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Welcome to our very first Qweerty Gamers: Game of the Month blog! Every week, our amazing QG Creators will be playing queer, queer-inclusive, and queer-friendly video games that highlight the diverse storytelling & representation of the LGBTQ community. In a world where censorship is rampant, supporting these creators has never been more critical. Be sure to favorite our website to stay up-to-date with our reviews!

Our first Game of the Month is an “oldie” but goodie, Dream Daddy (2017), published & created by Game Grumps, directed by Tyler J. Hutchison, & written by Leighton Gray & Vernon Shaw—a choose-your-own-adventure dating simulator. In Dream Daddy, you play a dad & move to a culdesac with other dads in Maple Bay. Before we get into the queerness of the game, We want to recognize how polished everything feels, from the original Dream Daddy theme song to the minigames you play as your Dadsona (your dad avatar) to the multiple endings available for the seven datable dads.

The launch of Dream Daddy was a game before its time and set the foundation for many developers to release queer games. From setting up visual representations of trans people by allowing players to customize their Dadsona with binders to curbing the number of gendered pronouns in the script & allowing the character to choose if their child (Amanda) is adopted or is their birth child. The game struck a great balance of queer storytelling while setting up normalcy to be a dad who dates other dads. What’s more impressive is that director Tyler J Hutchison is a straight, cisgender white man, and he and writers Leighton and Vernon Shaw got so much right.

If you’ve played the first installment of Arcade Spirits, you may have high expectations for this rightfully beloved visual novel. But do not approach this game with any apprehension, The New Challengers is, against all odds, even better! You will be absolutely charmed and thrilled by this indie gem that has some of the best writing I have ever encountered, delightfully retro yet modern and vibrant aesthetics, and fantastic dating sim gameplays.

A Word Is Worth a Thousand Pictures

In my view, no matter how many shiny things you surround the text with, you cannot camouflage bad writing in a visual novel. And likewise, a great story can effortlessly carry the player from beginning to end with the sheer power of words. This is exactly what the first Arcade Spirits did, and what this one does – and even better, to a certain extent. In this installment, you play as, once again, a young adult in a semi-existential crisis, at crossroads in their life with a big dream, in a euchronic future where arcades have not fallen out of fashion, and instead, have only risen in popularity (if only!). This time, rather than try and run an arcade in a ruthlessly capitalistic society, you want to make it into the hyper-competitive world of esports in a game called Fist of Discomfort 2 – connoisseurs will recognize this game from the first Arcade Spirits! — with the help of your AI companion Iris and teammates you will learn to love (platonically and/or romantically, your have the complete freedom to pursue any or no relationship type). You drive the narrative with the mere power of decision-making in the form of dialogue options in this visual novel that is halfway between a choices-matter game and a dating sim, while still retaining its unique aura and sense of artistry. It truly has a heart and soul that is beyond any constraining boxes and labels of genre.

What made the first Arcade Spirits shine amongst a plethora of good indie visual novels is not only the brilliancy of the textual and visual narrative it carries, but also the richness and diversity of its characters. None of the characters felt flat, they were all quite multilayered, likeable, and relatable to various extents. I didn’t think it was possible, but The New Challengers does this even better. You will not want to put the game down; this visual novel is a virtual page-turner!

A Vibrant Cast of Friends and Enemies

Another tour de force of this game is rejuvenating the game while keeping and honoring the Arcade Spirits core that all the fans adore. I can imagine it must have been an incredibly difficult balancing act which was masterfully achieved. The characters are again the heart and motor of the game, and we still find the same(-ish) five personality traits: kind, quirky, gutsy, steady, and flexible, that you can develop and increase in an RPG-esque manner depending on your choices. We meet six completely new characters to befriend (or not) and romance (or not), with very fresh, diverse, and multilayered personalities that do not fall into clichés or easy tropes, and are not simply direct counterparts of the characters of the first game. And as much I loved (and loved to hate) the characters from the previous game, these ones are growing on me even faster... Even Iris now has more personality, on a scale between chaotic and orderly depending on your choices throughout the game.

One aspect I particularly appreciate is the malleability of the protagonist, and the diversity and richness of all characters – one character uses they/them pronouns, Ben and Matt are an adorable husband and husband pair, one character has a physical disability, and a variety of body sizes, styles, skin colors, and gender configurations are represented. The best part is that it does not feel forced in, all of these identity markers are carefully imbricated into personality and interact within a constellation of other traits. Diversity is never plastered in or vapid, it enriches personality and narrative. Moreover, this time around, not only can you romance any (or none — which is made clear to be just as valid a choice) of the six characters, you also get to have a face and body of your own (of the shape and configuration you want) that shows up on screen, making scenes much more dynamic, less static; a vibrant icon that represents your online persona; and you choose amongst 15 different sets of pronouns. Arcade Spirits: The New Challengers offers a masterclass in representation.

Let your Personality Shine Bright!

