super-hexagon
Latest
Humble Mozilla Bundle: Try in your browser, redeem at Steam
Humble Bundle adopts a new approach with its featured offerings today with the The Humble Mozilla Bundle, a collection that lets you test drive HTML5 versions of featured games in your browser before you commit to a purchase. The pay-what-you-want package includes Steam-redeemable copies of Terry Cavanagh's Super Hexagon, Dejobaan's Aaaaa! for the Awesome, Hemisphere Games' Osmos, Secret Exit's Zen Bound 2, and Hitbox Team's Dustforce DX. Beat the average (currently $5.25) and you'll also get Voxatron and FTL: Advanced Edition, while purchases that exceed $8 will additionally unlock Democracy 3. Full versions of all games included in the Humble Mozilla Bundle are playable in HTML5-supported browsers upon purchase. The package will be available through October 28. [Video: Humble Bundle]
Super Hexagon shrinks to 16kb in Commodore 64 demake
Terry Cavanagh's endlessly vexing action game Super Hexagon travels back a few decades for its latest port, arriving mostly intact on the Commodore 64 via the fan-made tribute Micro Hexagon. Homebrew enthusiasts Paul Koller and Mikkel Hastrup created 8-bit version of Super Hexagon as part of this year's RGCD C64 Cartridge Development Competition, following up on Koller's previous C64 ports of Super Crate Box and Canabalt. It's an impressive piece of work considering the hardware (dig that rotation effect!), and comes complete with a SID rendition of the original game's thumping soundtrack. Micro Hexagon is available as a free download, and is playable on emulators and original C64 hardware.
Super Hexagon creator unveils free browser-based puzzler Naya's Quest
Terry Cavanagh recently released a new flash-based game, Naya's Quest. The enjoyable little adventure game has players traversing through an abandoned town to "the edge," an isometric world full of puzzling rooms. The attractive, challenging platformer also has a catchy soundtrack, which Cavanagh created and released on BandCamp. Cavanagh is best known for crafting VVVVVV and Super Hexagon. Naya's Quest is one of six free games listed on Cavanagh's site, and one that you should probably spend time with right now.
Unfinished Business: Super Hexagon creator reveals his abandonware
This Vine represents eight of VVVVVV and Super Hexagon creator Terry Cavanagh's unfinished projects – the first of three like it recently posted to the game designer's Twitter account. There's a hell of a lot of information contained within those flashing, garbled clips, but thankfully Cavanagh was willing to take our hand and guide us through each and every incomplete game he posted. Some represent ideas still to come, while others serve as bittersweet reminders of projects that will likely never see the light of day.%Gallery-187182%
Indie Spring Sale bounces onto Steam
From now through March 29, Steam will be hosting a cavalcade of discounted indie games, both old standbys and newcomers alike, as part of its Indie Spring Sale. The list of discounted games (just click on "Specials") is as long as it is jam packed with great deals.For instance, 25 percent off of Kentucky Route Zero is something you can have in your life right now, as is the opportunity to buy To The Moon, Home or Jamestown for less than $5 each. Runner 2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien, Super Hexagon, Proteus, Retro City Rampage, VVVVVV; the list of discounted greatness goes on and on. There's even quite a few options for you Linux gamers out there, so apologize to your wallet and start restocking your gaming retirement fund.
Humble Android Bundle 5: Dynamite Jack, Solar 2, optional Super Hexagon
Humble Android Bundle 5 brings a bunch of games to your PC, Mac and Android devices, all for the low, low price of "whatever you want." Included at that base price is Beat Hazard Ultra, Dynamite Jack, Solar 2, NightSky HD, and the soundtracks for all of those games, except for Dynamite Jack, who is too cool for that nonsense.Pay more than the average (which still hovers around the price of "low, low") and get Super Hexagon and Dungeon Defenders, plus all of the Dungeon Defenders DLC and the soundtracks for both games. Pay $1 or more and all games come with Steam keys in addition to the direct downloads.As always, payment to the Humble Bundle can be divided among the developers, the Humble team and charities Child's Play and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. Be on the lookout for the addition of more games to this Android bundle, because that's how the Humbles roll.
