Recent reviews by Henrimagne

SOMA turned out to be a really enjoyable adventure that exceeded my expectations.
The game starts out very unassuming, even too simplistic, giving the early impression that it's just going to be another of those walking sims with horror elements attached. And THEN, all of a sudden, one's world gets turned on its head, launching you on a thought-provoking, futuristic adventure where the idea of being human and alive is rocked to its core. What exactly IS life? When exactly is something ALIVE? What does it mean to be conscious? Is the distinction between what is human and what is machine really all that clear? And if faced with ultimate annihilation, the total destruction of humankind, is the prospect of becoming machine in order to survive really all that bad?
The player explores the environment, interacts with devices to solve puzzles and gain access to further areas, traversing the inside of buildings located deep underneath the ocean, also the seabed, coming into contact with strange creatures both human-like and not so human. In some areas the main quest is to avoid these creatures, to get past them relying on your wits alone.
Slowly a picture emerges of the place, and the time, you find yourself in, of the life-and-death struggles the human crew went through, coming to terms with your fate, with mankind's fate. Or do you? Are you even real? What is reality?
A truly mind-bending masterpiece.

This is the sequel to "Grey Skies: A War of the Worlds Story", remastered for PC after it was only available on console. Unlike its predecessor, it takes place AFTER the war and not during. You play as Jack, a secondary character from the first game, who in the aftermath scavenges through the rubble and debris for components to built a working heat ray weapon. Jack operates from a home base (a central hub) from where he can access the various areas of the game.
I liked the game and really did enjoy it.
I want to be clear though that players are in general negative when it comes to this dev's work. The first game was not received well at all and negative criticism has spilt over to this sequel as a result. Personally, I feel that this indie dev, still honing his skills, did a good job. While the first game was focused primarily on stealth, the player here has a choice between stealth and combat - the player wields a pistol almost from the start. The amount of ammo pick-ups is totally sufficient in this regard. The amount of red weed pick-ups to upgrade one's character and throwables also is enough to upgrade fully in one playthrough; just explore to find it all.
There is absolutely no need to want to run around like a lunatic and finish the game in under two hours or less. I fully explored every nook and cranny during my seven hours of play time, taking it slow, soaking in the environment and atmosphere.
I foresee complaints about the movement being clunky and some other frustrations, like there being (mostly) zombies. However, I feel that much of the negativity towards this game and its predecessor are somewhat exaggerated, unwarranted and even lazy. Don't enter into an indie game like this and expect a triple A production with epic battles, spectacular stunts and a Hollywood plot.
This is my honest opinion.

I've been supporting the short indie horror games made by Stanislaw Truchowski (Stan) for a while now. A master of the jump scare.
SNAFU, though, is somewhat different from anything that came before. A medieval grow-your-business game with 3D platforming in a pixel and low-poly world. But a glitch is gradually taking over the game world, terrorising and killing NPCs and the player alike. So beware; after nightfall Snafu roams outside...
Three different endings.

What a story! What a mind-blowing experience of love, hope, despair and tragedy!

It is World War I. The player takes turns to play as one of two soldiers on opposing sides: Harry Lambert, a young Canadian photographer (voiced by Elijah Wood), and Kurt Waldner, a German technician who is trying to find his son (voiced by Sebastian Koch). Great voice acting by true professionals.
Neatly intertwined with the lives of the two main characters are two animals: a pigeon (associated with Harry) and a cat (associated with Kurt). For brief periods the player will also be in control of their actions.

Graphics-wise the developer decided on an oil-painting look, "a unique painterly style", surely beautiful, but at the same time frustrating because it results in blurry textures on some systems, obscuring detail. While I absolutely loved the game and was captivated by the deep emotional battles within the characters, I can see how this could be an issue for some players. Personally, it didn't detract from the brilliance of the story.

There is something to be said for the multiple endings of the game. All have their own set of mercilessly life-altering consequences for the characters involved, a reminder of the fragility of our lives and the impact of split-second decisions that cannot be unmade.

This game made quite an impression on me. With the credits rolling and the music playing at the end, I was reminded of the pondering silence after finishing a good book, when you look back in wonder and realise that you have just witnessed something special.

The Corridor is a very unusual little game. In fact, I believe it's the most unusual game I've ever played.
Don't expect much though. After all, it's a simple, short game about a corridor, a door, and a button. That's it. I'm very deliberately not saying more, because that could spoil it for others. Just THIS: it is dead simple, and yet, surprisingly innovative, unexpected and different. An "out-of-game" gaming experience.
(20-30 minutes playthrough)

Note: Similar game to "The Stanley Parable".

