Side Note: I started with the original Death Stranding and then switched to the Directors Cut. The hours played are a combination of the two. My review will also be of both versions combined instead of talking about each separately. Although I do recommend paying the extra 10 dollars to upgrade to the director's cut since they added a lot of fantastic additions and changes to the game. Alright, moving on. 

Death Stranding is a Hideo Kojima game about an apocalypse and the people in it trying to figure it out and rebuild the world, one delivery at a time. There is obviously so much story in the game that I wouldn't be able to sum it up. There are over 7 hours of cutscenes, with one cutscene lasting around 31 minutes. Point is, if you don't like cutscenes or story-heavy games, then this may not be for you. The story is beautiful, weird, unsettling, and unique, but it is definitely not for everyone. 

Another part of the game that is not for everyone is the gameplay. Death Stranding consists mostly of delivering packages with the occasional combat. You start off with nothing, and as you play, you get more gear, more tech, better abilities, and more fun. This is a strange comparison, but it reminds me of Kingdom Come Deliverance. The only similarity being that you start off as a nobody with nothing to your name and slowly gain a reputation, which leads to you obtaining more things to make the journey more fun. If I were to explain the gameplay, it mostly consists of walking, driving, delivering, building, and fighting.

The story starts off slow and is very cutscene-heavy. You are thrown into this fascinating world with lots of questions. The first few hours are very slow and tedious. These are the moments when people are usually turned off by the game. For me, the slow build made things more exciting, but I 100% understand why so many people stopped playing at the beginning. You have to get past 3 chapters and several hours before the game starts picking up. 

To name some things I loved about Death Stranding, I loved the soundtrack, the connection to other players, and the freedom to strategize and play the game how I want to. I'll try to be as vague and spoiler free as possible. Throughout the game, you can interact with other players in several different ways. You can't actually see or talk to the players, but what you do in the world will affect them, and vice versa. It fits both thematically and adds a unique element to the game. Even more unique than if you could just be there with the other players.

The soundtrack is also fantastic. Kojima features artists that are not as well-known or mainstream. A few different songs are original to the game, and playing the soundtrack while delivering is such a vibe. I'm someone who suffers from pretty bad anxiety, and the soundtrack (the whole game, really) has been incredibly helpful in helping me relax. The game gives you the freedom to choose which deliveries to pick up, which path to take, what to build, how to traverse the world, and when you want to move on or not. 

Personally, I give this game a 10/10 because it puts me in a good mood and hits the right buttons for me. It does have its faults, so I am giving it a 8/10 just because dropping it even lower would make me sad. It's a fascinating experience, but it's absolutely not for everyone. It's such a niche game that I would suggest playing a demo, watching gameplay, or talking to people who have played it to see if it's your thing. 

Tell Me Why is a choice-driven story game from the creators of Life is Strange. You play as two different twins who are trying to solve a mystery involving the night of their mother's death. This game has two familiar qualities from recent Dontnod games. Young characters with superpowers and LGBTQ representation. In Tell Me Why, one of the playable characters is Tyler Ronan. Tyler is transgender, and he and his sister Alyson have twin telepathy. This lets them talk to each other internally but also helps them relive their former memories. Reuniting for the first time in years, Tyler and Alyson use their powers to solve the mystery surrounding the night their mother died.

First, I will talk about what I liked about the game. The story is heartfelt. You can tell the developers and writers put care into the narrative they were telling. The LGBTQ characters were nicely represented, and you felt for the struggles each character was going through. I appreciate that Dontnod has made games that people can relate to. This didn't feel like a game that was made to sell a bunch of copies or appeal to a mass audience. It seemed like a passion project from the developers to us. It's also a nice story about sibling relationships. The siblings care about and protect each other while also getting to know each other after years of separation.

Now for the things I didn't like. The game felt very slow. So slow that I almost quit playing a couple times. Where other games like Death Stranding  or Life is Strange hooked me with their engaging stories or tough choices, Tell Me Why is very linear and kind of boring. I love story-heavy games like Life is Strange, Beyond Two Souls, The Walking Dead, etc. The problem with Tell Me Why is that the choices weren't that tough to make, and the story wasn't very exciting. The mystery of the mom is interesting, but most of the game is about the twins trying to recover their memories, and that just isn't as exciting of a concept.

Overall, I give this an average score of 5/10. These story-driven choice games are very similar to movies. Some people will hate this game, and others will love it. If you normally like this type of game then I recommend watching some gameplay videos to see if this one is for you.

Oh no, Sonic is dead! It is a murder mystery train, so it's alright… right?

Who Killed Sonic The Hedgehog is a free visual novel game that was released on April Fool's Day. It features a whole cast of Sonic characters who are playing a murder mystery game to celebrate Amy's birthday. After Sonic's body is found, it's up to you and Tails to find the culprit! 

I never thought I'd play a game of Murder on the Orient Express featuring Sonic characters, but here we are. 
I love how weird this concept is, and I think this game is delightful. The art is very cute, and the characters perfectly represented their personalities from previous Sonic installments. 
It is a visual novel, so the gameplay is simple. Mostly reading and pointing at objects around the room. There is also a little Sonic minigame every time you want to solve a mystery. Your character is helping Tails by questioning suspects and piecing together the evidence to find the killer. It's really simple, and anyone of all ages could play, excluding the slightly dark subject matter. 

The game is about two hours long depending on how fast or slow you read. I think this game was written more for people who know these Sonic characters than for newcomers, but both would enjoy it, I think. There were a couple characters I've never seen before playing, but overall, it was a great experience. 

