans of the genre enjoy. It has a few drawbacks, but it's a fun, thought-provoking puzzle game that plays well for the most part.

A Gods Will Be Watching Review

Written By: Tyler
Platform Played On: PC

Rating: 6/10
Verdict: It's got an amazing premise, and solid ideas for fun gameplay, but it's unfortunately held back by some poor design choices.

Gods Will Be Watching is the expanded version of a Ludum Dare game. In the original, you were tasked with surviving for forty days by managing your resources, making hard choices and possibly sacrificing people for the greater good. Even though I never played the Ludum Dare version of the game, the level from that version is in this one, and a lot of people were excited for the full game. I was excited too because I thought it looked like a cool idea... the kind of thing that indie games get a lot of recognition for. If it isn't outright innovating in at least some miniscule way, it's doing something that is very uncommon these days.

The concept of the game is that with each chapter, you are thrown into a different environment, with different goals, and you have to control your team in order to successfully complete the mission. This will involve a lot of clicking on the different characters. You will manage them and also keep an eye on the resources you have. There is a lot of variety in the missions, as one has you taking hostages, one has you being tortured, one has you walking through a desert, and much more. 
 

So I started a new game...

I have some pretty negative things to say about the game, but I have to admit that I absolutely adore the premise of the game. I love that the game throws you into a mixture of different kinds of situations and expects you to figure out how to best solve the problems while never holding your hand, and at best, only giving you a little bit of information on how to proceed.

I also give a lot of credit to the artistic side of things. While the pixel-art may turn off some people, and many have proclaimed that Gods Will Be Watching -- and other games of its ilk -- have terrible graphics, you have to compare it to other games with the same style. Because I do that, I can safely say that there was a lot of work put into the visuals and it shows. The characters are about as detailed as they can be, which is an important element because the game relies a lot on visual cues to inform you how the characters are doing. It's a testament to the talent involved that it is usually pretty easy to tell when the people are feeling a certain way.

...then this happened, a few times, and I was very confused.

The environments are varied and beautiful, with a lot done to breathe life into them. You may only see one room at a time, but they are a joy to look at and really add to the atmosphere, especially some of the outdoors levels. The indoor levels do a satisfactory job of making you feel claustrophobic and shut-in, like a survival game should. 


At first I was going to say that while I enjoy the soundtrack, I'm glad I didn't buy package on Steam that included both the game and the soundtrack, but as I write this review I'm listening to some of the tracks on Youtube and I'm changing my tune a little bit. At first I didn't think the music stuck out, but in retrospect it may have been because I was so caught up in making decisions that I didn't pay a lot of attention. Now that I sit here and listen to the songs individually, it's very clear that the music does a good job of (usually) making you feel like you may be going insane. Since the nature of the game is that things get tougher and tougher as they go on, and you're constantly being pushed to the brink, it makes sense that the music reflects that, with a lot of the songs slowly building... like your insanity.


There are minor issues with the game, such as some poor English, but those can be brushed aside because there are flaws that are much bigger; such as the lack of narrative-cohesion and how tedious it gets.               

Gods Will Be Watching attempts to tell a strong narrative but there are some painfully obvious hiccups in that. For the most part the story is fine; you play as a group of people who are trying to stop the "terrorists." It's a game that tries to tell the side of both factions and does a good job of explaining that things aren't black and white in a conflict such as this. I really have no gripes about the plot as a whole, but they've done a terrible job of making your actions have any kind of consequence. You can literally lose a member of your team during a mission and he/she will be there the next mission. I lost Jack during a torture scene, and I was still talking to him during the rest of the chapter. I thought I was just talking to a ghost, and while I think that's a bit of a cheesy mechanic to employ in storytelling, I accepted it. Then in a future chapter, people were talking to him and he was performing tasks like he was alive. I could sacrifice people and they'd just show up next level. This is pretty much unforgivable in a game like this and breaks the immersion immensely. They really needed to fix this because once you figure that out, outside of accomplishing the challenges, who cares if so-and-so dies? And really, the challenges isn't enough glue to hold it together when the game is so story-driven.
 
Take a look at the first image on this page: I picked it for a reason. Unfortunately I chose "Exit Game" more than I would have liked when trying to play through it. I read preview after preview, watched video after video, of professional critics being in awe of how bad the game made them feel, or how intense the missions were. I can see why someone would get sweaty when playing this because it does expect you to multi-task a lot. Ultimately though the game gets bogged down in tedium because a) I don't think the choice-making is that interesting and b) the chapters are too long with no mid-level checkpoints.

