“Why so seriously delayed (again!)?” Actually, at this point the game looks so phenomenal that it’ll get snapped up even if it slips into the holiday season. I’m gathering this latest wait is due to the developer making sure the game will run as smoothly as possible out of the gate without the dreaded day one patching issues many games slap players in the face with. I’m wondering just how much better things would be if this was a completely single-player game with no online play, but such is the modern videogame development cycle that allows for DLC, season passes and other stuff that needs to work right out of the box or it’s unhappy campers complaining all over the internet. Well okay, it’s not THAT much longer a wait, but I can see a few Bat-fans leaping around and huffing and puffing in their hockey pads.
It’s been a long and hard week for some of you, I know, I know. What you need is something calming and stress relieving to do that’s not too taxing, so why not try a few games out bound to get you calmer? Bundle Stars just happens to want to chill you out a bit with The Zen Bundle, a collection of ten great games for a mere $2.49. Yes, twenty-five cents per game experience! The cool thing is what’s here ranges from short and thought-provoking to quirky and compelling. There’s fun to be had here in all these games, even the oddball “bullet hell” of Danmaku Unlimited 2. I have some of these games already, but I’d get this for Mountain:
and probably give another copy of the slyly sexy Luxuria Superbia as a random gift to someone who needs a game to play with that special person in their life. Hey, I’m good like that when it comes to digital delivery surprises:
As usual, you get a bunch of cool indie games for your backlog, some of your money goes to charity and everyone’s happy! Sure, it’s spring and you can run around in the melting snow all day, but if you’re not quite ready to have hungry squirrels jumping on your head in the park while you run in circles screaming, why not stay in for a bit and RELAX?
Six days to go and I wish I had about a half million bucks to throw at this Kickstarter project just so it could get onto the Wii U as a stretch goal. Still, with just about $70,000 left to go before it’s fully funded as a PC, Mac and Linux game, it’s worth helping get ToeJam & Earl: Back in the Groove made if you remember the original Sega Genesis/Mega Drive game and its somewhat under appreciated sequel, Panic on Funkotron. Here’s a peek at an early version of Back in the Groove from the game’s KIckstarter page:
In terms of the art style of the new game, I like it quite a lot, but the more colorful and distinct look Panic on Funkotron had made such a strong impression on me that I’m slightly sad to see it not make a complete comeback. That said, those “stacked” levels are awesome to see in that early footage. Also great is the return to the roguelike play of the original that featured randomized levels, enemies and presents. Couch co-op is back, but with four players instead of two and online play is on board for those friendless types who need to reach out and touch someone. Just kidding on that last sentence, but TJ & E was (and is, as I still have my Genesis copy that gets whipped out from time to time) a game that worked best with a buddy next to you on the couch to work with. Or elbow in the ribs at when they weren’t doing what they needed to do.
Anyway, if you like what you see, do what you need to do and tell some friends about this one. They need some old-school retro rap roguelike love in their lives too you know…
This week’s Humble Weekly Bundle is a sneaky one for sure, but it’s worth every penny. Six roguelikes for eight bucks is a STEAL, even in this game of gamers devaluing hard work to the point where a buck or two for some games is deemed “too much!” by some cheapskates. Those folks are entitled to their opinions, but not to making developers choose between eating and churning out more games they can only sell for pennies because some think it’s fine to not pay for all that hard work.
Anyway, humorous “rant” over, but there’s some truth in it. These bundles do well because many pay MORE than the suggested amount because they kn ow the deal and they also like helping out the assorted charities who team up with these bundle sites. If you’re suddenly feeling a little guilty about those games you got for about seventeen pennies each, that’s not my fault. I don’t believe in “guilt” at all these days. Just playing fair when you can do so and supporting the arts in any form they come in. Not get crackin’ on that paying what stuff is actually worth part. I won’t judge you either way, but I sure as hell bet YOU feel a lot better about it.
If you have at least $2.49 burning a hole in your pocket right now and need something fun to do with your PC or laptop, well… yup, it’s that time again. The IndieGala Every Monday Bundle is calling you. Can you hear it? Good. This week’s selection is mostly role-playing games from mostly western indie developers. Some are Japanese inspired old school goodness, some are western style old-school goodness. You’ll figure it all out soon enough because you’re good like that. Or, you just learned it all from me and aren’t as thankful as you need to be.
Whatever. As long as you’re playing more games and enjoying them, it’s all good.
Even though I don’t play online games these days, Firefly Online has had me intrigued every since I heard there was an official game underway. Oddly enough, no one from any PR firm contacted me about covering it, so I assumed that was some sort of warning sign or worse, someone not wanting to do the hard work of getting the word out on something they thought was going to be too niche for its own good. Well, I was wrong on both counts as I found out when I bit the bullet and signed up for Firefly Online Cortex, the companion pre-game app currently available on Steam, Google Play and the App Store.
There’s not much to do in Cortex other than collect digital trading cards and points playing mini-games on a map of The Verse or reading news updates. That said, the cards are cool, there’s a second series coming soon and you can also score some even better bonuses by ponying up five bucks to attain Big Damn Hero status. This status will get some some great perks for the main game when it launches this spring on Windows, Mac OS, iOS and Android OS. What kind of perks? Well, exclusive gear for your crew mates, access to items non-BDH players won’t have and some other neat stuff. Hey, they got my five clams without hesitation. I’m not here to babble about anything you can read in the FAQ here other than to add I like where this is all going and if you ever were a Firefly fan at some point in the past, you may want to think about signing up yourself.
