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I really love the too cute for words Grow games — nothing complicated, but cute and fun to play. There's a new game from the same creator — while not a grow game, it's a cute and quick little puzzle. And if you haven't experienced such classics as Grow Island, there's even more to go and click.
Meet In ver.0 [Eyezmaze]
state of the field
Juan Gril has an interesting look up at the current state of indie games, both on the PC and on this current crop of consoles — what's currently cooking, and potential and pitfalls for the future. And where is the hotbed of radical innovation?:
Some people may disagree with this statement, but frankly if there is one platform where most of the radical innovation in video game design is happening, that platform is the World Wide Web. For every innovative Wii game in the market, there are dozens of innovative Flash games.It's not only because the barriers of entry and the production costs are lower, it's also a platform open for experimentation. You can throw something out there, discover that you wanted to change something, change it on your server, and boom, it's available for everybody else.
There are some other interesting bits of information contained within the article ('Don't spend more than $200K developing a game for XBLA!'), and some stats and predictions as well.
The State of Indie Gaming [Gamasutra]
i hate math
couture can be good
Michael Abbott has another little thought provoking post over at the Brainy Gamer on whether or not we need 'boutique' developers — just like the heavies of the film industry have divisions that deal in 'boutique' titles:
Portal is a boutique studio project. Valve could have made it bigger, longer, and splashier and unveiled it as their NEXT BIG IP. Or they could have simply bought the team and plowed all those great ideas into the next edition of Half-Life. Instead, they made a game that was just the size it needed to be with just the amount of attention it required.We need more boutique developers. I believe there is a vital market for such games and an enthusiastic community of gamers hungry for such experiences. Not every game requires a 3-year $100 million development and marketing effort. And there's something to be said for allowing gamers to discover a game and push it forward ourselves. This was a big part of Portal's success, in my view, packed as it was into The Orange Box with much bigger and more recognizable titles.
I'd venture a 'yes, that would be nice'; the question is, would more studios be willing to follow the Orange Box path?
Do we need boutique developers? [The Brainy Gamer]
who needs color
... So Margaret Robertson argues, at least when it comes to graphics — why did everyone abandon monochrome for color? Wouldn't a little variety be nice?:
Why were we so quick to leave black and white behind as we moved on from Pong and Spacewar!, and so quick to assume that these 15, 52, 512 or 16.7 million new colours were necessities not possibilities? Why, other than the small consideration of it being certain commercial suicide, did so few designers chose to keep things monotonous? Why can't I think of a single voluntarily black-and-white game, from the last ten years, since my best candidate, Vib Ribbon, turns out to have a little hint of pastel indulgence in its scoring display.
I admit that while I adore old black and white film (more because I'm a fan of silent movies than because I'm so wild about monotony), but I do like my games to be vibrant — the washed out grey-and-browns is getting a little old. But I'm all for black and white if it's executed well — I've seen several modern films that utilize black and white and color to great effect. I suspect the game industry made a rush for color because, well, that's what humans do when a newer and cooler technology comes along.
Monotony [Lookspring]
indie games
indie games
A few weeks back, we mentioned a a funky little indie-in-production called Blueberry Garden; now the nice people at the Swedish Game Awards have let us know they've put up a short and sweet interview with Erik Svedäng about the game. There's not a ton of new information, but I'm getting a slightly better feel for what Blueberry Garden may be all about, and also growing more intrigued:
Some of my favorite games are Shadow of the Colossus, Starcraft, Go (the board game), Worms and Super Mario Bros 3. I think you can see influences from most of those games in Blueberry Garden. I also have to mention Nifflas and his games Within a Deep Forest and Knytt, they really helped me gather the courage to do something where exploration and mood is more important than a well defined goal. The game is influenced by a lot of other things too... like music (Sagor & Swing, Detektivbyrån, among others) and the Swedish outdoors.
Blueberry Garden Spotlight [Swedish Game Awards]
competitions
The Video Game Name Generator is always good for some fun, but what's even better is the game design competition run by the Independent Gaming Source: entrants had three weeks to come up with a game based on a generated title. The contest garnered 48 playable entries, including such scintillating titles as "Time Shark II: Medieval Shark Strike Force," "Shameful Pachinko Romance," "Post-Apocalyptic Unicorn Uprising," "Emo Harvest on The Oregon Trail" and my favorite, "Super Mario vs. Programming in China."
If you're running Windows, you're in luck. Head over and check out the entries, many of which are of pretty high quality for only having three weeks of lead time.
