For our second Friday’s Free Games we have a pretty wide assortment of titles to consider! Like last week, we have some hack and slash action games, but there’s also more variety this time around. There’s multiple story-focused games for adventure and RPG fans, along with a couple of side scrollers and tower defense kind of games!
Here’s what I’ll be showcasing today,
- Casual
- Action
- Adventure or Story Focused
- RPGs
- Side Scrollers
- Tower Defense, Kinda
- Other
- Summary and Recommendations
Casual
A hidden object cat finding game where you click on cats as you find them in a room. After all are found, the area becomes fully colored. There are 150 cats to locate, and it appears to be a very relaxing and pleasant title. Try to avoid looking at many of the pictures on the store page as they spoil many completed rooms and buildings which is a shame.
Kombi is a minimalistic puzzle game using numbers. By moving across the playfield numbers are added together. Once the total equals the goal on the board, the level is completed. It seems pretty chill, in a good way.
Action
Call The Abyss is a survivor game where you play as a weak magician who summons creatures against a mob of monsters. It features hand-drawn graphics and according to the trailer it was made in 3 days. I kind of like the look of it.
Another survivor game where you play as an astronaut that is fending off hostile aliens on the moon, mars, and elsewhere. This one has clear UI similarities to Vampire Survivors. One cool thing is that the creator has a YouTube channel and he seemed friendly, so I will link to it here to help him out!
This is a 3D Platformer designed for those who enjoy classic games of that genre. Your character has a hookshot that allows him to swing from one place to another like Spider-man. Strong storytelling is a key part to the game. You play as Death (I think) and you are out to kill the Universe (I think), the latter of whom is a distinctive talking character.
This is a 3D overhead action platformer with hack and slash elements. One unusual aspect about it is that a lot of the world is made up of blocks. Thankfully, this is fitting considering its seemingly simple art style.
This week’s Epic Games Store freebie is an Action RPG focused on combat. It is clearly inspired by Dark Souls and is enjoyable to many players. Yet, some say that they’d rather just play another Souls game instead after trying this. But hey, it’s free for now!
Adventure or Story Focused
An artsy exploration game with distinctive visual design and peaceful music. Don’t let my brief description dissuade you from playing it if you’re interested!
This is a 3D Platformer where a pig who used to be able to fly loses the ability to do so. With the help of a friend, Pig goes on a journey to be able to fly again. This is a passion project and it is said to have an emotional story about acceptance. The music in the trailer is simple but thought provoking.
A pixel art choose-your-own adventure game from the overhead perspective like a JRPG. Interesting premise!
RPGs
Inspector Schmidt – The Ebbing – Prolog
This is the demo to an upcoming 3D adventure RPG involving a murder mystery. Admittedly, it looks a little jank with the character movements as seen in the trailer. However, I love that it takes place on a boat and in the mid 1800’s, and so I want to give it some publicity. Note: The trailer does show a significant amount of blood.
A first-person action RPG with the graphics style similar to Minecraft. The dialog sounds hilarious, with everyone being a bit crazy. The game description is funny too. You may want to try it out if you like it. It is from Indie Gala.
A dark RPG Maker game with a fascinating art style and card battles. The story sounds like really something, but I don’t think it is for me. I have respect for it though, so it is listed here. The reviews rave about it!
Side Scrollers
A 2D side-scroller with a strong emphasis on story that also features light action and platforming elements. The story had me intrigued early on while also enjoying the variety of gameplay scenarios. I give the creator kudos for those two aspects! I want to play it further to see what happens. It takes place in the same universe as the Firefly TV show. I had forgotten that Badger was the name of one of the characters! It is on itch.io.
This is a slow-paced Metroidvania with a feline-focused theme. It has nice pixel art graphics, and you play as Momo who is trying to wake from a dream.
Tower Defense, Kinda
A 2D strategy game with hand-drawn artwork in a colorful world of nature. According to the story, plant spirits live happily in nature, but then humans start polluting the land with expired batteries. As one of the plant spirits, you inhabit plants to defend yourselves from enemies and restore the land to its former beauty. The art style is super sweet!
Turtle Riders: Adventure Begins
This is a mouse-driven tower defense game where you are riding on top of a turtle while defending yourself from enemies. It has upgrades available between stages and nice pixel artwork. It seems to be a demo of the full game that releases on March 23, 2025. I like the look of it a lot!
Other
Perhaps a retelling of the myth of Icarus, but for a boy who takes a flying boat to go out and explore the sea. The game is story driven with action sequences that are controlled by typing on the keyboard. At least, you type commands like “fire” and “reload” while in battle, anyway. You unlock new weapons or abilities after losing. Intriguing!
An arcade platformer where you collect apples as (presumably) Isaac Newton while inverting gravity and trying not to throw up in pixel art fashion. Includes leaderboards.
A vertical Shmup ported over from phones. It features over 100 ships to fly with a new mission being playable each day. The game has nice graphics, but sounds grindy which is to be expected from a formerly mobile game.
This seems similar to 9 Games, 2 Buttons from last week’s roundup, but with only 4 games at once and a better control scheme designed to be played with a controller. I really like the voice work in the trailer.
Summary and Recommendations
Compared to last Friday I consider this week’s collection of games to be generally more diverse. I also have a stronger interest towards these ones. One thing that stood out was the wide variety of emotionally interesting titles that are on offer. A couple that I would be particularly interested in playing include Pig & Chikin and Inspector Schmidt – The Ebbing – Prolog.
Beyond those, I appreciated the number of games featuring a pixel art style such as Rise of the Badger, Turtle Riders, and Slumbering Feline. For those looking for a more easy going gaming experience, Hidden Cats: City, Kombi, and Imvi: Echoes of Harmony would probably hit the spot.
Finally, the two games that surprised me the most were Across Icaria and Green Revival. I thought the ideas of both were fascinating, either due to gameplay mechanics or art design.
How about yourself? What do you think of the games that are being shared today? Feel free to let us know in the comments below!
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