If ever there was a week to just hide away and escape into video games, this is it. The world is a dark place right now, what with far right rioting in the UK, the hate thrown at a women just trying to be her best self at the Olympics and just so much hate. So let me take you through a couple of games that spark pure joy!
Creatures of Ava
In a time where our real world is burning around us, the chance to go to another planet and do some good is more than welcome. That is exactly what Creatures of Ava tasks you with.
You play as Vic, who has travelled to the planet of Ava and will save the various creatures who inhabit the planet and thus help the eco-system. Creatures of Ava is a game that just has a wonderful message about how even as one person, you can do some good that can spread beyond your own personal reach.
I came out of this with a warm fuzzy feeling, as this is a game that reminds you that one good act, can have a real snowball effect in the most positive way.
Throughout Vic’s adventures there is a mix of platforming, puzzles solving, creature taming and more. It is essentially taking the ideas of a Pokemon and grounding those ideas so as not to be a clone, like so many other games.
You’ll notice I said creature taming and not collecting of capturing. Because Creatures of Ava is focussed more on the relationships we have with nature and how learning to exist with other species can be more beneficial than simply having command over them.
Now a wonderful message is one thing, but that can be lost in a videogame if things like the gameplay and the narrative don’t hit home. Thankfully developers Inverge Studios have got a near perfect balance. With a narrative that drives the gameplay, but is never too preachy, nor too up its own arse that you end up felling lectured to.
Instead it has plenty of nuance and respects your intelligence, which is great to see, It also respects your time, with the narrative never really getting in the way of the gameplay. With maybe being a little weighted to the narrative in the opening. But I’ve played much, much worse for that.
The gameplay too is a well balanced affair. No one part feels overly drawn out and each section compliments the other. Puzzles are challenging but never too hard, nor too easy. The platforming feels like part of the journey and not just simply tacked on and the creature taming is well done. With you obtaining information about each species rather than just going straight in.
I’m not finished with the game yet, but I just love being part of the world and it is one of those games I hope we get more of down the line.
Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers
In interviewed the developer of Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers recently (read here) as ever since I firstr played the demo I have been utterly enthralled with the game. Why? Because it is part of a wave of recent indies that have focussed on nailing gameplay over everything else.
Now there will be people who compare this with the outstanding Balatro, much like in the past we have seen similar themed games and movies directly compared. But whilst both are card based games that is almost where the similarities end.
D&DG is a game not about getting bigger and bigger scores, but instead defeating opposition in a game of Blackjack. Unlike Poker, Blackjack is all about hitting or getting as close to 21 as possible, you can’t deviate away from that. (Well not exactly, but we’ll come to that)
Essentially you will go from opponent to opponent and attempt to whittle their HP down to 0 before moving on. You do this by winning hands of Blackjack against them. The more you win by, the more damage you do.
So as an example. You score 19 and your opponent 17. Well, you will do 2 damage. However, score 19 and your opponent busts, you’ll do 19 damage. The same back to yourself. It is all very simple in its premise.
However as with all deck-builders, you can manipulate the game to tip the scales in your favour. Whilst there are many ways for you to discover doing this, the most basic of these is by adding and removing cards to your deck.
You may start with a ‘standard deck’ but that will soon change throughout a run. For example you can simply removes cards from your deck, bhut you can also get special cards that have an effect. An example of this is a card that can do extra damage if it is in your hand. Or another that can add shield to your HP, or others that manipulate the score needed to bust for either yourself, or your opponent.
In fact there are so many ways to approach each run and each opponent, That I haven’t even worked out what the best deck aould be, let alone what the meta for this game is yet. Because like Balatro I am happy just playing and experimenting. I am not worried about losing, because each loss is a fact finding mission and just so much fun.
Aside from playing hands against opponents there are various stops you can make that will allow you to heal, earn buffs and debuffs, etc. There is just so much to do, but without ever feeling overwhelming. I will admit that it isn’t the most user friendly UI at present with some odd choices for how to select things or navigate, but it isn’t a deal breaker.
We are blessed in 2024 that we have two wonderful games in this genre. Dungeons & Degenerate Gamblers is the joint best playing card based roguelike of the year. Pick it up now, load it onto your Steam Deck and give it a permanent home.
The other thing to note, is that D&DG is a game that is anti-gambling and has many messages throughout about the dangers of gambling, never once glorifying it. Which I think is a very important thing in a game like this. Because I personally think the mechanics of card games are great fun, until the casinos and the likes get involved. So something like this can give you the enjoyment of those card games, without the dangers involved with gambling.
If you are at risk, or need help then please reach out to a charity that can help you.
