Tron: Catalyst (PC)

Two years after the release of Tron: Identity (Identity), developer Bithell Games would return to the Tron franchise with a new game, Tron: Catalyst (Catalyst), as part of the greater buildup to Tron: Ares. Since there was a general drought of Tron content at the time of the announcement, I was excited for it in part due to liking Tron: Identity, but bought it after it came out as part of a Steam sale and only recently got around to it. While the gameplay may be different, the storytelling remains one of the developer’s strong points and made me invested in seeing more.

Minit

Sometimes you’re aware of a game, but don’t actually get around to playing it until much later. Such was the case for me with Minit, a game distributed by Devolver Digital, until I read the premise, which reminded me of the lesser-known Half-Minute Hero, which I loved back when I played it. While not the same experience as Half-Minute Hero, and likely under the developer’s radar, Minit still captured the core essence of that game and took it in its own uniquely enjoyable, creative and hilarious direction.

Carrion (Switch)

Of the titles revealed during Devolver Digital’s Devolver Direct during E3 2019, Carrion stuck out. The concept of a reverse-horror game intrigued me and the gameplay that I saw explored that in an interesting way. Such was my interest that I pre-ordered a physical Switch copy through Limited Run Games on release day. To my surprise, however, pre-ordering this game also gave me a digital code, meaning that I wouldn’t actually need to wait a few months to play it, which enabled a quicker turnaround time for this review. Though the experience itself is pretty short, I fully enjoyed my time with this unique indie title.

Devolverland Expo - The Future's Future Has Been Canceled

Founded in 2009, Devolver Digital is an indie games publisher that has made a name for itself with the unique off-beat type of games that it publishes, and are the ones to finally bring the cult Japanese Xbox game Metal Wolf Chaos to the west as Metal Wolf Chaos XD. More recently, the publisher had an increased presence at E3 with their surprisingly well-crafted and funny pre-recorded press conferences that poke fun at the nature of press conferences (with some actual announcements thrown in), including a full-on parody of Nintendo Direct as Devolver Direct. Their last conference, also a Devolver Direct, ties up a four-year storyline and is a masterful satire of video game marketing in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the handful of actual video game announcements was one for the immediately-released Devolverland Expo, billed as a “first-person marketing simulator”, which features some additional video game announcements under the guise of a game in which you explore an abandoned convention hall. Since the game is free on Steam, I decided to give it a try and got a lot more than what I bargained for.

Metal Wolf Chaos XD

If you hadn’t heard of Metal Wolf Chaos before, no one would blame you. The game, developed by FromSoftware of Armored Core and Souls fame, was originally released in 2004 as an Xbox-exclusive, but never made it outside of Japan. Its increasing cult status would eventually warrant a remaster, named Metal Wolf Chaos XD, courtesy of Devolver Digital. Now, nearly 15 years later, Americans finally have the chance to play what is perhaps the most American game ever made. While I was excited to play it and enjoyed my time with it, I have to admit it’s certainly rough around the edges.