Riffs On GoldenEye 007, Star Fox And Kingdom Hearts, And Other New Indie Games Worth Checking Out

Duskfade

Developer: Weird Beluga
Publisher: Fireshine Games
Platforms: Steam (Windows; Steam Deck Verified), PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox on PC, Nintendo Switch 2
Price: $30. The Steam version has a 20 percent discount until August 27

I haven’t had much time to play anything this week, at least outside of a few rounds with the rad new Overwatch character. Duskfade is next on my to-play list, though. This is another retro-inspired game that hearkens back to the 3D platformers of the late ’90s and early 2000s.

As Zirian, you’ll set out on a quest to save your trapped sister and fix time after an eternal night takes hold of the land. You’ll battle enemies using a transforming clockwork sword that I’m sure is in no way inspired by Sora’s Keyblade.

I dig the look of the colorful, clockpunk world Weird Beluga has built here. The studio wears its influences on its sleeve as well. It’s evident from the trailer that the developers are drawing from the likes of Kingdom Hearts, Jak and Daxter and Ratchet and Clank. Seeing the mechanical cuckoo companion for the first time made me smile too. This seems like very much my kind of jam. I can’t wait until I have time (ironically enough) to play it.

Agefield High: Rock the School

Developer/publisher: Refugium Games
Platform: Steam (Windows; playable on Steam Deck). Coming to consoles later
Price: Usually $30, with a 10 percent discount until August 19

Here’s one last game that has its roots in a much-loved game from a couple of decades ago. I’d been looking forward to Agefield High: Rock the School, a spiritual successor to Bully. It’s about a young fella who tries to make the most of his last days of high school after moving to a new town. It’s set in the early 2000s, with a pop-punk soundtrack and era-appropriate references. For better or worse, it seemed like catnip to me.

But an IGN preview that dropped last month soured me on the idea of playing this game, as it was described as “unpolished, uninspired and flat.” Reviews on Steam and elsewhere this week have been pretty dire as well. That’s a bummer. I can’t fairly judge Agefield High without playing it myself, but time is short and the games are plentiful, so the negative sentiment around this one makes it easy to skip.

Finding Polka

Developer: Lidlocks
Publisher: Parco Games
Platform: Steam (Windows)
Price: Usually $10, with a 20 percent discount until August 25

Finding Polka looks so gosh darn cute. It’s a hidden object game in which you search for a pup, who reminds main character Friendy of her childhood dog. She goes on a journey with her current four-legged best pal, sausage dog Jazz, to track down the lookalike after briefly spotting it.

Solo developer Shinnosuke Kumazawa — who made the game as a tribute to his own late dog — created the striking world of Finding Polka with ballpoint pen illustrations. There are mini-games and secrets, and friends to make while on your quest. I don’t know when I’ll have a chance to play Finding Polka, but I just bought it in the middle of writing this paragraph.

I also love the juxtaposition between this game’s visuals and the studio’s name, Lidlocks. That’s the moniker used in A Clockwork Orange for the device that keeps Alex’s eyes open while he’s forced to watch propaganda. Lidlocks says it wants to create games that you can’t look away from, so the name fits!