GameLight - Heroes of Loot

Official Site: http://www.heroesofloot.com/heroesofloot/
Source: Youtube Channel orangepixelmobile

If there were ever a modern-day version of the classic Gauntlet, it'd probably be this game.  With the same exact 4 characters as the classic Gauntlet, the player traverses an endless stream of levels that randomly generates while grabbing loot to purchase items and take on quests to get even more items.  There's a free demo for PC/MAC that you can try out.  Being a fan of Gauntlet, dungeon-crawling and retro graphics, I quickly downloaded the demo and tried it out.

I'll be honest, the game's not very engaging playing on PC/MAC.  It's clear that the game was designed for mobile devices and doesn't change its mechanics at all for the PC/MAC.  Essentially, you hold down the attack button and just move around and dodge danger as your attacks automatically home-in on the nearest enemy.  There are no other buttons or abilities or such other than picking up runes that give you a short duration of power.  Also, the game is single-player only which leaves having actual buttons/keys to play and a larger screen the main reasons for playing on PC/MAC.  So although I compared this game to Gauntlet, it's missing a lot of aspects that made Gauntlet fun.  The game feels very barebones, yet it works really well in terms of a mobile device.  Having randomly generated levels keeps the game fresh which seems like an interesting distraction to have on my phone when I'm out and waiting somewhere.  I'll probably get this game for my phone, but not for PC.

Heroes of Loot is available for iOS in the App Store ($1.99), Android in the Google Play Store ($1.99), Ouya & Gamestick (price unsure), or PC/MAC ($4.99)

Source:
-Kotaku - Heroes of Loot Is The Most Retro Game You'll See Today

NewNews - Cards, Levels, and Prizes on Steam!

Official Site: http://steamcommunity.com/tradingcards/

The Steam platform is going to get a bunch of updates soon, and those who participate in the beta can check it out now.  What started out as a method of distributing the games for Valve turned into a very effective and favorable program and service distributing everyone's favorite PC games and indie games (now with application software).  I didn't like the Steam platform for the longest time because of how buggy, slow, and resource heavy it was just to run it.  Even when my friend bought me Team Fortress 2 and I was finally force to use Steam to play the game, it was slow, buggy and full of problems.  But sometime in 2010, there was a huge change to the platform that caused it to run more smoothly, quicker, and with less errors.  Then the occasional sales became seasonal, which became weekly, and now daily sales exist.  This not only changed my mind about the Steam platform, but also my perspective on digitally distributed games.  I'm still against digital download games on consoles, but I've become a bit more open minded about them now.

For the main topic at hand, Valve is working on some more updates for Steam to enhance the already social aspects for the users.

Trading Cards
While playing games like Don't Starve, Dota 2, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Team Fortress 2, Portal 2 and Half-Life 2, the player can get random drops of trading cards for that game similar to getting items in Team Fortress 2 and DotA 2.  These cards can be collected and crafted into badges which also leads to other goodies available.

Badges
By crafting badges, you can show it off on your profile and earn prizes or privileges such as emoticons to use in chat, profile backgrounds, and coupons for other games or DLCs.

Steam Levels
I've always wondered what the "Steam Rating" was, and it's just gauge on the amount of hours of gameplay put into the past 2 weeks.  Well it seems Valve wants to give us something more persistent with "Steam Levels".  I suppose crafting badges and playing games will increase one's steam level and will grant them access to profile showcases, extra friends list slots, and more.  I don't know how I feel about having "Extra friends list slots".  That shouldn't be something limited.

Profile Showcase
As a player's steam level rises, they'll have more access to their profile showcase and show off their favorite games, items up for trade, workshop mods, Greenlight submissions, or favorite screenshots.  Vanity is a huge social element in gaming, and this favors that aspect.

Profile Update
It's no surprise that the profile page will look different with the ability of Profile Showcase.  Aside from that, hovering over a friend's avatar will tell you their steam level and such at a glance.

Recent Games Page
This is getting an update too.  Aside from the time and achievements, media such as workshop mods, videos, screenshots, and guides for the game will show up along with a badge.


This is a lot of interesting ideas.  The only thing I don't feel very good about is having a limited amount of friend list slots.  Why in the world would you limit that when it's one of the aspects that bring more users into using the platform?  If you're interested in testing out all these neat updates and features, you can participate in the beta by clicking on the top link, scroll to the bottom, and click "Steam Trading Card Group".

