Team Ladybug’s project has, at long last, launched via Steam Early Access, affectionately mixing the setting and characters of the famed Lodoss War franchise with stylish Metroidvania action and gorgeous pixel art. Which sounds fantastic on paper, but how does it all work out in practice?
Imagine a game with plenty of potential and some decent ideas packed into it. Now imagine that this same game is also very much capable of driving me up the wall and making my brain boil like the soup I just left on the stove. Done? Good.
Much like the first installment, DreadOut 2 stars Indonesian teen Linda Melinda, a girl with a special affinity for the supernatural – and if you don’t remember what happened to her in the original game, don’t worry, the sequel has a special “The Story So Far”-type video to get you up to speed.
You almost immediately take control of two protagonists: a boy hoping to make it to the top of a massive tower, and an adorably rotund soccer ball of a cat that tags along for the ride and lends a helping paw whenever it’s necessary.
It’s not every day that one comes across a game developed by a Hungarian indie studio, so needless to say, I booted up Tank Maniacs with mixed excitement and anticipation.
The overall premise of being stranded on a Mars base and having to tackle Lovecraftian horrors is nothing if not promising – it’s positively brimming with potential waiting to be tapped.
Minoria stars two agents of the Church – Sister Semilla and her partner Fran – on a mission to stop the witches from conducting a heretical ceremony, but frankly, if you’re coming to this game primarily for the plot, you might as well turn around now.
Right as one boots up Eldervale, the influences of early Silent Hill installments can immediately be felt: the player is thrust into a multi-storey building and has to rely on their trusty map to navigate the place, look for key items, solve mind-bending puzzles and occasionally bash in the head of an undead nurse or two with a steel pipe, although that last bit is somewhat optional.
The Sinking City sees you take on the role of a private detective haunted by mysterious visions, who then journeys to the city of Oakmont to uncover the truth behind his unsettling dreams. This, as one might expect, brings him face to face with all sorts of unusual phenomena and a host of peculiar citizens as he explores streets stricken by flood and famine alike.
Nelly Cootalot: Spoonbeaks Ahoy! HD is, as the title not-so-subtly implies, the HD re-release of a freeware adventure game from 10+ years ago, featuring pirates, puzzles, leprechauns and an extremely – and I do mean *extremely* – wide beard.