54 Reviews liked by OwenRedPanda
Signalis
2022
I was interested in this one for a while & was gifted this one from a friend. As someone who recently played Silent Hill 2 I was craving for another survival horror game.
The visuals have that low poly feel but it works beautifully & the cutscenes are so stylish with the gorgeous red backgrounds & sprite work. The use of horror is amazing & requires you to be careful with your resources though I would say they were times that backtracking to pick up older equipment can be a bit tedious. The story is fantastic too living things up to the player to their imagination but leaves up enough information for the player to get the gist of it. If you love sci-fi & horror stories & enjoy survival horror games like Silent Hill 2 pick up Signalis.
The visuals have that low poly feel but it works beautifully & the cutscenes are so stylish with the gorgeous red backgrounds & sprite work. The use of horror is amazing & requires you to be careful with your resources though I would say they were times that backtracking to pick up older equipment can be a bit tedious. The story is fantastic too living things up to the player to their imagination but leaves up enough information for the player to get the gist of it. If you love sci-fi & horror stories & enjoy survival horror games like Silent Hill 2 pick up Signalis.
Demon Turf
2021
A fun 3D platformer with a cute aesthetic. The way the player character Beebz controls is great for the most part & the level design is fun to explore with plenty of ways to cut corners. I love I could double jump & glide or jump, glide & then roll in the air for an extra boost. To me these are the strongest part of this game.
The extra power-ups you get are a hit or miss for me. The hook shot & rollout moves are really fun & is used a lot. On the other hand the bird form & time stop are pretty weak with the bird form being awkward to control that lead me to a few deaths. The enemy encounters & the boss fights are the weakest parts of the game with most enemies don't really have any health about are killed using spikes or pits. To get to the final boss you also have to do the majority of stages including the remix ones which doesn't lead to many freedom to explore like say the 3D Mario games. Still this game has a lot of content with the remix stages, collectables, Demon Tower side mode & the Neon Splash DLC.
The extra power-ups you get are a hit or miss for me. The hook shot & rollout moves are really fun & is used a lot. On the other hand the bird form & time stop are pretty weak with the bird form being awkward to control that lead me to a few deaths. The enemy encounters & the boss fights are the weakest parts of the game with most enemies don't really have any health about are killed using spikes or pits. To get to the final boss you also have to do the majority of stages including the remix ones which doesn't lead to many freedom to explore like say the 3D Mario games. Still this game has a lot of content with the remix stages, collectables, Demon Tower side mode & the Neon Splash DLC.
Undertale
2015
Pepper Grinder
2024
Pepper Grinder
2024
Indie platformer of incredible quality !
Concept is super cool and well-executed, but what strucks me the most is the impeccable level-design.
It's written here on this site that it's inspired by games like Donkey Kong Country. Not only is this very clearly visible while playing, but it's also really the same level of quality. The kind of stuff I expect from Nintendo platformers.
Controls can be hard to master tho.
Visuals and soundtrack are really pleasant, time-attack is a fun bonus to have a bit more to play in this unfortunately pretty short game. They could have done a bit more with stickers and collectibles imo
What I am really disappointed by tho is the last world. Levels are focused on action sequences, and they are fun as they are but it's not what I'm expecting as a final challenge for such a good platformer ...
Concept is super cool and well-executed, but what strucks me the most is the impeccable level-design.
It's written here on this site that it's inspired by games like Donkey Kong Country. Not only is this very clearly visible while playing, but it's also really the same level of quality. The kind of stuff I expect from Nintendo platformers.
Controls can be hard to master tho.
Visuals and soundtrack are really pleasant, time-attack is a fun bonus to have a bit more to play in this unfortunately pretty short game. They could have done a bit more with stickers and collectibles imo
What I am really disappointed by tho is the last world. Levels are focused on action sequences, and they are fun as they are but it's not what I'm expecting as a final challenge for such a good platformer ...
Pepper Grinder
2024
Phenomenal little title that combines the challenge of Celeste with the fluid game design and structure of DKC: Tropical Freeze. Every stage is unique and expands on the drill mechanic in a meaningful way. Only complaint is that it was too short (~2.5 hours), but that's only because I wish there was more! A super charming must play.
Pepper Grinder
2024
Hi-Fi Rush
2023
While I'm sad that this game will most likely never reach its fullest potential, what's already here is honestly fantastic
Phenomenal main cast of characters, fun and interesting mysteries, and a bunch of things both big and small that warm my Ace Attorney-obsessed heart
It may be rough around the edges, but it's also incredibly sincere, and its love for the series that inspired it is clear to see
I will protect Tyrion and Celeste with my life.
Phenomenal main cast of characters, fun and interesting mysteries, and a bunch of things both big and small that warm my Ace Attorney-obsessed heart
It may be rough around the edges, but it's also incredibly sincere, and its love for the series that inspired it is clear to see
I will protect Tyrion and Celeste with my life.
Corn Kidz 64
2023
I absolutely love the aesthetic and animations here, they’re so well done and ooze with charm. I’ve never seen a game nail the 64 aesthetic so well. The music as well is so good, they manage to make a song you’ll be hearing for basically 2 hours not annoying. Only bad thing I can say is that it directs you on what to do so badly that the dev had to make a Steam guide. But still, it’s so fun to get lost that I kinda don’t mind. NOT going for lvl 6 tho, you can’t make me.
Gato Roboto
2019
Easily the best in the trilogy. Does some unique things like making you defend some technically guilty people, okay as other attorneys, gave us that beast of a man Godot (who is so cool and I don’t wanna spoil anything but man what a guy), and gives Phoenix a shadow the hedgehog ass doppelgänger, something I will always love in a game. Gameplay wise, there is none. It’s ace attorney lol. The psyche locks are back in an actually good game (the more I think of Justice for all the more I think it is easily the worst of the trilogy). I always keep a guide on hand for these because sometimes it gets way too obtuse for me to struggle and save scum through. This game had that problem, yeah, but all the cases were so well written that I didn’t care. There wasn’t a single one I didn’t enjoy. Recipe for Turnabout definitely feels the most out of place (side note but if possible I think this whole game should’ve had some through line featuring Dahlia, but I understand why it didn’t) but it is still a very entertaining case. Again, Xin ehoP! The final case is the best in an ace attorney game, full stop. Everything with Dahlia and the Fey clan is just. So well done. There are some things I’d change but I don’t want to spoil. I’d play this game, but don’t marathon it like I did. Shit DRAGGED at the end of the final case because I’d been going non-stop.