Kynseed has finally hit consoles, and Pixel Count Studios was nice enough to send me a copy. Truth be told,I don’t know the best way to describe this game. It is a lifestyle sim, you start out living in a shoe- yes, if you are familiar with your fairytails, THAT old lady’s shoe. You and your twin sister will be adopted. Your childhood will act as sort of a tutorial until you inherit what is known as the Kynseed, where you trade 5 years of your life for it. When you come out of what I can only describe as a 5-year time warp, your uncle is dead, and your sister is pissed. Congrats tho, you own a house.
From here you can sort of do whatever you want. Go fishing, mine some ore, become a blacksmith, buy a store, buy many stores, help out around the village, start a family. Hell, go buy a kid. Sorry, I meant adopt a kid from the old lady in the shoe for 500 gold.
Combat is also an option; you can tell how hard combat will be by the name of the forest you are fighting in. Don’t worry, it isn’t hard to figure out. The best method is to do a bit of everything, but honestly, the game truly does not care what you do when you continue through the story and have to increase your reputation; pretty much everything will increase it.
The game has beautiful pixel graphics and functions very well; the real question is how fun it is, and the problem there comes down to how fun you find what you do in it. I love fishing, and the mini-game for blacksmithing is quick and simple. While the cooking could be better explained, once you get the hang of it you will be whipping up meals in no time. This is a 9/10 title that has been locked on PC for far too long, and is worth every penny of the $25 price tag. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.
Forsaken Realms: Vahrin’s Call was sent my way by the nice people over at Titan Roc, which I always appreciate. I think to truly understand why the game has mixed reviews on Steam, we have to understand what this game is not. It is not the next Fable, despite what the trailers may suggest. I don’t know why anyone went into this game expecting a 60-hour epic adventure with towns, dungeons, and side quests. This was never even suggested. You are simply a mercenary searching for your next adventure to make some money in a war-torn land.
Now, for starters, the game is beautiful, especially when you realize this game was made by a small team. I believe it was 7 people, and for most, if not all, it was their first project. Together, they made a handcrafted world for you to explore and live in. They also put a story together that manages to be both cohesive and yet allows you to feel like a mercenary who isn’t really some powerful chosen one by god, just some guy looking for chances to make money.
If there was anything bad to say about this game, it’s that while the checkpoint system is nice and it is refreshing to be able to die in a game without being punished, just reload at the last checkpoint and try again, it’s that the combat is clunky and it doesn’t matter how you play. If you want to play with magic, arrows, sword and board, or a giant sword, it will take some getting used to. My first two deaths were because I dodged or healed, and my character just didn’t do anything.
This can be worked around by being a bit more defensive than you otherwise would be, and it is far from game-breaking as some would have you believe. The price point, however, $35, does give me some pause on recommending the game. As my long-time readers know, I love indie games and have supported many over the years both with my reviews and by purchasing others. Forsaken Realms: Vahrin’s Call can be beaten in about 15-20 hours, and while fun does have its issues, and at $35 is a bit steep. It is a 7/10 title that, unless you are a hardcore fan of the genre, you will probably want to wait for a sale. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.
Far Lands on PlayStation 5 was sent to me by Axyos Games, a company I have worked with a few times in the past on games like Ebola Village and Apartment No 129. The good thing about Axyos Games is that you always know what you are going to get. The bad thing about them is it will never be a fantastic game. Far Lands continues that trend; it is an open-world survival game where you survive a plane crash and find yourself with nothing but a rock. Do not lose this rock until you use it to mine some more rocks and wood, or you will have problems.
If this game is starting to sound familiar, it is because it is basically the premise of most other survival games out there. You will also get attacked by zombies, only a couple different kinds, and very quickly run into guys with guns. Yes, if you are quick, you can kill them with the aforementioned rock; they don’t track you very well with the gun if you get close. None of the enemies are very smart, truth be told.
I know this sounds like I didn’t like the game, and I still haven’t even touched on how bad some of the animations are. I don’t know who designed the horse riding animations, but those look like something from the N64 days. Not liking it actually could not be further from the truth; you see, what they made was a FUN game. Yes, the game is clunky and adds nothing new to the genre. The game isn’t all that good-looking, but you can build some interesting things if you want; just looking around is fun in its own way, and there aren’t many survival games out there for $15 that function well and also offer this many ways to customize your base.
