I played YET ANOTHER 9 Souls-Like games you've never heard of (AGAIN)

[@Th3UnluckyGam3r]

That wall climbing in Epic of Gilgamesh is the dictionary definition of a dev finding a bug and going "fuck it, we ball"

[@beingsactual]

This case is the evil twin sibling of ULTRAKILL's Projectile Boosting

[@tappajavittu]

Not a bug but a surprise feature.

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Feels like a game that is janky for being unexperienced but not because the dev didn't try. Fun mechanics and nice animations, but super rough as a game.

[@CMDKeenCZ]

Lmao I've done the exact same thing as a novice game dev once. Fixing the infinite jump climbing glitch can be way harder than just changing up your level design, haha

[@CaptainWoggy]

@@HappyBeezerStudios Agreed, watching the footage it seems like a game that is six months of polish from being something special. Or at the very least, six months of polish from being a hidden gem for the Xbox 360.

[@IronPineapple]

merry christmas, gamers

[@franuki1757]

Thanks friend

[@lyrics4516]

We are so back

[@TheCrownLP]

merry chrismas for you also

[@rat2132]

Gaymers*

[@pyroratt]

Merry Christmas, Metal fruit

[@christophermino7101]

The Review of "Epic of Gilgamesh" is the reason I love this series, even though I don't even like Souls Like. Being so positive about such a janky game, pointing at the cool ideas and not the bad stuff. Giving such long feedback. Always incredible.

[@metroid3802]

Absolutely agree. It’s a really refreshing take.

[@MattTorres]

Same here. I only played a bit of elden ring I don't care for the gameplay all that much (not that it's bad I just don't like it), but I love these thorough positive reviews of completely random games. Glad to see the definition of souls like is being stretched a bit more for this series just cuz I want to see what else is out there and there's no one out there who does these kind of play through and reviews with the same sincerity

[@RenneVangr]

Sorceress is insanely creative. It looks so awesome, like everything you wanted to happen actually happened.

[@OffscreenkillVD]

Exactly my thoughts

[@knife0party]

Especially the grippers

[@SullySadface]

I'm interested in this one tbh

[@cherrydragon3120]

It looks like so much fun tho!!

[@waaah9857]

@@knife0party💀💀💀

[@chrisruskin6189]

Epic of Gilgamesh feels like one of those PS2 era games that you found for like 5 bucks that comes back to your memory every once in a while

[@Sevness]

IT really does feel like that, like it's something you'd find on a Playstation Demo Disk.

[@PuggetronicsPioneer]

​@@SevnessThose were the days

[@pirapiranha5517]

"Where's my milk?" and the immediate cut to banana man holding a steak with no acknowledgement of what happened is killing me.

[@IHMyself]

Oh shit, I didn't realize he was holding steak 😂

[@JDEdwards2331]

that and the him accidentally sending people on a rocket ride had no dying laughing. (should I actually play Fortnite?)

[@VioletOtter]

@@JDEdwards2331 yeah lego fortnight is basically a different game in the same engine

[@swordzanderson5352]

@@JDEdwards2331 *Lego* Fortnite. Fortnite itself is a trainwreck.

[@beanieguitarguy4070]

@@swordzanderson5352Is it, though?

[@michivgc]

It's kinda surreal watching FlyKnight appear here; I literally joined the main developer and the 3d artist out of nowhere with a couple of tracks made in a sound canvas after the game was pretty much done/finished. Also, I'm glad you liked the music/ost! 😄

[@Someguy1a]

Getting your souls like to appear in one of these videos is the dark souls of game devs

[@mikecharnecke3087]

bro the devs and stuff on those games have maaad talent

[@mikecharnecke3087]

they really knew how to add fun to mechanics

[@SkyrimVictor]

I loved the boss theme

[@SomeoneThatIsHappy]

You made this ost and a cover of one of my favorite game themes ever, Theme of Laura? Man i want to see more of your work

[@nickstump5664]

39:35 is one of my favorite moments in this whole series. Just the sheer randomness of one-shotting the boss that way had me in hysterics

[@ChuckBassFGC]

Dude fr 😂😂😂😂

[@joca_sol]

The Sorceress and FlyKnight guy is built different, hope they'll get a very positive reaction to their games and continue to do it for living, they deserve it.

[@lookforthegood1]

legit agree

[@amp4105]

are

[@skeletonwar4445]

​@@amp4105No, is. It's a single person.

[@darkchiron]

100% agree. Those games look sick.

[@Ten_Thousand_Locusts]

​@@skeletonwar4445so say him. This fucking they them bullshit when the gender of the person in question is known is fucking dumb. Dude even called the fucking guy, "guy".

[@dwayneduphraine7024]

Seeing you go through 30+ attempts at beating that one VA Proxy boss and then immediately washing the giant robot god boss is like that old meme about Dark Souls bosses that are gigantic demon monsters with six health bars and a long elaborate title versus bosses that are just one normal man with one health bar and a name like "The Captain".

[@OG_Leoner]

The bigger they are the harder they fall

[@smergthedargon8974]

Nothing a Souls vet fears more than an unremarkable pale woman wielding a long, bladed weapon.

