Jonathan Mak's Everyday Shooter (Windows version) is now available on Steam for only $8.99, though the game will retail at $9.99 after one week. Keyboard controls are supported, but players can use a gamepad or an Xbox 360 controller as well.
For Vista users: If Everyday Shooter runs without sound, try enabling XP SP2 compatibility mode to solve the problem. (gameplay videos in the extended, source: Queasy Games)
What follows is an informal chat with darthlupi, a respected indie developer in the Game Maker build your own game community - with releases such as Raging Skies, The Cleaner, Airdoo and Winter's Heart under his belt.
He also finished first in the Retro Remakes Competition (2004 edition) with his entry, Legend of Shadow - we talk to him about his releases and thoughts on the indie scene.
Hi lupi, can you introduce yourself for the benefit of our readers?
Sure. My name is Robert Lupinek. I've been making freeware video games for the last 4 or 5 years for the pure pleasure of it.
Hmmm, I like to drink dark beer and I think that ninjas do beat pirates.
Do you develop games full-time? Or supplement your hobby with a day job?
Ok first off - I work full-time during the day as a UNIX/Oracle admin. And I hate to think of game making as just a hobby - you know? Even if I have to do something else to feed the family, I hope to be able to support myself fully with game making someday. That is if I can get the art down right.
What do you do to relax?
I go camping. That is how I chill. I like to run and go camping with my wife and take pictures of nature. And I love, love, love to snorkel. If anyone wants a super happy snorkeling buddy give me a call!
Any recollections of the first game you've made?
Of course. It was called Hell Stalker! It was coded in QBasic. It was never completed because I foolishly didn't believe in backing up my hard drive. The first game anyone played was called SpoonPage. That game was so silly and awful and fun.
Continue reading "Interview: Robert Lupinek (The Cleaner) Talks Game Maker Magic" »
new screenshot from Amanita Design's Machinarium
Continue reading "Preview Screenshots: Machinarium, Teppomanto, etc." »
The complete video walkthrough for Yume Nikki.
"I remember people saying that they liked the EB0 area's music, so I figured I tell you all how to find it. Go into Yume Nikki (Folder, not game) -> Music, and look for a file that's a bunch of gibberish. It's an MP3 file, and it's 1.34MB. You may need to look through a few files to find it, but to help the file name has 001 at the end of it." - Giegue
pararalyzer is a generic vertical shooter consisting of only three short levels. Hold the Z key to shoot, press the X key to use your stun weapon and tap the C key to activate your shields. Collision with enemy ships or bullets will decrease your life gauge, though the red bar can be restored and even increased permanently by acquiring life ups and extends.
Pause the game at any time by pressing the S key. pararalyzer also features three difficulty settings and an online high score submission function. (source: shmups.system11.org)
Name: pararalyzer
Category: Shooter
Type: Browser
Ad Nauseam 2 seemed to be a pretty big hit on GamingW compared to your other games and a lot of people have said good things about it, what was the concept and idea behind it?
Well, first I started out wanting to make a game with powerful explosions. A shoot 'em up felt like the easiest way to do it. Technical limitations pretty much excluded most other genres anyway. So I decided to make as many enemies as I could before I got bored, and ended up with three levels worth.
I wanted the game to have a theme so I designed it after the game's title. I used the internet as the point of focus. The first level in the game is about my hate for emoticons. Unfortunately I've started to use them myself. It seems to be really hard to avoid them.
The next bit was about text, which there really seems to be no limit to how much there is on the net. And most of it is a waste of bandwidth, it seems. The final bit is about spam. Here we got porn, viagra, drugs and money, which seems to be the kind of e-mails I usually get that end up in the junk folder.
What programs do you use to make the graphics in your games?
MS Paint, or GM's built-in graphics editor which is practically the same as MS Paint.
Cactus Interview (Gaming World, forums)
Review by bigbossSNK
Dino Run (Pixeljam mirror) - The pyroclastic wall of doom is approaching. Nothing survives it. The premise is clear, you either run ahead of it, or you die. No one said survival was going to be easy in this dino-eat-dino world.
Pixeljam's latest game lets you decide the fate of a dino, and has the typical* features of a free indie game: old school pixel art, multiple areas to explore, achievements to unlock, upgrades and secrets to obsess over.
And to prove these dinos live in packs, the developers have included an online multiplayer mode that'll have you competing against other dinos across the Pangea. (Smack talking optional)
*By typical, I mean extraordinary
Name: Dino Run
Developer: PiXelJAM games (kindly donate)
Category: Action
Type: Browser
Continue reading "Flash Game Pick: Dino Run (Pixeljam Games)" »
Defend your Castle will be released for the WiiWare this May 12th, 2008. (announcement, interview, multiplayer gameplay video in the extended)
The focus of TIGSource's Procedural Generation Competition is to develop a game which uses procedural content generation to create compelling, new content every time the player starts a game. Final submission date is June 2nd, 2008.
Review by Gr.Viper
It's time for some wanton destruction - Japanese style! Bootfighter Windom XP SP-2 features giant armed mechs (designs borrowed from Gundam) fighting in dense urban environments. Powerful weapons demolishing city buildings with one shot, jetpacks taking you sky high and special abilities like brief transformation are in common use both by player and AI bots, so battlegrounds tend to get pretty hot seconds after the battle begins.
The game also features Practice mode with disabled enemy AI. The other two modes are large scale battles with AI teammates - either until one team is destroyed or (in Blitz mode) until it loses its motherships which are huge and tough but not invulnerable.
Players are offered a good selection of gear to try on. Some mechs are pure melee types with a neat special ability thrown in (like long plasma whip), while others are designed for sniping and dealing massive damage at medium ranges. Several mechs can transform in flight to gain more speed but jetpacks rapidly drain energy, so long flights are impossible. Luckily, weapons drain energy from a different pool and each of them has its own cooldown counter so you'll never be unarmed even if your mech has no sword.
The default control scheme isn't very convenient to use but keys can be reassigned. Key combinations required to perform different tricks are listed in the manual, which has been translated into English along with readme and the few captions in game.
Mech models and animations are well done. Without shiny armor and plasma beams in the air the streets look pale and boring, although you won't have time to notice it unless you press the escape key and give the shot camera feature a try (controlled by cursor keys, W, A, S, D, Z, X and R for reset). A DirectX 9 video card is recommended, and the installation of .NET 2.0 is also required. With graphics set to full the game tends to get choppy when many mechs get together, although options to disable HDR and shaders are present. (screenshots, trailer in the extended)
Name: Bootfighter Windom XP SP-2
Developer: Y. Kamada
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 60MB
Direct download link: Click here
Continue reading "Freeware Game Pick: Bootfighter Windom XP SP-2" »
Gamasutra (the 'art and business of games'.)
Game Career Guide (for student game developers.)
Worlds In Motion (discussing the business of online worlds.)
Games On Deck (serving mobile game developers.)
Game Set Watch (the Group's alt.game weblog.)