Source:
-Joystiq - Steam Trading Cards enter beta

GameLight - Recent PC games

I have so many topics on hand right now that I'm going to have to talk about a handful of them in one post.  These following games are for mostly for PC (some available on consoles).

[The Walking Dead] - PC/MAC, PS3, Xbox 360, iPhone/iPad
Official Site: http://www.telltalegames.com/walkingdead/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/207610/
Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment

The series started as a graphic novel that launched in 2003 and was adapted into a live-action TV series in 2010.  An adventure game was launched this year and is split into 5 parts (2 are out so far) and the player only needs to buy the game once and will automatically receive the other parts when they're out.  It's much like other Adventure games where you point-n-click objects, make decisions, and added quick-time events for a bit of Action.  It is described to be like an interactive-movie with a great story, well written dialogues, and some pretty crazy moments that keep the player on their toes.

[Bullet Run] - PC
Official Site: http://www.bulletrunthegame.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/211880/
Source: Youtube Channel machinima

You're a contestant on a violent reality show where you kill other people for fame and fortune.  The premise of the game totally reminded me of Super Smash TV back in the old Arcade/SNES days.  Anyways, Bullet Run is a Free-to-Play First-Person Shooter published by Sony Online Entertainment.  On Steam, there are 3 available DLCs, each costing $9.99.  I'm not sure how "free" the game is.  That is, I'm not sure how balanced it is between those who play for free and how much of an advantage those who pay money for the game have.  I'll be trying it out when I get my new computer in.

[Awesomenauts] - PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Official Site: http://www.awesomenauts.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/204300/
Source: Youtube Channel ronimogames

As far as I can tell, Awesomenauts is a 2D Action-Platformer Tower Defense Game.  Perhaps an easier way to grasp it is to call it a 2D DotA?  I hear nothing but great things about this game and it seems a lot of people enjoy it.  It seems that on PC, players will have the advantage of a reticle to aim more precisely.  Also, if you get the game on Steam before September 5th, you get 3 exclusive Team Fortress 2 items based off the Awesomenauts universe.

[The eXceed Collection] - PC
Official Site: http://exceedseries.com/
Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/sub/15960/
Source: Youtube Channel Throneful

The eXceed Series ranges releases from 2005-2009 and was just released this year in English for the Western market.  eXceed is a doujin (indie) Shoot-em-up, Bullet hell (Danmaku) for the PC featuring Vampires.  Those who play the Touhou series may find the gameplay to be very familiar.  This is the first game that Nyu Media Ltd has brought over to Steam while I (and possibly many others) patiently wait for the release of Cherry Tree High: Comedy Club on Steam.

[Dark Blood] - PC
Official Site: http://darkblood.outspark.com/
Source: Youtube Channel loadstart

Dark Blood is a free-to-play Action Beat-em-up Online game with RPG elements.  Those who have played Dungeon Fighter Online from Nexon's site will be familiar with Dark Blood's gameplay.  Dark Blood looks a lot more gritty, violent and mature themed compared to the other online beat-em-ups.  Those who enjoy classic beat-em-ups will probably enjoy this game.  Those unfamiliar with the genre but have played other online games before might also take interest in this game.

[Born to Fire] - PC
Official Site: http://borntofire.aeriagames.com/
Source: Youtube Channel Funtree Main

This team-based First-Person Shooter has been talked about for quite a while now, and it looks like it's about to launch on Aeriagame's site.  In Born to Fire, you have your Shotgun-Man, Rifleman, Sniper, Heavyfire, and Dual-Gunner.  Sign up for beta is currently available.

[DayZ] - PC
Official Site: http://dayzmod.com/
Source: Youtube Channel icemotoboy

Those who are familiar with the ArmA 2 mod DayZ will be happy to hear that a stand-alone version of DayZ is currently in development.  This means that the limitations within the ArmA 2 engine will be lifted, no need to get an entire game just to play the mod (Counter-Strike was like that), and hopefully a more polished game will come out of it.  DayZ is a more realistic take on Zombie survival horror with real-time solar clock (it's bright out when you play in the day time and super dark playing at night time), perma-death, and real human interaction (you can betray each other, so that mentality causes paranoia).  It has already attracted over 1 million players to the addictive mod and hopefully will attract even more with a stand-alone version.


That's it for now.  My next line of action is getting through a lot of reviews.  More is on its the way!

