This is just a montage of a bunch of Game Maker games that I put together. There is a list of the games, with links to each and the time signatures, on the GMC thread.

Photos from the recent TIGJam 2008 meet. (source: Data)

Underside preview (note: strong language. source)

Dogfight 2 is an action game which takes place in the skies, where players assume control of a fighter plane engaged in a series of missions for the German side during World War I.

Use the cursor keys to climb or dive, and press the space key to fire your guns. Hold the left shift or alternate key to drop bombs. There are also four different ace tactics which can be used once per mission to confuse your enemies momentarily. These range from flying into clouds for cover, hovering above the ground for a short while, or even executing evasive 360 degree loops near an enemy fighter plane.

The game has twenty-five missions in total, with a different objective revealed at the start of the level for each.

Name: Dogfight 2
Developer: Rock Solid Arcade
Category: Action
Type: Browser

This week on Bytejacker: Flashbang Studios' iSplume, Edmund McMillen/Tyler Glaiel's Aether and Ted Lauterbach's Visit 2. Daniel Remar's Iji takes the crown in Free Indie of the Week. (YouTube video)

Bytejacker episode 9
Bytejacker forums

Flashbang Studios' central hub for their Unity games launches today, with a collection of their older works already available to play on the site. Not too many features yet, but future releases can now be found on Blurst instead of having to type in a different domain name for each.

The Unfinished Swan is described as "a surreal maze game set in an entirely white world", and to find your way around you'll need to splatter paint all over the place.

This project was recently chosen as one of the finalists for Sense of Wonder Night 2008 and also Indiecade 2008. Joystiq is currently featuring five Indiecade finalists a day (out of a total of twenty-five), with the last ten to be mentioned tomorrow and the day after.

No playable build of The Unfinished Swan is available to the public currently, but there is a tech demo called Whitewash which bears more than a few similarities. (playable only on browsers with the Unity plugin installed, updated version)

Note: video contains spoilers.

Marshmallow is a short action game which involves guiding the main character up into the sky while carefully navigating around other floating objects. Click anywhere on the protagonist's head and our genderless friend will move a little faster in the opposite direction. He or she (or it) will also knock any other creatures out of the sky when executing this action.

Name: Marshmallow
Developer: Recruit
Category: Action
Type: Browser

Similar game: FlyGuy

Diver maps 2D character posture to mouse position and challenges you to perform thirty death defying dives. The game shines on two occasions: when your planned dive works out, and when it fails miserably, killing the diver Stair-Dismount-style.

Maximize your chances of success by regulating rotation speed (stretched is slow, crouched is fast) so you can land with your feet on the diving platform, and descend as vertical as you can into the blue. Be forewarned, the dives' increasing difficulty will send the faint of heart swimming in a sea of desperation.

Wish list: highscore table, aesthetic dive bonuses, achievements, replay function, level editor and a standalone executable.

Name: Diver
Developer: Jeff Weber
Category: Physics game
Type: Browser

Note: the game provides links to the required (and painless) installation of Microsoft's Silverlight.

Techno-Slyph is a nice, laid back variety of shooter with a very well paced difficulty curve that should be easily picked up and playable by any fans of the genre. Shoot the bad guys and slowly evolve your ship into an ever more destructive war machine.

*edit: better controls explanation (Thanks Fish!)*
The left (blue) bar is your attack power, you can increase it by pressing 'A', but it eats up more energy.

The middle bar is your energy (yellow is max energy, red is current) - it charges over time and by pickups. If you destroy those engine-ish things (shown in the picture), a drop with a ring around it appears which increases max energy.

The right bar (purple), think of it like a Gradius system. It corresponds with the powerups shown on the bottom right screen, and can be changed by pressing 'S'.

Upgrading works when you 'select' something on your upgrade bar, and you have enough current energy at that level (ie: upgrade bar at lvl 2 for Flash, you have the red energy at lvl 2). If you press 'X' (homing laser), and have enough power, you get the upgrade and your max energy decreases. Unfortunately I *think* that you have to fill the blue vertical bars up all the way to actually use it.

Name: Techno-Slyph
Developer: KBZ
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 1.11MB
Direct Download: Click here

Zerosum is a puzzle game that is easy to learn but difficult to master, where players attempt to remove as many tiles as they can before their chances run out by matching at least three blocks with the same number in a column or row.

Click on a block to select it, then select an adjoining tile to move it over to the new spot. This block will then change to a number which is the sum of the previous two tiles, with numbers going above nine starting the count from zero again. One tile will then be taken from your stock to replace the blank spot vacated by the original block, as indicated in the next tile indicator on the right side of the screen.

As the level counter increases, more chains and matches are needed to fulfil the extend quota, which then increases your stock count by one. When burst mode is activated, tiles do not have to be in a straight line to be considered a valid match. Metallic tiles have numbers which cannot be changed, blocks encased in ice has to be freed by removing a tile next to it, and numbers in rounded tiles are increased by one after every turn.

There is a short advertisement to sit through before the game will load.

