It's been around a year since I first played Signalis, and a year since it wormed into my brain. No ma??tter? how much I think about it, watch video essays about it, or replay it, something lingers.

Unraveling its secrets, getting to the heart of what Signalis is trying to do or say haunts me almost a year later. There are few games like it �em> Signalis hammers in its sense of hopelessness and rips my heart out with every playthrough. Everything about it feels oppressive and dire, but in a way that’s hard to move on from. I've embarked on Elster's journey again and again, hoping for a better end, running this tr??eadmill of maddening sadness. But it's easier to go back here than move on.

So why is it that, in a year of titans like Baldur’s Gate 3, Zelda, and Armored Core, I’m still going back here? Signalis’s perpetual chokehold is probably best e??xplained by its marriage of misery and love, a union of survival horror and sapphic works I long for.

Before moving on, I will warn there are story-heavy spoilers ahead for Signalis, including all of its endings.

Perhaps, this is Hell

Signalis leaves much to interpretation regarding its plot, but some things are made clear. Its basic premis??e sees an android (Replikas in this universe) named Elster attempting to find her designated Gestalt (human), and it doesn't deviate from that. Elster devotes herself to Ariane Yeong, her crewmate aboard the Penrose-512, and als??o her lover.

So much of Signalis feels familiar, too. It plays like an amalgamation of classic survivor horror titles, taking the inventory management and save rooms from Resident Evil and mixing practical puzzles with ones operating on dream logic like Silent Hill. That, alongside its lo-fi polygonal art style, resembles survi?val horror titles from the PS1 era while keeping actual comparisons ??scant enough to stand on its own.

While Signalis's gameplay loop is solid, its story and themes are its beating heart and soul. Devotion, in particular, plays a constant role, and it's one that never pays off for its characters. Signalis is tragic �unabashedly bleak ?as it is sapphic. Its conclusions range from soul-crushing to simply devastating, but none of it matters because the events repeat the?mselves.

However hard Elster tries to break the hell she and Ariane are living, everything restarts, and they remain in perpetual misery. The cycle of tragedy borders on comical, but just like the cyclical nature of their doom, I keep going back here even when I kno??w better. Even a year later.

I will always remember our promise

There’s a moment in Signalis where it truly sells Ariane a?nd Elster’s love. While there’s always plenty of dialogue, this scene leaves the couple mostly quiet, cuddling through Ariane’s calm and melancholy theme. And through their embrace, the sights and sounds convey the inherent isolation that comes with traveling in a small spaceship.

It’s that tragic, longing embrace that makes repeating Signalis worth it. Another comes earlier, from one of its first-person segments, as Ariane takes a lonely train ride. Her distance from the player, mixed with the dim lighting and haunting music, creates a deeply personal yet detached scene. Nobody speaks here, nothing urges you forward, Signalis allows players to linger as much as they want.

It’s profoundly lonely. Every time I play Signalis, I stop in t??his scene and sit for a few minutes, simply taking in one of the few mom??ents Elster sees Ariane. That feeling snowballs its pain into something worse as Ariane vanishes and Elster travels alone within someone else's memory

Gameplay takes advantage of this desire for intimacy, implying the photo Elster finds is somehow important for exploration. It sits in her inventory, taking up a limited slot, but never comes into play. There’s no tangible value in holding onto to that photo, but it’s impossible to escape what drives Elster forward without truly going anywhere. Dropping it off is encouraged, but it's hard to let go of so??mething seemingly so important.

The magic in Signalis's story is its vagueness. From living several characters' memories to its ambiguous reality, the game never goes out of its way to explain anything beyond Elster and Ariane's love for each other. That’s rightfully among its biggest praises, even if it means sacrificing clarity. The gnawing ambiguity is universally familiar, but when looking at Signalis from a sapphic persp??ectiv??e, that rings truer �and a bit more complicated.

Signalis as a sapphic tragedy

While media at large can’t seem to stop killing off its lesbian characters or just tanking their roles and canceling projects altogether, treatment in games is somewhat better. Although largely in the indie space, there are many great lighthearted games with queer women in leading roles. Signalis stands incredibly stark in contrast; it’s bleak in all r??egards but just as comforting.

It also always ends with one or both members of its couple dying. It’s easy to dismiss these moments as another instance of bury your gays, but Signalis is more interested in explaining what drives their perpetual resilience. It doesn’t ?need fairytale endings; there’s comfort in the familiarity of its cycle.

The "Artifact" ending is the closest to a happy ending, and it might be one. My favorite interpretation is that Ariane ascends to godhood with ??Elster at her side, and they find closure. It could also be, in the most literal interpretation,  Ariane and Elster coming to terms with slowly dying in a failing ship. Whatever your takeaway on those events are, resetting is always an option. Any answers Elster finds in an ending no longer exist as soon as a new playthrough begins.

Yet, despite whatever bleakness is present within the events, the intimate moments keep Signalis from becoming emotionally cold. Moments like Ariane and Elster sharing a kiss before dancing to ?them holding each other show?? that no matter how many times they relive this hell, their love for each other never fades.

It's not as if the intimate moments and heart-breaking moments are exclusive to ea??ch other either. As sad as the "Memory" ending is, Elster lying next to Ariane as she dies is strangely warm. Ariane strokes Elster's hair as she rests before passing away and repeating the cycle once more. 

Elster repeating the events complicates the idea of death because while the lack of a true end adds to its bleakness, it means she can try again. Rather than fully bury its gays, Signalis repeatedly raises them to try ag?ain so long ??as their love never fades.

In a way, that also means their hope for freedom never dies. Perhaps it’s impossible, but Signalis is never outright hopeless. Its narrati??ve frames Elster as someone who will never give up on saving Ariane through whatever means possible. Their story might be tragic, but Elster's love for Ariane is more powerful, or at the least more stubborn than any cosmic horror she faces.

Finding closure in Signalis

Signalis hurts so much for me because the story always resets, and Elster never wavers in her devotion. It doesn’t matter however many times she forgets Ariane, or Ariane forgets her �they always fi??nd their way back to each other. And I’m drawn back there, too. Elster doesn't go to hell and back for Ariane; she spends eternity trudging through it for her. Her devotion is equally as touching as it is tragic.

Signalis stands on its own as a horror experience whose inspirations are noticeable, ?yet its identity remains its own, not just within survival horror but also in the broader scope of queer gaming. Sure, it’s another tale of doomed ??lesbians, but it's also an amazingly earnest depiction of love.

Because almost nothing is explained, we experience Elster's ?raw emotions, or at least that's what I take away. After mulling over my feelings for so long, the closest I find to a coherent is that there's little purpose in understanding what the in-universe truth is behind everything occurring.

To som?e deep and inexplicable degree, I feel connected with Ariane and Elster's struggle to find an end to their pain �it’s just as much my experience as a queer woman. To also see the moment they're happiest hurts almost as much as their suffering because the context of our joy is often r??ooted in tragedy and distant memory.

My closure is in the emotional reaction, Signalis’s tortured push and pull on reliving your pain. That’s the best I can?? take away from a game that keeps me anchored in its world. A game that, even a year later, offers me nothing more than a promise to hurt. That constant draw is as unexplainable as my emotions towards it, and all I can hope is for Ariane and Elster to eventually break out of their hell.

The post Signalis still has me in it?s tortured loop, one year later appeared first on Destructoid.

Many indie titles in the past several years have taken visual inspiration from previous generations. Some draw from ??the NES and SNES eras, but lately more are taking cues from the PS1/N64 generation.

These distinctive visual echoes fro??m years past have undoubtedly made it far easier to appreciate the aesthetic while playing ??something notably contemporary. At least, that's how I view many of these games, since occasional visits to previous generations can sometimes be painful.

That said, some of the best games from the la?st several years have retro games to thank, be they platformers, survival ho??rror, or RPGs. Some of these are the best in their respective years with others being quite underrated gems.

CrossCode

CrossCode is an ARPG with a 16-bit artstyle while retaining smoother combat and exploration. The store page makes its Zelda inspiration clear concerning how dungeons are designed around puzzle-solving and new equipment. Something that distinguishes itself from games like Link to the Past is the focus on ranged combat.

Protagonist Lea can attack at both close a??nd long distances, with either method having a significantly faster pace than its inspirations. Couple this with a breadth of customization options for Lea's build, and combat always stays satisfying as the player's skill grows alongside Lea's strength.

The story can be hit or miss as CrossCode follows the amnesiac protagonist throughout her journey across the CrossWorlds MMORPG, but the gameplay always remains engaging. Clocking in at around 30 hours for the main story, CrossCode is a lengthy and memorable retro adventure.

Dusk

Titles taking inspiration from '90s FPS's have gained traction, but arguably none do it better than Dusk. On top of being one of the best retro s??hooters in recent memory, it's potentially one of the?? greatest shooters ever.

It takes visual cues from games like Blood ??but plays like an improved version of Quake. Players practically glide across levels using a mix of mid-20th-century weapons along with some more fantastical inclusions to decimate cultists and eldritch evils.

Each weapon is exhilarating to use, and I argue movement is better than even Doom Eternal still. At around 10 hours long, Dusk doesn't overstay its welcome and leaves a better impression of boomer shooters than even its inspirations can offer. Despite only being around five years old, its popularity helped earn it a free HD remaster.

Katana Zero

Continuing my trend of focusing on titles released in the last five years is Katana Zero, a slick action-platformer with several interesting gimmicks. It plays almost like a 2D Ghostrunner, as the protagonist only dies in one hit and primarily uses a katana. What Ghostrunner doesn't have is a dedicated slowdown mec?hanic ??that ties into the story.

What makes Katana Zero great is not only its mix of brutal and fast combat, but a genuinely intri??guing story about identity, reliving traumatizing memories, and memory manipulation. It lives up to its neo-noir tag as an intertwining web of conspiracies forms with protago??nist Zero in the middle.

