Disclaimer:I received this game for free from the developers.
All You Can Eat is a very short and simple "comic game", for the lack of a better term.
It plays like a point and click game, where you click to interact with objects and locations. You also have a few specific interaction options by dragging the items into the objects themselves. By solving some puzzles you will progress through the story and reach the point where you can export your gameplay to a PDF file and print.
Made by two indie developers with a unique approach and a very interesting way to keep your legacy. We really like the idea of being able to share our story with friends, without them even knowing it was a game, in the first place.
DOOM became a mark in history as one of the best FPS games back in 1993. The new DOOM (2016) is by no means short of that. With a gameplay unique to its franchise, you will sure find it entertaining.
Gun Upgrades
DOOM's gameplay is very straight forward: Get some guns and convert demons into piles of flesh and blood. By itself is nothing new, what does make its playstyle unique is the mechanic called Glory Kill, which you might not wrongly assume by its name it is extra gory for an already sanguinary game. After weakening demons enough they enter a staggered state that allows you to kill them with your hands. Who needs guns anyway? More than that, the demon's body part you are aiming at and your position relative to it will change what animation gets executed, no easy feat may we add. Although Glory Kills are a small addition to the genre, it has deep implications in the way the game is played as well as how powerful it makes you feel.
Runes
Progression through the game is done primarily by moving through the story. You also get 3 secondary progression systems that will make you more powerful as you play. The first is adding bonuses to your weapons by finding gear drones, completing battles, challenges and finding secret spots on each story chapter. The second is increasing your suit power by finding elite guards and argent cells scattered through the stages. The third is through powerful runes that will add/change specific mechanics of the game by completing rune trials.
Although not a direct gameplay mechanic in itself the animation system created for the game has to be mentioned. Every creature has multiple reactions depending where it was shot at and with varying degree of pain. From simple twitches to full rage reactions for heavy damage, if you keep an eye out for these you will be amazed by the variety and responsiveness of the creatures to your actions.
With outstanding music, well paced fast action gameplay, and an aggressive mechanic DOOM will sure keep you on your toes! More than that, it effectively make you feel like the only one that can possibly stop hell from taking over! A decent multiplayer with user made content will also extend the gameplay if you are into it.
PS:There is much more to the animation system than we could possible mention here. If you are interested you can hear about it first hand from the developers themselves: Bringing Hell to Life: AI and Full Body Animation in DOOM (GDC Vault subscription needed).
Hero Generations: Regen is a rogue like strategy game where you have to balance between adventuring and managing your life span.
Time for Adventure!
The gameplay is simple, each character has a maximum number of years to live and each turn/move/action in the game grid takes away 1 year of that counter. During that time you can train your character, kill monsters, build cities, explore the map and find love. Before you reach the end of your life time you need to find an accepting mate to keep your bloodline going. In case you fail, it is game over. If you succeed you will be prompted to draw the attributes that your child inherits from a pile of cards. The quantity of draws you get is influenced by life span left, up to a cap of 16 draws and some traits you might posses.
Still got 120 left!
There is no long-term progression for the game. Every new game is self-contained and no progress is carried over. That said, the game does have a power progression as you go through the generations and accumulate resources and build cities that can empower your character. And if you survive long enough each generation card becomes stronger. Despite all that, having a longer lifespan is a clear advantage over everything else.
World Grid almost fully built.
Speaking of building you going to need gold in order to build. Gold can be acquired through combat, quests, and from buildings themselves (like farms). You can also use gold to purchase items from merchants, including a very special traveling one that can offer some of the best gear in the world. So keep those farms running!
Hero Generations Regen is a simple, enjoyable and unique game. Despite some minor issues like uselessness of damage, excessive randomness and a "rigged" feeling from the combat power system, the game presents a unique approach to using life span that we wish more adventure games would take.
Firewatch is a beautifully complex and simple mystery exploration game that will make you think twice about every other game that ever gave you a speech option.
The gameplay itself is very simple, as you walk around the world looking for clues you will contact your boss, Delilah, through a radio. This interaction, although simple in nature, was taken through great lengths to be extremely impactful. Every choice you make, every line you choose will affect your relationship with Delilah, changing the answers she gives, the comments she make and even the information she will give you.
Like other exploration games the only form of progression is going through the story, like reading a book. But more than being just one of those really great books, you will truly get the opportunity to choose the personality of your character and how he interacts with the story and others characters in it.
Firewatch is by far one of the best games of its kind. The art style fits perfectly with the game, the plot is well written and the voice over is exceptional! It brings not just character to life but also to every moment and every interaction you go through. Although the complexity of the game really shines when you do multiple playthroughs, being able to play the game once and never really realizing how your choices influenced the subsequent interactions is a statement to the lengths the developers went to make an amazing game.
Knights of Pen and Paper 2 is a simple, humorous and straight forward game that perfectly captures the feeling of a nerdy Pen & Paper session.
Character creation screen
As any RPG you will start building your character, your choice of player, race and class. That combination will determine the basic attributes and skills available to that one character. Gameplay itself is very straight forward, every challenge is a turn based battle. You can attack, block or use an item. Each character has four different skills that can synergize well with specific classes or builds.
Progression through the game is simple, as you move through the story line you will level up your characters, strengthen your skills, find new item recipes and special gear. What makes the progression enjoyable though has nothing to do with the power leveling (unless you are into that), but the lines crafted to resemble that table top kind of session. Filled with game references and popular culture, you are sure to get more than a couple. And, did we mention the piles of gold that fund your next expedition?
Item store
Gold is the most important resource you need. With it you can buy new and better equipment, consumable items to aid your exploring, furniture to your Game Room (that gives you party wide bonuses) and even reset your already playing characters. Annoyingly though you also need gold to travel around the map, so don't spend it all at once! We recommend keeping at least 50 coins for those travel heavy quests.
Even though the combat is simple and each characters only have four skills, there are many combinations to be made, specially when you take the character creation, equipment and the game room furbishing into consideration. Despite all that complexity, it still is an easy game that you don't have to worry too much and can just enjoy. As any table top game, there is no right or wrong here, just having fun. Added bonus for ease of saving the game and coming back right where you left it, even inside dungeons!
