Dec 13, 2019Feature
We may not have gotten more Animal Crossing: New Horizons information from last night’s (December 12th, 2019) The Game Awards, however Nintendo is still teasing us with social media posts letting us know that something is in the works. Nintendo also seemed to have already shown us the bulk of their games coming next year (2020) with the Indie World Showcase from last Tuesday. That’s not to say there weren’t any amusing highlights during the 3-hour long live-streamed event!
The Game Awards was the biggest we’ve ever seen with live orchestra performances and an appearance from the band Green Day. Even though there weren’t any World Premieres of wholesome ‘potato games’, I’ve listed my favorite moments of the show below. Potato Highlights, if you will.
Thanks to Geoff Keighley’s hard work of putting together The Game Awards, we all got an early Christmas gift that was Untitled Goose Game and The Muppets Show crossover. Dr. Bunsen Honeydew and his assistant Beaker came on the stage to announce the winner of the Games for Impact, which GRIS took the award for. Not only were the Muppets live on stage, we also got a hilarious video, Untitled Beaker Game, which made my whole night. I only wish that the developers House House could make this game a reality. I’d pay good money for that DLC.
Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice ended up taking the big award home (Game of the Year) during last night’s The Game Awards 2019, however a couple of Nintendo games also won in different categories! Most notably, Super Smash Bros Ultimate won Best Fighting Game and Luigi’s Mansion 3 won Best Family Game! I’m so happy for Luigi’s Mansion 3 because it was one of the best games I’ve played this year and Polterpup is a good boy.
Ex-CEO of Nintendo of America, Reggie Fils-Aime, was present at The Game Awards 2019 and announced the award for Best Independent Game. Before the winner was named, he gave a very passionate speech about the importance of indie games and how every game developer starts out as “indie”. These games are the future and I have definitely found quite a few gems over these past few months! I’m not crying, you’re crying!
This exclusive Nintendo Switch game announcement came quite out of nowhere with very little details. Bravely Default and its direct sequel Bravely Second: End Layer were amazing 3DS games by Square Enix. Bravely Default II seems to be an entirely stand-alone game with different characters but in a familiar world where there are “Heroes of Light”. My guess is they might be starting to create a numbered series like Final Fantasy. We can expect Bravely Default II to release sometime in 2020.
The Head of Xbox, Phil Spencer, came on the stage to show us the new Xbox console coming next Holiday Season (2020). We have known for quite some time that Microsoft has been working on their next generation console code-named Project Scarlett, but now we have the real name; Xbox Series X. The specs are as follows: 4K visuals at 60FPS, with possibility of up to 120FPS, including support for Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), and 8K capability. For more information on the Xbox Series X, you can go to Xbox’s official website here.
If you haven’t had the chance to try out the dozens of free demos available on Steam thanks to a new project by The Game Awards called The Game Festival, you should head over there now! The Game Festival allows you to try out demos that you normally would only see at conventions and events that you may not get the chance to attend in-person. Now, for only 48 hours (which started early December 12th, 2019), you can try out quite the wholesome list.
My first game on the list was SkateBIRD and can say that this tiny hawk is poised to replace the champ of skateboarding themed video games. However, what really surprised me was how much I enjoyed playing the demo for Roki. Finding items and figuring out how to use them to move on to the next puzzle was truly a fun experience. I also want to know more about the story and what’s with the creepy vibe I’m getting. Another game worth mentioning is Spiritfarer. The gameplay footage we got to see at Gamescom 2019 is the same but what I didn’t know was how a second player can play your cat companion Daffodil! Both of you can also go around hugging everyone and its so wholesome.
Finally, I also really enjoyed Moving Out and its physics-based mechanics, and Chicory for its clever use of the paintbrush for platforming puzzles and the nostalgic feeling I got of Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards. Both games are also local co-op games!
Dec 11, 2019News
The Game Awards are upon us, and everyone is super excited to see just how crazy the event will be this year. After last years overwhelming audience, they are really pulling out all the stops this year. The awards will feature an all new twist, called The Game Festival. During the festival, many of my favorite games that are currently in the works will have a playable demo.
You can play the demo for each game at any time during The Game Festival. The festival will last a total of two days, spanning from Thursday at 10am PT to Saturday at 10am PT. All of the demos will be made available through Steam, so be sure that you have an account ready if any of these strike your fancy.
Eastward is a JRPG adventure game with pixel graphics, which is set in a post-apocalyptic Shanghai. The game, which focuses on a father and his daughter, is said to be very emotive and exciting. Eastward has beautiful graphics similar to farming simulation Stardew Valley and Chucklefish’s upcoming magic school game Witchbrook (which you can read more about here). Now Eastward developer Pixpil’s has decided to partner with Chucklefish to release the game on Nintendo Switch. – More info here
Spiritfarer has everything you’d want in a laid back, cozy up kinda game, but this title has storyline that will guide players through an emotional journey. Spiritfarer is essentially a game about dying – which makes time alive just so much more valuable. How will you spend your every day? The game offers plenty of options to make the best out of each and every moment. Go fishing, enjoy some farming, cook and craft, the options are endless. – More info here
Skatebird is an indie game developed by Glass Bottom Games – a tiny 4 people studio creating adorable things. In Skatebird players will slip into the roll of “Skatbird” an adorable bird listening to tunes through headphones and following his (her?) passion to skate away. The variety of tiny worlds are Skatebirds playground and filled with little objectives and even tinier secret traps, which the developers say, are mostly made out of scotch tape. – More Info Here
Moving Out is created by SMG Studio in Australia (and in collaboration with Devm Games in Stockholm), an indie game development studio that won awards for their games such as Death Squared. This hilarious action, puzzle, and physics-based moving simulator game is a nice mesh of Frogger and Overcooked! I mean who doesn’t want to become a F.A.R.T (certified Furniture Arrangement & Relocation Technician)? – More Info Here
Steeped in lore with a rich narrative to guide, Roki is one adventure game that I absolutely can’t wait to play! I can already tell that the simple yet eloquent graphics truly attempt to capture the beauty and wonder that is Scandinavia. From the perilous mountain peaks to the frosted valleys, Roki is sure to be an adventure worthy of the heartiest heroes. However, it is not the environment that will be your foe here, but the darkness that looms therein. – More Info Here
Chicory: A Colorful Tale is an adventure game about a dog wielding a magic paintbrush! Use the power of art to explore, solve puzzles, help your animal friends and restore color to the world. The Brush is a one-of-a-kind artifact that can color the world. Naturally, it needs a wielder, a master artist responsible for all colors and for passing the brush down. The current wielder, Chicory, is immensely talented and beloved by all… until all the color in the land vanishes, and her with it! I guess that leaves it up to you, her number one fan, to take up the brush and fill in for her. Hmm… good luck! More Info Here
These are just some of my favorites that are going to have demo’s available during The Game Festival. If you’d like more info on the festival, as well as a full list of games available to play, you can check out the official announcement from Geoff Keighley!