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Best of the Rest: Jessica's picks of 2014
ATTENTION: The year 2014 has concluded its temporal self-destruct sequence. If you are among the escapees, please join us in salvaging and preserving the best games from the irradiated chrono-debris. Threes Threes is ingenious. Its simplistic presentation belies beautiful, thoughtful design and butter-smooth mechanics. Threes isn't a matter of "less is more," it's fully encapsulated and pushed to the limits of what it intends to do, providing hours upon hours of repeated gameplay on that four-by-four tiled screen. On top of the brain-teasing numbers game, writer Asher Vollmer, illustrator Greg Wohlwend and composer Jimmy Hinson infuse Threes with personality, giving the numbers voices and faces, and tipping Threes from "Fun" to "Absolutely adorable. And, of course, fun."
Best of the Rest: Alexander's picks of 2014
ATTENTION: The year 2014 has concluded its temporal self-destruct sequence. If you are among the escapees, please join us in salvaging and preserving the best games from the irradiated chrono-debris. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft If you'd told me a year ago that I'd spend a majority of my 2014 with a collectible card game, I'd have politely smiled and nodded, blind to how deeply Hearthstone would get its hooks in me. Blizzard once again proved itself to be the master of evolving a genre for the masses, creating a card game that is distinctly a video game and pulling in 20 million players. Hearthstone was the perfect distraction from my coursework, allowing for 15-minute breaks. Its daily quests passively pushed me to develop a well-rounded appreciation for the game. I took the time to check out Hearthstone forums and researched different decks as I collected more cards. I soaked in the HearthPwn. The additional cards added through the Curse of Naxxramas single-player adventure and the Gnomes vs. Goblins expansion have kept the game fresh. Hearthstone is a mathematical crunchfest at the tournament level and, much like poker, I can appreciate it, even knowing I will never be part of that world. Hearthstone and I have a casual understanding and I don't see us concluding our daily dalliance any time soon.
The Banner Saga, Suikoden 1&2, Resident Evil: Revelations 2, more coming to Vita
The Vita got plenty of love during the PlayStation Experience keynote, as ports for Octodad: Dadliest Catch, Resident Evil: Revelations 2, The Banner Saga, Suikoden 1 and 2, Super Time Force Ultra and Towerfall Ascension (and its expansion) are all on the way to Sony's handheld. Both Suikoden games will arrive next week on Vita (as well as PS3), and Resident Evil: Revelations 2 will launch in the spring of 2015. A Vita version of Drinkbox Studios' Severed was also announced during the PlayStation Experience keynote, joining ports of Geometry Wars 3: Dimensions and Bastion (which is also going to PS4) that were announced earlier in the show.
PlayStation Co-Op Sale: Dark Souls 2, Far Cry 3, Rayman
In the spirit of the money-saving holidays (and Thanksgiving, we guess), Sony kicked off a new Co-Op Gaming sale today that discounts games with local or online multiplayer functionality. The deals end on December 1, and PlayStation Plus subscribers get a bigger discount than other PSN users: up to 80 percent off the price of some games. Of the group, there are ten PlayStation 4 games on sale through PSN this week, among which are Awesomenauts Assemble ($5.39), EA Sports UFC ($13.99), Mercenary Kings ($8.99), Rayman Legends ($19.59), Surgeon Simulator: A&E Anniversary Edition ($6.39), TowerFall Ascension ($7.34) and Trine 2: Complete Story ($7.99). Other notable deals include Borderlands 2 (PS3, $4.54), Dark Souls 2 (PS3, $19.59), Rayman Origins ($13.29 on Vita, $9.79 on PS3) and Far Cry 3 (PS3, $9.79). [Image: Ubisoft]
Towerfall expands into the Dark World on PS4 in 2015
Towerfall Ascension's forthcoming Dark World expansion will arrive on PS4 early next year, developer Matt Thorson revealed via PlayStation Blog. The update adds new playable archers, four levels, power-ups and more to the archery combat platformer. The developer also upped the number of team deathmatch levels per tower to five in the expansion. Thorson announced the Dark World update in September, and has since detailed several improvements to the game via his blog. Dark World will add the Vainglorious Ghoul red archer to the game's roster along with her ghostly ship as one of the levels, The Amaranth. The final tower of Towerfall's expansion, known as Cataclysm, features procedurally-generated levels to keep the action fresh for multiplayer bouts. Dark World will also include power-ups such as Prism Arrows and Trigger Arrows, the latter behaving like remote mines. [Image: Matt Thorson]
Have you been downloading your free PS Plus games?
