Spirits of Xanadu

Spirits of Xanadu

Desolate spaceships out in the depths of space always make for good game settings, and Spirits of Xanadu is no exception. The game draws its inspiration from titles such as System Shock 2 but obviously cannot compete in terms of size and depth. It is still an impressive offering from a very small team, though, and makes for an engaging experience. The voice acting, in particular, is a highlight, but the interactive environments are also a great touch. If you enjoy exploration-based games and creepy locations, don’t pass up on Spirits of Xanadu.

Gameplay: The focus is more on exploration than puzzle solving, but it is still very enjoyable.

Graphics: The visuals are not cutting-edge but still impressive enough for a small indie title.

Sound: The audio is decent, but the voice acting is very good

Nightbanes

Nightbanes

Nightbanes features a great setting, superlative card artwork and rules that are easy to understand. There is more than enough variety when it comes to cards to keep things interesting and the multitude of play modes are also a bonus. Best of all, the game is completely free to play, so there is no excuse not to give it a chance. You can drop some cash to purchase booster packs or cards, but with enough time and dedication you can still have plenty of fun without spending a cent.

Gameplay: Very easy to learn and also extremely addictive.

Graphics: The superlative card art is varied and very detailed.

Sound: Atmospheric music and great sound effects

Cho Dengeki Stryker All Ages Version

Cho Dengeki Stryker All Ages Version

Cho Dengeki Stryker is a visual novel that is packed to the brim with great visuals, awesome audio and an engaging storyline. You’ll encounter a few clichés and plot holes, but overall the storyline is stellar and very engaging. It is also much longer than most visual novels and the additional routes boosts the replay value dramatically. If you are a fan of the genre you owe it to yourself to check this game out.

Gameplay: Thanks to an engaging storyline and great characters this visual novel is definitely worth the investment in time and money.

Graphics: The resolution is a little low, but the artwork and animations are top notch.

Sound: The voice acting is superb and there are tons of audio tracks

Friendship Club (Force Of Habit)

Friendship Club (Force Of Habit)

Young Timmy Bibble is a boy with a very active imagination and he uses it to make his four imaginary friends battle each other. Ranging from a mountain beast and crazy old prospector to a duck and ninja-bandit-skeleton-thing, these characters are ready to kill each other for their spot by Timmy’s side. As far as storylines goes it’s pretty wacky, but then again who needs an excuse for some good old fashioned arcade action

Trapped Dead: Lockdown

Trapped Dead: Lockdown

If you are not tired of killing zombies yet, Trapped Dead: Lockdown invites you to a small American town to get acquainted with the undead locals. The game features five different playable characters, hordes of zombies and buckets of blood, but because it is a linear experience it can also become rather repetitive. The game is still entertaining and features a lengthy campaign as well as multi-player with four players, but if you are not a fan of the genre this is unlikely to sway you.

Gameplay: Enjoyable, but repetitive and there are a couple of minor annoyances.

Graphics: The visuals are detailed and the locations varied.

Sound: Decent voice acting, but the music and sound effects are largely forgettable

Nephil’s Fall by Exordium Games

Nephil’s Fall by Exordium Games

Start weak and build up your character until they are an unstoppable force. That is usually how progression works in games. Some games strip you of all powers at the start and require you to slowly regain them again, but Nephil’s Fall dares to do things a little differently

Blade Kitten

Blade Kitten

Blade Kitten is a nice platform game in a style that’s just not available on computer anymore. The visuals are nice, the characters likeable and the gameplay bar a few annoyances here and there is solid. It is obviously not going to appeal to the usual PC crowd but if you can appreciate a platform game that won’t tax your skills too much and stars a pink haired cat girl heroine then there’s no excuse not to pick this up.
Gameplay: It’s a little low on challenges and feels like it’s over too soon but definitely fun while it lasts with some nice replay value.

Graphics: Colorful shell-shaded visuals set this one apart from the pack.

Sound: The voices are ok and the music not too bad either. The theme song is damn catchy though

Spirit of War

Spirit of War

Turn-based strategy titles that are based on the First World War aren’t exactly known for their accessibility, especially when there are hexes involved, but Spirit of War manages to buck this trend. It has a wealth of units, plenty of maps and the skirmishes are quite addictive. Thanks to the lengthy solo campaign as well as the inclusion of hotseat multiplayer the game definitely provides value for money. There are a couple of niggles that prevent it from scoring higher, but overall I really enjoyed this title.

Gameplay: A nice selection of different units and gameplay that is very accessible to newcomers.

Graphics: Nothing too extravagant, but still has plenty of neat touches.

Sound: Unobtrusive music and decent sound effects.

Sakura Angels

Sakura Angels

Sakura Angels is a definite improvement over Sakura Spirit, but still falls short of greatness. Players who like plenty of fan service and don’t mind a story that is a bit clichéd will enjoy the game though and the artwork is beautiful. It is also a more risqué game compared to Sakura Spirit, but once again the title is more ecchi than hentai, so will be tame to people used to nukige titles.

Gameplay: The story is a bit more involved this time round and there are much more choices.

Graphics: Beautiful art work with plenty of detail.

Sound: Once again, no voice acting, but the music isn’t too bad

Sakura Spirit

Sakura Spirit

Sakura Spirit features some very nice visuals, but despite an interesting setup the plot never really goes anywhere. The lack of animations or poses are also very noticeable, although the CGs are very good. The nudity that is included in the game definitely leans more towards the ecchi side of the scale and not hentai, which might be a letdown for fans of the genre. There are better visual novels available, but hopefully Winged Cloud learns from their mistakes, as there are not many Western developers who bother making these titles.

Gameplay: The story is rather short and not very engaging.

Graphics: Very detailed and features nice character designs, but the amount of outfits and poses are lacking.

Sound: The soundtrack is nice, but the game features no speech