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SimFiction — A Video Game Blog
Reviews, retrospectives and ramblings about video games — old and new, celebrated and obscure.
Starbites
I’ll Have a Starburger, Starfries, and a Space Coke, Please Having played Starbites for almost 25 hours and obtaining my first ever platinum trophy on it, I can confirm with absolute certainty that it is an RPG developed by IkinaGames and published by NIS, and not a chain of intergalactic-themed fast food restaurants. There is […]
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Gravel
Gritty Unrealism There’s nothing like an arcadey racing game when you’re a few whiskeys deep in the rumpus room on a weekday evening. Wreckfest has been my go-to for this sort of activity for the last year or so, but while watching a YouTube video on the recently-released Screamer the other day I saw a […]
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The Ascent
A Long, Long Way to the Top The Ascent is a twin-stick shooter RPG set in an almost painfully detailed cyberpunk world, and the most striking thing about it is that world. The game takes place in one of those arcology things that I first heard about in SimCity 2000, on a distant, dystopian planet […]
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Skitchin’ – Retro Review
Fixin’ for Some Skitchin’ I put on roller skates once in my life. It was at my friend David White’s house when I was a little kid. We were in a narrow outside space between the main building of his house and an outbuilding and for whatever reason we decided that I should try a […]
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Bomb Rush Cyberfunk
Back to the Grind I haven’t posted anything in a while. I don’t really know if there’s anyone out there who looks at this site regularly, but I have been getting a few comments lately so I feel like I should at least put something up before the month is over. I’ve been going through […]
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Yooka-Replayee
Starting a New Pagie I didn’t realise it at first, but during the first few days of 2026 when I was asked the old “what are you playing?” question by friends and family, it soon became apparent to me that Playtonic Games and PM Studios shot themselves directly in their webbed lizard feet by naming […]
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Ranking Every Game I Finished in 2025
In 2025, I finally got my rumpus room sorted out, and I managed to finish plenty of video games. It’s been quite the eclectic mix of old and new, and I decided that it would be fun to rank them. That’s what people like, right? Rankings? Obviously this is just my opinion, and could quite […]
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The Plucky Squire
A Real Page-Turner I ended 2025 on a jaunty note, as far as video games go, at least. The Plucky Squire was added to my Christmas list on a whim and was purchased for me by my lovely wife, and over a few jaunty handheld gaming sessions undertaken in the time void known to some […]
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Kizuna Encounter: Super Tag Battle
NEO-GEO Nostalgia I’m not lucky enough to have a NEO-GEO floating about in the rumpus room (obviously, I really wish I did), and until recently I don’t think I’d ever even seen one. I am interested in lesser-known video gaming lore, though, and have watched many a video and read many an article on SNK’s […]
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Kena: Bridge of Spirits
Who’s Making All These Hats Anyway? Kena: Bridge of Spirits is a visually resplendent action adventure game with a Dreamworks-style aesthetic and a melancholy atmosphere set in and around a village haunted by regret-filled spirits. It was developed and published by Ember Lab, and was the studio’s first (and at the time of writing, only) […]
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Metroid Prime 4: Beyond
Sylux, Psychics, and Sidekicks There’s something about the Metroid series. It’s a franchise that I’ve been interested in for a long time but didn’t leap into until Metroid Dread. Sadly priced out of most of the earlier entries into the series, I did consume lots of content about Metroid lore and history following my introduction […]
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Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes
A Hundred Hours of Procrastination My first impressions of Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, Yoshitaka Murayama’s 2024 spiritual successor to the Suikoden series, were exceedingly positive. Retro but in the right ways, Eiyuden Chronicle has all the hallmarks of a fun and fascinating, reasonably challenging, super-cosy JRPG experience, but my initial positivity was curbed somewhat by […]
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Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown – Game Diary
I’ve never played a Prince of Persia game before! Not the old ones with the rotoscoped animation and the punishing gameplay, or the more recent ones with the parkour-based platforming and the multiple reboots. Having gotten into Metroidvanias in recent times, I decided that Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown might as well be my […]
