He might just be the greatest Dave to ever do it. Dave the Diver is a game that succeeds in blending a very fun sea diving adventure with a cool restaurant simulator that, for better or worse, is constantly trying to expand on itself.

The gameplay mainly revolves around diving into the vast sea and gathering materials and ingredients during the day, and then using what you acquired to create dishes for your sushi bar which you operate during the night. This day/night loop hooked me from the very beginning and it stayed that way for a good chunk of my playtime. Exploring the ocean and discovering/catching all the aquatic life was very fun and you're given a lot of tools and upgrades to work with. The restaurant management section of the game starts out very slow but quickly picks up once you start building up your rating and more things are opened up to you. I honestly ended up enjoying it more than the diving section by the time I was done with the main story.

Speaking of the story, I ended up really liking that as well. It's silly, endearing, and pretty well-paced for the most part. I think what really makes it shine though are the characters. The main cast is really cool and each of them have their own little quirks that make them stand out. The way they interact with Dave, whether helping him out in some way or just simple banter, is really nice. I ended up liking a lot of these characters more than I originally assumed I would. Trust me when I tell you Bancho is the coolest character in the game.

The game is also really good-looking. The 2D-pixel art is really appealing to look at and the cutscenes are really over the top in the best way possible, they fit each character perfectly, and I rarely ever skipped them.

Remember when I said this game constantly tries to expand on itself for better or worse? Yeah, that's my main issue with it. This game constantly introduces new mechanics, features, minigames, etc.(especially in the 2nd half) in what I assume is to try to keep the gameplay loop fresh. While some of the things they introduced are nice, how they went about it and the sheer amount of stuff brought in is almost overwhelming. By the end of the game, a lot of it just felt like I was just doing busy work. Getting overloaded with a constant flow of new information...now I know how Jogo felt.

Despite the issues, I really enjoyed my time with Dave the Diver and I do recommend it. Not sure if I would call it a "cozy" game like a lot of other people do tho.

Pretty cool. For most of the game, you're rummaging through a database of live-action clips of a woman being interviewed by police on multiple occasions regarding the disappearance of her husband. It ended up being pretty expansive due to how you uncover new clips by typing in keywords and phrases into the database, finding these new clips and then tying them together with others made uncovering the events that transpired leading up to the interviews especially engaging. It's pretty short though, I was able to finish it in about 2 hours. The story itself is fine and I'm fond of how they were able to tie it together but some of these clips ended up being so absurd it had me like 🤨. I think the actress does a really good job for the most part, her mannerisms in certain clips stand out and add a lot to making the police interviews feel more authentic. This is definitely one of the more unique games I've played, and I recommend checking it out if you're able to catch it on a sale.

Open Roads is a game that has had a very rough development history. Back in 2021, Fullbright's Co-founder and Open Roads' creative director stepped down from his role on the game following allegations of mistreating employees and fostering a toxic work environment. Many employees ended up leaving the project due to the co-founder's terrible actions/behavior. The remaining employees ended up restructuring the project, and last year, the dev team and the game itself ended up splitting from Fullbright entirely! As someone who was interested in the game following its initial reveal back in 2020, I wondered how the game would turn out or if it would even see the light of day. Now the game has finally released and there's a lot to talk about.

The game is centered around 16-year-old Tess and her divorced mom, Opel, as they set out on a road trip across Michigan to uncover the mystery behind Tess's recently deceased grandmother, Helen. While the mystery serves as the driving force for the journey, the game puts a lot of focus on Tess and Opel’s relationship and how they handle Helen’s passing, and their current circumstances. The voice acting is amazing and helps both these characters feel authentic. I liked the game's portrayal of generational trauma and familial bonds but it could’ve been executed better.

It’s very short, I clocked in at around 3 hours and the game really doesn’t make the best use of its runtime, especially in the later part of the game. There are a few moments that just don't go anywhere and it just felt very abrupt near the end. It definitely would've benefitted from a slightly longer runtime.

For most of the game, you're walking around an area, interacting with the environment, and picking up objects, leading to dialogue between Tess and Opel. This is very usual walking simulator stuff, but what makes it stand out is how the game blends a 2D hand-drawn art style for the characters and a realistic 3D style for the environment around them. It works very well in the game's favor and helps make the world more immersive and the characters very expressive. This is one of the things this game did best and a main highlight for sure.

Despite my issues with how some parts of the story were handled, I enjoyed it. It's short and on Game Pass, so it wouldn't hurt to give it a try!

First game from the Recollection down! I never played the original DS game so I don't know how it compares but I enjoyed my time with the remake.

The story and main characters are definitely where the game shines most. The first two chapters are very slow and can come across as boring but it picks up very quickly. Ashley and D are cool characters and the way their stories intertwine while they work to solve the main mysteries makes it all the more engaging.

The puzzles the game hits you with are nothing to write home about but some of them have cool little gimmicks sprinkled in. A few accessibility features are available that make solving the puzzles(the game gives you two hints and will straight up tell you the solution if you want) and navigating the mansion very easy. I personally wouldn't rely entirely on these features as they may cause you to miss some cool story stuff.

Two Memories turned out to be a really nice puzzle adventure game! Now it's time to tap into the second game.

This game is so cool and is quickly becoming one of my favorite rogue-lites. There’s so much to like here from its satisfying combat to its dope art style. You’re offered a lot of variety when it comes to making ur build due to how many spells and gambits you’re given as you progress. Most of the zodiacs are cool and their interactions with the MCs reminds me a lot of games like Hades. The games story is something you have to piece together and you’re slowly drip-fed lore through your interactions with the zodiacs, other npcs, and things you come across in the actual levels. If you like rogue-lites at all I highly suggest giving this one a try!