Nostalgia

30th August

Hello and welcome back to our regular feature where we write a little bit about some of the games we’ve been playing. This week, Victoria searches for cats in Paris, Dom practises for Silksong on Shinobi, Ed enjoys the Rogue Prince of Persia, Marie calms herself by building ramen houses, Matt makes a wobbly oblong spaceship, Bertie goes ghost hunting, and Connor blasts through an old Resi.

What have you been playing?

Catch up with the older editions of this column in our What We’ve Been Playing archive.

Hidden Cats in Paris, Switch 2

Found one!Watch on YouTube

Last week was a busy one, and when I got back from Gamescom I just wanted my mind to switch to idle animation for a while. So rather than jumping into a game that would require me to use more brain power than I was in possession of, I decided to take a browse through the eShop for something cheap, mindless (in a good way) and that could be played while cocooned in bed. What I landed upon was Hidden Cats in Paris, which I scooped up for 89p, and ahhh, it ticked all of the necessary boxes.

Hidden Cats in Paris begins with a monochromatic illustration of a Parisian scene, with cafes, a cabaret, the Eiffel Tower and other French fancies. Hidden within this scene are – you guessed it – cats! The aim of the game is simply to find all of the hidden cats, and as I did so, the scene gradually coloured in. When I found the last cat tucked behind a railing, the French music that had been soothing me in the background swelled, and fireworks lit the inky blue night sky.

Honestly, it was the perfect tonic for the end of a very busy week. I think I may try Hidden Cats in Rome next.

-Victoria

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance, PS5

Watch on YouTube

Silksong who? I’m a 2D action platformer sicko, me. And I think this year is shaping up to be a golden year for the genre. We’ve already had the pulpy nonsense of Ninja Gaiden Unbound to drool over, and now we’ve got Sega coming back with a compelling, modern take on one of its most storied icons (no, not Sonic) in the form of Joe Mushashi.

Shinobi: Art of Vengeance is one of those games that I installed out of a sense of curiosity, but then promptly lost about seven hours to in one evening as I went sniffing out secrets, unlocking upgrades and Ninja Flipping my way over a rogue’s gallery of demons, commandos and rival shinobi. It’s fast, it’s flexible, and it’s hard without being unfair. A perfect training ground for my ageing hands as I try to wake up my synapses and reflexes ahead of Silksong’s launch next week.

-Dom

The Rogue Prince of Persia, PS5

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It’s not often a 2D game demands you interact with the background, but it’s one of the things I love about this new roguelike Prince of Persia game. As Matt eloquently put it last week, the series has always been known for its movement but this new game from the team behind Dead Cells is “beautifully balletic carnage”. Part of that is squeezing the left trigger for the Prince to run up and along walls, creating a pleasing rhythm to platforming and an opportunity to dodge attacks too.

Having spent plenty of time in Dead Cells, The Rogue Prince of Persia has proven easy to slip into and to while away a few hours in. I’m having a great time with it. I just wish it was better optimised. Loading often takes an age, and after a recent update I lost a chunk of progress. Thankfully, it was fun enough to do again – and isn’t that the point of roguelikes anyway?

-Ed

Minami Lane, Switch 2

Watch on YouTube

Existing is stressful at times, and while I do have other hobbies to help me relax, sometimes 15 minutes on a calming game is what I need. That’s how Minami Lane found itself in my routine this week.

Management games give me a space where I am completely in control, and for some reason I find that relaxing. Not only are the soothing colour tones and whimsical soundtrack enough to lull me into a calmer mood, but being able to create a small street with an Onsen on, and a Ramen Shop, that the townsfolk are enjoying, makes me breathe deeper and focus better on what I’m doing.

Somehow it tells my mind everything is OK. I don’t know how and I don’t need to know how. Minami Lane has a magic to it and it works wonders on me.

-Marie

No Man’s Sky, PC

It’s happening again! Firstly, this was the week I finally wrapped my rewatch of Twin Peaks: The Return, so – still haunted by the sound of Carrie Page screaming into an unknowable oblivion of an unfamiliar world – today’s WWBP entry is very much served with a side helping of unshakeable existential nightmare. Which is actually pretty appropriate, given the similar vein of bleak philosophy that continues to haunt No Man’s Sky and its doomed universe. Not that I’ve been dipping back in for such lofty matters!

Instead, this week finally saw Hello Games’ exploratory sci-fi sim introduce fully customisable ships, complete with multi-crew capabilities and functional interiors. And while they don’t fundamentally change No Man’s Sky’s familiar survival rhythms, there’s something deeply, wonderfully satisfying about getting to explore the cosmos in a gleaming vessel – or in my case, an awkwardly assembled eyesore – that you’ve carefully (hastily) assembled to meet your own idiosyncratic fancies. So, if you happen to see a garishly coloured oblong teetering through space on your travels, do come and say hello!

-Matt

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden, PC

Watch on YouTube

I genuinely don’t know how this passed me by – and props to the Eurogamer Discord for encouraging me in its direction. It’s a Don’t Nod game, a studio known for Life is Strange, though its vampire game, um, Vampyr is probably more relevant. Banishers is similar, you see. It’s a different concept – you’re a ghost banisher working in the 17th century in what Europeans would call the New World, or New England, or New Eden in this case – but the thoughtful adult tone and darkness of the world to me feel exactly the same. I’d even go as far as to say Banishers is a slow game, but slow in a mature way, by which I mean ‘given time to develop, given time to breathe’.

It’s really interesting and creatively brave. On the surface it looks like a lot of other games but underneath are many points of difference. I don’t remember another game revolving around a deeply-in-love couple from the start. I don’t remember a game with ghost-banishing ideas like this, or with such consistently engaging quests. The English language vocal performances of the two main characters are also superb, from Russ Bain and Amaka Okafor. The vocal performances are strong across the game, actually.

Banishers is a surprise package – the sort of game I imagine many people would say they would want to see, if asked. But it didn’t do the business for publisher Focus Home – Banishers performed “well below” expectations, even. Will it mean Don’t Nod simply won’t attempt something like this in the future? Because that would be a shame. A great shame indeed.

-Bertie

Resident Evil 3 Remake, PC

I’ve redownloaded the RE3 Remake while I wait for another game to review properly, or for 2XKO to launch on 9th September. I needed something fast but chunky. Moreish, explosive, and replayable. What better game than the RE3 Remake?

The truth is there are likely 50 games better than the RE3 Remake in this regard, but I already owned it on Steam and it’s like 20GB to download, which isn’t bad. And I’d forgotten how great Jill is in this, and I love Nemesis so much. Carlos is also great, though the hospital defence segment isn’t. I hit credits last night with a B rank, and all but one of the little doll collectables found.

Now I get to go through again, with a bunch of points to spend on little bonuses. I’m going to go for either the fiery knife to save ammo, or a fancy new pistol as I work my way through the pistol kill challenge. Wish me luck.

-Connor

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