IT'S BACK! The startmenu Winter Spectacular returns for 2025! - Guest Pieces from people across the industry, including: journalists, developers, PR folks, AND MORE - Game of the Year Lists - The startmenu Awards - AND OTHER BULLET POINTS! All starting December 1st on www.startmenu.co.uk

The week's Update Patch features Steam Machines and more Mario movie details, all rounded up by Simon Estey. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

Your friend and our's @deephelldotcom.bsky.social has something they need to get off their chest about good video game pixel art. www.startmenu.co.uk/home/the-fee...

I cannot believe I'm writing now! This is my first review, and what better way to kick it off than writing about a game that made me cry. This is one of my favorite games of 2025, and I hope you all read the review or at least check out the game. Huge thanks to @lexluddy.xyz for all their help!

We welcome Brandon Craw ( @snuggums.bsky.social ) to the site to review one of 2025’s most affecting video games, and Roger. www.startmenu.co.uk/home/review-...

FOLKS, WE HAVE SUCH A KILLER LINE UP FOR THE WINTER SPECTACULAR THIS YEAR!

So excited for this!! Everyone gotta check it out

Did some words, reviewed a game!

IT'S BACK! The startmenu Winter Spectacular returns for 2025! - Guest Pieces from people across the industry, including: journalists, developers, PR folks, AND MORE - Game of the Year Lists - The startmenu Awards - AND OTHER BULLET POINTS! All starting December 1st on www.startmenu.co.uk

In The Lonesome Guild, your band of merry travellers solves puzzles together and battles cooperatively to combat a creeping loneliness affecting the world. @alexgreen9898.bsky.social reviews.

Sonic Racing Crossworlds got off to a blistering start, but Sega has found a way to fumble its lead on Nintendo yet again. Tali breaks down whether it's too late or if Sonic and Co. and refind their footing. www.startmenu.co.uk/home/sonic-r...

This last week saw what is sure to be the start of an ongoing saga after Rockstar allegedly was caught union busting, so it's a good thing Simon Estey rounded up that news store and more for Update Patch. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

It was a really fun show today and IMO more people should get me on their podcasts. www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMvJ...

Update Patch is back with more news from the last week in games, this time courtesy of Simon Estey. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

October may not have been the best month for video game news… In fact, there was a lot of very bad news last month. Thankfully, @wendeego.bsky.social is here to keep us informed and highlight some great work being done in the space. www.startmenu.co.uk/home/patreon...

Something I have been sitting on as an idea for a while now is a recurring video series á la Game Tapes, where I grab some random new members from the @startmenu.bsky.social Discord and some videos from the @noclipvideo.bsky.social's GameSpot Archive and we just talk over them.

After a painful experience, Jay Weaver found comfort in one of Olivier Bouchard’s tradermark “sad games” — Camille and Laura.

reader beware…you’re in for a scare…

Another week of video game news has been rounded up by @wendeego.bsky.social for Update Patch. There has got to be some good news this time, right? RIGHT? www.patreon.com/posts/update...

Dispatch’s first two episodes show promise, particularly when the player is tasked with wrangling its roster of superheroes. @brawler1993.bsky.social reviews.

This week's Update Patch highlights big leaks, a new video game media outlet, and further unionisation efforts at Activision-Blizzard. @wendeego.bsky.social rounds everything up. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

Mind Over Magnet is an enjoyable puzzle platformer, but what makes it shine is developer and Game Maker’s Toolkit host Mark Brown’s commitment to sharing the ins and outs of the game’s design process. Jay Weaver reviews.

Steam Next Fest is back with a wealth of new game demos for players to try, so Super GG Radio’s @oronalex.bsky.social has returned to startmenu with a roundup of some of what's on offer this fall.

another scary week in the games industry (plus some digging into the history of nintendo pictures)

It kinda feels like everything is on fire in the video game industry right now, huh? Well, the good news is @wendeego.bsky.social is here to help you stay on top of everything going on. The bad news is... Yeah... You might be right. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

Well… that all escalated quickly. September was a quite, um, eventful month for the games industry, so it's a good thing that Branford Hubbard kept us up to date with all the industry news every week with his Update Patches. www.startmenu.co.uk/home/patreon...

