Tag Archives: Gaming

Gaming With A Cause: The Humble “Botanicula” Debut

Posted by Chad Knick on

I always find it a charming experience when I can find games made from foreign countries that can make me smile. In this month’s case of The Humble Bundle – I think I’ve found a new love in a game design company. Now you all may have been around when I touched on Machinarium during my Point and Click Adventures post , and let’s just say if you liked that you’ll certainly love the package that the Humble “Botanicula” Debut gives you.

Created by Czech Republic indie company Amanita Design these games are fantastic, whimsical, and will charm their way into your hearts with their simplistic, engaging, and emotionally heartwarming gameplay. The glorious thing about it all, is that you pay what YOU want for the Bundle – and your donations go to a wonderful cause – we’ve been through this routine before with past Humble Bundles if you’ve followed my blog. I’m telling you now they’re wonderful money-saving, cause caring little bundles and you should really check them out.

In the Humble Botanicula Debut you’ll receive the following:

  1. Botanicula
  2. Machinarium
  3. Samorost 2
  4. Kooky – An indie movie by Amanita Design
  5. Windosill – if you pay over the average donation – which is 8.77 as of now

So, now to try and examine each one, in short, to prove you get your money’s worth.

Botanicula:

In the newest release from Amanita Design, you play as a quirky little gang of misfit  tree creatures [ one looks like a stick, the other an acorn or seed, one looks like a fruit, etc. ] and you must guide them about this fantastically artistic world to save their forest homeland from spider invaders. Does this sound fun yet? – well it should! The game has a sense of whimsical charm I haven’t seen in ages, and it’s point and click storybook humor and gameplay make it not only simple, but a game that can be enjoyed by players of all age groups.

One small step for seeds - one giant leap for a forest.

I really have nothing bad to say about this game, because it doesn’t have dialogue from what I’ve experienced, and if it’s anything like most Amanita Design games, they’ve taken into account deaf players and either added no necessity for sound, or some sort of written or picture instruction [ in Machinarium, they used picture instructions so I’m leaning on the same vein. ] The colors are vivid and the animations are child-like and gorgeous. The mechanics are easy enough via point and click mechanics – so if you’ve got a mouse, even those with limited mobility will be able to play this game.

We're your friends! We're your friends! We're your friends till the bitter end!

The color scheme is the only thing that scares me, not being color blind I don’t know how this will affect colorblind gamers, but there’s quite a few spots where I felt that the colors of the background and items tended to have similar color tones, and that may cause some issues, but the characters and backgrounds I feel are vivid enough to counteract that. If any color-blind gamer gives this game a shot, let me know your personal opinion. I would love to hear it from a person who’s had first hand experience. Overall though, the game is charming and can be played by practically anyone – I totally endorse it as a must see game.

Machinarium:

Some of you have probably already heard of my ringing endorsement of Machinarium, but in case you haven’t, please check out my post on Point and Click Adventures.

Samorost 2:

If there ever was a game that I could honestly say had an almost Salvador Dali feel to it then it would have to be Samorost, but it’s sequel brethren Samorost 2 is no different. Now in Samorost 2 you play as a little man who’s dog has been kidnapped by alien invaders. They’ve taken your dog and now you must fly off to go on a grand quest to save him and find a way to return home. This basic and charming premise leads to one of the most heartwarming and light-hearted stories I’ve seen in ages.

Excuse me, but umm - have you seen a dog about Mr. Aardvark?

Now the games difficulty can become a bit tedious, as this point and click adventure game doesn’t hold your hand. You’re not told what does what, and you’re not told what items you can click on – so you’re sort of shooting in the dark, but I think that’s the joy of point and click adventure games. It’s a puzzle from the moment you walk into an environment. The game really has no dialogue, except for some sounds here and there, and so it can be played rather well by deaf gamers. The game is, once again, for all ages too. It provides a whimsical and exhilarating change of pace from the stereotypical game culture of FPS’s and MMO’s that we have floating around today.

Oh Wise Big Head! Me and my pup want to go home!

The color schemes are great, vibrant colors with distinct tones to separate one object from the other without being too offensive to the eyes. Samorost 2 is truly a treat, and I suggest anyone who loves any of these games today to seriously check it out. If you’re unsure still and you want to give the game a whirl you can try out the demo – or try out the full version of it’s predecessor Samorost. It’ll truly be a surrealist gaming experience that I feel you’ll cherish in your heart for a while.

Kooky:

Now Kooky isn’t even a game, but rather, it breaks from the traditional design medium of Amanita Design by being a MOVIE. This movie has everything going for it, and while at first I was skeptical of having an indie game company design and produce an indie film, I was proven wrong with my foot in my mouth when I watched the trailer. If you personally loved the movie “Where The Wild Things Are” or have ever watched any Muppet/puppet based movie – you’ll probably love Kooky.

