Game of the Year 2014

I thought I'd take a couple of minutes to list the games I've really enjoyed this year and explain what, to me, makes them great. I seem to have less time each year to play games and I'm glad for smaller titles that I can pick up and play for 20 minutes without any commitment. 

Some honourable mentions before I start: Rouge Legacy, Spelunky and Thomas Was Alone rereleases on PS4 were a great chance to play them again, in a year when there wasn't a lot of new games that were my cup of tea. I also enjoyed Final Fantasy X/X-2 Remaster on Vita and I finally played Dark Souls to completion. Nidhogg, Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes and Trials Evolution also deserve a mention. They were 3 games that got me through the early part of the year. 

Unfortunately some games I was looking forward to didn't live up to what I wanted. This includes Dark Souls II and InFamous: Second Son.

5) Diablo III:  Ultimate Evil Edition

I'm not a person that really plays the 'loot part' of games, it's why you won't find Destiny on this list, but Diablo III on the playstation 4 had me hooked for all 5 acts and then some. The replayability of the adventure mode and the way the controls map effortlessly to the DualShock controller with direct control made this game stand out for me. Also, next gen consoles make this game look almost on par with the PC version. 

The lack of the real money auction house was enough of a reason to call this the Ultimate edition of the game, but then to add the new abilities, enemies and adventure mode meant that I enjoyed my time with this game the same way I remember doing with Diablo II. 

4: Threes

Literally every time I was waiting for a bus, taking a dump or otherwise killing a few minutes I'd get out my phone and have a game of Threes Its an "easy to learn, hard to master" game. 

For me each game started nonchalantly with quick swipes but as the numbers got higher each swipe becomes more calculated and deliberate with the hope of a higher score. 

It's not only the simple mechanics of Threes that make it a great game, but the graphics, subtle sound effects and overall feel that meant I kept going back to it. 

3: Sportsfriends

Sportsfriends is a game I didn't get to play as much as I'd have liked, with my friends living out of town, but when I did get to play it I loved every minute of it. Hokra is essentially an Atari video game from the early 80's, resembling Pong in many ways. It shows that simple game design is usually the best. Without any bells or whistles, Hokra manages to be fun, rewarding and satisfying.

That applies to all the games in Sportsfriends. BaraBariBall's 2v2 team battles were intense. When that ball is sinking and you've got 1 jump left to make a last ditch effort to retrieve it is such a great feeling.

And then there's Johann Sebastian Joust. Oh boy! I only go to parties now if they guarantee there will be Joust. 

2: FTL: Advanced Edition

FTL was a great game in 2012 and the Advanced Edition on iPad is great too (and it came out in 2014 which means I can put it on this list). I fell in love with rouge-likes a lot and am still playing Rogue Legacy and Spelunky. I die constantly in FTL but keep playing because one day I'm gonna beat the massive ship at the end. 

I love the customisation of ship upgrades, I love micromanaging the crew, I love the battles. Getting to that final boss is a story and it's one the game lets you craft for yourself. The game is constantly throwing shit at you regardless of which sector you choose on the journey and by the time you reach that boss you've grown accustomed to your crew and have a badass ship. Maybe this is the time you'll win?

1) Transistor

Where do I start? This game wowed me like no other this year. The world of Transistor is mysterious and intriguing. As the game progressed I loved it increasingly so. The idea of computer concepts in the everyday world was great and hooked me on the story() and atmosphere(). 

The gameplay is astounding, the turn based combat and customisable abilities make this feel like a solid strategy game. The idea of having functions that could either be a main() ability or a passive effect on an ability was the mechanic I never knew I wanted until I played it. There are 22,283,705,698,113 possible combinations of abilities. That's amazing! 

The artwork and aesthetic is beautiful and any screenshot from the game could easily be printed and framed. The soundtrack, by Darren Korb, (which is still in my Spotify rotation) adds to the atmosphere perfectly and plays a large role in the overall game. 


So that's it for this year. I hope you all have a great 2015. 


Rob

Thoughts on why "PlayStation loves Indies" and how long it will last.

I've had some thoughts recently on the success of the indie game market and how long it's gonna last.

As an aspiring game developer, it's always reasuring to see more and more smaller games getting the recognition they deserve and getting prominent placement and promotion, via the platform holders, in stores and in the press machine, but the thought crossed my mind "why are big companies doing this? How long will this last? When will the bubble burst?"

My first thought was that they were capitalising on the success of indie games towards the end of the last generation. The market opened up to the mainstream thanks to games like Braid on Xbox Live Arcade. This was a refreshing new trend for people who were tired of the same old brown-palleted shooters and trilogies that were beginning to seem tired towards the end of the generation. Suddenly there was something new and different. When the mainstream paid attention it meant the platform holders also had to take note.

