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Truth to be told, I've never been a fan of roguelikes and roguelites. My expierence boils down to playing Loop Hero, which has it's own unique elements, including a story. Nevertheless, I've played Gunbot Diplomacy demo some time ago. I dunno if love for robots (steambots?) made me do it or I finally decided to give the genre a proper try. I've played it and I liked it. Here I am, playing the full version.

As it often the case with the genre, there's no story.
The "story" boils down to: you’re a robot in a wasteland, and everything (slimes, mutants, drones, angry office workers?) wants you dead. Why? No one knows and no one cares. It's roguelite, you're here to blow stuff up and get stronger with each levels.

Visuals aren't bad. Enemy designs are: imagine radioactive slimes, cactus-crab hybrids, and laser-firing bots, all colorful and detailed, although it's not like you have time to give them a proper look. As you upgrade your Gunbot, it visibly evolves from a scrappy heap to a weapon-covered monstrosity, which is cool as well. Maps, however, are hit-or-miss. While hazards like acid rain glow vividly, environments are simplistic, lack detail and often repear.

Since we're here for gameplay, what's on offer?
The Upgrade Grid is a cool feature: weapons, augments, and boosters slot into a hex grid. Placement matters: put a machine gun next to a "Thumper" augment, and its cooldown drops 20%. Unlock evolved weapons like nuke-launching footballs by combining specific items. Although it's not often clear what do you need to combine to receive a "super" version of any selected weapon.

Progression & Unlocks: Start with one bot (the "All-Rounder") and nine weapons. Win runs to unlock 10+ bots and 80+ modules. Each bot slightly changes your playstyle, some bots have affinity for different damage type, some have more health, but your fighting loop is always the same: run, dodge, gather oil canisters, while kill the enemies.

Combat & Controls: Weapons auto-target, so you focus on dodging via dash moves. It’s frantic but fair post-patch: infamous enemies like charging "Dillosaurs" now give you time to react. Scavenge oil cans for health and scrap for upgrades between waves.

It's not all sunshine and rainbows tho.
Runs can feel repetitive early on, with small maps and similar objectives (survive X time/kill X enemies).

The soundtrack pumps upbeat electronic tunes that match the chaos but won’t stick in your head. Weapon sound effects are fine.

As always with these games, Gunbot Diplomacy nails the "just one more run" hook. Grid system and random drops between missions are often enough to keep you playing. Considering the price, this is a good game that'll fill a couple of your lonely evenings.

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Yet again we step into shoes of a business manager. This time our job is to turn the Mall into the hottest spot in town with maxed-out ratings, just like the first time. You’ll build cafes, cinemas, rooftop farms (yep, they fit up there!), and even helipads for VIP big spenders. These guys are like bosses: they fly in, drop crazy cash, and bounce, leaving you richer.
Pixel art is still great, straight out of classic Kairosoft games. Everything’s colorful and detailed: tiny people hustle around, and shops look like detailed (especially the aquariums or cinemas with mini posters).
You’re basically an architect-businessman: build floors, connect them with stairs, and set up transport routes (buses, subways, and even waterways for ships).
Background music is still chill, cash registers cha-ching, and crowds buzz. After a few hours, the tunes might get repetitive, but no biggie.
Oh, the second game improved upon the features from the first one. So, what’s new?

1. Expanded Transportation Options
The sequel introduces helicopters, UFOs, and additional public transit methods to attract customers from farther distances. This adds strategic depth, as players can assign multiple transport links to a single residential area for faster customer influx.

2. Weather and Scenery Mechanics
For the first time, environmental factors like weather and scenery influence customer behavior. Players must leverage these elements to boost mall popularity and sales.

3. Exclusive New Store Types
MMS2 features unique tenants such as indoor farms, movie theaters, pools, and exhibitions, which were absent in the original. These stores diversify gameplay and allow for creative mall designs.

4. Enhanced Combo System
Combos now require shops to be placed in a specific order (e.g., three related stores adjacent in a sequence) rather than just proximity. This adds complexity to layout planning and boosts store reputation more effectively.

5. Larger-Scale Construction
Players can build taller and wider, with more floors and underground layers. The game emphasizes vertical expansion, enabling sprawling malls that surpass the scale of the first title.

6. Competitive Elements
A new competitive mechanic pits players against rival malls, requiring strategic upgrades and event hosting to outperform competitors.