Beyond the endearing story and characters, you will certainly fall in love with the visual and auditory aesthetics. The vivid colors, the very clean art, and the satisfying sound effects all contribute towards modern retro aesthetics that are very pleasing to the eye and ear, topped off with bits of voice over dialogues. They capture the setting and atmosphere of the game so well, as it is set in parallel future that is rooted in the proliferation of the arcade era, a happy marriage between the late eighties and futuristic elements. It will make your nostalgic heart happy from the moment you boot up the game and are faced with a VHS-inspired interface and Windows 95 boxes, but with a resolutely modern and fresh twist.

The biggest addition to the game from its preceding installment is the addition of a Fist of Discomfort 2 mini-game. You remember that game that QueenBee was very fond of? Now you get to not only make your dream of being a champion of that game come true, but also play it yourself in the form of a little side game. I found myself truly enjoying this mini-game that is simple enough to not distract from the main game and not weigh it down, and engaging enough to make it a lovely intermission, a playful side-quest and punctuation in the narrative. And if it’s not your cup of tea, you can choose to skip it entirely without consequences.

A Delight from Beginning to End!

For all the reasons mentioned above, I cannot recommend Arcade Spirits: The New Challengers more heartily. As a big fan of the first game, I was excited yet apprehensive about this new installment (not a sequel per se, a fresh new game that retains its predecessor’s soul and charms), thinking it could not possibly live up to my expectations. However, I was ecstatic to realize that it does not fall short in any single aspect. Everything you loved about the first game is back but better, with some completely new additions as well that rejuvenate the game. Like its predecessor, all of the aesthetic, narrative, and gameplay components combine and have this enchanting je-ne-sais-quoi that captivates you and makes you forget all your woes. It will make your little queer heart squee in joy and it will carry you away to its lovely nostalgic world, whether you’ve played the first Arcade Spirits or not.

If visual novels, choices-matter games, and dating sims are up your alley, you must do yourself a favor and add this gem to your collection. You won’t be able to put the game down until you’re done with it, and then, you’ll just want to play it again to try different romance, friendship, and career options. Go and show Fist of Discomfort 2 who’s boss!

Let this adorable puzzle game with surprising aesthetic depth charm you with its magical bunnies! Princess Farmer is a much needed breath of fresh, gay air in the indie gaming world. Take a break from the stresses of daily life, and let Princess Farmer’s charming universe make you fall in love with it, puzzle by puzzle, pixel by pixel, blushing bunny by blushing bunny.

Princess Farmer was released on March 31, 2022, and is currently available on all your favourite platforms (PC, Nintendo Switch, Xbox, and Playstation). It is the first project of developers Samobee Games, a wife/wife team, and was published by Whitethorn Games, who are also associated with the wonderful games Teacup, Lake, and Calico, among others. I had the chance to host a Q&A session with Bee and Charlene, the two creators of Princess Farmer, and we had wonderful conversations about their game. If you would like to watch it, it is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJ7Cs636xtc

Be Gay, Do Matches!

Most of your time as a magical bunny will be spent pulling vegetables – and trust me, it’s a lot more fun than it sounds! In a typical match-three fashion, you will need to line vegetables up horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, by pulling them from the ground and placing them in another column. It is quite refreshing for the genre to be controlling a character that physically moves the puzzle, rather than simply moving the tiles themselves Of course, as the game goes on, a lot more variations and twists happen: some veggies are shiny and grant more points, an animal may request that you match one specific vegetable and avoid others, rocks get added into the mix, fragments of ground hide parts of the puzzle, etc. You can also play co-op with a friend, which is a fantastic addition to the game!

My absolute favourite aspect of the gameplay is the option to choose between three modes: Action Bunny, Puzzle Bunny, and Balanced Bunny. Action bunny is for players who prefer to go fast and not have to think too much, the puzzle aspect is easier, but there is a timer to encourage speed. Puzzle Bunny is the opposite: players can take as much time as they want, but try to solve the puzzles as efficiently as possible. And there is Balanced Bunny, which, as the name implies, is halfway between the two. It is important to mention that, even though there are rewards to doing well, you cannot fail, so the player never has to worry about failure, poor performance, or an impending “game over” screen. And none of the modes grant more rewards than others, so it is entirely up to the player’s mood, taste, and abilities! I personally enjoyed going back and forth between them, as I love taking my time with puzzles, but sometimes preferred just mindlessly enjoying the satisfying animations and progressing through the story.

Make bunnies blush!

Between every puzzle, you will be delighted by the textual and visual narrative that unfolds through dialogues and response options. You start off as a bunny who simply finds a lipstick that turns her into a princess farmer, a magical transformation a la Sailor Moon. Speaking of anime, the references are plenty, from Tuxedo Masc (intentional spelling) to the nine-episode format, there are a bunch of subtle and less subtle cultural allusions. You will befriend a variety of cute animals and develop relationships with them. You will get attached to them just like you did (and still do!) to your favourite cartoon characters, and seeing them blush and react to what you tell them is pure joy!

The narrative is also infused with queerness without it being a story about queerness – it effectively shakes up normalcy and creates a world where cute and fat bunnies are queer and do magical things together, because why not? It is never heavy, it is always very lighthearted and wholesome, without compromise. While the dialogue options feel a bit vapid at times for a game that labels itself as a visual novel, it is always to relieve the player of any source of pressure or stress, as the dialogues (and the story itself) are entirely skippable anyways. The game offers a fully malleable experience to the player, and I appreciate that very much, even if it results in a lighter visual novel where the story comes third, after the gameplay and the aesthetics.

