beatstar
1998
Played this in Like A Dragon Gaiden, appreciated seeing the finishing move five times and the stage breaking, particularly when fighting the final guy. Movesets are easy to pick up. The enemies on later levels will punish you when they know you're down and out. Music was good. Reminded me of Tekken 2, minus a story.
Smash clone that is a little more feature limited on account of it being the first fighting game by the studio. Modest mechanics and makes no illusions that it's something original. Cool to see Nickolodeon IPs being used like this, but doesn't deliver anything more that what it promised.
2021
I fucking hate it. Played it for about 5 minutes and basically had no motivation to go further. NPC voices are horrendously vtuber-ish and aesthetic is ugly.
2021
One button. One dream. One star (just kidding, I'll give it two for effort).
Platformer that is inspired by Mario, Yooka-Laylee, Banjo Kazooie etc. It's not exactly inspired with "costumes", a character/ability switching gimmick many remember from Donkey Kong 64. However, balance is thrown out of wack because the abilities overlap. "One button does everything" means you can't jump when you really want to unless you have the proper costume. Dialogue is in Japanese only. Levels are cutely presented, short and to the point, but some things aren't possible to accomplish until you unlock the proper costume. Story makes positively no sense, everybody dances one of two available songs when the darkness is purged. Difficulty isn't exactly consistent. Soundtrack and people memeing farmer Sneed are two redeeming factors - but not much else is good about this game.
Platformer that is inspired by Mario, Yooka-Laylee, Banjo Kazooie etc. It's not exactly inspired with "costumes", a character/ability switching gimmick many remember from Donkey Kong 64. However, balance is thrown out of wack because the abilities overlap. "One button does everything" means you can't jump when you really want to unless you have the proper costume. Dialogue is in Japanese only. Levels are cutely presented, short and to the point, but some things aren't possible to accomplish until you unlock the proper costume. Story makes positively no sense, everybody dances one of two available songs when the darkness is purged. Difficulty isn't exactly consistent. Soundtrack and people memeing farmer Sneed are two redeeming factors - but not much else is good about this game.
2024
Welcome to our OOL. Notice how there's no "P"?
Seriously though, POOLS is a walking simulator (e.g: Gone Home) with emphasis on navigating a maze-like level similar to Anemoiapolis: Chapter 1, except this one isn't procedurally generated. Levels take about 15-20 minutes to get through, since they're assembled in a labyrinthine manner and often have you going through some pretty tight spaces that play on vibes.
Is it scary? Not really. Apparently the whole Backrooms/Liminal Spaces gives zoomies PTSD, but this is oddly relaxing, almost therapeutic. The random sounds are dread-inducing, and present themselves just enough to earn a "psychological horror" tag.
If you walk into total darkness, jump off into the "deep end", or wade into the spiral pit on Level 2, the game rewinds time prior to you doing such actions. The goal is to finish the level though, and this gentle nudge reminds you of your 'mortality' without further penalty.
Like the Backrooms games, POOLS' greatest strength is its atmosphere. The chromatic aberration, lens distortion, film grain, reflection, light diffusion, and ambient occlusion all work in tandem to fool you, if just for a moment, into thinking you're not playing a Unity game. However, like its ancient ancestor Gone Home, if walking simulators annoy you, this one may too.
Seriously though, POOLS is a walking simulator (e.g: Gone Home) with emphasis on navigating a maze-like level similar to Anemoiapolis: Chapter 1, except this one isn't procedurally generated. Levels take about 15-20 minutes to get through, since they're assembled in a labyrinthine manner and often have you going through some pretty tight spaces that play on vibes.
Is it scary? Not really. Apparently the whole Backrooms/Liminal Spaces gives zoomies PTSD, but this is oddly relaxing, almost therapeutic. The random sounds are dread-inducing, and present themselves just enough to earn a "psychological horror" tag.
If you walk into total darkness, jump off into the "deep end", or wade into the spiral pit on Level 2, the game rewinds time prior to you doing such actions. The goal is to finish the level though, and this gentle nudge reminds you of your 'mortality' without further penalty.
Like the Backrooms games, POOLS' greatest strength is its atmosphere. The chromatic aberration, lens distortion, film grain, reflection, light diffusion, and ambient occlusion all work in tandem to fool you, if just for a moment, into thinking you're not playing a Unity game. However, like its ancient ancestor Gone Home, if walking simulators annoy you, this one may too.