Name: Zerosum
Category: Puzzle
Type: Browser

Similar games: Blocksum

An example of games used in classrooms to teach students the importance of learning puzzle-solving skill sets.

Cavern of Doom is a full-length RPG release with original graphics and tilesets, where players take control of Mo the Great who is known across the land for his legendary feats of heroism. No task seems impossible to him, as he attempts to save the once-peaceful town of Quetharc by driving back the monsters hiding in nearby caves and earning the respect of the king and locals in the process.

Use the X key to access your inventory, and press the Z or space key to execute a default action. Switch between full screen and windowed mode with the F4 function key, or hold the left alternate and enter key for a similar effect.

Weapons, scrolls, potions, spells and armor are readily available for purchase from shops around the city, taverns are safe havens for battered warriors looking for a place to rest, while unused equipment can be sold at the pawn shop in exchange for gold. Note that your character stats can only be increased by returning to the city after engaging a couple of enemies in combat and using the free training facilities provided by the townsfolk.

The game also features four difficulty settings, side quests and hidden endings.

Name: Cavern of Doom
Developer: Ignotech
Category: RPG
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB

Glitch is a first person shooter created by a group of DigiPen students, freely available for download from DigiPen's gallery page. Your given objective is to survive twenty-five waves of enemies whilst trapped inside a room with high ceilings and rising platforms.

Only one weapon can be in use at any time, and will remain in effect until ammunition runs out or when you collect another item. Rocket launchers, cannons, spread shots and claw guns are some of the basic equipment which you can gather, but the game does have a couple of unorthodox weapons such as the vacuum and column gun to acquire as well. Enemy locations can be spotted by looking for coloured spots on the ceiling.

There are a couple of faults to be found in Glitch. No checkpoint feature is included, so players would have to start playing from wave one every single time. Enemies also have a tendency to stay high above the air or teleport themselves far too frequently. (source: bigbossSNK)

Name: Glitch
Developer: Team Glitch
Category: FPS
Type: Freeware
Size: 20MB

Just like Fraxy and Warning Forever, every boss encounter in Armed Generator Doom Machine has been procedurally generated to ensure a small percentage of randomness. Hold the Z key down to shoot, press the X key to launch a missile, and use the C key to activate your shields. Power-ups are granted every few levels, and the choice of upgrade is left entirely to the player to decide on.

The game features built-in joystick support, stereo sound, a boss editor, online high scores and a two-player hotseat mode. (high quality video)

Name: Armed Generator Doom Machine
Developer: Beau Blyth
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB
Direct download link: Click here

A preview of Secret Exit's new rope simulation game, Zen Bound. Out this fall on the iPhone and iPod, with PC, Mac and console releases to follow shortly after. (Zen Bondage)

Vampire Blaze is a freeware platform game which seems to have taken the best elements from early Castlevania releases and updated them for this project with improved controls, decent graphics and a catchy soundtrack. You start the monster hunt unarmed, but new weapons such as axes, knives, whips, crossbows and even guns can be acquired by destroying the many candelabras you will find during your adventure.

Press the X key to attack, or tap the C key to jump. Hold the Z key to sidestep or block enemy attacks with your weapon. The left shift key can be used to pause the game at any time.

Progress is saved automatically after the completion of each level, and players can continue their journey by using the resume option in the main menu. The Japanese language pack has to be installed to play, and the game will only run on displays configured with 16-bit color quality instead of the standard 32-bit. When starting Vampire Blaze, select the second option in the dialogue box for windowed mode.

Name: Vampire Blaze
Developer: RED
Category: Platformer
Type: Freeware
Size: 30MB
Direct download link: Click here (right click to save, use 7-Zip to unzip)

Note: video contains spoilers.

Hoshi Saga 3 is a new collection of puzzles designed by Yoshio Ishii, where the objective of the game is to search for stars hidden in each of the thirty levels included. Practically no instructions are given, and players are expected to solve puzzles by experimenting with random elements found in every stage.

Name: Hoshi Saga 3
Developer: Yoshio Ishii
Category: Puzzle
Type: Browser

video walkthroughs
puzzles 71 - 84
puzzles 85 - 94
puzzles 95 - 100, ending

A teaser site for the next Mondo game is up. (preview clip, Mondo series)

Introversion Software's multiplayer strategy game Multiwinia is out, and a demo of the game is available for download from the Multiwinia site, Steam and Big Download. Introversion's online store carries both digital download ($24.90) and limited edition box sets ($49.80); Steam users can choose to get their copies off Valve's digital distribution service ($19.99) instead.

In other news, the retail version of Mount & Blade can now be purchased from stores across the States and Europe, or bought off GamersGate directly for $29.99. Version 0.960 is still available for download from TaleWorlds' web site, which works as an outdated beta of the full game and also a demo since a license and serial key need to be bought to unlock the level limit preventing characters from advancing further than level six. Customers who purchased the game while it was still in beta can grab version 1.003 from the forums instead.

