Metal Slug 4 Original Soundtrack Vinyl Review "I was first introduced to Metal Slug in the back of a dingy record store" 💿 #Vinyl #VideoGameVinyl #VGM

Since the first release in 1996, the Metal Slug series was a long-time staple in arcades over the world. I was first introduced to Metal Slug in the back of a dingy record store (Rainbow Records) in my hometown of Pontypridd, it was one of three cabinets at the back of the shop (the other two were Aliens and Power Drift, if memory serves), and I was instantly hooked on the high-octane action that the game delivered with it’s intense militaristic soundtrack, colourful visuals and zany animations (I’ve always loved the Metal Slug reload animation) – even the in-game slowdown added an oddly cinematic quality to the experience, and made it feel like you were causing so much on-screen carnage and havoc that the game was struggling to keep up with you, good! It’s a series to which I often return, usually when visiting arcades scattered around the UK, as a blast on a Metal Slug title – especially with friends - always brings back great memories.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden Xbox Series X Review 9/10 "A wonderfully spun tale of love and grief" ⚔️ @DONTNOD_Ent #IndieGame #GameDev

I’ve been hankering for an RPG to sink my teeth into, and when Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden arrived at GF HQ, I was keen to tuck in and get a few dozen hours of adventuring under my belt. What I didn’t expect was to get sucked into the world of Red and Antea so deeply, and so quickly.

Set during the settling of America in the 1600’s, the game begins with Banishers (effectively mercenaries that deal with hauntings) Red and Antea arriving on boat to New Eden - a small settlement near Boston - having received word from their friend Charles that their ghost handling skills are required in this fledging town.

The Monty Mole Collection Nintendo Switch Review 8/10 "Modern Monty Mole Maniacal Manoeuvring" 🐻‍❄️ @pixelgamesuk #GameDev #IndieGame

The 8-bit home computing platforming scene is something of a golden era to a lot of people. Filled with extremely challenging games, great music, and a very ‘British’ sense of humour (and social commentary).

Whilst I have played Monty Mole - many years ago - I associate the games more with Rob Hubbard’s astonishing score than the gameplay itself, and so I was keen to delve into this collection and experience them for the first time, on a modern system.

Pinball M Xbox Review 7.5/10 "The spookiest balls around" 👻 @zen_studios #IndieGame #GameDev

Zen Studios have release Pinball M, a game that delivers horror thrills to pinball-lovers around the world through a pretty cool mix of franchises:

– Wrath of the Elder Gods: Director’s Cut – experience the eldritch horror unrestricted for free

– Chucky’s Killer Pinball: Step into a twisted realm where the innocent becomes sinister, and the playful turns menacing. Navigate through an eerie playfield where Chucky lurks in the shadows, ready to pounce.

– The Thing Pinball: Use your pinball skills and battle against the shape-shifting alien through the arctic chill of U.S. Outpost #31. Can you trust anyone, even yourself?

– Dead by Daylight™️ Pinball: Become the hunter or even the hunted in a thrilling fusion of classic pinball and the excitement of one of the most popular horror games ever created.

– Duke Nukem’s Big Shot Pinball: Enjoy the biggest, grooviest, most BADASS pinball table ever made packed with guns and babes. Push start and play with balls of steel!

Bahnsen Knights Xbox Review 7/10 "My trousers began to slowly unbuckle themselves in anticipation..." 🕵️‍♂️ @lcbgamestudio #IndieGame #GameDev

The third in the initial trilogy of Pixel Pulp titles, Bahnsen Knights follows Mothmen 1966, and Varney Lake, visual novel titles – with a smattering of micro-games – in an 18-month period that has taken me on a journey that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed from a presentation and atmospheric perspective, but I can’t help but feel this most recent entry is the weakest of all.

Video Game Lo-Fi: Super Mario 64 Vinyl Review 💽 @CuragaRecords @MateriaMusic #VideoGameVinyl #Vinyl #LoFi #VGM

There’s something about these lo-fi records that makes them feel oddly perfect all year round. The last time I covered one back in November, it was a very wintry  entry in the Curaga lo-fi series, matching perfectly with the change in weather.

As I listened through this Super Mario 64 record in quite bracing weather, it felt calming and warming, but I can just as easily imagine it seeming as mellow and engaging on warm summer days, adding a layer of groovy coolness to the proceedings.

Crashy Laps Xbox Series X (mini-review) 7/10 🏎️💨 @cheapeesoft @JanduSoft

Harking back to classic top-down / isometric racers such as Super Skidmarks, Crashy Laps by CheapeeSoft (which could have easily genuinely been a wonderfully 8-bit, British development house name back in the ‘80s!) is a budget title that aims to capture that vintage arcade-racing feel, with modern touches.

Uzzuzzu My Pet: Golf Dash (mini-review) Nintendo Switch 4/10 ⛳️ @RedDeer_Games #GameDev #IndieGame

Based on a popular South Korean franchise, Uzzuzzu My Pet: Golf Dash takes visual, stylistic and gameplay cues from What the Golf?

