tldr videogame curation
melbourne, australia

Platform: Xbox Series X|S

A surprisingly compelling soulslike despite quite a bit of jank. World is cool & very pretty. Combat is easy but enjoyable. Disappointing amount of invisible walls, and overall a bit clunky, but fun.

Can’t blame them, but someone clearly loves Bloodborne. Thymesia is cool and like a lot of new soulslikes, has a bunch of neat ideas, but somehow feels like less than the sum of its parts. Decent.

A really fun balance of roguelike dungeon crawling and Animal Crossing colony sim inside a slick package of stunning art and great music. Bit buggy at launch, but still great and ripe for expansion.

Lovingly crafted and it shows - Stray is poetic and touching. Looks and sounds gorgeous, as well as providing a chuckle or two. Fantastic world building. Puzzles are simple but not mind-numbing. 🐈

Everything about this seems like it should be amazing, but for me it somehow falls short and is less than the sum of its parts. Movement less slippery and combat more engaging would go a long way.

2.5D sidescrolling Kurosawa-inspired combat, which at times is challenging and rewarding but can also feel imprecise and frustrating. Excellent visuals and clever composition. Definitely worth a look.

Absolute gem and insane value. Despite its mechanical simplicity, Vampire Survivors allows for tonnes of variety and replayability. Fun, satisfying and addictive - stop reading and play it.

After bouncing off Fortnite the week it launched, I wrote it off for years. It was polished and fun, but I was frustratingly bad. Once they introduced Zero Build I tried again, and it’s fun as hell.

So masterfully crafted, creative, confident and bold that it immediately makes the rest of the openworld genre feel dated and uninspired. A landmark achievement and a very special game. Masterpiece.

Feels like a roguelite Borderlands. Starts slow but ramps up in difficulty nicely. Way more fun with friends. I wish combat had a bit more depths and more detailed stats, but it’s a nice little game.