7. VIP Progression Integration
VIPs play a more critical role in unlocking milestones. Failing to attract key VIPs can hinder progression, making their management essential for achieving the 5-star rating.

8. Quality-of-Life Improvements
Fast-forward mode: Unlocked after completing the game once, allowing players to skip animations in subsequent playthroughs.


TL;DR: Mega Mall Story 2 is peak fun for builders and managers. Pros: tons of options, cozy pixel vibes, VIPs with deep pockets. Cons: combos can feel limiting, and gameplay doesn't evolve after few hours. If you love Kairosoft or mind don't a chill management game, this is your game.

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Deadfall Adventures is loosely tied into the series of books about the adventures of Allan Quatermain by H. Rider Haggard.

If you ever heard of the 1885 novel King Solomon's Mines or seen one of the movie adaptations, you'll know what I'm talking about. If not, I implore you to check them out.

Allan Quatermain was an English professional big game hunter and adventurer. We're playing as James Lee Quatermain the great-grandson of Allan. He's an adventurer too and maybe a big game hunter, but instead of being English, he's American.

In the year 1938, he's approached by Professor Henry Jacobs and agent Jennifer Goodwin, who represents an unnamed US government agency tasked with opposing oppose Nazi archaeological operations.

Both James and Jennifer are going on a mission to secure the Heart of Atlantis before Nazi's will. While on the mission, heroes will be fighting Nazi and Soviet soldiers as well as some undead creatures.

Sure, the story is full of cliches: James is a rough no-nonsense sarcastic "shoot-first-ask-questions-later" type of guy, while Jennifer is "smarts-and-hot-know-it-all" occasionally filling in the role of damsel in distress.

There's nothing you've never seen before, especially if you're a fan of Indiana Jones movies. You know the stuff: ancient tombs, priceless artifacts, nazi scientists, and scary undead monsters.


Despite being a budget title from 2013 made by the Polish team, the game looks surprisingly nice.

Locations are varied, even if you'll spend most of your time in tombs, you'll visit the dry sands of Egypt, icy Arctic plains, and moist Mayan jungles.

All of those are pleasant to look at, even if often you get hit with the signature Unreal Engine 3 texture pop-up.

Monsters do look gross, artifacts are shiny and alluring.

Character models are...fine. Although they do stare at you with that dead-eyed look like they're looking straight through you.

Animations on the other hand...are not fine: the way characters move in cutscenes is all jerky and weird, and facial expressions and lipsync are pretty much non-existent.

Well, at least the game is nicely optimized, played it both on old and new PCs.



No suprises on that front. Sountrack is a bit bland, it's trying its best to create an atmosphere of an adventure movie, but sadly fails.

Gunshots and explosions are fine, although I think I've heard the same sound on more than one weapon.

Human enemies are constantly shouting commands and monsters produce their horrific noises too.

Voice acting is...there. Sometimes its competent, but mostly it varies from okay to bland. Since it's a budget Polish game, German and Russian accents are silly as hell.

During gameplay, both James and Jenn exchange jokes and funny-ish remarks. Yet again, it swings from pure cringe to silly.




The game is mostly split between adventuring and fighting: 50% - shooting humans and mummies, 50% - puzzles using flashlight, diary and compass.

Gunfights are a little on the easy side. Enemy AI can't provide any challenge. Human enemies are mostly hiding in cover while showering you with grenades, while undead have only one tactic - run straight at you.

However, with undead enemies, you have to focus the light from your flashlight on them, removing their "armor" and making so you can kill them with a couple of bullets. Otherwise, you will waste an entire magazine to kill one mummy.

This mechanic may seem annoying, but it's not. It's also nice that you can use your flashlight as a weapon and a tool for solving puzzles. Besides, you can use a variety of stationary traps found almost in each tomb or temple to kill enemies.

What about your arsenal? Oh, there are plenty of different guns to satisfy your killer needs.

But – there is always a "but" - you're able to access those weapons ONLY if you downgrade your game version to a previous one. Developers, in their infinite wisdom, released "Update 2", removing 70% of available weaponry, even in single-player. For what reason, I do not know.

Puzzles are quite easy: avoid traps, flip levers, and shine light into gemstones. Even if you don't know what to do right away, just look around or check your handy journal and you'll find the solution.

As I've mentioned before, you can find artifacts. Some are hidden in plain view, some will take a minute to find. Use your hand compass which will show you the right direction towards the collectable.

