First Place – Space Engineers – Keen Software House – Early Access Oct 22, 2013
This years winner is a personal favorite. Space Engineers is a procedurally generated voxel based space and building and exploration sandbox with both survival and creative modes as well as online play via hosted servers. In this game you build ships, stations and anything else you can imagine with their elaborate building system and wide variety of highly customizable blocks.
Everything from programming blocks, gyros, thrusters, rotors, pistons, remote control, armor, and just about anything else you can imagine make the possibilities endless. Did I mention mods? This game has full access to the Steam Workshop and custom fanmade content.
Almost forgot to mention their newest edition, PLANETS! A lot of new features have been added along with them. Also of mention is their weekly updates. They’re always tweaking and adding things and making the game overall more enjoyable for everyone. There’s really too much for me to go over in just this short blurb, so pick it up and check it out!
Hard West by PlayWay, was released November 18th, it was successfully Kickstarted back in September by over 4,000 people. Hard West is a new release in a small field of turn-based squad tactics games. This game comes from PlayWay, a newer developer perhaps best known for its Car Mechanic Simulator games. It’s not exactly a triple-A developing and publishing house, so it’s nice to see the inclusion of support for OSX, SteamOS (Ubuntu), and Windows.
If nothing else, the release is timed extremely well. This game has come out right before the holiday season, two years after the last X-Com releases and Shadowrun Returns. If you’re not a fan of the isometric Nintendo hand held tactics games, this is pretty much your newest choice.
An early mission showing how important positioning can be.
This is a review of Undertale that is 100% spoiler free. Reasons why are given in the review but I want you all to understand that this is a very difficult game to review because of this very reason. Almost any detail, even from the game’s own store page, can harm your first experience should you learn it. Knowing this, if you wish to not even risk reading this carefully written review then just know that my verdict is as follows; buy Undertale and play it as soon as possible.Read More
This new trailer for the highly anticipated No Man’s Sky from Hello Games does not disappoint. Everything from walking mechs, to battles with giant space creatures are showcased during this brief trailer.
At the end of the trailer the developers finally unveiled the release date of – June 2016 on PlayStation 4!
(Editors note: this is a very long game, and due to print time constraints, only about 4 hours of game play were unlocked.)
I Shall Remain is an indie, post-apocalyptic, ARPG zombie game, Published and developed by Scorpius Games. Set in the aftermath of WW2, the Nazis have released a deadly virus in the US. The game tells the story of two brothers and their relation to the world that emerged because of the virus. ISR has real time character progression and RPG systems, over 100 abilities, many weapons and weapon enhancers, plenty of infected, 20+ mutations, a large amount of NPCs and teammates all in a 20+ hour long campaign. Weapons include melee: such as knives, swords, pipes, brass knuckles, and many more Small arms: pistols and SMGs, Rifles, Shotguns And heavy weapons: flamethrower rocket launchers.
Each weapon has at least 4 levels of effects and bullets can be enhanced. Grenades, mines and flares can be found throughout the game and the player can pick up objects in the environment and injured NPCs. Occasionally there are vehicles the player can control and use its weapons. Throughout the game there will be buildings for the player to explore which can have items inside.
You gain experience from everything you do in ISR. Whatever your playstyle is, the game will grant you experience in the places you need it. Doctrines allow you to improve attributes and/or give you abilities and each doctrine can be upgraded. There are currently 128 doctrines in ISR. Serum is the currency in ISR. There are traders that buy and sell things for serum such as weapons, medkits, ammo, and flashlight batteries. You can upgrade ammo with serum and use it to control your characters infection.
There are quests in ISR similar to real life scenarios. They add on to the story of the game. About half of the quests in the game aren’t related to the main story line. The side quests help the player immerse themselves into the game world.Fatigue builds up when your character is outside. It affects hp and stamina regen and your chances of properly aiming. There doesn’t seem to be very many places to rest. There are many places for you to scavenge for items in the game. Every weapon has a durability. You can repair them yourself, with scrap you get from dismantling items, or find an npc or teammate to do it. There are plenty of teammates and you can choose what skills they get. You control the weapons they use. There is a detection meter in ISR. Shooting a gun, using your flashlight, and running raise it. Melee weapons, walking, high infection and no flashlight lower it.
Overall ISR is a well made zombie rpg with a decent story. I like the fact that it is set right after WW2. It has plenty of weapons and many skills to choose from. The fact that you gain xp based on what you do it offers many different playstyles and seems to have some replayability. There is a survival mode and a permadeath option for story mode.
A few very small negatives about ISR: If you disable shadows, the dark holes in the ground that zombies come from reflects the environment. When you kill an enemy they release red clouds that can obstruct vision. The camera clips through background buildings and weapons degrade too fast.
I Shall Remain is a good game and is totally worth $15 if you enjoy zombies, top-down ARPGs or both. This is a game i would recommend others that are looking for a zombie game.
Our latest episode of BrokenCast our semi-regular podcast about the world of gaming is here for your listening enjoyment.
This week I and managing editor Fionna Fox sit down with Potions: A Curious Tale developer Renee Gittins, the founder of indie developer Stumbling Cat. We chat about what it is like to enter the world of indie development fulltime as well as what it’s like to show off your game to thousands of potential players at the Penny Arcade Expo in Seattle.
First person indie horror Allison Road made a rather impressive splash this summer when its developers released footage of the game’s prototype. Due to its similar first person style and the fact that it is set in a modern urban dwelling Allison Road was almost instantly compared to Hideo Kojima’s cancelled Silent Hills project and its now unavailable teaser P.T.
