Epic Games offers free games Astrea: Six Sided Oracles and Mechabellum until October 1st

The Epic Games Store makes at least one free title available for download weekly. This week, the games Astrea: Six Sided Oracles and Mechabellum are available for free from September 24th to October 1st.

About Astrea: Six Sided Oracles

Astrea: Six Sided Oracles is a Brazilian independent game that presents a distinct approach within the roguelike genre, using dice instead of cards, as its name suggests. The game offers a wide range of dice that can impact only the player character, the adversaries, or both, with each character having its own characteristic dice.

The gameplay is described as simple and direct: the player defines their path and, during confrontations, rolls the dice each turn. This grants the player usable abilities at that moment, with potential for action sequences (combos). New dice can be obtained by progressing through the levels. The dice also introduce an element of risk, as they can cause damage to characters, but they offer substantial rewards, establishing a clear risk versus reward mechanic. Additionally, there are special abilities that are triggered when the character's health reaches predetermined levels.

Aesthetically, the game features attractive and striking art, although the intense use of blue and red tones can be tiring in prolonged sessions. Despite this, the visual style is considered interesting and dialogues well with the narrative, evoking an atmosphere of a dreamlike world, astral wizards, and distorted corruption.

For roguelike enthusiasts, especially those seeking challenges, Astrea: Six Sided Oracles is an excellent choice. Furthermore, it is a good option for those who appreciate independent games that bring innovations to their mechanics and gameplay.

About Mechabellum

Mechabellum is a real-time strategy game focused on giant robots. However, it differs from common titles in the genre by being an auto battler. In this format, the player must select and position their units each round, which advance and attack automatically in waves or hordes. Each unit has defined strengths and weaknesses, as well as various upgrades ranging from attribute increases to special abilities and distinct attack patterns.

Unit positioning is crucial for success in the game, giving it a highly strategic nature. With over twenty different units available, the game allows for great diversity of combinations each round. There are also reinforcements between rounds, allowing the player to summon special units or use unique abilities, such as missiles, fire, or oil on the ground, ensuring that each round is unique.

Although it has a single-player mode, it is not excessively complex, consisting of survival and challenge modes, which can be played cooperatively by two players. In the multiplayer aspect, the game offers 1v1, 2v2 modes, and a mode where four players compete against each other, presenting a wide variety of options while keeping the main focus on multiplayer.

Mechabellum is recommended for players who enjoy competitive games but want to avoid the conventional. It can also be an interesting alternative for those who appreciate strategy games in general, provided they have no objection to the auto battler format.

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olhardigital.com.brSeptember 17, 21:03

Epic Games Store offers free games: Mindcop and Shogun Showdown

The Epic Games Store makes at least one free title available for download weekly. This week, the games Mindcop and Shogun Showdown are available for download between September 17th and 24th.

Details about Mindcop

Mindcop is an independent 2D point-and-click game heavily inspired by film noir. It places the player in the role of a detective with the ability to access people's minds, blending investigation elements with surrealism. The objective is to solve a murder mystery within a five-day deadline, following the structure of traditional graphic adventures with fully two-dimensional movement.

A distinctive aspect of Mindcop is the time limitation. Unlike conventional point-and-click games where all interactions can be performed to progress, this game restricts the number of daily actions. Investigating a location or questioning someone consumes minutes; when time runs out, the day ends. This mechanic makes every decision crucial, as there is a real risk of losing clues, asking incorrect questions, and reaching wrong conclusions.

In the dream environment, the dynamic changes significantly. The detective must navigate the scene before the timer runs out, while colored mental projectiles hit the suspect's brain. This is where the puzzle element manifests: the player must rotate the brain to form color sequences horizontally, vertically, or diagonally. By achieving this, the character gains access to three doors—truth, uncertainty, and lie—each offering information that mixes memories, imagination, and dream visions, which the player must interpret.

Mindcop is recommended for those who appreciate investigative games with complex puzzles, provided they accept its cartoonish style and the absence of spoken dialogue, except in cinematic scenes. Fans of point-and-click and graphic adventures will find it an interesting and different alternative to the genre standard.

Features of Shogun Showdown

Shogun Showdown is another independent title with a unique premise. Initially, it follows the common roguelike format, requiring the player to choose a character and start a round. However, the difference emerges shortly after: each wave presents a grid board where the character moves, and their attacks and abilities are represented by cards. These cards can be upgraded or new ones can be obtained between waves, allowing different cards to be combined in each attack during combat.

Turn-based progression is vital in combat, allowing the player to distance themselves from opponents or swap positions, even causing enemies to attack each other. Although there is no exact time indicator for enemy attacks, there is a yellow warning that signals the correct moment to act or move. These elements recall games from the Megaman EXE series but differ by keeping all characters on the same board, adding a strategic layer.

Upon completing all waves of a phase, the player explores the map to initiate new confrontations or locate merchants and upgrades. The graphics adopt a pixel art style, which, despite being simple, is rich in detail, and enemies generally have fluid animations. However, the animations of playable characters tend to be more rigid, reflecting the vast number of distinct attacks and abilities each character can possess.

Shogun Showdown is a free game on Epic Games this week that should please independent game enthusiasts, particularly those who enjoy pixel art. It is also a good option for those who enjoy more accessible roguelikes, but which still demand quick planning and strategy.