Recent reviews by Hackle

A great game that really appreciates your time and more importantly, friendship and shared bonds with your friends that you play with.

Its unfortunately a one-and-done type of game in my opinion. But with that said, its a game that is best served by going in blind. You'll learn your own ways of communicating with your friends to complete puzzles you never thought of before, such as our little four-man's squatting to signify "I understand" and "that's correct!".
We spent four sessions playing Big Walk before finishing the game, each a Saturday night for around 2-4 hours each. Its not an intensly long game. There are puzzles that suck - such as the one our team dubbed "Claustrophobia", and there are puzzles that are great too that don't outstay their welcome. But it is a great game for a group of friends that I would highly recommend since I've never had a game having staying power like this for my group since Dota 2 (2012-2018) and Overwatch (2018-2020).
Part of that would be the shortness of the game. Part of that would be the ability to wander off and ♥♥♥♥ off into the middle of woop-woop, like we were children again at a camp grounds

And the little things I recognised - like the calls of the laughing Kookaburra, the Magpie, and the Lyre bird, or the Banksia of many varities and Eucalyptus gums. Every time I noticed something new - whether a new flora or call of fauna - I got so excited. Maybe that's the biologist in me, or maybe that's the power of seeing your home in a game, I couldn't say. The only thing missing was possums up trees at night with their big eyes! It truly felt like a walk in the backyard.

I guess what I'm trying to say is, Big Walk envoked a sense of child-like fun in me, reminding me of real times I had when I was young with friends I never had those experiences with. And to be able to play that every weekend together for a month was something very special.
If you want that experience, gather some friends and give Big Walk a go. Try and enjoy the experience for what it is - a Big Walk in Outback Australia.

It is honestly silly to give a review this early into me playing a game, but from what I've played of Honey Bunny, I have enjoyed it, and with 4 total reviews at the time of posting (and 2 at the time I purchased it!), I want to give it the most exposure I can.

When I was young, we rented Nintendo 64 games. If them, there was this really okay game called Chameleon Twist. I enjoyed it a lot, completing it multiple times in one weekend. And I have never encountered a game that has that whimsy nor oddity in its world design, until Honey Bunny.

It's a little clunky, just like Chameleon Twist. It's full of vibrant colours and zany environments even if they're in character for the world for Honey Bunny. And there was something so magical about having that moment hit me - a nostalgic feeling on something completely new and different.

Honey Bunny does - from what little I have played - have short songs for levels. This leads to the music repeating quite a lot, but at the same time, it's not grating as I would expect it to be.

One gripe I have is that characters have snippets of dialogues above their heads and you need to stand really close to to be able to read, but I just wanna zoom!

Movement, once again, clunky but fun. I can see it being a niche speed runner game with certain tech for those looking for that kind of challenge.

So why am I not playing more? Just not in the mood for a 3D platformer right now! But I think there is a real gem here that could be someone's next favourite game, and Honey Bunny deserves that attention.

Final note:
I played on both Steam Deck (unknown compatability) and a much beefier desktop on Linux distro Fedora KDE Plasma 44 with Nintendo Switch Pro Controller (USB). The game runs fine with both setups, but does take a moment to launch compared to other verified games on both devices. Would love to have tested with the Switch 2 Pro Controller but Steam is inconsistent with applying udev rules, and while the controller has previously worked, it currently is not compatible with Steam (which is a shame, it feels better).

Give it a go if you like the Nintendo 64 and Playstation era of 3D Platformers. You might just find that this game is the game that scratches an old itch!

I am once again wishing we had a neutral rather than binary yes/no for Steam Reviews.

I feel bad giving a review so early into my playing of a game, however the more I stewed on my thoughts, the more I realised I just wasn't having fun. The below were my thoughts at 3.5 hours, and while I may pick Verho up again, I think the core take away for me was it was a poor man's moden King's Field; the more I play Verho, the more I feel its lacking a polish that Lunacid had.

Sure, Verho has voice acting, and its pretty good voice acting, while Lunacid doesn't, but its missing a certain polish in the combat that Lunacid had. While Lunacid let you hold and build your attack, Verho expects a lot more perfect timing from you. Which means there is a greater skill ceiling than Lunacid ever could have. Combine this with weapons seeming to scale more in line with Dark Souls with some weapons scaling A in Strength and C in Dexterity, the combat feels a bit... I don't know the word to describe this right now, but not as enjoyable. Both have strafe attacking like that of King's Field, alongside adjusting where you're looking to ensure you hit but maybe it comes down to the enemies.

