The “It” Factor They say puzzle games are a hard sell on Steam. In a marketplace dominated by high-octane shooters and sprawling 100-hour RPGs, a game that asks you to sit quietly and think about moving blocks can often get lost in the shuffle. But…

Worlds Collide In the taxonomy of zombie media, there are two distinct phyla: the Sprinters and the Shamblers. World War Z (both the movie and the game) built its reputation on the former—massive, liquid-like pyramids of hyper-aggressive undead that scale walls like ants. The Walking…

Oh Bother, Something is Wrong with the Bear Since A.A. Milne’s beloved bear entered the public domain, we have seen a deluge of low-effort slasher films and cheap cash grabs trying to shock audiences by putting a knife in the paw of a childhood icon.…

Out of the Maw, Into the Fire When Tarsier Studios announced they were leaving the Little Nightmares franchise behind, there was a collective gasp in the horror community. They had defined a sub-genre—the “tiny child in a big, scary world” platformer. But their latest creation,…

The Lamb Returns to the Fold Since its release, Cult of the Lamb has occupied a unique niche in the gaming landscape: a perfect fusion of Animal Crossing cuteness and The Binding of Isaac brutality. Over the years, developer Massive Monster has supported the game…

The Dream of the Open Sky There is a specific fantasy that gamers have been chasing since the days of Skies of Arcadia or the ill-fated Worlds Adrift: the dream of building a flying fortress, gathering a crew of friends, and sailing into an endless…

The Hard-Boiled and the Furry The detective genre is no stranger to odd couples. We’ve seen mismatched buddy cops, consulting detectives with war veteran sidekicks, and cybernetic investigators with holographic AIs. But Octarine Arts has thrown a tennis ball into the machinery of the genre…

From Legacy to Legend Identity is a tricky thing in the gaming industry. Last year, this game was known as Legacy: Steel & Sorcery, a hardcore PvPvE extraction game that punished players mercilessly. Today, it has re-emerged as Eldegarde, a rebranded, refocused, and fully released…

The Aftermath of Tasmania The zombie genre has been shambling along for decades, often struggling to find a new pulse. We have seen the fast zombies (28 Days Later), the fungus zombies (The Last of Us), and the comedy zombies (Shaun of the Dead). Enter…

Your Claim Has Been Denied (With a Rocket Launcher) The “Survivor-like” or “Bullet Heaven” genre has arguably become the most saturated segment of the Steam marketplace over the last few years. Since Vampire Survivors opened the floodgates, we have seen every variation imaginable: fantasy wizards,…