- By Ash
- in Indie Games
[Update #2]: RimWorld is getting the massive free Update 1.3 and Ideology expansion in July 2021.
[Update]: RimWorld devs have announced their plans for future content updates, as well as additions to the Royalty DLC itself.
After a long period of silence, RimWorld's Update 1.1 went into beta testing last week. It brought with it a variety of new animals to tame, new weapons and armor to toy around with, a couple of new traits to spice up your playthrough, as well as a new long-ranged mechanoid to give your colony no end of trouble.
Since the beta had very few issues, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise to hear that Update 1.1 has already gone live. What might come as a bit of a shock, however, is that it has been released alongside a brand new expansion - Royalty!
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
If you would like to get your hands on Chivalry 2 and see just what it has to offer, as well as help the developers out by giving some much-needed feedback, you might be interested to hear that the Closed Alpha is coming this March. The exact launch date hasn't been announced just yet, but you can sign up over at the official website for a chance at entry.
Before you do so, it is worth mentioning that the Chivalry Closed Alpha will be an alpha test in every sense of the word. You'll be testing combat mechanics, performance and even how playable the game is at different server sizes. There will be bugs, there will be missing or placeholder content, and most importantly, there will be a significant lack of polish. That said, most of the core gameplay mechanics will be present and accounted for, so it should still be a good bit of fun.
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
[Update]: Knights of Light has now landed onto Steam Early Access, and is expected to stay there for around two years.
In a rather refreshing diversion from the usual action-RPG settings, the upcoming Knights of Light takes place in 7th-century Iran. The story follows two brothers tasked with commanding armies that are to have an instrumental role during the historical battle of Al-Qadiseiya, an event that quickly led to the collapse of the Sassanian empire. So depending on how faithful Knights of Light remains towards history, this could be an opportunity to learn a little bit more about events that aren't often mentioned in the West.
When it comes to the actual gameplay, Knights of Light will be divided into two parts: solo combat and army management. During solo mode you'll be able to roam across the world and use a variety of abilities to annihilate your enemies, as you would in any action-RPG. On the other hand, while in army management mode you'll be able to give orders to your armies, conquer new territory, manage resources, and naturally, fortify any crucial regions.
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
[Update]: Aerial combat and exploration game The Falconeer is launching this November 10th.
Despite gaming technology advancing quite considerably over the years, there is a disappointing amount of games where you get to freely fly around the world. Sure, there's simulators and the occasional wargame, but that's pretty much where the genre starts and ends. A real shame given how much potential there is. I mean for goodness sake, does nobody else want to ride a dragon around!?
However, while The Falconeer obviously doesn't star a dragon in the main role, it does check all of the other boxes. You'll be able to explore a significant portion of the world from the get-go, join or anger any of the various factions, and when someone insults your falcon's plumage, engage in airborne combat through a combination of ranged weapons and aerial acrobatics.
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
Diabotical is a fast-paced arena shooter heavily inspired by oldschool classics like Quake. As you might imagine from that description alone, Diabotical is all about rapid movement across a variety of maps, mastering numerous powerful but tricky weapons, as well as absolutely annihilating anyone that is unfortunate enough to cross paths with you.
Since words alone aren't the best when it comes to showcasing the strengths of an FPS, allow me to share with you the recently posted teaser trailer. It'll give you a pretty good idea of just waht Diabotical has to offer. Have a peek:
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
The original Dungeon Defenders was and still is a pretty awesome game. Despite being the developers' very first major title, it managed to nail a nearly perfect balance between face-smashing difficulty and care-free fun. Dungeons Defenders 2 tried to further improved upon the idea, but unfortunately, it missed the mark somewhat and the series started a slow but steady decline.
There is a glimmer of hope on the horizon, however, as Dungeon Defenders Awakened has now landed onto Steam Early Access. Much like the original, Awakened is a co-op focused tower defense game that's all about mowing down hundreds of enemies through the use of towers, traps, blockades, and naturally, your own weaponry.
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
[Update]: The aptly named A-cobra-tic content update has now gone live.
Ultimate Chicken Horse, as the name would obviously suggest, is a multiplayer-focused platformer that's all about trying to sabotage your friends while avoiding the same fate yourself. So as you play the levels, you and your friends will have a chance to add a variety of deadly traps and hazards, all in an effort to be the only one that reaches the end and giggles at everyone else's misfortune.
If that sounds like time well spent, then you'll be glad to hear that there is a major update coming this March 12th. It's bringing with it a skateboarding snake as a new playable character, two new levels to flung your friends into pits from, as well as four dastardly weapons to utilize: Flamethrower, One-Way Gate, Cannon & Beehive.
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
The original DreadOut released back in 2014 to a good bit of excitement and some fairly mixed reviews. The concept itself was pretty solid, as was the idea of focusing on the lesser-seen horror themes from Asian folklore and urban legends, but the actual execution left a lot to be desired. To put it simply, DreadOut was just a little bit too clunky.
Quite a few years have past since then, and developer Digital Happiness has now returned to give the whole thing another try with DreadOut 2. Much like its predecessor, DreadOut 2 is a survival-horror game with action elements, adventure game exploration, and even more Asian/Indonesian horror to dig into.
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
[Update]: Quantum League has now been released, and so far it's looking quite good.
If you're looking for a bit of an unusual competitive experience, you might want to check out Quantum League and it's newly launched Open Beta. To put it simply, Quantum League has you play multiple rounds against your opponent while stuck in a time loop, with each new round representing a diverging timeline. So once you're past the initial round, you'll be able to team up with your past self in order to counter what got you killed in the first place, as well as hopefully prevent your opponent from creating an even bigger advantage.
All of this sounds a lot more complicated than it really is, so allow me to share with you the recently posted cinematic trailer. It should get the point across quite nicely. Have a gander:
- By Ash
- in Indie Games
[Update]: Othercide and its rather striking visuals have now landed onto both PC and consoles.
These past few years have been pretty good for fans of turn-based strategy. The genre has not only managed to escape the slump it was stuck in for quite a while, but there are more and more turn-based strategies being announced each month, with all of them seemingly taking the formula in a bit of a different direction.
Needless to say, this applies to the newly announced Othercide as well. It is a turn-based strategy with horror elements, a fetching black-and-white art style, as well as a bit of a unique take on the usual turn-based combat. Instead of simply trading blows with your enemies, Othercide allows you to delay your attacks for maximum impact or to simply interrupt the enemy. If everything starts going south and you run out of options, there are also various reaction skills that give you the opportunity to try and avoid potentially fatal situations at a moment's notice.