Sebastian Wolff on piano, performing a twenty-four minute long medley of tracks from Pixel's Cave Story. (source: Doukutsu Monogatari LJ, high quality video)

This is possibly your last chance to grab the latest version of Pillowfort Games' Goo! before it gets upgraded to commercial status. A DirectInput compatible gamepad or a wired Xbox360 controller is required to play.

Freeware Game Pick: Goo!
Road to the Austin IGF: PillowFort's Goo!

Shortly after the recent release of Penumbra: Requiem, the people at Frictional Games have announced their next project (currently untitled) with the launch of a teaser site. This new adventure is set to take place in an old castle during the late 18th century, and players can once again expect the same type of shocking horror and surprises which the Penumbra series is known for.

The developers have promised an engaging storyline, more freedom to explore and an updated engine to render this upcoming first person survival horror game, due out sometime in 2010.

Blast Passage is an 8-bit mashup of Gauntlet and Bomberman, currently being developed by Markus Persson for the Retro Remakes 2008 Competition.

A new platformer with gameplay elements resembling those found in The Adventures of P.B. Winterbottom, Chronotron and Braid. The main storyline contains thirty episodes in total (one complete episode seen in video). Temporal has been in development for more than six months, is feature complete (save for additional bonus content), and will be released soon.

Bunny Bomb is one of the bigger contradictions in game design I've seen. The whole thing from top to bottom is absolutely dripping with enough saccharine sweetness to make your eyes bleed, and yet the only thing you can do besides walk around is cause your rabbit to self-destruct. You get a new one, but seriously, self-destructing your pet rabbit over and over. Harsh.

Use the arrows keys to walk around and the z key to send fluffy to his/her doom. Clear each level by activating and getting to the teleporter in each stage.

Name: Bunny Bomb
Developer: Kuriimuchiizu
Category: Puzzle
Type: Freeware
Size: 9.5MB
Direct download link: Click Here

Winners of the Intel Game Demo Contest 2008 were recently announced on the official competition web site. The organizers are currently hosting downloads for all entries on the same page as well.

2008 Intel Game Demo Contest Winners

This week on Bytejacker: Anthony picks ten of his favorite entries from TIGSource's recent bootleg demakes competition.

Bytejacker episode 8
YouTube video
Bytejacker forums

Kaleidoscope Reef is a new action game created by the same development team who brought us Anika's Odyssey. The reef which is home to five of our aquatic friends are in danger of being destroyed by humans through pollution, and it's up to the player to rebuild their sanctuary of peace one coral at a time. This is achieved by grabbing young polyps and placing them on top of rocks, then feeding them planktons so that they may grow into corals.

The number of corals required to pass each area is indicated by a gauge on the left side of the screen, which fills up by a small margin whenever you've successfully cultivated a coral. (web site)

Name: Kaleidoscope Reef
Developers: Jeff Nusz, Tom Robinson, Nobu Kasajima
Category: Action
Type: Browser

Wolfire Games (David Rosen and team) had revealed today that the sequel to Lugaru will be called Overgrowth, and a new web site was unveiled to coincide with the announcement as well.

Overgrowth development journal
Wolfire Games forums

Finalists for the Sense of Wonder Night 2008 event (to be held at the Tokyo Game Show venue) have been revealed, with all twelve participants required to present and demonstrate their games to attending visitors this coming October 10th, 2008.

Here's a list of links for the games to be presented at SoWN 2008 (translated English titles by Wired):

Camera, by Yareyare
Depict, by Jesús Cuauhtémoc Moreno Ramos (trailer only)
Genocide Automation (download available)
Trash Box, by Trash Box Team
The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom (trailer only)
Moon Stories, by Daniel Benmergui (playable build available)
Nanosmiles, by Yu Iwai (download available)
PixelJunk Eden, by Q-Games
Randy Balma: Municipal Abortionist, by messhof (download available)
Twintower, by OMEGA (download available)
Whitespace, by Ian Dallas *
World Icelansista, by Ambition

* no demo available, but there is a game created by Shawn White with a very similar concept called Whitewash (demo playable only on browsers installed with the Unity plugin)

list of finalists for SoWN 2008
SoWN 2008 information page
Wired: Games of Tokyo Game Show's Indie Showcase
Opinion: Why TGS' 'Sense Of Wonder Night' Matters

Nigoro's Bounce Shot can easily be summed up as a cross between Breakout and Space Invaders, where players are entrusted with the mission of driving back an invading alien force and save planet Earth in the process.

Similar to classic arcade shooters, you're only allowed to have a limited number of bullets on screen. This limit can be increased by shooting at Blue Bouncians just as they turn white, and those which blinks before the start of each stage will surrender power-up capsules when taken out. Note that only bullets fired from a ship with a little swerve applied will bounce off walls and ceilings.

You can hold your ship in a stationary position when firing shots to eliminate the need for dodging your own bullets, though certain Bouncians are well-protected and can only be destroyed with bounced shots. You will lose a ship and all of your acquired upgrades if you collide with a bullet fired from either your ship or by the enemies.

A boss battle awaits on the tenth level, and every ten stages after.