This game definitely isn’t for everyone, and the best way to play this is with friends who don’t take it seriously. It is a 5/10 game if I ever played one. I can’t hate it though. Best wishes and may the gaming gods bring you glory.
Every successful business needs time to grow before it can truly thrive, and Will’s humble shop is no exception. After nearly eight months in Early Access, Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault launches in full on September 2nd on PC and, for the first time, consoles. To mark the occasion, the original Moonlighter is free to claim on Steam from August 5th to 9th – the perfect chance to meet Will before his biggest adventure yet. A demo for the sequel is available now on all platforms.
A sequel to the beloved original, which introduced players to Will—a resourceful merchant and adventurer balancing dungeon crawling with running a village shop—Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault entered Early Access in November 2025. On the road to its full release, the game received two major content updates. Greed and Glory introduced the HEX combat path, Blo-Blitz dual guns, and the wave-based Greed Colosseum. Blob-Life Balance followed with Bloblet shop companions, a stackable Poison Path, new weapons, and a Very Hard difficulty mode.
With the arrival of version 1.0, Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault brings its main story to a satisfying conclusion while introducing new weapons, armor, and the Bomb Path; a combat ability that causes enemies to explode after taking enough hits, damaging those nearby. Will’s shop also reaches its final level, unlocking additional Bloblet slots, new cosmetic options, and even more room to make Tresna truly feel like home.
For players eager to continue the adventure, the Infinite Endless Vault offers a new postgame challenge: an ever-escalating gauntlet of gold-filled runs designed to test even the most seasoned merchants. And for the truly fearless, Hardcore mode raises the stakes to their highest level—fall in the dungeon, and it’s back to the very beginning.
Moonlighter 2: The Endless Vault is open for pre-orders on PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch 2, with the full release incoming on September 2nd on PC, Xbox Series X|S (also in Game Pass), Nintendo Switch 2 and PlayStation 5.
Moonlighters 2’s: The Endless Vault demo is available now on all the above platforms. The Steam giveaway of the first Moonlighter will be held from 5th to 9th of August.
It isn’t often I play a game and its demo so close together, but it wasn’t that long ago I checked out the demo for Hellslave 2: Judgment of the Archon.Dear Villagers and Ars Goetia were kind enough to hook me up with this one, for which I am eternally grateful. For people who enjoyed the first one and just want to find out if this one is also worth playing, the quick answer is yes.
For those who want more details, let’s get started. You will begin by creating a character. I once again decided to give people the plague; I wanted to finish my game out and see if this would be as game-breaking as the demo made it out to be. Maybe don’t use this build on easy; with the right gear, you can win entire battles, even against weaker bosses, before they even start or in the first round. The right gear will let you start the battle dealing massive amounts of poison damage and then stack even more on top of it with your skills.
The battles kind of remind me of old Dragon Warrior in a way, as you only ever have yourself to fight with. You can manipulate the battle quite a bit by judging how long moves take and by waiting or defending, which is a nice touch. Again, on easy you can get away with just spamming your strongest moves, but anything higher than that and you will have to think before you act. The standard difficulty feels like the way the game was intended to be played.
A nice touch is that, rather than punishing you for avoiding enemies, the game rewards you for killing every enemy in an area, not just with experience but with extra stat points. In this way, my level 10 and your level 10 characters may not be even in power simply because you decided to kill every enemy in some games and I did not.
This brings me to my one issue with the game: there is a weird bug that did not exist in the demo. A few side quest bosses, for example, the skeleton you fight early on, for some reason just die when you enter the fight. I never had to hit him; the battle never started, and my weapons before battle skills never triggered. I just entered it, and the quest completed. I got credit for it, but the battle just resolved itself.
Aside from those weird bugs, the game looks and plays great. I loved my time with it; it is an 8/10 title that I am sure I will play again. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.
Soulbound: Online for Steam is classified as a pixel art action roguelite with an MMORPG overworld, which sounds like a lot is going on for only $15, even if it is only early access. With this much going on, you would think at least something would suffer.
Turns out, basically everything is suffering. We will get to that; let’s talk about the good first. The game does look great if you like pixel games, and the ability to work with up to 3 friends to raid and fight bosses is a lot of fun. The almost bullet-heaven-like dungeons are a lot of fun, and I am always a sucker for farming or fishing in a game.
Now the bad: the game lags a lot, more than most Early Access games I have played, depending on what is going on and how many people are playing. This goes for both input and output. This wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for what is coming next, which is honestly unforgivable.
