CODE VEIN

CODE VEIN

Code Vein is an anime-flavored action role-playing game where players step into the shoes of a vampire like Revenant with the gift to save the world. The similarities to Dark Souls are immediately apparent, but Code Vein has enough of its own unique quirks that prevent it from feeling like a straight-up copy. The story is interesting, as are the various companions you meet along the way, but levels that are boring in both layout and design detract from the experience. The game still has plenty to offer for those willing to put in the time, but there are better souls-like titles on the market.

Gameplay: Code Vein sticks closely to the soul-like formula of fighting enemies, collecting materials to level up, and defeating bosses to unlock new areas.

Graphics: The character designs are great, although the game is heavy on fan service, and some levels look very drab.

Sound: The soundtrack features a couple of memorable tunes, and the quality of the voice acting is generally good

Shank

Shank

Players must take control of an ex-hitman and go on a blood-fueled rampage against the people who ruined his life. Shank feels like a Robert Rodriguez movie captured in comic book form, but while the violence is impressive, the game can become repetitive. There’s a decent amount of levels and enemies, but boss battles are a let down once their weaknesses become apparent. Fans of hack-and-slash games will enjoy Shank, but it is not quite as memorable as other titles in the genre.

Gameplay: Defeat waves of enemies using melee and ranged attacks while also doing some light platforming on the way to bosses.

Graphics: The comic book art style is eye-catching, and the animations in Shank are really good.

Sound: The music is fitting for the style of the game, and the voice acting is passable

Kena: Bridge of Spirits

Kena: Bridge of Spirits

Help a young spirit guide named Kena reach a sacred Mountain Shrine by freeing the spirits trapped in a forgotten village. The game features a combination of exploration, combat, and puzzle solving but doesn’t offer anything terribly unique or original. However, the visuals are beautiful, to say the least, and the soundtrack is exceptionally well done. Even with multiple difficulty settings, the combat can be challenging, and the story is much darker than the visuals suggest. Kena: Bridge of Spirits is an impressive debut title, but it can feel a little shallow for players expecting a full souls-like experience.

Gameplay: The combat is enjoyable and challenging, but apart from the Rot, there’s not much that players haven’t seen done many times before.

Graphics: The stunning visuals can put many AAA titles to shame.

Sound: The game features a stellar soundtrack and excellent voice acting

Elden Ring

Elden Ring

Elden Ring is a souls-like title that takes all the best elements of the genre and wraps it up in a massive open-world setting. Playing as a Tarnished, players venture into the Lands Between on a heroic journey to become an Elden Lord. Unlike many open-world titles, Elden Ring is a joy to explore and features plenty of hidden dungeons, catacombs, and caves to keep players busy. Simply completing the main storyline will take hours, and the addition of different endings, tons of secrets, and lots of optional bosses extend the playtime even further. It’s more accessible than other FromSoftware titles but still offers a challenging experience that should not be missed.

Graphics: The world of Elden Ring is visually distinct and filled with memorable bosses and scenic locations packed with detail.

Gameplay: Elden Ring has so many options for weapons and spells that very few players will end up with the exact same experiences.

Sound: The game’s soundtrack, sound effects, and voice acting are all superb

Zombie Derby: Pixel Survival

Zombie Derby: Pixel Survival

Zombie Derby: Pixel Survival is a simple arcade game where the goal is to drive through a gauntlet of zombies and obstacles while trying to prevent damage to your vehicle. This is impossible on the first attempt, so players must use the money they earn from killing zombies to purchase vehicle upgrades. This simple loop of dying and upgrading until a level is passable won’t appeal to everyone, especially players who hate seeing mobile releases on PC. Nevertheless, the game can be fun, and the new art style is an improvement over the previous two titles in the series.

Gameplay: The gameplay loop is straightforward, as all players have to do is kill zombies and make it to the end of the level with their vehicle intact to proceed to the next.

Graphics: Pixel Survival features a new art style for the series, making it look less gruesome and much more lighthearted than the previous titles.

