Wearing its very clear inspiration on its sleeve, Rabbit & Steel takes many recognizable mechanics of FFXIV raiding and applies it to a side-scrolling rogue-like. Fight round after round of unique bosses as you float around to dodge attacks and keep up your own skill rotation.

There are a number of classes, and after each round you are scored based on your DPS. Even on normal (and in co-op up to 4 players) it is quite challenging and there are a lot of different attacks and mechanics to keep track of at all times. The music is tremendous and gives me vibes reminiscent of FFXIII, and it is very satisfying if you can make it through a fight without taking damage.

As it is highly replayable with a high skill ceiling, I certainly expect I'll be playing this for some time in the future. I only have a couple criticisms, one being that some key effects or buffs don't feel as visible as they could be, and in a game where movement is everything, items that reduce mobility feel like an immediate throwaway. But I want to keep at it and get better, if only to hear more of that soundtrack.

After the worldwide breakout now-in-3D sensation of FFVII, and the more experimental, out-there FFVIII, FFIX returns to the same style of adventure as the older games. The tone and setting is a lot more traditional fantasy as you journey around the world of Gaia that is shrouded in mist (and mystery). The first half of it really did remind me of the structure of FFIV and how your party members are often swapping in and out as the story progresses and sometimes you'll even play as other members off doing other things. Eventually though you do get more free reign over the world, the ability to pick and choose your party members, and in my opinion is where the game starts to fall apart a little bit.

Gameplay-wise it is your standard ATB. Bars fill up and each combatant takes their turn, and Limit Breaks have been replaced with the Trance gauge. A secondary bar fills up under various circumstances and it augments that characters appearance and allows them to take some unique actions. Zidane gets access to his powerful Dyne skills, Vivi the black mage can do two black mage spells a turn, and so on. It's definitely an interesting take on Limit Breaks, and I thought the Trance designs were very cool. Of course too, the main gimmick is the ability system. Each piece of gear has different abilities or spells attached to them that different party members can learn. Use that gear for long enough and the party member can equip the ability regardless of if they are wearing the gear. On paper it seems like a nice idea, but especially once you have your full party it just becomes cumbersome to check every piece of gear with every party member. It really feels like the game just wanted to encourage the player to focus on zeroing in on their favourite three party members and forget about the rest. If they really do remake this game, I hope this gets a massive amount of QoL to not make it so cumbersome to interact with.

The story itself is alright. There is a recurring theme of finding meaning in one's own life, and that shines through in some of the characters (Zidane, Vivi, Garnet, and Steiner in particular) but sadly everyone else feels like they are missing the rest of their arcs. I love every playable character to varying degrees, but I wish I got to know half of them better.

The world itself feels quite compact. The various towns and dungeons you do go to are gorgeous thanks to the lovely 2D background art, but I was really surprised that there weren't more things to go see and do as part of the story especially after FFVIII which felt comparatively massive. On the topic of artstyle too, I never did get used to the human 3D models (particularly in the many pre-rendered cutscenes). The shape of their faces imposed on the sort of chibi models drifted into uncanny valley for me, so I really just felt all the budget (and storage space) that went into those could've been better used anywhere else.

While it has perhaps sounded like I have been overly critical of Final Fantasy IX, I do think it is worth playing for FF fans. There is a solid soundtrack as always, cool bosses to battle, and if I really want to be honest Vivi alone is worth it - just maybe wait for that rumored remake.

Crow Country is a pretty cute little survival horror game with a PSX style - fixed camera angles and (optional) tank controls included. You play as special agent Mara Forest as you explore the now abandoned theme park Crow Country, shooting (or dodging) monsters and meeting up with other survivors.

There are puzzles to solve, weapons to collect, and secrets to find. Tonally and plot-wise it's a lot closer to Resident Evil than Silent Hill. There are some good jokes that contrast to the solid atmosphere when the game really wants to creep you out, and some genuine moments of tension to go with it.

If I had any negatives I might say I wish the game was a little longer (or maybe just bigger areas). That said, fans who are really into it have ample incentive to replay the game with bonuses unlocked after completing it with different ranks. Movement feels pretty good too so I would love to see some speedrunners take it on as well.

Overall, while Crow Country didn't blow me away like Signalis, it makes me happy that the PSX-style really has some fans in the indie world. It's charming and has an engaging enough plot, so I recommend it to anyone who enjoys survival horror.

A pretty stellar point-and-click FMV detective game, Contradiction: Spot the Liar! puts you in the shoes of Inspector Jenks to get to the bottom of the death of Kate Vine.

As you wander around the little town, you'll meet a handful of colourful characters whom you can press about the various clues you come across. As you ask people about different topics, you can use their various statements to point out contradictions which reveal their lies and progress the story. Though simple, it is quite engaging and there were a few times I really had to think about who to search for contradictions on and for what. The game also has a pretty solid hint system if you are really stuck, and delivers just enough direction without giving the answer away (unless you really want it to). From a gameplay standpoint, the only criticism I have is that while the game does have a fast travel system, you actually shouldn't use it as there are key scenes with clues that you will only come across if you are deliberately travelling everywhere normally. Someone who is being liberal with the fast travel will find themselves stuck at a couple of points because they will miss these.

From a visual standpoint, the FMV scenes are all shot quite well. Characters (ESPECIALLY Jenks) are expressive and wonderfully portrayed, and the cinematography/lighting really nail the atmosphere of sleepy town with some secrets perfectly. The UI is simple to navigate and lays out all the information you need to know well enough too, though playing on the Steam Deck I would have loved some more proper controller support as it is designed with a mouse cursor in mind.

Overall, fans of detective games like Ace Attorney and the like will not go wrong with Contradiction. There are certainly some elements of the plot which demand further exploration, but the journey is well worth the price as it stands.

A shitpost taken to its ultimate conclusion, Nightmare Kart attempts to capture the setting and characters of definitely-not-Bloodborne in a kart racer/battler. Nightmare Kart's campaign will take the player loosely through some of the key locations and encounters from Bloodborne. All the maps are very recognizable from their source material, and there's a ton of creativity in giving each character their own cool unique karts as well. The structure of the campaign typically alternates between races and battles, and while the races are a fun enough time the battles feel quite poor after the first boss. Combat often involves guns and if you can imagine Mario Kart battle mode where every player is picking up auto-aim guns and whoever shoots first wins, that's about what you can expect.

My feelings on this game are roughly akin to those of JoJo All-Star Battle. It is an absolute labour of love from someone who very much appreciates Bloodborne, but that faithfulness comes at a cost of a game that could feel and play better than it does. Still, it's a free fan game and I am pretty glad it got made, because it at least looks and sounds great.