During our visit to the fair, we saw a multitude of games. It's hard to list and enumerate them all. Below this article, we bring a brief overview of some smaller titles that caught our eye.
Before I Go, the debut title from indie studio J’S Laboratory, which can be added to your wishlist on Steam. The graphic and sound design seem extremely promising, with a dark color palette and a story infused with cosmic horror visibly inspired by the works of the legendary H.P. Lovecraft. A demo is also available, so you can try it out on Steam. Before I Go appears to be an extremely ambitious project, capable of continuing the trend of budget-friendly video games of high quality.
Mexican Ninja! What can we say? We think we've never added a game to our wishlist faster in our lives. The mere fact that it revolves around fighting against a new ruling class in Tokyo, composed of yakuza and drug cartels called Narkuza, was more than enough to win us over. It's a quality beat 'em up roguelike title, which also feels like a fresh return to the golden days of retro arcade gaming. The development team promises not to hold back on the hits (literally and figuratively), and if you add the game to your wishlist now, you'll get free access to the upcoming demo. So we ask you, what are you waiting for, pinche ninja?
Cloudheim is a dynamic action RPG, focusing on combining combos and using the terrain to your advantage. Additionally, the game will offer co-op for four players and an intuitive crafting system, both in combat and in your base, which is located within a massive flying turtle shell!
The game world is reportedly almost entirely destructible, and the mechanics will strongly encourage experimentation and freedom of approach. It looks good, sounds good, smells good, let's hope it plays well too.
Cloudheim is now available to add to your wishlist on Steam, with a planned release in autumn 2025.
Distinct Possibility Studios showcased the game Reaper Actual at the fair, describing it as an Open World Consistent Shooter. We learned that the game will also contain certain MMO elements, and teams will have a base (hub) from which they will be dispatched to battle. There will also be PvPvE mechanics, meaning players will fight not only against NPC enemies but also against other player teams. It's ambitious, no doubt.
Vehicles and five different biomes have been promised from the very beginning. However, with games of this type, two questions always arise:
- How frequent and user-friendly will updates be?
- Will this end up as just another early access project for one-time use?
It seems that the studio takes the project very seriously, and the title itself has all the elements needed for
potentially being the surprise of the year. One note, although the studio has already mentioned it, the game contains a solid amount of AI-generated content, which is, at least in our opinion, always a big "red flag".
Reaper Actural is available to add to your wishlist on Steam.
Under Par is a golf course building simulator that primarily focuses on a sandbox experience. Players will
be able to create courses almost however they wish, with an additional management component that mainly revolves
around attracting VIP guests to their little golf paradise.
To assist in this, hiring quirky staff will bring their own charm to your business, as well as
organizing prestigious tournaments.
The best and worst things we've learned so far can be summed up as follows:
- You will be able to test your own “frankenstein” creations and thus check your golf skills, which sounds
great and has already proven to be a successful concept in similar games, like Mario Maker. - The game sounds like a dream for an online experience, but as far as we can see, it is currently unavailable. We hope
that it will be added in upcoming updates.
In any case, this is definitely one of the more interesting titles that was playable at this year's Gamescom, and you can also add it to your wishlist on Steam.
On paper, I Hate This Place seems like a sure hit.
Not only is the visual design stunning and strongly inspired by comic book aesthetics, but the sound design
will also play a significant role and have a symbiotic relationship with the gameplay.
The story is set on the Rutherford Ranch estate, and the game will be filled with horror classics, especially when it comes
to locations. From haunted forests, abandoned towns to infected bunkers, the player will have to use
all their resourcefulness to survive the constant day and night cycle which, as it stands, is the main
”gimmick” of this title.
Everything seems well-packaged, full of familiar “horror tropes,” but in a good way, and original enough to bring something fresh to the genre. There is no doubt that we are very excited about this title.
I Hate This Place does not have a specific release date yet, but you can already add it to your wishlist on Steam.
