Review: Mutant Blobs Attack

This is one angry blob. And he means business. After endless torture in a research facility on Earth, this gelatinous, one-eyed organism of extraterrestrial origin finally manages to escape. The alien thirsts for revenge and its appetite is so great that it will devour anything that gets in its way.

Review: Velocity Ultra

At first glance, Velocity Ultra from developer FuturLab looks like your standard retro space shoot'em-up with a classic top-down view, in which players take on hordes of enemy vessels with their own spaceship, blasting them into the infinite vastness of space with well-aimed shots while maneuvering their ship through the onslaught of enemy fire. These game elements can also be found in Velocity Ultra, but this indie game stands out from other representatives of this long-established genre by introducing a novel game mechanic and focusing on solving switch puzzles.

Review: MotorHEAT

Developer Milkstone Studios used to supply the Xbox Live Indie Games channel with high quality titles and MotorHEAT is one of my favorites from their impressive lineup, which consists of almost 30 titles! Considering this high output, you'd suspect the quality of their games to be sub-par but Milkstone never failed to deliver very polished products. This 3D endless racer was no exception and was one of the best racing games on XBLIG. Fortunately, it can also be purchased on PC (please note the disclaimer at the end of the review!) and there's a demo available to download from the developer's website so you can witness the intense speed rush this game has to offer with your own eyes. But beware: playing this game will dry up your eye sockets, so better get your eye drops ready!

Review: Shoot 1UP!

This shoot'em-up by Mommy's Best Games was literally a blast in its original release on the Indie Games channel back on Xbox 360 and its Steam port is just as much fun. The game lets you control a phalanx of up to 30 ships at the same time because whenever you gain an extra life, it immediately joins your fleet on screen. Using the combined firepower by arranging the formation of the fleet is a lot of fun and a unique gameplay twist you won't find anywhere else.

Review: 404Sight

Anyone who has ever wanted to run through the Internet at breakneck speed, performing daring jumps over abysses and obstacles in a Parkour manner, will enjoy action platformer 404Sight, a free game available on Steam and developed by graduates of the University of Utah. The premise sounds abstruse? It is, because in the game the player's task is to save the free internet by delivering important data to distribution points in the internet as quickly as possible.

New Release: Echoes III now available on Steam

Shoot'em-up afficionados rejoice: a new challenger has entered the arena! Last week, the third iteration of Echoes, one of my favorite twin-stick shooters, was released on Steam. I was not even aware that this game was in the making as developer binary zoo hasn't been promoting the title much except for a few tweets on Twitter. His website doesn't even mention the game and it certainly isn't easy to find among the many new releases on Steam. If you don't want to miss out on this retro shooter, head over to its store page and check out the trailer, which unfortunately can't be found on YouTube.

Review: Echoes+

Back then, one of the first games that got me hooked on the now extinct Xbox LIVE Indie Games channel on Xbox 360 was Echoes+, an excellent twin-stick shooter by one-man developer binary zoo. It was an eye-opener with regards to the kind of quality that could be found on the service amongst all the rubbish that used to be prevalent there. Quality-wise, the game is easily on par with Geometry Wars, which was a huge success on Xbox LIVE Arcade at the time and obviously served as an inspiration. Echoes+ doesn't need to hide behind Bizzare Creations' game, though, neither in terms of gameplay nor amount of content.

Elysia Flash Prototype Demo

Remember my preview of Whisper Studio's platformer Elysia? Back then, I recommended keeping it on your radar but somehow I lost track of its progress myself. So I was surprised to find out that Whisper released a prototype flash demo about two months ago, offering a three level preview of their title. Of course, the demo does not represent the quality of the final product that's going to be released on XBLIG but allows a first glance at the gameplay, the level design and the general atmosphere you will experience. Although you will encounter some bugs in the prototype, it delivers an enjoyable first insight. If you haven't done so already, you should take a look at it here! If you're too lazy or can't be bothered to play a platformer with a keyboard, watch this video showing one of the levels available in the demo:

Initially, Elysia was scheduled for a release this summer but has been postponed and I couldn't find any information on a new release date. However, I'm confident it will be worth further waiting.

More articles on platformers>>

More news>>

'They Bleed Pixels' debut trailer released

Back in February, when I discovered Spooky Squid Games' blend of intense platforming and ultra-violent combat called They Bleed Pixels, I was instantly overcome by a thirst for blood that only the release of this game would ever be able to quench. The developer has not specified an exact date yet, only naming Summer 2011 so far, but release seems to be nearing as they have released a lovely debut trailer. Watch a little girl with claws dismembering countless enemies in various imaginative ways, almost making Wolverine look like a tame kitten in comparison.

IndieWatch videos now on gamepro.de

In my articles on GamePro's IndieWatch series I'm trying to spread the word about this german dashboard promotion for Xbox LIVE Indie Games. The articles never actually mention what is said in the videos, but rather show my opinion on the games presented in them. Due to the lack of a video capturing device, I have not been able to present the videos here, but recently GamePro started posting the videos on their site, so anyone can watch their recommendations now without needing to visit the Inside Xbox channel of the german dashboard, but note that all audio commentary is in german. Funnily, the website is four episodes behind although it is a bi-weekly series, which makes me wonder what takes them so long to update and if they will keep posting the videos.

I have updated all my articles on IndieWatch to include the corresponding videos at the end of the posts. So in case all the german words on gamepro.de make you dizzy, you are welcome to watch the videos and read my thoughts on the games featured in them here in our cozy Indie Lair.

All articles on IndieWatch>>