Name: Bounce Shot
Developer: Nigoro
Category: Shooter
Type: Browser

Alien Assault is an homage to classic vertical shooters created by the developer of Super Bubble Blob and the Hurdler series, where every stage only lasts for about a minute long before a boss fight begins. Keys can be reconfigured by pressing the F5 function key, and the window size is altered by pressing any number between 1 to 8. Note that your button configuration settings are not saved when exiting the game.

There is only one shoot button, but random power-ups will appear whenever you defeat a boss. An online high score submission feature is included, and the installation of the Vitalize 4 plugin isn't necessary if the game is downloaded in zip file format.

Name: Alien Assault
Developer: knpmaster
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB
Direct download link: Click here

There is music eight seconds into the video, so don't flip out and turn up the volume during that period just because you're not hearing anything. (source)

Squish is a remake of the PSP puzzle game Crush in 2D by Terry Cavanagh, where players would have to collect all marbles in each level to open the exit door. Platforms can be squished into a single flat line by using the X key, allowing you to collect marbles which are previously unreachable at first. Your character will always be standing on the lowest row when the platforms are unsquished.

Windowed mode can only be enabled in the current build by editing the config.ini file.

Name: Squish
Developers: Terry Cavanagh, Josiah Tobin
Category: Platformer
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB

Coming soon to Direct2Drive and GamersGate this September 30th.

Trailer for FEIST, a game developed with the Unity engine. Due out next month. Controls for the beta are:

Arrow keys - move
Ctrl - take, drop
Alt - throw, hit

download Mac OSX beta (no Windows version)
high quality trailers

DrPetter (creator of sfxr) had recently updated his music editing tool musagi with a number of new features and bug fixes. An OpenGL paint application called protoshop was also released to the public, which should be receiving regular updates in the coming weeks.

Developers looking for a freeware game development tool might want to take a look at Construct. There are a few examples to download which demonstrates the engine's basic features in action, and a showcase section in the forums where members would regularly post their creations to.

Construct still has some ways to go before achieving the popularity or versatility of Game Maker and MMF (lack of comprehensive tutorials isn't helping), but what's already available so far does show promise.

Note: video contains nudity.

Avert Fate is a first person shooter created by Raimund Schmacher and Forest Johnson to showcase the capabilities of the Unity engine. Considered as the flagship Unity 2.0 stand alone demo, this one level build has been optimized to run on just as well on mid range machines by offering a number of preset graphical configurations to choose from.

This playable preview is available for both Windows and Mac users. (high quality video)

Name: Avert Fate
Developers: Forest Johnson, Raimund Shumacher, Cavan Fyans
Category: FPS
Type: Freeware
Size: 90MB
Platforms: Windows, Mac
Direct download link: Click here

(Italian version of the same trailer)

An upcoming iPhone game by Nitako, RastaMonkey was recently released as a prototype build to acquire feedback from fellow testers. The objective of the game is to reach the end of each level by swinging from one tree branch to another, all the while collecting as many bananas as you can for extra points.

Progress is saved automatically after every stage, and players can resume their adventure even after closing the browser window and revisiting the site later.

Name: RastaMonkey
Developers: Yuval Markovich and Noam Abta
Category: Action
Type: Browser (Unity plugin required)

The largely unedited interview with Jesse Venbrux is now up on dessgeega's web site. A review of the original Karoshi was also posted up on PC Logic Games.

Tumbledrop is a physics-based puzzler currently being developed by Hayden Scott-Baron, a character artist whose work can be seen in the recent WiiWare release LostWinds. Much like Gabriel Ochsenhofer's Totem Destroyer, the goal is to get the pink star down to the island in each stage without dropping it in the sea.

This build consists of only one level, but more content can be expected in two weeks' time.

Name: Tumbledrop
Developer: dock
Category: Puzzle
Type: Browser (Unity plugin required)

Remix of Sonic 1's Bridge Zone theme by BenH

Dot Matrix Revolution is the creation of superbrothers (Craig D. Adams), whose work was also featured in The Scourge - a survival horror shooter available for download from the official TOJam competition web site. (source: cactus)

DROD RPG: Tendry's Tale (a puzzle game with RPG elements) should be available for purchase from Caravel Games' web site later today. As always, a demo will be posted to coincide with the new release. (high quality trailer video, Caravel Games' forums)

Note: Video contains spoilers. And Daleks.

Pasta Master is a freeware arena shooter created by Jacob Buczynski, where players assume control of an amateur magician who goes by the name of Mr. Mingo. Besides performing tricks and magic, he is also the owner of a well-known restaurant which just happens to be chosen by demons as the perfect location for a gateway connecting earth and the netherworld. Being slightly aggravated by the whole situation, you put on your magic hat and jump right into the portal on a mission to seal this unholy passage and send the demons back to where they rightfully belong.

Use the cursor keys to move, and hold the left mouse button to shoot. Firing your lasers will drain energy quickly, shown as a numerical counter at the bottom right of the screen. Simply let go of the shoot button to replenish ammunition automatically, or grab a bottle of ketchup to increase it drastically. Shields can also be acquired to allow temporary invulnerability against one hit.