GameLight - Dungeons of Dredmor

Official Site: http://www.dungeonsofdredmor.com/

Source: Youtube Channel IGNentertainment

When the game first released on Steam, I didn't much of it because I was hoping for an Action-RPG dungeon crawler (remember, I'm in the Top-down Action RPG phase right now) but saw the trailer and it looked so boring...Still, I kept my eye out for the game and was ready to try it out (even though it was only $5).  This past Sunday was the last day of the fall sales on Steam and Dungeons of Dredmor was at $2.49 and so I picked it up hoping for the best and preparing for the worst.  I think the trailer could've done better in highlighting the game as it's surprisingly really fun.  Dungeons of Dredmore is a "Tactical" rogue-like RPG.  Games like Shiren: The Wanderer, Izuna: Legend of the unemployed ninja, Desktop Dungeons, and maybe even (but very loosely considered) Pokémon Mystery Dungeon come to mind.  Rogue-like RPGs have a lot to do with risks/rewards, unexpected surprises, and getting smarter/stronger.  When I started the tutorial, I already started worrying about whether I'd enjoy the game as the music (though catchy at first) started to get annoying, there was a lot to take in, and the stats system was convoluted.  When I finally started the game, it gave me the choice of 3 difficulty levels (I picked the hardest one to test the game out), the choice to play with Perma-death (once you die, your character is gone, which I have choice to play with every game so far), and 7 skills to play with.  Just choosing from the large array of skills started to get me interested.  There are so many combinations I could play with.  After my first playthrough and dying on Level 3-4 (I don't remember since I didn't know about "levels" yet, I just went where ever I saw was open) from a boss monster, all I could think about was getting more out of the game.  I did even better my second time around (only because I played on easy difficulty the 2nd time) but still died because of a boss monster.  3rd time, I died in the first time from being mobbed by a bunch of weak enemies.  It made me laugh and I loved the unexpected situation I had got into.  Each time I played, the levels changed.  Yup, the game randomly generates the dungeons for an infinite amount of gameplay.  As I retry each playthrough, I understand more about items, how the stats system works, and trying out new builds.  It's so satisfying getting stronger and killing monsters so hard that they explode from a single strike or to burn in a pool of fire that you had set.  But the game also keeps you on edge with traps each step of the way, a crazy boss monsters on the other side of the door, or a huge buff in abilities for the player to dominate the enemies with.

To make short of everything, the game is pure tactics, action, and item management.  There won't be cinematics getting in the way of your killing, long-winded tutorials on how to do things (though the optional tutorial did feel somewhat long), and there seems to be something new for each play through of the game.  I'm really hoping I can get 50+ hours out of this game, because it really is that fun!  I haven't beaten it yet, and I plan on playing no perma-death mode one of these days just to beat it once.  This is just a vague preview of the game and I don't feel ready to give it a full review yet, but I'm enjoying the game a lot so far!

GameLight Review - The Binding of Isaac

Steam Page: http://store.steampowered.com/app/113200/

Source: Youtube Channel iamjamesid

Developer: Edmund McMillen and Florian Himsl
Publisher: Edmund McMillen
Platforms: PC/Mac
Release Date: September 28, 2011
Genre: Action-RPG

Pros:
-Simple, short and challenging each playthrough
-Randomly generated dungeons, items, and enemies make for a unique experience each time
-The difficulty, grotesque art style, and mood setting music creates quite the atmosphere

Cons:
-The game does require a bit of luck in order to get through to the end
-The game doesn't have much left to offer after all items and characters are acquired unless they update
-Some room designs make it impossible to avoid getting hit or killed

The Binding of Isaac is an enticing and provocative Action game with elements of RPG and Rogue-like games that keep things fresh each time the player decides to play it.  Referencing to the biblical story "Binding of Isaac" in title and plot, the protagonist escapes his mother as she seeked to sacrifice him in the name of the Lord himself.  The player will traverse through the winding basements fighting off various enemies and lost brothers and sisters in a Robotron or Geometry Wars kind of control scheme.  The player will acquire equipment, gain health, and purchase items like in an RPG while the levels are designed like a rogue like game where each room that the player goes into is a risk or reward as well as the enemies that attack the player.  It's a challenging game and very difficult, but very much possible to beat almost every time as long as the player is cautious and makes wise decisions.  The game is definitely not for everyone, but those who enjoy a challenge will find the entertainment value of this game to be quite satisfying.

