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Xbox Live Indie Gems: Nyan Cat Adventure
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we try out Nyan Cat Adventure, a platformer from 21st Street Games. Indie developer 21st Street Games has found a niche: bizarre platformers. Its previous offering, Techno Kitten Adventure, was a visual assault backed by a simple gameplay mechanic, and the studio's latest is no different. The Xbox Live Indie game Nyan Cat Adventure takes the popular internet meme into the realm of single-button arcade gameplay.But the most surprising thing about Nyan Cat Adventure is the variety I found in such a simple experience. True, the game only uses one button, but what that button does constantly changes throughout the game's main mode of play, dubbed 'Party.'
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Annecto
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we try out Annecto, a puzzle game from oh-four-hundred. With the Xbox Live Indie Games Summer Uprising underway, there's already a glut of high quality games arriving. We've got one more to add that isn't part of the promotion. Say hello to Annecto, a unique puzzle game about building shapes and fending off curses. See it for yourself in the latest episode of Xbox Live Indie Gems. Want to try out Annecto? You can queue the trial version for download here on Xbox.com! The full version is 240 MS Points ($3). If you've discovered (or created) an outstanding Xbox Live Indie Game and think it deserves some more visibility, email Richard aat joystiq dawt com, subject line "Xbox Live Indie Gems." Want to find more indie gems? Check out the archive.
Xbox Live Indie Gems: TIC: Part 1
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we take RedCandy Games' TIC: Part 1 for a spin. In the latest episode of Xbox Live Indie Gems, we try out TIC: Part 1 from RedCandy Games. It's a 2D platformer with some challenging hovering mechanics and beautiful visuals. Want to try out TIC: Part 1? You can queue the trial version for download here on Xbox.com! The full version is 240 MS Points ($3). If you've discovered (or created) an outstanding Xbox Live Indie Game and think it deserves some more visibility, email Richard aat joystiq dawt com, subject line "Xbox Live Indie Gems." Want to find more indie gems? Check out the archive.
Xbox Live Indie Gems: The Great Paper Adventure
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we try out The Great Paper Adventure. For this edition of Xbox Live Indie Gems, we're trying something a little different. Rather than greet you with a wall of text, we've whipped up a nice HD video instead. This week, check out The Great Paper Adventure, a 2D shooter with some great hand-drawn visuals.
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Solve It - Pack 1
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we take a logical journey through Solve It - Pack 1 from Marklund Games. Like most well-made puzzle games, Solve It - Pack 1 is deceptively simple. Solve It takes its cue from other logic puzzlers out there, tasking the player with the simple goal of reaching an exit. Simply guide the strange little avatar over happy, brightly colored obstacles and reach the goal. It really couldn't be simpler. There's a catch, of course, being that you have to figure out how to reach the exit before your avatar takes a single step.
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Aban Hawkins & the 1000 Spikes
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we go exploring with 8bits Fanatics' Aban Hawkins & the 1000 Spikes. We play games for different reasons. Generally, most of us do it for fun. Others, by some alien logic that I don't understand but am all too comfortable with, are in it for the punishment. Aban Hawkins & the Thousand Spikes is their game. In the words of its Japanese developer, 8bits Fanatics, Aban Hawkins is an "8-bit retro style Hardest Extremest Craziest Platform Action Puzzle Adventure." It might not be the most eloquent of descriptions, but it's certainly accurate.
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Squid
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we take a look at Salmon Steve Productions' passive shooter, Squid. There are plenty of shooters available on the Xbox Live Indie Games channel. More than a few of them pack in neon graphics, pulse-pounding music and lots of eye-catching explosions. In this respect, Salmon Steve Productions Squid is no different. What does make it different from most shooters out there is pretty simple: You can't shoot.
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Antipole
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we try out the gravity-altering platformer, Antipole, from Saturnine Games. There's a an oft-used formula used by game developers. First, come up with an interesting gameplay mechanic. Second, build an entire game centered around that mechanic. The central mechanic of Antipole is easy to explain: Pull the trigger to reverse gravity. It's a very simple mechanic -- and not necessarily one that's never been used before -- but the way in which Antipole uses gravity is what sets it apart. As Saturnine Games' Edward Di Geronimo Jr. puts it, "Our gravity ability isn't just a replacement for a jump, but rather a core part of the game world."
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Corrupted
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we spend some time with OnlyLuck Interactive's hack-and-slasher, Corrupted. At first glance, Corrupted appears to be no more complex than most twin-stick action affairs. Players are quickly surrounded by enemies that must be dispatched. Naturally, this is done by pointing the right analog stick in their general direction. The base formula is one we've seen many times, especially in the downloadable space. Play a bit longer, however, and you'll find an experience that much deeper.
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Vorpal
Crowded as it is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles on Xbox Live Indie Games. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we take a look at Red Wolf's bullet hell shoot-em-up, Vorpal. Upon first trying Vorpal, I wasn't sure I'd be able to beat the very first level. Inspired by Touhou, Vorpal is a bullet hell shoot-em-up, and true to the genre, success is as dependent on dodging bullets as it is on defeating enemies. It's important for smaller, independent games to have a quick, recognizable hook, be it enjoyable gameplay mechanics, catchy music or simply a unique look. Vorpal, it turns out, has all three. %Gallery-114768%
Xbox Live Indie Gems: Cthulhu Saves the World
Crowded as Xbox Live Indie Games is with farting massage simulators, it can be hard to find worthwhile titles. That's why we sift through all that rough to unearth a few gems. That way, you get the skinny on quality games and we get to indulge our secret passion for fart machines. This week, we take a look at the Zeboyd Games retro RPG romp, Cthulhu Saves the World. Let's just start with the premise of Cthulhu Saves the World: You take control of Cthulhu, the squid-faced, winged god created by H.P. Lovecraft. Cthulhu emerges from the sea after centuries of slumber only to find his dark powers immediately sealed away by a mysterious holy wizard. A narrator then informs the player that the only way to break the curse is to become a true hero. Quickly breaking the fourth wall, Cthulhu informs the narrator that he was eavesdropping and now knows how to break the curse. Thus begins his quest to become a true hero, but only so he can restore his world-rending powers and wash the earth in a tide of insanity and despair. Oh, it's also an RPG inspired by the 16-bit adventures of yore. %Gallery-112189%