Also, the collectables give you skill points, split into three path:

- Warriors Path enhances combat abilities (e.g., reload speed, weapon accuracy)
- Life Path boosts health and stamina
- Light Path increases flashlight damage and effectiveness against monsters
The truth is, the effects of those upgrades are pretty much unnoticable. I upgraded all of those and the only thing that I noticed changing is the "power" my flashlight.

There is multiplayer and survival modes (including coop survival) but since this is a niche poorly reviewed budget title from 2013, the multiplayer is dead.

I've been able to play survival mode. It's fun for a short while, but playing solo gets boring sooner than you think.


Besides the uppermentioned weapon removal, I've experienced a couple of bugs.

A pillar with a button I needed to press, messed up its XYZ position and floated up in the air where I wasn't able to reach it, thus softlocking me. Thankfully, I only had to replay the level from the start and it worked just fine.
In a level with a moving bridge, I fell down and instead of being killed by an invisible death wall, I stayed alive, not being able to do anything until I restarted the last checkpoint.
Other than that, hitboxes sometimes would bug out, so I couldn't grab a treasure from a certain angle or undead enemies being able to hit me despite being relatively far from me.

Deadfall Adventures is like a cheap B-movie: full of clichés, bad acting, and stupid dialogues, but still addictive and fun. It is almost a parody of Indiana Jones and it bears no resemblance to the source material it takes inspiration from. Yet, it's still fun. The game doesn't overstay its welcome, you're in and out in about 8-10 hours.

And honestly, I miss those types of games. Everything is overblown, overcomplicated, and overpriced nowadays.

In my opinion, reviewers in 2013 were too harsh on this game, giving it 3's and 4's. It's a solid 7-7.5 in my opinion.

If you have a couple of bucks and you see this on sale, grab it! Just don't forget to downgrade your game for more gun variety.

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We all know Warioware: the series of games that is essentially a collection of wacky bite-sized microgames. This is it, but on PC.
First off, the core gameplay is so easy to grasp. You’ve got 56 mini-games, all controlled by one button. You tap, hold, or mash that single button to do everything from riding a kart and skipping stone, to controlling a Roomba riding cat in its attempt to clean a room and killing demons with a double-barreled shotgun Doom-style.
The humor mostly hits the mark, at least for me. The game’s set in Hell where demon roommates bicker about chores and existential dread, and the writing is packed with gaming meme references and fourth-wall breaks. It's funny most of the time, but depending on when you play this, some of those jokes can be outdated (we all know how quickly memes fade into obscurity).

Replayability is there. There are daily challenges, leaderboards, and achievements to unlock. What I do like, is that besides the "classic mode" where you have to play through the game 1 up to 56 each time you lose, you have modifiers that can randomize the games offered to you.
The customization options for your profile are a nice touch too. You'll even spot a few familiar faces if you played the previous game by this dev. You unlock those by playing the games and leveling up. 

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3429676808


I'll be honest, even if there are 56 games, I can't say that all of these are equally fun. Some of these are super fun and easy to understand: destroy a car as a schoolgirl uniform-wearing grandpa (Street Fighter reference btw) or split lanes riding a car (like that one game on Protech's Pro 200, yes, I'm THAT old). Some of those are boring or really hard: how "skip the dialogue" game sound? Not that exciting I bet. The stone-skipping game was super frustrating by having extremely precise timing. You can imagine what happens as the gameplay gets progressively faster.

Then there’s the soundtrack. The main theme is a catchy, hellish jingle that sounds like a carnival band trapped in a haunted elevator. It’s fine…for the first half an hour. But when you’re replaying the same mini-game for the 15th time, that loop starts to feel like psy-op. I’d kill for a jukebox mode or even just a second track. Instead fire up Spotify and put on my own funky tunes.

The difficulty spikes are brutal, too. One minute you’re breezing through silly mini-games like "Take a clear photo of a dude's head" to eat a bunch of marbles as a giant head competing with the other 3 heads. It’s like the game can’t decide if it wants to be a party game or a masocore challenge.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3429676786


From what I gathered, at launch, Super 56 forced you to navigate everything with one button. Want to quit? Too bad! You had to play a mini-game just to exit to the main menu. It was “quirky” at first but quickly became infuriating. Thankfully, the devs patched in D-pad support, but it’s still clunky. The “retry” button is buried like a secret level, and some menus take ages to load because…why not add unskippable demonic laugh tracks to every screen?

