DEMO DIVE #1 - June 2026

It is said that hell roads are paved with bricks of good intentions. I was hoping May will be the month in which I am able to flex some proper writing, play lots of games and fill the blog to the brim with reviews and insights, but alas! Day to day work conspired to topple such lofty ambitions. Well, June is almost around the corner, and I am more than happy to try again with the coming month! As for now, I still managed to scrounge up some time trying out new demos for the coming games, and as is tradition, would love to share some of them with you, dear reader. Have at it!

WARHAMMER SURVIVORS

I am an easy mark, an absolute goober with a simple vice. I can consume any grey goo slop, any mediocre product, as long as someone slaps a WARHAMMER sticker to it. It is one of my foibles, that’s for sure, and there is no defence is my system against such blatant corporate trickery. I just love the setting, married to it for most of my life. And so, when I see a game with Warhammer all slathered over it, I just must, at the very least, check it out. Such is the case with WARHAMMER SURVIVORS - a blatant copy, a shameless cash grab, that should be rightfully scoffed at for its creative bankruptcy.

But I can’t. Because I love the bullet heaven genre, I am a low-key addict for the survivors-like formula… And being able to play that as characters from BOTH of the Warhammer-verses, fighting hordes of Skavens or Tyranids, is just too tempting a pleasure to pass on. Yes, it is a replica. Almost too on the nose, too! With same stylings as VAMPIRE SURVIVORS, same animation for opening chests, same formula from start to finish. But, but, but… So many buts, so many excuses! When spilling Nuln Oil is a weapon, it makes me smile. If collecting Glue makes you more durable, that made me chuckle. Tossing explosive dice on the table? So meta! And so, I cannot in good conscience defend this game, but at the same time I just cannot wait for it to come out to sink endless hours into it.

COSMO CARGO

Damn, is it just me, or Inventory Auto Battlers are kind of neat? I admit that skimmed over the surface of this particular little genre. Played a few games like that in my entire gaming career, and frankly, have no idea why they aren’t a bigger deal in general landscape of games. They have a lovely mix of what I enjoy in gaming. A bit of that builder aspect, the search of combos and synergies. The soft delight of seeing your little blocks-assembled engine kick off, watch it sign in the automated combat. It’s like the world most aggressive jigsaw puzzle.

COSMO CARGO is the newest offering, a cutesy game about cosmic exploration in your trusty bulk transporter. You pack your cargo hold full of weapons, trinkets and thingamabobs and go to down against nasty space pirates trying to interrupt your mostly peaceful trade routes with their pesky ways. It adds a fun set of almost roleplay elements, too! Quests, storylines, fun passive benefits from crew member to further emphasize the build you’re trying to scrounge up… It was fun, engaging and showing great promise. Even though the demo is a little rough around the edges, with animations that felt unfinished or lacking in sensory impact. Still, if inventory battler is your thing, I believe you should put a pin on this game, so you know when it comes out. 

SCALE THE DEPTHS

Fishing game! Don’t we love a good fishing game when it shows up. Especially one that is so delightfully direct, so… straight to the point. At first the sheer audacity of just dropping me straight onto a boat to get me fishing without a single word of preamble felt like a little shock! What, no story? Not even a single tossed bit about how I pushed my little trawler into the lake to find sunken treasures? No backstory of debt to pay off or simple love of fishing for the thrill of the game?

Nope. Nada, zilch. Just you - a cutesy bot - and hungry critters demanding to be fed. And so, you swing your rod, drop your line, sink the hook and start hunting the many scaled critters roaming the murky waters. Major draw? The fishing itself - it is a very, ah, unusual way of controlling the whole process, since you can twist and turn your line in lots of wacky directions following your cursor with a feverish zeal. I am not a real-life fishing expert, but I have a feeling this isn’t how it works, most of the time! Still, from gameplay perspective it feels fresh, fairly unique in the most common definition of the term - as in, nonstandard.

And because of it, it is fun - a chase proper, hitting the fish over and over until they are collected and put on your chopping block to be descaled and beheaded. It’s… relaxing and riveting at the same time, a fine balancing act of excitement for traversing deeper, finding new nooks and crannies, sunken treasures, new species of aquatic life. And then the soothing clean-up process, sprinkles with short trivia titbits about the animal you’re prepping… It’s a simple loop, and it works exactly because of its simple nature. Great little game to unwind to, it seems to be aiming up to be.