You could spend 45 minutes playing a level only to die and have to start it over again because there is no saving in the middle of a chapter. The problem with this is that the game isn't exciting enough to warrant that. The first time you play a mission it's fresh and there's a joy in figuring it out, but then it becomes routine and the choices you make are more static than kinetic, and this gets highlighted when you die. You will end up falling into a pattern at some point, and their solution for that seems to be to add parts in each mission that are insta-death. These are random and there's nothing more frustrating than having to play something for so long only to be killed by something you have absolutely zero control over. The game stresses that you are the master of your own destiny in a lot of ways, but then the execution leaves a lot to be desired. I understand that in real life anything can happen, but this is still a poorly thought-out design choice. With that said, I can get past the random death but I have a much harder time with it when it takes so long just to get back to that point again in a replay.

I kept turning the game off because I just couldn't bring myself to do it again. That's where the game loses probably two points for me, because I can't get past this aspect of the game. There is a great idea in here, but it was implemented poorly.

Gods Will Be Watching had a lot of promise, and some people clearly enjoy this game more than I do. As it stands, it's actually one of the bigger disappointments of the year for me so far. It's only $10 on Steam though, so by all means give it a shot... it may appeal to you more than it did me.

Resisting The Urge To Dig Myself A Grave With A Shovel Joke (Dammit) -- A Shovel Knight Review

Written By: Tyler
Platforms Available On: PC, Wii U, 3DS
Platform Played On: Wii U

The first of many badass encounters.

Rating: 9/10
Verdict: A love letter to the past, but also a game that forges its own identity, Shovel Knight is an 8-bit inspired platformer that reaches beyond its humble roots and gives us a game that mentions the past but doesn't rely or get lost in it.


Releasing games inspired by the classics of the 8-bit era isn't anything new within the indie community. The indie scene is flooded with nostalgia, and you can't go five seconds without tripping over something that harkens back to the past. Shovel Knight is no different in that regard, being a game that is very much entrenched in the days of yore, but not trapped in them.

Let's just get this out of the way, because this is what you're here for: Shovel Knight is awesome. There will probably be very few games this year that bring me greater joy than this unassuming little platformer about a knight with a shovel who is trying to save Shield Knight from the evil Enchantress. Mario, yes, but that's not where it ends. The levels look like Mega Man, you can use your shovel and bounce off enemies and objects like in Duck Hunt. The world map is ripped right from Mario 3. The references are numerous, but like I said in the first paragraph... Shovel Knight owes to them but isn't defined by them.

Despite how obvious the influences are, the game forges its own path ultimately, and that's something a lot of indie games lack when calling to the past. It's one thing to make us go "aha" when we spot a reference, but that overstays its welcome. The better route is to make us go "aha" but then follow that up with making us go "wow" because the game has its own identity.

Shovel Knight has simplistic controls. Use a button to jump and another to swing your shovel. Press down while you're in the air and you can use it as a pogo stick. Press up and the attack button and you use your spell. If you're playing on Wii U you can either press a button to call up your inventory or use the screen on the gamepad, which is what I do. That's about it, but the game doesn't need anymore because the foundation is so solid, the levels so well-designed, that what might appear as a limitation these days is a strength. You don't get bogged down at any point.

All games need clever world/level/stage design, but platformers need it more than most genres, and Shovel Knight has it in spades. Every level has its own motif, whether it's something a little more trippy, or it being dark with only lightning lighting the way, or a level that uses air in interesting and dynamic ways, the game is always throwing something new at you.

Enemies are placed in interesting areas, and if you're not careful you might jump over to a ledge only to get hit off because that particular enemy is placed for that sole reason... the game assumes you'll get careless and make that jump without thinking, and a lot of people probably will. There are times that your platforming skills are truly tested, as the game consistently throws new types of jumps at you. The game is hard, but -- to the dismay of some retro-gamers -- it's not impossibly hard, which I'm completely fine with. I had a nice challenge throughout the whole thing.

Each stage ends with a boss, of course, and like the rest of the game there's a lot of variety to them. Since all the characters are knights with different specialties, such as the Tinker Knight, Specter Knight, Polar Knight, etc, they all have their own method of attacking and you have to adapt to that. The battles are fast, and if you sit back they will probably eat you up. I tended to lose on the first fight but won on the second more often than not. 

