Back in 1995

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Throw the Warped Code Out

I love PlayStation One-era horror. I always will. I'm not the only one who loves it, either. A quick glance at itch.io, and you'll find plenty of people inspired by horror games of that era. Some developers there have created some very good, unique games in that vein… and I really wish that Back in 1995 was one of them. Sadly, it's not. Instead of trying to create a retro game with some newer ideas and concepts tossed in, Back in 1995 is the result of a retro game being created that doesn't really add anything new and seemingly makes no effort to improve on anything from the retro games of old… even if some of those games haven't aged so well. It's almost like the developer attempted to make a game like the original Resident Evil without understanding why any of it worked… kinda like someone trying to make a log cabin out of hot dog links. The basic concept is there, but without the correct building materials and without knowledge of how to stack the links in a way where the hotdog cabin doesn’t droop, the end result will leave something to be desired. Yes, I’m speaking from experience. Don’t judge me. Anyway, that's not to say that I didn't find mild enjoyment while playing Back in 1995 or that I think it’s an awful game – this could have been much, much worse than it is. Unfortunately, it's still not good, and there are plenty of games that were developed "back in 1995" that I would love to go back and play instead of popping this game back in again.

Review added: 10/19/2022

The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Nicalis

As someone who has played (and loved) all iterations of the Binding of Isaac games, Afterbirth+ is the best of the bunch. With enough new stuff to discover (like enemies, power-ups, modes, and playable characters), even if you've played the other Binding of Isaac games until you were sick of them, you'll still find plenty of reasons for this game to lure you back to mother's womb. If you’ve never played the Binding of Isaac games before, here’s the basic concept – you control Isaac, a young, abused child, as he tries to survive the horrors put upon him by his fanatical mother. To defend himself from these horrors, Isaac fires tears at his fears, and picks up an assortment of power-ups along the way to, usually, make survival easier. You’ve got a single life to make your way to see the end, so if you fail, you start from the very beginning again. Each playthrough is randomly generated, so you’ll have different level layouts each time you play, with different enemies and bosses to battle, and different power-ups to collect. Eventually, you’ll unlock even more enemies and power-ups as you play, along with more characters to play as aside from just Isaac. Bring it all together, and you’ve got a very addicting rouge-like that will likely have you playing “one more game” about ten games after you said that the first time. Afterbirth+ adds plenty of new power-ups and enemies to the gameplay of the original, making everything even more varied. Much of the game will be familiar to veterans of the series, but with enough new content to make it feel like it's not just "more of the same," it's well worth a purchase for anyone familiar with Isaac's tear-filled battle or anyone new to the series alike.

Review added: 07/04/2019

Blasphemous

Also known as: N/A

Developer: The Game Kitchen

I had a mild idea of what Blasphemous was when I played it for the first time. What I did not expect was the imagery that I'd be seeing. Blasphemous, to me, is essentially the definition of a mature-rated game. Shortly into the game, you'll see some very graphic images of both gore and mild nudity…sometimes together in the same scene. To offset these images, Blasphemous manages to be absolutely beautiful in other areas, with gorgeous skies and haunting areas to explore. Of course, pretty and controversial imagery don't mean anything if the gameplay isn't there. Thankfully, Blasphemous delivers in that aspect as well. Playing similar to Castlevania, in a way, Blasphemous has you wandering around a fairly open world…but if you die, you'll be encouraged to return to the location that you died to absorb the part of you that had failed previously. Failure to do so will disable part of your magic bar until you either succeed at recovering that part of you that died or until you beg for forgiveness at certain statues…for a price, of course. Blasphemous is the kind of game I like - it's visually unique, the gameplay is difficult (but not impossible), and it's just plain made well. I have not made my way all the way through Blasphemous yet, but I can definitely see this being a game that I play on and off, slowly making my way to the end, and likely enjoying every minute of it.

Review added: 10/19/2022

Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon

Also known as: N/A

Developer: Inti Creates

When Koji Igarashi, who worked on many Castlevania games, most notably being Symphony of the Night, went to Kickstarter in an effort to bring Castlevania gameplay back to the world, but without the Castlevania name, he was met with overwhelming success. Folks threw money at him like he was half naked and spinning around on a pole while Baby Beluga blared on the club speakers….what? I'm sure Raffi's greatest hits get played at strip joints on a regular basis. Anyway, while fans waited for the game that they had helped fund (Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night) to be released, Mr. Igarashi gave everyone a surprise to hold them over until Ritual of the Night launched. That surprise was Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon. While Ritual of the Night was going to be inspired by Symphony of the Night, Curse of the Moon is clearly inspired by Castlevania III. Instead of Metroidvania gameplay, it's more like classic Castlevania with side-scrolling levels containing bosses waiting for you at the end. And like Castlevania III, in this game you can find companions for you to play as while you make your way through the game, with each companion having their own skills and gameplay style…or you can simply kill them when you find them to give your main character new abilities. Those possibilities alone add a bit of replay value. But, add in some branching paths and hidden power-ups to discover, and you've got a very solid retro-style game. I, personally, prefer Castlevania III to this game, but Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon is still a very solid game that any fan of the original, pre-Metroidvania entries in the Castlevania series will enjoy.

Review added: 09/21/2022

Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night

Also known as: N/A

Developer: ArtPlay

When Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night was funded on Kickstarter, people funded the concept, without fully knowing if the end result would be good or not. Prior to this game's release, Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon was given to us and it showed that the developers could effectively create a modern variation of the classic Castlevania games. That gave me hope that they could get the later, metroidvania-style right as well. Now that I've played through from beginning to end, I can honestly say that while I really enjoyed Ritual of the Night, in my opinion it falls short of what I had hoped for. If you ask me what I hoped for, I can't really tell you, to be honest…I guess I just wanted something that felt a little more original. To me, this just felt like a Castlevania game with all of the licensing pulled from it. That's not necessarily a bad thing, mind you…I think my score reflects that…but I would have liked to see a little more originality to make it feel like its own game. As it is, you can't help but compare it to Symphony of the Night, and it's not as good as SotN, in my opinion. Not many games are, in fairness, but a bit more originality may have prevented so many comparisons to be made. In some ways, this feels like a "greatest hits" game with features from various Castlevania games finding their way here, with some feeling like they've been improved and others feeling like they were watered down. But anyway, I'm nitpicking. If you like the metroidvania Castlevania games and don't mind playing another game in that style that doesn't bring too much new to the table, then you'll definitely like Ritual of the Night. If you were hoping for more, like I was, then I bet you'll still like it anyway, despite some mild disappointment.

Review added: 10/19/2022