DeVuego

Ragebound can be a hell of a ride, and on these terms it has been one of my favorite games of the year.

Strikey Sisters really feels like a game that should have been released 25 years ago, both in its unique blend of classic genres and its almost era perfect presentation. It really makes you wonder how it took people this long to make a brick breaking game like this. While this combination is plenty of fun, there are still a few gameplay mechanics that could use a little more polish and balancing to perfect the recipe. Still, it will likely deliver a lot of enjoyment for just about anybody who enjoys clever gameplay or well executed retro design ideas.

GRIS is perhaps the least developed in terms of gameplay and its more ambiguous approach to storytelling might turn off those of you who prefer a more concrete story. However, it also happens to be incredibly gorgeous and features a fantastic soundtrack that helps sell the emotional weight of its wordless narrative. So, personally, I found GRIS to be a worthwhile experience but I can also fully understand those who won’t see the appeal.

The core mechanics are perfectly competent and generally fun, the story is a little more solid by the end, and the music is genuinely great throughout. In other words, the adventure proves to be a fairly enjoyable one by the end, it just happens to be punctuated by moments of frustration throughout.

With its gorgeous visuals, moody story, and clever platforming gameplay, Nihilumbra is definitely trying its best to join the hallowed halls of indie greatness. However, I think it falls short, but not by much. Though they might seem contradictory, I would argue that the narrator needed a bit more gravitas while the story needed a little more subtlety to let the gamer decipher more of their own emotions. And while the gameplay is great, I really would have preferred a longer campaign that continued the brilliantly conceived difficulty curve and fewer post game levels that drastically up the difficulty. Of course, there are plenty of people who will probably adore the challenge, but I imagine that many will also be upset to find half of the game is overly frustrating. These problems, though, are actually quite small because the core package is so well executed and well worth just about any gamer’s time.