Indie Selects for February: Fill Your Hearts (and Game Libraries) with Joy

This February, let the ID@Xbox workforce set the vibe. On this, the month of Valentine’s Day, indie sport builders are competing to be your subsequent love – however don’t stress, as a result of our workforce of wingmen and wingwomen have handpicked six Indie Selects that may meet what anybody’s coronary heart needs.  

In case you’re wanting for some tasty meals for the soul, satisfying beats that actually pop, harmful exploits to get the center pumping, and unbelievable deliveries that actually soar, February Selects had you at good day. Right here’s what we’ve bought for you this month (in no explicit order):

This sport solutions the query,” What in the event you needed to earn your meal by partaking it in a combat to the dying?”.  Cuisineer is the primary food-focused motion roguelite that I’ve ever performed and I’m very a lot obsessed. I’ve spent an embarrassing period of time bashing cute (however hostile) creatures in its dungeons to restock my fridge again in my character’s hometown. The demand for extra wooden, extra sorts of stone, and varied grades of meat by no means ends and the loop of “spend a day cooking for fussy prospects, then return to a dungeon, then come again and improve your instruments, and so forth.” is fixed. It’s a hustle that I’m hooked on, to be sincere, and Cuisineer delivers up this cycle in a manner that’s each cozy and difficult.

These monsters within the varied dungeons aren’t joking round and also you’ll be battling via a number of flooring and executives to get to the top of every gauntlet (although there are alternatives to exit early). You’ll even be plunking down hard-earned gold (out of your restaurant’s until) to improve your backpack and eatery capability to proceed rising and progressing via the sport. It’s a soothing, dopamine-hit formulation that Cuisineer does extremely (and adorably) nicely, but it surely’s not absent of issue and studying curve. So, consider it as equipping cutesy cat ears whereas prepping for a prolonged exercise. Give your self a while to onboard and also you’ll be harvesting fuzzy little fluffballs for “fatty meat” very quickly.

Turbo Overkill is an FPS sport that invokes the spirit of ’80s cyberpunk media and traditional shooters equivalent to Quake & Doom. By trendy definition, you would possibly categorize it as a “boomer shooter” – a sport that both IS a retro FPS or a more moderen title that’s designed to create an analogous feeling. Sure, this can be a actual factor, and no, we didn’t make it up, however we are able to agree that it’s becoming! As a lot as I really like trendy FPS video games, I’m an enormous fan of the classics, and Turbo Overkill does this subgenre justice in as many ways in which it could possibly.

Happening in a futuristic, cyberpunk metropolis referred to as Paradise, gamers management a cybernetic bounty hunter by the title of Johnny Turbo who, paired with his trusty chainsaw leg and enormous arsenal of weapons, is ready to take down rogue AI, Syn, and their augmented minions. The gameplay revolves round preventing varied enemies and executives, exploration, puzzle fixing, upgrading Johnny and his weapons, and platforming. However what I really like most is its pacing and fight movement. Gamers can leverage Johnny’s chainsaw leg by crouch sliding (a staple in most trendy FPS video games) to not solely maneuver but additionally take down most enemies in a single hit. Pairing this motion with jumps, air dashes and biking via the varied acquainted weapons, makes the sport really feel like a traditional area shooter on prime of its retro heritage.

In homage to the classics, Turbo Overkill  encompasses a single participant marketing campaign with a number of difficulties to select from, secret ranges to search out, and unlockables to maintain you busy. There’s additionally two further modes, Countless Mode and Arcade Mode, each of which add a medal and scoring system for further replayability. In case you’re a fan of FPS video games, whether or not trendy or traditional, then it’s essential to examine this one out!

Tails of Iron 2 is a gritty and difficult 2D action-RPG that mixes Soulslike fight with Metroidvania components. I’ve been on this collection because the first entry, however I by no means picked it up – my backlog is infinite! After enjoying this one although, I really feel like I owe it to myself to attempt it out! It helps that, whereas the brand new story shares the identical world, the sequel encompasses a new protagonist, Arlo that means you don’t must play its predecessor to catch up. Because the inheritor to the Warden of the Wastes, Arlo should avenge his father’s dying, taking over threats just like the cruel Darkish Wing Bats and different creatures as he fights to revive his homeland. Oh… and Arlo’s a rat.