Wholesome and Nostalgic Aesthetics to Soothe your Heart

The vivid colours, pixel art, cheerful music, cute characters, and satisfying animations all contribute towards an aesthetics that is very pleasing to the eye and ear. Remember that feeling of inserting a VHS of your favourite Disney movie or animated cartoon, and savouring every second of it with child-like amazement? Princess Farmer emulates that effect for the player very well! Those of us who grew up in the 80’s and 90’s will be delighted to be brought back to nostalgic times, a carefree era where our biggest worry was whether we were going to make it to the next level in Bubble Bobble at the arcade or if the local record store would have a graphic tee of our favourite band.

Princess Farmer perfectly captures that old-school vibe and effectively sucks the player in. It feels retro, but not aged. Princess Farmer is sure to satisfy that itch if you miss games like Dr. Mario and Wario’s Woods, with a resolutely modern and queer twist. I fell in love with the clean pixel art and the sound effects reminiscent of old Disney movies. The soundtrack goes hand in hand with the atmosphere that the game encapsulates, with its relaxing and bubbly lo-fi that sounds like it comes from a remastered SNES game. The inclusion of so many recolours for your character (“hare dyes”) and sparkles is the cherry on top of a flawless sense of aesthetics.

Pulling Veggies by Moonlight, Winning Love by Daylight

Princess Farmer is a relaxing puzzle game with a lighthearted underlying visual novel, and the most charming retro aesthetics. The game exudes a nostalgic and queer aura through its visuals and its narrative. It hits that magical sweet spot of wholesome and childlike but not childish whatsoever. The puzzles are simple but not simplistic, the story is light but not insipid.

If, like me, you have a nostalgic heart that feels weary from everyday stresses that come with adulting, this game is what you need. It is easy to pick up and play, it teleports you to a magical world, and it bathes you in a soothing atmosphere with engaging and vibrant aesthetics. The wholesome vibes and smooth gameplay are guaranteed to heal your heart. Transform into a princess farmer bunny, and just be gay, do matches!

Ketchup and mustard: your sworn enemies

In YOLKED, you play as an egg with arms. Yes, you read correctly. You’re an egg that attempts to launch itself from structure to structure, using its hands as anchors, catapulting itself through levels. That sounds easy enough, right? That’s until you have ketchup bottles squirting ketchup on you, rolling pins squishing you, spatulas flying at you, and an array of familiar but suddenly very threatening items – you’re an egg after all, and you have a very fragile shell! What’s more, while you swing carefully from platform to platform, any corner or wall can signify death…

While this may seem already difficult as is, the real challenge is the controls. You may use keyboard and mouse or a controller. All you can move is your two arms, using them to hold onto structures and swinging yourself around. If you have played Getting Over It with Bennett Foddy, you’ll feel right at home, both in terms of controls and in terms of frustration – although YOLKED is nowhere as ruthless, because there are frequent checkpoints.

Sure to make you crack a smile

Whether you’re playing by yourself or with friends, this game is far from being pure frustration: you’ll definitely laugh a few times. From the terribly amazing (or amazingly terrible) egg puns, to the egg’s cute little “wheeeee” sounds, to the unsuspected items that are scattered across the levels, you’re assured to have a few laughs. There’s even a silly little storyline “hidden” in the background of levels that makes you feel like the hero of the eggs!

While the frustratingly fun physics-based mechanics are at the heart of the game and its reason for being, I truly appreciate YOLKED’s attention to details that satisfy the itch that explorers and completionists such as myself have. The game rewards venturing off the beaten path not only by offering multiple ways towards the next level, but also by hiding collectible costumes that you can wear (yes, your egg can wear costumes!) in some harder to reach places.

This game is an egg-sperience

YOLKED is the prime example of how creative indie companies can be. HardBoiled Studios (developers) and Hitcents (publishers) showcase brilliant thinking outside of the box. This fun little game will not change your life nor is it meant to compete with any other games, it is so quirky and abstract, in its own category. It effectively sucks you in, allows you to forget about your life and your problems for a bit, and delivers a few hours of fun, laughter, and escapism. You’ll time and again laugh at yourself for the things you accidentally make your egg do, and feel very proud for making it to the next level.

I played this game in early access and it took me three hours for two full playthroughs (I played once and just wanted more so I played again, just for fun!), which includes taking time to find and collect costumes. It is indeed very short in its current state – yet I can’t help but heartily recommend it. It’s just such a shot of endorphins! Pure, simple fun. Furthermore, the developers and publishers care very much about their game and its players, even coming on our stream when we played it and sending us a postcard at Qweerty Gamers. I have so much respect for their business practices and their artistry. I cannot wait to play the full version!