Super Hexagon now on Linux, Steam alternatives now also available
Super Hexagon is now available on Linux, both through Steam and directly from its official website. PC and OSX versions of the game are also now available directly through the site, should you prefer to acquire your games straight from the tap.Like the recently ported Linux version of VVVVVV, Super Hexagon requires Ubuntu version 12.04 LTS, or "Precise Pangolin" for you codename types, a 2 GHz processor and 32 megs of hard drive space. By bringing the game to Linux, Super Hexagon has successfully made it to "all the platforms that it's ever likely to be on," creator Terry Cavanagh said on his official blog, which means we can probably stop holding out for a Game Boy Advance version.
Super Hexagon brings concentric chiptune madness to BlackBerry 10
File this one under "things we definitely weren't expecting today:" Terry Cavanagh's Super Hexagon is now available on the days-old BlackBerry 10 operating system. Currently, the only device that runs BlackBerry 10 is the BlackBerry Z10, which is available in the UK and Canada, but won't make it to carriers in the United States until March."This wasn't originally something I had lined up," Cavanagh writes. "Laurence Muller, who ported the C++ openFrameworks version of the game to Android, has an interest in BlackBerry – he maintains the unofficial Blackberry port of openFrameworks. So when Blackberry came along and asked us to do the port, we figured, let's give it a shot!"The game can be purchased from BlackBerry World, either on the Z10 or online, for $2.99. Now all we need are PlayStation Vita and 3DS ports, and Cavanagh's mobile market saturation will be absolute.
Super Hexagon out on Android, temporarily $1
Terry Cavanagh's concentric chiptune masterpiece Super Hexagon is now available on most Android devices running Froyo or newer, provided said device has access to Google Play and runs hardware on par with (or better than) an iPhone 3GS.Sadly, the port's issues with the Nexus 7 have yet to be resolved, and therefore the game won't run on Google's flagship tablet. "We're going keep an eye on the situation with the Nexus 7," Cavanagh said on his official blog. "If it ever improves, you can be sure we'll make it available on that device too."To celebrate its release, the game is on sale for $0.99, though how long this promotional pricing will last remains a mystery. Seeing as Super Hexagon was our fifth favorite game of 2012, you should probably jump on that offer while it stands.
Super Hexagon on Android is 'basically done,' Nexus 7 owners out of luck
There's good news and bad news. The good news is that the Android port of Super Hexagon is "basically done," Terry Cavanagh wrote in an update on the game's progress. The bad news is that Cavanagh and Laurence Muller, who is actually coding the port, have run into a rather serious bug. The sort of goodish news is that the bug only seems to affect Google's Nexus 7 tablet.Specifically, testing on the Nexus 7 has shown a bit of input lag, meaning that player movement is registered slightly after the screen is pressed. Not a huge problem for most games, but a very big problem for Super Hexagon. As Cavanagh puts it, "even a slight control responsiveness issue like this basically kills Super Hexagon – every single touch overshoots." It's possible to play earlier levels, but the higher levels are "unplayable," which makes the game "unreleaseable" on Nexus 7.The next step for the duo is to test other Android devices for similar issues. Once that's done, the game should be released "very soon for any Android device that can handle it." Sadly, it looks like that won't include the Nexus 7.
