« August 6, 2006 - August 12, 2006 | Main | August 20, 2006 - August 26, 2006 »
Takase's web site has moved. Latest news about Dot Fighters can be found at his blog, while the ArmJoe download is available from this page. [Thanks to Khris!]
Don't forget to update your bookmarks. [Takase's blog, ArmJoe download and Dot Fighters video preview at T-Lab]
For the humour in the tutorial alone, it's got to be Frets on Fire. Now you finally get to live your dream of a rock star, have groupies and unprotected orgy fests. But first you must take a lesson from the begrudgingly Juergen, your instructor and the local guitar god extraordinaire.
Learn how to hold the keyboard in the coolest way, and you won't need to spend a few months' worth of allowance on a special controller. Song selection is rather limited, and the game itself is still undergoing revision but this is one title that is already showing plenty of promise. If you're no good with the strings, there's at least one or two good laughs to be had from the experience.
Placed first in the Assembly '06 competition. (Scroll down for the results, under the Competitions tab) For more instructions, click here.
Name: Frets on Fire
Developer: Unreal Voodoo
Type: Freeware
Size: 30MB
Comments
Six: Sweet! Now I can pretend to be Nullsleep!
MD: This videogame is f*cking great :D, awesome, awesome.
finefin: juergen is right. i SUCK in this game! but i can't stop trying... :D
I've uploaded the Siter Skain's Alltynex gameplay video on YouTube. This video shows footage from the first boss until the end of the game. [Kamui review]
As mentioned on the web site, the Comiket 70 release is a prototype and does not reflect gameplay from the final version (no date yet).
A 70MB demo for The Silver Lining (the unofficial King's Quest IX) has been released. (I'd recommend the AusGamer's mirror, it's blazing fast)
Adventure Europe puts up the first Broken Sword 4 in-game footage for download (50MB). UK Release date: 15th September 2006.
The full title is Broken Sword 4: The Angel of Death. It will be a point-and-click adventure, unlike the third in the series. Click here to watch the same trailer on YouTube.
The Runaway sequel will be released on September 2006, which means next month.
Mordalles of Duty and Beyond fame is currently working on Chronicles of the Red Knight and a secret project with graphics resembling those found in Future Wars. [Duty and Beyond review, walkthrough]
Eyezmaze's GROW nano updated to version 0.1.
Free Lunch Design of Icy Tower fame is currently working on three new games. One of them is entitled Hodja and the Sleeping Eggplant.
Quite a number of heroes and their ships from classic arcade shmups make their appearances in Absorb. You're cast as the enemy, attempting to acquire the projectiles that they shoot out and return the favor in kind. Hold the F key to activate your shields while absorbing bullets and several other harmful objects. Press the D key to launch them back at your adversaries.
Both buttons act as the cancel and confirm buttons as well. The keyboard controls work fine but a joypad is recommended.
Name: Absorb
Developer: Absorb Development Team
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 30MB
The latest release from Hizoka.T.Ohkubo, RAY-HOUND is an action game which requires no shooting from the player's part. Trapped in a room with enemies consisting of turrets, you can retaliate by clicking on the left mouse button to muster a shield and send their shots back at them. The other method is to move your ship towards the lasers rapidly to initiate a boost and repel the beams of destruction.
In the options menu, it is possible to adjust and increase the chances of boosting with quick mouse movements by lowering the figure. Press F11 or use the ALT and enter key combination to play in full screen mode.
A timer is always counting down, but you can increase it by destroying all enemies to complete the level. The gameplay system is pretty offbeat, since it can be rather hard to direct shots unless the player is adept at slinging projectiles.
Name: RAY-HOUND
Developer: Hizoka.T.Ohkubo
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB
Let's give a warm welcome to the new guitar hero in town. Aptly titled Frets on Fire, it will either help you get laid or have you breaking a few keyboards out of frustration in no time.
No expensive controllers required for this game. The main menu shows you how to hold the keyboard properly in order to rock the stage. A handy tutorial provides simple steps to follow, assuming that you can keep a straight face while playing catch up. Hold a button with your finger, then press the enter key to pick a note.
One to keep an eye on, especially if the developers include good music from unsigned bands.
Name: Frets on Fire
Developer: Unreal Voodoo
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 30MB
Mark Incitti was recently requested by Bizarre Creations (developer of Geometry Wars) to remove the Grid Wars download link. Here is the quote from Mark's web site:
"We're beginning to feel the effects of the Geometry Wars clones on our sales via Microsoft now and are beginning a process to begin to more robustly protect our copyright and intellectual property."
"Therefore, I'd like to ask you in an amicable fashion to stop infringing our IP and pull the game 'Grid Wars' from the internet for download."