The lack of a proper tutorial is another headache. Sure, half the fun is figuring out what the heck you’re supposed to do in each mini-game, but when you’re stuck on a cryptic objective, a hint button would’ve been nice. "But there is a hint book!" I hear you say. Uh yeah, for ACHIEVEMENTS.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3429676777

In conclusion, this is a mess, but mostly fun mess.

At $6.99, Super 56 is a steal for anyone who loves chaotic, unpredictable gameplay. It’s not perfect - some mini-games overstay their welcome, the UI is still janky, and the soundtrack will haunt your dreams, but the sheer creativity and replayability make it worth the price of admission.

Just go in with the right expectations: This isn’t a polished Nintendo title. It’s a scrappy, unapologetically weird indie game that feels like it was made by a group of friends who dared each other to keep adding weirder ideas. And honestly? That’s part of its charm.

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The game is set in a futuristic cyberpunk version of Central Europe (think Prague from Deus Ex: Mankind Divided). It has all the usual trappings: modern corporate skyscrapers mixed with classic architecture and a sprinkle of industrial sections and dirty slums. And you get to see it all. This serves as a perfect background for a not-a-perfect story. Don't get me wrong, it's still a good linear story, but nothing groundbreaking.

You are playing as Alexandra - a gridrunner on a heist that'll go wrong sooner than you think. Your team is dead and now you have 30 days to deliver the goods you were requested to steal or you're gonna take a vacation six feet under.

What do you need first? A new team. Oh and what a team it is. I kid you not, it’s really hard to pick a favorite because they’re all so well-written and likable (although I think Karel, Kepler, and Lujza are the closest to my heart). I can't remember the last time I liked all the characters in the game: both heroes and villains.

The best thing is, that Alexandra turned out to be a levelheaded person with her own fears and emotions, instead of the snarky "girlboss".

The story is pretty standard for cyberpunk, but it’s done well - it’s got that nice mix of drama, dark cyberpunk themes, and moments of humor (good one at that) which can get a good laugh (or at least a smile) out of you.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3421954001



The visuals are great too. The art style is pretty cool, and so is the character and enemy design. Mercs with robotic limbs (and all sorts of connection ports implanted wherever), huge heavy robots, and simple gang goons, all look nice. Karel with his old-school 80s sunglasses, varsity jacket, and golden tooth is the fashion icon I aspire to become in my later years.

The only design choice I didn't like was Alexandra herself. A combination of pink hair and a wolfcut haircut is so overdone in 2025 (on top of being an awful combo in the first place). Otherwise, no complaints on the design part.

The game sticks to a classic neon-gloom cyberpunk palette, and it works well. The city and heist locations are all 2D backgrounds, which keeps things simple but effective. Locations themselves are varied too. Slums, corpo labs, docks, and even a rich dude's real deal castle, the game has it all.

In story parts of the game, character portraits are slightly animated: characters sway a little bit from side to side and move their eyes, but weirdly do not open their mouths while talking.

Battle animations are fine if a bit limited and clunky.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3421954081



The audio is solid, both in soundtrack and voiceover. The music fits the cyberpunk vibe perfectly. There's also this one battle metal track that pumps me up every time I hear it.


Dan Gold as Csaba did a perfect job imitating eastern european slavic accent.

Krys Janae as Alexandra is great too, although there is some moments where her delivery is a bit flat.

Matthew Curtis as Karel (and bunch of other roles) was simply outstanding.

All the other voice actors are great too.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3421954031


The gameplay is essentialy split into multiple sections:


- Story section is presented in a visual novel form, where you simply talk and choose dialogue options.

- Heist section is where you presented with a location's blueprint, where you choose different routes which provide different options. Maybe you can avoide fighting and snag a few credits along the way.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3421954107

- Fight section where you choose cards with different effects while managing your action points.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3421954098

- Hacking section where you capture or destroy nods to get extra cards/resources or open new path for the other team.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3421954120

The heists are the meat of the game and where you'll spend most of your time. Managing multiple teams, moving across the target location’s blueprint, and completing side quests for extra loot or to avoid trouble is fun.
The card-based gameplay is also super fun. I'm not gonna explain every single mechanic, just gonna say that it's not without its quirks.
Haste doesn't make your turn come faster, it gives you more action points on your next turn.
The "Stealth" card causes enemy attacks to miss, so you can avoid all the damage. But for some reason, it doesn’t protect you from the side effects of the attacks you’re dodging. So all the bleeding, burn, and other negative effects will still affect you.
That said, the game is only a bit challenging in the early stages when you don't have good cards. By the end, you gather some strong decks and usually can win even the hardest fights without getting a hit.
Still, the deck-building aspect is refreshing compared to all the other ones out there, and it’s super satisfying to tweak your deck and speed through it multiple times in a single turn.

