Steam has grown into one of the biggest repositories of visual novels anywhere.

The genre, defined as choose-your-own-adventure novels with art (and sometimes) gameplay attached, has been the realm of mainly anime-centric romance games but is growing into a more diverse and less x-rated genre thanks to the efforts of smaller studios who see the low-budget means of telling great stories as the perfect medium for their ideas.

"Arcadia Fallen" is a crowdfunded visual novel from Galdra Studios.

It provides all the elements you'd expect of the genre — multiple choices, romance options, and branching paths depending on these decisions — but throws in a unique puzzle aspect for combat and crafting.

At the start, you get to create your character from a limited selection of options then are thrust into a fantasy world where you take the reigns as an alchemist's apprentice. In a world suspicious of mages and magic, you're not treated exceptionally well by fellow townsfolk.

And after your soul gets bound to that of a pink-haired demon, things only get crazier as our little villager becomes wrapped up in a battle against demons.

As far as the story and characters go, they both rely heavily on tropes of anime and Hero's Journey style fantasy.

The idea is that you get to make the choices that affect who these characters are to you and where the story goes. "Arcadia Fallen," as opposed to competitors, is very forgiving in the choices you make, and there is no "Bad End" — the ominous finale that lurks in plenty of visual novels and can ruin a 30-hour investment in a story.

On top of the endings not faulting the player for making the "wrong" choices, the game actively announces when a significant decision is afoot and how it can affect your relationships.

Many may find these big, bold warnings to be immersion-breaking hand-holding. Still, I appreciated the accessibility, mainly because the more I played this, the more I thought "Arcadia Fallen" was the perfect entry-point visual novel for a teenager or a fan of Young Adult Fantasy.

Another point in that favor is the inclusivity, which the game developers proudly point to. In a genre dominated by male-centric dating fantasies, it's nice to see a game that allows anyone to insert themself into the story regardless of gender or race.

And regardless of your chosen gender, you can have a romantic moment with any of the characters who are a romance option. Thankfully, these are tastefully done and cuter than anything else.

The story is wrapped up in a nice-looking package that reminded me of the animation of current young adult cartoon favorites like Netflix's "She-Ra."

I invested more in the puzzle segments than the actual story and pined for them through longer dialogue sections. The early puzzles slowly ease you into what increasingly become more and more complex challenges.

It's all based around a trio of circles that connect as a central circle.

You have to spin the four circles to create patterns or match colors. I appreciate the simplicity of the idea and how well it's executed.

If you're in the mood for a character-centric and inoffensive slice of feel-good fantasy gaming, "Arcadia Fallen" won't disappoint.

The ample choices, the familiar but enjoyable story, the character interactions, and of course, the puzzles all come together to make a unique and infinitely replayable experience. Though I will admit that I wasn't wholly invested in the entirety of the 9-ish hour first run of the story, I can easily see this appealing to fans of modern YA.

The publisher provided a copy for review. Currently available on Steam, soon available for Nintendo Switch.

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Sean Newgent at KGUN first reported this story.

The pandemic has turned even more people into gamers. About one in three people worldwide play video games, according to the Entertainment Software Association.

But it’s more than just fun.

“And we've been able to make sure that we were producing things that not only brought people together in ways that made them enjoy the games, but connected them to each other because today 65% of people in America who play games play with other people,” said Stanley Pierre-Louis, President and CEO of the Entertainment Software Association.

Video game popularity was already on the rise before COVID-19, supporting more than 425,000 jobs directly and indirectly related to the industry last year.

It generated more than 90 billion in economic output, according to the Entertainment Software Association impact report.

It includes jobs in engineering, coding, video game design, storyline and even professional players.

“What that's meant is that within schools, you now have esports scholarships and in fact there are over 200 varsity sports programs around the nation, creating new opportunities for people to play professionally,” said Pierre-Louis.

Education and jobs related to gaming can also lead to other opportunities outside the industry. The graphic design and visual elements that go into video games are as in demand in other fields.

“So, if you learn video game design, you're able to also help with airlines simulations and so it's creating opportunities across many sectors,” said Pierre-Louis.

Advancements rooted in the video game industry have found their way into other areas, including medical imaging and robotics, military training and simulation, and education.

Those directly employed by the video game industry make on average $121,000 a year.