"I hope you understand and are able to do this without us having to take further steps."
So, where to get your GridWars fix? Here are fifteen recommendations.
(Scroll down for all the reviews)
1. Grid Wars
2. XWars
3. Echoes
4. Rainbow Wars
5. Veck
6. Bullet Candy (demo)
7. Neon Wars (demo)
8. RetroBlast
9. HGEWars
10. Grid Assault
11. Mu-cade
12. Base 2
13. Mono
14. Mutant Storm (demo)
15. Vector Infector
Reviews
Grid Wars
Probably the most popular Geometry Wars clone, partly due to the fact that it's free and playable on at least two platforms. The dual analog controls work well, but players without a joypad can play using a combination of mouse and keyboard. No levels, but the difficulty increases slowly with the addition of new types of enemies. A black hole appears from time to time, which you can use to your advantage since it sucks everything into it. Blow it up, and the amount of points you earned depends on how many objects were drawn into the dark matter. This particular technique called black hole harvesting is a heated discussion among many fans of Mark Incitti's shooter.
Most power-ups upgrade your shots or gives you a temporary shield, while bombs can be used to clear the entire screen. The game has gone through many revisions and what we have is the final version, plus it's unlikely to be updated since the author has moved on to other projects.
Name: Grid Wars
Developer: Mark Incitti
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC, Mac
Size: 3.3MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 8/10
Rating: 9
Direct download link: http://worldofstuart.excellentcontent.com/grid/GridWars54.zip
Download page: http://worldofstuart.excellentcontent.com/grid/wars.htm
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XWars
XWars is a decent attempt to fill the hole left vacant by the forced withdrawal of Grid Wars. There are no configurable options yet, though gameplay is practically the same bar some minor sprite changes. Dual analog controllers are also supported in the latest version.
Your ship can be moved around using the W, A, S and D keys. The mouse can be used to aim at other vector shapes. Indicators shown at the top of the screen provides information on the next upgrade or multiplier increase at a glance. A worthy substitute, especially with a little more work. Made using the HGE engine.
Name: XWars
Developer: Ehud
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 0.6MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 8/10
Rating: 7
Download page:
http://www.gamedev.net/community/forums/topic.asp?topic_id=417391
Mirror: http://files.filefront.com/Xwarsrar/;6691038;;/fileinfo.html
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Echoes
Echoes is an arena shooter by Binary Zoo which consists of ten levels, with a different enemy type introduced on every new stage. Each have their unique strengths, weaknesses and require various strategies to deal with effectively.
The player loses energy when collision with an adversary could not be avoided. Remaining energy is shown as a counter on the top right of the screen, also indicated by the colored ring surrounding your ship. There are only three different power-ups to collect. One increases firepower, the other restores health while the third is a sort of bomb.
Zoots awards are handed out whenever a certain task is completed, with current achievements available to peruse via the trial accomplishment screen. To get a perfect score, all ten objectives must be attempted at the highest difficulty.
Name: Echoes
Developer: Binary Zoo
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 10.8MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 8/10
Rating: 9
Direct download link:
http://www.binaryzoo.com/games/echoes/echoes.zip
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Rainbow Wars
A side project from Volition designer Luke Schneider, part of the team responsible for the development of the Descent series. The background is practically empty, but destroying enemy ships will cause glowing particles to appear on screen. Bombs only appear as a power-up item, and is activated on the spot when collected. A power-up item will appear for every five thousand points earned which includes a black hole that only sucks in enemy ships.
Your ship is equipped with three layers of shield, and you lose one whenever an enemy ship touches yours. Destroying each wave of enemies will increase the level number by one, also replenishing your shields automatically. Losing all your shields ends the game, but you can continue from the last level attempted by selecting it at the main menu. Note that the easy difficulty will only allow access to the first ten waves.
Your ship also has the ability to warp and charge it's shot. Tap the left shoulder button on your gamepad to teleport, and hold the right shoulder button to prepare for a special attack. It's interesting to note that Rainbow Wars is an effort made with Game Maker in only thirty hours.
Name: Rainbow Wars
Developer: Luke Schneider
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 2.2MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 6/10
Rating: 8
Download page: http://www.volition-inc.com/Staff/LukeSchnieder
(click on design ideas to download)
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Veck
(Watch the gameplay video on YouTube!)
Veck was originally a competition entry for the Retro Remakes vector competition, which it won by garnering more than half of the votes submitted even though there were nine other entries. The level number increases for each minute that your ship remains intact, up to fifteen. Then the game loops back to the first wave but your score remains.
