Teaser: Chasing Aurora
By: Derek Yu
On: May 5th, 2012
This is a teaser for Chasing Aurora, a new game from Broken Rules (And Yet It Moves). You play a bird person who has to “return the aurora to the skies”. An older teaser, from 2011, shows off what appears to be a competitive multiplayer mode.
Coming this year.
Age of Decadence Public Beta
By: Derek Yu
On: May 4th, 2012
Iron Tower Studio has released a public beta for Age of Decadence, their up-and-coming role-playing game, and opened it for preorders. As far as I can tell, there’s a lot here to get hardcore CRPG players excited: AoD appears to put a heavy emphasis on role-playing, dialogue, and combat, with the three carefully intertwined. Quests are designed not only with multiple solutions, but also multiple starting points. One playthrough, for example, may have you assassinating a certain character while the other will have you protecting them – it all depends on how you choose to play. And the combat, which is turn-based, promises to be extremely punishing to players without the requisite stats and skills.
AoD takes place in the shadow of a crumbling, Roman-themed empire, where various political factions are vying for their own agendas. According to the FAQ, these factions play a strong role in the game, and as a player you can make and break alliances and even double- or triple-cross your allies. Or, if you want, you could try to ignore them and remain unentangled.
It sounds like Iron Tower is hellbent on delivering a complex CRPG in which your choices truly have deep consequences and role-playing is at the forefront. Enjoy the beta while you wait – Age of Decadence is slated for a 2013 release.
(Source: Chef Boyardee)
La Mulana Not Coming to NA/EU Wii
By: Derek Yu
On: May 3rd, 2012
Nicalis has decided to suddenly cancel the North American and European release of La Mulana, citing declining sales on WiiWare and developmental issues as the cause. Nicalis’s Tyrone Rodriguez told GoNintendo: “With the Wii U in the not too distant future and WiiWare sales almost non-existent, I had to make a call today. I wish them the best. They’re good game developers and good guys.” Click the link for the full statement, which points to the DLC as the main reason why La Mulana was having trouble passing certification in North America and Europe (it’s apparently more strict than in Japan, where NIGORO already self-published the game). You may also want to check the Twitter accounts of NIGORO and Nicalis for more details.
Thankfully, it’s not all bad news: according to NIGORO, a PC release of the new La Mulana is almost finished and will also be self-published. Distribution has yet to be determined.
Now on Steam
By: Derek Yu
On: April 23rd, 2012
A number of previously-released games have been added to Steam recently.
First off is Joakim “Konjak” Sandberg’s Noitu Love 2, a fast-paced platformer that was put out four years ago. Even if you already played it, you may want to relive the good times to support the development of Konjak’s latest project, The Iconoclasts.
Wizorb is a Breakout game with RPG elements that came out on XBLIG last year. Developed by Tribute Games with some help from Paul Robertson, Wizorb has great pixel art and adds a number of fun, new ideas to the classic genre.
Capybara Games has ported the popular iPad adventure game Superbrothers: Sword & Sworcery EP to PC. If a lack of iThing was preventing you from experiencing the sweet sights and sounds of Craig Adams and Jim Guthrie, now’s your chance!
Lone Survivor, the creepy survival horror title from Jasper Byrne, was released on Steam 20% off… the first sale since the game arrived last month.
Finally, David Williamson’s casual roguelike Hack, Slash, Loot is also available on Steam. With cutesy graphics and a simple mouse interface, this seems like a good release for those new to dungeon crawling. The OST was released today, as well.
Zooming Secretary
By: Derek Yu
On: April 22nd, 2012
If you’re interested in NES homebrew, you should check out Zooming Secretary, an original action game from programmer Shiru and artist PinWizz. In the game you play a secretary who has to answer phone calls after visiting the appropriate filing cabinet. Various co-workers will hamper your progress, but a coffee power-up will offer a speed boost to help you get through each of the eight work days.
Zooming Secretary is simple but polished, making it a good study for people interested in making their own NES games. The source code of the game is available here. A NES emulator like FCEUX is required to play.
Also, FEMICOM has an interview with PinWizz here.
Trailer: Intrusion 2
By: Derek Yu
On: April 20th, 2012
Impressive physics on display for Intrusion 2, a Flash-based run n’ gun that’s “coming soon” from vapgames.
Botanicula
By: Derek Yu
On: April 19th, 2012
Botanicula is the latest adventure game from Amanita Design, the creators of the Samorost series and Machinarium. It was released today as part of a Humble Bundle that includes all of their titles, but you can also purchase the game from GOG.com.
Bloodlands
By: Derek Yu
On: April 18th, 2012
Booting up Bloodlands, you’re met with a warning screen that indicates the level of action the title is aiming for – the screen that greets you is a tribute to Cave’s famous shoot ‘em up DonPachi. It’s a tall order for any game, but especially one that’s made in the ANSI-based game creation tool Megazeux! But Maxim, who developed Bloodlands over the course of two years, has managed to squeeze a lot out of the aging engine, offering some pretty intense “dual stick” arena shooting with a full complement of cutscenes and special effects.
Avernum: Escape From the Pit
By: Derek Yu
On: April 15th, 2012
Screenshot taken by crowe.Avernum: Escape From the Pit is a remake of Avernum (1999), which itself is a remake of Exile: Escape From the Pit (1995), Spiderweb Software’s very first RPG. Built on their latest game engine, Avernum: EFTP retains the original’s storyline and environments, but revamps the graphics, interface, and certain game systems. On top of that, it adds some new characters and areas to explore.
The game is available for Mac, Windows, and iPad.
TIGdb: Entry for Spiderweb Software
Fez
By: Derek Yu
On: April 13th, 2012
After nearly five years of development, Polytron’s Fez has been released on Xbox Live Arcade for 800 MSP. The winner of this year’s IGF Grand Prize Award, Fez is a non-linear puzzle platformer where you can rotate the camera to reveal the world’s third dimension. The game features a soundtrack by Rich “Disasterpeace” Vreeland, which will be released on April 20th but is available for pre-order.
TIGdb: Entry for Fez
