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Kibayasu
Mar 28, 2010

Horizon was just a mess of features for quite a while and it’s a small miracle it turned out how well it did. They at least didn’t spend 6 years trying to make a procedurally generated map like Mass Effect Andromeda.

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The 7th Guest
Dec 17, 2003

Hey y'all, I'm about to make a big infodump on upcoming games as I tend to do these days. It's nearly August, and August has a LOT on deck. I am not joking when I say this month is packed, wall to wall.

Note that I focus on indie and AA games, I don't really give a poo poo about AAA games sorry



Grime (August 2nd) (Demo available)

Genre: Souls-like, Metroidvania
For People Who Like: Giger-esque visuals, interesting world
Potential Issues: Makes Gears of War look like a vibrant rainbow explosion at times
Price: $24.99

I had played the demo of Grime in the Steam Next Fest and went "what the gently caress where did this come from??" The combat is satisfying (maybe a little too easy?), the world is weird, and the exploration feels right. The game has a couple of interesting additional systems... defeating enough of a monster gives you a perk, for example. I wish there was a little more color to the game, it's mostly sprinkled in the back for some occasional texture, but I worry that might make the biomes hard to distinguish. But I like a game that is inspired by art like Giger's without flat out ripping him off (reminds me a little of Zeno Clash's alien-ness as well).

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1123050/GRIME/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


Here Comes Niko (August 3rd)

Genre: 3D Platformer, Casual
For People Who Like: Cute games, something chill/relaxing
Potential issues: Not an issue per se, but seems tailored to the younger set
Price: $24.99

I've already mentioned this game before in past posts... I didn't get too into the details of it. Based on trailers I'd say this is somewhere inbetween Frog Detective and Mario Sunshine. It's a 3D platformer, but it doesn't look too complicated. You are helping people out with their requests, but you probably won't be racking your brain much. I'd say this is something that could cater to all-ages, like Rain on Your Parade. The game says there will be 6 islands, but it's a bit hard to tell just how much gameplay that will translate to. I'm assuming this is going to be a shorter game.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/925950/Here_Comes_Niko/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


Toodee & Topdee (August 4th)

Genre: Puzzle-platformer
For People Who Like: Twitchier puzzle platformers, avoiding spikes, planning ahead
Potential issues: Will the level design get a little too Meat Boy?
Price: $19.99

Take two types of puzzle games, the side-view puzzle platformer and the top-down Adventures of Lolo type, and mash them together to get Toodee & Topdee. You switch back and forth between the side-scrolling Toodee and the top-down Topdee to get both characters to the goal. The GIF pretty much explains it. This is one of those games where you need to think ahead on what you intend to do, as whichever character is inactive is frozen, but both have enemies that will come for you, so it's not the type of game you can sit still to strategize. I suspect this will be a game that shows up at Games Done Quick events in the future.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1303950/Toodee_and_Topdee/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


Death Trash (August 5th) (Early Access) (Demo available)

Genre: Isometric ARPG
For People Who Like: Fallout, Cosmic Horror, Puke
Potential Issues: Short on content for Early Access
Price: $19.99 (subject to change)

After a small introduction to the setting of a post-apoc world and the creation of your character, you are spat out into a world of fleshy trees, nude vagrants, and disembodied cyborg heads. You've been marked as infected, and you need to figure out if there's any cure out in the world... while solving other people's problems in whatever way you see fit. Death Trash started development as a Fallout fangame before becoming its own beast, splitting from the turn-based conventions of the original series and opting for a combination of dodge-roll melee combat and ranged gunplay. You can puke at will. The biggest issue with this at launch will be the fact that it is only launching with the first chapter of the game. Will there be that much more content than the demo? It reminds me a bit of Grounded, where I had played a demo of the game, and then the Early Access launch version had only one additional main quest that wasn't in the demo. I just don't know about buying it right away.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/941460/Death_Trash/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


Starmancer (August 5th) (Early Access)

Genre: Simulation
For People Who Like: The idea of Spacebase DF-9 but not abandoned
Potential Issues: Abandonment; being published by Chucklefish, who is as good at game management as they are taking care of an office dog

An indie space station sim with a nice isometric look, this one's been in development for... a while (nearly 6 years). You are the AI on board a space station and you're tasked with taking care of the many consciousnesses of the remainder of the human race. The care of the colonists seems to be job #1, as they can go insane or commit mutiny if they're not kept happy. Whether Starmancer will be the game Spacebase wanted to be will depend on a few factors... whether Chucklefish, the publisher that couldn't take care of a dog, keeps their feet to the fire, for example. I'm not exactly thrilled to see "What will constitute v1.0 will depend on feedback from the community" which makes me think they don't have a fully concrete plan. This may be one to watch from the sidelines to start.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1062000/Starmancer/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1



Dodgeball Academia (August 5th)

Genre: Sports RPG
For People Who Like: Sports games with story campaigns, the old Kunio-Kun dodgeball games maybe?? (I've not actually played them but it's not like there's a ton of action dodgeball games)
Potential Issues: Reverence for Pokemon might be a little too strong and lead to overly repetitive encounters in the world
Price: $24.99

I am not a huge sports gamer but I am a fan of games that take sports and make single player RPGs out of them, whether it's Mario Tennis for GBC, or Golf Story for Switch. Dodgeball Academia is made in this mold, where you are a student at a dodgeball school, taking part in many dodgeball battles with your party. Unlike Golf Story, this seems primarily focused on the Dodgeball battling-- the actual story battles do look like they will have some twists here and there, but it's probably not going to be as flexible and varied as Golf Story is. Still, it's got a campaign, side quests, and minigames. It has leveling up and experience points, it has character progression... one thing I don't remember from playing the demo is whether there is gear progression or not. The only thing that concerns me with this game is the battling itself, which I thought was very fun, but if it's just that over and over for every quest and sidequest, it could get old fast. It'll really depend on how they twist things up from battle to battle. For example, one battle took place out in the parking lot, and you had to dodge cars that drive right through the court because parents just don't give a gently caress about other kids I guess. (cutting social commentary!!!)

