Everyone knows exoskeletons are the future of warfare. Call of Duty says so. But this game thinks they’re the saviour of the environment too. Valley [official site] is a first-person science-fiction adventure from the folks that horrified you with Slender: The Arrival. You’re dropped in a mysterious valley hidden among the Rockies and you are encased in the L.E.A.F. suit. This means you can run as fast as wild animals and leap over chasms in a single bound, as the trailer below shows. AND you can bring dead things back to life just by injecting them with a glowing life force (see blue deer above). But should you die and resurrect yourself>, the natural world dies too.

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Have You Played? is an endless stream of game retrospectives. One a day, every day of the year, perhaps for all time.>

I didn’t play it for long. The Sims Online was a mess.

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The Final Station [official site] is preparing for its maiden voyage on August 30. You’re the conductor of one of the last running trains after a zombie outbreak has ravaged the earth. Players chug through the wasted landscape, pistol in tow, collecting supplies and survivors, while making sure the undead don’t find a way to snack on your face in the process.

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I was planning to focus this week’s round-up of free games on a watercolour-based walking simulator with lots of flamingos, until I saw that Alice had already coochy-cooed over it. And now I have to write about another spaceship game. A bloody spaceship game in which you have to salvage the pieces of your enemy and click them onto your blocky, Frankenstein vessel and then go shoot things. Okay to be honest I forget why I was complaining.

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I’ve not managed to shoehorn it in anywhere else this week, so: isn’t Stranger Things> nice? Don’t play video games this weekend until you’ve seen it. And don’t watch this trailer if you think you might be tempted – I’m only linking this for the people with no intention of watching it, so they can make snap judgements. And definitely don’t look at this fab adventure game mockup until you’ve watched it (‘cos spoilers, yeah). But after you have, what will you be playing this weekend? Here’s what we’re clicking on:

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Vikings ho! The Great Whale Road [official site] has just launched on Steam Early Access. It’s Sunburned Games’ first project–a seafaring RPG based on Danish legend, in which you help a host of beardy warriors prepare for the impending winter months.

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“Space, the final place we haven’t fully explored.” That’s the tag line to popular television series Star Walks. But wouldn’t it be good if YOU could go to space too? Well, here comes Stable Orbit [official site], a new realistic space station simulation set in the years after the International Space Station has been decommissioned. You’ve got the role as station commander and you have to build a working, plausible and non-lethal spacehouse out of different modules and resources. Come watch the trailer and look at pretty pictures of our stinking, melting planet.

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Destroy everything you create, that’s my motto. Create it, enjoy it, examine strengths and flaws, destroy it before someone ruins or – worse – accepts it, then move on with what you’ve learned. I’m delighted to finally find a video game which understands me.

Defect: Spaceship Destruction Kit [official site] is a shoot ‘em up where you carefully design a ship you’ll love and adore, then crew will mutinity and you’ll need to build a whole new ship to defeat them. Over and over, build ships to destroy their predecessors. I dream of a ship able to destroy me. Point is, Defect has now launched.

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This is The Mechanic, where Alex Wiltshire invites developers to discuss the inner workings of their games. This time, Hyper Light Drifter [official site].

Hyper Light Drifter is a game about exploring mysterious ruins and killing the monsters that inhabit them with ferocity and precision. Whether you favour a slash-slash-shoot, a dash-slash-slash-dash, or any other combination thereof, combat is built on a holy trio of sword, gun and a dash move. The dash gets you into and out of scrapes in a moment, and the sword, with a wide slash that almost encompasses 180 degrees, is your trusty mainstay.

And the gun Being slow to fire, with limited shots and requiring careful aim, it might not seem it at first, but the gun is your most powerful asset. Its place in Hyper Light Drifter s arsenal is down to single and subtle design feature that keeps its relationship with the sword close and maintains a sense of its shots feeling both valuable and always available:

THE MECHANIC: Recharging ammo

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StarCraft Universe [official site], the free multiplayer RPG that has been built as a StarCraft II mod, is finally due to come out next month, after an eventful 5-year development. On top of that, the open beta is now live and can be played through the StarCraft II Arcade right now. You can even play with its free Starter Edition.

It’s been a strange ride for this not-quite-MMO, including legal scares, name changes and a Kickstarter. What’s all the fuss about? Come here and I’ll tell you.

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