Convoy: Top-Down Tactical Vehicle Combat? Yes, You NEED This Game!

Posted on November 3, 2014 by geelw

Sometimes stuff lands in one of the inboxes here that makes me laugh for a few reasons from good to bad to “Ruh-Roh!”. Convoy Games’ Kickstarter project, Convoy falls squarely in the former hearty chuckle category. That was thanks to playing a demo build linked with that email that made me laugh because the gameplay was something I’d not seen previously and everything clicked right away. I happen to love when developers decide to tackle familiar genres in unique ways and Convoy does just that. Sure, it’s basically the space combat from games like FTL and other sci-fi classics translated to top-down rogue-like road action out of the Mad Max movies. But so far, it all feels just right and while in need of more tweaking, it’s clear the dev team is on the right path.

Anyway, go check out the project video above, click on over to that KS page and whip out that wallet. A mere $13 gets you the final version of the game when it’s all done and ready to go in February 2015. Currently, the game is just under a third funded with 25 days to go, but it needs to get more love. Um, financial love, people. Don’t go proposing to Convoy or anything silly like that, now. I’m not sure the dev team wants to let go of their game before they’re all done with it. It’s a great Monday when you see an indie game that’s more exciting than a bunch of AAA titles screaming for your attention, that’s for sure…

How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition is Perfect for Today’s Dreary Day

Posted on November 1, 2014 by geelw

Miserable weather or not, learning all you need about dispatching zombies and staying alive on a desert island are always handy skills. 505 Games dropped EKO Games’ How to Survive: Storm Warning Edition for the PS4 onto PSN and Xbox Live yesterday and it’s a must buy if you’re a fan of the original game or are entirely new to the experience. This visually gussied up version gives you the original game plus all six DLC packs for a decent price. While best with friends, the game offers up a hefty solo challenge with decent AI. Just make sure you watch where you aim, chop or punch. “Friendly” fire can’t be toggled off as far as I know and you don’t want to accidentally knock off your AI companion. Anyway, this one’s quite cool and funny for a fairly violent game – go check it out, I say.

Fund This! GRAAL SEEKER: The Final Push is On!

Posted on October 31, 2014 by geelw

Okay, folks – Lugludum’s cool-looking retro strategy RPG GRALL SEEKER needs our assistance! Go help fund the project over at Indiegogo and if you’ve got a Steam account, absolutely give it an up vote on its Steam Greenlight page. This is one of those games that needs a bigger audience willing to try something outside their usual comfort zone, so go check out those links and make Lugludum a very happy bunch of game makers!

Hey, Guillaume! Play us out with a little game music, won’t you, sir?

Halloween Bundles Offer Up Tricks and Treats to Keep You Up All Night…

Posted on October 30, 2014 by geelw

If you’ve no plans to venture outside on Halloween or this weekend when the clocks slow down an hour in some parts of the country, here’s an idea: why not grab some cheap games and scare yourself half or more to death without ever leaving the comfort of your own home? Here’s what’s up on a couple of indie game bundle sites for the big day:

The IndieGala Halloween Bundle has nine games up for $3.29 with two surprise games to be revealed next week (take a chance!, take a chance!). Most of the games here are scary, but there’s a goofy puzzle game as well as a very non-scary retro platformer here if you’re a total fraidy cat.

The Humble HalloWeekly Bundle features the usual sliding scale pricing, but I say drop down the $15 just to play Among the Sleep, a nicely unsettling and really beautiful game where you play as a two-year old child. Surprisingly (or not so surprisingly), this one works quite well on a number of levels.

Finally, The Carnage Bundle over at Bundle Stars has a whopping ten games for 2.99 that are guaranteed to creep you out or make you laugh (or both!). Well, that Zombie Bowl-o-Rama game is probably the only intentionally funny game, Warehouse and Logistics Simulator is exactly what it says (and that Hell’s Warehouse DLC would make Sisyphus proud) and Greed: Black Border is more of a RPG in the Diablo vein (with less scares).

Remember, some of what you pay goes right to charities and in this case, giving money to those causes is better than giving BLOOD. Anyway, get to the buying and installing and playing and screaming and dying stuff already!

Review: Dungeon of the Endless

Posted on October 28, 2014 by geelw

Platform: PC
Developer: Amplitude Studios
Publisher: Reverb Games
# of Players: 1 (Online 1-4)
Release Date: October 28, 2014
ESRB Rating: N/A
Official Site
Score: A (95%)

If you’re one of those people who thinks games have gotten too “casual” these days or you’re just looking for something meaty and stupendously challenging, Dungeon of the Endless would like a word with you before it puts you into a corner and makes you cry for bit. If you haven’t smashed your PC with a sack of hammers, you’ll pick yourself up out of that teary heap, stomp back to your computer and try again with gritted teeth and fresh resolve. Amplitude Studios’ brilliantly designed and gorgeously old-school experience mixes a bunch of genres, takes the developer’s famed 4X gameplay and makes it even more appealing than before. Of course, the game’s masterful design and monstrous difficulty will mean that everyone who plays will suffer load of losses as they attempt to keep their crystal and/or their party in one piece before they can reach that exit. But this one’s a game where you learn from each defeat and each victory deserves a celebration before you move on for more potential pain… Continue reading →

