Stickman Slayer: Puzzles N’ Guns

Stickman Slayer: Puzzles N’ Guns is a 2024 puzzle/tactical RPG video game. Released and developed by Blue Galaxy Studios for PC, Xbox and PlayStation consoles and Nintendo Switch. It is a spin-off of the Stickman Slayer franchise. It was released October 10, 2024 on all platforms and received critical acclaim. The game strays from the usual formula of the previous games, revamping the gameplay to be entirely new. 
== Gameplay ==
Stickman Slayer: Puzzles N’ Guns completely changes the gameplay. Previous games had a run and gun style, with a few bosses. Being a spin-off entry, the game is mostly a falling block puzzle game. The game is divided into two sections. In the campaign, the player plays through two different types of missions. Puzzle and Tactical. There is still an overworld, but it’s completely linear now. Only moving you from one level to the next, rather than the openness of the original games. The type of mission switches every two missions. Puzzle missions are falling block puzzle games, similar to Tetris. The character, Jim appears in the background watching you play. But, blocks are replaced with smiley stickman faces. There are different varieties of these. The player must match four in a row of the same stickman variety, which can be discerned by the Stickman expressions. A few zombie faces are present all the time. They act as obstacles, blocking any chains that could be made in its path. The goal of each of these missions is to make at least 5 chains, but the player can continue as long as they can.
Doing so will grant Coins to the player. The amount of coins rewarded depends on how many chains you made. This ties in to the Tactical Missions. Which player similar to Mario+Rabbids Kingdom Battle. A simplified version of a tactical RPG. The player controls Cool Bro in these missions. Doing so will grant Coins to the player. The amount of coins rewarded depends on how many chains you made. This ties in to the Tactical Missions. Which player similar to Mario+Rabbids Kingdom Battle. A simplified version of a tactical RPG. The player controls Cool Bro in these missions. Fighting against zombie and robot enemies. In small arenas, you face off against several enemies. There are different types of zombies/robots. In each turn, you have the ability to move, deal damage to enemies and defend in several ways. You can move to go behind cover or elsewhere, or move to melee (can be a knife or hammer) an enemy and go back to your same position. You can shoot at your enemies with several types of guns, which can be fired at them if you are in range. It is possible to melee and shoot in the same turn, But it will take 2 turns to recharge melee. You can also buy several other abilities, such as healing items and sentries, which can help in defense and offense. Things can be bought in the Battle Menu, accessible before every Tactical Mission starts. Here you can buy a variety of upgrades, using the coins you earn in the Puzzle missions.
== Development ==
After Stickman Slayer 2, no more games were planned to be developed in the franchise. That was until Jonathan Belmonte, head of Blue Galaxy Studios had a “fresh idea” that he wanted to make using the characters. A combination of the puzzle and tactical RPG genre to create a unique experience. Designer of the previous games, Alex Howard said “I had doubts about creating another game in the series but the premise seemed promising” so development began in 2023. For this entry in the series, they took inspiration from the games Tetris and Mario+Rabbids Kingdom Battle to create the blend they were looking for. Animation and art was a different process this time around. All the art and animation assets were done digitally. The reason this decision was made was discussed by Jonathan Belmonte. “After making two games with traditional animation, I think we deserved a little break. We did our best to make the animation still look as charming as ever, and we hope you still enjoy the game” As a result of this, the games art could be completed much faster. Giving time to the team to polish the gameplay. After this game, it was unknown if there were ever be another main entry in the series or even another spin-off game.