October 16 – October 22

Section: 

IMAGE(https://www.gamerswithjobs.com/files/pictures/pictures/picture-5877.jpg)   Greg “DoubtingThomas396” Decker

One of these days I’m going to try an achievement-hunter game, just for the novelty of it. But not this week. This week I’ve got a top five list for you.

  • Claybook takes the mud physics from Spintires and builds a whole game around being a blob of sticky clay. It may be a physics-based puzzle game, but it’s colorful and charming and it lets you build your own creations to play in. I’m a sucker for creative games, and what’s more creative than actual clay?
  • In The Shadows plays with our childhood fears in a delightful way. Shadowy monsters are chasing you, and the only way to defeat them is to shine lights on them so they turn back into the ordinary, harmless objects that populate the world in the hours when your mind isn’t preoccupied with being small and helpless. You show that hatrack who’s boss!
  • The Mind of Marlo is a short game presented as a documentary about a man whose head spontaneously transforms into silly things. Can you find a way to undo the transformation so Marlo can leave the house with his human head instead of the head of, say, a shark? Are you even interested in finding out? I am, but I’ve come to understand I’m not exactly rocking the zeitgeist.
  • Tiny Toyfare is another tower defense game, which some people think is played out but those people are wrong so I block them on Twitter. Dinosaurs are attacking, and you have to marshal the contents of your toybox to build traps, turrets and other tower-defensy things to stop them from getting to wherever it is dinosaurs go when they invade. Presumably they’re trying to find the kitchen so they can replace all of the cereal and peanut butter with asparagus and coconut oil. [Yes, one presumes. -ed.]
  • Real Farm boasts that it’s the “most immersive agricultural sim around.” I have reason to doubt that, but the fact that any game would even try to make that claim causes me to sit up and take notice. They certainly capture that “Forza for the John Deere set” vibe in the trailer. Will this one be the game to topple Giant’s seminal game, or will it be just another reminder that nobody else knows how to make a decent farming game? The only way to find out is to play it, and the only way to play it is to make it my game of the week.

Full disclosure: Neither claim in that last sentence is strictly true, but I am still picking Real Farm as my game of the week.

IMAGE(https://www.gamerswithjobs.com/files/pictures/picture-111373-1483294321.jpg)   Chris "C" Cesarano

Were it not for next week's impending release (and if you don't know me well enough to predict it than I shan't spoil the surprise this week), I would probably be tempted to snag one of this week's prime offerings. I've never played an Etrian Odyssey title, but the fifth entry, Beyond the Myth, proves the 3DS isn't as dead as its dual-screened Nintendo home console counterpart. Dungeon crawlers, prepare your styli for this labyrinthine adventure.

Serving Nintendo's portable markets new and old comes Fire Emblem Warriors, a title that seems to be reviewing a bit more positively than it has been previewed thus far. The roster isn't as varied as Hyrule Warriors, but the mechanics and map design seem to be pretty top tier for the Musou "genre" that's cropped up since the PS2 Dynasty Warriors premier.

While my temptation may break on this new Switch release, I imagine others in our community will be gunning for South Park: The Fractured But Whole. The game's mechanics have been improved over its predecessor, but if irreverent humor that ties skin color customization to difficulty – problematic for both social and mechanical reasons – offends you, then you'll probably want to skip past this one.

I'd say Fire Emblem Warriors gets my pick for the week.

IMAGE(https://www.gamerswithjobs.com/files/pictures/pictures/picture-13445.jpg)   Felix “Xenial or Menial?” Threepaper

There’s not much in my wheelhouse this week.

“Discover and investigate a forgotten underwater city built in an intriguing Art-Deco style.” promises Abyss: The Wraiths of Eden – now, where have I heard THAT before? Any intrigue is snuffed out by the dread words “hidden object”. Bokosuka Wars II gives Blade Runner a run for its money in the “time between sequels” stakes, but after an hour of extremely diligent video watching research, I still could not tell you how this game works.

Chaos;Child whizzes overhead, not just because it’s a visual novel, but on general punctuation principles. The title of South Park: The Fractured But Whole originates from Ubisoft telling Trey Parker that retailers would never stock a game with “butthole” in the name. It’s coming out this week, about 13 years too late for me.