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1422420/Dodgeball_Academia/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


City of Gangsters (August 9th)

Genre: Simulation, Resource Management
For People Who Like: ..the old Gangsters series I guess?
Price: $30

Not related to the original Gangsters series OR Empire of Sin, this is a Prohibition-era gangster sim about bootlegging, by the developer of Project Highrise (the one that was inspired by SimTower). I am out of my depth here when it comes to games like this but I have to include it just because it's by a notable developer. You grow your bootleg hooch empire as best as you can before alcohol becomes legal again. Apparently there's combat too and it's turn-based? Maybe someone with better knowledge than me can fill in the gaps here.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1386780/City_of_Gangsters/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


Black Book (August 10th) (Free prologue available)

Genre: Card-based RPG
For People Who Like: Slavic folklore, a Deckbuilder with a story
Potential Issues: People have mentioned translation issues with the prologue, not much to go on about the full game from the limited info available other than the promised claim of 20 hours of gameplay
Price: $24.99

This one is interesting... a combination of deck-building turn-based battler and narrative game exploring the countryside with quests, sidequests, and Decisions to make. Not sure why people tagged it with Roguelite... it seems to be a hand-crafted adventure game that just happens to have card battling and deck assembling/customization. It's not my cup of tea but it looks neat.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1138660/Black_Book/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1



Glitchpunk (August 11th) (Early Access)

Genre: Top-down Open World Action
For People Who Like: Grand Theft Auto 1 (yes, the original), cyberpunk settings
Potential issues: Well, it's early access, so, all the risks that come with that.

Maybe you just didn't like it when Grand Theft Auto got that third dimension, maybe you were the weird one that played the first GTA demo forever, especially after figuring out how to disable the demo timer. Now bring it into 2021, slap some cyberpunk paint on it, and make the guns more over-the-top. It promises 10 escalations of Wanted levels, 12 different gangs with their own quests, and four full cities..... in the final version, anyway. The early access version has two cities.. which is actually still a decent amount of content if those cities are feature complete. They're not really hiding the influence on this one folks.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1459960/Glitchpunk/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


SkateBIRD (August 12th)

Genre: Skateboarding
For People Who Like: Tony Hawk and :coolbird:
Potential issues: People not thrilled with demo in prior Steam Festivals, up-and-down resume for the developer
Price: $19.99

It's hard to say that the momentum that carries SkateBIRD along has anything to do with the game itself and more to do with the memetic nature of the premise. It's birds on a skateboard. Make GIF, put on twitter, get lots of retweets (bird pun). I don't know what to make of the game, as people have complained that the original demo was janky, and I never heard if later demo builds improved at all. The developer (a former goon, Shalinor) previously made Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and Jones on Fire... I actually liked Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, but was cold on Jones on Fire which was a bit.. simple. I dunno. I could go either way on this one. Good luck to them!

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/971030/SkateBIRD/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_1


Fire Tonight (August 12th)

Genre: Adventure
For People Who Like: Story games, rotating a camera around dioramas
Potential issues: Light on gameplay
Price: $5.99

Fire Tonight comes from the developer of unique (if repetitive) and definitely overlooked all-ages co-op game Fossil Hunters (in the itch.io BLM bundle), and it's a story game about two people trying to reach each other when the city they live on gets engulfed in a massive blaze. The game says it is a narrative puzzle game, but they are likely to not be much more complicated than what you see in the GIF: finding a solution on the same screen as the problem. Whether this one succeeds will largely depend on the strength of the story.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1188900/Fire_Tonight/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


Road 96 (August 16th)

Genre: Story/CYOA
For People Who Like: Road trips, branching storylines
Potential issues: Claims to be "procedurally generated"... hhhrrrmmm
Price: $19.96

Road 96 (which should've swapped the numbers around imo, just saying) comes from the team of Valiant Hearts and 11-11 Memories Retold, but this time it's not about old war soldiers, it's about road tripping in the 90s. Something that I didn't realize about the game until now is that it is set in "the authoritarian nation of Petria". And part of your road trip is escaping the regime. So your protagonist is not quite as passive as I assumed. You'll be making decisions, choosing routes, and getting into all sorts of situations. Valiant Hearts was actually pretty good, imo... this one promises exploration, contemplation AND action... but it's unclear to me if that just means quick-time events like a typical Telltale game.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1466640/Road_96/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2



Greak: Memories of Azur (August 17th) (Demo available)

Genre: Puzzle-platformer, Action, Character-switching
For People Who Like: The Lost Vikings, Trine
Potential Issues: Is tagged as a Metroidvania and my experience with the demo was... it's not. So this is not an issue so much as, keep that in mind.
Price: $19.99

