At the gamescom 2022, dozens of games are on display. During the play tests, MeinMMO editor Benedict Grothaus particularly remembered 3 titles because they can entertain wonderfully well with simple mechanics.
Every trade fair has huge blockbusters. Just the Opening Night Live of the gamescom 2022 featured 36 games with huge production values. For me, the real gems are often hidden beneath the big announcements.
Similar to Return to Moria a few weeks ago, I was particularly impressed by indie games at gamescom. While exploring the halls, I repeatedly passed booths where small developers showcased their ideas.
Three of these games particularly stuck in my mind because they impress with gameplay and get by without many frills. They show that simple concepts and ideas can deliver really good games when executed correctly.
Here are our highlights from gamescom 2022:
“Catch Me!” is a Kids’ Game That’s a Scream
The party game Catch Me! was my first appointment at gamescom ever. The game concept is incredibly simple: you play tag with up to 4 players. However, it is not one hunter who has to catch everyone else, but exactly the opposite.
One player is selected and has to collect points scattered across the static maps. The other three try to stop him. If they catch him, they become the new hunter. The first one to collect 10 points from the map wins.
Catch Me! is being developed by ByteRockers, a small studio from Berlin, and I spoke with the devs (featured image). They explained to me that Catch Me! is inspired by the indie hit Speedrunners, but follows a somewhat simpler concept.
There isn’t much more to say about the game. Catch Me! explicitly does not want to be an AAA game, but a game for in-between moments. While you wait for the next big release, you should occasionally just play a few rounds of tag.
Catch Me! is already playable in Early Access on Steam. Future content will be transparently shown in the main menu, and based on community feedback, further features will be added depending on what is desired.
“There’s no I in Coin” – Surprisingly Entertaining and Dark
The perhaps greatest hidden gem of gamescom 2022 puts you in the role of a coin. Sounds silly, but it has quite a wicked twist: you are supposed to lure people to their deaths.
To do this, you roll along the sidewalk and attract attention from people. If they follow you, you can lead them into the street to be run over by cars. The control consists only of movement keys for rolling and a jump.
The more people you lead to their deaths in a short time, the more points you get. It’s macabre, but incredibly engaging – and even somewhat challenging. Because if you fall and remain flat, you might get picked up and the game is over.
Despite, or perhaps thanks to the simple principle, There’s no I in Coin is similarly addictive as Flappy Bird or Cookie Clicker. When and where exactly the game will be released, we don’t know yet.
“A Bavarian Tale – Totgeschwiegen”: Historical RPG in Bavarian
Of the 3 games presented here, Totgeschwiegen is probably the most complex. You play a detective in Upper Bavaria’s Wolpertshofen in 1866, who is to solve a death case.
In terms of gameplay, Totgeschwiegen is basically a historical RPG where you can even level up and improve attributes. You need these to pass certain tests – just as you know from games like Dungeons & Dragons.
This is complemented by mechanics such as sneaking and combat, which remind somewhat of The Witcher and Co., from where the game also draws a bit of inspiration, as we were told. None of this is necessarily new, but one thing makes Totgeschwiegen so special: the voice acting.
The game is fully voiced in Bavarian, all characters speak in dialect, and sometimes even ask you if you have problems with words like “Schwammerl”. A truly unique charm that makes Totgeschwiegen a real insider tip.
The first chapter of Totgeschwiegen is already available on Steam, and you can also play a free demo. However, the game is still in Early Access.
Personally, however, I was convinced not only by the small indie games. I am also very much looking forward to some of the big titles, and among them, Minecraft Legends surprised me the most:
I saw gameplay of Minecraft Legends, and I was wrong about almost everything I thought about it
