Big News... Elliot Quest

Elliot can’t die—but he’s still running out of time. In Elliot Quest, the victim of a rare curse must find a cure before he’s transformed into a demon.

"Cara... I don't know what to do... I'm stuck in a review..."

Gameplay
Elliot Quest is very difficult. I'm putting that out right. I even went to the wrong area and rage quit because I kept dying. That said, the game takes a lot after Legend of Zelda II and Kid Icarus. It's a side-scrolling action-adventure with a top-down overworld. It gives little direction in where to go, using the mechanics of "explore" to help you find what to do next.

I shall brave this storm while killing innocent tortoises.

Bugs
I found one bug, and do not know if I can replicate it honestly. I got killed when climbing a ladder. This happened right when I transitioned areas, and I ended up with 2 hearts on the next area. Nothing broke, but it was strange. That being said, Elliot Quest does slow down on occasion on the Mesa drivers. It's still playable, but it can be annoying.

Story
You are slowly becoming a demon. You don't want this, so you set out to find the guardians to try to help save you. All the while, people are slowly disappearing from the island. The story is actually pretty well written, and also one of the best translations I've seen from a non English speaker. I don't recall any grammar issues occurring, and I found myself wondering what happens next constantly.

Overall, I found Elliot Quest to be a pleasure and a pain. I wanted to stop playing multiple times, but found it rewarding to keep going. If you pick it up, explore every part of the overworld, as there are several hidden areas. I give Elliot Quest a Half a Grilled Cheese. It was well done, but the frustration made it harder to enjoy.

Elliot Quest can be purchased from the following locations:
https://www.elliotquest.com/
https://store.steampowered.com/app/293440
https://www.desura.com/games/elliot-quest
https://indiegamestand.com/store/364/elliot-quest-bonus-content-edition/
https://www.humblebundle.com/store/p/elliotquest_storefront

Big News... Doom and Destiny

Four nerds, drawn into a fantasy world and mistaken for heroes, have to battle their way through a massive, crazy adventure and defeat a preposterous villain!

Roll for initiative. No good, I make the first move. I cast Review on Doom and Destiny.

He's broken.

Gameplay
Doom and Destiny is a turn based RPG that takes you through several parodies of popular media, including Mario, Lord of the Rings and Star Wars.  Gameplay is the standard move around in a 2D world and encounter random enemies. What makes this game fun is the stereotypes.

I've always been a Rolling Stones fan.

Doom and Destiny makes a point to point out every trope and cliché in RPG's and even works to break them. If you do not laugh at least once playing it, I recommend getting your laugh box looked at.

Bugs
I encountered no real bugs in Doom and Destiny. There was one bug I found awhile ago, but it has since been fixed. It was a launch issue on 64-bit machines. There is a string bug in the game however, but I've reported it as well, and it's purely aesthetic.

Those 0's aren't a joke, but they don't do anything either.

Story
Being a RPG, I feel I must review the story. I'll avoid spoilers as much as possible. You and your friends are on their way to game night at Benjamin's when something goes wrong. You enter his house to find it was turned into a dungeon.  This launches you on a wild journey through time and space (really surprised they didn't work in Bill and Ted.) The story isn't really anything special, but it's quirkiness over seriousness is what sets it apart.

It's name is Dungeon. You literally beat the Dungeon.

Overall, Doom and Destiny was a fantastic journey, and I will be playing again to complete side quests. I enjoyed it thoroughly, and even recommend it's soundtrack. The best part is, the soundtrack is free, as it was almost entirely composed by incomptech. I give Doom and Destiny a pizza and beer rating. It's not on my scale, but then Doom and Destiny sort of broke it. I'm still laughing at its jokes.

Real funny wise guy.

Doom and Destiny can be bought from the following locations:
http://www.desura.com/games/doom-and-destiny
http://store.steampowered.com/app/318130
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=hb.doom_and_destiny
http://www.windowsphone.com/en-us/store/app/doom-destiny/9efd9741-3430-4172-83b0-21029e68ff89
https://itunes.apple.com/app/id688285246?mt=8
http://www.amazon.com/HeartBit-Interactive-Doom-Destiny/dp/B00DQR26EC
http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/Doom-Destiny/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d8025855093e

Big News... Interview with Ansimuz

Hey guys! Today I decided to bite the bullet and interview Ansimuz, the developer of Elliot Quest. He was really nice and seems a charming fellow.


So, first, what was the biggest challenge making Elliot Quest?

Managing my time and money. I‘m a dad of two children and basically I quit my job to work on the game fulltime.