Graphics
The first and last impression of the game's art style is that it's grotesque, freaky, and down-right disgusting.  What's funny is that it works.  The obscure looking enemies, eerie corridors of each room and bloody effects from the defeated enemies places the player in an uncomfortable environment and leaves quite an impression even after retiring from play.  What I find surprising is that despite the muddy dark colors of each level and objects, the environment, enemies and players are easily distinguishable which is very important when the fighting gets really messy.  The user interface is a reference to (if not direct copy as an homage) The Legend of Zelda as well as the way the dungeon are set up.  With the game's levels set up as a room to room design, navigation is extremely easy while creating randomly generated contents for each play through is much more effective in creating a new experience each time the players stats a new game.  The only complaint I have about the graphics is that it's difficult to determine the trajectory of some of the enemies bullets when they're tossed into the air.  Graphics: 9/10

Audio
I've taken quite a liking to Danny Baranowsky's style of music from Super Meat Boy and now in The Binding of Isaac.  SMB was a lot of exciting and upbeat tracks, but in order for The Binding of Isaac to get the darker and almost horror-like feel, the music is a lot more subtle.  Lower tones, dissonance, and a bit of rushing makes for a tense and frantic feel for the level and gameplay.  It's a lot less synthetic than SMB and has a lot of those low strings and trickling piano that you hear used in thriller or horror movies.  The sound effects works really well as each enemy has their own unique cry or moan.  The sfx's association with the enemies' look and action are like signifier of what to watch out for.  One example is the enemy "Gluttony" and its similar counter-parts where they rip open their rip-cages and shoot a long stream of blood at the player.  The first time that happened, it freaked me out.  That sound was so prominent that I always become very cautious whenever I see one of them (which usually turns out to be six of them in one room).  Some of the best audio has to be the voice of the mother.  It is pretty dang scary hearing her call out Isaac and have her foot stomp on the player.  Audio: 10/10

Gameplay
The Binding of Isaac isn't one of those games that I want to continuously keep playing and keep coming back to day after day like with Super Meat Boy.  The challenge is opposite of what the developers did for Super Meat Boy in that in SMB, you memorize and get used to the level that you're playing and race for the fastest time possible.  In The Binding of Isaac, the player will want to slow everything down and take on each room carefully with a clear mind.  Fast reflexes and reactions to each situation is needed to fight off all the unique enemies within the game in order to survive.  And since the game randomly generates everything each playthrough, there's no way to memorize any of the levels and each room is an unexpected surprise (be they good or bad).  I've already gotten all the characters and half of the items in the game already after beating the game several times.  Each time I thought I was going to lose, I was able to pull through as long as I never got over-confident and was conscious of everything around me.  It truly delivered a different experience each time as each character has their own starting statistics, abilities, and each playthrough will give different power-ups.  The game does require a bit of luck as certain items can help or hurt a player in sticky situations that they can't get out of.  A player could walk into a very narrow corridor in a room and get attacked from a distance right from the get-go or be charged at by and enemy with no where to escape.  Getting a special item, a certain card/pill, or even half a heart for health can be the difference between victory or death.  I think once the player has discovered every item, enemy, and character in the game, the replay value will rely solely on the player's desire to play through it again and not to find anymore content.  It'd be great if the developers continued to add more like they did for the Halloween special, but that''ll depend on the developers.  As I've said in the beginning, it's not a game I'd play continuously, but rather play once in a while as a break in-between my other games.  It takes me about an hour for each successful playthrough, and there's no save function.  Still, I had fun each time I played through it and will probably continue to play in the future until I've collected everything.  Gameplay: 8/10

Overall
For a game I paid less than a dollar for (I got it during the Humble Voxatron Debut), it was well worth it.  I've already played it more than I did for some of the retail games I've bought.  I like how I can quickly start it up and play through it and (hopefully) get a satisfactory playthrough it as many big names games require the player to sit through long dialogues and tutorials (which is okay if it's what you want at that moment) or that a game is too simple and feels like an on-going monotonous action.  It can be frustrating because sometimes things happen when you least expect it and end up having to start all over.  But I think that's what makes it so satisfying if you can get through it all the way to the end.  I'm not sure who to recommend it to since it's so weird and freaky looking, but I suppose I would tell anyone who's remotely interested to get it since it's only $5 on steam.  I'm looking forward to what Edmund McMillen has in store for the future.  Overall: 9/10

NewNews - 'Tofu' with your 'Meat'

Source of News: Gamasutra

So the news that's spreading around about "Super Meat Boy" is how the co-creator of the game went onto "People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA)'s" forum boards and "introduced" the game to the community in trying to get a stir about his game.  Little did he expect that they made a parody game called "Super Tofu Boy" and create more publicity for the game than he could pay for.  The reasoning was that not everyone knew what Super Meat Boy was but many people know who PETA are and what they do.  In addition to creating free publicity, the developers had added "Tofu Boy" as a playable character in "Super Meat Boy".

