Nostalgia is brilliant for selling video games. It’s pretty much half of Nintendo’s marketing strategy. But before the age of consoles, early players were loading games via cassette on legendary machines like the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. Dundee-based developers Darrell Flood and Jack Oatley are looking back on those early days of gamingwith their new Kickstarter project, Cowgirls Vs Cthonimon.
Handbags at dawn…
Project: Cowgirls Vs Cthonimon
Developer: Darrell Flood
Genre: Top-Down RPG
Platforms: PC
Funding Target: £2,000
What Is It?
Cowgirls Vs Cthonimon is a true indie game, coming from the dark recesses of Dundee, Scotland, the same place that gave birth to the Grand Theft Auto franchise, and also, Lemmings. The game uses that well-worn trope of the main character waking up alone in an alien mine, with a mild bout of amnesia… but this time the amnesia-stricken heroine is a space cowgirl.
As you explore the procedurally-generated mine, you will meet friendly NPCs and alien fugitives who you must take down. Collect gold nuggets to buy better weapons, as well as useful tools like lanterns and dynamite to take down the dreaded Cthonimon as you journey to different worlds, chasing them down.
Why Fund It?
Games do not look more retro than this. With its minimalist wireframe graphics, Cowgirls Vs Cthonimon uses dashes of colour sparingly to draw your eye to bad guys, other characters, and objects like cash and keys. While the audio is currently temporary, Darrell and Jack are channelling some age-old John Carpenter films with synth horror and monster sounds, and hopefully that will still be the case with the actual audio.
One of the main inspirations behind Cowgirls Vs Cthonimon is The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. It features a similar game trope with the same world appearing differently depending on whether doom has fallen that world (dark) or whether it has been spared (light). In addition to the procedural generation, the game’s other characters will react differently to your Space Cowgirl depending on your past actions and current standing on other planets.
Best Rewards?
- Digital copy of the game, plus beta access – £10
- Previous rewards, plus name in credits and alpha access to help shape the game – £20
- Previous rewards, plus design your own NPC – £40
- Previous rewards, plus design a boss for the game – £100
- Previous rewards, plus a monthly Skype chat with Darrell and an early look at Cowgirl Galaxy Creator – £500
Until Next Time…
Some game projects thousands of backers, but Cowgirls Vs Cthonimon has a very achievable target of £2,000, so every contribution will help get this game made. Plus, they are Scottish, so if you get the monthly Skype chats you will get to hear a sexy and incomprehensible Sean Connery-esque accent.
Finally, because I am a sucker for any game starring a dog, I would be remiss not to mention Dog Theatre by Mexican studio Kyon Games. “Choose a dog, put on your best hat, and show the audience what you are made of” in this endless runner.
