Gaming In The Wild - Video Game Reviews

This week's episode is a big one! It's the third in the 2023 Games of the Year series, with special guest Steve aka Blinkoom of the Indie Quest & Polykill podcasts. We run through Steve's game's of the year, before revealing the results of the Discord/patron GOTY vote. Here's where to find Steve: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/Blinkoom Polykill: https://www.buzzsprout.c...

This week's GOTY special brings return guest Ciarán Daly to talk about his games of 2023, including Small Saga, DREDGE, Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, and more. We also talk about Lies of P, Remnant 2, Starfield, Wild Hearts, Assassin's Creed Mirage, Marvel's Midnight Suns, Hypnospace Outlaw, and more. Here's a link to BlockBusters!, a game jam game that's mentioned: https://dotb...

It's GOTY season, and what better way to kick things off than with special guest and friend of the show Brad Gallaway, co-host of the So... Videogames Podcast . We went long and had a great conversation about everything from big hitters like Zelda, Starfield, and Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 to indie gems like Lamplighter's League, DREDGE, Birth, and many more. And as always, many thanks to all the...

This week's bumper episode runs through the big winners at The Game Awards 2024 , with a rundown of my top 10 new game announcements, including Pony Island 2 , Big Walk , Lost Records , and more. I also give in-progress reviews of three games I've been playing: Inkle's A Highland Song , Ubisoft's Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora , and a viral Kickstarter hit called Backpack Hero . And...

Sludge Life 2 is an extremely welcome sequel that gives us more of the original’s winning formula. It’s an improbably enjoyable game that mixes high-speed first-person parkour with tagging, urban exploration, puerile humour, a wavy soundtrack, and a bleak world full of hilarious NPCs just trying to get through life. In the roundup: Jingle Jam 2023, A Highland Song, December releases, Backpack Hero...

This week's show is a little grab bag of demos and new releases, including Teardown, Coral Island, Wordless – and a super intriguing sci-fi mystery game called 1000xRESIST. In the roundup: Sludge Life 2. And many thanks to Steve, the show’s new patron! If you'd like to join them in supporting the show on Patreon , you can do so from $1 per month at http://patreon.com/gaminginthewild . Patr...

Goodbye Volcano High is a lushly produced visual novel about a high-school band at the end of the world. Playing as a hot goth dino called Fang, we navigate crushes, fallouts, band practice, and roleplaying sessions, all via dialogue choices & light rhythm gameplay. It’s an absorbing story game lit up by sparkling writing, sensuous art, and a dreamy guitar-pop soundtrack.  Also: The Game Award...

A blockbuster sequel long in the offing, Alan Wake II offers an original, cutting-edge audio-visual presentation. But its ambition as a showpiece and a spectacle is mirrored by a surprising lack of creativity in other areas, that makes it a uniformly dull – and sometimes frustratingly illegible – gameplay experience. In the roundup: Goodbye Volcano High, Thirsty Suitors, November release. And many...

Jusant is a chill, mechanically innovative climbing game, in which a nameless protagonist climbs a huge rock tower in a dry, deserted word. The wordless story adds some intrigue, and the methodical, tactile, handhold-by-handold climbing really shines. Also: first thoughts on Remedy's Alan Wake II. And many thanks to the show’s 53 patrons! If you'd like to join them in supporting the show o...

This week I talk about the fun experience of visiting video game hotspots in Tokyo, my experience as a PC gaming newbie with the ROG Ally handheld, and playing the opening hours of the imaginative, colourful, supremely entertaining Super Mario Bros Wonder. And many thanks to the show’s 53 patrons! If you'd like to join them in supporting the show on Patreon , you can do so from $1 per month at...

Nour: Play With Your Food is a bizarre physics-driven rhythm game that's all about... well, playing with food. The player rains food items into a scene, hitting buttons in time to responsive music, and… seeing if anything happens? As it all devolves into a chaotic spectacle, sometimes it seems like there's a game structure trying to emerge. Ultimately, not much is clear – except that it’s...

Under The Waves is a narrative-driven underwater adventure about a deep-sea diver dealing with loss. It shines brightest during its mesmerising ocean-floor exploration in a tiny submersible craft, which made for some epic moments. In the roundup: Dead Space Remake, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, The Crew Motorfest, and more.  And many thanks to the show’s 52 patrons! If you'd like to join them in su...

Cocoon is an enigma. As a green-winged bug, we hop between dimensions, facing puzzles that are in turn intricate and frustrating. It’s slick, polished, and impressive, but uneven, demanding, and narratively vague. In the roundup: Station To Station, Wargroove 2, Under The Waves, Jusant, Assassin’s Creed Mirage, Alan Wake 2, Spider-Man 2, and other October release highlights.  And many thanks to th...

