Really excited for the game, I love the art style and am a huge roguelike fan so there is a lot of potential here for me.
Indie Games 2014 [July] Now Voting - Post 430!
- Thread starter Toma
- Start date
Looks great man - can't wait to see it come to fruition.
And this looks fantastic as well.
More_Badass
Member
More_Badass
Member
The Sun Also Rises - ????
Bezel - ????
Skyhook - ????
Untitled game - ????
Previously Mentioned
Deadcore
Eldritch
Bezel - ????
http://onion-core.com/bezel/
Bezel is our in-development 2d side scrolling action RPG inspired by the metroidvania formula, based in a fantasy world where gods fight for freedom and power.
As a storm strucks a passenger ship, you find yourself on an uncharted island being ravaged by monsters and wild animals. As you pursue any ways of leaving this place, you find that is more than water thats preventing your escape, as an ancient force, and destiny itself holds tight bonds between you, and the heart of the island.
Skyhook - ????
Untitled game - ????
Previously Mentioned
Deadcore
Eldritch
More_Badass
Member
Another surprise? I need to try this and Vagante
TheHollowNight
Member
I'm digging it! We're going to hopefully have lots of cool stuff to show off for this & more likely some cool fancy gifs of some things in action
Thanks! Appreciate the kind words
glad there is a decent amount of interest so far!Chronology was a HUGE surprise for me too.
Seriously, grab that bundle guys. I need to buy the bundle for a friend of mine before I forget.
OP Impressions
Arc
I'll echo what Toma said on this one; a near miss. Basic options are hidden away in the game's launcher rather than in game, there's only two very low resolution options and it's multiplayer only. Having said that there's a good sense of speed, the levels look nice considering and, with a little more time in the oven, I'd probably play this a lot more.
compostion 83
Again, Toma was right on the money with this one. I love me some walking simulators but the way the narrative is given to you is too obtrusive with unskippable text that brings your, already slow movement, to a complete halt. I liked the ending though.
Vagante
I've skipped to 'V' because technically I played this last month. I think for any game in the OP to beat this one will take some doing. Wonderful graphics, challenging gameplay that ticks all the right boxes. There's a couple of things I find a little odd but you should all play this ASAP if you like Spelunky, or Metroid, or games.
Arc
I'll echo what Toma said on this one; a near miss. Basic options are hidden away in the game's launcher rather than in game, there's only two very low resolution options and it's multiplayer only. Having said that there's a good sense of speed, the levels look nice considering and, with a little more time in the oven, I'd probably play this a lot more.
compostion 83
Again, Toma was right on the money with this one. I love me some walking simulators but the way the narrative is given to you is too obtrusive with unskippable text that brings your, already slow movement, to a complete halt. I liked the ending though.
Vagante
I've skipped to 'V' because technically I played this last month. I think for any game in the OP to beat this one will take some doing. Wonderful graphics, challenging gameplay that ticks all the right boxes. There's a couple of things I find a little odd but you should all play this ASAP if you like Spelunky, or Metroid, or games.
More_Badass
Member
Got 40 devs/games and counting for the Showcase, including Crawl and Monument Valley 
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Three games I'm anticipating are releasing today on Steam: Infinity Runner, Pivvot, and Light
Pivvot is really good. I have it on IOS, one of my favorite twitch games. Varied obstacles that require more complex evasion than simply move left, move right. A lot of modes as well. Going to be $5 on Steam
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Three games I'm anticipating are releasing today on Steam: Infinity Runner, Pivvot, and Light
Pivvot is really good. I have it on IOS, one of my favorite twitch games. Varied obstacles that require more complex evasion than simply move left, move right. A lot of modes as well. Going to be $5 on Steam
PandaPedinte
Member
Hey people do you remember AdventurOS? It's up to pre-order now through the developer's site and is going to enter in Early Access soon.