Joystiq Top 10 of 2012: Super Hexagon
Super Hexagon is about an insignificant speck squeezing through gaps in a concentric, never-ending sequence of ever-shrinking shapes. In other words, Super Hexagon is about:1. Escaping debt in a constrictive economy2. Escaping a prison made of lasers3. The inevitability of death and the hope of reincarnation4. Resilience in the face of constant adversity5. Maintaining individuality in an increasingly homogenous society6. Being in a relationship with a control freak6. Slipping past tourists who are walking too goddamn slowly6. Recognizing Satan's insidious grip on your soul7. Dodging awkward hugs8. Fitting through a coffee shop's door before it closes so you don't have to touch it9. Wearing multiple corsets at once10. Trying to reach a human being on FedEx's customer support line
Rayman Jungle Run grabs App Store GOTY award
Accomplished auto-run platformer Rayman Jungle Run is the App Store Game of the Year 2012. Ubisoft's iOS evolution of Rayman Origins, which received 10 free bonus levels earlier this month, pipped word game Letterpress to the award.On the iPad-specific front, Fireproof's 3D puzzler The Room came away with the main prize. The runner-up spot went to IGF finalist and Joystiq favorite Waking Mars.There are at least a few pairs of raised Joystiq eyebrows at Super Hexagon being omitted, but Terry Cavanagh's twitch game did at least pick up the Runner-Up award from the App Store's UK branch. To celebrate, Cavanagh slashed 66 percent off the game's price, making it available for a limited time at a bargainous $0.99.
Super Hexagon now out on Steam
Game developer Terry Cavanagh's great Super Hexagon has been tearing it up on iOS -- and your eyes have probably been tearing up if you've played it for any length of time, because it's both crazy and crazy hard. But it's also very fun, and now the game has made its way over to Steam, available for purchase on both Mac and PC. Now you can play the overwhelmingly frantic game (with those soothing female tones guiding you) on a big-screen monitor. Actually, maybe that's not such a good idea -- just thinking about seeing Super Hexagon's trippy graphics blown up that big makes our heads spin a little bit. Then again, there are certainly gamers out there who enjoy that kind of thing. At any rate, play at your own risk. Super Hexagon on Steam is on sale for US$3, which puts it right in line with the $2.99 price on iOS.
PSA: Super Hexagon on Steam today
In case the mobile version of Super Hexagon has left you with a criminally short attention span, we'd like to remind everyone that the PC and Mac version of Terry Cavanagh's brutally challenging game is now available on Steam.It's currently on sale for two measly dollars, a full dollar off the usual price of three measly dollars. Or, if you really hate your friends, you can snag a two-pack for $3.34, saving a buck and change on the usual price of $4.99.
Super Hexagon spins onto Steam next week
Super Hexagon is coming to Steam for PC and Mac on Tuesday, November 27, for $3 (with the potential for a discount at launch). That's the same price as the iOS version that we are extremely fond of, even though it's "an overwhelming experience – for a few seconds at a time."Super Hexagon prides itself on creating a challenge, with death generally a given after seconds of play, rather than minutes or hours – unless, of course, you're developer Terry Cavanagh, who can calmly complete his own game on the "Hexagonest" mode, in front of a room full of people. Like a wizard."I'm sorry this has taken so long," Cavanagh writes on his Steam announcement. "I appreciate your patience with me! I wanted to launch much sooner than this, but ultimately I just wasn't happy with the performance of the flash version." Cavanagh rewrote the entire game in C++, meaning the Steam version runs at a higher resolution than the iOS version, and it's "fast and silky smooth on every machine I've been able to get my hands on – a very important thing for a game like this."Super Hexagon on Steam won't support gamepads at the outset, though Cavanagh hopes to add that after launch, along with a Linux version once Steam Linux goes public. As Cavanagh says, "See you on the leaderboards!"
Super Hexagon cloned on PC, Cavanagh is pretty all right with it
Open Hexagon freely states that it is a clone of Terry Cavanagh's iOS mind-melter Super Hexagon, but on PC. The developer of Open Hexagon, Vittorio Romeo, says that he secured permission from Cavanagh to make a game inspired by Super Hexagon, and Cavanagh says he's "basically all right with it." He'd probably be totally all right with it if Romeo hadn't beaten him to a PC launch."I'm a little upset that he released it before I had a chance to release Super Hexagon on PC myself," Cavanagh tweets. But, overall, he says Open Hexagon is "not bad at all – the harder octagon stage was pretty cool. I also like the death effect."So, no harm, no foul. Cavanagh even posted Open Hexagon on his Free Indie Games blog, writing, "This is probably the closest I'll ever come to posting my own games on this site." Besides, Open Hexagon is free for PC. Check it out right here, or play Super Hexagon for $3 on iOS (or regular Hexagon for free).Cavanagh is "working flat out" to get Super Hexagon on PC and Mac soon, and those versions are almost done, he says.
