Indie Game News: May 2010

First glimpse of the exciting new game from Red27 Studios.

Available June 11th, 2010 on PC, Mac and Linux.

http://www.red27studios.com

Get ready to rock & roll your way down from the tree tops because Jungle Bug Rock and Roll is here!

Buy it on

Features:

Tilt to roll game play.

Story book tutorial.

Crazy Critters like Snatcher, Spinner and Stinky Poison.

6 amazing power ups to collect.

A jungle full of awards.

Bonus glow worms.

Leader boards and so much more!

Try out the Lite version for free!

Jungle Bug Rock and Roll Screenshots

Jungle Bug Rock and Roll Video

Buy it on

Wow... this looks like The Secret of Monkey Island combined with Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds!!

Related Links:

Preview - Jolly Rover!

DropZone Promo Video:

Buy Dropzone on ($0.99)

Message from 2BeeGames:

It's that time of year again.
We're throwing the 2nd Indie Game Contest over at www.2beegames.com
Grand Prize is $10,000 and a publishing deal to console (deal is negotiated after the contest. You keep all rights to your games by entering )
Community favorite wins $5000
Hurry, the submission deadline is OCTOBER 15th.
A few developers from these forums made the top 10 last year! Who will make the cut this time?

What we're really looking for is great indie games who want to get on another platform, needs some help further enhancing the game, etc.

We may discuss publishing deals with some developers even without winning.
PC/MAC games, Flash, and XNA games and maybe some other types are accepted.
Any questions? Shoot me an email or PM.

Game demos and betas are fine.

Sorry this is late, only just saw it:

Press Release - May 06, 2010:

Crack team of indie game developers announce “FREEMAN”

News:

Byron Atkinson-Jones, Dugan Jackson, Rudolf Kremers and Brian Grainger have banded together to develop an exciting new indie game. The game’s working title is “FREEMAN” and it has been in development for several months.

About the game:

Although early days yet there are a number of aspects to the game that can be shared:

Freeman is a celebration of classic Sci-Fi, of science in general and of brave explorers of all kinds
Gameplay is focused on exploration mechanics and a strong sense of discovery and sense of wonder
It is a non-linear, 2d exploration game with strong narrative elements
The game will be very moddable by players and fans

A release is planned sometime in 2011, whenever the team feels the game has reached its intended quality level. The game is being produced and published by Rudolf Kremers’ independent game company Omni Systems, which means that the developers are free to march to their own beat. The focus is therefore squarely on quality and on the game’s development goals.

“Since we are big fans of the Sci-Fi genre we are thrilled to create a homage to classics like “2001 a Space Odyssey” or “Ringworld.”

Rudolf Kremers

About the team:

Freeman is being developed by an eclectic group of indies, namely: Byron Atkinson-Jones (code), Dugan Jackson (art), Rudolf Kremers (design) and Brian Grainger (music). Byron runs his own company Xiotex Studios and has worked on many well known projects, including a stint at Introversion, Dugan is massively experienced as well and has just finished work on Dave Parsons’ Gravity Crash after having made the excellent demake “Rock Boshers”. Brian can’t stop making great records and is responsible for the great music and much of the audio on Eufloria.

Future News:

Follow the game’s progress on its dedicated website at www.freeman-game.com, while its development will be blogged and written about on the individual websites of the Freeman development team members:

Rudolf: www.rudolfkremers.com/blog

Byron: www.xiotexstudios.com

Dugan: www.tikipod.com

Power Of Defense provides a new strategy and defense mix game experience. Defend your world from upoming evil and oil-smelling robots. They come from the platform between both parallel universes you have to fight on by producing own robots to send them back to their native world. You as the last hero on earth and the only one your government could find (and pay), only you can save the world.

Very replayable game levels

13 individual robots

Combine robots to extend strategical possibilities

Play against real clients in multiplayer mode

Upgrade robots to increase their force

Power of Defense Gameplay Video:

More info / demo download / Buy the game

Description:
Race across the terrain in this awesome physics based motocross game. Perform jumps, wheelies, back flips, front flips, and stoppies as you race towards the finish line to get the fastest time.