ELEX is a AA RPG from the makers of Gothic and Risen. In true AA fashion, it proclaims itself as a combination of AAA games. It’s a mix of fantasy and post-apocalyptic sci-fi – swords, sorcery and mechs. Oh, and you have a jetpack. Even though it’s got “delayed release” written all over it, this could be one of those really enjoyable 6/10 games. GOTW.

This week:

PC

  • 3on3 FreeStyle
  • A Mortician's Tale
  • Achievement Hunter: Zombie
  • Age of Empires: Definitive Edition
  • AZURA
  • BAFL
  • Bang Bang Fruit 2
  • BELPAESE: Homecoming
  • Beyond the Wall
  • Black Friday: The Game
  • Blackout Z: Slaughterhouse Edition
  • Blindsight
  • Bomber Crew
  • Boratium Wars
  • Buffy Stole Your Sandwich
  • Call of War
  • Campfire Cooking
  • Case #9
  • Cats Make You Smarter!
  • Cities: Skylines - Green Cities
  • Claybook
  • Cogmind
  • Cottage Garden
  • Daily Run
  • Dark Rising
  • Dead Noir the Heart
  • Dean Daimon
  • DUEL
  • Dungeons of Hell
  • Elex
  • Endless Treasure Hunt
  • Entanglement
  • Flappy Galaxy
  • Forest Escape
  • Fox Hime
  • FoxyLand
  • Freaky Awesome
  • Game Machines: Arcade Casino
  • Gil's Lucid Dreams
  • Girl Blonde
  • Golf 2D
  • Halloween: Jigsaw Puzzles
  • Hidden Object Sweet Home
  • Home Run Solitaire
  • ICEBOX: Speedgunner
  • Immersive Poetry
  • In The Shadows
  • Invisibox
  • Konrad the Rocket
  • La Aventura De Axel
  • Left&Right
  • Life At Space
  • LSD
  • Luna (Funomena)
  • Mad Age And This Guy
  • Magic Technology
  • Malkyrs: Arenas of Eternity
  • Maso Marble
  • Maybot Run
  • Mercury Fallen
  • Modern Tales: Age Of Invention
  • Nash Racing 2: Muscle cars
  • Neo Angle
  • Ninja Goemon and Immortal Jewels
  • Nona
  • Obscure Realm
  • Oik 3
  • Operation Desert Road
  • Packet Queen #
  • Party Hard Tycoon
  • Real Farm Sim
  • Record Store Nightmare
  • Rhythmica
  • Rogue Trooper Redux
  • Rosenkreuzstilette Freudenstachel
  • Run, my little pixel
  • SAS: Zombie Assault 4
  • Save Dash
  • Sea Of Fatness
  • Skipper
  • Skirmish Line
  • Slashers: The Power Battle
  • Solar Lander
  • South Park: The Fractured But Whole
  • Spelunker Party
  • Spring Breeze
  • Stickman: Killer of Apples
  • Stones of Rome
  • StrainZ-1: Elimination
  • Super Arcade Boy in Defender of Planet Earth
  • Swarm Queen
  • Taima Miko Yuugi
  • Tametsi
  • The Cube
  • The Doorbreaker
  • The Inner World: The Last Wind Monk
  • The Jackbox Party Pack 4
  • The Lost Wizard
  • The Man in the Cape: Special Edition
  • The Merchant Memoirs
  • The Mind of Marlo
  • The Princess is in Another Castle
  • The Succubi Trap
  • Tiny Toyfare
  • Trivia Vault: Video Game Trivia Deluxe
  • Two Draw
  • Urban Rivals
  • Volleying
  • Walking Heavy
  • Warbanners
  • Warlock Revenge
  • Wasted Pizza
  • Welcome to Hanwell
  • WWE 2K18
  • Yorkshire Gubbins

