Ghost of a Tale
I can’t name a single other game that can match the unbelievable charm of Ghost of a Tale. The stunning art design and graphics, the adorable animations, the fantastic music, the masterful level design, the deep and engrossing lore and worldbuilding, and the unforgettable characters result in one of the most stunningly realized adventures I’ve had the pleasure to participate in.
This game is simply magical.
Whether you are a fan of the classic animal adventure stories like Redwall, Wind in the Willows, and Disney’s Robin Hood, want to spend some time exploring a beautiful seaside fortress, or just want to dress a mouse in adorable little costumes, this game is more than worth it.
– Real player with 66.4 hrs in game
Read More: Best Adventure Atmospheric Games.
What a mixed bag this game is.
On the positive side, the world itself is breathtaking, and surprisingly interconnected. I expected a more linear style of progression, where you move past Zones and NPCs once you’ve gotten what you need from them, but throughout the entire game you’re constantly cycling back to places you’ve been and people you’ve talked to. You end up finding all these secrety hidey-holes and passageways that connect all the far-reaching areas of the map in cool, quirky ways. I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve absentmindedly been running through a tunnel and come to the end like, “Oh THIS is where I am!”. Perfect example of a smal world done right.
– Real player with 34.6 hrs in game
Styx: Shards of Darkness
Ah, yes. Styx. You know, I’ve never actually finished the original. Got about halfway, then lost interest. So this game already did better in that regard, since I’ve not only gotten all achievements but actually enjoyed it enough to keep playing after. So what can you, a potential buyer expect?
Let’s get the obvious things out of the way first. It’s a stealth game. Not a stealth-action game like Dishonored. Pure stealth, which means that you’re not meant to fight fair. The combat system is very basic as a result, and on the highest two difficulties it’s outright disabled. If you get caught, you either flee or turn invisible.
– Real player with 106.3 hrs in game
Read More: Best Adventure Co-op Games.
After almost 75 hours of play, it’d be hard for me to say I didn’t get my money’s worth, but while I had a blast (most of the time) playing Styx: Shards of Darkness, I think it was frequently in spite of the game rather than because of it.
Shards of Darkness is a stealth-focused, third-person action game with some great, sprawling maps that often had many paths to your objectives. The main character, a chatty, 4th-wall-breaking goblin named Styx, has a ton of unlockable skills and tools up his sleeve that offer a lot of replayability, despite most of those maps being reused two or three times. The game is at its best when it drops you into a level with all your tricks and leaves you to yourself to find your way. Unfortunately, it also suffers from some hyper-annoying bugs and poor design that will account for the vast majority of your deaths and reloads.
– Real player with 77.7 hrs in game
Republique
all in all its not a BAD game. in some ways it really pretty ok. the writing is pretty solid, the characters interesting and sympathetic, or deplorable but somewhat understandable, and mechanics not bad. its sort of a point and click old school adventure game mixed with a 3d stealth hunter, but with very little “combat.” the sound is pretty good, the music not bad, and the voice acting ranging from quite good to pretty ok. in many ways i actually DO recommend the game.
where the game lags is in pacing and stability/smoothness. its a pretty slow going game (as many stealth games are) but often at least with these you have a better saving mechanic to keep you from having to run the same puzzle-like timing gauntlet over and over until you finally pull it off, and not really because you dont know what to do as much as it can take many tries to actually do it.
– Real player with 23.6 hrs in game
Read More: Best Adventure Female Protagonist Games.
Republique * 8/10
I never, EVER buy any game on day one. They’re priced ridiculously too high. And another good reason to never buy on day one is because the game might not be complete, whole, especially if it has an episodic structure. I’ve been keeping an eye on this game for so long and I’ve read lots of complaints for the way Camouflaj handled the product while working on other OS and platform ports but, even if these problems probably have been true, I never noticed any of this as I’ve started playing almost 1 year after the release of episode 5. And that’s pretty soon for me.
– Real player with 22.7 hrs in game
Grey Scout
A tiny stealth game with a great atmosphere and fun mechanics.
– Real player with 2.1 hrs in game
Another great game coming out of the Sokpop Collective.
Whenever I’m feeling down, I always hit up the Sokpop Collective for a cute and interesting game, and this game doens’t come as an exception. The atmosphere is comfy as heck, and I absolutely adored exploring around the open world, hopping in and out of tallgrass to hide from the guards while saving the little children.
I would love for this game to be more developed and realized into a more thorough experience, as even in this tiny world, I had the same feeling I had when playing Breath of the Wild for the first time.
