The Top 10 Games of 2014 (So Far)

Written By: Tyler

We're a little past the middle of the year, and I love "Top 10" lists, so I think now is a good time to give a quick rundown of my favourite games of 2014 so far. Let's get right to it.

10: Earth Defense Force 2025 - I'm a little disappointed with Earth Defense Force 2025 because in a few ways they've improved the experience, but then they've dampened it in a few ways as well. They've improved classes like the Diver (jet pack), and they have some neat other classes, but I feel like one of them is broken and the other wouldn't be any fun unless you're with someone. Still, it's the same Earth Defense Force that I know and love, so it has to be on there because it's just mindless fun.


9: Jazzpunk - Jazzpunk is a parody/homage/satire of the spy genre, and it's one of the funniest games I've played in the past ten years... and it's one of the funniest of the year. It's a joy to see how silly everything is in this game.


8: Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze - Even though I've always enjoyed Donkey Kong Country, it's not a series that I get excited for when a new game is announced, especially when I feel like the developer should have made a new IP or just done another Metroid. But despite all that, Donkey Kong Country follows a familiar formula but it's an awesome platformer.


7: South Park: The Stick of Truth - It'd be easy for South Park to just rip on the role-playing genre, and it certainly does that, but it embraces the genre at the same time. It's a solid, though pretty linear (as if a linear game is bad), and has solid game mechanics. If you don't like South Park you won't like it as much, but I love the show, and I feel like that should go without saying. Obviously the humour of South Park is the main draw, but even if you took it away there'd be a pretty decent RPG here.


6: The Floor is Jelly - The Floor is Jelly uses a bunch of different tricks to keep the platforming fresh, and it has a beautiful soundtrack by Disasterpeace, who should be indie video game music royalty by now. The ending also caught me off-guard in the best way possible.


5: Charge! - At the beginning of the year I was disappointed by a Jake Clover game, but then I played this later on and it reminded me why I love the game. It isn't much, but it's a lot of fun. It's essentially just a repetitive run-and-gun shooter but it's surreal and uses an excellent song by Jack King-Spooner really well.


4: Mario Kart 8 - I have a few beefs with the way they handle online and the Battle Mode is ass, but it has a good amount of re-worked old tracks and brand new ones. The driving is Mario Kart at its best, especially when you consider how nuts some of the tracks are.


3: Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes - If this was The Phantom Pain, I have no doubt that this would be number one -- I can already call my game of 2015. Since this is so short and is more of a teaser than anything, I dropped it down a point and only gave it a 9. The gameplay is awesome and dynamic, and I can tell from the limited experience that The Phantom Pain will be awesome... but it's hard to shake the feeling that this is an overpriced demo.


2: Sluggish Morss: Ad Infinitum - Jack King-Spooner released the third game in the Sluggish Morss trilogy -- a series full of surreal and odd social commentary -- and it's a doozy. It's easily the best entry in the trilogy, and while I still feel like it would do him well to add some real gameplay (not just walking around), it's one of the best games of the year due to the style, visuals and the story.


1: Diablo 3: Reaper of Souls - I'm considering an expansion a game, especially since this, and the update before it was released, re-works the Diablo 3 experience drastically. Diablo 3 was a good, even great, game with a bunch of flaws, but Reaper of Souls fixes pretty much all of them but one. The only flaw I think the game still has is the level system, but they'd have to do a complete overhaul to fix that anyway. The new act that they added was incredible, the music actually sticks out and is one of the best soundtracks of the year, and the new Adventure Mode adds a lot of replay value. Reaper of Souls made me go back to a game that I already put over a hundred hours into.

This Week In Games, July 6 - July 12, 2014

Written By: Tyler

Welcome again to another edition of the cleverly titled, "This Week In Games." If you can't tell by the title, each week I tell you what movies are coming out. I check the release dates according to Gamespot and the "video games in 2014" page on Wikipedia to get my games, so blame them if the dates are wrong. I refuse to take any accountability for my actions.