Features:
- Accelerometer to control the biker, leaning forwards / backwards
- Rag Doll physics
- Realistic physics using the Box2D engine
- Challenging undulating terrains
- 16 Tracks to complete across two gorgeous backdrops
- Ghost bikers to unlock
- Online scores with Openfeint
- Openfeint Achievements to unlock
- Fun and addictive gameplay

Buy Moto X Racer at iTunes

Just to get you all excited about Brawsome's project, here's what you can expect and a screenshot to whet your appetite:

Over 60 beautifully rendered scenes to explore
25 colourful, fully animated and voiced characters
Traditional point and click adventure with simple one-click interface
Organic and fully integrated hint and task tracking system
Unlockable extras include Captain Bio's, concept art, music tracks and directors commentary

If you're a Mac owner, you can pre-order Jolly Rover here.

Jeff Vogel, founder of indie company Spiderweb Software (who most recently released the excellent Avernum VI), has given some words of wisdom that aspiring game designers.

Well, actually he's posted some more today - he'd already given out 3 golden rules of indie publishing. So, here you are:

Three Tips for Getting Started in the Indie Gaming Biz
Three More Tips for Getting Started in the Indie Gaming Biz

Also catching my attention recently was a post on Erin Robinson (PuzzleBots)'s blog recently: Fantasy vs Reality. Very funny, but also quite sobering for people who might think that it's easy to be a successful indie game designer...

Longbow Games has just released Hegemony: Philip of Macedon, a historical RTS wargame based on the conquest of Ancient Greece by Philip II, father of Alexander the Great. Longbow Games is a 6 person indie developer whose been making games since 1998 (half of that time on Hegemony

).

There's a free demo here and you can buy it through our website if you're interested.

Game Trailer:

Lost & Found is a hidden object game in which you help customers find their missing items by locating and piecing together memory fragments. Keep customers happy by finding their favourite objects and use your match 3 skills to create fun and helpful power ups, including Multi Hint, Clarifying Glass and Declutter. With the help of your grateful customers you'll soon restore and decorate your new home.

Lost & Found features :

- Original hidden object gameplay.
- Meet and help out 50 individual customers.
- Repair and decorate your old farmhouse.
- Create fun power ups using your match 3 skills.
- Piece together memory fragments in the bonus jigsaw game.
- Discover the story of the strange old machine's inventor.

Lost & Found Details
Lost & Found Download

__________________
Pi Eye Games

Puzzle Bots is a joint venture between Wadjet Eye Games and Lively Ivy.

The robots are escaping.

There’s a big secret at Dr. Hugo’s Factory for Making Robots. When the inventors aren’t looking, their tiny robots go on big adventures. They never expected to stumble onto a plot so diabolical it threatened their very existence. With lasers.

It all starts when Zander - possibly the world’s most absent-minded inventor - trips over a metal box buried outside the factory. When no-one can figure out how to open it, the robots sneak out and try it for themselves. What they discover is the first step to a grand adventure, leading to a mystery as old as the factory itself.

Join the robots as they outwit mischievous children, curious animals, and dysfunctional inventors in their quest to find the truth. Will the robots solve the mystery before it’s too late?

Find out by visiting Dr. Hugo’s factory yourself!

Price: $14.99

Reviews:

"If you don't like it, YOU'RE A FLIPPING ROBOT!" - Gaming Daily UK

"Puzzle Bots is a game that has been lovingly put together." - Geeks.co.uk

"An incredibly charming adventure, packed with plenty of humor and some deviously clever puzzles."[ - Gamezebo

Screenshots:

A strange device awaits you in the courtyard.

The bots get ready to storm a toy castle.

Nature and technology don't always mix.

What is the mystery at the heart of the factory?

