erin-robinson
Latest
Gravity Ghost swirls through Steam's solar system today
Ivy Games' Gravity Ghost is on Steam today for PC, Mac and Linux for $15, a reasonable price for a trip through the stars. Plus, it's two-for-one, forever – pay $15 on Steam, get two game codes. "Why?" Gravity Ghost Designer Erin Robinson asks in an email. "I'm encouraging everyone to give that second copy to someone special in their life who doesn't play video games. My hope is that it will open the door to this amazing hobby and allow people to share that joy with their loved ones." Gravity Ghost is a physics puzzler with a twist (or a twirl): Players soar around planets, using gravitational pull to gain momentum, alter direction and collect pieces of a shattered galaxy. There's no "fail" state, though there is a rich story with hints of darkness, plus voice acting by Ashly Burch (Borderlands 2), Logan Cunningham (Bastion) and Sarah Elmaleh (Gone Home). The soundtrack comes from FTL composer Ben Prunty. See the story trailer after the break. GRAVITY GHOST IS LAUNCHED I LOVE YOU ALL! http://t.co/69UeajfNCF - Erin Robinson (@Livelyivy) January 26, 2015
The union of Scale, Gravity Ghost and the indie devs making them
Scale and Gravity Ghost share a surprising number of characteristics, especially considering how different their core mechanics are. They're both serene, soothing experiences, at least at first: In Gravity Ghost, players control a girl as she flows around the gravity fields of planets, searching for her fox, collecting stars and bits of the universe that were destroyed in a recent black hole. It's a physics game and an odd type of platformer, and it can be a simple exercise in circling planets or a completionist's dream, completely up to the player. Scale is a first-person shooter, but the gun is a shrink-and-grow ray, allowing players to suck the size out of one object and blast it into other objects. Doing this, players can either complete esoteric challenges or simply play around in bright worlds of flowers, pretty houses, green grass and happy trees. Gravity Ghost and Scale are made by Erin Robinson and Steve Swink, respectively, and both games were selected to participate in the PAX East and Prime Indie Megabooth this year. Robinson and Swink both live in Arizona, in the same city, in the same house, and they have been dating for four years. This month, they got engaged. To each other. See – so much in common.
Indie Megabooth starlet 'Gravity Ghost' opens pre-orders on Aug. 26
Gravity Ghost has been on our radar for more than a year. It's a whimsical physics game about flinging yourself around planets and collecting stars in an effort to reassemble the universe. It's not a game about dying, killing or destroying – but it is about to come out as a pre-order, on August 26, from the Humble Store on developer Ivy Games' website. Pre-orders are for PC, Mac and Linux. Gravity Ghost has music from FTL: Faster Than Light composer Ben Prunty, and it snagged a spot in the PAX Prime Indie Megabooth, scheduled to touch down on the show floor from August 30 to September 2. To prepare for PAX Prime, Game Designer and Artist Erin Robinson made "swag" – miniature bottle dioramas starring the Gravity Ghost fox, Voy, in a bell-studded, glittering environment of colorful sand. See the intricate, cute process on the Ivy Games blog. The swag bottles will be available at PAX Prime, and one of them includes a ghost girl, rather than the fox. Gravity sold separately.
How a couple of indie devs snuck into E3
Two days before E3 began, Steve Swink and Erin Robinson finalized plans to attend the convention. They packed their laptops with the latest builds of their games, Scale and Gravity Ghost, threw some clothes in a suitcase, and started the six-hour drive from Phoenix, Arizona to Los Angeles, California. This is a process similar to what thousands of developers go through before showing up at E3, but there was one thing different about Swink and Robinson's trip. They didn't have passes.
PAX 10 winner Puzzle Bots available for half price during expo
Erin Robinson's excellent Puzzle Bots was chosen as one of the PAX 10 winners for this weekend's Seattle convention, and as a result, Wadjet Eye games has it on sale all weekend long. By entering the code "PUZZLEPAX" at checkout, you can play the cheerful little strategy puzzle title for $4.99 instead of the usual $10. There's a free demo available if you want to try before you buy and the game will also be playable on the PAX show floor -- so if you have a friend in Seattle, ask them what they think. An excellent deal on an excellent indie title, even for those of us who aren't partying with Tycho and Gabe this weekend.
