Recent reviews by SNC

I cannot believe that there is a chance that Silksong isn't my favourite Metroidvania release this year.

Basti does not miss.

I have mixed feelings on Tin & Kuna, but I would ultimately recommend this to someone after a very specific 3D platformer experience.

For most players, going for 100% completion will immediately present where the obvious cracks are in this game. It's a course clear game with (mostly) required collectables and optional hitless and speedrun challenges, all great things on paper. The problem is that there's a handful of baffling design choices and technical issues which can really get in the way of the enjoyment of these, and I imagine they lead to most not sticking with the game long enough to see it through to the credits.

At times the game can be unreasonably difficult or unforgiving, and at other times it becomes more tedious than enjoyable. The pacing of levels can also vary significantly over the full 40 levels on offer, and some people may not enjoy the slower style puzzle platformer levels as they start to creep in, particularly when your goal is not always completely clear. The quality of levels is also really hurt by trying to experience everything the game has to offer, but any new player would have no way of knowing this.

All of that being said, I purchased this with the intention of learning the speedrun, which offered a completely different experience and one that really elevated the game for me. Routing the levels and learning the full range of what an any% run had to offer has given me an appreciation for Tin & Kuna that I expect very few will ever have. The speedrun is largely fast-paced and varied, with plenty of opportunities to showcase skillful play and real player expression. It really is unbelievable to me after the lukewarm feelings my initial playthrough inspired, but there is genuinely quite a good game in here if you go looking for it - it's just a shame that not many will ever find it.

For less than the price of a coffee, you absolutely cannot go wrong with Sapo 3D.

Simple game with plenty of forward momentum which easily carries you through to completion.

I am the current world record holder for the original Super Sami Roll, and was fortunate enough to be invited to participate in a short closed alpha testing period ahead of this demo's release. I write the below from a place of experience and love for the franchise, but want to be clear that the opinions presented here are entirely my own.

I believe that this demo will be incredibly exciting for any fans of the first game. There's a sense of familiarity to everything on offer, but it all has been elevated and placed alongside a healthy serving of new elements to discover.

Movement feels more fluid across the board, the visuals and overall scale of the levels have each seen tremendous upgrades and all of the new additions like the increase in collectables in each level, the adorable new NPCs (the Nubos!) and the new rail grind and water rolling mechanics each feel like natural continuations to the original. There are moments in these levels which feel genuinely cinematic, something that I very rarely felt playing the first title.

The difficulty that the first title had a reputation for has also been reined in so far, and the developer has suggested they intend to offer a more balanced difficulty curve in the full game for anyone concerned about this specifically. I'm happy to report that this demo does offer some promising new accessibility and control options, including full rebinding of controls, which should make it easier for anyone to find their own comfortable level of fun. If the first game didn't entirely land with you for any of these reasons I would suggest giving the demo a chance.

All of this results in this demo being a confident statement from Sonzai Games that they want the sequel to offer a fresh take on the Sami formula while both expanding on the things that people really loved about the original and addressing the parts that needed some ironing out. I truly believe they've succeeded in that from my time with this demo, as the most important element is already here in spades, being the overwhelming sense of joy and expression that Super Sami Roll so uniquely inspires in those that connect with it.

If you want to see this game reach its full potential then I wholeheartedly encourage you to wishlist the game and follow the Kickstarter campaign ahead of its launch.

Lone Fungus is a terrific Metroidvania that has the most important element possible for an indie title like this - a whole lot of heart - it's a solo-dev effort that has movement and level design which is directly competing with with some of the best on offer in the genre.

The game has a substantial amount of content on offer, presented in a way that inspires you to experiment with world and potentially sequence break your way through even on a first playthrough. The possibilities that the full moveset and spell kit provides you with are somewhat bewildering - expect plenty of optional platforming challenges throughout that should put to test even the most experienced fans of the genre.

There's definitely room for improvement in terms of how the overall package has been polished up, but I feel like it would be unfair to focus on these too much. The developer seems to be actively updating the game using community feedback following the 1.0 release, so I suspect that in time the game will feature a lot more of the QoL features that were potentially missing during my time completing it. Even so, I came out of my time with Lone Fungus ready to wholeheartedly recommend it.

This feels like the love-child of the Mario 3D World series and Super Monkey Ball in a lot of ways, but that basic comparison doesn't really do this title justice. It's not unusual to load into a level, look around and hone in on some crazy strategy that looks impossible and slowly, bit by bit, work your way to making it possible.

If you are familiar with 3D platformers and think you'll enjoy one with an emphasis on speedrunning through individual levels, you need to play Super Sami Roll. The only thing that this game needs is some kind of in-game leaderboard (looks like there are only a handful of people sharing times on speedrun.com for the game right now), but other than that it would not be an exaggeration to call this is a "best in it's genre" kind of game. Strongly recommend.

There's something really unique about the Supraland games that makes it easy to recommend to people looking for novel experience. A great blend of first-person platforming, puzzle solving and metroidvania elements, all in this light-hearted package that never takes itself too seriously.

Play Rivals of Aether.