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Indie Games 2014 [March] Now Voting - Post 651!

Running with Rifles - top down tactical shooter

Another random find on youtube. Don't know anything other than the video.

This seems like great replacement for FPS. I love the camera view and potential for great fun as a multiplayer or single. The camera changes everything. I love seeing so much of the map. Aesthetically it's like the an SNES RPG crossed with FPS competition. Intriguing.

I want more attempts at this kind of shooter. Enough FPS.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tCp5Z2qDm9g
There are actually plenty of people here wh love this game, even if personally couldn't get into it yet.
 
Exposure - PC, Browser
nALt6uY.png

http://www.indiedb.com/games/exposure1

Exposure is a gloomy survival/adventure game set in a world that has all but died.
The player will control a traveller making his way through a landscape ravaged by a plague. To survive in the world the traveller must: Avoid infected areas and stave off the infection, scavenge food and drink, find protection (masks, heaving clothing, medicine), Solve puzzles and other adventure tropes...
Exposure is from the developer of One Chance, an older flash game I recommend playing at least once

Still Alive - 2014
directlink_BixJ9NbCAAEMSSF.jpg%3Alarge.jpg

http://www.stillalivegame.com/

Still Alive is a competitive multiplayer online game. With 9 rival players you race against time. You need to find weapons and medicine to increase your life-span
However, other survivors are not your only problem. During the day it might seem quiet - the illusion of being safe and secure comes easily. But beware of nightfall! At night, the Screetchers crawl from their hide-outs, mutated humans, bred by the Nexolth
race for one purpose only: hunt and kill!

Mammoth Gravity Battles - Free browser demo (PC, Mac, Linux, Android, iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Windows Phone, Windows Tablet, Ouya)
directlink_Biw1FBTCAAAcP-K.jpg%3Alarge.jpg

http://www.mammothgravitybattles.com/

Mammoth gravity battles is a game of skill and turn-based strategy with gravity, planets, physics, black holes, missiles, mammoth explosions, crazy weapons and best of all, woolly mammoths (in flying saucers)

Previously Mentioned

StarDriver
 
Apsis - mid 2014 (PC, Mac, Linux)
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http://apsisgame.com/

Guide a flock of birds through a world where earth, sky and stars are woven together.
Apsis is not a place to conquer, but a place to discover and play.

Deadwood - 2015 (PC, Mac, Linux)
Closing-In.png

http://steamrollerstudios.com/games/deadwood/

Scavenge, Secure, and Survive in this dual stick shooter/tower defense hybrid. You play as Lathe, the hero trying to hold back a swarm of wooden zombies called "Deadwoods" Place barricades, set traps and plant mines to create choke points and slow the horde down. Then blast through them with a wide selection of unique weapons. It's a constant balancing act of survival and strategy in this quirky adventure game.

Portal Mortal - Free alpha (PC, Linux)
pm_img1.png

http://www.ismolaitela.net/

One man, one room, one purpose: Reach the exit. Complex simplicity in your hands! And what if you reach the exit, what then? It's up to you. Create new levels, modify existing ones or download a new from the internet. Use wide variety of different blocks and gadgets on your own levels and customize your character using dozens of collectibles hidden all around the levels, but there's a catch: The road to treasury is always harder than the normal way to exit.

Gangs of Space - Free alpha access (PC, Mac, Linux)
directlink_BixYpg1CQAMGw7i.png%3Alarge.png

https://www.gangsofspace.com/en

Gangs of Space is a massively-multiplayer space online game of the 4X genre (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, eXterminate), using a shmup / hack'n'slash gameplay.
 
Last Life - ????
Resleeve2_HD.png

http://www.lastlifegame.com/

Last Life is a sci-fi noir adventure game about a transhumanist colony on Mars. When a murdered detective is 3D printed back into existence, he reopens his last case to uncover what he missed--a hunt that reveals AI corruption, corporate espionage, and the conspiracy that may have led to Earth's doom.

