Welcome to only the second in a new series here at covergeek that we’re calling Indies in Review, where we attempt to cover as many indie video games as possible by reviewing them in just a few paragraphs, and putting them all in one place.

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The month of October has no shortage of exciting indie releases, many of which we’d be keenly looking forward to, and thankfully most of which turned out to be rather good. You’ve got the beautifully-melancholic, photographic journey of Forever Ago, the breakneck boomer shooter sequel, Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun 2, the destructive therapy of Virtue and a Sledgehammer and even a couple of console debuts for beloved indies that already made the rounds on PC.

REVIEW // Dungeons and Degenerate Gamblers (console release)

If I said the words “roguelike, deck-building blackjack game,” there’s a pretty good chance I’d conjure up the though of Balatro. It is, after all, a hugely popular and highly influential example of a similar concept, albeit based loosely on the rules of poker.

But Dungeons and Degenerate Gamblers – which finally saw a console release this month – very quickly proves to be a different beast, with altogether more flavourful “runs” that take place across themed areas full of unique opponents, mini-games and opportunities to tempt fate. It is also, despite the game of blackjack being a beautifully simple one, a rather more complex deck-building experience that more closely resembles a tabletop trading card game. The core of blackjack remains, where you draw cards one after the other in an effort to score as close as possible to 21 without going over. Your goal is not high scores or chips, though, but to whittle away your rivals’ health points, dealing proportionate damage either when your hand scores higher than theirs or they bust.

The sheer number of unique cards to add to your deck, outside of the standard number and face cards you’d expect, can make this an overwhelming prospect over the first few runs. Numerous concepts and potential strategies abound, and cards fold in and out of your deck frequently as you happen across bonus rooms, challenges and shops to spend your chips on. This means Dungeons and Degenerate Gamblers is maybe not as elegant as some of its contemporaries – I’ve had runs ruined by virtual stalemates where mine and my opponent’s cards interacted in ways that stalled play. But by the same token, happening upon a completely broken build can be incredibly satisfying.

But D&DG is propped up most of all by its strange art and sense of humour, especially where the cards themselves are concerned. There are cards here based on absurd things like library cards, memory cards, blood donor cards or hall passes, and plenty of references to other video games with cards based on The Witcher, Magic the Gathering, UNO and a personal favourite – the Charred Lizard, clearly borrowed from a legally distinct creature-collecting TCG. These aren’t just surface-level references or gags but all have very thematic effects and strategic offerings, which I love. Throw in goofy one-liners from opponents that could be anything from an aggressive-playing Pit Boss to a dog that has absolutely no clue how to play Blackjack, and there’s a lot of reason to keep coming back for subsequent runs.

Reviewed on PS5 | Review copy supplied by publisher

REVIEW // Forever Ago

Note: This is an abridged version of a full review we posted earlier in the month by Kymothy Kennedy, we wanted to make sure it was included in the round-up! You can read the full thing right here.

Forever Ago is a narrative adventure about love and life from Third Shift, an indie studio founded by two best friends. It focuses heavily on relationships, specifically on a life lived with “your person.” Playing as Alfred, a semi-belligerent retiree on a road trip, you adventure across parts of the United States, on a tour of memories. The general purpose of your adventure is to do some scrapbooking – take some photos, tick some goals Alfred has set for himself, and reminisce about his past.

Almost everything is explored through the lens of instant film photography, with characters explaining things as you zoom, focus and snap away through Alfred’s late-life road trip. As you might naturally expect when reminiscing about places you’ve been before, often you are tasked with taking photos of places Alfred has made memories in, and this is where the main story comes in. Memories and present-day observations weave together to spin a tale of how things were, and how Alfred feels now.

Thrown in superb voice acting, delivering quality scripts, inside intriguing levels that genuinely had me excited to pull out the camera to take beautiful photos for the scrapbook, and you’ve got a strong contender for the best story game of the year, and a bold and uniquely emotional narrative for the medium. As for issues, I only ran into some small pain points with the camera controls – interactive elements had to be approached head on, so a few times I had to walk away and reapproach – a few seconds of annoyance for the hours of enjoyment involved.

Overall, if you are looking for a game that is slow, methodical and heavy in story, and you’re willing to sit with something quite sobering, then I must implore you not to miss Forever Ago, which for me is a new high-water mark in interactive storytelling that I will never forget.

Reviewed on PC | Review copy supplied by publisher

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