Category: DEMO

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Yep, demos. Demo reviews at least.

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Wanderful is a Cozy Puzzle Demo from Steam Next Fest

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Daedelic Entertainment is a huge high-quality game publisher featuring a range of developers from small to major, including the new Gollum game and also Wanderful from the German developers Tiny Roar. I have my eye on this publisher as an unbiased indie gamer because while, yes, the smaller indie community is my foundation, I also like really good games. So, when you can, there’s a great game you need to try from them called Wanderful, the cute cozy tile game demo that brightened my day. Played on Steam. How to Play Wanderful Explore and Discover New Tiles Starting Your Journey… Read the rest

DreamCell Is a Dark But Not Scary Rogue-Like, and I Got To Name Some of the Characters

Posted on by Dave Pizza
DreamCell: Lost in Nightmares is a 2D action twin-stick rogue-like that landed on my desk today. I have been hooked on the rogue-like/lite genre quite a bit lately. You may want to navigate to my YouTube channel for proof with the video below. Despite that, games like DreamCell: Lost in Nightmares give enough content to chew on for a regular day’s gaming. The game is currently in a demo stage, scheduled for release on November 25 2022 on Steam. It’s a challenging but ultimately amusing rogue-like that I could see evoking repeatable gameplay. It has challenging but anticipated enemies, and… Read the rest

If You Like Starship Troopers and Anime, Check out Stories From Sol

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Stories From Sol: Part 1 Gun-Dog is a new game entering onto the scene. It’s a hard space sci-fi story, a genre not without a plentiful fandom, although this sneak peek led me mostly through sharp comedic timing and even a romantic interest? Looks pretty cool. Please note that not only is this a demo, but it also’s part one of the whole story, so if you enjoy it, make the dev know so with a comment on their ItchIO. Or drop by our tweet on Twitter as well. Let’s take a look.This game is available on Itch.IO Genre: Visual… Read the rest

Jaded – Another Game From My ItchIO Free Game Binge

Posted on by Dave Pizza
I love these platformer games that emerge from the woodwork every single day. Today, that game is Jaded by Shellsnore games, up on Steam. It’s a standard platformer with directional keys, jump, attack, and a special mechanic which is a time warp. Although the time warp mechanic is more of a cacoon slingshot kinda thing, it works pretty well. I was able to bind my controller to the basic keys with no problem. Let me share a tad more here for you. Getting Started with Jaded The demo does mention that the game is still in beta, and there are… Read the rest

Peglin and its Pachinko Goblins – Trying the Demo

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Peglin is a great game where you complete levels by dropping a ball into a destructible pattern of mechanic-activating orbs. You can activate critical strike boosts, or replenish the board. And, before I gloss over too quickly, the purpose of this strategy is to rack up points that can then be used to attack mob health points, in effect winning the level and moving on. I was lucky enough to find the demo on Steam, although the main game has been covered elsewhere. Anyway, I’ll give you a brief rundown of Peglin. Why Peglin? So, it turns out Peglin is… Read the rest

BIOTA the Robot Action Monochrome Indie

Posted on by Dave Pizza
I’m going to try something new here. I have been known to review demos in the past, but they get kind of buried under other projects. I really want to dedicate time to as many as I’d like to. All things relevant, I made a post on Twitter about needing to play for Game Boy-style indies. I got a great tip from cshPinecone of Indie Game Collective about the game BIOTA from “small bros.” It’s a shmup–aka shoot ’em up. Blasting away weird goops of purple eyeballs has its merits, so here it is on MrDavePizza. The game is rich… Read the rest

Mago is a Colorful SNES Style Platformer About a Sorcerer

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Let’s take a look at Mago: The Villain’s Burger. It’s filled with so many fun easy-to-learn but masterable abilities and unique mechanics that you just don’t find in every game. The best way to understand it is most likely visually, but today I’ll be talking about why Mago is a promising look at how its developers are creating something that is, possibly, capable of going big if they wish. So, let’s get started. This game is available on Steam. Mago: The Villain’s Burger is an adventure set in a world populated by fresh NES sprites and joyful playful storytelling. It… Read the rest

