I have a distinct memory of playing Raiden II when I was younger, and loving the hell out of it.  There’s something immediately fun and nostalgic about playing a classic top down shmup.  This is why that memory of Raiden II stays with me to this very day, and also what led to my interest in Shoot 1UP.

An indie title from developer Mommys Best Games, Shoot 1UP is very much in the vain of the Raiden series, in that it’s full of the top-down goodness that has kept this genre prominent (and more importantly, fun) for so many years.  However, the game adds in a unique, and dare I say brilliant, mechanic that really differentiates it from the multitude of other similarly designed titles. Read more… »

One of the things that’s eternally frustrating about the Xbox LIVE Indie marketplace is the fact that it’s cluttered with terrible thumbstick shooters. They bring nothing new to the genre and most are plagued by worn out gameplay and terrible music that makes your ears bleed. Fortunately, Gnomic Studios seems to have it right with Square Off.

The basic formula for Square Off stays true to the genre, with the two thumbsticks controlling movement and fire, but Square Off departs from the usual in both graphics and gameplay. It’s a great combination that is only marred by the fact that it has no support for Xbox LIVE play, even if the local multiplayer is a complete blast.
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The more you have to suffer for something, the more you are able to find pleasure in the consummation. At least, that’s what my old dominatrix used to say. Difficulty is a double-edged sword, and doubly so in the case of the recent iPhone port of XBLIG title Soul, from Kydos Studio.

On the one hand, completing a stage will compel you to sound your barbaric yawp across the rooftops of the world in triumph. On the other hand, getting to that point may compel you to buy a much thicker case to protect your iPhone from your impulse to launch it out the window. Read on to learn more about this cruel portable mistress.

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When thinking of top down shooters today, many people turn to the Xbox LIVE Arcade or the Playstation Network to get their fix. There are a great number of these titles available on consoles, but most of them only give a passing nod to the glory days of 8-bit entertainment. BOH is available on neither console, but rather on all three major OSes, and offers retro action you won’t be able to find in any game created in the past 15 years.

The storyline for the game is non-existent, as most 8-bit top down shooters were. Basically, you’re just a guy wandering through various levels in an attempt to make it out alive. Yet, the simplicity of gameplay, the variety of powerups and monsters, and the level of detail and thought that have gone into the game will leave you wanting more before you know it.

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Legend has it that Ernest Hemingway was challenged to write a story in six words.  His response, which he allegedly claimed was his best prose work,  was “For sale: baby shoes, never worn.” These six words give the reader everything they need to hear and leaves enough space for their imagination to play out the exact events.

Darkfate, a game from Kevin Soulas, falls from the same minimalist tree. Using scaled-back graphics and fantastic audio, it emphasizes imagination and storytelling over actual gameplay. While it successfully gets its point across, it fails to remember that it has to be played.

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Kaleidoscope is the kind of game you’d expect to find on the Wii. In fact, in many ways its story is similar to De Blob, which was released for Nintendo’s latest console in 2008. However, Kaleidoscope is a platformer that borrows elements from classic platforming games, while adding a touch of its own charm and a great soundtrack that makes it an absolute joy to play.

The story for the game is pretty basic. You play a small black ball of fluff named Tint who must restore color to the world, one stage at a time. The world is divided up into four sections with equally distinct graphics, so much so that it’s reminiscent of platformers like Super Mario 3 in which you journey through different themed worlds to accomplish your objective.
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If you sum up Ludosity Interactive’s mission statement, their goal is to create fun, long-lasting titles that give players creative control. Well, mission accomplished.  Bob Came in Pieces is a clever 2D physics-based puzzle/adventure mixed with a bit of Lunar Lander (yeah, that’s right, an Atari reference) that does everything in its power to live up to that goal.

Players assume the role of Bob as he crash lands on an Earth-like planet. Bypassing the initial emotions of terror or isolation that one would feel on an unknown planet, Bob immediately begins his quest to retrieve his ship parts, the hyperdrive 2000,  and getting back to work. One must never be late. It’s a cute little game that focuses almost all of its attention on smart, simple gameplay. Read more… »

There are plenty of aptly named Xbox Live Indie titles in the Marketplace: I Made a Game With Zombies In It, You Will Die, etc. However, Impossible Shoota is so far from the truth, it’s rather laughable.

The game is nothing more than a top down shooter similar to Asteroids. You’re shooting increasingly harder monsters in an attempt to kill all 500 that invade your screen at such a slow pace your 80 year old geriatric grandmother could beat it. In fact, there’s nothing impossible about Impossible Shoota at all, unless we’re counting the task of finding fun in the game,

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If anything can be said about Rotor’scope: The Secret of the Endless Energy, it’s that its thorough. At its heart, the game is a simple puzzler with a narrative wrapped around it, but developer Nivel21 has managed to combine the wonders of social networking with a solid game to create a user experience quite unlike anything else you’ll find on the 360 today.

The premise for the game is pretty basic; you start the game in a mansion with rooms which need to be explored using a special device known as the rotor’scope. As you solve the puzzles, you’ll learn more about the device from a mysterious man hidden within the mansion.

Since the puzzles are the main focus of the game the narrative really takes a back seat. It’s not going to win any awards for its story telling, and some of the twists and turns are entirely expected, but the puzzling play is second to none.

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Browsing through Xbox Live’s Indie titles has made me realise two things: there are a staggering number of vibration “games”, and people sure love to put those zombies in their titles. We’re rapidly reaching the point of saturation, where developers need to give gamers something more to entice a purchase out of them.

So what makes Twin Blades, a side scrolling brawler/shooter that is also available for iPhone, any different from all the other zombie tinged offerings out there?

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Soul is a new Xbox LIVE Arcade indie title from Kydos Studio with a deceptively simple story. Your job is to guide the soul of a dead man through numerous pits and perils in order to get him into Heaven. Simple concept, right? Of course. Did I mention the massive gelatinous blobs which are keen on eating you? No? Consider yourself warned.

While the gameplay is just one simple mechanic of using your analog stick to guide your soul through numerous levels of pitfalls and traps, there are some delightfully devious rooms that will have you tossing your controller around in anger, but quickly picking it back up in order to finish the game.

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