Latest

indie

the-artful-escape-is-“like-if-david-bowie-went-on-a-space-journey-and-came-back-as-ziggy-stardust” Rock,Paper,Shotgun

The Artful Escape is “like if David Bowie went on a space journey and came back as Ziggy Stardust”

July 30, 2021RockPaperShotgun

The Artful Escape has been a long time coming for Beethoven & Dinosaur founder and designer Johnny Galvatron. While his side-scrolling platformer – about a teenage musician going on a fantastical journey to find and create his own stage persona – made its initial debut back in 2017, Galvatron tells me this game has really been 38 years in the making. He’s a professional musician himself, having been the lead singer of electronic rock band The Galvatrons in the mid noughties, but he’s also been raised on a diet of video games since the days of the Sega Master System….

Read More
the-artful-escape-finally-has-a-release-date VG247

The Artful Escape finally has a release date

July 30, 2021VG247

By Sherif Saed 30 July 2021 11:02 GMT The Artful Escape is not too far off.The Artful Escape was part of the stacked line-up of games showcased on the Annapurna Interactive livestream last night. The music-infused adventure game has been doing the rounds for years, but it now has a solid release date of September 9 on PC, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.Watch on YouTubeThe Artful Escape is a psychedelic, glam rock journey of a young guitarist in search of his stage persona. To get there, he’ll have to go on a rock opera trip through the cosmos to…

Read More
neon-white-is-part-demon-parkour-game,-part-dating-sim Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Neon White is part demon parkour game, part dating sim

July 29, 2021RockPaperShotgun

Neon White sounds like a lot. It’s a speedrunning first-person shooter where you use decks of cards that represent weapons to stop demons invading heaven. It also has dating sim aspects where you can chat and have a nice time with the other Neons (the demon slayers you’re sort of working with). Better yet, it’s made by the developers of Donut County, and designer Ben Esposito tells me that massive tonal change was because he wanted to go “apeshit”. Read more

Read More
claire-de-lune-won’t-light-any-fires,-but-it’ll-warm-you-up Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Claire De Lune won’t light any fires, but it’ll warm you up

July 29, 2021RockPaperShotgun

14 years on, it might say more about me than about games that I automatically want to reference Portal when I play a game like Claire De Lune. It’s a bit unfair to compare everything in the first person physics puzzle subgenre to one of the best games ever made as a default. You have a zappy non-violent gun necessary for navigating a series of platforming challenges. That’s… actually where the similarities end. Instead of the increasingly sinister laboratory and wry humour, Claire De Lune crashes you into an alien planet and asks you to reunite with your daughter while…

Read More
the-ascent-review-–-a-consistently-stunning-and-surprising-action-game-that-sets-a-new-standard VG247

The Ascent review – a consistently stunning and surprising action game that sets a new standard

July 29, 2021VG247

It’s not often we get a game like The Ascent.I don’t know what it is about the top-down shooter genre that endears it to indie developers. There are too many of them – usually with a pixel-arty look, but simultaneously not enough – the kind that used to push visuals and environmental detail to the point that you’d want to hack in a first-person camera just to get as close as possible to their worlds.I would have been content with The Ascent being among the latter; it’s what I went in expecting. The Ascent is that, and so much more.Watch…

Read More
veterans-of-the-last-of-us,-playstation,-and-bungie-form-that’s-no-moon-entertainment VG247

Veterans of The Last of Us, PlayStation, and Bungie form That’s No Moon Entertainment

July 28, 2021VG247

By Jeremy Signor 28 July 2021 19:42 GMT The new studio will focus on “AAA independent” game development. A group of industry veterans announced that they would be joining forces to form That’s No Moon Entertainment, a self-proclaimed “AAA independent” game development studio, and the pedigree these designers have is truly impressive. The team is made up of people from Naughty Dog, Bungie, EA, PlayStation, Sony Santa Monica, Infinity Ward, and more.That’s No Moon is the result of a meeting of AAA talent mixed with more than $100 million in investment from Smilegate, the creators of Crossfire. The debut project…

Read More
the-next-steam-next-fest-is-scaring-up-hundreds-more-demos-in-october Rock,Paper,Shotgun

The next Steam Next Fest is scaring up hundreds more demos in October

July 21, 2021RockPaperShotgun

It looks like Steam Sales and Steam Next Fests are fated to be pals for the foreseeable future. Valve have announced that they’ll be hosting yet another big game demo bonanza in early October, which is almost guaranteed to be followed by the yearly Steam Halloween Sale. The next Steam Next Fest is scheduled to kick off on October 1, once again bringing hundreds of demos for upcoming games and livestreams from their developers. Read more

Read More
last-stop-review:-half-a-really-good-doctor-who-episode Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Last Stop review: half a really good Doctor Who episode

