Beneath The Trees Where Nobody Sees

Samantha Strong is one of the many friendly faces you’d see in the cozy little town of Woodbrook. It’s the kind of town where everyone knows each other and it’s ok to leave your door unlocked at night. Well, Everyone thinks they know each other. Samantha has a grisly side; for years she’s been hunting and killing random people in the distant city. Her main rule is never at home. But during the bicentennial parade for the town, someone has broken her rule. Now terror spreads as a killer is on the loose and it’s up to Samantha to stop them before her own careful hidden trail of bodies is discovered.

I love comics outside the standard DC and Marvel fare. This might be my 2nd favorite, only below Nailbiter. The opening is very disarming, very tranquil and the artwork really makes me think of a lot of the children’s shows I grew up with. Once the killing starts, it hits you like a brick. I really loved Sam as a character. Part of it is the mystery around why she feels the need to brutally kill people. There is some really creepy imagery and few good story twists I didn’t see coming. The characters are misplaced mostly which adds to the shock factor of what happens to them. The book feels pretty self contained which is nice. Another installment just came out but the first book doesn’t sequel bait. In the end, I can’t recommend this book enough especially if you grew up with shows like Little Bear or Franklin or you’re a fan of Dexter or Criminal Minds. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Crystal Lake trailer

Jason has never been my go to in the slasher realm (team Michael all the way) but admittedly I’m happy to see a comeback of sorts. I really dig the idea of a prequel going into Pam Voorhees’s descent into grief and eventual madness at the loss of her son as well as hopefully a more human look at Jason before he become the iconic death machine. I liked the trailer more than I thought I would as well as the callbacks to the original movie. I’m actually pretty excited to see how Peacock and A24 pull it off. May the gaming gods bring you glory.

Endless Rails Steam Review

Endless Rails was sent to me by the people at Studio Monoblok, which is always appreciated. The game has a simple concept: use drones to defend your train from enemies as you ride the rails from one station to the next. Collect the money from dead enemies and use that to add train cars and upgrades to your train to hopefully get further and kill bosses, all the while collecting special coins to unlock permanent upgrades for the next run.

Parts of this work great; for example, the ability to move your train back and forth to avoid enemies and use your drones to kill enemies and collect the money. This does however start to fall apart however when you get to the next station and you lose money because you killed enemies towards the end and couldn’t collect it fast enough. I thought maybe there would be a permanent upgrade to remedy this, but there is not.

This is actually one of the bigger issues with the game; the permanent upgrade tree kind of sucks. You never really get to upgrade the range of your pickups or how much health your train has. You use it to unlock 2 new drones and some damage buffs for them. You will be relying mostly on RNG for what you get, and if you are unlucky, your run will end fast. Part of the game is simply figuring out which drone is best to start with, and yes, there is an objective answer.

I did enjoy the aspect of merging train cars to make them bigger to hold more upgrades on one car, and the ability to change the gun’s entire element this way is great. Many of the upgrades can also do things the upgrade tree doesn’t, but getting them is random and a matter of having the money.

So is the game worth the price tag? Well, the game is only $7, so yes, it is still a solid 7/10 game that will keep you entertained for a few hours. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Tower Tactics 2 Now Avaliable on Steam


Developer asraworks and publisher Assemble Entertainment have released their strategy sequel Tower Tactics II to Steam Early Access. Roguelike deckbuilding powers the ultimate tower defense game, where players must defend against the relentless enemy waves by building increasingly ridiculous decks and uncovering the most powerful combos to survive the game’s toughest challenges.

https://youtu.be/Y8YQjPQY2xU?is=0bKKGP2dbCNkRR29


The Sal’koth are back, and the universe is their target. Guided by Kaya, a new generation of tactical heroes must grow stronger, master new powers, and fight through increasingly dangerous encounters. Complete quests, uncover the truth, and destroy the Sal’koth before they plunge the universe into darkness. Players need to use the cards they’ve collected to build and upgrade their defenses, attack enemies, manipulate the battlefield, and create powerful combinations to obliterate the enemy.