NORFOLK, Va. — Generally speaking, parents try to limit their kids' time on iPads and video screens, but a new computer program may be changing that.

It's called Fintropolis, and it's teaching kids how to be financially responsible.

"Really, the story of how Fintropolis formed starts back in 2019 with our Moguls in the Making Program, which is a business entrepreneurship pitch competition with 50 students from HBCUs," said Kyle Kouchinsky, director of TM Studio at Ally Bank.

From the competition, four students interned at the company Ally, tasked with finding a way to teach middle school students about money.

"They really came up with a way how to teach education in a fun way that students actually like, and they settled on Minecraft as a way to teach that game," Kouchinsky said. "We all know that when we were growing up, it was difficult to learn those concepts, and how much earlier we could learn them, the better off we would be."

Inside the world of Fintropolis, characters guide the player and/or student through the program.

Kouchinsky described a scenario a player would see in the game. He said, "A player walks around a large city and has different tasks they have to do, such as go to city hall and talk to the mayor. The mayor explains what taxes are, about personal tax and income tax, and then the player has to break down and make certain decisions based on that."

The game exercises real-life scenarios like saving, budgeting, building credit, and even identity protection. Kouchinsky said the lessons learned are limitless as later in the game, and you can buy houses, have a mortgage, and participate in the stock market.

Access to Fintropolis is free, and there's an Education Edition so schools and summer camps can use the platform.

Erin Miller at WTKR first reported this story.

6/10

Mario Golf: Super Rush is a disappointing bogey across the board. As someone who was very much looking forward to hitting the links in this game since its announcement, I could not believe how thin and uninspired this Mario sports title turned out to be. While its mechanics are on par with comparable golf games, Super Rush lacks even the bare minimum features to entice gamers to keep coming back for more.

Story mode

The shallow nature of Mario Golf Super Rush makes itself visible pretty early on in the story mode. Titled 'Golf Adventure,' the lite RPG mode has you create a Mii (yes, like on the Nintendo Wii) and embark across various courses with different themes, all while increasing your character’s attributes. Ranking up tends to be a bit mindless, and you soon learn this journey is just an excuse to expose you to each side mode and course. Near the tail-end, 'Golf Adventure' randomly introduces boss battles, but they are hardly memorable.

RELATED: Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury review

Sprinkled in between each course are mini-hub worlds with familiar characters to interact with, but few have anything interesting to say besides a cliche golf tip. There’s so little to do in these areas that I eventually began to walk from one course to the next, ignoring every Koopa and goomba in sight.

Nintendo

Speed Golf & Battle Golf

There is no basic tournament mode to be found in Mario Golf: Super Rush, a fact that baffles me. After rolling credits on 'Golf Adventure,' you can either replay one of the six available courses or try the two side modes. There is ‘Speed Golf,’ which is a frantic race to each hole while sabotaging other players’ positioning on the course. It’s a running version of Mario Kart with golf clubs. ‘Battle Golf’ is the other mode. This is won when one player claims three flag poles on a 9-hole arena. These alternatives could be fun in a couch co-op setting, but victory is rarely difficult to achieve when playing solo against the computer.

Nintendo

Online Mode

This game's one saving grace is in an online mode, though this has already presented me with some woes in my time playing. After creating and ranking my character, I wanted to show off my style to other players but finding a match that allows Miis has proven to be a tough feat. Hopefully, this will change in the coming weeks when more players have gone through the story mode. I have had decent success finding matches that allow the regular cast of characters to choose from, though, and those games had minimal internet connection issues.

Nintendo

Is the golf fun, at least?

When just solely focusing on the golfing, Mario Golf: Super Rush is solid. Connecting with the ball on a long drive or chipping in a shot from the bunker is still fun. I enjoyed choosing which clubs go in my bag and replaying a course to beat my own score. There are motion controls, but they feel clunky and made me yearn for the days of Wii sports.

Nintendo

Verdict

Not all golf games are created equal, but most contain the essentials to make me want to keep working on my skills. Games like Everybody’s Golf, Desert Golf, What the Golf, and Golf With Your Friends are much more fully realized modern titles worthy of your time. When it comes to Mario Golf: Super Rush, the lack of a tournament mode, mini-golf, deep character customization, and leaderboards leaves the game feeling like a swing-and-a-miss rather than a hole-in-one.

Review code provided by the publisher

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Joey Greaber at KGUN first reported this story.