Paul Allen
Irish tech entrepreneur based in Johor Bahru, Malaysia. 25+ years of gaming. No publisher relationships. Independent research, commentary and game recommendations. The voice is direct and occasionally angry when anger is warranted. The reader is someone who has been gaming long enough to be tired of being marketed at. Not a review outlet performing for publishers. Not a news site chasing clicks. A person with opinions about games, writing for other people with opinions about games.
83 articles published · LinkedIn
Free Horror Games on Steam: Five Complete Experiences
Five free Steam horror games with complete stories. Compare what you get, optional extras and content warnings, with dated Steam review data.
26 Oct 2026 · 6 min
What a Four-Player Horror Night Costs on Steam
We compare the cost of four base-game copies across six co-op horror picks, using dated US Steam observations and clear party-size caveats.
26 Oct 2026 · 6 min
19 Horror Picks Under $10: What Our Steam Data Shows
A dated sample of 50 horror-related games reveals 19 paid picks below $10. We separate discounts, regular prices and the limits of review percentages.
26 Oct 2026 · 6 min
EA Killed BioWare. They Just Did It Slowly.
EA shut down BioWare on October 21, 2026 and cancelled Mass Effect 5. But this was not a sudden decision. The numbers have been telling this story since 2017.
22 Oct 2026 · 11 min
Silver Pines Review: One of the Best Horror Games of 2026
A survival horror Metroidvania that gates its world correctly. Dark areas you cannot navigate yet, boarded doors you cannot open yet, puzzles you cannot finish yet. Silver Pines makes you want to keep playing.
13 Oct 2026 · 10 min
The Amnesia Custom Stories That Are Better Than Most Commercial Horror Games
Hundreds of fan-made Amnesia: The Dark Descent custom stories exist. Most are forgettable. These eight are not. A 2026 editorial guide to the best the community ever built.
9 Oct 2026 · 14 min
I Tried Project Zomboid in First Person. I'm NOT Going Back.
Project Zomboid in first person is somehow even better. Project Viewpoint is free, works with Build 42, and completely changes how the game feels. I'm not reinstalling without it.
5 Oct 2026 · 10 min
Emberville Build Guide: Classes, Weapons, Every Choice Compared
Every Emberville class, weapon and profession choice compared before Early Access opens October 27, with provisional verdicts and a day-one test plan.
4 Oct 2026 · 22 min
20 Indie Horror Games Beyond the Usual Recommendations
From Cry of Fear and Yume Nikki to FAITH and Home Safety Hotline: a focused guide to stranger, smaller horror games and the compromises that come with them.
21 Sept 2026 · 17 min
Emberville Has Diablo's Combat and Stardew's Heart. It's AWESOME.
Cygnus Cross's debut Early Access ARPG hides a genuinely good hour behind a character creator full of dad-tier haircuts. The Prologue Demo is out now. Early Access lands October 27.
18 Sept 2026 · 4 min
FFS! Blizzard Killed StarCraft. The FPS Trailer Proves It.
Blizzard announced a new StarCraft at BlizzCon 2026. It's an open-world shooter, it's coming in 2030, and the RTS that actually built this franchise didn't get a single mention.
15 Sept 2026 · 8 min
26 Cheap Steam Games Under $10, Plus a Sale Watchlist
26 Steam recommendations with regular US prices below $10, plus three former budget picks now separated into a sale watchlist. Prices checked in October 2026.
14 Sept 2026 · 12 min
45 Free Steam Games: What You Can Play Without Paying
Compare complete free games with free-to-play worlds and their paid extras. Clear access limits, dated Steam scores and no free-chapter games disguised as full releases.
14 Sept 2026 · 20 min
Best Indie Games of 2026 So Far, RANKED as They Drop
Mina the Hollower, Mewgenics, Slay the Spire 2, Cairn, and more. A genuinely ranked list of the best indie games of 2026, updated as the year goes on. No algorithm, no PR, just one person reading what players actually say.