Experiment with 190+ cards, 150 trinkets, 5 playable characters, new enemies, decks, maps, tiles, and game modes to find your ultimate build.
Shape your strategy before every run with custom starting cards and trinkets, then grow stronger through the revamped Sanctuary.
Dominate the enemy waves with Hero Cards, powerful effects, card items, status effects, and new enemy abilities.
Take your deck-building strategy on the go with full controller support and Steam Deck compatibility.
Build your own maps, share them on Steam Workshop, and take on challenges created by other players.

Zombuffoonery PlayStation 5 Review

Zombuffoonery was sent my way by Brainium Games, and admittedly, the game is basically the definition of average. You start as a guy; he has no name. Zombies attack you, and the more you kill, the more money you get. You will use this money to buy upgrades and build basic defenses. You don’t really choose where they go beyond what you can buy. For example, you can buy a top left turret or a bottom-right turret if those pop up. All the weapons are essentially random as to when or if they pop up. The only thing you can truly control is ammo or health.

Now I will say, the game functions just as intended. It also looks downright decent for a $10 game. It just doesn’t do anything well, nor is it fun. The hours I played felt more like grinding for trophies; I didn’t even bother collecting them all, honestly. After a certain point the game just felt like busy work.

You will notice this review seems shorter than most reviews I do, and it is. That is because I have run out of stuff to say about the game. I won’t sit here and trash it because there is nothing bad to say, but I also can’t say anything good. It is the exact definition of a 5/10 title. There is no reason to buy or avoid it. This game simply exists. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Keep Driving PlayStation 5 Review

Keep Driving from Y/CJ/Y Games is a management RPG they sent my way, and I am glad they did. Let me get this out of the way up front: I did not enjoy my time with this title. It had nothing to do with the game itself; it was truly a me issue. The game itself, is great. It sits at 4 stars on PlayStation; it has over 3,000 reviews on Steam and has a very positive rating. The story of a young man traveling across the country listening to music, plotting his own course, choosing his own destiny to get to a music festival is one that is as old as, well, cars.

With multiple endings, different routes to choose from, plenty of different situations to come across, and hitchhikers and people to meet, and even different cars and backgrounds to choose from to make the trip, the replay value is there. Truth be told, I can’t even tell you why I don’t like the game. Is it the random events where you have to pick items or skills to fend off things, and if you don’t have them, your car or energy takes damage? No, this mechanic is in other games I enjoy. Is it the management of trunk space where every item counts? Also no, I love this in many games. It also certainly is not upgrading most aspects of your car; I live for that sort of thing in my games.

No, I truly can not tell you why I didn’t enjoy Keep Driving. It is an $18 masterpiece dedicated to letting people relive road trips in the early 2000s that I wish I could enjoy more, and it functions well. It deserves the praise it is given, it is an 8/10 experience that I wish I had more fun with, and I believe most of you will get more mileage out of than I did. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

The Walking Dead The Streets of Survival PlayStation 5 Review

The Walking Dead: Streets of Survival was sent my way by Trailmark Games which is always appreciated. If you enjoy The Walking Dead, you will enjoy the story here because it is the story you already love, though admittedly if you don’t know anything about the walking dead this game is probably best avoided. It starts pretty much in spoiler country, I worry about telling you where it starts in case someone is late to the party and still making their way through it. Suffice it to say Rick isn’t in a good place, and him, Michonne and Daryl will be making their way through walker infested tunnels, settlements and a bunch more places and the war with Negan rages on. All of them are playable characters, including eventually Negan.

At this point I feel like you either know what you are getting into with the story, or you just don’t care about this games story anyway, either way you really just want to know if the game plays well. First, this style of game normally has multiplayer. Don’t expect to run around with friends here, this is solo only and there are no official plans to add it later.

Aside from that, the graphics do a fantastic job of telling the gritty story but not going over the top with gore and keeping the game grounded in its purpose. While the controls can feel a bit stiff at time and are the weakest part of the game, they aren’t bad by any means. They are simply better done in other games in the genre, they however aren’t the worst either. The sound however is very nice. Gun shots have volume to them without sounding obnoxiously loud, melee hits sound bone crunching without sounding needlessly grotesque for no reason. They truly have caught the feeling of the show by making the game feel violent, but not for no reason.

