A couple of weeks ago, Indie Megabooth (a staple at many gaming conventions and events) announced that they would be shutting down for now. This is their "going away" sale, and has a ton of...
Some recommendations based on a quick skim through the list: Mini Metro, is a really great ultra-casual tycoon/simulation style game. I have it, and its sequel Mini Motorways (which isn't out on...
Some recommendations based on a quick skim through the list:
Mini Metro, is a really great ultra-casual tycoon/simulation style game. I have it, and its sequel Mini Motorways (which isn't out on PC yet), on my iOS devices and they are my go-to games when in the bathroom. :P
Renowned Explorers, I reviewed previously in my massive "hidden gems" list, so will just copy that here:
"Story heavy exploration adventure and turn-based tactical strategy game, with high replayability and lots of things to find/unlock. It was quite unique, charming and can get pretty difficult. I thoroughly enjoyed it and definitely recommend it."
Dead Cells is an absolutely fantastic Dark Souls-esque metroidvania, roguelike. And as you would expect, it's really really difficult, so you will die a whole hell of a lot as a result... However it also has a really nice progression system, so dying is actually part of the fun of it, IMO.
60 Parsecs! is a weird one. It's a zany, post-apocalyptic, scifi adventure that is part resource management, part visual novel. It has dozens of endings, great art, and really funny writing. In 5 hours of playing I got about half the achievements for it, and witnessed about half the endings, so it's not a super long game, but I really enjoyed it.
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander. Another somewhat zany scifi. It's ostensibly a turn-based, tactical combat, strategy + base building game, where you take control of a Starfleet-like organization. You can get in to ship-to-ship combat, go on away missions, meet aliens species (friend and foe), build up your starbase and fleet. Sounds amazing, right? Well, unfortunately the strategy is incredibly rudimentary and simplistic, and the game also turns into an incredible grind-fest pretty quickly as well. So, all in all, this one is kinda tough to recommend. It was alright, I guess. At least $4 is much more reasonable than what I paid for it. :/
I apparently own a whole bunch of others on the list, and have a ton more in my wishlist, but haven't played them yet, so can't speak to their quality.
Here are the things I've played and my quick thoughts on them. If you want additional depth for any of these, please ask! There's not a bad game in the bunch (of the ones I've played) but I've...
Here are the things I've played and my quick thoughts on them. If you want additional depth for any of these, please ask!
There's not a bad game in the bunch (of the ones I've played) but I've broken them out into three different tiers of enthusiasm because Distance and Tinertia deserve maximum love:
An arcade racing MASTERPIECE. This game is seriously great. Amazingly made, super satisfying to play, with tons of custom community-made tracks to keep you busy. Easily worth full price; an absolute steal on sale. Plus, native Linux build!
This game is CRIMINALLY OVERLOOKED. Only 63 reviews on Steam! Oh, and 100% of them are positive. It's a rocket jump platformer that is brilliantly made and tons of fun to play. And it has a native Linux build! I got a blister on my finger from this game -- my first since the original Mario Party -- because I played it too much.
I just played this one. It's a puzzle-adventure game where you don't directly control the characters. Instead, you advance and reverse time and manipulate things to get the characters to the end of the level. Beautiful artwork, sound, and design. Great for younger audiences.
This is a -- brace yourself -- visual novel sidescrolling beat 'em up match 3 cooking competition game. If that at all sounds interesting to you, then it's well worth a look.
It's roguelite Peggle. If you like Peggle it's a pretty good bet that you'll like this. The discount isn't very high, but it also just came out a little over a month ago. I paid full price for it and I was happy with what I got.
An actiony, bullet-timey, comboy, bullet-helly, platformery side scrolling shooter. Very well made, with great movement mechanics and a high skill ceiling.
I couldn't quite get into this one because I'm bad at games, but it seems like there's a very good game here if you can master the controls. 2D speed/momentum-based platformer reminiscent of Dustforce with some swooping/gliding built in.
This is cute. You're a cat and you knock things off tables, shelves, etc. Reminiscent of Katamari Damacy only you create mess instead of balling it up.
