Pokémon games will always hold a special place in my heart. The first video game I owned was a copy of Pokémon Red that I played on a second-hand Game Boy Advance, and it was a truly transformative experience. Having so many different creatures to learn about and collect was exciting, and that combined with an expansive world full of mysteries and secrets made it something that I put countless hours into. Since then, while I’ve drifted in and out of the franchise, I’ve maintained an interest in seeing what it’s going to do next. In contrast, an area I haven’t explored much is the broader creature collector genre, which seems to be seeing a resurgence in recent years with games like Cassette Beasts and Beastieball becoming indie darlings. Enter Voidsayer, which combines classic creature collector trappings with some roguelite elements and a dark atmosphere to create a unique – albeit deeply flawed – twist on the genre.
Tag: Roguelite
Going Under Review
Late-stage capitalism sucks. I like to think that’s not a deeply controversial statement to make, though I know there are those out there to whom such talk would be heresy. Seriously, though: it’s brought us the modern-day hellscape that is the gig economy, grift culture, and selling our privacy for the sake of convenience. Companies are increasingly unethical in their business practices, and even if you’re doing a good job, you’re at risk of getting laid off just so the execs can line their own pockets. And all the while, glitzy new Silicon Valley startups keep springing up, promising that this time they’ll make the world a better place. It’s a deeply depressing situation, and one in which it can be hard to find any sort of humour. However, with writing that deftly cycles between being severely cynical and surprisingly heartfelt, Going Under effectively satirizes the dire circumstances we all find ourselves in and even gives a bit of hope that things could get better.
Mother Machine Review
“Roguevania” is a curious genre tag that I’d never heard of before seeing it on Mother Machine’s Steam store page. I sort of understand it conceptually: take the randomly-generated level layouts and progression over the course of multiple “runs” of a roguelite and combine it with the “upgrade yourself to improve your ability to traverse the world” mechanisms of a Metroidvania. However, upon dissecting that idea, I immediately start finding holes. If you’re lacking a particular upgrade on a given run, does that mean it might be impossible to complete? Wouldn’t randomized level layouts be a nightmare to properly balance to give that satisfying sense of progression that the best Metroidvanias are known for? It seems like a recipe for disaster, which made me all the more intrigued to see how Mother Machine would pull it off.
Olive's Game Garden 