Stress Taxi - PC, Mac, Linux
637x358.resizedimage

http://www.stresstaxi.com/

Stress Taxi is the only game that will require large doses of reflexes, precision, wit and madness. Your mission is to transport all types of cargo: passengers, explosive goods to more remote and dangerous locations of different planetary systems. Escape through labyrinthine secret tunnels or caves at full speed without scratching your brand new Jetpod.

Viking Ghost - PC, Mac, Linux
tombsmall2_ss.jpg

http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=237159700

Viking Ghost is a comical, story driven "Arcade Action Adventure-Dual Stick Shooter-Dungeon Crawler-Rogue-Like-Lite" (that tastes great...and less filling!). The game features eight locations, each having procedurally generated layouts that are different on each playthrough. The main inspirations behind the gameplay come from classics like; The Legend of Zelda, Smash TV, Robotron - as well as more recent indie titles like The Binding of Isaac, and Spelunky.
 
Invisible Inc. formerly Incognita
Well, I've warmed up to the name now :p
Decided to give it a go after the recent update and game has progressed really nicely since the last time I played and the first build. Controls feel more responsive, planning and tactics are easier to strategize but make the game no less challenging. New additions like augmentations and upgrades add depth. The recent addition of seeing guard paths, where they'll be and where they've been allows for the player to plan their movements better and more precisely. The art style is as stylish as ever and the animations are slick.
Here's a trailer for the most recent update
 
Invisible Inc. formerly Incognita
Well, I've warmed up to the name now :p
Decided to give it a go after the recent update and game has progressed really nicely since the last time I played and the first build. Controls feel more responsive, planning and tactics are easier to strategize but make the game no less challenging. New additions like augmentations and upgrades add depth. The recent addition of seeing guard paths, where they'll be and where they've been allows for the player to plan their movements better and more precisely. The art style is as stylish as ever and the animations are slick.
Here's a trailer for the most recent update

Any word on the keyboard patch for Nom Nom Galaxy or whatever the name was?
 
The devs patches in kb/m controls yesterday. Haven't played much because it runs kind of slow for me, not well optimized at the moment

But yeah keyboard controls are in.

Ah nice, thanks.
 
I really, really want to play Banished, looks and sounds awesome. I think I'll grab it after finishing Theme Hospital...
 
My friend's studio (may as well be transparent) are releasing Ether One this month. It's a first person puzzle adventure. Looks really interesting. Although probably some degree of bias in there. xD


http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=96424148

I posted this a couple of days ago :)

There's a launch trailer for it coming out in 2 days, and I believe it goes live on Steam at the same time.

Some awesome looking games coming out this month! I don't think I've seen one that doesn't interest me in the thread yet.
 
Just haven't gotten around to getting it yet. Did get Factorio a few weeks back though, and I'm really enjoying it, so I'll probably like SpaceChem as well

---

Black Ice is on Greenlight
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=232152287

SpaceChem is more abstract, but in turn also way more... complex in its challenges due to the space limitations. Imagine you'd only have a limited amount of space for your Factorio factory and how the game would derive challenge from those scenarios and you are pretty close.
 
Invisible Inc. formerly Incognita
Well, I've warmed up to the name now :p
Decided to give it a go after the recent update and game has progressed really nicely since the last time I played and the first build. Controls feel more responsive, planning and tactics are easier to strategize but make the game no less challenging. New additions like augmentations and upgrades add depth. The recent addition of seeing guard paths, where they'll be and where they've been allows for the player to plan their movements better and more precisely. The art style is as stylish as ever and the animations are slick.
Here's a trailer for the most recent update

Thanks for the impressions :)
 
Before I dive back into some abyssal hells, here are some OP impressions, Magicmaker:
The idea and basic concept of this game is incredibly cool, but after playing it for a while, it doesnt seem like its put to a good use. The game is basically an action platformer in which you are finding magic as loot, and then build your equipment and sorceries from individual magic parts. And that system is incredibly cool. The spell parts have different power levels and widely differing attributes from which you can stack up to 4 for a single spell/equipment. Say how about a wavy fireball that shoots through walls? Or a stone that sticks to a wall with poison effects onto every passing enemy? Not to mention you can have additional adjustments like less initial damage but more effect damage (say a fire ball that does less fire damage initially but more burning damage over time). And there is TONS of options. Just look at what you have after 20 minutes with constant further drops:

I definitely recommend playing around with that because its really fun to see how different setups affect sorceries and equipment, but... the rest of the game doesnt seem very well thought out. The level design seems boring, the enemies arent offering any sort of interesting challenge and the game just doesnt... flow very well. Instead of being able to constantly play around with the sole interesting mechanic, you are restricted to building one spell and then using only that one for the whole upcoming level, which means you are stuck with the less interesting part of the game for most of the time. They unfortunately sort of failed to design a game around the very interesting and extensive magic combination system.

