Oliver Revolta, Author at Thumb Culture

28Jul

By Oliver RevoltaNo Comments

Unavowed – Switch Review

The opening of Unavowed — a point-and-click adventure game first released in 2018 on Mac and PC and now out on the Switch — throws you straight into the action. The first shot is of a moody, blood-orange sky depicted in beautiful, high-quality pixel art (the resolution so high that the word ‘pixel’ seems redundant). Rain is falling. Tense music plays. With the exception of the main character, the game is entirely voice-acted, and we hear some dialogue of what turns out to be an exorcism. The camera pans down to three figures on a rooftop, one of which is you: you are the one being exorcised. You don’t remember anything and you’re confused as hell. Of the other two figures, one has a knife in your back and the other a magic staff in your face. For some, a magic staff might sound off-putt...

Mario Strikers: Battle League Switch Review

22Jun

By Oliver RevoltaNo Comments

Switch Reviews

Mario Strikers: Battle League Switch Review

A couple of hours into my time with Mario Strikers: Battle League the possibilities of the game’s gear system clicked—by gear system, I mean clothing items you unlock to upgrade the characters. Each new bit of gear tweaks the strength, speed, shooting, passing, technique of whichever character you choose. It’s a balanced system—if you increase one stat, another stat declines an equal amount. Before my revelation I’d wondered why anyone would bother with that kind of micro-management. There are ten players to choose from—Mario, Luigi, Bowser, Donkey Kong and so on—and rather than tweak the stats, surely it’s just as easy to choose a different player. If Donkey Kong is too slow, I could go ahead and pick Yoshi instead. Toad is the quickest player in the game. Now I saw some pote...

13Jun

By Oliver RevoltaNo Comments

Switch Reviews

Silt Switch Review

Since it was announced, I’ve paid a fair bit of attention to the conversations around Silt (Spiral Circus, Fireshine Games). Limbo is mentioned as a comparison more often than not. In a way this isn’t surprising. Both indie games share an obvious similarity in their black and white aesthetic. Tom Mead, the lead designer on the project, told me it was a flattering comparison and that PlayDead were one of his favourite studios. But he felt that it was a ‘basic comparison’—only down to the colours. I think he’s right. In a way, I know he’s right. Full disclosure: I’ve known Tom for a long time. We went to university together and have been housemates more than once—in fact, he’s one of my closest friends. Without doubt, this makes my ability to review Silt objectively a little difficult,...

8Jun

By Oliver RevoltaNo Comments

Switch Reviews

Best Month Ever! Switch Review

Best Month Ever! was made by the Warsaw Film School, an intriguing setup for sure. What was a film school doing making a video game? Their website says the game was made by an array of people: ‘students, graduates, and employees’. How did this work? An idyllic picture of a large group of people collaborating sprang to mind, I admit. Best Month Ever! is a Narrative Point and Click Adventure Game, and it is out now on PS5, Xbox, Switch and PC. WOULD A GAME BY ANY OTHER NAME STILL SMELL AS SWEET? One of my main questions before beginning Best Month Ever! was whether a film school would find a good balance between storytelling and gameplay. There are games with a narrative emphasis that struggle to incorporate a good level of gameplay into their mix, often to their detriment. So would th...

2May

By Oliver RevoltaNo Comments

Switch Reviews

Nobody Saves The World Switch Review

The latest game from Guacamelee 1&2 and Severed developer Drinkbox Studios, Nobody Saves The World is—on the surface at least—a Zelda-inspired, top-down ARPG boasting both online and couch co-op. That’s some good credentials right there, and with the inclusion of the two co-op modes, which are full-blooded experiences, something uncommon in a lot of traditional ARPGs here we should have a guaranteed winner. Available now on every major system. NOBODY SAVES THE WORLD—VARIETY REALLY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE Trailers for Nobody Saves The World promises a lot: an action-intensive experience where you play as different forms—human, animal, monster, and magical characters—all products of a single morphing protagonist. They promise a deep combat system where you can mix and match attacks and...