Located in the heart of London’s historic Brick Lane, The Truman Brewery is hosting a showcase of some of the best upcoming indie games this weekend. Running from Thursday, April 25 to Sunday, April 28, WASD has a huge variety of games to play from some of the planet’s most creative studios.
We got the chance to swing by and get hands-on with some exciting new games – all of which intend to come to PlayStation and/or Xbox consoles in. On day one, the show was already abuzz with gamers flocking to the venue in their droves to check out the next big thing in indie gaming. During this flying visit, we didn’t have time to check out all of the multitudes of games available, but we did get to enjoy a select few demos on the show floor. Read on for our impressions of these games, along with some other picks of the best games to check out at the show.
The Holy Gosh Darn
The latest game from Perfectly Paranormal and Yogscast Games is a heavenly time-traveling adventure with a charming 2D animated art style reminiscent of cartoons like Steven Universe and Adventure Time. This story-based game has stellar writing that’s packed with wit, and we suspect there’ll be some poignant emotional moments too as the story progresses.
You play as Cassiel, a slacker angel who is unwittingly granted time travel powers in order to stop a catastrophe befalling Heaven. There are minigames and some light puzzling, but the meat of the game seems to be manipulating time to navigate your way through tricky conversations with the other denizens of Heaven. This gives the hilarious writing the chance to shine, as you rewind and replay conversations with a cast of colorful characters and attempt to bullshit your way to saving the afterlife.
The Holy Gosh Darn is heading to Xbox and PlayStation consoles (alongside PC and Switch too) this summer.
CorpoNation: The Sorting Process
If you’re after something a bit more thinky, CorpoNation from Playtonic will tickle your frontal lobe with its trippy aesthetic and razor-sharp social commentary. You play a corporate worker locked into a dull-as-dishwater sorting role in a dystopian future realized with gorgeous old-school graphics.
As you complete you’re daily tasks and funnel your hard-earned cash into a soulless capitalist economy, sparks of revolution begin to emerge. There are tonnes of surprises in store, so we recommend discovering Corpornation’s secrets for yourself. It’s already out on PC, but it is slated to come to Xbox and Switch soon as well.
The Mermaid Mask
Adventure fans are eating good at WASD this year. The Mermaid Mask is the sequel to The Tangled Tower, an extremely charming fantasy/crime adventure that launched in 2019. Series creator Adam Vian was on-hand to talk us through the demo, as we explored the wreckage of a sunken vessel that has become the scene of a mysterious murder.
You can investigate beautiful pre-rendered environments, solve puzzles, and enjoy fabulous voice acting and animation in this twisted detective game.
The Mermaid Mask is set to launch later this year on PC and consoles, but exact platforms haven’t been specified just yet.
You should also check out…
With just a handful of hours to take in the show, there were plenty of brilliant-looking games that we didn’t get the chance to get our hands on. If you’re attending for the day or more, here are few more brilliant titles you should check out.
Pine Hearts
If you’re after a wholesome and cozy game to snuggle up with, then Pine Hearts from Hyper Luminal Games is for you. Traverse an adorable isometric open world that combines the structure of games like The Legend of Zelda and Dark Souls, but with a focus on brain-teasing puzzles instead of combat.
Luna Abyss
Luna Abyss is a truly stunning sci-fi first-person shooter from Bonsai Collective. The game transports players to a hellish otherworld that combines visual elements of Destiny, Doom, and Neon Genesis Evangelion in a potent cocktail of dread. You’ll need to have your wits about you if you want to survive this bullet hell action game.
Die by the Blade
This 1v1 melee fighter places players in a ‘samuraipunk’ world where they can fight for supremacy in tactical sword battles. The game is built around one-hit kills, so you’ll need some serious skill to come out on top.
We’ve barely scratched the surface of what WASD has to offer here. Head over to the official site to check out the full list of games on display, and grab your tickets to attend.