From a long running series of games spanning across multiple themes and collaborations, just launched their brand new title set in one of my favourite worlds. The Witcher is a series with dense lore spanning multiple games, books and films which makes it perfect for spin off experienced from another perspective but Geralt’s.

What is Reigns?

Reigns is a charming choice driven story telling deck builder. The mechanics are very simple, players will swipe left or right to make their choices and appease one of 4 ‘factions’. Easy right?

Well this faction in Reign: The Witcher are Human, non human, sorcerers and monsters. The choices players make appear to be simple but juggling the factions likes and dislikes proves to be more difficult. It’s not just about keeping the bars high as filling up the ‘human’ faction to the brim means Geralt is invited to ball and swarmed by fans resulting in his death.

But Geralt is not quite the main character here, that will be Dandelion. The witty bard that everyone loves to hate is building up his fame by singing about the famous Witcher’s adventures, and with every ballad sung and tavern filled with cheer. Players will level up their fame which will inspire the bard to come up with new stories.

A theme that fits the gameplay perfectly

When the bard gains inspiration for a new story players will unlock a new card that will be permanently added to their deck. Every run players will draw 3 cards which essentially determine what the song will be about. Balancing tasks such as ‘making a troll smile’ and ‘support the scoia’tael’ can prove very difficult together as the human faction will quickly decline in their presence. Those cards don’t only provide a structure and a goal to the run but will also provide benefits or negatives that players will have to factor in.

Most of the run is reading prompts and accordingly swiping left or right to balance out the Witcher’s standing. But you can’t have a Witcher title without monster slaying and this title delivers. Out of all the bars players will want to fill up the monster bar high as that leads them to an encounter that, well requires slaying a creature.

I must admit I had trouble with the grid based ‘rhythm’? Mechanic that give me Crypt of the Necrodancer vibes. As blocks indicating the players and enemy actions are falling down the players’ task to avoid damage and instead dishing it out. Among runes appearing that allow Geralt to use signs and special attacks coming from the monsters, this becomes a fantastic break from the relaxing text based game play.

My conclusion

Overall I think Reigns:The Witcher combines the two franchises extremely well. Having minimal experience with Reigns before, this title makes me want to re-visit their other titles, and a must try for fans of either. The characters, the world and the music fit the gameplay and the humour perfectly. Strong recommend, especially on handheld devices such as the switch or mobile phones.

The fifth chapter for Poppy’s playtime finally released this week after a long year of awaiting the thought to be the final chapter of the series.

We carry on from the end of the 4th chapter, where we find ourselves pursued by the first antagonist of the series Huggy Wuggy, where we’re now in the domains of the prototype the labs, as we delve deeper into the factory uncovering the new horrors that await us.

What made this chapter exciting was that not only did we explore the deeper and darker parts of the factory but we also finally saw how horrifying the prototype is, after years worth of build-up and mystery surrounding him.

Graphically it was great, the atmosphere and tension was as good as ever, and it had a few terrifying moments, though I have to admit I was quite underwhelmed by how scary it actually was. Considering the trailer and the chapter was hinted to be centered around the prototype, I did expect to see him more and in general for it to be a much scarier experience.

Make sure you have your thinking caps on for this chapter...

The past chapters were quite heavily story focused, we actively seeked out notes and tapes to actually learn more about the narrative and the backstory behind characters. This applies specifically from chapters two to four, the first one is an exception of course since it was the first one and just a small taster for what was yet to come.

Surprisingly the latest chapter strayed away from this and instead felt more puzzle driven which I noticed after around an hour of playing, simply because there was a puzzle around every ten minutes. Now more puzzles and less story isn’t necessarily a bad thing, I did still somewhat enjoy the gameplay despite this but it did feel like a constant switch between “solve this puzzle” and “run away”, which pretty much summed up 80% of the game. Luckily though, most puzzles were fairly straightforward and could be solved within a few minutes, I actually had more issues with the chase sequences particularly towards the end of the game.

With that said, whilst it had the most puzzles out of any other chapter and definitely the most complex, the new hands introduced, the pressure and conductive hands added a lot more variety and made the puzzles a lot more enjoyable in general. That meant that new types were added, though the power poles we’ve seen in all of the previous ones still made a few appearances.

Chase scenes are a common occurrence in the series so it’s no surprise that there are quite a few in chapter five, most of them involving trying to escape the ever persistent Huggy. There actually felt like a lot more chase segments too compared to the other chapters, which emphasizes my point on how most of the game consisted of chase and puzzle sections.

It may not of been the scariest, but it was most certainly the darkest installment of the series.

