That’s right. Like any villain in any long-lasting horror film series that definitely hasn’t saturated itself into mundanity (yeah, I went there, fight me). We’re back baby! The video game of the month feature has been absent for 2 and a half years! But we have risen from our grave and ready to haunt you for a few minutes a month again. Or hours. I don’t know how slow you read. You do you bae.
There will be a few changes to the old formula. That is if anyone here remembers the old formula, that is. And I will try to bring together some interesting spinoffs from time to time as they were always so much fun to write and read. Anyone remember the mash-up feature? I want to bring some fun features like that to you guys again.
So, I am happy to introduce you to some new names to this feature as well as reviving some familiar ones. So, what have we been playing? Let’s jump into it.
This resurrection is coming to you thanks to the nudging of Bucket List Gamers, check out their podcast for more gaming goodness. As well as their sister podcast for board game goodness! You may even occasionally hear my smooth scouse dulcet tones there.
Cronos: The New Dawn – Sophie Jones
I’ve been following the work of Bloober Team since they released The Medium and were later tasked with the difficult job of remaking Silent Hill 2. Although I enjoyed The Medium, it had a few teething issues. But after Silent Hill 2, I was bowled over by how well they handled it. So when I heard about their new project, Cronos: The New Dawn, I was ready to be impressed all over again.
I’ve been playing Cronos steadily over the past few nights. At first, I wasn’t sure what to make of it, as the story starts off slow and doesn’t immediately grab you. Now, though, I’m completely hooked. The story has evolved beautifully, layering in detail and emotion, and I can’t stop thinking about it.
The combat, while challenging, is incredibly rewarding. Enemies hit hard, your gun needs to be charged before firing, and the recoil keeps you on your toes. I love figuring out the best way to take on the horde, especially when more than five enemies surround you and start merging with fallen Orphans to become supercharged. It’s chaotic, especially since your character can’t dodge and moves cumbersomely through tight spaces.
The gameplay loop is equally engaging. There’s plenty to collect and upgrade, from weapons to your suit, and it all feels meaningful. It reminds me of Dead Space in that sense, and even though it borrows a few ideas, it’s hard to complain when it works this well.
The world building is rich and layered, delivered through cinematic cutscenes, narrated logs and documents scattered throughout the environment. Add to that the stunning visuals and immersive sound design, and you have a game that oozes atmosphere.
If you’re after an unsettling horror to sink into this Winter, with a complex, evolving story and gripping combat, Cronos: The New Dawn would be my pick of the month.
If you were a reader of the original series, Sophie will be a very familiar name here. I am delighted to have her enthusiasm for the feature back and just as strong as before. Now for a contribution from someone making their debut on this feature…
Ark Nova – L.N Hunter
At first blush, digital adaptations of board games make little sense—and that’s certainly true for some (I’d avoid Monopoly if I were you; actually. I’d avoid the physical version too, so maybe don’t pay much attention to that). However, Ark Nova’s digital version is superb, though I can only comment on local and solo play on PC. Published by Dire Wolf Digital, it’s available both on Windows (Steam) and phone. I won’t describe the original game—for that, check out this review or the many other articles on the blog—instead, I’ll look at how the PC version differs.
Ark Nova is a big game, and one where you have to keep a lot in mind as you play: tags that you need to play cards are distributed across several locations of your player board and cards you’ve already acquired; and it’s not just tags that matter—there are other requirements you have to remember to check; some cards provide benefits when someone else takes an action, so better keep a close eye on what other people are doing. I could keep going, but if you’ve played, you know what I’m talking about; and if you haven’t, what are you doing reading this? The digital game takes care of all that, e.g., showing you which requirements for playing a card have been satisfied and which not via green and red colours (I have enough money for the wallaby card in the image above, but the red is a reminder that I haven’t yet built the Petting Zoo in which to place it). The bottom left of the screen shows my accumulated resources, including all of the tags regardless of where they came from, and top left shows the equivalent for other players.
I do have one criticism of the game, and this seems to be the case for many board game adaptations—you just don’t see everything. The bottom right of the screen shows what animals and sponsors I’ve played, as well as end scoring cards; however, I can only see one of those sets at a time, and I have to scroll if there are more than just a few cards in the set. Similarly, the middle top region hides the progress tracks (you can show them permanently, but that takes up a lot of display space), and seeing your opponents’ zoos requires a few more clicks. (Note this is the PC version, where I do have a decent sized screen; I’d hate to try this on a mobile phone!) As I said, the biggest advantage of the digital game is that it takes care of all the housekeeping, so besides some of the game state being hidden, stuff happens quickly when you and your opponents take their turns, and unless you’re playing close attention, you have little idea exactly what and why.