Gunbrella is slick, snappy, vibey action-platformer with a surprisingly affecting story, and some welcome adventure game elements. It’s heavy on style, and short in runtime. In the roundup: Baldur's Gate 3 impressions at 4hrs played, Cyberpunk 2077 2.0, Cocoon, Saltsea Chronicles. And many thanks to the show’s 50 patrons! If you'd like to join them in supporting the show on Patreon , you c...

This week’s show rounds off an epic four episode-spanning review of the game with some final thoughts and – after a spoiler break – some chat about endgame and NG+. In the roundup: Gunbrella, Sayonara Wild Hearts, and Moonstone Island. And many thanks to the show’s 50 patrons! If you'd like to join them in supporting the show on Patreon, you can do so from $1 per month at http://patreon.com/ga...

Starfield is a huge game! Now 70 hours in, this week's show goes into more of the game's systems: ship combat, ship building, base building, quest types, crew members and NPCs, and some fun story-stuff spoiler chat after a big ol’ spoiler warning. In the roundup: Mythforce, Chants of Senaar, Nour: Play With Your Food, The Pale Beyond, Solar Ash, and all the September releases: Cocoon, Cybe...

We have liftoff! Starfield is the long-awaited spacefaring RPG that's dizzying in its scope, depth, variety and possibility. It’s also an uneven and characteristically idiosyncratic Bethesda experience - but 40 hours in, my journey has been packed with awe-inspiring moments, and has inspired a very pure kind of gaming satisfaction. As always, many thanks to the show’s 49 patrons. If you'd...

Fort Solis is an atmospheric sci-fi mystery set on the dark side of Mars. It ramps up the suspense masterfully in the opening stages, and has an interesting story to tell, but is held back by some narrative ambiguity, egregious QTEs, and somewhat basic gameplay. Also: Starfield impressions, three hours in, and a first look at Sea of Stars. And many thanks to the show’s latest patron, Cousin Jack!...

Shotgun King - The Final Checkmate is a unique turn-based roguelike that’s a mutant form of shotgun chess. It’s very light on content, but the brilliant concept, ever-evolving ruleset, and affordable price make it an indie oddity worth experiencing. Punkcake Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/punkcake Great Punkcake interview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iGxYOu4YeXc   In the roundup: Adore mini-...

This week's episode is about Meg's Monster, a patron recommendation that turned out to be delightful. It's a simple, short & sweet pixel art adventure, that distinguishes itself from the pack with some enjoyable writing, and an emotional story that'll tug at your heartstrings. There's also a book review in this episode. "Tomorrow, And Tomorrow, And Tomorrow" by Gabr...

Venba is a striking visual novel that sensitively explores the experience of an young Indian couple emigrating to Canada, and the life events that follow. It has excellent audio-visual presentation and rich subject matter, but the compressed narrative seems to skip key events, before an abrupt ending. In the roundup: Pikmin 4, Luigi’s Mansion 3, and Stray's arrival on Xbox. And many thanks to...

This week's episode is a mixed bag roundup about high-octane retro Doom-like shooter Prodeus (and Doom 64), cult Metroidvania Axiom Verge, some Nintendo classics, and more. In the roundup: August releases including Armored Core VI, Sea of Stars, Blasphemous 2, Shotgun King, Book of Hours, A Guidebook Of Babel, Wrestlequest, Stray Gods, and lots more. Links from the episode: The original Cloud...

Have a Nice Death is an enjoyable roguelike with slick and satisfying moment-to-moment gameplay, top notch combat, and pinpoint platforming. As a roguelike, though, its various systems are oddly named, ill-explained, and muddled-seeming. In the roundup: Cyberpunk 2077 (again!), Grimoire Groves, The Last Worker, Dave The Diver, Koa & The Five Pirates Of Mara. And many thanks to the show’s lates...

Seven years in the making, Lost Signals is Night School's difficult second album. It starts strong by playing the hits, and shines in its atmosphere and dialogue system, but fades where it should crescendo. In the roundup: ASUS ROG Ally, Dead Space 2023, FFXIII, Venba, Dave The Diver. And many thanks to the show’s latest patron, Arti! If you'd like to join them in supporting the show on Pa...

Final Fantasy XVI is a dark fantasy action adventure that tells its epic story via impressively cinematic cut-scenes, sleek, kinetic combat, and spectacular set pieces. Some poor quest design made the story drag, but the characters and combat never got old. In the roundup: Final Fantasy XIII, Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, Dave The Diver. The Digital Foundry FFXVI review I mention in the show: https...