It's a surprisingly tragic and heartbreaking narrative that also happens to? be one of the best indie platformers. A ?free DLC has been in production for years to conclude the story, and I still need it.

NORCO

I'm not much of a point-and-click adventure game fan, but NORCO enthralled me. Inspired by neo-noir adventure titles like Snatcher, NORCO takes the cyberpunk genre into Southern Gothic territory. It a??lso happens to be one of the most melan?choly games I've played recently.

The perpetually dimly lit Louisiana atmosphere, slow jazzy soundtrack, and contemplative dream-like story create a genuinely moving experience. Its pixel art style greatly adds to this, coming to life in the way '90s graphic adventures did.

NORCO tapers off slightly toward the end of its four-to-six-hour adventure, but that doe??s little to spoil the package. Its simple puzzles also make it approachable enough for non-gamer sci-fi and Southern Gothic fans.

Pseudoregalia

Pseudoregalia has some of the best movement I've ever seen in a platformer, and it stars a goat-rabbit girl. This 3D platformer takes visual cues from fifth-generation systems, namely the N64, while remaining structured as a Metroidvania.

Its structure is like any other as pla??yers guide protagonist Sybil across Castle Sansa to collect new abilities and powers. Almost every area is available to some degree at the start, but the setting only shines once some more abilities are acquired.

The entire movelist in Pseudoregalia is snappy and satisfying, doing a wonderful job at ?showing Sybil's skills as an expert acrobat who is drip-fed upgrades throughout her roughly five-hour journey. What it ultimately does best is emulate a retro platformer's aesthetics while outclassing its ??contemporaries.

Sea of Stars

Sea of Stars is among the more recent titles on this list, since it came out in August. Still, it made a splash in the same month Baldur's Gate 3 launched for being a loving tribute to 16-bit RPGs while?? standing on its own as a solid game.

Combat takes place in turn-based battles, taking cues from Super Mario RPG's timing-based attack system. It's honestly an u??nderrated metho??d for implementing turn-based combat, as it keeps encounters interesting when done right.

The art and narrative are arguably two of Sea of Stars' biggest draws. Its pixel art environments give the world an inviting feeling an?d lively portraits bring the cast to life. Helping is the story itself featuring an endearing set of characters who fit perfectly into a grand RPG adventure.

Signalis

Signalis is studio rose-engine's debut title and is a remarkable work of retro sci-fi horror. It takes cues from ?various works ranging from Kubrick and Anno to create a PS1-styled nightmare with a heartbreaking narrative.

The basic premise sees Elster, a Replika who crashes on an icy planet and whose human partner is missing. Her only option is to venture into a nearby facility overrun by berserk Replikas and horrors bey?ond comprehension.

Despite taking visual inspiration from various anime and films alongside gameplay from retro games, Signalis is almost entirely its own beast narratively speaking. Elster's tale of finding her partner is as surreal as it is soul-wrenching and unabashedly queer. This is a must-play for any fan of cosmic horror a??nd dystopia sci-fi.

Vampire Survivors

Vampire Survivors was one of 2022's biggest hits for a reason. At an incredibly cheap price, players ?get a simple but compelling action game. Its minimal graphics also help make it accessible to pretty much anyone who has a computer made in the last decade.

It also has an interesting premise for how simple it is. Vampire Survivors is a time-based survival title where players ??get the power to become ??stronger than a bullet hell boss. The only active thing you do is move around as progressively more projectiles and enemies flood the screen.

The number of enemies on screen is staggering by the end of a run and would feel overwhelming if not for the player's scaling abilities. The incredibly engaging loop also helps as it's impossible to resist trying at least one ??more ??time.

World of Horror

World of Horror officially launched this October??, but fans have enjoyed the horror RPG for years in its ??Early Access builds. Taking cues from Junji Ito manga and 1-bit computer games, this horrifying title looks and plays like a cursed adventure title from the '80s.

Despite its monochromatic color scheme, World of Horror's excellent art direction captures what makes Ito's art so unnerving. Its structure of short runs with randomized adventures also emphasizes valuing every resource ?and every moment as all continuously dwindle.

As frustrating as randomization can be, it works in World of Horror's case as it helps furth?er cement how hopeless the player?'s fight is. They are facing off against incomprehensible cosmic horrors, and they aren't going down without a fight.

The post Nine great retro-inspired indi??es you c??an play today appeared first on Destructoid.

The 'I'm walkin' here' award goes to...

Yesterday saw the ??New York Videogame Critics Circle host its 12th annual New York Game Awards, celebrating the best releases to hit the PC, console, a?nd mobile gaming market in 2022.

In a ceremony packed full of, frankly, oddly monikered categories Elden Ring was the big winner of the evening, taking home the "Big Apple Award for Best Game of the Year". In addition, FromSoftware's highly celebrated fantasy RPG also captured the "Statue of Liberty Award for Best World". Elden Ring, as you will no doubt be aware, topped many outlets' "Best of" lists at the end of 2022, (including our own), which is a testament to the t??itle's appeal in aesthetic design, gameplay, and atmosphere.

Other big winners of the night included Poncle's Vampire Survivors, which won the "Off-Broadway Award for Best Indie Game", while actor Manon Gage took home the "Great White Way Award for Best Acting in a Game", for her affecting performance in Sam Barlow's Immortality. The "A-Train Award for Best Mobile Game" was won by card-battle Marvel Snap, while the "Herman Melville Award for Best Writing in a Game" went to Sony Santa Monica's brutal and evocative sequel God of War: Ragnarok.

Here is the winners' list for the 2023 New York Game Awards:

• Big Apple Award for Best Game of the Year: Elden Ring
• Off-Broadway Award for Best Indie Game: Vampire Survivors
• Herman Melville Award for Best Writing in a Game: God of War Ragnarök
• Statue of Liberty Award for Best World: Elden Ring
• Tin Pan Alley Award for Best Music in a Game: Metal: Hellsinger
• Great White Way Award for Best Acting in a Game: Manon Gage (Immortality)
• Coney Island Dreamland Award for Best AR/VR Game: Moss: Book II
• Central Park Children’s Zoo Award for Best Kids Game: Kirby and the Forgotten Land
• A-Train Award for Best Mobile Game: Marvel Snap
• Freedom Tower Award for Best Remake: The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe
• Joltinâ€?Joe Award for Best Esports Player of the Year: Masaya "aMSa" Chikamoto (VGBootCamp/Red Bull Esports)
• Chumley’s Speakeasy Award for Best Hidden Gem: Signalis
• NYC GWB Award for Best DLC: Destiny 2: The Witch Queen
• Knickerbocker Award for Best Games Journalism: Justin Heckert (Vanity Fair)
• Elizabeth Jennings Graham Award for Best Educator: Ryan O'Callaghan
• Andrew Yoon Legend Award Recipient: Phil Spencer

The post Eld?en Ring bags another Best Game trophy at New York Game Awards appeared first on Destructoid.

Take the horror home with you

Signalis was one of the best games of 2022, and it's certainly one of the best horror titles that's come out in the past few years. While the title was sadly left out of the conversation for a lot of awards at the end of last year, it's grown a steady cult following with fans �I can see it being one of those games that's only appreciated more and more as time goes on. We're off to a good start though, because pre-orders are now up for physical editions of Signalis for the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4.

The physical edition will run players $29.99 (Signalis pre-orders are currently listed online at Amazon, GameStop, Best Buy, Walmart, and Target in the US), but Humble Games is sweetening the deal by adding in an extra bonus item for players to enjoy: a holographic replica polaroid, which is a key item in the actual game. I'd love to see Signalis get some fa??ncy special edition releases in the future (maybe for an anniversary down the line or something), but for now this physical edition should make for a great collector's piece.

//?twitter.com/LastStarfarer/status/1611439084328583168

Here at Destructoid we're huge fans of Signalis �Eric Van Allen gave it a 9.5/10 score in his review, and I even chronicled my own experience playing the game, and how it's helped me confront my fear of horr?or games. If you've been on the fence about giving this title a try, now's the perfect opportunity to get in t??here and check it out.

[Featured Image via rose engine]

The post Pre-orders are open for Signalis physical editions, and they come with an ex?tra surprise appeared first on Destructoid.

An interesting year

It feels like a bit of a copout to say "2022 was an interesting year for video games," because every year is an interesting year for video games... but, well, 2022 was an interesting year for video games! It was the first year in which I really felt like I could see 2020's production setbacks on the release calendar, but it was also a year for projects that seemed like they would never arrive. Who would have guessed that Dwarf Fortress would reach 1.0 and Live A Live would get its official English localization in the same year??

I didn't have to whittle this list down too much - while there were a lot of smaller games this year, I only really loved a few. Personally, I prefer that to a year with a massive wave of just-okay games crowding out the ones I'm actually interested in. 2022 didn't see all that many releases from massive developers, which meant shorter mid-budget titles and indie games had the chance to really stand out, and I had the chance to play a lot more of them. There was plenty of chaff in there, but I also got to see some wheat I may have otherwise missed. I might not have even ?played some of the games on this list in a busier year. So thanks, 2022.

With all that being said, I'd like to run down those excellent games that gave me that warm and ?fuzzy game of the year feeling.

[caption id="attachment_356093" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Vampire Survivors

Vampire Survivors showed up at just the right time for me. At the beginning of the year, I contracted COVID-19 after seeing the most recent Scream movie in theaters (the illness was nearly as bad as the movie). Blessedly, Vampire Survivors had entered early access only a few weeks earlier, and, as luck would have it, I had a spare three dollars burning a hole in my pocket. And that's the story of how Vampire Survivors made my quarantine bearable.

