Won on SteamGifts

Jan 1st (162 games) vs Dec 31th 2019 (165 games)

Gifts & Other Wins

Jan 1st (324 games) vs Dec 31th 2019 (376 games)

I'll keep applying last year's plan as it seemed to work quite well this year. (And because I'm lazy to copy pasta everything again)

Won on SteamGifts 165 games

Gifts & Other Wins 376 games

Added in 2019 74 games

• Gems of War
  

  105 hours playtime

  60 of 71 achievements

• Descenders
  

  17 hours playtime

  20 of 32 achievements

• Kind Words
  

  2 hours playtime

  no achievements

• MISTOVER
  

  7 hours playtime

  19 of 64 achievements

• Cat Quest II
  

  16 hours playtime

  9 of 9 achievements

• My Friend Pedro
  

  6 hours playtime

  20 of 30 achievements

• Jenny LeClue - Detectivu
  

  2 hours playtime

  4 of 58 achievements

• Lonely Mountains: Downhill
  

  4 hours playtime

  10 of 47 achievements

• Encased
  

  2 hours playtime

  3 of 15 achievements

• SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech
  

  37 hours playtime

  34 of 44 achievements

• DemonCrawl
  

  96 hours playtime

  43 of 100 achievements

• Meteorfall: Krumit's Tale
  

  54 minutes playtime

  no achievements

Cat Quest II

16 hours playtime, 9 of 9 achievements

Finished 2019 playing the sequel of a game I loved at the beginning of this same year, and it was equally great. Cat Quest II offers some improvements on the already really great Cat Quest, with the possibility of playing it co-op with a friend in the process. The stories are not dependent of each other so you can play this without having played the first one, but why would you. Full of cats & dogs puns, strongly recommended.

My Friend Pedro

6 hours playtime, 20 of 30 achievements

I wasn't expecting to like this game as much as I did, but since it was in the Game Pass, I thought why not giving it a try. I had a blast and the game is way more fun than it should be, full of silliness and a nice way to empty your mind. If you're up for the challenge, you can try to beat each stage's top score requirement, or just go through it having fun like I did. Recommended, especially if you have the Game pass.

SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech

37 hours playtime, 34 of 44 achievements

The latest iteration in the Steamworld series, which as usual explores a new genre. This time, the dev team brought us a deckbuilder with a system pretty similar to Slay the Spire, but in the Steamworld universe, with a layer of fantasy RPG. As expected, I loved it and would strongly recommend it if you like the genre. A great way to finish my year in gaming.

• Blacksad
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 39 achievements

• A Plague Tale: Innocence
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 35 achievements

• Meteorfall: Krumit's Tale
  

  54 minutes playtime

  no achievements

• Little Misfortune
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 35 achievements

• A Place for the Unwilling
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 32 achievements

• Gibbous - A Cthulhu Adventure
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 48 achievements

• Disgaea 2 PC
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 55 achievements

• Gorogoa
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 11 achievements

• Whispers of a Machine
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 25 achievements

• Hades
  

  0 minutes playtime

  no achievements

• Thea 2: The Shattering
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 26 achievements

• Shadow of the Tomb Raider
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 99 achievements

• Cyberpunk 2077
  

  0 minutes playtime

  no achievements

• Gems of War
  

  105 hours playtime

  60 of 70 achievements

• The Outer Worlds
  

  36 hours playtime

  37 of 48 achievements

• Descenders
  

  15 hours playtime

  19 of 32 achievements

• Monster Prom
  

  20 hours playtime

  18 of 52 achievements

• Sparklite
  

  13 hours playtime

  21 of 27 achievements

• DemonCrawl
  

  39 hours playtime

  24 of 100 achievements

• Munchkin: Quacked Quest
  

  2 hours playtime

  8 of 26 achievements

• MISTOVER
  

  6 hours playtime

  16 of 64 achievements

• Kind Words
  

  29 minutes playtime

  no achievements

The Outer Worlds

36 hours playtime, 37 of 48 achievements

I had a really great time with this game. I thought it has some interesting quests and one of my favourite companion (Parvati <3), and I understand a lot of the critiscm going around about this game, but I still loved my adventure. Overall, it has its own flaws and I don't think it's Obsidian's best game (I still think, visual asides, Fallout New Vegas had a superior writing for example), but I strongly recommend it if you like first person RPGs with a silly touch to it. I liked the sublaying theme of it too and the choices you had to make sometimes were actually bringing consequences to the storyline. It's even a best deal if you have the Xbox pass for PC or can get a month of it for cheap.

