Gold-Plated Games

If you’re in the market for platformers, roguelikes, or the unholy merging of the two, these Weeklong Deals have you covered. The Swapper, Downwell, TowerClimb, and Teleglitch are all stand-outs in one genre or another and deserve a look if you haven’t seen them yet. There are some other extremely solid choices in other genres as well, such as Daily Chthonicle for some horror management and Nightmares from the Deep for hidden object aficionados. Definitely take your time with the list below, because there’s something for everyone this week.

Looking ahead, I’m gonna spill the beans on the whole week because for once I’ve got everything set in stone. Tomorrow’s review will be a nice, long look at multiplayer builder Eco, now that I’ve been around a few worlds. Wednesday I’ll have another look at this year’s 7-Day Roguelike Challenge, and then Thursday I’ll revisit my review of the lovely Downwell. Rounding things out on Friday will be a full review of strategy RPG Ash of Gods: Redemption, and then more mini-reviews on Saturday. I’m clearing the deck for a brand new review series starting next Tuesday, so sharpen your swords and get your identify scrolls ready for that!

HOT DANG

The Swapper (Review) – Clever and ominous puzzle platformer on an abandoned space station

Downwell (review) – Fantastic lo-res roguelike platformer with really cool mechanics

TowerClimb (Review) – Unique roguelike platformer with a distinctly SNES look and feel

Teleglitch (Review) – An all-time favorite roguelike that borrows equally from survival horror and Quake

Daily Chthonicle: Editor’s Edition (Review) – Wonderfully unique supernatural management sim

Nihilumbra (Review) – Solid puzzle platformer with a cool painting gimmick

Zombie Driver HD (Review) – Plenty of OG GTA stupid fun here, squishing zombies and racing around the apocalypse

Stories Untold (Review) – A very strong case for the revival of the text parser adventure

Rocketbirds (Review) – Off-beat platformer with some very unexpected moments

Nightmares from the Deep: The Cursed Heart (Review) – Simply one of the best hidden object games around

Dead Effect 2 (Review) – Janky zombie shooter with enough bells and whistles to keep me going

Kautic (Review) – Extremely rough around the edges platformer, but still worth a look

Schein (review) – Tough but interesting puzzle platformer with a light gimmick

HOT GARBAGE

The Shivah (Review) – Fantastic concept, painfully lackluster execution

Dead Effect (Review) – Janky zombie shooter without enough bells and whistles to keep me going

NeverEnd (Review) – A confoundingly bad roguelike

Langoth (Review) – A confoundingly bad third-person platformer

Crab Dub (Review) – what even is this