Welcome to this month’s Manygame Collection! There are more than 44,000 game developers on Steam alone. And even more releases to comb through year by year. I struggled to internalize this while starting out at Press SPACE to Jump, but now I’ve made my peace with the fact that no single person can play and review everything they receive in their inbox. Games I turn to in-between site posts feel even more precious. They carve out a place in my routine, not just my professional life.
What’s a Manygame Collection?
Manygame Collection is my way of documenting exciting games—past, present, in some cases future—that don’t quite make it to a full CMS page. These titles are deeply weird, frequently funny, and absolutely worth your time. I hope you find one you like!
Related: Press SPACE to Jump’s Best and Worst Games of 2023
Times and Galaxy
Times and Galaxy steers a newly-minted robojournalist through their internship at the solar system’s paper of record. Collect information by being observant, chat with everyone you can, or outright flirt with coworkers. And most importantly, craft a good story at the end of each cycle.
The lively art style and episodic structure all serve the game’s stellar, goofy writing. I loved that each episode credited its writer. And rightly so: there are so many distinct voices across this game’s solar system. Between an intergalactic cat show, a controversial press briefing on new sex-ed curriculum, and an ill-fated sweepstakes prize, I never ran out of new angles to explore.
The only reason I haven’t finished it is simply because I don’t want Times and Galaxy to end. When my impostor syndrome flares up really badly, I boot up the game and get to work. While it may not be a nitty-gritty reporting simulator, Times and Galaxy’s humor and sharp satire cuts through my mental noise.
Something about the reverse-pyramid reporting system helps me hone in on my own voice. There’s always a story. And I just have to find it.
SpellRogue (Early Access)
I’ll be frank with you: I need you to buy SpellRogue. I need it to sell twelve zillion copies so I can play it from my Xbox on the big boy TV.
In a nutshell, SpellRogue is a fantasy-themed dice-building roguelike (yes, like Dicey Dungeons), currently in Steam Early Access. At the start of each turn, your character rolls their dice, slotting the numbers into moves from their deck. Some actions demand a certain number, a range, or cost a certain amount of dice pips to perform. And later dice-based synergies are even more devious, chaining a once simple roll into a Rube Goldberg contraption of pain.
Like all the best roguelikes, you can construct a run that is completely, gloriously busted in your favor. Or, as I usually do, eat absolute shit after the first boss.
At any moment, I am this close to teetering into an all-consuming extracurricular SpellRogue playthough. “Put me back in, coach,” I tell myself. “This next one is the run.” And before I know it, three hours have passed. If SpellRogue releases on console, you won’t hear from me for a solid week.
ASTLIBRA Revision
ASTLIBRA Revision is a 2D hack-and-slasher that rivals even modern 3D offerings. The re-release of this beloved flash classic does right by the original’s art and interlocking system. It feels deeply satisfying to snare enemies in a fatal, screen-spanning combo. ASTLIBRA Revision is a near-flawless blend of speedy combat and hidden depths.
The game’s twisting story bends time and space, layering on a deceptively simple foundation to build a deeply moving tale of determined searching and unfathomable bonds. ASTLIBRA Revision spins a tale that stuck in my mind even months later, demanding satisfaction. Don’t make my scheduling mistakes. Carve out a long weekend and fully give yourself over to it.
Sparedevil
Sparedevil‘s first-person arena shooter format uses a bowling ball instead of a gun. True to the setting, graphics and animation are ripped straight from bizarre bowling alley FMVs. Spares, strikes, and the like boost your meter.
Being hit by any number of bowling pin monstrosities chews away your life. And like real bowling, your biggest enemy is a stray pin. They frequently sneak up on me from behind and devour my health.
The letter-grade combo system and easy controls keep Sparedevil endlessly replayable. I’ve attempted rounds between almost every section of this piece. And while I’m still not picking up Doom Eternal anytime soon, it’s great to have a bowler-shooter without annoying gun flashes or potential motion sickness.
It’s a perfect little treat for the work-from-home adult. Grab your shoes, kids—daddy’s going in for another turkey!
Arcana of Paradise: The Tower
Arcana of Paradise: The Tower has a distinct mood that sets it apart from other card-based deckbuilders. A pack of children venture down from the top of a perilous tower. An amorphous pact with a deity helps provide food and shelter to the other children, but does it bode them well or ill?
The further down the tower they climb, the less things make sense. Are they approaching salvation, escaping it, or somewhere in between?
You send the children down in teams, salvaging items, equipment, and food. Combat isn’t turn-based—you’ll have to play cards and manipulate your hand with precise timing. Enemies range from mildly foreboding to distinctly unnerving, adding heft to the struggle to survive.
But it’s no mystery why I’m still playing it years later. Arcana of Paradise is the perfect way to shake things up, especially for those in a card game slump.
Bossgame: The Final Boss is My Heart
In Bossgame: The Final Boss Is My Heart, love wins. Taking on devil-fighting gigs is how Sophie and Anna get by. But underneath the odd jobs, there might be an opportunity to strike at their corrupt boss and maybe even the dark heart of Mammon City itself. The sword lesbians are fighting, but this time it’s against a common enemy.
So many games fumble the tone of text message conversation, but I never tired of reading the back and forth messages between fights. They’re fun, flirty, and informal, just like real conversations with your partner should be.
Love also literally wins you boss fights. And these fights form the bulk of Bossgame. Sophie and Anna (the aforementioned sword lesbians) need to carefully coordinate abilities and charge attacks to fell enemies. The delightful pixel art adds just enough visual complexity to the frantic tapping and holding you’ll be doing. My final boss is my poor reaction time. But I’m working on it!
Handmancers (Pre-Release Build)
Handmancers adds rock-paper-scissors fights to roguelike deckbuilding. The game’s 3D models and animations already ooze style. And even with only one deck type unlocked, the urge to play just one more run is strong.
Rather than adding rock, paper, and scissors cards willy-nilly, Handmancers’ early game emphasizes on modifying your limited starter pool of ten. Relics and card modifiers boost each card’s stats. And the card art changes with every gem you affix to your selected card.
Handmancers does away with automatic card draw altogether in favor of a more interesting risk-reward system. Instead of replenishing cards each turn, you perform a Sprint once you need to draw more. Each sprint adds a cramp—a card that cannot win matchups—to your hand.
Since you can only dispose of cramps by playing them in the early game, I had to think hard during tricky fights. How much damage could I risk? How much additional draw did I need before my next sprint? Handmancers promises new challenges once it releases in full. I can’t wait!
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