All Stories in Genres

Shoot Many Robots out on XBLA and PSN, PC incoming

Demiurge Studios , an “independent, bootstrapped” company who’s previously worked on Epic, Harmonix, Gearbox and other AAA titles, just released its first game: Shoot Many Robots . The multiplayer Metal Slug/Contra-like with level-up elements is now available for download on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, with a PC/Steam release coming soon. I enjoyed playing Shoot Many Robots for an extended sitting at PAX East 2011, but I haven’t given the full title a spin to know if the enjoyment lasts. I reached out to Demiurge to ask about UbiSoft’s recent involvement as publisher, but I haven’t heard back, yet. Hopefully Demiurge was able to stay true to their vision, and the publisher sat back to enjoy the financial benefits while helping promote the game. The game currently stands at 64/100 on Metacritic with 15 reviews. Given the game’s lukewarm reception so far, I am even more intrigued to know the publisher’s involvement.

2 months ago by 0

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Ninth MURIGEE Competition Takes on Phantasy Star Online 2

Ninth MURIGEE Competition Takes on Phantasy Star Online 2

Murigee is a 48-hour game jam of sorts that has been going on since 2009. In this ninth session , around 20 games were made around the topic of Phantasy Star Online 2, a hot-topic title which Sony just announced is headed to the PS Vita. In a typical Murgee, developers are given a game around which to “demake” and tweak. While many entries use Flash, developers can distribute a downloadable game, too. The deadline isn’t strictly enforced, either. Two days after the deadline has passed, those completed games are covered on a live broadcast across NicoNico (Japan’s YouTube). The game I enjoyed the most this session so far is the above pictured PSO 2 by Inada, cleverly spelled out as Pinkku Sokkusu Osage x2 or pink socks pigtails x2. You control the scary-looking face creature with pink-socked pigtails that crush different aliens and spaceships. To play , simply hit “Enter” or the “Space” key and use the arrows to move. Anther clever game was Phanta shista- (sister) story , which avoids soda brand Fanta copyright infringement. The story of this action platformer is that two Phanta sisters were living peacefully in a refrigerator until suddenly one of them sprung a leak. Now the other sister must venture out to get plaster to save her from leaking to death. Rokko Chan developer King Soukutu submitted Phantasy Star Offline . Like Rokko Chan, I died quite often but there was very little to make me want to play again this time around. (Despite this experience, make sure you’ve played Rokko Chan if you want to play a proper Mega Man ode). The quality of game design from Murigee may not be up to par compared to some of what springs from Ludum Dare competitions, but the purpose here seems to be to just make a silly game and have fun. If you know of other game jams (in any non-English language), feel free to tell me about them below!

2 months ago by 0

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Mass Effect 3 Walkthrough: Collectables & Upgrades From Planet Scanning

Want to know which planets are worth scanning, or where you can collect all those precious upgrades? Check out our Mass Effect 3 planet scanning guide. Scanning planets in Mass Effect 3 is important because you can pick up a whole host of items that …

2 months, 1 week ago by 0

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XBLIG Release: Birth Order (Wide Pixel Games)

Wide Pixel Games ‘ Mikael Tillander, winner of the RGCD C64 16k Cartridge Competition with the game Fairy Well , has just released horizontal shmup/STG Birth Order on the XBLIG service. Tillander breaks a few taboos with this shmup, since no aiming skills are needed, and no score system is involved. Instead, players build up an experience bar while dodging massive loads of bullets and working their way to the Red Leader to stop an invasion. Wide Pixel also eliminates the step of associating certain enemies to weapons; the correct shot button on the Xbox controller corresponds to the clearly labeled enemy ship cores. Most of the ships look pretty with their elegant, flowing tails that serve as their health bar. Another eye-catcher is the game map, dubbed a “board game,” which is played with cards that are captured from defeated enemies. Different cards can be used on different areas of the procedurally generated (random) game board, as they bestow various power-ups to aid in completing a stage. As many XBLIG titles migrate to PC, I asked Tillander about Birth Order’s future outside of the box. He said “A PC port is possible; [I] do have it running on PC as well, but a different input standard (keyboard) and the like makes me a bit hesitant.” Birth Order on XBLIG is available now for 80 MS points along with a free trial .

2 months, 1 week ago by 0

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Alpha Trailer: KillFunYeah (Arctic Anteater)

Yes, the name of the game is silly. And yes, arctic anteaters look cooler than I imagined. That said, KillFunYeah is a franctic and fun multiplayer online 2D platform shooter that currently has free, downloadable open alpha builds for Windows, Linux, and Mac. Platforming is controlled with standard WASD input, and shooting is handled by a click of the mouse. Deflecting and attracting seem to be KillFunYeah’s main mechanical attractions. Players can deflect projectiles and grenades or redirect all their firepower to where they need it aimed. The character’s expressions are pretty entertaining throughout the carnage, and I must say that I dig wielding a saxophone with deadly notes. To see the charming designs and the mechanics more slowly demoed, check out the video after the jump. [ KillFunYeah free alpha for Mac, Linux, and Windows]

2 months, 1 week ago by 0

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