Weapon upgrade is automatic as well, bestowing the ability to shoot more bullets whenever the minute counter changes. No lives or shields, instead health is measured by energy which increments slowly but depletes if a collision with another object occurs.
Has the distinction of most bullets fired by your ship among all the games mentioned. The soundtrack is great as well, generating plenty of adrenaline rush as it reaches a crescendo. Full screen can only be enabled using a command line parameter, stated in a text file that comes with the zip package. For users with no gamepad, the mouse is not part of the control option although directional firing is still possible by mapping four other keys in addition to the standard movement.
Name: Veck
Developer: smayds
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 1.6MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 7/10
Rating: 9
Direct download link: http://dl.smayds.com/VeckSE.zip
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Bullet Candy
Bullet Candy is more like Robotron: 2084 than Geometry Wars, although the inclusion of dual analog controls make it a worthwhile inclusion into this list. You control a ship stuck in space much like the others, but enemies are able to shoot at you in many different ways. Lives can be earned either by collecting red power-ups or scoring 100,000 points.
Power-ups include lasers, triple shots and temporary invincibility. Bullet Candy includes a survival mode and an Asteroid Belt game, plus some secrets as well. Only fifty levels in the normal mode although most are designed to offer different challenges. For players without the luxury of a gamepad, the standard mouse and keyboard control combination can be used.
Name: Bullet Candy
Developer: Charlies Games
Type: Demo
Platform: PC, Mac
Size: 8.2MB
Online High Score: Yes
Geometry Wars-like scale: 3/10
Rating: 8
Download page: http://www.charliesgames.co.uk/
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Neon Wars
Developed by Reflected Games and BlitWise Productions, Neon Wars is another arena shooter that will only run properly if you have OpenGL 1.2 or above installed.
Your ship can only be moved around using the mouse, plus the primary weapon is fired automatically at the nearest enemy. Nevertheless, the one level included has no time restrictions and replayable at any time even though several power-ups have been disabled.
Name: Neon Wars
Developer: BlitWise Productions
Type: Demo
Platform: PC
Size: 2.9MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 7/10
Rating: 8
Download page: http://www.blitwise.com/neonwars.html
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RetroBlast
RetroBlast uses vector shapes for objects and enemies, much like Geometry Wars but that's where the similarities end. Only mouse control is available, and players used to a dual analog gamepad will be disappointed with this effort. To shoot at an enemy, your ship must first be rotated to face it by using the left or right mouse button to turn. Bombs can be used to clear the screen.
The full version features a hundred levels but only the first eighteen can be accessed in the demo.
Name: RetroBlast
Developer: JGOware
Type: Demo
Platform: PC
Size: 2.8MB
Online High Score: Yes
Geometry Wars-like scale: 5/10
Rating: 5
Download page: http://jgoware.com/retroblast.htm
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HGEWars
HGEWars is a work in progress by Yuriy O'Donnell, and there is still plenty of development to be done although it's been around longer than any of the other Geometry Wars clones. The rating should not be taken seriously since scores are not based on the final version. Some fiddling with the ini file is required for the gamepad to work.
Weapon upgrade is automatic. The gameplay is quite faithful to the original but it may be months before the final version is released.
Name: HGEWars
Developer: Yuriy O'Donnell
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 0.3MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 7/10
Rating: 3
Download page: http://yurka.org/gamedev/
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Grid Assault
Grid Assault plays more like Geometry Wars than any of the other attempts stated in this article. The author informs that it's development was halted to avoid any implications that may arise from creating an exact copy of Bizzare Creations' Xbox 360 hit on another platform.
Enemies will only appear for the first six minutes. Dual analog controls are available in addition to the mouse and keyboard combination. Weapon upgrade is automatic for every ten thousand points earned, and you can use bombs to destroy all objects on screen. Most of the objects from the original can be found in this effort.
Name: Grid Assault
Developer: Wiebo
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 5.3MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 9/10
Rating: 7
Download page: Blitz for the masses
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Mu-cade
Using vector shapes for shmups is practically a Kenta Cho hallmark, but the celebrated Japanese developer had been toying around with dual analog controls since Gunroar. A combination of both Robotron: 2084 and Snake, your objective is to stay on the rectangular platform and knock other enemies off it by shooting at them repeatedly.
For each enemy pushed off the platform, the tail of your ship grows longer and the score multiplier increases. A longer tail does complicate matters a little as it gets harder to stay on the platform. If the tail of your ship is over the edge, the weight will drag the rest of the ship with it as well.
Fortunately players only need to worry about the front portion of the ship. The tail itself can be blown apart in exchange for a short burst of additional firepower. You will lose the multiplier in the process though.
It gets increasingly harder to stay on the platform as time passes, but an extra life is awarded for every 200,000 points earned.