[@Emiichoco]

lmfao

[@Androu1]

The regular guy boss is insane because almost none of his attacks are parryable, but then you can parry the building-sized sword of the giant robot. It's cool as hell but it feels counterintuitive lol

[@mayonnaise9993]

It also helped that those 20 tries were really good practice. Pineapple had to level up from lvl5 -> lvl 60 in order to beat that first boss 😭

[@YonkoDGoofy]

That animation for the merch drop was mad sick, also PLEASE let there be a team to get built around the person behind Flyknight/Sorceress, it's insane how much they're cooking.

[@bye1551]

Fly knight was genuinely insanely good. The art style, the animations, the sound effects all OOZE CHARM like they're just spectacularly cute. The mechnics are interesting and i love how while certain methods sre clearly intended, a lot of other methods work too. Hope the developer makes way more games cause if they can make something like that in 3 weeks, a year long project feels like itd be amazing

[@MacCarell]

Flyknight in 2 weeks is absolutely insane. And Sorceress looked so naturally polished and in depth. That developer really deserves a chance to create his visions. They have an astonishing amount of talent and capability of putting in a lot of hard, efficient work into doing so.

[@cherrydragon3120]

I really like what i seen~

[@vicstrike3626]

It was an insane game hope he get the credit he deserve

[@williamfalls]

I like to imagine at 16:32 the character duel wielding torches just grabs the apple with their mouth and consumes it whole like a snake.

[@mark0183]

Togedaaa

[@huismands]

That first game is definitely more of a NieR-like. Absolutely awesome.

[@b0ssl0af72]

Exactly what I was thinking, and the parrying reminds me of Metal Gear Rising which is also developed by Platinum.

[@krodmandoon3479]

The original NieR is my favorite Souls-like

[@Asad-hv2dc]

​@hopediedlast7230perfect dodge is basically parry

[@fumanchu4321]

​@hopediedlast7230 Yes, you need to equip a specific chip and then you can do Bayonetta style parries

[@ExEBoss]

And the fight at 5:55 reminds me of the fights between *V1* and *V2* in *ULTRAKILL.* And the fight immediately afterward of the fight between *V1* and the *Corpse of King Minos* (also from *ULTRAKILL).*

[@Bat0541]

Whoever is making Sorceress needs to keep making stuff, that game has more charm and creativity in the demo than I see from a lot of huge budget titles.

[@SolaScientia]

I loved it when he accidentally set the weapon rack on fire just because he dropped the torch right beside it. I love that kind of environmental stuff.

[@SingingInferno]

That dev for Sorceress and Flyknight is going places, hope they get hired onto a strong team or are able to form their own studio.

[@marcar9marcar972]

Or works indie would be even cooler. Not like he’d get to do anything of value working for a big studio

[@michailvolski5035]

i would rather he stay independent.

[@MistaHahn117]

I just hope they keep making more games

[@LieutenantAlaki]

Definitely let them keep working indie, we probably wouldn't get as much of that beautiful creativity otherwise.

[@singular9]

Just for reference, VA Proxy is inspired by Nier Automata. A lot of its ideas come from there, + some souls mechanics.Pretty much everything that was confusing makes sense to someone who has played Nier, Everything from the weapon movesets to the fights, strange convo's, movement, etc.

[@ItsTickingTime]

I mean... I've played both Automata and Replicant, and there were some things I just DID not understand about VA Proxy. Like the lack of telegraph attacks from the first boss, and the absolutely brutal difficulty spike. As well as limited combo options.. you need to be able to tell the difference between blockable/Parryable attacks and "don't touch me or it will hurt" attacks, especially in a game like this.

[@nickelakon5369]

​@@ItsTickingTimeit looks like it's also inspired by metal gear rising, which iirc, all attacks in that are parryable, and it's probably the same here.

[@CorpusCacus]

I was losing my mind that he went the whole review without mentioning Nier once.

[@caav56]

@@nickelakon5369 Definitely not all. The "golden" charged attacks go right through the parry

[@nickelakon5369]

@@caav56 oh, I must have been misremebering them. I know all attacks are parriable is true for something though.

[@darienb1127]

Lakia might not be the game for me, but it's a testament to why I love Indie Games. Never in a million years would I have expected someone to make a furry metroidvania in a Mad Max style apocalypse that plays like those biking flash games that we all played in school. It's these strokes of creative genius that i've only really seen indie games do. And I hope it never stops.

[@bente2455]

M

[@Wrennvy]

@@DrClownPhD Because we needed 23 mainline Call of Duty games. They're just so full of innovation. Being more serious, I agree that Indie Games aren't the only source of out of the box brilliance, but it's a lot easier for them to chase than a AAA studio only worried about money and pleasing investors. They tend to stick to tried and true genres/mechanics/themes. So while Indie Games might not be the only source, they are the vast majority, which makes sense why someone might say they've 'only really seen indie games' do it.

[@christopherwineholt3202]

​@@DrClownPhDDr.VeryFunatParties

[@Wrennvy]

@@DrClownPhD Independant. Without a large scale publisher, and therefore without a lot of the expectations that come with that-- such as deadlines, audience demographic, financial targets. All of which can be constraints on artistic vision and expression that indie games tends to need to succeed in the market, to stand out from the sea of other indie games. For indie games, doing something different is bonus, or a goal. To large scale publishers, being different can be an unnecessary risk.

