Joseph Pugh

“Ball X Pit is certainly a unique game and for a time I found it interesting, but if I’m being honest the urge I had to play it felt eerily similar to the urge I’ve had to play crappy mobile games. There is an incremental progression that can be addicting. But after the first few hours I can’t say that I was actually having fun with the game, because it felt like an idle game.”

“In the end, Nature is an excellent digital adaptation of a board game. While the base game feels a bit too sanded down, the modules add the depth I was looking for and has me chomping at the bit for more to be released.”

“I doubt many who bought Wild Gate were looking to play Call of Duty Lite. They likely expected epic space ship battles and cool clutch gameplay moments, and while that framework definitely exists, it’s currently unbalanced to a severe degree. I want to keep playing Wild Gate, but the more I play, the less I like it, and Moonshot Games will have to implement some drastic changes to keep me flying into the Reach.”

“One of my favorite moments was the first time I played the Stinger after unlocking it. I thought after playing several runs with the Gunner that I had the game pegged. Playing the Stinger forced me to completely relearn how to play the game as if I had just booted it up for the first time. Much later, after I finally unlocked the Keeper, it happened again. There are not many games that have ever managed to give me that fresh game feeling twice, and StarVaders did it 3 times. That’s pretty incredible.”

“Giant King’s is admittedly on the pricier end of an expansion that doesn’t add a new culture. But I do find the additions significant enough that I’d never want to go back to playing without them.”

“Oxygen Not Included has some of the most unique and clever gameplay designs I have ever seen. There are very few games where you could put a degree in various sciences to work, but fewer still, are the number of games that could use them and remain playable and fun for those without them. I’m pretty sure that Oxygen Not Included manages to be both, and that’s incredibly impressive.”

“Uncle Chops Rocket Shop is going to turn off a lot of folks. The things it wants you to learn and the effort it takes to learn them are going to feel a little bit too much like work or school to some, and that’s okay. For the right audience, however, Uncle Chops Rocket Shop is a challenging toy box of satisfaction, the type of satisfaction that only comes from learning to overcome a challenge, not with reflexes, but with your own cognitive power.”

“These Doomed Isles is a refreshing unique spin on the deck builder genre, one that gives you an efficiency puzzle to try and solve without tripping yourself up, while also fending off the occasional raid.”

“Plate Up was certainly a fun experience and I enjoyed unlocking each new dish. But in an ironic twist of fate. Despite being a rogue-lite game I ended up putting a similar amount of time in Plate Up as I did Overcooked, a game I criticized for being too short.”

“Curious Expedition 2 offers such a satisfying level of strategic decision-making and replay value within the confines of a totally unique gameplay loop that it’s easily one of the most cerebrally enjoyable games I’ve ever played.”

“This Means Warp is incredibly fun and shines the brightest with friends. It could do with a bit more variety in some places, but the biggest thing holding it back is the crashing issue, and I sincerely hope it’s resolved soon.”

“The overall nature of the gameplay led The Last Spell to become one of my favorite games of the year. It’s such a great spin on the genre. It feels fast-paced but retains every ounce of tactical goodness you would come to expect. The freeform nature of progressing my heroes and controlling them in battle is fantastic, and the entire game just oozes a good time.”

“Its compact nature makes for a graceful game that isn’t bloated, but it also steps on its own toes. The number of upgrades, and even how you mine out resources feels like an illusion of choice as the optimal way to play becomes obvious fairly quickly. Up until that point, and even for a while afterward, it’s fun to play. It just doesn’t stand its ground for nearly as long as other rogue-lite games, and replayability is an important defining feature of the genre.”

“Blacken Slash is a well-designed, challenging, and deep game hidden behind its minimalistic but charming aesthetic. Its core gameplay is simple to understand, but its stat-crunching character building extends far beyond its pick-up and play nature. It feels fast-paced despite being turn-based, and a solid upbeat soundtrack enhances that vibe even further.”

“To speak candidly for a moment. If you were to only ever take my word on a single game, make it this one. There are only a few games out there that can match its quality and quantity within its niche. It mixes the magic of board games and video games brilliantly while inspiring the same kind of joy that games like Slay the Spire can spark but, in its own way that’s unique to it.”

“Wingspan already rules the roost when it comes to family games. It carries that same talon sharp gameplay into digital form remarkably well, and with the addition of AI and local play, it might just swoop into the hearts of bird lovers everywhere.”

“Kaiju Wars is clearly a labor of love from people who love Kaiju, and with it, they manage to take a neat concept and turn it into something great. In most games, it’s you laying slaughter to hundreds of nameless grunts and fodder. In Kaiju Wars, you’re the fodder, and the beauty of it is in the challenge that presents.”

“One Step From Eden manages to combine the strategic satisfaction of deckbuilding with the chaotic fever pitch of an action game and wraps it into a snug package of player choice. It might feature all the randomness that the genre is known for, but it puts the ball squarely in the player’s court about what to do with it, and that’s pretty magical.”

“The incredibly detailed combat, deep strategic layer, living world, and immense variety didn’t just fill the void in my heart left by the absence of X-COM 3, it replaced it entirely.”

“Red Ronin might not be the turn-based tactical game that its main menu implies, but it is a great puzzle game with a popping soundtrack, nice visual effects, and stellar level design. The real-time elements are really interesting and unique, even if it introduces them with all gentleness of a rampaging rhino. If the technical issues can be fixed, Red Ronin could certainly take a seat atop its throne of blood.”