Most importantly, every character feels different and nobody feels useless. Their special abilities and skills are all worth using without making you wish you weren’t stuck using Rick over Daryll for example on certain levels. The game is an 8/10 experience with plenty of things to collect and find over multiple playthroughs on various difficulty levels. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Train Sim World 7 PlayStation 5 Review

It’s that time of year again, everyone. Train Sim World 7 is out, and DoveTail Games has once again set me up with a review copy. If you missed my coverage of that, you can find it here. I said last year that if you haven’t got a chance to play a Train Sim World game, that 6 was a great place to start, and this year makes the game even more approachable than ever. They have added a control scheme for those who want to use it, so you can now control the major stuff of the train easily from the controller. This is fantastic if you just want to relax and check out the beautiful scenery, and it is beautiful.

For those that enjoy the more hardcore simulation style of the games, don’t worry, they haven’t changed it on you. By all means, turn the UI off, stare at the dash, move every control knob and stick on the train, and fully immerse yourself in the experience of hauling a massive machine through Bavaria or Yorkshire. Or be like me and stick to the in-between and leave the UI on so you have the extra help and maybe crash the train a few times in Florida. Seriously, letting me drive a train is the worst thing to happen to Florida since Florida man discovered bath salts.

The game isn’t perfect; however, it is fun. When you get to certain areas, you will notice they did manage to push the PS5 (at least the base model) to its limits at points. There are some noticeable slowdowns here and there when things get super busy, mostly on the German routes. Kind of seems like the Axis once again lost to the Allies here, considering the British and American routes rarely suffer these issues. I jest, come on guys, the war’s over; stop making these jokes.

Tastefully borrowed from Push Square

The game is a lot of fun, and fans of trains will have a lot to work with, and I am not 100% sure what carries over from the previous year’s game, but I know some things do, which is pretty cool. For me, the game is an 8/10 experience, and fans of the series will enjoy it. Best wishes, and may the gaming gods bring you glory.

Primetime

Why don’tcha take a seat? Perhaps one of the most infamous phrases of the 2000’s came from one of the most controversial shows ever put on TV: To Catch A Predator with Chris Hansen. Week after week thousands tuned in to watch the stoic journalist confront child molesters and pedophiles on national tv, culminating in some heavy ethical debates as well as an insane confrontation that ended with the suicide of a public official. Not only does this story follow the rise and fall of Hansen but the journey of Daniel Plum, a struggling actor hired to act as one of the child decoys tasked with luring out the worst of the worst. What’s the cost of fame and how far is too far?

Ok, let’s get this out of the way: I’m not going into the accuracy of this movie. The real Chris Hansen is pretty pissed at how this movie portrays him-a conflicted, imperfect family man with big dreams whose willing to do some ugly shit to achieve them. Much like Oppenheimer, I’d argue it’s a realistic portrayal of a human being. Pattinson is great as Hansen, and I gotta give him credit for nailing Hansen’s memorable cadence and inflections. Skyler Gisondo was also incredible as Decoy Dan Plum, disappearing into the role as well as Pattinson did his; I totally forgot he was Jimmy Olsen in Superman (2025). The movie on the whole is entertaining as hell on the whole. Visually it’s a knock out with a score that compliments the psychedelic vibes and the eerily faithful 2000’s TV look to everything. The movie is pretty quick, staying focused on strictly the span of To Catch A Predator. The only real complaint I have is that the ending feels abrupt. I feel like Dan Plum got a reasonable end, the producer got a reasonable end, but not Hansen.

In the end, I really enjoyed Primetime. It’s funnier and trippier than I expected with some great performances I’d highly recommend. May the gaming god’s bring you glory.

Slayground trailer

Halloween is upon us and sometimes, we need something simply fun. A24 presents us with Slayground, which looks likes a cool horror romp at a haunted house. Admittedly, I have a soft spot in my heart anytime I hear Bodies by Drowning Pool. The killer looks pretty cool too. Given the fact A24 has a part in it, I’m sure the movie will have some elevated hook we aren’t seeing. Worst case, it looks like a nice slasher to populate the season. May the gaming gods bring you glory.