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

This week, t-poses, anime Returnal and unexpected Evanescence.

New Releases

Leftovers KO! (PC) is Punch-Out!! by way of fever dreams about food waste. You play a man who has found, to his horror, that all the uneaten food in his apartment has come to life and wants to punch him in the face. So now you must punch them back. From Mountain Man Animation and published by Feardemic (Perserverance).

Cattle Country (PC, PS5, Switch, Xbox X/S) is a farming sim from Castle Pixel (Blossom Tales) and Playtonic (Lil Gator Game, Victory Heat Rally, Yooka-Laylee). However, the difference here is you’re building yourself a homestead out in the Ol’ West frontier. As well as all the usual trappings of the genre, you’ll also need to defend your new home from roving bandits and keep the local wildlife in check.

If you want to live a cosy childhood summer of catching bugs, Kabuto Park (PC) is for you. You play as Hana, a girl on her summer holiday, armed with a net and a dream of becoming the Summer Beetle Battles competition. Catch the best bugs and pit them against each other in tiny battles. Has similar vibes to obscure Sony franchise Boku no Natsuyasumi. Developed by solo developer Doot (Minami Lane).

Nice Day for Fishing (PC, PS5, Switch) is an adventure game set in a world threatened by a magical force. Only problem is, all the heroes have disappeared and only one man is available to take on the threat: a local fisherman. Travel the world and use your fishing prowess to save the land. From developers FusionPlay and publisher Team17 (Worms, Dredge, Overcooked!).

From Transylvanian developers Stuck in Attic comes another supernatural point-and-click following on from Gibbous: A Cthulhu Adventure. Near-Mage (PC) sees you playing as a witch in training (or the titular “near-mage”) seeking out the answers to spooky mysteries in the town of Sighisoara.

The debut game from Flawberry Studio, Projected Dreams (PC) is a cosy puzzle game about shadow play. Place objects on your table and move them around to create scenes in the shadows, all backed by a story about friendship and moving on.

From Baladins developers Seed by Seed, Jump the Track (PC) is a visual novel with additional arcade games that help improve your choices. These games are based on pachinko and Peggle, and where your balls land unlocks new choices in conversations. This is all in service of big city slacker Sam, who is aiming to achieve some lofty ambitions and escape the gig economy.

Pipistrello and the Cursed Yoyo (PC, PlayStation, Switch, Xbox) is a top-down action-adventure about the nephew of a powerful electricity magnate with mad yoyo skills. You’ll venture around the city, using your yoyo as a weapon and travel aid, trying to stop the various crime families from destroying your family empire. Developed by Pocket Trap (Dodgeball Academia, Ninjin: Clash of Carrots) and published by PM Studios (My Time at Sandrock, Let’s School).

From developer Demon Max, Guilty as Sock! (PC) is a chaotic courtroom sim for you and your friends to sling accusations at each other. Make wild accusations, throw evidence cards around and keep order in the court as best as possible. Also, everyone in the court is a sock puppet.

Fuga: Melodies of Steel 3 (PC, PlayStation, Switch, Xbox) is the third game in CyberConnect2’s furry tactics series. Combining tactical gameplay, cute art and a harrowing story of war and the loss it brings, this is a game where you’ll find yourself having to make tough decisions.

Scar-Lead Salvation (PC, PlayStation) sees you playing as Willow Martin, a woman who wakes in a strange facility surrounded by deadly robots. She must fight her way out, while every death reveals her to be trapped in a time loop. It’s basically anime Returnal from Compile Heart (Neptunia series) and Idea Factory international (Death End Re;Quest, Fairy Fencer F: Refrain Chord).

After FromSoftware won all the awards for their open world Soulslike, they have now taken it in an unexpected direction. Elden Ring: Nightreign (PC, PS5, Xbox X/S) is a co-op game about building yourself up to fight a major boss before an encroaching Fortnite-style barrier threatens your current progress. Might be a divisive one due to its shift to multiplayer, but we shall see. Also, someone who made AMVs in the 2000s now has a job with Bandai Namco marketing and I’m happy for them (seriously, just click that link and enjoy while remembering that’s an official trailer).

Game of the Week

Game of the Week this week is To a T (PC, PS5, Xbox X/S), the new game from Katamari creator Keita Takahashi’s studio Uvula and Annapurna Interactive.

You play as Teen, a permanently t-posing teenager as they attempt to navigate life with the inability to lower their arms. In a story set across multiple days, Teen must learn the advantages of their condition and find themselves in the process.

Keita Takahashi is a curious guy, with all of his game concepts sitting outside of what’s expected from most games. Katamari, Noby Noby Boy and Wattam were all quirky little curiosities, and it’s nice to see him still out there doing his thing. There’s an undeniable charm in everything Takahashi does, so I have no doubt that To a T follows in that tradition.