What Lies in the Multiverse is a New Game With One VERY Interesting *Feature*

Posted on by Dave Pizza
We’ve got a big event going on right now for THE BIG ADVENTURE. Many demos, and many great indies. I set my eyes on What Lies in the Multiverse first. It’s a collaboration between Studio Voyager, IguanaBee, and Untold Tales. Everything you’ll see in this game has a silvery thread of classic games like Fez, Owlboy, etc. But it’s a little more than technicolor flashing pixel animations, it’s dealing with a really awesome powerful mechanic. Changing universes. That’s right, when you click RT you change universes in this game, and, honestly, it’s unique, it’s a seldom-used trope, but a particularly… Read the rest

Remember When I Played Soul Delivery And It Got Like 40,000 Views?

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Alright, folks, I am compelled to write about this. Last night I posted a video of a game on itch.io called Soul Delivery. Yes, it is true, the graphics in this game are so stunning, it’s enough to short-circuit. Though, until now, I’ve never even heard of it. I don’t know who the dev is, and I don’t know anything more than what’s covered on the itch.io page. But, since there’s a demand on this, let’s just take a look at it right now, and I’ll polish this up later once I’ve had a little more time with it–maybe, I… Read the rest

Figment 2: Creed Valley is a Vibrant & Dali’esque Game

Posted on by Dave Pizza
It seems that Figment 2: Creed Valley, is a new game headed to Nintendo Switch in February of 2022. I’ve been all about checking out these Switch demos right away, and when I saw this listed today I downloaded it immediately. I wasn’t quite sure what I was dealing with here, as it seemed somewhat derivative but also cozily familiar, the reason of which I discovered later. This game is really pleasant-looking though. It reminds me of moments from games like Bastion but also games like Weaving Tides. It’s pretty cute really, with enough prickly wholesome creepiness to stay interested.… Read the rest

The Last Friend is a Great New Game With Dog Buddies Out Now

Posted on by Dave Pizza
In between monitoring my every action, eShop suggested I check out what demos were out. I had really been looking for them though! So, this game The Last Friend showed up as a demo out. The art looked cool and didn’t seem too derivative of anything course. So, I downloaded it and loaded it up. The Last Friend is a brawler kind of game with some turret defense mechanics. Most importantly, however, is all your sidekicks are dogs! WHAT. I think this is actually going to be a pretty cool game because of the variety of levels, learning curves, gentle… Read the rest

The Lightbringer (Demo) is What I Played Today

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Okay, let’s talk about The Lightbringer. This is kind of random. No, really, it is. Might as well roll for initiative. Anyway, I’ve been spending a ton of time on the Switch lately, since I was traveling with the handheld recently and got kind of used to it. However, I recorded it while playing on my TV, so I don’t know. Anyway, was looking back through some of my YouTube videos and realized a lot of you like demos for some reason. So, this one was on the eShop and I gave it a spin. Here we go again with… Read the rest

Big Boy Boxing is a Great Game Homage That You Have to See

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Big Boy Boxing is a cartoony indie boxing dev inspired by Cuphead and the classic late 80’s NES game Punch-Out!! The concept is polished and shiny for contemporary indie players who thrive on retro quirks in new games. You play as a new boxer, trained up through the earnest beginning in the ring with a trainer, Coach Hank. At this stage of development, the demo is pretty short with only one contender, but there are plenty of interesting observations to be made on this neat project. I’d say it’s pretty certain by the time this is released this is going… Read the rest

Dark Dragonkin is A Little, Simple Indie I Played

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Dark Dragonkin is an indie dev project from Twintertainment that is a top-down pixelized fantasy RPG/dungeon-crawler. Players control multiple characters in a group to make them work together to defeat enemies and advance the story. This game is still deep in the dev process with a potential audience of RPG fans and general indie gamers. It feels very attended to as a solo dev project though, and the potential to scale abilities and environments into a fully fleshed world is entirely real. So, I sat down with Dark Dragonkin and played through the first level. I recommend if you test… Read the rest

