Skip to Content

‘Westerado: Double Barreled’ is high on fun, low on flaws

Your brother and mother have been killed, and your ranch has been burned down. With his dying breath, your brother points you to your uncle’s farm in search of the killer. From this point on, the list of people you can trust is pretty short. Everyone seems to know something about the killer, it’s up to you to find out their price. Welcome to Westerado.

Read More about ‘Westerado: Double Barreled’ is high on fun, low on flaws

‘Free to Play’ explores the alienation of hardcore gaming

As a hobby, gaming can create some interesting and disquieting juxtapositions to our existence. On the one hand, it is an activity which stimulates the brain, expands the boundaries of critical thinking, and allows people to de-stress or work through the problems and frustrations of their day in a world where the consequences of their decisions are not so dire as their reality. Despite these positive factors however, gaming is still often frowned upon by a vast degree of society as a childish activity which is not to be taken seriously.

Read More about ‘Free to Play’ explores the alienation of hardcore gaming

‘Papers, Please’ makes for a disheartening piece of meta-fiction

Rarely are games capable of being as deliberately uncomfortable as Lucas Pope’s Papers, Please. By casting you as an immigrations officer manning the border of the fictional nation of Arstotzka, it first presents your position as a glorious gift from the country’s fabled Labor Lottery program. However it quickly becomes clear that this “prestigious” position isn’t all that it’s cracked up to be.

Read More about ‘Papers, Please’ makes for a disheartening piece of meta-fiction

Working for the Weekend: ‘Papers, Please’ and ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ trick you into overtime

The idea of video games making you work to accomplish something is not a new one by any stretch. From RPGs forcing you to level grind, to platform or racing games making you replay an entire level due to one mistake, games have always put us to work to at least some extent. Lately though, …

Read More about Working for the Weekend: ‘Papers, Please’ and ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ trick you into overtime

‘AudioSurf’ builds a unique musical ride

Music has the power to make you move, to inspire great works, and to touch your soul. But as the year draws to a close, Christmas music prepares to blast our eardrums for what seems like an eternity, music becomes the enemy (I love Christmas, but can we at least wait till Thanksgiving is over before we deck the halls?). Before we all stuff our ears with cotton, let’s reflect on a game that really brought music to life in the distant year of 2008.

Read More about ‘AudioSurf’ builds a unique musical ride

What we know about Telltale’s ‘Game of Thrones’ so far

Telltale Games has managed to make a pretty big name for itself over the last few years. By focusing heavily on plot and character development in an industry that too often leaves these factors at the wayside, Telltale has brought storytelling back to the forefront of the medium. Now, with two Walking Dead titles, and the Fables-inspired series, The Wolf Among Us, under its belt, Telltale has turned it’s focus to the Game of Thrones universe.

Read More about What we know about Telltale’s ‘Game of Thrones’ so far

Interface to Face: Why Full Controller Support Matters

“A Steam sale!” you gasp. Or perhaps you just opened your email to discover that one of the items on your Wishlist is currently on special. Maybe you heard about a new Humble Bundle, one that contains a few gems that you have yet to play. In any of these situations, the standard emotion is, of course, joy. However that excitement can be quickly tempered by the absence of three important words: “full controller support”.

Read More about Interface to Face: Why Full Controller Support Matters

‘Dark Souls II: Crown of the Ivory King’ caps off with a cold and cruel close

It’s time to check your backs for the Darksign because with the release of Crown of the Ivory King, From Software has essentially closed the book on Dark Souls II. This final episode in the Lost Crowns DLC takes place amid the snowy vistas of a frozen kingdom, and levies some of the heaviest challenges yet.

Read More about ‘Dark Souls II: Crown of the Ivory King’ caps off with a cold and cruel close

‘Braid’ delivers a crushing tale of loss and introspection

Have you ever made a mistake that you wished you could undo? Well that’s a silly question–of course you have. It would seem an obvious statement that we all have our regrets about this life. Whether it be in relation to friends, family or career, each of us carries a skeleton or two around with us as a reminder of the missteps which we have been party to. Moreover, though, for so many people, their central regret is tied into the memory of a lost or faded love.