 I recommend this. It's free, it's fun, it gives off ace attorney vibes, and the art style is so cute. 

Ghostrunner is a fast-paced cyberpunk parkour platformer. You run through intricate levels at top speed while performing parkour, platforming, combat, and puzzle solving.
This is a hard game. Keep this in mind before you buy or play it. There are assist settings you can turn on to make it easier, but those settings broke rather quickly after I turned them on. I'll elaborate on that later. Mostly just to vent :P

In Ghostrunner, you parkour through the world while attacking enemies. Most enemies die in one hit, but they also all kill you in one hit. This makes the game very challenging, as you have to master how each enemy works so you can dodge them while also not falling off the map. You have to clear all the enemies in each section to move on to the next one. If you get hit by one bullet or enemy attack, you have to start that section over. Each enemy has a unique way of attacking, and not all of them are easy to take down right away. It's very strategic, and you'll be restarting the game A LOT. Get used to the "Press R to restart" prompt. 

Let's start with the things I loved about Ghostrunner first. The cyberpunk aesthetic is incredibly fun. The world looks unique, and the worldbuilding sucks you in. The voice acting is wonderful, and you really feel like a badass playing the Ghostrunner. I couldn't wait to keep playing to learn about the world and about the ghostrunner himself. I really enjoyed the atmosphere and the creativity. Each section of the game adds new abilities, enemies, and platforming levels so that the game is never stale. I can't state enough how refreshing it is to see a game constantly changing the way you play so you never know what's coming next. You are constantly learning how to fight new enemies and master new levels in the game. Plus, the visuals are just beautiful. 

Unfortunately, with the good comes the bad. The game does have some bugs. It wouldn't be so bad if most of them weren't towards the end of the game. especially the last level. The last level of the game is torturous in so so many ways. Most of my pain and anguish with Ghostrunner comes directly from the very last section of the game.

The final level is just horribly designed, extremely hard, and very broken. I fully understand that the final level should be difficult, but the difficulty jump is just unreasonable. One second I think I've got the game down, and the next I feel like a beginner who has never played a video game in her life. It just felt very rushed and lazy. This was proven even harder because of the bugs. The final level involves a lot of wall jumping. Suddenly, I just kept clipping through the walls or simply not sticking to them at all. The poor Ghostrunner would simply fall off the wall without a chance to even slide or wall jump.

Speaking of bugs, The assists I mentioned earlier would not work. You can turn on assist settings that give you an easier time while playing. There is one that makes your ghostrunner slower, so you can perform platforming better. Then there is one that lets you take one extra hit in combat before dying. I'm okay with platforming, but the combat was slowly sucking out my soul. I enabled the extra hit setting, hoping it would make my experience a little less daunting. The first time I played was on my desktop, and about an hour in, the settings stopped working. I tried several fixes, but none worked. I switched to my steam deck but had the same issue shortly after, so I decided to continue on without the assists. It's not a big deal, but I wanted to mention it for people who may buy the game because of these settings.

Overall, I really did enjoy my time playing this. Once I started, I wanted to continue to see what lay ahead. Ghostrunner is exactly what it sets out to be. If you watch the trailer and it looks like something you'd like, chances are you will like it. It does give you that accomplished feeling after you beat it. It's like a less forgiving Mirror's Edge with a cyberpunk twist. If the last level didn't exist, I would be less angry writing this review 😂

 I personally recommend Ghostrunner on sale, but the full price is justifiable too. It has its issues, but it also shines where it matters. 

Out of the Box is a "Papers, Please" inspired game where you play a bouncer who was just released from prison. You decide who to let in the club by following the rules given to you each day. Throughout the story you can choose to redeem your character and follow the law or to help your new employer by contuining your life of crime.

I think this game is a hidden gem. It's not spectacular but its a fun little game that deserves recognition. The story is interesting and It's a good length. The gameplay does get a little repetitive but the length of the game keeps it from dragging to long. I'm not sure what the other paths are but I enjoyed how my story turned out.

If I were to have a complaint, its just that they should balance the fakes a little bit better when letting people in. You have to let a certain amount of people in the club to raise the popularity, but sometimes the game throws fake after fake so that its impossible to get the amount of people you need, forcing you to let underage or drunk people in the club just to not fail out. Not a big deal, but worth noting.

If you enjoy games like Paper Please or Not Tonight and you want a similiar game, this is the one for you. it's a lot of fun. It's a little expensive so I recommend it on sale.

"Hello there! How are you? It's great to see you here! I'm Ben… and I'm Becky, let's start off with a cheer!"

Big Thinkers Kindergarden is an educational game for toddlers to young kids. You follow the two hosts (Ben and Becky Brightly) as you play minigames and learn things like colors, numbers, spelling, etc.
I played the demo of this in Elementary school so when this got picked for my PoP, I just had to ride the nostalgia train and relive a part of my childhood. Overall its a very cute and fun little game that teaches kids beginner level education.

I don't have much to say about it being an adult and all, so I thought it might be funny to write a review on each minigame for dramatic effect. So here we go!

Time Telling: In this game you learn how to tell time. Ben's head will turn into a clock and the player has to turn the hands to match the time that Ben gives the player. Do this three times and you win! This game actually made me wonder, will telling time be a useful skill to learn in the future when most clocks are digital?

Measurement and Estimation: You and Becky explore the kitchen fridge where you will learn how to estimate height. Becky will turn into various things (such as a cat or rocket) and then ask you to stack food items next to her that match her height. For examples, how many olives match Becky's height. Since Becky tells you what items to pick and has you stack them next to her, it's not as challenging or educational as it should be, even for the chosen demographic. It does do good at teaching counting though.

