So many cool games released this week. One of them is Gecko Gods which I enjoy so far. However, I want to put more time into it before I write about it.
This week, I picked up a game I’ve played for a bit last year, although it initially released in 2024. Let me tell you about Pryzm.
Pryzm|| 07/08/24
I enjoy visual novel hybrids a lot. Games that take the narrative heavy construct of visual novels and attack another gameplay focused element to it. Something like Danganronpa, Ace Attorney, Zero Escape or Ghost Trick.
I value story a lot and having a break between longer reading sections, helps a lot to absorb the information and get your brain going.
Comparing Pryzm to the before mentioned games however would be unfair as the scope and style are vastly different.
You start the game as Kyle. A young boy who is isolating himself from life as it’s just too complicated for him. For one reason or another he accepts the invitation of his sister to join her and some friends to a vacation.
Perhaps Kyle should have stayed home, as the mountain bears a harrowing secret. The vacation quickly escalated in a survival adventure. Weird earth shakes, placed that suddenly look abandons when they shouldn’t and dangerous man shaped creatures.
You will make a lot of decisions in this game and these actually change the route and whether your characters will survive at the end or not. In general, you play through roughly five perspectives (there is a secret sixt one that can be unlocked), each splitting from your decisions. You can jump through the different perspectives after each scene The deeper the plot goes, the more expensive the path is.
Expensive? Yes, you start of with a resource that needs to be spent to continue the story.
This resource however can be also used in battles for spells like healing or buffing.
The combat is a classic turn based fight. You can decide between a simple attack, evading, spells and risky manoeuvres. Those risky manoeuvres consist of fleeing, critical hit or absorption. Their success is dictated by a visible percentage. This percentage gets higher and lower by your different commands and by getting hit. What starts as a simple combat routine creates room for complex decision-making. We can raise the percentage to try and absorb some of the rare resource from the enemy. We could evade the whole time and try to flee if the damage is bigger than the merit. You can focus on evading and taking out the enemy with critical hits.
It’s a fascinating game with a hand drawn style and lots of replay-ability. Each run takes about 1-2 hours and will provide you with more knowledge. To stop it from being boring, the escape parameters can shift a bit in every run.
Ever thought of speedrunning a visual novel? It’s possible here!
Quick Shoutout (not played yet)
Regions of Ruin: Runegate || 14/04/26
A hack-and-slash RPG where you rebuild your community of dwarfs. In a handcrafted world you search for resources and slay dozens of enemies. In a time where most games like this get turned into a metroidvania or Rogue-like, it’s refreshing to see a game with a linear progression, lasting character building and decent run-time.
In below 10 hours you will find out if you were able to return the dwarfs to glory or not.
Moves Of The Diamond Hand || 13/04/26
A first person RPG that oozes with style. The developer describes the world as a surreal dystopian jazz-drenched city. With only once glance at the trailer and screenshots, you spot the uniqueness and character of the game. All of it has so much personality, all of it is creating a vibe I can’t compare with any other game.
Your tabletop-RPG experience and choices influence the story, whose narrative is deep and twisted.
The game is currently in Early-Access with 2 chapters ready to play. So be aware that the game is not complete yet. However, the first chapter is free to play in the frame of a demo!
Cult Vacui || 09/04/26
Cult Vacui combines the elements of horror and point-and-click-adventure to tell a gruesome story about the secrets of a remote island in Scotland.
Its time-driven elements create a structure where your actions are limited and impact the flow. It creates a complex puzzle in which every move counts.
Don’t worry, if you fail to save the people, you can always try again in this 2-3 hours adventure.