DemonCrawl

39 hours playtime, 24 of 100 achievements

Surprise of the month. It's a weird mix between Minesweeper and a roguelike RPG, but the result is strangely very addictive. I didn't think I would put so many hours into it but I did, and I will probably replay it from time to time. It definitely makes the minesweeper gameplay so much more interesting with a combination of relics, curses and consumables that can add a twist to the gameplay and make each run different. Strongly recommended.

Sparklite

13 hours playtime, 21 of 27 achievements

This game is presented like a Zelda like action adventure RPG but it's really a roguelike RPG, nonetheless beautiful. It looked really good at the beginning but then turned quickly boring, which is sad because the game was really nicely polished in some aspects. The main problems were that the game turns quickly quite grindy to acquire the currency you need to upgrade everything, from the main base to all your equipment and stats, as well as instead of getting more challenging, the bosses were getting more easy as I went. And actually, I didn't notice the upgrade mecanics until way past half the game, so it wasn't even that I was overpowered, if anything I was going way underpowered and made it harder on myself, still the only boss that gave me some sort of challenge was the very first one you encounter in the game. Even with that I finished the main game in about maybe 10 hours and I feel like it was a hit and miss for me, especially because they ask for 25€ full price while there are better games on the market in that price range. Maybe keep an eye on it when it gets bundled or in a strong sale?

Kind Words

29 minutes playtime, no achievements

I didn't really "finish" this game per se, as there is no finishing it, and I'm gonna play more of it as I think it's lovely but I wanted to talk about it this month, and thank all the others assassins who played it and talked about it. I had read the concept and was scared it was one of those good ideas that could have turned into a troll filled hell, but after reading all the reviews and recs from other assassins, I accepted the key from a friend and gave it a try myself. It's not one of those games you'll play for hours (even though you could) but it's such a nice concept executed right and with such a nice community of people inside of it. It's really heartwarming and one of my favorite hidden gems I've played this year (along with A Short Hike).

Descenders

23 hours playtime, 19 of 32 achievements

I had played the beta of this game a long time ago and didn't really like it, as I found it pretty boring at the time, but since it's part of the Xbox pass, I decided to give it a second try, and that was a great decision. From time to time, I like to play one of those sports game, mostly skate/snowboard, but now bike too, that doesn't require much of my brainpower to get into but is relaxing and helping me to empty my head. It reminded me a bit of the BMX game I was playing on the PSone but outdoors with procedurally generated tracks. They improved greatly since the beta and added a lot of variety to the game, and I enjoyed the time spent in it.

Munchkin: Quacked Quest

2 hours playtime, 8 of 26 achievements

Talk about a disappointment of a game. Munchkin, the card game, is one of my favourite board games ever and I have a lot of nostalgia towards it, so I was really excited when they announced a PC adaptation of it, even tho Asmodee digital games are often a miss. However I was glad to see it got added to the Xbox PC pass on day one, and saved my money. Good thing I did. Not only there is no online multiplayer mode (which is to die for for this kind of game, and totally intended by the devs, who I'm gonna call it were lazy), but it's only barely related with the card game. It's more close to a sort of very repetitive Mario party style of game, with a munchkin skin. I finished a few runs and got overly bored with it, realizing there was nothing more behind it that the impressions I got from my first game, except unlocking more cards. Again, disappointing.

