Recent reviews by defective pancake

This is the game that will make you crack down on your ADHD tendencies (otherwise you'll be unable to play it) and start running a notebook to keep track of stuff (just like in those dawn of the ages times when you had to neatly write down all of your GTA and sims cheatcodes in a special journal).
Thematically it follows up on lore established in Cultist Simulator, but it more visually vibrant and detailed. In terms of gameplay it's quite forgiving as whatever you do with your in-game days doesn't wholly depend on RNG's mercy, further in especially, but still requires you to plan quite a bit and usually keep track of multiple things that are going on at the same time. It's definitely still very description-heavy and expects you to use your imagination quite a lot, which is why I personally like it. The way I see this game, it's a great blend of seeing how this could work out as a pen-and-paper game and how it actually works as it is in a virtual environment.
I really enjoy how the lore for this whole obscure, in-the-shadows cultist scene was expanded upon, and that goes on gives off vibes of managing a dollhouse and an advent calendar.

As a self-proclaimed microorganism & tiny critter enthusiast, I wholly approve of this game.
The game lacks any comprehensive directions and descriptions whatsoever, but it's still easy and intuitive to figure out. Utterly delightful to watch all sorts of tiny critters crawl around your screen as you run a virtual settlement and manage its economy. The gameplay is centered around you regularly checking up on your tamagochi town for about maybe 5 minutie tops as it runs itself, but I personally think this kind of gameplay goes along with its visuals and obscure storytelling methods just fine. I also really like how the soundtrack is sort of generated by all those microorganisms visiting your virtual town, it's a neat little detail.

It's like a JRPG with all of the good parts (fishing) and none of the bad ones (everything else). A great game if you're into fishing games that don't get disturbingly realistic or pile up some totally obscure\unnecessary mechanics. Art direction is also quite pleasant and slightly nostalgic. I don't inteact with people much but apparently you can do it in this game, if you're into this sort of thing, you sick creature. Which seems redundant to me personally, as you can alreay fish - what else do you even need to make a game enjoyable?? Oh, you can also customise your in-game representative creature to a degree. Too bad you can't turn yourself into a fish (at least yet).

Honestly, I just can't get enough of this game. It's definitely among one of the most intriguing/mysterious/obscure things out there. While somethimes I get the impression that this would've worked as a physical tabletop game much better, it doesn't take much to realize that setting up such an event takes time, planning and so on, whereas with videogames, you can just hop right in. The overall narrative for the game present the player with a world of cards, mysteries and cults, giving just enough clues to leave most of it all to personal interpretation and imagination - I feel like this game really requires some kind of imaginative spark to go off in your brain. I'm really not sure how to actually descibe the gameplay other than that you toil at cracking some really obscure esotheric mysteries while on a timer, as you have to watch out for all sorts of setbacks and figure out problems of not-so esotheric kind, like paying rent and keeping despair at bay. It's incredibly frustrating, and a lot of it depends on RNG (sheer luck), but isn't that part of all matters shrouded in mystery? You can't jsut brute force it.
Either way, it's hard for me to recommend this game overall, because all you do is just watch your cards, read descriptions and imagine things play out for yourself. It really does require you to do a lot of work to get into, but once you do, you realize just how strong this game's otherworldly grip on you is.

This is a neat little game that seems simple, even casual enough at first glance, but provides an increasing level of challenge the more you play it. There are also options to increase that challenge further, as well as provide your own self with a boost, which is actually really nice since most of the games are lazer focused on slapping you on the cheeks without providing at least something in return.
The gameplay is split in two phases: daytime, where you plan the economy and defences of your kingdom by spending your hard-earned coins you receive via taxes and victories, and nighttime, when you defend your kngdom from relentless hordes of attackers RTS-style. Visuals are very simple, yet really well-designed, there's nothing to distract or divert your attention from the gameplay. Sadly, as it's often the case with indie games, especially ones that don't focus on any narrative whatsoever, the music completely blows, but since it's a minor nitpick of mine, this one flaw is easy to overlook. Overall, this definitely is a solid game that might seem similar to, ahem, something else one might've played (taking all the 'indie defend you kingdom' style games into consideration), yet has a distinctive style and substace to hold its own ground.

I started playing this game expecting it's gonna be about knock-off H*gwarts, however, it turned out to be a knock-off Unseen University. Money well spent. I really like the artstyle and the presentation that lets you spy on all the activity that's going on - even if the gameplay does get repetitive at some point, those fun little details really help. I wish there were some QOL improvements to the gameplay, like demolishing or rearrange some of the rooms (for some manner of fee/penalty even), and the soundtrack is really bad (obviously not asking for Jeremy Soule but they didn't even remotely try with this game), but those are just nitpicks and overall I'd say the game offers a good blend of challenge, laid-backness and fun.

This is one super addictive tile placer-style puzzle game. I've really enjoyed some of its thoughtful gameplay additions, like added blueprints for unique buildings that boost your tile scores, gameplay modifications and bonuses, and spawning tiles that require you to combo them with several other tiles of the same type that serve as sorts of in-game quests. The fact that you can prioritise aesthetics over chasing the high score is also quite nice, because obviously creating a pleasant-looking area is much more important than anything else. Hunting for animals is also a fun little activity, and I like how placing tiles next to each other upgrade their look. I can see how this game can get repetitive, but as long as you treat it as something to play in 1.5hr sessions, you'll hardly ever get bored of it.

I've ran into some visual bugs where new tiles don't visually appear as you place them but that's just a minor thing. The game runs well on my toaster even when I create a really huge map.

Riot! Protest! Destory! In the name of justice... The only justice that matters - cute justice! Because cute... IS justice, as one ancient anime wisdom once said.
This written, I absolutely adore the squeaks of euprhoria your cute rioters make as they reunite with their kin as their numbers grow strong enough to topple entire buildings. Highly recommended.

Wonky translation and dialogue box errors are probably the most off-putting things about this game. Now, with that out of the way, overall it's a very cute, tamagochi-style game where you take care of your virtual daughter in order to bring her up as an outstanding member of the society (or not, it's up to you). Mine became astronomically rich on top of having two boyfriends at the same time, so I felt a great sense of accomplishment. You go girl. Everything is clear and manageable even without a guide thats usually mandatory to follow for these types of games, as well as being pleasantly light on creepy subtext. Not to say it's completely nonexistant, though, but nothing that destroys the sweet fluffy cuteness of the visuals.
At the same time, I'm always puzzled by how the player takes on the role of a father yet also you play as the daughter and then date all kinds of people as her. Not to throw shade on fathers or anything, but I really wish you could pick between the parents' genders (I am aware that the girl's mother is already relevant to the plot, just make it work. somehow), like a cosmetic option which doesn't affect gameplay or overall plot.

This tiny little game sure packs a punch! With its limited, yet stylish and clear and comprehensible visuals, and simple gameplay, it has everything an enjoyable dungeon crawler has to offer, while also being completely free for you to download and play.