Maverick Bird
I am not a fan of the Flappy Bird games, they simply dont appeal to me on a fundamental level, even if I actually like high score gaming. I can admire the elegant simplicity inherent in the game design and the way, way better execution of Terrys version over the original, but its not my type of game.

Mirage
Another game for the "surprisingly good"-category. You are navigating a swarm of shards around a few levels, exploring, defeating enemies and just generally soak in the world, and while it does seem rather generic at first, its actually very atmospheric. I am also a huge fan of developers fleshing out their game world lyrically, meaning with elaborate and well executed conversations (Planescape Torment), short stories (Lost Odyssey) or on a very small scale also here with poems. I mean dont expect a full blown ThatGameCompany game here, but I did get some Flower vibes while playing it. Word of warning, if you start playing, play through it as it doesnt appear to have a save functionality, even though the checkpoints might suggest that. You should be able to finish it within 30-45 minutes. Lovely little game, though.

Nothing to Hide
Well that game just caught me totally off guard. I didnt even know its a rather competent puzzle game, but the level animations alone just make this stand out quite a bit. The meta commentary is so obvious that its hard to argue about it not being a subtle game, but still manages to evoke some thoughts on certain elements of the game in regard to privacy. The actual puzzle elements revolve around staying within the camera sight, which opens up some interesting challenges once they start adding linked functions to those cameras that only operate if they see you. Additionally, I love the way they animated these levels themselves and the Intro/Ending. The intro/ending especially is an artistic touch I havent seen anywhere else yet. Apparently this is 1/10 of the full game eventually, looking forward to it!

>----------< Highly Recommended >----------<
1. Card City Nights
2. Cubesis
3. Glitchspace
4. Nothing to Hide
5. Black Ice
6. Lennas Inception
7. Mirage
8. Cosmochoria
>----------< Recommended >----------<
9. Banished
10. Box Out!
11. Heroes of Steel
12. Blue Saga
13. Action Painting Pro
>----------< Decent-ish >----------<
14. MagicMaker
15. Lift
16. Izbot
17. KiloBite
18. Clockefeller
19. Bosses Forever
20. Astrovoid
21. Maverick Bird
>----------< Bleh >----------<
22. Magic Book
23. Guild of Dungeoneering
24. Grabbles
25. HOMEunculus
26. Cubrick
27. Goofball Goals
28. Cloudbase Prime
 
Orbitalis - 2014 (PC)
directlink_BizHZ7HCEAA6bC3.png%3Alarge.png

http://www.0rbitalis.com/

0RBITALIS allows players to explore the force which keeps the Universe together: Gravity. Its minimalistic aesthetic has been designed by subtraction, unravelling the beautifully complex art that lies within Newton's laws. As a game, 0RBITALIS is indeed a novel and addictive experience, surely diverse from the majority of modern indie games.

The Masterplan - 2014 (PC, Mac, Linux)
BizKljfCAAAYDn8.png

http://sharkpunch.com/

Can you pull off the greatest heist in the history of mankind?
Hire the crew. Get the gear. Plan the job. Profit!

Lost Orbit - 2014 (PC)
directlink_BizChoeCYAAFbBu.jpg%3Alarge.jpg

http://www.indiedb.com/games/lost-orbit

LOST ORBIT centers around the exploration of space. Players take control of a lone astronaut (Harrison) who sets off on a dangerous journey to rejoin his civilization, armed with only an improvised set of equipment and a relentless spirit. Without the help of his ship, Harrison will need to use the gravitational forces of planets to navigate and propel himself through space. Set in a world rich with comedy and tragedy, LOST ORBIT is a game filled with risk, loneliness, wonder, and death.
 
