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OpinionAn Exploration Game About Breeding Plants
Plenty of explorations games give you the opportunity to walk through colorful fields or strange, alien worlds. But sometimes it feels like all you can do is wander around. Mendel allows the player to breed plants in order to create wild and unexpected new species. Created by Owen Bell, Mendel is as much a science…
By Heather Alexandra Published September 12, 2018 -
Opinion
Tennis With a Bullet Hell Twist
10Sis a bullet-hell tennis game where each match is a frantic battle to survive. Strange dog enemies and massive bosses fill the screen with projectiles, all while you fire shot after shot at them. The amount of things you need to juggle and track to succeed is intimidating, but it makes each victory feel incredible.…
By Heather Alexandra Published August 29, 2018 -
Opinion
An Existential Doll-Making Game About The Future Of Bodies
Ship of Theseus is a straightforward game. You are given dozens of body parts with which to design and construct an android. Mixing and matching pieces until you settle on a unique creation is a lot of fun. But Ship of Theseus is also a meditation on the human body and what it means to…
By Heather Alexandra Published August 22, 2018 -
OpinionA Relaxing Game Where You Serve Coffee To Orcs
It’s a late night shift and things are quiet. That nosy journalist who always says she’s working on a book took her espresso and sat down in the corner. A dapper looking elf wanders in with his literal succubus of a girlfriend. It’s gonna be a slow night in Coffee Talk, but that’s fine. Coffee…
By Heather Alexandra Published August 15, 2018 -
OpinionA Giant Mech Game About Flirting With The Enemy
Heaven Will Be Mine is a visual novel about giant robots, political intrigue, and maybe even smooching the enemy. It combines evocative writing with a multi-perspective story that’s as engrossing as any anime. In Heaven Will Be Mine, a strange extraterrestrial threat has driven mankind to the stars by the year 1980. In this alternate…
By Heather Alexandra Published July 25, 2018 -
OpinionClever Puzzle Game Feels Like Sega Made An Asset Flipper
Clever game design can take advantage of even the most limited resources. Celestial Hacker Girl Jessica is a marble-rolling game set in abstract space, which is made using mostly Unity assets. For some people, that might be infuriating, but sitting down to play it shows off what smart level design can do for a game. Created…
By Heather Alexandra Published July 18, 2018 -
OpinionShape Of The World Is A Gorgeous Exploration Game
Shape of the World is an exploration game that weaves colors into breathtaking landscapes. The shifting pastel horizons create one of the best game worlds I’ve ever explored, capturing both the thrill of hiking and the colors of a solid psilocybin trip Shape of the World invites comparison to 2013’s exploration game Proteus, but while…
By Heather Alexandra Published June 29, 2018 -
OpinionThis PlayStation-Inspired Arcade Game Is Scarier Than It Looks
OK/NORMAL is an experimental arcade game by Toni Kortelahti that embraces the visuals of early PlayStation games. The game, which captures the strange and abstract worlds of mid-90s 3D, is one of several new indie titles that embrace a new form of “retro” aesthetics. It’s an oppressive, bizarre, and overwhelming game whose glitch spaces are…
By Heather Alexandra Published June 20, 2018 -
OpinionA Game About Stopping Corporate Demon Takeovers
Settling a bet with Rock, Paper, Scissors is nice but it’s even better when you can read the future. In Fortune 499, you use fortune-telling cards to predict your opponent’s move and win battles against the demons attacking the human resources department. Fun combat and a unique twist on magical bureaucracy make it a perfect…
By Heather Alexandra Published June 8, 2018 -
Opinion
Clever New Text Game Asks Whether You’ll Trust An Alien
In Quarantine Circular, a plague is ravaging humanity, destroying cities and pushing our existence to the brink. As extinction looms, a mysterious creature from the stars appears, their motives unclear. It’s up to you to navigate the situation and hopefully save humanity. Quarantine Circular is created by Thomas Was Alone developer Mike Bithell as a…
By Heather Alexandra Published May 23, 2018 -
OpinionSpartan Fist Was Born In A Bowl Of Spaghetti And Carpet Fragments
Spartan Fistis a first person brawler where you have to punch your way through randomly generated maps. Along the way, there’s tons of special attacks and silly upgrades that turn each new playthrough into a hilarious beatdown of hapless enemies. Developed by Seattle based developer Glass Bottom Games, Spartan Fist’s origins spring from personal tragedy.…
By Heather Alexandra Published May 16, 2018 -
Opinion
A Game That Explains How Good (And Bad) Ideas Spread
The Wisdom and/or Madness of Crowds is an interactive game by Nicky Case all about how ideas and trends spread. Short puzzles teach the player how popular perception changes as groups grow smaller or larger. It’s an important lesson wedged between devious brain teasers and a perfect Indie Pick. We’ve featured Case’s work before, which…
By Heather Alexandra Published May 10, 2018 -
OpinionPhoton Highway Is The Perfect Racing Game To Play On A Lunch Break
Sometimes, you just want to hit the road. Photon Highway takes cues from games like Audiosurf and Temple Run to create a randomized highway through the stars. It’s great for those times you want to sit back and cruise away from life’s problems. Created by Sirnic, Photon Highway is a moody racing game with a…
By Heather Alexandra Published May 2, 2018 -
OpinionA Hand Drawn RPG With Great Boss Fights
Lucah looks like it leapt right off a chalkboard, with a distinct hand drawn style somewhere between wild scribblings and hallucinations. It mixes tense combat and exploration into a wild action-RPG. Created by melessthanthree, Lucah takes place in a dream world full of monsters. The player takes the role of Lucah, a young adventurer seeking…
By Heather Alexandra Published April 26, 2018 -
OpinionIndie Brawler Has Some Of The Best Punching Ever
Beat the Art Breaker is a game about dashing around and punching folks. It’s not done yet, but a new playable demo gives a glimpse at an indie game that has a fast and exciting take on hand to hand combat. Beat the Art Breaker is designed by Jesse Burnett, whose work I’ve shared before.…
By Heather Alexandra Published April 18, 2018 -
OpinionFree Game Is WarioWare With Ducks
Duck Jam mixes WarioWare style mini-games with a touch of absurdist comedy to tell the story of a bunch of ducks trying to make money. Bills, you could say. The fast-paced change from one game mode to another means you need to always be on your toes if you want to avoid begging for bread…
By Heather Alexandra Published April 11, 2018 -
OpinionNew Switch Port Is One Of The Best Bullet Hell Games I’ve Played
Danmaku Unlimited 3 is a bullet hell arcade game that came out for PC last year but was recently released for the Nintendo Switch. The laser-filled shoot ‘em up is exciting, with tight dodges and massive beam blasts that make for a good time. Danmaku Unlimited 3 chases after other bullet hell games like Ikaruga…
By Heather Alexandra Published April 4, 2018 -
OpinionBleed 2 Is A Non-Stop, Action-Packed Daydream
Bleed 2 initially released last year for PC, Playstation 4, and Xbox One, but was ported to the Switch this month. It’s a relentless action game full of air dashes, bullet deflecting, and tons of bosses that feels freshly sprung from the mind of an eight-year-old on a sugar high. Developed by Ian Campbell, Bleed…
By Heather Alexandra Published March 28, 2018
