Bone Robot Games

 Momodora:  Reverie Under the Moonlight is a delightful entry into the side-scrolling, action-adventure genre.  I play as many as I can, and they are usually bad.  Having played through so many mediocre titles, I wasn't expecting much from Momodora, but I was happy to have been proven wrong.  A "Metroidvania-lite," Momodora makes the case why maybe more Metroidvanias should be this way. There isn't too much to this game, and that is its biggest strength.  Everything about it is simple, but executed brilliantly.  It has a retro feel with its graphics and art style. The story is told in very short quips from a small amount of NPCs.  It deviates from basically every other Metroidvania I've played, and I welcome it with open arms. Pixel-style  graphics are usually a style choice I don't enjoy, but after the initial disdain, I found myself enjoying it quite a bit.  The lack of imperious elements on the screen gave it a quaint spectacle. ...

 Turbo Kid is an example of a game that does just enough , and that is okay. Better than being horrible.  Games are often too ambitious for their own good, and by the end of the game, I'm sick of it.  Turbo Kid is closer to a standard entry in the genre, with some flaws, but some really cool things, and it excels for that. Not every game needs to be genre-defining, generational, or upper echelon. It is enough to be competent and fun, and that is where Turbo Kid succeeds. If you have played a handful of search/action games, they all start to blend together for the worse. This game starts strong with removing itself from the cliches of the genre. I wish it would have leaned into these ideas even more. To get away from the classic movement traps like dash, wall jump, and double jump, they give the player a bike to ride.  This is a really interesting movement mechanic that functions like a lite version of the Trials bike game.  It's cool for traversal, and for quick...

  Before the review, I want to briefly touch on the fact that I hate the term Metroidvania as a genre.  It's meant to help categorize games easier for players to understand. It is a deservedly high honor for Metroid games to be the keystone of that definition.  Unfortunately for all other games, being compared to Metroid is a death sentence.  Super Metroid was the greatest video game ever created until Metroid Dread was released.  To classify yourself in a genre that is known for perfection is a tall order.  Furthermore, every game that comes out in this genre seems like it was made by someone who played Metroid a decade prior and is trying to make a game like it from memory.  Perhaps they never played Metroid at all.  I have not played a single game that I felt warranted being compared to this game in any other way than "side scroller with interconnected levels and ability-led progression."  Genres should be broad.  From now on I will r...

  I'm not sure the target audience for this game, but I am certain it flew under their radar.  I cannot think of any marketing for this game, it is tied to a reboot of a classic movie franchise, and somehow it extremely good.  That somehow is the talented folks at WayForward.  I find myself wanting to go back and play it just to listen to the incredible soundtrack and walk around the environments. You start off with a small cutscene, and then you are thrown into the mix.  You're a random Prodigium soldier going after Princess Ahmanet.  Then you just start shooting.  Your main gun is not the strongest but has infinite ammo, which is an amazing start to a game.  Get out there and explore and shoot your damn gun.  It rules. You also get 2 grenades that can hurt enemies or blow up blocked entryways. You eventually get stronger guns that have finite ammo. You can replenish ammo, grenades, and health from destroying certain parts of the e...