That's cool
That's cool
PandaPedinte
Member
Hardline Gunner - I agree with Toma impressions about this game, but while I liked it I could point that I found the sounds effects a bit annoying.
More OP Impressions
Arcade Ace
I couldn't really get into this at all; maybe I was tired, maybe I was angry. It seems cool though.
Monochroma
I wanted to like this. The atmosphere is top notch but I think that over the course of a full game the platforming mechanics would really get to me. There's no momentum in any of your movements and nothing blends together quite right. Still; worth playing the demo.
Mother Machine
I REALLY wanted to like this. It's beautiful; maybe one of the most in this month's batch. I don't like the controls though, not one bit. Subray (another game in this month's OP) absolutely nails the controls of a similar style of game. W for accelerate is bad in 2D.
Subray
The best game in the OP so far. When it comes to all these free games/prototypes/betas that we play in here I always ask myself; "would I pay money for this if it were a full game." Subray is a resounding yes. Beautiful graphics, great ambient music and tight gameplay. Play this. Play it.
---------Yes---------
Vagante
Subray
---------Maybe---------
Monochroma
Arc
Arcade Ace
composition83
---------No---------
Mother Machine
Arcade Ace
I couldn't really get into this at all; maybe I was tired, maybe I was angry. It seems cool though.
Monochroma
I wanted to like this. The atmosphere is top notch but I think that over the course of a full game the platforming mechanics would really get to me. There's no momentum in any of your movements and nothing blends together quite right. Still; worth playing the demo.
Mother Machine
I REALLY wanted to like this. It's beautiful; maybe one of the most in this month's batch. I don't like the controls though, not one bit. Subray (another game in this month's OP) absolutely nails the controls of a similar style of game. W for accelerate is bad in 2D.
Subray
The best game in the OP so far. When it comes to all these free games/prototypes/betas that we play in here I always ask myself; "would I pay money for this if it were a full game." Subray is a resounding yes. Beautiful graphics, great ambient music and tight gameplay. Play this. Play it.
---------Yes---------
Vagante
Subray
---------Maybe---------
Monochroma
Arc
Arcade Ace
composition83
---------No---------
Mother Machine
PandaPedinte
Member
You made me want to play Subray, Moobabe. I'll check it later.
More_Badass
Member
Moobabe, mind if I pass your comment over to DigiPen? I'm in touch with the woman who runs the DigiPen Foundatin Studio; SubRay is part of that
Absolutely! I linked the full article in the bolded 'Subray' - what an amazing contact!
More_Badass
Member
Cool, I imagine the SubRay team will appreciate it.
Candescence
Member
Once again, this game needs more attention, I already consider it to be on my GOTY list.
More_Badass
Member
Okay, I need to finally play Vagante today
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Also setting up my blog to auto-post articles while I'm on vacation. Got a preview of Death's Gambit and a Q&A with the developers lined up, as well as a few others
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Speaking of Q&As, the third TIGForum Devlog Showcase & Q&A are up. Learn about Far Sky, Guild of Dungeoneering, and more
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I reached out to IndieGames Weblog, there's a possibility I could write for them. Nothing concrete, but it sounds positive
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Also setting up my blog to auto-post articles while I'm on vacation. Got a preview of Death's Gambit and a Q&A with the developers lined up, as well as a few others
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Speaking of Q&As, the third TIGForum Devlog Showcase & Q&A are up. Learn about Far Sky, Guild of Dungeoneering, and more
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I reached out to IndieGames Weblog, there's a possibility I could write for them. Nothing concrete, but it sounds positive
More_Badass
Member
Anyone experiencing crashes with Vagante? I can't even reach gameplay. I select a character and as soon as I enter the cave, the game crashes
That ain't gonna happen. This is the best indie community on the Internet, got to support my friends and fellow indie gamersCool, best success
TwistedSyn
Member
Wow this news came out of nowhere today. Halfway has just been announced for a release date of July 22, 2014. I have been eagerly awaiting this games release for quite sometime now.
http://halfwaygame.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKXxA382xPs
http://halfwaygame.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKXxA382xPs
I played a lot of the Beta, hunting bugs.