This is by no means a difficult game, but it's a microcosm of what I love about RPGs. Watching my character go from a wimpy little single-weaponed loser to a screen-clearing god over the course of thirty minutes is the kind of dopamine hit that I just need sometimes. This is not a joke - I just opened Vampire Survivors to grab a q??uick screenshot for this entry and I accidentally played through an entire run.

[caption id="attachment_356095" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image via Bethesda Softworks[/caption]

Ghostwire: Tokyo

I don't really understand why so few people played Ghostwire: Tokyo. I get that it was never going to be a God of War-sized smash hit, but this is the third title from a studio with a decent reputation, and the pitch is great - explore the haunted streets of Tokyo while slinging Doctor Strange-ish magic at various ghosts and spirits. What's more,?? the execu??tion of all those ideas is pretty great.

The empty city at the heart of Ghostwire: Tokyo is gorgeously haunting, and the moment-to-moment FPS combat feels great. The banter between protagonist Akito and his ghost buddy KK keeps the middling story from dragging the exp?erience down, and collecting what feels like one trillion different o?bjects scattered around the environment is a blast. It doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it rolls along just fine.

[caption id="attachment_356098" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Neon White

Nobody needs to hear me talk about Neon White. I've touched on its cringe-and-proud writing in the past, and anyone who's spent more than a couple hours with it knows how instantly addicting its speedrunning parkour loop is. Neon White is very?? good, and ??if you haven't played it by now, you really should.

I'm reminded of something like Celeste, a game that made me love precision platforming where other precision platformers could not. I don't care for speed games of this nature, and yet, I cannot stop gunning for those shiny blue medals in Neon White. It's just so great.

[caption id="attachment_356100" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image from Humble Games[/caption]

Signalis

I have a confession to make: while I love nearly every Resident Evil game released after 2005, I kind of can't stand classic survival horror games. I love the eerie atmospheres and the carefully constructed environments, and every time I start Silent Hill, I become briefly convinced that it will become my entire personality. But I've never finished Silent Hill.

I did finish Signalis, a lo-fi sci-fi sendup to survival horror stories of the PSX era, and I thought it was great. A lot of the things I struggle with in those early survival horror games (esoteric puzzles, poor sense of direction, clunky gunplay, constant inventory management) are present here, but I forced myself to muscle through them, and I found myself really liking them. I was also very taken in by Signalis' setting and its beautiful art style. I guess I should go finish Silent Hill now.

[caption id="attachment_356102" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image from Bandai Namco[/caption]

Elden Ring

Poet Robert Graves once said, "The remarkable thing about Shakespeare is that he really is very good, in spite of all the people who say he is very good." That's kind of how I feel about Elden Ring. Often, when a game connects with absolutely everybody else, I can't help but look for its shortcomings. I always en??d up scouting for the sea?ms, the compromises that must have been made to appeal to such a wide audience.

I did exactly that with Elden Ring. I loved the thing on release, and I poured dozens of hours into it, but as soon as I stopped playing, I started assembling my little list of contrarian gripes. It's repetitive, the narrative coasts on being esoteric to mask the fact that it's kind of boring, there are too many damn systems to make "system mastery" feel satisfying, and so on. And then I came back to Elden Ring, and all of those complaints melted away. Because Elden Ring is very good, in spite ?of all the people who say it is very good.

[caption id="attachment_356104" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image from Funcom[/caption]

Metal: Hellsinger

Metal: Hellsinger is a rhythm game with designs that imitate 2016's DOOM and a boss? fight set to a Serj Tankian s?olo. It's great.

[caption id="attachment_356106" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image from Crows Crows Crows[/caption]

The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe

The Stanley Parable didn't really need a remaster, and The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe knows it. It's hard to explain what, exactly, The Stanley Parable: Ultra Deluxe is without totally spoiling some of its most delightful surprises. I don't think it's a spoiler to say that Ultra Deluxe has surprises, though, because it's The Stanley Parable, and that's what The Stanley Parable is.

The Stanley Parable is the kind of game that you should play if you have any interest in video games as a means of telling stories, and that's especially true now, with the Ultra Deluxe package representing a reasonably major reinvention of the original concep??t.

[caption id="attachment_356108" align="alignnone" width="640"] Screenshot by Destructoid[/caption]

Immortality

I love Sam Barlow's Her Story, a non-linear FMV mystery game in which new scenes are discovered by searching for specific keywords. Immortality, Barlow's newest game, is even better. It features a similar system, in which new scen?es are unlocked by searching ??for specific items found in video clips.

Immortality is the story of a movie star whose three films were never released to the public. The player takes on the role of an archivist, simultaneously assembling those unreleased films from recovered footage and attempting to unravel the mystery of what happened behind the scenes. It's a story about cinema, and the image-matching game system is a perfect match for that narrative. Her Story is a story about language, the words we use and the reasons we use them. In contrast, Immortality is a story about? images, a much headier?? concept in a much more satisfying package.

[caption id="attachment_356109" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image from Raw Fury[/caption]

Norco

Norco is one of those? games that feels special from minute one. This bizarre point-and-click adventure set in a near-future version of the real-world town of Norco, Louisiana is dreamy, melancholic, and simply amazing. It's a striking anti-capitalist text, but it's also a love letter to the kind of place that doesn't often receive love letters.

I have found myself considering something new about Norco almost every day since I played it. It blends its near-future dystopia with its current-day problems absolutely expertly. T??his is the kind of game where a dying mother does gig work in order to amass cryptocurrency to pay for her own digital ghost. It's full of tragic sci-fi conundrums like that, and I can't stop thinking about it.

[caption id="attachment_356112" align="alignnone" width="640"] Image from Devolver Digital[/caption]

Card Shark

I don't know all that much about pre-revolutionary France. I know even less about gambling, and next to nothing about cheating at card tables. And yet, while playing Card Shark, I felt myself becoming an expert at cheating at card games in pre-revolutionary France. Nerial's period piece, w?hich focuses on the pupil of the Comte de Saint Germain (history's greatest liar), is a thing ??of beauty.

Card Shark looks amazing, and its story is a charming and touching testament to the proverbial little guy, but where it sings is in its gameplay. The card tricks performed in the game are based on very real cheats, and Nerial has produced something of an interactive handbook for fraud. Every trick is taught to the player carefully, and executing on them feels like playing a very painterly WarioWare micro-game. Part of me wishes it was? a little longer, but the narrative itself is very well-paced. I just want to play more of the thing, which is a very good problem to have. It's an incredibly specific game, but the one that I l?oved the most this year.

The post Sorrel Kerr-Jung’s favorite games of 2022 appeared first on Destructoid.

This is the stuff I live for

The horizons of my video game tastes have broadened pretty significantly over the past few years, but my undying love for narrative games first and foremost has never wavered. While 2022 has been a great year for games in general, from heavy hitters like Elden Ring and God of War Ragnarok to indie darlings like Cult of the Lamb and Vampire Survivors, I think this past year has been one of the best we'??ve seen for narrative games in a good while due to the breadth of stories that were told both thematically?? and mechanically.

Whether those stories were rooted in lighthearted, optimistic sentimentality or a grounded, gritty introspection, I was reminded time and time again why I'm so excited f?or games to continue paving the way forward as our youngest and most dynamic storytelling medium. Here are some highlights of what I consider to be some of the most compelling narrative games to have come out in 2022 �if you're interested in interactive storytelling and haven't played through these yet, I suggest adding them to your backlog ASAP. Keep in mind that I'm only touching ??on my absolute favorite narrative games of 2022 with this short list, so if I missed a truly groundbreaking game narrative this year, make sure to let me know down in the comments!

Stray

I was so pleasantly surprised by Stray. It's a game I excitedly jumped into as a cat lover, but I'll admit that I didn't expect much more from it than some cute yet vapid interactions and some run-of-the-mill gameplay. Whil??e I actually found myself enjoying the platforming mechanics that helped me see the world from a cat's perspect?ive (especially in the game's most open hub section, The Slums), it was its story that I found to be unexpectedly poignant and uplifting.

I certainly didn't expect to come to care for a tiny AI robot whose introduction at the time seemed to only be for tutorial purposes, or that a game with a cat as a protagonist would provide one of the most delicate and thought-provoking stories about the end of the world that I've seen as a fan of apocalypse fiction.

For me, what really worked for Stray was more in its minute, subtle interactions with NPCs and the environment than in its overarching narrative itself, but the game managed to keep its hold on me the entire way through to my tearful conclusion of its story. This is a game I've thought about a lot over the months since I played it, and I look forw?ard to returning to it sometime in the future.

NORCO

I've followed NORCO since it was previewed at Tribeca's Games Festival back in 2021, and while it was absolutely snubbed at this year's Game Awards, I'm still so pleased that it's gotten the love that it has. Being from the South myself, I'm partial to southern gothic storytelling, and NORCO did the subgenre proud as the best to delve into the American South since Kentucky Route Zero.

Also similar to Cardboard Computer's modern classic, NORCO leaned hard into surrealism and used it to deliver some truly unforgettable commentary about capitalism and our connection to the land on which we live. NORCO's writing is poetic and sometimes downright hilarious, and it has some of the most beautiful pixel art I've ever seen in my life. Some of the gameplay elements weren't exactly my favorite, but it's overall a good time if you like point-and-clicks, and it??s storytelling should certai?nly not be overlooked.

Signalis

Signalis is a game I wasn't sure I was going to be able to play at all on account of my aversion to horror, but I'm thrilled that I was able to push through. Signalis' story is told in a less traditional manner, and in more of a way that I can only describe as "vibes" outside of its journal entries scattered around the map, and I think it was brilliantly done. I love a story that poses a lot of questions, and while Signalis provided many more questions than answers, it succeeded tremendously at exploring the lengths we're willing to go for the people that we lov?e, especially when we have nothing to lose.

