Terry Cavanagh released VVVVVV this weekend. It’s a retro platformer with innovative game play.

He gives users the option to play an online demo at Kongregrate here or you download as windows or mac demo.

The game costs $15.00

Virtual Farm Game Review by Adam Sprott
Game Rating = 2/5 Balls

After playing Virtual Farm by Alawar Entertainment, I have found it to be quite unrealistic and a game that quickly becomes boring. Personally, I did not like it; I enjoy games that are a challenge, and this game was far too simple. To give it a rating, I would say it is no better than a 2/5 for children, a 1/5 for everyone else.

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The game is far too stereotypical and idyllic with very little creativity or innovation. Seeing as I live on a farm, I think the game designers know very little about farming and have instead developed a game more along the lines of home gardening; farmers do not grow grass, they grow hay as any 3-year-old living on or near a farm can tell you. Naturally the main character is the stereotypical large pot-bellied farmer in plaid overalls and straw hat that waddles around with gardening tools and equipment. There are hardly any setbacks as you play the game, and unless you forget to do something or you make a mistake everything will turn out perfectly. This game has been built from a basic template that has been used by many, many other games, and has no innovation or creativity other than being set in a large garden. I was surprised I did not have to chase any troublesome garden gnomes away; it would have probably been more interesting and engaging. (more…)

Phadt Menace game review by Dean Arias
Game Rating = 2/5 Balls

Right out of the gates, UFO 2: The Phadt Menace blasts you with some nostalgic tunes and graphics from the days of the Sega Genesis. Blaring trumpets, odd sparkles, and shimmering noises fill your mind. If you look forward to this for the next 60-minutes of this game’s trial-run, then you’ll be in blocky 16-bit heaven.

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Next screen after the emboldening intro is a scrolling wall-of-text, explaining the game’s story; It’s a copy of the Star Wars method of story-telling. A slow reveal, lame plot, in other words, absolutely boring as hell if hell was having to read a giant wall of text, in slow motion, with trumpets blaring in the background. You may safely (and for your safety) skip it. (more…)

Jets and Guns Gold Game Review by Kenneth Andrews
Game Rating = 4/5 Balls

Once upon a time, all action games were like Jets n Guns Gold. Piloting a heavily armed yet highly manoeuvrable starfighter around unlikely structures in outer space and blasting seven shades of starlight out of all manner of alien beasties. Sideways scrolling shooters are back with a vengance.

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Real Estate Empire 2 Game Review by Cindy Shanks
Game Rating = 4/5 Balls

Story:

Could you be a property magnate? Could you make money from nothing? This game allows you to find out. The player has inherited a trailer park and needs to buy trailers, upgrade, rent them and sell them in order to make money before moving to a more affluent area with houses.

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Timetrap, a Swedish based game development company released a new downloadable platform game for the PC and Mac today. We have posted the trailer below and will add a review later this month.

You can get the PC and Mac demo’s on their site at

http://www.timetrap.se/emberwind/

The game costs $12.

System Requirements:

Windows PC – System requirements
Windows XP or newer,
50MB of HD, 256 MB of RAM,
1 GHz processor

Mac OS X – System requirements
OS X Tiger or newer,
50MB of HD, 256 MB of RAM,
G4, G5 or Intel processor

Laser Dolphin Game Review by Tabitha Akery
Game Rating = 5/5 Balls

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A senator has been captured by aliens and its up to Laser Dolphin to race to the rescue. Thus the story begins. Collect gold dolphins on your way to saving the day. Race through the sea and jump land obstacles as you shoot floating mines, shooting lasers, and bomb strapped turtles. Be the hero you were meant to be, if you were a dolphin.

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(more…)

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Positech released an expansion pack for their latest downloadable strategy game called Gratuitous Space battles. The pack adds an extra playable race to the game, complete with new spaceships to blast apart in gratuitous slow motion. As well as new ship hulls, the game adds two new missions and a scattering of new tribe-specific modules to reflect their emphasis on ’strong hulls and weak shields’. It also introduces
the first use of kinetic weapons.

Here’s a video containing scenes from the expansion pack:

The expansion pack is free for anyone who has already purchased Gratuitous Space Battles which costs $22.99 for new users.

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Game Review by Shilo Dawn Goodson
Game Rating = 3/5 Balls

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System Requirements
2.0 Ghz processor, 1 GB RAM
Minimum: NVIDIA GeForce 7600 / ATI Radeon X700
Recommended: NVIDIA GeForce 9600 / ATI Radeon HD 2600 or better.

Grappling Hook will start out as probably one of the most frustrating games you’ve ever played, but hold out. It gets better. In this game, the basic storyline is you are stuck in space, and you are trying to make your way back home.

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Game Play
One of the most frustrating things about Grappling Hook is that you start out the game with no real instructions. To start the game, you are stuck in a space station, and you must make your way out. Along the way, you need to collect access codes. These look like gems. Each level has a certain amount that must be collected for you to pass that level. To start with, you can only run and jump your way through the game. Once you find your grappling hook, you can use that to grab onto the green bars which will pull and/or swing you to another location. Make sure that you have collected all of your access codes before you attempt to leave a level, or you will have to go back and get them.

Unless someone explains this game to you, or you somehow figure it out quickly on your own, the game moves really slowly in the beginning. This is one of the game’s greatest weaknesses. A tutorial or some real directions would have improved this game greatly.

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Graphics and Sound
I felt like the graphics were a little dated. I felt like I was playing a computer game from twenty years ago rather than one that had recently been made. I enjoyed Grappling Hook’s sounds, though. The background music accurately set the mood for the game. The noises made the game feel more realistic. For example, when you shoot your grappling hook, you can hear it being shot.

Creativity and Innovation
Although I have never played a game where I am space explorer, the game didn’t really feel that unique. I also really felt like the game’s creator did not build upon possible resources properly. To play the game, you have to use your arrow buttons, the space bar, and your mouse. This isn’t too bad most of the game, but when you have to jump, use your grappling hook, and move over all at the same time, it can be pretty difficult.

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Although the game did get a little interesting as it progressed, at almost $20, I won’t be buying it, and I would suggest to others that they try the trial before purchasing the game.

BUY GRAPPLING HOOK IF
-You have the patience to learn how to play it
-You like games where you jump around and explore an area
-You want a game that requires you to use both hands simultaneously to accomplish a task

DON’T BUY GRAPPLING HOOK IF
-You need a game that provides clear, easy to follow instruction
-You get frustrated if a computer game task doesn’t work right away
-You don’t like games where you are exploring

Here’s a demo of Shank, the next game from Klei Entertainment creators of Eets.

Shank PAX2009 Demo Playthrough from Jamie Cheng on Vimeo.