We’re still catching up on games from 2025, which is fine for me. January is usually pretty slow for big releases as everyone recovers from the holiday period with alcohol and copious amounts of food. I’ve been playing a bunch of games this month including Powerwash Simulator, that new Fantasy Life title, Rune Factory: Guardians of Azuma, and a heavily modded playthrough of Cyberpunk 2077. It’s only my fifth playthrough of Cyberpunk after all, and I had to do something special for it. Seriously, play Cyberpunk 2077 with mods if you can.

As you can imagine, that’s a lot of gaming. However, I’ve not been idle with my game coverage and I have plenty of fun things planned! Today I’m featuring Angeline Era, a late bloomer in 2025 that I have greatly enjoyed my time with so far. It launched in December which was too late to hit my Top 10 criteria, but this is an impressive indie title by Analgenesic Productions that’s received solid reviews across the board. You can pick it up for around $25, which is a solid price for the package available. I haven’t had too much time with the game yet, so consider this an early impressions review for now. After a few hours with Angeline Era however, you can bet I’m going to play more.

At its heart, Angeline Era is a 3D action RPG that carries some solid inspiration from classics from the old days such as Zelda. The studio also made Anodyne and Sephonie, and the artistic style from those games carries over into this one. I was a big fan of Sephonie back when I played it, so it’s good to see studios succeed. Out of the three, Angeline Era is by far my favorite game they have released so far. Given the Overwhelmingly Positive reviews it currently holds on Steam, it seems a lot of people agree with that!

The story in this one is surprisingly captivating, as is the world design. Set in the fantasy realm of Era, you play as a former soldier called Tets Kinoshta who embarks on a journey to uncover a mysterious angel ship called the Throne, delving into the world of humans, angels, and fae with all the secrets and beauty. It’s an interesting story so far, and despite the lack of voice acting involved I’ve gotten invested in the characters.

The combat is an odd thing that reminds me of very old games such as the Ys series and (shudders) Hydelide. Angeline Era’s system is very simple. Instead of pressing an attack button, you strike enemies by walking into them, creating a fast-paced and fluid combat experience. Success hinges on careful positioning, timing, jumping, and evasion through movement. Additionally, you can employ ranged weapons and other tools to help turn the odds, especially when it comes to the boss battles. The first boss fight took me a long time to work out!

The biggest strength of Angeline Era for me however is the exploration, which is done in a really interesting way. While the overworld looks basic, the levels are hidden on the unmarked map, and they require a lot of work on the player to experiment and explore. There’s no time pressure either, so players can explore the world at their own pace. Dungeons, forests, mountains, mines, and towns are filled with traps, hazards, foes, and sometimes surprising encounters that blend humor with challenge. The writing is surprisingly good, and the lore is pretty nice as well.

Overall, Angeline Era seamlessly blends freeform exploration, inventive bump-based combat, and an atmospheric world into an action RPG that stands out for its personality, pace, and its encouragement of curiosity.

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Hello and welcome back to our regular feature where we write a little about the games we've been playing. This week, Bertie plays a classic but finds himself getting a bit bored; Marie adopts a black cat called Salem; Tom can't get out of the menus; Victoria makes a young child cry; Dom Platinums a game and feels very smug about it; and Connor finds an inventive way to play two MMOs at once.

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