: Upcoming releases
: All-time favorites
: Freebie fest
: Finest gunplay
: Massive worlds
: Grand adventures
On an average day about a dozen new games are released on Steam. And while we think that's a good thing, it can be understandably hard to keep up with. Potentially exciting gems are sure to be lost in the deluge of new things to play unless you sort through every single game that is released on Steam. So that’s exactly what we’ve done. If nothing catches your fancy this week, we've gathered the you can play right now and a running list of the that are launching this year.
Two Strikes
Release: May 23
Developer: Retro Reactor
Two Strikes is a 2D fighter set in 16th century Japan, or rather, the afterlife of 16th century Japan. As one of eight fighters you'll engage in tense blade-oriented scraps to determine who gets a chance to return to Earth and face the wrath of Oda Nobunaga. Historical backdrop aside, it's basically a sword-oriented, precision focused fighter with some of the most gorgeous illustrations I've seen outside blockbuster offerings like Guilty Gear or Grandblue Fantasy Versus. Truly, the screenshots do it no justice: it's a gorgeous thing in action. Features a single-player campaign, but most importantly, online and local PvP and cross-platform multiplayer.
Among The Whispers - Provocation
Release: May 23
Developer: D&A Studios
This week's mandatory horror is another first-person paranormal investigation outing from the creator of the well-received . [[link]] In keeping with that style, it exchanges excessive gore and jump scares for a more technical approach: you'll actually be operating machines used in real life to investigate the paranormal (don't ask me how these work). I guess it wends closer to a puzzle-centric adventure than survival horror per se, but make no mistake: it's definitely spooky AF, albeit with a familiar "haunted mansion" setting.
Snacko
Release: May 26
Developers: Bluecurse Studios
Snacko is a chillaxed life sim and town builder which grabbed my attention [[link]] mostly [[link]] because you play as a cat. All the familiar Animal Cross / Stardew Valley beats are here: meeting and potentially romancing a cast of other animals, meticulously plotting out townships and interiors to your liking, plundering mines and the environment for resources, and—most importantly—maintaining a cheerful pastel cuteness all the while. Reviews are "very positive" on this one, and I really like its art style, which mixes 2D sprites with low-detail 3D environments.
Tinkerlands
Release: May 24
Developer: CodeManu, Endless Coffee
Tinkerlands is another game about grinding for resources and building stuff, only with more prominent survival and combat elements. Either alone or with up to four friends, you explore a handful of islands on the hunt for materials to bolster your settlement, which naturally involves defending yourself against mindlessly hostile creatures. Crafting and farming? Yes, of course. Fishing? Why, yes. Tinkerlands is an early access affair: it'll get big expansions, endgame content and much more between now and its eventual 1.0 release.
Kathy Rain 2: Soothsayer
Release: May 20
Developer: Clifftop Games
The original came out in 2016, long before the more recent boom in retro-styled point 'n' click adventures. So studio Clifftop Games knows what they're doing, especially when it comes to lavish LucasArts / Sierra-style pixel art. This instalment sees private eye Kathy Rain tackling a serial killer case, which takes her to a variety of rundown locales in a 1990s-era American city. Protagonist Kathy is arch and down-at-heel, and if I were to point to a '90s predecessor I'd probably mention the Gabriel Knight games, though modern point 'n' click studios tend to make their puzzles far less arcane and thus, parseable for mere mortals.