Now the folks at Lilith LTD have taken Allison Road to KickStarter in an attempt to raise 250,000 British Pounds (Aprox 387, 000 USD) within the next thirty days to help fund their latest game.
Looking to secure a digital copy of Allison Road on PC will need to fork over about $24 USD to reserve their code.
For $47 USD backers can get the “full digital package” which includes the game on PC, Xbox One or PS4 as well as the game’s art E-book, a digital soundtrack and an in game credit. A physical copy will run you about $87 USD!
On the more expensive end if you have a photograph that you think would go well with the game’s aesthetic Lilith LTD is offering the chance for 15 backers to include their photos in game (with approval) for aprox $386 USD.
For about $1500 USD you can leave a phone message in the game (with the developer’s approval) plus an audio credit and a downloadable copy of the game.
For $3800 US you can collaborate with the developers at Lilith LTD to develop one of the unique scares in the game (with their approval of course). The purchaser of that tier will also get an in-game design credit and the soundtrack/game bundle mentioned above.
Lilith LTDs Kickstarter describes the game as:
“A narrative-driven survival horror game developed by industry veterans and lifelong game enthusiasts. Created with Unreal Engine 4 and supporting Oculus Rift we are ready to take horror into your front room”.
Will they hit their hauntingly large target of over $380,000? I am not sure but if Allison Road hits its mark the game is expected to be delivered to backers in December 2016.
Daily Espada is the newest indie from Pedro Gabriel, pits an ordinary man against Brazil’s most bizarre and exciting fictional game show. Our hero will be given a sword and a gun and forced to fight against hordes of Brazil’s greatest mythological creatures in exchange for fabulous prizes. The sword gives our hero the power to transform in a super-sentai kind of way, donning a black suit with red accents that give you additional more powerful combos and a super ability. The gameshow’s rewards are fantastic, and will ensure our heroes family will be set for life.Read More
Sony has finally revealed the February PlayStation Plus line up for North America. Get ready to sink your teeth into an action-RPG with Transistor, sneak around in the Shadows with Thief and join the Japanese mafia with Yakuza 4. All of these games and more will be gratis for the entire second month of 2015.Read More
If you’re a fan of Metroidvania titles, you know, games like Castlevania: Symphony of the Night for example, UnEpic is a wonderful exploration title you’ll probably enjoy very much! I’ve already gushed a little bit about the game before, but there is a lot more to be said about the game itself. Available both on Steam and on the Wii-U eShop, I took a look at the console release that is available thanks to EnjoyUp publishing the title on Nintendo’s latest system. The best part that I’ve already noted is how much UnEpic feels like you’re living a comedic RPG web comic.Read More
Imagine a game that plays similar to Gears of War, but is a near future sci-fi adventure that takes place at a secret lab on an island. You’re part of Echo Squad, a team sent in to rescue a doctor and recover a chunk of meteorite. With a choice of one of four characters, you progress much in a similar GoW fashion going to each checkpoint and enjoying the story as it unfolds.
Gameplay and progression is quite solid. At first you may feel unsure about this title, but it does quickly pick up. After the tutorial, which I’d recommend checking out, you’re dropped right into an outdoor island location, working your way into the lab. In the general open areas outdoors I didn’t take much cover at first, but I didn’t need to at the very start. When you reach the lab and start making your way inside it takes on a good cover system feel.Read More
Released today on the Wii U eShop, this game is an indie gem worth checking out. The latest I’ve been enjoying is UnEpic, a quest that features a tabletop gaming fan being transported into a far away dark castle. RPG know how and clever wit come into play as you advance with your modern day hero. It’s an enjoyable story that plays out in a web comic sort of feel since you occasionally have conversations with a shadow being that fails to possess your characters body and gets stuck within him. The exchanges between the two are quite fun and keep a comical tone to your journey. Read on for more, as well as the games trailer.Read More
There’s been a lot of interesting change in the indie world lately, specifically with the flood of console-exclusive indie titles coming to Sony’s Playstation 4. Some onlookers have been quick to crown the PS4 the ‘King of Indie’ as a result, but is just a trend, or is there something more to this? IGN reached out to three indie studios for some insight.Read More
I’m usually always poking around at various indie games on the Xbox Live Marketplace. While I really should write up about a lot more of my favourites, there’s definitely one recent addition that Metroidvania fans should check out.
The demo takes place after the games intro which involves the three main characters, two siblings and a fellow classmate from a magic class. In the demo, you’re telewarped into a forest setting which quickly reminded me of the classic game Jill Of The Jungle, at least from what I remember of it. Even bringing in memories of exploring Shadow Complex, instead with a fantasy setting. No big story spoilers, but if this does sound fun you may just wanna go get the demo and try it out yourself. Otherwise, read on!Read More
I’m always poking away at Xbox Lives indie section for treasures like Cursed Loot, and this is a fun title especially for such cost as a dollar (well 80msp). The game is at first just another take on the classic Rogue gameplay of searching through a dungeon, leveling your character, and fighting mosters most of the time by bumping into them to attack.
However, Eyehook Games adds multiple choice role playing moments and even a coin rush side scroller section that really add some extra fun to the original formula. There’s even a slot machine! The game consists of a randomly generated 50 floor dungeon and 6 playable character classes. There’s tons of loot to find, including as the title indicates, cursed loot that you need to use a scroll to remove from your character. The trick is too, just like classic Rogue, you only have one life! Read on for the trailer.Read More