I have a confession, and yes I've chosen until the middle of the review to say this: I actually am glad we've moved on from the past in a few ways. Namely, I hate redoing levels over and over just because I died. I welcome checkpoints. I did my time, so now once I beat a section I beat it and I don't want to go back until my next playthrough. Shovel Knight has a bunch of checkpoints throughout each level, and each time you die you lose money where you died and you can go back and collect it. This is an interesting play on what we know and love.

Part of the identity of the levels is the excellent soundtrack. Each level has its own, and the soundtrack itself has 48 songs. All of which are great. As I write this review I am listening to it, and each song fits the mood of the stage, transporting you into that world with its usage of chiptune. Yeah, it's another homage to the 8-bit era, but it's extremely well composed with a variety of different moods and atmosphere. Some of it is victorious, some of it is darker, some of it sounds incredibly urgent.

You don't level up in the game, but you can buy different spells such as a fireball, a green orb that bounces around, a powerful blast, and much more. There's a good variety of spells in Shovel Knight, especially when you consider that it's not an incredibly long game. More on that in a second.

You can also spend your money on giving yourself more life, upgrading your shovel with a few different abilities like an homage to Zelda where your shovel shoots something across the ground when you have full life. There are also a bunch of armor upgrades, all of which with their pros and cons, except for the gold armor which I don't think really changes your stats but makes you do a flip when you jump. Plus you look stylish and that's all I really want.

As of writing this review, the game is $15 and I feel like I got every penny nickel worth. I completed the game in roughly five and a half hours but I didn't get everything. Besides the main stages, there are side stages and side boss battles, along with the many dream sequences in which you fight enemies until the Shield Knight drops and you catch her. I don't know why I love this so much, but I think the numerous campfire scenes add to the experience. It's a nice touch. There's also a new game plus after you beat the game, which allows you to keep your old equipment but ups the difficulty.

Shovel Knight is special. It's one of the best platformers of the last ten years, at least, and it's a good price. If you're looking for a retro-inspired game that offers more than just nostalgia, then pick up Shovel Knight because while it does have the novelty of you playing as a knight with a shovel, it has an abundance of excellent level-design, lovable characters, great boss battles and amazing music.

Let's Play Death of the Augnob -- Squishy, squishy

Written By: Tyler

Hello everybody. This is my first actual Let's Play that I've done since this blog started (I've done a machinima with Goat Simulator), and I've chosen an indie game called Death of the Augnob... which was created by the wonderful Jake Clover.


http://youtu.be/cigIqK6PKu8

Ye Indie Game Corner Volume 4 - The Valley Rule, Grim Phantasm, Sanic FPS!, Dreamy Journey And DaiZs

Written By: Tyler

Hello people, Tyler here! I figured now would be a good time to do another edition of "Ye Indie Game Corner," which is basically just a feature I do where I go to sites like Gamejolt.com or Kongregate.com and play some newer indie games that I randomly choose. I then do a quick review of it and then I post the article and make a million dollars.


The Valley Rule
Get It Here: http://www.kongregate.com/games/Raiyumii/the-valley-rule

When you see this, be prepared to get angry.

The Valley Rule is one of many indie games that have taken influence from games like Metroid. Yes, it's another puzzle-platformer/Metroidvania, but it's not without its charm and claim to fame. It's not an awe-inspiring game that is drastically going to change the path of gaming for years to come, but it has an isolated, lonely atmosphere with a gorgeous song that plays. There are no enemies, so you are free to jump around with the only hazards being the water that kills you instantly. The puzzles are incredibly easy, and for the most part the game is a quick, relaxing experience... except for one particular wall-jumping part which is beyond frustrating. It was also made in 72 hours so I feel like the developers have potential.

Rating: 7/10


Grim Phantasm
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/action/grim-phantasm/28672/ 

Grim Phantasm isn't actually the full game. It's a work in progress so it's only a one-mission "demo." It's also hard, but not impossibly so. I never felt like the game was being cheap and stupid... I just felt like I needed to figure out the best way to go about this with trial and error. It harkens back to the days of yore where it wasn't so much about outsmarting the AI as it was figuring out the pattern. You can press J to swing your sword, K to parry or L to use your scythe as you run through the multiple screens fighting demons... until you get to the obligatory boss. I dig the name of it and I did enjoy myself, and look forward to more.

