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LudoNarraCon Mini-Preview: Yoink the words straight out of mouths in Great God Grove
Great Googly Moogly, Great God Grove has a demo out for LudoNarraCon and it's all we could've hoped from the creators of Smile for Me.

Nate Hermanson
May 10, 20245 min read


LudoNarraCon Mini-Preview: Angeline Era's bumpslashing adventure fills an unexpected need
Angeline Era is a standout demo from LudoNarraCon 2024, leveraging a nostalgic spin but a fresh and unique voice.

Nate Hermanson
May 9, 20246 min read


Early Access Check-in: Abiotic Factor is already one of my favorite games of 2024
Abiotic Factor is packed with the sci-fi flavors of Half-Life and Control, sprinkled with an undeniable cheeky dorkiness.

Nate Hermanson
May 1, 20249 min read


Playdate's Pulp stirs up creative juices and makes game dev accessible
We talked with AlternateHamlet, George Banks, and Ron Lent about how the easy-to-use Pulp engine can make a game dev out of nearly anyone.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 30, 20249 min read


REVIEW: Lucas Pope's silly community center work sim Mars After Midnight demands to be let into your Playdate library
Lucas Pope's 'Papers, Please-lite' for Playdate is all alien community-building charm.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 27, 20247 min read


REVIEW: Life Eater is Strange Scaffold's most twisted game yet (and they made a black market organ trading sim)
Being a weird little freak behind my computer screen because god told me to.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 16, 20248 min read


REVIEW: Harold Halibut is a grand artistic achievement and a humbly quiet adventure
A story about feeling different than the people around you and struggling to find purpose in a world that tells you what your purpose is.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 15, 20248 min read


The Playdate Season 1 Graduating Class: Handing out superlatives to all 24 games
The who's who of Playdate Season 1. We're circling our faves in the yearbook and handing out superlatives to these 24 pack-in games.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 12, 202417 min read


REVIEW: Botany Manor is an accessibly cozy and surprisingly defiant escape room puzzler
Botany Manor: Gently compelling and seeded with cleverness.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 10, 20247 min read


Early Access Check-in: Lightyear Frontier's great prelude to more farming mech sim action to come
We're just a couple'a stocky farmers inside giant mechs inside a lonely, alien world.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 7, 20247 min read


REVIEW: Death Trick: Double Blind has more twists and turns than a high-flying acrobat
A slow burn of a mystery — full of surprising warmth, misdirection, tension, and surprise.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 4, 20247 min read


How the Playdate's crank reignited my passion
This little box with a crank is full of some of the most creative bits of game design I've seen in years.

Nate Hermanson
Apr 1, 20244 min read


REVIEW: Pepper Grinder is a drillin' platformer that's smooth as butter
Thrilling drilling and buttery smooth platforming. If this Pepper Grinder asked me to "say when" I simply wouldn't.

Nate Hermanson
Mar 28, 20248 min read


REVIEW: Capitalism's a drag in the work-work balance simulator CorpoNation: The Sorting Process
CorpoNation's gameplay bravely toes a line between fun and total drudgery (on purpose) in this dystopian corporate world.

Nate Hermanson
Mar 25, 20247 min read


REVIEW: Gambling's addictive?! Balatro's poker-based roguelite style showcases exactly that
By blending the inherently addictive nature of the roguelike with the go-big-or-go-home nature of poker, LocalThunk has ruined me.

Nate Hermanson
Feb 25, 20247 min read


REVIEW: Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth honors its past and sets up a brilliant future
I don't even think I ever want to go back to Like a Dragon after spending 85 hours in Infinite Wealth.

Nate Hermanson
Feb 18, 202412 min read


Steam Next Fest 2024 Mini-Preview: Embrace open world simplicity and absurdity with Tiny Terry's Turbo Trip
Some dreams are worth anything — especially if that dream is a shoe-shaped car that'll catapult you into space someday.

Nate Hermanson
Feb 8, 20245 min read


Steam Next Fest 2024 Mini-Preview: Destroy religious trauma with stylish character action combat in Death of a Wish
Fans of character action games, queer narratives outside of visual novels, and incredibly cohesive art projects... this one's for you.

Nate Hermanson
Feb 7, 20245 min read


Steam Next Fest 2024 Mini-Preview: Arco accelerates tactical combat and decolonization
With Arco's Steam Next Fest demo, what you see is what you get. And WHEW, I like what I see.

Nate Hermanson
Feb 6, 20244 min read


The four most irresistible co-op game demos coming to Steam Next Fest February 2024
Being a site run by a couple, co-op games are a must. Here are four must-try multiplayer demos to check out during Steam Next Fest!

Nate Hermanson
Feb 4, 20249 min read
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