Do you love music and ever catch yourself daydreaming about working in a cozy little record shop? I definitely do—which is probably why Wax Heads immediately resonated with me. It’s the kind of game that feels like stepping into a record store you’ve always hoped to find: equal parts welcoming hangout, punk-spirited chaos, and thoughtfully crafted, narrative driven life sim. Set inside the struggling Repeater Records, Wax Heads blends simulation, storytelling, and light puzzle solving as you help a cast of quirky customers track down the perfect album, dig through crates of hand drawn records, and slowly bring the shop’s groove back to life.

What drew me in right away was the vibe. The game describes itself as “cozy punk,” and that feels exactly right. It blends the warmth of a slice of life sim with the wonderfully messy energy of a place where everyone has strong opinions about music. If you love character-driven storytelling like Night in the Woods or the easygoing workplace camaraderie of Coffee Talk, you’ll feel instantly at home.

I happily spent hours flipping through fictional albums—each one packed with its own lore, fanbase, and occasionally unhinged backstory—while chatting with customers who felt strikingly similar to people I’ve met in real record shops. The light puzzle elements, like piecing together clues to recommend the perfect track, add just enough structure without disrupting the laid-back flow.

What really makes Wax Heads special, though, is how personal it feels. It’s a genuine love letter to music obsessives, community spaces, and the wonderfully weird people who make them unforgettable. If you enjoy witty character banter, uncovering thoughtful details, or simply settling in with a great soundtrack, this one truly hits the right note.

– Jessica Ronnell

Invincible VS

Invincible VS is a 3v3 tag fighting game based on the hit animated series and comic. Players build a team of fan-favorite characters and throw down in brutal, fast-paced combat, swapping between all three fighters in real time.

Invincible VS is the byproduct of modern fighting game design meeting one of the hottest superhero IPs in recent years. As much as I love fighting games, I’ve historically been terrible at them. I understand concepts like playing neutral, overheads, conditioning, zoning, mix-ups, and even numpad notation, but I’ve always lacked the finger discipline and patience to master combos. On the spectrum from novice to pro, I’d call myself an intermediate level “strategic button masher,” and I appreciate Quarter Up designing their core experience around players like me. That’s not to say you won’t hop online and get your butt handed to you by a genre vet, but you can still pull off cool-looking combos without grinding hours in the lab.

Beyond approachability, there’s a lot to appreciate here. Visually, it captures the spirit of the show well while evoking the blood-soaked brutality of Mortal Kombat, the tag-team chaos of Marvel vs. Capcom, and some of the fighting-game DNA you’d expect from a studio led by Killer Instinct (2013) veteran developers. The game includes Arcade mode, a cinematic original story mode featuring Ella Mental — a new Invincible character voiced by Tierra Whack — online and offline versus, and a robust training suite with tutorials and lab options. While it’s approachable and flashy, it stands out in its depth through a sandbox-y combo system and assist play. It’s fun experimenting with attacks and assist mechanics to see what works—most of it just does. It almost feels broken, but in a fun way that encourages creativity and mastery. Invincible VS is an easy recommendation for fans of the show, fighting game players, or anyone interested in the genre but intimidated by the usual barrier to entry.

– Deron Mann

Directive 8020

Directive 8020 is the next entry in The Dark Pictures Anthology, launching the series into full-on sci‑fi survival horror and it’s terrifyingly good. Set aboard a colony ship fleeing a dying Earth, the game blends cinematic storytelling, branching choices, and tense stealth sequences as a shape-shifting alien threat begins infiltrating the crew. Think tense paranoia in the spirit of games like Dead Space or the creeping distrust of “The Thing” but filtered through Supermassive’s signature choice-driven style.

At one point, I became so suspicious of every crew member that I started treating casual conversations like I was trapped in the world’s worst office Teams meeting. Someone would calmly ask a question, and I’d immediately think, “That sounds exactly like something an alien pretending to be Steve from accounting would say.” Directive 8020 has a way of making even routine interactions feel dangerous, and honestly, that paranoia became part of the fun.

What immediately stood out to me was just how oppressive and atmospheric everything feels. The Cassiopeia isn’t just a backdrop — it becomes this claustrophobic maze where every dark hallway had me questioning whether I should keep moving forward or turn around immediately. I’ve spent a good amount of time exploring its branching story paths already, and some of the decisions genuinely made me pause longer than I expected. There’s something uniquely stressful about knowing the person next to you may not actually be human anymore.

