mattipaulgia: Greenlight Roundup 2 | Video Game Blog, Video Games Reviews ...

One computer failure too many has set this week?s roundup back a day, but nonetheless it arrives!

Compulsion Games are not the first developers to put a platformer like?Contrast?up on Greenlight. Black Forest Games??Project Giana?is somewhat similar in that both of these games are surreal platformer titles in which the player switches between two?different?aspects of the game world (the trailers for each are at the bottom), however the reason I am talking about?Contrast now?and didn?t talk about?Giana last week?is because the former seems to be more focused on telling a story with its gameplay and the challenge is actually ingrained in the levels? designs, while in the latter the gameplay is focused more on getting every crystal-point-whatsit on the stage, and the levels would otherwise be rather simplistic.

What you see in?Giana?s?trailer is literally a scaled down version of the entire first stage (as a video by Black Forest Games revealed), and it appears to rife with repetitive motions like the?Super Mario Galaxy?mid-air spin move. On the other hand, just look at all the nifty mechanics that reside in the teased stages of?Contrast; everything in it seems to contribute to the mood in substantial ways, and as far as platformers go, it seems to be a rather unique and enjoyable experience. Not to put?Project Giana?down, though, as both of these games seem delightful, but?Giana?seems geared more towards those willing to grind for every last hidden point- an audience that is substantially smaller than that of the fun-loving, intriguing world of?mystique?within?Contrast,?which has earned the up-vote of approval from?Greenlight Roundup.

It would take a smarter man than me to accurately describe this game, but it is nothing short of amazing. From the videos that are available of this game, it seems to mix some well designed platforming maps with strategic TBS combat, in the form of?aerial?drones,?controlled?by the player, able to move at varying speeds and carrying?specialized?weapons to present the player with a very wide number of unique strategies to explore. The game presents the potential to?emulate?much of what made?StarCraft?so popular back in the 90?s, but it doesn?t just copy the old ways; Kiritsu Games??Band of Drones takes?full advantage of its hybrid origins, integrating item pick-ups dropped by enemies, making heavy use of the game?s physics engine in combat, and?limiting?the player to a select few drones, rather than an entire army to make every small loss more significant.

In addition to its gameplay potential, the UI is highly customizable, and I personally adore the promise of an included level editor and a scenario-based campaign. However I get the biggest kick out of this: it is one of the very few games on Greenlight to feature Linux support. If you?re anything like me, you have been pining for Steam on Linux for quite some time, but my concern has always been a lack of good games supported on the OS. Sure source games will be there, eventually, but right off the bat, the Linux audience can look forward to this masterpiece, provided others follow in ?our footsteps and give this nifty creation a well-deserved up-vote.

There was quite nearly a bit about?The Slender Stories: The Orphanage?this week, but when the third Slender Man related game this?month?was announced yesterday (a commercial game this time around), it seemed as though?that?corner of the industry has gotten enough?attention?for now?

Article from Gamersyndrome.com