No, this editorial was not a week late, it was merely delayed due to a previous review and scheduling. It what has now become an annual tradition, this editorial will cover three free games released in 2016 that gamers might have missed out on.
Gaming really has come a long way.
The first game joining the party is Let It Die for the Playstation 4 which released on December 3rd, 2016. Developed by Grasshopper Manufacture, the same developers behind No More Heroes 2: Desperate Struggle, Let It Die is a hack and slash title that centers on death as a gameplay mechanic where players will inevitably die and then appear in other player’s games. Unfortunately, the game is technically free-to-play (not just free) and does offer micro-transactions. The way in which these micro-transactions work is that when the player dies that can either choose to defeat their now zombified previous avatar with a new character (that has to be leveled up), spend in-game currency to be revived, or use a Death Medal which can either be purchased or received as a daily log-in bonus to be immediately revived like a fairy from the “Legend of Zelda” series. Other than the micro-transactions however, the game is also known for its sort of breakout character Uncle Death who is a skateboarding grim reaper who refers to the player as Senpai.
Is he some sort of cloud? A man? A cloud man?
Next up is Accounting which is a…VR game (keep reading) released on October 18th, 2016. This game was co-developed by Squanchtendo (headlined by Justin Roiland famed creator of the tv show Rick and Morty) and Crows, Crows, Crows (the team behind Dr. Langeskov, The Tiger, and The Terribly Cursed Emerald: A Whirlwind Heist which was covered in last year’s editorial). Although the initial introduction of it being a VR game is understandably unsettling, players have been giving extremely positive reviews due to a large focus on humor which is understandable given the two teams behind the game. While it is no way encouraged that a reader buys a VR headset as they are “icky” and “gimmicky,” it is encouraged that they try and find a video (without an annoying Youtuber’s commentary) that shows off the game to see why others find it to be such a hilarious experience. One of the positive reviews on Steam reads, “I’ve never had more fun being verbally abused by a video game,” so even MastaJax had fun.
There is also a fun sub-game where the player takes a shot everytime someone says Sara!
Last game this editorial will cover is Sara is Missing which was released on October 23rd, 2016. Developed by a small team of about four people who seem to go under Monsoon Lab (a new game studio for this game), Sara Is Missing is a horror game where the player has “found” a missing woman’s phone. The player is then encouraged to look through Sara’s pictures, texts, emails, and so on in order to find out what exactly happened to Sara. The game boasts that there are multiple endings and branching paths in the story to be found along with hidden sub-plots, all while trying to immerse the player in the idea that they have Sara’s phone. While the game is mobile-centered, players can also play the title on Windows and Mac computers, but it is nice that a mobile game is very obviously tailored to be playable on a phone as it practically is a phone simulator. The game seems to take about an hour or less to play depending on the player’s speed and choices, and hey, it does have the nice price point of being free.
So there it is, the three hidden gems of 2016, do you think that Adeki will still be around next year to talk about the hidden gems of 2017? What if there are not any free games that are fun in 2017? Oh, the horrors of it all. Have you played any of these games and want your opinion to be known? Leave a comment below and let us know what you think!
