Enlarge / The disks and diagrams Mike Brixius has to work with in finishing his 1984 CRPG project. (credit: YouTube/RavenWolf Retro Tech)

There are stories that some of us, at a certain stage of adulthood, should never hear. Not if we value our time or our storage space. I regret to inform you that Mike Brixius, on his RavenWolf Retro Tech channel, offers just such a story about his quest to finish his own Commodore 64 CRPG from 1984 . He's going to be able to do it, too, because he kept all the disks, tapes, notes, and hand-documented assembly code print-outs ever since his teenage project.

"It's one of those loose threads in my life that I deeply regret," Brixius says in his video. He hopes his Patreon supporters and YouTube community can give him the "moral support and accountability" he needs to complete his game after all these years.

Digital Dungeon Master ( DDM ) was based in part on the Avalon Hill tabletop games Brixius loved at the time, but more so on Avalon Hill's foray into dungeon-crawling RPGs, Telengard . Brixius wanted to recreate Telengard 's limited line of sight but add in a surface world, akin to that of another favorite of his, Ultima IV .

Paws and Claws, a pretty wholesome DLC for the fantastic and stylish Children of Morta has managed to raise a rather nice lump sum for charity.

"We have a piece of truly wonderful and heartwarming news for you today! The Paws and Claws charity DLC has proven to be a huge success and ever since its launch, we've been able to raise MORE than $130K for animals worldwide!" - Dead Mage & 11 bit studios

Not an essential DLC for the game by any measure, and it's a completely different experience to the main game overall. However, it's just so wonderful that you should probably buy it anyway. It adds in an animal shelter system, a herd of various animals to visit you, a new treats mechanic for animals, animal-related character boosts and quite a bit more. 100% of the proceeds of Paws and Claws goes to the Humane Society International (HSI) .

Watch video on YouTube.com

The developer confirmed the figure is PC platforms and Consoles combined for the total. Considering the low £2.99 / $3.99 / 3,99€ price - it means it's sold quite a number of copies.

You can buy Children of Morta from GOG , Humble Store and Steam . We can easily recommend it.

Oddventure is a crazy turn-based RPG about the misadventures of Charlie, a girl trapped in a cursed fairy-tale world.

We previously covered the launch of the Kickstarter, which at the time did not have a Linux build of the demo available. After asking the developer, they promptly put one up. As it turns out, it's using the open source Godot Engine too which we weren't aware of before! Wonderful to see more excellent looking games use it.

"Oddventure is a JRPG about the misadventures of Charlie - a nihilistic and rebellious teenage girl with anger issues and social awkwardness. Charlie searches for her troublesome brother Bonzo and ultimately for a way back home. The setting is the Kingdom of Luxia, a land straight from original Grimm Brothers’ fairy tales with a dark, Nietzschean twist."

Watch video on YouTube.com

One note: currently it seems the battle UI doesn't like the gamepad action button, so you need to use keyboard Spacebar. The developer has been made aware of this.

After playing the demo, I'm absolutely sold and decided to back it personally. It has some good quirky dark humour and an excellent style. Very intrigued to see the full game and I expect this to absolutely be a big hit when it releases in full later in 2022.

You can fund it on Kickstarter and follow on Steam . Download the new Linux demo from itch.io or Game Jolt .

Since it has already hit the goal, we've added it to our Crowdfunding Page .

Games about being homeless aren't new but they're still quite surprising when actually done well, and Hobo: Tough Life actually seems like a reasonably good experience. Note : key provided by the developer.

"Welcome to Praslav, a cold Central European city that grows even colder with the coming winter. Praslav is recovering from the political turmoil that followed the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Communist regime, which held the country in its iron grip for decades.

While most people eagerly awaited the coming of democracy and capitalism, some were unable to adapt to the new socio-economic climate. Soon they found themselves on the streets with nowhere to go.

You are one of those people."

Watch video on YouTube.com

A setting that's not particularly nice to explore but that's part of the point. For a lot of people, this is their actual life every day. Playing it for fun though feels a bit weird but video games have gone to much worse places. As rough a setting as it is, the game though is somewhat enthralling - partly because I've never experienced what these people go through, although I see it all the time even around my own area.