As you make your way through a ruined space station, the story of Signalis almost feels like it's already happened, with the player left to wander around in the aftermath wondering how it all could have gone down differently. It leaves you with this sense of futility, and yet somehow still hope. It's a story you feel more than think your way through, and in that sen?se, it has more heart than any game I've played in a long time.

Pentiment

I feel like there are two types of gamers in the world: those who like Pentiment, and those who don't. Point-and-click is already a polarizing genre, but I feel like when people saw the game's authentic medieval art style, they decided right then and there that the game was or wasn't for them. To those who were quick to write it off, I'm begging you to reconsider, because this is one of the most compelling murder mysteries I've ever played in a game, which is also helped by the st??reamlining of some of the more cumbersome point-and-click conventions.

Pentiment is a game that surprised me again and again in the absolute best ways, but what really stands out the most is how it refuses to give the player definitive answers, whi??ch not only re-contextualizes the whodunit genre, but also how a lot of us think about video game storytelling in general. This is a game that has incredible replay value, so I'll likely be starting another playthrough before the year's out just to see how much everything changes on a different path.

Immortality

To me, Immortality is not only the best narrative game of the year, but also a milestone of the medium's continued innovations in storytelling, following in rank with Disco Elysium and The Last of Us as one of my favorite interactive narrative experiences of all time. It explores its themes so intimately and in such compelling ways, and I can't get over how well the three "movies" of Marissa Marcel play off of each other. This game has some of the most incredible acting performances of recent years ??as well, and the gut-wrenching twist is one of? the gaming moments that will truly stick with me for the rest of my life.

When people talk about video games as art, especially a storytelling art, Immortality needs to be at the top of that list. It's a narrative that could truly only be told through an interactive experience. I feel like I could write volumes on the depth and complexity of this game, and I likely will in the future after subsequent pl?aythroughs. Fo??r now, though, I'm still kind of basking in it �and of course, going back, again and again, to try to find every last clip that I'm missing.

The post 2022 was an amazing year for narrative games appeared first on Destructoid.

Slowly rolling backwards on the year

Another year has come to a close, and so we're looking back at the breadth of games we saw throughout these last 12 months. Many came and went, and gradually, I've managed to whittle the crowd down to something resembling my t??en favorite games of 2022.

It wasn't an easy task, to be honest. Sure, this year saw the delay of multiple big-name projects into 2??023. I'm a bit grateful for that though, as it at least gave me time to spend on some smaller indie relea??ses. And wow, did they come out swinging.

This year was the year of small games, tactics games, story-driven and narrative titles, and more. I played a lot of games this year that felt like they were pushing forward, whether through new mechanics and ideas or just pushing hardware to its limits. Sitting down to whittle down my list, I was cutting games that I genuinely enjoyed and could have easily made my list last year. Plus, I got way into Final Fantasy XIV.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=dFlDRhvM4L0

This was also the year of Chainsaw Man, and I'm not -not- mentioning that.

2022 had some stiff competition. My honorable mentions list could stretch on for ages. And my top 5 or so have all swapped around constantly as I've thought this over and over. Heck, I had to cut off Midnight Suns and Chained Echoes from consideration, as I just did??n't have the time to properly dive through them before I finalized my l??ist.

Well, let's get to the heart of the matter. ??H?ere are ten of my favorite games from this year, in no particular order except the last one.

Neon White

Part-speedrun tutorial, part-Toonami special, but 100% dripping in style and incredible design choices, Neon White is a breath of fresh air for folks who still boot up Titanfall 2 just to run the Pilot's Gauntlet. Everything, from its incredible vision of heaven and unabashed commitment to the bit down to the actual movement and gunplay, felt rock solid. The story still didn't move me quite as much as it did for others, but the action and killer soundtrack of Neon White have been stuck in my mind all year. Seriously, even against a line-up of heavy hitters, Neon White is one of the best OSTs all year.

Pokemon Legends Arceus

I was down-and-out on Pokemon for a long time headed into 2022. I've got friends and family who adore the series, but the mainline series hadn't hooked me in since the Game Boy Color. Pokemon Legends Arceus is the entry that didn't just re-imagine Pokemon; it re-ignited my spark for this series.

The catching mechanics of Arceus turn the semi-open, Monster Hunter-like environments into careful cat-and-mouse games, heightened by the presence of terrifying Alpha Pokemon. I loved the danger and the thrill. I loved how this journey wasn't taken over well-trodden roads, and the world felt like it was still wild and new, despite being a region long-time Trainers know well. It was easily the better of the two Pokemon entries I played this year, and hopefully the Legends line is something The ??Pokemon Company returns to in the future.

AI: The Somnium Files - nirvanA Initiative

Mystery, laughs, twists, and great puzzles. The nirvanA Initiative is what I've wanted to see from Uchikoshi and company since the Nonary Games concluded, and what I'd hoped the first AI: The Somnium Files would be.

There's a lot to be said for a shift in leading characters; Ryuji was fine, but Mizuki easily steals the show. Still, what endeared the nirvanA Initiative to me was seeing this series embrace real puzzles and escape room-style scenarios for its dream-diving sections. It was more enjoyable to puzzle these out than any of the more esoteric, dream-logic problems were. And the overall story structure ends up twisting and winding in a more interesting manner, too. This felt like the team finding their footing in the Somnium universe, and making it stand tall in the pantheon of mu?rder-mystery adventures.

Vampire Survivors

Honestly, who didn't fall down a Vampire Survivors hole this year? While there's been an influx of players recently thanks to its DLC and Game Pass debut, I've been on the Vampire Survivors beat since this time last year. And yet it's never really gotten old?? or dull in that time.

Sure, there have been times I've taken breaks or even uninstalled it from my computer for a couple weeks. But poncle's effective blend of active inaction, avoiding enemies while hoping you've made the right upgrade decisions and maneuvers to stay afloat, mixes tower defense and roguelite into a beautiful blend. It's one of many indie success stories this year, but poncle and the Vampire Survivors crew have really put in the work, all the while offering an incredibly?? fun game at a mind-bendingly low price.

Elden Ring

Two moments stick out to me, that ensured Elden Ring would be on my end-of-year list. The first: opening a t??reasure chest and waking up in Caelid. Walking out into that blasted land, with the sca?rlet canopy weaving around its shores and cliffs, I knew I dug this game.

The second was another teleportation, this time to the Haligtree. Here, I needed a moment to just take in the scope and wonder of this massive area, completely separate from the critical path. I beat every boss, conquered all foes, built the perfect Tarnished and in the end, ushered in an era of stars with the witch Ranni. Elden Ring is a big, gorgeous culmination of years of Souls development, and it really manages to achieve all it s??et out to do.

Pentiment

With Microsoft building up a wealth of studios and building out Game Pass, Pentiment is the sort of end result I was hoping for in all of it. This passion project from ?a team over at Obsidian is not the so?rt of blockbuster, big-budget, all-out affair you'd expect.

Instead, Pentiment is rich, beautiful, and wonderfully focused on its historical narrative adventure. Following Andreas Maler through the ages as the world evolves around him, dealing with the times while also investigating a murder, was something a bit different. And it clicked incredibly well because of it. Pentiment is sharp in its writing, art style, pres??entation, and more, and well-worth checking out.?? It's an exciting sign of the possibilities for smaller projects from the big studios under the Xbox banner.

Signalis

I had been struck by Signalis' style since an early demo I checked out. Pixel art, anime style, and low-poly environmen?ts made for a mix of styles that felt bound t?ogether just right. It was exciting to see that rose-engine's survival horror game managed to stick the landing, too.

Signalis feels like a love letter to classic survival horror. Dark hallways and corners loom large. Ominous, vacuous silence makes every step feel louder than it should, as you carefully navigate through dangerous, monster-filled corridors. The limited inventory and elaborate puzzles meant I was constantly making choices, juggling what I could hold and what I was willing to risk every outing. Signalis is such a tightly packed, perfectly paced bite of survival horror that I can easily see myself booting up again several times ove??r.

Xenoblade Chronicles 3

This is my crow-eating moment: I did not think Xenoblade was for me. Despite loving the Xenosaga series, Chronicles never managed to draw me in. But the war story focus of Xenoblade Chronicles 3 caught my eye, and boy, am I glad I gave it a ch?ance.

There hasn't been a party that I've dug as much as Xenoblade Chronicles 3's group of rag-tag adventurers in some time. Brought together by fate and driven to discover just why they are born to die in never-ending war, it doesn't take long for them to start fusing into robots and fighting gods. But it's the little moments that kept me locked in; campfire hang-outs, character-focused quests, and tons of time spent on developing this crew and their growing group of cohorts made the big moments hit. I've been, diving into side quests and extra content, holding off on rolling credits because I don't want to be finished with this world. Xenoblade Chronicles 3 is easily one of?? my favorite RPGs I've played in a while.

Immortality

As a fan of both FMV and Barlow's previous work, I was eager to see what the team at Half Mermaid would do with Immortality. The match-cut system is interesting enough, but as it turns out, Immortality is m?uch, much more than just a novel navigation tool.

This mystery, that ambiguously sends you searching through the lost film history of a missing star, smartly breaks down the barrier between film and subject. It draws you in, not just with the match-cut that asks for careful observation of scenes, but in its framing too. You can go for a long time without using an interface, and all the while be absorbed in the story, connecting dots and matching names to faces. It drew me in, and didn't let me go, ultimately revealing a dialogue about creation and creativity that's been stuck in my head for months. In a year full of fascinating narrative design, this was a highlight.

Citizen Sleeper

Given how early it arrived in the year compared to some other games on this list, I wasn't sure where Citizen Sleeper would fall on my list as more and more games arrived. It?? might be the greatest testament to Jump Over the Age's sci-fi, narrative-driven RPG that it's still held up through it all.