I hope that Hollow Knight hasn't ruined the ability for other developers to make atmosphere platformers with fog and moody lighting, because I feel like everyone's just going to shout that comparison from the rooftops at everything. The better comparison for this one is Trine but with more action. You have three characters with their own abilities and fighting styles, and you'll be switching between them to solve puzzles and progress through the world. It's a bit buried under other games for me at the moment when it comes to my wishlist, but I don't think this one should be ignored. There's definitely a lot of effort gone into this one.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1311070/Greak_Memories_of_Azur/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


Tetris Effect: Connected (August 18th)

Genre: Tetris
For People Who Like: Tetris, Vibes
Potential Issues: Tetris addiction

I don't normally mention games coming out of Epic jail, because they aren't REALLY new releases, but this one warrants attention as it is one of the three most significant Tetris games to come out this past decade (the other two being, of course, Puyo Puyo Tetris from Sega, and Tetris 99 from Arika). From the creator of Lumines, Tetris Effect is as good as Tetris gets, and it is amplified by a phenomenal soundscape and shifting aesthetics. And yes, this version has VR support.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1003590/Tetris_Effect_Connected/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


Monster Harvest (August 19th) (Demo available)

Genre: Farming RPG
For People Who Like: ...besides the incredibly obvious, also Pokemon.
Potential Issues: Kind of out of nowhere, first game by this dev, battling looks a little.. simple
Price: $19.99

New Stardew just dropped. Okay but seriously, here's a farming game with an additional layer of monster raising and battling. So you've got your farming and you also have your turn-based Pokemon fights. The game has a story to it, it seems. It really comes down to presentation and depth. I know nothing about this dev but a google search brought up a website that may as well not have been a website. Merge is a reputable publisher, it's just... I dunno. I would've expected to see this kind of game in early access to get feedback from the community, so. I dunno what to make of it. The slightly tilted perspective is a neat look. I guess I'll have to play the demo at some point to make any fair judgement.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1363350/Monster_Harvest/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


Recompile (August 19th) (on Gamepass)

Genre: 3D Platformer, Metroidvania
For People Who Like: Metroid Prime, Hacking minigames
Potential Issues: As with any indie 3D platformer, if the feel of the jumps is bad, it throws everything off. Hopefully they've tuned this well.

Here's a cool one... a 3D platforming Metroidvania with some third-person shooting, lots of hacking, a cool setting, branching narrative and multiple endings. Listed as inspirations in the description are Axiom Verge, Hollow Knight and Breath of the Wild, so, yeah, I'm interested. I just hope the platforming is alright. In clips the jumping is a little.. fast? Fast acceleration and de-celeration. As someone who has played Poi, FreezeME, Yooka Laylee, A Hat in Time, Demon Turf, Pumpkin Jack, etc... the feel of the jumping sets the tone for the whole game. If it doesn't feel good, the whole game feels bad. So that's the biggest hurdle for this one to clear and hopefully it clears it.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/986310/Recompile/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


SYNTHETIK 2 (August 19th) (Early Access)

Genre: Roguelite, Top-Down Shooter
For People Who Like: The original SYNTHETIK
Potential Issues: Haven't played the original so I'm not qualified to say, but as always, early access games come with pitfalls

SYNTHETIK has a shiny new coat of paint on it. New weapons, classes, headshots, and looooore. I don't have much to contribute on this one, I have not played the original (I'm not a roguelite person) but this game has some very dedicated fans so I'd be remiss not to include the sequel.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1471410/SYNTHETIK_2/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


12 Minutes (August 19th) (on Gamepass)

Genre: Story/CYOA
For People Who Like: Time loop stories
Potential Issues: Hopefully skipping forward in time is not too painful.

You have dinner with your wife, an argument happens, then a police officer breaks in and beats you to death... start over. This one is highly-awaited, is voiced by James McAvoy, Daisy Ridley and Willem Dafoe, and comes from a publisher with a top-tier pedigree (Annapurna). I'm not just going to throw it on the GOTY list right away, but I think this is going to be one a lot of people play. As with most time-loop games, I hope that there are not too many lull points where you are sitting around waiting for something to happen. Please.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1097200/Twelve_Minutes/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


Hoa (August 24th)

Genre: Puzzle-platformer
For People Who Like: ...puzzle-platformers???
Potential Issues: Not sure what the hook is
Price: $14.99

Hoa is a gorgeous looking platformer leaning towards the end of the month, although... it says that it has "exploration based puzzles" and it's hard to say whether that means you will actually need to look around and find things, or if they just mean "make it through the level by finding the way forward!" Because then that means Mario is an exploration based puzzle game. It looks nice though.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1484900/Hoa/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


I Expect You to Die 2 (August 25th)

Genre: Adventure
For People Who Like: Seated VR silliness, escape rooms
Potential Issues: Will likely be short, like its predecessor.
Price: $24.99


Yes, VR gamers get something this month too, besides the bonus VR in Tetris Effect. I Expect You to Die is one of the classic Steam VR games, a game of spy shenanigans where you avoid laser grids, stop rocket launches, prevent world annihilation and gently caress up grabbing objects with your stupid VR hands, all from the comfort of your chair. This looks to be more of the same, and to be fair, I don't think the wheel needed to be reinvented here. It's just more levels essentially. The only caveat to VR games is, as always, the ridiculous pricing which never matches the content on offer. $25 is at least not TOO bad, especially if the game has more content than the original.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1499120/I_Expect_You_To_Die_2/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