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It all starts in 2019 with our protagonist and his fellow female student Qiu Shuya doing some testing on their experimental communicator that supposedly can communicate through space and time. Mainly, it is supposed to communicate with the past. Except it doesn't. The experiment is a failure and on top of that, on the day of the protagonist's birthday, Qiu Shuya gets killed in a car accident. We get questioned by the lovely Inspector Gu Siqi where we can enter our names. After that, we go drinking alone at the bridge where we meet a reporter Cheng Linwei who becomes our friend, and over time you start dating. After that, in 2024, on the day of your birthday, you invite your new girlfriend, kiss her, and live with Cheng Linwei happily ever after, forgetting all about Qiu Shuya. THE END.

Wait, what? That can't be it! And you're right, it's not the end. Well, it's not the end if you don't want it to be. Because what I didn't tell you is that up to this point, you're given a series of choices that affect the outcome.

If you choose not to kiss Linwei and not to forget about your old flame, the protagonist will decide to use his failed experiment one more time on a rainy night and will be able to send a message to the past to Qiu Shuya, warning her of the incoming danger, thus saving her. Past is changed, you and Qiu Shuya reunite and live happily ever after. Yay! It's done, the end! Right...? Except, turns out that in this timeline, Cheng Linwei gets killed by a serial killer named "Rain Man".

This triggers the series of events forcing our protagonist to rely on his newly obtained power to send messages to the past. Will he be able to save Cheng Linwei? Will he choose to? Who is this the mysterious Rain Man killer?

At first, I thought it'd be a complete ripoff of the Steins;Gate and you'll be stuck in a loop of desperate attempts to save the one you love. Turns out, not really. The game quickly shifts focus from sci-fi elements (although they're still present) to murder mystery and dating sim. Yup, you read it right. Dating sim. You'll be sweet-talking girls to left and right. Shuya and Linwei are not the only girls you can and will romance.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3416695036


Since it's an FMV game, what graphics are we talking about? Video quality is alright, seemingly locked at 720p but there's an option to download the 4K version. I'm also not competent enough to judge cinematography and all that fluff.

However what I can say is that the game is filmed from a first-person perspective and more often than not, the operator's hands are a little bit shaky. Also, despite some of the actors having acting roles in real life (Fang Jin - the actress playing the role of Cheng Linwei has several dorama roles behind her) acting can be a mixed bag. Supporting actors (including the main character) are mostly amateurs and were a hit or miss and even the main female cast can be "so-so" from time to time. It's okay, just don't expect the quality of Christopher Nolan.


UI is solid but it's clear that it was a mobile title before.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3416695057



The sound itself is crisp and clear. The soundtrack is mostly there to provide a background sound. Nothing spectacular, but there's a solid selection of tracks. Can't say anything about voice acting itself (since most of my Chinese cinema experience comes from the 80s and 90s) but what I can comment on is the technical aspects. There are many scenes where audio doesn't match the video and you can see that lipsync is way off. From what I can gather, sometimes actresses are re-recording their lines in the studio to preserve the audio quality.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3416695082


Nothing I can say on that front either. It's essentially a visual novel but in video format. You have to choose your answers and actions and watch the consequences. Sometimes you'll be given a static screen with investigation "bubbles". Upon clicking each one of these, you'll be shown a video of the protagonist, well, investigating them.


Sometimes your actions will lead you to a Bad Ending. Ranging from losing a clue to dying. It's a good thing then that at any given moment you press a button and return to the "timeline" menu where any timeline deviation is shown. It's a very helpful thing. If you don't like an outcome, you choose another and see what happens that time.

Some routes require you to make a certain choice or have a certain level of relationship with a certain character, which can trail back to the previous chapter. It's okay though, since you can change it any time and go back. Also, rewind/skip features help immensely so you don't have to watch the same scenes over and over.

