Wow. Attention everyone: Proteus is my new favorite game. You may remember this game as Crazy Atari Graphic Style First Person Game from my little shpiel on the PBS video The Creativity of Indie Games. For a preview of this game, watch that video, as there are clips of it throughout. Not to mention a bunch of other games I plan on trying. Proteus is a game I would like to go on and on about. But I would rather you play the game, and come talk to me, and then we can both go on and on about it. For now I'll mention some facts: It is available here, for $10. I suggest you buy it. It plays Mac and PC and Xbox 360 and is available on steam. Here's a picture:
The first impression I had was one of relief when I realized nothing in this game is trying to kill me. It is a first person game, and Jaconian: You will be happy to hear that you can invert the Y axis. Generally, the menus are minimalist, so I am glad they included this little option. The controls can be a little slippery, so I hope it doesn't trigger motion sickness. Here's another pic:
If you go to the website for the game, you can download it. You can also read all sorts of acclaim for Proteus. It's all true, but I think, rather then spending your time reading that, you should just buy it, play it, get your significant other to play it, if you have one. I think you could probably buy this game as a valentines present and get away with it. More pics:
I've put in about two hours, and I'd like to put in some more. I want to also mention that this game does an excellent job of mixing the music, sounds and graphics together. If I had to sum up the effect in one word it would be: Pleasant. I think this game might be a really good winter time game, and there's not much winter time left, so download it now. Thanks. And you're welcome! -D
I took this list from the information section on this youtube video: The Creativity of Indie Games from the pbs youtube channel. I hope they don't get mad at my for lifting the list, and I hope I'm citing it appropriately. I've made notes on each game, mostly the operating system(s) the game is available for, and occasionally price and miscellaneous comments. I've marked when a game is available on steam, though technically that is not an operating system. There has been talk of a steam console: Piston. I write a little bit about the accompanying video in my previous post.
Sometimes I slip into an incorrect assumption: that Indie games are universally accessible to anyone with a computer, regardless of operating system. This is not so, as there are definitely games, such as Journey, which are console-exclusive. This has been frustrating for me, so I'm going to write a post about it, to work on the subject a bit, so that I can be better prepared and to avoid disappointment in the future. To start off with, here's a nice little 7-minute mishmash of indie game promotion supported by some design theory:
I went through this video with a few thoughts. One: Wow, look at all those rad games, I can't keep them all straight! Two: Wow, look at that crazy atari-graphic style first person game? What's it called? I really want to play that game! Three: Wow, I'm overwhelmed. Fourth: Oh, that bird jumping game looks fun! I want to play that. What's it called? Jaconian tells me that the bird jumping game is called Tiny Wings, and Conkelderp has it on her ipoodle. Google, Google, Google...And I found out it was only available on Apple products :P So this proprietary platform thing happens between handhelds and game consoles vs PC. Not to mention Linux/Windows/Mac. With big-budget games and little productions as well. So, it's the Return of the Console Wars. I guess they never really left. Truly, it's my own return to the Console Wars. After some time spent away from gaming, as my re-interest in gaming grows, I realize that I am limited by platform. Not to mention time and money. I would like also to mention that in the description portion of the above youtube video, there are dozens of games listed (all those featured in the video). So many that it may be overwhelming. In my next post I will be copying and posting that list, with a brief mention of which platforms each game is available for. And, over the following months, I will be plundering this list for games to play and to talk about. Special attention to free games and demos, of course.
-D
This video was originally shown to me by none other than JP Bruneau. Read the TV Tropes breakdown of the Console Wars for a great overview of the subject.