9 Sept 2026 · 10 min
Onimusha Way of the Sword Build Guide: All Armaments, Full Skill Tree
All seven Oni Armaments ranked, the katana skill tree explained, and why your Oni Stones matter more than your Red Souls. The complete build guide for Onimusha: Way of the Sword.
7 Sept 2026 · 5 min
Onimusha: Way of the Sword. Capcom ACTUALLY Got This One Right.
Twenty years dormant, a demo that got roasted for being too easy, and a publisher with a genuinely rough recent track record on monetization. Onimusha: Way of the Sword shouldn't work this well. It does.
7 Sept 2026 · 10 min
Gamescom Let Indie Devs Get Robbed. Then Blamed Them. SHAME!
Multiple indie studios had hardware stolen from their Gamescom 2026 booths, including demo builds and company data. Gamescom's first response was to point at the terms and conditions. CD Projekt Red did more for the victims than the organizers whose actual job was security.
7 Sept 2026 · 5 min
Subnautica 2 Vehicles Guide: Playable Now vs. Just Confirmed
Every Subnautica 2 vehicles guide online mixes together what you can actually build today with what's merely confirmed for a future update. Here's the real, current roster: the Tadpole, its two working chassis, and exactly what the Trident and Seafrog Chassis actually are right now. Not craftable.
23 Aug 2026 · 7 min
How Long to Beat Windrose: 8-15 Hours Solo, 4-6 Co-op (Early Access)
Windrose's Steam page lists 50-70 hours, but that's for the full 1.0 release, not what exists right now. Here's how long the current Early Access build actually takes, by playstyle.
23 Aug 2026 · 7 min
Windrose Crafting Guide: Station Order, Materials, What to Prioritise
The confirmed station build order, exact material costs where documented, and the one loot sink that pays back 100% of your materials. Windrose gates crafting behind biome tiers. Here's the actual progression.
23 Aug 2026 · 6 min
Windrose Co-op Guide: Hosting, Crew Setup, and What Carries Over
Up to 4 players is the real sweet spot, not the official cap of 8. How to host, what carries over between worlds, why Shared Quest Progress matters more than anything else, and the crossplay claim that doesn't hold up to scrutiny.
23 Aug 2026 · 6 min
Windrose Talent Tree Guide: All Branches and the Level 10 Commitment
14 talent points across three branches, and the level 10 commitment point that locks in your build direction. What each branch does, when to commit, and why older guides describe a completely different system.
23 Aug 2026 · 6 min
Windrose XP Guide: The Mechanic the Game NEVER Explains
Enemy kills give zero XP in Windrose, and the game doesn't flag it anywhere. Exact XP values for Journal quests and Site Clears by biome, the correct first-session sequence, and why some players take 30+ hours to reach level 15 while others do it in 8.
23 Aug 2026 · 6 min
Windrose Best Ships Guide: Every Hull Ranked and Compared
Nine buildable ships across three classes and three variants. Full stats, unlock costs, and an honest look at the one real disagreement in the community: Brethren Frigate for raw tankiness, or Blackbeard Frigate for speed and firepower.
23 Aug 2026 · 6 min
Windrose Beginner Guide: What the Game Doesn't Tell You
Windrose doesn't flag its single most important mechanic anywhere in the tutorial: enemy kills give zero XP. Here's what actually progresses you, the four difficulty modes explained, and the first-hour priorities that save you from wasted time.
23 Aug 2026 · 6 min
Windrose Roadmap: What's Confirmed, What Shipped, What's Still Rumour
The complete, ongoing story of Windrose's Early Access roadmap. The studio's full origin story, every controversy, every patch, what's confirmed for Ashlands, and links to every system guide. Updated as the game updates, not tied to a year.
23 Aug 2026 · 25 min
Frogwares Built This in Kyiv Under 85,183 Air Raid Sirens. Buy It.
