Joy Joy
Decimation X3
Score Rush
Shoot1up
XBL’s $1.00 Gems
The Indie Shooter
Indie games, the $1.00 thrills that can fill the space that few other types of games can due to their very large bang for the buck. Most of those on XBL (Xbox Live) rarely venture into the indie marketplace as the games are generally considered to be “old school” and lacking the polish of games costing sixty times as much. It is speaking the truth to say that many of the available titles are simply repeats of classics, reorganized to appeal to younger audiences; however, there are some that invent new ways to make old concepts appear fresh. Some of the best
The greater majority of the shooters available try, sometimes badly, to copy the formulas used by the Gradius series, 1942, and even the classic twin-joystick shooter, SmashTV. However, some titles take these tried-n-true formulas, and added certain elements to make them stand apart from the games that defined the genre. One title, Shoot1up, takes the forced-rail, top-down shooter from eras past, and expands upon this simple design by letting a “what-if” guide its direction. The “what-if” in question was probably worded something like, “what would happen if I had all my ships on screen at the same time, rather than use them one at a time upon death.” From the start, the player is given three ships which can be summoned into a phalanx-like arrangement, or expanded to enable the three ships to focus their firepower onto a single devastating beam attack. Once one has enough ships at their disposal, the game becomes a simple matter of dodging enemy attacks, and collecting the extra lives given by defeating the hordes of enemies thrown in the player’s path. By having the courage to pursue an interesting take on the genre, this game is easily worth many times the $1.00 asking price.
For those players that stare at 1,000 projectiles and beg for more, there are many Indie games waiting for them. One in particular is Score Rush by Xona Games, which dares to fill the screen to levels usually only seen in a Japanese shumup. The game will often frighten the average gamer with only one difficulty setting that leaves very little margin for error. As with most “bullet-hell” shooters, the player is presented with hordes of enemies with so many projectiles that just avoiding getting hit makes up about 90% of the experience. With crisp controls, a small hit box, and the fluid motion of the action, the game has kept this player satisfied since first downloading the trial.
The game, I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1N 1T, by Ska studios, features very basic graphics, a wonderful soundtrack, and utilize the power of the system to allow hundreds of enemies to stand between the player and ultimate victory. Of all the indie games available, this is one of the best multiplayer titles as it allows up to 4 players to decimate the zombie hordes together. The genius behind this game is not only it’s often unpredictable assortment of enemy types (game ‘WITH’ zombies, not ‘only’), tied to a hilarious soundtrack with a “narrator” that sings about the game, but also that it takes the classic, SmashTV, and breathes new life into a very old formula.
Space Invaders once tore the quarters from this gamers’ pockets on a daily basis with its highly addictive, at the time, gameplay which revolved around an assortment of enemies slowly falling towards the player who is tasked with blasting them from below. This has been faithfully re-created in the Xona games title, Decimation X3, with the same type of graphic display, yet with greatly improved speed and control that lets a player truly decimate the opponent. The game also features an intense soundtrack that compels the player to continue playing, as it stays in tune with the action that is being displayed on-screen. Despite the fresh take, most gamers will pass up on this game in favor of something offering a little more, “flash;” however, for those retro minded gamers, there is no denying that X3 is an excellent purchase.
Although most of these games utilize the 360’s processing power to fill the screen with various usually dangerous objects, few actually use the system’s ability to render a staggering number of polygons onscreen at once. Enter Prismatic Solid, by Yo1 Komori, a game that brags about its use of the polygon with its incredible introduction screen; which is almost as satisfying as the game itself with a constantly changing array of simple geometric shapes. However, if the player doesn’t possess red eyes, then after hitting the start button an extremely difficult game begins to unfold; all of which is driven by the simple geometric patterns, shapes, and particles that are handled with ease by a system usually responsible for rendering entire cities in great detail. The difficulty will arise in the different shield and weapon patterns available which have differing effects and in some instances, quite a few weaknesses depending on the enemy types presented. For the measly 80 point cost, this is definitely worth checking out, and if that is too much, there’s always a free trial, hint hint!
The last game that must be considered was actually the first Indie game this player ever purchased; which, with the name Joy Joy instills images of some kind of powder puff like shooter with teddy bears and lollipops for enemies. Fortunately this twin-joystick shooter doesn’t go down this route, but it does use pleasant colors and a stress-free soundtrack to put the player at ease; which can either equal a pleasant demise, or the joyous destruction of the enemy. The game does a fantastic job of easing the player into the action while providing a constant stream of what seem like simple enemies that will turn into potent challenges by the later levels. Radiangames, the company responsible for this game obviously took their time on it by perfecting the controls and refining the look to reflect the name perfectly.
As with most of the games available on the Game Marketplace on the Xbox 360, they come with the option of downloading a free trial which usually includes either, a few levels or timed play. Once a player has tried the game, the extremely difficult decision remains, “Do I spend $1.00 or not?” To the budget minded college student, or the casual gamer, the value presented in these games is really hard to ignore.
Some honorable mentions include:
Beat Hazard- A twin-stick shooter that uses the beats of the music stored on your hard drive to “power your gameplay.” This translates into death with slow tracks, and the destruction of all if using nearly any track by the speed metal band Dragonforce.
Explosionade- Half-shooter/ half-platformer, this game takes the love of mechanized soldiers and throws the player into the fire with an entertaining storyline that never takes itself too seriously.
Ballistic- An evolutionary step forward in the formula used by “Joy Joy,” but with an emphasis on blazing through what seems like insurmountable odds, to achieve high multipliers and even higher end scores.
Vampire Rage- A forced rail “bullet hell” type shooter that requires the complete attention of the player with its ship sized hit box (the area that if hit, kills the character), and high degree of difficulty.