A secret game can be found by left clicking on the exposed part of the ceiling.

Name: Paster Master
Developer: Jacob Waldemar Buczynski
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 5MB
Direct download link: Click here (cncs32.dll)

Links to some of the recent interviews with prolific or high-profile indie game developers of today:

ACG Interview: AGD Interactive (text)
Chris Warren and Stijn van Empel answering a few questions about their latest release, the Quest for Glory II: Trial by Fire remake.

Guardian Interviews: Cactus Games (text)
Man/machine Jonatan Söderström speaks to Keith Stuart of Guardian News about games, influences and inspirations.

Armor Games: Aether - Developer/Artist Interview (text)
A couple of questions forwarded to Edmund McMillen and Tyler Glaiel to answer, in regards to their new collaborative effort Aether. (trailer)

Evil Avatar Radio: Jonathan Blow and Tarn Adams (audio)
Interviews sandwiched by a lot of chatter, but the developer of Braid and Dwarf Fortress do get some airtime on this series of weekly podcast shows.

Gamasutra: The Path to Braid (text)
Jonathan Blow discussing about Braid.

Tales of the Rampant Coyote: Interview with Nick Tipping of Moonpod (text)
Nick gets quizzed by Jay Barnson on the subject of indie game development in general.

The PAX 10: Interviews (video)
All ten indie game finalists showcased at PAX 10 gets interviewed. Feature headed by recorded sessions with Dylan Fitterer of Audiosurf fame and Ryan Clark from Grubby Games. (The Download: Braid)

Adam Atomic and Danny Baranowsky's Gravity Hook was recently updated with a number of changes:

- new music tracks
- player motion redone
- fixed buggy behaviour when player quits without exploding
- click to skip intro fade
- first node is not always centered
- new 'max climb' marker
- node algorithm changed, etc.

play Gravity Hook
original post
gameplay video

Failed Supra Mairo Bors games by Lazrael.

"A collection of Supra Mairo Bors games, five to be exact: Supra Bird Bors, Supra Mairo 0, Supra Mairo 1, Supra Mairo 2 and Supra Mairo 3. The remix is Monstrous Turtles!! by zircon."

Starlit Zone Fighter Remake

[A summary of links to a series of 'Road to the IGF' interviews, profiling four of the nine recently announced winners of the IGF Showcase at Austin GDC - with the local Southern U.S. indie developers to be showcased at the Texas game development show later this month. More to follow in the coming weeks.]

Road to the Austin IGF: Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball
Chris Stockman of Blazing Lizard, on the Xbox Live Arcade release Pirates vs. Ninjas Dodgeball.

Road to the Austin IGF: Pangea Software's Enigmo
Pangea Software's Brian Greenstone on the hit iPod Touch and iPhone physics puzzle title Enigmo.

Road To The Austin IGF: Mockingbird
Troy Gilbert on the user-generated games website Mockingbird.

Road To The Austin IGF: PillowFort's Goo!
PillowFort's Tommy Refenes about the action-strategy liquid sim Goo!.

So, you'll see a more formal announcement about this in a couple of weeks, alongside a very neat (and related) competition reveal, but we'd like to announce our new weblog FingerGaming.com, subtitled 'The art & business of gaming on the iPhone.'

But why? Well, this new site, which is edited for us by Matt Burris, continues something we at Think Services have been doing over the past few months and years - supplementing our industry-leading coverage of the mainstream game business, as showcased with products like Gamasutra.com, Game Developer magazine, and Game Developers Conference, with important emerging and vital submarkets such as Apple's touch-based handheld.

FingerGaming [RSS feed] is already publishing daily news, analysis, and reviews from the swiftly burgeoning iPhone and iPod Touch gaming scene, including the latest from Steve Jobs on the iPhone Store's game expansion, early impressions of iPhone titles including Spore: Origins and iSplume, and increasing concentrations on interviews, analysis, and trends in the new business.

In addition, the site is looking for iPhone game-related tips, announcements, news, and even potential developer diaries from those creating iPhone titles - you can reach FingerGaming via its contact page.

We believe that if we help aggregate information for creators (and dedicated consumers) of these submarkets, and then help them form communities through in-person events, networks, and shared knowledge, then everyone benefits.

Now that we've launched FingerGaming, we'd like to point out our full set of submarket and 'focused' weblogs that Think Services currently runs, including the new site:

- GameSetWatch [RSS, jobs] (founded November 2005), Think Services' alt.game weblog, featuring informal editorials, interviews and opinions from our editors and special contributors.
- Game Career Guide [RSS] (founded August 2006), for student game developers and those considering entering the game industry - also helping to support the Game Career Seminar events.
- WorldsInMotion.biz [RSS, jobs] (founded June 2007), analyzing the business of online worlds - from MMOs to virtual worlds and beyond - supporting the Worlds In Motion Summits.
- IndieGames.com: The Weblog [RSS, jobs] (founded January 2008), for independent game creators, from Flash to downloadable and beyond - helping to support the Independent Games Festival and Indie Games Summit.
- GamerBytes [RSS, jobs] (founded June 2008), for digital downloaded console games, from XBLA through PSN to WiiWare and beyond - helping to support the Indie Games Summit.
- FingerGaming [RSS] (founded August 2008), for the art and business of gaming on the iPhone and iPod Touch - helping to support GDC Mobile and IGF Mobile.