Colorblend fx Desaturation is an Interesting Freebie

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Colorblend fx Desaturation is an upcoming game released in demo form shortly before testing it here on my end. It’s a 3D platformer with story-rich puzzle-solving elements that blend ideas about color and storytelling. The characters in Colorblend fx Desaturation consist of a wholesome-ish pack of potato-headed buds called the Splatians. And deep in the fire and brimstone caverns of who knows where is the abode of nefarious minions sworn to a meanie named Lord Ashen. In a diabolical turn of fate, Lord Ashen depletes the Splatian’s home of colorful hues in place of monochrome misery. The only solution is… Read the rest

Go Heroes: Prometheus is an Interesting Project

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Go Heroes is a coming soon, turn-based RPG based on the stories of Greek Mythology. Each level is filled with puzzles that not only advance your progress in the game but progress the story. It is not quite isometric but rather described as four-directional–it is sort of like using a board game with camera controls. You play as Prometheus, the Greek titan, who dared give the gift of fire to mankind. I am fortunate enough to have a very early press copy of this game in collaboration with Indie Game Collective and Happyland Games. So, let’s take a look. Thoughts… Read the rest

Universe for Sale Looks Like a Good Sci-Fi Game

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Universe for Sale is an upcoming title that combines sci-fi themes and metaphysical themes into a quirky and compelling visual novel/interactive fiction. I already do not recall the main character’s name, and neither will you, as the shroud of mystery is an important part of this introduction. He is a self-described “cultist” with a floating head who drops into a tea shop on Jupiter to meet with a young lady named Lila. The prologue sets up a story involving Lila’s special gift to create mini-universes! Hence the game title. Universe for Sale: Intriguing Oddities The first thing that pops out… Read the rest

Because It’s Hot! Why Pizza? is a Weird, Interesting Indie

Posted on by Dave Pizza
I’m back, reviewing a game. An indie game. A very indie game. An indie game prologue. Because it’s hot! – Why Pizza? Freeze frame. But seriously, I am in recovery from an intense year of reviews. So, when I saw this perfectly amusing stylized demo on Steam with a radical pizza theme, I narrowed in on it. What IS this!? Because it’s Hot is a platformer y’all. But I almost forgot since this game is so much more kooky and creative than most games at all. You choose your anthropomorphic animal/pizza-head whatever, character. Then jump through a colorful ToeJam &… Read the rest

Space Mechanic Simulator is a Really Terrific Game I Tried

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Let’s talk about an upcoming space game! Space Mechanic Simulator is a 3D space-sim in outer space. So far, this game is still in development, but that may have changed by the time you read this. It is currently in development with a demo on steam that I am reviewing here. Your job is to repair space stations, spaceships, and presumably other space vehicles with a sophisticated drill and a meter. Obtain parts from drones or 3D print them. Once you have detected the malfunctioning equipment, remove it and replace it with a new part. Space Mechanic Simulator: First Impressions… Read the rest

Forgotten Fields is a New Indie About a Young Man’s Private Life

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Forgotten Fields is an indie-developed story-rich interactive game by Frostwood Interactive. It is about a young Indian author seeking inspiration for his next book in the midst of a major family transition at his childhood home. The character, Siddharth, visits home which at first seems a distraction but may help him re-think his writing completely. The game design is aesthetically pleasing low-poly 3D modeling combined with interactive puzzles and visual novel-style dialogue. It was recently released on Steam and is available to download. Searching Deeper in Forgotten Fields The game Forgotten Fields was recommended to me since I am now… Read the rest

Scarlet Hood & the Wicked Wood, 👌

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Scarlet Hood and the Wicked Wood is a new visual novel/interactive fiction game. The story follows Scarlet, a budding musician in an aspiring band of close friends. Start your journey on route to your band’s major performance at a club in the city. Plus, explore the opportunity it provides with a heavy offer from the club’s boss. In an unexpected twist, you’ll soon find yourself, through unforeseen circumstances, in another world! This land is filled with popular themes from classic fantasy stories and solvable puzzles. Together, they all blend nicely into a one-of-a-kind story. Scarlet Hood: Definitely Try It I’m… Read the rest

