We’ve made it to Friday again, and for this week some of the highlights include a 3D mech action game, a tower defense title where you are a crow fighting against thieving squirrels, and a racer featuring a bunch of seals!
Before we get started though, let me point out a few things. You may notice that for this week I don’t have games listed by category. Instead, they’re being shown below in order of title with their genre in parentheses. Additionally, I have dropped the distinction between games I am most interested in, and those I am not. This means you won’t see asterisks anymore next to game titles. Subsequently, I may also list fewer games than before, but hopefully they will be higher quality to help compensate.
Finally, please note that all images shown below are from their respective Steam sales pages.
Anyway, on to the games! I hope you have a nice time playing some of these this weekend. Thanks for reading!
Ad Astra Infinita: The New Evolution (JRPG)
In a world of monsters, your goal is to create the supreme killing machine. It’s a goofy, sandboxy JRPG where you can take body parts from enemies and equip them to your party members. According to the sales the page, the developer is releasing it early with hopes of receiving constructive feedback before proceeding further. I think it seems funny and looks promising! Plus some of the music is rocking!
Bygone Dreams: Prophecy (Action Adventure)
For action-adventure fans, this game may be worth trying out. Along with the 3D action scenes, it also includes RPG elements and a really nice art design. This is a part of the full game that will release later. It has about 3 hours of gameplay from the first 2 levels.
Dead island 2 (Zombie-slaying FPS)
Dead island 2 is the first free game from the Epic Games Store this week. It is the very popular zombie-slaying FPS taking place in LA.
Dream on (Walking Simulator)
This is a brief walking simulator with a very minimalistic art style. It only takes about 5 minutes to complete. I really liked the chill atmosphere and music in the trailer.
Flipper Frenzy (Racing)
As one of the few racing games on Friday’s Free Games, it’s a big deal to include Flipper Frenzy this week. Choose your seal, and race against over marine mammals through water and around frozen glaciers. I hope this title is good for kids!
FluXis (Rhythm Game)
As a 2D minimalistic rhythm game, I don’t have a lot to say about this one, but I did enjoy the music in the trailer. It already has 22 reviews. After a little more research I learned that it has been developed for quite some time by a community of developers. The title is also available on github. The community aspect is very cool!
Foreman Frenzy! (Old-school Platformer)
This is an old-school platformer in the style of something like Donkey Kong. The trailer on Steam even shows an old arcade machine prominently, so they know where they’re going with this one! I gravitated to the art style, but reviewers said you could be softlocked in the game due to control issues. I do appreciate that the developer responds to critiques in a positive way!
Frest (3D Platformer)
If you’re looking for a nice looking 3D Platformer with some collectathon elements (and cats!!), then this looks like a good one to play! I really enjoyed the music and the art style in the trailer. Multiple reviewers played the game for over 2 hours, so that is a good sign.
Granvir: Zero Front (3D Mech Action)
Although this is a 3D action roguelite title featuring mech-building elements, when I first saw it, it made me think of a cartoony Armored Core. Not that this is really like that latter game, but when I see customizable mechs I still get excited! One reviewer shared that the movement is more like MechWarrior, but with more customizable parts. The developers plan on having “…Extreme Difficulty, the Enemy Ace, and the new Scavenger pilot class implemented by this weekend”, so that is really exciting! The title has 22 reviews so far.
Happy Game (Horror Adventure)
The second free game from the Epic Games Store this week also has elements of gore and violence, but this time it is in the form of a puzzle adventure game. Help a child overcome three terrible nightmares.
The Honours Project (Walking Simulator)
It’s amazing what people can do with a walking simulator! This one is a commentary about being a student and also game development. The voice acting in the trailer is good and some of the reviews are really enthusiastic. Sounds like a great experience!
Online Records: Unknown Seller (First-person Horror)
Ordering something online is a normal experience nowadays, yet, sometimes doing so goes terribly wrong. You’re a 22-year-old college student who goes to a stranger’s house to pick up something you bought online (not recommended!). From then one, the story gets creepy… I find the VHS tape aesthetics to be nostalgic, and that’s the reason I’m including it. The game has mostly positive reviews!
Operation: Surface Takeover (RTS and Tower Defense)
OK, so the graphics may not be the best for this title. Even so, what intrigues me about it is its mix of real-time strategy with tower defense. The developer is clearly focused on gameplay, with a variety of levels, the ability to place units however you want, and being able to zoom the camera in and out a great deal. I like it when companies focus on gameplay!
Opollo (Shooter)
Compared to other games this week, Opollo is another minimalistic looking title. It is largely black and white and appears to be an arena shooter with a lot of customization options for your ship. For me, its defining characteristic is the cool jazzy soundtrack!
Rogue Worlds (2D Platformer)
This game bills itself as a chaotic tactical roguelike platformer, but I don’t know what is “tactical” about it. However, the game looks fun and I am hoping the procedurally generated levels hold up well. Using the environment in different ways is pretty neat with diverse gameplay options! It looks to be an interesting title.
Scare Crow (3D Tower Defense Strategy)
Take on thieving squirrels in this 3D tower defense game with strategy aspects. When I watched the trailer, it made me laugh out loud and I thought the art design was just great! It’s really bright and funny looking. I also like that you get to play as a crow, an unlikely hero!
SteelSilk Championship (Arena Shooter)
Arena shooters are a common genre for Friday’s Free Games and this one has a pretty good look to it. In it, you play as a spider that has to defend itself against an endless onslaught of invaders using different weapons and power ups. From one Google-translated review the person said this was a student project. If that’s true, I wish the developers great success in the future!
Traveler Lost (3D Puzzle Platformer)
If you are a fan of 3D Platformers that have puzzle aspects as part of their gameplay design then this title may be the one to play. Admittedly, the camera work and animation seemed a bit choppy as seen in the trailer. Yet, I still have a soft spot for this game. The art style is endearing to me, and the concept of using a large animal friend to complete puzzles is a good touch. The music in the trailer was enjoyable and relaxed as well.
VolleySmash (Sports)
It takes a lot for me to share a sports game on Fridays Free Games, but VolleySmash seems to have some good things going for it! It’s supposed to be a fast paced 3D volleyball game designed for a variety of types of players and it’s already earning a nice player base. The game has 28 reviews and is positively rated for 92% of them. The main drawback seems to be the lack of online multiplayer. Hopefully the developer is able to add that in time. Although it should be noted, this game was made by a solo developer in under for 4 months! Way to go!
Cheap Retro Gaming 
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