Writings of Mass Deduction

I’m purchasing an Xbox Live Indie Game every day, seeking out the quality titles that got lost in the shuffle and no longer appear in the top 50 downloads. Today is day #67, and today’s game is “Halfbrick Echoes”.

From the developer:

“Race to collect crystals while dodging the Echoes shadowing your footsteps in this innovative, seat-of-your-pants arcade game. Try the blend of action and strategy in Arcade Mode, the tense maneuvering of Clockwork Mode, the frenetic pace of Survival Mode or challenge a friend to an intense Duel Match. With dozens of surreal levels across seven unique gameplay modes, theres plenty for everyone.”

In Halfbrick Echoes, you have to move around the playfield collecting crystals. Simple enough right? Well, you have to avoid your “echoes” (think a ghost car in a racing game that’s mimicking your moves from a previous lap). Each gem you pick up triggers another echo, leading to a growing number of them as you play each level… and contact with an echo means instant death.

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I’m purchasing an Xbox Live Indie Game every day, seeking out the quality titles that got lost in the shuffle and no longer appear in the top 50 downloads. Today is day #64, and today’s game is “BlindGiRl”.

This is, of all things, a puzzle game based on wave propagation. BlindGiRl was an entry in Microsoft’s 2010 DreamBuildPlay contest. It’s an intriquing concept that’s at times difficult to describe, but it’s one of the most innovative games I’ve ever played. The fact that it costs only 80 Microsoft Points is a bonus, I would have happily paid more. The game seeks to (more…)

I’m purchasing an Xbox Live Indie Game every day, seeking out the quality titles that got lost in the shuffle and no longer appear in the top 50 downloads. Today is day #39, and today’s game is “FallDown”.

FallDown is an indie hit on LAN PCs and iOS devices that’s made its way to the Xbox Indie Games channel. When I first booted the game up I did was I usually do, hit start, look for something that tells me which parts of the controller do what, and then play. Hitting start right at the beginning starts the game without any further ado. The game was subsequently over in about 5 seconds, at which point it asked me if I wanted to purchase it or exit the game. What the heck?

Confused, I tried again. Same result. Was I really beating the first level in just a few seconds and then being asked to buy the game? As it turns out no, I should have RTFM.

The game’s instructions scroll across the screen when you load it up. Once you hit “start” or “A” you’re right into the action. But if you hold back from doing so, you’ll be rewarded with two things: instructions (cool!) and some genuinely amusing commentary if you wait long enough (with the game enquiring why you don’t seem to want to play, attempting to educate you on where the Start button is, etc.).

When you finally do start playing, the game launches you into a world where sawblades inexorably make their way down a shaft, and you must constantly fall down it to avoid them; last character standing wins. The game is for 1 to 8 players. 8 players you ask? Let me explain. (more…)