Terry Cavanagh goes inside Super Hexagon
Terry Cavanagh began his panel at Fantastic Arcade by playing his game, Super Hexagon, live on stage. Above, he easily gets through the "Hexagonest" mode, which is the hardest mode available from the start, and shows us one of the endings. It's inspiring.After that, he played through the absolute hardest level in the game, in order to show the attending fans the true ending. I didn't realize Super Hexagon had an ending, much less multiple ones. But now I and a small group in Austin have seen it. "Congratulations," he told us all. "Now there's a much larger percentage of people who have seen this ending." To see it yourself, you'll just have to practice.%Gallery-164642%
Super Hexagon has sold approximately 45,000 copies
Super Hexagon creator Terry Cavanagh estimates about 45,000 downloads to date for his iOS action game since its September 6 release."I still haven't really processed it yet," Cavanagh told me at Fantastic Arcade. "It is such a hard game, and such a niche thing. I didn't expect it to get the reaction it's gotten. I thought it would be cool if I made enough sales to pay for the phone I bought, it would be cool. I didn't see it doing what it's done. It's up to like 45,000 sold so far."Cavanagh admitted that "Zynga would be disappointed with those numbers. But me as an individual, I'm ecstatic. That's enough for me to live on. That's several years."The launch of Super Hexagon has even eclipsed that of his hit gravity action game VVVVVV. "If you actually look at the launch of VVVVVV and the launch of Super Hexagon," he said, "Super Hexagon's bigger. Way bigger. The launch of VVVVVV was like an unprecedented event that I thought I'd never experience in my life again. I'm really, really happy with the game's reception and its sales." I'll have more from my interview with Cavanagh soon, focusing on the design of Super Hexagon.
iGame Music Bundle adds Super Hexagon, more to music mashup
The iGame Music Bundle – the fourth such collection of indie game music on the cheap – has been extended and enhanced to include the soundtrack of Terry Cavanagh's recent, lovely launch Super Hexagon and other mobile games. You can grab the five initial soundtracks for $1, featuring music from Horn, Squids 2, Puzzlejuice, Globulous and Organ Trail.Pay $10 and get bonus soundtracks including Super Hexagon, Super Stickman Golf and Big Giant Circle's Contingency collection, all of which were added today. Also, pay $10 and have the opportunity to buy a second copy, for a friend, for $5. Top contributors can snag a plethora of prizes, including the ocarina used to record the Horn soundtrack.There are nine days left in the iGame Music Bundle, with the opportunity for more goodies to be unlocked as sales progress.
Daily iPhone App: Super Hexagon is a wild ride
Terry Cavanagh is one of my favorite game developers. He's probably best known for his retro, mind-bending platformer VVVVVV (yes, that's its name, six Vs in a row), but he's made a number of other great titles, including the somber Don't Look Back, and the wild cat-based MMO ChatChat. Now, he's released a game on iOS called Super Hexagon, and, well, it's pretty insane. Super Hexagon is a fairly straightforward arcade game -- you control a little triangle on the screen, rotating it around left or right by pressing your thumbs on either side. Lines fly in from the sides, and the goal of the game is to move the triangle quick enough to avoid lines for as long as possible. Here's the thing, however: This game is hard. Really hard. Like, you will not survive for more than 10 seconds the first few times you play. The retro but flashy graphics, combined with the chaotic chiptunes of Chipzel make this game a freaky experience, so if the extent of your gaming prowess starts and ends with Angry Birds, you might want to wait for another Daily App tomorrow. But if you know, as a gamer, how much fun it can be to take on a really challenging but well-designed game, and fight your hardest for just a few extra seconds of life and a high score, Super Hexagon is probably for you. The game's trailer will show how wacky this one eventually gets. If that doesn't scare you away, it's on sale right now at a launch price of just $0.99.
