Game recomendation archive
This page serves as an archive for previous videogame recomendations of mine. Not much else to say here.
Current recomendation
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October 2024 game is:
Inscryption
(This game features a bit of self harm and a handful of violence)
Inscryption is a mashup of a deck building rougelike and an escape room, 2 genres I thought I never liked. That said, there might be a bit more to this game...
Prior to this game I wasn't a fan of deck builders. Hovewer, the presentation of this game enticed me. By presentation I mean pretty much everything: graphics, music and ambiance, the way you and your camera moves, and storytelling.
The gameplay is fairly simple in such a way, that a beginner deckbuilder will not struggle too much, but, even so, it will take mastery to be truly good. The escape room aspect is also very fun. Certainly more fun than being stuck in a real life escape room in another country with people who are unfamiliar to you, half of which you have to talk to with your second language, just as they do too. Might write about this sometime.
The soundtrack and sound design by Jonah Senzel is superb! The music is varied, but literally every song is amazing.
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Well, of course, there's more to it, Iscryption is made by Daniel Mullins after all, clearly it’s not *just* a rougelike and an escape room.
There are a few more sections with different gameplay styles. Some people, despite their praise of this game, don't like these parts as much as the first one. And well, to each their own and all, but I disagree with this opinion, and I believe that all of this game is great!
What I've been saying about the first section is still the case for other ones. The music, gameplay, all amazing. The story, though a bit cofusing, is pretty good too!
Oh, and there is also a proper rouglike mode for the first section, which adds new stuff, and rebalances old ones to be a more proper rougelike experience.
Finally, if you liked this game, check out Daniels other works, Pony Island and The Hex. They are related to Inscryption, and are good! They will get their proper entries here later, but I figured I should mention them.
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September 2024 game is:
Baba Is You
Baba Is You is a puzzle where you are able to change the rules of the game.
Each level has a number of rules present as blocks of words on the level itself. These blocks make said rules by being placed next to each other. And, since they are in the level, you can rearrange them!
There are A LOT of levels. As in hundreds of levels. And also a lot of words. So you’ll be solving these for a while. Not just because of how many levels there are, but also because of their difficulty. Despite this, the levels are well crafted, which is obviously very important for a puzzle.
The story is pretty much nonexistent, but you’re not really gonna think that the game named “Baba Is You” has the most groundbreaking story ever? You’re here for the puzzles of course!
The soundtrack is quite nice too! It's basic, but in a way that is just right for this kind of game. I like to come back to the score every now and then to use it as background noise.
There is also a level creator! So you can make your own levels. You probably wanna get familiar with the game first though.
Gonna be honest, I'm too stoopid for this game. Not even halfway through I just began looking up the solutions for nearly everything. But, even so, I really like it and I think it is one of the best 2D puzzle games period.
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August 2024 game is:
Cave Story
Cave Story is a platformer adventure with a hint of a metroidvania (it technically is one, but it's a bit lighter on this element compared to other famous metroidvanias).
You play as an android who lost his memory, awoken in a damp cave. As you get out of it, you embark on a journey to escape from this large cave, and while at it, you meet its many inhabitants.
What makes this game remarkable is that all of it was made by a single person - Daisuke "Pixel" Amaya, back in early 2000s. Back then there were not that many indie titles, especially this polished.
This game has pretty basic controls. Your standart movement of a 2D platformer and all. There are guns. Guns can become stronger if get doritos experience points. There are also movement upgrades which I won't get into, as they are more story focused. Pretty simple, right? And yet it works flawlessly.
There are many friends you'll meet along your journey. And there are many enemies and bosses, too!
Music in this game is amazing. What makes it even more interesting is that Pixel wasn't that music educated back then. And yet he did spectacularly!
Cave Story would end up making indie video game scene the way it is today. It would inspire many creators to make their own games: Undertale, Deltarune, OneShot, Enter the Gungeon just to name a few. It's also why so many indies are metroidvanias, for better or worse.
You might be wondering "how do I get this game?". Well, there are a few ways. First of, there is Cave Story+ on Steam and consoles, published by Nicalis, which brought some controversy over ownership of the game. I will not get into this here. If you don't feel like giving a penny to Nicalis, you don't have to! Cave Story started out as a freeware title, and it still is! Cavestory.org is a tribute site, which has freeware version download, as well as translations not present in CS+ version, and some quality of life features! You can pretty much modify freeware version to resemble CS+ version if you want to. You'll have to figure out on your own, though, as when I played Cave Story back in 2019, I played Cave Story+, so I didn't go through all the modding.
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July 2024 game is:
The Binding of Isaac: Repentance
TBoI is an action dungeon crawler roguelike set in deteriorating mind of an abused, dying child.