It seemingly has it all. A full skill system to level up, a big open world to explore, a lock picking mini-game to steal goods which drops your morale, use scratch-cards to try and win some change. Your mission is to survive, and build up your own shelter piece by piece. Your not some hero though, there's no special powers here, everything needs to be done with thought and consideration for your basic survival.

Seems it's hit a small fanbase on Steam with the most recent user reviews giving it a "Very Positive" rating.

The Linux version seems to run reasonable well, with it running mostly smoothly on Max settings but it does stutter here and there when entering new areas as it loads bits in. Overall though, perfectly playable. You can play it solo or online in co-op with friends.

You can buy Hobo: Tough Life on Steam .

After already being available on itch.io , the free teaser for Drova - Forsaken Kin is now available on Steam and it's been upgraded for the new release.

"Drova - Forsaken Kin is an Action Based RPG filled with handcrafted open world adventures inspired by the much renowned Gothic game series. A society has discovered the power of a dead empire: to capture the spirits that govern nature and rule over them instead. However, the anger of the remaining spirits divided them. Where will you stand?"

Watch video on YouTube.com

Features:

• Dynamic World
  Journey through a lovingly crafted world filled with danger and mysteries, and witness the lasting impact your actions will have on your environment.
• A Divided Society
  Become a part of an isolated society grown from the ashes of a dead empire. Where will you stand when ambitious factions plunge the world into chaos?
• The Spirits of Nature
  Explore nature and encounter the spirits that rule it. Seal them and learn to use their power for yourself. But be prepared for the consequences of their anger to change your world.

The full version is planned to release in 2023, with this teaser being a very early slice of what to expect. The developer mentioned plenty is still to be added, graphics will be upgraded before the full game and so on - all the usual you expect from an unfinished game. Definitely worth a go now though, especially with the intriguing combat mechanics.

Now that it's on Steam, even more people can try it out who missed it on itch, plus they said the teaser on Steam has some exclusive extra content. Check it out on Steam and itch.io .

Set in the Tangledeep universe and featuring a unique puzzle-battle system, Impact Gameworks have now properly revealed their new JRPG-inspired adventure Flowstone Saga.

Technically, it was already revealed under the name of Puzzle Explorers: A Tangledeep Story but sadly they had a failed crowdfunding attempt for it. So they went back, continued expanding it and providing free Alpha builds to anyone from their official site. Now it's back, bigger and better under the name Flowstone Saga. Check out the trailer below:

Watch video on YouTube.com

"Flowstone Saga is a 16-bit, JRPG-inspired adventure featuring an epic story, charming characters, stunning pixel art, and a unique puzzle battle system! Like our first title Tangledeep, we're combining everything we love about the finest SNES & PlayStation-era RPGs, and infusing it with modern sensibilities in a captivating, original world."

You can actually try it out right now, with Impact Gameworks continuing their full Linux support. Given how beautifully Tangledeep worked on Linux, and Linux builds of this game have been available for a while - we expect it to do quite well overall for Linux fans.

Features:

• Battle monsters in a truly unique puzzle-based arena! Using the power of falling blocks, you can attack, defend, and trigger magic effects to thwart everything from lowly Beewis and Cookie Ferrets to Craggans and Giant Axolotls.
• Immerse yourself in a grand story that begins with the discovery of an ancient power, and grows to encompass a continent-wide conflict
• Explore the islands of Ocean's End, search for treasure, gather resources, solve ancient puzzles, and unravel mysteries across dozens of handcrafted maps and dungeons
• Befriend charming characters, helping them to build the town of New Riverstone, learning their stories, and even buddying up for extra battle effects
• Customize your experience with multiple difficulty settings; enjoy a more relaxed, story-driven playthrough, OR push your puzzle & tactical skills to their limits
• Feast your eyes on lush, stunningly-detailed pixel art including huge monster sprites, gorgeous backgrounds, and expressive animations
• Rock out to an epic, adventurous soundtrack with over 50 songs, featuring live performances by world-class musicians

It's crowdfunding on Kickstarter with demo links, and against the $20,000 goal they've already managed nearly $7K in one day pledged - so it looks like it's going on to be a success.

