🕹️ I Played That At My Mate's House 🕹️ #Retrogaming #C64 #Commodore64

When I chart back my journey through video games over the years and I think back to my childhood years of playing video games a pivotal moment in video games always took place at a mates house. 

From my first moments of seeing a Spectrum to the point where I realised I needed a PC these moments were all borne from a visit to a friend’s house who had the latest console or the coolest game of the time.

So let’s get into my own personal time machine and head on back to those key moments from when I was growing up and discovering video games for the first time.

🏴‍☠️🦜Nelly Cootalot Spoonbeaks Ahoy! | Review | PC | "Avast Ye Widebeard!" 🏴‍☠️🦜 @MisterABK #IndieGames #GameDev

Nelly Cootalot Spoonbeaks Ahoy is a quintessentially charming British pirate point n click video game that has stacks of humour and is played at a relaxing pace which is perfect for people who love to play old school point n click inventory based video games. 

💻🖥️💾🖱️ Paper Craft Computers and Super Mario Bros Demakes From @rockasoo 💻🖥️💾🖱️ #PaperCraft #RetroGaming

Construct the retro computer or console from your childhood or build an entire retro computer museum at home with these FREE papercraft models, free to download and share.
Print, Cut, Score, Fold and Glue.

🏔️🚛 SnowRunner | Review | PS4 | "Let's Rescue Some Folks On A Mountain Pass!" 🏔️🚛 @PlaySnowRunner #IndieGames #GameDev

Whilst a very niche gaming market, SnowRunner is the follow up to Mudrunner and is a surprisingly in-depth and rewarding experience that comes across as a game with the utmost respect for the challenging industry that it portrays.

Definitely not a game everyone will click with but will resonate with those that do.

⬛️ ⬛️ Crew 167: The Grand Block Odyssey | Review | PC | "Block Kicking Fun!" ⬛️ ⬛️ @oddbreezeGames #GameDev #IndieGame

In Crew 167: The Grand Block Odyssey you play as a character called Crew 167 who finds himself alone on a spaceship hurtling towards a destination called Hope 9. 

The game plays on the fact that Crew 167 is Isolated and his mind begins to create hallucinations to keep him entertained on this lonely journey.

The cinematic cut scenes attempt to dive into the mind of the character as he tries to make sense of the world around him and the gameplay centres on block-pushing puzzles of old.

🖥️👩‍🔬 The Advantages of a PPI Calculator in Console Gaming 🖥️👩‍🔬

The Advantages of a PPI calculator in console gaming

Some modern-day consoles give you a top cut gaming experience in terms of resolution and view. A lot depends on the screen size you are using. In other words, to get the best quality view, you should be aware of the correct PPI value. It defines the number of pixels recommended per inch for the screen. To get accurate measures, you obviously cannot take a measuring tape, count each inch and inject the values in the formula. A good PPI calculator accurately determines the value of pixel per inch in a hassle-free and accurate manner.  

⛺️ Hidden Through Time | Review | PS4 | "Peek Into A Cave Man's Tent" ⛺️ #GameDev #IndieGames

Hidden Through Time is a puzzle game in the vein of the Where’s Wally books with objects scattered through levels based on the history of the world. You’ll have to use cryptic hints to discover every secret as you attempt to explore the colourful hand-drawn levels in close detail. The object of the levels is to Find enough objects to advance to the next stage and make your way through all four ages of the world.

⚔️👑 ⏪ Farabel | Review | Nintendo Switch | "Get Some Of That Sweet Sweet Queen Healing!" ⚔️👑 ⏪ @FrogamesFarabel #GameDev #IndieGames

I've been playing Farabel on my Switch Lite* recently and I have to say that I am pleasantly surprised by this Turn-Based Strategy game from Frogames.

Farabel is a turn-based strategy game whereby you start at the end of the story and as you progress through the story mode you level down instead of up.

At your disposal, you have various units that you able to command to beat the enemy to a pulp. As the king, you command these units and also have the power to utilise a limited ability of time rewind within battle which can really even up the odds within the battle for you when used right.

🧭🗡️ Vigor | Review | XBOX | "An Online Shooter With A Difference" 🧭🗡️ @vigorthegame @bohemiainteract #GameDev #IndieGames

A mash-up of genres that kept me completely hooked for the first few hours, Vigor is a free-to-play title that stands out from the crowd but eventually devolves into standard fayre.

Set in a post-apocalyptic Norway, Vigor casts you as a lone survivor desperately trying to make a living in a series of encounters, empty except for the other players who want their bullets to connect with your head at startling speeds.