Source: Youtube Channel MachinimaTrailer

Super Meat Boy is a Action Platformer that was inspired by many retro games such as Super Mario Bros. and Megaman 2 with the challenge of other indie games such as "I Wanna be the Guy" (He's a secret character in Super Meat Boy I hear) and N+.  It has very slick gameplay which demands more twitch action than careful planning.  Using the concept of "learning through losing" is common for super hard games and really puts gamers to the test on coordination, memory, timing, and reflexes.  At the moment, I don't plan to buy Super Meat Boy right away, but I plan to in the near future.  I'm still trying to learn as much as I can from other Indie developers so that I can be prepared with my own releases if I ever get anything done.  At the moment, I'm still stuck on a lot of writing, music, and level design for other projects and don't have enough free time to work on my indie projects yet.  I miss the challenge of hard games and I think I want to give "I Wanna be the Guy" another go.  If you have interest in Super Meat Boy, please support the developers and BUY IT NOW!!!  It's also available on Xbox Live Arcade, WiiWare, and Microsoft Windows Games Live for $15!!!

GameOn - FPS Week last day with Team Fortress 2

[Team Fortress 2 - Valve Corporation - PC/Xbox 360/PS3/Mac OS X]

Source: Youtube Channel RadioactiveCaffeine

Team Fortress 2 is more than just a game; It's a culture.  Team Fortress 2 has generated millions of fan-based materials all over the world such as art pieces, videos, fan-fiction, remix songs, comics, and parodies.  The game brought all gamers, creative minds, and hobbyists together to create things beyond the game and into our everyday lives (yes, I'm talking about Cosplay).

The truth is, the game has no story, no campaign, no background, just the game.  Team Fortress started out as a Quake Mod that was then brought in by Valve to distribute through Steam and then worked on a original game developed by Valve themselves as Team Fortress 2.  It's an Team-Based (or it should!) First-Person Shooter that has two sides fighting for the intelligence (Capture the Flag), an area (Capture Point), or escort a bomb to enemy base (Payload).  Each player is capable of choosing one of nine classes to play as that fulfills a sort of role in the team: offense, defense, and support.  Each of these classes have a personality and accent in their speech that gives them a distinctive personality.  The game is multiplayer-based and played online.

Pros:
-Fast action in a unique FPS experience that plays more like an action game than traditional FPS games
-Dynamics of the game changes each time you play with the different combinations of classes in a team
-Tons of ways to play the game that fits many different styles of play
-Very strong community within the game, there will be plenty of players to play with online
-Graphics are not too demanding and allows many players of any computer specs to play
-Lots of mods and special servers that allows changes in rules and game type
-Developers constantly update the game and maintenance the servers
-Many extra maps, modes, and features are added without charge
-Deals can go as low as $5 for the game and can provide several hundred hours of gameplay

Cons:
-You WILL die...A LOT, it is impossible not to (unless you hack, DON'T HACK!)
-It's very rare to play with people that understand the term "team"
-The game takes a ridiculous amount of time to load and connect to a server
-Hackers, mic spammers, glitchers and other riff-raff frequent in the servers
-Lack of players and Lag in a server makes for an unappealing experience (so d/c and find another)

If you're not a hardcore FPS player and want insane action, I highly recommend Team Fortress 2.  The game is phenomenal as entertainment and as a culture within itself.  The game often gets extra content and will not be charged for it unlike every other FPS game that has released recently.  I am up to about 124 hours of gameplay on Team Fortress 2 and I got it Christmas of 2009.  The only game I have played recently to have gotten that amount of hours is League of Legends with 128 hours.  For those of you who don't like unrealistic gunfights and whacky action, I suggest one of the 4 games mentioned earlier this week.  Other than that, go get Team Fortress 2 when it goes down in price this holiday (sale for this game frequently shows up).