Sunday, May 19

Tag: Casual Games

Darius Cozmic Collection Arcade Review – Quarter Cruncher Supreme
1Jul By Craig1 Comment
PlayStation Reviews, Retrogaming Corner

Darius Cozmic Collection Arcade Review – Quarter Cruncher Supreme

The Darius Cozmic Collection Arcade features a series of arcade releases of the immensely popular shoot-em-up franchise. Often touted as one of the pioneers of the genre, Darius was unique in that its cabinets used three screens to create a longer visual range on which to play the game. Having a triple screen set up made for a very wide and eye-catching cabinet. Unfortunately, my local arcade growing up didn't have the funds to acquire such a machine. First released in 1987 by Taito Corporation, Darius set a high standard for Shmups(Shoot-Em-Ups). This is the second of two collections released for the Darius Franchise. I'm taking a look at the collection of Arcade releases on the Playstation 4, whereas the review for the Console collection can be found Here. Gameplay Darius Cozmic Collec...
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Bug Academy Review – Swarmy Study Buzzies
30Mar By CraigNo Comments
PC Reviews

Bug Academy Review – Swarmy Study Buzzies

If you had asked me a while back if I would play a game about insects, my answer probably would have been; "Sim Ant?!". Since I was a young boy, I've enjoyed weird little games where you play as insects doing insect stuff. Sim Ant was semi-educational and fun. Bug Academy takes the idea of insect gameplay and adds a whole lot of fun physics. Developed by Igrek Games, and published by Ultimate Games for Microsoft Windows via Steam for a measly CAD$ 11.49, Bug Academy came out on January 14th, 2020. So, without further delay let's jump in and see what the BUZZ is about. (hehe, see what I did there?) Gameplay Bug Academy is a physics puzzler where you control a buzzy swarm of insects to complete various tasks. Igrek Games have laid out Bug Academy as a series of lessons about the various ty...
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Murder By Numbers Review – Elementary my dear quadrature
26Mar By TC Staff WriterNo Comments
Switch Reviews

Murder By Numbers Review – Elementary my dear quadrature

Remember the 90's? Flannel shirts, MTV, Furby, Tamagotchi's, bowl Cuts, neon patterns, amazing cartoons, and the idea that all robots are sentient. Murder By Numbers dives headfirst into all the nostalgia possible, and in classic 90's fashion, sends you and your robot buddy to hunt down bad guys. Only, instead of muscle-bound action heroes, these criminals will face the wrath of cognitive thinking. Developed by Mediatonic games, Murder By Numbers is available now on Nintendo Switch and PC. Gameplay Murder By Numbers is at its heart a series of logic puzzles (commonly known a Picross or Nanogram puzzle) wrapped in a visual novel. Set in the '90s, you follow Honor Mizhari, an actor who finds herself in a somewhat forced career change. She used to be a hit TV detective but now fin...
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Clumsy Rush Nintendo Review – Stumbling Out Of The Gate
17Feb By TC Staff WriterNo Comments
Switch Reviews

Clumsy Rush Nintendo Review – Stumbling Out Of The Gate

In Clumsy Rush, which was developed by NerfGame and published by RedDeerGames, you play as a feckless hippo whose goal is to reach the end of an obstacle course whilst wearing a crown over a series of 47 levels. Clumsy Rush released on Nintendo Switch at £4.99 on December 23rd 2019. Gameplay As the title suggests, controlling your hippo is intentionally challenging. You control your movement by using the L2 and R2 buttons to pivot upon your left and right legs respectively. There is a button that will cause you to rush forward, but if you are wearing the crown it will fall off immediately, rendering this move useless in single-player mode. Each level has a series of hazards that are designed to impede your progress. Unfortunately, games that revolve around clunky control schemes ca...
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Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training Review – Dumb or Dumber?
20Jan By TC Staff WriterNo Comments
Switch Reviews

Dr Kawashima’s Brain Training Review – Dumb or Dumber?

