:) brought back the spirit of mid-'00s freeware games that I've missed so much. A fun, weird concept, modest in scope, and playable from start to finish in a few non-committal moments. I was reminded of that time, and while enjoying what :) itself has to offer (which, incidentally, is a bag of delightful surprises and laughs), I also took a trip down memory lane. Rousing so many thoughts and memories, :) proves what a short game experience can do.

Those games you downloaded on a whim and played one afternoon and never again… They stay with you, don't they? I'm sure I'll be reminded :) some ten years down the line – and I'm looking forward to that moment.

Removing the procedurally generated aspect from the beloved roguelite seems like a risk, and it is – but with careful game design, Handmadedeathlabyrinth delivers: through incisively selected data that carries over across runs, and a dungeon that goes by faster and faster as you learn its inner workings, a convincing argument is made that procedural generation isn't necessarily integral to the roguelite feeling. And learning is indeed the name of the game here: studying how traps and enemies work – trying new methods of handling what's thrown at you – is a delightful journey of discovery. From start to finish, barring extra content, the game is only 30 (not quite 10!) minutes or so.

The game does get a bit frustrating and confusing if you decide to go for said extra content, however. Specifically, the rewards hinted at for defeating the Wizard of the Slime Pit are a red herring, and there is in fact no reward or further content, which was neither interesting nor enjoyable to me after 2½ hours of trying – 5× as long as I spent playing the main game. Depending on how you fare, this may defeat the “10-minute game” aspect a bit – it did for me.

In the end, though, I can't say it sours the experience overall – in a compact package, you get a lot of game design to think about and enjoy! Get it! (And really, the whole 10mg pack!)

NightSky is a very atmospheric game made by Nifflas, the man behind the Knytt games among others. The music and the visuals interact in such a way that they don't really feel like separate entities.

Gameplay-wise, the game is an amazingly fun 2D physics puzzler which sees you rolling a ball through a multitude of levels. You hold the right arrow key to spin the ball clockwise, and the lef arrow key to spin it counter-clockwise. This makes for some interesting situations where your control scheme might feel reversed as you roll on the ceiling, for example.

There is a lot to say about this game that I haven't, but then again - this is a recommendation, not a formal review. If you're having trouble, you might also want to look up the guide I wrote for it!

You might be wondering if you should buy this game. The answer ranges from a "probably" to a "definitely", depending on how much you like physics puzzlers. If it's ever on sale, there's nothing stopping you!

I've been having way too much fun with this.

Magicka is a game about pushing onwards, even when nothing goes your way. No, seriously, nothing. The game is tough as nails, even when you're playing with friends - even if it does make it a bit easier, and a whole lot more fun!

You play as a magician with an affinity for, well, magic. You get to combine different powers in real-time in order to make different spells, which adds a creative aspect to a game that wouldn't have much to speak for itself gameplay-wise otherwise!

The game is shock-full of bugs, but that's part of the fun. Going through a whole level only to have a monster spawn on top of you and make you fall through the level might sound terrible, but it's really hilarious when it happens! A lot of the DLC suits make sequence-breaking a possibility, too, if you like that sort of thing.

There's way too much to mention here, it's pretty much impossible to do this game justice through the number of letters Steam allows you to u

Cave story is an indie freeware game from long ago. Recently, the small company NICALIS decided to remake CS for PC, Mac, DSi, Wii and 3DS. This is one of those versions!

If you're new to Cave Story, this is really the definitive way to experience the game. It's great fun, too, so you really don't want to miss it!

If you've already played Cave Story, though, you might not want to pay $9.99 for a game you've already played. Aside from a few new gamemodes (including the option to play as Curly), new music and slightly updated graphics, there's not much new to see here.

Cave story is really an engrossing experience that'll take you many hours to complete if you go for the best ending. Innovative level system, original story, great controls and AWESOME music (the original music is better in my opinion). If you don't want to pay $9.99 for a game you don't know if you'll like, download the original freeware version to try it out! If you see CS+ on sale, don't hesitate to pick it up!

There's no reason for not trying Spiral Knights. The most obvious reason is, of course, that it's free! It's a great little MMORPG, and it's more complex that how it looks at first sight. The only bad thing about the game (except for some minor bugs and item sharing) is that you need "energy" for every action you do. Every day you have 100 energy to spend, and the only way to get more in a single day is to BUY it, or invite friends end get energy tanks.

The game as a whole, though, is awesome. You venture into dungeons, find loot, craft new weapons with that loot, rinse and repeat. It masy sound repetitive, but it's not! Whenever you've got some free time on your hands, try Spiral Knights.

Super Meat Boy. What can I say? It's hard as a brick wall (EXTREMELY frustrating at times), it's loads upon loads of fun, it's got lots of achievements, unlockable characters, loads of levels... Super Meat Boy is really a very *meaty* game (XD), and you should buy it. Now.

(Warning: Might be too hard without a gamepad/XBox360 controller)