Because of this, I don’t see digital vs physical being an either/or choice for Ark Nova; instead, get both! The digital version is an excellent teaching aid for the physical game (precisely because of all the housekeeping), and the physical provides context for the ‘hidden’ actions in the digital version. The digital game is good when you can’t get a group together in the same place for a full game, and even the AI opponents aren’t truly abysmal when you’re alone.
The game is attractive and slick, and a great adaptation of Ark Nova, well worth getting if you’re already a fan of the physical game.
I loved that I could feature the digital version of Ark Nova here as it is one of my favourite physical board games! And reading about it for this collaboration only made me want to dive into the digital version. Now for a contribution from the very man who prompted me to revive this feature series…
Phasmophobia – Jay D
We’re right in the middle of SPOOKY SEASON and over on the Bucket List Gamers Twitch (www.theblg.tv) we’ve been playing our fair share of Horror Games.
From the sublime like The Mortuary Assistant and Gloomy Eyes, to the outright terrible like Spider Malll, we’ve had a lot of fun and just as many jump-scares… but the title we keep coming back to is PHASMOPHOBIA.
We are VERY much afraid of ALL the Ghosts.
Phasmophobia first hit Steam in September of 2020, and by Halloween of the same year it was one of the Top 5 most viewed games on Twitch, despite it having teething issues with hackers being able to enter and influence other people’s games.
In the years that followed Phasmo went from strength to strength; adding more locations and ghost types, new equipment and objectives, and even a console release at the end of 2024.
Despite all this, the game is STILL listed as Early Access… so what makes it so special?
Two things…
1. It’s almost infinitely replayable, with every single investigation feeling different to the last.
2. It’s the PERFECT multiplayer experience.
Trust me, I don’t say that lightly either. But it just is…
For those of you not familiar with what Phasmophobia is, it’s a relatively simple concept. You and your friends (because only true sadists or psychopaths would play this alone) enter a location that is being haunted by a ghost.
Using the various tools at your disposal you have to locate and identify said ghost without getting killed, and teamwork really does make the dream work here as you can only carry a limited amount of equipment at any one time.
Each type of ghost responds to different combinations of equipment, and some can even be identified by their unique characteristics, such as poltergeists throwing multiple items at once.
Yes it’s scary (we haven’t been brave enough to try it in VR) but the jumps are relatively few and far between, and the real joy comes from working as a well-oiled machine and figuring out what you are up against.
Oh, and hearing your teammates scream like tiny little babies when something appears right in front of them… that’s fun too.
If you want to see what it’s all about (and more than likely hear ME scream like a tiny little baby) you can see us playing it on the Bucket List Gamers Youtube Channel.
Kingdomino – Jay D
To try and balance out against the horror, and to keep this segment at least vaguely relevant for Zatu, I also want to talk very briefly about the upcoming digital release of KINGDOMINO.
Meeple Corp very kindly gave us early access to a demo of the game, and although a lot of it was locked off (only 2 games allowed before it became unplayable!) it definitely seems to have captured the spirit of its physical counterpart.
The graphics are nice and vibrant, the gameplay is everything you’ve come to expect from Kingdomino but with the scope for much more, and the AI opponents are clever enough to put up a fight if you want a quick game without linking up to friends.
With cosmetic upgrades, new game modes, community events and challenges, and the option to play cross-platform all promised for its 20th November release, this is definitely one to watch out for!
You can see us playing and discussing it over on our aforementioned YouTube Channel, too!
I got the chance to talk to Jay about Kingdomino on said episode and I hav
e to admit; it does look slick. Now from kingdom to blockbuster empire…
Indiana Jones and the Great Circle – Michael Collins
Indiana Jones is the world’s worst university professor. And judging by how relentlessly bad I am at The Great Circle (I am a perfect test case for enjoying games while also sucking at almost all of them), he is also the world’s worst parkour-iste, climber of monuments, fighter of giant snakes, solver of complex pipe puzzles, and puncher of Nazis. But I love all those things deeply anyway (at least in the abstract), so this game has absolutely had my heart this Autumn. Since university lecturer is actually my day job, too (we are SO alike in so many ways he and I. Honest), as the leaves are now falling and the school year has restarted, it is the most perfect escapism to watch as he slacks off his lectures to gallivant around the globe pursuing some MacGuffin of some sort. It’s rocks. Magic rocks. Somehow connected to secret cults of Giants. And no! Nazis, you cannot have them. Indiana Jones and the Great Circle is the Dr. Jones movie we have wanted but haven’t had in the last 30-odd years since The Last Crusade. Remember, Crystal Skull? Sheesh.