Thinking Skills: This is one of those puzzles where the picture is jumbled up and you have to move the tiles around to fix the image. When the picture looks as it was intended to, you win! I wish I practiced this skill as a kid. I'm terrible at puzzles. Especially those sliding picture ones. ughh they are the worst. Thankfully Big Thinkers Kindergarden made me feel temporarily smart :P

Art Creativity: This one is fun, and exactly what it sounds like. Ben jumps into a painting and allows you to use him as an art experiment. You can drag different facial features on him like different mouths, noses, eyes. You can paint on him and change colors. It's your basic art minigame, but who doesn't love being creative.

First Letter Identification: We've moved onto the playroom now and were jumping head first into the fish tank. Ben and Becky turn into fish and ask you to finish the word at the bottom of the screen. You have to choose the first letter that will finish the word. For example the word is -at. You can choose either an "L" to make the word "Lat" or an "H" to make the word "Hat." I remember the spelling games being my favorite as a kid. Overall, great game for learning how to spell.

We've been having so much fun inside, but I think its about time to head outdoors…

Spelling and Phonics: We head out into the forest (not the safest idea, but okay..) but no worries because we run into some friendly talking squirrels and a big tree. This is the perfect time for Ben to empty his Tardis pockets that contain 12 items. He throws them on the tree and asks you to pick which items begin with the letter he gives you. For example: Which items begin with the letter Z. You would click on Zebra and Zipper.
I really enjoy the animation on this one. Once you get the correct items, the squirrels vaccum up the other items. The whole game is just cute and fun.

Geography and Directions: Were back in the safety of our backyard when Ben decides he wants to play hide and seek. Ben we just got back in one piece! A map will appear with locations you can click on. Becky will give you clues and you have to choose where you think Ben is hiding. This game humbled me. I took way to long to find Ben. Way… to.. long.. It was definetely Becky's horrible clues and not my problem with directions :P

Garden Maze: I don't remember which category this one falls under. It's start off simple enough and gets more interesting. You start off in a garden maze and you have to lead Ben to the exit. Then in the next maze there is food blocking the path. What are we gonna do?!? Luckily Ben has the power to temporarily turn into an animal. You are given a choice of two different animals and you must match the animal to the food. For example: Horse eats hay or monkey eats bananas. This is like a two for one game. You solve the maze while also learning about animals.

Alphabet Skills: In this game Becky and you take to the sky and land upon a fluffy looking cloud. Becky presents you will three letters and asks you to put them in the order that they appear in the alphabet. After that, you can click on any letter in the alphabet and Becky will tell you what the letter is. Then she'll turn into something that starts with the letter. For example: If you click on a B, she'll turn into a balloon. Then you repeat the same two segments again and again. This one is straight to the point and very helpful when looking letters. There is a different animation for each letter so it's neat to see them all.

Reading and Sentences: We excitedly run to the library and find books! So many books! You open a book thats containers a beginner level story. There are some words in the story that are highlighted green. If you click on the green word, you can change it to a different word! When you change the word, the image in the book also changes to match the word you chose! Each time you play its a different story with a different title and image. This is such a creative game and it's probably my favorite.

Counting and Computation: Alright so in this game, we are in space on what looks like one of those board games where you have to move your pieces forward to win. Each space on this path is a different color and Becky wants to get to the end of the path. Ben will spin and give you two random colors. You have to choose which color will get Becky farther on the path. So if the path has a red, blue, grey, and yellow spot and Ben spins a grey and blue, you would choose grey since its farther then the blue on the path. I explained it badly but you are basically picking the color that will get Becky farther on the path. Once you win with colors, the same game is played but with letters. The letters are not in alphabetical order so it takes some thinking. Although it sounds easy in theory (especially for a grown adult) the way the game is set up is pretty advanced for young kids. I appreciate that they threw a harder game in here to challenge the player.

Environmental Science Were back in the forest, but were here on a mission to do good! Some nasty people left a bunch of trash in the forest, so Becky and Ben turn into a trash can and a recycling bin. You then just have to figure out which pieces are trash and which you can recycle.

Music Creativity: We head into the music room. Yes they have a music room…
I want to know more about Becky and Ben. Where do they work? Who are there parents? Are they from this world? Anyway, the three of us have a jam session. You pick an instrument for them to play and then you can choose how fast or slow they play it. You can have them both play at the same time to mix and match your music. There is a concerning moment where if you pick violin, Becky fuses with the violin. She stretches her upper half and her neck becomes the neck of the violin. They do this with other instruments as well, but its not nearly as creepy. I'm still trying to get the human/violin hybrid out of my head.

Sequencing and Patterning: This is a shape and color pattern puzzle. There is a pattern above Ben's head of shapes and colors. For example: a blue circle, a yellow triangle, etc. It may be my hatred for math (which I think this falls under) but this felt more like work then fun. I think there wasn't enough creativity in this minigame to mask the educational part of it.

Counting and Computation: Were still doing math, but back outside. Birds will land on Ben and Becky's arms and you have to count how many birds there are in total. This game is all about adding or counting, no subtraction. Easy stuff and there's cute little birds.

We just completed all 15 games… that can only mean one thing….

WE ARE A BIG THINKER!

I'm not sure why I spent so much time writing this out but if you are a teacher, parent, babysitter, etc, I think this is a good learning tool. There is probably more up to date educational games out there but this really provides that level of nostalgia and wholesomeness. It's just here to teach and it does a fairly good job at it. Now if they decide to make one of these for adults then I'm all in.