– Real player with 0.9 hrs in game
The Lord of the Rings™: Gollum™
Athletic and agile, sneaky and cunning. Driven by the desire to once again hold in his hands what he lost, Gollum is one of the most fascinating characters in the world of The Lord of the Rings™.
He has seen things that others can not imagine, he has survived things that others would not dare mention. Torn by his split personality, he can be vicious and villainous as Gollum, but social and cautious as Sméagol.
While being vital to the story by J.R.R. Tolkien, many parts of Gollum’s quest have not been told in detail yet. In The Lord of the Rings™: Gollum™ you get to experience this story. From his time as a slave below the Dark Tower to his stay with the Elves of Mirkwood.
Use stealth, agility and cunning to survive and overcome what lies ahead. Climb, leap and grapple your way past dangers or into advantageous spots.
While Gollum might not be a fighter, it is not unlike him to assassinate a careless enemy when the chance presents itself – or dispose of them in more creative and villainous ways.
The decisions you make and the way you play have a direct influence on Gollum’s personality: Always struggling between the two sides embodied by Gollum and Sméagol, it is up to you to decide whether the darker side of Gollum takes over or if there is a spark of reason left in what once was Sméagol. One mind, two egos - you decide!
Alekhine’s Gun
Alekhine. One of the greatest chess champions. Not only for his timeline but for the whole history of known chess players. He was eager for finding smart, precise moves, he was rather an attacking side even in his defensive schemes. So, it is actually a cool name for a Hitman-like spy operative, who’s supposed to very selective and cautious in his covert work of dispatching enemies and revealing their secret plans.
However, when we’re talking about this specific title, Alekhine’s Gun, we’re actually putting ourselves in quite a strange stalemate position. To be brief, it is the “enjoy the good part and suffer a lot of shortcomings as well” - type of game. 40% rating on Metacritic should warn you as well - even if it’s underestimated, Alekhine’s Gun is definitely not for everyone’s tastes.
– Real player with 37.1 hrs in game
If your a fan of Death to Spies games like i am this is the third entry to the series as the devs had to work indie as their publishing license expired so they had to Crowdfund & Kickstarter their work but it didn’t go well so Maximum Games published and helped them complete it. You still play as Semyon Strogov with some familiar gear such as Chloroform and throwing knives but you have less weapons and equipment then before with less space to bring items for the next mission so choose well. Depending on how you perform you will earn points to buy new weapons, equipment and upgrades for your guns to use in the coming missions. There’s a new Instincts mode that gives you awareness of where the enemy is looking at and who finds you suspicious but also is a meter that tells you if you can knock someone out instead of spotting people unlike before so you have to regain that meter by doing objectives if you want an alternative to Chloroform. The overall gameplay is mostly similar with different objectives and different disguises but you can’t go prone stance anymore, crouch sneaking only effects noise and you can’t ride vehicles anymore either then the overall map is much smaller less complex linear even at times making some areas rather difficult cause of how cramp it us but you can back to wall to hide as well as surprise attack from plus performing “accidents” is easier then before at varied locals with missions getting more progressively complex as you reach the final mission. This time its not just historical missions but there is an actual story now compared to before with the biggest weakness is that it doesn’t use in-game cutscenes unlike before instead using pre-rendered art stills but still gives a great thriller spy story. Graphics are better then before and help with the immersion and believability despite the level size. The soundtrack is alright like games before it though at times the audio doesn’t sound as good or as clear. Overall not bad but it could’ve been more despite that for what the game is its a decent entry to the series that you can buy on sale if you want to know how Smeyon Strogiv’s story ends or need another social stealth game alternative.
– Real player with 19.7 hrs in game
Brighter Day
“The Most Colourful Horror you will ever play!”
In the same vain that Bryan Forbes wanted to make a day time horror film just to prove that it could be done and this lead to the classic 1975 film ‘Stepford Wives’. So too, a single Chicago Developer known as ‘The Loneliest Pixel’ https://theloneliestpixel.com/ Aka ‘Princess Axolotl’ https://twitter.com/princessaxolotl set out to prove to herself and the world that she could make a horror game filled with bright colours.
It must have taken a lot of balls to not only set yourself this challenge, but also to successfully accomplish it, and it did… eyeballs. Heaps of them. The premise of the story is that you ‘204’ suddenly become conscious to the fact that you are stranded inside a healing clinic which has become overrun by these inter-dimensional beings … giant levitating eyeballs … which like to decapitate their prey. The clinic seems to have been already evacuated, but thanks to ‘209’ who was blessed with prophesy saw a future where you ‘204’ would locate and destroy the nest and free him by influencing the current timeline. To make sure this prophesy comes true, he prints an employee manifesto at the back of a deck of bunny tarot cards he has and hides them in places that he knows only 204 could find. He also draws four prophetic drawings in the tunnels of the nest and a trail of bunnies which only 204 would be able to decipher. Collecting all 22 tarot cards will present an Easter egg at the end of the game in regards to 209 as prophesied.
