Recent reviews by suitkace

ive got a lot of feelings about FACEMINER. its a game that makes you think on several very prevalent issues in our modern society. but the game itself can feel like a bit of a drag to actually play.

FACEMINER is a very blatant criticism of ai usage and the effects of ai usage, like the environmental and economic factors. theres also themes of cyber security, specifically once you unlock the ability to purchase facefinder cameras to harvest your own data. the game itself is an interesting form of criticism.

the story is heavily told through the various emails you receive. most of the emails are incredibly short. some are messages from the FACEMINER administration on things like work efficiency or claiming the negative effects are just fearmongering. other emails are from other FACEMINER employees discussing the ethics and effects of their work. a lot of emails provide nothing to the story, just standard emails about mundane stuff. its both an interesting and incredibly boring method of story telling.

its interesting in the way that it allows you to see into the lives of your fellow coworkers. some seem to be hysterical and outraged at anyone who opposes their work, others fearful of the world theyre creating others are jaded and dont seem to care. these are all very real responses to the usage of ai in modern society, so i definitely think it was important to be included. however, your inbox very quickly gets full of messages. notices about efficiency or expenses, rank up emails, babbling between employees, messages from people opposing the work of FACEMINER, etc. it all just gets jumbled up. and since the inbox is the method of storytelling, all this nonsensical data makes it hard to keep track of the story.

the gameplay loop is also a bit boring. you can select how fast you want your game to go or if you want to play an endless game. even on the quicker speed, the game still takes ages to actually reach the ending. and endless isn’t even all that fun– it’s the same exact game, just without an ending. there’s no new infrastructure or offsets to switch things up. which, gets frustrating even in a standard run. things get more expensive exponentially. it’s really easy to dig yourself into a financial pit or to basically keep your game at a standstill.

one major bone to pick is that you have to pay to save your game. you get a free autosave after ranking up, but in order to save, you need to pay. and like all other upgrades in the game, saving becomes exponentially more expensive the more saves you make. it’s honestly just a nuisance.

the game does use ai for image generation. specifically, all datasets are made up of ai-generated faces. it uses nvidia’s ffhq dataset to generate these faces. while the devs claim it’s for thematic purposes (as well as it would obviously be tough and expensive to legally gather enough faces to create the datasets). but how many of the people whose faces were used in nvidia’s dataset consented to their faces being used? and since the ai is trained on real people who may or may not have consented to their images being used for ai training, it undermines the criticisms the game it trying to make. at least, in my opinion. the game’s whole point is to criticise ai usage through the unethical gathering of data and the effects it has on the world. if the game’s face data was gathered unethically, then FACEMINER has become what it set out to criticise. it ‘s a slippery slope.

all in all, a summary of the story is just “ai bad”. do i think it’s got a good story? yes, if you’re willing to do some digging to read the important emails. do i think it’s fun? no, not really. once you’ve made it to mid-/late-game, you’ve done basically everything but get the story’s finale. most late-game features, such as the emissions/offsets have barely any upgrades. if you’re interested in the criticisms this game has on ai and a cynical worldview, then maybe you’d enjoy the game. but it’s definitely a type of game you dont actively play, you just check in every now and then to upgrade it and let it run on its own.

as someone who has been excited to play the game’s full release since the demo, i cant help but feel rather disappointed by the game we got. so, let’s get into it.

starting with the positives, the art style is lovely. the characters you meet all have super unique and interesting designs. the idle animations, fighting sequences, standard movement, and the likes are animated pretty well. from the designs of the characters alone, you can get a pretty good idea of their personality.

the music is also amazing, which is important, as this is a rhythm game. i found myself replaying a lot of the minigames in the story mode just to keep listening to the music. and with the base game alone, theres a decent selection of music for the arcade mode. the arcade mode also has several modifiers to change up your gameplay, as well as several different difficulties to challenge you.

during my playthrough of the story, i really loved just how many different styles of rhythm games made appearances. theres side scrolling, vertical layout (most prevalent in combat), baseball-esque, and more. the variety of setups for the rhythm game keeps things entertaining. and sometimes, the style switches up mid-song, creating a fun challenge to keep hitting the notes.

the story mode also has quite a few minigames/side objectives. you can do some vandalism, take photos of Quaver, play beatballl at whacktown, do some bartending, jump rope (kind of..), and play some rip-off DDR.

now, lets get into the not so good. UNBEATABLE is absolutely riddled with bugs, most prevalent in the game’s story mode. some are mildly inconvenient, some are game breaking. right at the beginning of the game, i quickly ran into an issue while exploring outside Quaver’s house because she got stuck on something, so i had to exit the game and reopen it to continue playing. more often than not, dialogue doesnt play, so youre forced to read the speech bubbles. but another glitch causes speech bubbles to overlap, so it can be incredibly difficult to actually read any of the text and understand the story. while playing some of the computer games in episode 2, the games would freeze/not trigger game over screens, so you couldnt retry the minigames. episode 4 is riddled with ways to softlock yourself, with no easy fix (other than altering the game files or just waiting for a bug fix).

