Mtp Target is a simple enough concept: In most maps, the penguin you control rolls down a hill, goes off a jump, and then must be put into gliding mode (CTRL) in order to be maneuvered over to the target area, usually some sort of platform. Your first few attempts at Mtp Target will most likely result in frustrating falls into the water, but if you stick with the game you’ll be landing on target in no time.
As I got better at Mtp Target, I picked up on some strategies that reveal a more competitive aspect of the game. For example, instead of racing to the landing area, more experienced players will glide in circles until everyone lands and then zoom over and knock everybody into the water, proving that even the cutest of games can provoke vulgar (not to mention hilarious) exchanges of insults.
My main problem with most multiplayer games is how long it takes to start playing; loading, finding a good server, more loading, waiting for players to join, getting utterly ravished by people who devote their lives to playing, etc. So it’s nice to see that there’s an online game out there that doesn’t take itself too seriously and instead aims for a laid-back, quick experience.
Take the weapons from the Quake and Unreal Series (the shotguns, the grenade-launchers, the laser-cannons), throw in swords, over-sized wooden mallets, and grapple-hooks for good measure and give the whole arsenal to a tiny, round, and colorful race of giggling cuteness that one might come across if say… Tribbles got into a large stash of food. Now force these creatures to fight each other in battles ranging from death matches to rounds of capture-the-flag.
Well, actually, don’t do that – it’s already been done, and turned into an surprisingly polished and addictive experience.
Officially, Teeworlds (originally titled “Teewars“) is a 2d multiplayer-only platform shooter available on Windows, Mac, and Linux, and with its gunning and grappling cuteness it recalls memories of games like Soldat, Liero, and the cute-but-brutal landscapes of the Worms Series. Although it’s only in version 0.4.2, Teeworlds has already shown amazing progress and is perfectly playable right now.
The controls of Teeworlds are standard controls for and big-title FPS (WASD for movement, number keys for weapons, click to fire, etc) and fit the gameplay very well. Of course, the player can remap any of these keys if need be. The customization doesn’t stop there though; each player can customize the shape and color of their individual character or even make their own maps via the map maker. Another aspect of the controls I really thought was innovative for a game of this type was the emoticon system: just push leftShift, and a circular menu will appear with several choices. Simply move the mouse over the emoticon you want to appear over your character, and release shift. Simple as that.
You can even go one step further if that level of freedom isn’t enough: Teeworlds is an open-source project, which has led to many, many, custom skins and mods on the part of the community.
Game play is easy to learn, and soon you’ll be a double-jumpin’ grapple-swingin’ gun-wieldin’ machine, so be sure to check this game out.
Now Mac users can also have some Phun (groan)! That’s right, everyone’s favorite sandbox physics simulator has been ported to the Macintosh.
Also, Monster’s Den, the Flash-based dungeon crawl, has received an upgrade. Called Monster’s Den: Book of Dread (Kongregate), the game features new graphics, classes, items, monsters, and quests. And the addition of a shop. Or “shoppe” if you want to get all medieval.
And speaking of dungeon crawls, the roguelike Incursion has not only been updated to a much-more-stable version 0.6.9, but it also recently received a Mac port. So rejoice, Mac users!
Larva Mortus is a new top-down action game from Rake in Grass, the creators of the well-loved indie shmup Jets n’ Guns. In the game you play an agent in an occult crime-fighting organization of sorts… in other words, you’re going to be slicing, shooting, and blowing up every manner of foul Goosebumps reject in your efforts to protect humanity from the supernatural.
The fighting takes place across various missions that you select from a map. Some are “key” to the storyline and and some aren’t. The structure of each type is the same, however – make your way through a series of randomly generated rooms until you achieve your goal, whether its clearing the area of monsters, destroying profane altars, rescuing civilians, or what have you.
Larva Mortus is fun, and it looks good, but it doesn’t quite live up to Crimsonland or Smash TV, which are the two games it most reminded me of (and both classics of the genre). The action isn’t quite frantic enough, the RPG elements are a bit too diluted, the maps are too simple… and the game’s never quite sure whether it’s supposed to be scary or campy. Or maybe it’s the simple fact that it’s not as fun as it should be to blow a zombie’s head off with a shotgun!
But try it for yourself if it sounds interesting. The demo caps the amount of experience you can get, which bars you from attempting the later story missions. The full game is $19.95.