🤜💥🤛 Streets Of Rage 4 | PS4 | Review | "So, Lizardcube…Landstalker next?" 🤜💥🤛 @lizardcube #SOR4 #IndieGames #GameDev

Sega’s iconic brawler series Streets Of Rage, which has been dormant for over a quarter of a century has finally hit the digital shelves and everything you’ve read is true, this is one of, if not THE best example of this much-loved genre.

🔦👻 Don’t Die, Minerva! | Preview | XBOX | "A Ton Of Saucy Loot!" 🔦👻 #GameDev #IndieGames

I’ve played a lot of early access games in my time at Games Freezer and I’m used to seeing games that are yet to be fleshed out, heck even ones that are more skeletal than anything!

When I installed Don’t Die, Minerva! I was surprised by how robust it felt and quickly found myself getting stuck into the gameplay.

💥 What Is Quake Champions, And Why Should You Check It Out? 💥

Way back in the mists of 1996, legendary first-person shooter developer id Software released Quake. The development process for this shooter was fascinating, and the game still enjoys a large audience today thanks to its fast-paced action and retro aesthetic.

Of course, the single-player campaign is excellent, full of smart level design choices and well-crafted monster encounters, but that’s not where people’s hearts are.

Quake’s massively influential multiplayer arena mode still draws players on a regular basis because it offers a pure shooter experience many modern games can’t match.

🦀 Deadliest Catch The Game | PC | Review | "Time To Catch Crabs!" 🦀 #IndieGames #GameDev #DeadliestCatch

Based on the TV show of the same name Deadliest catch sees you enter the dangerous world of king crab fishing in the deadly Bering Sea!

You will take command of your own fishing vessel, use realistic equipment, combat hazardous Alaskan waters and become the world's best crab catcher!

🔴😈 WarriOrb | Review | PC | "Keep Rolling Rolling Rolling!" 🔴😈 @NotYetDevs #GameDev #IndieGames

In WarriOrb you play as a mighty demon trapped in a ball for a  body. 

You’ll now be tasked with trying to free yourself from this orb-like existence by passing many trials that are set before you.

Your platforming skills will be tested to the limit in this fun indie platformer from Not Yet Devs

🏚️🏡🏠 Change: A Homeless Survival Experience | Review | PC | "Take Each Night As It Comes" 🏠🏡🏚️ #GameDev #IndieGames @DelveInteractiv

CHANGE is an emotional homeless survival experience set in a randomly generated city with rogue-like elements.

Explore, survive, earn perks, find items and kindness to develop your character and escape to a new life.

🌞🕶️ The Touryst | Nintendo Switch | Review | "The Perfect Time For A Virtual Sunny Holiday" 🌞🕶️ @ShinenGames #GameDev #IndieGames

I’ve had my eye on The Touryst since last year when my friend (and State of Play co-conspirator) Rupert suggested it as he had enjoyed playing it so much.

A few weeks later and I was watching a Digital Foundry episode on the game – naturally focussing on the more technical aspects – and I was completely sold. 

Last week, I didn’t just play the game. I inhaled it.

🦉 Animal 🦒 Crossing New Horizons: A Family In Lockdown On A Tropical Island 🏝️ #AnimalCrossing #ACNH

Animal Crossing New Horizons was released on the 20th March 2020 and swooped onto the Nintendo Switch just as the COVID 19 pandemic was really taking hold of the world.

The world needed a comfort food game and Nintendo delivered.

🏚️🧔🏚️ Change : A Homeless Survival Experience | Review | PC | "Down But Not Quite Out!" 🏚️🧔🏚️ #IndieGames #GameDev

CHANGE: A Homeless Survival Experience is an emotional homeless survival experience set in a randomly generated city with rogue-like elements.

Explore, survive, earn perks, find items and kindness to develop your character and escape to a new life.

🤠🔥 Boot Hill Bounties | Review | Nintendo Switch | "A Retro-Styled Western That’s Chock Full o’Beans" 🤠🔥 @ExpGamerStudios #GameDev #IndieGames

Presented in a visual and gameplay style most reminiscent of cult SNES classic Earthbound, Boot Hill Bounties is a game that sucked me in far deeper than I would have expected and I loved every moment of it.

🧛‍♂️ Vampire The Masquerade: Coteries of New York | Switch | Review | "Fangs For The Memories" 🧛‍♂️ #GameDev #IndieGames

An interactive visual novel set in White Wolf Publishing’s ‘World of Darkness’ made most familiar to gamers by Vampire The Masquerade: Bloodlines, a cult title released back in 2004 by Troika Games, Vampire the Masquerade: Coteries of New York (VTM:COTN) is a visual novel with light adventure elements in the form of choices that the player can make.

Whilst this means the game is quite casual in nature, the brevity of the writing and length of the game (3 hours or so) means that it feels accessible and doesn’t get too bogged down in dense text.

On the other hand, those who are used to such heavy-duty visual novels may feel short-changed here.