This is an isometric adventure game that is a bit like Bastion with less combat. The game's main feature is its inclusion of music that's context dependent in the levels. Would also be great for younger audiences.
A pinball/RPG hybrid. Neat idea, decently executed. Can't hold a candle to the other indie pinball titan, Yoku's Island Express, but not terrible by any means.
A racing game with a pretty high skill floor. I didn't put in enough effort to get really good at the game, but if you do it's apparently a fantastic futuristic racer.
Just a heads up to anyone considering items in this sale: The Humble Store just started up their Spring Sale which has some of the same games as Steam's sale. You might want to comparison shop...
Just a heads up to anyone considering items in this sale:
The Humble Store just started up their Spring Sale which has some of the same games as Steam's sale. You might want to comparison shop before buying, as I've found one game so far, The King's Bird which has a better discount on Humble (-80%) than on Steam (-75%). Also, for anyone subscribed to Humble Choice Basic/Premium/Classic, you get an additional store discount, so even games with equal discounts on both platforms will actually be cheaper for you on Humble than on Steam.
I see Guns of Icarus: Alliance in the list; not recommended as it's a dead game. Same for the base game, which is a shame since it's fun (got well over 700 hours in it) :/
I see Guns of Icarus: Alliance in the list; not recommended as it's a dead game. Same for the base game, which is a shame since it's fun (got well over 700 hours in it) :/
I ended up picking up Hell is Other Demons from this sale, which I've been interested in for a while now. I generally love these really focused, pure, arcade-like experiences, and this one has a...
I ended up picking up Hell is Other Demons from this sale, which I've been interested in for a while now. I generally love these really focused, pure, arcade-like experiences, and this one has a great visual style along with music by Rémi Gallego, who I'm a big fan of (he releases music as The Algorithm and Boucle Infinie, and also did part of Hacknet's soundtrack).
I've played it for about an hour so far and really enjoyed it, it's almost like a more-intense combination of Downwell and Super Crate Box. Looking forward to spending more time with it and getting better.
A couple of weeks ago, Indie Megabooth (a staple at many gaming conventions and events) announced that they would be shutting down for now.
This is their "going away" sale, and has a ton of excellent indie games on sale, many of them for their lowest prices ever.
Some recommendations based on a quick skim through the list:
Mini Metro, is a really great ultra-casual tycoon/simulation style game. I have it, and its sequel Mini Motorways (which isn't out on PC yet), on my iOS devices and they are my go-to games when in the bathroom. :P
Renowned Explorers, I reviewed previously in my massive "hidden gems" list, so will just copy that here:
"Story heavy exploration adventure and turn-based tactical strategy game, with high replayability and lots of things to find/unlock. It was quite unique, charming and can get pretty difficult. I thoroughly enjoyed it and definitely recommend it."
Dead Cells is an absolutely fantastic Dark Souls-esque metroidvania, roguelike. And as you would expect, it's really really difficult, so you will die a whole hell of a lot as a result... However it also has a really nice progression system, so dying is actually part of the fun of it, IMO.
60 Parsecs! is a weird one. It's a zany, post-apocalyptic, scifi adventure that is part resource management, part visual novel. It has dozens of endings, great art, and really funny writing. In 5 hours of playing I got about half the achievements for it, and witnessed about half the endings, so it's not a super long game, but I really enjoyed it.
Halcyon 6: Starbase Commander. Another somewhat zany scifi. It's ostensibly a turn-based, tactical combat, strategy + base building game, where you take control of a Starfleet-like organization. You can get in to ship-to-ship combat, go on away missions, meet aliens species (friend and foe), build up your starbase and fleet. Sounds amazing, right? Well, unfortunately the strategy is incredibly rudimentary and simplistic, and the game also turns into an incredible grind-fest pretty quickly as well. So, all in all, this one is kinda tough to recommend. It was alright, I guess. At least $4 is much more reasonable than what I paid for it. :/
I apparently own a whole bunch of others on the list, and have a ton more in my wishlist, but haven't played them yet, so can't speak to their quality.