The little that's there is already so cohesive and original, it's hard to not feel good about the full game reaching its funding goal.
 
Another gem in development from Tigforums

Catcher - Free beta (PC, Mac, Linux, Browser)
2013-12-09_gif_1_shy.gif

http://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=37554.0

What would an arena shooter look like if it wasn't about shooting? Probably a lot like Catcher - a sometimes fast-paced, sometimes almost meditative arcade game. Instead of weapons, the player controls two space ships connected by a net made out of energy. Enclose huge groups of enemies, build up combos and try to figure out those odd geometric shapes before they kill you!
 
Seriously, why are there so many outstanding games this month. March is insanely packed with those great Indies. I'll probably come out with 20 recommendable games this month. Thats kinda ridiculous.
 
We need a reaction gif like this one, but for 'Indie Games'.

Most of them are even free. Pretty sure march 2014 is high up on my favourite months from this thread series so far.

The only thread that still blows all the others out of the water was the first one (also march!) with Factorio, Gorogoa, Maldita Castilla, MirrorMoon, Papers Please, Proteus, Spice Road, Starseed Pilgrim, The Sea will claim everything, Underrail and Zineth.

But the first thread was a bit cheating anyway because I collected lots of 2012 and early 2013 releases into a single thread.
 
Did some investigating, and I found it: Skip to 3:32 (no seriously, skip to 3:32.. I-I need a shower *shiver*)

Thanks I'll try to make a gif tomorrow.

How does one even find the time to wade through all of these Indie games?

Talking about myself, I firstly play the games that looks most interesting to me, then games that are being praised by other members, then if I have time I'll play a random games from the OP.
 
How does one even find the time to wade through all of these Indie games?

I usually clear out an evening to go through as many freebies as possible (usually ends up being 5-6 games). Bigger indies - usually a handful of those each month, not counting Early Access - I try to fit into my (ir)regular schedule which includes other games.

Writing up impressions and reading other people's opinions is a huge part of the fun, for sure. Going through that many games not only broadens your horizon, putting your impressions into words simultaneously hones your critical skills, as if the games were small analytical exercises (that's a very personal view, though).

Thanks I'll try to make a gif tomorrow.

Cool!
 
How does one even find the time to wade through all of these Indie games?
I'll admit, I probably spend more time discovering new games than actually playing the ones in the OP. Which is something I definitely mean to rectify. I do try to set aside time in the evening to check out the games that interest me or have been recommended in the thread.
 
How does one even find the time to wade through all of these Indie games?

Marathoning a few days a moth. Writing up impressions feels more time intensive though, but I agree with daydreaming on the reasons. Pretty sure I improved a lot at dissecting these games and also offering constructive criticism or improvement suggestions by playing 30-40 of those per month.

Plus I found a few games that are now among my all time favourites. it would suck missing out on those.
 
Gamma Void
Well it's technically in the OP, not eligible for voting though, but anyway, I'm alpha testing Gamma Void (formerly Project Outlaws) and it's great. Played for about two hours straight; the game definitely has a one-more-go appeal to it, since you revive so fast, ready to attempt your objective again.

The ship editor is so user friendly and easy to use; usually I don't really touch creator tools in games, but this game, it's so simple and fast and the physics and where you place thrusters and weapons all have such a major effect on your movement that building new configurations and designs doesn't get old. The modular visuals and weapons effects are very impressive; the bigger, better armed ships are quite daunting, which makes taking them down that much more impressive.

My only complaint is that the game currently feels kind of aimless. Now that might be a product of it being in alpha, or maybe just the nature of the game. Exploring, activating stations, building your ship is all very fun and satisfying, but I hope there are plans for, maybe not a full-fledged story, but at least more of a concrete overall objective to drive the gameplay

So overall first impressions, is that this is a great game, both visually appealing and really fun to play and craft new and better creations. Can't wait to see how the game grows and improves in the future
 
I posted this a couple of days ago :)

There's a launch trailer for it coming out in 2 days, and I believe it goes live on Steam at the same time.

