Vampire Survivors

Also known as:  N/A

Developer: poncle

I saw a description of Vampire Warriors that claimed that "you are the bullet hell," and I feel like that accurately describes the gameplay here. In Vampire Survivors, you essentially control one of several characters, gradually killing various types of the undead, until you can level up and either gain a new skill or improve upon a skill that you've already got. Get enough skills, and you'll have so many projectiles spewing from your character that even when it looks like you've got hundreds of enemies on the screen coming for you, they won't even get close to you due to all of your weapons keeping them at bay. Of course, every run isn't like that, but it's essentially the goal. Unlike similar games, you don't actually control your attacks in Vampire Survivors - you can pretty much just play this game with a single hand. You just need to focus on moving around, all attacks fire automatically. While that may sound like a turn-off for some, honestly, it helps add some strategy to the game…and with more than 20 hours logged into the game, I can honestly say that everything is really well done here. While it's not perfect, it's very good, and I definitely recommend it to anyone that would like to play a twin-stick shooter while only using one stick. I can definitely see myself coming back to this game from time to time in the future.

Review added: 10/14/2022

Verdict Guilty

Also known as:  N/A

Developer: Retro Army Limited

Verdict Guilty is a fighting game with an interesting concept of attempting to handcuff your opponent before delivering the final blow in order to detain them. Attempting to handcuff the other person in the battle adds a unique layer of strategy to the fight…unfortunately, aside from certain fights in the story mode, the handcuffing does not seem to be mandatory, so unless you simply want to gloat about being able to handcuff your opponent prior to flicking them in the nose or whatever the final blow was, it comes across as more of a gimmick than a needed gameplay mechanic. Aside from that, another interesting addition to the fighting is that each special move counts as ammunition. If you use up your ammo, you have to reload. It makes you be more strategic than you might be in other fighting games because the last thing you want is to be stuck reloading when the opponent is one hit away from victory. This also helps prevent moves from being spammed to victory. It’s no Street Fighter, but for the $5 price tag, you definitely get more than your money’s worth here.

Review added: 03/23/2020

The VHS Paradise

Also known as:  N/A

Developer: fedev

My first job was at a VHS rental store, so games like this, that take place in a video rental store, always catch my eye. Unfortunately, this one is really dull. The entire game is standing in place, watching customers, occasionally chasing after customers that try to steal, and at the very end, then the "horror" element starts…and it's not really well done, in all honesty. Watching customers is pretty boring…interacting with them isn't much better. The only real action in the game comes at the end…and that's not necessarily done well. Even if it was, it doesn't last long. Basically, you're looking at roughly ten minutes of boredom to see a screen with credits and a comment thanking you for playing. I get that this was created mostly by one person (with a little help according to the credits) but I feel like if they put a little more time into this, added a little more meat to it, it'd be a better overall game. As it is, though, it's not very good. I want to like it…but since I also don't want to really replay it, I think this is the rare instance where it's kind to NOT rewind.

Review added: 10/31/2024

VVVVVV

Also known as:  N/A

Developer: Terry Cavanagh

VVVVVV is a very unique game that is also very, very good. It's a platformer that involves manipulating gravity rather than jumping - bouncing between the floors and the ceilings by changing the direction of gravity is your only way around obstacles (usually deadly spikes) in your path. That alone is fun, but VVVVVV doesn't fit the traditional "level-by-level" mold of platformers. Instead of beating levels, the game is an open world for you to explore, similar to a Metroid title. The soundtrack is also very well done. The end result is a game that looks very basic, but with gameplay that is anything but basic. If you haven’t played it before, but like unique gameplay and/or a Metroid-style of exploration in your games, then I think that you’ll really enjoy what VVVVVV has to offer. It really is a fantastic game, and it may be the best game that Terry Cavanagh ever created.

Review added: 06/29/2020