#justbeatit Mixtape. This game succeeds extremely well in capturing the last day in town vibes with nostalgia and a killer soundtrack. It’s reminiscent of movies like High Fidelity and Ferris Bueller while gameplay changes to fit the story like Edith Finch @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit OPUS: Prism Peak. You take photos in a mystical world carrying a mysterious young child to the top of a mountain. The story is really rich and worthwhile while the gameplay isn’t all that exciting, but the characters and the artwork are really well done @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Pragmata. The compelling gameplay of hacking while shooting and dodging enemy robots propelled me through this and it never got old. The story is serviceable and some may find the companion more annoying than I did. One of the best of 2026 for me so far @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Pikmin 4. I enjoyed this game a lot at the the start but by the final act I was ready to roll credits. The main game was relatively easy and the harder challenges seemed to be more of a nuisance than a challenge. I did however love the production design @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Black Myth: Wukong. This was a super challenging action, dare I say soulslike, game. You are a monkey with a stick and martial arts and spirit skills and transformations. Some tough as nails boss fights. Felt some pride beating this one @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Dear Esther. A pioneer of the walking sim. This one fell a little flat for me but it may be because I can compare it with all of the other great games it inspired @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Old Man’s Journey. Slide pieces of the vibrant environment around to go on a walk. Chill music and visual storytelling meant to evoke emotion @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Donkey Kong Jr. Math. Climb rope and solve simple math equations. Ya know like Donkey Kong Jr. @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Wide Ocean Big Jacket. A pretty funny visual novel about an extended family camping trip with some mild sexual exploration. @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Sheepy A Short Adventure. The name is accurate. The game has some pretty cool moments in an otherwise simple gated exploration. Music is fantastic @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Gradius (NSO). This is one tough shooter. Each level starts the same way so I also thought I wasn’t making progress for awhile, but I don’t play many retro games so I’m likely an idiot. Glad I played it on the Switch @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Gradius Interstellar Assault. (NSO). I don’t play a ton of shoot em ups but this one seemed to be nailing the style for 1991. I was surprised there was a well crafted visual story as well @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Kirby’s Dream Land (NSO). Not much to this one. No abilities - just sucking and puffing…unless I missed something @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Super Mario Land (NSO). I think this is a Mario game I could have beaten as a kid…if I had a Game Boy. Pretty simple and straightforward @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Limbo. I can’t put a finger on why I like this game so much. It may be because I find it very rewarding learning how to avoid death. Smartly designed and concise. Each death teaches you something and can even be straight up looney tunes @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Sheepo. I discovered this short metroidvania thanks to @indiequestpod.com . Fun abilities and platforming and I’m cool with no real combat. The controls were a bit unintuitive at times and the map wasn’t the easiest to navigate but otherwise a fun jaunt @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Burly Men At Sea. A short little adventure at sea. Writing is strong for such a small narrative. Glad we have a story for three burly bearded men @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Kirby’s Adventure (NSO). I wish I would have played this one as a kid. I really enjoyed most of abilities. Freeze for the win. Thanks to all the others who justbeatit as a rec @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Abzû. An underwater journey about vibes with light exploration. The controls weren’t as tight as I would have liked, but the music and sea vibes were solid @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit ittle Dew. This is a super fun, comparatively short Zelda-like with a huge focus on puzzles. You learn some things during a playthrough that reveal you can push the limits of the game if you really want to. I don’t think I’m that smart @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit A Case of Distrust. A visual detective novel set in Prohibition era San Francisco. Decent mystery and writing, but doesn’t add much to the noir genre @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Flower. I felt like this game was trying to make me chill and relax, which was hard to accomplish with motion controls. If the game were going for vibes, I would have enjoyed even less of an objective and more free roaming @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Lovish. I think this game harkens back to a genre in which I am unfamiliar. Many of the jokes slipped right past me and I found the gameplay to be either too easy and uninteresting or frustrating and uninteresting. @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Öoo. This metroidbrania does an incredible job teaching you new mechanics that have been hidden right in front of your eyes. You feel oh so clever, but it’s because the game design has expertly guided you there. Would love to see what this designer does next @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Terminator 2D: No Fate. This run and gun excels at retelling the Terminator 2 story in “retro” video game form. It’s fun as hell and gameplay is quite varied in its short run time. It offers some alternate paths and modes, but may be a bit thin for the price @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Arcade Archives: Tinkle Pit. Clear stages by dragging your yo-yo-like tinker bell behind you. I thought I heard about this game from the @indiequestpod.com dudes but I couldn’t find it on the quest log. Oh well, a neat thing to do for an hour @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Little Kitty, Big City. A cozy, collectible-grabbing and checking-the boxes game. Not much to it but it is cute and my daughter likes it @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Fast Fusion. This racer has you switching phases/colors to match up with boost strips while collecting coins to power up your boosts. It feels like the level design could have pushed this idea a little further, but it was still high speed fun @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD. Continuing my odd order of completion of the series, this one felt a bit bloated. Dungeons rocked but I was not a fan of dowsing, bug catching, the spirit realm, or traveling the skies. Still, an ok Zelda is pretty good @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Resident Evil: Requiem. A top tier entry in the franchise building off the recent remakes. Thrilling resource management, straightforward puzzles, and a surprisingly succinct story for the series @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Plant of Lana II. While this sequel offers some new gameplay ideas along with expectedly stunning visuals and gripping music, the story feels a bit too complicated to be told in the same manner as the original @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Death Stranding 2: On The Beach. A very fine sequel that improves on each aspect of the original. However if you don’t like the original, you probably won’t enjoy this one. I really loved the whack-a-do moments and I had a great time connecting 👍 @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit VVVVVV. A neat short 2D platformer that uses a flip mechanic instead of a typical jump. The game does a lot with a little. I died over 800 times but there are plenty of generous checkpoints preventing frustration @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Cairn. I didn’t really clip in to this climbing game. I understand it may have been trying to convey the challenges of this sport, but I eventually adjusted many of the settings to make my ascent somewhat enjoyable. I mostly felt punished and rarely rewarded @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. A surprisingly fun romp through the world of Pandora. I played through on online co-op and it worked seamlessly. Third person mode is definitely a plus for me @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Lorelei & the Laser Eyes. This may be one of my favorite puzzlers of all time. Note taking is pretty much a requirement but I was able to solve all puzzles without using a guide and never was frustrated with a solution being too opaque. Cool noir vibes @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Death Stranding: Director’s Cut. This game is mesmerizing. At times absurd, serious, self referential, existential, delightful, and infuriating. I understand why it is so polarizing and I think I enjoyed my time with it. Morbidly curious about the sequel @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Time Flies. Live the life of a fly by checking items off your bucket list. These items are usually silly ways to interact with the world. You learn by dying in the short lifespan of a fly. Easy puzzling and fun discovery. @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit and Roger. This one hour interactive story tackles some heavy content while cleverly pairing the limited gameplay mechanics. It was on some Top lists of the year and while it’s not necessarily a “fun” game, the overall cohesiveness is impactful @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Promise Mascot Agency. I had a hoot truckin’ around an anthropomorphic pinky finger on an open world island while managing a business hiding from yakuza @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Absolum. I don’t often play beat em ups unless TMNT is in the title, but this roguelite version was a good time. The first successful run may not be a true end to the game, but I hit credits so I’d thought I’d share @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit This is a rebeat of Astro Bot to complete a square and give me 6 lines of Bingo earning me Fanboy status on @polykillpodcast.bsky.social ‘s 2025 Challenge. A great way to wrap up the year

#justbeatit Disney Villains Cursed Café. I started this reading it to my 5 yr old daughter. After a few plays, she preferred doing other things, so I finished the second half solo. Clever writing for Disney characters but not much more than visual novel for kids @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Keeper was stunningly beautiful. The puzzles were fairly linear only requiring a step or two to complete. I only really enjoyed the last couple of sections from a gameplay standpoint @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit Dispatch is now my favorite Tell Tale-like. It adds unique spin to the superhero archetype. The dispatching part was beat even though it occasionally allowed me to send an incomplete team resulting in avoidable failure. Voice acting was phenonmenomenomal @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit It Takes Two. I started playing this game four years ago with my 7 year old nephew. We played every year he visited for Thanksgiving and now we completed with him at age 11. A great couch co op experience even if this story was beyond him most of the time @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatbeatit Ghost of Yotei fine tunes the open-world experience by immersing you in a world in which every side distraction feels worthwhile and as important as the main story. Plenty of variety in attacks and gear, solid story, fantastic soundtrack @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit BALL X PIT. I stayed up past my bedtime many nights for an additional run or to upgrade parts of my town. I still have a few blueprints to unlock and there seems to be more to do, but I may use this beat to go cold turkey on this gaming addiction @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit despelote feels like a deeply personal video-game-memoir of a young man growing up in Ecuador in the early 00s as the country tries to make it to the World Cup. It has some incredibly artful storytelling, as gameplay takes a bit of a backseat @polykillpodcast.bsky.social

#justbeatit 20 Small Mazes explores mazes by layering an extra type of puzzle mechanic on to each of the 20 small brain teasers. Very clever with minimal bells and whistles @polykillpodcast.bsky.social