Frogwares built this game in Kyiv between 2023 and 2026, while their country was being invaded. It launched today at 95% Very Positive on Steam. Here's the studio's story and the game itself.
18 Aug 2026 · 8 min
Supermassive Put Diversity Over Story. The Numbers Had a Response.
Up to 75 more jobs cut. The director went on record calling the diverse cast a deliberate value, not an incidental one. The game landed Mixed on Steam and barely cracked 3,000 concurrent players. Here's the full timeline.
18 Aug 2026 · 10 min
Subnautica 2 Early Access: How Much Is ACTUALLY in the Game? (2026)
Subnautica 2 has been in early access for seven weeks. Vehicles, biomes, maximum depth, the no-weapons controversy, how it compares to Subnautica 1, and whether to buy it now.
1 Jul 2026 · 21 min
Gaming Needs a New Category. The Industry Is Too SCARED to Create It.
Expedition 33 won Best Indie Game with 412 credits and $10M budget. Balatro was one person. They should not share a category. The AA label needs to exist.
25 May 2026 · 10 min
How Mixtape Got a 10/10 With Only 285 Players - It's not even a game!
IGN gave Mixtape a 10/10. 285 people were playing it three weeks later. Press kit nobody disclosed, the review mechanism, and the Ellison connection.
25 May 2026 · 17 min
Best Horror Games on Steam Under $15: No Filler, All Worth It
Horror does not need a AAA budget, and this list is the proof. Some of the most disturbing games ever made cost less than a cinema ticket. Amnesia, Mouthwashing, SOMA, Outlast, FNAF, Doki Doki: these are the best horror games on Steam under $15, with honest notes on what makes each one worth your money.
14 May 2026 · 5 min
Best Deck-Building Games on Steam: The Ones That Hold Up
Balatro won Game of the Year. Slay the Spire invented a genre. Inscryption broke every rule about what a deck-builder could be. These are the best deck-building games on Steam right now: honest about what makes each one worth your time and who each one is for.
14 May 2026 · 5 min
Best Roguelikes for Beginners: Choose Your Kind of Challenge
Compare five Steam roguelikes by controls, permanent progress, difficulty options and the cost of failure. A practical starting point for new players.
14 May 2026 · 8 min
Best Indie Metroidvania Games on Steam 2026, RANKED
Hollow Knight redefined what a Metroidvania could be. Nine Sols pushed the genre into new territory. Ori made you feel things you did not expect. These are the best indie Metroidvania games on Steam right now: verified, ranked, and brutally honest about difficulty.
14 May 2026 · 5 min
Best Co-op Horror Games on Steam: Players, Prices and Picks
Compare co-op horror games by party size, price and play style, with a two-player section covering private groups, progression and the cost of two copies.
14 May 2026 · 11 min
How Sony WASTED $1 Billion on Bungie
PlayStation reported a $765 million impairment loss on Bungie in 2026, on top of a $204 million write-down the year before. Nearly a billion dollars in 18 months. Bad games, studio politics, a talent exodus, and a pitch Sony should never have believed.
14 May 2026 · 10 min
Mixtape: 79% on Steam, 66% From English Speakers
Mixtape has an 86 on Metacritic and 285 concurrent players. English speakers rate it 66% positive. The data behind 2026's biggest review score controversy.
13 May 2026 · 8 min
Forza Horizon 6 Leaked. Microsoft's Response Was an 8,000-Year Ban.
Forza Horizon 6 leaked on Steam without encryption ten days before its May 19 launch. One player got hardware-banned until December 31, 9999. Playground Games says it wasn't a preload issue, meaning someone with early access leaked it. That detail is more interesting than the ban.
13 May 2026 · 8 min
GTA 6: Everything We Know. And Why November 19 Feels Like a Lie.