Anyone else have any other recommendations?
Here are the things I've played and my quick thoughts on them. If you want additional depth for any of these, please ask!
There's not a bad game in the bunch (of the ones I've played) but I've broken them out into three different tiers of enthusiasm because Distance and Tinertia deserve maximum love:
Absolute Standouts
An arcade racing MASTERPIECE. This game is seriously great. Amazingly made, super satisfying to play, with tons of custom community-made tracks to keep you busy. Easily worth full price; an absolute steal on sale. Plus, native Linux build!
This game is CRIMINALLY OVERLOOKED. Only 63 reviews on Steam! Oh, and 100% of them are positive. It's a rocket jump platformer that is brilliantly made and tons of fun to play. And it has a native Linux build! I got a blister on my finger from this game -- my first since the original Mario Party -- because I played it too much.
Solid Bets
I just played this one. It's a puzzle-adventure game where you don't directly control the characters. Instead, you advance and reverse time and manipulate things to get the characters to the end of the level. Beautiful artwork, sound, and design. Great for younger audiences.
This is a -- brace yourself -- visual novel sidescrolling beat 'em up match 3 cooking competition game. If that at all sounds interesting to you, then it's well worth a look.
It's roguelite Peggle. If you like Peggle it's a pretty good bet that you'll like this. The discount isn't very high, but it also just came out a little over a month ago. I paid full price for it and I was happy with what I got.
I haven't actually played this, but my husband LOVES it. He said "it's like an adventurey FTL with people who talk".
An actiony, bullet-timey, comboy, bullet-helly, platformery side scrolling shooter. Very well made, with great movement mechanics and a high skill ceiling.
Good Times
I couldn't quite get into this one because I'm bad at games, but it seems like there's a very good game here if you can master the controls. 2D speed/momentum-based platformer reminiscent of Dustforce with some swooping/gliding built in.
This is cute. You're a cat and you knock things off tables, shelves, etc. Reminiscent of Katamari Damacy only you create mess instead of balling it up.
This is an isometric adventure game that is a bit like Bastion with less combat. The game's main feature is its inclusion of music that's context dependent in the levels. Would also be great for younger audiences.
A pinball/RPG hybrid. Neat idea, decently executed. Can't hold a candle to the other indie pinball titan, Yoku's Island Express, but not terrible by any means.
A racing game with a pretty high skill floor. I didn't put in enough effort to get really good at the game, but if you do it's apparently a fantastic futuristic racer.
Roguelite FPS. Approaches greatness but doesn't quite reach it. Can get a bit stale.
The sequel to Tower of Guns. An improvement over the original in every regard. Has a neat gun-building mechanic. Can get a bit stale.
Just a heads up to anyone considering items in this sale:
The Humble Store just started up their Spring Sale which has some of the same games as Steam's sale. You might want to comparison shop before buying, as I've found one game so far, The King's Bird which has a better discount on Humble (-80%) than on Steam (-75%). Also, for anyone subscribed to Humble Choice Basic/Premium/Classic, you get an additional store discount, so even games with equal discounts on both platforms will actually be cheaper for you on Humble than on Steam.
I see Guns of Icarus: Alliance in the list; not recommended as it's a dead game. Same for the base game, which is a shame since it's fun (got well over 700 hours in it) :/
What does a dead game mean in this context? Server only and the servers are down? No more updates? Abandoned prior to balancing?
It has players, but it's generally mostly closed matched between veterans. For casual play, you're lucky if there's more than 20 people online.
I ended up picking up Hell is Other Demons from this sale, which I've been interested in for a while now. I generally love these really focused, pure, arcade-like experiences, and this one has a great visual style along with music by Rémi Gallego, who I'm a big fan of (he releases music as The Algorithm and Boucle Infinie, and also did part of Hacknet's soundtrack).
I've played it for about an hour so far and really enjoyed it, it's almost like a more-intense combination of Downwell and Super Crate Box. Looking forward to spending more time with it and getting better.