PS4

  • Abyss: The Wraiths of Eden
  • Bokosuka Wars II
  • Chaos; Child
  • Dungeons 3
  • Elex
  • Gran Turismo Sport
  • Hex: Card Clash
  • Let's Sing 2018
  • Megaton Rainfall
  • No Heroes Allowed! VR
  • Real Farm
  • Realms of Arkania: Blade of Destiny
  • Rogue Trooper Redux
  • South Park: The Fractured But Whole
  • Spiral Splatter
  • Summon Night 6: Lost Borders
  • The Jackbox Party Pack 4
  • WWE 2K18

Xbox One

  • Abyss: The Wraiths of Eden
  • Dungeons 3
  • Elex
  • Real Farm
  • Rogue Trooper Redux
  • South Park: The Fractured But Whole
  • The Jackbox Party Pack 4
  • TorqueL: Physics Modified Edition
  • WWE 2K18

Switch

  • Don't Knock Twice
  • Fire Emblem Warriors
  • NBA 2K18
  • Party Golf
  • Putty Pals
  • Rogue Trooper Redux
  • Spelunker Party
  • Syberia
  • The Jackbox Party Pack 4
  • WWE 2K18

3DS

  • Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth
  • Fire Emblem Warriors

Vita

  • Chaos; Child
  • Spiral Splatter
  • Summon Night 6: Lost Borders

RIFT

  • Bike Rush
  • Google Spotlight Stories: Pearl
  • Luna (Funomena)
  • Organ Quarter
  • Skyworld
  • Sneaky Bears
  • SweeperVR
  • The Gallery - Episode 2: Heart of the Emberstone
  • The Talos Principle VR
  • VR Hockey League

Vive

  • Alpha Mike Foxtrot
  • Battlemage Training
  • Bike Rush
  • Breadwinner VR
  • Google Spotlight Stories: Pearl
  • Luna (Funomena)
  • Organ Quarter
  • Pathstow Mystery VR
  • Skyworld
  • Sneaky Bears
  • SweeperVR
  • Taphouse VR
  • The Cave
  • The Gallery - Episode 2: Heart of the Emberstone
  • The Talos Principle VR
  • VR Hockey League

Comments

Elex has been on my radar since PAX East, but it hasn't cracked the "gotta play it now" barrier, so it goes on my PSN wishlist to wait for a sale...

Age of Empires: Definitive Edition got pushed to "early Q1 2018". Source

Also of note: Cogmind by fellow Goodjer Kyzrati

tboon wrote:

Age of Empires: Definitive Edition got pushed to "early Q1 2018". Source

Darn. I was looking forward to that, although I did completely forget about it until you just brought it up, so maybe I wasn't looking forward to it as much as I thought?

Wembley wrote:
tboon wrote:

Age of Empires: Definitive Edition got pushed to "early Q1 2018". Source

Darn. I was looking forward to that, although I did completely forget about it until you just brought it up, so maybe I wasn't looking forward to it as much as I thought?

I have trouble following what is doing whichever in the AoE franchise. I think there's a new version being worked on by someone maybe? And this. And the other HD remakes. And stuff I am sure I am not rememberng. I just kind of see what floats up to the top of the news churn.

dewalist wrote:

Elex has been on my radar since PAX East, but it hasn't cracked the "gotta play it now" barrier, so it goes on my PSN wishlist to wait for a sale...

That makes two of us. It being full priced and from Pirahna Bytes means I'm way better off waiting for a sale.

tboon wrote:

Also of note: Cogmind by fellow Goodjer Kyzrati

Very excited for this. Hope it gets a ton of love on Steam.

This week, we have a Presuming Ed!

Can't wait for the dolls to come out ... /Withnail

IMAGE(http://cdn.akamai.steamstatic.com/steam/apps/722730/header.jpg?t=1507426479)

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/kpPqdMT.gif)

Cogmind looks awesome.

tboon wrote:

Also of note: Cogmind by fellow Goodjer Kyzrati

Because I am the worst of all worsts (or perhaps wursts? I'm fat enough for it) I was unaware of a GWJer developing anything. So if anyone wants to toss us a heads up, feel free to send a PM to me and/or Doubting and/or Wordsmythe and/or Felix and we'll gladly let it shine.