[We also continue to run GamesOnDeck - for non-iPhone cellphone gaming, and Serious Games Source, for educational, social, and other 'serious' gaming.]

In exchange for providing these sites to you, we hope that you'll consider posting your industry jobs on the Gamasutra job network, which includes or will shortly include all of these focused sites, or attending our conferences (such as GDC or Austin GDC) when they include focused content on those subjects.

Maverick is an action game which involves using the momentum from firing your guns to move around the screen. Simply press the left mouse button repeatedly to start shooting and moving in the other direction. Note that cursor keys cannot be used to move the protagonist, and certain areas will have gravity switched around to cause disorientation. Spikes and cactuses are lethal. (gameplay video)

Name: Maverick
Developer: jmtb02
Category: Action
Type: Browser

Indie Showcase is the new aptly-titled column premiering on Big Download today. This weekly feature written by James Murff will highlight a couple of indie games regularly, from browser to downloadable games or whatever the writer seems to find interesting enough to mention.

Big Download: Indie Showcase

Development work on World of Goo was recently wrapped up after a short period of beta testing, and a master copy of the game has been sent off to 2D Boy's retail partners for mass production. The boxed set will appear on store shelves around the first week of November, while WiiWare and online digital distribution releases are due out a little sooner than that.

2D Boy: Pretty big news...

AerialKeng is a short vertical shooter where players engage one large enemy ship after another as they strive to make it through each of the three stages included. Use the cursor keys to move, hold the Z key to shoot, and press the X key to activate the slow motion feature. Using this option drains your shields, which is automatically restored after a few seconds. Your ship will be destroyed if it takes a few hits during this window of vulnerability.

The game offers no continues, and has a short congratulatory message for an ending. (YoYo Games link, download instructions)

Name: AerialKeng
Developer: FuriousKeng
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 2MB

Similar games: Varia, Clean Asia

New trailer for Metanet Software's N+, out now for the DS and PSP. The second N+ XBLA level pack will be released tomorrow for 200 Microsoft points. (contest details)

This popular card-based strategy game was recently updated with new card art, quicker turns, a card library and numerous bug fixes. Progress is now saved after each level, the number of ranks to play in standard mode was changed from twenty to thirty, and a challenge mode is included to artificially increase replay value. (earlier article)

Name: The Necronomicon 2.0
Developer: Games of Cthulhu
Category: Strategy
Type: Browser

From FingerGaming: Based on the hit web game, Splume, comes the iPhone/iPod Touch version, iSplume ($2.99) from Flashbang Studios.

The object of the game is to shoot the specified amount of splumes without them crossing the line at the bottom of the screen. The splumes attach to each other and with gravity plus physics in play, adds an extra layer of strategy to the puzzle. Swing your iPhone/iPod Touch to make the splumes swing to line up your shots.

In all, there are 20 levels to complete. iSplume also tracks your statistics, best times, and high scores. Currently the game does not have any music or sound effects.

FingerGaming: Popular Web Game, iSplume, in App Store

From GamerBytes: Beatnik Games have announced their first title for the PC platform and hopefully the Xbox Live Arcade - Plain Sight, a game about Robots running around and beating each other up. It's all in the vein of a 3D platformer as well. The game is being built on the XNA framework - so it will work fine on an Xbox 360 unit.

Check out their website for a video and a bunch of screenshots. GamerBytes will host a new interview with the developers on how their game formed, and how its been dealing with Microsoft's XNA framework later this week.

GamerBytes: Plain Sight - A New XNA Game Hoping To Get To Xbox Live Arcade

Caution: loud music. Not to be watched by people who are easily offended.

lyrics

Little Girl in Underland is a remake of American McGee's Alice by the developer of Nanobots, where the absurd is a reality and capitalism exists in many shapes and sizes. The F5 and F7 function key can be used to save or load your progress, though the entire adventure lasts for about ten to fifteen minutes at most. Press the left alternate and Q key to quit at any time.

Name: Little Girl in Underland
Developer: Erin Robinson, Grundislav
Category: Adventure
Type: Freeware
Size: 10MB

Soundless Mountain II is a NES-style remake of Konami's Silent Hill 2 created by Jasper Byrne for TIGSource's demakes competition, where the story is centered around the protagonist's search for his missing wife Kate in a seemingly-deserted old town. The adventure starts off slow as players are introduced to the use red squares to save their progress, interaction methods with objects and also initiating conversations with characters. Combat begins soon after you've discovered a weapon to protect yourself against the enemies you will face in this game.

Use the Z key to examine items, select an option or strike at an enemy with a weapon. Press the X key to enter or exit combat mode, or to cancel a selection. The M key is used to display your map, while pressing the space key allows players to access the inventory screen.