The characters are superbly written and acted throughout. Troy Baker has had all the accolades already for his incredible Harrison Ford impression (it really is damn impressive, kid) but hats off and whip cracks in celebration also of Alessandra Mastronardi’s masterful touch in bringing the new sidekick/love interest/badass 30’s anti-fascist journo Gina Lombardi to life. Gina is at least as good as Marion Ravenwood from Raiders of the Lost Arc as Indy’s romantic foil and raison d’etre and has a much poignant emotional arc than anyone in the movies.
The game is a first-rate Hollywood production all through. The world is fully realised, the puzzles as good as any point and click from the heyday of the 90s Lucasarts adventures, and (not to spoil it) but some of the cutscenes are works of absolute adventure-comedy slapstick genius that I could watch on loop. Oh, and one more thing. I know people are into ASMR noises online to relax their brains, but I have to give it to the sound team at Machine Games for the noise when Indy connects a punch with a Blackshirt. That is some serious therapy.
I am a big supporter of video games becoming less exclusive and more accessible. So having The Great Circle featured here is something I love. Especially since it is now available on more consoles. Next up is a game that I wish WAS on more consoles as I need it on my PS5 as soon as possible…
Hades II – Jacob Rear
As a huge fan of the original, Hades 2 fully launching out of early access and onto the Switch made me very happy indeed and the sequel certainly hasn’t disappointed. Hades 2 has you playing as Melinoë, daughter of Hades, who is trying to descend into the Underworld to save her family by slaying Chronos, the Titan of Time.
The core gameplay loop is as satisfying as ever with the fast-paced combat and a wealth of upgrades and buffs to improve your chances. Clearing an area gets you a reward which can be straightforward like a health or magic increase, or it can be an upgrade in the form of a boon from one of the gods of Olympus. Poseidon for instance can power up your attacks with knock backs. At the end of each section of the Underworld you face a boss and just like in the original these bosses are often great characters in their own right. I got a kick out of seeing more characters from Greek mythology that weren’t in the original, I won’t spoil any of them here though!
There are a bunch more characters than the bosses and Olympians though. Between and during runs you encounter a cast of friendly faces and it is through these interactions that you get a lot of the game’s story. Hecate is Melinoe’s teacher and the guardian of the Crossroads where you can unwind, perform spells and upgrade your gear. I’m loving the return of gift giving to friendly characters to expand on their stories as the dialogue is brilliantly written and voiced (plus you bag a keepsake that you can take out on runs).
The cycle of combat and then downtime is fantastic and I’m constantly thinking of doing some one more run. The story is engaging, the characters are interesting, and the music is on another level – as games by Supergiant Games often are. I’m going to stop there so I can go back to another run now – Death to Chronos!
I was delighted to discover that there was so much interest in this feature so I am incredibly happy to see some new names for this feature. And now for a name that you should be familiar with…
What the Golf? – Dan Hilton
That’s right, it is time for my own contribution. Did I choose a juggernaut of a game to go up against the other big hitters on this list? Did I choose a really slick video game adaptation of a board game to tie in with Zatu’s main focus? Did I choose a scary or horror game to fit in with the spooky season? Of course not, you’ve already seen the subtitle for this section. I chose ‘What the Golf?’ which is a very fun, very cooky little indie game that has made me laugh so much lately.
So here is the thing, a little peak behind the curtain. My life has not been going particularly well lately. And ‘What the Golf?’ (I need to type it in quotations as the word processor thinks the question mark is the end of the sentence, which is incredibly frustrating) has cut through some of that frustration and kept putting a smile back on my face. It is a golf game, or is it? It takes the form of one at least. Hit the ball into the hole and win. Except when the ball isn’t a ball. Or the hole isn’t a hole. Or when the oh so familiar power bar fills up when you are taking your shot, instead of the ball being shot, it’s actually the power bar itself that propels forward. And now you need to awkwardly chip it over to the hole to win. Or use it to bat away explosive pineapples.
This process never stops surprising you. Especially when the golf ball is actually a car, or a house, or is actually the hole itself. ‘What the Golf’ is an incredibly charming game that even has a party mode if you want to jump on with a friend or two to increase the chaos. The game asks the question of ‘what really is golf?’ (this time it is actually supposed to be in quotations) and then answers the question with the simple answer of: ‘yes’. Check this one out if you enjoy casual little goofy games, it won’t disappoint.
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And there we have it folks. 6 (technically 7) video game recommendations for you to feast on. I am truly blown away with the response to the revival of this feature. I think my editor may be a little surprised when she sees the 3000+ word count (sorry Abbie!). And I am already working on next month’s feature with even more recommendations. Whatever your genre of choice, I hope you find something worth playing. Happy Gaming!
