Charlie, Author at Thumb Culture

28Nov

By CharlieNo Comments

Whiskerwood – PC Early Access Preview

Whiskerwood is a settlement management simulation, brought to you by developer Minakata Dynamics and publisher Hooded Horse. It released into Early Access on Steam on November 6th. You are put in charge of a colony of mice on an untouched island, where you will need to manage your resources, set up production chains, and ensure the general welfare of your little Whiskers, all while trying to grow your home. The cats have taken over! Today, I am diving back into Whiskerwood to check out the newly released Early Access version! I previously played and reviewed the demo version, so feel free to check out that article before reading this one. While the general gameplay loop has stayed the same, there have been some really major updates that open the game wide up. I'm excited to talk about th...

20Oct

By CharlieNo Comments

PC Reviews

Twinkleby – PC Review

Twinkleby, developed and published by Might and Delight, is a cosy decoration game that hit Steam on September 23rd. Build adorable little dioramas across a whimsical archipelago of floating islands and make your little residents as happy as can be! Twinkle Twinkle Little Island It is once again time to review a cute decorating game! This one has a very unique vibe to it that I am excited to share with you today. Let's get into it! Gameplay Imagine diving into a peaceful, cosy world with a refreshingly simple premise. Twinkleby is like your personal digital dollhouse. You spend your time customising adorable floating islands, placing and decorating houses, building gardens and planting trees. But your work doesn't stop there! You will need to collect and place cute furniture all ov...

3Oct

By CharlieNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

Eat The Rich – PC Preview

Eat the Rich is a multiplayer party game all about alliances, betrayals, and secret advantages. Developed by Maccima Games and published by Monstronauts, it was released on Steam into Early Access on September 10th. Sounds like Food Poisoning to me Who doesn't love a good party game? What about a mediocre one? While it's great when game developers have many ideas for their game, maybe putting all of them in at once isn't the best idea. Let's get into it! Gameplay Eat the Rich is a multiplayer party game in which you scramble through mini-games, betray your friends, and ruthlessly compete to be as rich as anyone could possibly ever be! Imagine a weird mix between Jackbox Party and Among Us. The main difference is that those games are actually fun to play. Eat the Rich tries to throw...

19Sep

By CharlieNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

Whiskerwood – PC Demo Preview

Whiskerwood is a settlement management simulation game from developer Minakata Dynamics and publisher Hooded Horse. The game is set to release on Steam in 2025, with a demo going live today too. Lead a colony of mice on untouched islands. Manage your resources, production chains, and the needs of your Whiskers while growing your settlement. All while surviving under the oppressive paw of your cat overlords. Just be sure to pay your taxes on time, or there will be consequences. Loving cats and settlement management games, I fell head over heels for Whiskerwood when I first saw it at the PC Gaming Show this year. I instantly put my hand up to cover this little preview for Thumb Culture. So let's get stuck in. Monarch Cat Overlords? So just a normal cat. This preview could have been writ...

10Sep

By CharlieNo Comments

PC Reviews

Stone Simulator – PC Review

Stone Simulator, developed and published by STFGames, is a new immersive simulation game that released on Steam on August 19th. The game aims to finally answer the ultimate question: "What is it like to just be a rock?" Just Be So I must ask: who among us, in this current date and time, does not dream of a life with no tasks, no pressure, and no taxes? An existence free from all burdens? To truly be free from the constant expectation that you have to do things in order to be happy? Today, I might just be able to offer a solution for this matter. A way to truly feel at ease. Gameplay Stone Simulator allows you to experience pure tranquillity, for what may be the very first time in your life. Much like a real stone, your activity options are rather limited, and that is how it should...

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar – PC Review

9Sep

By CharlieNo Comments

PC Reviews

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar – PC Review

Story of Seasons: Grand Bazaar, a remake of the original Harvest Moon: Grand Bazaar, is a newly released farming game developed and published by Marvelous Inc. The game released on August 27th on Steam, Switch and Switch 2. In this game, you take on the role of a new farmer who has just moved to Zephyr Town, a place whose bazaar was once one of the grandest in the world. However, the bazaar has lost its spark, and it's now your job to help restore its prosperity and make the town thrive again! The Grand Remake While I unfortunately didn't get to play the original game, I used to be absolutely obsessed with watching Harvest Moon speedruns for a good while. I kind of remember most of the general gameplay. That's gotta count for something! Anyways. I've had an absolute blast playing this ga...

18Aug

By CharlieNo Comments

PC Reviews

Whimside – PC Review

Whimside is a cute little creature-collecting game that lives right at the bottom of your screen, in which you can find and catch adorable creatures called Whimlings. Developed by Toadzillart and published by Future Friends Games, the game was recently released on Steam on August 7th. A Little Piece Of Whimsy I have been waiting for this game to release for ages. The big question now is: will it live up to my expectations and its hype? Gameplay In Whimside, your main objective is to collect adorable little creatures called Whimlings. Every Whimling you come across is a unique mix of different parts from different animals and mythical creatures, from their head and body to their ears and tail. It's really fun to see what kind of cute or wild combos you will discover next, like a cha...

7Aug

By CharlieNo Comments

Hardware & Tech

TOZO Crystal Pods Review

The TOZO Crystal Pods are a pair of Hybrid Active Noise-Cancelling wireless earbuds that are offered at a very competitive price of just £35.99. With a long battery life and immersive stereo sound, these earbuds seem to check all the right boxes, but can they live up to our expectations? Great Price, Great Quality? As someone with tiny ears, I've had the misfortune of trying out many different earbuds that, sadly, become rather painful after just a few minutes of wearing them. Up until now, my go-to pair has been an older TOZO model, so I was excited to see what else the company has to offer. My main hope is that these earbuds will offer a nice and pain-free listening experience, and, of course, if the sound is up to par! Now then, let's have a look. Design The design of the TOZO Cryst...

6Aug

By CharlieNo Comments

PC Reviews

Block Factory – PC Review

Block Factory is a new, relaxing creative building game that hit the market on July 11th on Steam. In this game, developed by OverPowered Team and published by Shiro Unlimited, you get to build and optimize factories to create your own 3D figurines from building bricks. A Solid Foundation? My hopes for this game were pretty high, but unfortunately, some early performance issues let me down quite a bit. I don't believe that it's a bad game, but it sure took me for a ride. Oh, and just so you know, my factories in the screenshots are such a mess and, uhh, let's call it "compact", in order to avoid performance issues. Yeah totally, that's why. Nooo other reason, I swear! I'm not bad at optimising, maybe YOU are bad at optimising. I think you're projecting, really. Anyways, moving on. ...

Bite Sized PC Review – Crime Scene Cleaner Nightmare Update

5Aug

By CharlieNo Comments

PC Reviews

Bite Sized PC Review – Crime Scene Cleaner Nightmare Update

Crime Scene Cleaner, developed and published by President Studio, with additional publishing by PlayWays S.A., originally launched on Steam on August 14th 2024. The game just received a significant, free content expansion called the “Nightmare Update”, having released on Steam on July 24th, with a console release scheduled for July 29th. Bloody Good This massive content update introduces two brand-new game modes, 20 additional levels, and a variety of fun collectibles and skins. Let's get into the good stuff, shall we? Gameplay Time to grab your mop and sponges, 'cause Crime Scene Cleaner's new Nightmare Update has finally released, and it is absolutely packed with new content! Once you have cleared, or rather “cleaned”, all 10 of the original maps, you will unlock two new secti...