Mighty No. 9

Developer: Comcept, Inti Creates
Publisher: Deep Silver
Release: 2016
Platform: PC (played), PS3/4, X360/One, WiiU
Genre: Action

There’s hardly anything left to say about Keiji Inafune’s Mighty No. 9 convoluted (and well documented) development. But as for the final product, gut feelings aside, there’s a faint soul to be found under the game’s debris; it’s just that it never quite shines through to the point of fulfilling its promising sparks of life in any front in particular.

Everything falls short due to a widespread lack of polish plaguing every aspect of the game. Beyond the most blatant tech issues (performance, vfx particles/shaders implementation, the eventual game-breaking glitch), even good ideas are held back by such hindrances–especially when it comes to balancing and fine tuning shortcomings. For instance, it rewards the player for keeping a fluent (and satisfyingly so) pace up with buffs, but the very same buffs disrupt the intended flow (more speed or damage affects traversal in both direct and indirect ways); levels and bosses sport interesting gimmickry premises but, for the most part, they overstay their welcome; a shoehorned stealth level towards the endgame annoys (instead of bringing something fresh to the table) the player who got that far by mastering entirely different skills; and so on.

Designs are genuinely interesting.

As said before, it has strengths. When it flows, it feels remarkably good–maybe to a “good 2D Sonic level” degree, even; the characters/enemies designs are great, and the hint system (which pitches a formerly defeated boss against the next best level) intertwines plot, level design and appeal smoothly; battle/weapons mechanics are interesting enough without being hard to grasp.

In the end, an honest approach may grant Mighty No. 9 isn’t the dumpster on fire one might think for its infamous reputation. But it’s surely undercooked–despite the amount of time and money spent (mostly by faithful backers) on it.

Pikuniku

Developer: Sectordub
Publisher: Devolver
Release: 2019
Platform: PC (played), Switch, XOne, Stadia
Genre: Adventure

Oozing charm on the presentation side–including some fantastic sound design/music–Pikuniku doesn’t quite know what it wants to be. From a promising tactile digital toy, it unfolds as a (light): metroidvania; collectathon; platformer; puzzle; action; highbrow indie title. Unfortunately, for the most part it drags.

The bouncy aspect of the original premise makes everything else (exploring, jumping around, hitting buttons, fighting) a chore, and it becomes more evident when backtracking (an integral, unavoidable part of the experience) comes into play, rendering an underwhelming feel to the 3-hour main campaign run (taking into consideration the amount of time spent solely on traversal matters, that is).

Blatant.

As for ~  v i b e s ~  Pikuniku’s smartass attitude fits Devolver’s catalogue well and may act as a selling point in the current dystopian late capitalist world, but if it’s the case humans (and videogames) survive such games might as well be seen as the 90’s mascots of our time: inadvertently silly and puerile.

MARVEL SNAP

Developer: Second Dinner
Publisher: Nuverse
Release: 2022
Platform: Android (played), iOS, PC
Genre: TCG

You know the most successful aspect of a game is PR when professional reviews are unanimous in pointing out “it’s too generous a F2P” even if it blatantly throws the player through a tunnel of tempting seasonal rewards that can only be snagged through some ol’ real money dropping–as casual players pass them by just to watch their locks refuse to rattle–every 3 weeks or so. But market stuff aside, yes: MARVEL SNAP breathes some (welcome) fresh air into the genre without simply resting on the strength of the tied-in IP.

The trimmed down main setup–12-card decks, only six turns before a full match is over–works surprisingly well not only for its by-design casual appeal; the twist of randomizing available playfields/locations (and the way such are progressively revealed as a match unfolds) adds up a good deal of variety (as an extra pinch of luck) to the mix while allowing the devs to keep a healthy, expansive framework without necessarily having to spend tons of resources on creating/balancing new cards again and again.

As for climbing the prizes ladder and getting extra cards, the way to go is… expanding the very collection itself. This “Collection Level” system is meant to “auto-cap” the amount of new cards a player can add to their ranks, once again elegantly avoiding constant “manual tweaking” by the devs when it comes to regulating the game’s economics. It’s such a Swiss Army knife of a feedback method that it can’t help itself being both good-natured and noxious to the player at the same time: e.g., as it randomly digs prizes from an invisible “tier pool” it relegates casual players to their “rookie” level for a long time before handling them a “chance to have a chance” of getting real game-changer cards; when synergy starts coming into play this gets even worse, since the odds of pulling more cards that are both a) good and b) work well together are slim. On the other hand, allowing a player to increase their Collection Level by spending resources on cosmetic upgrades to cards they already own lends them a decent deal of agency on how to do it in satisfying personal fashion.

The infamously tempting ladder.

Talking about cosmetics, there’s no cohesion to be seen among the collectible cards’ art pieces: they’re all over the place both aesthetically and quality-wise. A sad (but perhaps unavoidable) departure from how solid a “historic” curation approach–like the one previously available in Marvel Puzzle Quest, for instance–would have been with such a decades old IP-focused project; regardless, results tend to be good enough to keep it afloat, given the fact that the current audience’s nostalgia only trace back to, roughly, MCU’s beginnings or so. Credit where credit's due though, the game does pretty well in other presentation areas–especially VFX and sound design/music.

