In 1995, a small studio from Milan took a risk, trying to bring a fast, well-playing Ridge Racer-inspired game to the PC. Screamer was the result, and it launched a franchise that earned itself a loyal fanbase. The series evolved with the technology of the day, adopting early 3D acceleration to achieve a smooth framerate. It went from pure road racing to rally and off-road, looking poised to become something long-lived. But publisher Virgin Interactive fell on hard times; the IP was sold off, bounced between companies, and became entangled in red tape before going dormant for nearly two decades.

These days, it can be hard to make a game stand out among the thousands released every year. Whether it’s a title requiring an elaborate marketing campaign or a solid pitching strategy, getting a game noticed becomes more difficult by the day. Mr. Sleepy Man, a dreamy 3D platformer from the mind of solo developer Devin Santi, challenged that narrative with its fascinating visual design and frankly absurd trailers. It absolutely stays true to the game’s world as a lucid dream of an experience.

Last week I set up an appointment with Brazil Games to see four fun-looking titles being made by Brazilian developers, and while they all had some neat aspects, Talaka stood out to me the most.

I’m not the biggest VR guy. I think the last time I messed with anything in VR was when I first got my PlayStation VR. But to be fair, I enjoyed a lot of the games I got, especially Beat Saber, Astro Bot: Rescue Mission, and Batman Arkham VR. When I was asked if I wanted to take a GDC offsite appointment to play a new Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles game, I was all the way down. Say less.

Jackbox is getting into the publishing game with their first wacky project, My Arms Are Longer Now.

We took a look at the game at GDC.

The modern gaming calendar is often dominated by sprawling, hundred-hour open-world behemoths, but Etrange Overlord takes the spotlight as my biggest surprise of the year so far. It’s developed by Gemdrops and SuperNiche, and headed by Disgaea creator Sohei Niikawa. Between 10 to 15 hours of gameplay, it marries an ironically grim sense of humor with tightly tuned, gimmick-free mechanics. 

Day of the Devs had a delightful surprise for us called Worming From Home. The first ever worm-life simulator about working from home as a worm.

Yeah, I know. This stupid headline writes itself, and I’m going to keep it that way because I find it funny.

I wrapped up my Atari meetings at GDC with a 30-minute session with the latest Jay and Silent Bob game, and I left with roughly the same opinion I have about the movies.

Bubsy is a meme for all the wrong reasons. Nearly every game in the series is arguably terrible, and the self-deprecating jokes are often just as bad.

Well, Bubsy is back.

Again.

But all of a sudden it looks like he has the sauce. Out of the 30 game demos I played during GDC, Bubsy 4D is in my top three, and it’s not number three.

Limited Run Games had a special presentation for Marvel MaXimum Collection during GDC, and while we only got to try one of the six games, we came away impressed with the accessibility options.

This is the fourth preview I’ve written on Pragmata. I’m sold. I don’t need to see any more of the game until its launch, but when Capcom invites you to their San Francisco headquarters before GDC to play the game for two hours, you go.

MIO: Memories in Orbit is a game that attempts to capture that feeling while also expressing it in the form of a Souls-like Metroidvania adventure game. Attempting to capture Melancholy in game form is nothing new (Quintet Co. famously built their entire brand around it), and especially not new when it comes to the world of indie game development.