Self-Driving Cabs, Murder?, “CRASH Autodrive” Tells a Different Story

Posted on by Dave Pizza
CRASH: Autodrive is a point-and-click interactive fiction that takes place in Pittsburgh, PA, in the year 2027. You are a passenger in a robot auto cab that hosts you and three other passengers on your way to your respective destinations. The car takes an unanticipated detour and strikes a crossing bicyclist on a deserted back road in the city. With the aid of a host full of clues from your cab sharers, you will use information and evidence from the individual to unravel the mystery behind the crash. In a world where A.I. is everywhere, you’ll have to deduct on… Read the rest

Arcade Spirits: The New Challengers Appeals to Gamers, Romantics, and Visual Novel Lovers

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Arcade Spirits: New Challengers takes place in an alternate history, the year 20XX, where arcades have not been subjected to deprecation or obsoleteness, unlike what happened after consoles in the 1980s. As such, the arcade is quite an interesting place to run into quirky characters. Get into all sorts of gaming fun in a truly nostalgic vibe. I keep an eye on Steam’s demo listings on a daily basis. I’ve been really into visual novels for some time now. I like the way they hit my palette when it comes to emotionally charged game content. The game Arcade Spirits: New… Read the rest

BattleCakes is an Astonishingly Colorful and Sweet Indie I Played

Posted on by Dave Pizza
BattleCakes is a game in development by Volcano Bean, an indie studio. Play as a customizable cupcake person and explore the town you live in. Talk to other cake-like characters around town and even solve some mysteries. You can solve the problems around town when you head out the gates and take on the gumdroplins, some goblin gum drops, in the park. You can battle, you do indeed have a sword, but you can also defeat the enemies by befriending them. BattleCakes: A Sweet Adventure Battle Character Customization Friends This is pretty cool. I really like the art, it’s just… Read the rest

Escaping Winter is a Simple Little Indie I Played

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Escaping Winter is a strategy game about a forest colony that has to survive the winter every few turns. It’s safe to say that this is more of a JAM than anything, solely representing some conceptual ideas. Indeed, civ strategy games are not my forte, but I think this idea is unique enough. If unprepared a winter might be the downfall of a society if it lasts long enough. Luckily it just makes the fire put-put a couple of times. This is a small solo project, nothing to overanalyze. I liked the title screen though and this demo has what… Read the rest

Drawing + “Patchless” PizzaPost 🍕

Posted on by Dave Pizza
drawing practice goblin As I’ve been writing about, I’m still in some brainstorming stages of a visual novel. I saw a post on Reddit about spending 15 minutes a day practicing, with a disclaimer that after 15 minutes you’ll want to draw all the time. That’s one thing I’ve always liked about drawing, it’s a relationship between you and the sketchpad but between you, you can create worlds. Same for writing really. Anyway, I started off with this dude on the right here with the hat. I was feeling kind of rusty so when my attempt at drawing hair went… Read the rest

PizzaPost: Wait, Another? Game: Kraft and Slash 🍕

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Here’s quick gameplay of Kraft And Slash from Purejam Games on Itch.IO. Link: https://purejamgames.itch.io/kraft-slashThis post’s game is called Kraft & Slash. An in-browser game with a cute crafty aesthetic, decent tune, and solid gameplay. Not sure the motivation behind Kraft & Slash, but it appears it’s done its job in the look good feel good, please distract me into playing vibe. I am fond of this style because it reminds me of crafting field trips I used to take when I lived in the PNW. This would fit right in at a local artist shop or something of that nature.… Read the rest

PizzaPost: More Personal Posts; “Cactus Mayhem” 🍕

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Greetings, friends! Welcome to this introductory post about a new posting format on MrDavePizza. I currently need a more efficient type of post to use this site as a writing outlet as it was originally intended. I will write for about 30 minutes and include a gameplay video with a description in this new format I am calling PizzaPost. Most of these posts will focus on a variety of topics including but not exclusively about games or hobbies. This is as much for my mental health as well as the quality of the website. P.S. I’m going to still review… Read the rest

Playing the Cyberpunk VN: “Read Only Memories: NEURODIVER” 👾

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Read Only Memories: NEURODIVER is an indie interactive fiction visual novel project. Play as ES88 a psychic therapist who recovers lost memories for clients using the help of an organic “neurodiver.” You’ll start as a hybrid client named Crow. Crow has a mysterious background but is trying to restore a memory that has been tampered with to recover a memory chip at the center of a secretive trade he took part in. The art direction in reading Only Memories is colorful and fresh. The subject of memory is always a potent one, and the way it translates into media is… Read the rest

