The winter traditionally stands as a bit of a slow point in the year for new media. Movies in January often receive a critical drubbing as the month got deemed a dumpster for films studios don’t have faith in, and television goes through a weird transitional point that gets you shows like Kenan, the newest selection in the forever popular trend of “shows you’re 99% sure have the same plot as Full House”. The role of the form of media that could save you in this cold blustery time of bad horror flicks and unoriginal sitcoms gets given to the video game industry, and thankfully, they rarely disappoint. These games should keep you entertained until the sun finally peeks back out and movies about giant apes fighting lizard monsters show up on screens again.
A new indie production released this year goes by the name Cyber Shadow. This action platformer follows a cyborg ninja through a futuristic world filled with synthetic organ harvesters attempting to steal his remaining organs as he attempts to reunite with his clan. The game struck many as a bit of a spiritual successor to the Ninja Gaiden series, a series that hasn’t seen a new installment since 2014 and hasn’t seen a good one since 2008, with IGN giving the last game a 3/10. Cyber Shadow delivers on the classic retro stylings of the 8-bit era, while providing some incredible level design and shockingly beautiful cinematic cutscenes. For those still in need of some convincing, this game comes from the publishers of the critically beloved Shovel Knight franchise, a revolutionary platformer with similar throwback stylings.
If your interests result in looking for a game with a bit more of a budget behind it, Hitman 3 might catch your eye. The newest entry in the cult classic modern Hitman series has not only been increasing in popularity as every new installment releases, but quality as well, with Hitman 3 being the most complete and diverse entry yet. The locales show up gorgeously rendered on the newest hardware and the options for pulling off hits seem truly endless, with the mission in Dartmoor proving to be the most unique of any level in the series thus far. IO Interactive has been committed to upping the ante with each new game they put out, and Hitman 3 feels like a natural escalation of the formula, especially with the addition of the new VR mode. If you want to escape into a new city to take down shady corporate executives, Hitman 3 will be the perfect game for you.
Finally, if you find yourself looking for full-on crazy, get Nuts, a game about tracking the movements of squirrels. It truly feels like the perfect game for 2021, a year where everyone already feels like they just need a breather. So take some time out of your day to just...go take videos of some squirrels. What begins as a relaxing, albeit a bit surreal, game builds into an intriguing mystery about the real goings-on in those Pacific Northwest forests. Still, even as the mystery builds, the core gameplay mechanics stay the same, giving plenty of time to chill out and watch those cute little rascals run around the woods with their nuts and sticks, even if another story unfolds behind the scenes.
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