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Play Review

Year of Games #1: Stitch.

Slowly weave your way through increasingly more complex embroidery-themed puzzles in this relaxing Apple Arcade exclusive.

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Play Review

Two Games, Two Lives, Two Approaches to Environmental Storytelling

Possessions (2019, Noodlecake, Apple Arcade) and Unpacking (2021, Witch Beam, Xbox Game Pass) share quite a few surface similarities. Each game is defined primarily by its colorful aesthetics. You rarely, if ever, see the subjects of the game’s story, just important items in their lives. Your main means of interactivity involve manipulating these objects into […]

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Commentary Play

What’s the Deal With Apple Arcade?

As of right now, there are only a few situations where I would recommend that people become new Apple Arcade subscribers.

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Play Review

‘World’s End Club’ is a mess, but I love it

It’s not good, but it’s not bad. It’s not “so bad it’s good.” It’s also not unplayable. I have no regrets.

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Play Review

‘Discolored’ is a quick and breezy puzzle box with aspirations toward creepiness

‘Discolored’ is enjoyable for what it is, a simple first-person puzzler designed to be finished in under two hours.

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Play Review

Fantasian: The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

Fantasian is good, but has some issues. Is it worth playing, especially if you don’t already have Apple Arcade?

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Play Review

First Look: FANTASIAN

FANTASIAN is Apple Arcade’s killer app, a tentpole JRPG made by a small studio with bespoke physical dioramas for levels, a great mobile traversal system, and quick turn-based battles that don’t feel like grinds.

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Play Review

‘The Bradwell Conspiracy’ is Fun yet Frustrating

While it might be too reliant on its Source engine influences like ‘Half-Life 2’ and ‘Portal,’ ‘The Bradwell Conspiracy’ is mostly satisfying and worth a playthrough.

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Play Review

‘Alba: A Wildlife Adventure’ as Propaganda of the Deed

Alba: A Wildlife Adventure is the second Apple Arcade game by ustwo games, following 2020’s much smaller and more constrained Assemble With Care. It puts you in the shoes of Alba, a 11- or 12-year-old girl who is visiting her grandparents on the Iberian island of Pinar Del Mar for a week. The core gameplay […]

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Play Review Watch

Review: Hold Tight and Hope Nothing Goes Wrong in “South of the Circle.”

South of the Circle, State of Play Games’s latest game for Apple Arcade, also begins with a plane crash in the coldest, driest place on Earth.