1 Hour 1 Decision (1H1D)

A cyberpunk story that's set in the past. This selection's not random! Chris has been eager to try the two and a half dimension action platformer developed by Sad Cat Studios but, unfortunately for him, it was delayed several times. Fortunately for us all, the game ultimately arrived and thus could be added to the queue for this show. To make this episode even more tantalizing, Chris invit...

The apostrophe isn't a typo! The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has surprised our hosts with a top-down twin-stick shooter from the minds of SoulGame Studio! Comprised of two fresh cousins from Toulouse, this studio is incredibly indie. Perhaps that has allowed them to take a big swing here by taking the action of a bullet hell ship shooter like Ikaruga and combining it with the story and pro...

Time to brush up on your Latin! Tom was sure that he had played the first entry in this series for a previous episode of the show, but just like this game, it turns out that memory was a work of fiction inspired by true events. This first person action RPG developed by Warhorse Studios and published by Deep Silver was recommended to Chris, and Tom did indeed play at least a few hours of the first...

Can they try 100+ games in an hour? Spoiler alert: they can't! Even if they split the list down the middle and tried to tackle fifty each, the challenge of getting to everything included in this retro compilation from Antstream Arcade in the allotted hour is just impossible for our two hosts. That didn't stop Tom and Chris from testing out as much as humanly possible within those tight time constr...

All aboard another loony locomotive! The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button surprised our hosts by selecting a sequel to a title they have actually played! For this episode, Tom and Chris return to the world of roguelike deckbuilders crafted by the folks over at Shiny Shoe. The fundamental gameplay remains the same, but the premise this trip is that titans have taken over the tracks, so angels an...

This will have you swearing! If it's a rogue-like, you know that the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button is the one that picked it. Developed by Windwalk Games and published by Team17, this game takes a different approach to established Arthurian legends and asks "What if Arthur and his knights were the villains?" You'll step into the boots of a nameless hero and, with the help of blessings from a...

You just know this will be an odd one. From slot machines to stolen potatoes, the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button maintains control of game selection and has our hosts playing this indie adventure title developed and published by StudioBando Inc. The player steps into the shoes of a child tasked with fetching some ingredients for his grandma's soup, but the pantry is a portal to another world,...

Simulating debt for fun? Alright "Surprise Me" button, what are you trying to tell us with your selection of this rogue-lite gambling sim developed by Panik Arcade? Do you want Tom and Chris to literally fall into debt? Or is this perhaps a cautionary tale so that we all learn a painful lesson virtually in order to avoid experiencing that fate in the real world? Admittedly, we think it's highly un...

Artifacts so nice they stole them twice! Even the "Surprise Me" button is entitled to a few days off, so Chris has stepped in and selected this action-platformer developed and published by South African studio Nyamakop. Like the studio, the game is also set in South Africa, but not in the present or even the past, but the future... 2099, more specifically. In this future, precious pieces of Africa...

Coulda called it cudgel cat. The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has an indie title picked out for our hosts this episode. More specifically, we are talking about the third-person (or should we say third-cat) adventure game developed by Kyle Thompson and published by Top Hat Studios. As you may have guessed from the name of the developer, this is the product of a solo operation! Using GameEngi...

Is it more than a well done pun? We have another guest! This time it is Jake aka Zulgeek that joins Tom and Chris to review a randomly selected game and decide if it is worth your time. For this episode, the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has selected the puzzle adventure game developed by Dogubomb and published by Raw Fury. The plot follows the "protagonist inherits a mansion, but there are...

Are they better than big ones? The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button takes control and doesn't surprise us at all by selecting the middle game of a trilogy. Developed by Tarsier Studios and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment, this title is chalked up as a puzzle-platform horror adventure game. What this means in practice is up to our hosts, who are joined by Adam from the "Spectre Approved"...

