Warp Zoned Presents
Author: Andrew Rainnie - UK Correspondent
Kickstart This! Lona: Realm of Colors
I like to think I put my money where my mouth is, and this is very true of my relationship with Kickstarter. You could say I have something of a small obsession with helping other creatives get their projects off the ground. I jumped on the Yooka-Laylee bandwagon, funded inverted-planet flyer InnerSpace (which is now getting a console release), and still hold out hope that Knite & The Ghost Lights will see the light of day.
My most recent campaign contribution was to the shiny PELDA Pro battery case for the Nintendo Switch, because, like Gollum, I wants it! That means I cannot really afford to fund any more games. Which is a shame, because if I could, I would be funding Lona: Realm of Colors (even if they do spell “colour” wrong).
Paint brushes at the ready… (more…)
Arms Review: Limber Up For Some Smackdowns
When the Wii first arrived, Nintendo teased motion controls that seemed like a natural fit for sport games. A whole new generation of gamers were entertained by Wii Sports after it arrived alongside the console, but what Nintendo actually achieved was closer to a waggle-fest. Two consoles later, the company has managed to deliver on those initial expectations with Arms, a bouncy and bright brawler that aims to be the next Splatoon.
But will Arms have “similar legs to the ink-splashing shooter (which already has a sequel available in stores)? Grab your boxing gloves and find out! (more…)
Kickstart This! Epistasis
Regular readers will know of my love for No Man’s Sky, or at very least, my desire for a truly far-reaching space exploration game. I traversed land and stars in No Man’s Sky for over 60 hours, and enjoyed the freedom of being lost in its universe. However, my enthusiasm waned when it became clear that Hello Games hadn’t built an end goal. There was no deep mystery to uncover and no puzzles to solve beyond the random riddles that became rudimentary.
Unfortunately, I have not had time to return to the lush galaxies and poetic planets since the release of the updates. But part of me wonders whether I should move forward and try to find something that seeks to be the game that No Man’s Sky never was.
So follow me as we stumble though another alien portal in the latest edition of Kickstart This! (more…)
Kickstart This! Neil deGrasse Tyson’s Space Odyssey
E3 2017 has come and gone, but there was actually very few indie titles on display at the big show this year. While the Nintendo Switch is gaining traction with indie developers for its ease of use, Sony showed no love for smaller games. Only Microsoft made a case for the indie scene, surprising given the volume of paperwork small developers have to sign before any agreement is sealed for the Xbox platform.
But there is a wealth of amazing video game ideas on Kickstarter. Though some are a little rough around the edges, and could use the input of a publisher or producer to guide them to greatness. This month I’ve chosen a project that not only speaks to topics close to my heart, but one that seeks to involve its backers at a more basic level, to create a community that will be part of every step of this odyssey. And it is presented by the one and only Neil deGrasse Tyson! (more…)
So Did Anyone “Win” the 2017 E3 Expo?
E3 2017 proved to be something of a musical affair, with every company trying to out-do the others in audio superiority. Microsoft had a mournful piano solo to accompany the reveal of Ori and the Will of the Wisps. Ubisoft had a drumline. EA also had a drumline. Sony kicked their Press Conference off with a bizarre melody of Indian music and light projections on a waterfall. And halfway through its show, an android introduced the trailer for Detroit: Become Human with the voice of an angel.
Usually, you can add the question, “who won E3,” to this aural bombardment. And just as often, it is a question without an answer. But what about this year? Let’s find out. (more…)
Kickstart This! The Return of Way of the Rodent
I keep promising the people of France that I will cover a French game, and I will, but not in this edition. I stumbled across a project here in the UK that I though was worth this segment. Imagine that you run a cool, semi-retro online gaming magazine. You have been doing so for 12 years, and have managed to produce 94 issues, just six away from the big 100. Then, hackers decide to corrupt your system beyond repair, erasing all that work and effort.
This is the story of Rodent. (more…)
Kickstart This! Zombie Teacher
There must be something in the air in France (apart from all the political stuff), as there has been an unusually high number of game projects from the country launched on Kickstarter in the last few weeks. There’s LabyX from Yazorius in Bordeaux, a pair of games from Clermont-Ferrand (the awesome-looking NES game Twin Dragons by Antoine Gohin and building sim Sandbox by TarteUp), as well as Robi, which is in development at Xzezal in, um, “France, France.”
So, naturally, I chose a project from East London, because I used to live there. Just kidding. I chose Zombie Teacher because it looks awesome. So reach for those tasty brains and see what makes this game a delicious delight. Mmm… brains… (more…)
I Couldn’t Give Two Loots About Destiny 2
Destiny 2 will probably be upon us this year, assuming there are no delays like most AAA game these days. Bungie recently released the first teaser trailer alongside a rather naff logo. Seriously, the new logo looks like it was thrown together in Photoshop by a bored cat. I even managed to cook up some alternate designs while thinking about this opinion piece. The “2” just seems totally out of place. It could be more flush, using Roman numerals to match the Destiny font, or behind it, using a destroyed font to convey that war is coming, or is here already.
The trailer reveals very little about the game itself, beyond the fact that the Guardian Tower has fallen. It’s a clever story device, similar to Shepherd being resurrected at the start of Mass Effect 2, and it allows the game to shirk off aspects of the original, starting afresh with new adventures not constrained by the previous generation.
One issue Destiny fans never had to deal with was its graphics, as it is one of the prettiest first person shooters to grace the a console. The game’s problems lay in what was promised, or what fans hoped for, versus what was actually delivered. Even with The Taken King expansion, which is where I was introduced to the series, the game failed to truly dig into its own mythology, worlds, and threats, and became more of a slog, forcing players to revisit locations for the hundredth time all in the name of loot.
Yet, I don’t want to rant about failed promises of the original game. There is already an excellent post on Bungie’s Community Forums by “TrueMadnessNinja” that delves into the unfulfilled promises of the first entry. This is more of a wish list of things I wish had been in the first game, and I hope Bungie takes a look and can change my mind about picking up the sequel. (more…)