I love horror movies, that much should be apparent, but every once in a while it’s nice to step outside of our blood-soaked comfort zone to see what the rest of the world is up to. Before my undying adoration for our beloved genre – I loved video games. I would play games of all shapes and sizes for hours and hours on end. Hell, it was RPGs like Earthbound and Chrono Trigger that persuaded a young Luke Rodriguez that reading wasn’t all that bad; and it certainly wasn’t boring.

knuckle sandwich 1 Sure, video games have grown leaps and bounds since the days of my precious SNES console. From a technical standpoint,  things have never been better. But to find a game with the same amount of sole and character as the RPGs of yore – that’s a rare thing. Enter Knuckle Sandwich.

Developed by Andrew Brophy, Knuckle Sandwich follows a young man who moves out of home and starts working at a rundown diner. Almost immediately after landing the job, people start to go missing around town and a peculiar series of cults appear looking for answers. Not only are there creepy cults running around, but apparently Brophy drew some inspiration from American Psycho of all things. It’s unclear as to how that will actually carry through in the actual game, but it’s an intriguing admission nonetheless. But that style… My god, that style.

My god, that style.

As shown in the newest gameplay trailer for Knuckle Sandwich (seen below), players will traverse colorful landscapes, interact with awkward shop owners, and battle hilarious foes; all in glorious 16-bit stylized graphics.KnuckleSandwich 2 The game will undoubtedly (and already has) taken heat from diehard fans of something like UNDERTALE, but there’s enough retro love to go around for everyone…. And for what it’s worth – I think Knuckle Sandwich looks better. Like, way better. But hey, turned based RPGs are my shit.

So what do you think? Are you going to welcome the retro JRPG back with open arms or stick to the technical mastery of current gen AAA titles? There’s no wrong answer, but I encourage you to stretch your legs and show support for something as unique and exciting as Knuckle Sandwich. I’ll be plopping my money down on release day – who’s with me?

A young man who moves out of home and starts working at a rundown diner. Almost immediately after landing the job, people start to go missing around town and a peculiar series of cults appear looking for answers.