July 21, 2021RockPaperShotgun

I was a fan of Virginia, Variable State’s first-person FBI thriller. It used unusual camera cuts to create a really filmic vibe, something that games are always trying to do but rarely succeed. Last Stop is Variable State’s new story adventure game, and adds two more fully voiced protagonists, three converging storylines, and a bunch of glowy green sci-fi light, while keeping the TV show style. With all the stories taking place in the same (fictional) borough of London, the result is somewhere between Black Mirror and Doctor Who. Read more

Read More
death’s-door-review:-a-sturdy-and-often-funny-fable-about-death Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Death’s Door review: a sturdy and often funny fable about death

July 20, 2021RockPaperShotgun

If grimdark is a genre, then so must be cutedark. Death’s Door glides into this camp on gossamer wings. It’s got Hollow Knight‘s dimples but not its teeth. It’s lighter, an appropriately feathery game. For long stretches it is refreshingly untaxing with a few challenging battles. This lightness is its strength. The soulslike undertones are mostly a facade and it is less inspired by Lordran than it is by Hyrule. There are fluffy puzzles, curious dungeons and cute characters with JiGgLiNg diALoGuE tExT. I foresee any Nintendo likers out there immediately thinking: “I’ll get this on my Switch”. Sadly, you…

Read More
egx:-rezzed-–-join-us-this-evening-for-a-martha-is-dead-developer-walkthrough VG247

EGX: Rezzed – Join us this evening for a Martha is Dead developer walkthrough

July 15, 2021VG247

By Stephany Nunneley 15 July 2021 20:12 GMT EGX Rezzed is going on right now, and VG247 is hosting a panel this evening with Martha is Dead developer LKA.Join us this evening at 2pm PT, 5pm ET, 10pm UK for a walkthrough of Martha is Dead where we will be joined by the game’s developer LKA.Watch on YouTubeThe first-person psychological thriller is slated to be released this year on PC, PlayStation 5, and the Xbox family of devices.Developed by the folks that brought you The Town of Light, the game takes place in the Italian countryside where Allied and Axis…

Read More
minimalist-skateboarding-game-the-ramp-looks-like-a-tea-break’s-worth-of-fun Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Minimalist skateboarding game The Ramp looks like a tea break’s worth of fun

July 15, 2021RockPaperShotgun

The Ramp’s solo developer Paul Schnepf built his skateboarding game “to scratch a very specific itch”. He’d always wanted a simple, complete skateboarding experience. No moves to unlock, no vast levels to scour, no online scoreboards. He just wanted to hop on a skateboard and ride around small levels, flowing from one move to the next. So he made it. The Ramp is a four-level skateboarding game for those who just want to flip, spin, and grind. It’s out next month. Read more

Read More
watch-the-rps-indies-uncovered-stream-at-pax-east-/-egx-rezzed-2021 Rock,Paper,Shotgun

Watch the RPS Indies Uncovered stream at PAX East / EGX Rezzed 2021

July 14, 2021RockPaperShotgun

While we’re a little bit closer to meeting up at the Tobacco Docks for some Zoom-less chats and interactive funtimes, we’re not quite there yet. So, in lieu of in-person video games events, the lovely folks at EGX Rezzed (and our American cousins that are keeping all PAX-related things ticking over) are running two online events that kick off this weekend – and we’ll be taking part with our returning Indies Uncovered stream. Read more

Read More
battlefield-like-shooter-world-war-3-back-from-the-dead-with-a-very-promising-update VG247

Battlefield-like shooter World War 3 back from the dead with a very promising update

July 14, 2021VG247

By Sherif Saed 14 July 2021 16:22 GMT World War 3’s long-awaited overhaul has been in the works for over a year, and The Farm 51 is finally ready to show it off.World War 3, the indie shooter from Chernobylite developer The Farm 51, was one multiplayer shooter Battlefield fans were especially excited to play. The game replicates much of what Battlefield is known for, and, in the absence of a recent modern military Battlefield, many looked to WW3 to scratch the same itch.Watch on YouTubeUnfortunately, the game’s early access launch left many disappointed thanks to a host of bugs,…

Read More
gta-2-inspired-glitchpunk-has-early-access-in-its-sights Rock,Paper,Shotgun

GTA 2-inspired Glitchpunk has early access in its sights

July 14, 2021RockPaperShotgun

Top-down and totally OTT shooter Glitchpunk is aiming for an August 11th early access release date. I spotted it just before the Steam Game Fastival a few months ago, and was surprised at how grafting a Grand Theft Auto 2-style action game with hacking appealed to me. My memories of GTA 2 are so fast-paced that I get out of breath just remembering it, so stopping to do some nefarious and slow-paced activities seems like a perfect tweak. Read more

Read More