I tried out more games this April, and here they are: I commissioned some bees, De-Exit: Eternal Matters, Swords and Sandals Immortals, Arcana of Paradise: The Tower, and Shadows Over Loathing.

I commissioned some bees

I Commissioned Some Bees is a puzzle game made by Follow The Fun that plays similarly to “Where’s Waldo.”

Your objective is to find hidden bees across multiple stages and there are a total of ten main stages with the first stage alone having 80 hidden bees. If you feel like this is not enough, there is one bonus stage for you to play.

You also have the option to use three save files if you want to share the experience with friends.

Honestly, the game feels more like an art showcase than a game but this doesn’t take away from the experience.

The only downside for me is that the music can be buggy, playing and stopping randomly during gameplay.

I highly recommend it for those who want an extremely casual, peaceful, and less stimulating fun time.

I also recommend checking out more games by Follow The Fun, you can check out their list here.

De-Exit: Eternal Matters

De-Exit: Eternal Matters is a puzzle platformer game developed by Sandblooms Studio, published by HandyGames, and released on April 14th this year. It has great graphics with a blocky minimalistic 3D art direction that reminds me of Minecraft Dungeons and Minecraft Legends

In the Prologue, you reincarnate as a skeleton in a tomb that sits atop a floating island. The controls are introduced to you which include the WASD, Shift, and Spacebar keys. These allow you to jump, crouch, sneak, climb, shimmy, and swim across different obstacles and platforms.

Deeper into the game, you must hide from enemies in bushes and use your newfound cube artifact to move around and activate objects. This cube artifact is given to you by Asem the Last Guardian, who is being chased down by Donovan, a Soul Living a Lie, and his minions.

By the end of the Prologue, you learn that your name is Lux, and find yourself in a safe village. Most of the story is still untold, so I can’t really share anything as of yet.

Overall, the game has excellent dialogue, voice acting, and cinematic cutscenes that seamlessly transition to gameplay once they are over. There are also cool camera angle switches for specific instances, and well-placed Quick Time Events (QTE) for better gameplay and storytelling. I really enjoyed this game and will try to finish it.

Swords and Sandals Immortals

Swords and Sandals Immortals is an RPG game that continues the theme of gladiator fighting found in older titles. Based on my recollection, the series has been around since around 2009 when it was up on the Armor Games website.

Anyway, Swords and Sandals Immortals also continues to incorporate some of DnD’s combat elements through dice rolling, hit chances, distance management, and skill checks.

The game, surprisingly, still has a story but is mainly just a device to set further game mechanics. It gives reason for the 300-day time limit for you to train, fight, and do a bunch of other things in preparation for the final boss.

Additionally, you can spare or kill defeated opponents which is one of the coolest features carried over from older titles.

Character creation is also a thing, and there are tons of customization options for you to choose from.

Despite its engaging gameplay, most of its features still feel outdated compared to other games in the market. So, it’s not perfect.

Nonetheless, Swords and Sandals Immortals should be a challenging game suitable for everyone.

Arcana of Paradise: The Tower

Arcana of Paradise: The Tower is a visually appealing roguelike deckbuilder game that features a compelling art style and music. The art direction is pleasantly unique, making use of painterly visuals. The music is extremely soothing and almost angelic in nature.

The game revolves around a prophecy that pits 20 children to become warriors and live in a tower. Each of these children has a unique personality, traits, abilities, weapon affinities, and set of cards.

As part of their prophecy, they have to explore the tower while finding food to sustain them. You will then need to form a party with these children to explore the tower.

Each child has a unique card set that will indicate what the deck contains. These cards will then be used for both friendly and hostile encounters in the tower.

Hostile encounters tend to turn into combat which involves time management, rhythm, and quick decision-making. Other features are present that elevate the game’s combat. Such features “perfect guards” which stuns enemies when done, and card position which provides different card effects.

When the children are victorious, you can choose a reward from three card options. This is then added to your deck and can be used until you complete the floor you are exploring.

Outside of tower diving, you will also need to manage resources for your so-called Commune. Mainly, this is just about Bread consumption as you use bread to feed the children and ask for blessings.

However, I found some minor grammatical errors in the dialogue, which can be distracting at times.

Overall, Arcana of Paradise: The Tower was a refreshing game that I intend to add to my “Completed Games” list this year.

Shadows Over Loathing

Shadows Over Loathing, developed and published by Asymmetric, is an adventure-RPG game that was released on November 11, 2022. It is a sequel to the game West of Loathing, which was released in 2017.

I tried Shadows Over Loathing because its art style and presentation in Steam reminded me of the flash game Johnny RocketFinger. Much to my surprise, there are tons of similarities with this old Flash Game from art direction and gameplay to story and comedic tone.

The main story centers around your uncle, Murray, who urgently requests your presence at Ocean City due to an undisclosed emergency, leaving players to unravel the mystery as they progress through the game.

Although Shadows Over Loathing can be played as a point-and-click game, you can also use your keyboard for movements and interactions as well. The game features puzzle elements such as finding the necessary items, talking to the right people, or deciphering locations through dialogue hints.

Additionally, stat checks for specific actions are also present. These stats are also involved in combat as weapons or equipment draw power from them.

Overall, Shadows Over Loathing offers a unique gameplay experience with its blend of adventure, RPG, and puzzle elements. It’s definitely a game worth trying for fans of the genre.