Still Wakes the Deep (Review)

Developer: The Chinese Room
Publisher: Secret Mode
Available On: PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S
Reviewed on Xbox Series S

Rising to fame with “Dear Esther” in 2012, The Chinese Room is considered by many to be the studio that pioneered the “walking simulator” genre, introducing players to first-person narrative games where you primarily walk around environments as you piece together a story through narration and short scripted events. Following up with Amnesia: A Machine for Pigs in 2013, and Everybody’s Gone to the Rapture in 2015 (one of my favorite games of the last generation), The Chinese Room have made a dedicated fanbase with their particular style of games. However, shortly after their newfound success, The Chinese Room underwent a complete restructuring due to a whole string of complicated events that caused them to completely pivot toward VR and mobile games. Now, after nearly a decade, The Chinese Room have returned to their roots with Still Wakes the Deep, a new walking simulator that seeks to evolve the genre while still showcasing the strengths that made their studio famous in the first place. Unfortunately, Still Wakes the Deep misses the mark in nearly every category.

Open Roads (Review)

Developer: Open Roads Team
Publisher: Annapurna Interactive
Available On: PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S
Reviewed on Xbox Series S

Several video games try to touch on themes of rocky familial relationships, generational secrets, and awkward adolescence, but there are few I would say hit as hard as Open Roads. This short narrative adventure game follows a mother and daughter as they embark on a road trip in search of answers to a decades-long family secret, complete with shocking revelations and painful truths. Clocking in at around 3 hours, Open Roads is a bit on the shorter side, but this actually works in its favor, creating a heartfelt and emotional story that can be completed in a single session. As I get ready to dive into two massive games back-to-back (Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth/Elden Ring), I’ve been looking for a few shorter games to play through before dumping hundreds of hours into something bigger, and let me tell you, Open Roads was exactly was I looking for.

Return to Grace (Review)

Developer: Creative Bytes Studios
Publisher: Creative Byters Studios
Available On: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X|S
Reviewed on Xbox Series S

While everyone seems to be busy with massive JRPGs such as Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, Persona 3: Reloaded, and most recently Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth, today I want to talk about a small sci-fi adventure game called Return to Grace. Originally released last year on PC, Return to Grace offers a complete and polished narrative experience that takes only 2-4 hours to see through to completion, and now with a console release that happened just two weeks ago (it’s also on Game Pass!), even more players can experience this delightful little adventure. In a year that’s already being dominated by one massive time sink after another, let me tell you why this much, much shorter game is just as worthy of your time.