I have tried the random mode - Oh my God, I am not ready! - so I have seen a variety of enemies outside of the starting areas I've visited on my main playthrough. Once you're outside the starting area, also while within the starting area for an optional boss, the enemies start doing weird things. One telegraphed move from one of the early bosses shows up in those random enemies I mentioned earlier where there is a windup, and then BOOM! Area of Attack on the ground. So you naturally would jump to avoid it, yeah? But that's the thing, the timing on it feels bad - like you jump when it lands (take damage), and you land a few seconds after the attack hits the ground (take damage) - almost like the timing window is buggy or incomplete. In fact, one of those randomised enemies I jumped up to high ground to avoid getting hit. It hit anyway. So I stayed on the ground - it stil hit. So I jumped. It didn't hit the first time, but the second time.

Another gripe would be the environmental hazards or enemies like the bats and mites. They're meant to be mild inconveniences, but can inflict bleed on you. They also take 1/4th and 1/8th of your health in damage on the Crusader starting class respectively. And the way they move is not great. You must simultaneously back away and swing to hit them without being hit yourself for both. With the mites constantly hitting you in a forward march, only turning if they are hit (and only sometimes) and can lead to a death by a thousand tiny bites because the mite didn't run away, and you stil need to charge up your attack to be able to hit the enemy for more than 1-10 damage (normally 50 or more depending on your weapon). Meanwhile the bats do more damage and fly off, encouraging ranged attacks...or back stepping.

Back to the environments...the reason I'm not feeling them is they're small, and have environmental damage that happens after I've been over the environment and taken no damage, with the first example being the poison swap where you can fetch a ring. The swamp moves up and down. I notice this, and wait to see what happens as I stand on a platform that moves gradually upward, completely engulfing the platform. Okay, cool, I've just learned that the environment is somewhat safe to stand on. Next time I do the exact same thing, instant death. Something similar happens in a lava cave. I jump across, can see I'm standing on the lava environment, I'm fine. I go to make a jump from one rock to the next and make it? You better believe that's instant death. In the Temple in the Secret Halls, there is a portal. I stand on it, once more nothing happens. I'm low on health, have a level to spend, and really want to try that greatsword in my inventory with 1 more stat in Strength before I can use it, so I take the path I took to get there and step over the portal and I can only assume this is what damaged me gradually because the area was completely annihilated of enemies earlier.
So yeah, all my deaths have felt cheap, and not deserved.

Music is not inspiring to be honest. Fitting, but not great; a Dark Souls tier soundtrack, which is to say...just a good soundtrack at best. If I come away not wanting to listen to it independently, and would not be able to enjoy the music outside the games environment, its not a great soundtrack in my opinion.
Also, the main character grunts at everything, and its at least not the hyper sexual sounding male character from Dark Souls, but its not pleasant. I could turn it off, but then I wouldn't know that I'm taking damage from the environment for an unknown reason.
I'll also touch back to the voices here; they are good, not great like a lot Verho - Curse of Faces is. But a good voice actor is so much better than a mediocre voice actor, even without proper direction. What I have heard sounds well directed and well paced, alongside properly mixed voices. I hope that the developers Kasur Games learn a lot from this game here because they're so close to having great voice actin.

Another minor greivance is the awful head bob. You can't turn it off, even with the setting that allegedly turns off head bobbing. So if you're suseptible to motion sickness, do not come near this game.

So where does that leave me?
I don't know. Maybe I'll finish it at some point at a later date, or maybe I won't. Not really sure, because its got a lot more polish than KIng's Field (which I yearn for) but its stil not quite enough to reach that Lunacid itch. Like I feel like there should be more to explore; more secrets to find...and yet I'm coming up short. So yeah...we'll see.

Who is this game for?
Definitely recommending it if you like King's Field, Lunacid, Dark Souls, Demons Souls, Elden RIng, but also a buyer beware sort of situation. Same for those who enjoy metroidvanias like Hollow Knight, Blasphemous, Salt & Sanctuary as I strongly hold the belief that there is a lot in common with Dark Souls and Demons Souls ethos in a 3D environment games like Verho and these particular metroidvanias. I can easily see you enjoying this as a first time foray into this type of RPG.
I'd also probably give a minor recommendation for those who enjoyed The Elder Scrolls games, Dread Delusion, and Kristala, as while Verho is much smaller in scale compared to those, the combat feels closer to those games, and also has the aesthetic charm of some of them (Morrowind and Dread Delusion in particular).

Who is this game not for?
If you don't like stiff combat ala The Elder Scrolls, or are not a fan of janky head bobbling, I'd absolutely stay away from the game.
I'd also not recommend it for people who aren't fans of modern systems like deaths costing progress rather than being a semi-checkpoint system.

Who is this a wild card game for?
My wild card recommendation is Ultima Underworld and The Legend of Grimrock of all things, specifically for the atmosphere. They're not very similar in gameplay or aesthetics, but there was something about Verho that makes me think of these games in a good way.