– Real player with 16.5 hrs in game
“Brighter Day” is a short first-person stealth adventure with a unique setting, creepy atmosphere, room for exploration, and clunky controls.
You start in a small room and see a giant floating eyeball patrol the hallway outside. If you sneak past the eyeball, you’ll find more rooms, all containing little more than a bed, a shower room, small boxes with pills, and a number above the door. If the eyeball sees you and gets close enough, the chapter resets and you start again in your room.
From exploring the building, you get some clues about what is happening, and learn that you need to flee. You also find ways to distract or paralyze the eyes, and you’ll notice that they emit a humming noise that can warn you of their approach. Gameplay mostly involves dealing with the eyes in several different ways, but there are also a few very basic puzzles to solve, secrets to discover, and collectibles to find.
– Real player with 10.3 hrs in game
Calvino Noir
I really liked playing this game! You can confidently call it a piece of art and a good contribution to Noir genre. In regards to aesthetics, I loved every part of it. Classic Noir colour palette; portraits of main characters look like frames from 30’s films; even the faces are different from our time. The architecture, the costumes, even the faces - everything is steeped in history and authentic to that era.
All of this is spiced with very nice jazz soundtrack, which, on a little side note, loops very smoothly with no abrupt cuts into its different variations whenever a guard gets too close to you. Big props in this regard!
– Real player with 21.8 hrs in game
5 Things You Should Know about Calvino Noir
What Is It?
A film noir-style stealth adventure game set in 1930s Vienna. The graphics are 3D rendered, but the interface is locked to a 2D side-scrolling camera. The story is engaging and the atmosphere is superb, although the voice acting sometimes leaves a little to be desired.
What’s The Best Part?
I love the atmosphere in this game. Forget about the actual story for a minute, I just love how everything about the game screams “noir.” From the period-piece jazz music to the constant pouring rain outside. I love how the game is (almost) entirely black and white. Very fitting. Sometimes, when standing in the light, the game takes on a more sepia-tone hue.
– Real player with 16.5 hrs in game
Chibi Horror: The School
I really enjoyed this game as something different. You roam the halls of the haunted school, hoping not to run into the one active chaser as you collect eight books. Books appear in random locations each time, and you never know where the chaser is.
There are some jump scares, though they didn’t always appear in the same place or happen each time. Overall it’s pretty fun and you have infinite run and battery life. The only problem I had is that the chaser can spawn right in front of you even if you just left her a floor away, so there is an element of luck as well.
– Real player with 0.9 hrs in game
It’s like, Minecraft slender man but with your pixelated wives. You never know what they are going to do. They will stalk you and try to get your attention. If you are really lucky, you will never see any of them due to the way they randomly roams around. I am deathly scared of little girls stalking me so… it’s perfect for me. https://youtu.be/iYnCeasOte4
– Real player with 0.6 hrs in game
Hello Neighbor 2 Alpha 1.5
Hello Neighbor 2 Alpha 1.5. The alpha is 6/10 for me. Here are the Positives, the Art-style of the game is beautiful, the Controls and Physics are way better than the first game in my opinion, and messing around in the game is really fun especially seeing how the “AI” reacts to certain things.
Here are the Negatives, The Game is extremely un-optimized like I’m getting 30 fps sometimes, the puzzles are really difficult and random. For example, there’s a bored up window on the outside of the house and there’s a tree right next to it. Most would think that the tree has no collision BUT IT DOES! So you have to jump on the branch of that tree and throw an item through the window to hit a lever. WHAT THE HECK?!? and Finally my last complain is that the GUEST IS ALWAYS ON YOU! after going inside the house once he is always on you. That’s my review hope it helped a lot.
– Real player with 30.3 hrs in game
There are a lot of bugs here and there and there seems to be a countless amount of downgrades from the gameplay trailer we all got to watch and love but that doesn’t take away the outstanding new game we all are going to get sometime in 2021. The new gameplay features added to this new roleplaying horror game makes the series all the better. A brand new story with brand new characters cannot be denied as a good and well created game. Over the updates and new alphas this game will get, I truely hope this game will become what we all saw and loved from the gameplay trailer and that they clear the bugs and glitches. And with all that being said, this brand new sequal to this series is worth trying out and hopefully gets the attention and love that this game deserves.
– Real player with 26.8 hrs in game