• Sparklite
  

  13 hours playtime

  21 of 27 achievements

• DemonCrawl
  

  39 hours playtime

  24 of 100 achievements

• Kind Words
  

  29 minutes playtime

  no achievements

• Gems of War
  

  104 hours playtime

  58 of 70 achievements

• Overland
  

  5 hours playtime

  10 of 48 achievements

• WARSAW
  

  16 hours playtime

  17 of 34 achievements

• Dicey Dungeons
  

  14 hours playtime

  4 of 53 achievements

• Don't Starve Together
  

  83 minutes playtime

  no achievements

• Borderlands 2
  

  85 hours playtime

  45 of 75 achievements

• The Outer Worlds
  

  16 hours playtime

  4 of 48 achievements

• Descenders
  

  23 minutes playtime

  3 of 32 achievements

• Bridge Constructor Portal
  

  38 minutes playtime

  0 of 26 achievements

WARSAW

16 hours playtime, 17 of 34 achievements

WARSAW was one of those turned based tactics games I was having high hopes on being the successor to Darkest Dungeon. It was not, but it was also a pretty good game on its own. It started a bit rocky at launch (very unbalanced) but the devs patched it quickly (and are now following a roadmap of updates to add more things to the game, which I'm not gonna lie give a bit of EA feeling, even if it's not). That being said it's now pretty well balanced while still being hard enough to be interesting to play. Basically it's roguelite turned based tactics that let you replay the insurrection of Warsaw during the second world war. It's also pretty historically accurate, which is sadly what brought the only thing I regretted about the game: there is no endless mode. No matter how good you do during the game, the game will end at 63 days like the insurrection did in real life, and you cannot "win" it. Still, I played 2 full runs of it this month and I would recommend the game for tactics lovers.

Borderlands 2

85 hours playtime, 45 of 75 achievements

Finally, after months of playing this in co-op with my GF (we started in June), we finished both the game (that was actually done in july) and ALL the DLCs. As for the first time I played this back when it first got out, the best part of this is actually playing it with a friend, as otherwise it can get pretty grindy. My favourite part was still the Tiny Tina Dragonkeep DLC, which is probably one of my favourite DLC ever, all games considered. At least it scratched my FPS-looter itch for a while and I can wait that BL3 gets all its DLCs out AND an extremely cheap deal. Any of you've been playing BL3, and if yes, how is it?

• WARSAW
  

  16 hours playtime

  17 of 34 achievements

• Encased
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 15 achievements

• Sonic Mania
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 18 achievements

• MISTOVER
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 64 achievements

• SteamWorld Quest: Hand of Gilgamech
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 44 achievements

• Gems of War
  

  82 hours playtime

  51 of 67 achievements

• Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
  

  4 hours playtime

  2 of 39 achievements

• Knights and Bikes
  

  5 hours playtime

  11 of 36 achievements

• Destiny or Fate
  

  6 hours playtime

  7 of 23 achievements

• Invisible, Inc.
  

  22 hours playtime

  6 of 23 achievements

• Borderlands 2
  

  84 hours playtime

  44 of 75 achievements

• Dicey Dungeons
  

  9 hours playtime

  3 of 53 achievements

• Jenny LeClue - Detectivu
  

  2 hours playtime

  no achievements

• Overland
  

  3 hours playtime

  6 of 48 achievements

• Cat Quest II
  

  4 hours playtime

  2 of 9 achievements

Invisible, Inc.

21 hours playtime, 6 of 23 achievements

I went back to Invisible Inc thanks to adam, who picked for me in PoP. I completely restarted the campaign, and what I didn't realize at first is that I also had the contengency plan DLC activated, which made the main campaign consequently longer than what I remembered. Nonetheless, it was a great coincidence because it was fitting for this month's theme, but also it made the game (which I already loved) even more interesting. Invisible Inc is such a good infiltration tactics game that I strongly recommend it to any turn based tactics lovers.

