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

This week, drills, foul-mouthed children and road trips with your mom.

After last week’s collection of major releases, this week the smaller releases have all come together to share the spotlight. There’s a decent selection of excellent under-the-radar titles this week, and a few solid contenders for Game of the Week. Between Horizons, Terra Memoria, Distant Bloom and Open Roads all caught my attention, but ultimately, Game of the Week was drilled in the second I played the demo of Pepper Grinder.

New Releases

Releasing in Early Access this week, Kadomon: Hyper Auto Battlers is a roguelike auto battler where you collect up to 180 creatures.

Developed by new Australian studio Dino Rocket and published by Fireshine Games (Core Keeper, Shadows of Doubt, KeyWe)

Also in Early Access, Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist is the sequel to sleeper hit Metroidvania Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights. In this game you play as Lilac, an attuner who can call on the powers of homunculi who aid her in battle. The original gained a lot of fans, so hopes are high for this one.

Developed by Japanese studios Live Wire Inc and Adglobe, and published by Binary Haze Entertainment, all of whom were involved with the original game.

Between Horizons (PC) is a point and click mystery game set on a generation ship drifting through space. The demo sets up an intriguing premise, as a saboteur emerges on board and Stella, as head of security, must figure out who they are and what they’re up to before it’s too late.

Developed by German studio DigiTales Interactive (Lacuna) and published by Assemble Entertainment (Roadwarden, Endzone: A World Apart, Far: Lone Sails)

Go Fight Fantastic (PC) is a co-op action game for up to three players. You play as a crew of plucky fighters heading down to Bird Planet to stop invaders. The demo of this sadly did leave a lot to be desired, but I sense that it may just be poorly optimised for single player gameplay. Hopefully it’s much more enjoyable with friends.

Developed by new Swedish studio Dinomite Games and published by Kinda Brave (Distant Bloom).

Outpost: Infinity Siege (PC) is an ambitious game blending first-person shooter elements with tower defence and strategy gameplay. That said, the Mostly Negative rating it has on Steam suggests that maybe it hasn’t blended these elements as well as they’d hoped.

Developed by Team Ranger and published by Lightning Games (Anno: Mutationem)

Distant Bloom (PC) is a cute little game about making a new home on a distant planet, as you and your crew of quirky aliens flee their polluted homeworld. However, their new home also lies in ruin, but your efforts can help revitalise the wilderness and build a thriving world. I played the demo of this and was impressed at the combination of light survival gameplay with puzzle elements, as you try and plant patches of land with the perfect combinations of herbs, trees and ferns for maximum revitalisation. It’s got a fun sense of humour too.

Developed by Swedish developers Ember Trail (Main Assembly) and published by Kinda Brave (Go Fight Fantastic)

Bulwark: Falconeer Chronicles (PC, PlayStation, Xbox) is the city-building followup to giant bird flying sim The Falconeer. You may remember that I reviewed it a while back and was not particularly impressed by it. After playing the demo for Bulwark, I have to say that it similarly failed to impress me in a different genre. Sitting somewhere between toys like Townscaper and Summerhouse and standard city builders, it feels too complex for the casual crowd while not deep enough for the Cities Skylines fans.

Developed by Dutch solo developer Tomas Sala (The Falconeer) and published by Wired Productions (Martha is Dead, Deliver Us the Moon, Arcade Paradise).

Terra Memoria (PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox X/S) is an old school style RPG, as a band of quirky magical characters journey across a world where magical crystals are running short. The substantial demo I played of this left a great first impression. There’s some gorgeous art, a lot of charming writing and a world full of questions and curiosities that make me want to explore more. The battle mechanics were a lot of fun too.

Developed by French studio La Moutarde (Old School Musical) and published by Dear Villagers (The Forgotten City, Fort Solis, Born of Bread)

Open Roads (PC, PlayStation, Switch, Xbox) released this week after a turbulent development process and its whole development team breaking off from its original company. It’s a narrative adventure game about a teenage girl going on a road trip with her mother, after discovering some secrets while searching through Grandma’s house. Due to the past work from the developers, expect this one to be full of complex, heartfelt stories

Developed by the remnants of Fullbright (Gone Home, Tacoma) and published by Annapurna Interactive (Stray, Outer Wilds, What Remains of Edith Finch).

South Park: Snow Day! (PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox X/S) is a co-op action game set in the world of South Park. You and up to three friends can battle their way through the dangers of snow day. Sadly this one may not live up to the success of the previous games (The Stick of Truth, The Fractured But Whole) but it could be a fun time with friends who also love South Park. Developed by US-based studio Question (The Blackout Club) and published by THQ Nordic (Alone in the Dark, Darksiders, Wreckfest). And of course, South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone were involved too.

Game of the Week

Game of the Week this week is Pepper Grinder (PC, Switch), a 2D platformer about drilling.

You play as Pepper, a sailor whose ship has crashed on a strange island. After her treasures are stolen by a mysterious figure and their team of angry narwhals, Pepper finds a massive drill and sets out to reclaim what is rightfully hers.

I already liked the premise of this one, with the gameplay built around using a drill for momentum-based platforming challenges. You carve through blocks of earth like a fish through water, using your speed to propel yourself up into new heights or clearing gaps. It seemed like a neat concept, and then I played the demo.

Pepper Grinder feels so good to play. The drill mechanics are incredibly responsive and it’s extremely satisfying to carve a route through a bunch of tricky routes. I left the demo wanting so much more, and I could see this mechanic expanding into something requiring heavy mastery by the end. I had so much fun with the demo that I simply had to make Pepper Grinder Game of the Week.

Developed by American developer Ahr Ech and published by Devolver Digital (Cult of the Lamb, Hotline Miami, Inscryption).