A picture of the Kooky puppets from a museum exhibit

Kooky is a tale about a little teddy bear who gets lost from his owner, and must travel across a forest in search of him. This basic principle has been done before, by many successful franchises [ in fact I’m pretty sure Winnie The Pooh was made off the idea of adventuring to find Christopher Robin ] but my point is this – this movie will captivate you. The movie is captivating, in my eyes, because of the use of materials and the use of Czech actors actually portraying the English speaking roles. The accents portrayed give a wonderful tone to the movie, and the puppets are gritty, odd, and out-of-this-world unique.

You can see Kooky in all of it’s glory in both the Czech/English Dub, or you can watch it in Czech with English subtitles – and to think you can get this ALL of these for less than 10 dollars? I’m definitely looking forward to seeing the whole thing, and you should too. Here’s the trailer to show you how amazing of an experience you’re bound to have:

[ Yes, that’s Jeremy Irons being Narrator ^_^  If that doesn’t sell you… ]

Windosill:

If you’re looking for a completely bonkers, unusually artsy experience well then look no further than Patrick Smith of Vector Park and his odd-ball game of Windosill. The game look like it came out of a child’s nursery, if it was the nursery of a famous artist of course. My point is this game will be odd, I’m certain of it – but after playing the demo I’m completely intrigued. There are a couple of issues I have with the game that limit it’s accessibility, but overall it’s grand.

Well, this is a look into a person's closet...

The first would be the color tones. I’m in love with the artwork that Smith has portrayed, but the rooms often carry very similar color tones, and for color blind gamers that can make differentiating items difficult to determine. The other is that, because there is no instruction what so ever you’re tossed in blindly to finding out how to access new areas – what items do, etc. It’s a very odd game to say the least, but it’s a beautiful game and if you’re looking for something oddball to pass the time I’d definitely say you should be glad to pick this up.

So there you have it folks! Four fantastically artistic indie games that are both simple to play and beautiful to look at, and one intriguing childhood whimsical film that I’m exceptionally excited about. You can grab all of these for less than 10 dollars currently and you’re donations are not going to waste either. You’ll be aiding the World Land Trust, an organization that works to promote conservation of our world’s natural rain forests. So please, if you’re in a gaming mood and in a giving mood – I suggest stopping over and checking out the Humble “Botanicula” Bundle.

You’ll be glad you did. The Bundle is going to be running for 13 more days so get your button clicking fingers ready and pay what you want for a fantastic good time!

Inspirational Gamer of the Week: Justin “8-Bit Animal” LeGrande

Posted by Chad Knick on

Today on this weeks’s Inspirational Gamer of the Week, I decided to focus my attention on a very important topic that is near and dear to my heart. I recently watched a video from a gamer named Justin LeGrande, or otherwise known as 8-Bit Animal, and his video touched my heart with his message and so I figured that I would share it with my audience.

Cyber-bullying, or Online Discrimination is a huge problem within our online gaming communities. I can personally say that’s why I practically despised the movement to online gameplay when most games started importing multiplayer aspects to their games just so they could say that they were online compatible. I’ve had countless times where I’ve personally felt the sting of online harassment, and it’s one of the few reasons why I refuse to ever wear a headset again. A headset, while it may be useful in some games, is practically a gateway to getting bullied and harassed.

What makes it worse, is that I typically don’t talk back – which only allows me to listen to the slurs of vulgar language, discriminatory conduct, and depravity that are passing through the airwaves during matches. I’ll give you an example:

Recently I was playing the Uncharted 3 Multiplayer on my PS3, and while I didn’t have a mic on, one of my anonymous party members did. Now the voice was obviously that of teenage kid, probably no more than 12 – 13 and so his comments shouldn’t get to me right? He’s just a kid, and I don’t know this person – so why should his words affect me? Well – unfortunately, they can and do for many gamers around the world. I personally have been picked on enough, that I can shove words like ‘retard’, ‘gimp’, etc. in one ear and out the other.

This kid was reaming on me, because I kept trying to save his butt, but in the process kept dying. Now I’m pretty good at the Uncharted Multiplayer. I won’t lie, I’ve got quite a few hours of that game under my belt, but when a teenager calls you all sorts of discriminatory names without knowing who you are at all – it really devalues your gaming experience and makes you not want to play anymore. This is exactly what Justin gets at in his video, and that’s why I love him for it.

How can we allow this to continue?

We have to be able to stand up for gamers, especially gamers who don’t have the courage or the ability to stand up for themselves. I love his advice on trying to make sure that you have a dedicated group of players and friends who know you well enough that discrimination won’t be an issue. I love all of my fellow gamers no matter what race, creed, orientation, etc. I’m a fan for all, but what I’m not a fan of is disrespect and grief for just being a fellow gamer. It’s uncalled for and rude behavior that drives me away from online gameplay constantly.

Now sure, there’s ways to prompt that gamers be banned and accounts pulled – but that’s not what I’m asking for either. All I’m asking for is a sense of understanding, and some maturity on the part of my fellow gamer. We have to start being aware that the millions of players around us on these online servers come from ALL walks of life. They may be homosexual, bi-sexual, black, white, disabled, etc. and guess what?

IT SHOULDN’T MATTER!