This remake holds more of a nostalgic value than anything else, as most of the scenes will confuse players who are unfamiliar with the revered cult classic. The meeting with Pyramid Head does not happen here as well, since the game ends abruptly after you've made your way into the run-down apartment.

Name: Soundless Mountain II
Developer: Jasper Byrne
Category: Action, Adventure
Type: Demo
Size: 20MB
Direct download link: Click here

Nobody Shooter is a remake of Jonathan Mak's Everyday Shooter, where players would have to collect coins from the enemies they've defeated to acquire enough points for an entry in the high score table. Hold the W, A, S or D key to shoot in any direction, and use the cursor keys to move your ship around.

There is only one level to play. Your final score is submitted online automatically once the song ends, as indicated by a progress bar at the bottom of the screen. The game window can be moved around by dragging the uppermost area where a title bar should be located at. (gameplay video)

Name: Nobody Shooter
Developer: 0rel
Category: Shooter
Type: Freeware
Size: 100KB
Direct download link: Click here

From GamerBytes: Metanet Software have announced that the second expansion pack for N+ has been announced for release next week, and will have more levels than the last.

This expansion pack contains 225 new levels -- 150 "harder" singleplayer levels, while the first level pack contained easier levels, 50 new race levels, and 25 survival levels - all for 200 Microsoft Points - less than one point for level.

With this announcement they will also be starting a new contest to celebrate - check it out here.

There's twenty indie games in this list which I think most of us have played, but if you've missed any of these picks previously then the weekend is a good time to try them out.

Digit: The Best Indie Games You (n)Ever Played

Gravity Hook is a remake of a prototype game by Arne called Gravity Key, where players strive to reach the top of a secret base using only a grappling hook to tether themselves to explosive nodes and swing upwards. Momentum is determined by your distance from the active node. The closer you are to an active node, the faster you will travel in that direction, but you must avoid touching an active node directly to prevent a premature end to your climb.

Use the left mouse button to grapple onto a node, and press the X key to quit back to the main menu while a game is in progress. An online high score table is included. (gameplay video)

Name: Gravity Hook
Developers: Adam Atomic, Niklas Jansson, Danny Baranowsky
Category: Action
Type: Browser

An interview with Daniel Remar, originally posted on Planet Freeplay earlier this year (March 2008). Fan art by John Nesky.

Daniel Remar interview (Planet Freeplay)
Iji download page

Guru Logic Champs is originally a puzzler developed by Compile for the Game Boy Advance, which was also remade by PopCap under the name of Pixelus. There are usually several white spaces and immovable blocks in each stage. These blocks are the only objects which can stop the movement of the pieces that you shoot out of your cannon.

The main objective is to place these pieces on the designated areas indicated by the white squares. Pieces shot out of a cannon will continue sliding until they hit another block. Some tile manipulation skills are required as the number of blocks assigned to you is just enough to complete each level.

These pieces can be retrieved at any time by pressing the down arrow key, providing that the route is clear to do so. The board can be rotated by pressing the Z or X key. Use the page up and page down keys to browse puzzle sets when the puzzle selection screen is shown.

Only eighty puzzles are accessible in this version. The game was developed using BlitzMax, does not have any music (currently), but will work under both XP and Vista operating systems.

Name: Guru Logic Champs
Developer: Ian Price
Category: Puzzle
Type: Freeware
Size: 1MB

original Compile ten-level demo

Note: video contains major spoilers.

Pock's Friend is a point-and-click adventure game which tells the story of a boy named Pock, who happens to be transported to a land far away while taking a walk in the forest he resides in. A creature with horns on his head named Tam decides to befriend him in this new yet strangely familiar place, and both embark on a journey to find a way back to the forest where Pock came from.

The english translated version was never completed, and will not work past the first act.

Name: Pock's Friend
Developer: Hanamushi
Category: Adventure
Type: Browser

From GamerBytes: Nick Suttner and Shawn Elliott were able to chat with Programmer Jonathon Blow and Artist David Hellman about their Xbox Live Arcade title Braid. They discuss the indie scene, the story of Braid (somewhat) and also chat with Sims Director Rod Humble about his own independent 'art' projects.

09/01/2008 | 1UP FM - Podcast

An epic Labor Day Special -- Nick Suttner and Shawn Elliott sit down for a Braid Afterthoughts with creators Jonathan Blow and David Hellman, with special guest Rod Humble, executive producer of the Sims franchise, in the fifth chair.

Download the podcast here.

This week on Bytejacker: The Behemoth's Castle Crashers, Nitrome's OneKey, acidBatterie's Hot Ninja Moon Moon and a recommendation from Raigan Burns (developer of N+), Buster's Akuji the Demon. (YouTube video)

Bytejacker episode 6
Bytejacker forums

To be released on Blurst soon. (screenshot)

"Fresh from the labyrinth, a minotaur opens his own china shop. Equipped with fine china, a small business license, and a debilitating case of Minotaur Rage, will he succeed? Will his Minotaur Rage insurance policy be enough?

