So many games, so little time! Actually I have plenty of time too. Just needed an intro to this week’s round up and I am feeling a little creatively bankrupt right now. So anyway, here are the games.
Gourdlets
Does a game need to have a point to it to be a game? Because I don’t quite know what the main aim of Gourdlets is, other than to relax and build. I mean, technically there is progression, but it doesn’t intrude on the game at all.
YOu are given a map, you build a community and watch your Gourdlets live out their lives on your screen. I suppose, imagine Gourdlets as Tamagotchi+. They become a part of your daily life, as you check back in to see how they are doing and maybe expand their world a bit further. Or even just to waste some time watching them.
If you care, then Gourdlets are a kind of vegetable based life-form and that is about all you need to know. They live in harmony and just enjoy being.
The best thing about this chilled game is that everything is customisable, from the Gourdlets themselves, to the townships you will create. You can start on a base map, but then you are free to just go and do what you want.
There is a bit of a popular run of games that are designed to just let you relax and be creative and whilst I look forward to the likes of Islands & Trains, I can see Gourdlets being in regular rotation because of the nature of the living beings within.
I have been mostly playing on Steam Deck (like a big cumbersome Tamagotchi) but if you do play on the desktop you can have the window idle at the bottom of your screen whilst you get on with other tasks. Which really adds to the feeling of having a digital pet in many ways.
Also at just over £4 it is an absolute bargain.
Mika and The Witch’s Mountain
What a delightful game Mike and the Witch’s Mountain is. A coming of age tale set around making deliveries to the the residents of a small island so you can earn your way into a witch’s school. That is pretty much the entire game, but the charm it has really shines.
The whole thing is presented like partly like a Studio Ghibli inspired thing. From the art-style to the animation of the cutscenes. Whilst the story may be a bit Kiki’S Delivery Service from the outside, it is very much its own thing.
Every character you meet has their own story and you will want to listen to them all. I think I started my first time with the game just to see if it ran well, what the basic gameplay was like, etc, but instead I quickly became enamoured with Mika and her journey.
By the time I put the game down, I had made my way through over half the full experience and lost numerous hours to it. Which is the sign of something that has a bit of a special hook. Developers Chibig are not afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves, but at the same time aren’t letting those same influences hold them back. Producing something that feels both comfortably similar, but also wonderfully unique.
The gameplay is so well balanced too, both when walking around, or when flying your broom. Neither are at any point to dominating in how you need to use them, nor do any parts feel tacked on. With certain criteria needed when making deliveries, such as time based, or doing no damage, you do have to think about your approach. Yet none of it is too taxing and I found it a brilliant game to play with my daughter.
In fact we are on a second playthrough, as she started by watching me and then wanted to play herself. There aren’t many games that have has that effect on her, but this is one of them.
Mika and the Witch’s Mountain is a wonderful example of why the indie game scene is so far above the AAA space, because this didn’t need to be a massive open world epic and by remaining small scale and cosy, it just creates one incredible time.
Arco
Rounding up this week is Arco. A game I somehow knew very little about and in all honesty don’t quite know how I came across it, but I am so glad I did.
Essentially Arco is a turn-based tactics RPG with a fantastic story that will grab you in an instant and not let go until it is done. The pixel graphics work so well, allowing the story and the gameplay to work their magic.
The story itself is really well told and the characters within show so much expression, despite the toned down graphics. It’s very hard to convery how well this is done without you experiencing it for yourself. But please trust me when I say you will have feelings about the various characters within the game, both positive and negative.
I think this comes through because of how your actions really affect the world around you. You may go on an epic journey but everything still feels wonderfully personal.
The turn-based nature of the game is rather well made too. As it is mostly turn-based, but does have some dynamic real-time actions to it too. For example you’ll place a shot that is in the path of where an enemy may be moving, or plan to move defensively as they plan an attack, before countering with an attack of your own.
It makes every encounter feel meaningful and keeps you on your toes, especially when you work out that a single wrong move can put you at t a disadvantage. Yet the brilliance comes in that Arco isn’t a game about the meta game and needing to min/max your strategy.
Instead it is a game that blends storytelling, exploration and combat absolutely perfectly. I have enjoyed my time with Arco so far and playing it in bite-sized chunks has just felt right. There are many twists an turns on the journey that I won’t spoil, but this has come from nowhere to being in the discussion for my own personal GoTY contender.