Exo One has to be one of the strangest and most unusual games I've ever played. It is difficult to liken it to other games because it's actually quite unique. If I had to, though, I'd mention a likeness to Flower and Journey, two games in which flight plays a vital role. So maybe I should describe Exo One as a kind of flight simulator.
You control the movement of an alien craft that can alternate between two shapes - a sphere and a flat oval - and propels itself forward by means of a gravity drive. It took me two to three playthroughs to fully grasp and master this very basic but unique propulsion system (that's just me though).
It's a visually attractive game. You visit ten planets, all with different landscapes and moods, with strange structures, floating islands, weather systems, otherworldly formations and hints of other lifeforms. The alien beauty of it all can be hypnotic. Breaching the sound barrier is a kaleidoscopic experience.
The objective is to reach the teleportation structure on each planet - indicated by a thin blue line - that will transport you to your next destination. You may be aided by the weather and flight-boosting devices on your way.
Exo One is dedicated to those astronauts who were lost to humanity, as well as the powerful attraction that space exploration has on the human psyche. May we never stop dreaming of what we may find out there.

This is a little fun racing game I used to play way back before I had Internet and Steam, a time before Covid-19, masks and hand sanitisers, before Wokeism, cancel culture, toxic masculinity, multiple genders and universes, before men could breastfeed and give birth to babies, and before the world went totally sky-high crazy with all of the above.

Racing environments include supermarkets, a botanical garden, a large ship, a western/wild west town, a residential neighbourhood and a museum. Take control of your favourite remote-controlled cars and defend yourself against the rest of the pack with randomly picked-up weapons: turbo battery, fireworks (rockets), oil slick, ball bearing, electro pulse, bomb-on-a-fuse, water balloons, shockwave and landmine (disguised as a random pick-up).
The campaign involves a championship divided into four cups: bronze, silver, gold and platinum. Otherwise, choose any single track from the menu (tracks and cars unlock as you progress).

I picked up this favourite again for old time's sake, for the awesome trip down memory lane. The track editor is basic but lots of fun.

In "The Redress of Mira", Tonguç Bodur returns to the fantasy universe portrayed in his "Nephise" trilogy and "Finding The Soul Orb". The mystical, medieval atmosphere offers a true escape from our everyday modern reality.
We are presented with a fable, both beautiful and tragic, that reveals itself from one area to the next, from lush landscapes, rendered in soft pastel colours, to dark, sparsely-lit caves, reflecting the shifting mood throughout. It is a short, gripping tale of love and sorrow, told from several characters' points of view. And it has the promise of continuation. So a sequel will be welcome.
Progression through minor puzzling, collecting mana, and mild combat.
Well done, Tonguç, on once again keeping us glued to our screens.

"Martha Is Dead" is a psychological thriller set in 1944 Italy amidst the Second World War.
Not really a jump-scare game, it is rather a look into the darkness of a troubled mind using horror and macabre, unsettling imagery.
The story is very well written and the plot intelligently developed. It has the feel of a "who-dunnit?" novel.
I decided to play the game using the Italian voice acting (with English subtitles), which for me enhanced the experience from a historical location point of view.
FPS drops in a few areas forced me to lower the graphics settings, because it resulted in your character being instantly turned around, going back the way you came from instead of continuing on to your goal.
Overall, the game was well worth experiencing.

I felt like playing one of my regular go-to games, but was going to start this little game first to quickly see what it was like before resuming business as usual. But I totally underestimated how “Corpse of Discovery” would pull me in. I kept going for six and a half hours straight until it was done.

It turned out to be a truly remarkable exploration of, not just the alien landscapes on the screen, but also the meaning of life, what it means to be human and to be alive. It ponders our existence, our significance (and/or insignificance) in the universe; the meaning of family, of everyday choices, the existence of a higher power, our fate, the significance of artificial intelligence and what that holds for the future of human life.
Does the greatness of man’s accomplishments actually mean anything beyond the human context? Does the universe care about any of that? Are our technological advances actually taking us anywhere in the bigger scheme of things?

Gameplay-wise you will, as an astronaut (in 3D platforming style), explore the surfaces of mysterious alien planets and the lifeforms on them, aided by an AI drone, a jet pack and waypoints. You will encounter things that blurr the line between reality and fiction, between the present and the past, between visual observation and thought. Real historical recordings of famous speeches are incorporated, even surprise messages by famous actors.

“Corpse of Discovery” was a delight to play and intrigued me throughout. I was a bit frustrated with the platforming in the final level, but that was probably because I desperately wanted to see how the game ends, and I guess I was feeling fatigue setting in by then. Ultimately it was a very worthwhile experience. I am richer for it.