Taito Milestones 3 Nintendo Switch Review 8.5/10 "A Glorious Collection of Classics" 👾 @TAITO @TaitoCorp #Retrogaming

The third entry in Taito’s ‘Milestone’ series, this selection of solid gold feels the strongest overall in terms of the games included here.

The ten games included are Bubble Bobble (1986), Rainbow Islands (1987), Rastan Saga (1987), Rastan Saga 2 (1988), Dead Connection (1992), Cadash (1989), Champion Wrestler (1989), Runark (1990), Warrior Blade (1991), and Thunder Fox (1990).

49 Keys Nintendo Switch Review 8/10 🗝️ @2Pcom @49chiavi

A game based on a celebrated Italian gamebook titled ‘49 Chiavi’, released in 2022, 49 keys has been adapted for consoles adapted by the original author, and hits all the right notes as a slow-burning text-heavy adventure title.

Set in 1520, your character travels to a distant abbey - following the last wishes of your former master - on a quest to unveil the secrets held within. Presented as if in the form of an ancient manuscript, 49 keys features incredibly evocative writing, crisp visuals and puzzles that will get your grey matter pulsating. Keening, aching music will accompany you as you make your way around the island, collecting items and taking notes – all the while getting closer to the centre of the mystery.

World of Horror Nintendo Switch Review 9/10 "A Must For Horror Fans" 🔪😱 @panstasz @YsbrydGames

World of Horror has been on my radar for quite a while, the 1-bit visual style reminded me of the incredible Return of the Obra Dinn, and the Japanese-centric horror backdrop is always appealing to me, there’s something enticing about an alien culture combined with horror, you already have a sense of being an outsider, and out of your comfort zone – before the horror even kicks off!

After playing the game, I feel pretty confident in saying that this is a title that will be raising its head again in my GOTY article in a few short weeks.

Monarchy Xbox Review 6.5/10 "Monarchy of the Glen" 👑🐎 @brainseal #IndieGame #GameDev

Brain Seal quickly became ones to watch for me ever since covering Dark Quest 3 last year, a game I really clicked with, and spent a lot of time diving in for ‘one more run’. And so, I was quick to check out Monarchy.

A 2D game that involves resource management, combat, and base-building – but all in a very brisk arcade style - the game tasks you with building up your little village until you gain enough gold in your coffers to finish the level (of which there are several available).

The game begins with a tutorial, which is somewhat abstract in how it’s entirely wordless – this is charming and fine…but this is game that could really have done with a little more depth here, and after showing your little horse-seated monarch how to complete the basic game mechanics, it ends with an emblem on the screen. I thought the game had crashed, as the tutorial had clearly finished, but none of the buttons on the controller did anything to move past this greyed-out screen. It turns out that I had to press ‘start’ then ‘new game’ and the main levels were now playable, it’s this slightly esoteric approach that makes the game seem a bit more involved and daunting than it actually is.

The visuals are bright and cartoony, the animation smooth, and the music lilting and gentle - before ramping up a touch in the night-time sections that is, where the combat happens in earnest. During the day, you move left or right, adding folks to your tiny army, searching for chests and coins to afford various builds and defences. Then, when the night comes, you have to fend off small waves of sword-wielding attackers. The game ends if your main tent is demolished, or you get struck by an enemy whilst not holding any coins (they act as a sort of health bar), as this causes you to fall of your horse, ending the game.

The premise and presentation is great, but I found the game limiting in a lot of aspects. You cannot directly control anyone aside from yourself – and you can only attack by turning away from the enemy and kicking them with your horse (an automatic action)– but they will pretty much always strike you at the same time, taking a coin away from your treasury.

This means that you have to rely on the archers that follow you around, and more often than not, they’ll get distracted by shooting at a passing rabbit or deer. The base building is also quite functional, and almost feels like a ‘lite’ version of itself, I found it hard to get engaged in the game, as I spent most of the evening standing still in my fort (the days / nights pass quickly, so it’s only a few minutes) then in the day, wandering around trying to find something to do, the lack of text in the game sort of hampers it, as sometimes the on-screen icons aren’t particularly clear.