While the real-time waits aren’t long at first, later on they become massive, literally days, and I have heard even weeks. If this wasn’t bad enough for a game you have to pay to play, I could deal with it. The unforgivable part is the fact that there is a progression wipe coming at some point, most likely at release. Anything bought with real money would be kept, everything else being reset. This, to me, is unforgivable and kills any reason to play the game; you are simply a playtester paying to play the game. You will lose all progress, and worse, and this is after fighting through lag, bugs, and waiting real time for it all. For this reason, I have to give the game a 4/10 and suggest you wait for a few patches and the full release or news on the planned reset being reversed. Best wishes, and may the gaming god bring you glory.
Echo Isle was sent my way by Josh Koenig Games, which is always appreciated. I won’t lie to you; I did not expect much from a game that cost $5 and was made by one guy and in every way appeared to be a complete rip-off of the original Zelda. I have learned one thing over the years, however: judging games by a quick look and the price is a quick way to miss out on a fun title.
First, yes, there is no way to avoid there is no way to avoid comparing this to Zelda because this game is an homage to the early games in the series, and it wears that very proudly. More importantly, it does it very well.
Now you are going to notice fast that this is a pretty short review, because the game is designed to also be short. This is sort of Josh’s thing; he makes retro games that are affordable, easy to get into, with no fluff. The dungeons are small, which doesn’t mean easy; some of the bosses can be tough if you aren’t careful. You get in, find the key, and then upgrade, fight a boss, and move on.
The story is equally as easy to get into. The lighthouse on the island has gone out; you are on a quest to relight it. The people on the island help with what they can; you explore a bit to find a few secrets, and away you go. The game can be finished in one sitting; I think I beat it in about 2 hours. My only complaints are the lack of achievements and the sword on some enemies could be a bit finicky later in the game. Not in any sort of game-ruining way, but a few times I swung and missed when I definitely did not miss. Still, this is a 9/10 game. Everyone should buy it. If you like old Zelda games, you will love this; if you don’t, this might give you a reason to try them. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.
There’s 3 things I knew tryin to get into the DMC series: the chronology is all over the place, the reboot missed the whole point, and people opinion on the best and worst are pretty damn unanimous. 3 is the best by a popular majority. After my lukewarm experience with the original Devil May Cry , I skipped 2 (unanimously cited as the worst) and went to see what the series really had. Was I disappointed?
We join a very young, brash, cocky, arrogant Dante on his first foray into demon hunting. When a mysterious tower emerges from the ground near his unnamed business and demons start pouring into the streets, the half human son of legendary demon king Sparda jumps into action with his trusty sword and pistols. However, behind this outpouring of hellish forces is a familiar face- his twin brother, Vergil. Vergil craves his father’s power and wants to smash the barrier between worlds, leading to utter chaos. Can Dante defeat the only one who can match his supernatural skills?
Seriously, I wish I heeded the advice everyone gave me to just stat with 3. These games aren’t really my kind of game but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I didn’t have a blast with the game. Everything is improved dramatically from the first game. Combat is more fluid with plenty of variety. The story is both more engaging with better developed characters and is more fun and over the top in the best ways. Dante has more personality and I love his interactions with Vergil, who’s his total opposite. The cut scenes are impressive as hell, especially given the time period. The camera, which killed the first game for me, was rarely a problem. The game itself has a lot more quality of life improvements that I greatly appreciated like unlimited continues and the ability to quick change weapons without pausing to go to the inventory menu. The highlight howver was the boss battles which were epic, challenging, and rewarding; the fights against Vergil were truly the best of the whole game.
The only real complaint was the the path finding at times. There were a few times the game has you backtrack quite a ways back through a layout that can be super easy to get lost in, especially when you start twisting parts of the tower. The boss gauntlet at the end did feel a bit excessive and felt like padding. Of course too there are few times the platforming annoyed me but thankfully it’s never life or death kinda of platforming.
In the end, I’m on board with the masses. Start with 3, it’s the first game in the series story wise anyway. It’s a fun, fast, over the top hack and slash that was plenty of fun and has has a hell of a lot of value I’d gladly recommend. May the gaming gods bring you glory.
As many of you know, I was lucky enough for iRacing to send me a copy of NASCAR25, and I thought it was fantastic. The newest trailer looks just as good; feel free to check out what they have to say about it below.
