Bandai Namco releases three free Steam games developed by new recruits

Bandai Namco has released three new games on Steam, all of which are completely free.

All three games are part of the developer’s 2023 New Employee Training Project, which it runs in collaboration with Japanese publisher Phoenixx.

The games are developed by Gyaar Studio, an indie games label within Bandai Namco staffed by the publisher’s new recruits.

The idea is that by making games in Gyaar, new recruits can get the nurture and experience they need to prepare them for work on Bandai Namco’s more high-profile games.

Last year VGC played three of Gyaar’s releases – Hook & Kaiju, Shigeru Planet and Excycle – at the BitSummit indie festival in Kyoto, and came away impressed by all of them.

However, while last year’s games were also free on Steam, they were only available in Japan. This year, all three games are available for free to players globally.

The three games are as follows (titles lead to each game’s Steam page):

NOTTOLOT – “NOTTOLOT is a free play robot hacking action game. The main character, Rolly, uses his “hacking ability” to control four enemies and escape from a robot production factory.”

Doronko Wanko – “Doronko Wanko is a Doronko [muddy] Action Game. In this game, you can become a cute, innocent Pomeranian, make your master’s home messy and dirty. ‘Will the master be angry with me?’ Don’t worry. Because you are a sweet doggie.”

Boomeroad – “Boomeroad is an exhilarating action-adventure game in which players slide along boomerang rails you will create. The game is set in an ancient ruin floating in the sky, and the player slides through the vast skies at their own will while searching for the Artifacts.”