Also I have to mention that game has a tarot card system where upon playing the game for at least 3 hours, you can get cases that contain tarot cards with female characters from the game. Nothing raunchy or anything like that, just actresses being cute. You can collect those or sell them on a Steam Market (but I doubt that you can make any money from that).


https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3416695128


Now to the negatives, since I didn't know where to put this section.

First and foremost: the translation. English language translation is quite bad. It feels like they took the script, ran it through Google Translate (not even DeepL), and put it back into the game. You can understand what characters are talking about (most of the time) but the amount of absolute gibberish and misspells is atrocious.

For example, my first time playing through the prologue section, despite reading the subtitles, I had no idea that Shuya was our girlfriend. I found out only by manually translating a Chinese walkthrough guide that specifically says that we should speak the truth to Inspector Gu when she is questioning us. One of the questions about our relationship with Shuya has two answers: "She's my girlfriend" and "She's just a classmate". And "she's my girlfriend" is considered to be the truth.

Then there's the fact that the game requires a constant internet connection to be played. Huh? What's up with that? It's a singleplayer game, what do you need internet for?

But what mostly stops me from fully enjoying this title is its very FMV nature. Look, as a 30+ years old man engaged in a long-term relationship with a woman, I usually have zero problems playing Japanese dating sims, since the characters are not real. But here, I see real girls (probably younger than me) fluttering their eyelashes and pretending to kiss the protagonist (but smooching the camera) I die a little bit inside from cringing too hard. Every romantic scene makes me want to avert my gaze from the screen.

In the end, I feel like this title (or any FMV dating sim title) is not for me. Maybe if the game had no romantic sections whatsoever, I wouldn't had these problems. It's not like there's something inherently wrong with the game or even the genre, it's just that I am not the target audience for it.

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This is the fourth Hercules game I've played, with previous being 1,2 and 4. And with them being so similiar, honestly, I don't even know what to say about this one.
12 Labours of Hercules XVII: Feathered Fury continues the series' familiar time-management and puzzle gameplay, this time with Hercules (more like his slave/workers) taking on the Stymphalian Birds. Gather resources, remove obstacles, sometimes build something. Everything that you've been doing eleven games before this one. I mean, this entry includes new power-ups and visually distinct levels. The Aztec myth-inspired missions kinda provide a unique twist, adding some variety to the standard mechanics. Don't get me wrong, this definetely is a fun time-killer, but I dunno if there enough fluff to separate this one from the others. If you love the series and you simply want more of the same, get this one. If you're a newcomer, I see no reason why you should pick this one. Choose any of the 16 games, you can't get it wrong.

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As a huge Kairosoft fan who’s played on every device possible, I can honestly say Dream Town Island is their best yet! It’s everything we love about Kairosoft: cute pixel art, addictive gameplay, and that perfect blend of strategy and chill vibes, but on a whole new level.

You’re given a blank island and total freedom to build your dream community. Want a quiet village full of parks or a bustling downtown packed with shops? Want entertainment centres and quiet suburbs? Go for it! The customization is next-level for a Kairosoft game, from detailed roads and landscaping to houses you can actually upgrade.

The game feels more open-ended too, just the fun of watching your island grow and change over time. Your residents even age and have personalities, which adds an unexpectedly sweet touch. And while it’s super relaxing, there’s still strategy involved. You have to balance homes with businesses, make sure shops are near tourist attractions, and use “building combos” to maximize benefits.

As your island becomes more popular, tourists start visiting, spending money, and adding to your economy. Plus, there are special events and festivals to keep things interesting, which is a nice bonus. With its adorable visuals, endless customization, and perfect balance of strategy and relaxation, Dream Town Island is Kairosoft at its best.

Pros:

- Deep customization (roads, buildings, upgrades)
- Cute pixel graphics and animations
- Super chill!
- Great replay value with so many ways to build

Cons:

None. Seriously.

Honestly, it's hard to review this game without writing a wall of text, there's too much deep and fun mechanics. Just know, that I think this is Kairosoft’s best game yet - more depth, easier at the start, and just plain fun!

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Review is written October 16, 2024, for the "Lost in the Void : Chapter One".