We have a few that I know of. Fredrik_S made Card Dungeon. jlaakso used to work at Bugbear (Flatout) and is now at Next Games.

I'm sure there are more, but those two are off the top of my head.

Fwiw, Cogmind is coming to Early Access which is why it may not have been listed wherever yall get your info.

Also, doihaveto is half of the duo known as SomaSim Games, which developed 1849 and Project Highrise.

Cogmind is coming to Early Access which is why it may not have been listed wherever yall get your info.

TWA has included Early Access releases for a long time, so their source for releases must have just missed it.

MeatMan wrote:

Also, doihaveto is half of the duo known as SomaSim Games, which developed 1849 and Project Highrise.

Cogmind is coming to Early Access which is why it may not have been listed wherever yall get your info.

TWA has included Early Access releases for a long time, so their source for releases must have just missed it.

That’s exactly it. I don’t exclude early access games when I’m compiling the list. Coffins just didn’t show up on any of the sites I use to fine releases.

I’d be interested to know what sites it did appear on, so I can add them to the list of sites I check. Right now I’m checking Metacritic, Releases.com, IGN, Gamespot, Sony’s PlayStation blog, and the Oculus store. If it appeared on any of those sites, I apologize for missing it.

Elex cause I have a soft spot for the Devs.

garion333 wrote:

Fwiw, Cogmind is coming to Early Access which is why it may not have been listed wherever yall get your info.

Cogmind is on the list (right between Claybook and that soon-to-be classic game Cottage Garden; that's what made me mention it. It ain't because I actually remembered anything.

doubtingthomas396 wrote:

Real Farm boasts that it’s the “most immersive agricultural sim around.” I have reason to doubt that, but the fact that any game would even try to make that claim causes me to sit up and take notice. ... Will this one be the game to topple Giant’s seminal game, or will it be just another reminder that nobody else knows how to make a decent farming game?

Over the years I've come to realize that in the niche world of farm sims, most claim to be bigger, better, and more bad-ass than Farming Simulator leading up to launch. Sadly most (all) so far don't even come close, hamstrung by low budgets and empty bravado. Or even worse outright greed as there's an entire cottage industry of Vehicle Sim shovelware with zero interest in product quality.

On the other hand, some projects do look interesting on the farming front. Cattle and Crops looks like a genuine labor of love. It does look low-budget, but I feel the dev's have good intentions. I hope it works out for them.

Aaaaanyway, I'm curious about Real Farm. Even more so to hear your impressions. I'm always open to being surprised. And either way, more competition in the field is usually a good thing.

Aaron D. wrote:
doubtingthomas396 wrote:

Real Farm boasts that it’s the “most immersive agricultural sim around.” I have reason to doubt that, but the fact that any game would even try to make that claim causes me to sit up and take notice. ... Will this one be the game to topple Giant’s seminal game, or will it be just another reminder that nobody else knows how to make a decent farming game?

Over the years I've come to realize that in the niche world of farm sims, most claim to be bigger, better, and more bad-ass than Farming Simulator leading up to launch. Sadly most (all) so far don't even come close, hamstrung by low budgets and empty bravado. Or even worse outright greed as there's an entire cottage industry of Vehicle Sim shovelware with zero interest in product quality.

On the other hand, some projects do look interesting on the farming front. Cattle and Crops looks like a genuine labor of love. It does look low-budget, but I feel the dev's have good intentions. I hope it works out for them.

Aaaaanyway, I'm curious about Real Farm. Even more so to hear your impressions. I'm always open to being surprised. And either way, more competition in the field is usually a good thing.

Wait, nobody told me I actually had to play the games I pick for GOTW.

Seriously, though, I'll get to it. Probably not this year, but I'll get to it...

How did Etrian 5 get a stealth release too?

JohnKillo wrote:

How did Etrian 5 get a stealth release too?

The 3DS is dead, long live the Switch.

Atlus still has two more games to be released.

I still love my 3DS, dammit.

I just picked up Bomber Crew on a whim after watching a few YT videos, and boy is it fun (and intense).

I'm not sure I've ever played a game where the visual style and subject matter were so at odds, yet worked so well together.