2023
Grotesque and macabre, but oddly satisfying. Employs horror elements in a way that you are well aware what's RNG and what's simply a well-played use of one's items. A very streamable, replayable game. At $3? Definitely worth a buy.
2016
You know what you are getting - a Newgrounds-style stealth game. Like Barro, It's basically an achievement miner. Shovelware, avoid.
Terrifically unfun game, except you can fight random NPCs.
I don’t play a lot of the newer CoDs, but Black Ops really stuck with me because it was a Call of Duty that realized its willingness to shake things up and go for a cinematic angle. Not to say it was a “movie game”, but really something where you felt like you were the star, not just a player. You had Sam Worthington voice the protag, Ed Harris voice your CIA handler, Gary Oldman as Viktor Reznov, and James Burns as your very own war buddy Frank Woods.
The clever incorporation of numbers stations and their significance within SIGINT. The missions where you’re smack dab in the action, or you see Frank Woods defy death. It stands out among other COD games since this is one of the few where I felt like my character had a voice. Even when things get a little “dicey” toward the end in terms of his mental well being, this was really was a stand out.
The clever incorporation of numbers stations and their significance within SIGINT. The missions where you’re smack dab in the action, or you see Frank Woods defy death. It stands out among other COD games since this is one of the few where I felt like my character had a voice. Even when things get a little “dicey” toward the end in terms of his mental well being, this was really was a stand out.
2012
Innovative with a rockin’ soundtrack, but plenty janky also, not to mention some of the levels are more difficult than you remember. Much of the music and smooth gameplay people associate with 2000 JSR was in fact JSRF.
2008
This review contains spoilers
An aesthetically pleasing landscape, with beautifully composed music as well as a genteel time flow mechanic rounds out this puzzle platformer into an indie standout. The real stinger is the story though, which was a hell of a shock the first time I played it. To put it curtly, the levels serve as therapy for an overarching trauma that the protagonist (Tim) is revealed to have inflicted on his romantic partner.
It’s a real thinking person’s game, but best played drunk or high. Some say Jonathan Blow still, to this day, receives psychic damage whenever someone remembers the Soulja Boy video (JK, he calls the whole situation a “distortion”). That begs the question though, is remembering painful memories a “bridge” too far? Nah, Braid’s still a great title, and one day the long-awaited Anniversary Edition will come out as well.
It’s a real thinking person’s game, but best played drunk or high. Some say Jonathan Blow still, to this day, receives psychic damage whenever someone remembers the Soulja Boy video (JK, he calls the whole situation a “distortion”). That begs the question though, is remembering painful memories a “bridge” too far? Nah, Braid’s still a great title, and one day the long-awaited Anniversary Edition will come out as well.
2021
This review contains spoilers
Disclosure: Cavemanon, the studio behind Snoot Game, submitted a trailer for “I Wani Hug That Gator” in 2021 to the “Vidya Gaem Awards”, an award show I work on. “Snoot Game” was a past nominee, and its source material “Goodbye Volcano High”, won Most Pretentious Indie Game in our 2023 show. The opinion presented below is of my own experience playing Snoot Game, and does not represent the views of anyone else.
—
After Goodbye Volcano High won Most Pretentious Indie Game. I played it first, beat it, and then I played Snoot Game, and completed one of the endings. I found it the better game, but just as importantly, I found it completely different in substance.
Before Anon came along, humans were never part of Volcano High. But by taking the focus away from “the meteor” and impending doom, neither were distressing concepts like racism, being socially ostracized, and familial dysfunction. While some casual misgendering, conflict, and personal growth are also present in Goodbye Volcano High, each of these things are more tactfully addressed in Snoot Game.
As someone who doesn’t play a lot of VNs, this is the best VN to come out of 4chan since Katawa Shoujo, and it also has the dubious distinction of being the most notorious fan work since Harry Potter’s “My Immortal”.
I think the core message of Snoot Game is to grow as an empathetic person, get over social anxieties, and treat people with respect, even as it pains one to do so. This message resonates really well for a site that has many people who are undersocialized. Even the act of physical contact from the opposite sex sets off blaring alarm bells in Anon’s mind, and this serves as both a hilarious deprecation of Anon’s confidence, as well as an acute understanding of the target audience.
Anon’s insertion into the mix of Volcano High also serves to bring its audience back to school. They’re not necessarily the NB dinosaur Fang is, but they probably were in love once, they probably were bullied once by someone who was being a piece of shit, and given teenage angst, they also probably were a piece of shit themselves. The biggest takeaway is where you start isn’t where you end - and if this is what you wish, the story will punish you with some pretty damn sad endings.
