It’s the Spanish word for grey. Created by the Barcelona-based Nomada Studio, this platform adventure title has been described as a combination of other games-as-art staples (namely Journey and Ori). Created by a small team, this randomly chosen game has both a minimalist design and a distinctive visual style that is sure to secure a place for it amongst other artsy indie games. Critical praise aside, several listeners have also suggested that our hosts should investigate this game, so expectati...
Jan 18, 2024•21 min•Ep. 157
Alice takes her trauma back to Wonderland. The Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button has indeed surprised us with its selection of this 2011 third-person adventure game developed by Spicy Horse and published by Electronic Arts. Originally released on the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3, this sequel to American McGee’s Alice is definitely among the oldest games our hosts have been tasked with playing for this program. After over a decade, will the design and mechanics still hold up or will this game pro...
Jan 11, 2024•21 min•Ep. 156
Travel to a land down under. The Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button has selected yet another sequel for our hosts. This time it has chosen the first-person Metroidvania developed and published by Supra Games. Originally conceived as DLC for the original Supraland, this expansion exploded in scope and became a full game all its own. With an advertised focus on exploration and puzzle-solving, this first-person platformer is not your typical specimen in the genre. Will Tom and Chris appreciate the...
Jan 04, 2024•22 min•Ep. 155
Executing exorcisms of evil eastern enemies. Our hosts had no idea what they were going to be playing when the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button picked this title at the end of the previous episode. A cursory search of the internet revealed that it is a side-scrolling action RPG developed by a Chinese company called Wildfire Game. Screenshots show that the art is 2D and done in a hand-drawn ink painting style, but that’s all they had to work with before beginning the requisite hour of gameplay...
Dec 28, 2023•25 min•Ep. 154
The spin-off to the series that is itself a spin-off! We move away from a tactical shooter with RPG elements and on to a tactical RPG with shooting elements for this episode of 1H1D. Selected by our special guest Slade from The Game Club Podcast, this episode focuses on the latest spin-off of the beloved series developed by Atlus. With a plot that takes place concurrently with the events of the main game, this side-story adopts a different art style and combines it with grid-based tactical comba...
Dec 21, 2023•31 min•Ep. 153
It is a sequel, but not to Darude’s dancefloor hit. For this episode, the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button has selected the multiplayer tactical first-person shooter developed by New World Interactive. The bad news is that our hosts are unfamiliar with the game, but the good news is that the developer is apparently no stranger to the tactical FPS space. Will their founder’s real-world experience on the battlefield synergize with the company’s desire to deliver an authentic but still fun game?...
Dec 14, 2023•22 min•Ep. 152
Presumably referencing people and not dobermanns. In a surprising twist, neither of our hosts have yet to play Ubisoft Montreal's 2016 action-adventure, making it fair game as the subject for this episode of 1H1D. Set in a fictionalized version San Francisco, the game puts you in the shoes of a hacker looking to take down the city's big brotheresque surveillance system. The astute will note that Ubisoft is no stranger to open-world action-adventure games, so they may be wondering how this one st...
Dec 07, 2023•26 min•Ep. 151
Not related to the mobile payment service. Developed and published by Visai Games, this narrative cooking game is certainly a departure from the standard picks of the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" Button. The game takes its name from an Indian woman who immigrates to Canada with her family in the 1980s and the bulk of the gameplay revolves around restoring lost recipes in a damaged cookbook. To further spice things up, Tom and Chris are also joined by Nick from the QTB Network to celebrate this n...
Nov 30, 2023•29 min•Ep. 150
Neither the villain nor the paper destroyer. This one is all about snowboarding and we have the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button to thank for its selection. Developed by FoamPunch, a joint venture between I-Illusions and Let It Roll, this sports title puts you in the boots of snowboarders looking to carve out a place for themselves on the slopes. Will the game skate the perilous line between arcade and simulation to deliver a fun and engaging experience? Join Tom and Chris as they gather to d...
Nov 23, 2023•24 min•Ep. 149
It features a world-hopping, puzzle-solving beetle. It’s likely that you have never heard of Geometric Interactive, they are a small independent game studio in Copenhagen, Denmark. You may, however, have heard of its two founders: Jeppe Carlsen and Jakob Schmid, formerly of Playdead. Credited as creators of Limbo and Inside, it is unsurprising that this pick by the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button falls squarely into the puzzle category. At a bare minimum, this title is set apart from those p...