What made you choose to use HTML5?

At the beginning I was aiming to make Elliot Quest a Free browse game. But as the development was getting complex I changed my mind and opted to make it a Premium game for Desktop and OUYA.


Out of all the platforms you've chosen to support, which has proven the most difficult to work with? The least?


The easiest was to port it to OUYA and Desktop since basically I just package the game in a wrapper and it run it as is.
The WiiU has been the most difficult because it need to be adapted, that's why I decided to partner with PlayEveryWare. They took care of all the porting process.

What other game(s) have you worked on, if any?

Elliot Quest was my first commercial game. I had made some small games for learning purposes that didn’t see the light.

What are your future plans?

I‘m taking a break form making big games at the moment and I’m focussing on making Pixel Art for clients and sharing to other Game Devs. I have a Patreon Page if you want to learn more: https://www.patreon.com/ansimuz

Thanks for your time, and one last question:

Are there any developers you feel more people should know about?

You are welcome. Maybe these guys http://or.paleozoic.com/


Elliot Quest is a game that I have a review on coming up on May 29th. I hope you guys look forward to it!

Big News... Rocketbirds: Hardboiled Chicken

Annihilate an evil penguin regime in this cinematic platform adventure game offering full solo and co-op campaigns. Set out on a mission to assassinate the totalitarian penguin leader as Hardboiled Chicken. Destroy enemies with a slew of weapons and illuminate the secrets to his past while uncovering the real enemies of Albatropolis. Master fowl play in the co-op campaign as a pair of Budgie commandos on a mission to save the general's daughter. Many lives will be destroyed, countless penguins will die!
On or off, but nothing in between, I prefer to think in steps. Program me, reload my systems, the review comes next.

Gameplay
Rocketbirds is a semi-solid title.  It opens up immediately with, what is essentially, a music video, and then drops you right in. It gives an unobtrusive tutorial that guides  you throughout new weapons and techniques to help you learn how to play. The game took me about 4 hours to complete, but that wasn't 100%. There are signs for you to get that don't seem to do anything other than unlock achievements, and some are pretty difficult to get.

They have a TV show about you killing them. Why?

The game itself is a platformer in a loose sense, with a little bit of tactics to it. You will utilize the environment to help stay alive in several fire fights.  The game also has some comedy to it, though the one liners tend to make me groan more than anything.

This explains so much.

Music
I'll say it outright. I love the soundtrack to this game. I just love listening to every piece and seeing how it was worked into the game. It couldn't have had much of a better soundtrack to it.

Bugs
There were several issues I've had with this game. First, my gamepad barely works with it. For instance, it worked on the menu, but when I went to the game itself, it said to plug in an XBOX compatible controller. I managed to get it to work one time, but that is it. The game also has random moments of lag when you die, which actually turned out useful later in the game as I used it to take down large groups of enemies before they could fire on me.

Overall, Rocketbirds is a fun game, but it's far from perfect. The game gets repetitive early on, and while it is essentially James Bond in chicken form, it's basically a gimmick. The main redeeming factor for Rocketbirds is it's soundtrack, which I recommend even standalone. I give Rocketbirds a crispy toast rating. There is still more to do before it can be considered perfect.

I never did learn what PPPP means.

Rocketbirds: Hardboiled Chicken can be purchased from the following location:
http://store.steampowered.com/app/215510/

Big News... Greenlight Limbo Again!

Hey guys, I felt bad about only 5 Greenlight games yesterday, so I went through all 550 titles available for me to vote on to find the rest of the gems. So here you go!

Arclight Cascade:

Arclight Cascade is a 360 arena game. You swing your sword around you to beat your enemies to a pulp. It looks fun and the music doesn't sound half bad either.

Dandy: Or a Brief Glimpse Into the Life of the Candy Alchemist:

Dandy is a sidescrolling shooter that seems to have elements of Isaac in it. I use Isaac as it's the only game I've played where your form changes with powerups. I just really want to play it.

Devil's Bluff:

Devil's Bluff looks really freakin' fun. I'm not normally an online multiplayer guy (I have my exceptions), but the idea of a mystery theater game just sounds fun!

Empire In Ruins:

Yes, this is a tower defence game. No, there is nothing wrong with that. It sounds like it has a good story, and the trailer hooked me. It should hook you too!


Entwine:

Explore a dark maze to find the exit. A simple maze runner, Entwine looks like the perfect play for a few minutes game when you want something to do while you're waiting.
 
Exception:

Exception looks beautiful. It looks fun. The story scenes are meticulously put together to bring a comic style aesthetic. I just want it!

