Cotton Reboot! (PS4, Switch)
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Posted on September 20th, 2021 by
“Cotton” is a series of 2-D horizontally scrolling shooters that were very popular in the 90’s during the 16- and 32-bit eras. They star a candy-obsessed witch girl named Cotton who flies on her broom as she shoots down foes in spooky yet silly settings. It’s an example of the “Cute ‘Em Up” subgenre of shooters similar to titles like Twinbee, Parodius, Fantasy Zone, or Ordyne. And now the series is coming back with Cotton Reboot!, based on the original game. Darkness has fallen over a fairy kingdom, and a fairy named Silk enlists witch girl Cotton’s help to save the day (with a bribe of candy, of course). This game is available on PS4 and Switch, but reviewed on PS4 here.
Spelunker HD Deluxe (Switch, PS4)
Posted on September 15th, 2021 by
Spelunker was an 8-bit 2-D platformer game where you explored caves, avoided obstacles, and gathered treasures. It came out in the US, but gained more popularity in Japan, probably because it was one of those easy to play yet hard to master games, and it came out when the Famicom (Japanese NES) was big. About ten years ago I reviewed an HD remake of Spelunker on PS3, and now you can play a Deluxe version of that on Switch and PS4 (reviewed on Switch here).
Space Invaders Invincible Collection (Switch, PS4)
Posted on September 13th, 2021 by
Space Invaders is just as iconic of a classic video game as Pac-Man or Tetris. We probably wouldn’t be where we are today without it. And now you can play nearly a dozen games in the series with Space Invaders Invincible Collection. It’s available on Switch and PS4, but reviewed on Switch here. Let’s take a look at all the games on this collection!
Pokémon Unite (Switch, Mobile)
Posted on September 10th, 2021 by
I don’t really play a whole lot of PC games, so I’m not familiar with MOBA titles. MOBA stands for Multiplayer Online Battle Arena, by the way. But when a free-to-play Pokémon themed MOBA came out a while back, I knew I had to try it and review it! In the game you control your Pokémon directly as you work in teams of five to score goals on your opponent’s side. If you wanted me to describe it in my own inexperienced words, I’d say it’s like Pokémon mixed with basketball. I know people would disagree with that description, but that’s how I saw it. Anyway, Pokémon Unite is available for Switch and mobile devices, but reviewed on Switch here.
Glyph (Switch, PC)
Posted on September 8th, 2021 by
One of my favorite arcade games from back in the 80’s was Marble Madness, and I’ve always enjoyed trying out various marble rolling games since then. Whether it be Super Monkey Ball, Marble Blast Ultra, Koronipa, or what have you. So I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Glyph is the same kind of game! In Glyph you control a mechanical scarab beetle as you try to uncover ancient desert ruins. Your beetle mostly rolls up into a ball to move around. Kind of reminds me of those Bakugan toys. But you can do other things, too, like jump. Roll around buried desert ruins and try to avoid touching the sands as you collect coins and gems while reaching the end of each obstacle filled maze. It’s available on Switch and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.
The Long Gate (Switch, PC)
Posted on September 6th, 2021 by
Explore a mysterious deserted ruined cave and solve mind bending puzzles in The Long Gate. You view the game in a first person perspective as you explore a 3-D cave with all sorts of electronic devices. Early on you’ll get what looks like a Portal gun but it’s actually just a tool that helps you pick up and move things. You’ll use it to drag around battery looking objects as you link wires and such to solve circuit-based puzzles. Kind of what an electrical engineer might do. The game is available on Switch and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.
Labyrinth City: Pierre the Maze Detective (Switch, PC)
Posted on September 1st, 2021 by
When I was a kid, there was a series of books that were super popular and still are to some degree. I’m sure you’ve all heard of them: the Where’s Waldo books. I didn’t get into them as a kid, since they came out around the time I was just a little too old for them. I’m sure I would’ve still had fun with the books, but you know how kids are when they don’t want to have anything to do with things that are a little too young for them. But I still recognized their appeal. Anyway, back then there were tons of Where’s Waldo books, puzzles, toys, a Saturday morning cartoon, and even video games! Unfortunately, the technology wasn’t quite there yet with the games, as many of the Where’s Waldo game entries were considered some of the worst for the respective consoles. It’s a shame they couldn’t wait for technology to catch up. But luckily today’s consoles are good enough for games based on properties such as this. Enter Pierre the Maze Detective, a series of books very similar to Where’s Waldo in that they combine 2-D maze activity books with hidden picture elements. I’ve never heard of those books before this game, but apparently they’re pretty popular. And now you can play a game based on one of those books, and it does a good job recreating the charm and whimsy of the series. Labyrinth City: Pierre the Maze Detective is available on Switch and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.
Metaloid Origin (PS4, Switch)
Posted on August 30th, 2021 by
Metaloid Origin takes inspiration from classic 16-bit run-and-gun games, especially Mega Man X. Play as one of three android catgirls (kind of reminds me of Samurai Pizza Cats) and blast robots in more than half a dozen 2-D platform stages. It’s available on PS4 and Switch, but reviewed on PS4 here.
CrisTales (Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox X/S, PC)
Posted on August 27th, 2021 by
Crisbell is a young girl who lives in a fantasy world full of monsters and magic. She lives in an orphanage until one day she meets a talking frog. The frog leads her to the local cathedral where her Time Mage powers awaken, which lets her see the past and future and manipulate them. She has a vision of an upcoming war with a powerful Time Empress who is trying to take over the world. So now with her talking frog and newfound friends, Crisbell embarks on an RPG adventure in CrisTales. It’s available on nearly all current consoles and PC, but reviewed on Switch here.
MouseBot: Escape from CatLab (PS4, Switch, Xbox One, PC, Mobile)
Posted on August 25th, 2021 by
Help a robotic mouse navigate through devious trap-filled mazes designed by cat scientists in MouseBot: Escape from CatLab. It’s kind of like a 3-D endless runner where you constantly roll forward, and must avoid and jump over obstacles while collecting as much cheese as you can. It’s available on nearly all current game consoles, PC, and mobile devices, but reviewed on PS4 here.