Monarchy also has a two-player co-op screen where the other player can be another friendly monarch assisting you, and this adds some fun and extra tactics to the game, but even then it feels oddly slight, as if there’s something missing to really get me engaged. It almost feels like a mobile game in this aspect, as it’s such a breezy experience.

SUMMARY

Whilst I much preferred the depth in Dark Quest 3, I get the feeling that I didn’t quite ‘get’ Monarch, and I hope that other players will click with the game more.

As it stands, I’ll still play with my young son – as he quite liked the characters and simplicity – but Monarch does – to me- feel like a game that needs a little fleshing out in order to stand up above the crowd, and pull plyers in for the long haul.

6.5/10

💧MELTING💧

Mining Mechs Xbox Review 7.5/10 "A budget title that drills down deep into the well of fun" ⛏️ @DelayedVictory_ @eastasiasoft #IndieGame #GameDev

It’s always fun to cover smaller games that are under a fiver, as it’s always pleasant to be surprised by a game that may otherwise have passed me by. Mining Mechs is a game that was released on Steam in 2023 and has now been ported to consoles. I played Mining Mechs on the XSX, and was quite won over by the core gameplay loop, surprisingly catchy music, silly humour, and pixel visuals.

The Story of Thor: A Successor of The Light – Britt's Vinyl Review 💿📀 #vgm #videogamevinyl #vinyl #vinylrecords #OST

Originally released on the Sega Mega Drive back in 1994, as part of the 30-year celebrations, Wayo Records have released this deluxe 2-disc vinyl set, with audio captured as purely as possible for absolute authenticity.

Known as Beyond Oasis in North American markets, the game was Ancient’s take on the Zelda formula, and tells the story of Prince Ali, who has found a golden armlet and must travel the land of Oasis, visiting four spirits in order to gain the eventual powers and abilities to defeat a rising evil who has located the corresponding silver armlet.

The music for The Story of Thor was composed by the mighty Yuzo Koshiro, someone that Wayo Records have previously worked with in their release of ActRaiser, and I’m sure is a luminary that our readers here will be very much aware of from his incredible resume of solid gold on the 16-bit machines. Heck, we named our son after one of his characters!

Liberte Xbox Review 5/10 "A promising premise that has issues throughout" 🫡🗼 @LiberteGame #IndieGame #GameDev

A Lovecraftian action-adventure game with horror elements set in 17th century France, Liberte was subtly on my radar for a little while leading up to its release, and I was quite intrigued as it had been a while since I’d played a game in the action-adventure genre.

Unfortunately, Liberte has quite a few technical issues that bear down on a game that ends up feeling feels unrewarding and unfortunately – a missed opportunity.

Bitmap Books – A Tale of Two Halves: The History Of Football Video Games | Britt's Review ⚽️📘 @bitmap_books #RetroGaming

Image Credit: www.BitmapBooks.com

We have covered many of Bitmap Books’ fine releases here at Games Freezer, with the most recent being Dave Cook’s rather wonderful Run ‘n’ Gun tome. This, their latest, is a very different beast, tackling a genre that has existed since the early ‘80s and was very much been twisting and morphing for decades before settling into (mostly) more sedate, incremental releases in recent years.

The book covers the football (or ‘soccer’ depending on your geographic location) genre from its nascency in the early ‘80s - when the games were effectively variations on the Pong theme - right up through the modern generations where the majority of the releases are ultra realistic and pretty – but perhaps lack the character and individuality that previously made the football genre a more interesting beast, with some incredible goals, some near misses...and some that deserved a red card, and a kicking in the car park.