An emotional visual landscape sprinkled with puzzles

Fate of Kai operates like a book, and just like when you open one and start reading, there is no tutorial. You are simply launched into the game and click on arrows to turn the pages as a story unravels in front of your eyes (and fingers). You meet Kai, the protagonist, who wakes up in the middle of a sunflower field, and very soon encounters a treasure chest to which he becomes bound, and which rapidly turns into both a blessing and a curse. You neither embody nor control Kai, you simply follow along from chapter to chapter, as he seeks to open or get rid of his treasure chest.

So you may wonder what part of this is a game or a puzzle, then? You do have a tiny bit of agency in the story being told, and that is in the form of words. The world that unfolds in front of your eyes is a very evocative and telling one, but with images only. And truly, words are unnecessary in understanding and feeling the wonderful and powerful storytelling powers that this game has. But, and this is where things get interesting, there are indeed a few words here and there, in speech and thought bubbles. And this is where you, the player/reader, come in: you may alter certain thoughts and uttered words by taking them out of the pages in front of you, and placing them elsewhere.

Become Kai’s guardian angel

The first instance of the aforementioned word-based puzzle is quite simple and efficiently presents you this unique game mechanic. Kai is faced with a huge mountain, and his thought bubble reads “climb.” If you leave it there and just flip the page, you’ll see him climb the mountain, where he’ll encounter an insurmountable obstacle. Here Kai’s thought bubble reads “jump.” You can flip the page to see where Kai’s jumping will lead, or you may take the word “jump” out from Kai’s thoughts, preventing the idea of jumping from even occurring to him – or alternatively, you may even take the word “climb” from before and make Kai climb instead of jumping! You can flip back and forth between the pages, and speech/thought bubbles become increasingly numerous, so options keep growing and presenting more and more of a challenge.

This neat and intuitive game mechanic is absolutely fascinating and fun, extremely simple but leads to more complex puzzles than you can imagine at first! I’ve never seen anything quite like this before, despite being an aficionado of the visual novel and puzzle genres. But beyond the very satisfying feeling when you solve a puzzle, and getting access to the rest of the narrative, the mechanics play a central role in the storytelling itself: how does a mere word affect your entire future? It expresses perfectly the butterfly effect, wherein getting (or not getting) a certain thought can steer your life in a completely different direction.

An image is worth a thousand words

I also love the fact that we are not Kai and do not dictate his actions directly, the player is more like a guardian angel looking over Kai by giving him certain thoughts and spoken words. This idea also lends itself before to the metaphors at hand: Fate of Kai is a coming-of-age story, in which Kai is presented with important life decisions and where he must carry and unlock the burden of his identity, his treasure chest, both a blessing and a curse. The visual novel, with its puzzle mechanics neatly imbricated in it, tells this story powerfully almost solely through images.

I have to admit that I shed a few tears – not only are the story and its aesthetics beautiful in and of themselves, but the puzzle aspects function as tool of immersion, captivating the player who ends up taking part in Kai’s path to adulthood. Fate of Kai operated both as a mirror of my own growth and made me feel like I had to oversee and care for Kai, to ensure his well-being. I felt simultaneously both as Kai himself and as his father or big brother, all because of a few gorgeous images and some unique mechanics.

So short but so precious…

In my view, there is only one shortcoming that this game displays: its length. You may expect to complete the game in an hour or two at most. And while I very much appreciate games such as this one that don’t bear tedious fillers and gaps, Fate of Kai does keep you craving more. But perhaps its greatness is why I crave more of it. I want more of those beautiful pages of art, soothing music, and captivating puzzles. And most of all, I want more of Kai and his growth. I’ve grown very attached to him in this mere hour of playtime. A sequel, please?

If this game is up your alley, do yourself a favor: buy this game, set aside a couple of hours, and immerse yourself in Kai’s story told through beautiful artwork. Don’t let the simple mechanics fool you: the puzzles will get your gears turning. Even if it’s short, Fate of Kai’s imprint on your mind and heart will be long-lasting.

Embark on a teacup-sized quest to find ingredients for a tea party that you are hosting! You are a cute, introverted frog who ventures throughout a beautiful hand-drawn two-dimensional world, interacting with friendly animals who help you gather leaves and sweeteners to make the most delicious tea for your esteemed guests. Teacup is a wholesome and creative short game that will leave you all warm and cozy inside!

Developed by Smarto Club and published by Whitethorn Digital, the people behind Calico and Lake, Teacup shares a similar soothing atmosphere and serene gameplay as its predecessors, designed to calm your nerves as you play through the narrative, and it succeeds at that perfectly. I found myself engrossed in the slow yet enticing world of Teacup, but I only wish there was a little more.


Serving Aesthetics, 10’s Across the Board

Teacup understood the assignment when it comes to aesthetics. Both the visuals and the soundtracks will welcome you into the fantastical world where all characters are animals and where everyone co-exists peacefully. Every area of the game features gorgeous hand-drawn backgrounds and characters and comes to life as you walk through it. The slow pace and soft aesthetics will soothe your soul and calm your nerves.

If you have a nostalgic heart like I do, you will be so pleased by how reminiscent this game is of retro Nintendo side-scrollers and old-school animated Disney movies. In other words, visually-speaking, Teacup is the lovechild of Cuphead and Spiritfarer. If the fairy-tale narrative is not your cup of tea (pun intended), the warm and vibrant colours will make you want to keep exploring, to savour every page of this beautiful book turned into a video game.