Psychonauts 2 (August 25th) (on Gamepass)

Genre: 3D Platformer
For People Who Like: Psychonauts, Platforming mixed with Adventure Gaming
Potential Issues: It's Double Fine, the definition of Potential Issues in the dictionary (the special kind that defines two words together) is just their logo.
Price: $60

If an AA developer gets acquired by Microsoft does their game become an AAA game? I dunno. I just hope that this comes anywhere near to living up to the hype, because DF has a wild track record and people are very jaded on them. Granted, that cynical nature comes from Spacebase and Broken Age which were years ago at this point, and they've put out solid games since then (such as Headlander and Rad), but still, it's hard for them to shake the image that they have problems finishing games. This does feel like a legitimate full fledged game, not cut short, not compromised, and hopefully this will be Psychonauts as we remember it in our heads

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/607080/Psychonauts_2/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_3


ProtoCorgi (August 26th) (Demo available)

Genre: Horizontal Shmup
For People Who Like: 90s Shmups, Cute Visuals
Potential Issues: Finding the balance between bullet hell and approachable game for newcomers

A dog-based shmup with great pixel art (very Yoshi's Island inspired), and heavy action. Something I didn't know about until today is that the game will include a level editor that is inspired by Super Mario Maker, which should make it possible for people of all ages to make their own little doggy shmups. It will have an adjustable difficulty from "Pup" to "Ultra Nightmare" so I'm curious to see the differences. The demo was fun. IDK, it's a shmup. Buy it or don't what do I care

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1039280/ProtoCorgi/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_3


Baldo: The Guardian Owls (August 27th) (on Apple Arcade)

Genre: Zelda
For People Who Like: Zelda
Potential Issues: Translation, slightly off art, not many details given

This one's been in the works for a while and you might have seen it before and forgotten the name because the name is loving horrible. Well I don't blame you because drat, that name. They don't even include a colon in the Steam page title and didn't seem to proofread the page much... so while I'd like to give the benefit of the doubt, it's possible this will be a jank fest. It has a Ni No Kuni style look to it, but slightly off. You'll know what I mean if you go to the store page and look through it. It's just.. a little bit off. This one will be on Apple Arcade so I'll be able to give a hands on when it releases.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1614890/Baldo_the_guardian_owls/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2


Book of Travels (August 30th)

Genre: TMORPG (see below)
For People Who Like: Other Might & Delight games, experimental social multiplayer games
Potential Issues: Might be tough to find other players if it's not a major success
Price: $29.99

The developer of the Shelter series has a new experiment, a Tiny Multiplayer Online RPG where you don't have a specific goal. There may not even be quests? I can't tell for sure. It will have detailed character customization, and combat, and a ton of abilites and perks... but it's also nonlinear. So this is definitely a risk for the developer. Will the game hold up if you never see another person, for example? You will only be able to communicate to them with symbols you find in the world, anyway. I think this could be pretty cool, but also the kind of game that people talk about a decade from now going "man, that really could've been something if people actually played it".

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1152340/Book_of_Travels/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_3


The Big Con (August 31st)

Genre: Adventure
For People Who Like: The 1990s, playing as a con artist, intense colors.
Potential issues: Gameplay could become repetitive
Price: $14.99

While the developers claimed they weren't going too hard on nostalgia during the Tribeca Games Festival in June, it's hard not to just look at The Big Con and think of it as Nostalgia: the Game. It's the 90s brought to you through Mission Hill-esque color theory and Nicktoon-esque characters. In this one you play a teen learning how to pickpocket and grift people in order to save her mom's rental shop. This can simply involve swiping change, or eavesdropping on conversations and "helping" people, or fulfilling other objectives. The demo was fine, I'm just not sure if it will vary things up enough across the whole game. It's got a very powerful aesthetic, I will give it that.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1139280/The_Big_Con/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_4


KeyWe (August 31st)

Genre: Co-op Puzzle
For People Who Like: Overcooked, Monaco, any game where co-op can lead to panicked shouting
Potential issues: The art on this one looks REALLY busy, it might be hard to tell where you are at times which is not great when you're in the midst of mayhem.
Price: $24.99

As far as I know, this is how the postal system works in New Zealand. You play as two little kiwi birds working together in a post office, pulling levers and pressing buttons to get mail to where it needs to go. What separates this from games like Overcooked is the additional platforming element. Since your characters don't have hands, part of your functions involve butt slamming on buttons and also jumping to reach things. So the developers designed levels around this, with platforms and hazards, so it's a bit more active in that regard rather than a game where you are just walking from one counter to another. I think this could be quite special if it finds the right audience (I'm sure it will be popular with streamers).