GTA 6 launches November 19, 2026. Two trailers. Seventy official screenshots. Zero gameplay footage. Zero price. Zero PC date. Zero Trailer 3. The most anticipated game in history is six months from launch and Rockstar has gone completely silent. Here's everything confirmed, everything speculated, and why the silence is starting to feel deliberate.
6 May 2026 · 12 min
KARMA: The Dark World Got a 72 on Metacritic. It Deserved Better.
Critics gave KARMA: The Dark World a 72 on Metacritic. They were wrong. Pollard Studio's first-person psychological thriller set in alternate 1984 East Germany is a genuinely extraordinary piece of work. The most beautiful horror game I've played, with a story that earns every one of its surreal moments.
4 May 2026 · 8 min
Poppy Playtime Chapter 5 Hit 275K Sales. - I'm Tired Boss...
Poppy Playtime Chapter 5 broke every record the franchise had set, hit number one on Steam, and ended on another cliffhanger. It's also 3-5 hours long and costs $20. With Chapter 6 already confirmed and a film adaptation in development, it's worth asking how many more of these we're actually going to get.
4 May 2026 · 8 min
ARC Raiders Just Did a Helldivers 2. The Industry NEVER Learns.
ARC Raiders dropped to Mixed overnight after the Riven Tides update. Players called it the Helldivers 2 playbook: nerfs disguised as buffs, a community that trusted the devs, and a studio that squandered it. Same mistake. Second time.
4 May 2026 · 8 min
Nintendo Switch 2 Broke Every Launch Record. Now It's in Trouble.
The Nintendo Switch 2 broke every launch record in gaming history. Then Nintendo cut production by 33%, sued the US government over tariffs, and floated another price hike. Here's what happened.
4 May 2026 · 8 min
Krafton's CEO Used ChatGPT to Cheat Devs Out of $250M. A Court Agreed.
Krafton's CEO used ChatGPT to scheme his way out of a $250 million bonus owed to the original Subnautica developers. A Delaware court ruled it fraud. The full story, with citations from the court record.
4 May 2026 · 10 min
Saudi Arabia Just Bought EA for $55 Billion. Here's What Happens Next.
The Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia is acquiring EA for $55 billion. They've done this before with Scopely. Here's what the track record actually shows, and what it means for Battlefield, The Sims, Mass Effect, and Dragon Age.
4 May 2026 · 9 min
WOKE Sony Replaces Male Leads and Wonders Why Numbers Drop
The God of War Faye spinoff rumour isn't the issue. The issue is a pattern Sony keeps repeating: take a beloved male character, sideline him, and act surprised when gamers notice. Here's the track record.
1 May 2026 · 9 min
Crimson Desert Is Game of the Year 2026. The Patches Sealed It.
Pearl Abyss launched their first single-player game to mixed reviews in March. Five million copies and six major patches later, Crimson Desert is the best open-world game of the year. Here's what changed.
1 May 2026 · 8 min
Windrose Is the Pirate Survival Game of 2026
Kraken Express launched their first game into Early Access and 222,000 people showed up on the same weekend. Here's why Windrose is the survival-crafting game of 2026 and what it gets wrong.
1 May 2026 · 9 min
Xbox Raised Game Pass 50% and Got TORCHED. Now They're 'Sorry.'
Microsoft raised Game Pass Ultimate from $20 to $30 in October 2025. Six months later, new CEO Asha Sharma admitted it was too expensive and rolled it back. This is not a pivot. This is a company getting caught.
1 May 2026 · 9 min
Pragmata Made Men Want to Be Dads. Critics Hate It.
Capcom's Pragmata is one of the best games of 2026. It also made a lot of male gamers feel something unexpectedly wholesome. The discourse that followed says more about the critics than the players.
1 May 2026 · 8 min
Hollow Knight Is One of the GREATEST Games Ever Made. Here's Why.
Two developers, AU$57k, 40 hours of content. Hollow Knight is the definitive argument that constraints produce better games than budgets. Here is why.