I also really enjoyed how much more active the gameplay feels this time around. Sneaking through maintenance shafts, using tools to avoid threats, and reacting quickly under pressure helped make the tension feel more immediate. If you enjoy narrative-heavy horror games that are best experienced with friends reacting to every bad decision in real time, Directive 8020 feels like it could become a favorite Movie Night pick very quickly.

– Steven Allen

Dungeon Clawler

Deckbuilders and roguelikes have been taking over gaming lately, and it can feel tough to figure out which one actually fits what you’re looking for. Dungeon Clawler brings a genuinely fresh twist by swapping your deck of cards for claw‑machine capsules. You then need to drop a claw into a container of abilities and hope you snag the ones you want. It sounds ridiculous, but it demands real strategic planning, and it’s incredibly satisfying.

You’ll have a blast experimenting with what feels like endless combinations of weapon types, shields, buffs, claw‑machine synergies, character choices, and more. Whether you prefer stacking shields and applying debuffs, pushing for the highest damage possible, or landing somewhere in between, you’ll find a playstyle that clicks for you. Just hope that RNG treats you kindly along the way.

Once you’ve gotten the hang of building out strategies, trying your hand at new characters and harder difficulties allow for incredible amounts of replayability. Personally, I’ve only beaten the final boss on three characters so far, and my first goal is to clear it with all of them before moving onto the next difficulty.

If you’re craving that Slay‑the‑Spire‑style dopamine hit, Dungeon Clawler should clear that up for you! I found myself having to go back in and aim for new strategies run after run. Whether I was successful or not is not for me to share… But I’m sure you’ll do better than I did.

– Keith Muelas

Until Then

Recently, I’ve come to appreciate from games like Despelote, Closer the Distance, and Afterlove EP show that games as a medium isn’t just viable for poignant storytelling, it’s uniquely suited to fully immersive narrative experiences. Until Then carries that forward with a striking 2.5D coming-of-age story that blends love, grief, and friendship in 2010s Philippines, with a subtle supernatural undercurrent that I’ll try not to spoil.

The game follows Mark, a slacker teen who coasts through school with little ambition and plenty of isolation, spending most of his time gaming and procrastinating. As the story unfolds, he connects with a growing cast, texting and messaging friends on social media including forming a bond with newcomer Nicole. Every so often light gameplay will occur, such as skewering fishballs with a stick, rhythm game sequences when Mark is learning to play piano, or playing a series of games at a local fair, all of which add a brief amount of variety that fit into the narrative. But Polychroma’s richly detailed pixel art is the real showstopper, bringing the Philippines to life through vibrant, lived-in spaces, where cultural touchstones and food-centric moments create a deeply immersive, emotionally resonant world, whether you share that background or not. Though it takes its time, the story’s endearing cast draws you in, building toward a devastating emotional payoff that lingers long after.

Whether you’re reliving your teenage years or still living them, this visual novel feels instantly familiar. Over my 18-hour playthrough, Until Then made me laugh, pause in awe, and even tear up. While the coming-of-age narrative stands strong on its own, the added breathtaking pixel animation, engaging mystery, and cultural backdrop firmly cement it as essential for anyone who loves narrative-driven games. 

– Raymond Estrada

Adorable Adventures

Get ready to fall head over hooves for Baby Boris. Adorable Adventures is a cozy, low-stress exploration game where you play as an irresistibly cute baby boar searching the wilderness for his missing family. Guided by a friendly park ranger, you’ll sniff your way through vibrant biomes in a beautifully crafted national park. There’s no combat, no pressure, and nothing here can harm you. Even the scariest fall ends in a soft squeak instead of a splat. It’s just you, a fuzzy little bread loaf, roaming a peaceful, picturesque world designed to melt your worries away.

After a forest fire, you wake up alone realizing that your mother and siblings are nowhere to be found. With little to guide you, Boris’s greatest strength quickly emerges: a boar’s powerful sense of smell. But as a young boar, the overwhelming flood of new scents can easily distract you from your goal. Only by tracking enough of the same scent can you learn to tune it out, clearing your path forward. As you filter through the noise, you’ll reunite with your siblings, who help you continue the search. Beyond that core loop, there are puzzles to solve, photos to snap, and races to run—for the completionists who want to do it all.

The game is visually stunning and quietly emotional, with a “Homeward Bound”-style heart that lingers. It’s a short journey—around 4–5 hours—but a lovely escape into nature alongside an adorable fluffball named Boris, and a gentle reminder of why these wild spaces are worth protecting.  I highly recommend Adorable Adventures for those looking for their next cozy outing and especially for parents looking for something genuinely delightful, non-violent, and sneakily educational for their kids.

– Raymond Estrada