Some awesome looking games coming out this month! I don't think I've seen one that doesn't interest me in the thread yet.


Woops, missed that post! (: Glad it's getting attention, game looks great and they're a lovely bunch. From a personal perspective it'll be great if development kicks off in the north of England again.
 
OP impressions, Offworld:
Not much to say because there is not much to it. You start the game and are immediately thrown into a sky arena in which you are battling with other players. No highscores, no challenges, no campaign, just simple, plain old skirmish. However, the game does seem a bit light on features considering you can control the whole game with only the mouse and there isnt much of a weapon variety to choose from and the weapons that are in the game end up feeling not all that interesting to use. Not sure where they'll go with this eventually, but currently at least not fun for me.

Painters Guild:
Cute game concept concept in which you are balancing your own ressources (manpower, money) to create pictures and build up your guild rooms. Currently very limited because it is in very early alpha, but it is charming. It also has some serious balancing issues still, plus it feels rather repetetive at the moment since you dont do much with only 2 people and limited upgrade options (Basically a very simple Game Dev Story variant). I do like the pixel art of classical art works however. Since the game has a tendency of getting rather hectic at times, I couldnt admire them as much as I want to, but very nice touches. My enjoyment in future versions will likely stem from the amount of options and campaign progress. With the current setup, I cant see them building HUGE guilds, as you micromanage everything.

Not all that good currently yet, but I'll definitely check back for future versions.

Probably Archery:
I havent played the full version, but judging from the demo this game can be very fun TRYING to execute moves/shots probably (similar to QWOP) and also equally frustrating. It was certainly worth a look eventually considering free form arrow shooting isnt all that common to come by but not something I can play for very long.

Principia:
"The Incredible Machine x Little Big Planet" would probably be an apt description. Initially the OP said nothing about a free demo but it DOES have a free demo which seems to be almost the full game with the exceptions of certain limitations regarding downloadable levels and some "buy?" popups. There are plenty of building games out there, but this might be among my favourites based on the versatility of the tools and the community contests, but more to that later. The game offers different modes, which in turn also have a slightly different focus. There are puzzles (basically single levels in which you need to use available tools to fulfill a goal, which... can be anything really and is achieved by "simulating" the tools that you prepared), adventure mode (in which you are traversing a level from left to right, overcoming obstacles by actually jumping/running/shooting and building the level on the fly), creative mode (in which you can build anything you want) and the possibility to quickly delve into the creations of others.

While this game is in itself already very neat, the monthly community contests are giving it an actual profile. Players are challenged to create levels/machines to fulfill a certain requirement, which in turn helps showcasing the possibilities this game has to newcomers AND keeping the community together without the constant nagging for updates. Examples?

Here some pictures for best houses, pinball machines, moon rovers and a transformer:

...yeah. The game still has some flaws though. Apparently the adventure mode is incredibly short for now and also not very well polished, the "platforming" itself seems rather loose and it seems quite daunting to actually build something from scratch. I also need to admit that I wish it had more challenge/puzzle levels. However, considering I just spent almost 2 hours with the 40 challenge levels, the dozens community creations and the editor, this one definitely deserves a look, even if its not yet fully realized. And again: Free Demo on their website after registering. Some more simple Gifs coming after the break.


>----------< Highly Recommended >----------<
1. Card City Nights
2. Cubesis
3. Glitchspace
4. Nothing to Hide
5. Black Ice
6. Lennas Inception
7. Mirage
8. Cosmochoria
>----------< Recommended >----------<
9. Banished
10. Principia
11. Box Out!
12. Probably Archery
13. Heroes of Steel
14. Blue Saga
15. Action Painting Pro
>----------< Decent-ish >----------<
16. MagicMaker
17. Lift
18. Izbot
19. KiloBite
20. Clockefeller
21. Painters Guild
22. Bosses Forever
23. Astrovoid
24. Maverick Bird
>----------< Bleh >----------<
25. Magic Book
26. Offworld
27. Guild of Dungeoneering
28. Grabbles
29. HOMEunculus
30. Cubrick
31. Goofball Goals
32. Cloudbase Prime
 
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