In Citizen Sleeper, you play a Sleeper, a runaway worker formed from an artificial consciousness in a failing body. Camped out on Erlin's Eye, every day is about staving off?? hunger and damage, alongside the looming threat of planned obsolescence without the corpo-mandated medicine. But then something clicks. Amid all the daily dice rolls, hoping for high rolls and trying to keep ahead, you start to form a community.

Others trying to get through life, drifting through the Eye, start to drift into your orbit. Soo?n, you're not just trying to survive. You're forming a co-op and commune., or hacking the station for ancient se??crets. You're building a still to try and keep an old haunt afloat.

All the while, Citizen Sleeper asks the player to juggle clocks, ticking up towards success and down towards failures. This experience made me think about how role-playing games operate, and what emotional stories can be formed from the looming stresses and da?ngers of life on the outskirts of the universe. By the time I left the Eye, I felt at peace with my journey there, and what might be next for my Sleeper. That journey was easily a highlight of 2022, and my favorite game of the year too.

The post Eric Van Allen’s favorite games of 2022 appeared first on Destructoid.

Setting fear aside for new possibilities

My e??ntire life, I’ve been really, really sensitive to horror. I usually chalk it up to being raised in a fundamentalist Christian family where I was told from a very young age that not only are Satan an??d demons real, but they are coming to get me and I have to actively fight them from taking control of my mind. Either that or I’m just a little too sensitive. Who’s to say?

Regardless, some of my chi??ldhood memories involve scary movies, or rather, my aversion to watching them. At my best friend’s sleepover birthday party in middle school, I spent an entire two hours upstairs by myself because I was too scared of whatever crappy C-tier horror flick they turned on that night. I once fled a family viewing of What Lies Beneath in tears because it was just too much for me.

When I played video games as a kid, somehow this anxiety was heightened even more. I remember playing a childhood favorit??e, the ever-mild Barbie Horse Adventures: Wild Horse Rescue, an?d being so stressed when I encountered an enemy that could harm ??me, I would barely eke through the level with sweaty palms and an elevated heart rate. The enemies in question? Skunks and porcupines. Not big, monstrous versions of the woodland creatures, but normal, small, adorable skunks and porcupines. 

I didn’t dare touch anything more inte?nse than that, although I greatly enjoyed watching my dad and brother play games like Ratchet & Clank, Jak & Daxter, Fallout, and Bioshock. I liked to chide myself for being the world’s biggest wimp, but looking back, it’s a shame my internalized trauma kept me from pur?suing a hobby that I now enjoy so much, I’ve built my career around it.

The survival horror story that started it all

Ironically enough, The Last of Us became my new f?avorite hyperfixation when I was in college, to the point that I shifted my entire life plan to work in the video game industry. I was enthralled by the emotional father-daughter story that was ul?timately about love and hope, but I also had to deal with the game’s glorified zombie enemies to get to it. It is, after all, a survival horror game.

At first I needed a lot of emotional support from my friend, and the first time through she had to play the hotel basement level for me �easily the scariest level in the game, even on easy mode. In my subsequ??ent playthroughs, I think it was my sheer love of the narrative that powered me through, because I was able to make it through the whole game without any help.

Then I moved on to the Uncharted series, the Walking Dead and Tales from the Borderlands Telltale games, and more. Naughty Dog's The Last of Us helped me get over that initial video game anxiety, so I appreciate it for that, among other things. Of course, while the game had its scarier moments, for the most part it was more of a stealth/actio??n game than straight-up horror. Maybe it was a lack of supernatural elements, but I played and repl??ayed TLOU,?? even if it did mak??e me squirm every once in a while.

Fast forward a few years, and horror was still an issue for ??me. My friends helped take up the mantle of slowly easing me into scarier movies, like Coraline and It Follows. Most of the horror games that came out d??uring this time didn’t really strike my fancy, so I steered clear. That was,?? until I heard about Signalis.

Trying something new

Our very own Eric Van Allen reviewed it, and after reading through his summary, I had to admit I wa?s intrigued, to say the least. I adore games that go all in on a unique art style, and there was something about the game’s story that grabbed my attention over its dark subject matter, similar to Last of Us back in the day. ?Eric’s 9.5/10 score cert??ainly piled onto my curiosity.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Na4KadSK770

And so,?? after a few weeks of mulling it over and hyping myself up, I started playing Signalis. I’m not sure if I’ve just been desensitized to horror after doing? QA on The Last of Us Part II, or if the therapy and medication are reall??y working, but I realized the prospect of taking on a horror game suddenly didn’t seem as impossible as it used to.

I was slow going at first, unsure of what to expect and easing my way around every corner, but ?I got the feel of the controls and mechanics soon enough. Part of my anxiety also comes from the unknown, which is why I would often look up the plot for a scary movie or game online, so I at least knew what to expect. I told myself that I was absolutely not allowed to look up anything about Signalis, and while I broke my own rule once to find the solution to a puzzle I was stuck on, I’m otherwise proud of myself for holding to it when it came to the horror e?lements.

While I was certainly still frightened of the enemies, at least a little bit, I found that it was less of the genuine, visceral fear I was used to, and more of the “I’m allowing myself to be afraid because I want to�kind of a thing �which I’ve come to understand is the usual appeal of horror for a lo??t of people. It was exciting to have that kind of autonomy in a situation that usually leaves me in a puddle on the floor, and regardles??s of any enduring fear, I managed to push through, even when my mind fought against me.

As it turns out, Signalis is just an awesome game, and despite my apprehension, it was one of my gaming experiences of the year. The atmosphere it created was distinct and emotionally charged; the worldbuilding was tragic and engaging, begging me to discover more; the mechanics were clunky in a way that further immersed me in the combat; the protagonist’s story was obscured in mystery yet endlessly compelling; its visual style was specific, strong, and consistent. Signalis is just a stylish, well-made piece of interactive media, and looking back, I’m appreciative? that I was able to overcome my fear enough to really enjoy it.

Don't let fear keep you from art you love

There is so much great art out there, and for a long time, my long-held anxieties kept me from being able to experience and enjoy a whole category of it. There’s something quite?? empowering about not only being able to play through a horror game, but truly being able to enjoy it, because for a long time that wasn’t something I was able to do.

I can’t promise that Signalis will magically help other scaredy cats get over their fear of horror games overnight, but it was just the right game for me to keep me coming back for more even when I wasn’t always comfortable doing so. If you’re looking to expand your horror horizons, I recommend finding a game that strikes your interest in its story, world, visual style, or mechanics, and then focu??sing on your favorite feature to carry you through. Having a friend or two around for emotional support certainly doesn’t hurt, either.

I mean, it worked for me. I may have started Signalis to appreciate its artistic vision, but as I played it, I was able to reconcile with its horror being part of that vision. Hats off t??o the developer rose-engine, because they were able to convert a mousy little gamer like me into a fan. I’m not sure which horror game I’m going to play next, but whatever it is, I’m looking forward to it.

Story Beat is a weekly column discussing anything and everything to do with storytelling in video games.

The post Signalis’ gorgeous design helped me overcome my fear of horror games appeared first on Destructoid.

PC indeed

As someone who heretically prefers to play games on a controller, PC may not always be my first choice. But even I have to admit that it's a platform that has some of the most compelling?? releases of the year, every year. When it's easier for small, independent teams to publish to platforms like Steam or itch.io, the cream usually tends to rise to the top, so that PC is always one of the most stacked "best of the year" categories, in my opinion?. 2022 was no exception, because this banger-filled list is making it really difficult to try and decide which game is gonna take my vote.

First you've got Signalis, which is not only an awesome tribute to classic horror games like Silent Hill and Resident Evil, but also one of the most stylish and heart-wrenching games I've played in a long time. Everything from the art style to the soundtrack to the puzzle design elevated the c??reepy, slow??-burn atmosphere, and it's a game I've been left thinking about weeks after having put it down.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KFiOp2o4L8

Citizen Sleeper is yet another innovative title that released in 2022 among a swath of other games that are moving the medium forward. Its focus is on a tabl??etop-inspired, dice-centric narrative, and it executes that premise with all of the polish you can imagine. What it is able to achieve in unique yet somehow familiar gamep?lay, it also wins you over with its stories, even after leaving us with some mysteries to explore on our next adventure.

For all the shoot 'em up fans out there, Vampire Survivors has you covered. The game has minimalistic art and gameplay design, but with good reason �the gameplay loop is so well-designed and lean, it doesn't need any of the extra fluff. It's one of those games that's perfect to sit down and play in little bouts, but every time you do, you know you're gonna have a blast. Vampire Survivors snuck up on me for sure, ??but it did indee?d turn out to be one of the highlights of 2022.

Trombone Champ is the obvious stand-out of the year. At a glance, it's not a game I think any of us would have expected to appear on a list like this, but when you look more closely, it's all there. It's simply a well-designed rhythm game (going so far as to actually imitate how it feels to play a real trombone with a scary amount of accuracy), the visual style is downright hilarious, and the soundtrack has the perfect lineup of songs that you're either super familiar with, or make you go "I know this song but I never knew what it was calle??d."

It was one of those ideas that the team would make or break in its execution, and they absolutely nailed it. If nothing else, the entire gaming community's reaction to Trombone Champ is enough to warrant its place on this list, I think, because there was something magical about seeing a game collectively bring all of u??s joy upon its release.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=NpQ8a3c7EAQ

If you're not a speedrunning person, you will be after playing Neon White. While you can really take or leave the story, the gameplay alone is enough to land Neon White on this list. It's bombastic, it's creative, and of course fast-paced, and it'll make even the most tepid players (aka me) twitching to set a new record. This title is really able to capture the raw, tactical fun that only tightly-designed gameplay can really deliver, and is maybe the best game to do so since the release of Hades.

