PEGBRJE: Spooky Station
9 games. 9.
Spooky Station is an anthology of ghost-filled pixel games published by Estudio Vaca Roxa, an indie studio based out of Rio de Janeiro. Normally this is where I would jump into a similar storyline about how the player is going to be doing something, controlling someone, or experience a new adventure. Instead, however, there are 9 total games to cover with differing gameplay styles and genres. In the interest of keeping things clean and simple, I’ll be taking a similar approach to how I handle the software: each game feature will be listed below.
The fact alone that there are 9 games within this single entry still boggles my mind.
Let’s begin!
Spooky Cooking
A simple one-button game, Spooky Cooking by Heavy Sheep has players throw pumpkins into a cauldron at the press of a button in the hopes of putting as many in as possible. Unfortunately for them, many of the other spooky creatures are making their way past the cauldron, and if any of them are hit the game is over. It seems so simple at first, especially since it is just a click of a button to throw the pumpkins, no aiming required. Yet the timing of each creature that goes by is different and critical in order to send as many pumpkins in during the free time, and the margin for error is a lot smaller than it appears. If you’re looking for a simply fun title to pass a small amount of time, this is it.
Tower of 100 Floors
Following the tale of the hero of the village, Tower of 100 Floors by LASTONE has Sewer Cat enter a tower in order to save his home from the demons within. Players are given a choice of 3 guns to accompany their sword, and enter the randomly generated tower to fight out enemies on each floor. Interestingly, many of the smaller hand guns can be doubled up, so I had a double machine gun pistol quite early on and enjoyed ripping through many of the enemies and bosses until my own hubris got the better of me. Death for Sewer Cat is problematic, and sends them right back to the the start with nothing — their only hope is to reclaim their dead body’s stuff by reaching the same numbered floor. It’s an enjoyably simple rogue-like with 100 floors of enemies and traps to overcome. I only made it to floor 37 and there appears to be no save points, so best of luck to any that can get the entire way.
Cosmic Rain
A title reminiscent of the arcade games of the past, Cosmic Rain by Expresso Games has players collecting blobs to place in the cauldron to create recipes for their witchy teacher. These blobs are not just ingredients for food however, as they can be combined in a vertical line to create a single spell potion, capable of doing various tasks. These spell potions are needed in order to capture some of the harder ingredients, such as the head of the pumpkin man that keeps running past or Mothman’s feather in order to finish a dish off and move to the next area. It’s a cute little experience that becomes much more difficult in later areas as more pumpkins and mothmen appear to stun and slow down progress, especially with the added pressure that running out of time resets the game back to the first ‘lesson’. Simple and addictive, best for anyone looking to experience some good old fashioned arcade games.
Wishing Sarah
The most unique entry in this mini-bundle as it includes a GameBoy image, Wishing Sarah by Asteristic Game Studio is the mini-sequel to Dreaming Sarah, the surreal adventure featured earlier. This follows similar feelings of bizarre eye imagery and unnerving plot elements as players follow Sarah after she awakens from her coma. I don’t wish to spoil much, but if you enjoyed the gameplay and puzzle mechanics of Dreaming Sarah then you’ll love the follow up.
Thursday the 12th
In a little twist, Thursday the 12th by Calangames has you play as the ‘bad’ guy, friendly serial killer Johnny. Help him with his ‘morning’ routine as he gets ready to go out and live his best life. If you were expecting something more, that’s not what this is all about. Enjoy the set pieces of a serial killer who is just cheeky enough to almost not realize he kills people for a living.
Worship the Demon Lord With Friends
Worship the cute Demon Lord themselves in this local multiplayer competitive game by Pastel Studios. Players are one of two cat worshipers of the ultimate Demonic Overlord, and must compete against each other in a series of challenges to see who is the best at worship. These challenges range from a mini version of Guitar Hero, collecting items, infinite runners and many more. If you wish to see who is best at serving their master, try this one.
Curse Bringer
Players are the Curse Bringer, a witch that caries out curses to those that have been marked and brought to the establishment to be dealt with. Sister Constance, the protagonist, is assigned a new mark after coming back to the organization, and players must assist her in making decisions in order to complete the mission. How will the mark be completed? Only the players can help figure that out. If you enjoy short stories about the supernatural and witchcraft, try this out.
Killing Moon
Recreating an old horror story is Killing Moon, an adventure by JoyMasher. Players follow the tale of high schoolers Ash, Barbara and R.J as they attempt to liven up a stereotypically dry party with some alcohol and get more than they bargained for. Weird events occur as players solve puzzles involving old school point and click mechanics, interacting with the other party goers and just trying to get the party to not suck. If you’re a fan of these adventures, this is another to add.
Spookids
A co-operative yet competitive multiplayer title, Spookids is an adventure title made by CrownO and Relixes, featuring music by HydroGene and Karugamo BGM. Players pick one of 4 kids that are determined to get candy by any means necessary, regardless of the fact that their locations are overrun by angry monsters. Each kid has their own attack and special move, progressing throughout each level to fight off monsters and gain points in the hopes of achieving candy. It reminded me a lot of the old flash games I used to play, with simple attacks yet power ups to be found throughout the world to augment them. It can feature up to 4 kids all attempting to get candy, while also competing to see who can get the highest score. Good luck!
And that’s all of them! You can find the bundle below.