These are only North American release dates because that's where I'm from and I try to keep it to new releases as opposed to games that are just getting ported, unless I feel they're a big game. I have rules that I probably consistently break, but oh well.

A final note is that it's not every game released in North America: it's only games that I think are of interest, whether that's because they're a huge release (even if I don't care) or if they're games I'm interested in myself. Let's get to it.


July 8

The Wolf Among Us Episode 5 - Cry Wolf

Coming Out For: PC, PS3, Xbox 360 (July 9), iOS (July 10)
Genre: Adventure
Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=umw8QPW5tiw

I actually forgot to play Episode 4 so I have to catch up, but I will say this... from my experience this has been an excellent series with a great story. I always criticize the lack of gameplay because I'm not real into these games where you mostly watch, but to its credit, it does allow you to make quite a few choices in conversation and when you're fighting someone. But anybody who is into this type of thing, this is a must-play because really, it has been a suspenseful thrill ride so far.



One Piece: Unlimited World Red

Coming Out For: 3DS, Vita, PS3, Wii U
Genre: Action-RPG
Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uohkYxCcgvQ

Truthfully I'm probably not the best one to sell you on this, because I know zilch about the One Piece manga and anime, but I will try purely from a game-fan perspective. This is an action-RPG from the looks of things where you have real-time battles and you can catch bugs and go fishing. It looks like there's some decent freedom when you're walking around too, since you can grapple hook your way up to places and whatnot. It doesn't look like anything original, but it looks like a nice blend of some cool things, and if I didn't have Episodes 4 and 5 of the Wolf Among Us to go through, while also being knee deep in Divinity: Original Sin (review coming at some point), then I'd probably give this a go.



Mousecraft

Coming Out For: PS4, PS3, PC, PS Vita, Linux, Mac
Genre: Puzzle
Gameplay: http://www.gametrailers.com/videos/d4lal6/mousecraft-debut-trailer

Want something cheesy? This may be the game for you. Basically what you do is help your mice get cheese by moving blocks to allow them to proceed. The game is described as Tetris meets Lemmings, and that sounds about right.



July 9

The Escapists

Coming Out For: PC

Genre: Action/Adventure

Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wpF3LFlXgSc#t=25

Unfortunately this is only hitting Early Access July 9, and I don't think I'll make a habit out of including Early Access games in this feature (because I don't like including unfinished games), but The Escapists looks fascinating, and when I know there's a really interesting game hitting Early Access I'll include it. Think of all the great prison-break movies that you've seen... now think about playing in them, only with pixel graphics and no Morgan Freeman. The Escapists sets you in a prison and you have to escape. There's a reputation system where the cons will react differently to you depending on what you do, a crafting system because every game needs one since Minecraft (just a joke), light RPG elements and apparently gang warfare. Count me in, honestly, because this game seems neat.






July 10


The Red Solstice

Coming Out For: PC

Genre: Action/Shooter

Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt1c8AayNhY

The Red Solstice is a top-down shooter where you choose from 8 different classes and fight hordes of monsters, whether in a single-player story mode or with 7 friends in the co-op mode. The levels are randomized and resources aren't unlimited, so each playthrough will be different and you have to manage your ammunition or y'know, you will die. I'm always up for a top-down shooter because we don't get AAA versions of these types of games anymore and they're one of the genres I grew up with.




July 11


Terraria

  Coming Out For: PS3

Genre: Action/Adventure/Platformer/Builder

Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGo7iMUcxLc

I guess Terraria isn't out for every system yet? Like Minecraft, it appears that we get a port every few weeks. That isn't a criticism because it's a good thing. I played it on PC and it's a great game with a little more focus on combat and exploration than Minecraft. If you are into mining and building things, then this is the game for you because it is seriously awesome.

On a final note regarding Terraria, it has a perfect main theme. It's so dinky but makes me want to explore and dig for hours.



Any games coming this week that I missed that you are into? Yell at me on Twitter @ArtBathednCrime or just leave a comment in the comment box below. Thanks for reading!

