Verdict: cute and nostalgic
In a Nutshell: Interactive story book about a kid cyclops that includes a memory game and music videos. This was one of the 2009 PAX10.
“What is Bothering Carl? is the tale of a young cyclops named Carl whose laid back attitude is disrupted by a single nuisance. Readers will discover Carl’s dilemma and follow along as he tries to solve his problem in this colorful interactive adventure.”
Verdict: extreme challenge!
In a Nutshell: This is a top-down, real-time strategy space conquest.
(from the game’s manual)
“You are a space war commander who controls a small fleet of ships and must win against all odds. While your enemies usually have more money and ships than you, a clever strategy can always turn the situation upside down so that you’re the one with all the cash and a giant armada. One last thing. In an act of sabotage, someone turned on your starbase’s self-destruct mechanism. This means that it will gradually destroy itself, assuming that your enemies don’t eliminate you first. Really, you have no time to waste. Get to it, commander!”
Verdict: If not for the load times . . .
In a Nutshell: This is a dogfighter with campaigns that take you through the time-line of WWII.
“Air Conflicts is an arcade flight simulator game set in World War II, featuring the aircraft of this period and historically inspired missions. The emphasis is on intense dogfights, daring bombing raids and exciting aerial missions.”
Verdict: funkadelic!
In a Nutshell: This is a side-scrolling rhythm game full of cute and funk.
“In the game, MEVO, the main character, has to reunite his band, the Grooveriders, bring ‘FUNK’ back to the universe and defeat the enemy SILENCE. To move MEVO through the game’s five beautifully crafted worlds (Ocean, Jungle, Desert, Space and Wormhole), players must tap 2 keys to the rhythm of the game’s music as it is played and displayed in the game with arrows. All tracks are original, produced in-house with live musicians, and feature a unique and playful retro-funky style that varies from organic to electronic tracks. “
Verdict: Twisted.
In a Nutshell: A bizarre yet enjoyable puzzle-platformer with a unique twist: not only do you control your character, but you must also rotate the the world around you complete each increasingly insane level.
“And Yet It Moves is a puzzle-platformer, set in a unique world, made of ripped paper. Within the paper collage, you can jump, run and last but certainly not least: rotate the world. Learn how to apply the physical consequences of rotation to master the many tricky situations you may encounter.”
Verdict: loved every minute of it
In a Nutshell: Defense Grid: The Awakening is a 3-d tower defense game that feels a lot like Starcraft.
“Defense Grid: The Awakening is a unique spin on tower defense gameplay that will appeal to players of all skill levels. A horde of enemies is invading, and it’s up to the player to stop them by strategically building fortification towers around their base. Beautiful environments, spectacular effects, and a dynamic, engaging soundtrack bring the world to life. The controls are intuitive and the gameplay is deep — the special attacks and properties of each tower work together to provide many ways to succeed.”
Verdict: delightful
In a Nutshell: Zatikon is an electronic strategy board game that feels like chess but with a good helping of medieval fantasy thrown into the mix.
“Welcome to Zatikon. Construct your army out of creatures as varied as the magnificent dragon or mighty warrior to the evil necromancer or holy Templar. Destroy your opponent with a heavy cavalry charge or defeat their army before they can reach you with archers, crossbowmen and mages. Use an unlimited number of strategies to defeat your opponents and earn gold to increase the might of your army. Play Zatikon for free and start building your armies today!
Zatikon is a turn based multiplayer tactics game featuring over 50 unique units. Build your army and defeat your opponent. With an almost unlimited number of possible strategies at your disposal Zatikon highly addictive and fun. Zatikon includes online player ranking and several extra game types including co-op, single player and random army mode.”
Verdict: adorable
In a Nutshell: The Maw is a third-person perspective action game about an alien and his side-kick who eats everything possible.
“The pinnacle of alien evolution, Maw is a cowardly fat blob concerned mostly with snacking and lounging. He can, however, absorb the traits of anything he eats, is virtually indestructible, and can grow to unlimited size. If he wasn’t a danger to all life in the universe, he’d make the perfect pet. In this action/adventure game, he’s the best friend of our hero Frank, and only by working together can Maw eat their way to freedom. The Maw was honored with the Audience Choice Award in the 2008 PAX-10 showcase of independent games, and is a finalist at this year’s Independent Games Festival for Technical Excellence.”
Verdict: Nine Inch Nails!
In a Nutshell: This is a rhythm game similar to Guitar Hero to the tunes of Nine Inch Nails.
“The first-ever special edition of Tap Tap Revenge, featuring 13 tracks from the last two Nine Inch Nails albums, The Slip and Ghosts I-IV. Put your rhythmic skills to the test, tapping and shaking your way through 13 tracks hand picked by Trent Reznor himself.”
Verdict: nice idea
In a Nutshell: Crossblock is a logic / pattern recognition puzzler.
“Cross out all the squares. Not as easy as it sounds!“