I gained’t get too deep into the gore, however all I’ll say is, don’t let this sport’s storybook-like look idiot you – the themes on this sport are grim. The hand-drawn visuals remind me of a hidden gem you’d discover digging via the Xbox Reside Arcade library, in all one of the best methods. It has that nostalgic appeal that makes it really feel acquainted, but in the end recent and distinctive. And the world? Completely superior. Viking themes aren’t new, however Viking rats? They’re lovely, and on the identical time, so metallic.

After spending hours preventing bosses, I can verify this sport is difficult. You’ll need to backtrack, platform, improve your gear, and parry and roll… quite a bit. You’ll want persistence, and in the event you’re something like me, you’ll in all probability die greater than you survive—until you turn to Fairy Story mode, the place enemies have much less well being and do much less injury.

In case you’re a fan of Metroidvanias, Soulslikes, or simply actually love the thought of rats in Viking armor, I like to recommend giving this a shot. Oh, they usually bought Doug Cockle (Geralt from The Witcher sport collection) to relate the story, which solely provides to the enchantment.

Rhythm video games are again, child! Robobeat is (deep breath) an modern, fast-paced, futuristic, roguelite rhythm boomer shooter.  To say this sport is in a league of its personal is placing it mildly.  There should not many video games that mix slick fight mechanics with music-centric gameplay in procedurally generated environments, and I’d say even fewer that do it nicely. You play as Ace, a well-known bounty hunter, chasing after an eccentric cyborg named Frazzer.  Nevertheless, in an effort to cease Frazzer in his tracks, you’ll need to make your manner via his distorted techno playground, which is comprised of 5 randomly generated “pathways” the place you have to to shoot, wall-run, slide and bunny hop, all in sync with the beat of the soundtrack. 

Probably the most distinctive a part of Robobeat, and possibly my favourite half, is the flexibility to vary songs as you play. Switching between energetic metallic, jazz-like grooves, and frantic EDM permits you to set the tempo of your run. Generally a slower tempo is required in an effort to get the dangle of the subsequent stage. The enemies turn out to be harder and the hordes turn out to be extra intense the additional you go, and all through your runs you’ll accumulate blueprints that may be unlocked utilizing forex – nevertheless in the event you die earlier than cashing in your blueprints, you’ll need to reacquire them.  As soon as a weapon or potential is unlocked, it could possibly seem in any future run.

The tunes are nice, the gunplay is manically intense, and roguelite mechanics set Robobeat aside from its friends throughout a number of genres. This was a daring guess that paid off.

Mexico, 1921: A Deep Slumber is a story journey sport impressed by true occasions. You’ll step into the sneakers of Juan Aguirre, a photojournalist in post-revolutionary Mexico Metropolis. The sport not solely entertains however educates gamers by involving historians and cultural establishments in its creation. This collaboration transforms the sport into an interactive archive of Mexican historical past. I used to be completely fascinated as the sport transported me to a tumultuous interval in Mexican historical past, permitting me to uncover the reality behind President Álvaro Obregón’s assassination.

You’ll navigate via Mexico Metropolis, interviewing and photographing topics, which I discovered created a deep feeling of involvement within the storyline and historic occasions. It’s a layer of authenticity solely added to by the images mechanic, which requires you to grasp early 20^th Century photographic methods. The sport follows a traditional point-and-click journey fashion, the place you look at objects, collect clues, and interact in conversations with varied characters, and I used to be deeply captivated by the connection to the historic occasions and cultural facets of post-revolutionary Mexico.   is a compelling and emotionally partaking sport.

Mika and the Witch’s Mountain is a captivating E-rated journey sport. You play the position of aspiring younger witch Mika, who’s declined admittance to witch college and has to take a job delivering packages to fund her broom repairs. The sport takes place in a small open world, the Island of Winds, asking you to fly from  level to level by means of broomstick– opening extra of the world as you unlock further traversal skills for your broom.

With a Studio Ghibli-inspired artwork fashion, the appeal of this island location and its many inhabitants is infectious. There are dozens of residents that you simply get to know and assist in your journey to ascend the mountain to witch college. The principle story doesn’t overstay its welcome, however there are further puzzles, races, and secrets and techniques to increase your time on the island. The simplified management scheme and cute aesthetic means that is appropriate for all ages and talent ranges of players. The artwork fashion, the characters and the music elevate a sport that’s virtually completely a collection of fetch quests into an endearing, enjoyable and memorable journey.