Sound: The guitar-driven soundtrack is decent, and the sound effects are suitable for a zombie game

Days Gone

Days Gone

Roam around a post-apocalyptic Oregon as Deacon St. John, an ex motorcycle club member trying to survive the aftermath of a virus outbreak that turned the population into violent zombie-like creatures. Deacon lost his wife during the outbreak and the game picks up two years later as he goes on a crusade against the Freakers, bandits, and everyone else who gets in his way. While Days Gone features most of the cliches found in other open-world titles its compelling story, nailbiting combat, and beautiful environments make it worth playing through. It is also filled with enough additional content to keep players coming back for more.

Gameplay: With a large, beautiful map to explore and plenty of missions as well as sidequests there’s always something to do in Days Gone.

Graphics: The game looks incredible on PC and is filled with a lot of detail as well as really good mocap performances.

Sound: Sam Witwer steals the show as the voice of Deacon St. John, but the rest of the cast also delivers stellar performances and the rest of the audio lives up to expectations

Ravva and the Cyclops Curse

Ravva and the Cyclops Curse

Ravva and the Cyclops Curse is a 2D platform adventure that draws inspiration from the 8-bit NES era. Players must help a young summoner fight through ten levels of monsters to defeat the evil Cyclops that cursed their mother. Along for the ride are four summons that offer different abilities for Ravva to use. Some of these are more useful than others, but they add some variety to the gameplay. The game is very short but offers an entertaining experience while it lasts and should appeal to all retro fans.

Gameplay: Cycle through different summons while platforming through levels filled with traps and monsters.

Graphics: The visuals look authentically 8-bit, but despite the limited color palette everything remains clear and visible.

Sound: Each area only has one tune, but the music is upbeat and cheerful

Q-YO Blaster

Q-YO Blaster

Pick from an assortment of strange characters and save the Earth from an alien insect invasion in this quirky side-scrolling shooter. While the game only features ten levels, it has multiple modes, difficulty settings, special weapons, and characters to choose from. The 2D visuals look good, especially with the CRT filter enabled and the game offers a decent challenge while remaining accessible to newcomers. It does have some annoyances though, and the quality of the English translation leaves a lot to be desired.

Gameplay: Even with only ten levels the game features plenty of characters to choose from and the different modes as well as difficulty settings shake things up a bit.

Graphics: The 2D visuals look good thanks to some impressively large sprites and the characters as well as bosses are unique.

Sound: The soundtrack features a nice assortment of tunes and the sound effects capture the spirit of the genre perfectly

Ookibloks

Ookibloks

Help Ooki the Monkey retrieve his stolen bananas from some nefarious crabs in this classic action puzzler. The game was originally a mobile title but works well on PC and feels more like a long-lost arcade title than something that was designed for a touch screen. It has more than 100 levels to keep players busy along with daily challenges and a score attack mode. While not perfect, it is still an easy recommendation for fans of the genre, especially considering the price.

Gameplay: Pushing Ooki from block to block while gathering bananas and avoiding enemies is trickier than it sounds, especially when trying to get a perfect combo.

Graphics: The visuals are bright and colorful with cut designs for everything from Ooki to the enemies and bosses.

Sound: The soundtrack is very upbeat and catchy, which makes its inclusion as MP3 files within the game folder even better

Neon Chrome

Neon Chrome

Pick a clone and battle through the many floors of a skyscraper to reach the top and take down the evil Overseer in this top-down roguelike shooter. Players must deal with everything from assault drones and cyborgs to military robots and security guards, but fortunately, there’s plenty of firepower to unlock and cybernetic enhancements that can make the job easier. Neon Chrome features plenty of action, but the procedural levels can begin to look too similar after a while and the boss battles are somewhat uninspiring. Nevertheless, blowing up almost everything in sight while upgrading weapons and picking perks is a lot of fun and the game has plenty of replay value.

Gameplay: Battle through procedural levels while collecting loot and unlocking new weapons and perks.

Graphics: The visuals look good and the game fully embraces its cyberpunk aesthetic, but levels look very similar after a while.

Sound: The synthesizer-heavy soundtrack and combination of gunshots and explosions enhance the experience