‘Puzzle Bots’ is a light-hearted adventure game guaranteed to put a smile on your face. It’s got quirky characters, laugh-out-loud dialog, and brain-tickling puzzles.

Help the robots save the day - play Puzzle Bots now!

Here are some of the many delights that await you!

* devious and original puzzles
* robots and rayguns
* a geeky love story
* vibrant cartoon graphics
* an evil plot just dying to be foiled!

Gameplay

* Play as 5 different robots, each with their own abilities and quirky personalities
* Help the bots work together as a team to solve puzzles
* Bomb, burn, push and swim your way through 17 intricately designed levels
* Explore the hidden secrets of a crazy robot factory
* Unwittingly meddle in the humans’ lives

For more details on the game (like character info, trailers, and other goodies), please mosey over to the Wadjet Eye Games website.

I've posted my review of indie sports sim Full Ace Tennis on my PC Gaming Blog, so take a look if you're interested.

Existing players and potential buyers alike will be interested to know that the online multiplayer feature of the game is currently in beta testing and should be fully functional soon - so you'll be able to challenge indie gaming tennis fans across the world with your fearsome backhand very soon!

See the press release or the Official Full Ace Tennis Website for more information.

Here we are with a new game. After the huge project that was Lilly and Sasha: Curse of The Immortals, we decided to try something new. This game is made up of a bunch of different ideas we had for games that weren't big enough on their own. You'll do everything from helping some Australians get ready for a barbie to trying to keep the peace between new and old school vampires.

After his father dies in a freak accident, Jack vows to do whatever it takes to bring him back. He begins a journey that will take him through seven different worlds and show him how much of a difference one person can make.

Throughout the journey Jack will find new masks that give him the ability to do things he never thought possible. In order to change history and prevent his father’s tragic death, Jack will need to become the … Jack of All Worlds!

Jack of All Worlds is available to try for free right now and if you like it, the full game is just $4.95.

More Info
Try the demo

Now that Jack of All Worlds is complete, we're shifting our focus to our next big game. I have a feeling it's going to be our best yet. We're going to share a preview of the game very soon.

Indianapolis, IN - May 12, 2010 - Basilisk Games, Inc. today announced that Eschalon: Book II for Windows is now available.

"We are thrilled to announce that the second book in the Eschalon Trilogy is now available for download" said Thomas Riegsecker, Lead Developer of the Eschalon series. "Fans are going to really enjoy the game enhancements and larger world. Book II is a big game!"

Eschalon: Book II is available now for Windows based computers. Basilisk Games will release the Macintosh and Linux versions of the game on May 26th, 2010. Eschalon: Book II for Windows can be purchased directly from the Basilisk Games website, and in the next few weeks from most major digital distribution services.

About Eschalon: Book II

Eschalon: Book II is the sequel to 2007's hit independent role-playing game, Eschalon: Book I. Continue your journey across massive outdoor environments and deep into twisted dungeons as you seek to uncover the mystery of your past and who is behind the menace that threatens all of Eschalon. No experience with the first game is needed to enjoy this second chapter in the Eschalon trilogy. More information on the game and links to the demo and video trailer can be found online at: http://basiliskgames.com/eschalon_book_ii

About Basilisk Games

Founded in 2005, Basilisk Games is an independent game developer located in Indianapolis, Indiana. The company's mission is to produce compelling old-school computer role-playing games for gamers who still remember what great computer RPGs used to be about: "Single-player. Turn-based. Stat heavy. Story driven." Visit Basilisk Games online at: http://basiliskgames.com

Screenshots from Eschalon Book II:

[From the developers]

We're happy to announce the first 2-player crossword-style board game for Android: WordWise Pro. Features asynchronous multiplayer play with up to 100 concurrent games.

We are using Google App Engine as the server, and hope to add support for a wider range of Android devices soon (currently only supports WVGA devices running 2.0 or above). We also plan to release clients for additional platforms, so that, for example, iPhone users can play their friends on Android.