Sony Worldwide Studios president Shuhei Yoshida recently discussed the continued dissonance between the audience's perception and reality of independent games and AAA titles. In particular, he mentioned the download rates of games available for free to PlayStation Plus members. "I hear complaints [about the lack of AAA games]. I do realize that some people are only interested in big-budget AAA games. I don't really understand those people. I don't know if they've tried some of the indie games and decided they're not interested," said Yoshida to GI.biz.
Mark of the Ninja, Dyad star in Canada Day sale on Steam
Steam's current sale honors the Great White North with a slate of discounted games made by our Canadian brothers and sisters in celebration of Canada Day. Featured Canada-powered games include TowerFall Ascension ($10.04), Fez ($4.99), Dyad ($3.75), Rogue Legacy ($7.49), Retro City Rampage ($2.50), and Mark of the Ninja ($4.99). Other sale highlights include Bleed, Starseed Pilgrim, and The Yawhg, among others. The sale ends tomorrow, so you'd best act swiftly if you want a dose of old-fashioned Canadian ingenuity. [Image: Steam]
PS Plus in July: Towerfall, Muramasa, Dead Space 3
July is soon to arrive, and with it comes six games for PlayStation Plus subscribers to freely download. Falling in line with the program's rule changes introduced in late May, the six games are split evenly among PS4, PS3 and Vita, though some are Cross Buy-compatible. Leading the group on PS4 is Towerfall: Ascension and Strider, followed by Dead Space 3 and Vessel for PS3. The two Vita games going free this coming month are Doki-Doki Universe and Muramasa Rebirth. The former is Cross Buy-enabled, so PS4 and PS3 owners will also have access to the game, whereas Muramasa will only be available for free in North America. European PS Plussers will instead receive Lego Batman 2: DC Super Heroes. Heavy discounts for the six games will available as of July 1, so those that haven't picked up June's free games should do so this week before it's too late. [Image: Capcom]
Towerfall lets arrows sail on Mac, Linux
The mechanically simplistic, extraordinarily competitive Towerfall: Ascension has coated Linux and Mac devices with bramble arrows. Whether you're on PC, Mac or Linux, you can celebrate the spread of Towerfall's frenzied, archery-driven deathmatches by buying a Steam key directly from Matt Makes Games for $9.99, 33 percent lower than the normal $15 asking price. You'll need to decide sooner rather than later though - at the time of this writing, there's about 20 hours left to get in on the sale. If you need to be swayed, Senior Reporter Jess Conditt's review describes Towerfall as a "whole-brain game with minimal controls," and she adds that it's "the most fun I've had with a bow and arrow since The Year Of The Bow – or even the 1980s." [Image: Matt Makes Games]
Humble Flash Sale discounts Towerfall: Ascension for the next 4 hours
Alert! A sweet deal is approaching fast! The Humble Store is currently offering the PC version of Matt Makes Games' multiplayer arrow-'em-up Towerfall: Ascension at a 33 percent discount, making it the cheapest it's been since launch. The catch? The deal is only valid for the next four hours. Hours of fun await, but the satisfaction of picking up one of this year's best competitive multiplayer experiences for cheap is reserved for those who act fast. [Thanks, Joe!] [Image: Matt Makes Games]
Towerfall PS4 trumps PC as multiplayer hit tops $500,000 sales
Local multiplayer obsession Towerfall has proven incredibly successful, to the tune of more than $500,000 in sales to date, but according to creator Matt Thorsen, the nascent PlayStation 4 version of TowerFall has outpaced its PC predecessor. "It's actually doing better on PS4, but it's still doing well on PC," Thorsen told Eurogamer. "It's doing definitely well enough for me to support myself for quite awhile. That's really encouraging." When asked why the PS4 game, which only appeared last month, had become such a success, Thorsen simply said, "I think it's just a console game, ya know?" "People have controllers - it's not confusing to get the controllers like it is for PC - and people have it in their living rooms already," Thorsen explained. "I think a lot of people still sit down with their friends when they play their consoles, whereas they don't do that on PC. Even if it's a single-player game. I know me and my friends will sit down and one of us will be playing a game while everyone else is just hanging out." Thorsen also praises Sony for the support the console manufacturer has offered Towerfall as an independent production. "They've featured and promoted it really well." Finally, Eurogamer asked Thorsen about the Ouya version of TowerFall, which is widely hailed as the best game available for the flailing Android console. He estimates about 7,000 copies of the game have been sold on Ouya to date. "Being the best game on Ouya isn't a huge deal, but it is nice. It still sells on there." [Image: Matt Thorsen]
This is how we TowerFall
When the Joystiq crew gets together in person, things get intense. We need somewhere to channel all of that pent-up editing rage and story-scheduling mania, and thankfully we've found our outlet: TowerFall: Ascension.
