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REVIEW: Final Fantasy 16 takes wild swings but stays true to its roots

Nate Hermanson

Sep 23, 202311 min read

REVIEW: Final Fantasy 16 takes wild swings but stays true to its roots

Final Fantasy 16 shows the darkness that past games in the series would have hidden in the margins.

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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.

640 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.

923 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.

2,190 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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

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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.

3,721 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.

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