Posted by Derek Yu
Mon, 11 Jun 2007 04:18:00 GMT
Man, Marshmallow Duel is a blast from the past… and it really was a blast, as I recall. This two-player platform deathmatch game is quick and oh so much fun. Even though it pales in comparison to heartier games like Liero and Soldat, it’s still good for a some laughs. Power-ups like “1000 Volts,” “Invisibility,” and “Mine” coupled with the great collision “physics” made this one a cult classic of DOS shareware. And now there’s an Unreal Tournament mod and a DS version? Crazy.
You may need DOSBox (worked for me on XP, though).
Posted in Platformers, Multiplayer, Windows, Freeware | 4 comments
Posted by Derek Yu
Tue, 08 May 2007 21:17:00 GMT
Secret of Ultimate Legendary Fantasy Unleashed, or “Soulfu,” is a dungeon exploring game by the guy who made Egoboo, and like Egoboo it’s got a great graphical style but lacks any kind of purposeful gameplay. The idea, I think, is to grab a bunch of friends with USB gamepads and romp through some randomized dungeons, but without a story or any sense of meaning to drive you forward, what’s the point?
The developer’s website tells you everything you need to know about the depth of Soulfu’s gameplay.
EDIT: You know what, this game is really geared toward multiplayer, so it’s kinda unfair for me to review it based on a singleplayer experience. It also probably gets better as you get further in. But damn, playing it on my own, I really didn’t want to keep going. It’s solid, it just… it’s missing something. I had the same feeling when I played Egoboo. I dunno, maybe I’ll talk about it more in the comments.
(Thanks, Pyabo, for the heads up!)
Posted in RPG, Multiplayer, Windows, Action / Arcade | 16 comments
Posted by Derek Yu
Tue, 24 Apr 2007 07:01:00 GMT
I don’t think I’ve laughed so much playing any other game, to be quite honest. Well, maybe Pillar Killer.
Sumotori Dreams is a sumo wrestling simulation that incorporates some sort of self-balancing algorithm. What that really means is that the wrestlers stumble around like a couple of drunken clowns. Add to that an easy jazz soundtrack and you basically have the funniest 88kb of fun you’ve ever had.
(Source: Sensible Erection NSFW)
Posted in Unique / Bizarre, Multiplayer, Highly Recommended, Fighters, Windows, Physics, Freeware | 14 comments
Posted by Derek Yu
Wed, 18 Apr 2007 19:03:00 GMT
The simplest way to describe Space Aggressor is to call it “Dungeon Keeper meets a shmup.” In the game you take the role of the evil space empire, defending yourself against the lone pilot. It’s a really neat concept, actually.
However, the game itself is frustrating as hell. This is partly due to the clunky interface that requires more micromanaging than is fun or necessary, and partly due to the fact that your opponent happens to regenerate like Wolverine in a full body cast! Seriously, what’s the point in attacking his primary weapon (or shields, or engine) when he can replenish it to 100% before I can even queue up another round of fighters?
Sadly, the creator has taken an unfortunate stance toward user feedback. If the interface sucks, it’s “because it’s a strategy game.” If the game is frustrating, then you’re just not understanding the subtleties behind the game mechanics. With that kind of attitude, I imagine Space Aggressor will forever remain a mediocre game with an interesting concept behind it.
Posted in Multiplayer, Shoot-em-ups, Windows, Strategy, Freeware | 26 comments
Posted by Derek Yu
Mon, 16 Apr 2007 15:04:00 GMT
Old news, but first I’ve heard of it: Introversion is working on a multiplayer version of Darwinia, called Multiwinia, which is slated to be released in 2008. This will be a standalone product that will include the single player game. It’s being headed by John Knottenbelt, who was reponsible for the Mac and Linux ports of Darwinia. No word yet on a price.
Cute lil’ Darwinians courtesy of Rarok from the Introversion forums.