Dr Kawashima's Brain Training helped make the Nintendo DS popular with non-gamers and as a result of this, Grannies and Mothers all over the world were putting down their knitting needles and picking up a stylus. Fast forward to 2020 and Nintendo are back with an updated version of the classic, however does it still have the same appeal as previously?   Gameplay Following in the footsteps of its predecessors, Brain Training gives you a range of exercises to complete which helps you in preparation for the dreaded 'Brain Age' test! These training exercises focus around maths, logic and memory-based task, which I know doesn't sound terribly fun but trust me, it is! Due to how the game tracks your progress, you constantly want to better your score and as a result, you'll pick ...
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Untitled Goose Game Review – I’ve Been Goosed!
1Oct By TC Staff WriterNo Comments
Switch Reviews

Untitled Goose Game Review – I’ve Been Goosed!

adveAs one of Yorkshire's foremost amateur geese enthusiasts, when I was offered the chance to review Untitled Goose Game, I considered it an excellent opportunity to educate bird-brained Thumb Culture readers about the majestic beauty of the family Anserinae. Upon accepting the honour, however, I was somewhat chagrined to discover that I had not been chosen to review the game due to my expert knowledge of geese, but rather because the particular goose-protagonist in question had a vindictive and irritating nature, and it was suggested that I had an unparalleled grasp of such personality traits. Whilst deeply upset at what I considered a somewhat spurious claim, in the end, I agreed to evaluate the game, all the same, so long as I could litter the review with atrocious puns [I don't...
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Cyber Protocol Review – Hack my Switch up!
1Oct By TC Staff WriterNo Comments
Switch Reviews

Cyber Protocol Review – Hack my Switch up!

I was sitting on my sofa in a mundane area of North England when I loaded up Cyber Protocol, a Cyberpunk infused arcade puzzler by RedDeerGames. The opening sets the scene, and the soundtrack transported me to a world influenced by classic cinema such as Blade Runner.  I was a hacker, tasked with bringing G0X6 back to life by activating the protocol. I had no idea who G0X6 was and what the ‘protocol’ was but I was invested.  Starting the campaign, I hoped to feel like Mr Robot’s Elliot Alderson, a cool but socially awkward vigilante taking down E Corp, however that fantasy was quickly squashed. I had been thrown out of the Matrix, and the promise of a neo-futuristic world dissipated into a muggy September evening in the North of England. My adventure as a hacker started and finished bef...
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House Flipper PC Review – If Only Housework Was Really This Easy!
12Jun By John1 Comment
Gaming, PC Reviews

House Flipper PC Review – If Only Housework Was Really This Easy!

House Flipper is a Casual DIY / building sim from Empyrean. Basically you’re a one man renovation machine. Working from doing odd jobs for people who need repairs etc. all the way up to flipping houses for a profit (Guess the title makes sense.. although not going to lie I was imagining flipping houses like burgers, with a giant spatula). The biggest question for me was, Can Virtual house work actually be fun? Let’s find out… Gameplay Let’s be honest, you have to be a pretty ‘special’ person to enjoy doing house work or DIY, I’m sure 99% of people would much rather have someone else do it for them (or else why would house keepers and repairmen have jobs?). Well at the start of House Flipper you’re basically a housekeeper. You need to do odd jobs to earn cash to take on and unlock t...
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Mowy Lawn Review – You Thought Gardening Was Relaxing?
17Apr By TC Staff WriterNo Comments
Android & iOS

Mowy Lawn Review – You Thought Gardening Was Relaxing?

Mowy Lawn is brought to us by Playstack, who are based in London, and who were founded on the belief that even the greatest developers need support in order to create their best work. They offer support in three key ways; end-to-end funding, publishing expertise, and tech to build a strong gamer audience and community. So, usually when you hear of an app with the premise being about gardening you'd assume that it would be a Zen experience. Something after a hard day of slogging it at the office, you'd come home and play a nice relaxing game, get in touch with your inner Buddha and get those tired fingers nice and green...unwind and chant a few om's right? WRONG! well, at least after the first couple of levels and then it's pedal to the metal. Welcome to lawnmower heaven - where lucky...
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Blasters of the Universe Review – Pew Pew Die
3Apr By TC Staff WriterNo Comments
PC Reviews

Blasters of the Universe Review – Pew Pew Die

[Advisory Warning: This review contains details which disclose that the reviewer is old enough to remember the 80’s. Reader discretion is advised.] Odd socks, impossibly large hair, guys in Porsches, women in shoulder pads and everyone wearing shades, all the time, even indoors. That was the 80’s. ET was everything, Transformers were huge, everyone listened to Madonna and Pop Tarts were considered the food of the future. Most video games could only be found in arcades and that is where this story begins. Back then the guns in video games had very little reference to real life. Overpowered guns fired impossibly large bullets that travelled visibly slowly across the screen, from hero to antagonist and vice versa. The aim of the game was nothing more than to dodge bullets and kill the bad ...
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