For every game like Elden Ring that smashes the doors off sales records and gets the gaming world abuzz, there are dozens of smaller games that don't make quite as big of a splash. Here in the sl
For every game like Elden Ring that smashes the doors off sales records and gets the gaming world abuzz, there are dozens of smaller games that don’t make quite as big of a splash. Here in the sluggish summer months, which you might call The Lands Between in terms of big game releases, it’s a good time to look back at the first half of the year and see what hidden gems you might have missed.
Below you’ll find five games that flew beneath that radar but are still well worth your time. There’s a wonderfully funny FMV game, an immersive sim from veteran developers, a couple of puzzle games (one that will make you laugh and one that will absolutely do your head in), and a sim that’ll make you believe running a collectible card shop is sexy as hell.
Here are 5 hidden gems from the first half of 2022.
Not for Broadcast
Release date: January 25
2022 kicked off in a bizarre way if you played this FMV television studio simulator. And if you didn’t, you owe it a look now. In Not for Broadcast you’re a custodian at a TV studio who makes the mistake of answering a ringing phone, and now you’re in charge of deciding what viewers across the country see and don’t see when they turn on their televisions. On the fly you manage different news feeds, switch to commercials, keep the camera on live broadcasters, cut to different angles, attempt to bleep swear words, and eventually start making decisions on how much propaganda to feed the rapt television audience.
While it sounds like it could hit a bit heavy with social commentary, Not for Broadcast is far more silly and slapstick than serious, though it does satirize issues like wealth, political parties, the police, and even the pandemic (though in this game the lockdown is due to killer toy robots). The writing and performances are sharp and there’s lots of laughs as you struggle to keep viewers from changing the channel.