A Cottage Story is a Hidden Gem & Terrific Little Visual Novel

Posted on by Dave Pizza
A Cottage Story is an indie fantasy-style visual novel currently in development by indie developer LadyMeowsith on itch.IO. The theme is what is described as, “Cottage-Core.” You’ll play as Emory, or whichever moniker you choose. Your form is selectable as well. You are a human/changeling grown up far away from humans. You live within a fantastic forest of goblins, satyrs, elves, and maybe more. Meet characters and treat their ailments by mastering herbalism and healing skills from herbs found in the forest. Participate in the story or personal fulfillment in this stylistic story/dating sim. Platform: PC (Itchio: https://ladymeowsith.itch.io/a-cottage-story) A Cottage… Read the rest

The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante is One of the Best ‘Serious’ Interactive Fictions

Posted on by Dave Pizza
The Life and Suffering of Sir Brante is an interactive visual novel. It spans the lifetime of a character named Sir Brante. Progress through the stages of life starting with childhood. You will forge deep experiences that will shape the course of your entire life later on. Your actions will affect your own character and also how others interact with you. Try to live true in a world dominated by an esoteric caste system and brutal classism. Yet, starting from the very bottom. If you’re looking for an experience, not just a game, that will affect you at your core,… Read the rest

Don’t Forget Me is an Interesting New Cyberpunk Mystery

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Don’t Forget Me is a pixel art, narrative investigation game about two cybernetic specialists, memory copiers to be exact. After a client visits their clinic, they find themselves in a complex situation involving government conspiracies and secret technology. The game is slated for release on April 15th, and gamers will find themselves playing a game with excellent art and unique mechanics. When I first encountered this game, I thought about some similar theme stories or picked up on them. One is The Lathe of Heaven, a science fiction book by Ursula K. LeGuin, and also Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless… Read the rest

Demetrios: The BIG Cynical Adventure Requires Some Decent Puzzle Solving Skills

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Demetrios is the second title from COWCAT’s indie studio that I have played, the other one being BROK the InvestiGator. My friends, let me preface this by saying although what I present to you are my first impressions from the demo, I enjoyed this enough that I purchased the full version because I am 100% behind this game developer and might very well go in-depth at some near-future point. Demetrios: The BIG Cynical Adventure is an indie interactive-fiction/visual novel cartoon adventure. The interactive feature is much like you’d see in a hidden object game as well, although clues that you… Read the rest

Henchman Story is a Hilarious & Bizarre Visual Novel About Super Heroes

Posted on by Dave Pizza
I’ve been trying to give visual novels a place in my catalog. It’s a fun game style that is conducive to some good storytelling. Incidentally, I keep finding more and more edgy but good-natured humor in them. Pick a theme and go, that’s where I’d like to see these go. Most of these games are also tagged as dating sims. But that is pretty much secondary to my interest in them, however, it may interest you! Today I’ll be looking at the visual novel Henchman. Most of the visual novels out there are also anime, not sure why. But the… Read the rest

The Pizza Situation is an Unusual & Interesting Interactive Fiction

Posted on by Dave Pizza
The Pizza Situation is an indie game project found on ItchIO about a freshman college student named Roni. He has a dream about seeing a girl with pink hair at a party and her stealing a slice of pizza from him. His goal is to use social networking to solve the problem and prevent this girl in his dream from doing so in real life. It’s totally bonkers and irrational, but some games are like that and that’s why we have the ability to play them. The Pizza Situation is fully animated and illustrated. You’d think there would need to… Read the rest

Rain On Your Parade is a Really Vibrant and Fun Game

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Thank the heavens, or at least the upper atmosphere, because Rain On Your Parade gave me just the right meta-medicine I needed to make it through this day. Have you ever seen something on the internet and thought, well there goes my day. That’s really unhealthy I know, but as soon as I saw a demo for Rain on Your Parade, I immediately chippered up. There’s a bit more depth to this anecdote, but it doesn’t matter. Anyway, Rain on Your Parade is an indie title aimed for release sometime in 2021. Really, it’s only a handful of people in… Read the rest