Anyway... Check out @startmenu.bsky.social. www.startmenu.co.uk

Well... That was certainly an eventful week of gaming news... Thankfully, @wendeego.bsky.social rounded up everything, good and bad, for this week's Update Patch. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

I reviewed CloverPit for startmenu In which I try to evoke the feel of the game while being critical of its mechanical and thematic superficiality

With its macabre trappings and roguelike mechanics, CloverPit’s slot machine reels you back in again, over and over. Perhaps fortunately, its compulsive allure does not appear to be lasting. @stopcar.ing reviews.

Hey there! As you may or may not have noticed, we didn't release a podcast this week. We'll resume regular programming in a few weeks.

Blippo+ combines a retro television experience with intergalactic new wave style to tell the channel-spanning story of the planet Blip. Philip Adrian reviews.

I appreciated the unique angle @qwertyprophecy.bsky.social brought to The Dark Queen of Mortholme, and the tightness of its execution. @monstertheater.bsky.social a solid addition to your publishing repertoire.

Playing as the antagonist is not a new concept, but Dark Queen of Mortholme puts its own twist on the material in a short, but impactful, game. @stevenstoermer.bsky.social reviews.

For the final Update Patch of September @raisinbman.bsky.social highlights Sony's big State of Play, Nintendo's major corporate shake-up, and Microsoft's huge price tags. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

New piece for start menu! I wrote about the history of Final Fantasy Tactics rom hacks, and where they now stand following the release of The Ivalice Chronicles.

With the release of The Ivalice Chronicles, @wendeego.bsky.social muses on the history of Final Fantasy Tactics, and how the game’s reputation has been shaped as much by fan contributions as official releases.

With Hades 2's release reminded me of StarMenu art that Lex Luddy commissioned me earlier this year. Good times! @startmenu.bsky.social @lexluddy.xyz

It was my pleasure to review the excellent @staticdread.bsky.social for @startmenu.bsky.social

The week before TGS saw lots of news, yet another Xbox price increase, and plenty of controversy. @raisinbman.bsky.social rounds it all up in this week's Update Patch. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

Static Dread harnesses the isolation inherent to being a lighthouse keeper and gives it a Lovecraftian twist, making you the bulwark that keeps your community safe from eldritch terrors. @stevenstoermer.bsky.social reviews.

If you are thinking, "These news stories look like they are a week old?" please blame Lexi because @raisinbman.bsky.social submitted this Update Patch on time and she was swanning about in Japan and forgot to set it live. www.patreon.com/posts/update...

Always great to write for @startmenu.bsky.social even though not once did I see Erik or their home

Eriksholm pairs stealth-based puzzles with vivid cutscenes to tell an interesting story, but it feels like it doesn’t fulfill its potential. @bigbovy.bsky.social reviews.

Angus Law got up to some hijinks in Little Nightmares III’s co-op mode, where dying feels less like failure and more like a punchline.

always thrilled to talk with @kellymerka.bsky.social and Dave, but this one’s special because me and @ashlikeadragon.bsky.social get to argue and agree and kvetch and kvell about Silksong (the game) and Silksong (the discourse)

in case my review apparently being this weekend's discourse wasn't enough, here's even more of me talking about it (midway through writing the review at the time) thanks for having me!! 💜

I am having the fun experience of listening to a podcast that I started without me on it. Turns out The startmenu Podcast is pretty good.

Silksong is out, and with Lex out on assignment and Dave and KM woefully underinformed, the wonderful @dietdeitz.bsky.social and @ashlikeadragon.bsky.social have jumped in to talk us through one of the biggest launches of the year.

In Ubik Studios’ Leila, the titular character brings the player along on a journey of self-reflection. A meditative experience guided by gentle narration, the game examines what it means to be human — both when we’re at our best, and our worst. Jay Weaver reviews.