Well, it's a new year. With a new year comes a lot of stuff, whether it be the every day hustle and bustle that comes with life, or something else, this year seems like it's going to be just as busy as the past few have been, at least for me. But hey! This is a blog about games, and with a new year comes loads more games to play. I may have talked about this in my previous blog, but I really need to start finishing games. Now I love games, and I'm excited to get new games and to see what they have to offer, but I feel like I am purchasing games faster than I can finish them. I have a ton of games that I have yet to finish, despite enjoying them immensely. Red Dead Redemption, Halo 4, Skyrim, are all games I love, but I haven't had the time to finish. I got a bunch of games over Christmas, and I haven't started about two thirds of them, however I plan to as they are games I have been eyeing for a while (Fez, Braid, Bioshock). So hopefully I will have some time to play them in the coming weeks, but with mid terms in two weeks, looks like those games will be waiting a while (except for Fez because that game is fantastic).

I actually forgot to talk about Christmas in my last entry, so I figure I'll give you guys a summary of what happened over Christmas break. It was actually really good that break came when it did, I was starting to get a little overwhelmed with the amount of work I've been receiving from school as of late. So that was nice, and it was really just a relaxing vacation, which is just what I needed really. I played some games, as I mentioned last post I started one of the games I got for Xmas, Bioshock, and I am loving it. I'm planning on doing game reviews, so that might be one of the first when I get around to finishing that. So all in all, a good vacation.

And with that, I figured I might start talking about some games (and a movie!).

So I'm sure many of you have heard of this documentary. It follows three developers through the development process of three popular indie games (Jonathan Blow, Braid; Team Meat, Super Meat Boy; and Phil Phish, Fez), and the film mainly focuses on Team Meat and Phil Phish and the creation of there games, while Jonathon Blow sort of provides insight from time to time on what he thinks makes indie games special. Through interviews with the developer, the documentary does a fantastic job of showing just how strenuous and exhausting it is to make a game, especially with just one or two people.

I recently bought the humble indie bundle 7, and this was included in it. Despite having seen this about 4 times on Netflix I was happy that they decided to include it in the bundle, and speaking of that bundle, SEGWAY

The Humble Indie Bundle 7

So the Humble Indie Bundle 7 just ended, and I purchased it over vacation. Let me say that it was well worth 7$, and it was nice to see the money go to both charity and the developers behind these fantastic games. While there are a few I haven't played yet, I thought I could go into some detail about the ones I have started playing.

The Binding of Isaac:

I've heard a lot about this game, and I was very excited at the oppurtunity of getting it, and it's DLC, Wrath of the Lamb. Immediatly I recognized the art style of Edmund McMullan, co-creator and designer of Super Meat Boy, an art style which I am a huge fan of. Also, I was struck by the sort dark comedy that the game seems to eschew, or rather the ridiculousness and signature dark and adolesent humour mix that accompanies almost all of McMullan's games (one of the items in the game is Isaac's mom's pad). At the start of the game, we find out how Isaac became trapped in the basement courtesy of the opening cutscene. In this intro, we see God speaking to Isaac's super-religious mother, telling her that her son must be sacrificed. Obeying, Isaac's mother busts into his room clutching a butcher's knife, and Isaac struggles to find somewhere safe, eventually escaping into the basement, where the majority of the game plays out (although later locations such as the Chapel add variety and new rooms). The gameplay is inspired by the room-to-room exploration that was found in the original Legend of Zelda, albeit slightly more disturbed. It plays like a mix of a rogue-like RPG, a run-and-gun shooter, and a typical adventure game. The game only lasts 15-20 minutes, but multiple playthroughs further the story, as beating the game more than once unlocks more bosses and rooms to explore.

The Basement Collection:

The Basement Collection is a collection of Edmund McMullan's earlier flash offerings, including Aether, the original Meat Boy flash prototype (precussor to Super Meat Boy, of course), Spewer, Time **** and more. When you first boot up the game, you will discover that 5 games are unlocked right off the bat. Upon completing these, the other four or so games are unlocked, along with a plethora of concept art, music, and even bonus footage from Indie Game: The Movie.

Cave Story+:

Cave Story + is my kind of game. Full of nostalgic tunes and old-school platforming sensibilities with a mix of shooter elements, an homage to the sort of games the developer played as kids, such as Metroid. The game focuses on the amnesiac, silent main character who awakens in a cave at the start of the game. After a bit of exploration, you began to discover the plot of the Doctor, a power-hungry meglomaniac who intends to make the inhabitants of the cave fight for him in his quest for power and world dominance. Throughout the game. you collect different weapons, which you can toggle between with the press of a button. Some enemies drop yellow glowing triangles, which are experience points. EXP works in an interesting way in Cave Story, in that you lose EXP when you take damage, and you don't level up the character, you are leveling up the gun you currently have equiped. When a gun is leveled up, the radius of the shot is increased, and each weapon has it's own unique abilities and firing capabilities.

So that's all the I've had the chance to play so far, but I'm hoping to play the others soon, and when I do make sure to check back here if you want to read about them!

See you guys next time,

Killian