The Worst
TECHNOSPHERE RELOAD
A platform game that combines the best mechanics of Valve’s Portal and Sega’s Super Monkey Ball, this Adaptive Games title had far to fall. You have ten hours, both in-game and out, to repair the orbital system of an asteroid now hurtling towards Earth. With obstacles, depleting energy, and the time limit, there are a lot of hurdles to overcome. While there are some nice ideas and graphics present, unfortunately, the camera angle and clunky mechanics make it more frustrating than satisfying. As we said in our review, “If you’re looking for a challenge, you might find Technosphere Reload is worth your time – however, in its current state, I just can’t recommend it.”
Unknown Fate
Marslit Games’ Unknown Fate follows a man named Richard, an amnesiac who’s been pulled into a mysterious dream world that he must solve puzzles in to understand his surroundings. While there is strong atmospheric design, everything except the environmental design feels unpolished, from voice acting to narrative. As we said, “Despite its potential Unknown Fate falters at almost every step during the entire adventure. Not only are the ideas of both the narrative and combat experiences not well executed, but the game seems to struggle with an identity crisis.”
Swag and Sorcery
Sometimes the games in our bottom three list just came out in a strong month. Sometimes it’s just luck of the draw that puts them here, or a bad mechanic in an otherwise fun game. That is not the case with Swag and Sorcery. With a series of either lackluster interactions or no interactions at all, this title feels mocking to the player in its cheap Deadpool-style version of a fantasy kingdom. What did our reviewer have to say? “I implore its developers, all developers really, to learn from these mistakes. This is the exact lack of interaction that makes games bad. This is the recipe for failure, and in the future, it should be used as a road map of precisely what not to do in game design.” Oof. Daming indeed.
What did you think of our top and bottom games of May 2019? Did we miss anything? Put something in the wrong spot? Let us know in the comments below!