Rating: 8/10


DaiZs
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/arcade/daizs/28656/

I was so reluctant to play this one because I figured it'd be a DayZ knock-off... a quick way to ride on the coattails of the much anticipated zombie-survival game. But it's not. You play as a bee who has to pollinate their way to victory over three levels. What this entails is that you're going to spend your time platforming and shooting, while collecting power-ups such as machine guns and shotguns. You can also collect a Badass Mode which involves hearing a voice go "oh yeah" like it's having an orgasm. It's actually quite a fun game with some decent challenge.

Rating: 8/10


Sanic FPS!
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/sports/sanic-fps/28671/

Oh look, a joke game based on a meme. It's funny because Sanic just runs fast! There's nothing el se going on! You get the joke? I do... it just really isn't that funny, but as a game it just doesn't work in the least. I give it a point for the music, which is kinda funky. Besides that, there's no reason to play this unless the idea of Sanic makes you chuckle. I can't just give it a pass and ironically proclaim "greatest game ever!!!" because it's based on a funny meme.

Rating: 1/10


Dreamy Journey 
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/arcade/dreamy-journey/28668/

The basic premise is that you are a Dream Bringer who brings dreams to humans but the Nightmarish Lord messed that up so you have to go kick some ass. The game opens with story, told in the form of a beautifully drawn comic book. At that point I thought I'd be in for a real treat because the care taken to craft the opening segment is obvious... but the rest of the game leaves a little to be desired. You're supposed to be able to jump on "almost everything," and that's mostly true but sometimes it's very hard to tell what you can jump on. I tried jumping on a box that should have been possible, but yet I couldn't. Or I tried jumping on something only to fall through but then I saw someone else play and they jumped on it. Sometimes you slide off things when you shouldn't. The end boss battle isn't responsive and it just feels so light with no real oomph to anything. The artwork in the rest of the game is fine, though, and I do like the song that plays because it lends an eerie, night time feel to the proceedings. I've made a crappy platformer before and I ran into some of these issues, so I sympathize, but the game mechanics are not solid here. It has a wonderful idea though so while I give it a 4.5, that doesn't mean it's terrible.

Rating: 4.5/10

Ye Indie Game Corner Volume 3 - The Impossible Cave, Asylum, 2 Souls And Infiltration

Written By: Tyler

Welcome to the Indie Game Corner Volume 3! If you are unfamiliar with what I do here, I'll give you a quick rundown. Every so often I go to a site like Gamejolt and I download/play a few random indie games. I go in blind, and I experience what it has to offer, then I give a quick review of these games. This time I got lucky so there are no terrible reviews, but Volume 2 had one of the worst games I've ever played.



The Impossible Cave
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/action/the-impossible-cave/23753/

The Impossible Cave is a simple premise -- you guide something through a cave. The game speeds up as you go deeper into it, and the cave shifts and changes. With the combination of speed and the unknown, The Impossible Cave is a game you want to keep playing just so you can beat your high score. It also helps that the song that plays (Push It Remake by Jeremy Allred) is, well, bomb. Seriously, it really adds to the experience.

Rating: 8/10



Asylum
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/adventure/asylum/25127/

In Asylum you start in... an Asylum. You have no weapons, it's dark, and everybody wants to kill you. All you can do is run through the halls, trying frantically to open each and every door as psychotic, messed up inmates chase you.

I enjoyed Asylum for what it is, but the fear left by a certain point. At first I ran for my life, but then after some glitches/bad AI where the inmates walked downstairs and got stuck, it became more tedious than anything as I searched for the place to go. It's a pretty scary game at first, but Amnesia it is not.

Rating: 6.5/10


2 Souls
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/platformer/2-souls/25206/

In 2 Souls you guide little robots across platforms. If you play it by yourself, you control one with WASD and the other with your mouse. I imagine playing with someone else would be more fun, and easier when it comes to the challenges, but it's a decent game regardless.

Rating: 6.5/10


Infiltration
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/action/infiltration/25205/

In Infiltration you hack terminals to open doors so you can get to the end of the level. In your way are turrets placed in various positions. You can shoot them, or you can use your brain to avoid that altogether. Meanwhile, there are different messages with each level that become more menacing as the game goes on.

I think Infiltration is the highlight of this adventure for me. I love The Impossible Cave for its style, addictive gameplay and music, but I like Infiltration just a bit more. It's fairly long for a freeware game, unless you're really good at it, and it can be a little bit challenging. It reminds me a little of Hotline Miami in the way it plays, but it's not Hotline Miami. My only problem is the shooting is difficult because of the way it handles. Outside of that, it's a wonderful little game.