I'm not gonna lie, I wrote out a big review for this game and then everything crashed and I lost it. So I'll be more breif and to the point.

Chicken Police is a noir style visual novel following detective Sonny Featherland. Everyone in this world is an animal, including Sonny, who was once part of the famous (maybe somewhat infamous) chicken police. After taking on a new case, Sonny must recruit his former partner while being careful not to get entangled in the crime and mystery that surrounds clawville.

This game could have easily been a gimmick, but it perfectly encapsulates the Noir style. Everything from the atmosphere to the dialogue and characters are what breath life into this game. Every voiceline is fully voiced and every single character has a unique voice. The voice acting is wonderful and no matter what you click on, it has dialogue attached to it. Even revisiting locations will earn you new dialogue. The characters are so interesting that you want to learn more about them and the story follows the Noir genre to a T.

The gameplay is nothing out of the ordinary for a visual novel. There are parts where you can put the evidence together, but the game doesn't allow you to continue unless you have it correct. So its less like you're solving the story yourself and more like you're figuring it out as the story progresses. There is gameplay where you can question the suspects, but I'm not sure if it changes the story or not if you fail. I've always done pretty well on those parts.

Overall, the atmosphere, dialogue, characters, and voice acting carries the game in all the right ways. If you enjoy the Noir style, you may really love this game. It just depends on if thats your cup of tea. If was picked for my Challenge Me and I'm very glad it was!

The final game I played in February. This one is a bit of a two parter review.

Suits: a Business RPG is a hand-drawn rpg-maker game. To review this game, I need to go back to the roots. The inspiration behind the whole thing. Suits is heavily inspired by the game OFF by Mortis Ghost. OFF was an rpg-maker game that was released in 2008 and popularized in 2012 when it was translated into English. Suits shares a common theme, artstyle, and character design. Plus you can find the Batter from OFF in Suits if you explore the rooms.

Suits is a fun little game. I like the simple hand-drawn art and the fact that it's short. The jokes were very hit or miss. A lot of it random and some political. It was a unique little game that felt more like a fan project if anything. I did run into a game breaking bug towards the end that required me to rename a file to fix. I'm pretty sure that will pop up for everyone who plays so I wish the developer would fix it. The ending was abrupt. I thought there might be multiple endings but when I watch others play it, everyone got the same ending. It felt very incomplete.
The story didn't make much sense anyway. It's $1 and probably a very small team so I don't mean to be harsh on it. I really wanted to see how it stacked up against the game that inspired it.

I just got done replaying OFF and although it is old, it's still a fantastic game. The art, the sound design, the music, the characters, the story, everything. It throws you into this strange and surreal world where you piece together the story as you go. It has so many unique elements and the ending absolutely sticks the landing. I haven't played the game since 2012, but replaying it still left me with that uneasy feeling. If you've played it you know what I mean.

Compared to OFF, Suits is a bad imitation that misses on everything that made OFF unique. Both are fun little games, and although Suits is $1, OFF is free. With the game breaking bug and the ending, I probably would not recommend Suits, but I do appreciate it for convincing me to go down memory lane (again).

Spooky's Jumpscare Mansion is a horror game with a cute exterior. You are somehow in the mansion of Spooky the ghost and you have to trek through 1,000 rooms in the mansion to win.

I want to start out by saying that I enjoyed this game! I liked it… but I didn't love it. I'll dedicate the first (and longest) part of my review rant to what I disliked the most. And that is… This game is super duper repetitive!

The goal of the game is to get through one thousand rooms. You just have to run from the beginning of the room to the end of the room and repeat. The problem is that as you run through the mansion, you'll see the same rooms over and over, hundreds of times. The game is free (unless you bought it like me), so I understand that the devs probably had to reuse a lot of the same assets to make it a full fledged game. With that in mind, repeating the same rooms for the full one thousand just feels so incredibly monotonous. I think it also removes a lot of the horror elements. At first, the repetitiveness gives you a false sense of security in the familiarity. Then when the creatures pop up, it's startling! The horror is quickly diluted due to the fact that you'll also see the same monsters over and over again. They pop up randomly and without much build up after their first appearance. One creature freaked me the f*** out the first time I saw it. But after seeing him four more times, I didn't mind. You might die to them once, but when you figure out how to evade or outrun them, then it loses all its horror elements. They do add some monsters and maps as the game goes on, but you get used to it quickly. Maybe if they added more twists and turns or objectives the player could do, I'd like it a little bit more. I was also a little disappointed in the lack of build up or difficulty/intensity as you get further into the mansion. It happens a little bit, but only with some scripted events. Normally I hate being scared, but since it was a lot of the same game, I wanted it to get real scary for Halloween!

Now that I got that out of the way, for a free game, this is actually an excellent game to play, especially during the spooky season. I can imagine it would be a fun game to stream or play with friends. I like the premise and the lore you can gather in the world if you pay enough attention. The sound design is nice. Creepy audio cues and sounds that put you on edge. I enjoy graphics that contradict the theme of games. I love how adorable the graphics are compared to the monsters and storyline.

I don't want to elaborate on the lore or the monsters because that would ruin the fun, but if you enjoy stories/games like SCP: Containment Breach, then you may like this. They are very similar.

I do have the paid version, which comes with all of the DLCs. I don't think these are in the free version, but I could be wrong. I did not beat them all, admittedly, but I tried them all, so I'll give a barebones first impressions review.

Endless Mode: This is what it sounds like. You start at room one and keep going until you die. Some new layouts are added, but since the base game was enough for me, I wasn't much interested in endless mode. This is good for people who want more of a threat level in the game. 