It shouldn’t matter if a 19 year old GIRL gamer who’s paralyzed in a wheelchair can headshot you in Halo Reach 3 times before you even change your clip out – but apparently it’s heinous in the eyes of bigot gamers who feel that the anonymity of online gameplay gives them the right to say horribly outlandish things. I find these actions appalling and that’s why I’m so admiring of 8-Bit Animal for his inspiring message.

Justin,

You are an amazing gamer man, and I appreciate all of the sentiments and ideas that you’ve bestowed upon our gaming community. You have my fellow gamer support and I applaud you for such a stand up message. I hope more and more people begin to think and act like you when it comes to online gameplay, because seriously, the online market needs to change. Discrimination will always be a factor, but hopefully, we can at least get word out enough that we lessen the impact of the words in question and hopefully get fellow gamers thinking about their actions.

To all my fellow gamers,

Please heed this man’s wisdom. Acknowledge that just because a gaming console or PC gives you the anonymity to be an avatar or portray someone else it doesn’t give you free reign to abuse your fellow gamer. Griefing is a form of cyber-bullying and it’s been happening now for far too long. There are far too many children and adults plagued by these anonymous discriminatory actions not to do anything. To joke around in a group of close friends may seem acceptable, but to do so spitefully and rudely on an open forum like a gaming site or server can cause detrimental damage to the receiver. Please think about your actions and, when all is said and done, it’s almost best to say nothing than to say anything at all.

If you’re an advocate in the fight against cyber-bullying, if you feel like all gamers should have a peaceful environment to play within, then I urge you to check out more information on cyber-bullying here:

Stop Cyberbullying

The more we get acquainted with the actions that we take that are abusive, the quicker we can become aware of the steps needed to stop these interactions. I pray for a day when cyber-bullying isn’t an issue, but until that day, the best step is to be made aware that it is one. On the site there’s also a game available to play too called Alex WonderKid Cyber Detective.

I haven’t downloaded it yet [ and I assume it’s PC only ] but it’s supposed to help students learn about the dangers and issues involved with cyber-bullying and discrimination.

Thank you Justin and I hope that your message helps touch countless other gamers!

– Chad

Game of the Week: Closure

Posted by Chad Knick on

Well, I’m always a fan of etherial sorts of gameplay, and today’s game is no exception to that. I’m fascinated when a game can take a simple design aspect like light, and transform it into the base medium for their game. Now some of you may hate me today [ in fact I’m sure many of you will if you don’t own a PS3 ] but today’s game is a PSN exclusive  for now… unfortunately. I wish I could provide this game to anyone and everyone, but alas, there WILL be PC and Mac versions later this year. So now, please, before I ramble on any further – how about we get some Closure?

The light will guide you home...

I remember seeing closure back at PAX ’09 [ Yeah, it’s been a while ] and when I first checked out this game by Tyler Glaiel, Jon Shubbe, and Christopher Rhyne [ The trio of Eyebrow Interactive ] I was fascinated by the initial concept, and in fact, it was one of the first indie games that really strengthened my desire to step into this industry. [ Thanks guys! ]

Three years later, and now they’re a indie game sensation. They’ve won countless indie game awards, and honestly, when you look at Closure – you can see why. Closure is this artistic, musically enthralling, light puzzle game and it’s got so much going for it that I’m scared to even say a word about it.

Left or Right - Oh for the love of Light I can't choose!

The gameplay mechanics are really nice. I always love when you can port onto a game and your controls feel fluid and simple. The game only requires the use of three buttons too: x, square, and triangle. I’m hoping that the Mac and PC versions only require a point and click interface – it would provide much more accessibility. The game is intriguing on all fronts, whether it be the alluring art design from Shubbe, or the dark and pulse pounding musical tones from Ryhne – this game has a ton to keep you entertained.

The great thing is that, while in some cases and puzzles you have to follow the light around, I felt like there wasn’t a severe sense of urgency. If I failed I could simply start over again, and there was no real penalty or game over screen. The color scheme of the monotone black and white was a brilliant choice – considering that it aids colorblind gamers and makes the visuals actually pop quite nicely. There isn’t a real requirement to play this game with sound, but the sound definitely adds to the games allure – so deaf players will be sadly missing out if they don’t have hearing aids. I merely tried the demo, and I’m already hooked. They managed to take a game I had witnessed back when they first started conception – and turn it into a real masterpiece.

Lights... Camera... Action!

Accessibility, for mobility impaired gamers, is where it gets tricky. The game is simple, and so it’s refined mechanics make it easy to go from one button input to the next. The downside though, is that in many of some of the beginning puzzles [ and I presume further on ] you actually have to follow the light, and while I’m sure it can be done with one hand on the analog stick – it makes for precision timing issues and that can lead to the failure of a level multiple times. The game is forgiving though, and allows you to replay levels as many times as you need, which is a refreshing thing to see game designers put into console games. I hate ‘Game Over‘ screens, I prefer “Continue at your leisure‘ games.

I thought it was something back in ’09, but give them a while and they really did a fantastic job. The game is accessible to almost everyone, considering that there’s no dialogue instructions or need for sound to play. Blind gamers will be sadly out of luck due to this lack of audio instructions, and the fact that you need to be able to see the puzzles to complete the worlds, but overall, it’s accessible which is a great thing. There’s definitely a sense of losing yourself though, which can be a bummer for some gamers. The lack of light in levels can cause you to fall off into the vast black spaces, or cause you not to be able to see the full map of where you need to get to.