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1242980/KeyWe/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_4


Soul Nomad & the World Eaters (August 31st)

Genre: SRPG
For People Who Like: Nippon Ichi games, PS2 SRPGs
Potential Issues: Port quality

After bringing Phantom Brave to PC, NISA is continuing to bring PS2 games over (will La Pucelle Tactics be in the future?). I don't really know anything about this game, I just know that it looks like one of those Disgaea games and it's by NIS, so.. there'll probably be six fans clamoring for this one.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1535610/Soul_Nomad__the_World_Eaters/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_4


Lamentum (August 31st)

Genre: Survival Horror
For People Who Like: Resident Evil, The Count Lucanor
Potential Issues: Combat could be cumbersome, but that would just make it all the more genre-appropriate
Price: $14.99 (subject to change)

There are two major indie ResiEvils coming out this year; one is the extremely slick Signalis coming from publisher Humble Games. This one comes from smaller publisher Neon Doctrine who has published games like Yuppie Psycho and The Count Lucanor and this definitely fits in that same wheelhouse, but with even more of a tilt towards classic survival horror action. The art isn't to my personal taste, but this seems to have everything you'd want in a Resident Evil clone: a large mansion, esoteric puzzles, mechanisms that need multiple talismans placed in them, awkward item combining, weird creature designs, and... okay there aren't tank controls. But that would be weird for a top-down game, so be fair.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1033950/Lamentum/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_4


Ambition: A Minuet in Power (August TBD)

Genre: CYOA/Visual Novel
For People Who Like: Long Live the Queen
Potential Issues: If it's as difficult as Long Live the Queen you might never get to the end; art style is so-so

It's been a hot minute (minuet) since Long Live the Queen was the first VN that came to mind when talking about Steam's catalog; the notoriously difficult stat-based CYOA where a bunch of decisions and stat boosts would not seem important until long after it's too late to do anything about it (many people just couldn't help themselves to that poisoned chocolate). Here comes a similar game of stat raising, diplomacy, and avoiding bad ends. You are a commoner rising in power right at the brink of the French revolution, and you'll be trading in gossip, strategically dating, make political decisions that affect the story and pretty much try not to die. Note that this game got delayed from June to August and then still doesn't have a specific release date, which is why it's at the bottom here.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/949200/Ambition_A_Minuet_in_Power/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2

----

This month will also feature Aliens: Fireteam Elite and Amazon's New World MMO, but.... I dunno about actually repping them here. For starters, no one wants Fireteam Elite, we want Isolation 2. Also, who gives a gently caress about Amazon's game. There are also a couple of other games being freed from Epic Game Store jail this month: Humankind (a civvy), The Cycle (F2P PvPvE shooter), and Mortal Shell (a souls-like).

Now, one weird thing about indie devs is that they will put games in specific months of the release queue on Steam either because they do intend to release in that month or because they once planned to, and then forgot to move it. So I have a lot of games below that are shown in the August queue on Steam, but none of them specifically list August as a release date. So it is possible they will move out of August, or very much will release in August and will get a release date soon (Lamentum literally announced their release date as I was away from the computer):

System Shock - The remake from Nightdive, gone through a bit of a development hell... I doubt this will come out in August but we'll see.
Carrier Command 2 - The return of Microprose.... currently seems to be sandwiched between a bunch of August 10th releases.
Garden Story - A combination of life sim and ARPG where you go from town to town fighting off The Rot. Sandwiched between a bunch of August 11th releases.
Dread Templar - Another retro shooter, this one gives you a sword to go along with the guns. I thought the demo was alright.
Land of Screens - A 2.5D narrative game about a woman who ditches social media and tries to establish in-person connections with people. Developed by Serenity Forge (Neversong, The King's Bird).
Beacon Pines - Furry Stranger Things, with a unique storytelling gimmick where you gain words that you can place inside of the sentences that narrate the story and change the branch you're on. The game does claim to target September on the Kickstarter, so while it may miss August it's not too far off. Really liked the demo of this one.
Final Fantasy IV - This is the pixel remaster of FF4 which is currently in the queue for August 19th but does not have an official release date confirmed by Square yet.
Arietta of Spirits - A melancholy Zelda-like about a girl that discovers the ghost of her grandmother and starts seeing spirits around the island the family has gone to visit.
Moncage - A cool little 3D puzzler where you transport objects from one dimension to another. Each face of the cube represents a different world. The developer says that development is complete but also that it will release "by the end of 2021" so... probably not coming out in August.
Alchemic Cutie - An extremely vibrant life sim, this one is in the August queue, but the developers specifically mentioned September as the target window.
Midnight Fight Express - An isometric brawler that looks cool as poo poo. Has a mission in it where you go into the No Russian level from COD:MW2 and stop it from happening, which rules, gently caress you Activision.
Behind the Frame - Is an escape room an escape room if you don't intend on escaping? This is a chill one-room puzzle game about a painter with gorgeous art direction. Update: Confirmed for August 25th
OPUS: Echo of Starsong - The OPUS series of narrative sci-fi puzzle games have been more popular on Switch, but they've been ambling along on Steam all the while. This is the latest one, and it looks to be the biggest yet with actual 3D mixed in with the 2D elements. Queued for August 25th.
Murder Mystery Machine - This one's been in a quasi-state of Early Access via Apple Arcade for a year; it has a slick look for an investigation/detective game, although I found that the game was not willing to take the training wheels off and let you actually do any detective work yourself. You're just sort of clicking around to find the clues and then you move on to the next location, and there's a pinboard style deduction process but it was pretty basic. We'll see if more has been done to the gameplay since I played it.
Myst Remake - This is not RealMYST but a -new- remake that will also support VR headsets. Personally I think Cyan needs to stop milking this cow and release another game, now that Obduction has dried on the line for a few years.
Outworlder - This is basically the Spacebound-but-good game that goons have been working on for a while now. If you didn't intend on releasing in August, folks, consider this an opportunity to fix that!
Patrick's Parabox - A recursive puzzle game about levels inside of levels. Compared to the platforming of similar entry Recursed, this one is a Sokoban style game, but looks to be a bit more fixed than brain (and universe) destroying.
Steel Assault - The latest 2D action game published by Tribute (Mercenary Kings, Panzer Paladin). It looks great but I wasn't a huge fan of the level design in the demo.