Kickstarter Games That Deserve Funding Volume 1 - InSomnia, The Deer God and Midora

Written By: Tyler

We live in an age of Kickstarter now, where developers flock to the website and go directly to the gamers to fund their passion projects. Whether this is a good system is hotly contested among gamers, but I thought it'd be interesting to make a feature where I talk about a few games that seem interesting and deserving of your hard-earned (or easily-earned, no judgement) money.

For any of these, it's smartest to go to the Kickstarter page and see a detailed description of their project right from the people making it, but I will use this opportunity to sell you on the game enough that you'll want to click the links.


Midora
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1867607597/midora-0?ref=category

Midora is a throwback to games like Zelda and Secret of Mana. Though I'm not a huge Zelda fan in general, I'm big into Secret of Mana. I'll just let them describe the story:

Midora is a colorful world, crafted by an ancient architect with the elements as his tools. For an eternity after this creation, those elements populated the world, fashioning cultures and kingdoms all their own. They contested each other for land and prestige, and when the world was finally overwhelmed by the strife, the architect came back down to seal the elements away, preserving the world for its lesser inhabitants.

  This harmony lasted for centuries, until even the eldest tribes had only vague memories of the conflict and its participants. The town of Seawind will be the first to remember the Inferno in earnest.
 
  Enter Snow, the lead character of this adventure. A young girl growing up on the edge of Seawind, she embarks on what starts as just a simple chore, only to uncover the catalyst in a war as old as the world she lives in. On her journey, she will encounter help and obstacles in various forms. Elderly town matrons, kings, long extinct races, burly blacksmiths, and the living elements themselves will play a role in Midora's newest story, but it falls to Snow herself to see it to the end.

The main gameplay mechanic is that you can control water. At the beginning you will be weak, obviously, but as the game progresses you will become a lot better at it. I like the idea of being able to manipulate water.

Besides that, it is an action-adventure game like we've seen before but that doesn't mean it's bad. There are no levels but your sword and shield have their own levels, and there will be little stealth elements that allow you to do critical damage.

There is also over 200+ items to get, along with 12 dungeons and 6 towns to go to. Of course, there will also be secret areas that you can find. You can use alchemy to create your own items, or just find them.

It does seem to truly blend together elements from the two main games that influence it, and that's definitely a good thing.



InSomnia
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1892480689/insomnia-an-rpg-set-in-a-brutal-dieselpunk-univers?ref=nav_search

InSomnia is a dieselpunk RPG set on "The Ark" which is basically a gigantic half-deserted space station populated by the race known as "Normans" in which you are a part of. You wake up on "The Ark" only to find that is moving to a planet only known as "The Evacuation Point," in order to start over because the "SORG Regime" are a bunch of pricks, basically.

So why is it interesting? Because it's a dieselpunk RPG, mainly. No, there's actually a lot going on here of interesting, namely:

• No leveling system but instead the game opts for a more Elder Scrolls approach where you use abilities and they get more powerful. There are perks and whatnot as well, but this is a system that is a welcome break from what we normally get (not that I hate levels because I certainly don't).
• 15-20 hours of main storyline with 20+ hours of side-quests. That's not the cool part. The cool part is that that is only the first season and there will be 20 free missions released post-release at some point.
• Did I mention that it's dieselpunk?
• Strategic real-time combat.
• You can also play with friends if you're unlike me and actually have some.
• Not only do you have to fight enemies, but there's a survival element (along with crafting). I'm a little concerned/curious about how the survival elements will co-exist with the sandbox elements because it could possibly get annoying to traverse the land while managing your food. I'm not trash talking the game, but it is literally the only gripe I have and it's not even a very big one considering the developers seem ambitious and I'm sure they'll make it work.

Those are only some of the things to look forward to in this game.

The bottom line is that if the developers can live up to their promises then it should be another great RPG to add to the already excellent canon of the genre. The planned release date isn't for a ways off, however, as it's planned for Q 2015 for PC with Mac and Linux a possibility later on.