I need a little Closure in my life.

One aspect that I really loved was the idea of having multiple characters in multiple worlds, so each world advancement, your character gains a new persona to aid it through the light defying levels. I love this game and quite honestly, I’ll probably be buying the full game the moment I have enough to splurge on it. You should definitely check this game out if you’re a puzzle fiend, are into artsy games, and you love deep, enjoyable indie game experiences – Closure is most definitely for you.

Aside from a few minor down points this game is all upside, and I’m totally endorsing it as a highly accessible game that, when you get the opportunity, everyone should try out. I can’t wait for the game to come to PC and Mac so more players can try it out, but if you’re hankering for a wonderfully immersive and innovative puzzle game give yourself some Closure at the price of $14.99 on PSN – or you know play the free demo before you go splurge that cash on an awesome game.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some light bending to do and some puzzles to thwart…

Game of the Week: I Saw Her Standing There…

Posted by Chad Knick on

You know, on occasion, I find some really interesting games that I just feel compelled to comment on. I’d much rather introduce them early than wait to catch up with the masses. Today is no different, which is why I’m not waiting till Tuesday to post this. Today I’ve got a lovely little artistic game called I Saw Her Standing There… by Krang Games.

I Saw Her Standing There… is a puzzle game with tons of artistic appeal. It looks so simple, but the story is fun and engaging. You play as a small stick icon in love with a fellow icon and as you approach you realize there’s a twist to this love story…

I Saw Her Standing There… But Then She Was A Zombie.

This game has something definitely going for it: humor.

Each level is like a segment  of your avatar’s devotion to his zombie fiancee. The game mechanics can be a little cumbersome, but it’s a fun enjoyable experience for such a simple game. The puzzles involve you having to lure your zombie fiancee into a containment cage. It sounds simple, but it can actually be quite difficult due the WASD/ Arrow Key movement. As you advance throughout the game, the game adds other controls too, including a spacebar for a gun to fend off offensive zombies.

... I love you... You nom me... I don't care if you're a zombie...

This game is adorably charming, and I’d highly recommend it for someone who’s into games that are driven by a narrative concept in a game. It’s the narrative of this love story that drives you to continue from level to level, and the simple design of the game makes it easier for many players. Color blind gamers won’t have a problem with the game, and neither will deaf players. The only demographic that will have a major problem is motor impaired gamers, because it can be quite difficult with the control scheme.

I kind of wish it was a point n’ click situation, but alas, the game still delivers on a beautiful premise. The game is a testament to how sometimes simplicity can definitely mean more. There are 15 levels, so it can be a short, sweet love fest of gaming. The game is so much simple fun that I don’t really have much more to say…

… all I will say is that the ending will definitely be a surprise, and I hope that you love your virtual zombie bride as much as I enjoyed playing this new indie title. It is definitely an artistic title to say the least. I would love to see this title become bigger and better, maybe even garnish a phone/tablet game. You can play it for free though here:

I Saw Her Standing There… But Then She Was A Zombie

I hope you all enjoy!

Shoot up zombies, protect your zombie love, and learn what true devotion means via this heartwarmingly morbid title.

As always, thank you folks and happy gaming to all!

Games of the Week: ‘Point and Click’ Adventures

Posted by Chad Knick on

Well, for those of you who have kept up with my blog from the beginning, you’ve probably heard me talk a little bit about a man named Tim Schafer. Now it’s not secret that I’m a definite fan of his work and that of Double Fine Productions. I think I’ve successfully laid my hands on at least -most- of their titles, but if you haven’t been in the loop here’s the scoop:

Tim Schafer and Double Fine Productions are in the process of creating a ‘point and click’ adventure game. The Kickstarter garnished over 3,000,000+ dollars in donations AND I was one of those donators [ Woo to the $ 15 tier! ] Now, while I’m not allowed to discuss anything private as far as development goes – I figured I could still honor this ‘point and click’ adventure by promoting some other ‘point and click’ graphic adventure games that I feel are totally worth noting – so without further ado:

1. Machinarium

Now I was directed to this game via Alex over at Space Giraffe, and yes, I’m 3 years behind the curve. This is an unfortunate circumstance, but meh, you brush yourself off and move on. Machinarium is a wonderful little ‘point and click’ indie game that I think anyone who has an affinity for games that contain robots in them should try. You play as a little robot, and you travel through this junkyard solving puzzles and navigating your way around. There are 30 levels, and each one, while it may seem simple, is actually quite intricate and can take some time to figure out.

One small step for bots - one massive leap for gaming!

The game is, for the most part, accessible on all levels except for blind players. The color schemes are sharp, but not too abrasive to the eyes for color-blind gamers. The gameplay mechanics are simple ‘point and click’ so mobility challenged gamers won’t have a problem navigating the maps and finding what needs to be done. In the case of deaf players, there is no real sound except for sound effects and ambient music. They don’t really affect the gameplay, and so it should be accessible for deaf gamers, especially because most instruction is given via picture references which is a plus.