• Deep Sky Derelicts
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 54 achievements

• The Adventure Pals
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 31 achievements

• Destiny or Fate
  

  6 hours playtime

  7 of 23 achievements

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• Jenny LeClue - Detectivu
  

  2 hours playtime

  no achievements

• Overland
  

  3 hours playtime

  6 of 48 achievements

• Cat Quest II
  

  4 hours playtime

  2 of 9 achievements

• The Church in the Darkness
  

  6 hours playtime

  23 of 48 achievements

• A Short Hike
  

  5 hours playtime

  8 of 8 achievements

• This War of Mine
  

  56 hours playtime

  29 of 54 achievements

• Borderlands 2
  

  71 hours playtime

  38 of 75 achievements

• Dicey Dungeons
  

  8 hours playtime

  no achievements

• Gems of War
  

  25 hours playtime

  38 of 67 achievements

• Invisible, Inc.
  

  17 hours playtime

  5 of 23 achievements

• Knights and Bikes
  

  4 hours playtime

  9 of 36 achievements

The Church in the Darkness

6 hours playtime, 23 of 48 achievements

This game was probably my stongest disappointment this month. The premise caught my attention: a roguelike infiltration game with the unusual setting inspired by the tragic Jonestown events. I wrote a more in depth review about why I didn't enjoy this game overall, but it can be summed up to this: the game doesn't deliver on its promises. It gets pretty boring after very few runs (because sadly it's always the same map, just with sections aleatorily moved around) and the different cult leaders personalities are not that game changing, just leading to different endings. Equally, the potential of the context kind of get wasted in a mediocre story telling, leaving the player unsatisfied. It's not an awful game per se, but I can't really recommend it, especially not for the full price they ask for it at the moment sadly.

A Short Hike

5 hours playtime, 8 of 8 achievements

By far my favourite game I played this month, despite its apparent simplicity and the other good things I've played this month. This game was just such a delightful parenthesis, it gave me a mixed feeling of Firewatch and Animal Crossing, but just the great parts of it both. It's a short adventure where you decide to take a hike at the summit of the island/park where you're spending your summer to catch some phone coverage. That being said, there is so much more than meet the eyes and so many other things to discover that it made a game way less simple than it seemed. I won't spoil too much about it because the discovery is part of what was great, so do yourself a favor and go play it. 100% recommended. #BeachstickballForever

Dicey Dungeons

8 hours playtime, no achievements

This dice/card deckbuilding roguelike is the last work of Terry Cavanagh (VVVVVV, SuperHexagon) in a genre that finally speaks to me, and I have to say, the man's reputation is deserved. He knows how to make video games with good mecanics that makes you wanna keep playing. If you've liked Slay the Spire, this game might be for you (I'm not saying it's the same though, it does involve different mecanics). The game has both a funny tone, lots of good puns and a compelling gameplay. It has a good run lenght to allow you short sessions, and the difficulty gets more complex as you progress in the levels. I'm taking a break on it right now but I plan to go back to it as soon as they've implemented achievements. Definitely a recommend if you like the genre.

This War of Mine: Stories - Fading Embers

12 hours playtime (DLC only), 29 of 54 achievements

And finally this DLC. I do not have the 2 previous DLCs in the 'stories' series for This war of mine, but I loved the base game so I was really happy to go back to it and put more hours into it. The DLC is only one story with specific new mecanics that were not in the base game, as well as new locations and characters, and a few different endings. This DLC focuses on the importance of the collective memory and relic of a people's history versus the survival of a few individual in a critical time period like war. I encountered a few bugs but nothing too bothering (for me at least) and really enjoyed the story overall. It actually made me want to try the 2 previous Stories DLCs, anybody who played them have an opinion on them?

• The Church in the Darkness
  

  6 hours playtime

  23 of 48 achievements

• Yoku's Island Express
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 31 achievements

• A Short Hike
  

  5 hours playtime

  8 of 8 achievements

• Dicey Dungeons
  

  8 hours playtime

  no achievements

• Knights and Bikes
  

  4 hours playtime

  9 of 36 achievements

• Zero Escape: The Nonary Games
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 38 achievements

• Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 33 achievements

• Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 35 achievements

• The Town of Light
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 20 achievements