Snoot Game’s derivative factor cuts both ways. Most characters aren’t OC, and as sad as it is to see KO-OP look down on the fans and have some its own turboautists coming at Cavemanon pitchforks in-hand, the company showed some restraint by never issuing a C&D despite the extensive copying.
Additionally, the heavy reliance on pop and chan-culture references can alienate the “normie” audience, perhaps most notably the KO-OP staff who played the game’s earlier builds before deciding to disassociate. Seeing Anon call dinosaurs “meteor dodgers”, others pointing out that the good endings (3 & 4) have Fang abandon her nonbinary identity, Anon’s neighborhood being called “Skin Row” (a la LA’s Skid Row), and the choice word “trigga” being used each serve as powder kegs to ignite and then warn others: “don’t try this game, it’s fucking bigoted.”
That’s not to say criticism of the game is without merit, or that the people who are reviewing the game poorly for these reasons do so in bad faith. But when I look at this game, I see it for what it is - a fan work from someone you’d least expect. Cavemanon took what was originally a parody and really knocked it out of the ballpark with something that better resonated with its home audience - which just so happened to be the same site I grew up on: 4chan.
Perhaps one day, KO-OP and Cavemanon can get along, but until then, just play both so you know what the hell each is all about. I’m looking forward to playing Wani in the future.
—
After Goodbye Volcano High won Most Pretentious Indie Game. I played it first, beat it, and then I played Snoot Game, and completed one of the endings. I found it the better game, but just as importantly, I found it completely different in substance.
Before Anon came along, humans were never part of Volcano High. But by taking the focus away from “the meteor” and impending doom, neither were distressing concepts like racism, being socially ostracized, and familial dysfunction. While some casual misgendering, conflict, and personal growth are also present in Goodbye Volcano High, each of these things are more tactfully addressed in Snoot Game.
As someone who doesn’t play a lot of VNs, this is the best VN to come out of 4chan since Katawa Shoujo, and it also has the dubious distinction of being the most notorious fan work since Harry Potter’s “My Immortal”.
I think the core message of Snoot Game is to grow as an empathetic person, get over social anxieties, and treat people with respect, even as it pains one to do so. This message resonates really well for a site that has many people who are undersocialized. Even the act of physical contact from the opposite sex sets off blaring alarm bells in Anon’s mind, and this serves as both a hilarious deprecation of Anon’s confidence, as well as an acute understanding of the target audience.
Anon’s insertion into the mix of Volcano High also serves to bring its audience back to school. They’re not necessarily the NB dinosaur Fang is, but they probably were in love once, they probably were bullied once by someone who was being a piece of shit, and given teenage angst, they also probably were a piece of shit themselves. The biggest takeaway is where you start isn’t where you end - and if this is what you wish, the story will punish you with some pretty damn sad endings.
Snoot Game’s derivative factor cuts both ways. Most characters aren’t OC, and as sad as it is to see KO-OP look down on the fans and have some its own turboautists coming at Cavemanon pitchforks in-hand, the company showed some restraint by never issuing a C&D despite the extensive copying.
Additionally, the heavy reliance on pop and chan-culture references can alienate the “normie” audience, perhaps most notably the KO-OP staff who played the game’s earlier builds before deciding to disassociate. Seeing Anon call dinosaurs “meteor dodgers”, others pointing out that the good endings (3 & 4) have Fang abandon her nonbinary identity, Anon’s neighborhood being called “Skin Row” (a la LA’s Skid Row), and the choice word “trigga” being used each serve as powder kegs to ignite and then warn others: “don’t try this game, it’s fucking bigoted.”
That’s not to say criticism of the game is without merit, or that the people who are reviewing the game poorly for these reasons do so in bad faith. But when I look at this game, I see it for what it is - a fan work from someone you’d least expect. Cavemanon took what was originally a parody and really knocked it out of the ballpark with something that better resonated with its home audience - which just so happened to be the same site I grew up on: 4chan.
Perhaps one day, KO-OP and Cavemanon can get along, but until then, just play both so you know what the hell each is all about. I’m looking forward to playing Wani in the future.
1999
Great music, but holy shit, is it miserable to actually play.
2014
California: The Game.
2019
Dev knows how to ramp up the difficulty, how to really promote the game with shareable moments, and mechanics that make sense but also can be cheesed. All in all, a solid game that's both original and a tad cute.