It's like if Tim Burton designed a video game with robots...

Now, I only played the demo version and you can gladly try it out too here.

– but from what I’ve gathered the game is immersive, the artwork is moving and fitting to the music, and after I was done with the demo I was longing for more. It’s definitely a warm, homespun game that I would definitely suggest worth checking out if you’re in the mood for an updated, old-school experience of a point-and-click. You can get the full game DRM free on Steam, Mac, Windows or Linux for just $10.00 – for 30 levels of old-school awesome I’d say it’s a definite check out.

2. Little Wheel

Now, if you’re in the mood for a FREE experience along the same vein, I invite you to take a look at another little robotic adventure ‘point and click‘ dubbed Little Wheel by FastGames. Little Wheel takes you on a journey through a robotic homeland that’s become devoid of power, and as the only powered robot left in your entire planet you must go forth solving puzzles and attempting to bring power back to the whole world through puzzle solving. Does it sound neat yet? If you’re a robot fan you’re probably drooling. Here’s a handkerchief.

One is the loneliest number that you'll ever do - 2 can be...

Now as far as accessibility goes – the accessibility drops a tad on this title. The only issue is that Little Wheel gives you no instructions. It shows you via faint circles where clickable items are, but it’s up to you to solve every scenario and figure out what can be used and what can’t etc. The color scheme is incredibly dark, almost akin to a Limbo style of gameplay. This is probably going to make it difficult for some color-blind gamers to play as the patterns of the objects have moments where they blend in during movements.

The wheels on the cage go round and round, round and round...

The gameplay can become increasingly hard too, so cognitively impaired players may have trouble figuring out patterns and actions to do when given no instructions and no hint options. Sound isn’t a requirement for this game, but you’ll be missing out on a full experience if you can’t hear the sound effects and jazz-toned music. The game is adorably charming though, despite it’s simple mechanics. It has an art-deco sort of feel and it you find yourself drawn into wanting to complete each and every puzzle [ well at least I did ] If you’re interested and would like to give it a look over you can head over and check out Little Wheel.

Well folks, that’s it for today, I hope you enjoy my ‘bot filled Games of the Week and you take in the simplistic joys that are ‘point and click’ adventure games. I’m going to go dive back into my mounds of sketchbooks and notebooks now as I await for Schafer’s Adventure to be released…

If you’re still in a steampunk mood though I also suggest you take a look at this short film by Anthony Lucas. It’s in the same vein as these games and it’s wicked good fun – though it’s a bit dark and disturbing at some points for an animation so please be aware [ also it’s quite long, just an fyi for those that are busy ]:

Inspirational Gamer of the Week: Gareth Garratt

Posted by Chad Knick on

Hey there folks, sorry for the late post today. I usually like to get my posts done in the morning, but scheduling issues occurred today. Even so, I’m dedicated enough to this blog to make sure these types of stories go out. Especially ones that speak so near and dear to my heart like today’s story. Now this story was actually reported on a little over a year ago on Kotaku, but it’s still very relevant to the topics I try to present on gaming and so that’s why I’m covering it today.

Every once in a while you see a wonderful gesture done by a company that makes the enjoyment of one gamer worth all the hard work put  forth. In the case of UK gamer, Gareth Garret, Visceral Games went above and beyond the call after one letter was written to them. Gareth has a form of cerebral palsy that severely limits his motor skill movements. He has a passion for playing video games, but uses only his chin to navigate the mouse controls. This is an astonishing testament to Gareth’s resiliency to overcome the adversity of his condition, but it was a letter that he sent to Visceral Games that truly got my attention.

In the letter it simply stated:

“I just got Dead Space 2, and I’m so disappointed.”

He went on to talk about how the lack of customizable controls on the PC made it almost impossible to play most titles, and especially Dead Space 2, but how he would very much enjoy playing the game if he could. This caught the attention of other gamers and of Visceral Games and in response Visceral Games sent this note to Gareth:

“Dear Dead Space 2 PC Players, 

The Dead Space 2 team is aware of the issue that disabled gamers are having with Dead Space 2 PC. In fact, a number of folks on our team are so passionate about this  fix done that they are currently working hard to allow players to remap key-bindings in the mouse which should help disabled gamers enjoy the game.”

So why does this even matter, why is all of this relevant to what I’m talking about today? First, I would like for you to check out this video of Gareth. Here he is playing Fallout: New Vegas on his PC – just so you can get a better understanding of amazing this guy is in my eyes, and I hope in yours too:

Well, I’ve been discussing the necessity of accessible controls like crazy in some of my past posts. I’ve explained why accessible controls can ultimately increase revenue streams and why allowing them will ultimately lead to an overwhelmingly better gaming environment for all gamers – not just disabled gamers. There is currently petition going around [ and I’m not sure if I mentioned it in my earlier Button Remapping post ] but it was started by another inspiring gamer who I’ll discuss at a later date named Chuck Bittner.

The petition was set up to start getting mainstream companies to recognize the necessity for accessible controls, accessible options, and the like. I know it may seem far fetched to ask a large company to make a concession of giving accessible controls to all console and PC games, but hear me out on this.

