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Johan C. Wyckoff
- Apr 23, 2021
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Coffee Talk
Video games have a wonderful flexibility between involved gameplay to quietly living out a different life entirely. Take the indie darling Stardew Valley versus the widespread phenomenon of Call of Duty; both include involved gameplay, but each differs in genre and interactivity. But some games treat their story first and front, injecting less gameplay with more focus on story for a “visual novel.” As the genre states, it’s an interactive novel with minor gameplay elements, r
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Apr 3, 2021
- 2 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Downwell
Fall deep into a well while blasting bullets at enemies from your boots.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Sep 24, 2020
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Last of Us Part II
There are some stories that shouldn’t have a sequel.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Aug 28, 2020
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Spider-Man
Play for the thrill and story of one web swinger.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Jul 14, 2020
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Star Wars: Fallen Order
Star Wars video games are back? Read on to find out Johan's take.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- May 22, 2020
- 3 min
Game Review: Kingdom Series
Build up your kingdom better than Lord Farquaad.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- May 11, 2020
- 3 min
Game Review: South Park: The Fractured But Whole
"OMG! You killed Kenny!" and possibly this game in the process.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Apr 15, 2020
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Resident Evil 7: Biohazard
The only thing scarier than this quarantine.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Apr 8, 2020
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: God of War (2018)
He is Kratos, teacher, husband, and now father. God of War has changed.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Mar 30, 2020
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: That Dragon, Cancer
Stories that create catharsis for players are hard to create. That Dragon, Cancer is one of those games.
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Dec 26, 2019
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Ryse: Son of Rome
You know that feeling of when you see a game a long time ago, then all of a sudden you get it as part of a winter sale and realize how it should’ve gotten attention? That’s the feeling I get when I rediscover the interactive movie phenomenon The Order 1886. Games that are marketed to be launch titles but then fall to the wayside in comparison to larger name brand recognition, like Killer Instinct (2013), Halo, and Gears of War to name a few. It’s a shame, considering this is
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Oct 29, 2019
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks Game Review: Blasphemous
Who knew that a small Spanish video game studio could make a true magnum opus? Blasphemous, developed by Game Kitchen, published by Team17 Digital, and funded on Kickstarter, is a pixelated Action Platformer with heavy influence from the Dark Souls, “Metroidvania”, and Spanish Catholic imagery. Its narrative core of penance and suffering combined with interconnected locales and stylized gameplay makes for a delightfully dark game with clunky controls. The story of Blasphemous
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Aug 7, 2019
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks: Stranger Things 3: The Game
Alright, I admit it. I really like Stranger Things. From its debut on Netflix and now on its third season- where did the time go- on July 4th 2019, the Duffer Brothers attempted to make the birthday of our nation into an 80s filled action thriller with the kids and adults of Hawkins, Indiana. With the teens trying to move on into teen life, what better way to commemorate the long anticipated third season with a video game? Stranger Things 3 The Game, developed by BonusXP, is
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Jul 29, 2019
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks: Borderlands: A Retrospective
Looting and shooting, total anarchy, a fanbase that has much love for meat bicycles as it does heartfelt stories, and a development history just as complicated as the mood of its current magic slinging CEO, get on the next rocket to the planet of Pandora and maybe its moon if you really want to with Borderlands. The Borderlands franchise has gone through some serious bumps and grinds on its way to its hard worked for pedestal as one of the prime loot and shoot first-person sh
Johan C. Wyckoff
- May 2, 2019
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks: Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice
How far would you go in order to save someone that you loved? Would you go down to Hell itself? These questions ring through Senua’s head besides the voices in her head throughout her story, leading to a climatic realization that true battles are fought in the mind as well as in reality. In this award-winning game, Ninja Theory makes a remarkable return to form and tell a story fueled by research. Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, is a third person action-adventure game developed
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Apr 17, 2019
- 3 min
All Thumbsticks with Johan: Machinarium Review
Even though I tell my friends that my first experience playing video games was the Apple version of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by Electronic Arts, I feel as if that is a disservice. Not that it isn’t; I’ve played that game many times, but it felt lacking. Scrolling through my middle school years, I remember falling in love with a little browser game known as Samorost, made by a little Czech game studio known as Amanita Design. It had a little fella who travelled an
Johan C. Wyckoff
- Mar 26, 2019
- 3 min
Video Game Review: Monster Prom
One aspect that I’ve grown to appreciate in my life is the love of monsters: Frankenstein's monster, werewolves, vampires, ghosts, etc. If you are a monster or generally a horror fan, then it makes sense to pick up a game where you are a monster seeking out monsters to take out to high school prom with. That is the concept behind Monster Prom for PC. This parody of visual novels and dating simulators gives players an interesting take on how we find love now. With the recent r