24 Apr 2026 · 8 min
Destiny 2 Is the Most PREDATORY Game Ever Made
Bungie built the FPS genre twice. Then they spent a decade building a slot machine. Destiny 2 is the most sophisticated psychological manipulation engine in gaming, disguised as a loot shooter.
24 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Hades Is NOT a Roguelike. Calling It One Misses the Point.
Hades is the most acclaimed roguelike of the last decade. It is also not really a roguelike in any meaningful sense. The distinction matters because it explains why nothing else can replicate what Supergiant built.
24 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Game Pass Killed the Mid-Budget Game. Microsoft Doesn't Give a F*ck.
Hi-Fi RUSH won every award. Microsoft shut down the studio that made it eight months later. This is not a coincidence. It is what Game Pass does to the games that don't generate subscriptions.
24 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Darkwood Is the Most UNDERPLAYED Horror Game of the Last Decade
Acid Wizard Studio built the best top-down survival horror game ever made in 2017. It sold modestly, got decent reviews, and just about nobody talks about it. That needs to change.
24 Apr 2026 · 10 min
Dead Space: How EA DELIBERATELY Killed a Franchise
Dead Space was a successful horror franchise. EA added co-op, microtransactions, and action set pieces. Sales declined. EA closed the studio. The IP sat unused for six years. This is the story of how publishers destroy their own franchises.
24 Apr 2026 · 10 min
Redfall: How Microsoft Forced Arkane to Make the Worst Game of 2023
Arkane Austin made Prey. One of the best immersive sims ever created. Then Microsoft told them to make a live service co-op shooter. The result was predictable to everyone except the people making the decision.
24 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Anthem: How EA BURNED BioWare to the Ground
Anthem was not just a bad game. It was the visible symptom of EA systematically destroying the studio that made Mass Effect and Dragon Age. The full story is worse than you think.
24 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Skull and Bones Cost $750 Million. The Result Was a 58 Metacritic.
$750 million. Seven years. A 58 Metacritic. Skull and Bones is the most expensive lesson in what happens when no one is allowed to say no.
23 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Cyberpunk 2077's Launch Was FRAUD, Not a Mistake
CD Projekt Red knew Cyberpunk was broken on consoles before launch. They hid review copies. They took the money. Not a mistake. FRAUD.
23 Apr 2026 · 11 min
10 Games From 2024 That Nobody Talked About
2024 was dominated by Black Myth: Wukong and Elden Ring DLC headlines. Meanwhile, ten genuinely exceptional games came out and just about nobody covered them properly.
23 Apr 2026 · 6 min
10 Horror Games on Steam That Will ACTUALLY Disturb You
Not jump scares. Not gore. Psychological horror, the kind that gets inside your head and stays there. These are the 10 best psychological horror games on Steam.
23 Apr 2026 · 6 min
10 Indie Games Under $15, Plus Sale Picks and a Watchlist
Ten Steam indies under $15 at regular US prices, three observed sale picks and a separate watchlist. Compare play styles before spending.
23 Apr 2026 · 8 min
60 Best Horror Games on Steam: Find Your Next Scare
Compare horror games by atmosphere, combat and group play. Clear starting points, dated Steam data and recommendations for different kinds of fear.
23 Apr 2026 · 44 min
Fear and Hunger: The Most Important Horror RPG Nobody Plays
Miro Haverinen made a horror RPG in RPG Maker that goes to places no commercial game would be allowed to go. Fear & Hunger is not for everyone. It might be the most honest horror game ever made.
23 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Outlast Proves Jump Scares Are the LOWEST Form of Horror
Red Barrels built one of the most oppressive horror environments ever put in a game. Then they filled it with jump scares. Outlast is a fascinating case study in a developer who understood atmosphere completely and narrative horror barely at all.
23 Apr 2026 · 10 min
The Elden Ring Difficulty Discourse Is Exhausting. Everyone Is WRONG.