An options menu is clearly just that – AN OPTION. It doesn’t impede an able-bodied gamer from using a control configuration that he/she approves of, it merely gives MORE options to those who don’t fit the standard ‘options’ that are usually set. I can’t imagine having to play like these gentlemen, and I am so blessed that I am capable of doing so much – but these guys inspire me.

They prove to me that even though a person has limitations that were either birth given or man-made it shouldn’t stop you from enjoying a past-time or a specific skill or hobby you enjoy. I’m a huge advocate for this movement and I encourage anyone who’s in agreement with me to go and join the petition:

Button Remapping Petition

Currently there are 83,848 signatures – but there are plenty more disabled gamers out there in this world. So, if you are a disabled gamer, if you know a family member or friend who is a disabled gamer and you want them to be able to have the same enjoyment and opportunities as the rest of the gaming universe then I encourage you to follow up and at least keep following this petition – because it’s something special and much needed in our industry. We need to start seeing gaming as a whole community – not just ‘hardcore’ and ‘casuals’ or ‘females’ and ‘males’ or ‘abled’ and ‘disabled’ – but rather just ‘gamers.’

Gamers one and gamers all. Let’s focus on accommodation and not discrimination.

So here is to you Gareth, for speaking out to a company and getting your voice heard. Here is to you for changing the course of the way a company thinks about it’s products and it’s accessibility, and here is to you for just being an amazing, fantastic person who – through all odds, finds a way to find joy through your gaming. You are truly an inspiration and I applaud you. The day I get an industry job, you can bet my first words out of my mouth are going to be:

“Yeah, but is it accessible though?”

Game of the Week: Warp

Posted by Chad Knick on

Well, it’s finally happened, after all of the browser/app based games I’ve been promoting on this blog I finally get around to promoting some console nuggets to share with the gaming universe and today I’m extremely excited to be bringing you:

Warp

Have you ever wondered what it might be like if the movie E.T.  if it was rated R instead of rated G? – Well, that’s kind of what you’re getting in Warp by Trapdoor  Inc. The synopsis is pretty much exactly the same, but with fun little gameplay quirks. You play as Zero – a cuddly little alien test subject that a group of scientists found in some random crater. They take you back to their labs and remove your power core – and thus, it’s a game of stealth, evasion, and puzzle-solving to escape the compound and remove all evidence of Zero’s existence from the poor scientists hard drives.

Zero. He's my hero - so adorable, and yet, so unassumingly vicious.

Sound fun yet? – oh, well what if I told you this game was rated M for Mature and that one of the core mechanics was that you use a “FRAG” warping ability to possess soldiers and scientists and EXPLODE THEM?! – Sound interested yet? Now, certainly, this game is not for everyone. There’s curse words a-flying and pretty comical blood splatter physics that occur after every possession, but the game is fun if you can take the funny and comical with the darker, more adult content.

Now let’s move on to the meat of most of my posts – the accessibility.

I have to admit when I first attempted to grab the controller and look at Warp. I was skeptical, because most [ if not all ] console games require two hands to play. This game was no different, but it did have a small amount of button inputs which makes for easier controlling. Most moments are spent navigating and teleporting through rooms and hallways, and evading guards, laser turrets, and scientists – but the story has some fantastic comedy and depth to the very simplistic story. The ‘warp‘ ability only requires the touch of the X button and most actions are prompted on the screen, so it makes the gameplay easier for you to recognize when to press which input.

Help! Help! - There's something cuddly trying to kill me!

A little yellow dot signifies the distance that Zero can ‘warp’ to from one sequence to the next, and it’s not a huge distance, so you’ll have to plan your move accordingly. There is a way to format the view of your screen to a specific tones – so that colors can be more vibrant, softer, etc. – so depending on your preference that will help visibility.

Unfortunately, I didn’t see any subtitle suggestions in the options menu [ but perhaps that’s because I played the demo ] but not having subtitles, or any sort of follow along text support really cuts down the playability for deaf gamers enjoyment. You can still enjoy the game certainly, but it makes the game more difficult if you can’t hear guards in hallways, hear laser paths, etc. So what next?

Pros:

  • Simple control scheme makes for easier play
  • Visual change options makes for easier vision for vision impaired
  • Deep and comical storyline makes for fun and exciting new game
  • Puzzles are complex and deep enough to keep simple mechanics challenging
  • Challenge maps to hone skills
  • Checkpoints are frequent and rewarding

Cons:

  • Zero subtitles or deaf impaired assistance 
  • Dual handed controls [ though one-handed may be attempted. ]
  • Precision required on some puzzles due to fast paced warping.
  • Small print via most on-screen text makes for difficult instruction reading.

The point is – Warp is a great game. It’s fun and comical, although morbidly toned. There’s something infectious about that little cute alien Zero that just makes you want to squeeze him. Though watching as he bursts all cuddly from some scientists chest prompted me to suddenly think about what Alien would have been like if it had been made as a Disney movie.