Karamari Hospital:  This one is okay. Its nice that you can explore around a little bit instead of going straight through. There are some new monsters, and it's a shorter DLC. If you like hospital settings, then you may enjoy it. 

Spooky's Dollhouse: Nope. Nah. No way, I'm out. I hate dolls and yet I still loaded this up thinking I'd be able to beat it. This is too scary for me. The new creatures are beyond creepy. I'm too dumb to figure out where to go, and why is there a clown?!? I chickened out and watched a playthrough on YouTube instead. This is a very good DLC. I'll never play it, but I do appreciate its existence. 

I'm not sure why this review was so long, but overall I recommend Spooky. I don't know if I recommend buying it because I haven't played the free version to compare it to my purchased version, but I'm always happy to support indie developers. 

Half Life is just one of those franchises that I regret not playing on release. I never even heard of the games until 2014 when I downloaded Steam for the first time :( I want those nostalgic memories of it! lol

That said, Episode 1 is a fun game. Not amazing, but more Half-Life. It takes place RIGHT after the second game. Gordon and Alyx have to escape from City 17 before it blows up. The controls and graphics still hold up very well. It doesn't feel as old as it is.

There isn't much to say because it's part one of the story and it mostly feels like a small extension of Half Life 2. The same gameplay, characters, and story. I do enjoy having Alyx as a companion throughout the game because I like her character. 

Overall I recommend it on sale. I'll play episode 2 to get the full story and judge it accordingly. If you liked Half-Life 2, then you'll probably like this too! 

Hey everyone! Hope you guys are having a good October. I'm posting a little early because I actually did quite a bit of progress. October is the only time that I can convince myself to play horror games. It's been a tradition of mine to try and knock out as many horror games as I can. A lot of the games I played aren't exactly horror games, as much as they have horror elements. But thats just cause I'm a big wuss lol

I also finally got the game pass that everyone's been talking about! Hopefully I won't neglect my backlog because theres to many good games on there :P

Other then that, I'm still saving up for a steam deck. I'm going to buy one in about ten days and I'm very excited! My laptop has seen better days so its about time. The docking station will have to wait though because thats a few dollars to many.

I'll leave off on a question. Whats your favorite horror game? Or whats a horror game you played this month that surprised you?

Red Bow is a short rpg-maker horror game. You play a little girl named Roh who finds herself transported into different worlds and scenarios. You can choose to help the inhabitants of those worlds or just escape!

The gameplay is very linear. There are a couple of different choices to make in each scenario, which lead to different endings. Overall, it's still a very linear, story-driven narrative. I enjoyed the idea behind the game and the artstyle. The problem is that the game is just too short. You barely get to know the characters or the situations they are in. The game isn't expanded beyond a couple lines of dialogue for each character.

Red Bow is cheap, but I don't know if I'd recommend it at full price anyway, just because it seems a little incomplete. I remember the developer stating that it was a side project while he worked on bigger things. Either way, the game is a nice little horror game. I enjoyed my time with it and if you go in knowing the length, then you probably will too.

Rating: 3/5 Red bows!
Scare Factor: 2/5 haunted houses

NoooOOOoo, curse my laziness. Why didn't I read about this game beforehand :'(

I bought this game because of the reviews. It's overwhemingly positive, and it's a genre I really love. If I researched further, I would have realized the game is in early access. Not only that, it looks like it is years away from being finished. I'm not even upset that I spent money on an unfinished game… I'm upset the game is not finished because it is so dang good!

In Heartbound, you play a boy named Lore who is on a mission to save his trusty dog, Baron. While searching for Baron, he discovers colorful worlds and eccentric characters. If I were to compare this game to another, I'd compare it to the game Undertale or Oneshot. They all share the quirky characters and humor, interesting worldbuilding and unique game mechanics and choices.

The graphics look amazing, especially going through the different worlds (only two worlds are finished atm). Each one being distinct and beautiful. The story has kept me intrigued and I want to know more. There are some really neat mechanics in the game that I won't spoil, but they set the game apart from other games like this.

Overall, there isn't much to say yet. There are only two completed worlds and only about three hours of gameplay. I will say the 3 hours felt like so much more because of how much content they fit in it. I have no doubt that when Heartbound is finished, it will be an amazing game. I don't think I can recommend it just because it is unfinished. The story will just cut you off part way through it. If you want to support the developers, then please go for it! If not, then just wait until it's finished. It may take years, though, with how much is left to do. 

Rating: 4/5 Barons!
Scare Factor: 1/5 Adorable Black Cats!

Wolf & Rabbit is an rpg-maker horror game. There are a dime a dozen of these around, and I enjoy them a lot. You play as a wolf boy named Carroll who is trapped in the house of a rabbit girl. Spooky things are going down and you have to solve the mystery of the house and its residents if you want to escape!

The game follows the usual formula of solving puzzles, interacting with objects and avoiding death endings. There are multiple endings with one being the good ending that explains everything. I'd normally give this an average three pumpkins, but there a couple things that drag it down. There is a lack of direction in the game that leads to you going into every room multiple times to figure out what you're supposed to do or where to go. There are also quite a few errors in the english translation. I don't want to fault anyone in that but it just breaks the tension a little bit during the horror parts.

The story itself is cute and if you like Anthropomorphized animals then you may like it more. The thing I appreciated most about the game was the extras you get after you beat it. I won't spoil that part though.

I didn't really enjoy Wolf & Rabbit, but for the price I can recommend it. You'll be able to see by the steam page if it is something you would enjoy and its a very cheap game. Red Bow cost twice as much and had less content.