Exploring a romantically wretched city as a strange alien creature, Aolta is a thoroughly weird casual experience for those of you who like games aimed at an adult / mature audience.

"Aolta is a casual RPG where you play as an eponymous alien who lives in a romantically wretched city. Sit back and enjoy the game world... relax at the night club, stroll down the streets and meet interesting creatures and discover their stories. You can find a job that suites your abilities or you can skip work and resort to foraging. Meet someone to love, become the lord of the local music industry, retire to another planet, and/or maybe get married."

Features:

• Discover many activities around the city which includes dancing, loitering, smoking, drinking, getting high and fighting in the pits.
• Romance up to six main characters and unlock their endings.
• Befriend dozens of other characters and learn their secrets.
• Collect spirits for your bottle city!
• Develop your character by working on your stats which allow you to survive and ultimately get what you want.
• Features several animated sexual scenarios.
• Unlock several endings, collections and achievements.
• Engaging music and atmosphere.

You can buy Aolta for $10 from itch.io .

This looks absolutely brilliant. Oddventure is an upcoming adventure RPG from Infamous Rabbit and Pineapple Works that follows a girl trapped in a cursed fairy-tale world.

"Oddventure is a JRPG about the misadventures of Charlie - a nihilistic and rebellious teenage girl with anger issues and social awkwardness. Charlie searches for her troublesome brother Bonzo and ultimately for a way back home. The setting is the Kingdom of Luxia, a land straight from original Grimm Brothers’ fairy tales with a dark, Nietzschean twist."

Watch video on YouTube.com

It's currently crowdfunding on Kickstarter, with a goal of €20,000 they need to hit by June 5. I'll be massively surprised if something that looks this good doesn't get funded. Looks like it's off to a good start with over €3,000 pledged less than an hour after launch. For Linux fans, it's good news too as they're supporting "PC (Windows, Mac & Linux) and Nintendo Switch" with it being "actively developing and testing the game on all platforms".

Features:

• Meaningful choices – EVERY decision matters, sometimes in the most unpredictable ways.
• The friendly RPG where nobody has to die... but can. In a horrible way.
• Unique and EMOTIONAL turn based combat system with cursed-image-like enemies.
• Countless hidden secrets, references to pop culture and fairy tales.
• MEDIEVAL FURRIES?!
• Frog milk as a currency.
• Bitter-sweet comedy mixed with some coziness and dark humor.
• Dope and climatic OST.
• A life changing gaming experience.

You can fund it on Kickstarter and follow on Steam .

For The King: Lost Civilization Adventure Pack is the first ever expansion to For The King, a challenging blend of Strategy, JRPG styled combat, and roguelike elements.

Released originally back in 2018, For The King is actually really good and its certainly a game that deserved to have a whole lot more content to play through. Popular too, as they confirmed they've now seen over 3 million players (although that is across all platforms).

"This hard-as-nails fantasy experience melds challenging turn-based combat, deep roleplaying game progression and procedurally generated maps, quests and events to ensure no playthrough is the same. This potent gameplay mix is matched with a captivating artstyle and options for players to tackle the campaign on their own or in co-op with friends."

This Lost Civilization Adventure Pack gives you a brand new Jungle Falls zone, two new playable character classes and lots more. Check out the trailer below:

Watch video on YouTube.com

What to expect from it:

• Explore the lost Jungle Falls Realm - A lush jungle forest beckons adventurers to explore its dense wood, but what dangers lurk under its thick mysterious canopy?
• Two New Playable Characters - Go on the offensive with the glory-seeking Gladiator or harness dark energy from the heavens with the wise Astronomer!
• Spectacular Arena Battles - For Glory! Defeat waves of enemies before a cheering crowd in the new gladiator arenas.
• New Weapons - Throw caution to the wind with devastating dual-wield weapons or gamble on the destructive power of the versatile wands.
• New Enemies and Loot - More than 90 new items closely guarded by over 50 new enemies. From giant snakes to petrifying golems, the rewards are great but the stakes are even higher.

You can pick up a copy from Humble Store or Steam , the Linux version is not on GOG .