Looney Tunes Wacky World of Sports Xbox Review 6.5/10 "Looney Tunes return (the serve)" 🏀🎾⚽️ @BamtangGames #IndieGame #GameDev

The premise of an anarchic Looney Tunes sports collection felt oddly nostalgic, and I was quite keen to dive into the game in multiplayer at home, as we are all familiar with the characters, and as the game supports up to four players locally,  numbers wouldn’t be an issue. Whilst the visuals, characters and functionality is there, the games all feel a little too flat to be a recommendation, unfortunately.

Purpose 1951 Xbox Review 5/10 "These boots are made for walkin’ (and simulatin’)" 🥾 @TongucBodur #IndieGame #GameDev

Purpose 1951 is a brief little game that blends walking simulation with extremely light puzzle elements. Clocking in at around an hour in length as the character muses about the situations that have arisen to bring him to his current predicament.

Presented in a 1st-person POV style, Purpose 1951 is a very slender game in a lot of ways, you follow a mostly linear path – with the only branches areas leading to what are effectively ‘trophy points’ - as the narrator monologues as you trek.

Gori: Cuddly Carnage Xbox Review 8.5/10 "Gory, gruesome, and great fun!" 😼🛹 @GoriCarnage @AngryDemonGames @wiredp #IndieGame #GameDev

I’d been following the development of Gori: Cuddly Carnage for a while, and was hoping that the promised blend of cutesy innocence and uber-violence, combined with the neon, graphic-novel visuals would scratch my turbo-arcade itch...and yes, yes it has.

Nikoderiko: The Magical World Nintendo Switch Review 8.5/10 "A highlight reel of classic late ‘90s platformers" 🐲 @GamesVea #IndieGame #GameDev

I’d never heard of Nikoderiko: The Magical World before receiving it for review, but within seconds of playing, I knew exactly what treats I was in for. This is very much a game that tips its hat to titles such as Donkey Kong Country, and Crash Bandicoot, as we follow the adventurous mongoose duo Niko and Luna as they try to retrieve a magical artefact from the devious Grimbald and his army of ‘Cobrings’. 

Mega Cat Studios: - Britt’s Mega Drive Odyssey Part 2: L'Abbaye des Morts 🐱 @megacatstudios #IndieGame #IndieGameDev

Once again, I check out a game from Mega Cat Studios, this time, L’Abbaye des Morts, a game in which you play as Jean Raymond, a persecuted man who is chased into the titular ‘Abbey of Death’ and must find his way out.

This was a game that really stood out for me when I first played it, as it is a wonderfully presented – yet delightfully simple (yet HARD) – game that has some really saucy features whilst coming from a very 8-bit home computer-centric design philosophy in terms of the gameplay and mechanics.

It really nails a specific sweet spot in time that resonates with my nostalgia perfectly and feels quite unique in that sense in the Mega Drive library. Plus, it’s effectively a horror game, and the Mega Drive certainly needs more of those in its library!

PowerA Advantage Xbox Wired Controller - Fortnite Midas 🎮 @PowerA

Hot on the heels of our previous coverage of the PowerA Core Blush a little while back, we now take a look at the PowerA Fortnite Midas, a wired controller that makes an extremely stylish first impression.

Feeling similar to the Core Blush in how it fits in the hand, the first thing that struck me about the Midas was how it looked; the shiny detailing in the handprints, webs, skulls and flowers popping out from the matte plastic, and the ridged back of the controller providing grip for lengthier, more intense playing sessions.

The triggers are designed to be less spongy, shallower on the press than the official controller, so there’s a sense of snappiness in their use, giving more of an arcade vibe and a sense of quicker reaction time. This aspect is also adjustable, using the trigger locks on the rear to fine tune your experience.

Nintendo Switch REMATCH GLOW Wireless Controller: Boo Hoo Review By Britt 👻🎮 @PDPgaming

I’ve covered a fair few controllers for the Nintendo Switch here at GF, and I find myself rotating between a few old favourites every now and again, but the arrival of the Boo Hoo controller has thrown things into disarray here at the Welsh branch of GF HQ, and I found myself becoming quite entranced with it during usage, and it has now become my ‘go to’ controller when gaming on the Switch.

