NOTE FROM THE EDITOR: We here at GameTyrant have been absolutely bombarded with so many games this year. We will be rolling out select quick reviews to let our audience know about games and DLC that may have slipped under their radar. We appreciate the amazing support from all publishers and developers out there!
Sand Land (PC)
I was not expecting to like Sand Land as much as I had anticipated. Its demo wasn’t the best at fully representing the game’s scope and potential, and the performance wasn’t anything to write home about either. This is now the case with the full release, and it’s an absolute joy of a video game adaptation of the late Akira Toriyama’s underrated limited series.
Sand Land’s art direction is stellar, as expected, and the sandy setting couldn’t have been a better pick. Everything about its presentation is a highlight for me, and seeing Akira Toriyama’s inventive tank and vehicle designs brought to life is a joy. It’s not just the visuals that impressed me, but the world, its characters, and the sheer variety in side quests.
Its combat isn’t as great though, and arguably the weakest link. That, and after a certain while it felt like the game was padding itself out after running out of exciting content to get through.
Overall, it’s a solid anime adaptation that’s a cut above the typical arena fighter. The art and characters are very memorable, and the vehicle designs are a blast to mess around with.
Another Crab's Treasure (PC)
Soulslikes don’t always have to be hard…right? Another Crab’s Treasure is a charming, extremely funny, and enjoyable Soulslike adventure that takes to the seas and follows Kril, a recluse hermit crab whose home is taken from him because of unpaid taxes.
What follows is a brutal journey where Kril will fight many fishes and crustaceans in beautiful environments. The combat is fun, the tone of the dialogue is hilarious, and the general level design is very memorable. Some of the bosses are genuinely difficult, and you’ll want to put some points in VIT, trust me.
However, despite my enjoyment, it’s a bit rough around the edges. I don’t like how you can’t move the map around on its screen. Some instances of the camera lock can be annoying, and there are a lot of bugs you can run into.
For a small team though, this is a seriously impressive launch, and there’s a lot of fun to be had here. If you’ve been looking for a good Soulslike to spend around 25 hours, it’s hard to go wrong with this.
Tales of Kenzera: Zau (PC)
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU has a lot of heart, and it’s hard to say that about a lot of games that are just made to entertain. ZAU is an emotional journey of self-healing a clearly personal project from Abubakar Salim about his grief of losing his father. It’s a game with vibrant colors, a deep respect for Bantu culture, and a powerful soundtrack.
It’s hard to be down on a game like this, but it lacks polish in many aspects of its gameplay. The combat doesn’t always flow well, the camera isn’t reliable, hitboxes aren’t always accurate, and checkpoints can feel needlessly punishing.
The game has a lot of great ideas, and the core story, writing, and character work are excellent. However, it lacks the polish found in other games of the same genre. It’s still worth checking out for its heartfelt tale if you can ignore its rough edges.
