Transistor: Supergiant Games’ Next WIP (PLUS, Buy Bastion Cheap If You Haven’t Yet!)

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Transistor_19-mar-2013_01Meet Red, heroine of Supergiant Games‘ currently in development action/RPG, Transistor. That’s a mighty big sword she’s swinging, isn’t it? Turns out that weapon is integral to the plot, as it was previously used in an attempt to kill the poor gal, but she survived and is out to find out who wanted her dead and why they used such a damn big butter knife when an accidentally dropped piano would have done the job. OK, so THAT piano stuff is probably not part of the plot (I hope), but those of you who played Supergiant’s amazing Bastion on any platform it ended up on know that Transistor will be a spectacular and memorable experience. Keep an eye on this one, folks – it’s going to be one for the ages, I predict…

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Anachronox Is $2.39 On GOG.com…(!) Yes, You Should Give It A Try.

 

anachronox coverTo some gamers, Ion Storm’s excellent 2001 role-playing game, Anachronox hasn’t aged so well in terms of visuals (the 3D character models in particular can be quite ugly thanks to the aging, but heavily modified Quake II engine), but the story, writing, art direction and turn-based combat are all prime reasons for checking this out. As usual, GOG.com comes to the rescue with a temporary price drop on this gem that makes it well worth a test drive. The game is often very funny, there are some interesting quests and NPC’s to meet, nice nods to eastern and western RPGs and film noir in all that sci-fi shininess and yeah, it’s pretty darn long. The ending is the weakest link as the game was so huge and seemed ripe for a follow-up that never got made. Nevertheless, at the end of the day there’s a lot to love about this not quite forgotten slice of gaming history, so yes indeed… I say you should set aside time to check this out…

(*whispers* It’s kind of hard to pass up a value like this, is all I’m saying…)

Dead State: DoubleBear’s Indie ‘ZRPG’ Looks Awesomely Apocalyptic…

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combat_shot_finalI’ve been way too busy to keep up with every indie game I’d like to play, but once in a while I catch up to something like DoubleBear Productions work in progress, Dead State and all is well in my little corner of the Internet. As you can see, there’s a nice The Walking Dead meets Fallout vibe going on here (which is double cool) and the WIP combat video below shows off a pretty impressive engine and grid-based tactics at work. The writing here is solid as well, with some nicely done descriptions that bring the slower-paced battles to life very well indeed. Hopefully, this will run on my ancient PC or laptop when all is said and done. I could use a nice turn-based post zombie apocalypse RPG that’s not a system hog for the sake of flashy graphics (and so could you, I bet). This absolutely looks as if it’s going to have a wider appeal amongst a few types of folks into the current zombie craze which seems to be without end and only growing in strength.

 

 

Keep an eyeball on this one, folks. If everything falls into place, this just might be an indie sleeper that gets a ton of attention and puts DoubleBear on the lips of zombie fans around the globe. Or at least keeps them busy for way too many hours across many sleepless nights… or both.

BUY THIS GAME! Amanita Design’s Machinarium Headed to PS Vita March 26

 

One of the most unique-looking and fun indie adventure/puzzle games from a few years back is finally Vita-bound for an excellent price later this month. Amanita Design’s Machinarium is coming on March 26, 2013 for a paltry $6.99 and it’s actually greatly enhanced over the previously released PSN version. A reworked control scheme allows analog sticks or touchscreen movement, a new zoom function allows you to see things a bit closer (the artwork is so intricately detailed that this is a necessity), and PSn leaderboards have been added so you can check your times and mini-game scores against players from all over. Another must-buy indie game for Sony’s handheld? Sure, I’ll take it if it’s one as good as this…

Lone Survivor Headed to PS3 & Vita. Lock Yourself In, There’s Trouble All Around…

 

I actually hadn’t heard of Lone Survivor until a friend raved about the PC version a little while back. But I’ve just been way to busy to get to the ton of indie games I already have and pushed this one to the back burner. Now, I have a reason to give it a try, as the game is headed to the PS3 and Vita this summer courtesy of superflat games (which is Jasper Byrne) with an assist from London-based studio, Curve (which is a few more people). The game is a retro-looking but decidedly modern survival horror game that can be played in almost any way a player chooses. You can complete the game without firing a shot or go all out and try to dispatch every undead thing you come across. However, your character’s mental state is a bit off (possibly from hunger, thirst and/or lack of rest) and not everything is as it seems. Innnnnteresting, to say the least and given Byrne’s complete love for Sony’s console and handheld, PS3 and Vita owners can expect some nice changes to the game that include Trophies, Cross-Buy and Cross-Play support plus MORE. What’s MORE you ask? Ha! That trick NEVER works here, kids.  You’ll see if you click on this PlayStation Blog post…