Very well presented and fun game, that was only missing a bit on diversity last time I played. Definitely worth being interested in though.
More_Badass
Member
Pocket Robots Test Chamber
And the developer introduces colors and it's back to square one.
Don't be fooled by the simple style. This is a challenging inventive puzzle game that uses its programming mechanic in a variety of interesting ways. The drag-drop interface is easy and painless, allowing you to focus on what you need to do and how to make it happen. And it's free so there's no reason to overlook PRTC.
Hardline Gunner
Hardline Gunner may sport a minimalist style, but the action in the game's alpha demo is anything but. Each level offers a new challenge, from tight cramped corridors to open areas with bosses firing insane amount of projectiles to special tiles that boost you forward or slow your movement. Your small square is agile and fast, able to dash around, and quickly maneuver between bullets and missiles. Crates drop health and special weapons like homing rockets and spread shots, allowing you to change up your arsenal at the most opportune moment. However your most important skill is the ability to deflect bullets; with the right timing, you can send projectiles back at enemies and enjoy a few moments of invincibility. Deflect bullets becomes invaluable as the action grows more hectic and you need to break through the hailstorm of projectiles for a better position.
Hardline Gunner is still in alpha; the developer is currently changing the flat 2D look to a 3D style with more depth, and as well as implementing other improvements such as slow motion when health is low.
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1. Crimsonland
2. Subray
3. Pocket Robots Test Chamber
4. Hardline Gunner
5. Nekro
6. Inside My Radio
7. UnSummoning: the Spectral Horde
8. Chained
9. The World Beneath
Okay, like Toma said, Pocket Robots Test Chamber has proven to be an (awesome) surprise. The basic idea is that you have a six interval programming set-up to command your robot to move left, right, and jump. And commands, Not commands, branching commands, it's quite complex and took a few levels for me to wrap my head around how the mechanics work
And the developer introduces colors and it's back to square one.
Don't be fooled by the simple style. This is a challenging inventive puzzle game that uses its programming mechanic in a variety of interesting ways. The drag-drop interface is easy and painless, allowing you to focus on what you need to do and how to make it happen. And it's free so there's no reason to overlook PRTC.
Hardline Gunner
On Lazorun's site, Hardline Gunner is proclaimed to be "pretty damn hard like the good old days." And I'd have to agree, that's a pretty accurate description of the experience you'll find while playing this fast and furious top down bullet hell shooter.
Hardline Gunner may sport a minimalist style, but the action in the game's alpha demo is anything but. Each level offers a new challenge, from tight cramped corridors to open areas with bosses firing insane amount of projectiles to special tiles that boost you forward or slow your movement. Your small square is agile and fast, able to dash around, and quickly maneuver between bullets and missiles. Crates drop health and special weapons like homing rockets and spread shots, allowing you to change up your arsenal at the most opportune moment. However your most important skill is the ability to deflect bullets; with the right timing, you can send projectiles back at enemies and enjoy a few moments of invincibility. Deflect bullets becomes invaluable as the action grows more hectic and you need to break through the hailstorm of projectiles for a better position.
Hardline Gunner is still in alpha; the developer is currently changing the flat 2D look to a 3D style with more depth, and as well as implementing other improvements such as slow motion when health is low.
---
1. Crimsonland
2. Subray
3. Pocket Robots Test Chamber
4. Hardline Gunner
5. Nekro
6. Inside My Radio
7. UnSummoning: the Spectral Horde
8. Chained
9. The World Beneath
KodeAndGame
Member
So many games! Glad I saw the Pocket Robots Test Chamber recommendation. I'll have to try that.
Toma, I really like your impressions format.
Toma, I really like your impressions format.