Posted in Multiplayer, Community, Previews | Tags Introversion | 1 comment
Posted by Derek Yu
Tue, 03 Apr 2007 15:49:00 GMT
I was reminiscing with my friend Jon the other day about games we had played in our formative years, and Brainchild Design came up. I’m sure a lot of you remember them: they made two delicious little freeware games back in the day, Quadnet and Jump n’ Bump (and then promptly jumped the shark). But for those who haven’t (or for those who have forgotten)...
Quadnet is a fast-paced shoot ‘em up that took place on a single grid. The camera angle twisted around depending on where you were on the grid. Robotron-esque control scheme. Really fun, fast-paced little game that we loved competing in.
Jump n’ Bump is a flat-out great hotseat multiplayer game. Using the keyboard, mouse, and/or joystick, the goal of the game is to squash your opponent by jumping on their head. And you play as cute little bunnies, so it’s really, really funny. There’s nothing better than dropping on friends one after another and watching garbage bags full of gibs ‘spode out of their furry little bodies. You can quote me on that!
Both games crash on start-up in XP, but run perfectly using DOSBox.
Update: Good ol’ Mr. Hollow pointed out that JnB is available as a Win32 binary. Thanks!
Posted in Platformers, Multiplayer, Highly Recommended, Shoot-em-ups, Freeware | 13 comments
Posted by Lorne Whiting
Tue, 13 Mar 2007 18:00:00 GMT
Nexus War, a game with obvious influence from Urban Dead, is perhaps the greatest browser game ever. The only one I’ve played for more than a month (Started in July of last year).
In it, you do battle with other dudes, you craft weapons and armor, you cut peoples electricity, you build large barricades around people’s houses so when they wake up they’re trapped in a small square with no choice but to spend all their action points trying to break the barricades down.
Action points are used for just about everything in the game, from moving to hitting someone to death with a magical scimitar, and are gained every 15 minutes. They serve as a good way of making it so you don’t have much, if any, of a disadvantage if you only play every 12 hours, as opposed to someone that does something every 2 hours.
You start off as a mortal, something that’s more akin to an urchin than a warrior, gradually getting more skills as you level up, eventually reaching the second tier of classes, expanding your power and abilities, and then each second tier class has 2 or 3 exits. Once you’re tier 2, you’ll generally have the need to join a faction, unless you want to get hunted down and murdered in your sleep by people twice as strong as you.
The game is highly faction oriented, and it will serve a huge advantage to be in one. You have a stronghold, where you can sleep, you have a shared safe, where you can get items that other people put in, but of course, you can raid and be raided by other factions.
I myself got started with trial and error, but there are useful guides on the Nexus Wiki, like planning a character and stuff.
Anyways, I highly recommend it. Check it out, people!
(Orgh! Don’t know what categories to put!)
Posted in Multiplayer, Browser Games | 11 comments
Posted by BMcC
Wed, 14 Feb 2007 11:15:00 GMT
Right on the heels of build twelve, Data Realms releases build thirteen of their upcoming team-based shooter Cortex Command. Why do I even bother anymore? :P
This new build should fix a bunch of the issues with the previous version.
Download here, alright?
Hey Data! It seems that walking is much more clunky on my laptop than on my PC. How could this be? Also, I just noticed… CC is all “true” 2D, isn’t it? (I.e., blitting, sprite rotation, etc. versus hardware acceleration?) It looks fantastic. The gunfights are remarkably tangible.
Posted in Platformers, Multiplayer, Windows, Physics, Freeware | Tags DataRealms | 17 comments
Posted by BMcC
Tue, 13 Feb 2007 17:08:00 GMT
Kaboom! Data Realms has released the latest build of their highly-anticipated (by me) multiplayer shooter, Cortex Command.
This new version adds some pretty substantial improvements, including up to four player split screen, keyboard and mouse control, improved AI and gameplay mechanics, and blast shields. Probably more stuff, too.
Be sure to download from this page to get the proper version. (Twelve.)
Thanks Rz.!
Posted in Platformers, Multiplayer, Windows, Physics, Freeware | Tags DataRealms | 25 comments
