Another month, another bunch of games released, some of which may have gone under your radar. Here are five games you may have missed in December 2019. Before we begin, I would like to thank all of the publishers who sent these games to me in order to make this video, so with that out of the way, let’s get started.
A Tofu Tail
You’ve been turned into a block of tofu by a deceptive fox spirit, what do you do? Well, you roll yourself around on a variety of colorful maps and solve puzzles of course. That is A Tofu Tail, a little indie puzzle game with some deceptively simple gameplay. The core of that gameplay revolves around flipping yourself over on square tiles until you reach the end marker. However, these tiles fall away after landing on them once and you can only land on tiles that are the same color as you, so it’s actually a bit more complex than it appears. You’re able to change colors mid-puzzle by picking up little orbs, but you’ll oftentimes have to plan your approach to that orb to avoid getting stuck.
Fortunately, the puzzles are short enough that it’s never too frustrating when you get stuck and the game even allows you to reverse your actions mid-puzzle, so there’s no negative to experimenting with potential solutions. As you progress, more mechanics are unlocked, including power-ups that allow tiles to be used multiple times and yokai that can throw you over gaps. There’s even a little story to top it all off. It’s a cool little game that, while I can’t see myself playing for longer sessions, is fun to play in little short bursts.
DJMAX RESPECT V
For those unaware, the DJMax series has quite the history. First launched back in 2004, it has since seen a number of releases on several different platforms. However, most of those titles were exclusive to Asia, so having a new entry release internationally AND on Steam was definitely some good news. DJMAX RESPECT V is a rhythm game in the vain of beatmania, where notes come down the screen and you hit the corresponding button in time with the music. It’s a simple formula, but the DJMax series has refined this formula for years now, and that really shows in Respect V.
Not only are there a bunch of great songs to choose from, but there’s also a plethora of customization options, a ton of unlockable content, and even a few different game modes to choose from. I personally spent most of my time in free play, but there’s another mode called ‘AIR’ that allows you to play a continuous playlist while also chatting with other players. It’s a pretty fun rhythm game all things considered and I look forward to seeing what is added in the coming months (as the game is expected to leave early access in that time).
Jamestown+
The shoot ’em up genre is one full of space-themed games. Whether you’re out in deep space blasting aliens or working your way through abandoned space stations, the theme is pretty much the same across all of these games. Well, Jamestown+ kinda throws that out the window. Instead of just being your everyday shoot ’em up set in deep space, it’s a shoot ’em up set in 17th-century British colonial Mars. Yes, it somehow manages to maintain that space theme, while feeling completely new in the process.
Aside from the theming, Jamestown+ offers up a lot of what makes the genre fun. There’s the fast and frantic shoot ’em up gameplay, the wide variety of cool enemies, stages, and bosses, and some really well-done pixel art and music. On top of that though, Jamestown+ also offers some pretty good accessibility, with a decent amount of difficulty options and settings to choose from. Whether you’re a newcomer to the genre or a seasoned veteran, you’re bound to find something suitable there. And to top it all off, the game even offers up to 4-player local co-op, something that’s pretty rare in this genre. It’s a solid shmup all around and given that this is the definitive version of the game (hence the “+” in the title), it’s never been a better time to check it out.
Bunny Sudoku
We’ve had Bunny Minesweeper, Bunny Mahjo, Bunny Reversi, Bunny Parking, and now the bunnies have moved on to Sudoku. In Bunny Sudoku, you take up the role of a bunny of whatever color you choose, whose goal is to solve a Sudoku puzzle that can be customized to one of three difficulties. As with previous entries, the game is meant to be played with some friends, with Bunny Sudoku supporting two-player online in its classic mode and 4 player online in its “defense mode”. And if you don’t want to sit there and solve a Sudoku puzzle, you can instead go around and explore whatever the devs slapped onto the map this time (as they’ve done with the previous games).
I’ve played every game in this series to date and can confirm that Bunny Sudoku is just as dumb and clunky as the previous entries. However, this series has always been a source of fun for my friends. It’s not a game that you will likely play for more than a couple hours, but during those couple hours, it’s some really dumb fun. Whether you’re trying to figure out ways to break the game, achievement hunting by exploring the map, or actually playing the objective, it’s a fun little game that’s definitely worth the dollar or two that the games in the series usually go for.
Retimed
Remember that game Duck Game? Well if you took out all of the ducks, swapped in some original characters, and added slow motion on top of it, you’d get Retimed, a multiplayer arena shooter for up to four players. It’s a game that is incredibly easy to pick up, yet is a bit harder to master. The base gameplay involves you and however many players you’re playing with spawning in an arena with a limited amount of ammo. You move around the arena picking up more ammo all while blasting away at other players. Every time a bullet gets close to a player, that player enters slow motion, giving them a chance to dodge by moving out of the way, jumping, ducking, or consuming one of their bullets to do a quick dash.
Given this, there’s a heavy emphasis on quick movement, which adds another layer to the already fast-paced gameplay. It’s a pretty interesting mix, and with the inclusion of stage hazards and stuff like portals, it’s quite the arena experience. Granted, it’s the type of game that would only really be fun for maybe thirty minutes or so at a time, but it’s a solid multiplayer shooter regardless and one I can see myself returning to in the future.
And that’s my list. A bit of a slower month for game releases (probably due to the holidays), but some great games regardless. As usual, I’ve included links to the store pages for all games featured in this video in the description, so do check them out if you’re interested. If you’re not subscribed already, be sure to do so, it really helps out, and if I perhaps missed a game that you really liked this past month, do let me know in the comments down below. Thanks again for watching and see you guys in the next one.
cublikefoot 