The game's gameplay is based on classic The Legend of Zelda dungeons, with every floor being a dungeon of its own. Unlike classic TloZ though, you normally don't use a sword, or a melee weapon, but your tears, as a ranged weapon.
Another appeal of this game is it's galore of content. Hundreds of items: lots are good and even amazing, some bad; hundreds of enemies and bosses: Most are fun to fight against, others are... Edmund why. Thousands of rooms. 17+ characters with only 2 bad ones (IMHO).
The replayability is a focal point of the game. You're supposed to beat it over and over to unlock everything. As you might guess, this takes... a while.
You might be wondering: "What exactly am I supposed to get?" as there appears to be 2 games and a bunch of DLC's. Well, you get The Binding of Isaac: Rebirth, which is a remake of 2011 Flash game, and you also get all DLC's: Afterbirth, Afterbirth+ and Repentance. I also advise to get Steam version because it has modding, and an amazing modding community that makes new music, graphics, items, enemies, bosses, floors and rooms, and rebalances of existing stuff in game.
Oh yeah, this game is kinda gross. Plenty of body horror, and dump trucks of poop.
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June 2024 game is:
Hypnospace Outlaw
OK, gonna be honest, if you are here, on Neocities that is, you probably are aware of this game. It might be why you are here (it was a big factor for me in making this website). But, if don't know what this, you're in for a treat.
Hypnospace Outlaw is point and click adventure where you explore a fictitious network of Hypnospace.
You've been chosen to be one of the Enforcers, whose task is to patrol the Hypnospace and look for violations like hate speech, copyright infringements or malicious links. Most of the time you will simply browse the Net and take in Hypnospace's fascinating world. From a rockstar past his prime to obscure and talented teen, or corporate products to freshest music scene. There is A LOT.
Fake OS trope has been a thing for a while, however, this game is by far the most expansive and fleshed out one.
Hypnospace is rather comedic. It's definitely going to get you at least a few times. It references the old Internet a lot, but none of it is obnoxious or poorly aged or offensive. It maaay also get your feelings, don’t worry about it.
The presentation is amazing. It gets the feeling of the late 90's Internet really well. I want to point out the music in particular. It's not just amazing, but it's also unique. What I mean is that it is largely made of original genres or genres that are counterpart to real ones. There are whole scenes in this game.
Also, there's a sequel in the works! And there is a FPS side game that's pretty good too! That said, look into it after you're done with Hypnospace.
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May 2024 game is:
Lunistice
Lunistice is a simple and short (like 3 hours) 3d platformer with slight emphasis on movement.
Usually I would write up a premise here, but this time I won't do it because of how small the game is. Don't get me wrong, there is story and even a bit of lore, but I believe it's best if you experience it on it's own.
I wouldn't say this game is particularly special, but it's a neat experience. The controls are nice, levels are solid in length, albeit simple. Each dream introduces a new mechanic. Combat... exist. It's not bad, but it's a bit too simple.
This game has a PS1 aesthetic. Some might say it's overdone by now, but I still think they're nice. Despite retro style, Lunistice certainly doesn't feel retro in gameplay.
Moreover about the aesthetic, this game is quite pretty. Each dream is unique and colorful. The soundtrack is also quite nice.
Sure the game is short, but it's also really replayable. What's more important is how cheap it is. No, really, I got it for less than a dollar on a sale (It would probably costs more for most readers of this even on sale, but still), and for such a price this is a really good, short and sweet deal.
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April 2024 game is:
Chants of Sennaar
Chants of Sennaar is a point & click adventure with an emphasis on learning languages. Yes, plural. You wake up at the bottom of an enormous tower filled with diverse cultures, and your goal is to reach the top. You do so by interacting with the world, discovering words and deducing their meanings. And with the knowledge you may progress.
The puzzles in this game are great. If it's not clear, most of them are based on learning a local language. Most. There are also stealth sections that I personally wasn't a big fan of. But most of them are solid. Except for one. You'll know which one if you play the game.
The core mechanic of learning languages is well executed. You can figure out the meaning, then you are given a page in the book with drawn meanings. If you know the meaning, and place the right words, you will secure and know the true meaning. This can be brute forced, but it's much easier to gradually work it out.
The world of Chants of Sennaar is simply gorgeous. Simple, colorful and a treat to look at. The soundtrack is also nice.
Overall, this game is a neat experience that I would recommend if you have even a faintest interest of language learning. Knowing these may not be as useful as learning a real language, but it's still learning in the end of the day.
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March 2024 game is:
UTRAKILL
Before I start, Have a warning: This game is full of violence. How could it not with such a name? If that is not up your valley, feel free to check out archive for more family-friendly games. Anywho...