Other games in the August queue: Sam & Max VR, Atomic Heart (lol no), Trepang2, Soup Pot, Ultra Strangeness, One Dreamer

The 7th Guest fucked around with this message at 18:20 on Jul 29, 2021

StrixNebulosa
Feb 14, 2012

You cheated not only the game, but yourself.
But most of all, you cheated BABA

SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS

kirbysuperstar
Nov 11, 2012

Let the fools who stand before us be destroyed by the power you and I possess.

StrixNebulosa posted:

SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS

this tbh

Ciaphas
Nov 20, 2005

> BEWARE, COWARD :ovr:


looking forward to more people seeing what happens when NIS decides to get grim

whoo boy

Mordja
Apr 26, 2014

Hell Gem
Anyone play Intravenous? Seems like it's going for a Hotline Miami but with stealth sorta thing.

Clockwerk
Apr 6, 2005


7th Guest, thank you for your service

:captainpop:

Hub Cat
Aug 3, 2011

Trunk Lover

Mordja posted:

Anyone play Intravenous? Seems like it's going for a Hotline Miami but with stealth sorta thing.

I've played it for a bit(maybe an hour or so) and it's a pretty brutal 2d stealth game with interesting in-depth systems and loadouts. I think if you're looking for sneaky Hotline Miami (that is lots of fast loud ultraviolence melee encounters) I'd say move along but if you want hardcore 2d Splinter Cell it might be your jam.

The game has no problem with stuffing you in a locker for loving up. The enemies are numerous and dangerous things quickly devolve into a whole level of relatively clever enemies death balling you. I'm liking it so far some solo dev indie jank aside but it seems like very much a niche love it or hate it kind of thing.

Hub Cat fucked around with this message at 09:14 on Jul 29, 2021

HerpicleOmnicron5
May 31, 2013

How did this smug dummkopf ever make general?


My issue with City of Gangsters is it has you stick to the gruntwork for far too long, and has you spinning boring plates. I spent the opening couple hours repetitively buying things to make booze, then selling the booze to people to increase our relationship, then repeatedly asking them to increase my influence, repeat until enough territory is accrued to hire more people to do these things. It's not like Gangsters. It's like Factorio meets Crusader Kings without automation and having to take part in every conversation with other characters in the same multiple choice format over and over again.

Maybe it eases up and becomes more interesting as the game goes on, but it made a particularly negative first impression in the demo.

The 7th Guest
Dec 17, 2003

Clockwerk posted:

7th Guest, thank you for your service

:captainpop:
no problem! I also just went and added store links to all the games. the next mega post from me will be in a couple of days when i go over games I played this past month and what I recommend and don't recommend from it (genesis noir, to give an example, is in the don't recommend pile, unfortunately.)

The 7th Guest fucked around with this message at 06:42 on Jul 29, 2021

Jamfrost
Jul 20, 2013

I'm too busy thinkin' about my baby. Oh I ain't got time for nothin' else.
Slime TrainerS
Some interesting highlights in there. Now I don't have to wait for them to pop into my queue. Expedited backlogging. :yayclod:

Edit: Already had a huge interest in the Tetris one when it first made waves, forgot about it, and am now re-interested.

claw game handjob
Mar 27, 2007

pinch pinch scrape pinch
ow ow fuck it's caught
i'm bleeding
JESUS TURN IT OFF
WHY ARE YOU STILL SMILING

StrixNebulosa posted:

SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS

Yeah it really cannot be stressed how hard Soul Nomad is the best game NIS ever released. Nothing even close.

Maybe ZHP. MAYBE.

Xander77
Apr 6, 2009

Fuck it then. For another pit sandwich and some 'tater salad, I'll post a few more.



This:
https://disk.yandex.ru/d/UcQCvkJrfgiGog

The Gripper
Sep 14, 2004
i am winner

The 7th Guest posted:

Road 96 (August 16th)

Genre: Story/CYOA
For People Who Like: Road trips, branching storylines
Potential issues: Claims to be "procedurally generated"... hhhrrrmmm

Road 96 (which should've swapped the numbers around imo, just saying) comes from the team of Valiant Hearts and 11-11 Memories Retold, but this time it's not about old war soldiers, it's about road tripping in the 90s. Something that I didn't realize about the game until now is that it is set in "the authoritarian nation of Petria". And part of your road trip is escaping the regime. So your protagonist is not quite as passive as I assumed. You'll be making decisions, choosing routes, and getting into all sorts of situations. Valiant Hearts was actually pretty good, imo... this one promises exploration, contemplation AND action... but it's unclear to me if that just means quick-time events like a typical Telltale game.

Store page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1466640/Road_96/?snr=1_7_7_popularcomingsoon_150_2
I don't know what it is about them but the recent trailers with voice-overs have changed my opinion from "hell yeah I'll be getting this" to "this doesn't look like something I want to play at all". The original cinematic trailer with Anarchy Road's vaporwave-esque music over it had so much atmosphere https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KEBkjL31Avw, but the recent ones sound like mobile game ads for janky Theme Hospital clones.

Jerusalem
May 20, 2004

Would you be my new best friends?