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Mario Kart World – Four Months Later
Keep on Karting If you read my previous article about Mario Kart World (written on the day of release, I believe), you might remember that I said my favourite thing to do was drive across water. I’ve since changed this opinion. Don’t get me wrong, tricking off the crest of dynamic waves caused by exploding […]
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Ninja Gaiden: Ragebound vs. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
Battle of the Ninja Sometime in the last couple of years, the planets aligned on the same night that a full moon cast an eerie light over the bamboo forests at the base of Mount Fuji, and two separate studios came up with the idea of resurrecting a classic 2D ninja franchise for modern consoles […]
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Alien: Isolation
Is This a Rescue Mission, or Another Bug Hunt? One of the last scripts I wrote for the sadly-defunct TripleJump YouTube channel was a giant list ranking every single Alien and/or Predator video game ever made. Unfortunately, the channel went under before the video was released, but here’s a peek behind the curtain for you; […]
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Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
Une Lettre d’Amour Aux JRPG When you start a new game on Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, you’re asked to select a difficulty setting. The game tells you that in order to get by in normal difficulty (known as “expedition” mode) you won’t need to master the dodging and parrying mechanics. This is a lie. Clair […]
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The Precinct – Game Diary
In the midst of playing the sparkly and new Mario Kart World and getting addicted once again to the wonderful Dragon Quest Builders 2, I decided to start another game. The Precinct is an isometric cop simulator with an ’80s vibe and a story about a cop trying to live up to his dad’s name […]
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Mario Kart World – Impressions
It’s a Knockout I bought a Nintendo Switch 2 on the day of release. I’m not actually sure if I’ve ever done this before. Maybe with the PS Vita? I got really caught up in the hype for that one. Let’s hope the Switch 2 lasts a bit longer than Sony’s sleek, handheld, unwanted stepchild, […]
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Shinobi III: Return of the Ninja Master – Retro Review
The Ninja Game That Ex-Zeeds Expectations My most successful writing endeavour to date was a script I put together for the TripleJump YouTube channel about the ten most disturbing 16-bit video game bosses. I had the idea for the list myself and it ended up performing incredibly well. At the time, most TripleJump videos would […]
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The Ooze – Retro Review
It’s Slime Time An oft-forgotten monster type in the preternatural pantheon (unless you’re a fan of JRPGs or Dungeons & Dragons, that is) is the humble ooze or slime. These corpulent masses of gelatinous gunk used to be a mainstay of the big screen in the era of B-movie horror, with Steve McQueen’s The Blob […]
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Foundation
A City-Builder That You Just Might Dig Developed by Polymorph Games and reaching full release on 31st January 2025, Foundation is a laid-back city-builder with a peaceful, pastel tone and a light-hearted approach. The game launched into early access on 1st February 2019 and, according to my Steam purchase history, I picked it up in […]
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Gauntlet IV
Warrior, Valkyrie, Wizard, Elf, and a Couple of Legendary Bards The idea of the Gauntlet games always appealed to me as a kid. It had that exotic-yet-comfortable classic fantasy vibe, featuring swords and sorcery, Valkyries and barbarians, and hordes of evil minions to slay in the name of justice (probably, I never paid too much […]
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Drainus
Not Without My Drainus I don’t feel all that qualified to assess Drainus. I really like a good shoot-’em-up, and have lots of respect and nostalgia for the genre, but I’m actually shockingly bad at them. Whether I was begging my parents for change just to instantly get shot down on the 1942 arcade machine […]
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Tumblepop
A Tumble in the Jungle As a small child with a wide-eyed interest in the natural world, I embarked on one or two trips to a place called the Tropiqaria in West Somerset. It was (and still is) a small tropical house and zoo built in and around an old BBC radio transmitter. I have […]
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Devilish – Retro Review
Bounce Your Balls Through Spooky Halls If there’s one thing that Atari’s block-bashing 1976 arcade hit, Breakout, needed to make it a little bit more eye-catching, it was a sinister sprinkling of ghosts, ghouls, demons, and other monstrosities. Japanese software developer, Genki, thought so anyway, and came up with Devilish for the Game Gear, an […]
