We have a lot of fun here at Z1G, but it’s time we addressed a serious issue that’s affecting PC gamers across the world. I’m talking, of course, about Steam Addiction, and the game hoarding that comes with it. According to completely verified and trustworthy statistics, 70% of the games in the average PC gamer’s library are unplayed. The first step towards solving a problem is admitting it, so JBH, Trent, Chris and Ed decided it was time to get their addictions under control by working through some of the unplayed games in their library, one at a time.

Finding Teddy

My name is Joseph and I’m addicted to Humble Bundles.

Whenever those immoral vultures put out another bundle, I can’t help myself. As a result, my library is clogged with games I don’t even remember hearing about; games like Finding Teddy, the third-person point-and-click adventure title which debuted on iOS and Android before stepping up to Steam.

Following the journey of a little girl who has her teddy stolen by a giant insect, Finding Teddy is a surreal, Limbo–esque little game that revels in understated protagonist murder and obtuse puzzles. The anonymous little girl enters her cupboard and tumbles into a colourful but sinister world of melancholic inhabitants who communicate in musical notes.

In true adventure game fashion, many of the puzzles make little sense but provide satisfaction. The most annoying aspect of Finding Teddy is the backtracking it demands of the player. You’ll often find yourself clicking back through several screens at a time looking for some random object that arbitrarily leads to progress.

Fortunately, at about an hour in length, Finding Teddy’s frustrations don’t mar it’s excellence. The beautiful pixel-art visuals, the subtle soundtrack, the unnerving tone and unorthodox puzzles all combine to create an outstanding indie game that deserves to be distinguished from the ranks of unknown indie titles in your Steam library.

JBH

Flower Shop: Summer in Fairbrook

I find it difficult to explain to friends my obsession about gardening games. It’s just not something that one can talk about without garnering strange stares or polite nods of acknowledgement while those you’re speaking to slowly back away. From Plants vs. Zombies to Farming Simulator and everything in between, I’ve played them all. My most recent, Flower Shop: Summer in Fairbrook, is vastly different than those already in my catalog.

Flower Shop: Summer in Fairbrook is a difficult game to compartmentalize into any one genre. It is part visual novel, part dating sim and part gardening RPG. You play Steve, a love-torn teen with girlfriend troubles sent to live with his uncle where he will learn rudimentary gardening skills and find blossoming love (you see what I did there, right?).

If this sounds corny and unrealistic, that’s because it is. But, hey, this is a dating sim and that’s a fundamental aspect of its ilk. Like most dating sims, you need to directly handle the protagonist’s schedule, raising his stats through your choices and building (or destroying) relationships with the other city inhabitants based on your chosen interactions.

What sets Flower Shop: Summer in Fairbrook apart is its gardening aspect. Based on the game’s description, I expected this to be slightly more in-depth. Instead, it’s a shallow mini-game of sorts that in the end serves no real purpose. The money you raise can’t be used to advance or change Steve’s relationship status or alter the game’s ending. I found this disappointing. Still, it was fun to build a prospering garden.

Flower Shop: Summer in Fairbrook is a fun, highly interactive visual novel with excellent art and music. If you’re a fan of visual novels and if you’re perhaps a burgeoning e-farmer like myself, this one is definitely worth your time. 

Ed S

Hatoful Boyfriend

Hi everyone. My name is Trent and I’m a Steam Addict.

A few months ago, Steam had a surprise sale. All JRPGs and anime themed titles heavily discounted. I don’t remember everything about that weekend, but when I awoke on Monday morning, my credit card worn and broken and my bank account nearly empty, I found that I had purchased Hatoful Boyfriend, a… umm… pigeon dating simulator. I told myself it was alright, that I would write a review of this bizarre game and everyone would have a good laugh, but I didn’t. It sat in my library for weeks before I played it.

It’s a fun game, though. If you spent any amount of time on Newgrounds as a teenager, it’ll be a familiar enough formula. Meet pigeons. Give gifts. Enter into a romantic human/avian relationship. Uncover the horrible secret hidden within the nation’s foremost school for gifted birds. You know, standard stuff. It does a great job of being both an enjoyable and funny game while also serving as a send up of an already silly genre.

What? No, I’m not trying to “justify” my addiction. What do you mean I need to admit I have a problem? If Hatoful Boyfriend is a problem, I don’t want to be cured.

Trent

Robocraft

Robocraft is one of the latest additions to my ever growing collection of games that I’ll probably never play. The premise sounds tempting; a delightfully simple block based building system allows you to put together a non-too-serious vehicle of war, then take it into battle against your opponents, each driving their own creations. I decide to sit down with Robocraft for a while to see if it lives up to the awards it keeps winning. Many hours later I’m happy to conclude that it’s devilishly addictive and something that you can lose yourself in for days if you aren’t careful.

The emphasis is clearly on having fun. Levels are easily attainable and very quickly you find yourself utilising all sorts of new blocks, fittings, attachments and weapons to construct your epic mega doomsday buggy of the apocalypse. It’s a simple red vs blue affair, and when you die you’re out for that round. In my relatively limited time playing it this is my one criticism of the game; I’d really like to see some different varied play options, but these appear to be coming in the future and are certainly planned by the development team.

Where Robocraft really shines is the vehicle builder. Within a few minutes you’ll be able to grasp precisely how it works and construct bizarre, outlandish creations. The community has gone wild and their creativity has come bursting forth to produce all sorts of unusual contraptions that you will encounter on your travels. Robocraft is most certainly a game that you’ll spend more time tinkering with than actually playing, very much to its credit! Highly recommended, miss this one at your peril!

Chris Halpin-Durband

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