Camp Sunshine Nintendo Switch Review 6.5/10 "If you go down to the woods today…" 🔪🩸 @Fossil_Games #GameDev #IndieGame #IndieGameDev

Originally released in 2016 on PC, Camp Sunshine if now available on consoles. Part of Fossil Games’ ‘Sunshine’ series, the game casts you in the role of a young boy arriving for his first night at camp, only to find that during the very first evening there, things have gone…awry.

A perfectly timed release for the spooky season, Camp Sunshine is a game made in RPG Maker that admirably captures the 16-bit era. Whilst however, it scores highly for mood, sound design and setting, issues with the core gameplay take the wind out of its sails a little.

Drova: Forsaken Kin Nintendo Switch Review 9.5/10 "One of the RPGs of the Year" 🐻⚔️ @J2D_Interactive #IndieGame #GameDev #IndieGameDev

I’ll open by saying that, whilst Drova: Forsaken Kin ended up being one of my games of the year, during the review period there was a shaky few days where V1.0 of the game had some issues that made me think that this was going to be another case of Wasteland 3, Wartales, or Shadows of Doubt, whereby a gripping and fantastic adventure seemingly genetically designed for my tastes would be scuppered by myriad technical issues, breaking my heart into a thousand pieces and casting them into the ocean.

Luckily, patch 1.1 was released and completely annihilated all the issues that I was having with the game, transforming it into a title that will be with me for a long time. In fact, I don’t even really need to cover this game as my handsome, suave editor Rich is already covering it on PC (I can feel a pay rise coming on – ed), but I want to talk about it so much that I’m writing this review anyway, purely to spread the word and share my love of it. So yes, I liked it a lot.

Games Freezer Interviews: Pirate PR! AKA Robby Bisschop 🏴‍☠️🦜 @PR_pirate #IndieGame #IndieGameDevs #IndieGames

Games Freezer Interviews: Pirate PR!

Over the years, I’ve had many an email exchange with various PR companies, developers and publishers. Recently, Pirate PR have become somewhat of a Twitter / X highlight for me, as the man behind the machine – Robby Bisschop – has been incredibly open with advice and tips for game developers, as well as dedicating his time to exposing scammers, sharing his experiences for all to learn from.

He is very active on his channel (@PR_Pirate) and I thought it would be fun to learn more about the man, the myth…the pirate.

So get comfortable, and pop open a rum as we set sail across the seas of gaming.

Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland Nintendo Switch Review 6.5/10 "The Rugrats Ride Again" 👶 @WallrideGames

I must admit that I wasn’t expecting a Rugrats game in 2024. I remember the cartoon back in the early-mid ‘90s, but I was far more preoccupied with X-Men and Spider-Man at the time, a lot of the quirkier shows of that era kind of passed me by, although some of my peers remember them very fondly.

That said, the show must have been on a hell of a lot, as the moment I booted up the game and heard that theme, even I was surprised how much of the show I remembered, from the voices, character names and family members, it all came flooding back. Heck, maybe I did watch it more than I can recall! Or perhaps it was such a cornerstone of culture at the time that it just permeated my very being.

Video Game Lofi: Kirby - Britt's Review 💿📀 @CuragaRecords #VideoGameVinyl #Vinyl #VGM

🔗Video Game LoFi: Kirby | Besso0 & GlitchxCity | Curaga Records

We are once again in the cosy arms of another in the Curaga Records LoFi series, this time centred around the music of the Kirby games, specifically; Kirby and the Forgotten Land (2022), Kirby’s Adventure (1993), Dedede’s Drum Dash Deluxe (2014), Kirby’s return to Dreamland (2011), Kirby Air Ride (2003), Kirby’s Epic Yarn (2010), Kirby Super Star (1996), and Kirby’s Dream Collection (2012), together - representing almost thirty years’ worth of music from the world of the lovable pink puffball across various systems, from SNES to Switch.