Then there's NORCO, which is easily one of the weirdest games of the year, in the best way. It's a Southern Gothic point-and-click narrative set in the marshlands of New Orleans, and let me tell you, it is one wild ride. NORCO has absolutely beautiful pro??se and breathtaking pixel art, and then you'll encounter one of the most strange set pieces you've likely seen in a game in a while. I found the game incredibly moving, and easily one of the best narr?ative games of the year. If nothing else, it simply deserves more eyes on it, because it was an absolute delight to play.

Last but certainly not least, we have Victoria 3. It may not be for everyone, but for those who are fans of grand strategy games, the newest release from Paradox Interactive is considered a truly great title. The cult following of the Victoria series has been long-awaiting the series' third installment, as Paradox themselves call it "one of the most anticipated games in Paradox’s history." The general consensus is that Victoria 3 did in fact live up to the hype, making it one of the best grand strategy games to come out in recent years?, and? certainly in 2022.

Here are the nominees for Destructoid’s Best PC Game of 2022:

• Signalis
• Citizen Sleeper
• Vampire Survivors
• Trombone Champ
• Neon White
• NORCO
• Victoria 3

The post Nominees for Destructoid’s Best PC Game of 2022 appeared first on Destructoid.

Flesh, frights, and gears

There are so many places I could start with Signalis, ??that it's hard to know just where. Maybe it's the long, ominous shadows that often hid an enemy from my sight. The horrifying cr?eatures, waiting to shriek and charge at me. Maybe it's the incredible style, or the music, or the intricate, tactile puzzles.

It is really hard to succinctly explain what's so striking about Signalis. In a span of nine or so hours, I went on a trek deeper and deeper down, ?scraping through layers of steel and concrete until I reached the earth's flesh, to find the forbidden truths? that both my avatar and I sought. It was perilous and emotional, gorgeous and terrifying.

For me, I keep thinking back?? to the tension I felt in save rooms. I'm standing over a storage box, counting how many bullets I think I'll need to walk out the door with to get through t?he next section.

It's often just barely enough.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFNRihUyo5o

Signalis (PC [reviewed], Switch, PS4, Xbox One)
Developer: rose-engine
Publisher: Humble Games, Playism
Released: October 27, 2022
MSRP: $19.99

Signalis is a survival horror game from in?die studio rose-engine. It's the debut of the two-person c?rew, in the works since 2014.

It would be really easy to describe Signalis by the melting pot of influences you could draw out of it. From survival horror games like Resident Evil and Silent Hill, to its literary influences literally called out in the game itself. From symphonic performances to The King in Yellow, Signalis doesn't really shy away from its roots. Instead, it feels like a glowing call-??back to the golden era ?of survival horror.

Into the abyss

The player takes on the role of Elster, an android who's crash-landed on a s?now-drenched planet in search of a lost companion. This quest leads her to a mining and re-education camp, falling apart from an unknown terror.?? Something's wrong here, which becomes even more apparent as the residents warp and attack you on sight.

The bulk of Signalis is spent in a top-down, ti??lted view as you move room to room, trying to forge a path ahead. Managing health, ammo, and other resources is critical, even down to stomping on an enemy rather than spending an extra bullet. Because these foes, after enough time, do come back.

Thankfully, rose-engine provides some effective methods for dealing with things that go bump in the dark. There's a careful balance of tools and equipment. Stun batons give you a free knockdown on most enemies, and thermite flares let you torch their bodies so they won't get back up. An arsenal that starts with a pistol expands to heavier and more powe??rful firearms.

But nothing in Signalis is too plentiful. It often felt like I was given just enough ammo and tools to skate by. A rigid am??ount of storage forced me to make tough decisions. Am I willing to run around with just a few rounds in my revolver, just in case I run ac??ross a key item? Should I backtrack to open space in my storage, or use a valuable Repair Spray to free up a spot now? 

While the right choice never felt certain, it was comforting that it rarely felt like there was a wrong way to play either. Rose-engine lays out just enough to keep ?you moving forward puzzle-to-puzzle, without making me feel I needed to reload an old save to undo past mistakes.

The tactile puzzles are highlights of Signalis. Flipping fuses, turning dials, or watching as a box clicks open after a neat solution adds a little extra layer of connection to what's happening. Many aspects of Signalis feel extremely tangible in this way, from tuning dials to hastily opening the inventory screen to swa?p to another gun.

Earth's pores open

And Signalis effortlessly swaps between styles, too. While a large portion of the game is in the top-down view, some moments zoom the camera into a first-person mode, letting you wander much closer. In others, cutscenes play out, flipping between low-poly models and detailed, anime-inspired pixel art. There are even more fascinating stylistic choices that I wish I could talk about without spoiling; suffice to say, if you're a fan of clicky, analogue pieces of tech, you'll dig some sections of Signalis.

Where this perspective and art style swapping could feel inconsistent, it instead creates this unsettling tension. Broad strokes give way to fine, grim detail. Text violently slams onto the screen, with fonts and words used as imagery to e?mphasize the drama. The cut-in to someone's face, often against a foreboding monotone background, can form punctuating moments of emotion, whether that's relief or terror.

Cold, distant space

It's hard to talk too much about the actual narrative behind Signalis without giving too much away, and even then, there are final details I'm still picking apart after the ending. The vision of a star system finally settled by humanity, thanks to the Replika workers like Elster, and the costs associated are fascinating to dig into. Rose-engine has put a ton of lore into the nooks and crannies of the world. Some of? it is crucial, for puzzles or story reasons. Others are just welcome bits of detail, fleshing out their universe.

But the setting rose-engine constru?cts is both grim and beautiful. The nature of labor and work in this world, especially for androids like Elster, is a constant question. And as you both climb deeper into the abyss, who knows what truths you'll start to?? uncover?

To be more clear, there's a fair bit of cosmic, unknowable terror baked into the heart of Signalis' horror. It's an especially sci-fi, technologic kind of cosmic horror too. The kind where synthetic flesh and metal warp to create absolutely terrifying monstrosities. It's never an outright jump-scare kind of game, but moments in Signalis filled me w??ith an absolute d?read of what could be right around the corner.

Remember our promise

Even so, there's a heart at the center of Signalis that kept me and Elster going. As the thread unspools and I started to grasp just what was happening, I was absolutely magnetized to this setting. I'm frequently a clear-it-once player, but it was really hard to stop myself from immediately starting up a new run after I'd rolled credits o?n Signalis. It's a testament to rose-engine that this has stayed in development for so many years, and yet still feels like it's breaking new ground 

It's honestly hard to find any drawbacks about Signalis; sure, sometimes the lock-on gets a little finicky, or some areas feel a tad drawn out. Those feel like tiny s??lights against an overall fantastic experience.

For survival horror fans, and lovers of cosmic sci-fi terror, this is a no-brainer. Signalis is a fresh, reinvigorating take on the games that inspired it. Thinking back on each?? hour, through each locale and their mysteries, I'm repeatedly won over by its impressive style-swapp??ing, carefully balanced tension, brilliant art and sound design, and engaging puzzles. This is a promise worth keeping.

The post Review: Signalis appeared first on Destructoid.

Celebrate the scary season

Xbox is lining up its later Ga?me Pass additions for October, and it's an interesting mix. There are some scares, some mysteries, and one big RPG that can easily take your time.

Persona 5 Royal is one of the big additions for this month on Xbox Game Pass. It hits cloud, console, and PC?? on October 21, bringing the previously PlayStation-exclusive RPG to new platforms.

Worth noting that Royal also hits PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch, as well as Steam, on October 21.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDSXGIigC3Q

If you're looking for frights though, might I suggest the Amnesia games and, especially, Soma? All arrive on Game Pass this month, and SOMA is one story I don't think I'll be able to? dislodge from my head anytime soon.

While the Amnesia series focuses on a lot of medieval and traditional horror, SOMA goes sci-fi and absolutely nails it. Even if you're not a fan of the horror aspects, for gameplay or for scares, there is an option to turn that all down.

Other additions this month include Signalis, a sci-fi horror game with Resident Evil vibes that I've been looking forward to for a while. You could also flee hordes of rats in the new Plague Tale game.

And if you'd rather just vibe and solve some mysteries, there's also Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery. Here is the full end-of-October lineup for Xb?ox Game P??ass.

Xbox Game Pass late October additions

• A Plague Tale: Requiem (Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X|S) - Out today
• Amnesia: Collection (Cloud, console, PC) - October 20
• Amnesia: Rebirth (Cloud, console, PC) - October 20
• Phantom Abyss (Game Preview on cloud, PC, Xbox Series X|S) - October 20
• Soma (Cloud, console, PC) - October 20
• Persona 5 Royal (Cloud, console, PC) - October 21
• Frog Detective: The Entire Mystery (PC) - October 27
• Gunfire Reborn (Cloud, console, PC) - October 27
• Signalis (Cloud, console, PC) - October 27

Leaving Xbox Game Pass on October 31

• Alan Wake: American Nightmare (Console, PC)
• Backbone (Cloud, console, PC)
• Bassmaster Fishing 2022 (Cloud, console, PC)
• Nongunz: Doppelganger Edition (Cloud, console, PC)
• Project Wingman (Cloud, console, PC)
• Second Extinction (Cloud, console, PC)
• Sniper Elite 4 (Cloud, console)
• The Forgotten City (Cloud, console, PC)

The post Xbox Game Pass ??gets Persona, frig?hts, and a frog in October appeared first on Destructoid.

Sony puts the limelight on some ports and projects

Though big-name games can dominate the discussion, t?here are some cool indie projects slotted for the coming months. Today, PlayStation showcased seven indie games coming to PlayStation 4 and PS5 in the future.

All of these games have either been previously announced, or previously released on other platforms. That said, it's an honestly great collection of rad games worth keeping an eye on, especially if some have slipped you b??y.

