Galacticon Really Plays Like an Old Arcade Cabinet Style Game

Today, I’m taking a look at the soon-to-be-released, arcade-style title Galacticon from developer Radin Games. It’s similar in style to 1980s arcade games like Defender, Joust, and Jetpac. You might be familiar with some of these from the book Ready Player One; and maybe the film, but I can’t remember, although I know Joust featured prominently in the book. I sat down with the space-themed preview they provided and honestly got really into it. Initially, I wondered how much there’d be to say, but the game has many objectives. There’s also an online leaderboard to compete with, so it is… Read the rest

Earth Day Game Pick: Tadpole Tales

Today is Earth Day, and that’s why my free game pick for the day is Tadpole Tales. I played this last year with a fair amount of amusement at the concept. The art style is juicy and vibrant like a Miyazaki film or perhaps some other manga animation. It’s an arcade-style game. This doesn’t mean it’s confined to an arcade cabinet somewhere, it’s a Steam title that’s easy to start and has a few basic controls and mechanics. Gameplay in Tadpole Tales Plot your way as a tadpole through a polluted river. When you heal corrupted wildlife with a splash… Read the rest

This Game is Basically Cyberpunk Pong

Exoblast is basically a very extreme version of pong. Made by the French developer DreamIRL Games, it hit Steam last month and is free as of version 1.0. You control a machine slider in charge of one side of the screen playing against either an AI or another player (there seems to be a function for online mode too.) It’s got some great gameplay and as far as pong goes, might be the most industrial pixel art feast for the eyes in all of the pong kingdom. I have no reason to mention it other than I found it pretty… Read the rest

You Can Go Your Own Way by Eric Smith

While the industry in the gaming business model changes, Adam’s family’s pinball arcade and Whitney’s eSports Cafe are in direct competition with each other, and consequently Adam and Whitney. You Can Go Your Own Way by Eric Smith is a November 2021 release YA book about two childhood friends, Adam Stillwater and Whitney Mitchell. They have both become knee-deep in running their parents’ businesses as their parents are either too busy or in Adam’s father’s case, not there. Through firey tweet threads and a plot that takes place almost entirely in the market area of Old City Philadelphia, the two… Read the rest

Lasagna Boy is Weird and Scary But Really, Really, Hilarious

“HEADS UP,” Moderately creepy imagery is in Lasagna Boy, this will be my only warning. I don’t generally review horror games, but Lasagna Boy made me laugh, and then, it intrigued me. It merits analysis based on absurdity alone but also on design. I also personally understand people like illustrating and drawing creepy monsters because… well, it’s fun! Why not throw in a third or fourth eyeball here and there? We’ve been doing that for ages. Direct link to the games on Itch.IO a the bottom of this article. Lasagna Boy – Umm, Why is This Not Pizza? Keep Your… Read the rest

The Best Pinball Video Games For Your Budget

Remember pinball? Not only remember it but are you a “pinball wizard” as it were? Well, here we go again. Today I’m going to share a game that is available on both Mobile and PC platforms. The game is Pinball Deluxe: Reloaded. There is also apparently some background with Blackberry devices long before that for this publisher, but I don’t know much about that. Before this post, I tried to load up an Android emulator to see if I could try the Google Play version on my Windows machine, but it didn’t really work and it was easier to just… Read the rest