The Deer God
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1907053239/the-deer-god-a-game-of-reincarnation-pc-mac-linux?ref=discovery

From dark and depressing to beautiful and majestic, here is The Deer God, a game in which you play as a fawn who was originally a human. Yes, the hunter gets reincarnated as a fawn. You will be a fawn until you gain experience and eat food. You can also apparently made with does.

The Deer God looks like one of those types of games that you will play and be in awe of how beautiful it is. If that sounded too poetic, then let me put it in internet meme form: you will get dem feels. A lot of games use pixel art, but a lot of them fall prey to getting by just on nostalgia. The Deer God does not look like that at all... it looks like a wonderfully crafted world that is full of life and populated by a lot of animals.

The developers say they are influenced by "Metroid, Zelda, Blaster Master, Kid Icarus, Ecco The Dolphin, Joust," and I'm down with all of those games that I've played, but especially Metroid and Blaster Master, which they bolded on their Kickstarter. They are also influenced by that pesky "outdoors" thing that I always hear about.

I know I haven't talked as much about the individual gameplay aspects as I did with InSomnia, but it really does look like it'll be fun to plat form and explore this world. You have to survive and grow into an elder deer (they say there isn't really an end, but there are things like that to make you feel like you've accomplished something), and you have to solve puzzles.

Just watch the video on their Kickstarter page and be inspired by the visuals and atmosphere. Then listen to some of the sample tracks because they've stated that music will be a big part in the game and I believe it.

11 Video Game Developers/Companies That Canadians Can Be Proud Of

Written By: Tyler

It's Canada Day here in Canada, so instead of going out and partying like every other single person in my country, I've decided to write a blog article that talks about a bunch of video game companies/developers that Canadians can be proud of. To come up with this list, I went through Wikipedia (I know, very professional) and am using the information from that site.

These are all companies either founded in Canada, by Canadians, or they have their main headquarters in Canada.



11: Tribute Games - Founded in 2011 by Ex-Ubisoft employees, they haven't developed many games as Tribute Games so that's why they are only eleven on this list. However, the one game I played by them -- Mercenary Kings -- is a wonderful, original take on the classic run and gun/side-scrolling shooter that gamers my age grew up on.



10: Radical Entertainment - Vancouver has been described as "the backbone of the Canadian video game industry," and Radical Entertainment was the leader of the pack, so despite the fact that I haven't actually played many of their games I had to throw them on here because they are literally a massive part of gaming culture in Canada.

Unfortunately Prototype 1 and 2 didn't find as much of an audience as they had hoped (they're solid games), and this was the nail in the coffin for them. Since then, they've been doing support work on Activision Blizzard games, but they will no longer have any original games that they create by themselves.



9: Relic Entertainment - Here's a company that is important due to the quality of their games within the strategy genre, but also a company that I haven't actually experienced. They've made games such as Homeworld, Company of Heroes 1 and 2, and a bunch of Warhammer games. Within that realm, they are giants, so they are included in this list because I know people love some of those games.



8: Ubisoft Toronto - I'm probably jumping the gun a bit with this one, but I have to give them some respect anyway because of the potential that the future holds for this offshoot of Ubisoft. They've only technically made one game -- Splinter Cell: Blacklist -- but they have two massive titles in the works: Far Cry 4, which I know will be awesome and Assassin's Creed: Unity, which is the first Assassin's Creed game to have co-op and consequently the first game in the series to have me excited. Plus let's be honest, it has Jade Raymond at the helm.



7: Klei Entertainment - I have yet to play Don't Starve, but I've played Shank 2 and I absolutely love Mark of the Ninja, so Klei Entertainment gets put on the list. Their games are stylish, always beautiful and with Mark of the Ninja they actually made a great 2D stealth game. I also look forward to Invisible, Inc. which is the game that they're working on now.



6: Capybara Games - Like a lot of people, I would imagine, my first experience with Capybara Games is with the excellent Superbrothers: Sword and Sworcery, which is my favourite mobile game of all-time as of writing this. I really want to play Super Time Force because it looks like a great take on manipulating time, wrapped up in an old-school style, but unfortunately I don't have the means to get it. Below is shaping up to be another solid entry in their catalogue, but I'll always remember the first time I played Sword and Sworcery.

