Review: Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly Serves Up a Worthy Sequel

Review: Coffee Talk Episode 2: Hibiscus & Butterfly Serves Up a Worthy Sequel

When I picture the perfect coffee shop, I don’t think of the minimalist, industrial design that became popular throughout the late 2010s and endured in present times. I think of the dark green walls and warm wooden counters of Saint’s. It was narrow, or perhaps it just felt that way because it was crammed with things: the pastry case filled with tantalizing scones, an ancient floral couch, rickety chairs, and maybe a dozen tiny tables—always full—that were barely big enough for two laptops. I remember it as warmly and dimly lit despite the wide windows that overlooked Beaver Avenue. A seat at the window, should you be lucky enough to snag one, afforded interesting people watching. (more…)

Review: A Space for the Unbound Journeys Through the Mind Toward the Apocalypse

Review: A Space for the Unbound Journeys Through the Mind Toward the Apocalypse

A Space for the Unbound features themes such as depression, anxiety, domestic abuse, suicidal ideation, and animal death.

I find an old man huddled under a now-barren cherry tree as he racks his mind for the reason he’s there. As Atma, I approach him to see if I can help, but his memory is betraying him and he can’t remember. So I use my power of Spacedive to delve into his heart for answers and, in that reality, I find him as a boy. Together, we collect cherries from the now-flourishing tree. When we have enough, we split them, and it’s then that his brother appears—also a child. I realise that this is what the old man was forgetting—a childhood with his brother climbing the cherry trees. This is one of many stories that you find in A Space for the Unbound. (more…)

Review: Teacup Is a Charming but Buggy Brew

Review: Teacup Is a Charming but Buggy Brew

Teacup is a young frog, and she really loves tea. In fact, Teacup, a chill narrative game from developer Smarto Club, opens with the titular frog preparing to host a tea party, only to discover she is fresh out of tea (and several other supplementary ingredients)! That’s where the player comes in, taking control of Teacup as she ventures out into the world to get what she needs for her party. (more…)

Review: Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion is in Rock Angelz’s Shadow

Review: Bratz: Flaunt Your Fashion is in Rock Angelz’s Shadow

Like many people, Bratz was a staple in my childhood and teenage years. Owning the first edition Cloe doll in 2001, watching the Starrin ‘n’ Stylin’ film in 2004 and dancing to the Space Angelz music video in 2005 and playing the original PS2 games, in particular Rock Angelz, Forever Diamondz, and The Movie in 2007 was somewhat revolutionary for me. (more…)

Review: The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow Hauntingly Blends Folk Horror with Point-and-Click Tradition

Review: The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow Hauntingly Blends Folk Horror with Point-and-Click Tradition

Horror games are not my genre. It’s hard for me to not feel an intense fear because games ask us to participate in them, and my participation usually involves involuntarily throwing my controller across the room at the first jump scare. There was a chance that The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow, a point and click adventure developed by Cloak and Dagger and published by Wadjet Eye Games, would be the same; I’d dabble in the folk horror aesthetics, but one ghoulish face popping onto the screen or one perfectly timed scare chord and I’d be in the market for a new laptop. Thankfully, The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow’s embracing of the folk horror slow burn, its reserved frightening imagery, and its involved but not overly complex puzzles kept me enraptured the whole way through. (more…)