Rating: 8/10



So that's it for Volume 3... I hope you enjoyed it. If you want to tell me how much I suck, or even have a game that you want me to play, tweet me on that Twitterbird thing @ArtBathednCrime, or leave a comment below.

Things 'Splode! A! Charge! Review!

Written By: Tyler
Platform Played On: PC
Get It Here: http://gamejolt.com/games/action/charge/24329/

Rating: 9
Verdict: With its surreal, disconnect, Sci-Fi atmosphere and its fast and intense action, Charge! lives up to its name and offers a great game full of things exploding and dying.


The last game I played by Jake Clover was Tandoor, and it is the first time he disappointed me. I could understand what he was going for, but I didn't think it worked. But I love Clover as much as a man who has never met the other man can love someone, and I was excited once I saw that he made another game.

Charge! is a very apt title for this game because that's exactly what you do -- you charge forward. You are a soldier that looks exactly the same as the others. While you are more useful than your AI allies because you are the player, when you die you just quickly respawn as another soldier that looks identical. Then you continue to charge, either jumping, shooting or bombing your way to victory. When you get to an enemy base, that acts as a checkpoint, and you continue your frontal assault until you reach the end of the level. It's a very simple concept.

But it works splendidly. Yes, I said splendidly.

Though it's a simplistic game where things go boom, don't ignore the artistry on display here. By his own admission, Clover likes making games where things blow up, but he also fused military actions with a surreal, Sci-Fi environment.

The visuals are about what you'd expect from a Clover game, with its slightly messed up art style and the excellent blend of colours so it's not just another drab shooter, but look around and there are actually things going on, some of which expands to the actual gameplay. Fires rage, things fly through the sky, bombs get dropped on you, bodies hang around and certain things crack and feel the consequences of war.

It's a chaotic experience all around because there is so much going on and though he has said there isn't a lot of skill involved, you still don't want to die so you're trying to stay alive. But things come at you quickly, and you're always on the move. Machines come into the action and start laying waste to your comrades, the enemy is always advancing on your position.

Helping in this is the song by Jack King-Spooner that acts as the theme to all this carnage. Like a lot of the King-Spooner music I've heard, it adds an otherworldly feel to the whole experience. It was a great choice by Clover because it's fast and yet dark. It doesn't hit emotional highs, but it somehow manages to make the whole war you're fighting seem, well, kind of messed up. It feels like hell to some degree, which is how war should feel.

My only real complaint with the game is that sometimes the character doesn't jump when I hit jump. This can get annoying in battle when a good run is spoiled by the fact I tried to jump and couldn't.

When I play a King-Spooner game, I expect some surreal, weird, social commentary where I walk around a lot (this isn't a criticism), but what I'm admiring the most about Clover is that he does have an odd visual style going on in all the games I've played by him, but he seems more Tarantino-ish in his approach. He clearly as the knowledge and love for games, and without actually knowing him I would imagine he plays games of all types, but he often chooses to make violent games. He's good at it too, and you ca see this in a game like Nuign Specter -- where the guns are loud and abrasive, the violence sudden and full of impact -- or now Charge!, which is a game that manages to make the shooter genre exciting despite how minimalist this may look like on the surface.

For me it's a return to form for a guy who has made a bunch of great games.

Ludum Dare 28 - I Review A Bunch of Games! wow

Written By: Tyler Selig

                Ludum Dare is among us right now, and this is the first Ludum Dare since I started the blog. I have to admit, I’m not usually as up on the submitted games as I should be, often only playing one or two. This time, I’ve decided to just randomly select a bunch of them and write short reviews.

                For those who are uninitiated to Ludum Dare, it’s basically an indie game online festival where there is a theme, and developers from all over the world make short games based around said theme and submit them. They are eventually then voted on, and ta-da, you have your winners. This time it’s “you only get one.”

                So here we go.

One More Bullet

Get here: http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-28/?action=preview&uid=7388

Rating: 7.5/10

            One More Bullet takes you to the Wild West, placing you in a duel. One More Bullet has a nice art-style, and wonderful music to set the mood, which is tense because you wait until the screen says “Go” and then eventually a letter on the keyboard pops up and you have to press it quickly or you get shot.