[@javi_fc]

@@DrClownPhD Indie has never been about budget and you know it. You're being ridiculous. It means independent for fucks sake. It's in the name. Also they never said AAA games don't do this or can't. They said they've only seen it from indie games which is different. Saying only indies do this and I've only seen it from indies is a big difference. They probably only play indies as do a lot of people myself included. I'm not paying attention to big companies and could care less what they're doing so no I can't see their innovation compared to the indie devs I follow.

[@taric2133]

Omg I love the idea behind Laika. Those biking flashgames were my childhood and combining that with other genres, gameplay, and a story is so sick.

[@trigs7127]

I was thinking the exact same thing. I was also reminded of another game that mixes metroidvanis with pinball. The mixing of these completely erratic genres that shouldn't be combined and yet they come together in such beautiful harmony is amazing.

[@Miccielly]

@@trigs7127 The game with pinball is Yoku's Island Express for those wondering, there was also interesting game with pinball combat called Creature In The Well but felt short for me because of nonexistent story.

[@SullySadface]

Line Rider: Thunderdome

[@jayiyengar9136]

@@trigs7127 The Creature in the Well?

[@danm7421]

​@@trigs7127Yoku's Island Express was a blast and really creative game.

[@KKingOfficial]

Thank you so much for checking out V.A. Proxy. While I've only just joined the team as a voice actor, Pyro and K have done some seriously incredible work so far, and I'm beyond excited to see where this game goes.

[@DrClownPhD]

As someone who has been interested since seeing the nuke parry clip months ago on Twitter, it looks pretty badass. I hope they're able to reach their full vision with this game. I look forward to playing it when it's more polished

[@kabirjain4692]

The environment and art style looks unique and beautiful in it own way. Cant wait to get my hands on the final product

[@WilliamLucian]

What a great project to attach your name too!

[@sholahverassa8582]

Even though it looks like a remake of Nier:Automata at certain points, it doesn't mean that it doesn't look badass as hell. Will be waiting for the release.

[@fuzyfuzfuz2]

This game LOOKS DOPE! seriously, it needs work because all games have bugs but I'm excited to see where it goes too! I'll be looking out for it and you in the future!

[@ampthebassplayer]

This series is so good for showing people who mainly play good games how hard it is to get it right.

[@stupiddreamer9696]

Funny seeing you here bass man, my two interests colliding

[@garrick3727]

Anyone can make a game. There's no barrier to entry. You don't see that for many products. There's also one source you can go to for most games - Steam. So, for example, while it's not hard for someone to make a movie or short film, it's hard for them to find an audience, but almost every game can be on Steam. I guess my point is - we take the ability to make good products for granted because we rarely see the less good attempts. With games you can see those other products, although - to your point - most people do not.

[@henkaan7741]

I really like the artstyle of V.A Proxy, it feels so "scrappy" which I think really fits the game's world. This game was absolutely the highlight for me.

[@metroid3802]

It really reminded me of the scrappy kinda cobbled together look of something like Kenshi, it’s hard to describe but I love it. Can’t wait to see more.

[@PoorEdward]

@@metroid3802I get that, like a risk of rain kenshi lmao

[@PoorEdward]

@@metroid3802even a little bit of Phantom Dust and NieR

[@mrbilla3954]

If you liked V.A Proxy you should play Nier Automata, its very clearly based off it. Still a pretty good game tho.

[@SilverSeleucid]

@@PoorEdward literally this. all i was thinking was like kenshi risk of rain dark souls. excited to follow the development of that game

[@EdoardoSimonetti87]

40:58 It's really lovely to see the time you spend on giving feedback to the developers. It shows you care and adds so much to the experience of the video

[@KamilSzarafinski]

Laika has an amazing art style, and the cutscenes too, they are incredibly impressive.

[@srsgoblin]

I wanna know what drugs were consumed when someone came up with the idea "what if Trials but Metroidvania?" Because that's gotta some good good. What a brilliant idea!

[@shalvei_]

@@srsgoblin the full game really edges the definition of metroidvania, there are 2 movement upgrades total and there isn't much of unlocking new areas with them. It's still a great game but imo it's closer to a standard rpg

[@mysterdmt5400]

At this point, almost every indie souls developer's dream is for their game to appear in this series, not only for the visibility, but mainly for the incredible feedback you give.

[@TrepidFaceHugger]

Brb, tagging my game as a souls-like

[@BlueisNotaWarmColour]

It's credible

[@goawayimbaitin1278]

@@TrepidFaceHuggerthrow in a stamina bar and a dodge/roll and you’re 90% there lol

[@Greywander87]

I'm interested in becoming a game dev, and I have a few different ideas for Souls-likes. Would definitely feel great to get one of my projects featured here. Just need to stop being lazy and get started. Though I probably won't do a Souls-like as my first game.

[@Bran.man24]

I started laughing my ass off when you got upset the cow didn't give you the milk and in the next frame, you're carrying a T-bone steak in your hand..

[@yannickgrignon2473]

"Hello! My name is professor Maximus Obeseus!" "Are we really doing this?" Absolutely excellent reaction

[@LightningFoxHD]

Bro, Sorceress looks so damn good. I wish there were more Dark Messiah-likes

[@freshlymemed5680]

Its sad Dark Messiah was the only game of its kind for years. Some games had similar mechanics but nothing close to the pure physics chaos and kicking of Dark Messiah.

