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Mirthwood looks to level up life sims with RPG elements - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Oct 23, 20239 min read

Mirthwood looks to level up life sims with RPG elements - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Mirthwood brought its first-ever playable demo to PAX West and solidified its place as a life and farming sim game worth watching.

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World of Horror developed "low and slow" heads to 1.0 release - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Oct 15, 20238 min read

World of Horror developed "low and slow" heads to 1.0 release - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Palms sweaty, pulse racing. The typical PAX West experience? Or the result of playing the demo for World of Horror?

656 views0 comments

Narrative RPG Long Gone Days centers humanity in a time of war - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Oct 9, 20238 min read

Narrative RPG Long Gone Days centers humanity in a time of war - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

As Long Gone Days approached its October release date, we talked with Lead Programmer Camilo Valderrama at PAX West.

81 views0 comments

REVIEW: Bilkins' Folly combines professorial puzzles with Monkey Island shenanigans beautifully

Nate Hermanson

Oct 8, 20238 min read

REVIEW: Bilkins' Folly combines professorial puzzles with Monkey Island shenanigans beautifully

X marks the spot, and Bilkins' Folly HITS the spot with its delightful treasure-hunting and puzzles.

301 views0 comments

Fight Crab 2's physics-based action delivers a welcoming chaos - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Oct 1, 20237 min read

Fight Crab 2's physics-based action delivers a welcoming chaos - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Two crabs enter the arena... but only one can leave victorious. We talked with PLAYISM at PAX West about the absurd brawler Fight Crab 2.

185 views0 comments

Demonschool delivers a more active tactics RPG experience - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Sep 28, 20238 min read

Demonschool delivers a more active tactics RPG experience - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Necrosoft Games Founder and Director Brandon Sheffield schooled us in all things Demonschool at PAX West 2023.

117 views1 comment

REVIEW: Dino farm sim Paleo Pines is creative, cute, and clunky

Nate Hermanson

Sep 27, 20238 min read

REVIEW: Dino farm sim Paleo Pines is creative, cute, and clunky

There's nothing prehistoric about Paleo Pines' fresh ideas, but the execution isn't always dino-mite.

1,324 views2 comments

REVIEW: El Paso, Elsewhere is nostalgic, fresh, and Strange Scaffold's best

Nate Hermanson

Sep 26, 202310 min read

REVIEW: El Paso, Elsewhere is nostalgic, fresh, and Strange Scaffold's best

Meet me in the liminal space of one reality-shifting El Paso motel.

417 views0 comments

Everdeep Aurora keeps drilling its way into our hearts - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Sep 24, 20238 min read

Everdeep Aurora keeps drilling its way into our hearts - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

At PAX West 2023, we drilled down into the Everdeep with Ysbryd Games Founder Brian Kwek, publisher for Everdeep Aurora.

105 views1 comment

REVIEW: Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical hits the high notes but forgets to sweat the small stuff

Nate Hermanson

Sep 20, 20238 min read

REVIEW: Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical hits the high notes but forgets to sweat the small stuff

When the game reaches its climax, and the emotional impact is at its peak, Stray Gods soars.

637 views1 comment

Billy Basso on creating mysterious and mind-blowing Animal Well - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Sep 18, 202311 min read

Billy Basso on creating mysterious and mind-blowing Animal Well - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

We had a long chat about the beautiful and layered platformer Animal Well with its solo developer, Billy Basso, at PAX West 2023.

922 views1 comment

REVIEW: Chants of Sennaar is a masterful puzzle-and-click for linguists and puzzle fans alike

Nate Hermanson

Sep 17, 20238 min read

REVIEW: Chants of Sennaar is a masterful puzzle-and-click for linguists and puzzle fans alike

Chants of Sennaar tasks you with puzzling out the intricacies of the human experience through languages learned from scratch.

2,174 views4 comments

Physics meets crafting in silly survival game Dropkick Navvy - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Sep 16, 20237 min read

Physics meets crafting in silly survival game Dropkick Navvy - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Dropkick Navvy shows what survival actually entails: A lot of stumbling, talking to trees, and getting bonked on the head.

100 views0 comments

Find a rival, learn to ball, and save a community in Beastieball - PAX West 2023 interview

Nate Hermanson

Sep 14, 20238 min read

Find a rival, learn to ball, and save a community in Beastieball - PAX West 2023 interview

Greg Lobanov's "dream game" to make is our dream game to play. Find out what we learned at PAX West 2023 about Beastieball, coming in 2024.

212 views0 comments

REVIEW: Gunbrella soars with its quality and lands gently as one of the year's best releases

Nate Hermanson

Sep 13, 20237 min read

REVIEW: Gunbrella soars with its quality and lands gently as one of the year's best releases

The Gunbrella is the Best Weapon of 2023, THERE I SAID IT.

468 views0 comments

From Nookazon to Galactic Getaway, Akrew puts players first - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Sep 12, 202310 min read

From Nookazon to Galactic Getaway, Akrew puts players first - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

We went hands-on with Galactic Getaway's PAX West demo and chatted with Akrew CEO Daniel Luu about their Nookazon origins and debut game.

125 views0 comments

REVIEW: Eternights shrinks the Persona experience down to a tight action-romance package

Nate Hermanson

Sep 11, 20238 min read

REVIEW: Eternights shrinks the Persona experience down to a tight action-romance package

Eternights is visually striking, features stirring character arcs, and shows great talent. Even if in the end, I recommend it conditionally.

3,719 views6 comments

Mecha meets musou in the customizable roguelike Metal Bringer - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Nate Hermanson

Sep 10, 20237 min read

Mecha meets musou in the customizable roguelike Metal Bringer - PAX West 2023 hands-on/interview

Metal Bringer has players use deep mech customization to craft Labors and Arms, then fight enemy hordes in a satisfying series of waves.

190 views2 comments

Bitsummit 2023: Unboxing the 3D puzzle-fighting game Monstabox

Green

Aug 31, 20236 min read

Bitsummit 2023: Unboxing the 3D puzzle-fighting game Monstabox

WHAT'S IN THE BOX? Peek inside for a look at Monstabox, which debuted publicly for the first time at Bitsummit 2023.

67 views0 comments

REVIEW: Decarnation's horrors come from the painful realities women face

Nate Hermanson

Jul 5, 20236 min read

REVIEW: Decarnation's horrors come from the painful realities women face

Decarnation's horror has Gloria slipping between a nightmarish reality and disturbing, fleshy dreams.

1,162 views0 comments

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