Free Bytes: Vertical Drop Heroes

Posted on September 9, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“When princesses (and other captured royalty, for that matter) are in need of serious rescuing from dastardly villains and fanged monsters, it’s rare that a hero just comes falling out of the sky to promptly save the day. However, in Vertical Drop Heroes, that’s exactly what happens. Every level seems to practically hemorrhage heroes, but most are in cages and are incapable of doing much besides twiddling their thumbs out of boredom. That’s where you come in. Setting them free – or as we prefer to look at it, consuming their souls – lets you steal their powers and carry the torch to glory.”

Check out the full column here at IGN.

Indie Spotlight #2: Flash, Bang, Boom

Posted on August 17, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“Freeware used to be a completely different animal back in the earlier days of home computing, but the birth of the Internet and the more recent advent of blazing-fast connections speeds have changed things completely. The Flash gaming scene has since exploded, giving bedroom coders and startup indie studios a shot at having their games played by millions of players. That’s a win-win for players looking to get in some short bursts of gaming. But how does one stay afloat simply making free browser-based games on a full-time basis? The folks at Nitrome Limited have it figured out.”

Check out the full column here at GameSpy.

Flash Game Freebie: 60s To Save The Queen

Posted on July 23, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“Enemies are attacking the castle! The queen is in danger! Quick, you must leap to her rescue! You have 60 seconds to save your poor bride from the clutches of evil. Ready! Set! Go! Yeah, that’s pretty much the entire the setup for 60s to Save the Queen, and what follows in the moments after you take on your frantic mission makes for unadulterated spazz-platforming glee. It’s a mad dash to be the hero, and every second counts.”

Check out the full write-up here at GamesRadar.

Flash Game Freebie: Death Row Diner

Posted on July 16, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“Let’s not beat around the bush. This hilarious flash game is basically a re-skinned Diner Dash with knife fights, which is why we absolutely can’t get enough of it. Not only are you the “culinary director” for a particularly rowdy bunch of death row inmates, you’re also one badass, cig smoking, spoon wielding, apron toting granny with a major attitude. Dishing out the grub to murderous thugs in Death Row Diner is messy business, especially when they get pissed and start shanking the hell out of one another.”

Check out the full write-up here at GamesRadar.

Flash Game Freebie: Action Turnip

Posted on July 12, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“We’re not sure exactly what it is a turnip would be running madly away from – except possibly a hungry, knife-wielding chef in search of a perfect summer salad topping – but the little veggie protagonist in Action Turnip has a lot of spunk. Part Canabalt, part action shooter, and part random bizarreness, this twitchy and crazy web browser game is utterly charming and a hell of a lot of fun.”

Check out the full write-up here at GamesRadar.

Free Bytes: Space Disposal

Posted on July 9, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“This one is for those from the “safety is for wimps” school of thought. Imagine this: instead of taking out the space trash the normal sissy way, why not concoct a scheme to get rid of your garbage using the most potentially dangerous and lethal means possible? That’s the order you’ve been given from your higher ups, as the new garbage commander in Space Disposal. Apparently, getting the job done is so much more fun when there are countless lives at stake, including your own. “

Check out the full column here at IGN.

Free Bytes: Civilization Wars

Posted on June 25, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“Knowledge is power, and power can corrupt. When a once-grand civilization’s possession of ancient knowledge unleashes a destructive curse, all of the people are suddenly wiped out of existence by a fiery cataclysm. After many ages have passed, new tribes sprout up beyond the reach of the destruction, and they retain the legend of an untold power that will be given to those who seek out mystical fallen star. When such a star does indeed fall from the sky, everyone scrambles to acquire its might with little concern about what gets trampled in the process. That’s how the stage is set for battle in Civilization Wars, an extremely sharp-looking and addictive real-time strategy flash game.”

Check out the full column here at IGN.

Flash Game Freebie: Pixel Legions

Posted on May 26, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“On their own, individual pixels seem small and insignificant, but when you put hordes of them together, their value becomes readily apparent. No, we’re not talking about retro videogame art – this is war. It’s a war fought by throngs of tiny, pissed-off glowing pixels. It’s a war that will draw you into its fold and completely annihilate any chances of escape. Thought you were going to get some work done today? Think again. Pixel Legions is calling.”

Check out the full article here at GamesRadar.

Flash Game Freebie: Tetraform

Posted on May 24, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“These days manually shooting at enemies to make them explode into a fiery ball of awesome death is so passé. It’s way cooler to make them collide, causing a similarly delightful eruption of flame, annihilation and twisted metal. Tetraform is an odd little arcade space defense game that has you taking out take out entire armadas of ne’er-do-wells without laying a finger on your trigger. The lack of pew-pew-pew doesn’t disappoint, because it’s a hell of a lot more fun to fling them at one another.”

Check out the full column here at GamesRadar.

Flash Game Freebie: Give Up, Robot

Posted on May 14, 2010 by Nathan Meunier

“You know a game is awesome when you’ve just died about a hundred times in the last five minutes but still want to keep on pushing forward to beat the next level, or when the jittery on-screen flashing reaches seizure-inducing levels of crazy but you still can’t look away. With its psychedelic retro style, solid grappling action, and twitch-inducing puzzle gameplay, Give Up, Robot is that kind of game – as much as it brutalizes you for playing, you simply won’t want to stop.”