• She and the Light Bearer
  

  3 hours playtime

  13 of 15 achievements

• Borderlands 2
  

  58 hours playtime

  35 of 75 achievements

• Subnautica
  

  52 hours playtime

  17 of 17 achievements

• Assassin's Creed Odyssey
  

  123 hours playtime

  59 of 93 achievements

• Glass Masquerade
  

  5 hours playtime

  32 of 32 achievements

• Detention
  

  4 hours playtime

  5 of 8 achievements

• Mushroom Cats
  

  3 minutes playtime

  24 of 24 achievements

• Mystery of Unicorn Castle: The Beastmaster
  

  4 hours playtime

  no achievements

• INSIDE
  

  5 hours playtime

  14 of 14 achievements

• The First Tree
  

  4 hours playtime

  13 of 14 achievements

• Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales
  

  3 hours playtime

  2 of 39 achievements

Subnautica

52 hours playtime, 17 of 17 achievements

This took me long enough, but I finally finished Subnautica. This was such a great experience and a refreshing twist on survival/craft games. I won't say too much about the story itself, as I feel the interesting part is for everyone who wanna play it to discover it by themselves, but unless (and it's a big unless) you are phobic of underwater environment (I've read some people found Abzu panic inducing), I strongly recommend the game. I'm already missing the experience.

Detention

3.5 hours playtime, 5 of 8 achievements

Girlfriend got me this game during the past steam sales after playing it herself, and I was pretty excited of playing it myself. Yes, it looked a bit scary, but she promised there was no jumpscares (I'm a wuss with those) and the story sounded intriguing. I won't tell you too much into it either because it's part of it to discover the mystery behind it, but it was visually really interesting in a disturbing and creepy kind of way. I think I'd have enjoyed the game even more if I knew more about Taiwan's history, but I still recommend the game if you don't.

She and the Light Bearer

3 hours playtime, 13 of 15 achievements

I won this from Skatrzoo on SG and it had been on my wishlist for a while so it was really nice to finally play it. The game is an extremely cute point and click with a story based around nature and ancient folk tales. It's very pleasant and the puzzles were all well balanced. It was on the shorter side but totally recommended. The only sad thing about it is that it has limited profile features for a reason I fail to understand (when some garbage games pass those mystery requirements all fine).

Mystery of Unicorn Castle: The Beastmaster

4 hours playtime, no achievements

Finally came around to play this HoG I won quite some time ago on SG, and it was just meh. Not awfully bad, but far from the best HoGs I've played. Nothing much to say about it.

Mushroom Cats

3 minutes playtime, 24 of 24 achievements

This free game is only 3 min long to completion, but it has the most adorable design, so if you like cats I suggest you download it and give it a try. As I said, worst case situation, it's only 3 min of your time.

INSIDE

5 hours playtime, 14 of 14 achievements

Inside was an horrifying yet beautiful and well made game. Think about it as a great improvement on the studio's previous game, Limbo. There is a bit of exploration involved but mostly some linear puzzle/plateforming. I have to admit though, except conveying that horrifying feeling, the story itself grew more and more confusing, and I didn't really understand it at the end (even less with the secret ending).

The First Tree

4 hours playtime, 13 of 14 achievements

I wanted to have great things to say about this game, but I only have one: it is a great game for eye candy screenshot extravaganza. Apart from that, the game is a short yet extremely tedious experience, and I don't recommend it at all. It's inversely proportionally enjoyable as it is beautiful. And it's very beautiful. The game tries to convey some touching message but it's delivered in such a way that I couldn't get emotionnally invested in it (And i'm someone who cried playing that free captain spirit adventure FFS, I'm an easy target for those. NOTHING.). Add to that some quite awful plateforming, tedious collectibles and stupid mechanics to artificially extend the gameplay time and you have it. My recommendation: watch at other people's screenshots but stay away from playing it yourself.