Make Tea and Friends

The narrative is simple and straightforward: you’re hosting a tea party tomorrow but need to find ingredients, which are found by interacting with the numerous animals scattered in the area. Progress is somewhat non-linear, letting you explore more or less freely, reinforcing the calm nature of the game – you don’t need to strive for precise objectives in order, only gather ingredients as you explore (and re-explore) organically. I quite enjoyed this aspect of the game, which is difficult to achieve for a two-dimensional side-scroller, where you typically go from point A to point B, from left to right.

The various characters you encounter are all very attaching, I found myself wanting to befriend them, wanting to know them more. The game succeeds at infusing animals with personality in a way that does not feel flat and forced. The dialogues are mostly well-written and interesting. However, I would have preferred fewer characters with more depth, more lore. Only a fraction of them is significant to the narrative and to getting you ingredients; the ones who don’t, feel inconsequential, even vapid at times, slowing down the pace of the game even further – which was perhaps the intention, but on occasion it feels like it’s dragging a tiny bit, despite the short length of the game. Does the game deserve the “story rich” tag that it displays on its Steam store page? Probably not. The story is simple and cute, not rich – which is not a bad thing per se.

A Wholesome Fairy Tale Turned into a Game

The simple narrative boasts simple controls: arrows to move, spacebar to interact, shift to sprint (a very slow sprint) and z to consult your book which shows you all the ingredients you need and have collected thus far. You’ll spend most of your gameplay time walking forward and pressing the spacebar as soon as you see an icon pop up, and then reading the flavour text. It’s cute and sweet.

Serving as punctuation between moments of exquisite exploration and wholesome dialogues are mini-games, usually as the final step to get an ingredient. They’re not difficult but not as easy as they seem! I found them thoroughly enjoyable and would have gladly taken more of them.

I personally enjoy visual novels, and this game very much has that feel. The fun mini-games and the non-linearity of the exploration do add a level of player interaction and are a wind of fresh air. That being said, the game is very short – in one hour, you’ll be done with everything that the game has to offer, with little to no replayability.

A Warm Cup of Tea

Despite its short length, (too) slow pace, and lack of depth, I cannot help but be left with a good feeling after playing this game. I cannot overstate how gorgeous the visuals are, and the soundtrack complement the aesthetics very nicely. While it does not feel like a game in typical sense, Teacup is a creative treasure that is sure to calm you down and soothe your soul, especially if you have a retro heart like I do. This game is nostalgic in the best way possible, without being childish whatsoever. Teacup is like a freshly brewed cup of your favourite tea in a chilly winter evening: it will comfort you, bring back heartwarming memories, and leave you with a cozy feeling.

Eastward is a top-down, pixel art, narrative-driven role-playing game published by Chucklefish and developed by Chinese developer Pixpil. I was drawn into the world of Eastward with its fantastic visuals and unique character design. It has undeniable charm and offers some innovative gameplay particularly in its minigames. However, a convoluted story, flat characters and frustrating gameplay mechanics mired this game to the point where, by the last chapters of my playthrough, I wasn’t having fun anymore.

Eastward is a game with huge potential, it has so much going for it: a cool visual style that harkens back to great old Nintendo classics like EarthBound, Chrono Trigger and Final Fantasy. It wears those references proudly on its sleeve, it even features an entire playable game within the game called “EarthBorn,” that I’ll come back to later. Overall, it’s dripping with nostalgia but still has some amazing 21st century graphics. In particular, the water, foliage and “miasma” were just so cool and while the game felt like an homage to the old titles, it certainly lived up to a modern aesthetic in that regard.

Unfortunately, the great graphics and style did not make up for frustrating gameplay particularly in regards to combat and story progression. Eastward really likes to take its time with its story. At times, the slow pace felt like a meditation that added to the feeling of making the best of a tough situation, but mostly it felt constipated. Fetch quests and mandatory side missions would make areas quickly feel stale. Every objective had character development which did help flesh out the world, but as I’ll talk about later in this review, despite the attempt I think it mostly failed in that regard.

Combat in Eastward was frustrating and often felt unfair. You are armed with an arsenal of interesting weapons. For instance, your main weapon throughout the game was a frying pan. But the speed at which you unlock new weapons and abilities and the difficulty spike of enemies in the mid-game felt uneven. Enemies rarely give you time to charge your weapon or abilities, and unclear hitboxes or invulnerability frames would often lead to missed hits or accidental damage. With no dodge roll or evasive maneuvers, your best bet is to back up and wait for enemies to come to you or heal through the damage. Frequent healing also required opening a menu that would pause combat, throwing off the flow. Bosses were often easier to beat than regular mobs because they, at least usually, had consistent mechanics. By the end of the game, I dreaded going into the dungeon areas because the combat was so frustrating.

Despite the issues with combat, Eastward’s many dungeons did have some really nice puzzles that made them a little more bearable. In general, they felt challenging but never so much as I had to look up how to solve them online. I particularly liked a brief section where you had to sneak past a bunch of guards, it was little asides like this that broke up the gameplay and were, in my opinion, some of the best parts of the game. However, because of the combat issues, I would often leave areas unexplored. It’s really too bad that a game that put so much work into creating beautiful landscapes and interesting puzzles would have areas skipped because of irritating gameplay issues.