There's a bunch of debug stuff still showing. Pardon our dust! This represents about 6 weeks of work, with another 2 to go." - Matthew Wegner

Minotaur China Shop (Alpha)

This version of xWUNG is a port of cactus' earlier release, originally created using the Game Maker engine. You play by moving the mouse to swing a ball. The ball is attached to a wire, and both of them eliminate enemies on contact. Debris will destroy your ship, so avoid them whenever possible.

There are bosses that appear with regular intervals, and new enemies are introduced as the game progresses. The single power-up found in the game allows you to nullify certain enemy projectiles. Good scores can be achieved by making successive combos. (Kongregate link)

Name: xWUNG
Developer: cactus, VilleK
Category: Action
Type: Browser

Aether is a new collaborative effort by Edmund McMillen and Tyler Glaiel, where players get to see the a small part of the universe through the eyes of a young dreamer as he ventures into space on the back of his newfound friend.

The game involves using your pet's tongue to grab onto clouds or asteroids, swinging from one planet to another in search of new locations to explore. Restore the color back to each planet by solving the puzzles unique to every location before returning to Earth to complete your journey.

A standalone version is available for download as well, which should work faster on older computers.

Name: Aether
Developer: Edmund McMillen, Tyler Glaiel
Category: Puzzle
Type: Freeware
Size: 20MB
Direct download link: Click here

Gravitron 2 is a retro arcade shooter with Thrust-like controls, where the objective is to destroy enemy reactors while saving as many scientists as you can before blasting off into space to complete a level. Keyboard, gamepad and mouse controls are all supported and can be reconfigured by accessing the options menu with the escape key while a game is in progress.

Hold the up arrow key or right mouse button to activate your thrusters, and press the left mouse button or Z key to shoot. Use the X key or middle mouse button to activate your shields and reflect enemy projectiles. Land carefully near a scientist to rescue them, and they will repair some of the damage done to your ship. Fuel can be replenished by hovering or landing next to a fuel pod. Once all reactors in an area have been destroyed, simply fly towards the sky to exit the planet's orbit and progress to the next stage.

The demo contains five of the forty-four levels found in the full version.

Name: Gravitron 2
Developer: Castle Software
Category: Arcade
Type: Demo
Size: 10MB

Retro Remakes' 2008 competition was launched just yesterday, and with nearly USD $10,000 in prizes to be won the cream of the crop has to be that swanky gaming laptop worth $2,000 alone for the first place winner. (pictured above)

The competition runs from September 1st to December 6th 2008, with the results to be announced in January 2009. Contest rules and categories can be found at the official competition web site.

Archibald's Adventures is a puzzle game which tells the story of a young boy named Archie who finds himself trapped in a mad professor's mansion after a skateboarding adventure gone wrong. Similar to Grubby Games' Professor Fizzwizzle series, players will have to figure out the correct way to use a variety of devices and contraptions to reach the exit in each area, usually surrounded by enemies or dangerous traps in later levels.

Both mouse and keyboard support are included, though controlling bubbles with the mouse can be tricky at times when navigating tight spots. The full version contains over a hundred levels in total, while the demo features thirty stages from the first three chapters. Mac users will be pleased to hear that a Mac OS X version is available for download as well.

Name: Archibald's Adventures
Developer: Rake in Grass
Category: Puzzle
Type: Demo
Size: 10MB
Platforms: Windows, Mac

Knock the Monster is a remake of Erik Svedäng and Petri Purho's collaborative effort which was originally developed for the inaugural No More Sweden meet. The aim of the game is to knock over a rectangular-shaped monster in each level, by drawing lines of chains to move and swing a heavy weight towards it. A weight attaches itself to a new chain whenever it touches the hook at either end of a chain, while players can cut chains at any time by right-clicking after the level has started to influence proceedings.

Right click on a chain in edit mode to remove it. The restart option can be used to generate a new area whenever players encounter a level that is impossible to solve due to random girder placements. The game also does not have an ending, even though the backstory seems to suggest otherwise.

Name: Knock the Monster
Developers: Erik Svedäng, Petri Purho
Category: Puzzle
Type: Freeware
Size: 10MB

Iji is an action platformer which took Daniel Remar four years to make, where players assume control of the titular character as she learns how to cope with waking up to find her world taken over by an alien race. Guided by her brother who speaks through the research complex's loudspeaker system, she has to find a way to convince an alien leader to retreat and save humankind from total annihilation.

Iji's skills can be upgraded by acquiring nanofields left behind by the aliens, then spent on cyborg stations to increase any of her seven basic stats. You can only acquire a maximum of five nano points per sector, and one nano point is awarded whenever your nano gauge reaches its limit.

Progress is saved automatically after the completion of each Sector, but not before boss fights. This is also one of the very few games which offers multiple storyline paths in relation to how much the player resorts to violence when dealing with the adversities they face. There are ten sectors to play through in total, not inclusive of the secret level which can only be unlocked once certain requirements have been fulfilled. (trailer, GMC discussion thread)

Name: Iji
Developer: Daniel Remar
Category: Action
Type: Freeware
Size: 30MB