[@shodanargie1574]

They are called Immersive Sim. But they are rare

[@ledumpsterfire6474]

Dark Messiah is such an underrated gem, even if it hasn't totally aged well over the years. It was my favorite game when I was a kid.

[@noalb3108]

@@shodanargie1574 Nope. Most imsims are not at all like Dark Messiah. Dark Messiah-like refers to a very specific kind of imsim, with heavy focus on melee combat with a lot of magic and a strong af kick.

[@ObsoletePerson]

That Gilgamesh game looked like it had some really incredible ideas. I wanna see more games with yo-yo shields and also those divine explosions.

[@dotgif397]

why does it remind me so much of Bollywood action heroes

[@killer12480]

Rygar, PS2.

[@DawnSentinel]

Dude when the parry caught the spear and threw it back. That's genuinely so cool.

[@KironX1]

@@killer12480also NES :)

[@MyCarllee]

If only the developer could spare time to polish the mechanics and animations instead of making long levels.

[@grumpygoosegg3514]

Really appreciate your balanced critique and willingness to give small games a chance

[@sirfijoe450]

The environments in VA Proxy are so insanely cool. I love how much freedom you have to traverse the huge set pieces.

[@mossy_nutz]

Just wanted to say as a long time fan,this is literally the best gaming content I have ever seen on KZbin. I look forward to every video randomly popping up. Thank you for making vids and sticking around as a content creator all these years later man. Here’s it another year of you keeping a smile on my face.

[@jguns3738]

The gigantic sword battle of VA Proxy giving shades of MGRR, very cool

[@leithaziz2716]

Reminiscient of the Metal Gear Excelsus boss QTE.

[@zix7988]

this game is very much inspired by Nier Automata

[@b0ssl0af72]

@@zix7988 Nier's combat is pretty similar to Rising as well, and the combat was developed by Platinum. The world and everything else definitely look heavily Nier inspired.

[@antonkishkovskyi8392]

I don't know why, but the "I'm a gamer!" bit felt so real. Like there are times when the mechanics start to click, and you somehow do something awesome. That's an amazing feeling.

[@YzilTube]

99% of my life is just waiting for another episode of these. Love your thoughtful analyses, adventures in jank, and the occasional gem. I played and loved Lunacid previously (I hope you've finished it now it's fully released) and now you've got me into Laika which has been incredible so far. Great content as always!

[@El_Rey_247]

Just gotta applaud the notes at 59:08. As a viewer, this did a lot to inform me of the specific issues, and helped me have a less negative experience than the obvious frustration during the preceding gameplay segment. I also think that it wasn't necessary to narrate, since that would have made the video flow weirdly. Good reflection, good constructive feedback. Whether or not you realize it, I think this kind of thing encourages your viewers to approach things similarly, and that can do a lot of good.

[@Mostbee]

Yes, something I wanted to add into Morbid is: the most positive and interesting thing Pineapple seemed to be excited about was the combat mechanic of heavy attacks flinching enraged enemies... From a design point of view, I've seen so many games have the flaw of passing an information only by HUD. I'd like to feel or just see the enemies get this so called "rage", not just a symbol getting orange, I'm not fighting a symbol or a green bar. Be it just some dragon ball like flames around the enemy head to actually convey he's angry and pumped and no light attacks would stop it (or, for the boss case, like in souls series, making him do a flurry of apparently 'unstoppable' attacks would satisfy both the 'rage' shown and the repetitive moveset). It breaks the magic a little bit for me, the main character wouldn't be able to tell apart and decide to use a heavy attack by itself, I'm not playing a music rhythm game where white = right trigger, orange = left trigger. Worth mentioning this concept is apropriately applied to the posture system, while the posture is only shown by HUD, when you break it the enemy seems physically stunned and open to a finishing blow. Having a mechanic actually happening in the game adds importance and weight to the combat.

[@zioncruz7302]

How come you’ve never called this series “soul searching”?

[@eqwerewrqwerqre]

No one ever thought of it

[@resurgamviridisnitor7734]

Steam dumpster diving is better

[@Mr_Spaghetti]

⁠@@resurgamviridisnitor7734not when some games are only on itchio or gog or whatever. and it doesn’t imply that he’s playing souls-like games

[@LanceThumping]

@@Mr_Spaghetti I think the dumpster aspect adds a lot because we don't want this to be a pure highlight series. Showing bad along with the good helps those devs improve, helps the better games get recognized and boosts ideas that might inspire someone to make a new unique great.

[@lucasmoore8558]

@@resurgamviridisnitor7734 it's got a ring to it

[@Andrescat98]

This incredible series has become a staple in our lives, thank you for always providing a new episode.

[@Moewenfels]

Word

[@yeti25934]

Seriously, the only disappointing part is he can't realistically release them more often

[@Arnell_Mediocrity_Long]

Facts! And every video I mention how much I love this Series but it often goes unnoticed which is fine...I'm just glad to be alove during the makings of these awesome videos. 💯

[@daiolamers7274]

Same!

[@Valium762]

Seeing games like Sorcerers thaws my jaded heart and gives me hope that there's still some genuine creativity out there.

[@GidanoTwitch]

There's a demo on Itch of an Italian Souls like based on chess pieces that has some cool ideas, it's called Stonemachia, might be fun to try

[@elisashimi]

same here, I tried it and it’s cool!

