31.12.06

Game of the Year?

Posted in everything, games, must have, shmups at 6:18 pm by the2bears

I thought about selecting a Game of the Year, but making that choice would be too difficult, as there really were a lot of great indie shooters released. So I’ll take the easy way out… and solicit comments from everyone as to what games stood out for you. So, what were your favourite games of 2006?

Oh, and Happy New Year! Here’s to a great 2007. I’d also like to say thank-you to everyone. First, I would like to thank all the developers who created all the games I’ve been playing and enjoying. Second I’d like to thank all the great people I’ve met and gotten to know through their comments and emails, it’s pretty cool being a small part of the indie game community.

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December Notables

Posted in everything, games, shmups at 6:05 pm by the2bears

My favourite game from a very strong December bunch is Fire and Forget. I’m making this based on how interesting I’m finding the whole concept. It reminds me a little bit of the Yellow Submarine vs. the Blue Meanies and I think opens up some new ideas.

Rect Winder received another variation in Rect Winder HB, this time courtesy of Kou Mikage.

Spark Spectra is a very good abstract shooter, combining the ABA graphical style with some Tron glows.

Demolition Gunner gained a Remix Mode more in tune with bullet hell games and providing a nicely different gaming experience from the original mode.

Titanion also received an update, with the original gameplay being added in as a third mode.

cactus sent me a link to the latest version of Ad Nauseam. This is a great effort, and deserves a little more attention.

Saucelifter is a really cool Choplifter remake with great production values that pays a lot of attention to the little details.

X-Out treated us with an early version of another remake. GraviTron is a great take on Gravitar, and is also inspired by Wiebo’s excellent Thrust Xtreme.

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Gunstorm II

Posted in everything, games, shmups at 9:15 am by the2bears

Gunstorm II, from Cornutopia, was released a few days ago. It’s a 360° shooter that utilizes a control scheme similar to Asteroids, however I would recommend using the Follow the Cursor mode. The game can then be controlled mainly with the mouse, left button to fire and right button to thrust, though you’ll still need the keyboard to switch weapons.

The game, while a decent effort, just takes too long to get going for my taste. It seems very slow paced for the first 10 or so levels, at which point it seems you’ve only seen a few types of enemies and the same terrain each time. I suppose I’m a bit biased as I don’t generally like this type of shooter, so your impression may be different. Interestingly enough, though, the game has its own theme song… which is still running through my head.

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30.12.06

Newspace Blackstar

Posted in everything, games, shmups at 10:10 pm by the2bears

Newspace Episode One: Blackstar is a beautifully rendered horizontal shooter from Freespace Films. Check out some of the other projects, such as the Wipeout styled race in Speed Factor, and you’ll see that there’s more than a bit of talent here in 3D modelling and animating.

I’m normally not a really big fan of this style, of what I like to call super-realistic graphics. I’ll make an exception here, though, as the pace of the game is fast and the action gets quite frantic. The game is not without it’s faults, such as the placement of the keyboard controls, but there are some pretty good enemy designs, with both large and small craft to fight. And, it’s the first in a planned series of games.

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29.12.06

Last Hope Interview

Posted in everything, games, news, shmups at 7:41 pm by the2bears

Thanks to Chip for this post at Shmuptacular, about an interview with redspotgames, publishers of Last Hope. Interesting quote:

Until now, almost every second order came from Asia, which corroborates our strategy.

I’m not so sure if this means they’re selling half of their orders to Asia or are lots of people buying through Play-Asia like me? Anyway, an interesting read.

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