I’m purchasing an Xbox Live Indie Game (XBLIG) every day, seeking out the quality titles that got lost in the shuffle and are not well represented in the top 50 lists on the Xbox Dashboard. Today is day #344, and today’s game is “Steam Heroes”.
Not sure how I missed this one, as I continue to pour through the indie games catalogue with the persistance of a creeping barrage, but somehow I did. Steam Heroes takes the gameplay made famous by Puzzle Quest (which was itself an evolution of Bejeweled), and enhances it with real-time battles that give the game a frantic feel, online play, and (most importantly) more variety in enemies and level effects than I’ve seen in a game like this before. You can truly say that the type of challenge you face each level is unique, which keeps the game fresh right through to the end.
First, from the developer (ProjectorGames/Tiamat Games):
“Help three brave adventurers on their quest to stop the diabolical Baron Von Smog’s plot to conquer Steam Land. However, there is an army of evil minions that stand in your way. Challenge yourself in this new puzzle strategy game; includes 12 action-packed stages, a full soundtrack, competitive online play, all in stunning 720p HD Graphics. It’s up to you to save Steam Land!”
Don’t bother waiting for a price drop to 80 Microsoft Points for Steam Heroes, the game is too large to fit into the file size limit for 80 MSP games. As such it sells for 240 points, and is worth absolutely every penny.
Not everyone prefers real-time gameplay over turn-based, but here real-time is an advantage because it the game really gives you an adrenaline rush, and this increases the sense of accomplishment when you beat a level. The 720p graphics are attractive, and the voice acting is good (in a B-movie sort of way). The Xbox Live competitive play increases the replay value, and the full soundtrack gives the game a sense of richness. The fact that you must approach each computer opponent extremely differently really gives you the feeling of getting incredible value for money. This game is an absolute steal at 240 points, seeing as how it’s as good or better than XBLA games that sell for far more.
Writings of Mass Deduction 