“Our fans told us they wanted iRacing Studios to build the next NASCAR console game, and they delivered,” said Nick Rend, Vice President of Interactive & Emerging Platforms at NASCAR. “The response to NASCAR 25 reflected the momentum we’re seeing around NASCAR video games, and NASCAR 26 takes another meaningful step forward with improvements across the entire experience, from how the cars drive and tracks evolve to cross-platform play that brings the community together. This is the most complete and authentic NASCAR console game we have delivered.”
NASCAR 26 will build upon the success of NASCAR 25, developed by iRacing, which launched on PC and consoles last fall. This year’s game, which features NASCAR star Kyle Larson as its cover driver, once again includes four NASCAR series – the NASCAR Cup Series, O’Reilly Auto Parts Series, Craftsman Truck Series, and ARCA Menards Series – with real drivers from each series, along with a groundbreaking new dynamic track feature that evolves over the course of every race weekend.
Built in collaboration with NASCAR and powered by iRacing Studios’ industry-leading simulation technology, NASCAR 26 continues the franchise’s commitment to delivering an authentic representation of the sport both on and off the track.
Additional features include:
New and improved game modes including an enhanced career mode with a new facilities feature and team upgrades, a standalone mode featuring The Chase, a new training mode, and cross-platform multiplayer
Visual upgrades including improved graphics, skies, and dynamic lighting, plus better replay cameras
More realistic racing with the new dynamic track technology, enhanced calibration tools for controls and force feedback, an improved driving model with overhauled tire and braking models, better driver AI, a particle system that enhances smoke, debris, and rubber buildup, and a 750 HP package
New additions such as burnout celebrations, an all-new Ram truck, a new spotter (Freddie Kraft), and a trophy room
New tracks including the Qualcomm Circuit at Naval Base Coronado, Chicagoland, and St. Petersburg
A host of other improvements with updated driver ratings, an improved paint kit, safety violations, DNFs and much, much more
“NASCAR 26 isn’t just about adding new features, it is to continue our long-term approach to building the most authentic NASCAR console franchise ever created,” said Matt Lewis, Vice President and Senior Producer at iRacing Studios. “Dynamic track technology means conditions evolve throughout a race weekend, the improvements we’ve made to the driving model, the new modes we’ve added… it’s all rooted in one of the founding principles of iRacing; leading with an authentic experience for our fans. We’re excited for players to experience NASCAR 26 this September.”
Beginning today, fans can pre-order NASCAR 26 at www.NASCAR26.com and choose from a Standard Edition ($59.99) and Gold Edition ($79.99), with Gold Edition owners receiving three days of early access beginning on September 15, four monthly paint scheme DLC packs, 1,000 career mode rep points, a $10,000 career bonus, and more.
Launching on September 18, NASCAR 26 will be available for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S and PC via Steam.
NASCAR 26 continues the sport’s expanding investment in interactive entertainment and fan engagement, bringing the latest innovations from the track to players around the world. For more information, to pre-order the game or watch the official gameplay trailer, visit www.NASCAR26.com.
It is well established how much I love and respect both Atari and Strictly Limited Games, and at a time when physical games may be coming to an end in certain areas, I am happy to announce that Bread and Fred will have a limited-edition physical release on both PlayStation 5 and Nintendo Switch from Strictly Limited Games. This is not a code-in-a-box situation; these are true physical games. Feel free to click the links and place your pre-orders while supplies last.
In partnership with Atari and Strictly Limited, this fan-favorite co-op platformer is making its way to physical format, giving collectors and platforming fans the opportunity to add one of the most charming cooperative adventures of recent years to their shelves.
In this playful and challenging co-op platformer from Sand Castles Studio, players take control of two penguins tied together by a rope as they set out on the ultimate climb to the summit of a towering snowy mountain. Beneath its charming exterior lies a delightfully demanding challenge where every jump matters, every swing counts, and every hard-earned victory feels unforgettable. Whether playing side by side, online with a friend, or solo alongside a stone called Jeff, players will discover a unique platforming experience that rewards perseverance and skill.
This Limited Edition includes the complete Bread & Fred experience, featuring local and online co-op, the dedicated single-player mode with Jeff the Rock, Speedrun Mode for seasoned climbers, and the extensive Laboratory Update, adding new mechanics, fresh challenges, and hidden secrets to discover..
The physical release of Bread & Fred will be completed by the physical publishing experts at Strictly Limited as a Limited Edition for Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5. It will be available through the Strictly Limited Store, the Atari Store, as well as select retail partners and online marketplaces worldwide.
Savior Gaming 