Welcome to this atmospheric adventure.
You play as a high school senior, and just as you're hanging out with friends, this creepy voice starts pulling you into a dark, unknown path. The choices you make affect everything - your friendships, how the story plays out, and the overall vibe of the game. No fighting here - it's all about talking things out and making smart decisions. Although as of now, it's not really clear how your decisions will affect the game.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3349593504


The game’s got a cool '80s vibe, and it's all about storytelling and choices. You even get to set up your character's skills, which is pretty fun because it changes how you deal with situations (like whether you're tech-savvy or a good communicator). The pixel art gives off major nostalgic feels, but the first chapter is pretty short, around an hour long, so it’s more of an introduction to the world and main characters.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3349593516

Pros:
- Great sountrack, vibes are immaculate
- Good looking pixel art and animations
- Atmosphere
- Writing is nice

Cons:
- Short with a cliffhanger ending (only Chapter 1 as of now)
- Collision is a bit wonky (for interactions as well)


While I liked what I played, that little chapter one left me wanting for more (and I don't know if we even have an approximate release date for chapter two).

Lost in the Void is an immersive atmospheric story driven pixel art adventure, oozing with atmosphere.
This is the only the first chapter, although the price is small enough for this little teaser, just be aware that it only take an hour to complete.

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Being a connoisseur (and a one of the biggest fans) of the Kairosoft simulation line of games, going into Pocket Academy 3 was gonna be a no-brainer. At least that's what I thought, cause, well, it's a Kairosoft game and the third game in the Academy sub-series (if you can call it that), but "Pocket Academy 3" is on another level compared to its predecessors. If you’ve played either (or both) previous Academy games, you’re in for some cool surprises. Imagine all the classic school-building mechanics, but with a new layer of polish and a heap of fresh features that make it feel like a brand-new experience.

https://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3349564175

Right off the bat, "Pocket Academy 3" throws you into a colorful, bustling school environment where you have total control over everything—teachers, students, facilities, clubs, and even events. While it's definetely can make you feel a bit overwhelmed at first, especially if you’re not familiar with managing all the small details of a school, but it doesn’t take long to catch on. The core gameplay? Still as addictive as ever. You’re crafting the perfect school by managing student happiness, juggling facilities, and unlocking tons of new features. As always, your end goal is to be first, this time among schools.

What about school management? Well, here you’re not just passively watching your school grow. You’ll constantly need to make decisions that shape your students' futures. What facilities to build, what teachers to hire, what special classes to hold. Every student has their dream job and it's YOUR job to make it happen. Or maybe you realise that a particular student is better suited to be a chef, rather than a singer. With the help of counceling, you can change it any time you want. At the end of their highschool life, students will graduate and reap the fruits of their (or rather yours) labor. Or maybe they will fail miserably (that's on you btw). Game adds new layers of complexity to its systems, which might feel a bit overwhelming at times, but it’s all part of the charm. And if you get stuck trying to figure out why your students are unhappy or why your basketball team keeps losing, the in-game guidance is always there to help without holding your hand too much.

What makes this version stand out from the earlier entries is how much more depth there is to the student interactions. Now, students have distinct personalities, and their interests actually impact the clubs they join and how they perform in class, which presents you with even more fun decision making, choosing what helps your students more at any given moment. Plus, the events you plan can seriously change how your school evolves. There’s also a new club system that adds layers of strategy, letting you set up everything from the debate team to the robotics club, which is a huge improvement over the simpler systems in the first two games. And guess what? Each and every club has it's own rankings. Want to reach nationals? You better put in some work (and money...a lot of money!)

The visual style is still that classic Kairosoft charm—bright, pixelated, and full of quirky details. Sure, it’s not a graphical powerhouse, but who cares when the gameplay loop is this satisfying? At this point, this style is trademark for Kairosoft, I would be surprised if that changed any time soon.

In terms of auido: sfx and music, it was never the highlight of Kairosoft games. A couple of changing tracks is what you get on loop. So if you're easely annoyed by this, you better turn off in-game audio and switch to your favourite band, but the soundtrack pretty inoffensive if you ask me.

Pros:

- Deep, engaging school management with new layers of strategy
- Personality-driven students and dynamic club systems
- Classic pixel art that’s still full of charm
- Satisfying gameplay loop that keeps you hooked
- Improved event planning and student interaction over previous games

Cons:

- Some mechanics may feel overwhelming at first
- Audio is a mixed bag


Highly recommend if you love simulation games with a quirky twist, or if you just want to build the school of your dreams! For fans of Kairosoft games, it's a must have!

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