Superbrothers also get respect because they co-developed Sword and Sworcery, so major props to them as well.



5: Eidos Montreal - Eidos Montreal is like Tribute Games for me, only they resurrected a franchise that's near and dear to a lot of gamers: Deus Ex. Even though they've only released a few games, and their treatment of Thief was only a little above mediocre, they will get love from me for the work they did on Deus Ex: Human Revolution. They also released a mobile Deus Ex game that apparently doesn't suck.

So even though there's only been one game I love by them, it's a doozy. The sky is the limit for Eidos Montreal.


4: Silicon Knights - Though I don't actually know if they're defunct or not at this point, and they released a stinker in Too Human (despite the ambition), I don't feel like Silicon Knights gets the credit they deserve. They re-imagining of Metal Gear Solid for the Gamecube wasn't better than the original, but even as a staunch Metal Gear fanatic, I appreciated the zany, over-the-top (even by Metal Gear standards) cutscenes that Silicon Knights created.

Sure, Metal Gear Solid: The Twin Snakes was pretty good and Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain was also a lot of fun, those two games aren't what define Silicon Knights for me. In 2002, they released a horror game that was quietly one of the best games that the Gamecube ever saw: Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem. It was a truly scary game that messed with your mind greatly, and it is their crowning achievement.



3: Rockstar Toronto - In 2012, Rockstar Vancouver merged with Toronto. Combined, they have either created or collaborated with other studios to bring us games like Bully, Grand Theft Auto 4 and 5 and Max Payne. Upon researching this list, I figured out that they have more collaborations on their record than a rapper.



2: Ubisoft Montreal - They're a giant gaming studio, and they've brought us games like Prince of Persia, Assassin's Creed, Splinter Cell and Far Cry. Just this year they've released Child of Light and Watch Dogs, which were both great games, even if one of them (ahem Watch Dogs) was too overhyped for its own good.

It doesn't look like they're stopping anytime soon, because the future looks bright. They're collaborating with Ubisoft Toronto -- and some other companies -- to bring us Far Cry 4 and Assassin's Creed Unity, but they are also working on Rainbow Six: Siege... a game that impressed many, including myself, at E3 this year.



1: Bioware -- Bioware are owned by an American company now, but they were founded in Alberta in 1995. To a lot of people, Bioware are the kings and queens of the RPG. They have a list of conquests bigger than the Lindsey Lohan sex list:

1. Baldur's Gate series
2. Neverwinter Nights
3. Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic series
4. Mass Effect series
5. Dragon Age series
6. Star Wars: The Old Republic
7. Jade Empire
8. MDK2 (I didn't like the Dreamcast controls but the game was awesome in every other way)

If you're into computer RPGs, then chances are Bioware is one of your favourite companies. They stand tall with companies like Obsidian Entertainment and Black Isle Studios. They make deep games, and their RPGs are often defined by choice. 



Did I miss anything? Am I a terrible Canadian? Let me know in the comments below or you can always reach me directly on Twitter @ArtBathednCrime. Thanks for reading and I will see you next time.

This Week In Games, June 29 - July 5, 2014

Written By: Tyler

Hello and welcome to another edition of "This Week In Games," a weekly feature where every Sunday or Monday I give a quick preview of some of the games releasing this week that are of interest to me in a good or bad way.


June 30

Divinity: Original Sin

Coming Out For: Windows, Linux
Genre: Role-playing
Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDaYWfqJD3g

This is the big release of the week for me, and it's strange because I didn't know anything about it and I only played Divine Divinity briefly years ago... so I'm not a series fan. However, this prequel to that looks incredible.