[@Mr_Spaghetti]

misread this as a demo of an Italian Soda based on chess pieces and I was like “damn somebody is cooking in a way I can’t even comprehend”

[@oneoranota]

I thought "Itch of an Italian" was the name of the Souls like.

[@Mr_Spaghetti]

@@oneoranota obviously someone must now merge our two mistaken ideas together into the perfect video game, make millions, and then give us half

[@dylanlerian5960]

The dev himself said it's a Sekiro like not Souls like.

[@MarginalSC]

Gilgamesh is sending powerful PS2 vibes just from how shiny his skin is. Also the jank seems like something that'd happen in that era...

[@JanPospisilArt]

The designs are very 2010s and it even starts in 4:3 ratio I think.

[@Necromorph790]

Dude I instantly felt like I was watching Draken: The ancient gates almost again, that clang noise was so old school

[@Gatorade69]

What are you talking about ? Jank ? Don't you know that every PS2 game was great ? That was back in the day when video games were good, weren't political, weren't rushed, broken or unfinished and had no microtransactions. It was the golden age ! Modern games are trash, there's no good modern games. Have fun with your modern 'non jank' games like Redfall or Rise of Kong !

[@PotionSmeller]

​@@Gatorade69Haha good one, that's a really funny parody of insufferable nostalgia addicted gamers. It was a parody, right?

[@MarginalSC]

@Gatorade69 They were still figuring stuff out and experimenting a lot.

[@ジェイクス]

VA proxy, kinda reminds me NieR: Automata (not souls-like), the map and enemies design are kinda similar, also the fact you have drone that can shoot and use it to glide, and the glide animation is basically the same

[@rafalst]

And parrying a nuke or gravity is something that i would expect seeing in a Nier game

[@ItsZorroDood]

And MGR:R.

[@MrSonnyfy]

It's like Nier and this VR game Jet Island mixed together imo

[@Helghastdude]

the world also gives me Bleak Faith Forsaken vibes

[@SFotakos]

The "ghost" bosses reminded me of the enemies in the first Nier game, I'd wager it's a huge inspiration

[@logiarhythm6285]

Wow, Miguel Arroyo seems like an absolute master of sandbox mechanics! Cutting off enemies limbs, making them choose their weapons, physics based gameplay,... truly amazing!

[@docrock2465]

Not gonna lie, a part of me went into this hoping you'd cover Laika, but I was like "It's not a soulslike, so no way." When you got to Laika, I lost my marbles. Laika is so good.

[@portarul96]

it feel soo similar to Ori and the blind forest for some reason.

[@different_stuff]

@@portarul96 except it's not gory at all

[@CthulhuianBunny]

I love how the frame rate of Flyknight's animations make the enemies look like doom sprites.

[@Warlock_Sack]

I really hope the Gilgamesh dev keeps going, there’s some serious potential.

[@TheAssassin642]

Yeah, i felt bad for that one. Hope they keep making stuff

[@aurens.]

totally. it seems like they don't know how to make games yet but they know how they *should* make games, ...if that makes sense

[@tarik365]

@@aurens. a lot of talent but unrefined

[@rollingr0ck]

it is a case of a dev that just keeps adding new cool shit they like but not spending enough time refining things that need to tuned up, guaranteed@@aurens.

[@tristanc3873]

Reminded me of a lot of mid 2000s PS2 action games. Like a time capsule transported to today.

[@ChickenCrazy7]

42:25 cutting from the cow, to you running around with a steak in hand is one of the most unhinged transitions i've seen

[@jfortanell2525]

I never thought that this would become the series that I enjoy the most in all over KZbin. I never thought that I would comment something like this, but man, you are something special.

[@EternalArctic]

My favorite part of V.A Proxy is that dying, in any way (especially now) is just one giant skill issue, since you can literally parry everything lol. Died to a nuke? Skill issue should’ve parried. Fell down a cliff and died? Skill issue should’ve parried.

[@timpeterson175]

Yo parry that gravity and stop falling to death

[@leithaziz2716]

Now I'm thinking back to a funny youtube edit (by Izumi ch I think?) where Godzilla cuts a nuke in half with a giant katana.

[@bruhcoin2361]

Didn't Pineapple say not every attack is parryable

[@dwayneduphraine7024]

​@@timpeterson175 Unironically yes, the dev even shared a video of parrying gravity

[@BrownsheepBF]

Got sunburn? Should've parried the sunlight. Skill Issue.

[@krawlingchaos3963]

You're a legend for this man. I enjoy these so much so i already know i will enjoy this one too. Merry Christmas to you and everyone reading this.

[@fourward27]

Merry christmas and thanks for the positive vibes.

[@leithaziz2716]

Merry Christmas, bud.

[@oguz091]

Actually true one of the best series on youtube and its fun to watch. Also Iron is good at games and his feedback is top notch. Merry Christmas m8.

[@petersomogyi7245]

Merry Christmas! Wish you the best, Brother 🤗🤗🤗

[@slynt_]

V. A. Proxy has a very cool artstyle. I think it's great how people have turned low-poly 3D into its own aesthetic like the way pixel art is for 2D.

[@goosewithagibus]

The Gilgamesh game actually looks kind of incredible. Some real passion and talent there, just needs A TON of polish to work.