Issues aside, MARVEL SNAP is very well positioned to grow bigger by the day and become a F2P juggernaut–and an ever healthier one while at it. That’s only possible because the development team made the clever decision to plant its structural foundations far beyond some shallowly obvious Baby Groot fan service would.

The Nightmare Cooperative

Developer: Lucky Frame
Publisher: Blazing Griffin
Release: 2014
Platform: PC
Genre: Roguelike

The Nightmare Cooperative is one of the rare cases of a modern game that could be labelled “retro-hard” for the right reason: it’s tough for longevity’s sake, just like old times. Rather than being a compliment that just speaks volumes about the (apparently) deliberate imbalance of the odds against the player, especially in a genre in which making the most of every run tends to be vital: enemies usually take more than one hit to die, don’t drop loot or lend XP and ultimately defeat the purpose of reaching for treasure chests altogether--opening one with 2 coins will bring an equivalent number of enemies to the playfield, and such meagre rewards are rarely worth the trouble. Even growing the party by enlisting soldiers along the way makes it harder, since manoeuvring a bunch of heroes sharing the same inputs within such a crowded 9x9 grid is a recipe for frustration.

Art direction overall ups the game a couple notches.

So, fittingly enough, the fact that it’s on the short side plays in favour of the game since it never reaches the point of overstaying its welcome. The clean, polished art style makes it for awakening the completionist in the player and raises the “one more play” factor--even if it’s just for unlocking yet another new character (with a particular playstyle and neat flavour description of their own) before calling it a day. The controls and scene flows are just as slick as the art and doesn’t hurt the experience a bit either.

The Nightmare Cooperative may not be the best “value” proposition for such a potential buyer--even if the Steam Trading Cards can mitigate that a good bit--but it’s a solid product, the result of an interesting enough premise that’s well-executed enough to be worth being checked out.

Dig Dog

Developer: Rusty Moyher, Matt Grimm
Publisher: Wild Rooster
Release: 2016
Platform: PC, Switch
Genre: Roguelike

True to the modern “I-understood-that-reference-pun-premise” trope, Dig Dog is still fun and competent while at it.

Just like with most rogue-lites out there it has its share of balancing issues, making descents raggier than desired: the 2-hit-death base stats coupled with meager invincibility frames rendering good runs prone to be smashed into pieces under some fickle RNG-god’s (dog’s?) paws, for instance; or getting a favorable “supply x demand” seed (meaning a) finding shops with b) good items while c) having enough money to afford ‘em) being rarer than digging random gold down the way; or procedural level design being cruelly nasty at times; and so on.

None of those are game breaking though; but one structural design decision hurts the experience on a… deeper level. Unfortunately mapping all main actions (jumping, digging, dashing) to the same button makes the controls feel clumsy instead of elegant as intended, and may pile a couple extra frustrating deaths to the ever-growing counter.

Digging all night along.

Despite all that, a player will most likely jump back right away without batting an eye--a testament to the game’s compelling and accessible “one more try” factor.

Donut County

Developer: Ben Esposito
Publisher: Annapurna Interactive
Release: 2018
Platform: iOS, PC (played), PS4, XOne, Android
Genre: Puzzle

At first Donut County feels like a Windosill--i.e. a pleasant tactile experience--that lacks the courage to stay in its wordless standalone toy-ish sandbox form: the story bits feel intrusive and the player will often spend more time reading than actually playing the amusing levels.

It’s a good thing then that both characters and plot are engaging enough for the player to care about them--to the point the levels act like a “pleasure delayer” and ultimately make the comebacks even more enjoyable.

Deliciously inviting.

The short campaign (around 2 hours) per se doesn’t pose a problem; but the game would benefit immensely from some Free Play, Sandbox or Level Maker modes of sorts since the mechanics--nailed so gracefully--are there already, begging to be played with more often.

KNIGHTS

Developer: Arzola's
Publisher: Arzola's
Release: 2016
Platform: PC
Genre: Puzzle

Veteran Chess players could, at first glance, dismiss dropping money in a game built upon the mechanics of a single piece--specially when "full real deal" versions are so abundant (and frequently free); in the opposite corner of the board some Queen's Gambit-fueled newcomer, eager to dive below the waterline, could get to the same conclusion for completely different reasons. Both groups wouldn't do themselves any favours in doing so though.

In fact the knights that lend the game its title easily make up for a dozen hours worthy of puzzle cracking--and then some more--entirely on their own.

Second-naturing "L"s

By tackling those puzzles at a comfortable pace--the game not only allows that but also encourages the player to do so with its "light unlock" system--fresh apprentices will be able to start glimpsing through the most erratic and unpredictable strategies in the game through focusing solely on the piece that usually carries them out; and growing capable of making their movement patterns second nature as the game progresses can be rewarding enough per se.

Seasoned players will be able to improve just as much by solving the final Level Packs--or even by taking advantage of specific scenarios that always have the potential of tricking players that are yet to experience such situations in real-life matches.

The elegant presentation (both graphics and sound wise) and the infinitely expandable "Daily" mode that comes after the curated campaign puzzles--all under a low price tag--make KNIGHTS a no brainer for any player (regardless of their experience) interested in the game.