It looks like a dense (as the gameplay video says) RPG, with a neat robbery system that actually affects your reputation if you get caught. You can cause a distraction with one character by talking to somebody and then use another to steal. The crafting seems simplistic but it appears that there are a lot of things you can craft. The combat is turn-based but I like the idea of your action points carrying over to the next turn so you can have a big turn. It looks like there's a lot of variety in your attacks.

The leveling system looks like it has depth, with the different perks you can put points into and all the other things that you can level up, and there's a lot of story to read and things to do. My only complaint from what I know is that there isn't a marker telling you where to go so questing will be extremely difficult. NPCs will tell you, but then you have to remember. There is a dialogue diary but it looks like it's hard to filter through.

If you're playing co-op, you can make decisions together and depending on how you interact with your partner your stats will be affected.

There's also an RPG kit to make your own adventures! The game isn't even full-priced but looks huge. $40 on Steam.


July 1

Guacamelee! Super Turbo Championship Edition 

Coming Out For: PS4 (July 1), Xbox 360 (July 2), Xbone (July 2), Wii U (July 2)
Genre: Platformer
Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nVQbAtAQzj8

Guacamelee! sees its debut on the systems listed above in an enhanced edition. I'm not really sure why I never played the game because I love luchador wrestling, and the game is zany and colourful. I reckon now is probably a good time to try it out, and if you have Xbox Live Gold it is the free Games With Gold for July, so pick it up.



Child Of Light

Coming Out For: PS Vita
Genre: Role-playing
Gameplay: http://ca.ign.com/videos/2014/05/20/child-of-light-psvita-trailer

I really enjoyed Child of Light because JRPGs are where my heart is. They're my roots.

You can fly around in this game, which is different, and the turn-based combat has a spin on it with the fact you can use your companion to slow down enemies and just generally interact with things. The story is told entirely in rhyme, and the visual style is gorgeous. It looks like the Vita version hasn't suffered so if you haven't played Child of Light, here is another chance to do so.



Sniper Elite 3

Coming Out For: PS3, PS4, X360, XboneGenre: Third-Person Shooter

Gameplay: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J1yg9jffjxI

It's already out on PC, but it sees its console release. Here's what I said about the PC version.

This one doesn't interest me at all, and since I don't get paid to do reviews I'm not sure if I'll get around to this one or not. It's not that it looks terrible, but it doesn't look like it brings anything to the table that we can't get a million other places. The kill-cam idea doesn't really make me feel like I'm seeing the damage I'm doing, it just seems annoying, and the action looks okay but there are so many shooters it just doesn't stand out.

Resisting The Urge To Dig Myself A Grave With A Shovel Joke (Dammit) -- A Shovel Knight Review

Written By: Tyler
Platforms Available On: PC, Wii U, 3DS
Platform Played On: Wii U

The first of many badass encounters.

Rating: 9/10
Verdict: A love letter to the past, but also a game that forges its own identity, Shovel Knight is an 8-bit inspired platformer that reaches beyond its humble roots and gives us a game that mentions the past but doesn't rely or get lost in it.


Releasing games inspired by the classics of the 8-bit era isn't anything new within the indie community. The indie scene is flooded with nostalgia, and you can't go five seconds without tripping over something that harkens back to the past. Shovel Knight is no different in that regard, being a game that is very much entrenched in the days of yore, but not trapped in them.

Let's just get this out of the way, because this is what you're here for: Shovel Knight is awesome. There will probably be very few games this year that bring me greater joy than this unassuming little platformer about a knight with a shovel who is trying to save Shield Knight from the evil Enchantress. Mario, yes, but that's not where it ends. The levels look like Mega Man, you can use your shovel and bounce off enemies and objects like in Duck Hunt. The world map is ripped right from Mario 3. The references are numerous, but like I said in the first paragraph... Shovel Knight owes to them but isn't defined by them.

Despite how obvious the influences are, the game forges its own path ultimately, and that's something a lot of indie games lack when calling to the past. It's one thing to make us go "aha" when we spot a reference, but that overstays its welcome. The better route is to make us go "aha" but then follow that up with making us go "wow" because the game has its own identity.