Name: Mu-cade
Developer: Kenta Cho
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 6.02MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 2/10
Rating: 7
Download page: http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~cs8k-cyu/windows/mcd_e.html
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Base 2
Base 2 is a game that plays more like Every Extend than anything else. The player controls a bit with the mouse, using the left button to activate the shield. Coming in contact with enemy ships when your shield is up will cause them to explode.
Some enemies are too large to eliminate in this manner, so your only option is to maneuver around them carefully. The green bar at the top of the screen indicates the amount of energy you currently have, and will depreciate whenever your bit touches an enemy ship with the shields down. Some energy is lost regardless of shield status when collision with large enemies could not be avoided.
Pressing the right mouse button activates the freeze bomb, which freezes all enemies on-screen momentarily. Extra lives can be earned by destroying enemies of the same color in a row, using a process called linking. Multipliers are awarded for long links.
The screen tilt can be rather helpful or distracting to players, depending on their preferences. A higher score would have been awarded if the toggle option was available from the main menu.
Name: Base 2
Developer: SimSimGames
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 6.02MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 2/10
Rating: 5
Download page: http://www.simsimgames.co.uk/
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Mono
Mono is a shooter from Binary Zoo that uses Robotron 2084-style controls, where the aim of the game is to change the color of the entire screen from black to white or white to black. Enemies will leave a splash of color on the playing field when destroyed, and the behavior of a hostile unit will change depending on the patch of color that they traverse on.
Power-ups can be collected replenish energy, shields, or radically alter your ship's firepower, although they only lasts ten seconds. Playing this game can be disorienting after a while because of the bright colors used.
Name: Mono
Developer: Binary Zoo
Type: Freeware
Platform: PC
Size: 5.5MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 3/10
Rating: 5
Download page: http://www.binaryzoo.com/games/mono/
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Mutant Storm
Mutant Storm is an arena shooter developed by PomPom Games, in which you control a ship equipped with directional firing much like Geometry Wars. Instead of vector shapes, most of the objects in the game are represented in 3D.
It's quite unfortunate that your progress is only saved every ten levels, leaving most users replaying the same stages just to arrive at a save point.
Name: Mutant Storm
Developer: PomPom Games
Type: Demo
Platform: PC, Mac, Linux
Size: 4.3MB
Online High Score: Yes
Geometry Wars-like scale: 6/10
Rating: 7
Download page: http://www.pompomgames.com/mutantstorm.htm
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Vector Infector
Vector Infector is another release by Oddbob that resembles Geometry Wars, featuring fifty rooms filled with geometric shapes bent on your ship's destruction.
There are some notable differences when comparing this version with the console hit. For example, the only way to power up your weapon's attack strength is by collecting gems that vanquished enemies leave behind. The game also has a wrap around playing field, where sprites that go over the edge of the screen will appear on the other side.
Two control options are made available to the player. Pressing the Z key will cause your ship to fire in the direction it is currently facing. Shots can also be directed by using W, A, S and D keys. Looks very promising even if it's still in early development stages.
Name: Vector Infector
Developer: Oddbob
Type: Demo
Platform: PC
Size: 15.0MB
Online High Score: No
Geometry Wars-like scale: 7/10
Rating: 5
Direct download link: http://www.merseyremakes.co.uk/previews/testbuild8thJan.exe
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Some notables which uses dual analog or features vector shapes that did not make the list (for various reasons), but very playable nonetheless:
Circle Hunter by Swooshysoft [review]
Bubble Thing by Queasy Games [review]
All games copyrighted by their respective development studios.
Feather Raid is an excellent shooter featuring a power-up system much like the one employed by Konami's Gradius series. There are no lives but your character is able to take several hits, indicated by the HP gauge shown at the bottom of the screen. Your HP can be increased by completing levels and gaining experience points.
Hold down the Z key to shoot and press the X key to activate a power-up. Tap the left shift to launch the cyclone attack, although it requires a recharge after each use.
Refer to the FAQ on the left sidebar for instructions on navigating the Vector site.
Name: Feather Raid
Developer: Ichigo-Citron
Category: Shooter
Type: Demo
Size: 10MB
Neko-Kaitei Iseki Taisen is a rather dated Flash effort by Yoshio Ishii, featuring the use of only two colors to great effect. Essentially an exploration game, your objective is to guide a cat as it embarks on a quest to retrieve hidden treasures in an underground cave, deep beneath the sea.
Left click to bring up a map and a treasure loot indicator. Look out for false cave walls.
Name: Neko-Kaitei Iseki Taisen
Developer: Yoshio Ishii
Category: Adventure
Type: Flash
Size: 1MB
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.)
