As always, another month brings another set of games. As we approach the end of the year you’ll start to see more Steam Sales, more NextFest Demos dropping, and more reasons to stay inside where it’s warm, bust out your handhelds and drop some time into whatever game you can pick up, and in this case, it’s whatever game I can drop down for you.
So whether it’s falling blocks, hockey, or gambling your apartment away, you should hopefully be able to find something worth playing this time around.
Tape to Tape
First up is a Stubbs recommendation that was sent my way, but it’s a recent release known as Tape to Tape. Finally leaving early access, this is a Roguelite hockey game, where every choice you make can either make or break your team on the road to the championship.
Pick up abilities, teammates, and hopefully someone that’ll help you win along the way. If you’re looking for a way to play this; x86 and your Armada or GameNative-capable devices should make easy work of this game. And at $19.99, while it’s not the cheapest game on the list, it’ll definitely be one worth a try.
Crypt Custodian
Another $19.99 game on the list, but rather than be a stick swinging roguelite, you’re taking a look at a Crypt Cleaning Metroidvania styled game. Crypt Custodian is a really cool looking game where your goal is to clean up the afterlife as Pluto the Cat, and take out any of the beasts, and monsters that are ruining the afterlife for everyone else.
It’s a great exploration and discovery game, and if you’re looking for something to try out, this 2024 release is going to be a great option. Available on Steam, but playable all the way down to something like a Retroid Pocket Nova, this is another game worth taking a look at.
Tetrachroma
Time to go a little on the lower end in terms of cost. Tetrachroma is pretty close to exactly what you’d expect. A game about falling blocks where your goal is to complete and clear lines in an attempt to get the highest score you can.
While it may sound like Tetris off the bat, it’s also more than that, with color changing modes, big block modes, and a whole lot of confusion when getting around to filling in your lines. It’s a nice, simple $4.99 game that really fills that arcade mood with a neat art design and solid sound choices.
If you’re looking to try out a game on your lower-end Android devices, I can see this one being a solid option that way. This is one I’d highly recommend, it really deserves a bit more attention.
Luck Be a Landlord
Here’s a game that’s going to be everywhere really. Luck be a Landlord is another roguelike deckbuilder where rather than land on the chance of dice, mice, or rice you’re gambling your life savings away in the hopes to pay your rent and eventually decimate your landlord.
If you can collect all the tools you need, get past the birds and the bees into miners, ores, and fruit you might be able to make the money you need. It’s hopelessly addictive and worth the $9.99 easy.
This one’s everywhere because not only is it playable through GameNative, it’s also got a PortMaster port, and a port directly to Android. So if you want to pick something up and play it, give this 2023 release a look.
Over the Hill
Easily my favorite game on the list; Over the Hill is a relaxing single, or multiplayer game where your goal is simple; Explore. Drive a variety of 4×4 vehicles from past decades around a few genuinely beautifully designed maps in an attempt to find your cabin to rest in, find new trails to climb, and discover the beauty of nature, all with a lovely soundtrack radio to go with it. At $24.99, this is the most expensive game on the list at the moment, but if you have a friend to go driving with, I think you’ll find a lot of enjoyment out of this one.
You’ll be able to drop this one through Steam, and while I haven’t tested this one on Android, I imagine it’ll be about as playable as Funselektor’s other games like Art of Rally and Absolute Drift. I’ve put a good bit of time into this one already, and can’t wait to go back for more.
FixFox
Taking things back a notch, FixFox is an older game where you play as Vix; traveling space and exploring a number of different landscapes as you do your best to use unconventional means to repair the world around you.
You may find yourself falling into the storylines of others around you, but keeping your eyes forward, solving the mysteries, and fixing the problems around you just ends up being the goal. This is one worth checking out, and at $14.99, it’s worth the cost of entry.
And thanks to its pixelated artstyle, while it’s not going to have a portmaster release or an Android drop, you’ll find it easy to play over on your GameNative or Armada-capable devices.
Firewatch
This might be a Zu favorite, but Firewatch is a game I’ve come back to pretty regularly since its release back in 2016. Published by community favorite Panic, Firewatch is a singleplayer mystery game set out in the woods of Wyoming. With nothing but your wits and a handheld radio, all you’ve got is an inviting wilderness to walk through, and the constant threat of fire over the horizon.
This is one that, while you may have given this a try in the past, is worth giving another go in 2026. Playable through things down to GameNative, watching this game on a small, but vibrant OLED screen like that in the Odin 3 would likely be a great new way to play this game.
Gris
Probably both the oldest, and (one of) the more well known games on this list, Gris is an atmospheric game from 2018 with a great soundtrack and a story worth discovering. In a time where you’re dealing with a painful experience with life, the goal is simply to move forward, grow, and see life in a new way.
The game doesn’t have intense danger, or constant risk of death, but it retains that calm soothing atmosphere that you’ll sometimes just need to find for yourself. While it is a $14.99 game it does go on sale frequently enough that you could likely pick it up for much less later on in the year.
If you’re looking to play it on the go, its low barrier to entry means it’ll be accessible on practically any device through x86 and Android with GameNative. Past that, you can find it available on iOS but unfortunately Gris is not on Android at the time of writing. Though I hope that’ll change in the future.
Final Words
And that’s everything for the month of November. The goal is to always find something that brings you interest, but if November didn’t have anything, you can check out the last 48 recommendations I’ve put out between May and October.
Thanks to the never-ending stream of games entering my Steam Family library, I’m sure there’s going to be plenty to take a look at and plenty worth picking up. But for now, just pick up your handhelds, stay warm, and game.
