50

"UFO 50 is, in other words, a game that trusts you, the player, to find the fun—with the promise that there is a lot of fun to be found in this odd, massive toy chest. We should note that the game does have a few curation tools—if you scroll down to the bottom of the collection, you can filter games by whether they’re meant to be more reflex based, or cerebral, for instance, or focus in on the title’s large number of same-screen multiplayer games. (Breaking free of the chronology is a good idea in any case; although UFO 50 doesn’t pay as much attention to the “complexity increases as fictional time passes” conceit that powered Retro Game Challenge, you’ll still tend to find more robust experiences closer to the end of UFOSoft’s fictional lifespan.) We’re sure we’ll soon see a cottage industry of guides and wider critiques pointing out hidden gems buried in its library. But honestly, we recommend just doing what the game itself advises: Scroll through until you find a title that sounds cool, blow off the fictional dust, and take a gamble on the chance you’ll hit something that’ll be one of your favorite games of 2024."

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