Every time FromSoftware releases a game, the internet spends two weeks arguing about whether it should have an easy mode. Both sides of this argument are tedious. Here's the actual take.
23 Apr 2026 · 10 min
The Last of Us Part II Is Better. The 2020 Backlash Was EMBARRASSING.
The Last of Us Part II is a more ambitious, more technically accomplished, and more thematically complex game than the original. The online backlash against it in 2020 was one of the ugliest things gaming has produced.
23 Apr 2026 · 9 min
The Witcher 3 Is OVERRATED. There, I Said It.
The Witcher 3 is not the greatest RPG ever made. It is a very good open world game buried under 100 hours of filler, a mediocre combat system, and a fanbase that will not hear a word against it.
23 Apr 2026 · 8 min
Darkest Dungeon Changed How Horror Works. Nobody Gave It Credit.
Red Hook Studios built a roguelike in 2016 that understood something most horror games still don't: the scariest thing is not the monster in the room. It's watching your own people break.
23 Apr 2026 · 9 min
Disco Elysium Is the ONLY RPG That Treats You Like an Adult
Disco Elysium lets you fail to the truth, play a fascist, drink into a coma. The only RPG that trusts players to make genuinely bad decisions.
23 Apr 2026 · 11 min
Signalis Is the BEST Horror Game of the Decade
Two developers. Resident Evil structure. Silent Hill atmosphere. Evangelion existentialism. Signalis shouldn't work. It does.
23 Apr 2026 · 9 min
SOMA Is the SCARIEST Sci-Fi Game Ever Made. Shat my Pants!
Frictional Games followed Amnesia with something worse. A horror game that gets inside your head philosophically and never lets go. SOMA asks questions about consciousness that will haunt you past the credits.
23 Apr 2026 · 10 min
Amnesia: The Dark Descent Is Still the BEST Horror Game Ever Made
Fourteen years old. Still terrifying. The reason every indie horror game since 2010 exists. Here's why Amnesia remains the benchmark nobody has matched.
23 Apr 2026 · 10 min
Cozy Games Are Exploding. Gamers Are DONE With AAA Stress.
The average gamer is in their mid-30s. They have jobs, families, and limited time. Cozy games exist for them. Here's why the genre is exploding and what it means for indie developers.
17 Apr 2026 · 8 min
Ubisoft's Collapse: Every Bad Decision Since 2020, DOCUMENTED
Every bad Ubisoft decision between 2020 and 2026 in order. Skull and Bones, NFTs, the open-world formula calcifying, an executive layer that kept growing.
17 Apr 2026 · 9 min
How to ACTUALLY Find Good Indie Games on Steam
Steam publishes 14,000+ games per year. The algorithm is built for engagement, not quality. Here's the system that ACTUALLY works.
17 Apr 2026 · 5 min
EA Killed Another Studio. Let's Talk About WHY.
EA has a documented, decades-long pattern of acquiring beloved studios and closing them when the numbers don't work. This isn't incompetence. It's the model.
17 Apr 2026 · 8 min
Best Roguelikes on Steam: Choose by Play Style
Action, deckbuilding, tactical decisions or permanent progression: compare the roguelikes and roguelites that fit the way you want to play.
17 Apr 2026 · 13 min
Balatro Was Made by ONE Person. That's Still Insane.
One developer, 2.5 years, expected ten sales. Balatro sold 5 million. Why solo-dev constraints produce better games than hundred-person studio budgets.
17 Apr 2026 · 11 min
AAA Is Collapsing. And IDGAF.
EA, Ubisoft, and Microsoft closed 30+ studios since 2020. The machine is breaking. The games getting better because of it aren't coming from publishers.
17 Apr 2026 · 8 min
50 Best Indie Games of 2025 Nobody Covered Properly
A genuinely ranked list of the best indie games from 2025. No algorithm, no PR, just one person who played them and has opinions.
17 Apr 2026 · 7 min