Almost at the Exit! Dungeon of the Endless Review Incoming…

Posted on October 27, 2014 by geelw

Hmmm… I’d already have my Dungeon of the Endless review up and running for the exit like mad, but yesterday’s rather dopey PC woes set me back a bit on a few projects. That review is just about done and should go up tomorrow afternoon. Anyway, I’ll skip keeping you in suspense and suggest you just go BUY the game if you haven’t and have been wondering if it’s any good. It is and then some. I’ll be back tomorrow with a few reasons why you need this rogue-like RTS hybrid in your life. Your brain will certainly thank you for the workout, that’s for sure…

Monday Bundles Make That Mundane Monday All Better…

Posted on October 27, 2014 by geelw

Some scary and not so scary options in this week’s set of bundles. This week’s IndieGala Every Monday Bundle has seven games for $1.89 (nice!), 24 hours until that price goes up.

This week’s Humble Flash Sale is an all-horror themed bundle that will run you a few more bucks for the good stuff, but it’s worth every penny you’ll spend. And you’ll definitely do that spending more than a penny part, I’d say.

Finally, Bundle Stars wants you to learn to like the Kalypso. The Kalypso Games Bundle, that is (oh, I’m SO funny today!). This particular deal will only set you back $3.99 and nets you TEN complete games and 14 DLC packs (yikes), meaning it’s the winner today if you’re into sheer content versus cost. Yes, it’s a shorter than usual post this week, but that’s because I’m in the middle of a review and need to keep it brief. Back in a bit – go get yourselves some games!

Spooky’s House of Jump Scares: Oh, It SURE Looks Cute At First…

Posted on October 27, 2014 by geelw

(Thanks, Akuma Kira!)

Ha and double ha. For a while, Fridays over at Desura have been interesting thanks to the site dropping four free indie game downloads for all in their Freedom Fridays promotion. Some of these games have been clunkers, others have been classics and a few defy a proper description because they’re so weird or unfinished or both that they feel like experiments that have taken a life of their own, bumped off their programmers and just forced themselves onto the site leaving a trail of corpses in their wake. Thankfully, Lag Studios‘ unique Spooky’s House of Jump Scares doesn’t fit into that latter category.

As you can see from that trailer above, the game starts off cute and simple-looking with cardboard monsters popping out of walls to maybe make you jump a little. But at some point during its thousand rooms, things take a decidedly dark turn as actual monsters drop onto the scene and give chase to your nameless character, a plot of sorts comes into play in the form of discovered notes and all of a sudden, the game with the dopey name you got for no money is freaking you out and you have to keep playing just to see what horrors that next room reveals. Okay, it’s no P.T. or Outlast, but the game will run on nearly anything and has enough tricks up its sleeve to be a nice little Halloween surprise. Anyway, go get Spooky and let her get under your skin. Hey, even if it doesn’t scare you at all, it’s FREE and you can’t be afraid of that price point at all…

Review: TRI: Friendship and Madness

Posted on October 26, 2014 by geelw

Platform: PC

Developer: Rat King Games

Publisher: Rising Star Games

# of Players 1

ESRB Rating: N/A

Official Site

Score: A (95%)

It’s very hard to believe two people (Jana Reinhardt and Friedrich Hanisch) programmed the stellar TRI: Friendship and Madness, but that’s what it says on the official site and in the game credits. This family-friendly first person puzzle game plays like a hybrid child of Portal and a very well made Minecraft mod where you soon find the only limitations to solving the increasingly challenging levels are your imagination and sense of exploration. The game starts off small as a simple, somewhat straightforward Point A to Point B “find the keys to clear the level” experience, but once you get to drawing triangular platforms that can send you almost anywhere on a map, the game opens up into pure brain expanding territory.

Despite the often high level of challenge in reaching some really out of the way items, once you get the hang of things, the game is always a joy to play, particularly when you’re making your own route around the expansive and often gravity defying maps that have you moving around at seemingly impossible angles… Continue reading →

BUY IT! Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut Gets Price Slashed in Time for Halloween

Posted on October 24, 2014 by geelw

In case you missed this great and epic oddball horror adventure from Access games and the mind of Swery 65, well, you now have ZERO reason not to want to try it out (well, unless you don’t have a decent enough PC to run the game, of course!). Deadly Premonition: The Director’s Cut is now (well, from now until October 27) a measly $2.49 on Steam! That’s like $24.99 with a “9” missing! Or 90% off, if you actually know how to do math better than I do it. The Steam version adds some new content and nicer visuals than the console versions, but don’t go in expecting the most stellar looking game that’s perfection in all areas.

Come visit Greenvale for the weird people and offbeat vibe and stay for the surprisingly more compelling and poignant tale that unfolds as the game progresses. DPTDC has surprises in store for those who stick it out and survive each chapter and by the finale, you’ll emerge as someone who might want to try more games in this vein because this one went above and beyond the call in a few key areas. Anyway, enough rambling from me – go get this game!