Bang-Howdy
Latest
The Game Archaeologist: Puzzle Pirates
Up until this point in my life, Puzzle Pirates has always been that "oh yeah, that actually exists!" game to me. Even when I do lists of pirates in MMOs, this title slips right off of my radar. Maybe it's because Puzzle Pirates doesn't make waves (har!) these days, or maybe it's been around for so very long. I can't be the only one; the last time Massively talked about Puzzle Pirates was three years ago. I think that part of Puzzle Pirates' forgettability is that it doesn't exactly scream MMO. I mean, its combat is more cerebral than anything else, it's all cutesy and stuff, and even its name suggests a casual flash title than anything deep and substantive. Yet I have friends with a long and abiding love for this game, people who always chide me when I forget it. So to peer pressure I bow: It's high past time that we gave Puzzle Pirates its due as part of the MMO genre. Avast, ye landlubbers, and swab those peepers: We be goin' to sea!
A whole new Whirled: The future of Flash MMOs with Daniel James
Earlier this week we had the chance to speak with Mr. Daniel James, the CEO and co-founder of Three Rings. Makers of successful online titles Puzzle Pirates and Bang! Howdy, the company is well known for the quality of its work and the quirkiness of its GDC parties. They've been working on a third project, Whirled, for the better part of 2008 and it just launched into full live service earlier this week. We spoke with Mr. James about the whys and logic behind Whirled, about the power of user-created content, and the power of offering actual compensation for hard work and talent. Read on below the cut for our talk with Mr. James, and a thorough exploration of a brand-new Whirled.%Gallery-36577%
Joystiq not-so-live coverage of the IGF and GDCA awards
6:20 p.m.: The Joystiq crew walks the red carpet, because we're just that important.6:33 p.m.: Gnarls Barkley's cover of the Violent Femmes' "Gone Daddy Gone" is blasting as we find seats in the press section. Cushy seats with recline-able chairs.6:42 pm: Sam and Max introduce the start for the independent games festival. The mention of projectile vomiting is disturbing, but welcoming somehow. 6:43 pm: Jamil Moledina and Simon Carless march onto stage, noting that the show is being broadcast to the entire world. We sense somewhat sinister undertones.
Gears of War takes best game at GDCA, Aquaria wins IGF best game prize
At tonight's Game Developers Choice Awards, Epic Games' Gears of War took home three awards: best technology, visual arts, and the coveted Game of the Year award. On the independent side of things, Bit Blot's Aquaria won the Seumas McNally Grand Prize from the Independent Games Festival.Okami picked up a win in one of the four categories it was nominated in (take that, AIAS). Unfortunately, Loco Roco did not pick up any awards despite two nominations (character design and audio). Independent game Everyday Shooter won two awards and a distribution deal from GameTap.View the full list winners and nominees from both events below.
Bang! Howdy now in open beta
Those on the lookout for an online game that doesn't involve orcs, elves or magic may find Bang! Howdy refreshing. From Three Rings, the makers of Puzzle Pirates, Bang! Howdy is a western-themed online strategy game.Although we featured it in our MMO roundup, it's not the same sort of MMO as Puzzle Pirates -- it features small-scale multiplayer strategy matches rather than a large persistent world. It's a Java-based game, meaning it runs on PC, Mac and Linux happily, and today it entered open beta. The game itself will be free, but with micropayments for various in-game features.