i had several issues with episode 2’s brickout minigame in particular. the bar and ball got duplicated, and i could control one set while the other set stayed frozen in the middle. sometimes the ball would barely move, while other times it just shredded straight through the bricks the moment i launched the ball. technically, this minigame isnt required to progress the story, but there is an incredibly difficult achievement tied to it. and i know im not the only achievement hunter out there who is going to be incredibly frustrated by this achievement.

the story’s pacing is also a bit weird. i felt lost throughout most of the story, like i was missing key pieces of information. UNBEATABLE’s pacing also felt way too fast. theres a total of 5 episodes, with the entire story campaign lasting around 6-8 hours. we’re introduced to so many characters who we know basically nothing about and they remain pretty mysterious for a good chunk of the story.

where UNBEATABLE currently stands, i wouldnt really recommend buying it. the arcade mode is enjoyable and i do like the story, but its just so buggy, that its incredibly frustrating and potentially unplayable. with a ton of bug fixes, i would definitely change my review to be more positive. but as it stands, the game is just a buggy mess that makes playing it incredibly frustrating. and for a game that youre paying $28 USD for, youre expecting a good quality game. and right now, UNBEATABLE falls short. like i said, its got potential with a lot of bug fixes. the devs are aware of a lot of the issues and im sure theyre working dilligently to release bug fixes, but its just disappointing for the game to be so buggy and broken upon release.

cast n chill is an absolutely wonderful game, whether you play it or leave it idling in the background.

theres a ton of fish to catch, each requiring different bait and fishing poles. as you catch more fish and tip rusty, you can unlock new locations, fishing poles, baits, and more! and the latest free update, the lake hunkerdown update, introduced the ability to ice fish.

the game's art is absolutely beautiful. the landscapes are so unique and gorgeous. the pixel art is so detailed, and its incredibly relaxing to look at.

you can actively play cast n chill, or you can leave it idling. i found it helpful to idle while doing other tasks to farm money so that when i was actively playing for myself, i had tons of money to buy upgrades.

skatehouse has the potential to be a super interesting game, but its currently lacking in a lot of areas.

for starters, the shop is incredibly small. you can expand your shop three times, but each expansion is pretty small. in order to keep up with the production demands for your shop, you need to cover essentially every square inch of the wall with boards, grip tape, handles, various frames, etc. and a good chunk of floor space is full of counters and shelves to produce wheels, hardware, bearings, and trucks. this gives you very little room for decorating your shop. in my experience, i really only had room for floor decorations, since my walls were just covered in upgrades.

theres also nobody in the game. despite running a store, you're the only person there. no customers show up, none of your sponsors ever drop by, and none of your employees ever show up to clock in. the most you ever see of other people is the pngs in different menus or on the various wall decor.

the game is $10 USD, and i earned all acheivements in about 4 hours. a good chunk of that was spent AFK while my employees did all the work. and by the time i hit the 3 hour mark, i had unlocked all the store expansions and work stations.

all in all, there really isnt much content. i think the game could be tons of fun with some updates adding more content and expanding upon what currently exists.

if you played and enjoyed the original sushi cat games, then this is an absolute must buy! if you never got to experience the greatness that is sushi cat, then now's the time to give it a shot!

for $5 USD, you get all five of the sushi cat games. the game itself runs great, though there are a few noticeable issues with sushi cat going transparent for a few frames in a few of the cut scenes or sushi cat getting a bit jittery when being squished between obstacles.

sushi cat is most definitely worth the price. the game is simple (as many of the flash games in the 2010s were), but thats what makes it so charming. getting to re-live the joys of sushi cat's story in finding love and eating sushi was worth the $5

once upon a katamari is yet another banger to the game series. so strap in, we’ve got lots to talk about.

first, lets hit on what fans of the game probably already know. the soundtrack is banger as always, but thats no surprise, as the katamari soundtracks have never disappointed. the overall gameplay is the same as the previous installments– roll up your katamari to be as big as possible. and tons of characters make reappearances, such as the king, the queen, and several cousins.

theres a few additional collectibles per level. crowns and cousins allow you to unlock new levels, while the presents give you themed items to decorate your avatar. and yes, i say avatar, because you don’t have to play as just the prince. you can play as any cousin or you can create your own cousin to play as. by collecting king tokens (earned by beating levels or replaying levels to complete challenges) you can earn things such as new facial expressions or emotes. rolling up different cousins allows you to unlock their body type in cousin customization. and of course, the presents give you some clothing options.