Nov 16, 2023•23 min•Ep. 148
Wouldn't a day market be more profitable? As the first title from indie studio Meowza Games, how do we predict where this business simulation title will land in the hearts and minds of our hosts? Historically, neither Tom nor Chris has been overly drawn to the genre, but there have been some entries that managed to snag their attention. Fortunately for Mineko, our duo has an expert joining them for this episode! Liv from Podcasters United requested this title, so it is only fitting that she weig...
Nov 09, 2023•30 min•Ep. 147
Another stab at horror, but this time in the future! Did Frictional Games bribe the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button, or has our game selection system achieved a state of consciousness mirroring the theme of this sci-fi survival horror title? Once again our hosts are tasked with spending an hour with a spooky game and trying not to end up with nightmares afterward. With plenty of experience crafting horror on both the Penumbra and Amnesia series, how will Frictional Games attempt to set this ...
Nov 02, 2023•23 min•Ep. 146
A spooky collection that’s seasonally appropriate. The Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button feels rigged with its pick for this episode about the survival horror compilation created by Frictional Games. Tom is excited to play something spooky and seasonally appropriate, but it won’t surprise you that Chris is much less enthusiastic. This collection contains three titles from the series, namely The Dark Descent, Justine, and A Machine for Pigs. Each of these is a full experience unto itself, so it...
Oct 26, 2023•26 min•Ep. 145
At a minimum, it’s an admirable array of alliteration. Chris already had this turn-based strategy game that was developed by Harebrained Schemes and published by Paradox Interactive on his radar. This made it easy for him to agree to check it out for this episode featuring Kevin from Save the Game Media as our special guest. Set in an alternate version of the 1930’s, the plot revolves around a customizable crew of agents recruited by a mysterious benefactor to thwart the evil machinations of an ...
Oct 19, 2023•26 min•Ep. 144
A Star Wars game that Tom hasn’t played? Blasphemous! When the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button landed on a Star Wars title, Chris naturally assumed that he would have to spin it again. In a surprising twist, this Lego action-adventure game developed by Traveller's Tales and published by Warner Bros Games happened to be among the very few that Tom had not yet played. As the sixth installment in the series and largely covering films that have been hashed and rehashed in prior installments, you...
Oct 12, 2023•29 min•Ep. 143
A city-builder on the back of giant turtle… don’t tell Terry Pratchett. The Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button is at the helm and has picked Stray Fawn Studio’s simulation title for this episode. Crowdfunded on Kickstarter, this game utilizes a blend of 3D and hand-drawn 2D art to create a look that stands out against other games in the same genre. Another aspect that sets it apart is that players must make decisions at both the village level and the creature level, with each of those choices i...
Oct 05, 2023•24 min•Ep. 142
Beastkin children pilot a gigantic tank to free their families from fascists. Incoming alert! This episode features the tactical RPG developed and published by CyberConnect2. For this episode, our regular hosts are joined by Aaron from Super Pod Saga, who has specially requested that Tom and Chris give this game a shot. It is clear from the request that Aaron has an interest in this title, but what will our dynamic duo think of it? Will the cute character designs, surprisingly mature plot, and t...
Sep 27, 2023•26 min•Ep. 141
The mice are attempting a coup, what do you do? The prince of Ding Dong Dell has just assumed the role of king after his father’s untimely demise, but the boy’s reign is cut short in the opening moments of this action role-playing game developed by Level-5 and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. As an outsider transported from present day Earth to this fantastical world, the player arrives in the middle of the coup and is tasked with protecting the boy from those who wish him harm. With an ...
Sep 21, 2023•23 min•Ep. 140
Join us for a conversation that sits outside the usual format. If you didn’t already know, our hosts recorded a standard episode about Sea of Stars… you can find that as #139 in the numbered episodes of 1H1D. Once that episode was over, however, Chris was curious to talk more about why this game stood out when compared to the many other RPGs that our hosts have played and reviewed. We kept the mics recording and now present you with the very first “After Hour” in which Tom and Chris continue the...
Sep 17, 2023•25 min
Just the composer’s name alone has Tom intrigued. If you want to request a game for our hosts to play, mentioning that it was “inspired by Chrono Trigger” is a strong place to start, but noting that Tom’s favorite composer contributed ten tracks to the soundtrack might be an even more powerful strategy. Amazingly, both are true in the case of this retro-inspired indie role-playing game developed by Sabotage Studio, requested by Chris Coplien from the Retro Hangover Podcast. Conveniently, he was ...
