@XenoShaun : Most of them look like low budget games with very little content, but there are obviously audiences that are into these extremely niche games otherwise they wouldn’t be made. There was one released a week or so ago called Shopping Mall Parking (?) Simulator which is probably the most oddly specific one yet!
The only such game I have bought was Truck and Logistics Simulator (which seemed like such a comically odd and specific concept), and when I found out that it was developed by a team of three people from Ankara, Turkey, I knew I HAD to buy it (as I am Turkish and would like to support my fellow countrymen where I can), particularly as they went through the trouble of issuing a physical release in Australia of all places.
While it’s rough around the edges and not exactly bursting with content, I was quite impressed by what a team of three could do, and I was quite happy with the game overall (having clocked in a little over 5 hours, which I don’t often do). I just wish that there was an in-game radio (or the option to listen to one’s own music via the microSD card) as that would have gone a long way in alleviating the game’s inherently monotonous design (such a low budget game wouldn’t have had the budget for licensed music, but surely licensing some Turkish pop tunes wouldn’t have been too costly ).
Would I clamour for more such games? Certainly not. But if the same developers produce another project in future, I’ll certainly keep an eye out to show my support.
@XenoShaun : Two Point Hospital is developed and/or produced by some of the Theme Hospital team from back in the day, so it’s definitely one of the better contemporaries in its genre. I loved playing it on Switch (and the many callbacks/similarities to Theme Hospital), but the plethora of DLC has definitely left a bad taste in my mouth, especially as the Jumbo Edition reissue STILL doesn’t give us the complete game in physical form (an unfortunate sign of the times). Furthermore, the latest updates have incorporated “in-game purchases” (with expansion levels showing up on the map with “Requires DLC to unlock” messages) which is among the most contemptible of modern industry practices.
I will consider double-dipping if they ever do release a complete physical edition, and while I have thoroughly enjoyed TPH, I will probably wait for Two Point Campus to be released in “complete” form (which probably won’t happen until 2025 ) before taking the plunge, as I am absolutely fed up with the practice of paid DLC, and owning incomplete “physical” releases that serve as glorified boot disks.