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Prodeus
Become a Vessel of Destruction Despite not being a “boomer” (I’m D-Generation X, baby), I’m quite fond of Boomer Shooters. Anything that reminds me of simpler times blasting away on the likes of Duke Nukem 3D and Hexen on my Sega Saturn is going to have a decent shot at earning my affections. Also, I […]
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Krusty’s Super Fun House – Retro Review
Can’t Afford the Exterminators? Send in the Clowns. Hey, kids! Remember when Krusty the Clown was just Homer Simpson with funny hair and a red nose? No? Well, playing Krusty’s Super Fun House for the Mega Drive will probably jog your memory. In this platformer-puzzler, you’ll play as the titular troubadour as he collects pick-ups, […]
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Expeditions: A MudRunner Game
Man (and Truck) vs. Nature (and Ghosts) Have you ever been driving at night through country lanes? Cowering behind the wheel from looming, pale branches and convinced of glowing eyes watching from hedgerows? Have you ever seen hunched figures in the distance only to realise it was actually a road sign, or been shocked by […]
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The Simpsons: Tapped Out
A Long-time Mild Addiction Finally Taps Out Yesterday, September 26th 2024, the team behind The Simpsons: Tapped Out mobile game made the surprise announcement that they were pulling the plug on it after 12 years. Online purchases were turned off immediately, the game will be removed from app stores at the end of October, and […]
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Shadow of the Ninja – Reborn
Blue Shadow (And a Pink One Too) A modern remake of a “Nintendo hard” NES game that I’d never even heard of? No, it’s okay, I’ll leave it, thanks. What’s that? It’s got gorgeous, pixelated sci-fi cityscape backgrounds and super cool modern re-imaginings of 90’s ninjas and robotic enemies? Alright, you twisted my arm. Shadow […]
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Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth – Game Diary
Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth is a Metroidvania game developed by Team Ladybug and released in 2021 across multiple formats. I picked up a physical copy of the game for the Switch because I thought it looked cool and also because I own a copy of the Dreamcast RPG, Record of Lodoss […]
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Visions of Mana – Game Diary
Visions of Mana is an Ouka Studios-developed, Square Enix-published action RPG released in August 2024. It’s the fifth main title in the Mana franchise, and tells the story of Val, a Soul Guard charged with escorting the Alms to the Mana Tree on a sacrificial mission to save the world by maintaining the flow of […]
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Metroid Prime Remastered – Game Diary
Session 1 – Friday 9th August I’d been thinking about starting Metroid Prime Remastered all day, but didn’t get around to it until returning home from a meal at the Admiral Hood pub in Mosterton. I was extremely full. The burger wasn’t especially large but the cheese in it was overwhelming to the point that […]
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Terra Nil
The Power Is Yours Visually resplendent eco-strategy Terra Nil kicks things off with a dry and infertile patch of land and a limited selection of high-tech equipment, and tasks players with creating thriving and varied ecosystems through both natural and artificial means. Wind turbines power soil scrubbers, and specialist buildings distribute grasslands, fynbos (which is […]
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Into the Breach
Live, Kill Kaiju, Die, Repeat As someone who’s eyes light up at the sight of a grid-based battlefield populated with adorable 2D combatants, I was predisposed to give Into the Breach a chance. If you’re not like me, and don’t instantly fall in love with anything that bears even a passing resemblance to Shining Force […]
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Video Game Covers
Wanna Talk Box Art? I’ve Got You Covered One of the many reasons I fear the day when digital distribution replaces the physical game entirely, is that we’ll lose the establishment that is video game box art. I’ve been thinking a lot about video game cover art lately, and have indeed been looking at a […]
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Donald in Maui Mallard – Retro Review
A Duck Pretending to be a Duck Pretending to be Another Duck This is the second and last review I wrote for Sega Mania Issue 8, and as such is written from a 90’s perspective. This one had a couple of boxouts as well, which I’ve presented as best I can with any knowledge as […]
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RimWorld – Impressions
