REVIEW: Train Valley Origins (2025 Video Game) - Released on PC Steam

Review by Jon Donnis

Train Valley Origins is a charming and quietly clever entry in the long-running train management series from Flazm. While its name hints at something nostalgic, Origins is no lazy rehash. It strips the formula back to its basics, capturing what worked in the earlier games and leaving behind the fussier mechanics that bogged down its immediate predecessor. The result? A clean, focused, and highly replayable puzzler that delivers satisfying strategy in bite-sized doses.

The setup is instantly familiar. You're looking down on a colourful world, laying tracks and managing switches to shepherd trains from station to station without causing mayhem. It sounds easy until it isn't. With multiple trains on the move, limited track space, and a growing list of constraints to juggle, things get hectic quickly. But the design is tight, and the rules are clear. There's rarely a moment where you feel cheated by the game, just bested.

Each level offers a self-contained puzzle, often with extra challenges layered in. Some ask you to complete the map without ever stopping a train. Others tempt you to take on bonus deliveries while keeping everything on schedule. It's these optional objectives that bring out the obsessive side, pushing you to replay levels until you've nailed that elusive perfect run.

Visually, the game leans into a clean, minimalist style. Bright colours, neatly animated locomotives, and clear interfaces make everything easy to read, even when things get hectic. It may not be a visual showcase, but it's thoughtfully designed. The aesthetic feels more functional than flashy, but it's undeniably charming in its own right.

One of the game's best features is the variety of settings. You move through four distinct historical periods and locations, from the dusty grit of the Wild West to the frosty terrain of Norway. The trains evolve with the eras, and there's genuine pleasure in unlocking new models and viewing them in the game's Shed, a kind of virtual garage that adds a subtle collecting element.

What Train Valley Origins does especially well is keep you engaged without overwhelming you. It avoids the over-complication that turned some players away from Train Valley 2, sticking instead to a more accessible core loop. That simplicity is what makes it sing. It's a game that trusts its mechanics and doesn't try to overextend them.

There are drawbacks, though. The lack of significant innovation over the first game is noticeable, particularly if you've spent a lot of time with the series already. At times, it can feel like a reworked version of Train Valley 1 rather than a full evolution. And while the upcoming level editor promises longevity, it's not here yet. That means the game currently lives or dies on its built-in content.

There's also the matter of presentation and price. For some, the game's browser-like look and mobile-style pacing might make the near £10 price point feel steep. It doesn't have the polish or scale of a full PC title, and if you're not already into this genre, it might be a harder sell.

Still, for puzzle fans, transport sim lovers, or anyone who enjoyed the earlier Train Valley titles, this is a very easy recommendation. It's focused, fun, and easy to lose an hour in without realising it. Most importantly, it's the kind of game you find yourself booting up again the day after you've sworn you were done with it. And that says more than any feature list ever could.

Score: 8.5 / 10

Train Valley Origins is a delightful return to form. It's simple, satisfying, and full of personality. Once the level editor arrives, it might just be the best in the series.

Out now on Steam

REVIEW: Blades of Fire (2025 Video Game) - A Game of Hot Steel and Cold Frustration

Review by Jon Donnis

There's a lot to admire about Blades of Fire, the latest third-person action-adventure from MercurySteam, published by 505 Games for Xbox. The moment you step into Aran de Lira's world, with its lore-rich backdrop and striking visual design, it's clear that this game isn't trying to copy anyone. It introduces its own rules and rhythms, drawing you into a land shaped by ancient giants and cursed monarchs. But while the ambition is obvious, the execution doesn't always hit the mark.

Set in a world once ruled by a race called the Forgers, the game builds its premise on a strong narrative hook. The Forgers gave humanity the power to work steel, but Queen Nerea has flipped that gift on its head, turning steel to stone with a spell. You play as Aran, a warrior with ties to the royal family and a painful past, now armed with a sacred hammer that lets him defy Nerea's curse by crafting his own weapons. Alongside him is Adso, a scholarly companion who takes on puzzle-solving duties and helps break down enemy tactics in a travel book that doubles as an evolving strategy guide.

The story works well in its simplicity. It doesn't overload you with exposition, but the fragments of lore you uncover along the way are just enough to keep you invested. It's all fairly digestible, which is refreshing in a genre that often leans into convoluted fantasy. Aran himself is not a particularly expressive lead, but the emotional weight of his mission comes through clearly enough, especially with Adso adding moments of levity and insight along the way.

Visually, the game is stunning. There's a distinctive look to each region of its interconnected world, with layers of hidden paths and secrets waiting to be uncovered. The issue is how you get to them. Movement feels limited. Aran can't jump, and that restriction makes exploration clunky and frustrating. There are far too many instances where you're wandering around in circles, unsure of where to go next. A simple instruction like "find the castle" can easily become a long-winded hunt through areas that offer no real clues or satisfaction. The game doesn't do much to guide you, which might appeal to some, but I found it more irritating than immersive.

Combat is clearly intended to be a major draw. There's a good amount of depth here, with options to attack from either side, focus on specific body parts, and experiment with different attack types. Blocking regenerates stamina, and parrying gives you a solid opening to land a heavier hit. But the actual feel of combat can be uneven. The mechanics sound great on paper, but they often lack the precision and responsiveness you'd expect. It's not broken, but there's a stiffness that never quite goes away, especially when switching weapons mid-battle, which happens a lot due to the enemy colour-coding system.

The forging system, which sits at the heart of the gameplay, is a mixed bag. On one hand, it's inventive. You collect Forge Scrolls, and at anvils scattered across the world, you get to customise weapons by altering length, blade shape, and materials. There's even a hammering minigame to physically shape your tools. On paper, it should be the standout feature. In practice, it quickly becomes a chore. The level of tweaking feels more like busywork than meaningful progression, and the interface doesn't help matters. It's fiddly and not particularly intuitive, and considering how essential the system is, that becomes a real problem. When forging ends up being the weakest part of a game that revolves around it, there's an issue.

There's still plenty of value here. The world is richly imagined, the story keeps you engaged without overwhelming you, and there's a good variety of enemies to tackle. Adso is a likeable and useful companion, and some of the puzzle-solving elements do a great job of breaking up the pace. It's just that too many parts feel disconnected. The backtracking feels artificial. The level design is often confusing. The forging, which should elevate the game, drags it down instead. There are moments when it all clicks, but they're too scattered to leave a lasting impression.

Blades of Fire deserves credit for originality, and it's clear a lot of care went into its creation. But it's one of those games that ends up being more interesting than it is enjoyable. With tighter combat, better movement, and a serious overhaul of the forging system, it could have been something really special. As it stands, it's a decent game with flashes of brilliance that never quite pull together.

A solid 7 out of 10 feels fair. It's got heart, but it needed sharper edges.

Out Now on Xbox and PS5

https://amzn.to/441BaHc