Rating: 2/5 Snarky Wolves!
Scare Factor: 2/5 Haunted graveyards!

"my thoughts will follow you into your dreams…"

Omori is a psychological horror game about a boy named Omori and his friends. Playing this game will pull you into its beautiful world and offer you a wide range of emotions from the start to the finish. I get very excited about games that bend the rules of RPG-maker and prove that you can make something incredibly unique and fantastic with the small number of tools given to you. 

I actually don't want to say much about this game because going in blind is the best way to experience it. The game starts off slow and a little confusing, but the more you play, the more the pieces fall together and create an amazing narrative. It's one of those games you'll want to play twice to catch everything…  Just Keep in mind, there are some dark themes in the story, so be careful if you are delicate about certain subject matters.

Now that I have the vague story out of the way, let's talk about the gameplay. You run around solving puzzles and talking to the characters around you. There are different areas to explore and a lot of extra material. There is plenty to do and a lot of extra content that isn't connected to the main story. The game is very long. Especially if you do everything (which I have not.. yet). There is a turn-based battle system. The system uses moods as an advantage/disadvantage in battle. For example: if you make your character happy, their luck and speed go up, and they are stronger against angry enemies. Anger raises attack but lowers defense, etc. It's a unique battle mechanic that took me some getting used to. It helps that you can choose which abilities you want to equip, so you can customize your battle how you want.

The difficulty of the game depends on how much extra stuff you do. I barely did any grinding and some of the boss fights were very difficult but also doable! I never had to go back and grind to beat a boss. There are also a TON of side missions you can do that give you items and XP. The game can be around 25–75 hours depending on how much of a completionist you are! 

Omori is a special game that tackles some deep subjects. Once I started playing, I literally could not stop. I beat the whole thing in a few days. The only reason I don't give Omori a perfect 5 pumpkins is because I didn't really like the ending. I may do a spoiler review at some point, but there were some parts of the story I wished went a different direction. You may feel the opposite way, though. Many people loved it so it just comes down to personal preference. Either way, I 100% recommend this game on or off sale. Just keep in mind the triggers before you play. 

Rating: 4/5 Watermelons!
Scare Factor:  3/5 Witches on Broomsticks! 

I first played Alan Wake in 2010 on Xbox. Then again in Dec. 2016 on Steam. It's actually my first reviewed game on this site! So this review will just be of the EPIC Games remastered version that was released last year.

The quality of the remaster depends on whether you played the original game on PC or console. The remaster looks a lot better if you are used to the console version of Alan Wake. The remaster mostly fixes the visuals. improved lighting and textures, and the environments look better. I'm not an expert on this sort of thing, but I watched a lot of comparison videos on YouTube which helped me spot the differences. I recommend watching some of those to help influence your decision.

The character models have been changed a lot. They look better, but it was hard to get used to. I played a lot of Alan Wake growing up, so Alan's new look really threw me off. It did, however, get rid of the non-intentionally creepy weird looks the characters had due to the old graphics.

It doesn't look like anything new has been added to the game, other than some hidden QR codes that lead to something interesting if you scan them. I'm going off of memory, but everything else appears to be exactly the same, other than the updated graphics, lighting, atmosphere, and models.

I would give this remaster a higher rating, but I ran into a few bugs. The dialogue was not synced up with the characters' mouths. It also had some stuttering. I played it on my desktop, so I know it wasn't a problem on my end. As far as remasters go, this one is pretty average. It doesn't add anything new, but it was much needed and if you haven't played the game, then it's a good place to start. 

Rating: 3/5 Coffee Thermoses! 
(just for the remaster. The game itself is an easy 4/5)

Scare Factor: 2/5 running zombies!

Midnight Ghost Hunt is like if Phasmophobia, Prop Hunt, and Dead by Daylight had a baby, but that baby didn't quite live up to either one of them. 

In Midnight Ghost Hunt, you can play as either a ghost or a hunter. The ghosts have to hide in different items until the timer runs out. Once the timer runs out and it hits midnight, they get a boost in strength and can hunt down the hunters. The ghosts win if they survive the night and kill the hunters. The ghosts can hide in almost any item on the map. The larger the item in which you hide, the more health you have. If a hunter spots you, you have a chance to jump into other objects in an attempt to get away or throw yourself at a hunter to stun him and escape. You have different abilities depending on which ghost you choose. You can unlock your abilities by getting in-game currency. You cannot hide in one place the entire time. There is a meter that fills up, forcing you to move around, making it easier for a hunter to spot you. 

The hunter's job is to kill all the ghosts before it turns midnight. If it turns midnight, all of the ghosts revive, and the hunters have to kill all of the ghosts who are now more powerful. The hunter has a wide variety of weapons and perks they can use to hunt ghosts. They also have health packs and EMTS to heal and revive teammates. They force a ghost out of hiding by shooting or hitting the item the ghost is in. They also have equipment like EMF's or footprint trackers that can help them locate the ghosts. The ghosts do have abilities that can mess with these items, so hunters cannot always trust what they see. If all the ghosts are found and destroyed, the hunters win.

Now that we have the gameplay out of the way, let's talk about the pros and cons. Right now, the game is a little barebones. It has a great foundation, but more needs to be added to it. It does get boring after a few games. Using the equipment as a hunter sometimes feels a little pointless. A lot of times, the ghosts can mess with them, and you spend more time reading the equipment than just going around the map and flamethrowing everything.

There are a lot of good things about the game, though. The gameplay, at its core, is fun. It's like a polished prop hunt with more variety.

