SOMA is Greek for “body” and while it’s an apt title, it’s also a bit ironic, as “body” is something SOMA plays fast and loose with. Taking the mechanics that made Penumbra: Overture and Amnesia: The Dark Descent hits, SOMA stays true to that formula while introducing a whole new level of body horror and existential dread. What makes a person a person? What happens when you copy consciousness? If you haven’t played SOMA, I highly recommend you just go and play it. Minor spoil

While a sledgehammer might be a desirable substitute to traditional therapy, it won't solve Pratelle’s problems. Just smash them up.

Screenshot: Remothered: Red Nun's Legacy I’ve been playing survival horror games for a really long time. Arguably, since the birth of the genre since I first cut my teeth on games like the Alone in the Dark series before I even started playing Resident Evil. In this time I’ve played some great survival horror, and some terrible survival horror games. (Ironically, games in the Resident Evil franchise touch on both ends of that spectrum.) I would love to say that Remothered: Re

If you just want a cozy, atmospheric architectural sandbox where you can build a crooked dream cottage on the back of a giant chicken, Reka will scratch that itch–just don’t expect the game around your walking house to be nearly as magical as the house itself.

I’ve played a lot of management games in my time, but Dungeon Inn is something different. Rather than being a pure management game, it’s really a turn-based strategy/puzzle game hybrid in cozy management game clothing. Okay, that metaphor is a bit unwieldy, but the truth is Dungeon Inn has a bit of an identity issue.

Horror isn’t just a genre; it’s an amalgamation of pop culture, cozy traditions, and things that go bump in the night. This year, we're taking our 31 Days of Horror across the entire cultural spectrum. We’ll be taking a look at movies that scare us, games that kept us paranoid, scary books we cozy up with under blankets, music that sets that spooky tone and seasonal food we’re craving–or strange food you’d have to tie us up and force feed us. Whether you’re looking for someth

Screenshot: We Were Here Tomorrow Virtual escape rooms and puzzle games have been some of my go-to games since I was a kid. From SCUMM engine games to Myst, I played everything I could get my hands on. Then I discovered the joy of multiplayer puzzle games, and I was hooked. While games like Split Fiction and Big Walk encourage cooperation and involve some amount of asymmetrical gameplay and puzzle-solving, the franchise that specializes in it is the We Were Here series. Hey,

Hellraiser: Revival is so visually visceral and audibly squelchy I found myself holding my head in my hand a few times. Being chased in the Labyrinth genuinely terrified me–and video games rarely scare me. Hell, I felt sick by the time the prologue was over–and I knew that they were on the right track, and it would be a hell of a ride.

I love retro games. I collect them. And I play them quite often–not only to relive my childhood memories, but to also check out games I never got a chance to play as a kid. It’s fun checking out all of the different game systems, control styles, etc. Future Knight really spoke to me, purely on an aesthetic standpoint. And while it’s a decent run and gun, it feels like it’s a one (or two) trick pony. Future Knight is a sidescrolling run and gun style game. The first thing anyo

There is a distinct cruelty to short-form horror. Whether it’s short horror films on YouTube, short stories, or games you can wrap in a single sitting, brevity acts as an amplifier. The tight runtime prevents too much of the veil from being stripped away—you never spend enough time in the world for the monster or the mechanics to become familiar. Instead, you're trapped with the dreadful certainty that something terrible is coming, and it's arriving fast.

While the studio has expanded far beyond its trivia roots over the last three decades, Jackbox Games still has a special knack for drawing players in with clever hooks, sharp writing, and low-barrier party chaos. The Jackbox Party Pack 12 marks the second numbered installment in a row with zero sequels, ports, or remakes. Instead, it delivers five completely original games—We Forgot a Card, MegaPals, Idol Factions, Debate and Switch, and Hyperface—each its own style of par

Screenshot: Warhammer 40,000 Boltgun 2 For the Emprah! As part of my ongoing midlife crisis, I’ve been playing a lot of games from my childhood.That includes a lot of “Doom clones” and other seminal titles, and I think Boltgun 2 would fit right in. While I felt like the original Boltgun was missing a few factors to make it a classic, Boltgun 2 goes a long way toward addressing my gripes while adding a whole new character, new weapons, and a branching narrative to encourage re

Theos: Cities of Myth looks poised to deliver the modernized Zeus successor fans have wanted for years, striking a smart balance between classic isometric charm and much-needed quality-of-life overhauls. The three-chapter Athens demo is live on Steam now, with the full game launching on PC on November 4

But where a game like ARC Raiders pits you against towering, militarized industrial mechs, Gravebound asks a much sillier question: what if humanity was wiped out because we gave our home appliances Wi-Fi?

Screenshot: Soggy Froggy Playdate Season 3 is here. And even though the console and all of its accessories are currently sold out on the Playdate store—which is a bummer; I went to buy a pizza box cover just to discover that the entire storefront is empty—Panic plans to have more hardware available later this year. In the meantime, current owners can look forward to their weekly Season 3 deliveries, with the first two games dropping just yesterday. One of those launch titles

I’ll be keeping a close eye on Beat, Heart, Beat as it heads toward the finish line. It’s an incredibly fascinating intersection of midwest emo grunge, rhythm mechanics, and avant-garde art. The highly specific—and punishingly addictive—gameplay loop makes it a unique standout in the indie rhythm space.

Despite its heavy origins, Dancing with Ghosts remains an uplifting and deeply cozy experience. You follow Mai, a 15-year-old girl struggling with severe depression after the death of her parents. She befriends Pim, an 11-year-old ghost visible only to her. The narrative boldly tackles complex concepts like loss, depression, and suicide, but it juxtaposes these difficult themes with gentle gameplay designed around a singular, hopeful message: the best way to heal yourself is

If you’re a fan of retro game content, video game history, or just curious about Alien Breed, you should definitely check out this title. I don’t want to get on anyone’s bad side, but I never thought the Alien Breed games were great even for their time, so you sort of have to go into the whole thing with academic curiosity or some thick nostalgia goggles.