Hello! Welcome to the latest Geeky Brummie Games Release Roundup!

This week, people management, Sicilian organised crime and demon slaying.

Re-Releases and Ports

Apex Legends comes to the Switch 2, in case you haven’t played it already on other systems. Not sure a handheld system is the best place to play this, but you have the option now.

Operation Night Strikers (PC, Switch 1) brings together four arcade shooters from Taito into a single collection. These include the Space Harrier-like Night Striker, along with three light gun shooters – Operation Wolf, Operation Thunderbolt and Space Gun – which support mouse and Joy-Con controls to emulate the original gun.

Continuing the theme of light gun games, The House of the Dead 2: Remake (PC, Switch 1) brings Sega’s classic shooter to modern systems. You play as two agents liberating a city from an army of the undead, while also battling laughably bad voice acting.

Gradius Origins (PC, PS5, Switch 1, Xbox X/S) is a collection of Konami’s classic arcade side scrolling shooters. The collection includes Gradius 1-3 in multiple versions along with Salamander 1&2 and Life Force. The collection also includes Salamander 3, a new game in the series or, as the official website suggests, some kind of delicious meal (“an all new entrée” apparently).

New Releases

In this week’s cosy corner, we have three wholesome games designed for relaxing times. Catto’s Post Office (PC) from In Shambles Studio and Cult Games (Go-Go Town!, Tempopo) sees you delivering post around a town as a small cat. MakeRoom (PC) from Kenney and Wholesome Games lets you, uh…make rooms, from comfy dining rooms to camper vans. Finally, Tiny Bookshop (PC) from Neoludic Games and Skystone Games (Undying, Spacelines from the Far Out) sees you running a book cart on the seafront. How nice.

Artis Impact (PC) is a quirky little RPG with an expressive art style set in a world of humans and AI. You play as Akane, a woman in a post-apocalyptic world, accompanied by her robot friend, uncovering secrets and making yourself a cosy home. This one’s really interesting.

Demon Slayer Kimetsu no Yaiba: The Hinokami Chronicles 2 (PC, PlayStation, Switch 1, Xbox) continues the story of the Demon Slayer anime from the first game that released in 2021. Covering the Entertainment District, Swordsmith Village and Hashira Training arcs from the show, you play as Tanjiro in big flashy battles with impressive cel-shaded visuals. Developed by CyberConnect2 and published by Sega.

Mafia: The Old Country (PC, PS5, Xbox X/S) is the newest game in 2K’s Mafia series, taking things back to the beginning. Set in Sicily in the 1900s, you play as Enzo Favara as he joins the Torrisi crime family.

Game of the Week

Game of the Week is Is This Seat Taken? (PC, Switch 1, Mobile), a cute logic puzzle game.

Is This Seat Taken? is about an aspiring actor who sees an actor the same shape as them in a film, and sets out on a journey to find meet their hero and find out how to fit in. And fitting in is the aim of the game here, as you take your little shape people and place them into different seating arrangements. The catch is, they all have their own preferences, such as wanting to sit somewhere clean or sitting next to specific people. You need to make sure everyone’s preferences are met, so expect a lot of shuffling around.

I love a fun little brain teaser, and Is This Seat Taken? is a suitably adorable one. The simple aesthetics and adorable designs are a plus on top of what is already a fun concept for a game. A fun little surprise release this week.