Shovel Knight has simplistic controls. Use a button to jump and another to swing your shovel. Press down while you're in the air and you can use it as a pogo stick. Press up and the attack button and you use your spell. If you're playing on Wii U you can either press a button to call up your inventory or use the screen on the gamepad, which is what I do. That's about it, but the game doesn't need anymore because the foundation is so solid, the levels so well-designed, that what might appear as a limitation these days is a strength. You don't get bogged down at any point.

All games need clever world/level/stage design, but platformers need it more than most genres, and Shovel Knight has it in spades. Every level has its own motif, whether it's something a little more trippy, or it being dark with only lightning lighting the way, or a level that uses air in interesting and dynamic ways, the game is always throwing something new at you.

Enemies are placed in interesting areas, and if you're not careful you might jump over to a ledge only to get hit off because that particular enemy is placed for that sole reason... the game assumes you'll get careless and make that jump without thinking, and a lot of people probably will. There are times that your platforming skills are truly tested, as the game consistently throws new types of jumps at you. The game is hard, but -- to the dismay of some retro-gamers -- it's not impossibly hard, which I'm completely fine with. I had a nice challenge throughout the whole thing.

Each stage ends with a boss, of course, and like the rest of the game there's a lot of variety to them. Since all the characters are knights with different specialties, such as the Tinker Knight, Specter Knight, Polar Knight, etc, they all have their own method of attacking and you have to adapt to that. The battles are fast, and if you sit back they will probably eat you up. I tended to lose on the first fight but won on the second more often than not. 

I have a confession, and yes I've chosen until the middle of the review to say this: I actually am glad we've moved on from the past in a few ways. Namely, I hate redoing levels over and over just because I died. I welcome checkpoints. I did my time, so now once I beat a section I beat it and I don't want to go back until my next playthrough. Shovel Knight has a bunch of checkpoints throughout each level, and each time you die you lose money where you died and you can go back and collect it. This is an interesting play on what we know and love.

Part of the identity of the levels is the excellent soundtrack. Each level has its own, and the soundtrack itself has 48 songs. All of which are great. As I write this review I am listening to it, and each song fits the mood of the stage, transporting you into that world with its usage of chiptune. Yeah, it's another homage to the 8-bit era, but it's extremely well composed with a variety of different moods and atmosphere. Some of it is victorious, some of it is darker, some of it sounds incredibly urgent.

You don't level up in the game, but you can buy different spells such as a fireball, a green orb that bounces around, a powerful blast, and much more. There's a good variety of spells in Shovel Knight, especially when you consider that it's not an incredibly long game. More on that in a second.

You can also spend your money on giving yourself more life, upgrading your shovel with a few different abilities like an homage to Zelda where your shovel shoots something across the ground when you have full life. There are also a bunch of armor upgrades, all of which with their pros and cons, except for the gold armor which I don't think really changes your stats but makes you do a flip when you jump. Plus you look stylish and that's all I really want.

As of writing this review, the game is $15 and I feel like I got every penny nickel worth. I completed the game in roughly five and a half hours but I didn't get everything. Besides the main stages, there are side stages and side boss battles, along with the many dream sequences in which you fight enemies until the Shield Knight drops and you catch her. I don't know why I love this so much, but I think the numerous campfire scenes add to the experience. It's a nice touch. There's also a new game plus after you beat the game, which allows you to keep your old equipment but ups the difficulty.

Shovel Knight is special. It's one of the best platformers of the last ten years, at least, and it's a good price. If you're looking for a retro-inspired game that offers more than just nostalgia, then pick up Shovel Knight because while it does have the novelty of you playing as a knight with a shovel, it has an abundance of excellent level-design, lovable characters, great boss battles and amazing music.

Let's Play Death of the Augnob -- Squishy, squishy

Written By: Tyler

Hello everybody. This is my first actual Let's Play that I've done since this blog started (I've done a machinima with Goat Simulator), and I've chosen an indie game called Death of the Augnob... which was created by the wonderful Jake Clover.


http://youtu.be/cigIqK6PKu8