Sep 14, 2023•30 min•Ep. 139
A game chosen by our hosts, so it doesn't count! Sometimes a game comes out that both our hosts are itching to try, but the Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button is far too random to cooperate. Of course, they could play the game and not make an episode about it, but why waste "premium" content? Behold, an unnumbered bonus episode of 1H1D centered on the highly anticipated Sci-Fi Action RPG from Bethesda! It's the developer's first new IP in twenty-five years and has taken them a decade to develop...
Sep 10, 2023•32 min
Was it a good time or more like doing time? Korean developer Pathea Games set out to combine elements of action role-playing games and cute casual sims when it released this title across all current consoles in 2019. Whether or not they were successful in the attempt is the subject of some debate. Fortunately for you, dear listener, the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button has decided to have our hosts visit the quiet hamlet of Portia and report back on the experience. The standard hour is unlike...
Sep 07, 2023•24 min•Ep. 138
Called to craft contraptions of chaos! When game selection is left to the whims of our favorite randomizer, it is safe to expect something unexpected. For this episode, the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button has selected the strategy sandbox developed by the small indie team at Spiderling Studios. The game was originally built for the PC but it was recently heavily reworked for the Xbox console. With Chris crafting on his PC and Tom testing it out on his console, it should be illuminating to he...
Aug 31, 2023•20 min•Ep. 137
All aboard this crazy train… to Hell! The Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button has made its decision and our hosts must now play an hour of the acclaimed roguelike deck-building game developed by Shiny Shoe. As you may already know, Chris is not a fan of roguelikes and Tom is not a fan of card games, so it’s not looking too hopeful for this hybrid of both. Perhaps with their expectations set sufficiently deep in the underworld, the mandated hour with this title will end up surprising them both. W...
Aug 24, 2023•23 min•Ep. 136
Fighting evil by moonlight, running a shop by daylight. With so many roguelikes in their rearview, our hosts had to make sure they had not already played this one when the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button selected it for this episode. By focusing gameplay on running a shop and having the player both figuratively and literally “moonlighting” as an adventurer, this title developed by Digital Sun stands out against other third-person action roleplaying games. Traditionally the mandated hour is e...
Aug 17, 2023•25 min•Ep. 135
Exosuits AND Dinosaurs? Sounds like something Tom wrote. Considering the subject matter, this title was on Tom’s radar long before it was requested by The Elder Trolls Gaming Podcast for this episode, which conveniently features them as our special guests. Developed and published by the gaming juggernaut known as Capcom, this title has our hosts strapping into exosuits and battling it out with dinosaurs! Clearly expectations are going to be running high on this one, so it will be interesting to ...
Aug 10, 2023•30 min•Ep. 134
What happens when you cross Resident Evil with Stanley Kubrick? Sometimes the Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button picks a title that one of our hosts was secretly hoping to play. Well, this third-person survival horror game developed by rose-engine and published by Humble Games is a prime example of that! Considering his track record with horror games, you may be surprised to discover that it was Chris that was rooting for this one, but we assure you that’s the truth. How will this game measure ...
Aug 03, 2023•19 min•Ep. 133
Be an astronaut and an engineer, simultaneously. The Xbox Game Pass “Surprise Me” button has “spoken” and Tom and Chris have once again answered its call. In this sandbox adventure title developed and published by System Era Softworks, the player takes on the role of a space explorer that must dig into the planet to activate an alien gateway. Unlike some similar planet-exploring titles, the design here is decidedly more family-focused... which is probably best exemplified by the game’s smooth an...
Jul 27, 2023•25 min
If you give a dog a paintbrush… Art Class is on the menu for this episode of 1H1D! The “Surprise Me” button has chosen the indie adventure game developed by Greg Lobanov and published by Finji, and thus our hosts must spend an hour exploring the colorful title. This may not be the first game where Tom and Chris need to bring color back to a desaturated world, but it is the first one starring a dog with an oversized paintbrush. With that key feature in mind, it will be interesting to see how the ...
Jul 20, 2023•24 min•Ep. 131
The pun in the name is just the beginning. The Xbox Game Pass "Surprise Me" button proves it is aptly named with its selection for this episode. Neither Tom nor Chris had ever heard of this random physics-based action title developed and published by Flashbulb, but now they are honor-bound to give it a fair shake. A quick glance reveals that the gameplay appears very simple and fast-paced, but will that be enough to capture the attention of our hosts, or will they be desperately waiting for thei...
Jul 13, 2023•22 min•Ep. 130
