Control Resonant, Rapidfire CEO Turnovers And Other New Indie Games Worth Checking Out

Developer: Free Lives
Publisher: Devolver Digital
Platform: Steam (Windows, Mac, SteamOS/Linux; Steam Deck Verified)
Price: Usually $12, with a 50 percent discount until October 1

I appreciate art that has a clear point of view, and Stick It to the Stickman doesn’t shy away from getting its point across. This is a satirical, anti-capitalist roguelite brawler. The main loop sees you rise up the corporate ladder (well, the floors of a building) to defeat your company’s CEO and take their job. Then you do it all over again as a new employee. The rate of turnover at this company is incredibly high, so I think it says something that the characters are effectively stick figures with few defining features.

Along the way, you’ll battle your coworkers using a wide range of attacks, from a staple gun and flying kick to a hadouken and a projectile coffee mug. You’ll start each run (which takes just a few minutes) with a certain character trait and a few moves, and unlock and upgrade abilities as you move through the building. There’s lots going on in the overworld too, where you might be tasked with tackling protestors or earn a Grand Theft Auto-style police wanted level.

I’ve played an hour or so of Stick It to the Stickman, which left early access this week and I’ve enjoyed my time with it so far. The animations are smooth and kicking enemies through windows or into electrical panels does not get old. I’m tickled by the frequent appearances of the former colleague who recommends your first character for a job and is immediately replaced by them. The short runs help make it a good Steam Deck game too.

It’s probably not best to think about what’s going on too closely, though. Spending your avatars’ hard-earned cash on expanding the company feels ghoulish, even if you do get some perks out of it.

Doggy Don’t Care

Developer: Rohan Nowell
Publisher: Rotub Games
Platform: Steam (Windows; Steam Deck Verified)
Price: Usually $15, with a 10 percent discount until October 8

In Doggy Don’t Care, the outfits that you unlock for the trouble-making pup are called “pawjamas.” That’s all I really needed to know to realize this adventure game is for me. It helps that reviews have suggested fans of Untitled Goose Game and Little Kitty Big City (I like both of those!) will enjoy it.

You play as Charlie, a pup that’s left home alone by its owner, and your mission is to cause carnage and impress his friends. You’ll earn badges for your mischievous deeds, which may just involve a diamond heist. It looks chaotic and pretty cute. Sometimes, you just need something that’s chaotic and pretty cute.

Video Game Menu: The Game

Developer/publisher: Sebastian Gioseffi
Platforms: Steam (Windows), Itch
Price: Usually $4, with a 10 percent discount on Steam until September 30

Video Game Menu: The Game is one of the titles included in the Out of the Box showcase. It’s a short game that slots into the burgeoning Fake OS genre while simultaneously parodying that category. As you might imagine, it’s all about navigating a video game menu system. Things very quickly get utterly ridiculous.

I’ve played a bit of Video Game Menu and developer Sebastian Gioseffi sets the right tone immediately. As I do with pretty much every game, I opened the settings before doing anything else. I was tickled to see a drop-down menu that allowed me to choose from a range of emotional depth options for the challenges, ranging from “I Just Wanna Kill Some Zombies” to Sophie’s Choice. Turn on the gore option and every time you toggle a setting, there’s a splash of blood. If you like to see numbers arbitrarily go up, why not switch on the random score? You’ll never guess what happens when you enable airplane mode either.

I hadn’t even started the game yet and I was enjoying how the settings warped what I was seeing and hearing. I won’t give anything else away, but if you’re looking for something silly to play this weekend, Video Game Menu is right there.