The maps are beautiful. There aren't that many, but they look really nice. Especially the circus. There is a ping system, so you don't have to be on mic to play. I played during the free weekend and getting into matches was fast. It slowed down quite a bit after the free weekend, though. The game usually replaces people with bots, which is less fun. 

Overall, Ghost Hunt is a fun time, especially if you're playing with friends. It's still in early access, so it has plenty of potential. I think it's a little boring now because I don't have friends that are interested in playing this. That definitely changes the fun factor. I'd recommend buying it half off like I did. 

Rating: 3/5 angry ghosts
Scare Factor: 1/5 adorable vampire bats 

Criminal Origins is a horror game where you play an FBI agent named Ethan Thomas who is trying to clear his name and track down an active serial killer. This game holds up really well! I've never played this game before, so I was shocked to learn it's over 16 years old!

It is hard to rate this game on spookiness because it is so old. The dialogue and story are kind of cheesy, and a lot of the moments that would have scared the bejesus out of me on release kind of fall flat due to graphics or the trope being overdone after the game's release. Don't take this as me saying this isn't a scary game. The atmosphere is fantastic and it brings a feeling of dread to the player. You always feel like you're being watched or you're stuck in a place you don't want to be. There were only a couple of moments I can say scared me, but they REALLY scared me. 

The combat still holds up nicely. You can pick up weapons off the walls, floor, etc. Almost anything can be a weapon, and you can really feel the impact when you hit enemies with it. You can also parry to protect yourself from enemies. I think the AI is pretty intelligent for how old the game is. Sometimes they even snuck up on me when I least suspected them. You also get some tools you can use to investigate. You actually feel like you are a detective or an FBI agent instead of just a protagonist that goes around shooting everything. 

The story is a mixed bag. There were parts I really appreciated, and then towards the end, I think it falls flat and goes in a direction that doesn't suit it. This is one of those games, like Half Life, that I wish I played on release because I would have gotten the full experience. I still enjoyed it though, and I'm glad I gave it a shot all these years later. Oh, surprisingly, I ran into almost no bugs the entire game. I kinda thought it would be riddled with them.

I recommend this game on sale if you somehow haven't played it like me! I've seen it around 3 usd and thats a steal. 

rating: 3/5 Axe Murderers

scare factor:  3/5 killer mannequins 

I played this on itch.io so that's why there are no achievements attached. 

Night in the Woods is a sidescrolling adventure game. You play as Mae, a 20-year-old college dropout who is forced to return to her old mining town, Possum Springs. While she thinks about her choices and reconnects with her friends, she also stumbles upon a creepy town mystery…

I'll try to be vague in this review to avoid spoiling anything. There will be very small plotline spoilers, because I want to talk about the things I enjoyed. 

Night in the Woods is a wonderful game that I didn't appreciate for the first half. I kept waiting for something to happen. I was bored. By the end, I loved it and realized that the moments where "nothing" was happening and you were with your old friends in your old town, those were the best moments! I really want to do a replay sometime soon to fully appreciate the entire thing. 

The gameplay is pretty simplistic. Some small puzzles, but mostly just interacting with people and reading dialogue. It's a story game, with its main draw being the narrative and the worldbuilding that you get sucked into. The characters are all flawed. Mae being the most flawed of them all. The game does a great job of forcing you into situations that feel frustrating but also real and relatable. You want Mae to be a better version of herself, but the game forces you to play out scenarios as they happen, and you learn to accept the protagonist and her problems.  It's one of the most relatable games I've played in a while, being in my 20s myself and dealing with mental illness.

The way the game tackles mental health is commendable. It does it in such a way that doesn't feel corny or forced, but real and approachable. I think the soundtrack is great even though I'm awful at the minigame. Overall, if you want a character-driven narrative. Give this a shot. Don't go in expecting anything specific. Just enjoy the world and the characters. I highly recommend it! 

Rating: 4/5 creepy woods
Scare Factor: 1/5 SpoOoOky ghosts

Before Your Eyes is like a visual novel or an interactive movie. You need a webcam to play it. You can play without a webcam, but it really improves the experience if you use one. Also, this isn't a horror game, but I beat it, so it's going in with the rest :P

In Before Your Eyes, you play as a lost soul who is given the chance to sift through the memories of his formal life from beginning to end. The catch is, when you blink, the memory fades away and you move onto another. 

This game is short and sweet. I found myself with dry burning eyes, trying to keep them open as long as possible because I wanted to see each memory to its fullest. It's impossible to do, and that just makes the game more special. The game is about an hour and a half, but I recommend buying it. It has a beautiful story. 

I finished this game for my POP challenge. I actually beat it almost a month ago, but I'm lazy and forgot to write a review :( I talked about it a little in the last review so I won't go into detail.

Hades is a fantastic game. I'm not a fan of roguelikes but the little details made me fall in love with the game. There is so much care and precision put in. The music, sound design, voice acting, characters, different features and things you can interact with. The gameplay itself was rewarding. You will die a bunch. In fact, you have to. When you die you have a chance to upgrade your stuff and get stronger. I also played on God Mode, which made the game easier for me. Without that, I probably would not be able to beat it because I am awful at these games. It never felt too daunting though, because the game lets you choose your abilities and powers to take on your run. The controls feel so precise too. I never felt unsure of what was going to happen when I attacked or dashed around the area.

The story is also really nice. It does require you (small spoiler) to beat the game ten times to get the actual ending. The first few times take ages, then it gets a lot easier to beat it because your experienced and stronger. The story takes its time and it's not groundbreaking but you enjoy the characters and care about their struggles.