The puzzles are challenging, the challenge rooms are fun and there are leader boards that you can compete with others online with. There are upgrades available and collectables to discover – and it’s just a real bloody good time! I’m truly satisfied with this game, in fact, it’s one of the few games lately I feel EA has gotten spot on as far as entertainment lately. Zero disappointments from my new pal Zero! So, if you’re hankering for a good ol’ fashion puzzler that will keep you hooked by the seat of your warping little britches – I suggest you check out Warp.

You can pick up Warp for PSN, XBLA, or PC and it’s going for about $9.99 – so for 10 dollars you can tell your friends you just had the most violently fun E.T. experience that you could possibly have. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles it needs to to be fully accessible, and it’s by no-means fully accessible on consoles, but the simplistic controls and engaging puzzles make for a wonderfully dark romp of fun!

Enjoy folks and as always – happy gaming for all!

Game of the Week: Bunni: How We First Met

Posted by Chad Knick on

Hey there folks, so I know I just posted a Game of the Week yesterday, and I realize that this game is late notice – but today is Easter, and what kind of gamer would I be if I didn’t celebrate the holiday in some kind of style by giving you fellow gamers a joyous, heartfelt experience of gaming to go along with this occasion. Today I’m bringing you a game some of you folks may have heard of, but never have taken the time to play. Trust me, I do it a lot. It’s normal. You hear about a game, and then you’re like:

“Oh, that game sounds amazing – too bad I can’t afford to play it.” 

– and so you wait, and then you’re like the last person to experience it – and rewarding feeling of discovery is gone for you. Oh – right – enough with my ramblings and carrying-on-abouts! Time for the gaming and the naming, shall we? So tonight I’m going to be talking about an adorable little indie gem of a game:

Bunni: How We First Met

I am King and you are my foxy minions!

Now this game does a lot of things right in terms of accessibility and this is why I think it should be well noted. Here’s how it works, essentially Bunni is a game that revolves around resource management and maintenance of an island [ that is presumably haunted by other wandering soul Bunni’s ] – in order to stay alive and appease the spirits of the island you have to build a bunny civilization and maintain the delicate balance between the needs of the spirit world and the needs of your own.

Did that synopsis suck you in yet? No. Drat. I need to work harder at this! Well how about if I mention that the art direction is adorable and simple and it’s user friendly with all of the colorations being bright and distinct enough that it won’t affect colorblind gamers play? – or how about the addition of full subtitled directions? Point and Click accessibility, etc., etc. This game has so many things going for it I suppose I’ll just have to list them all:

  • Full written and subtitled directions for deaf gamers
  • Color scheme is conducive to all players visual fields
  • Point and Click makes the game easier for mobility impaired gamers.
  • Icons for items that appear to point you in the right direction on the map
  • Tracing Resource Bar at the Top of Screen

Here’s a tutorial of how it plays out [ sorry, it’s the best quality I could find ]:
There are sound cues for when things drop, but it’s not really necessary to play the game. It may make it more difficult for deaf gamers, but the game is still fully playable and fun. The game draws you in by only giving you so many options at the beginning, but as you complete tasks and build new structures – new building opportunities arise. This is where the manic gamer in me comes out – if I’m given new options to explore with, or new places to venture to I want those experiences! This game will keep you on your toes with it’s random requests from your ghost relatives, fending off deer and monsters from your trees, etc. and that’s the joy of it really.

I am your adorable King. Cuddle me and bow before my snuggles!

I have to admit I’m not often a huge fan of resource management games, but there have been quite a few that have struck me lately and Bunni is no exception – so please, feel free to spend what ever you have left of this lovely Easter evening enjoying the cute, fluffy, cuddlesome joy and become a King of the Bunni in:

Bunni: How We First Met

You can play it for FREE on Kongregate, but be warned, unless you have a user account [ which is totally free by the way I suggest getting one ] it won’t save your game progress, otherwise, it’s totally a wonderful experience and definitely a game that I endorse during this holiday season. Thanks folks, and as always, happy gaming!

Game of the Week: Axon

Posted by Chad Knick on

Well hey there fellow gamers! Real quick blog today featuring a game that’s both educational and fun at the same time. I know – they’re rare, but they’re out there. Anywho today’s game comes to you from a company called Wellcome Collection. They are, apparently, an online museum relating to the human culture and inner workings – which is why their game Axon intrigued me enough to write about it.

The science of neurons has never looked so fun!

Axon is a very quick point and click action game where you try and connect as many synapses as you can to earn points. There are multiple colors that you can connect throughout that serve as power-ups, and the game – although simple, is surprisingly addictive fun. Here’s how the power ups work:

  • Purple: Range – This will increase the range of your click radius for a short time.
  • Green: Boost – This boosts your protein count by boosting you up the targets.
  • Blue: Freeze – Provides a 1-second delay of the click radius and anything around.
  • Yellow: Chain Force – The best power-up, but also the hardest, click all the yellow proteins in order and you get the largest boost of any upgrade available.