On top of this, towards the end of the the cycle more people had switched to PC for their platform of choice, specifically Steam. There are a multitude of indie games on Steam and when there isn't a major title being released they can hold many of the top slots in the marketplace. Other platforms see this, imagine the percentage of each sale that Valve recieve and think of it as a great return on investment.

Steam already has thousands of games in its library, but one thing that always plauges early adopters of new consoles in the sparse launch library. All the Big AAA games are an E3 away and players are stuck with the 10-20 or so mediocre launch games. What if the library was fleshed out with great games. Games that are tried and tested on steam, that console only gamers have heard of but have never played? What if the amount of games out in the launch period was higher? What if it wasn't bank breaking to get these games on their system?

So far, it all works out for Indie developers, the platform holders are paying attention. But what happens when the triple A games are ready? Will Indie games be cast aside and suddenly it's all about the blockbusters, or does PlayStation really love indies and believe they're for life and not just for Christmas?

I certainly hope so. Not just because I love creating small games but because games like Fez, Spelunky, FTL and Papers Please are some of the greatest game of the last generation. Don't get me wrong, Mass effect was an epic space opera that I enjoyed a lot, but it stuck to conventions and didn't trigger the same feeling that I really enjoy from smaller games. 

Is it up to the platform holders? What happens to the coverage they get when November comes round and all the Tripple A games come out? Will the small games be ignored for the big games that are getting googled? Websites need traffic to survive after all? Will Indie games be for quiet news periods and not for Christmas?

Of course, it's ultimatly possible that the gamer will decide. After all isn't it the consumer that dictates the market? 

EGX Rezzed - Day 2: Awesome games are awesome

EGX Rezzed, day two. What did it have in store?

Roll7's new game, Not A Hero. It's a great 2 1/4D game that introduces typical third person mechanics such as reloading and covering behind objects to a 2D perspective with excellent results.

But it's not all video games here at EGX Rezzed. I'm currently sat on the floor with my back rested against the Leftfield Collection watching a group of people playing pinball. 

The Twitch booth, which is bang centre of the floor has been constantly busy throughout the day. Currently they have yogscast youtubers playing Goat Simulator, much to everyone's amusement.

And when you throw in Fez on the PlayStation 4, Super Exploding Zoo and Worms Battlegrounds, I've seen some excellent stuff today.

Here's some more images from the day:

EGX Rezzed - Day 1: impressions from the show floor

I'm currently sat in the board games area after a long but productive day at Rezzed, enjoying a spot of people watching, digesting all of the games and developer sessions I've seen at EGX Rezzed today. 

The Leftfield Collection in particular has some amazing games. If you're going this weekend, it's definitely worth a look. My personal favourite is forma.8, a particularly beautiful game that's coming to all platforms bar Xbox one. 

You should also check out Team 17's new game Flockers. It reminds of all the best things about Lemmings, a particular childhood favourite of mine.

The general vibe I get from the conference is a great feeling of comradely and embracing the enjoyment of video games. 

Speaking of new games, if you haven't heard already, I'm working on a new game of my own, which 'll be showing at Rezzed after hours if anyone is interested (if so, just grab me at the bar!)

It's Space Fleet, a turn based strategy game, coming soon to iPad. For more on that you can check out http://Ralabaloza.co.uk

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to finish my text adventure for the BBC Micro...

Here's some more images from the show floor.

End of 2013

Well folks. 2013 is over now. I've unfortunately been a bit busy recently to update this blog, I promise that'll change, but here's an update of what's happened since the community update for Puzzle Dungeon went live.

There was a Christmas level pack with 60 more levels, all themed for the season. This brought the total levels to 130, for no extra cost. I decided not to charge for the DLC right from the beginning. Although it doubled the content, there wasn't enough justification for it. Also, if my hunch was right, I'd gain more sales through the promotion of the DLC anyway. My hunch was correct and a surge of sales came my way around release of the DLC and the holidays (with people getting new iPhones I assume).

I also promoted the game with a free weekend after, to coincide with the end of the Steam Winter/Spring sale. Making the game free for the weekend was based on the idea that "Anyone who was gonna buy it, has brought it already" and I thought it'd help with exposure. During the free weekend the game was downloaded to more than double the accounts than had brought the game.

Overall. I'm pleased with how the year ended in that regard. My first venture into working with iOS was more successful that I had imagined, I had a very merry Christmas and spent time with family and friends.

Here's to a successful 2014, for everyone. I'm going to start work on a new project soon. Nothing to say about it yet, but I've got an idea I really wanna try out.

 Happy New Year to you and yours.