Cybercade #27 2025 | Five Fresh Worlds, One Pixel at a Time
Dear Friends,
Welcome to this week’s edition of Cybercade.
If you’re new here—Cybercade is a weekly game discovery newsletter where I share hand-picked upcoming and newly released games across all genres.
This week we’re looking at five promising new games covering Action, Adventure, Casual, Indie, RPG, Simulation, and Strategy—plus a nostalgic return to one of the most important city-builders ever made.
Let’s get to it.
| Upcoming Games
ISLANDERS: New Shores
A serene and minimalist city-builder that invites you to expand your island paradise with elegant simplicity. New features build on the original’s relaxing charm.
🧭 Genre: Casual, Indie, Simulation, Strategy
📅 Release: 10 Jul, 2025 | 🎮 Developer: The Station
🔗 Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2368930
Shooty Shooty Robot Invasion
A hand-drawn, hyperactive FPS where you shoot malfunctioning robots, banter with oddball characters, and wander through a world bursting with strange energy and absurd humor.
🧭 Genre: Action, Adventure
📅 Release: 10 Jul, 2025 | 🎮 Developer: Bubby Darkstar
🔗 Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3763820
PATAPON 1+2 REPLAY
Command your quirky tribe through rhythm-based combat! This remastered collection brings the iconic drum-god strategy gameplay of Patapon to PC for the first time. Pon-pon-pata-pon!
🧭 Genre: Action, Adventure, RPG
📅 Release: 11 Jul, 2025 | 🎮 Developer: SAS CO., LTD.
🔗 Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2383200
Last Report
You’re a night-shift park ranger—and something’s not right. This found-footage horror game blends subtle dread with psychological twists. Watch the cameras… and whatever you do, don’t blink.
🧭 Genre: Adventure, Indie
📅 Release: 11 Jul, 2025 | 🎮 Developer: Monopixel Games
🔗 Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/3209480
Xenopurge
A cerebral tactical auto-battler where you issue indirect orders from a remote command center. Fight the alien threat through real-time strategy, layered planning, and adaptive routing.
🧭 Genre: Indie, Simulation, Strategy
📅 Release: 11 Jul, 2025 | 🎮 Developer: Traptics
🔗 Steam Link: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2983410
| From the Vault
SimCity 2000 – Building the City of Your Dreams
Developer: Maxis (Will Wright, Fred Haslam)
Publisher: Maxis / Electronic Arts
Release Year: 1993
Platforms: MS-DOS, Mac, Amiga, SNES, Sega Saturn, PlayStation, and more
Genre: City-building Simulation
Modes: Single-player
What Is SimCity 2000 About?
SimCity 2000 is a city-building simulation game that puts you in the role of mayor and chief architect of a budding metropolis. Building on the foundation of the original SimCity, it introduced an isometric perspective, allowing for more detailed and vibrant graphics[1]. Players start with a blank landscape and must zone land for residential, commercial, and industrial growth, while also building essential infrastructure like roads, power plants, water pipes, schools, hospitals, and even arcologies.
Managing your city means balancing the budget, setting tax rates, enacting ordinances, and responding to disasters—both natural and man-made. Underground layers add depth, letting you lay out water pipes and subways beneath the city.
What Makes SimCity 2000 So Special?
SimCity 2000 was not just a sequel—it became the template for urban simulators for decades to come. Its isometric view and open-ended gameplay inspired a generation of players. The game’s educational and creative impact is still felt today, and its influence can be seen in modern city-builders like Cities: Skylines. SimCity 2000 proved that games could be both complex and fun, offering players a digital sandbox to experiment with the challenges and joys of city management. For me it remains a beloved classic.
| This Week in Gaming
A Short Hike dev releases unfinished RPG as demo
Developer Adam Robinson-Yu shares a canceled project with players despite putting it on hold.
🔗 Read on Eurogamer
Pokémon Go Fest 2025 brings Zacian & Zamazenta forms
Major event kicks off with new raids, spawns, and bonuses for players worldwide.
🔗 Read on Polygon
| What to Listen to This Week?
UNDERTALE Soundtrack
Toby Fox’s RPG wouldn’t be the same without this unforgettable chiptune-meets-piano soundtrack. Support the artist directly on Bandcamp:
| Final Thoughts
That’s it for this week! Let me know which games caught your eye—or share your memories of SimCity 2000. I’ll be back next week with more games worth knowing about.
Share this issue if you enjoyed it, and as always, thank you for reading Cybercade.
– Belane
* Some screenshots in this issue are sourced from MobyGames.
Wow your game discovery is so spot on for me
Nice write-up! SimCity2000 was amazing, and I loved it way back when I played it in the early 2000s! I switched between that game, RollerCoaster Tycoon, and Zoo Tycoon all the time 😆! Thanks for sharing!