Guardians of the Forest:

I'm always up for a 2D beat em up. Especially when they look fun. Guardians of the Forest appears to be Lugaru meets Smash Bros, and I couldn't want more.




Hexters:

Darwinia had me hooked with it's strategy cyber theme, as did Frozen Synapse. So imagine how I felt when I stumbled upon Hexters. It's a tower defence meets Darwinia, and I really want to give it a go.

Omnipotent:

Omnipotent doesn't really look special. I'll be honest. What got me was the trailer music. Sometimes what makes a game is the soundtrack. Shame the demo is only for Windows.

Lightrise:

Lightrise only caught my eye because it is mainly mages duking it out. Very few games have let me have a sorcerer's battle, but this one does. So bring it on!

Prismatica:

Prismatica is essentially a flat Rubik's Cube. You rotate panels to make all colors line up properly. It's simple, but sometimes simple is the hardest to do. I love a simple puzzle game over a complex one.
Viridi:

Let's make a garden. Many would argue this is an interactive screensaver, but I like simple things and this would be very calming.

Volvox:

Volvox is a simple puzzle game. Yeah, 3 in one Greenlight. Guess I like puzzle games. But it seems to be Incredipede meets Lemmings. It's beautiful, too.

There you go guys, a total of 18 greenlight games. Out of 550 available for me to vote on, that's 0.04%. Enjoy. I'm getting an ice pack for my head.

Big News... Greenlight Limbo!

Hello, and welcome to another Greenlight Limbo. This is where I highlight games that look fun that I think should be greenlit. These are all personal opinion and I actually paid for some of these. (I didn't download any illegally either). They are also merely in alphabetical order, not any other order.

Blues and Bullets:

Blues and Bullets is a Noir Sin city-esque cinematic game. It looks gorgeous and I'm sure I'll put in hours of gameplay into it to solve everything.


Once Upon a Platform:

Once Upon a Platform seems to be another masochistic platforming game, but that won't stop me from enjoying it.

Protect thy Sphere thingy:

Protect Thy Sphere thingy is a cute minimalist arcade game. I picked it up on Desura, and have had fun playing it, though there is some more work to be done before I could say it's done.

SpaceCube Arena:

SpaceCube Arena is a multiplayer arena game that will be releasing an alpha if greenlit. It looks fun, and could be my new party game away from Gentlemen!.


That Rock Paper Scissors Game:

That Rock Paper Scissors game turns the classic game into an arena battler. Use traps and other tools to block off your predator while you hunt your prey.

Big News... Ticket to Ride Online

The best Online adaptation yet of Days of Wonder's best-selling train game, Ticket to Ride takes less than one minute to learn but a lifetime to master. With tension building at every turn, it's definitely NOT your Father's train game! Play Solo or Online. With over 30,000,000 games played Online, and a new game starting every 4 seconds on average, Ticket to Ride is the ultimate online board game experience. It's not just exciting – it's addictive!

Hello, and welcome to the Ticket to Ride review. My name is Chris, and I'll be your reviewer today. If you're ready to begin, scroll on down.

Gameplay
Ticket to Ride Online is based off the titular board game. You must collect train cards of specific colors to claim routes so that your destination cards can be fulfilled. Each destination card is worth a specific amount of points, and if you have any left at the end of the game, you will lose their worth.

Most of my destination cards were complete on drawing them

Ticket to Ride Online features online multiplayer (true to it's name), hot seat multiplayer and solo. Each one offers up to 5 players, and is challenging in their own rights.

Bugs
I have a few issues I found with the Ticket to Ride Linux client. First, it has very long load time. For what it's worth, I did have Firefox open as well, so it may have been partly to blame. Second, the game crashed a few times. This is most likely due to OpenJDK, as it was random and I could not replicate it. 

Overall, Ticket to Ride Online is a fun game, and if you can't afford the physical version (like me) or prefer to play online, I recommend picking it up. Overall I give this game a buttered toast rating. While it is fun, the music gets annoying after a few games, as well as the long load time.

Ticket to Ride Online can be purchased from the following:
https://www.daysofwonder.com/en/buy/
https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/ticket-to-ride/id432504470?mt=8
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.daysofwonder.tt.android
http://store.steampowered.com/app/108200
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CLUPOEE







HEY GUYS! In celebration of me reaching 6000 views, I'm holding a giveaway! The giveaway is for Race the Sun. (I'd do Ticket to Ride to fit the review, but I don't have the money to spare). To enter, just leave a comment below! Thanks for reading!
a Rafflecopter giveaway