Capcom’s turned back the clock with Kunitsu-Gami: Path Of The Goddess, bringing to us an action RPG tower defence hybrid that’s very 2000s and very welcome in this age of open world, live service-ness. And for some, it’ll deliver what’s needed: a fairly good time. A time marked by a loop that does hack ‘n slash, management, and a dash of base repairs to an average degree. For me, though, and possibly many others, I simply don’t think this mix ever truly captures what makes even the simplest of tower defence games so captivating.
All 36 employees of Humble Games publishing have reportedly been laid off. According to business developer Nicola Kwan, staff were informed at 9am this morning, and told that “the company is shutting down.” Humble dispute this in a statement made to Game Developer, claiming that the publishing label is “undergoing restructuring,” as opposed to a full shutdown.
Humble’s statement – which you can read in full here – attributes the events to “challenging economic times for indie game publishing,” saying that “Humble Games has made the difficult but necessary decision to restructure our operations.”
The latest free update to The Sims 4 will let you “define the conditions under which your Sims become jealous”. That’s handy. The new feature, called “Romantic Boundaries”, will give you some settings to tweak that determine whether a Sim will be bothered when they see their partner flirting with the neighbour, or kissing the neighbour, or getting into bed with the neighbour, or becoming a blur of obscene pixels with the neighb- okay Cindy, stop! I’m not comfortable with this. When I said we could open up I didn’t mean with Nigel.
“Do you fancy playing as a couple of skellies named ‘The Boner Brothers’ riding a bike and sidecar while chunky bastard-metal blasts out, also they’ve got a gun, also they can do tricks?” asked Motördoom, to which I became so instantly hyperactive I somehow worked out how to headbutt my own face. Of course I want to put a chainsaw on the front of my bike, Motördoom. Obviously I want a rougelike-able upgrade that perchance may set my demonic enemies on fire. Yes, I’d like to combine a sick manual with an action game killstreak for a very large combo, Motördoom. Is this what overly concerned parents thought PS1 games were actually like? If I got a disc with this demo on as a kid, I’d be significantly radder than I am today. Gnarly, even. Made of gnarls.
In the heyday of Sierra’s adventure game years, there was a series called Space Quest that featured an intergalactic janitor named Roger Wilco. The series was more satirical than King’s Quest, less preachy than Police Quest, and not quite as adult as Leisure Suit Larry. Spearheaded by Scott Murphy and Mark Crowe – a pair of devs who called themselves “Two Guys from Andromeda” – Space Quest was renowned for its humour, and there was a nice sense of progression throughout most of the series, with Roger Wilco leveling up from working class spaceman to the head of his own Star Trek ship.
Tachyon Dreams Anthology, a collection of three short games previously released on Itch.io, is clearly channeling Space Quest. Made by indie dev Cosmic Void, AKA Aviv Salinas, each episode of Tachyon Dreams puts you in the shoes of an intergalactic dishwasher named Dodger, who’s almost like an alternate Roger Wilco if you squint. Dodger’s just chilling on a spaceship clearing plates when all of the staff around him disappear, which is basically what happened to Roger at the start of Space Quest I. Guided by a sentient computer, Dodge has to travel through time and space, and his quest eventually leads him on the trail of the Margdonians, a mysterious race that once cultivated the galaxy.
The plot, which starts with time travel and ends with Dodger literally contemplating his past while sitting on the porcelain throne, doesn’t quite hit the mark set by any of the Space Quests. But the game’s visuals are 100% reminiscent of a lost Sierra adventure from 1987 made with the company’s then-famous AGI (Adventure Game Interpreter) engine. Even Dodger’s walk cycle channels Roger Wilco’s, though Dodger is several pixels larger than Roger ever was. I’m not sure if Tachyon Dreams Anthology was made in AGI Studio, gamemaking software that’s been widely used amongst Sierra fans, but it certainly looks it. Cosmic Void’s expert use of AGI’s 16 colours is especially impressive, and I really appreciate the pixelated depictions of the galactic sky, swathed in lovely shades of blue and magenta. (Anyone who wants to see similar visuals in something that resembles a ’90s game rather than an ’80s one should check out Twilight Oracle, one of Cosmic Void’s other projects. Alice B (RPS forever in peace) liked the demo!)
Between Against The Storms’ critters, Manor Lords’s perfect oxen, and now Cataclismo, Hooded Horse’s roster of strategy games share a common thread that many guard-the-village-em-ups can fatally overlook: they present a civilisation that’s worth protecting. Even if the fallen culture you’ll defend against waves of gribblies offers fascinatingly few concrete details on its origins, there’s a lithe and impressionistic otherworldliness and use of colour in Cataclismo’s art that evokes unearthed layers of history. Also, everyone is just so gosh darn likeable, with their foppish hats plopped atop stretched bodies, and dialogue that remains resolute, chirpy, and eager, even when you’re click-marching these poor folk straight to their deaths.
Still, none of this will stop me will sacrificing every last man, woman, and child of these beleaguered warriors if it means preserving a single one of my immaculately crafted staircases.
I’ve not played Counter- Strike 2 in yonks, but I know a big update when I see one. That’s right: Valve have added some new crates just outside of counter-terrorist spawn, near bombsite A. This means that players can now use these boxes to hop from CT up to catwalk with little fuss, where previously you’d need to use your teammates’ heads as a springboard. What does this mean as a layperson who sort of plays the game sometimes? More than you might think!
A glance at comedy medieval medic sim Stretcher Men might have you believe it is a co-op game about co-ordination and teamwork. Not so! It’s a singleplayer game in which you control not one but both carriers of a stretcher. You have to ferry a sick man over the hilly countryside, past muddy lake banks and over snowy mountains, all without dropping him on the ground. I can only imagine it controls a bit like Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons, but with added ragdoll jollity. We’ll know next week, when it releases on Steam.
One of the most memorable moments of Metro Exodus comes from a standoff with a giant catfish, who you have to avoid for a while (along with the cultists who worship it) before going “fishing” using an entire human corpse as bait. I didn’t expect to see any rival catfish appearing in games after that, but now that I think about it – why not? They’re a naturally freaky animal, perfect video game antagonists. And the developers of upcoming Japanese folklore ’em up Otoshi No Shima seem to understand this, having created a monstrous creature with a gaping mouth that follows the player at every turn. Come see.
Tiny Garden is a puzzle game about planting flowers and crops you can then sell to buy seeds for new types of flowers and crops. That would be charming enough on its own, but your agricultural endeavours are set inside a Polly Pocket-style toy, with crops also able to be exchanged for furniture with which to decorate your diorama home. After blowing past its Kickstarter target, there’s now a playable demo.