More_Badass
Member
Roguelike sale on IGS:
- Tower of Guns is awesome. Up there with Fancy Skulls as my favorite FPS roguelike
- Tallowmere is fun and has a lot of promise; the dev is working on local co-op
- I've heard good things about Crystal Catacombs and Ascendant. There's a browser demo for Crystal Catacombs here and here are some impressions from my friend over at CueIndieReview
- Crystal Catacombs - $6.99
- Ascendant - $4.99
- Brandon Must Die - $2.50
- Steam Marines - $5.99
- Tower of Guns - $7.49
- Tallowmere - $2.49
- Tower of Guns is awesome. Up there with Fancy Skulls as my favorite FPS roguelike
- Tallowmere is fun and has a lot of promise; the dev is working on local co-op
- I've heard good things about Crystal Catacombs and Ascendant. There's a browser demo for Crystal Catacombs here and here are some impressions from my friend over at CueIndieReview
Giving out a last minute gift of Chronology to one of the first persons quoting this. Also preferably to the first person who says they have time to play for 30-60 minutes within the next 10-15 hours and posts some impressions (as a last minute recommendation push for the IndieGala bundle that runs out in 20 hours).
My impressions:
My impressions:
More_Badass
Member
I'm mostly free today and I'd been interested in the game
You win then, see pm.
More_Badass
Member
There is a demo, might as well include it next month.
One Foul Note
Member
Good recommendation on Chronology Toma, I'm about 60% of the way through and am very much enjoying it. Especially loving the random charming banter between the inventor and his snail. The only problem was I ran into a bug where the camera wouldn't reset on on the main character after moving to a different location which basically forced me to restart a chapter but luckily I wasn't far in so I lost very little progress.
I am not too fond of puzzle platformers lately, but Chronology struck the right notes, especially with art style/animations and actually interesting puzzles.
More_Badass
Member
I'm going on vacation at the end of this week till the end of the month. I set articles to auto publish while I'm away, but you guys don't have to wait
Here's my Q&A with the devs of Death's Gambit
Here's my Q&A with the devs of Death's Gambit
I wrote about Death's Gambit a few days ago and now I was fortunate enough that developers Jean Canellas and Alex Kubodera were able to spare some time to answer a few questions about their promising action RPG
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This is something I ask all the developers I interview, perhaps a cliched inquiry: What inspired you to become a game developer?
Jean: I knew for sure that I wanted to be a game designer after I made an indie game in highschool called Aftermath. It's very old and crappy, but some people actually said it had some of their favorite boss fights in a game maker game(I really dont think so). Hearing people discuss the games I made between themselves really pushed me to study game design after high school.
Alex: It was sort of a natural progression for me. I made RPG board games in elementary school for my classmates to play using Legos and paper cutouts. I incorporated elements of our class work into it by gating progress with quizzes. At home, my father and I would create murals of crazy characters battling it out on a huge piece of paper. Drawing inspired me to develop stories for these characters, but why stop there? I later discovered Fable: TLC, and player choice affecting the world was so intriguing to me, I simply had to create a world of my own.
If there was one thing that caught my eye while reading about your game, it was the art style and atmosphere. Could you talk more about this "alien medieval" world you're crafting and the kinds of environments we may encounter?
Setting our game on an alien planet gives us the creative freedom to do what feels best for the game, in terms of setting the mood for the story and gameplay. Each environment will have its own unique color palette and biome that breeds specific kinds of enemies. That being said, most of our locations have a very dark atmosphere, rich with hidden lore.
Death's Gambit is described as an action RPG. What RPG elements will the game feature?
The nature of RPGs is inhabiting a character and crafting your own adventure. You will meet a motley group of characters, all with their own agenda, offering up advice or misinformation depending on their disposition. Every boss encounter tells part of the story as you develop relationships with them and to the world. Defeating them rewards you with epic loot and a core part of the gameplay is finding the best gear that works for you
On your Tumblr page, you describe encounters as "complex hack-n-slash puzzles", two styles of gameplay that don't seem immediately compatible. How does combat work in Death's Gambit?