Sony eases PS4 indie development with new publishing tools
As if Sony's support of independent developers hasn't been apparent enough, the console manufacturer will make it easier for indies to bring their games to Sony's platforms. The company announced partnerships today to offer PS4 exporting tools for game development software GameMaker: Studio and MonoGame for free to licensed Sony Computer Entertainment developers. Sony also made "fully-integrated solutions" for PS3 and Vita available for Unity users, with an early access PS4 version arriving on Unity in April. Lastly, the company opted to offer its Authoring Tools Framework as a free, open source download available on GitHub. SCE uses the framework to help craft games like The Last of Us and Beyond: Two Souls. Created by Yo Yo Games, GameMaker was used to create games such as Hyper Light Drifter, Risk of Rain and Nuclear Throne. Conversely, MonoGame is the backbone of games like TowerFall: Ascension, Mercenary Kings and Transistor. One GameMaker-developed game is Savant Ascent, which Yo Yo Games named as its favorite game of 2013 for the development platform. The stylistic shooter was announced for PS4 this morning following its debut on PC, Mac, iOS and Android in December. [Image: Matt Makes Games]
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Joystiq Weekly: Titanfall review, BAFTA Awards, NPD data and more
Welcome to Joystiq Weekly, a "too long; didn't read" of each week's biggest stories, reviews and original content. Each category's top story is introduced with a reactionary gif, because moving pictures aren't just for The Daily Prophet. Titanfall is one of those games that's fun even if you're not playing it. Watching a group of friends suffer the fallout from a crumbling strategy plan is easy to laugh about, especially as the final pilot from their crew gets run over by a Titan. It seems that, despite a few hiccups on Xbox Live's side of things, fans have also been able to enjoy a relatively smooth launch. An online-oriented experience that doesn't stumble its way into functionality? We know, it's crazy. We've got a review of both the game and the online experience, but if giant robots aren't really your thing, we've got our take on Dark Souls 2, Towerfall: Ascension and Yoshi's New Island, too. This week also brought us fresh NPD data, a Costume Quest 2 reveal and more, all of which is neatly compiled for you after the break in the Joystiq Weekly. [Image: Respawn]
Joystiq Streams: TowerFall creator Matt Thorson teaches Joystiq how to arch [UPDATE: Relive the stream!]
From afar we watched Ouya owners, rapt with pleasure as they bounced around the beautiful pixel caverns of TowerFall, hitting each other in the face with arrows over and over again. We, too, wanted to fall through the floor only to re-emerge from the ceiling, poised to strike down our foes with the vicious efficiency of a peregrine falcon. Ouya owners' grip on Matt Thorson's game has loosened, though! Now we're rocking that business on PC and PlayStation 4 on the regular. That's precisely what we'll be doing on Joystiq Streams today, with Mr. Thorson himself on hand to walk us through the ins and outs of his game. Come 4PM EST on Thursday, March 13, Joystiq's own Jess Conditt (@JessConditt) will be streaming TowerFall: Ascension on the Joystiq Twitch channel. Creator Matt Thorson (@MattThorson) will join us to talk about the game. Anthony John Agnello (@ajohnagnello) will, as always, be hanging in the chat, referring your questions straight to the people. Join us for all the succulent archery. Joystiq Streams broadcasts every Tuesday and Thursday at 4PM EST. [Images: Matt Makes Games, Inc.]
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'Stiq Tips: A TowerFall Guide
TowerFall might be a fast-paced arena game with dash-jumping and high speed arrows, but it's also a tactical affair. Yeah, alongside of all that arrow slinging you'll actually need to think from time to time, and there are a few secrets you can use to become the pride of your local group of friends. First things first, master the dash, as it's core to your success as an archer. Start off in a "break the target" level in solo play to really get a feel for movement, as you're going to need a bit of practice. Each level will teach you something new about the game, both in terms of core concepts and power-up use, so think of them as a tutorial. While you're breaking targets, note that dashing while aiming towards the ground will result in a slide, allowing you to slip underneath low ceilings. You can also jump on targets to break them and save an arrow.
