Prototype 2 is a gorgeous shoot ‘em up that takes its inspiration from Irem’s famous R-Type series of games. The game was created for the SHMUP-DEV 2007 competition, where the theme was “Options.” And yes, the pre-game options in P2 certainly are various, with the player being able to change the flavor of his or her ship, pods, and power-ups.
And like R-Type, Prototype 2’s most interesting mechanic is the Force Pod, which is a detachable “option” that can be used to clear out hard-to-reach spots. In P2, the Force Pod can also be detonated at any time to clear out the screen. Skill with this thing is crucial if you want to survive in this game, which is punishing even at the easiest difficulty (it is for me, anyway).
Conclusion: the great presentation, numerous options, and overall polish make this a pretty awesome package. GET IT.
Guys, I am very happy to announce that the polls are now open for the B-Game Competition! Go and vote for up to 3 of your favorite games!
Voting will end at midnight, October 15th, whereupon the results shall be revealed and we will declare a winner!
I have to say, seeing all the games in one place is, well… to quote haowan:
This whole competition has created one of the most concentrated sources of awesome on the Internet. It’s bewildering, in a good way.
Well said! Everyone’s truly outdone themselves… not only are there a LOT of entries (29 total), but, you know, for a so-called “B-Game” competition, the quality is insanely high overall. I’m really happy to see that the entrants stuck closely to the theme and also made it their own. Jesus, you people really came up with some great ideas in one month.
This competition basically summed up why I love independent game development: the passion, the teamwork, the comraderie, the idealism. When I think about how we just rolled this thing up on a whim, and made it happen, and how everyone just bounced off of everyone else’s energy… well, shit dawg, it’s damn inspiring.
...I-I think I have something in my eye… (sniffle)
Sampe’s Kylät is the winner of Game Maker Games’s Three Word Contest, where entrants were asked to make a game based around the words “break,” “deep,” and “wing.”
In terms of its visual and narrative styles, Kylät follows proudly in the footsteps of popular Game Maker platformers like Seiklus, flapflapflap, and the games of Darthlupi. It definitely falls short of those classics, however. For one thing, there’s almost no pacing – you’ll go from chatting up aliens (who speak… very… slowly) to being dropped into the middle of a chaotic war zone where it’s not obvious what’s hurting you and what’s not, or whether you’re doing any damage to your enemies. The whole thing feels disjointed and incomplete.
The story is interesting (if somewhat stilted). But I can’t say I recommend seeing it through, because the ending is totally lackluster and feels like a rush to meet competition deadlines.
The Independent Games Festival is announcing the first ever indie mobile competition to promote handheld games and developers! That includes everything from cellphones to Palm to DS and PSP. Actually, they seem pretty open about what a handheld device is, so presumably some prankster could submit a pencil and a Post-It with an empty Tic-Tac-Toe grid on it… don’t do it!
The prizes for the competition total $20,000, with a $10,000 Grand Prize and a host of other major prizes for innovation and great execution in mobile game development. The deadline to enter the competition is Monday, October 22nd 2007, and judges will be trying playable version of all games submitted.
A quick reminder: one week left in the B-Game Competition! Competitors, it’s time to start wrapping up your entries. And if you’ve wanted to enter but haven’t yet, NOW IS THE TIME! Get the lead out, people!
I’m hoping to see some dark horse entries pop up in the last few moments. The excitement is mounting!
(The screencap is from can-o-spam’s eagerly awaited entry, Hickbilly Bride!)
Hit the jump for all the new entries since a week ago:
Kokoromi is a Québécois (“Quebec sauce?”) game developer collective, and they’re working with the Montreal International Game Summit and the Society for Arts and Technology to set up a “game jam” called gamma 256.
The theme is “low resolutions,” and the rules are as follows:
1. Your game’s resolution absolutely may not exceed 256×256 pixels maximum.
2. Your game must run on Windows XP and use an XBox 360 controller.
The submission period ends on November 1st. TIGForums is hosting the discussion for the competition, because we think it’s neat, okay? Head on over and make with the talkies.
A video explaining the game mechanics behind “Hermies,” jazzuo’s entry to the B-Game Competition!
The B-Game Competition has been a resounding success so far. All the entries look amazing and we’re having “tons o’ fun” on the forums. (Yes, I’m trying to make you feel silly for not having signed up yet! Why haven’t you!)
One thing I’ve been really happy about is how differently people have interpreted the theme and yet they’re still staying true to the basic concept behind “B-Games.” The entries run the gamut, from action games, to text adventures, to… Petri Purho’s word processing simulator which requires the use of a microphone?!
So you know how in Dead Rising, when you take photos, it tells you the genre? EROTICA! DRAMA! BRUTALITY! OUTTAKES! Yeah, we got ALL that, baby.
Even jazzuo, who’s amazing Sexy Hiking inspired the competition, is now getting in on the act (see the above video)!
This is your official reminder that there are exactly two weeks left to submit your game. I also wanted to let you guys know that I putting up an awesome “Making Of Grindhouse” book and a CD version of MDickie’s latest masterpiece, Reach, as the prizes for first place!
Hit the extended for a list of all the current entries:
Gamasutra reveals that all the finalists for this year’s IGF will receive help from “Game Attorney” Tom Buscaglia, with winners receiving some one-on-one consultation.
All Finalists – All finalists will receive a free copy of Buscaglia’s Game Dev Kit. The Kit contains essential information and forms for new independent game developers: Starting a company, contracts and NDAs, and advice on managing copyrights and intellectual property ($295 value).
Category Winners – In addition to the $2,500 cash prize, winners of each of the seven major awards will also receive a free one-hour consultation with Buscaglia ($400 value).
Seumas McNally Grand Prize – In addition to the $20,000 cash prize, the Seumas McNally Grand Prize winner will also receive ten hours of free consultation with Buscaglia ($4,000 value).
Nice work from Simon (source!), Steve, and Matt! The IGF is in great hands.
(Dream-Build-Play is a contest for games built with Microsoft’s XNA Studio.)
Check the results: in a surprise move, D-B-P officials have chosen 2 games for 1st place, and 2 games for 2nd place, offering XBLA publishing deals to all of them! Whoa. That’s kind of a big change to the rules. But more games is never a bad thing.
Congratulations to the winners. Dead Samurai is the one that piques my interest the most, with its gothy atmosphere and sweet, bloody action. It’s made by the guys who did the Zombie Smashers series of games, which I enjoyed.
