What to play this weekend: an array of indie adventures to inspire

It’s the weekend, Watchers, and time for all of us to revel in games unplayed during the last week. We have three delightful (and distinct from each other) indie titles for your sampling this weekend, along with a wildly incredibly roguelike sale. Let’s dive in!

Release of the week: Thank Goodness You’re Here! (comedy)

Thank Goodness You’re Here is a hand-drawn comedic adventure (okay, “comedy slapformer”) set in a bizarre Northern English town; the title comes from the key phrase you’re greeted with by townspeople in need of assistance. You’re playing a traveling salesman who enjoys seeing the sights of new towns and meeting the locals, but the Barnsworth locals are happy to give you some increasingly odd jobs to complete as you progress your explorations. These jobs open up new areas of the town, along with even stranger tasks to complete.

Functionally, this has the standard side-scrolling action but exploration shifts the game into more of a top-down model and the title’s artwork is quirkily adorable. The jobs truly do get progressively weirder — cut the grass, bake a pie, traverse the astral plane. And yes, you are in fact going around slapping as your primary action.

Now, this does have an M (Mature 17+) rating from the ESRB, so it’s definitely not all wholesome fun. That said, critics have been rating it incredibly highly across the board — the lowest rating shown on Metacritic is a 70! When reviews are calling something the “new high watermark in a comedy game,” my interest is piqued.

Get Thank Goodness You’re Here for $19.99 for PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, PC on Steam or Epic Games Store, and Mac.

Cozy getaway: The Garden Path (genre)

The Garden Path is a cozy, relaxing slice-of-life sim set in your own lovely secret garden and meant to be picked up and played in small increments, celebrating the small moments! Delightfully, this is another successfully Kickstartered title, created by developer Louis Durrant (aka “carrotcake”).  The title uses a lovely muted palette to really enhance that chill vibe and has simple, relaxing activities — fishing, cultivating your garden, trading, and making new vegetable friends. It’s creating a space to “call your own, to cute, and to reflect” in this “wonderful and wistful adventure.”

Time moves uniquely in The Garden Path — it’s designed with short play sessions in mind, where you’ll knock out 10-30 minutes of daily errands, meeting visitors, and exploring. Time in the game runs in parallel to our own, set at whatever time of day you are currently in yourself (with a chance to permanently create an ‘offset’ in game). However, you’ll experience all four seasons in 28 real world days! Plenty of time to delight in the hand-drawn aesthetics and delightful cast of vegetable-headed visitors.

Get The Garden Path for $19.99 for Nintendo Switch and PC on Steam.

Community highlight: Dungeons of Hinterberg (adventure)

Thanks to Watcher Brainstrain for recommending this title and Coral Island in the comments on last week’s “What to Play”. While Coral Island is no longer on sale, Dungeons of Hinterberg caught my eye with its comic book animation style and rapid action. Set in the Austrian Alps, you are Luisa, a “burnt-out law trainee taking a break from her fast-paced corporate life to conquer the Dungeons of Hinterberg.” Wield magic along with your sword to brave the dungeons and solve fascinating puzzles to progress — combat is just as bright and dynamic as the comic book art style suggests! Stay for the friendships with the locals and other adventurers — not only for your enjoyment but to get stronger for future dungeon runs or learn new tricks. Who knows — maybe you’ll learn a little bit about yourself along the way.

Get Dungeons of Hinterberg for $29,99 for Xbox and PC on Steam.

Steal of a deal: One More Run — Roguelike Rampage sale

This week we have another sale to dive into, courtesy of Humble Bundle (and h/t to Phil Ulrich for pointing it out)! The One More Run: Roguelike Rampage sale has a range of discounts with over 200 games, DLCs, and bundles available from 20% all the way up to 95%. You will not find anything over $25 apiece on this list!

Just a few notables that caught my eye include:

• Dead Cells for $11.24 (55% off), plus four DLCs and two DLC bundles for 20-30% off apiece.
• Slay the Spire for $6.24 (75% off)
• Cult of the Lamb for $14.99 (40% off), plus three update packs for $3.74 (25% off) each)
• Loop Hero for $4.94 (67% off)
• Rogue Legacy for $2.99 (80% off)
• 13 different games available for 95% off!

Now, the majority of these titles are provided via Steam client, but you have to purchase them through the Humble Bundle site to get the sale price. The One More Run: Roguelike Rampage sale ends August 8 at 12:00 pm Central.

Now tell us, Watchers — what are you playing this weekend? Share in the comments below, and we’ll feature your new interest in next week’s round-up!