• She and the Light Bearer
  

  3 hours playtime

  13 of 15 achievements

• Detention
  

  4 hours playtime

  5 of 8 achievements

• 60 Parsecs!
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 40 achievements

• It Lurks Below
  

  8 hours playtime

  no achievements

• Flat Kingdom Paper's Cut Edition
  

  11 hours playtime

  35 of 48 achievements

• Submerged
  

  4 hours playtime

  9 of 10 achievements

• Subnautica
  

  15 hours playtime

  5 of 17 achievements

• Borderlands 2
  

  35 hours playtime

  24 of 75 achievements

Flat Kingdom Paper's Cut Edition

11 hours playtime, 35 of 48 achievements

Somewhat classic 2D plateformer with a cute fantasy story. You keep acquiring new upgrades, that unlocks new mecanics as you progress. Nothing too innovative but an enjoyable game nonetheless.

Submerged

4 hours playtime, 9 of 10 achievements

Submerged was a really relaxing and refreshing walking/climbing game set in a flooded post apocalypse world. You play a young girl trying to collect different dropped ressources boxes from the pre apocalypse to save her injured little brother. You navigate your small boat from one building in ruin to another and find the path to climb to the top. I think the game is just the perfect length (finished it in about 4h) as it would maybe get a little repetitive had it been much longer. However it was a really nice experience as it is.

• Borderlands 2
  

  35 hours playtime

  24 of 75 achievements

• Assassin's Creed Odyssey
  

  122 hours playtime

  58 of 88 achievements

• Forager
  

  24 hours playtime

  62 of 84 achievements

• Lamplight City
  

  9 hours playtime

  23 of 42 achievements

• Karma. Incarnation 1
  

  2 hours playtime

  5 of 7 achievements

• It Lurks Below
  

  2 hours playtime

  no achievements

Assassin's Creed Odyssey

122 hours playtime, 58 of 88 achievements

What an adventure! It was my first AC since Blag Flag (which was a good pirate game but as an AC? meh), and what a great one to pick up the series again. They refreshed the gameplay and I felt the writing had greatly improved. I hadn't been interested in a protagonist that much since Ezio, and even tho, I loved Cassandra so much more that I was sad saying goodbye when I was done with the game. Don't get me wrong, the game is not perfect. It's still an ubi game with their own set of repetitive side quests, but it also has a great lot of unique side and main quests and an incredible game world. I wish they had finally dropped the "present time"/alien bullshit but I guess they're dragging it to justify it's still part of the AC license, and at least it's kept to a minimum. Strongly strongly recommended. Great value for your bucks.

Forager

24 hours playtime, 62 of 84 achievements

In my quest for a Stardew Valley substitution, my eyes got caught by Forager when it was first announced. Marketed as "inspired by exploration, farming and crafting games such as Stardew Valley, Terraria & Zelda", 3 of my favourite games, I had high hopes. And it did start well and sort of addictive. But then after a few hours of collecting stuff, expending the map and solving very basic puzzles/dungeons, the game just hit the grindy wall of doom. It's like a bonified clicker with a crafting/surival game appearance to lure you in. I didn't dislike it, but I wouldn't strongly recommend it either, especially not for the full price they ask for it. Wait for a discount/bundle and give it a try maybe.

Lamplight City

9 hours playtime, 23 of 42 achievements

Another really amazing game I played this month, Lamplight City is a steampunkish detective P&C by the creator of Shardlight. It does give that wadget eye feel and you know that in P&C it's a sign of quality. Really compelling and interesting adventure with 5 separate cases to solve, and where you can either fail or succeed to find the true culprit. I loved the game and can't recommend it enough to all P&C lovers.

Karma. Incarnation 1

2 hours playtime, 5 of 7 achievements

Another P&C with an amanita design feel to it (not as detailled visual style, but still), Karma Incarnation 1 was really nice to play through even tho on the quite short side. Sadly, it's clearly the first episode of what should have been a trilogy, but there hasn't been word of episode 2 from the devs in ages, so it's probably dead. That being said, this adventure is nice on itself and I recommend giving it a try if it's in your library.

• Underhero
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 44 achievements

• Finding Paradise
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 1 achievements

• Forager
  

  24 hours playtime

  62 of 84 achievements

• Frostpunk
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 75 achievements

• Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition
  

  0 minutes playtime

  0 of 30 achievements

• It Lurks Below
  

  2 hours playtime

  no achievements