[@jameskazd9951]

yeah it looked like it had a ton of potential there, hope the dev/devs take their experience from this game and make something with all the cool stuff this games does but with less jank and better enemy balancing

[@uhrguhrguhrg]

Honestly it seems like they went for scale instead of polish, and while I can respect the effort, I feel like it's the wrong choice for a tiny indie team. always tightly designed smaller games over sprawling buggy messes

[@Dominichunter5]

I love that we're inching closer towards this series being about you checking out cool/obscure indie games that have EVEN ONE mechanic in common with Dark Souls. I'm here for it, too~! I've discovered some really cool stuff through these videos!

[@statistic2343]

49:08 I died luaghing at how funny this moment was. I was not expecting them to shoot off into space at such an extreme speed and than instantly die to fall damage, 🤣🤣🤣

[@grumpymonkey811]

First off, I want to say I've been binge watching this "Souls-like" series for the past few days, and courtesy of that, I have since added about half a dozen games onto my Steam Wishlist. These videos were a breath of fresh air, due to how you provided legitimate feedback for problems and possible solutions you saw within each experience. Props to that alone. Second off, I'd like to give Jotun as a plausible game to showcase on this series. It has all of the requirements of a "souls-like" due to it having a dodge role. :) Thirdly, Asterigos was one of the first 3D "souls-like" games I experienced and it was one of the few experiences that I'd consider an all time favorite. I hope you do a revisit of that in the future, so I can get your take on it.

[@Revealingstorm.]

Sorceress looks so freaking fun. I'm glad you have this series to highlight stuff like tthis

[@xavile9939]

I suggest you try slasher's keep if you say that Sorceress looks fun for you, they are almost the same.

[@Revealingstorm.]

@@xavile9939 I actually do already have it so you know me well haha

[@Matt16006]

Sorceress looks amazing. Just recently played Dark Messiah and absolutely loved it. Sorceress really seems like it captures the magic of that game's combat system

[@boqk]

I've been waiting for V. A Proxy to release it's demo for a while and I have to admit, it does not disappoint in its insanity

[@dynamicgecko1213]

I just wanna say, I love this series. I dunno how Iron Pineapple feels about it at this stage, but I like seeing new games, contemplate about their design choices, find unique ideas. Just fun times for a long-tme gamer. Thanks man. And also, pretty amazing shirt design. A merch that would also sell outside of the community. Which is the mark of a great merch I think.

[@percher4824]

The Gilgamesh game seems like it genuinely has a lot of potential in ideas alone.

[@alastor8091]

Sorceress is sick af. I love that Indie devs are really focusing on style and mechanical depth. Blows the AAA industry out of the water. Pure SOVL. Edit: and FlyKnight too? This guy needs to be a head developer with millions of dollars at his disposal. He'd be a legend.

[@SilverSeleucid]

a love letter to immersive sims

[@webbowser8834]

Gonna be honest, I probably would have found Fly Knight to be incredibly slow and tedious. I don't mind slower games, but Fly Knight was looking like the main character was practically crawling. Don't get me wrong, it's impressive as heck for a 2 week game jam, but I would not enjoy playing it at all. Sorceress on the other hand is sick af, I can def get behind that.

[@bye1551]

​@@webbowser8834i personally loved how slow it was. Really slow and deliberate, you have to comit to each attack and the game becomes much more about positioning since even if you know the enemy has long punish windows, your movement isnt fast enough to just stay out of range. I understand why some might not like it, but personally i love how tactical it makes games feel instead of just being twitch reflex testers

[@webbowser8834]

@@bye1551 I often times feel the same way. Hollow Knight is among my favorite action games of all time, and it is by no means a fast paced game. This crosses the line as "too slow" for me, but there's obviously effort put into the game and I'm glad it found an audience.

[@PurpleMush12]

Triple a games are just as good. Spend a little more time looking for them instead of assuming every major game is fortnite or diablo. Explore, there is plenty to love about triple a games including the depths that some go. People always neglect the fact that indie games have just as many shitty, cash grabby, scammy games as triple a.

[@Yobonn]

I physically say "Yay" and raise my hands in the air whenever I see a new video of this series released

[@Zanemob]

You are not alone.

[@pochiluis0570]

Same :D

[@inigo137]

22:38 STRAIGHT UP PSYCHONAUTS LOVE IT

[@kam1k0t0]

47:45 You know it's a souls-like if the crossbow does no damage whatsoever

[@sombrerolord6095]

The person who made flyknight and sorceress is just so surprisingly talented and filled with refreshingly unique and creative and honestly just fun ideas both lookwise and gameplay wisd

[@PrinceEdwardIII]

i am very interested in that first game. i love giant environment games with weird visuals and crazy lore. i love not having any idea whats happening and alowly figuring it out. love exploring and finding quests and items in areas i never imagined you could even go

[@gms02]

Especially when some of the UI is unreadable, obfuscated. To just exist in an unapologetically foreign world is a treat

[@Eagle3302PL]

Looks like a clone of NIER Automata.

[@CarelessBeach]

Art style, familiar-but-alien world, and mix of kickass mechanics with jank gives me strong Kenshi vibes!