Something the past chapters have successfully achieved at is instilling fear effectively, whether it’s through tense chase sequences, subtle appearances of antagonists or even just the naturally eerie atmosphere they had, none of them ever left you feeling calm.

In comes chapter five, which I found had none of those aspects to make it truly terrifying. Whilst yes it did have chase sequences, a lot of them mind you and an extremely horrifying antagonist in the prototype, it just didn’t feel…scary.

I rarely felt uneasy when walking through the labs or when running away from Huggy for the fourth time. Simply because he’s just not as scary, the more you encounter an antagonist the less effective they are in terms of stirring up tension and fear, which is what I really think was the case here. The atmosphere also felt quite non-existent at times, this was primarily due to the fact that most of the game was heavily puzzle focused which as you can imagine doesn’t scream “horror”.

I really think if it wasn’t for the prototype and how horrifying his design is, it would’ve been one of the least scariest in the series. It’s a shame we didn’t see much of him either apart from a chase sequence towards the end which was probably the best part of the game, he felt like the saving grace for this chapter even if he only appeared towards the last segments of the game.

Despite that, I think this was the darkest chapter by a pretty wide margin, and this was because of the section where you have to collect Huggy’s memories. We got to see his backstory and understand why he’s so aggressive and violent which honestly is understandable, seeing how the toys were treated and basically brainwashed was extremely cruel and we can only think of how horrifying it must have been to go through that process. The thought alone makes me shiver, which is exactly why I thought that section was so effective in making us feel uncomfortable.

Ms Gracie who appeared throughout that segment and in some tapes and notes also contributed to that a lot. I found her to be very creepy and sadistic when watching the short films in the rooms clearly made to brainwash the children to accept their new forms as toys.

New faces didn’t stick around for too long and were overshadowed by past characters for the majority of the game.

We were introduced to a few new characters in this chapter, the first of which being Giblet and Chum Chompkins who had the same dynamics as Poppy and Kissy. I don’t think they really had that much of an impact on the chapter, we didn’t really see them both much apart from the beginning of the chapter, whilst Giblet was with us just before the credits rolled I did expect the two to have a much bigger involvement than they did, though we definitely should see more of them in the future.

Lily of course was the last new face to be introduced to us, and like the other two I mentioned she wasn’t present long apart from the last segment of the game, but I do think we saw enough of her behaviour and personality for her to actually have an impact on the game. She was very unhinged and creepy and I do wish we saw more of her because I think she died way too quickly, unlike Yarnaby in the previous chapter who also acted as a secondary antagonist and didn’t have a backstory at all, I didn’t really care when he died since he didn’t have much to offer as a character, but I really wish Lily was fleshed out more or just survived a little longer.

If she was present throughout the whole game I think she would’ve been a lot more effective as an antagonist which is exactly why I think Catnap is one of the best in the series. In my opinion an antagonist which is present the whole game and silently stalks you is a lot more horrifying than one that just kind of has no hesitation showing themselves and dies quickly.

Whilst new faces appeared they were overshadowed by characters reappearing from previous chapters, with the most notable one being Huggy. Kissy and Poppy reappeared which isn’t a shock because we all kind of expected it, and of course who could forget the prototype. The main antagonist who we’ve been aware of and seen briefly since chapter two, who I guess you could count as new since it was our first actual confrontation with him. The Doctor also made a return too, another character we assumed to be dead that we’ll have one final showdown with.

What I really don’t want Mob Entertainment to do is constantly bring back old characters who we thought died. Towards the end of the game we see the Prototype attack Huggy and Kissy and by the looks of it kill them, I do hope that their stories there finally came to a conclusion. I don’t think they have much else to offer anymore and seeing them return again would just feel pointless, especially since it’s a chance for the characters we rarely saw this chapter to actually involve themselves and have an impact on the story in the next chapter, even if it’s small.

Demon Tides is what Sonic Frontiers wanted to be. The entire game revolves around the main character Beebz traversing distinct islands collecting outfits, talismans and upgrades to make consequent islands easier and more fun. There’s something magical about a 3D platformer that truly understands movement. Not just jumping from point A to B—but making every leap, dive, spin, and scramble feel like self-expression.

The theme

You play as Beebz, the demon queen with a rebellious streak and a surprisingly acrobatic skillset. The setting is a sprawling ocean archipelago called Ragnar’s Rock—an interconnected playground of islands, secrets, vertical challenges, and open water traversal.

Unlike tightly segmented 3D platformers, Demon Tides leans into openness. The ocean itself isn’t just a hub—it’s part of the platforming puzzle. Swimming, gliding and freeform exploration blur the lines between levels. The Islands are perfect bite sized, None of them drag out too long and remain fun to explore every time.

