Aleaty's Game Library

This weekend I spent time all over SXSW Sydney ! SXSW is a week-long festival centred on professional development and networking that started in Austin, Texas and has now landed in Sydney with a plan for a 10-year run. SXSW is described as "An essential destination for global professionals, featuring sessions, music, comedy, film screenings, exhibitions, professional development, gaming and a variety of networking opportunities." What I got up to: I kicked off the week at the opening night of the screen festival with ' The Royal Hotel '. The Royal Hotel follows two American women backpacking Australia as they take up a job in an outback pub for some extra cash. Their unnerving experience is a twist on the classic outback horror genre through the lens of the female gaze. I also had the pleasure of attending the World Premiere of ' Hot Potato: The Story of The Wiggles '! The documentary follows the ups and downs of Wiggles history and brought back so many childh

PAX Aus has come and gone once again! Here's a list of the top things I covered at PAX Aus 2023: Tavern Keeper The lovely team at Greenheart Games were kind enough to invite me to their booth first thing Friday morning to try out their upcoming release Tavern Keeper . I sat down with the demo for around 15 minutes and was very excited about what I saw. Tavern Keeper is a Fantasy Business Sim where you'll build and manage your own Tavern. If you're a fan of the sim genre, especially if you're looking for something that feels like The Sims and Rollercoaster Tycoon combined, you should definitely add this game to your Steam Wishlist. There were so many details to explore in the demo alone, that I'm not sure I even opened every customisation menu! You can build storerooms and decorate customer areas, hire and fire staff, buy fantasy brews, search for hidden coins and so much more. One of my favourite details was the sarcastic narrator who helps you set up shop. Given Ta

Escape From Mystwood Mansion is a first-person puzzle escape room game that will test your wits, logic, and keen observation skills. In this immersive experience, you find yourself trapped within the mysterious walls of Mystwood Mansion. Your mission? To explore every nook and cranny, uncover hidden compartments, solve elaborate puzzles, and decipher cryptic codes in your quest for freedom. Will you manage to escape, or will you become trapped by the mansion's darkest secret? The adventure begins with just another day on the job – delivering a package to Mystwood Mansion. The moment you step inside, the heavy doors slam shut, trapping you within. You quickly realise that your only way out, is in. Explore the mansion's many rooms and confront the challenges that lie ahead. But beware, you are not alone. Surveillance cameras are scattered throughout this home and someone is always watching. The feeling of being constantly observed adds an extra layer of tension to the game and t

Have you ever wondered just where those dungeon masters are sourcing all those mobs from? Where do you find an endless supply of skeletons and ghouls that haunt their hallowed halls and take down intruding adventurers? Well, wonder no further as they're all buying direct from Tiny Witch! Tiny Witch is an adorable pixel art sim that puts you in charge of managing a minion shop. But here's the problem: you're stuck in a spooky, cursed forest store and the only way out is to successfully complete 10 days of service. Your Dungeon Master customers will arrive day and night, making requests for all kinds of nightmarish minions - ghosts, ghouls and zombies oh my! Your goal is to serve as many as you can before the day is over by whipping up souls in your cauldrons and preparing ingredients like mushrooms and bones in your pestles.  Tiny Witch's store is run a little differently from your normal shop management sim as you'll have two customer cycles to manage. Some dungeon

I had the wonderful opportunity to attend an early screening of Dumb Money this week: Craig Gillespie's 2023 comedy-drama inspired by the 2021 GameStop Wall Street takeover. In case this flew under your radar, at the height of the pandemic Keith Gill (aka Roaring Kitty) led a movement of small-time investors who went all in on GameStop stock. Gill would regularly share his market analysis with his YouTube followers and Redditors on r/WallStreetBets leading to a Wall Street squeeze that put hedge funds at risk of losing it all. Dumb Moneys All-star cast The film has an impressive line-up including Paul Dano, Shailene Woodley, Seth Rogan, Pete Davidson, America Ferrera, Nick Offerman, Sebastion Stan and many more. Dumb Money follows this collective cast of hopeful shareholders, based on real-life investors, as they attempt to take on the billionaires of Wall Street. From beginning to end Dumb Money had the audience rooting for the little guys as their investments become less about f

Prepare to journey back in time to the golden era of 3D platformers with a modern technological twist in Boti: Byteland Overclocked. In this captivating adventure, you step into the virtual world as Boti, an endearing data bot with a mission to purge the digital realm of viruses and glitches. Alongside your loyal companions, One and Zero, you'll embark on a thrilling quest through the inner workings of a computer tackling levels inspired by components like the graphics card, processor and power supply. Let the collecting begin! Boti: Byteland Overclocked evokes the nostalgia of classic 3D platformers like Crash Bandicoot, featuring a main hub that leads to various level portals. Armed with an array of abilities including jumping, dashing, hovering, and punching, you'll navigate obstacle-laden platforms on your way to the finish line, all while keeping an eye out for a plethora of collectibles. Megabytes and Botcoins serve as your currencies, enabling you to unlock upgrades for