Read More about ‘Braid’ delivers a crushing tale of loss and introspection

‘Only If’ is a peculiar experiment with mixed results

Indie games are a mixed bag, sometimes they’re great, sometimes they’re terrible, and sometimes…sometimes you wonder what the heck you’ve just played. Only if falls into the last category. Described by the developers as a game designed with the millennial in mind, Only if seeks to challenge the way we interact with games.

Read More about ‘Only If’ is a peculiar experiment with mixed results

‘Hotline Miami’ takes players on an acid trip into a realm of depravity

Even in the daring realm of indie titles, few games would have the gall to be as jarring and deliberately unpleasant as Hotline Miami. An ugly game, through and through, Hotline Miami is also insanely addictive and offers loads of hardcore fun. But the glaring question is why?

Read More about ‘Hotline Miami’ takes players on an acid trip into a realm of depravity

‘Dark Souls II: Crown of the Old Iron King’ paints an ash wonderland of tumultuous despair

It’s pretty well known by now that the mantra of the Souls series is “Prepare to die.” Yet, one finds one’s self continuously shocked at the near-trolling levels of effort that From puts into killing the player via tactics of shock, awe, and fear. It would seem that the most appropriate citation is that of the opening cutscene of Things Betwixt, where the three former Firekeepers just laugh at you before you even begin your journey…almost as if they know what kind of horrific traumas are to come.

Read More about ‘Dark Souls II: Crown of the Old Iron King’ paints an ash wonderland of tumultuous despair

‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ a shock-by-the-minute indie gem, and quite possibly the scariest game you’ll ever play

Cawthon delivers a riveting work that also breaks considerable new ground. Radically fresh and every bit as frightening, Five Nights at Freddy’s has a very simple setup: and somehow that simple premise turns it into an effective delivery mechanism for sparse, economic horror.

Read More about ‘Five Nights at Freddy’s’ a shock-by-the-minute indie gem, and quite possibly the scariest game you’ll ever play

‘The Wolf Among Us’ completes an engaging tale with a mixed conclusion

Fresh on the tails of their highly praised and critically lauded The Walking Dead: S1/S2, Telltale Games has finally finished up their latest episodic opus, The Wolf Among Us. Released on July 8, the final chapter, “Cry Wolf”, closes off the story with a somewhat mixed conclusion, while simultaneously leaving the game open for a possible second season.

Read More about ‘The Wolf Among Us’ completes an engaging tale with a mixed conclusion

‘Gone Home’ expands the territory of conventional videogame storytelling

As a teenager, I felt I would never age. Yet I also knew I would, and more than that, I could anticipate that when I did, everything would change. So I stood then, with confused ideas about time. The future would never arrive, yet it was also imminent. Now, my teenage years were horribly boring and sexless, so I was certainly looking forward to some sort of revolution. It was only a matter of emerging out the far side of high school, into the end of the world as I knew it. Life is a succession of points of no return, and if we find apocalyptic stories about crashing asteroids and alien invasions so absorbing, it might be because they exaggerate this fact. Popular fiction brims with characters who undergo processes of self-discovery while everything around them burns, from The Lord of the Rings to Akira. Watershed moments can be as monumental as they can be personal and private, and though graduating high school or parting with your family are not exactly comparable to a tidal wave, such commonplace events can inspire fear and trembling regardless.

Read More about ‘Gone Home’ expands the territory of conventional videogame storytelling

Brutal Bundle: Do You Have What It Takes?

Looking for a new PC-related gaming deal?  Bundle Stars has released a new Steam-based gaming bundle among the few it still has available.  Save a savage 97% off awesome indie games with the BRUTAL Bundle!  From the Press Release: For just $4.99 you’ll get your hands on 10 individual Steam keys, saving 97% compared to …

Read More about Brutal Bundle: Do You Have What It Takes?

The Puzzle of Valve’s Steam Machine

On September 27th, after weeks of teasing big announcements, PC game developer and digital distribution pioneers Valve formally announced their long-rumored Steam Machine platform. The timing definitely seems right, what with the robust growth of the downloadable games market and both the upcoming X-Box One and PS4 putting so much stock in digital distribution. Valve …

Read More about The Puzzle of Valve’s Steam Machine