As I mentioned, the best sections of the game are where it strayed from its normal gameplay loop. Minigames like a quick aside to rally some floating pigs for a farmer by hitting them with your frying pan, or the Breath of the Wild style cooking minigame where a slot machine would determine the quality of your dish were really innovative and fun. The real gem was its game-within-a-game “EarthBorn,” an old-school turn-based RPG where you have 7 days to defeat the “Demon King,” who plagues the land, with a group of unlikely adventurers. The game is impossible to beat on your first try, but by using items you get in the outerworld from another clever coin-slot vending machine game gives you keys, revive items and power ups you can use permanently in subsequent playthroughs. I found that “EarthBorn” was honestly more fun than the larger game it was a part of.

Eastward’s sound design was thoughtful and evocative of the best old-school adventure games and the music was delightful, but repetitive at times. Treasure chest opens and the cooking minigame had particularly memorable jingles. But, not to harp on combat yet again, but it would have been nice if more monsters had sound cues before their wind-ups. The music was really quite good, very bold and endearing, however I did feel like it got stale by the end of the game. It felt like certain characters or areas should have had different musical queues; instead it often relied on the same limited set of music throughout the game only opening up the repertoire near the end of the game.

Unfortunately for a heavily story-driven game, the story in Eastward felt convoluted and while not completely predictable, ultimately unsatisfying. I think the most egregious aspect of the story was the complete lack of character development, particularly of the main characters and flat or confusing side characters. It is possible that there was some stuff lost in the English translation of the game, but for the most part I don’t think that excuses the often disjointed ambitions and attitudes of the characters. I’ll give some examples, but beware of spoilers below.

We’ll start with John, the main character who you play throughout the game, who is silent. It is not uncommon to have a muted main character, however in order to give that character depth they either need to be very emotive or have very clear motives in the story. John has neither. It’s clear he cares about Sam, a child he’s decided to adopt and follow to the ends of the earth, but every time he’s asked about intentions or feelings, he gives the same character animation where he scratches the back of his neck. It’s fine to have a character that is stoic, but with John it mostly felt flat.

Sam, the secondary character and intrigue of the game, is obnoxious and even apathetic at times. The narrative will reveal game-changing plot points or an NPC will evolve the story and Sam seemingly forgets everything every time, instead remaining clueless and childish until the very end of the game. The idea that she’s incapable of processing trauma and just shunts it into her subconscious feels like a lazy way of leaving questions unanswered and pushing the story forward with a faultless protagonist even though it’s clear she’s not. I kept asking myself, “isn’t John horrified by the atrocities Sam is committing?” She literally brings on the destruction of an entire town early in the game without repercussion.

The overarching story for the game left me scratching my head, it felt like it was meant to be deep but it was just confusing. The game was also pretty conservative; it felt ripe for queer characters or any act of political subversion, a critique of capital or just something profound but ultimately felt like a lazy interpretation of stories long ago told in better forms like Evangelion or The Matrix. Side characters were so often disappointing with their interesting relationships but confusing motives. For instance you could try to read Alva and Isabel as a queer couple in the game, they are two women living together, obviously protective of each other and they even mention a love between them, but it turns out Isabel is just a robot guardian with a more maternal relationship with Alva and it felt like the game went out of its way to make sure the subtext doesn’t add up.

Yes!! You Can Pet the Animals: Calico Reviewed by @Palkuka

I want to reiterate to you that in Calico, you can pet every animal in the game!!! It’s every gamer’s dream! I could end the review there because it’s reason enough to buy Calico, but let’s dive into this sweet, magnificent, and colorful game. Calico is an adorable addition to the sandbox genre of gaming. It has bright and happy environments, cheerful music, and the best part is that you can shelter animals you find in-game.

The premise is that you had just opened a magical café in a fantastic world of friendly neighbors and free-roaming animals. As you venture around, you can tame animals to follow you in a party, or send them to hang out and be the main attraction of your café. You also collect furniture to spruce up your café and also use magical world items. Those items slightly change the experience you have in the game, but most of it is cosmetic for the fun of it. It’s a cute game for all ages, but definitely a game to relieve stress and unwind.

The first thing you get to do in Calico is customize your character, so have fun doing that for an hour… or two, lol. It’s really inclusive of how much customization they’ve programmed for character creation. It opens up a wide range of body types and allows you to represent your own body type or any body type you would like. Later on, you can find outfits and clothing that are mostly colorful and cute. Once you’re in the game, there’s a short explanation on how to name and collect animals, and then it’s time to have fun.

There’s no hurry to do anything and it’s all about making your café as cute as it can be. There’s a really cute cooking feature too, but I’ll leave that as a surprise because it’s imaginative and fun. I ran towards every animal and started filling up my café with cats, birds, a red panda, and I really wanted to find a snake, but I haven’t found one… yet. There are short and easy quest lines that are simple but involve quite a bit of travel around the map. Later on, you’ll be able to tame bigger animals and mount them to roam around. I would try to remember names of the NPC’s because some of the quests ask you to visit those neighbors.