Is Dollar Dash a Modern Day Bomberman? Hmmmmaybe…

 

dollar dash tinyYes, yes… just the mention of the late, lamented Hudson Soft’s classic character and game brings a tear to my eye (and nope, that new-ish online game isn’t my thing despite the massive social aspect – or rather because of it. I like to see who’s beating me and vice versa). That said, Kalypso Media and developer Candygun want you to dive into their fast-paced cops & robbers & assorted traps game, Dollar Dash like it’s the new next best thing. Already out on PC via Steam and through Xbox Live Arcade for the 360, the game is finally headed to PSN on March 19. I’ve played the PC version and found it to be fun and funny with tons of hazards to avoid in each stage and while not quite as kawaii as Bomberman, the game is a blast to play. Anyway, go check it out if you have Steam installed and if there’s also a PS3 in your home, boogie on over to PSN next week and snap this up. Hopefully, this will be Vita compatible, but we’ll see, I suppose…

Drunk of the Dead: Zombeer Now Set to Creep Onto PS3 (& YOU Can Be In It… Sort Of)

 

Annnnd, Speaking of nights gone to hell, folks…

zombeerOK, for a while I thought this in development PC and Mac game was a very well-done Internet joke, but it seems to exist and is now also headed to the PS3 soon. Zombeer: Zombies & Beer, a “first-person-survival-horror-comedy-shooter made BY fans of the zombie genre FOR fans of the zombie genre”, according to the press release. Spain’s Moonbite Studios is cranking away on this and it does look pretty wild in a retro sort of way. The developer is also doing something special for Steam Greenlight supporters in creating a hidden Easter Egg scenario (one of many planned for the game) and putting all those names into the game’s extended credit sequence, which they say will be “the looooooooooongest and BIGGEST end titles of history of videogames”. Eeek. I can think of a few games that had insanely long credits (Super Burnout on the Atari Jaguar springs to mind, as do a few RPGs with massive staffing across many studios). Click HERE if you want to be a part of the madness. And absolutely read that Greenlight page, as the game description is hellishly priceless…

Alien Spidy Set to Crawl Onto Xbox Live, PC, Mac on March 20th

alien spidy artIn the mood for some classic platforming action? Do you like (or more precisely, are you not afraid of) SPIDERS? Well, then… Kalypso Media Digital and developer Enigma Software Productions have a fun little indie game for you (well, provided you own a PC, Mac, Xbox 360 or PS3). Alien Spidy packs in 69 levels of that aforementioned platforming straight out the the NES and arcade days with pretty HD visuals and plenty of challenge. PS3 owners? You’ll be getting a version shortly afterward and it’ll cost the same $9.99 as PC and Mac owners will pay. XBLA users have to pony up 800 Microsoft Points (which is sort of the same price, I think) for the pleasure of playing with Spidy. I’m gathering that if you haven’t hit your monitor with a shoe or sprayed it with Raid ’til it keeled over DEAD, you’re still intrigued, so here are some screenshots to ogle while you wait for the 20th to roll around…

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Shadowrun Returns Alpha Gameplay: First Look At The Return of a RPG Classic

 

shadowrun_preordersMore proof that the best crowd-funded games do indeed make it into production once they grab huge sums of money, here’s a long look at a tiny chunk of what hardworking indie developer Harebrained Schemes (yes, that’s their name!) has cooked up so far with the $1,836,447 backers ponied up on Kickstarter. In addition, even if you happened to miss out on the big pledge drive, you can still pre-order the game in three affordable different configurations at prices ranging from $15 to $75 for PC, OSX and Linux-based computers. With an expected release window of sometime this summer (May/June 2013), as well as gameplay that’s decidedly old school (and great looking) 2D turn-based RPG in a cyberpunk setting (and you get a level editor to fool around with, to boot), it looks as Shadowrun Returns will be one of those cool indie games that makes a few “best of” lists once gamers get their hands on it…

99 Levels to Hell Trailer: Every Day, and With a Cup of Coffee in My Hand…

Hey, now! That’s EXACTLY what I USED to say when I woke up most mornings, but thanks to gog.com, I need to change my favorite saying to something else. Gee, thanks guys! It took long enough to think it up (something like 666 levels!), but oh well. Anyway, the game looks pretty cool and yeah, I do wonder that happens after that 99th level? Elvis? The Pope? A Diet Kook factory? Hmmm… maybe I should drop a few bucks on this and find the hell out? Well, once I get this pile of other work done, I most likely will take a trip to hell. As seen in the trailer, it’s got shops and casinos, so it can’t be ALL bad, right? Hmmm…