Pixels from the past: R.C. Pro-Am

June 2, 2009, 0 comments

R.C. Pro-Am

What to do about the relative lack of decent browser-based racing games? Either sit and shake your head ruefully until it falls off. Or play R.C. Pro-Am — the 1988 NES game from Banjo-Tooie boys Rare that’s still one of the best racers in racertown. Race surprisingly fast for 20-year-old technology! Skid around with satisfying just-rightness! Aim rockets at dastardly cheat-happy rival racers! And realise that with that happy little between-circuit screen of medals and cups, Rare invented Achievements about 2 decades before the fates intended. Play R.C. Pro-Am (in-browser, Java)

Tokimeki Kikoriaru

June 1, 2009, 0 comments

Tokimeki KikoriaruLooks like I picked the wrong week to give up silly microgames. Yoshio Ishii’s Tokimeki Kikoriaru lasts approximately three-and-a-half seconds. But I can’t help but love the little thing. That’s about all I can say. Viel Spaβ, as they say in Germany. Play Tokimeki Kikoriaru (Flash)

The Chaser

May 31, 2009, 2 comments

The ChaserWhat exactly is The Chaser all about? Creator Conor Carpenter fashioned it from brain and fingers in just 12 hours, and claims it’s designed to “induce a state of mind and mood”. Here’s how it does it: by making you chase some poor dude through a forest, seemingly forever. It’s tougher than it looks — as the speed ramps up, one carelessly-strewn rock can send you spinning like a dog in tail-chase mode. And it’s weirder than it looks — why does the chasee occasionally grow to about ten times his normal size, and why do clouds suddenly start appearing on the ground? The Chaser is simple, compelling — and comes with music you’ll be humming in your grave. Play The Chaser (Windows download)

Update: oh, it’s one of those games.

A Shot In The Dark

May 28, 2009, 2 comments

A Shot In The DarkSo what if I told you that a game you have no control over — a game that is essentially entirely random and isn’t even a proper game dammit — is one of the funniest things you’ll play this week? A Shot In The Dark by Uncommon, part of Castle Paradox’s laudable Terrible Games Contest 2009*, is just brilliant. You press left Shift or right Shift to ‘choose’ the course of ten characters’ lives — but the game basically ignores you and throws out whichever ending it likes. This is what all videogames will be like when the sentient AI has enslaved us all. Thanks to the randomness — and the superb writing — this is one game you will genuinely WANT to play over and over again. Gogogo. Play A Shot In The Dark (Windows download)

* and you really should get over there and download these so-called ‘terrible’ games, because surprise surprise they ain’t that terrible at all if you take them in the correct spirit. Which is that they’re, er, terrible. OOOH PARADOX.

3 games from Andrew Brophy

May 27, 2009, 1 comment

Andrew Brophy has released three games in one go — which means to find time to play them all through in one day, I’ve had to give up sleep, naptime, mid-afternoon naptime and late evening snooze. You’ll understand if I’m a bit crabby.

3 games from Andrew Brodny 1 Back To The Laboratory. Dodge your pet monkey’s flailing fists — while protecting those very same fists from the evil army fighter jets. The anguish! Below-average shooter, but 10/10 for the monkey drawing. His spiralling eyeballs will haunt you in your sleep for decades to come.

2 Takishawa Is Dead! A visually appealing 3D platformer, ostensibly about the search for the eponymous Takishawa. Mainly notable for having to wait 30+ seconds for your hero to very slowly descend to the first level, which is right up there with the queue at the post office on my Fun-Time Things list. Other than that, Takishawa Is Dead! is strangely alluring stuff, despite its obvious simplicity and insistence that this time, buster, you’re gonna be the cameraman.

3 Sworrd Buster. Andrew, I like this one, I really do. But. You grab the sword, you wave the sword, you shoot astonishingly pretty laser death from the sword… what’s not to like? Answer: INVISIBLE BOUNDARIES THAT MAKE PLAYING IMPOSSIBLE. Tch. Perhaps you’re supposed to stay near to that ‘base’ at the bottom of the level? I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt: those rainbow lasers really have put my eyes in a very good mood.

Play Back To The Laboratory, Takishawa Is Dead! and Sworrd Buster (Windows download)