Tom thumbs the scale for this title. Move over "Surprise Me" button, the only thing surprising about this not-so-randomly chosen game is that Tom hasn't already played it. Fortunately Xbox Game Pass has rectified that oversight by adding this third person action-adventure game developed by Massive Entertainment and published by Ubisoft. At this point, the game has been out for a while and has rece...

Perhaps a garden for growing grandiose gods? For this episode the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has selected the indie adventure developed by LimboLane and published by Fellow Traveller. These developers have some experience making strange and quirky games and it sure looks like this title is in that wheelhouse. In it, the gods are upset and the world is in peril, so the player needs to work...

What does that even mean? Well, when you let a randomizer pick your next game, you sometimes end up with something completely unexpected. Apparently this title is a multiplayer competitive platformer that was developed and published by Clever Endeavour Games out of Montreal, Canada. Our hosts are unfamiliar with this game and its indie developer, so they get a blank slate and an hour to make their...

The original is still there under the hood! If you thought the last episode was a throwback, get ready because this episode covers a remake of a beloved point and click adventure game that was originally released by LucasArts in 1993! Would you believe that despite his love of the aforementioned studio, Tom has never actually played the original game? Gasp! Well this remaster developed by Double F...

This legend began three decades ago! When our hosts challenge the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button, sometimes it responds with a deep cut! Behold this side-scrolling platformer developed by Ubisoft Montpellier and released way back in 2013! Did it age gracefully over the past decade? Did the trials and tribulations of the initial launch and plenty of post-launch support lead to a solid finished...

Ryu Hayabusa, where are you? With assistance from the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button, our dynamic duo returns to Team Ninja's third person action series, but of course it's the sequel to another sequel they didn't play! Adding to the complexity, though Team Ninja was involved, this entry was primarily developed by PlatinumGames. This actually sets expectations a bit higher, at least for Tom....

Beating up baddies, Marvel edition. Tribute Games is back with another side-scrolling beat 'em up! There are some mutants on the roster here too, but they aren't teenagers or turtles. Speaking of the playable roster, it's sizeable, with a smattering of famous and esoteric characters from different segments of the marvel universe. Will that mix help offset the repetitive nature of the whole beat 'e...

This former agent just wants to stay retired. The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button lives up to its name with its selection for this episode. Our hosts have been tasked with playing the strangely named First-Person Shooter developed by indie studio Strange Scaffold and published by Frosty Pop. It turns out this studio likes to give their games zany names, so this is actually par for the course f...

The skipper promised a three hour tour! Our hosts play random games on the Xbox Game Pass service and often that means titles they had never seen before the "Surprise Me" button makes the selection. Such is the case with this third person adventure title developed by Polygon Treehouse and published by Whitethorn Games. Players take on the role of Alex, who gets stranded on a strange island full of...

Our hosts were teens in the late 1990s too. The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has selected another narrative adventure title! The focus here is similarly on story and there's more of that teen angst and certainly some mysteries as well. Fortunately for our hosts, this one developed by DigixArt is played from a first person perspective and set in a fictional past instead of far into an altern...

The number is years, the rest is your task. For this episode the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button has chosen the debut title developed by Sunset Visitor. This narrative adventure game tasks you with exploring memories to uncover the truth that's been buried for a thousand years. In it, you take on the role of Watcher and delve into THE ALLMOTHER's past to discover what happened a millennia ago...

Will there be tales told of this? The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button takes control once more for this episode. Its selection is a side-scrolling platformer developed by Sunny Peak and published by Headup. This title was conceived as a student project at ISART Digital in France and then blossomed into a full-featured game release after several years of additional effort from its dedicated team...

Not the sequel to the game from 1H1D #83. Traditionally game selection is left to the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button, but this First Person Action RPG developed by Obsidian Entertainment was actually chosen by Matt aka Stormaggedon, who was previously a guest on the show for episode 225! There was a possibility that Matt would be our first repeat guest, but alas, it was not our stars. Tom and...