Calico is such a stress-free game. You should definitely add it to your collection. It’s peaceful and whimsical. I highly suggest buying Calico for PC on Steam because there have been technical bugs on the Nintendo Switch version that still might need a few more patches to work out. Calico was developed by game developers who represent the LGBTQIA+ community, which is even more of a reason to support this game. I really want to see more queer game devs in the future, so please support Calico and get your copy today.

This one-of-a-kind simulator will charm you with its delightful aesthetics and unique gameplay. Set in medieval times, you take on the life of a rookie alchemist managing a potion shop. You must try and satisfy townsfolks’ needs and desires while honing your skills as an alchemist and as a merchant.

Potion Craft: Alchemist Simulator is the first big project for developer Niceplay Games. It was published by TinyBuild which is quickly becoming quite a hallmark in the growing world of indie gaming, with titles such as Hello Neighbor and Graveyard Keeper under its belt.

Welcome, new alchemist!

The game greets you with a bit of background information before guiding you directly to your new potion shop, which will serve as experimentation ground, as marketplace, and as your home. The short and sweet tutorial will hold your hand through the first few steps: how to get ingredients for potions, how to create potions and discover new recipes, and how to interact with townsfolks and sell them your goods.

Before any of the narrative even begins, you will be enthralled by the sepia yet vibrant visuals. I cannot get over how uniquely beautiful the aesthetics of this game are – not only are they clean and very pleasing to the eye, but they also create a soft and immersive ambience. The graphics and the soundtrack work together in conveying a soothing medieval setting, and altogether enhancing the gameplay through improving the simulator aspect of the game. They capture you and suck you into the little world they create. This game is a true work of art. The user interface is also exceptionally clear – we do not get lost in the various components of the game and menus. Everything is very intuitive.

Step 1: Make potions!

Most of your in-game time will be spent crafting potions, and it is by far the most innovative, creative, and riveting part of the gameplay. It is quite simple and intuitive at its core: you drag and drop some items from your inventory into a cauldron, hold the ladle and move around to stir, then heat it up to create a potion. Ingredients in your inventory are acquired from your garden (you grow your own flowers and mushrooms) or purchased from various merchants that pass by your store on occasion. You may also choose to put ingredients into a mortar and crush them with a pestle before putting them into the cauldron, altering their effects.

This is pretty fun in itself, but the real fun runs one layer deeper: there is a potion-making map, that you uncover more and more through trial and error. Every ingredient you choose to mix in has a specific trajectory in which it will drag your recipe on the map. You may also add water to strategically dilute your potion, dragging your recipe towards the center of the map. This is like an exploration mini-game, perfectly embedded into the crafting/simulation game! The map itself even has obstacles that affect your potion if your recipe goes through them. The map seems to be quite extensive, and the recipes numerous and diverse, especially considering they can be fused (e.g. a poison potion can be fused with an explosion potion to combine their effects!).

One more thing that particularly caught my attention: the customizability of potions design. While it does not affect gameplay whatsoever, all potions you create are highly customizable in design. You may select from hundreds of pot shapes, sizes, labels, symbols on labels, and colour combinations. I caught myself spending so much time customizing all my potions to make them look cute and unique!

Step 2: Make money?

Every day, there will be about ten people at your doorstep. Most of them will have a request for you that you will try and fulfil with a potion that satisfies their needs, which they will then buy from you. This is how you’ll be making money and increasing your popularity and reputation. Some of the people that visit will be merchants from which you can purchase a variety of special goods (ingredients for potions, recipe book pages, etc.). In both situations, you may choose to haggle with the visitor, in which case, you will be given a little reflex mini-game, where you have to click on a bar at the right time (think of it like timed attacks in Paper Mario or skill checks in Dead by Daylight) as many times as possible. If you succeed, this results in a better deal for you.

I think it is neat in concept but haggling becomes repetitive quite fast – so much so that after two hours of gameplay, I decided to just not haggle anymore. It wasn’t worth the hassle for a few more coins. I hope that the full version of the game develops haggling further, because it is a good idea and should not be ditched, but it is too repetitive and insipid in its current state. Interactions with fellow townsfolks are interesting and sometimes colourful in flavour text, but they would also benefit from a bit more depth and variety, as they are currently quite flat.

Wait, there’s more?

It is noteworthy that this game also features an RPG element – you acquire experience which allows you to level up one of four skills that improve your alchemist or merchant qualities. Your character also builds up (and loses) reputation and popularity through certain interactions (haggling too much, selling a dangerous potion to a sketchy person, etc.). There are many achievements to keep track of your progress and to have concrete longer-term goals. These details are fantastic additions to this simulator. There is also an absolutely beautiful garden in your store that provides you with daily ingredients for your potions.