If I were to point out one negative thing, it would be that the game (and this is probably just my dislike for repetition) feels very repetitive and boring after a certain number of runs. It's around the time you have been through it a lot and definitely have the hang of the game and your doing great, but you still have to keep pushing through after a while. around the 6-9 completion run I felt like it was a chore.

Overall, the game is fantastic and if this is your genre, then you may just fall in love with it! If you aren't into these types of games, maybe get it on sale or try a demo. I'm not the target audience for this and I still enjoyed it!

This was chosen for my Challenge me challenge

My Friend Pedro is a sidescrolling shooter game where you can do a lot of parkour and cool tricks. Watching a quick minute of gameplay will tell you if you will like this game or not. It's not my type of game but I still really enjoyed it. It gives you a score at the end of each level based on how well you did and how stylish you were doing it. I kind of ignored the score so I could focus on playing my own way. If you are a completionist you'll love this even more.

Pedro (the banana) also adds comedy to the game since you are a silent (pro?)tagonist. The game is short and every chapter adds a new element to the game to keep it fresh throughout. I didn't really understand the ending at all, but I enjoyed the ride.

Overall, if you enjoy sidescroller shooters, scoreboards and gore, you might love My Friend Pedro. I recommend this on sale. Off sale its a little steep for 20 USD but its a very unique game.

This was chosen for my Play or Pay challenge

I have an interesting relationship with this game. I won it on steamgifts 6 years ago! I played it instantly after I won it before they released chapter 4 and 5. I didn't realize that the game had a reputation of releasing chapters late. Apparantly it took 9 years to release all the chapters. soo.. I marked it as finished after beating chapter 4. Finally years later they released chapter 5, but I forgot about the game entirely! So when it was picked in POP for me I was super excited. Plus they added achievements! Was the entire thing worth the wait? I definitely think so.

Without spoiling the story, Kentucky Route Zero is a point and click game featuring a man named Conway and his dog, on their last trip to deliver a package. From there kicks off a magical realist journey about capitilism, sacrifice, friendship, and the unknown.

Overall I loved this game! But I'm going to break down the good and the bad because it is not a game for everyone.

Pros:
I enjoyed the dialogue and the characters. I like that at several points in the game you can get different character perspectives depending on who you choose. The soundtrack is great. Both atmospheric, chilling and nostalgic in a lot of ways. The game has a lot of interesting surreal ways to give its narrative. I enjoy games that get creative or metaphorical, but its more like a storybook or a piece of art with a message, then a standard video game.

Cons:
The game can be very confusing. It leans in on its magical realism so its hard to tell what is real and what is not. I know thats the point, but the narrative jumps around often and the story left me very confused. I did have to look up some things, which may just be a personal experience but I know I'm not the only one confused often by the narrative. Also, the game feels very sluggish. The characters walk slow, some parts drag on. It can get boring at parts.

Overall I still really enjoyed it. I like games that experiment and try new things so I knew it was something special to me when I played it 6 years ago. This game is not for everyone and it does have its faults. I would 100% recommend it on sale because of that.

I played this for my Play or Pay: Medium game challenge

VA-11 Hall-A is a cyberpunk bartending visual novel where you mix drinks and listen to your customers vent as you learn more about them and the world around you.

You play as Jill, a bartender in a bar VA-11 Hall-A (Valhalla). The gameplay is mostly reading text while mixing drinks. It's a very casual game and it's fun to get to know the characters and learn about the world around you.

The characters are very interesting and the dialogue is unique. I didn't quite like all of the dialogue. Not a specific reason but its like reading a book where some parts did not peak my interest. The soundtrack is fun and it lets you pick the songs you want to listen to while bartending. The game also has multiple endings so there is a lot of replay value!

If you are into the cyberpunk setting or relaxing visual novels with interesting characters, I definetely recommend this one, both off sale or on sale!

I played this for my Play or Pay: short game challenge

I have so many mixed feelings about this game. I didn't know what to rate it!

In Reventure you play a "hero" who is on a quest to save the princess. The game has one hundred different endings, each ending taking from around 10 seconds to around 15 minutes to get. It's not a full game where you get different endings; getting the different endings is the game.

Your goal is to save the princess, but you can choose your adventure and go around trying new things until you get a new ending. the endings can be absurd, out of the box, and very funny.

I applaud the developers for putting so much into this game. So many endings, secrets, etc. Each achievement is linked to an ending so you have to get them all to actually beat the game and get 100%. It's kind of a double edged sword because although its the charm, the numerous endings is also the problem. Getting all of the endings can be a very repetitive and difficult process..

When you get an ending (which usually takes around a minute at first and 10 minutes later) you get an ending screen telling you what happened to that character or world. Then you start over. It can be very.very.very repetitive after a while because you have to collect the same items and traverse the same map several several times. The game does offer some ways to fast travel as you get further in the game, but collecting items limits your ability to use those traveling methods.

Finding the endings can be difficult too. I know that's the entire point of the game, but some endings can be extremely hard to figure out! There are hints and an item that can help you out, but you have to figure out what items you need (you can't carry a lot of them) and what the game wants from you. After about 60 endings I had to start using a guide and playing in short bursts because it was difficult and a bit tedious. I know that won't be the experience for everyone, but that's what brought the score down for me.

The game is 100% worth the price though. Funny writing, plenty of play value, and a lot of love was put into this. Despite my love/hate relationship with this game, I really did enjoy myself and the first half was especially fun for me. The very end of the game is satisfying (although getting the 101'th achievement was a b***). If you are a completionist you will enjoy Reventure. For the small asking price, I definetely recommend Reventure on sale or off sale.