ULTRAKILL is a fast paced retro FPS that combines best of Shooters and action games like Devil May Cry.
The game takes place in a horrible future, where humanity is dead and machines are powered by blood. The only source of blood now comes from hell itself, and so, at the start of the game machines begin a full scale invasion of hell in search of blood. The machine you play as, V1, however, does not cooperate and will kill anything that moves.
ULTRAKILL may still be in early access ( there are still 2 layers of hell to be made, weapon variations and a bunch of other stuff), but it is already a worthy deal due to how well crafted it is. From weapons, all of which are satisfying to use, enemies and bosses, who may seem difficult at first, but as you learn, they become a piece of cake, to levels, which are really fun to replay.
Beside levels, there is a sandbox mode, where you can screw around ( and even build things), and there is also The Cyber Grind, a survival mode, where you clean out waves of enemies on a mid sized arena. Totally not addictive. There are also secrets you may discover...
Also, the soundtrack is simply amazing. It uses a variety of genres and does so well. Most of it is made by games creator ( btw, you should check out other stuff by Heaven Pierce Her), but there are also a few guest artists.
DON'T GET ME STARTED ON LORE I have a lot of things to say here like how much Gabriel is a p⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ and why Swordmachine is the best gender goals and ⬜⬜⬜⬜ ⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜⬜ and
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February 2024 game is:
The Entropy Centre
The Entropy Centre is a first person puzzle that was clearly inspired by Portal. It takes place on an abandoned Moon base of the same name and it appears you are the last person alive, as the Earth is set ablaze buy a mysterious event.
The main gimmick of the game is the Entropy Device ( get ready to hear and see the word "entropy" a lot btw), a device capable of rewinding objects up to 45 seconds back in time, and also pause them. Every puzzle has to essentially be solved in reverse. There are also plenty of puzzle elements, some of which are also time based.
This game has a pretty solid amount of puzzles, about 8 hours of gameplay or so. Earlier ones are fairly easy, but it'll get you thinking with the later puzzles.
It's worth mentioning that The Entropy Centre is absolutely gorgeous. I would say it's worth playing it just for the environments alone. As for the music, it's minimal and perhaps a bit repetitive, but still good, particularly in plot heavy moments.
The voice acting is good, and so is are the characters. Humor, however, is an attempt to be modern Portal and I Feel like it's not that good. It's not bad, it just feels a bit bland.
Oh, there is also a mapping community, but I haven't tried these fan-made maps, so I can't tell if they are any good.
Overall, If you like Portal, you'll most likely enjoy The Entropy Centre.
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January 2024 game is:
Chicory: A Colorful Tale
Chicory: A Colorful Tale Is a RPG in a style of classic 2D Zelda games. Unlike those, however, you don't fight in this game. Instead, it's more of an advanced coloring book, where you use your abilities to solve puzzles, move around, draw and, most importantly, paint the world.
You play as a dog, who is a Janitor and the biggest fan of Chicory, a famous artist and wielder of the Brush. Something weird happens, and the picnic province loses it's color, and Chicory is missing, but the Brush is not. It is now your task to fill her job in.
Chicory is a charming game full of love, but also happens to tackle the themes of imposter syndrome and artistic burnout. And it tackles them very well. Obviously I recommend this game for anyone, but if you suffer from either of these two ( or perhaps both), then I encourage you to play this game.
Oh, how could I forget. This game has an amazing soundtrack made by Lena Raine! Yes, that Lena Raine.
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December 2023 game is:
Cobalt Core
Cobalt Core is a roguelike deckbuilder, in which you take control of a spaceship and try to defeat other ships to progress the time loop ( don't worry, this isn't the most important piece of the story, far from it).
Your ship has 3 crew mates with unique cards that take different aspects of your ship or gameplay, and there are 8 characters with over 200 cards. There are also 5 ships that have unique gimmicks and upgrades.
The story is light hearted, but still good ( as if being light hearted even means bad). The soundtrack is a particular highlight, as it so good, that I would've listen to it on itself if there was a single video of it on YouTube. Also to note, I played since 1.0, and I haven't encountered any bugs at all.
I found out about this game from a streamer who showed a reveal trailer of the game in early 2023, and I instantly got interested. So I waited ~10 months, and it met my expectations. The only possible downside is it's size, This game is fairly small, It took me 20 hours to complete the story, unlock all the characters, 4 of 5 ships, and most of other stuff. This isn't that much for a roguelike, and if you're looking for beefy roguelike, this is not the one.
Still, if this mediocre text got you at least somewhat interested, You should check out Cobalt Core! People at Rocket Rat Games clearly put some love into it.