Holy mackerel! I just watched the pre-alpha gameplay trailer for Darkwood and I am soooo pumped for it! Acid Wizard Studio have been developing a top-down, roguelike game for the PC which is set to be put out through Steam... provided it's Greenlight'd. Which I hope it is!
I think this will be a game worth playing, given its unique game play. Despite it being top-down, the atmosphere is dark and creepy, which is helped in part by the ambient weather sounds and the lighting that I think looks great.
The game play itself is also noteworthy as the world is procedurally generated, the ability to craft items, construct and reinforce barriers, a skills system, exploration! It almost feels like as if a proper game were made of Evil Dead, with some RPG components thrown in. And it holds no punches either, with its permadeath and lack of "hand holding", as they put it. Just throws you in to a survival-horro type situation in which you have learn and adapt for yourself. I think that will potentially be great, especially for this sort of thing they're going for.
I think this game has real potential, so be sure to check out their website below, watch the trailer (also below), give it a vote in Steam's Greenlight section, and so forth.
First off, I'd like to start by saying thank you!
It's been an absolute privilege to interact and speak with all of you video game enthusiasts and fellow bloggers about gaming, and just random things in general through Google+, Youtube, and also by email. Writing this blog and the Youtube'ing has turned out to be a very enjoyable opportunity and I have you all to thank for making it that much better, so again, thank you!
But enough of that... It is my great privilege today to tell you all about Full Moon Rising! :D
This has to be one of the most excellent, albeit short, throw-back titles I've gotten to play of late. Really top-notch. Developed by the Drunken Devs group, whose site is linked via the above picture, Full Moon Rising is definitely a well-crafted game. It's free, pretty basic, and short, but what makes it truly excellent is the charming, retro-style graphics and the goal of the game itself.
That goal, as you might have deducted from the above picture is to "baste the notch" of your in-game girlfriend, as they put it. In order to get laid, you must satisfy your girlfriend's weird furry fetish by acquiring a "moon piece" and becoming a werewolf. This is done by traversing to the other side of town while avoiding dangerous hobos and electric eels, stealing the moon piece from a vampire hunter (which probably isn't the best idea), and making it back to your dear Victoria. It ends with an awesome boss fight and an even more awesome ending, which I won't spoil. It won't quite be what you expect, though. ;]
The game itself is pretty standard old-school platforming. As a human, you have no attack and must avoid all baddies. As the werewolf, you get a rushing-forward attack where you eat your enemies that get in your way which I admit, feels pretty good given the hard time they give you as a human.
Another Drunk Dev game. :]
Aside from this, the Drunken Devs have other games which are definitely worth trying, which are a bit of a riot. I also really liked their Destroy The Porn game, and they have others. Also worth mentioning is that they actually have a section for giving them ideas for games, which I think is a pretty neat idea. These guys definitely deserve some kudos!
Anyway, thanks for reading, all!
It's been a real pleasure so far. ;]
Now this is a particularly interesting title.. Jikkyo Oshaberi Parodius is a side-scrolling shooter type game for the Super Famicom, much like the famous title Gradius. It plays very similarly, but Jikkyo is a bit more... unique? That doesn't even properly describe it. Jikkyo is downright strange, and absurd, but in a very excellent way. I wish I knew more Japanese so that I'd know some of what is going on, but then I have my doubts if that'd even help. It's just so off the wall! What were you all smoking, Konami?
My first major "WTF"-moment in the game...
This odd-ball game certainly has its charm, being a parody of other arcade shooters, most notably of Gradius. Its cast of characters as well are equally charming, but strange. From the selection screen, you have your choice of sixteen characters, ranging from baseball cap-wearing octopi, to penguins, paper planes, fairies and so forth, and they all each are given their own style of attacks and techniques. I personally like being the cat and bombing space-chickens with my mousey-bombs.
The Colorful Cast
As I said before, the game plays fairly well, much like a number of old-school arcade shooters from back in the day. The impressive size of the cast makes for differing play through experiences as they all get their own abilities and upgrades. The upgrades are picked up from shot-down enemies, which is a standard feature, and also from the bells that come onto the screen which give you varying effects.
In addition to the strange cast, there is also a large amount of equally strange and random baddies, ranging from dancing, wig-wearing penguins, to chicken leg-throwing Santas, hula-hooping monkeys, and the list continues. And the bosses are no different in their bizarreness.
Uhm... er... Shall I come back later, ma'am?
One last final thing I should warn you about is the sound and music. Keeping to the running motif, it too is rather "off the beaten path". Throughout this particular title, there is a running in-game commentary in Japanese, much like you'd hear in a Japanese game show, which I've read is where the game gets it's name-sake. The music itself are parodied remixes of more popular songs, ranging from 70s disco to more popular tunes, and even classical.
The characters, the baddies, the settings themselves, and the sound all work together to make a really excellent, albeit, an odd Super Famicom title. Overall, I liked it and I recommend it to anyone in a funny mood. Aside from this one, there are more of these games, a popular one being made for the PSX by the name of Jikkyo Oshaberi Parodius: Forever With Me.
Below you can see me be decimated by drum sticks and penguins. Think you can do better? Let's see it, Starbuck! :P
Now I'm sure most of you have already heard by now, but Disney has closed the doors to Lucas Arts and laid 150 people off at the studio. I didn't believe it at first when I found out. I happened across an article at Business Insider, looking for an article to supplement an economics assignment. Essentially, it wasn't something I was looking for and certainly not expecting. And my fears were only further confirmed after seeing all the Google+ and Facebook posts about it.
End-game screen that gets me right in the nostalgia.
Honestly, it kinda depressed me. Game companies rise and fall all the time, but this is different. I mean, I know that they'll still exist as a licensing entity, but it won't ever be the same. Especially if Disney decides to whore out to some less desirable gaming companies. (A new Full Throttle with micro-transactions is the stuff of nightmares, my friends...) Regardless, it's like Mickey Mouse himself has taken a giant-ass, mouse turd over a very dear part of my childhood.
Why! Why!?!
Something that didn't make sense to me though, is both the cancellation of Star Wars 1313 and also the underlying reason given by Disney's conversion to a licensing format for Lucas Arts. They said in their statement that, "we've decided to shift LucasArts from an internal development to a licensing model, minimizing the company's risk." Risk? Risk!? Anything "Star Wars" sells. Of all things, what was the risk in Star Wars 1313? It was my understanding it was coming near to fruition, and everyone I knew was so hyped for it, myself included!
Even though it's been quite some time since Lucas Arts' golden age, the closure of the studio hits me right in the childhood. I grew up with all the classics, with my particular favorites probably being the Monkey Island series. Day of the Tentacle and Sam and Max: Hit the Road too are both ones that I enjoy replaying on occasion. And also Full Throttle. And The Dig. And Indiana Jones. Screw it, they were all good back in the day!
Guybrush to honor the lactose-intolerant volcano-god.
I encourage you all, in honor of Lucas Arts' contributions to gaming society, to pop in maybe Grim Fandango or something. As a sort of "moment of silence", memorial-type of thing. And then go give Mickey Mouse a big ol' middle finger for taking Star Wars 1313 from us, and canning all those good people at Lucas Arts. It's a sad thing to see happen, to be sure.
I made a short little good-bye video to Lucas Arts, so be sure to check it out.
Peace out guys, and stay strong! Don't let Disney see you cry.