But it unfortunately fails to capture the charm and replayability that oozes from every pore of the game that it apes. 

Super Arcade Racing Nintendo Switch Review 7/10 🏎️💨 @outofthebit #IndieGame #GameDev

I recently covered Full Void by OutOfTheBit, and in requesting a code for reviewing purposes, I noticed their previous release, Super Arcade Racing.

As a fan of top-down racers, I thought it would be fun to do a mini-review of this, as I hadn’t heard of it before stumbling across it on the developer’s website, and it takes a slightly different approach to its gameplay when compared to games of a similar ilk, in that it’s much more of a fun, unfolding narrative than simply disjointed races.

Kingdom Eighties Summer of Greed – Original Score by Andreas Hald Vinyl Review 💿📀 #Vinyl #VideoGameVinyl

I do enjoy diving into a soundtrack for a game that I have no context for, having covered Raw Fury’s previous OST Cassette Beasts – a game I was very familiar with – Kingdom Eighties is a game that I was aware of, but hadn’t yet played.

Written and performed by Denmark-based composer Andreas Hald, This soundtrack hurtled at me out of nowhere to become a real favourite due to the world conjured up by the rich production, emotive compositions and powerful melodies. There’s so much to take in here, with echoes of some of my favourite albums through the years from the wonderful, alien oddities of Chase Bethea’s work on Aground, through the wide-eyed synth innocence of Salvinsky’s Narita Boy, the cyberpunk expanse of Encodya, to name a few that come to mind – all popping with the expertise mastering at the hands of Adam Ayan at gateway Mastering Studios, a huge high-five especially in this regard as the album is so clear and bright, it makes for a glorious listening experience and completely brings the music to life.

Gothic 2 Classic Nintendo Switch Review 7.5/10 "odd characters, amusing dialogue and locations" ⚔️ @gothicthegame @AlkimiaGameDev #IndieGame #GameDev

I’ve been a fan of Piranha Bytes since discovering the first Risen game back on the PS3. After completing that game, I was so taken by the rough ‘n ready (also slightly bizarre) style of the Piranha Bytes games that I worked backwards and picked up Gothic 3, also enjoying that title – but finding it a bit awkward to get to run on my PC, at the time.

Since moving on from both the Gothic and Risen series, Piranha Bytes are now working on their third ELEX game, a series that I’ve had a mixed opinion of, especially because of the game-breaking bugs I encountered when reviewing ELEX 2 last year.

Through all of this though, Gothic 2 is held as somewhat of a high watermark of their games in terms of narrative, quest design and atmosphere. Playing it on the Switch was my first time with the game, and whilst it is certainly showing its age in many areas, that janky charm and idiosyncratic approach to quests and dialogue does still feel fun and fresh, and kept me coming back for more, each evening.

Full Void Nintendo Switch Review 7 / 10 "A Slice of Cinematic Cyberpunk" 👤 @outofthebit #IndieGame #GameDev

The cinematic platformer is a genre well-suited to Switch, as the impact of the pixel visuals works especially well in docked mode, when you can snuggle up in bed or in a comfy chair and dive into a genre that tends to never be overlong, by design, making them relaxing experiences over a night or two.

Developer OutOfTheBit Ltd have delivered a strong slice of such action, in a wonderfully wordless experience that clocks in at around a couple of hours, making it a breezy game to replay – in a similar vein to Devwill Too on MD, a game I routinely return to each year, for its brevity and melancholy.

Trust GXT490 Fayzo 7.1 Gaming Headset Review By Britt 🎧 @TrustGaming

We’ve covered several Trust products here at GF HQ, and they always deliver a quality experience at fair prices, the Trust GXT490 Fayzo 7.1 Gaming Headset is no exception to this rule in the quality, comfort and accessibility that it offers.

Horizon Forbidden West Vinyl OST Review By Britt "An album that has a world-building vibe to it" 💿 #VideoGameVinyl #Vinyl #VGM

I’ve just covered another Sony Entertainment release – the God of War: Ragnarök OST – and the difference in presentation (visuals, not quality) is quite staggering. Whereas God of War: Ragnarök was filled with freezing blues and expansive whites, here Horizon Forbidden West is instead rich with almost alien tropical landscapes, and hot shades of orange. 

This is also a more ‘meat and potatoes’ release, on heavyweight black vinyl - but with no inserts such as art cards or the like – although there is a collector’s edition deluxe version of this release that is available on vinyl, but it’s the standard version that I’ll be covering today.

God of War: Ragnarök – Vinyl OST Composed by Bear McCreary " pairs well with a horn of mead" 🐻 @bearmccreary #Vinyl #VGM #VideoGameVinyl

The much-loved God of War franchise has been rolling on, powered by a war-like bloodlust since 2005 on the PS2, and has been known for its award-winning, rousing scores, which – since 2018 -have been handled by American composer Bear McCreary – who also plays the role of Raeb in-game. This triple-vinyl release features 28 tracks, including a final song that features Irish songwriter HOZIER. Faroese songwriter Eivør also features on a handful of songs throughout the record, mainly appearing on the first disc.

