Come see all the games, more games than one can play. I put some of them in my special book, thinking of days distant with hours unturned.
In this episode, fourteen more games I have not played are added to the Crashbook.
262/ LUNARK
A pixel-art sci-fi adventure set in the midst of a rebellion against a totalitarian regime, LUNARK is a modern take on the 2D cinematic platformer genre of the ’90s. Run, jump, hang, climb, roll, and shoot your way through gorgeous and mysterious locations!
Crash notes: Someone made their own take on Flashback for 2023 and I want it.
Windows | Steam Link | Just Released
263/ The Forest Cathedral
The Forest Cathedral is a first-person environmental thriller set on a remote island. Playing as scientist Rachel Carson, players will slowly uncover the effects of DDT by using advanced environmental technology to solve 2D/3D connected puzzles in this dramatic reimagining of Silent Spring.
Crash notes: I am not convinced this will be a good game. But it goes into Crashbook because I never expected someone would create a platformer based on the 1962 non-fiction book Silent Spring. This was a crucial book in the history of environmentalism; in it Rachel Carson made the scientific case that synthetic pesticides such as DDT were disastrous for the environment.
Windows | Steam Link | Just Released
264/ Headlong Hunt
A puzzle game about capturing a creature. Learn to guide it and hide from it in simple yet surprisingly deep and satisfying ways.
Crash notes: Toombler is a prolific puzzlescript game maker who previously made it into the Puzzleworks series with Secure. This is Toombler’s first commercial release.
Windows | Steam Link | Unreleased
265/ ARC SEED
Face the interstellar Archangels in a turn-based tactical game with deckbuilding elements and destructible environment, where you pilot powerful mechs to save the Earth from destruction.
Crash notes: Someone is working hard to make Evangelion: The Game without triggering legal action.
Windows | Steam Link | Unreleased
266/ Two Falls (Nishu Takuatshina)
Explore 17th century Canadian wilderness through the eyes of Jeanne, a French woman who crossed the Atlantic to start anew and Maikan, an Innu hunter trying to discover what’s disturbing the forest. Your choices will shape the traits of the protagonists in this narrative single-player experience.
Crash notes: Strikingly beautiful but impossible to know what this game will turn out to be – heavy-handed or well-written or nothing but collectible hunts.
Windows | Steam Link | Unreleased
267/ Wall World
Explore the mysterious Wall World on your giant robospider: mine for valuable resources, upgrade your equipment to fight off hordes of monsters, and discover exotic biomes in-between attacks. Will you be able to survive and learn the secrets of the Wall World?
Crash notes: I’m guessing you have limited time to “delve into the wall” before your robospider on the surface gets attacked, so there is a constant tension between exploration and defence. Love unearthly concepts like this; some of the backdrops are awesome.
Windows | Steam Link | Just Released
268/ Trade Bots: A Technical Analysis Simulation
Trade Bots is an educational simulation game featuring technical analysis and algorithmic trading. Decide when to buy or sell an unknown stock based solely on patterns and technical indicators. As your profit increases, unlock upgrades that help expedite and automate gameplay with bots.
Crash notes: Hmm. I’m afraid I tend to view technical analysis as a game of pareidolia, the human predilection to interpret meaning from formless noise; it’s like having a “system” for betting on the horses. So I have mixed feelings about this educational game because technical analysis is not a science. If this gets more people obsessed with candlestick charts, I don’t think that’s a good thing. These are personal opinions and not those of my employer, just saying.
Windows, Mac | Steam Link | Just Released
269/ Obsidian Legion
Embark on a dark journey in this 2D Adventure Game. Rise to the challenge as you fight your way in a land of perils and wonders. Explore the world and collect the tools necessary to overcome the many obstacles set before you. Find the path that leads to the Obsidian Legion.
Crash notes: Some nice looking graphics but I think this one has lots of time left on the developer clock.
Windows | Steam Link | Unreleased
270/ Trans Neuronica
LINK nodes; UNTANGLE paths; REBUILD memory; ASSESS humans; A puzzle where logic goes hand in hand with surgical precision and humans ask artificial intelligence for help. But only if you trust them enough.
Crash notes: This is the game that Electron Dance reader Maurycy Zarzycki (Evidently Cube) has been working on for years. Coming out next month.
Windows | Steam Link | Unreleased
271/ DE-EXIT – Eternal Matters
Embark on a surrealistic afterlife journey to discover the secrets of the broken and mysterious Plane of Memory in this cinematic adventure with a hint of stealth. Dive into a wonderful voxel world with an intense atmosphere and save the day!
Crash notes: I have the impression this is a highly cinematic game, more focused on story and theme. I’m very curious.
Windows | Steam Link | Just Released
272/ Soko Solitaire
SokoSolitaire is a card-pushing puzzle game inspired by Sokoban and Solitaire. You’ll find yourself pushing, stacking or flipping cards and more across 60 different handcrafted levels.
Crash notes: The next Sokoban mashup from Daisy Games who brought us the SokoChess games.
Windows, Mac | Steam Link | Unreleased
273/ 1984
1984 is a first-person survival adventure set in Orwell’s timeless dystopia. As Winston Smith you must carefully plot your secret rebellion against Big Brother, while avoiding the suspicions of the Thought Police. Adaptation by the Narrative Designer of Subnautica, Talos Principle and FTL.
Crash notes: Tom Jubert project!
Windows | Steam Link | Unreleased
274/ Going Medieval
Stake your claim in this colony building sim and survive a turbulent Medieval age. Construct a multi-storey fortress in a land reclaimed by wilderness, defend against raids, and keep your villagers happy as their lives are shaped by the world around them.
Crash notes: Another settlement builder; looks cool.
Windows | Steam Link | Early Access
275/ Mr. Sun’s Hatbox
Mr Sun’s Hatbox is a slapstick, roguelite platformer about getting the job done at all costs. Upgrade your HQ, your team, and your tools so you can take on increasingly dangerous (and ridiculous) missions, wearing hats with amazing (or questionable) potential.
Crash notes: Always interested in Kenny Sun’s projects (Kubrix, Tender: Creature Comforts). Just noticed it has co-op, maybe it’s one for Side by Side…
Windows, Mac | Steam Link | Just Released
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is there no end to the interesting gammos
Crashbook will never end.
Trade Bots players test their own trading strategies against real, historic stock/ETF/crypto data
I mean, kill it with fire
I’ve actually been playing one of these! LUNARK. I would say you are right to want it. A modern take on Flashback with lower frustration and lovely freshly rotoscoped pixel art. Slightly awkward to play in short sessions because of the autosave system, but it has a winning personality and someone with more time may enjoy trying to find the collectibles on each level.
Matt you cannot kill what does not live
Phlebas Don’t say this. You don’t realise how how much more I want to play it now :S
Gosh, I’m so behind with my Electron Dance!
I played the demo of Lunark and… it was gorgeous, but I didn’t really have much compulsion to go back to the full thing. That said, the rotoscoped animation is just so delicious. Like, that’s something I’ve wanted to do in the past and I’ve often asked why it isn’t done more often because the results are almost always great and I daresay a lot easier (and fun!) to produce!
The Forest Cathedral looks interesting and I’d not heard of the Silent Spring. Wow, that’s some Exxon-level ‘called it!’.
Wall World is fascinating because it’s like a horizontal Dome Keeper. The concept and visual style is so similar but I can’t imagine one was influenced by the other given they released just over 6 months apart! I played and enjoyed Dome Keeper, so much so it nearly ended up on my games of the year list, but it felt just a little undercooked. It’s one I want to return to.
Tom Jubert! Man, all I hear from him these days is spam from his hacked email account 🙂 Glad to hear he’s still practicing his craft. 1984 sounds fascinating.
In case it’s of interest, The Forest Cathedral is in a Humble bundle at the moment, a Whitethorn Games showcase including a couple of other things that were on my wishlist:
https://www.humblebundle.com/games/whitethorn-games-showcase