Oh but they are compatible! Most bosses in games could be considered timed puzzles. We want our bosses to focus more on strategic thought-out play as opposed to twitch reflexes and button mashing. For example, we have a prototype boss encounter on an unbalanced platform. It's all about making sure there is enough weight on either side while you fight the boss. On top of that, he has multiple phases that each play with the mechanic in different ways. They are brutal in the dark souls way(you dodge roll and jump out of attacks) and on top of that, each boss has at least one mechanic that forces the player to solve some sort of combat system puzzle. Sometimes bosses will feel very challenging to some players before they realize there are multiple ways of tackling their mechanics.
Another seemingly incongruous inspiration you mention is Spec Ops: The Line, a title lauded for its narrative and subversion of genre tropes. How has that game influenced the narrative and gameplay of Death's Gambit?
This one is a bit harder to explain without going in-depth into the story, so we cant really say much. We did mention how the game is about collecting epic loot and empowering the player to surpass insurmountable obstacles. Overall I wouldn't expect a lot of genre satire or war themes out of Death's Gambit.
We should probably exclude inspired by spec ops because it gives people the wrong expectation. Regardless, it has influenced us greatly.
Perhaps the most compelling and intriguing aspect of Death's Gambit is the Shadow of the Colossus vibe, as seen in the image and GIFs where your character ascends a towering beast. Why did that game in particular influence development? How central will these battles and enemies be to the overall experience?
So this is a fun anecdote. The giants (called Gaians), were not a part of the initial design draft for the game. Jean initially was inspired to add climbing sections after prototyping a grappling hook. It was then that he coincidentally was linked to an Attack on Titan video, which sparked an idea to prototype a giant's leg. He was so excited to find out if a giant would look/play well, that he ignored all schoolwork and worked until 6AM.
The giant prototype turned out to be a huge success. So much so that it impacted the future of the game. We want to make sure it captures the same sensation as SoTC does, in sheer size and impact. The Gaian functions as its own level, so we want every climb to take you on a journey that tells a compelling story about the creature and world, while making the combat encounters increasingly more challenging.
On TIGForum, you mention that Death's Gambit has been worked on full time for several months. What's the state of the game at this time?
Well its only been two months, but we have about 40 to 60 minutes of gameplay. You could technically say we have more, but a lot of content is still in the prototype stage. The game is somewhere between 5% to 10% complete.
Wow, that looks sweet.
More_Badass
Member
Okay, I am going through OP games atm and its rare that I feel so... stumped looking at a game like when I started up Subsim and I needed to share my first impression with you with a pic I just made from different game screens. The main screen looks like this:
And then you also have... these:
Notsureifchallengeaccepted.jpg
I am still reading the guide on this to decide whether I try to dig into this or not, but its... intriguing to say the least. Oh and some features:
And then you also have... these:
Notsureifchallengeaccepted.jpg
I am still reading the guide on this to decide whether I try to dig into this or not, but its... intriguing to say the least. Oh and some features:
Shadow Hog
Member
How does it compare to old DOS "game" Oakland Nuclear Power Plant Simulator?
PandaPedinte
Member
Hm hm hm.
Like FTL but harder?
PandaPedinte
Member
I was having the same problem when I was playing in the old desktop. What OS are you using?
Yeah, basically FTL with more technical options, based on real life and less fancy graphics. I looked at the game for 1 hour now and I am STILL unsure whether to play more of it or not.
PandaPedinte
Member
I was going to download Space Jade but I looked at the minimum specs and now way I can run it. D:
I was looking at the screenshots in the subsim forum and they look oppressive for someone who isn't a submarine enthusiast.
I was looking at the screenshots in the subsim forum and they look oppressive for someone who isn't a submarine enthusiast.
Yeah, I love those games, but its a tad daunting at first, still trying to figure out whether its a bit more approachable than it seems.
More_Badass
Member
Windows 7