Congratulations to 2023 players! 2022 was a great year for gaming, and this year is poised to be another year for the history books. So how about making a New Year's resolution to broaden your gaming horizons? Trying games of unfamiliar genres or games made by new developers can be a great experience. A great place to start is with January Highlights. These games take you to many interesting places, from the terrifying nightmare worlds of a two-stick shooter to the emotional drama of dull existence and the sheer fun of a car wash.
Silenttown kids
Small towns are known for building strong communities where everyone feels the absence of one person. But many people have disappeared in this village in the middle of the forest. There are also many sounds of the night that terrible roar shakes the soul from the body. Lucy has lived here her whole life and is sure she is old enough to understand why the townspeople have disappeared. His fragile young mind is in a very shameless awakening. Developed by Elf Games and Luna2 Studio, Children of Silenttown is a tribute to the classic adventures of the past with a rustic horror theme. Enjoy mesmerizing and terrifying visuals and amazing sound effects as you use your brain to solve diabolical puzzles. And whatever you do, don't go into the woods.
Published: January 11th | Publisher: Daedalic Entertainment | PS4
Place for free
Hey, the 90s was the heyday of pixel art. Free Space takes you to the Indonesian countryside in that exciting decade and introduces you to Atma and Raya, an inseparable teenage couple endowed with supernatural powers. That's not the only unusual thing going on here: there's a sinister force behind the scenes that threatens everyone. You will meet colorful townspeople, use your psychic powers to get to the bottom of strange events, and get into their minds to solve mysteries and conflicts. But even the brightest high school students have to deal with their fears and doubts. Immerse yourself in this beautiful 2D art adventure from the developers of Mojiken and Toge, and don't forget to love all cats.
Published: January 19 | Publisher: Global Choir | ps4, ps5
Never wake up
Reem is a child with typical childhood problems: he hates raw vegetables, fears big wild dogs, despises the arrival of doctors, and doesn't get along with his classmates. However, Rem's dream world is less common: a world of nightmares, where all his fears and insecurities lie. To wake up, he must face his worst fears in a tense hellish shooter with two joysticks. Evil mutant Nightshade and demonic demon dogs are just some of the strange and memorable enemies Rem must defeat in order to escape. You will also have access to a number of collectible power-ups and equipment to help you through the most difficult stages. NeverAwake from Neotro Inc.
Published: January 26 | Publisher: Phoenix | ps4, ps5
Firewall
Some people say they "live on their phone," but developer Naraven's Backfirewall takes that statement literally. In this amazing first-person adventure, you will play as an update assistant who lives on your phone and will be fully hired when an OS update arrives. The problem is that the latest update that comes out is a disaster that will brick the device. With the help of other anthropomorphic apps that inhabit this standalone smartphone world, you will explore, hack, reprogram and exploit the system to keep it stable. You can also find interesting information about the user.
Published: January 30th | Publisher: Everyone! Toys | ps4, ps5
Cleaning simulator
It's the simple things that bring the most joy in life - you know when you take a powerful jet of water and shake off layers of dirt and grime to reveal the shiny beauty of the car underneath. The PowerWash Simulator from developer FuturLab gives you a full-scale deep cleaning experience without scrubbing or wetting the hose. As the owner of a cleaning company, you will get everything new: cars, houses, playground equipment and even an all-terrain vehicle. Team up with a friend for an incredibly intense and relaxing cleanse.
Published: January 30th | Publisher: Square Enix | ps4, ps5
Season: Message to the Future
It's time to leave home and explore the world - it's a tough proposition because you've lived in a quiet city all your life and never left. When you take control of protagonist Estelle and ride your trusty bike (with its DualSense controller and feedback-optimized pedal), you know everything you've known is about to come to an end. In this atmospheric and emotional exploration/adventure game from Scavenger Studios, you will do everything you can to preserve the lives, traditions, words and memories of the soon-to-be-disappeared people. Using notebooks, cameras, and tape recorders to record the details of the culture's daily existence, you will attempt to preserve the memory of life as it is for those who live in the future.
Published: Jan 31st | Publisher: Scavenger Studios | ps4, ps5
We are here forever
Well, there you are, stuck in a dungeon with other unfortunate vines in the frozen tundra of the Antarctic. How did you end up in this wretched place? What is the castle doing in Antarctica? Who knows, the main thing is that you will have to get out of this icy hell, and for this you will need to freely help your potential partner. This terrifying first-person co-op puzzle adventure from TMG Studios BV will have you and another player roaming the challenging halls of Castle Rock to discover the history and secrets of the castle together, starting with a pair of walkie-talkies. . . Can you escape or will you forget the frozen corpses of both of you?
Published: Jan 31st | Publisher: TMG Studios BV | ps4, ps5
What indie release are you looking forward to this month?