[@ariannadravis3934]

​@@Eagle3302PL Im glad im not the only one that thought of NieR: Automata, but im not sure a "clone" is accurate. I'd call it a HEAVY love letter to NieR and NieR:Automata however, with that giant fight feeling like the first parts of Automata and some of the boss ideas of NieR. Having to avoid two bosses at once, with one being more of an obstacle then anything, is genuienly really cool and inspired.

[@eugeliceistruecanon1678]

May I recommend to you "9 years of Shadow"? It's a decent and quite challenging metroidvania with a bautiful visual

[@JustinTyler-s5l]

picked up laika because of this video, solidly agree. It's a shockingly good indie game, and most of the flaws I observed felt like they were because it was one of the first of it's type (seriously, who knew making Trials a twin-stick metroidvania would work so well). Thanks for covering it, even though it's not ~really~ a souls-like, I'd almost certainly have completely missed it without this video.

[@bye1551]

Yeah exactly. I also played the game off this recommendation and I loved every second of it. The flaws felt more like experience mistakes because honestly the premise is so novel the fact it was enjoyable at all is a testament to the skill of the developers (brainwash gang)

[@caret_shell]

No need to downplay it dude, the intro is excellent! It's about time your awesome series gets some sweet(er) opening credits.

[@feralkitty33]

Seriously this series has grown into such a beautiful journey of games discovery with very thoughtful commentary and feedback. Thank you so much!

[@KSTK101]

V.A Proxy does seem like an awesome concept, and it being made by a single person is mind blowing.

[@DameNaNoYo]

Laika is so amaziing, very genius combining trail game and metroidvania, props to the devs!

[@Ralabougres]

I really like that you take the time to cool off and review your own review. You have some pull now considering the popularity of the series and you're taking this responsibility seriously. Keep going! These reviews are awesome!

[@GeorgeNoiseless]

One of the strongest episodes yet. Your dedication to through and constructive critique never ceases to inspire. Thank You, IP. And also... RAIN WORLD MENTIONED (in passing) SATISFACTION ACHIEVED (I'll take it)

[@mojitojones2592]

"My name is Professor Maximus Obeseus" "Are we really doing this?" LMAO 53:25

[@Player-10]

I subbed for this series. And boy, does it get the views. This series deserves the millions of views too. Excellent work, as always! Frankly, I would like to see other people adopt this style of review/critique/spotlight. Its in-depth enough to really appreciate each game, hear pros and cons, and the reactions from a genre veteran is always entertaining!

[@sirbrokkoli5309]

It has already been done for Autobattlers and Roguelikes at least, probably more. And I agree, it's a great format, although Iron Pineapple does them especially well imo.

[@stephenlong9806]

I think it's the genuine feedback and support IronPineapple gives are a huge part of why they are so successful. He's very genuine and has a good grasp on what makes a game good.

[@eddebrock]

Saw on the dev's Twitter that the boss in the first game has been nerfed "due to popular demand".

[@Obmelg]

The fact that Laika: Aged Through Blood uses "LT" instead of "RT" as "Go forward" just makes my brain melt

[@dotfortun]

I ended up using mouse and keyboard, and was much much happier that way.

[@Robospy1]

V.A Proxy reminded me a lot of Neir Automata and Devil May Cry. I mean, the one move that the rival boss had was basically Judgement Cut End.

[@BlowntoBytes]

I am already looking forward to speedruns of Laika. Seeing the whole thing performed perfectly has to super satifying.

[@LivingGuy484]

I love that this series is still going strong, it always puts a smile on my face

[@Foxtayls]

I just love laika! Its melancholy, the music, the art, and the gameplay. I love laika being willing to do anything for her child and for her village and her personality makes perfect sense when you see how her mom and the elder treated her. On the faults of the gameplay, i can agree, but a fair amount of it is migated on m&k, since you can control aiming more accurately. Laika has easily become one of my all time favorites.

[@CarelessBeach]

That's a good tip about mouse and keyboard - I would've assumed it would be harder without a controller! I may just give it a shot now, thanks.

[@Foxtayls]

@CarelessBeach I bought laika on steam and tried it with both controller and m&k. It's still a bit strange to get used for me, since I almost exclusively use controller, but I played through with m&k after trying controller. I highly recommend you at least try the demo since its a bit longer than normal one.

[@thenameschall]

I love it when games include active reload mechanics like the second game. Vaguely reminds me of another game called receiver, which emphasizes realistic, manual gun mechanics

[@Jade-db1jx]

Petition for Sorceress dev to continue on with Fly Knight. Love it!! Amazingggg work and feel and inspiration

[@TiroDvD]

"Laika: Aged through Blood" reminds me of "Yoku's Island Express". it's a game and wordl you move around but movement is a gimmick: Excitebike & Pinball respectively.

[@Zooft11]

V.A Proxy has a very similar feel to Nier Automata. The little droid that glides with you and even the bullets it fires. Also very similar acrobatics.

[@W1nter_S0lid3r9]

That’s what I was thinking

[@iBloodxHunter]

I'm pretty sure I've seen footage of somebody parrying a nuke in that game.

[@TheDapperDragon]

Nier, but valuing good gameplay over barebones sex appeal and sub-first year philosophy.

[@mcbill7352]

​@TheDapperDragon nier automata isn't a philosophy text lmao it's a video game.