Sea of Stars

First up is Sea of Stars, the classic RPG from Sabotage Studio, which made The Messenger. It recently got delayed into 2023, but today Sabotage showed off some gameplay and mechanics. Actions? can build up combos, and? timed hits can increase your damage and mitigate incoming hits.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=BMComOd9qP4

Cult of the Lamb

Adorable cult simulator and action game Cult of the Lamb got a feature on some of its base management and farming. Which uh, includes poop. Really no way of sugarcoating that one. Cult of the Lamb is set for August 11.

Signalis

Sci-fi classic survival horror game Signalis showed off its haunting world and atmosphere. This is still one of my most-anticipated indies of the year; the classic Resident Evil setup just meshes so well with the CRT screens and dark world. Signalis arrives on October 27.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=SFNRihUyo5o

SCHiM

SCHiM made a splash at this year's Day of the Devs presentation, and for good reason. It's a neat exploration game about dipping and hopping between shadows. While it looks great in stills, it's even cooler in motion. Be sure to check out the trailer and keep an eye out for SCHiM sometime next year.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLvChfIFnBs

The Tomorrow Children: Phoenix Edition

Q-Games recently reacquired The Tomorrow Children and revealed its plans to re-launch it as the Phoenix Edition. Today, Q-Games confirms that the phoenix w??ill rise on September 6, and it showed off Monoliths, a new mechanic for?? this version.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=z1WCCkauZQU

Cursed to Golf

Sports roguelite Cursed to Golf puts an interesting spin on golfing. Well, really any situation in which you need to golf your way out of purgatory is going to be interesting. But the golfing afterlife arrives very soon, it turns out. Cursed to Golf chips its way onto PS4 and PS4 (as well as Xbox consoles and Switch) on August 18.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=4SPxcFWzf_M

Inscryption

Closing out the day's reveals is an oldie but a goodie. Inscryption, from Daniel Mullins Games, made a big splash on PC last year. Now it's coming to PlayStation, with some PlayStation-exclusive features in tow. The Stoat will talk through the controller, and lighting will come out of the controller too. Seems pretty creepy, especially if haptics are also getting involved. No date yet, but Inscryption is bound for PS4 and Ps5.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAn7OxLub9Y

The post PlayStation spotlights seven rad indie games making their way to PS4 and ?PS5 appeared first on Destructoid.

If you're looking to try something new, here are a few good options

The Steam Next Fest dem?o party is currently on, with many studios showcasing their upcoming games. From big to small, solo devs to publisher-backed projects, there's a lot to expl?ore.

I took a browse through the selection over the last day or so, and now I'm back with a list of some demos that seem worth checking out. Keep in mind: this is, by no means, an exhaustive list. There are a ton of demos to find, and if you're l???ooking to fill a specific need like "deck-building roguelike" or something, Steam's tag system will get you there.

These are just the on?es that caught my eye, and might c?atch yours too. Some I've even already played, as you'll see in the writeup, at previous expos and demo fests. But with the selection here, there are plenty of cool upcoming games to try out.

Without further ado, let's start with the spooky.

Metal: Hellsinger

The rhythm-FPS genre is quickly filling up, but Metal: Hellsinger has been garnering some attention for its extremely metal approach. I imagine many people who played Doom (2016) found themselves entering a Zen state of chugging guitars and splattering demons, and Hellsinger is the meeting point of the two. I?t's currently set to launch in full on Sept. 15, 2022.

Find the demo on Steam here.

Signalis

Maybe arena shooters aren't your thing. Maybe you prefer your nostalgic, retro-vibes games more in the vein of Resident Evil, with a twist of existential cosmic dread and cyber-horror. Well, Signalis has it in spades. It's atmospheric, moody, utilizes shifts in perspective and audio pips extremely well, and is easily one of my most-anticipated indies headed into later 2022. And it's slated just in time for Halloween, on Oct. 27, 2022.

Find the demo here.

Cult of the Lamb

Okay, so maybe dark-and-creepy is your vibe, but you want a splash of cute. Maybe some isometric roguelite action, and a surprisingly compelling base management system. You should head over to the Cult of the Lamb, Massive Monster's adorably chaotic game about a cute lil' lamb starting a cult. Slay the false prophets, reclaim the forest, and convert the critters to your belief system so they can work while you're away. Cult of the Lamb arrives on Aug. 11, 2022.

You can find the demo here.

Gloomwood

Okay, dark and grimy, but maybe a little more immersive sim. How about a survival horror game with a heavy heaping of the Thief series in Gloomwood? It's set in a dark Victorian city where guards with bright, glowing eyes patro??l. Plan your route, escape with stealth and ingenuity, and deploy all kinds of fun tools along the way. Just don't get caught.

Find the demo here.

Escape Academy

Okay, I get it. Let's lighten the mood a bit, while sticking with the escape theme. Escape-the-room games have always been quite popular, but Escape Academy brings a little something extra to the table. It's got a narrative twist, ??as you're a new student at the titular school for escape artists, learning to get out of any sticky situation and meeting classmates and professors along the way. What I really dug about the demo, which is one of my favorites in the Next Fest lineup, is that it has online co-op. It was remarkably easy to hop into a room with a friend in another state and play through the demo together, and we had a blast. The release date is right around the corner on July 14, but I can't recommend this demo enough for co-op folks looking to try something new.

Find the demo here.

Potion Permit

Sometimes, you just want to hang out, hunt for some ingredients, and brew some potions. Potion Permit is one of the cozier games in the Steam Next Fest, and I really dug its small-town alchemist sim setup. It's definitely one of the slower starts compared to other games on this list, but if you want to just hang out and brew some potions with your dog, who's a very good boy, then Potion Permit seems up your alley.

Find the demo here.

Terra Nil

This city builder that's actually a nature builder has been top of my to-watch list for some time, and for good reason. Free Lives turns terraforming and restoring the scorched earth into an extremely pleasant experience. With each new installment and fixture, you get some gorgeous animations of grass flowing out across the soil, or water filling desolate canyons. Then, when it's all said and done, you pack up and leave. Terra Nil is bea?utifully serene and definitely ?worth your time.

Find the demo here.

Anger Foot

And now for something completely different from Free Lives, it's Anger Foot. Jordan recently declared this might be Devolver's most unhinged game yet, and after playing the demo, I'm inclined to agree. That's not a bad thing, though. Anger Foot has powerful kicks and speedy runs through brutal, blistering chaos, but its bass-pumping, pulse-pou?nding pace can really put you in the zone. It's fast and bizarre, and might be a bit much for some, but I have to admit I do love how the gators break it down after bringing you down.

Find the demo here.

Naiad

Okay, wheel it back around. Let's go back to the comforts of nature. Naiad is a gorgeous, almost dreamy game about being a river guardian and hanging out with your river pals. HiWarp has crafted some incredible visuals here, and it makes the whole experience wonderfully serene and flowing in a way that really sticks. Naiad was a Day of the Devs standout, and I'm ha??ppy to see it's got a demo in the Next Fest.

Find the demo here.

Goodbye World

Another Day of the Devs standout for me was Goodbye World, from solo developer Yo Fujii. It is a narrative adventure about the life of two indie developers, who st??ruggle to make their hit game while juggling part-time jobs. Intersp?ersed throughout, you actually get to play their game, a cute little puzzle platformer. It's a great concept with wonderful art and huge potential for drama.

Find the demo here.

Frogun

Another nostalgic surprise is Frogun, a throwback 3D platformer about a g??irl with a frog gun. This seems like it should be on the radar of anyone who dug the Nintendo 64 or PlayStation 1 era of platformers. But the bonus is now, with modern technology, we've got a frog-themed grappling gun. Molegato's game seems both adorable and pretty interesting for platformer fans.

Check out the demo here.

WrestleQuest

I'm sorry, did you think I'd write a whole Steam Next Fest demo roundup and not include wrestling RPG WrestleQuest? I was pretty surprised and entertained by the demo I played at PAX East 2022. Mega Cat Studios is combining the world of wrestling with action figures and Super Mario RPG-style combat for something that, somehow, works. ?Works pretty darn well, actually. Pump up the hype and pin some fools (or be pinned, if need-?be) in RPG fashion.

Find the demo here.

Those are all the games I'm keeping an eye on and checking out?. But if you've got any cool?? demos you like from the Steam Next Fest, please shout them out in the comments! Summer showcases are always a landslide of info, but these demo fests are a really great opportunity to test the waters, expand horizons, and add some cool new indie projects to your Steam wishlist.

The post Steam Next Fest: 12 cool demos you should try out appeared first on Destructoid.

There's a bad moon on the rise

Survival horror fans are getting another game to watch for, just in time for Halloween. Signalis is coming to PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox ??One, and Nintendo Switch on October 27, 2022.

The news shown today as part of the Guerrilla Collective stream also had some new gameplay of rose-engine's low-poly survival horror game. In a press release, publisher Humble Games confirms Signalis will be a day-one Xbox Game Pass game when it arrives in October. There's a demo arriving as part of Steam Next Fest, too.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=1okoqNHFlXc

Signalis follows Elster, a Replika trying to? solve a dark and terrifying mystery. Along the way, she encounters nightmarish monsters and has to struggle to survive, while discovering her own lost dreams.

Cosmic horror

It's got some definite cosmic horror vibes, mixed with tech and sci-fi themes around seemingly artificial life. It all feels very space horror, which granted, there's been a decent amount of in the summer showcases so far.

What struck me about Signalis when I demoed it for last year's Tribeca Games showcase wa??s not just the aesthetic, though. (Granted, the aesthetic is fantastic.)

It's got some classic Resident Evil feel to it, with isometric viewpoints and carefully placing shots in slowly approaching monsters. It had a real "every bullet counts" approach that I dug. And the puzzle se??gments that dove into? first-person kept things moving between the survival horror sections.

Rose-en??gine's space-based scare fest has been one of my most-anticipated indies for this year, and that hasn't changed yet. I'm looking forward to seeing the cosmic mysteries and horrors co?llide later this year.