one of the major changes you’ll see in terms of gameplay is the addition of freebies. these are items that you can pick up for some kind of temporary boost. these freebies come in the form of a magnet, stopwatch, jetpack, and scanner. the magnet has an incredibly short duration, but it draws in all nearby objects that you can pick up, helping you quickly grow your katamari. the stopwatch freezes time for a few seconds. this is great to help you collect moving objects or to quickly roll up enough items to beat a level. the jetpack gives you a speed boost, allowing you to roll up a ton of items in a short period of time. however, the turn rate isnt the greatest, so it’s best used in a mostly straight line. the last freebie is the longest, yet most important for completionists. the scanner will show you where all crowns, cousins, and presents are.

another super cool feature is the introduction of katamariball. this is a new gamemode that allows you to go head to head with other players to roll up the largest katamari. its a change of pace from the relaxing gameplay of the main game/story mode, but its tons of fun to compete with other players.

theres a ton of different levels. each era you travel to has an entirely different level design with tons of new items you can roll up. the only complaint here is how uneven the level distribution is. some eras are seriously neglected in terms of how many levels they have.

all in all, once upon a katamari is a must play for any fans of the katamari series. its also a great starting place for any new players (though, there are a few references or callbacks that you may not understand, but it’s nothing that’ll ruin your experience).

frog legs is a short game about crossing a road, fighting demon frogs, and the power of margaritas! theres a lot of frog puns and potty humor, as well as a wide array of game styles, from frogger, boomer shooters, dungeon crawlers, and puzzle games.

for $3 USD, its definitely worth it for the laughs!

cart racer is a silly concept, but its poorly executed and makes for an overall frustrating experience.

for starters, there is no save system. if the game crashes or you need to take a break, you lose all progress. thats annoying on its own. but cart racer is incredibly difficult, making the lack of a save system even more aggravating. the game makes you want to bash your head into a wall due to frustration, but youll have to leave cart racer open in the background to save yourself the frustration of having to start over.

secondly, the controls are janky and its incredibly inconsistent. if you do anything more than tap the controls to move to the side, you'll go flying and have to reset. hopping into the cart is pretty annoying, but how you land in the cart can change how fast you gain momentum and how high you can launch yourself. but since you kinda just ragdoll into the cart, you cant really control how you land. so even if you line up your cart just right to get to the objective, if you landed in the cart wrong, you likely wont make it.

theres also no settings. you cant adjust the sensitivity, cant change the keybinds, and most annoyingly, cant change the volume. the music is incredibly loud and after a few hundred attempts, the music gets old. it would be great if there was a volume slider, so you could turn down the music and play your own music/background noise.

lastly, the graphics are pretty mediocre, but thats to be expected for the price. still, cartman's legs/butt often clips through his shorts as he flies around.

if a save system at the beginning of each level was introduced, that would make cart racer 10x better. starting in the cart would also be a huge improvement, as it would remove the struggle of actually getting into the cart and remove the unpredictability based on how you land. but as the game currently stands, its not worth the frustration

good news AMD users! you can play loan shark now!

with that being said, is it worth it to buy and play? personally, id have to say no for a variety of reasons.

for one, there really isnt any gameplay to be had. you just fish a little bit, get a call about your loan, then have to talk to the fish to solve your issues. the gameplay is incredibly boring and theres no repeatability. there are multiple endings, but theyre all incredibly boring. theres little variety to the endings– its just an image while some person on a radio berates you. the game also fades to black numerous times instead of showing any animation. this is most noticeable when putting the lure on your hook, as well as in a few other scenes.

the game’s tutorial is also atrocious. it’s entirely possible for first time players to accidentally miss the tutorial. it’s a journal on the boat that gives a super vague tutorial. the gutting mechanic is also super picky. i had so many issues where you had to start at a specific point, the knife could only go so far in, and you had to reslice a lot of the fish.

you can open console commands with the ~ or ` key. i found this out on accident, and since i had no idea how i opened console commands, i had no idea how to close it. and typing the command for help or for a commands list doesnt tell you how to close the menu. even better, console commands were entirely useless and more of a hindrance. anytime i tried to use the console commands to skip around for certain endings for the achievements, it would just cause the game to crash.

all in all, loan shark really doesnt have much to offer. its a bit buggy and has a lot of issues, plus the gameplay and story is pretty mediocre and boring.

midnight snack is a short horror game about going to get a midnight snack.

you have to walk through a forest to get to the kitchen to make yourself a snack. im not entirely sure why you have to go through a forest to get to the other half of your house, but since this midnight snack making happens in a nightmare, we'll just roll with it being due to nightmare logic.

the movement is what really interests me. its incredibly clunky, but its a super cool idea. you have to move around by turning two dials-- one for walking and one for looking.

i will say, the monster that chases you through the woods is pretty underwhelming. because the movement is pretty clunky, the monster is very slow so you have more than enough time to escape. out of curiosity and for the achievements, i let the monster catch me. theres no jumpscare, no cutscene, no nothing. it just leads you to a game over screen.

all in all, i think the game was just okay. its free and the movement is a really unique concept. however, the game is super short and there really isn't much substance to it. the monster poses little to no threat due to how slow it is.