Please be good, Psychonauts 2 :pray:

Also yeah looking forward to hear what people think of The Ascent, that gameplay demo posted 2-3 weeks back looked really cool and that's.... that's all I know about that game v:shobon:v

Gromit
Aug 15, 2000

I am an oppressed White Male, Asian women wont serve me! Save me Campbell Newman!!!!!!!

Jerusalem posted:

Please be good, Psychonauts 2 :pray:

For me, more of the same would be perfect enough. Don't need to mess with the gameplay at all, just give me more crazy places to go and stuff to collect. And Mr Pokeylope.

Sway Grunt
May 15, 2004

Tenochtitlan, looking east.
Psychonauts 2 will be good. Maybe not an all-time classic like the original but I'm feeling pretty confident about it. My only concern is my old computer is way under even the minimum specs, despite them being very modest for a AA+ 2021 title. I really hope I can run it. This is such a bad time to upgrade, too.

The Lone Badger
Sep 24, 2007

The 7th Guest posted:

Yeah, like I said gating works in stuff like Zeldas or Metroidvanias, or puzzle games. It doesn't make much sense in open world games where you can reach any objective from the beginning. I also maintain it made no sense to make you unlock essential stuff to combat in Metal Gear Rising like parrying. I can't fathom why they did it that way.

It forces the player to select the move in a menu and see the command for it (and often a little animation). It's an alternative to a forced tutorial.

Jerusalem
May 20, 2004

Would you be my new best friends?

Gromit posted:

For me, more of the same would be perfect enough. Don't need to mess with the gameplay at all, just give me more crazy places to go and stuff to collect. And Mr Pokeylope.

:agreed:

First game just absolutely hit all the right notes for me (aside from Meat Circus, and I played the much improved version years after it initially came out) and if they can do the same again I'll be so happy.

Hub Cat
Aug 3, 2011

Trunk Lover

Yeah alright played some more Intravenous and it's basically a silly vigilante plot crossed with Splinter Cell(or maybe Rainbow Six) as a 2D top-down shooter. Lots of systems stuff(weapon handling sound propagation etc) and gadgets here

I don't think Hotline Miami comparisons are very apt tbh although the combat is brutally lethal it's very gunplay and stealth-focused and well basically plays little like HM imo. While you can play aggressively you need to play smart and engage with the systems, simple run and gun will get you killed a lot. I'm giving it a good game I like it stamp but definitely very niche. Looking forward to tearing it apart and playing around with loadouts and so forth.

For the people that this might be a sticking point the enemies toss around (at the very least) homophobic slurs and well it's a vigilante murder game so uhh yeah.

Hub Cat fucked around with this message at 14:02 on Jul 29, 2021

Flimf
Sep 3, 2006

Played the demo for that Greak game and it seems like it could be really good but I will never understand how someone can make something impressive like that and then just decide on locking the movement, in this 2D platformer, to the dumbest and absolute worst control scheme possible, the analog sticks.

Speaking of 2D platformers (and metroidvanias I guess) Astalon: Tears of the Earth came out last month and is a really really good one of those (with movement on the d-pad).
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1046400/Astalon_Tears_of_the_Earth/

This is also features character switching like Greak, but the focus of the puzzles is not really like what you would see in a Trine game. I have seen some people compare it to La-Mulana, which is probably a better comparison but not really ideal either I don't think. There are certainly some "the text on this tablet makes a vague statement about something in another room" types of puzzles but nowhere on the difficulty scale of La-Mulana.

It has an actual interesting and also quite funny story, tons of puzzles and secrets and great soundtrack.
It does have a kind of weird (roguelite) death mechanic where when you die you get sent to an upgrade shop where you can unlock new abilities and stuff and when you restart, it starts you back at the beginning of the castle. You don't lose anything on death and there a so many shortcuts in the game that it never really felt like a punishment to die.




Isomermaid
Dec 3, 2019

Swish swish, like a fish
7thGuest, do you have a Steam Curator Page?

Kaiju Cage Match
Nov 5, 2012




StrixNebulosa posted:

SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS

It's not Makai Kingdom but HELL YEAH time to hear Yuri Lowenthal ham it up again.

Stupid Decisions
Nov 10, 2009
Slippery Tilde
For anyone that hasn't seen, The Ascent is out in a few hours and is on Game Pass. It's a cyberpunk twin-stick RPG and seems to be getting some pretty decent reviews.

PlushCow
Oct 19, 2005

The cow eats the grass

Thanks for this, some interesting stuff I've wishlisted to keep an eye on

RBA Starblade
Apr 28, 2008

Going Home.

Games Idiot Court Jester


Lol I've advanced to installing dubious russian mods, now the experience is complete

Thanks, I didn't see that

The 7th Guest
Dec 17, 2003

Isomermaid posted:

7thGuest, do you have a Steam Curator Page?
I don't really. I only used it when the curator concept first came out. i am thinking of maybe doing a youtube channel in the future when i ever have non-gaming-related spare time

.random
May 7, 2007

StrixNebulosa posted:

SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS SOUL NOMADS

Can someone confirm this game will scratch my ogre battle itch? I have heard tell that it might

Mordja
Apr 26, 2014

Hell Gem
Sounds like The Ascent has great combat and a great world with a :meh: story and difficulty spikes. Given my priorities, that sounds all right to me!

