Bye, Bye August; Here Were Your Best Games

Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout

After coming out at the beginning of August, Fall Guys was a game that quickly took the internet by storm. It was the game to talk about on social media or to play on Twitch and for some people, it still is. And Season two has already been announced by the developers.

In essence, Fall Guys is rather simple with players competing against one another on various obstacle courses to advance to the next level. Going from A to B sounds simple enough but, while also dodging traps and obstacles, players need to deal with each other.

This PvP aspect can bring out the competitive side of a lot of people and some players will do anything to qualify for the next round or ultimately win the crown at the end of the game.

Fall Guys easily turns into a dangerous minefield every round and you don’t know who you can and can’t trust as you run by other players.

Mortal Shell

The resident Souls-like game for the month of August, Mortal Shell, adds its own twist to the genre with a few unique gameplay additions and tweaks.

With the title as a reference, players have the opportunity to inhabit dead bodies or “mortal shells” throughout the game. These shells each have their own skills, advantages, and disadvantages so you’re able to customize your playstyle and personal build a bit more than other Souls-like games.

Mortal Shell also does away with traditional shield blocking by replacing it with Hardening, an ability that literally allows you to turn to stone for a brief period of time. It also encourages players to explore and consume items to discover their uses and benefits.

As a Souls-like game, Mortal Shell is heavily inspired by the Dark Souls series. However, with many unique additions, Mortal Shell presents players with an interesting experience.

Microsoft Flight Simulator

Released back in early August, Microsoft Flight Simulator is weirdly and scarily realistic to the point that the game’s screenshots can be mistaken for real life. Since the map is a mirror of the real world, many areas you go through can seem eerily and creepily familiar. You can basically find your house if you try hard enough.

Since this is a flight simulator, you’ll be charting and manning planes going from place to place whether that’s Paris to Tokyo or Cape Town to some random city in Alaska –you might even find yourself in a dang hurricane.

You’ll need to do a bit of challenging work and maneuvering to have a successful flight. The learning curve might put a few people off but there’s a truly satisfying feeling when you see your plane take off into the sky.

The world is your oyster in Microsoft Flight Simulator and playing it will help you pretend that you’re out somewhere beautiful in the world.

Spiritfarer

An August game release, Spiritfarer manages to present the dark and dreary topic of death in a wholesome way that will have your heart twisting in your chest.

To say that Spiritfarer has an emotional story is an understatement.

You take control of the nice version of the Grim Reaper who needs to ferry various souls to the afterlife. I did say you’re the nice version so you regularly cook for these spirits and you can give them hugs when they’re feeling down.

You’ll easily love the colorful characters you’ll encounter and it’ll be a bittersweet experience every time you have to say goodbye to them.

In addition to the story, there’s plenty of activities to do to occupy your time. You can fish, cook, garden, build improvements to your ship, and play through various events that yield different rewards.

Spiritfarer will get you in your feels but in the best way possible. It’s a cozy representation of death and moving on and it’s a game that definitely deserves your attention.

Tell Me Why

Another emotional video game, Tell Me Why recently came out at the end of August. It bears many similarities to the Telltale Games and the Life is Strange series as it is an episodic game with a powerful narrative that presents players with difficult decisions they need to make throughout.

The story centers around two twins, Alyson and Tyler, who reunite after years apart to uncover the truth of their past. Both characters are complex and three dimension and you’ll easily come to like them as you see their personalities come out at different times in the story.

Heavy themes will be prevalent throughout and the game’s narrative will cleverly and intellectually present certain situations in a way that makes you think. I know that’s vague but no spoilers.

As an episodic game, Tell Me Why’s story will be spread throughout three parts. Luckily, we don’t need to wait too long to experience the full story.

PGA Tour 2K21

We’ll finish off this list of August’s best games with a bit of golf. PGA Tour 2K21 takes you through an in-depth golf experience that will quickly show you that you’re bad at the sport.

You have to pay attention to wind direction and speed, the power and orientation of your swing, the type of club you use, and the terrain your ball is under. There’s a bit of a learning curve here but it’s not enough to put people off entirely.

The best part of PGA Tour 2K21 is probably its colorful commentators who freely and sometimes meanly talk about how you’re playing. They’ll easily praise you to no end when you do great but the moment you do anything bad, they’ll quickly come for your life and soul.

Distantly snarky and passive-aggressive comments are casually thrown out by all of the commentators and their words will quickly define your golf career. Though, that’s honestly all a part of PGA Tour 2K21’s charm.