Oh What A World!

  Every couple of weeks I return to Kongregate, which is a mass conglomeration of just about every browser game out there. Developers from Crazy Monkey Games, New Grounds, Armor Games, and countless independents (individual people as well as growing businesses) upload their games to Kongregate, thus the name. Recently I've been seeing a few games uploaded that require Unity. Unity, from what I can tell, is the new java/flash, at least when it comes to browser games. Generally the term is "flash game", but with this new program, it looks like we're about to see a whole new wave of browser games, and let me tell you, it's a development I can get behind. These new games aren't the most intense, but the potential is definitely there. But enough introductions, let me show you what "there" really means.

Important Note: These games require Unity, but you should be giving a link to download it. Don't worry, as far as I know, it's not anything scary. It's like a java update.

Drillboid

  What the hell is a "Drillboid"? This is a Drillboid. The game puts you in the body of a rolly-polly robot, adorable, who has a drill on one hand, and a phaser on the other. On top of that, you can turn into a ball, though I don't really use it that often. You can hop, jump, and even fly a bit. What's cool is that it's not a hot jolting mess, you can pretty much control all of that while doing all the other things. A lot of games of this style usually only let you do one of these things, or if you can do more than one, it's limited to flying and an arm function. Not this game! If you want to fly, drill, and have a phaser ball going all at the same time, who is this game to stop you? 

Who's my deadly multitasking robot? It's you! Yes it is! Yes it is!

But seriously, look at that shit. Is that not awesome looking, if only in a single picture? 

The plot is a bit iffy, if only because I didn't really pay attention. From what I gathered, you're a mining robot who has to retrieve a power core from a station in a cave, collecting gems along the way. Honestly, it's like they took Minecraft, Pacman (I...don't really have a link for that. Get it yourself), and Megaman and shoved it into one very circular tin can. Between the graphics, the simple yet slightly difficult game play, and a third thing, it's a wonderful little game. 

Arbitrary Star Rating: * * * * * * * * * (9/?)

Best feature: You are obviously stealing this power core, yet you go clank clank clank as you run around on the metal floors. "Guuuuys, I think someone's here... Guuuuys?"

Bullseye

  I would say that this is the next wave of games, and that's not just because I lost my mind and shot all of the hostages. Bullseye is a piece of a large game called Interstellar Marines. IM is an upcoming game that, to me, is trying a bit too hard to jump on the next big thing, but I'm behind them almost every step of the way. It must be a Netherlands thing, because this independent company, AAA Indie, hails from Denmark, much like Sweden's Mojang (see: Minecraft). I'm sure all of you hardcore gamers are shouting about that other tiny company no one has heard of, but please be quiet because your parents are trying to sleep, and I can't hear you. I'm beginning to wonder if independent games will start the next hipster fad. "I totally played that game before it was even released as a full game." 

  Anyway, when I said almost every step of the way, it's because the game costs 25 dollars and I don't think I want to shell that out for a game that's not released yet. It has a ton of potential, and not to put Minecraft on a pedestal, but Minecraft won't cost 30 dollars until it's finished and released in full, while IM is asking for 25 dollars upfront. They are boasting a nice solid team of eight, so I understand their financial needs, but come on. You're running an independent business for gods sakes.

That's not to discourage you from buying it, I just don't think I want to get into it. I'm doing my part by telling you readers about it. The other issue I have with it is that I finished Bullseye on Kongregate and am now trying out Running Man, another piece of their free test run. Why is that bad? I'm almost done with this portion of the blog and it's still loading. It could be my internet, as I'm on the school's server, or the game is just huge, in which case their new wave isn't so much a rip tide as a strong ripple.

  The game itself is a first person shooter, and like I said, has a shit ton (metric for being in Europe. I think.) of potential. It puts you in space, obviously, and I suppose it's a bit cliche, I can't tell, but I think you're trying to stop genetic experimentation. The reason I don't know is because it's mostly been training, and no plot exploration, except for what you can see in the video linked below. Overall I'd say it's a wonderful game. The weapons and unlockables look pretty neat, and I'm mostly interested to see how well it does out in the real world. It's definitely getting a lot of traffic through Kongregate, so it's using word-of-mouth (all of my projects failed because I tried implementing word-of-foot) nicely. 

Arbitrary Star Rating * * * * * * * § (7/? and whatever that thing is)

Best Feature: In the video promo, during the push for how independent they are, the incredibly unsubtle Minecraft icon. 

  Much like Comics Galore, this list will be ongoing, because I'm sure we're going to see more of these. Don't get discouraged just because there are only two games here. I jumped into writing this so I haven't tried past the first couple of levels on Drillboid, so I can promise at least 5 minutes of gameplay.