Murder is Game Over XSX Review 7.5 / 10 "Pocket-sized Pixel Pondering" 🔪 #IndieGame #GameDev @HitherYonGames @RatalaikaGames

A budget title from Ratalaika, Murder is Game Over is a short and fun narrative horror made in RPG Maker, full of jaunty music and pixel detective action.

As detective Guy and his crime-solving dog Chloe, you’ll roam a mansion and the surrounding grounds in a bid to solve the murder of a world-renowned game designer.

There are eight suspects, and thirty bags of dog treats to find as you try to solve this dastardly crime, as well as a treasure-hunting side quest!

A game that cosily leads you through the mystery as opposed to getting your grey cells pulsating, Murder is Game Over is a fun and light-hearted way to spend an evening, satisfactorily wrapping up its plot in an hour or two, and a big high five for the awesome music, which I would quite happily purchase on vinyl, awesome stuff!

The Crew Motorfest XSX Review 7.5/10 "Hawaii Five Oh!" 🌴🏎️🌴

The newest entry in The Crew franchise, The Crew Motorfest plonks drivers down in the paradise of Hawaii and lets them loose across the many locations of the island, from volcanos and mountain roads through dense foliage, absurd, spiralling racetracks, suburban areas and more.

After creating your driver and choosing your starting vehicle, you are free to roam around the island as you see fit. You can free roam or enter one of the myriad of ‘playlists’ (races) available, these range from drag races in highly-tuned performance cars to old camper vans, monster trucks, motorcycles and even planes.

There are currently well over 600 vehicles across these styles available, and each completed race will see you earning XP, unlocking extra vehicles and parts to replace and improve your various rides, in terms of both performance and vanity items.

There really is a huge amount of customisation available – as well as other micro-transactions that you can pay for to speed the process along, should you wish to do so …I personally avoid these like the plague, although it didn’t impinge on my enjoyment of the game as I was constantly unlocking and upgrading my garage of cars through normal play.

Video Game Lo-Fi: A Winter’s Tale (Vinyl & Cassette) Review 📀💿 @CuragaRecords @BrittRecluseuk #Vinyl #VideoGameVinyl #VGM

Here in Wales, as the weather takes a colder turn, A Winter’s Tale arrived at the perfect time! 14 tracks of low-end, heavy, lo-fi warmth, this is an album that takes a trip-hop look at some of those seminal, snow-laden gaming moments through the years, taking us from Donkey Kong Country, past Mario Kart 64, through Stardew Valley, and the coast of Fable – alongside many others.

The front cover continues the classic lo-fi series approach of an isometric, stylised look at a certain location. Here, we are treated to a be-snowed take on Princess Peach’s castle from Mario 64, the familiar turrets poking out from underneath a blanket of deep, white snow; as light bleeds out from the entrance way, highlighting some scattered instruments outside in the snow; a piano, drums, acoustic guitar, and trumpet.

FROM ANTS TO ZOMBIES: SIX DECADES OF VIDEO GAME HORROR Book Review "The Gaming Necronomicon" 🧛‍♂️ @BitmapBooks #Retrogaming

Sam Dyer – the brain behind Bitmap Books – is someone that I imagine laughing wildly in a vast, ever-growing library somewhere, surrounded by mad monks engrossed in ever-more-perfect drafts of upcoming books through which they will eventually devour the gaming world. Each time I read a book by the publisher, it always feel definitive and individually voiced. I’ve commented before on how each release doesn’t feel like a run-through of the topic at hand, moving from genre-to-genre with a  vanilla, ‘one-size-fits-all’ sensibility. From the all-encompassing JRPG book to the laser-focused CRPG tome – and the surprisingly moving release on Gremlin Graphics – these books really do each have their own approach and style. 

From the moment that I caught wind of From Ants to Zombies, the fact that it was covering video game horror – a genre incredibly dear to me – I was desperate to discover what approach this book would take - and as it turns out, it’s possibly the boldest move by Bitmap Books yet, and one that absolutely lives up to the lofty heights that author Alexander Chatziioannou sets out in the first few pages.

Mondealy XSX Review 8/10 "I completely fell under the pastel-coloured, joyous sway that it conjures" 🌻 @ValkyrieInitia1 #IndieGame #GameDev

I’m very much on board with playing a wide variety of genres, and I appreciate that sometimes you need a game like Mondealy to slow you down and allow you to take stock of your life, appreciate what you have, and perhaps take a break from blowing up demons, shooting thousands of bullets at an alien threat, or squeezing your controller in love/respect/frustration because you missed that pixel-perfect 100th jump, and how need to do the last hours’ worth of progress again.

I initially played Mondealy off the back of a pretty full-on game, and switching from that to this mellow, slowly-unfolding world was initially a little jarring, but after a mental reset, I completely fell under the pastel-coloured, joyous sway that it conjures, especially enjoying the soundtrack, courtesy of the below talented composers: