Tag: Casual

If you’re looking for a game that won’t take up too much time or brain space, come browse the Thumb Culture news pieces and reviews of the latest casual games.

Pine Hearts – PC Review
PC Reviews

Pine Hearts – PC Review

Explore the great outdoors and discover all the secrets in this small caravan park in Pine Hearts, developed by Hyper Luminal Games and published by Little Nook. This wholesome exploration and Metroidvania-lite title was released on May 24th, 2024, and is available on Steam and Nintendo Switch for £15.99. Pine Hearts and Heart Strings At first glance, Pine Hearts is a cozy, hiking game where you meet various characters and explore different locations to achieve a personal goal. It is also a tale about grief and honouring the memory of loved ones through you. If you are going through a period of grief, this may bring out strong feelings. Gameplay The story of Pine Hearts begins on a cloudy day in a train carriage. You meet Tyke, the main character who is flipping through a journal o...
Little Kitty, Big City – PC Review
PC Reviews

Little Kitty, Big City – PC Review

Using one of my nine lives, I recently took a tumble into Double Dagger Studios' debut release, Little Kitty, Big City. A platformer and puzzle game released on the 9th of May on PC. It's also available on Xbox Game Pass to anyone with a valid membership. Will You Land On Your Feet? A cosy and relaxing game, with an abundance of mischief. It will not be long until you snigger at destroying a copious amount of plant pots. Gameplay Your adventure begins with a very cute kitty enjoying a nap in the brisk sunshine. However, it doesn't take long until that is rudely interrupted. Next thing you know, you are catching a ride with a crow! Unfortunately for this kitty, your apartment, where you were just sleeping, is not easy to get to. Therefore making it your main mission to return the kitty ...
Aarik And The Ruined Kingdom – PC Preview
PC Reviews, Previews & Early Access

Aarik And The Ruined Kingdom – PC Preview

Set to release on June 20th, Aarik and the Ruined Kingdom is indie developer Shatterproof's first release. New perspectives on old favourites... As the perfect addition to the library of fans of Evo Explores and Monument Valley, the game combines simple yet beautiful graphics and perspective puzzles to build a mystic world and story filled with intrigue perfect for puzzle fans. Gameplay The demo of Aarik and the Ruined Kingdom is short yet packs a punch. With an introduction to Aarik, as well as his father, old pet and mother, the mystery of the story is present from the get go. The kingdom is already in ruin but there is not explanation for why it's so quiet, why Derek (Aarik's old pet) is dead and why his father refuses to wake up and get out of bed. The controls for the g...
Kill It With Fire 2 – PC Preview
Previews & Early Access

Kill It With Fire 2 – PC Preview

It's time to fight spiders with fire, once again, in this new sequel, Kill It With Fire 2. Creators at Casey Donnellan Games LLC have released it for early access this month on the 16th. You'll play The Exterminator as he continues to take on the eight-legged menace. Grab some friends and start hunting together via the campaign, or go head-to-head in Spider-Hunt. You can pick up the game for £12.79 or give some extra support with the Supporters pack, which comes with the OST and costs £15.28. You're gonna need more than fire. Gameplay Kill It With Fire 2 story takes place right after the first games. Our hero, The Exterminator, awakens in his house. The tutorial plays through similar to how it did in the first game but in reverse. Once you finish the tutorial, you get abducted into a ...
Bootleg Steamer – PC Review
PC Reviews

Bootleg Steamer – PC Review

From the horror specialists comes something completely different. Bootleg Steamer, a game about prohibition, moonshine and coastguards. Released today April 25th it is available on Steam. What makes this game stand apart and bring you to spend your hard earned money? Boats. Lots of Boats! Good Morning Moonshine! If you've not heard of the team over at Junkfish before, they are synonymous with Monstrum and Monstrum 2, among a couple of other games. The idea behind Bootleg Steamer came out of an internal Game Jam! So does bringing a rogue-lite style game to the water work? Or does it just become a complete shipwreck? Let's find out Gameplay What do you get if you cross Moonshine, Rum, Vodka, Whisky and grain? That's right! Prohibition! Bootleg Steamer is based in the 1920's prohibition e...
Botany Manor – Switch Review
Switch Reviews

Botany Manor – Switch Review

Botany Manor is a delightful single-player casual puzzle game set in 19th-century England. Developed by Devon-based Balloon Studios, it is out now on PC, Xbox (including game pass) and Nintendo Switch. I have had the pleasure of reviewing a copy for the Switch. Horticulture made fun! Playing as Arabella Greene, a retired botanist, the game is in first-person and set in the grounds of a beautiful stately home. Do you have what it takes to solve puzzles, grow plants, and reveal more about your life and career? Gameplay You begin the game in a typical old-fashioned English greenhouse, surrounded by windows, low brick walls, gardening paraphernalia and items to interact with. The controls are a simple twin-stick operation that you would expect to find with a first-person-style game....
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass – Switch Review
Switch Reviews

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Booster Course Pass – Switch Review

The Booster Course Pass for Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is an expansion for the popular racing game. First released in 2022 and completed in November 2023. Developed and published by Nintendo. The Booster Course Pass doubles the tracks and doubles the fun of an already fantastic game, making the one of the best kart racing games of all time even better. Booster Course Pass – A First Place Expansion Mario Kart 8 was released first for the Wii U in 2014 to critical acclaim. In 2017, it was given a new coat of paint and some gameplay improvements with Mario Kart 8 Deluxe for the newly-released Switch. Finally, the Booster Course Pass was announced in 2022, injecting some new life into the kart racer. With six waves of eight tracks each, the booster course doubles the number of tracks in the game...
Ready, Steady, Ship! – PC Review
PC Reviews

Ready, Steady, Ship! – PC Review

Have you ever received a parcel and thought you could give that a go? Well now you can, with Ready, Steady, Ship! From Solo developer Jollybits Games and published by Untold Tales. This parcel packing puzzler will bring you perilously to... prustration* Yeah I know, the alliteration kind of lost me there. Pop the right word down in the comments if you fancy a suggestion Evri Time, Always on Time! Releasing on the PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 as well as Nintendo Switch and Xbox. Ready, Steady, Ship! brings a puzzler for you and a couch coop buddy to get your brains around. So sit down relax and get ready to see whether you should answer the door when the delivery man comes. Gameplay At its core, Ready, Steady, Ship! is a straightforward puzzler. You are tasked with sending specifica...
SokoFrog – Nintendo Switch Review
Switch Reviews

SokoFrog – Nintendo Switch Review

Developed by EastAsiaSoft and Solluco, SokoFrog is a pushing-puzzle game that was originally released on Steam in December 2022. However, it has recently become available on more platforms on April 10, 2024. It currently retails for £4.49 and is available on PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One and Xbox Series. Hopping to Freedom in SokoFrog Have you tried this frog-tastic pushing-puzzle game? and how many frog puns can you find in this review? Gameplay SokoFrog is a colorful top-down puzzle-pushing pixel art adventure. You play as a cute frog, trying to navigate and hop through the levels by unlocking the gates. It's a take on the Sokoban puzzle games released in Japan in 1982. There are five different themes with different gameplay mechanics to increase the difficulty as you go...
House Flipper 2 – PS5 Review
PlayStation Reviews

House Flipper 2 – PS5 Review

Building on solid foundations from the first game that was released in 2018, the development team at Frozen District have brought us a new addition to the House Flipper series. House Flipper 2 is available to buy now on Xbox and PlayStation for an average £34.99.  Of course, it can be brought on PC, however, this version was released in December 2023. Will you become a property brother? Since House Flipper 2 was announced, I have been incredibly excited to play. This has been highly anticipated by the House Flipper community. It's great to see the best parts of the original game taken and improved. Let me know in the comments if you are enjoying the new game! Gameplay Moving back into your parent's house isn't everyone's dream, but the sleepy town of Pinnacove is your new home. The res...