10800 zombies

By: Derek Yu

On: December 1st, 2008

JW’s fast-paced run n’ gun 10800 zombies was released this Halloween, during our front page downtime. The atmosphere is well done and the way the game forces you to switch weapons constantly is a nice change of pace. I dig that the characters explode like ketchup packets being stepped on! Or teenager zits.

TIGdb: Entry for 10800 zombies

Cortex Command Black Friday Sale

By: Derek Yu

On: November 28th, 2008

Quick note: Data Realms is having a Black Friday sale for Cortex Command. The popular squad-based action/strategy physics game is $9 over the weekend, which is half-off its normal price. And with build 22 having just come out, there’s no better time. Buying the game now will entitle you to all the updates through the end of the first campaign.

Hope everyone who got to eat turkey last night enjoyed it. There’s a lot to catch up on and I promise I’ll get to it soon!

Lightmare

By: Derek Yu

On: November 14th, 2008

Lightmare is the latest release from Edit Mode Games (aka Kevin Oke). Like Kevin’s other games (most notably, the Robotron-inspired satire Consumer CULTure), Lightmare is simple in concept and execution, but saddled with ample amounts of charm. I really like this description of one of the obstacles in the readme:

The goal of the game is simple. As a hungry vampire, you must avoid light and cars to reach the vial of blood at the end of each stage. Apparently man-made light hurts vampires as much as the sun does! That’s got to make life difficult for a modern-day bloodsucker (and for the people playing as one in a video game).

TIGdb: Entry for Lightmare

Cortex Command Build 22

By: Derek Yu

On: November 7th, 2008

Happy day! A new build of Cortex Command is out! This version features a ton of new additions, not the least of which is a completely new campaign mission that has you infiltrating a cave full of zombies to retrieve a data disk. Arne’s custom background graphics for this level are a-mazing.

Other additions include a 2x scaled-up windowed mode, a ton new actors and weapons, and improved AI. The movement and HUD seem to be a lot smoother to me, as well, although I think I missed a couple of builds in-between. Overall, though, it just feels a lot more polished.

But yeah, God, everything about this game – the style, the complexity – captures a lot of what made PC gaming fun for me back in the day. It’s great to see all the pieces really start to come together. Go grab it!

Gamma 3D: Paper Moon

By: Derek Yu

On: October 21st, 2008

What’s that I spy, hanging over the canvas sky? Why, it’s Paper Moon, a new game from my friend (and Aquaria partner) Alec Holowka, developed with his all-Canuck, Winnipeg-based studio Infinite Ammo. Made for Gamma 3D, this Unity-based platform game features true 3d graphics (using 3d glasses), and an interesting mechanic. The cut-out graphics are by the talented Katie De Sousa, with help from Adam Saltsman (Gravity Hook, Wurdle).

Play the demo at Gamma 3D in November!

Jill Off Harder

By: Derek Yu

On: October 16th, 2008

And I thought I jilled off pretty hard the first time! Jill Off Harder, the expanded version of Auntie Pixelante’s masochistic tower-climbing platformer, is now available. The game includes numerous tweaks to the original version, but the biggest draw is the super-tough second tower, which is inspired, in part, by the Japanese Super Mario Bros. 2 (aka “The Lost Levels”). Thankfully, Tower Two isn’t merely a rehash of the first, and it’s got plenty of tricks up its sleeves. Much more fun, too, in my opinion.

Knytt Online World: Sneak Peak

By: Derek Yu

On: October 16th, 2008

A Knytt fan who goes by the handle “Dynamite” is working on a multiplayer online version of Nifflas’s atmospheric platform game. You can read more about the project here.

Unfortunately, development of the game is being postponed until the holidays, as Dynamite grapples with one of indie gaming’s greatest foes, SCHOOL. How many promising young developers has this menace claimed? Oh, the humanity!

[Follow the discussion on TIGForums]

(Thenks, architekt!)

Treasure Hunter Man

By: Derek Yu

On: October 16th, 2008

Bernie just released a slightly-unfinished platformer, titled Treasure Hunter Man (formerly known as “Yoghurt”). The game is completable, although Bernie acknowledges that he “rushed it a little and the last few levels aren’t all that grand. I can not finish this the way I wanted to.” Regardless, if you enjoyed Bernie’s other platform games, like A Game with a Kitty, you’ll probably dig this!

I did get stuck early on in the game, and, just because of the way it’s set up, I imagine other people will, too. Here’s a hint: if you can’t make the jump, try looking around elsewhere. Use your sword.

Timerocketxby

By: Derek Yu

On: October 10th, 2008

Hempuli (FIG, BulletZORZ) plays with time in Timerocketxby (direct download), a platformer where you can stop the clock and then use frozen objects to your advantage. It’s a great mechanic that is sadly underdeveloped in this relatively short experimental game. Make an expanded version and polish it up, man!

Note: Your “ghost” is not useful to the gameplay and is just for kicks.

(Thanks, mountainmohawk!)

Meat Boy

By: Derek Yu

On: October 7th, 2008

Edmund McMillen and Jonathan McEntee have finally answered that age-old question: “What would it be like to be one of those slimy meat patties that came with ”http://www.x-entertainment.com/articles/0753/“>Lunchables boxed lunches?” A masochistic platformer in the vein of YMM‘s Jumper and FLaiL series of games, Meat Boy has you slippin’ and slidin’ through 56+ stages to rescue your beloved Band-Aid Girl from the evil Fetus-in-a-Jar. Absolutely brutal difficulty, with a nice feel to the main character, who is squishy and slippery.

In a world where Veganism is trendy and Garbage Pail Kids are not cool any more, it’s nice to see guys like Edmund bringing back some good old-fashioned, meaty gross-out humor, and adding a touch of class to it. A solid game that is rounded out with a sweet score by Daniel Baranowsky, who also did the music for Gravity Hook. If the level editor were only a bit more user friendly, it’d be tops.

The standalone version of the game is available here (13 MB) .