Polyclef Software

I've just had a look at the latest issue of Indie Game Magazine. It's 24 pages long, 2 of which are full-page adverts, covering indie game news, previews, interviews, reviews and competitions. There are several ways to buy, all of which are detailed on the IGM website. I'm not entirely convinced that it's worth the money, but for indie game fans there's definitely some interesting reading here.

The quality of writing was pretty good, but I wasn't too impressed with the layout and design - unjustified text, text too close to images, and some fairly big unfilled gaps here and there. The reviews were short but there were quite a lot of them. I haven't yet read everything so this is only an overall impression; when I've look at it in more detail I'll post again.

You can also get IGM on the iPhone for $0.99 - visit the iTunes page for more details.

Orbs Match is a fun and very addictive game for match-3 lovers!, playing it is very easy: just move the orbs to make matches of 3 or more before the orbs overflow or time runs out.

Features:
- Addictive gameplay
- Colorful graphics
- Great Music and SFX
- 50 challenging levels and more
- 3 Difficulty settings
- Close the game any time and resume later
- Play your iPod music

Buy Orbs Match on iTunes

Hi from HeavyBoat! We are a new born game studio based in Argentina and want to invite you all to stop by our blog and fish for some insights on our game development progress day to day.

Our site
Our development blog

We are developing a management game called "The Moops: Happy Joy Farm" and while we are at it we stay afloat by building flash (social too) games for different clients.

__________________
Juan Becerril
www.heavyboat.com

This game / application's author got a bit annoyed that many quiz apps only had one subject, so they created a quiz app that you can create and share your quizzes with everyone...

Quizicards is the only quiz app you'll ever need as once you have purchased it you can download the quizzes online for FREE...

Quizicards turns any room into a quiz show. The application has two sides, the quizmaster and the contestant; the quizmaster can ask various questions to the audience turning any dinner party, gathering, or bored moment into a fun packed quiz show. Other iphone users can turn their device into a quiz button for the 'buzzer' rounds.

THREE DIFFERENT GAME TYPES:
General: Randomly picks questions from all your installed quizzes
Categories: Allows you to choose various subjects to be quizzed on
Specialist subject: Quizzes you on all the questions on that subject

Up to 6 players can play in one game or you can play solo. Options to have multiple choice or single answers

HOW TO PLAY:
In quizmaster mode (normal) its just like holding a pack of cards in both hands, when the contestant gets a correct answer press the right hand side of the screen and the cards flip to the back of the pack, if the answer in wrong, press the left hand side

CREATE & DOWNLOAD QUIZZES FREE:
You can create quizzes on your device and upload them for the world. You can also download quizzes for FREE. The profile section allows you to add your details, add a photo. Also, for a limited time if you create approved quizzes then you can earn 'real money' (T's & C's apply - see website http://www.quizicards.com for more details)

REMEMBER MY CONTESTANTS:
Whenever you enter a contestant's name for the first time, Quizicards will remember them so future games you can just press the drop down and select any name you've already entered saving time and speeding up the fun!

A WORLD OF QUIZZES IN THE PALM OF YOUR HANDS
Quizicards has over 1000 pre-installed questions split into various categories and there are thousands more already online for you to download. Just a few of the quizzes already online:

* The Solar System
* Cartoons (general)
* Movies (general)
* The Beatles
* Star Trek
* Chelsea FC
* Wines of the World
* Shakespearean Quotes
* When did it happen?
* Herbs & Spices
* Myths & Legends
* Cricket Quickie
* Baseball General
* Key Stage 2 – Science
* The Simpsons
* Star Wars
* Harry Potter
* Friends
* The Human Body
* Superheroes & Villains
* Retro Games

So whether you want to quiz your family, test your knowledge, revise for an exam or learn a foreign language quizicards in the only quiz app you'll ever need.

Buy Quizicards on iTunes

Aldorlea Games (http://www.aldorlea.com) are pleased to announce the release of the newest Aldorlea Game - Ella's Hope.