[@Leaf__22]

​@@TheDapperDragonwhen you can't appreciate a good ass

[@Atropos148]

Its so cool to see an indie game like VA Proxy being inspired by Nier Automata, more games need that level of scale in the combat EDIT: This episode has above average number of games i want to play :) good job on finding cool indie games

[@aarishbaig]

VA Proxy looks amazing. It feels deeply inspired by Nier automata and the passion is bleeding out of it.

[@Conankun66YT]

i remember playing the demo of Laika during the steam next fest and being REALLY into it. game feels great and the visuals and atmosphere are just top notch. great to hear the full game pays that off

[@TheGamingNobility]

It really does! I basically picked it up because I spent a couple hours in the demo. The atmosphere and music reaaaally help to seal the deal. Plus, I really enjoyed the themes and story of motherhood, coming-of-age, plus unexpected parallel between Laika’s village (Aboriginal) vs. the Birds (Colonialists) was interesting. This is a DARK story though, it made me uncomfortable and it kinda never really lets go of that - but you get a sprinkling of some cute moments with your puppy and some characters at least. 🥲

[@revengeofthelolin]

I love the look of the enemies in flyknight, somehow they look like 3d renders turned into 2d sprites ala daggerfall, but they're completely 3d models, incredible

[@ThePineappleKnight932]

Developer behind sorceress seems *insanely* talented. I wish them all the monies.

[@ReiNFrags]

V.A. Proxy seems extremely promising, the world looks like a combination of nier automata and risk of rain & the combat feels extremely fast paced.

[@Blacklands]

Also gives me some BLAME! feelings even if you're outside too!

[@_hegs_]

@@BlacklandsI was looking for this comment, have always wanted a game that with a BLAME! Kind of vibe, any other recommendations welcome

[@Biouke]

@@_hegs_ Signalis and Echo have some BLAME! vibes and flavour :)

[@traehouston1141]

I was thinking the same thing when it came to risk of rain. But you can definitely see where they took inspiration and added a bit of a twist to it.

[@Foreck]

​@@_hegs_ NaissanceE is the quintessential Tsutomu Nihei game

[@GLingamProduction]

Hey Man, I really dont actually write comments, but i thought about it so many times watching your videos and now its about to happen, even if i do think you will maybe not see this, that I just wanted to say thank you for your content and person yourself. Been watching i dunno maybe since your DS3 Kirk Fan Club Armor of Thorns Trolling video and to see how much you have changed in the best way to the point that through your Dumpster Diving your are giving us new things to maybe experience to play ourselfs and ALSO giving mostly Indie Devs the Chance to be heard and to be seen makes so happy. Also seeing you "Pinning/Hearting" their comments, so we can maybe check on them is a pure Joy for me. Connecting and behaving like this makes the Game Industry so much better and should be done by everyone. Your constructive criticism paired with your humor fitting mine exactly and ofc loving FromSoft since Demon Souls makes me celebrate every new Video with some good food and feet on the table enjoying every minute like a good movie/series. You're not begging for likes, subscribes and shit like that like so many other KZbinrs, no clickbait, got your own Merch and so on and so on. You deserve any Money you make from this and I hope you keep growing until you can maybe even publish your own game or smth else you want to accomplish in your life. Keep up the good work i will stop now with this cringy love letter LOL and start to watch the rest of this Video. You Rock man! Cheers to you and merry Christmas. Greetings from Germany!

[@giannisc.5254]

Wait, WHAT ? Flyknight was made in 2 weeks ? It looks awesome ! Unbelievable what talented solo devs can create in such a sort amount of time. Thanks for another installment of my favorite series in YT IronPineapple ! Happy Holidays and Merry Christmas ! I wish you the best !

[@loompaz]

it's been a MONTH. I REQUIRE MORE!!!

[@loompaz]

ITS BEEN 3 MONTHS, MORE!!!

[@SyphroPlays]

I'm so happy you covered Laika. I've been trudging my way through the game over the last couple months and it's definitely my favorite game of the year outside of Baldur's Gate 3 (keep in mind, I haven't played some big contenders like Remnant II, yet). It's a really special game to me, and I especially love the soundtrack, so thanks for spotlighting it here!

[@gugfitufi4862]

It would be cool if you left Steam links in the description. It makes supporting these very small studios and solo devs easier

[@johnarnold7984]

Steam has a search function, I easily added a few games from this video to my Wishlist just by using the search function.

[@samuelsmithart]

Agreed, I went to the description expecting to find the links :(

[@habitualfavours4349]

to be fair the names of the projects are there

[@MatiasGRivera]

You can like… go backwards in the video and type into Steam. Try that emergent gameplay.

[@YangBalanceYin]

Takes like 4 seconds to look up the game on steam, dude...

[@pilotpetrov3855]

"Sorceress" looks absolutely incredible!

[@Night-Rider101]

Looks just fine chill out

[@olchum7605]

​@@Night-Rider101 for a solo dev it looks and feels extremely gorgeous. 1 guy managed to get the spirit of Dark Messiah better than Arkane and you call it 'just fine' I can't figure out if you are trolling or actually delusional. Either way take your meds

[@smallkidneyjoe4046]

there's a free demo on steam :3

[@cantrip7]

Death of a Wish on Steam is my suggestion for the next video. It's a super angsty, scribbly game with some unique mechanics.

[@cantrip7]

Plushie from the Sky is a game with a stamina bar and a roguelike. It's another one of those borderline 3D platformer situations. Very goofy.