NEXTFEST Demos: Crypt Custodian, Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure, INDIKA, and Synergy
1#nextfest #cryptCustodian #oddsparks #indikagame #synergygame
Crypt Custodian (https://store.steampowered.com/app/2394650/Crypt_Custodian) is a cute (and sometimes sad) metroidvania-style game where you, a recently deceased cat, are denied entry to paradise and are forced to clean up outside The Palace for all eternity. It's got all the hallmarks of a traditional metroidvania (big map, unlockable skills, big ol' bosses, so much combat), and it's all bundled together in a delightfully playful package. I'm going to be getting this when it comes out.
Oddsparks: An Automation Adventure (https://store.steampowered.com/app/1817800/Oddsparks_An_Automation_Adventure/) is an interesting game that I almost enjoyed. It splices together to genres: Adventure and Automation. Through a series of events, you end up being able to make small automaton creatures called sparks. They in turn can do jobs for you: collect resources, attack creatures, operate machinery etc. You use them to work through the game loop of every increasingly difficult things to manufacture. It's a neat idea, but I felt the pace sort of dragged for me.
INDIKA (https://store.steampowered.com/app/1373960/INDIKA/) is a trip. The demo dumps you right into the middle of the game it seems, so I was lacking a lot of context. It's just a very strange experience. You play as a nun, and for some reason she's helping a soldier get to wherever it is he's going. I think at gun point? Also there's a skill tree for some reason and also a voice in your head that may or may not be the devil. It's an interesting game, but the dog/wolf chase sequence left a bad taste in my mouth.
Synergy (https://store.steampowered.com/app/1989070/Synergy/) is a city management/survival style game where you are tasked with keeping a small community alive in a harsh environment. Everything must be purified, studied, or otherwise made safe for consumption. You slowly build up the community from survival to prospering, all the while making sure to strike a balance with the nature around you. It's coupled with a very striking art style that I really enjoyed.
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