What I like about the game based on the descriptions and video above it that it’s NOT at all forced social interactivity. You can play along with your virtual crew as you rise up in the ranks, taking your customized ship into charted and uncharted territories for fun and profit. The game is in fact, a single-player experience that just so happens to have some social elements added in like the ability to create and share quests with others. As it’s also powered by Unity, this means there’s a slim chance it may end up on other platforms (as in consoles) if it does well enough on the initial platforms it launches on (and there’s enough demand for a port in every port, of course).
Right now, my own personal choice will be what to play this on when it does ship. I’ve been eyeballing a few inexpensive tablets recently (primarily for gaming purposes) as well as dinking around on devices owned by a few friends while I decide to make up my mind. I suppose I could just run the game on the laptop just fine. However, I want to keep it freed up to write and have something else dedicated entirely to FFO. So, it may be a mobile platform after all that’s bigger than a phone and smaller than a breadbox. We shall see, but whatever I choose, Firefly Online will be played. At my own pace, of course.
While this latest delay may seem like “bad” news, developer Slightly Mad Studios is letting gamers know that the game is pretty much done (99.9% is certainly “pretty much done” to me!) and just needs that extra QA love so it ships across all platforms ready to run out of the gate:
“Despite our long heritage and pedigree in making critically-acclaimed racing games, Project CARS is by far the grandest and most intricately detailed of them all. Despite therefore the game being 99.9% complete, the remaining 0.1% attending to small issues and bugs has been tricky to anticipate. We’re absolutely dedicated to delivering a ground-breaking experience and by targeting mid-May fans can be assured that’s what they’ll receive” said Ian Bell, Head of Studio at Slightly Mad Studios. “Again, we want to thank our fans for their support and patience on this matter. There’s a high expectancy from racing fans around the world that Project CARS is going to be an exciting new contender in the simulation racing space and we firmly believe gamers deserve it to be in its most complete and polished state when they come to play it on day one. And since the gaming community is our primary focus and has always been at the heart of the project during development, we would like to offer some free content to all players as compensation for this short delay and as acknowledgement of how grateful we are. This gift, that we’re sure is going to excite fans, will be available from day one and revealed shortly. Keep an eye on our website for more info.”
To me, this reads “We want the console versions to ship out with hopefully zero need for day one patching, particularly the Wii U version.”, which is a good thing at the end of the day. Given the release of certain other high profile racers plagued with bugs (notably Sony’s DriveClub and UbiSoft’s The Crew), seeing Slightly Mad take the extra time to add that bit of extra polish their game up is a good thing. I’m holding out the Wii U version will get some love and respect, as Nintendo just can’t seem to get a break when it comes to good marquee racers that aren’t Mario Kart 8. Yeah, yeah, it’s lightning fast, looks phenomenal and most of all is FUN to play. But at my age, I tend to like my racers a bit more grounded in reality.
Okay, back to holding my breath for a bit longer, which is tough to to with a sore throat, mind you…
Do this writing about games stuff for a long enough period of time and you learn to go into every media event with no expectations. This time-built wisdom will pay off when you’re completely surprised by a game you’ve heard about in bits and pieces that’s shaping up to be a must-play title. ADR1FT was one of those games I’d heard about since its inception, but held off on writing a single word about until I was able to spend time with a demo. That happened yesterday thanks to 505 Games giving it a big screen premiere in two separate events for Boston and New York City games media. The Unreal 4 powered game headed to PS4, Xbox One, Steam (and yes, whatever rigs Oculus will run on) is one of those first games that leaves you breathless for a few reasons.
“SURVIVOR DETECTED”
The game’s story is a straightforward and simple tale of survival. You’re an astronaut who wakes up stuck in a damaged EVA suit on a heavily damaged space station orbiting Earth. Gameplay revolves around locating air supplies, repairing your suit and finding out just what happened that left you the only survivor. Part mystery, part survival game and all stunning to look at, it’s clear that ADR1FT has a mission in changing some perceptions about modern gaming. Sure, that sounds like an overly lofty goal. But again, it’s a case where if you see and play this one, you’ll “get” why it’s such an important release for its developer and publisher… Continue reading →
While I rest up my golden throat and silver eyeballs for tomorrow’s meeting with 505 Games, you can go buy some cool indie games over at the IndieGala Every Monday Sale. This week’s bundle features eight games for $2.49, and a nice mix of titles at that. Adventure games, a digital board game for up to four players, classic arcade shooting and more, all for a song. Thankfully, you don’t need to sing in order to get this deal. On the other hand, for that little money you may just be singing so happily that the neighbors will think something’s wrong with you.
Okay, stop it with all that wide-grinning and humming too loud and go play some games, I say.
So, I’m home today and feeling lousy as I deal with this evil throat, which seems to be clearing up a bit more, but not before giving me some guff and beige-green colored stuff to cough up. Yuck. Anyway, this PAX trailer for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt made me feel better as I watched it, but I’m not quite ready to go monster hunting just yet. I’m trying to figure out which body part to sell so I can play this game when it comes out, but that’s another story for another time. Anyway, let me get back to my recuperation, as I’m way behind on a lot of stuff and can’t get much done if I’m sick as a dog. *Woof!*
"DESTROY ALL FANBOYS!" 