Closing Thoughts
Verho - Curse of Faces is a game that captures some but not all of the things I'm looking for in a 3D dark fantasy game. It is a strong contender to scratch the itch for a modernised King's Field style of game, but unfortunately comes up lacking if you've placed other games in a similar vein more recently.
Its not a bad game by any stretch of the imagination, but it is a bit lacking compared to others more recently released.
Kasur Games did a good job with Verho - Curse of Faces, but its just that; a good game.

Another free game that is just a cute little proof of concept type of game. I like the humour, the puzzles weren't too difficult, and the background artwork was a real treat.

Not much that can be said because its a really short game. However, I suggest playing it with company, as the humour is worth sharing with others.

I wish Steam gave a neutral option rather than YES or NO only.

Toem is a short casual cozy game, and I think its the game that made me realise that this style of game is really not for me.

There are no puzzles to speak of because everything is clearly sign posted. Because of this, Toem is basically a walking simulator, which isn't the game I signed up for.
I was hoping for a bit more use the camera as get interesting shots ala Pokemon Snap. Maybe using modifiers like the honking to change shots like Pester Balls and Flute in those two games. But it isn't that. There's ONE achievement puzzle that involves using that feature. That's what I mean by Toem being closer to a walking simulator.
Now don't get me wrong for $3.00-ish, I don't regret purchasing it, but it is emblematic to me of a deeper design shift in games that just...isn't for me.

Its the perfect game to have as second monitor content because that's how braindead easy the puzzles are. Its perfect for listening to a podcast because you're not actively engaging with the environment in a way that's satisfactory. And that's okay! People live busy lives and like the style of game.

I would recommend Toem for those who are looking for a very casual game experience. It might be something good to unwind after work for those who like it. I would also suggest those after short experiences will probably enjoy it. I would also suggest it for children age 3-6, because its the right level of difficulty for them, and the right level of reading for them to be learning and engaging. It would also be a fun experience as a parent helping the younger end of that age range, by engaging with them by reading (in silly voices of course!) while allowing the older end to ask questions of how to pronounce or what a particular word means, in my opinion. This is not a bad thing! We need games that engage kids and parents!
But I would not recommend Toem for those looking for a puzzle game, nor for those looking for something like Pokemon Snap. It just isn't either of those things, and those going in wanting either will be severely disappointed like I was.

Specs attached because I could not play it on my Linux Desktop. It refused to load; it was stuck on a white screen with the photo number in the bottom right, and was basically like being in a test room except I couldn't move.
Works percfect on Steamdeck though!

Beautiful little game. Seems like it has original music, great animation, gradually builds in difficulty. Not too difficult in terms of rhythm games, but builds upone itself. I like how it felt like a dance rather than a fight in how the character moved.

Its free. I don't know what else to say. Except...

KISS. THAT. DRAGON.

I will state that I have previously played through Gnosia on the Switch when it first came out, and loved it there.

I fell in love with this werewolf/visual novel when it released on the Switch, which is odd because I hate deception games and I hate visual novel games. Yet, the game is very simple in its concept of finding out who the bad guy is, and of course, don't let the world ending bug live either, meanwhile you chase threads to learn more about the characters of this world.
I can't say more without going into spoilers, but the game is so well done that even characters I hated from their introduction warmed to me, barring one. I still think about the game regularly even to the point that the anime starting up again made me want to see how faithful an adaption it is, and well, I love this game so much that I believe the team behind Gnosia deserves a second buy.

If you like mystery, a sci-fi setting, and a world that has progressed in a different direction from our own, Gnosia should scratch a specific itch.
If you however are not a fan of visual novels, I would probably give this a miss, and the same for repetitive natured games where you do the same or similar things over and over again expecting a different result.
If you're enjoying or did enjoy the story of the anime, it wouldn't hurt to give it a try. You'll spot things that are only obvious to those who've played the games, I'm sure!

Some caveats with Steam Deck; it can't be launched at full resolution, you must resize it down to the appropriate size. I assume this will be smaller on the LCD Steam Deck than the OLED, but I only have the OLED to confirm with.
The other issue is setting your name - the one time you have to - seems to require a physical keyboard, and in desktop mode as well. I could not get the digital keyboard to work in either desktop or portable mode, and sometimes the game would soft-lock here, unable to progress even with a keyboard unless I started typing on the keyboard first.
These two minor quirks are enough to warrant a caution to Steam Deck owners on buying this, but they're not a big deal in the end because you only ever use the keyboard twice in the game, and only need to set the resolution once.

For the asking price, this is an absolute steal of a game. Its a very good puzzler that engages in lateral thinking, similar to a New York Times style of crossword puzzle or any cryptic clue game.
I will say I have only played a little of this game so far, but what I have seen I like, and it is a good game to play with another person to brain storm aloud. That said, it is tricky if you have never encountered a word before (e.g. a particular variety of animal, tree, or concept).