Signalis will launch for PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, an?d Nintendo Switch on October 27, 2022.

The post Signalis ?brings the sci-fi survival horror this October appeared first on Destructoid.

Some of the coolest upcoming games we saw at the show

PAX? East 2022 was a strange one. It was my first time attending the show since the pandemic shuttered in-person conventions. And it was nice, getting to see old friends, new faces, and plenty of interesting indie games in Boston again.

Throughout my four days, I wandered the show floor, checking out plenty of games along the way. And to be ??clear, I didn't see everything. Despite best efforts and a slimmer-than-usual year, there was still plenty on the floor I never got a chance to check out.

But among the list of what?? I did see, a few? in particular stood out. So without further ado, here are some games worth keeping an eye on from PAX East 2022.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uyhz-HBx9wI

Lucid

Take a little bit of every platformer you've dug in the past, mix it together, and you're somewhere in the ballpark of Lucid. It's got a little Celeste and Metroid, plus some time-trial speedrunning influence, and a Hyper Light Drifter-adjacent style.

But comparisons don't really do justice to seeing it in motion. It ties this all together into a game that, even in a behind-closed-screens han?ds-off demo, looked t??ight and fast. This small indie project was one of my favorites of the weekend, and though I only saw a little slice, I'm incredibly interested in seeing what developer Eric Manahan has in store for the future.

Find it on Steam here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=h66fgPv1EnM

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge

What more do I need to say? TMNT: Shredder's Revenge turned out exactly as I'd hoped it would. It's energetic??,? upbeat, easy to pick up and a blast to master.

It's full of charm, ??the way you'd want a Saturday morning brawler to play. The turtles, Splinter, and April all feel unique and worth swapping around the roster to check out. I'm glad this retro brawler is shaping up so well.

Find it on Steam here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=avX_SrXRyTk

Cursed to Golf

Someone in the comments section of my preview asked why so many indies are tackling golf in particular. It's been a few days since, and I feel like Cursed to Golf provides the answer.

Golf itself is a malleable sport. You have clubs, a ball, and a hole you have to whack the ball into. Everything in-between is completely up to the designer; the course can take whatever twists and turns it wants. Cursed to Golf does just that, turning a grand ol' game of golf into a platforming, puzzle-solving, route-planning roguelike full of challenge and fun characters. It's a clever reinterpretation in the vein of Golf Story and What the Golf, and worth keeping an eye on.

Find it on Steam, with a demo, here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=qxvpJ1g54sY

Signalis

The demo I tried out at PAX East 2022 was actually the same one I played last year, so I don't have much new to report on the Signalis front.

That is also an incredibly good thing, as I was more than happy to play that excellent demo again and still be just as excited for the full game. This lo-fi, sci-fi survival horror with classic Resident Evil vibes is high on my watchlist. If you like horror of the technologic, extraterrestrial variety, don't let Signalis slip by.

Find it on Steam here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlwimDp1eqw

Cult of the Lamb

This was one of the big surprises for me. Not because I wasn't aware of Cult of the Lamb; I'd seen it pop up in showcases and trailers. But I did not think I was t??he target demographic for t?his one.

Behind the admittedly fun contrast of cute and grim, beyond the roguelite action, there's a base-building management side that captured my attention. Building a cult means building, after all. And I'm very eager to build my own adorable animal following when Cult of the Lamb finally drops.

Find it on Steam here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJQjQ-nfJRY

Lego Bricktales

Few games have captured my childhood like Lego Bricktales, a game about physics and Leg??o bricks in equal measure. It's a fun adventure through a dioramic world that lets you probl?em-solve with batches of plastic bricks.

Snap them together, then send across the robot and see if it holds. It's a surprisingly simple concept that works very, very well in the world of Lego. Keep an eye on Bricktales if you want more hands-on building in your virtual Lego experien?ces.

Find it on Steam here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYPSoSsOCrU

Rusted Moss

I managed to catch a spot on the Rusted Moss set-up in the PAX Rising area between appointments, which was a ?surprise in and of itself. It garnered quite the crowd there, and after playing some, it's easy to see why.

Rusted Moss has elements of bullet hell, Metroid, Contra, and even Bionic Commando. It looks great, feels great to play, and swinging across gaps with my barrel blazing down on enemies felt incredible. It ticks an incredible numbe??r of boxes and, even in a short demo, made a long-lasting impression.

Find it on Steam, with a demo, here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=fNsmLahKQE4

Potionomics

The way Potionomics mixes multiple genres I really enjoy together into one cohesive brew is pretty astounding. Sell potions to meet people, date those p??eople, get their cards, and haggle better at the store. Build decks, seek rarer ingredients, and meet the needs of ?a town full of adventurers and mysteries.

Throw in a dash of quite excellent character design and animation, and Potionomics seems to be coming together quite well. I'm excited to mix, socialize, and sell later on this? year.

Find it on Steam here.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMotjq4Dltg

Demon Throttle

The pitch for Demon Throttle is pretty different from your usual game. It's a physical-only game, f?or the Nintendo Switch. And while I'm caut?ious on the approach, I do admit, it's a pretty fun game to play.

Demon Throttle is a pretty tough top-down shooter for two (or one person with character switching). It's got some RPG elements in the mix, and a lot of fun jokes. The pair of heroes seek revenge against a demon: the vampiress because it took her chalices, and the gunslinger because it slept with his wife. It's funny, very retro, and very fun. My one worry is more folks won't be able to play it, as it's currently sold out on the site. Hopefully manufacturing doesn't get in the way of a good time with Demon Throttle.

Update: Developer Doinksoft has reached out to clarify that pre-orders are currently capped to let the manufacturer know how much to make in the initial run. The game will start shipping in "July or August," and during that time, sales are expected to re-open. Their intention, Doinksoft says, is to ensure Demon Throttle is "continuously available" to buy after launch.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXQMkQ71F_M

WrestleQuest

Wrestling and RPGs turn out to be an incredible mix in WrestleQuest. At first glance, it's easy to get taken in by the pixel art and turn-based battles where several fighters are duking it out in the r??ing.

Show up for that, but stay for the surprisingly good storytelling and tackling of darker subject matter. The narrative in this isn't pulling punches, and it's got a star-studde?d lineu??p of wrestling legends to boot.

Find it on Steam here.

And one last note, special PAX East 2022 shoutouts to Match Point, a four-player competitive Pong-alike that's already out and was extremely fun to play; and Tough Love Arena, a f?ree-to-play browser-based fighting game. They're both a??lready released, but very much worth your time.

_{This article has been updated to clarify Doinksoft's manufacturing plans for Demon Throttle.}

The post PAX East 2022: 10 of our favorites from this year’s show appeared first on Destructoid.

The only way forward is down, way down

If you're anything like me, the first thing that grabs you abo??ut Signalis is its look. Gorgeous pixel art portraits of its main character segue into a p??seudo-isometric camera ang??le, and almost angular shapes form shadows in the eerily quiet vessel you've woken up in.

P??eering into a r?oom, it might transition to a first-person view, and now you're point-and-clicking through interfaces and around environments. It's eerie, made all the more unsettling by the horrors happening around you. I got a chance to demo Signalis as part of Tribeca's Game Festival, and for the duration of my playtime, I was kept on my toes by ever?y camera change, r??ight up until the dread-filled end.

//www.youtube.com/watch?v=hz1FA6J3tMg

The setup of Signalis is fairly sparse to start. Your playable character wakes ?up on a ship, and clearly something has gone w??rong. It's dead quiet. And as you walk through the halls, trying to figure out just what's gone down or even who you are, you notice some monsters lurking in the shadows.

I don't think it's too much of a stretch to say Signalis wears some of its inspiration on its sleeve. Its isometric exploration, along with the way your character aims their weapon—onc??e you find one—and even?? the menu interface all feel very Resident Evil. But rather than the undead, these horrors are twisted si??lhouettes that scream and shamble at you once you've been spotted. An early tip from a user instruction manual advises you to preserve ammunition by physically stomping on an enemy you've knocked down with bullets; and yes, this aggressive strategy works.

Every new room offers opportunities to figure out what's going on, and how to proceed forward. It became clear the ship wasn't going to fly again, so I set off in search of a suit that would protect me against whatever environmental hazards were present on the planet we had landed on. I say planet, and we, but all of these are left very ambiguous�/span>Signalis' demo is more abo?ut atmosphere and dread than giving any di?rect answers. 

Logs and notes are the only scraps you have, as you start to piece together ideas about "Replika," or some sort of synthetic human. Are you?? one? And were those aggressive, screaming creatures ones too?

Though it feels very Resident Evil, there's also po??int-and-click inspiration in some of Signalis' interactive ar??eas, where you need to fiddle with dials and controls, or look around the contents of a room to find the bit of info you need. You can further examine items in your very retro menu interface, the kind you might expect to find in an Alien movie. Rotating objects can be fun, but also provide certain c??lues that the game doesn't always signpost. It's up to you to do what you can with what y?ou have, combining and inspecting items to move forward.

After about 20 or so minutes I reached the demo's end, in a finale that I won't discuss too much. Suffice to say, it was absolutely terrifying and immediately had me wanting more. It leaves a l?ot open for where this could go moving forward, and also introduces some really neat visuals and ideas. And o??f course, as shown in trailers prior to now, it references The King in Yellow, paying som?e homage to another supernatural work.

Of the many demos I've played over t???he last couple of weeks, Signalis is easily the most enigmatic, showing me just enough of the gam??e to feel like I've grasped its core concepts, while also won??dering about all the places it can go. One thing's for sure: Signalis has rocketed up my list of indies to keep an?? ey?e on.

The post Signalis preview: Sci-fi pixel horror goes ??supernatural appeared first on Destructoid.