Posted by Jordan Magnuson
Wed, 14 May 2008 20:54:00 GMT
I know, I know, we’re all mature independent gamers here, and we know The Indie Canon like the back of our collective hand; and yes, Open Liero was mentioned here a scare half year ago. Well I’m sorry, but here’s the thing: is there any one here who is really going to stand up and say that Liero doesn’t deserved to be mentioned at least every few months on any self-respecting indie site? If there is one person out there who reads this post, and has not yet played Liero, and plays Liero as a consequence, then this post was not in vain.
So many clones, but there’s only one original; and here’s dos box, for sound.
If I had a million dollars for every time I had fun playing this game, well, I would be richer than Bill Gates—and that’s a lot of millions.
Edit: despite my [snobbish?] loyalty towards the original, it’s true that OpenLieroX is perhaps the definitive version of this game. Download it here.
Erik Hermansen at Caravel Games wrote to let me know that they’ve released a trailer for Deadly Rooms of Death: The City Beneath. True, this game is about a year old, but it’s never too late to try out this rather brilliant, and overlooked, series of turn-based puzzle games. And DROD fans consider The City Beneath to be the best of the lot (and suitable for beginners).
I love the game’s really odd visual design and sense of humor. Definitely very unique!
Droid Assault is a new action game from Puppygames. Just as Titan Attacks was a “Puppified” version of Space Invaders, and Ultratron a Puppified Robotron, Droid Assault is Paradroid given the Puppy treatment.
In Paradroid, players controlled an “Influence Device,” an otherwise weak droid with a very special ability – it could control and command droids after beating them in a logic-based circuit game. Droid Assault eschews this mini-game and lets you “transfer” to a droid so long as you have enough transfer points (obtained per 1000 score points). Also, once a droid has been transferred, it joins your team and can be controlled at any time (or when your current droid is blown up).
Longtime Paradroid fans may find this a bit off-putting, since the circuit mini-game was a big part of Paradroid (and allowed skilled players to take over even the mighty level 999 droid with a lowly Influence Device). However, Droid Assault is clearly built for speed and action, and as such it’s a highly enjoyable game with frantic action. The graphics and music are also ace, as we should come to expect from Caspian Prince and his team.
If I had any complaint, its that it’s occasionally difficult to discern blocks, pits, walls, and floors. Other than that, I’d highly recommend this very affordable ($10) little game. (And give Freedroid a try if you’d like to play the original!)
POWDER’s been around for quite a while, but I noticed it just hit version 1.0 this year, so I took it for a spin (it’s currently at version 1.04)! The developer, Jeff Lait, created it so he could have a roguelike to play on his Gameboy Advance, and primitive versions of the game were only available for that platform. Now, however, you can also play the game on Windows, Macintosh, Linux, DS, and even PSP!
POWDER is a graphical roguelike, and it’s much smaller in scope than most games in the genre (which typically try to throw the proverbial or literal kitchen sink in there). The game also includes a mouse-driven interface and a tutorial that walks you through the basics, so I’d recommend it readily to beginners… and to veterans of the genre, too! If you’re looking for some lighter fare (or something to play on the go). It’s quite fun.
This trailer was made for the Nintendo WiiWare Press Day. Hi-res versions at the 2D Boy website! Have you pre-ordered yet? (Embarrassingly enough, I haven’t. But today is going to be the day. I want that Profanity Pack.)
(Thanks, Data! Be sure to check out the newly-designed Data Realms website.)
Z Sculpt has finally released Return to Dark Castle for Mac OSX, after a long development that began in 1996! Wow! That gives me hope for Duke Nukem Forever. (I’ll wait until the year 3000, Duke!)
The original Dark Castle, and its sequel, Beyond Dark Castle, were developed for the Macintosh by Silicon Beach Software, and were subsequently ported to other platforms (including a terrible Sega Genesis/Megadrive port). Return to Dark Castle retains the gameplay from the first two games, and adds a lot more stuff, including “remastered” versions of the 30 levels from the original games. A level editor is also forthcoming.
I had a great time with the DOS version of Dark Castle as a kid. Damn was that game hard. To hit a bat with a rock you needed some skills, dawg. And I’ll never forget the three prisoners getting whipped in the torture chamber, and how they’d help you pick the key that wasn’t booby trapped.
Unfortunately, I don’t have a Mac, but Benzido, who tipped me off about the game, does, and he had this to say:
Anyway, I bought it, and it’s extremely compelling. I’m into the 15 fps cap… it gives everything a film-like feel, like the stop-motion sequences in Star Wars.