Click Here to open Ella's Hope Info Page

High in the mountains of Estis an ancient stone marks a portal between mortals and angels. The angels have long since stopped interfering in the matters of the world yet there are a group of select few who watch over the land below as powerful Guardians.

Each year the most promising individuals from across the lands are invited to take part in the Trials - their prize is to become a Candidate for Guardianship, to train amongst the clouds for a chance to join the elite ones.

Yet our story is not focused on those specially invited ones - instead meet Ella, a girl with a mysterious past having been found on the mountainside in a storm just under a year ago and now working as a maid in the local Inn.

This game is the latest release from the company who have brought you Dreamscape, Millennium, Laxius Force, Asguaard, 3 Stars of Destiny and more. Full of adventure, story, developments, choices, alternative endings and all supported by a great cast of characters - can you help Ella and friends on this journey?

Contact:
Website: http://www.aldorlea.com
Community: http://www.aldorlea.org/officialsite/phpBB3/index.php

A new version of Gravity Core is now available from independent developer Suisoft.

GAME BACKGROUND:

An unknown force has taken control of the fledgling mining colony in the Mars Jupiter Asteroid Belt. Earth’s military cruisers are unable to navigate the confines of the asteroids. As the only mining pilot on the outside, that just leaves you!

You must use all your piloting skill to rescue the miners and find a way to defeat the threat!

GAME FEATURES:

• 50+ Levels of intense fighting and daring rescues.

• Take on dynamic, free-roaming adversaries. No battle is ever the same.

• Tear up enemies with plasma, cannon shells, gattling guns, missiles and devastating frag bombs.

• Campaign decisions affect resistance encountered.

• Randomly generated campaigns offer practically infinite replay value.

• Fight side by side in co-operative play.

• Blow each to bits in Player vs Player.

Version 1.52 changes are as follows:

* New: Simplified keyboard and mouse control system.

* New: Resizable HUD / Minimap and more obvious Minimap symbols.

* New: Difficulty level can be adjusted prior to any mission.

* New: Improved display on high resolution screens.

* Reorganisation of difficulty levels.

* Reduced numbers of enemies on Easy / Normal.

* Weaker enemies on lower difficulty levels.

* Less aggressive enemies on lower difficulty levels (speed / firing).

* Refinements to control sensitivity and shield / firing switching.

The latest demo (for PC) is available at: http://www.suisoft.co.uk/gravitycore/

Monday, 31 May 2010

Awesome Soccer World 2010 - Sneak Preview

Friday, 21 May 2010

Jungle Bug Rock and Roll released for iPhone and iPod Touch

Jolly Rover Trailer

Wednesday, 19 May 2010

New iPhone Release - "Drop Zone" bu Utopia Games

Default Indie Game Competition - $15k and possible publishing deals!

Press Release - Freeman

Power Of Defense: Defend your world

Monday, 17 May 2010

New iPhone Release - "Moto X Racer"

Preview - Jolly Rover!

Friday, 14 May 2010

So you want to be an Indie Game Publisher?

New Release: Hegemony Philip of Macedon

Thursday, 13 May 2010

Lost and Found - New Hidden Object Game by Pi Eye games

Puzzle Bots!

Full Ace Tennis - Update

John Wizard Presents: Jack of All Worlds

Wednesday, 12 May 2010

Basilisk Games Announces the Availability of Eschalon: Book II for Windows

WordWise Pro released for Android

New Game Trailer for LIMBO

Tuesday, 11 May 2010

Indie Game Magazine Issue #10

New iPhone Release - "Orbs Match"

HeavyBoat sets sail!

Monday, 10 May 2010

New iPhone Release - "Quizicards"

Aldorlea Games announce the release of Ella's Hope

Saturday, 8 May 2010

Teaser Trailer for Planet Stronghold - game in development by WinterWolves Games

Friday, 7 May 2010

Gravity Core - New Version Available!