The Video Game Name Generator Competition [The Independent Gaming Source via GrandTextAuto]
freeware
freeware
Farbs' excellent ROM CHECK FAIL is a WarioWare-style retro mash up featuring the gameplay, music and graphics from gaming's best arcade and console classics. The freeware PC game (a wee download) borrows from Defender, The Legend of Zelda, Pac-Man, Super Mario Bros., Spy Hunter, Qix, Buster Bros. and others to create a quirky, fun race against the clock for high scores. One second Link is stabbing away at asteroids, the next Pac-Man is biting his way through an Arkanoid level.
It may not hold your attention for more than twenty minutes, and may frustrate as Gauntlet ghosts are bearing down on your Space Invaders ship, leaving you helpless, but it's so worth checking out.
Freeware Game Pick: Rom Check Fail (Farbs) [Indie Games]
game design
Blueberry Garden is a forthcoming indie release from Erik Svedäng that looks like ... well, I'm not entirely sure. A surreal, super-minimalist Viva Piñata, perhaps? Your guess is as good as mine. I'm totally mystified, and I kinda like it. There's a bit more information over at the creator's blog (plus info on his other games), including a short story from Blueberry Garden involving party hats, birds, blueberries, and starving party hats. Poor little party hats. My interest is piqued and I'm waiting to find out more.
indie games
indiecade
IndieCade is a festival of independent games that makes appearances all over the place; this year, they'll be at events in Hangzhou, E3, E for All, PAX, and a couple of other places. And, like their name would imply, they're out showcasing independent games. The call recently went out for independent game submissions for the 2008 festivals. The rules look pretty flexible, with the primary requirement being that no major developer's money has crossed your palm in reference to the submitted game:
To be eligible for IndieCade, your game must not have funding from a major publisher .... You can have other deals with these publishers; your game just can't. There is no age requirement for submission.IndieCade has an inclusive submissions policy and invites submission of all styles and genres of games, including PC, browser-based, casual, puzzle, mobile, ARGs, Big Games and installation-based games (submitted via video if not playable on-site), mods (provided they conform to game engine licensing agreements), serious games, activist games, art games, virtual worlds and "sandbox" style games, and more! We also welcome student games and games developed by universities, schools and non-profit organizations. All entries should have a digital component, but hybrid games are not only welcome, but encouraged. Innovation is the name of the game.
That's quite a lot of options. The submission period closes 11 April; games will be judged by a panel, and finalists will be notified by mid-May.
dev tools
"This is fantastic news for commercial PC game developers as well as the independent game development community, who will really benefit from this move," said Mark DeLoura, creator of the Game Programming Gems series.Indeed fantastic news, as having powerful tools freely available can really help foster creativity across the industry, while also expanding the market for Havok's add-on products, like the recently announced Cloth and Destruction apps. An extremely long press release follows. More »
Indie darling Aquaria may be best known for its serene underwater setting and gorgeous hand-painted artwork, but its genesis lies in one of the most twisted, most violent video games ever created, I'm O.K. That game, designed in part by "attorney" Jack Thompson, was part of the self-described school shooting expert's "A Modest Proposal" an ultra-violent game concept that was supposed to elicit a $10,000 pay out from Thompson, should someone be bold enough to make it. Jack, as expected, welshed on the promised charitable donation when I'm O.K. hit the web, but the freeware shooter garnered the attention of Aquaria co-creator Alec Holowka.
More »
4:00 PM on Mon Feb 18 2008
By Michael McWhertor
5,485 views,
27 comments
Latest by Morberis: @Molbork: Actually the controller option works quite well, and I've used both the ps3 and the 260 controller on it. My only issue is is that you can't move when casting spells which would be quite easy to solve using the 2 more »
If you're looking for a lovely way to look busy on a lazy Friday afternoon, then independent developer Dejobaan Games has got just the thing. They've just released their latest title, The Wonderful End of the World, which casts you as a super absorbent puppet tasked with collecting as much of the world as you can before it is eaten by "mythological demon with the head of a fish." It plays a lot like Katamari Damacy - in fact, the first level of the two-level demo had me ready to dismiss it as a throwaway clone - but then I got to level 2 and fell in love. Set in a video game world, the second level starts you off in a game of Pong, which is set within a game of Pac-Man, which is set within a game of Centipede, with Tetris blocks and Tron light cycles running about and Space Invaders descending overhead. I swoon! It's PC Katamari Damacy on crack, all for $19.95. Hit the link below to give the game a go!
The Wonderful End Of The World [Dejobaan Games]
Indiegames has put together a convenient wrap up of their top 20 free arcade games of 2007. There's something for everyone, and games running the gamut from simple to complex, with graphics to match. Garden Gnome Carnage not sounding like your cup of tea? Maybe Cottage of Doom or Winter's Heart will be up your alley. Most entries give a quick overview, screen shots, and a video of gameplay.
Best Freeware Arcade Games 2007 [Indiegames]
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