24 | August | 2016 | "DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!"

If you told me I’d be gushing endlessly over an old-school run ‘n gun with a modern look that just so happened to star a cybernetic FLAMINGO, I’d probably ask you what YOU were smoking. But, here I am extolling the joys of Featherpunk Prime, one hell of an indie action/platform shooter from two guys with a ton of talent.

Stephen Payne and Dan Jeffery make up Super Hatch games and their baby is headed to Steam and the Humble Store September 1st. BUY IT, I say. The game is a total blast to play, it looks phenomenal, packs in a great soundtrack from Wingcap Audio (buy it!) and from my brief stretch with a recent build, it just might be one of the better arcade-style shooters this year.

Once you get over the oddball choice of a lead character, dive in and see how tight the game is, any preconceived notions will be vaporized. The game’s gaudy neon color scheme, catchy music and excellent re-mappable controls suck you in and keep things bouncing along as the level of challenge blow you around in your seat.

The game is wonderfully balanced and (to me), plays like a Bizarro World version of Contra meets Midnight Resistance with a CYBER FLAMINGO as the hero. I’m sure a few Treasure games also influenced Super Hatch, but the important thing here is the game they’ve made manages to stand out on its own as original thanks to tat heroic metal bird and how the game makes you adore it so damn much. It’s not a “cute!” shooter at all, folks. But then animation on that metal bird is so damn priceless you’ll crack up at the genius absurdity of it all.

I’ll shut up here before this turns into a full-on review (that’s coming!). For now, head below the jump for more…
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BUY THIS GAME.

My inbox gets packed to the gills with requests to review games and with my current massive backlog it usually takes me a week to sift through a few days’ worth of pitches and press kits. However, that bug-eyed alien art from Matt Glanville’s awesome Switch ‘N’ Shoot jumped right out at me and as soon as I clicked on the link and watched that gameplay video above. My wallet was two bucks lighter. Although it’s still in beta, it’s completely playable and addictive as bacon-wrapped bacon with a side of bacon.

Dirt simple and a great companion piece to Downwell (I guess you can call it Upwell? No? Hey, I tried!), the brilliantly simple gameplay packs a hilarious level of challenge. You get one ship, one button moves AND shoots, you can only move laterally. Have fun. Zen-like reflexes are needed to keep scoring points, but death comes so quickly that you’ll just jam on the button to restart until you get on that leaderboard. My paltry 17 points is up now, but not for long, I bet.

(Thanks, Awesome Movie Clips!)

Anyway, go grab this one on anything it’s on. If you hate DRM, go get it here. I say pay for it if you can – even as an Early Access title, it’s well worth the cost and then some.