I hope more people give this fun little puzzle game a try. Its cheap, its fun, its engaging, and most importantly to me, its family night friendly.

EDIT:
I love this game. Since this review, I have swapped from Windows 10 to a Linux distro.

It is not Linux compatable. It will not launch on a Linux Desktop. Do not buy if you plan on using Linux OS (tested with Fedora).

It is Steam Deck Compatable though!
Streaming to your PC via Steam Deck does not work though, lol.

I enjoy colouring pixel games. They're very relaxing.

This was actually quite stressful due to the camera not being easy to move around. Maybe there are settings for this, but I found it focusing on one point which made it hard to find missing cubes.
The other thing that was stressful was the sheer amount of colours. Level 2 has 60. Some of those are two blocks, but that's a daunting task to see. Especially when you've got individuals who prefer to do one colour at a time. Which brings my third negative.
Its really difficult to see what you're doing because the numbers bleed together. It physically hurts my eyes. You may not experience this, but if you're prone to eye strain like I am, this hinders the game more than anything.

I hate doing this to a free game, but these factors combined with in-game microtransactions is a real turn off. Yes, I can buy the DLC - which is what other colouring games do - I just think seeing microtransaction style "buy this pack" is just gross. Even if its not a true microtransaction, it is not what I come to relaxing colouring games for.

I'm sure this is perfect for some people, but for me its just too unworkable in its current state. Its a shame, the concept is really cool. I wish the best to the devs and hopefully once its out of Early Access I can come back and update this review to be more positive.

Realm of Ink is a hack and slash in isometric action roguelike game that is set in a unique world. From gameplay point of view, its very easy to compare against the very popular Hades as they do play similarly, however from my first run through Realm of Ink, I would say the basics seem easier than Hades, however the complexity of your choices seem to make the game harder as you progress.
When you die, you return to base and can accumulate new skills to help you next round with currencies you’ve earned through the last runs, same as Hades. You don’t purchase new weapons, but instead you purchase new skins for Red that give different weapons, and then optionally, you can buy skins for some of them - this will probably change as the game progresses through EA. I really like the distinctly different looks Red gets with each skin - helps differentiate really easily what weapon you're using because Realm of Ink is a bit zoomed out.
Not going to lie and say that these games are things I’m a huge story fan of, but the writing is decent, and is mostly voice acted in English (the dub I’m using) for the lines you see when talking to people. That is to say, these types of games are comfort games for me, and so long as the gameplay feels good – which it does for Realm of Ink – I will play them.
I like the differences it has compared to the easy game to compare against – Hades – including having a pet that changes based on what inks you have equipped, that you constantly can get better inks but they may not vibe with your build. I do not like that inks on the ground are not instantly recycled on new room transition as that means if you forget, you lose out. I like that you get a variety of different ways to upgrade yourself during the run, that may initially appear to affect you minimally, but stacking them makes you feel powerful. I don’t why this keeps happening, but I’m a firm believer of DOT/CRIT builds for these games. They just feel good to me! Just don’t take damage... ._.;;

I’m not a huge EA believer as I worry I’ll get my fill before everything is finished, especially if there’s no end in sight. If there is and its soon, I’m normally happy to get started before a game’s full launch, but for Realm of Ink its a little different.
Let’s address an elephant in the room with this game that some may not be aware of: It was removed from Steamin fact, I had it in my cart contemplating if I break my rule on EA when it was removed!, and returned under a new publisher but same devs. During the down time, the devs were posting planned updates they had ready to push, and were doing their best to find out what happened while being as open as they could with the community for Realm of Ink.
That, to me, says a lot about the future of the game in a positive way, and ultimately why I picked it up before full release.

As for Steam Deck, it is definitely playable with a huge caveat. The text in the dialogue boxes are dynamically sized based on the amount of dialogue present. Little text means easy readability, while lots of text is almost impossible to read. This carries over to the upgrades you get with each run. I found my eyes strained trying to read it, which is normally not an issue when Steam says “small text”, but this is tiny text. I’m a Nintendo Switch player and many people complain online about small text that I find passable, so when I say its small, it is really small, and because of that I would not recommend it for Steam Deck in its current state for that reason alone.
Maybe in the future the devs will make it more accessible for handheld gaming, but for now, I would recommend playing on a larger screen.

I would recommend this if you enjoyed
- The original Hades by SuperGiant as honestly, it feels like more of the same
- Fate as the pet reminds me a tiny bit of the pet mechanic there
- Binding of Isaac because the game’s also a roguelite and if you enjoy them, you'll likely enjoy this

I would not recommend this game if you are not a fan of rogue, roguelikes, roguelites, and other randomly generated run games, and especially those people who like games to have progression carry over ala NG+.

Realm of Ink is a fun action roguelike game that’s a bit on the easier side for this style, but is worth your time and money if you enjoyed other games like it in the past.