The Hayseed Knight is Not Bad, And is Cool To Look At

Posted on by Dave Pizza
I’ve been getting really interested in games like The Hayseed Knight and I don’t really know why I haven’t explored them further. I reviewed a game last week called Brok: The Investigator, similar mostly in the ways of it is an anthropomorphic visual novel. The Hayseed Knight is through and through an anthro/whatever you want to call it, a visual novel. The themes are probably around Teen+, only in the PG-13 range though. Nothing obscene in my gameplay. The maturity level is more thematic than graphic. This is not a dating sim, but there is quite a bit of flirting.… Read the rest

Indie Demo Reviews 3/4/2021

Posted on by Dave Pizza
So here’s a brief compilation of some cool indie demo reviews of games I played recently, which deserve a little cred. (Please note: some of these games have been released since I tried them, so they might be associated with a price in the Steam Store links.) Indie Demo Reviews 1: Jennifer Wilde: Unlikely Revolutionaries This demo is super short, but it lets you try out the mechanics and the art style. It’s a hidden object story game, that has a grand plot involving the ghost of famous author Oscar Wilde in the jazz age Parisian roaring twenties. This game… Read the rest

“A Long Journey to an Uncertain End,” I Played It

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Scoured Steam for ages looking for anything that caught my eye. My shortwave is all fuzz today. It must be a solar storm and a celestial body in retrograde. But it’s not, the dishwashers running and it’s just a slow week. So, I took forward to Itch.IO in the hopes of some nice dev gems out there and sweet demos. I hit the motherlode. Thank you GameDevites. A Long Journey is such an amazing collection of genres, it’s holistic in its approach. We’re talking space outlaw, contractor, story click, and adventure. The art is beautiful, the design is brilliant, and… Read the rest

Loco Motive is Coming to Nintendo Switch

Posted on by Dave Pizza
UPDATE: Loco Motive is headed for full release on Switch & PC in 2023 (sorry if I don’t update this right away.) I absolutely adore it, and if you want to watch the awesome trailer for it, check out this link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EFahJJOdMzII’ve spent a good amount of time my life on trains or watching, learning, and reading about trains. For my own context, it’s always been a novel way to travel, and some don’t dig it, but I do. The chic yesteryear of trains was incredibly stylish at any rate. You’ll find that aesthetic all here in Loco Motive. There’s… Read the rest

Beasts of Maravilla Island is Magical & Pleasant

Posted on by Dave Pizza
Beasts of Maravilla Island is a mindful and progressive concept revolving around the science, hobby, and storytelling of isolated ecosystems and their sometimes astonishing, in this case even magical, discoveries. It’s a game about collecting documentation and exploring the flora and fauna of an environment, where combat or violent interaction is non-existent. I wish I could say non-violence in games is more common, but games are still in the formative years of non-violence, even conceptually. I do not mean to sound judgmental in any way there, since combat is a reliable game mechanic. There needs to be more variety for… Read the rest

Phoenotopia is That Terrific Pink Hair Indie Game

Posted on by Dave Pizza
I sat down this morning, had something to drink, and thought, let’s play that really cool game that makes me feel good whenever I see art from it. Let’s play… Phoenotopia: Awakening. Heads up: this is based on the demo on Steam. There’s quite a bit of content in the demo though. Don’t contemplate the parallels of one or the other too much, at least for this review. Probably better to get the full game, yeah. First off, I am so grateful for the demos that some of these game publishers are releasing these days. I wondered if the demo… Read the rest

5 Great Itch.IO Games to Try

Posted on by Dave Pizza
I recently, officially delved into a world which is mysterious yet intriguing on the game review front to me. That world is Itch.io. If you are unfamiliar with this website, it is an all inclusive community of solo-dev and indie dev game projects. It’s got everything from free games to digital game building resources. It’s also host to some pretty weird stuff, and I’m okay with that, because there is so much creative flow happening here. This is like SoHo for game artists. I have already delved right into 5 games that were free demos. Note: it is customary for… Read the rest