While I have absolutely nothing negative to say about the visuals and the soundtrack which made me fall in love at first sight, as well as the potion making, the game in its current early-access version lacks depth in certain of its mechanics and would benefit greatly from further work. This is mostly evident in the merchant aspect of running the potion store – haggling, most notably, and adding personality and variety to the recurrent townsfolks – but also in other tiny aspects of the game aside from the potion-crafting. It would be fantastic to be able to tend to the garden or just interact with it more than merely clicking on plants that randomly appear daily. Your own room is also quite insignificant: in its current state, it never changes, and all it does is serve the purpose of allowing you to start a new day (and thus refresh your plants and clients). It could change as your store grows, it could also be where you write recipes, where you look at your achievements, etc. You could also buy furniture for it and seeds for your garden. The leveling aspect as well as popularity and reputation are a bit inconsequential as well. Some of these side elements feel too much like an afterthought, in this early access version of the game.

Final remarks

All in all, however, Potion Craft’s shortcomings are outbalanced by how brilliant the potion crafting is – which is perhaps why the social aspect seems so lacking by comparison. Everything other than the alchemy itself feels underdeveloped and like it has a lot of untapped potential. Once again, let us also keep in mind that this is a review of the demo version, so we can expect many improvements. And I have to say, even in its current state and in spite of its flaws, I would be buying the game. It is incredibly relaxing yet engaging, clean yet vibrant, simple yet deep. Everything is just so… pretty and captivating. Potion Craft will attract you with its artistry and hook you with its potion-making gameplay. You will keep wanting to create more potions, try more recipes, customize more pots, and explore your crafting map. The other stuff is far from perfect, but that is not why you will be playing the game anyways. Potion Craft is, after all, an alchemist simulator, and it does serve that excellently.

Since its Early Access debut trailer at E3 2021, Death Trash has been a frenzied hope of indie game enthusiasts looking to capture the nostalgia of old-school adventure cyberpunk classics like Fallout, Beneath a Steel Sky and Shadowrun (SNES). What it delivered in is something reminiscent but fresh to the genre of nostalgic pixel-art RPGs that have cropped up in the past decade. In Death Trash, you are encouraged to blindly explore the desolated plains of an unknowable wasteland, every discovery leading to more questions, that left me craving for more after my ten-hour campaign in the early access release of this exciting game.

The wasteland of Death Trash is macabre and hysterical with a sick sense of humor that was a joy to uncover. You wake up with little to no memory of who or what you are or were, cast out of an ancient organization due to a contamination you have contracted somehow. Your mission once leaving the starting area is left unclear, with only scraps of notes to guide you. The only thing obvious is that wherever you are was once a technologically advanced civilization, but that time has long passed.

Humanity has devolved into factions of barbarians, drunken fools and zealots. Aimless wandering will inevitably lead you to a settlement called Tauris and a place known as the Kraken Temple where you discover that the planet you are on has been seeded and overtaken by a biological growth and entities called “Titans.” The meat of which is the lifeforce of most inhabitants of the wastes. They pass their time by salvaging old tech, drinking, making love, and having puking contests.

Death Trash also has some queer knods and sidestories. Similar to the game from my last review, Littlewood, Death Trash has continued the trend of defining your character with a name, clothes, hairstyle, but notably not a gender, leaving that particular distinction to your own imagination. There isn’t much romance in Death Trash but where it does show it, it’s clear there’s no moral objection to same-sex relationships. Also, while I didn’t run into it in my own adventures through the wastes, there is a screencap on the Death Trash website, at the time of publishing, showcasing a shack surrounded by a myriad of misfits, including one in his underwear on the roof. The shack is emblazoned with pink scrawl saying “Cuddly Beards!” Adding to the queer intonation, the name of the jpeg file is “boys_will_be_boys” a clear homage to a scene in the 1934 pre-code Hollywood era film Wonder Bar. A delightful easter egg for a queer-eyed investigator such as myself if I ever saw one.

The combat in Death Trash is simple but satisfying. You are equipped early with a club and a gun, and proceed with iterations of a melee and ranged weapon combo, along with a set of specialty skills either technological or occult as you see fit. There is a nice cloak-and-dagger, backstabbing gameplay style that is unlocked very early, allowing you to overtake even large crowds by taking out particularly troublesome enemies first, then clean up with area-of-effect skills or even disappear again in the later game. The skill tree had typical combat progression by weapon or skill and a set of ambiguous branches into which to drop points, like Animalism or Empathy, although some of these felt hollow in practical use. Fortunately, you can reskill at any time for a reasonable price. I found myself using this to experiment with a few playstyles before I landed on a poisonous rogue with a claw blade.

The soundtrack of Death Trash is reminiscent of Aphex Twin’s Selected Ambient Works Volume II. It is dissonant and ominous, barely there until it hits you with a jarring metallic strike that adds to the enigmatic atmosphere of the game. Composer James Dean created a haunting landscape with minimalist industrial shades that never felt out of place in the game. What felt almost as powerful as the soundtrack in the game was the places where the developers left the gameplay devoid of musical commentary. Battles with mobs of rogue agents were often left without fanfare, with only the gentle coo of the winds of the wastes and the resonating blasts of gunfire to punctuate your stand. I am not entirely sure that this wasn’t a limitation of the early access, but I felt that it added to the overarching feeling of desolation in Death Trash and would not be disappointed in its carryover to the finished game.