TowerFall: Ascension review: Exploding corpses
TowerFall: Ascension is deceiving. It appears to be cute, pixelated and friendly, and it looks like something you would have played between rounds of Contra and Super Mario Bros on the NES as a kid. In reality, TowerFall is a brutal bow-and-arrow brawler with vicious enemies that materialize from the ether in droves, heedless of whether you have backup or the skills to defeat them. You have a set number of lives, limited ammo, power-ups that disappear the moment you're hit, and hordes of enemies that demonstrate increasingly complex powers as the levels progress. It's also local co-op only. So, yeah – it's basically the reincarnated amalgamation of classic NES shoot-em-ups and platformers, bred for a more technologically powerful world.
PlayStation Blog details Towerfall: Ascension's Quest, Trials modes
Towerfall: Ascension is picking up Quest and Trials modes along with its subtitle in its upgrade for PC and PS4. While one of the modes was announced in Ascension's previous reveal trailer, a recent PlayStation Blog post offers details on actual gameplay elements from each style of play. In Quest mode, players can team up or fight on their own against varied waves of monsters, which the PS Blog notes range from "scythe-wielding warriors to leaping globs of slime." Some enemies will also have unique abilities, like the rival archers that can send arrows shot at them right back toward their origin. Trials mode is a solo affair, pitting players against dummy targets and a timer. The faster players kill off their inanimate opponents, the more prestigious their rewarding medal will be. The PS Blog describes Trials stages as "addictive as they are difficult," but adds that restarting a challenge takes less than a second, which should keep the frustration focused on the game instead of loading screens. Ascension will take its shot at PS4 and PC this week and has come a long way from its vanilla verison's Ouya-exclusive debut last year. [Image: Matt Thorson]
TowerFall, SteamWorld Dig headline PSN's Spring Fever event
A slate of high-profile indie releases will hit the PlayStation Network during Sony's Spring Fever event this month, bringing games like Luftrausers and Towerfall to the PlayStation family of consoles. The promotion kicks off with tomorrow's launch of an upgraded PlayStation 4 version of Ronimo Games' 2D MOBA Awesomenauts Assemble, and the PS3 debut of Wales Interactive's sci-fi adventure game Master Reboot. Ouya-ported multiplayer combat game TowerFall Ascension (PS4) and Strange Loop's puzzle-platformer Vessel (PS3) continue the promotion on March 11, while Image and Form's mining-themed adventure game SteamWorld Dig (PS4, PS Vita) and Vlambeer's aerial dogfighting sim Luftrausers (PS3, PS Vita) follow on March 18. The event wraps up on March 25 with the release of Polytron's Fez for the PlayStation 4, PS3, and PS Vita. All featured games are available at a launch-week discount for PlayStation Plus subscribers. Sony additionally revealed that Tomb Raider and Dead Nation: Apocalypse Edition will launch tomorrow as the month's first free PlayStation Plus games. [Image: Sony]
Catch arrows in Towerfall Ascension on PlayStation 4 this March
Those without an Ouya will be happy to hear that Towerfall, one of the nascent console's best games, is headed to the PlayStation 4 in the enhanced form of Towerfall Ascension on March 11. The original version of Towerfall mates the pixel-heavy aesthetic so popular with indie game developers with frantic, four-player multiplayer combat. In lieu of guns and a series of corridors, players are each given archery equipment, then dropped into a 2D stage rife with platforms and pitfalls. Think of it as a cross between the frantic combat of the Super Smash Bros. games, and the exacting, retro platforming and chunky aesthetic of Spelunky. Towerfall Ascension improves upon this basic template by adding 50 new Versus arenas, "a bunch of new variants" for the game's stages and a few new power-ups. Additionally, Ascension brings with it a new Quest Mode that allows two players to cooperatively battle waves of monsters spawned from portals. The gameplay here is similar to that seen in the game's core multiplayer modes, but as designer Matt Thorson notes, Quest Mode fleshes out Towerfall as a whole by adding "a bunch of new content to explore even when you don't have three friends around." As of now there is no price point attached to Towerfall Ascension. That March 11 release date only applies to the United States, but Thorson claims that a European release "shouldn't be far behind." [Image: Matt Makes Games]