Armauk
Jun 23, 2021


The 7th Guest posted:

Hey y'all, I'm about to make a big infodump on upcoming games as I tend to do these days.
Great list. Thanks for compiling.

nordichammer
Oct 11, 2013

Clockwerk posted:

7th Guest, thank you for your service

:captainpop:

I very much appreciate the large effort post as well

DourCricket
Jan 15, 2021

Thanks Coupleofkooks
I never thought I would hear about Soul Nomads and the World Eaters ever again

drat that was a good fuckin' game.

The 7th Guest
Dec 17, 2003

Armauk posted:

Great list. Thanks for compiling.

nordichammer posted:

I very much appreciate the large effort post as well
No problem! I updated the post with prices for what I could find.

Made me realize that the average launch price for an indie game has risen to $25 but that doesn't really surprise me, given the times and general inflation. There are still a few $15 and $20 games on the list, though.

Attack on Princess
Dec 15, 2008

To yolo rolls! The cause and solution to all problems!
Indie games going up in price, and it being accepted by the audience, is a good thing for the future of indie games. It'll be easier to clear the bar for surviving as an indie dev without being the big zeitgeist game of the month.

Memnaelar
Feb 21, 2013

WHO is the goodest girl?
So, one thing I see on several reviews is that if I'm thinking Chernobylite, I should *really* be thinking Metro: Exodus instead. I might even be thinking both.

Anyone dug deep into either (or, ideally, both) and have thoughts or possibly even comparisons?

The 7th Guest
Dec 17, 2003

Donnerberg posted:

Indie games going up in price, and it being accepted by the audience, is a good thing for the future of indie games. It'll be easier to clear the bar for surviving as an indie dev without being the big zeitgeist game of the month.
Yeah, I think it is a good thing. Also having a wider accepted range of prices is good for games of different scales as well. Like how Hoa is $15, I don't think you'll get many people balking at that price for a 2D platformer when 3D indies are $5-10 above. And then smaller games like Fire Tonight ($6), or, Haven Park ($9) can be priced as movie ticket games -- well, maybe second run theater prices.

I didn't include Haven Park on the list because I can't fully vouch for it being a great game but it was a cute game when I tried the demo, and it comes out next week, for anyone that wants a smaller Short Hike type experience (not the same type of game but that type of vibe and scale): https://store.steampowered.com/app/1549550/Haven_Park/

Macichne Leainig
Jul 26, 2012

by VG

Memnaelar posted:

So, one thing I see on several reviews is that if I'm thinking Chernobylite, I should *really* be thinking Metro: Exodus instead. I might even be thinking both.

Anyone dug deep into either (or, ideally, both) and have thoughts or possibly even comparisons?

I have played all Metro games extensively and love them, I picked up Chernobylite yesterday and haven't given it much time yet. I do intend on playing it some today and I can post my thoughts.

I'm also a huge fan of STALKER, so anything thematically like this is something I eat up no matter what. I'm sure I'll gush about it.

HopperUK
Apr 29, 2007

Why would an ambulance be leaving the hospital?
Anyone into Banners of Ruin? I see some grumbling in the discussions that it's too easy - that sounds amazing to me because I am awful at deckbuilders and never got far in Slay the Spire. Is it fun?

Also trying to pick between Factory Town and Rail Route. I shouldn't really get both. ...I could but I shouldn't.

zedprime
Jun 9, 2007

yospos

HopperUK posted:

Anyone into Banners of Ruin? I see some grumbling in the discussions that it's too easy - that sounds amazing to me because I am awful at deckbuilders and never got far in Slay the Spire. Is it fun?

Also trying to pick between Factory Town and Rail Route. I shouldn't really get both. ...I could but I shouldn't.
Factory Town has a lot more to do/is a lot more thought out at its current state. But it shares a lot of verbs with Factorio and Dyson Sphere Program which generally do those parts better. It definitely has its own unique, good take but you're moving things around to make other things and it's 3rd best in that realm in my personal list.

Stealing my recent unrecomendation for Rail Route from the management thread where both of these have come up recently if you want to see some general conversations about them:
Rail Route is the best unrecomendable game I've played. Watch a video or look at some screenshots and you'll know if it's for you. I can't reflex recommend it to anyone on the fence because it's extremely niche.

Where every other train game is about long hauls, this is very much the train game about the fiddly bits going into and out of stations. It is the only game about clearing trains to proceed manually and then automatically. If you've ever played a game with path based signalling and thought "I'd rather do this myself" or maybe "I'd rather program a strange automaton to do this in the margins of the track" then this is the best and only game doing both.

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Play
Apr 25, 2006

Strong stroll for a mangy stray

Memnaelar posted:

So, one thing I see on several reviews is that if I'm thinking Chernobylite, I should *really* be thinking Metro: Exodus instead. I might even be thinking both.

Anyone dug deep into either (or, ideally, both) and have thoughts or possibly even comparisons?

I've beaten Exodus, got Chernobylite but haven't played it yet will be doing that tonight. Exodus is really good. I seriously doubt that Chernobylite could really measure up to it. So if you haven't played that I would definitely start there. It was dirt cheap at the last steam sale too, like 5 or 10 bucks. I'll let people know what I think about the Chernobylite full release once I've played it a bit.

Mordja posted:

Anyone play Intravenous? Seems like it's going for a Hotline Miami but with stealth sorta thing.

I played it, found it very serviceable but not really my cup of tea. The stealth works okay, the combat is pretty nice, it's got a pretty lame story but one that sets you on your way well enough. I'm just not enthralled by the gameplay and for me it doesn't actually have any of the things that made Hotline Miami so special

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