                I didn’t read the instructions so at first I didn’t know what to do. Once I found out, I realized that One More Bullet hits exactly what it’s trying to do. Instead of just pressing a button, it makes the simple premise more stressful by making you have to find the key on the keyboard. It tests your typing, in a way.

The Only Journey

Get here: http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-28/?action=preview&uid=14665

Rating: 8/10

                The premise here is that you have to reach the end, and you only get a minute to do it. The catch is, you only get one chance to do so. I have to say, this is a beyond solid game that manages to play and bend your mind in the short period that it exists. I also have to say that the song that plays is incredible and ends a sense of atmosphere to the entire thing, which is really simple visually – it’s black and white with rectangles and squares… not a whole lot going on but it’s fitting because the game uses it in interesting ways.

You Will Fail

Get here: http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-28/?action=preview&uid=30512

Rating: 5.5

                You Will Fail is a wave-based shooter that has you defending yourself and your Core from a really eerie alien head (seriously, it’s creepy). You only get one chance, one life but unlike The Only Journey, you can just reload the thing and try again.

                I have talked about the music in every review so far, and I do it again here. It manages to be creepy and other-worldly, much like the visuals. It adds to the effect.

                The game is fun, but there are some bugs that completely ruin the flow and makes me knock it down from at least a 7. Whenever the alien is about to talk – in a nice touch, he basically tells you how he’s going to kill you whenever you clear a wave -- the game freezes. The developer commented on this as well, but it really bothers me that it happens. The other issue is that sometimes, regardless of what platform you’re on, it’ll just restart you at the bottom. It’s a jarring experience.

                Even so, it is a fun game, and without those bugs I’d be more favourable to it. This kind of thing is bound to happen in jams where they only have a short period of time to create.

Sense

Get here: http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-28/?action=preview&uid=30233

Rating: 8.5

            Sense is a short platformer with the idea that you can only use one sense – sight or sound – at a time. It’s actually the first game of Ludum Dare 28 that I’ve played that I wish would get fleshed out into a full game because it’s a neat idea, and there’s real talent on display here.

                I have to give props to the sound, because the one song that plays is astounding. It’s so catchy and fitting, lending a sense of menace as you walk through this dark caves avoiding rocks, light and some strange dude at the end who just follows you.

                Throughout the three levels, it switches things up a little bit, but considering the game can be beaten in 10 minutes if you know what you’re doing, it’s expected that it doesn’t have a lot of variety.

Apocalypse One

Get here: http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-28/?action=preview&uid=24574

Rating: 4

                When I’m reviewing indie games, I don’t like giving them negative reviews because I figure being indie is hard enough as it is. I’ll still do it, but it hurts me more than giving a AAA title a bad review.

                Apocalypse One puts you in a warzone, and you have to make your way to the landing zone while clearing out the enemies. Very simple idea, but it’s just not done that well.

                First of all, the way it plays on the theme is that you can only choose one character at a time, but yet you end up playing as all three anyway. Two of them are useless, the other one is much better. This imbalance does my head in.

                Aside from that, it’s just not polished. I know, it was made quickly, but other games have a sense of polish that this lacks. For example, at many points I’m trying to move and it just stops, causing me to get shot. Or I can’t advance through a walkway right away.

                I would avoid this one.

Super Rashomon RPG

Get here: http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-28/?action=preview&uid=12708

Rating: 8.5

                Super Rashomon RPG is an action-RPG that starts you off as a magic wielding knight, but there are actually three different perspectives to choose from, and you unlock them as you go. It’s an interesting idea, and one I wish more games would do.

                It’s got simplistic gameplay, but there’s a surprising amount of polish here for a game that was supposedly made in 48 hours. It’s nice to see such talent on display, from the visuals to the extremely catchy tunes, Super Rashomon RPG is a win.

One Night At The Space Opera

Get here: http://www.ludumdare.com/compo/ludum-dare-28/?action=preview&uid=29240

Rating: 3

                The principle here is that you choose three different actors, and you have to sing to the emperor to please him. You have to follow the commands on the screen, but depending on what actors you’ve chosen, you may not be able to do it correctly. I’m not sure I like that idea that much, but my main problem is just that the game is annoying and not that much fun.

                The first time I played, I just kind of did whatever, and the sound was so awful I proclaimed, “How do I get out of this hell!”

                I just can’t recommend this.

               

So what Ludum Dare games peaked your interest? What do you think are the best? Let me know in the comments below, or hit me up on Twitter @ArtBathednCrime.