PC Review: MOVE OR DIE

Posted on January 31, 2016 by geelw

MOD_Thumb3 Platform: PC (also on Mac/Linux)

Developer: Those Awesome Guys

Publisher: Those Awesome Guys

# of Players: 1 – 4

MSRP: $ 14.99

ESRB Rating: N/A

Official Site

Score: A- (90%)

Can’t type… playing…

Okay, I had to drag my tired self away from my ongoing battle with MOVE OR DIE just to drag myself back to the computer and bang out a quick review. This game is a total blast and pretty much everything it’s cracked up to be in one package. Simple enough for the kids to pick up, but only the best and most clever and cheap players will survive… that is until they get bested by someone or some random element that’s smarter or faster. The name of the game says it all. If you don’t MOVE, your little avatar will DIE, period. If that wasn’t impetus enough, you’re tasked with a number of randomly rotating mini-games, all of which last a mere twenty seconds each and consist of trying to stay alive longer than the other players whether AI or live.

Between the chainsaws, falling block walls, time bombs and other hazards, this is a game where everyone dies at some point and the key to survival is dying less than anyone else you’re playing against. This simplicity plus the intense speed of each round keeps the game fresh even if the currently limited number of game modes randomly loops back on itself multiple times. The greatest thing about the game is it allows anyone who can hold a controller and keep moving to play and win (and lose).

This one’s a game where the cute factor of those avatars only vaguely mask the title’s dedication to keeping players in a constant state of tension and/or hilarity. You can win a match with a split second remaining and lose the next one in the same manner. That “friendship destroying” element the trailer promises isn’t really a good selling point because the players you’ve beaten are going to not want to quit playing until they get some payback. Continue reading →

MOVE OR DIE: Friendship Destroyer, Inbound

Posted on January 7, 2016 by geelw

On the other hand, a game like MOVE OR DIE is 100% made for playing with folks you know or don’t know anywhere in the world at any time. As you can see from that trailer below, indie developer Those Awesome Guys have cooked up a fun, devious, and genius plan to destroy as many friendships as possible in a single game experience via local multiplayer or online play. You’re a cute icon trapped with a few buddies in a room where the rules and games change every 20 seconds and you need to stay in motion or explode (eek!). Add in all sorts of challenges and the pure panic they provide and yeah, it’s an instant classic of the digital download variety:

While the game is currently Steam-bound on January 21, it would be awesome of Those Awesome Guys to get their baby onto consoles and handhelds in record time. I guess I should try this out and destroy a few friendships of my own, but I’m already at that point where I’ve streamlined my contact list to supermodel skinny. So I guess I can hit the park and train some squirrels to fiddle with controllers and figure out the game mechanics at some point. I can take that show on the road and make MILLIONS from the rubes and with those MILLIONS, run for elected office because here in the U.S. of A., anyone can run and if Deez Nuts can (my squirrels will rip him to pieces in the race!), so can I, grrrr!

Er, where was i again? Oh, right – MOVE OR DIE wants YOU.

Tall Tales: No Plug, Just Infinite Play

Posted on January 7, 2016 by geelw

While New York Toy Fair 2016 isn’t rolling around until mid-February, for months leading up to the event my inbox has been packed to the gills with new product info I’m still sifting through. One of the press releases that caught my eye (ow.) was for an upcoming family game from SCS Direct called Tall Tales: The Game of Infinite Storytelling, which as you can see from that photo above, is packed with possibilities for yep, infinite fun (and not just for the kiddies). Hey, I do love my many videogames to death. But a good board game, party game or something social (not “social”) where anyone can join in and PLAY (gaming’s decline into a paid spectator “sport” baffles me considerably) makes for a more robust experience.

Anyway, playing the game is dirt simple, according to the press release:

Playing Tall Tales is simple- players choose a story card for their setting, draw random story elements from the bag and twist their best tale… just like the world used to do before the technology revolution. Some of the 24 story card settings include: a quirky game show, a colorful ocean, a fun theme park and a crazy circus. The story bag contains a wide range of 3-D pieces, including: a treasure chest, a baby, a unicorn and a rocketship.

Now, I don’t know about YOU, but I thought up a few ideas based on those settings and pieces in the time it took to read that paragraph. Then again, I’m a bit nuts, so I can make an epic novella from the ingredients on a cereal box (it sure beats eating what’s inside, that’s for sure). The game’s release date will be revealed at the show in February and I just may need to check it out on the show floor because it sure looks like a winner. Keep an eye (and an egg) peeled for some sort of update. Your family game nights may never be the same again.

-GW