The game is exceptional, because it does allow for point and click accessibility, and it’s art style is conducive to just about anyone to play it. Another key element, that I found really sealed the gameplay for me, was the competitive nature of the game. The AI of the other red neurons as they tried to steal away your available proteins was a really nice touch that kept me engaged. The music is ambient and intriguing and the gameplay is fast paced enough that you don’t get bored of the concept easily. The only problems here is that it’s not exactly conducive gameplay for those with motor-skill impairments.

 

Precision timing is key here since the radius ring closes rather fast – so your clicking finger needs to be super quick as you increase up in length. Overall though the game is fantastic, and even though it’s simple, it kept me wanting to try and increase my score over and over. I kept wanting to see if I could create new neurons as I went on, because when you lose the game gives you a synopsis of what type of neuron you created. I thought it was fascinating and I hope you will too. I know today’s article is short and sweet, but truth be told, it’s all about the game – not about what I have to say about it.

Give it a go yourself if you’d like to test your speed skills: Axon

Hope you enjoy folks and as always here on Gastrogamer – Happy gaming to all!

Inspirational Gamer of The Week: Almost Human Games

Posted by Chad Knick on

Imagine if you will that you are a gamer and you love playing games, or you would love to play games, but the accessibility of the controls made it inaccessible or impossible to succeed at playing said games. This is a situation that occurs for thousands, if not millions of gamers world wide with disabilities. This week though we have a case of a gaming company hearing the voice of one individual and changing the course of their games accessibility just from the sound of one question posed to them.

In January 2012 a small indie company called Almost Human Games began promotion of a game called Legends of Grimrock. It was set to be an old-school dungeon crawler RPG. The dungeons have tile based movement and so most actions are rather simplistic in nature. The real story here comes from a gamer, HarpoonIPA, who contacted Almost Human about their accessibility and why the option of on-screen directional movement arrows was actually a necessity in his case.

This is amazing - so I had to share.

HarpoonIPA is a paraplegic gamer who is required to use a mouth stick for any of his typing and so when HarpoonIPA explained the reason why accessible onscreen button controls were a necessity for his enjoyment and gameplay. The developers were touched by his story and, thus, set about implementing the onscreen HUD to the game. Developer, Petri Hakkinen, stated in an interview with Kotaku that:

” It was no big deal to implement it. I mean even it were to affect only the life of one single person, it is still totally worth it.”

The game will be released on April 11th, 2012 on Windows, Mac, and iOS – but this event truly speaks to me. I mean, as a designer, I’m constantly searching for new ideas and new methods that people are working on and trying to see how to best implement aspects into my own projects. In this story I think it speaks in droves the kind of impact small gestures like this can have.

Why don’t we have more onscreen HUD controls?

Why don’t we see more main-stream developers taking the reigns and reformatting their works to be more accessible?

I have to ask, is it a finance thing?

Is it a lack of desire to change control schemes, or do developers feel locked to the plastic control schemes presented by mainstream consoles?

Is it because the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few?

I applaud HarpoonIPA for speaking out and requesting his needs and desires to help the developers change their accessibility, and I applaud the developers for having the courage and wherewithal to follow through with it. Most gaming companies would have stopped this idea at the front door, because there’s so much consumerism and mass appeal that goes into production of most of these games. Indie games catch a break though, because they don’t often have to deal with all of the red-tape of a hierarchy system.

Badger Badger Badger Badger...MUSHROOM MONSTER!

My question that this poses is why? Why does it have to be indie houses that show the most attention to detail when it comes to creating accessibility? Why can’t the console market take steps to creating meaningful experiences like this? I’ve traveled many forums, talked to countless other gamers, and even having SOME options like this available to them would make their enjoyment of their gaming lives overall better. One thing I hate though above all are the folks out there who are able-bodied and who troll forums like Youtube and other major network sites and claim that the needs of disabled players shouldn’t be recognized because it will give them an ‘unfair advantage.’

Trust me I’ve seen hate bashing on some button remapping campaigns. Some able-bodied gamers believe that giving access to additions like button remapping or assistive controls will ultimately give disabled gamers an advantage in their gameplay. How much sense does this really make? None. I pose this argument to anyone who still thinks this is true: If you’re getting beat by a disabled gamer, and you’re able bodied, you seriously need to think about choosing a new game to play. They are playing at a disadvantage already, so how does giving them the ability to play on an equal playing field make it an unfair advantage for them?

Hmm - He's behind bars... now how to make a stew out of him?

Fellow gamers shouldn’t complain, instead, embrace and show love and support for your fellow gamers. Almost Human has and I’m so excited to see design studios doing this. I hope there’s more of it in the future. I believe a ton of MMO’s could benefit from onscreen HUD displays like this: The Old Republic, World of Warcraft, DC Universe Online – you name it, they could use it. I’ve also thought about the concept of voice recognition software too. I know that Bioware was working on voice software for the Kinect and Mass Effect 3, but I would love to see that same concept implemented into other games before I can truly say that it’s a step forward in gaming.

So here is to you Almost Human Games! You reached out to a gamer in need and changed your game for the benefit of, not only him, but countless new gamers who will play your title. You have not only my respect, but my admiration, and I wish you all the best of luck upon the games release April 11th, 2012! Time for me to go slay a dragon in some dungeon somewhere…