The music and art direction deserve just as much praise as the movement. Visually, Demon Tides embraces a bold, colourful style that feels playful without being overly busy. Exaggerated character animations, vibrant island palettes, and expressive effects all reinforce the game’s kinetic energy. The ocean shimmers with that slightly surreal, almost toy-box quality, while Beebz herself remains a constant focal point thanks to her sharp silhouette and lively animations. The soundtrack complements this beautifully: From up-beat funky tunes to Lo-Fi flicking between exploration, platforming and boss fights really set the tone for any task.

The Exploration

Rather than overwhelming you with map icons and quest logs, Demon Tides encourages organic discovery. You spot something interesting in the distance and you go there.

The depth here feels deliberate. At first, you’re simply navigating obstacles. A few hours in, you’re experimenting with new abilities to find faster routes, discovering unintended shortcuts, and slowly becoming a speedrunner. Importantly, progression feels flexible. You can tackle objectives in multiple ways, and creative movement often rewards you with unintended advantages.

Talisman upgrades modify abilities in subtle but meaningful ways. Cosmetics are plentiful (and stylish). Scoreboards that allow player-ghosts that you can track add a friendly competitive edge without being intrusive. In other words there’s plenty to do and enjoy.

My Conclusion

Yes the technical rough edges are there. The islands popping into existence out of the void can be jarring, especially when you’re swimming or gliding at full speed. Those moments briefly break the illusion of this seamless ocean world. You notice it. It’s not subtle.

But the more time I spent with Demon Tides, the more it clicked. What started as “this feels really good to control” slowly turned into hours of experimentation, rerouting, and that addictive “one more attempt” energy that only the best platformers manage to create.

What makes this game special is personality and freedom. It trusts you to push its systems. It rewards curiosity. It lets you look at a distant structure and decide how you want to approach it, not how the designer expected you to.

There’s something immediately comforting about booting up Under The Island. Before the story even begins to unfold, the vibrant pixel art, top-down perspective, and upbeat colour palette quietly signal what kind of journey you’re about to take. This is a game that wears its inspirations proudly on its sleeve — and yet, it still manages to carve out an identity of its own.

Developed by Slime King Games and published by Top Hat Studios, Inc., Under The Island is a 2D action-adventure RPG that feels like it belongs in the late ’90s — in the best possible way.

Straight to the action

You step into the shoes of Nia, who reluctantly accompanies her parents to seemingly very boring island. Under the Island quickly escalates the stakes and doesn’t waste time sending players on their adventure. The premise is simple, but it works. There’s an immediate sense of urgency layered beneath an otherwise cosy island atmosphere.

The game’s narrative doesn’t overwhelm you with exposition. Instead, it unfolds naturally through exploration, side quests, and conversations with the island’s eccentric residents. You’ll reunite lost pets, uncover strange environmental disturbances, and gradually peel back the mystery surrounding the island’s fate.

The tone balances lighthearted charm with genuine interesting characters. As players progress they will constantly loop back to the main Koala Village where NPC’s will move around, complete their tasks and have something new to say. It’s what this title does really well, added details like that, which wouldn’t be missed, but add so much character by being there.

Great puzzles combined with fun gameplay

If you love discovery-driven games, this is where Under The Island shines brightest. The island is divided into multiple distinct regions — lush forests, odd industrial areas, strange greenhouses, frozen caverns — each with its own visual identity and mechanical twist. The map design encourages backtracking once you unlock new abilities, creating that classic “aha!” moment when you remember a previously unreachable ledge or sealed path.

There’s a satisfying density to the world. Hidden chests, secret pathways, optional character stories — the island constantly rewards curiosity. It’s not massive in scale, but it feels intentional and handcrafted. Under the Island captures that elusive feeling of childlike adventure — the sense that every corner of the map might hide something surprising.

It’s not trying to reinvent the genre but refine it. It’s confident in its scale, focused in its design, and careful not to bloat its systems unnecessarily. For players who grew up on classic 2D adventure games, this feels like coming home. The puzzles are rewarding with a perfect balance between being satisfying without unnecessarily frustrating.

My Conclusion

Under The Island is a heartfelt indie adventure that understands exactly what it wants to be. It combines exploration, combat, puzzles, and story into a cohesive experience that feels both nostalgic and fresh. It may not push technical boundaries or introduce groundbreaking mechanics — but it doesn’t need to. Everything this title offers is done perfectly.

If you’re drawn to retro-inspired action RPGs with charm, mystery, and a strong sense of place, this is absolutely worth your time. Under the Island is inexpensive and available on all major platforms.