The Harrowing Trials and Tribulations of the Potato People I held off on playing RimWorld for years after it first started showing up in my Steam discovery queue and my suggested YouTube videos. In terms of gameplay and premise, it was right up my street, but the visuals always turned me off. Don’t get me […]
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Aero the Acro-Bat – Retro Review
Bother in the Big Top This review was written for Issue 8 of the sadly now defunct Sega Mania Magazine, as such it is written from a ’90s perspective. Does anyone actually like the circus? I mean, I’m sure they were great in the olden times, when the only other forms of entertainment were gathering […]
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Xenoblade Chronicles 3
Live to Fight and Fight to Stay Awake Alright, so that subtitle is a bit misleading. I didn’t find Xenoblade Chronicles 3 boring (rest assured I would not have stuck with it if I did), I just found it very, very comfy. I’ve already touched on this thought in my other writings that can be […]
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Vigilante – Retro Review
Green-Trousered Rogues As a kid growing up in rural Somerset, I didn’t see much in the way of gang violence (although I’d argue that a group of shifty-looking cows can be just as intimidating as a gang of ruffians with flick-knives), and my only experience of that culture came through films and music videos. Loading […]
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Dakar Desert Rally
Hooning in the Dunes There’s something fascinating and visceral about rallying. It’s man and machine versus nature, and the battle takes place on muddy Welsh backroads, deep in snowy, Bavarian pine forests or across the arid outback of Australia. Skilled drivers exhibit courage beyond reason as they fling noisy, high-powered, sponsor-festooned automobiles around trees, through […]
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Subnautica
Not Recommended for Those With Thalassophobia. Alma’s unsettling appearances in the first F.E.A.R. game. My decision to quit and never come back thanks to the constant aura of smothering terror in the P.T. Demo. Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem trying to convince me that my TV was on the blink. All of these are examples of […]
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Dragon Quest Builders 2
Dragons, Quests, and Builders, Too! You’d be forgiven for taking one look at the blocky visuals of Dragon Quest Builders and rolling your eyes at the thought of a Square Enix helmed cash-in on Minecraft’s success. However, while clearly taking cues from the cuboid phenomenon, this is much more than just an Akira Toriyama-themed skin […]
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Triangle Strategy
Actually Full of Squares The grid-based, strategy role-playing game has always been a favoured genre of mine. My first experience was with Shining Force III for the Sega Saturn. I bought it off the back of playing and enjoying dungeon-crawling RPG Shining the Holy Ark, and honestly wasn’t expecting such a significant shift in gameplay. […]
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Gravity Rush 2
Falling Blissfully Upwards All great games have high points. Those peaks in the action, the memorable bits that give a title its identity. Sometimes those moments are in the gameplay; when pulling off a killer move or surviving a dangerous encounter. In other games, it might be a story beat, a great plot thread building […]
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Metroid Dread
The Grim Brightness of the Far Future I’ve been orbiting the Metroid series for a while now, but it wasn’t until this most recent offering that I finally hit the boosters and made planetfall. Metroid Dread is an immaculately polished space adventure in a classic, retro style. Nintendo’s artistry is abundantly evident in the way […]
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Triangle Strategy Preview
A Shining Example At the time of writing, Triangle Strategy is about two weeks away from release. Coming to the Nintendo Switch, this turn-based tactical RPG is drawing a lot of comparisons to Final Fantasy Tactics, and rightly so, it’s developed by Square Enix. However, as a certified Sega Maniac, I’m hoping that this strategic […]
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Immortals: Fenyx Rising
It’s All Greek to Me I went into Immortals: Fenyx Rising knowing the Ubisoft open-world games only by their reputation. The likes of Assassin’s Creed, Watch Dogs and Far Cry all represent gaps in my otherwise extensive gaming knowledge, and this dive into a bright and breezy imagining of ancient Greece is my first contact […]
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Introduction
Welcome To My Fictional World I’m Simon, a writer from Somerset in England. I’m currently writing for two extremely dignified and successful enterprises; TripleJump and Sega Mania Magazine. Apparently, it’s not enough for me, so I’ve breathed life into this blog to keep my words ticking over in those short periods of downtime. I’ll use […]
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