Hornets by Kitty Horrorshow—https://kittyhorrorshow.itch.io/hornets

As mentioned in my review of Haunted Cities Vol.IV, the literary aspect of Kitty Horrorshow really explodes in her recent work. This interactive novella confirms it with a singular vision of mankind annihilation through occult forces.

memory_head by Possmonaut—https://possmonaut.itch.io/memory-head

Addictive roguelite/shooter with impressive minimal visual. The biohorror/cyberpunk feeling is definitely enhanced by the limited colour palette and the incredible pixel art.

Slide in the Woods by Jonny’s Game—https://jonnys-games.itch.io/slide-in-the-woods

This is the stuff: horrific misappropriation of childhood souvenirs and usage of space. Brilliant and recommended

Security Booth by 3dKyle—https://3dkyle.itch.io/security-booth

Masterfully exploits player’s apprehension. Would recommend a double-bill of this and Slide in the Woods.

Rouge Noir by gubebra—https://gubebra.itch.io/rouge-noir

Non Euclidian FPS are some of my favourite things, especially when they are that beautiful. Soothing soundtrack to boot.

Echoes of Humanity by Kitsch Digital—https://kitschdigital.itch.io/echoes-of-humanity

It rides the current eco-horror trend with an interesting interactive twist. Amazing ambiance.

Turgor Pressure by Johnny—https://feverdreamjohnny.itch.io/turgor-pressure

Come for the oceanic deep diving, stay for the cryptic retribution and corruption of organic tissue.

AIEyes by tm—https://tmdev.itch.io/aieyes
Get lost in a neural network-generated cityscape. Unfortunately, it requires a rocket-fuelled computer to run smoothly but this tech demo really induces some architectural uncanny valley syndrome.

Shadows And Sickles by Smogzone—https://smogzone.itch.io/shadows-and-sickles

I have to agree with Dread XP: Cornpunk is a great description of this game. The rough paintbrush aesthetic ended up growing on me and evoked the weird generation of QBASIC games. QBASIC-punk may actually be more precise? Recommended for the grotesque splatter and an interesting noisy soundtrack.

Abyssasylum by Kaidash—https://kaidash.itch.io/ld48

If my previous title w(H)ole is any indication, I have something for games about falling. This one is absolutely addictive—I repetitively fell through mental illnesses and crashed on padded asylum floor for nearly an hour. 

In the Mountains by Decestia—https://decestia.itch.io/in-the-mountains

I recently trained myself to not be intimidated by potential jump scares and thought I was now hardened. This proved me wrong in the best possible ways.

Earthworms by All Those Moments—https://store.steampowered.com/app/320330/Earthworms/

(Played on Switch) Beautiful, mesmerizing, thought-provoking, hilarious, horrifying, recommended.

Garage: Bad Trip by Zombie Dynamics—https://store.steampowered.com/app/878580/GARAGE_Bad_Trip/

(Played on Switch) Puerile splatterpunk take on the Hotline Miami 2 extreme reflex shooting. Hard as hell but really, really fun. Pixelated bodily fluids galore.

Also finished Carrion which I can only recommend for checking two tropes I absolutely enjoy: biohorror and controlling the monster. Replayed Paratopic on Switch and it still is as brilliant as when I went through it (4 times in a row) when it was released. I won’t go in detail for this one—if you haven’t experienced Paratopic you owe it yo yourself.

I must confess I ragequitted Pathologic 2 and Yuppie Psycho after losing hours of progress due to their saving mechanics. Both are great games with unique aesthetic approach, but I’m at this point in life where I have no patience of repeating the same motion—especially with limited learning/development involved. I would still say they are brilliant experiences and I tremendously enjoyed the 17 hours I spent with P2 and the 5 hours with YP. Only when I feel I need a walkthrough to go through the game (or the session is Fubared and requires restarting from scratch), I’d rather just watch a Let’s Play.