Video games have moved to the forefront of digital technology and entertainment. Not only are developers pushing the frontiers of tech with projects that include VR and even holography, but studios around the world continue to invest in innovative new games that buck old traditions.
Whether you game on your smartphone, PC, console, tablet, or beyond, there’s likely a brand-new release waiting for you. But with so much saturation in the gaming market, it’s hard to wade through all the white noise to find a title that’s truly exciting on multiple levels. The best projects offer quality gameplay mechanics, graphics, and storylines—at the bare minimum.
Let’s take a closer look at five unique titles that have gained popularity this year.
LuckyLand Slots
Browser and mobile
LuckyLand is a social casino that offers free slots online, including dozens of different titles that players can peruse. Each has its own unique features related to progressive jackpots, multipliers, free spins, and other winning combinations. The platform offers titles that cover a range of interests, from Doggie Kisses to Vaults of Valhalla, providing hours of interesting gameplay.
If you’re new to slots, it’s a great way to get to know how the spinning reels work. Many include bonus rounds and features, which add new components to the stories, settings, and characters included in each title.
Sky: Children of the Light
Mobile and Nintendo Switch
This open-world social adventure game is one of the top indie projects ever released for mobile devices. The concept is simple, while the graphics give gamers plenty to explore and fall in love with. It’s great for casual gamers, as the setting is peaceful and the adventures suitable for players of all skill levels and interests.
For example, the game also includes poetic descriptions of the Kingdom of Sky. Little creative markers like these make all the difference as players return fallen Stars to their constellations.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge
PC and Nintendo Switch
Any fans of retro gaming or TMNT diehards will find endless entertainment in Shredder’s Revenge. The game features pixelated, arcade-style graphics and a cast of characters that includes Splinter and Casey Jones. It perfectly balances TMNT’s 80s style with ridiculous plots inside pizza parlors and, of course, a horde of pesky Foot Clan members to fight off.
Strange Horticulture
PC
Casual and puzzle gamers will enjoy the endless challenges presented by Strange Horticulture. The project is highly unique, as it requires gamers to oversee a medieval horticulture shop where customers come in needing to identify strange fauna. Slowly but surely, gamers gain knowledge about the plants as customers seek foliage to encourage bravery or to smite their enemies.
The game resists easy categorization, as its precise details build out the world’s highly complex and nuanced challenges. Slowly but surely, the veil is pulled back on a storyline that adds intrigue… and plenty of occult elements.
The Quarry
PC and Console
Since its release earlier this year, The Quarry has set itself apart from all other horror projects that have come before it. First, it hits on classic thematic notes, as a group of young adults faces the terror of a sleepaway summer camp that quickly goes awry. Players are faced with challenges that range from finding a sleeping bag to encountering mythic beasts.
But what makes the project stand out is Supermassive Games’ cinematic approach to graphics. Characters are rendered by motion capture, which adds an eerie and life-like element. In fact, the game’s binary decision-making setup means most of the game plays out like a movie—one that has 186 different endings based on the choices that each player makes.
