GDC has been and gone. But after two articles about the show (here and here) we’ve still got so many more games and projects to talk about. So here it is – everything else we saw in San Francisco last …
GDC has been and gone. But after two articles about the show (here and here) we’ve still got so many more games and projects to talk about. So here it is – everything else we saw in San Francisco last week. Enjoy?
PCFútbol 18 (IDC Game)
Despite its name this is actually a hardcore football management title for Android devices as well as PC. It’s even a reboot of an ancient series from the 90s. It won’t be released for a few more months as it’s apparently far too difficult at this stage, as you can be sacked as quickly as Frank De Boer as it stands. Expect a premium price tag of around €9/$9 for this one.
Truck Simulator America (Astragon)
Arriving in June or July is Astragon’s newest mobile title, Truck Simulator America. It’ll have brands including Freightliner, Kenworth and Mack – you can only get those three in this title. Also in a few months, Euro Truck Simulator will trundle onto mobile too. Expect $4.99 price-tags for both of these high quality games.
AquaMoto Racing 2 Redux (Zordix)
Zordix seem to be releasing versions of their jet-ski racing series for every format under the sun, even the Wii U. The good news for mobile gamers is that their version – a rebooted version of AquaMoto Racing 2 Redux, will be arriving in mid-June with both Free and Premium versions available.
Oceanhorn 2: Knights of the Lost Realm (Cornfox & Bros)
This is just as impressive as you might expect from the developers of the original Oceanhorn, with incredibly detailed worlds and intuitive touchscreen controls. Considering the development team consists of just five people this is a technical marvel, and will arrive on mobile later this year.
Necrosphere (Cat Nigiri)
Possibly the best game we played at the show, this platformer is already out on Steam – but we got a hold of the upcoming mobile version, and it’s great fun. You can only go left and right to navigate tricky 2D courses packed with deathtraps – there’s no jump or attack buttons, with this simple set up meaning it’s the perfect fit for mobile. Lovely.
BalanCity (Giant Monkey Robot)
A mixture of Sim City and Jenga, BalanCity is already available on Steam but is coming to iOS and Android in a couple of weeks. It seems a pretty perfect fit for tablets in particular, with the open beta available to download for free now (link).
Crocodile on the Roof & Super Stretchy Chicken Legs (Kettle of Fish)
Kettle of Fish showed us a couple of very different titles, with the first – Crocodile on the Roof – aimed at families with small children. It’s an interactive storybook which teaches kids the importance of tolerance. Basically you have to decide whether you befriend the crocodile or reject him. I’d go so far to bet that it’ll offer a far deeper storyline than most games on mobile. It’ll snap onto iOS devices in the Summer and will cost $2.49/£2.49.
The second is Super Stretchy Chicken Legs, which is pretty self explanatory. It’s a puzzle platformer where you play as a chicken with, yes, super stretchy legs. It’ll be released in Autumn on Android (iOS shortly after) and will cost 99c/99p or thereabouts.
Landlord Go & Weather Challenge (Reality Games London)
Reality Games London focus on AR titles – with their main two titles impressively original. First is Landlord Go, which asks you to buy real-world properties and then make virual rent on them. The trick is to purchase places you know will become popular in the near future – so buying the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club a few days before Wimbledon for example. It’ll be free to download and will launch in 2-3 months on both iOS and Android.
Then there’s Weather Challenge, which will arrive at the end of this year. It basically challenges you to predict the weather for the coming days and even gives you the chance to compete against a range of celebrity weather-men and weather-women. Or is it weather-people?
Insanus & Insanus Express (Cienart)
Insanus for Steam sees you building up a community of – as the development team puts it – plane crashed ‘loonies.’ You must give them all jobs, make sure resources are properly distributed, and explore out to find new colonies. It’ll arrive in around a year.
In the meantime a mobile prequel of sorts will be released in July called Insanus Express, which is a much simpler one-screen management experience that asks you to chase high scores. Both games certainly have a lot of character, and are worth keeping an eye on if you’re into time management titles.
RacketBoy (Double Dash Studios)
A mix of shmup and, er, tennis – RacketBoy is a game that almost defies description (except it doesn’t, because I just described it pretty well). In any case it has an endearing pixel-art style and some great ideas – which the dev was only to excited to go into in detail. Suffice to say, I could only make it past the first level. I did see more than enough to suggest it’ll be well worth looking into when it arrives on on Steam later this year though.
Age of Magic (Playkot)
This technically impressive turn based stretegy title has a 24th of May release date, and offers a range of modes (campaign, PvP arena, and more) – and in-game events to boot.
Samsara (Marker Limited)
This inventive puzzler was released on mobile two weeks ago (iOS/Android), but the developer revealed that DLC for the title is planned. It basically revolves around placing blocks to allow a girl named Zee to safely reach the exit.
But saying “basically” there doesn’t quite cover how many new obstacles get added as you progress. There’s even a dark opposite world where the rules are twisted around even further. My head hurts (in a good way) just thinking about it.
Marvel Strike Force (FoxNext Games)
You’ve seen this game a fair few times before. It’s basically a turn based arena strategy title, but with Marvel characters. Over 60 in fact.
In it’s defence it looks pretty slick and does offer plenty of chances for you to match up plenty of characters from the Marvel universe. Putting Guardians of the Galaxy protagonists Rocket and Groot in your team means you can access exclusive attacks for example. It’s out now, download from here.
Isoland 2: Ashes of Time (Lilith Game)
Developed by Cotton Cotton but published by Lilith Game, this is a very promising point and click adventure. You get stuck on a mysterious island, and meet a range of interesting characters – you get the idea. The hand drawn visuals are eye-catching to say the least.
Isoland 2 will be a premium title and arrives on iOS, Android, and Steam at the end of April.
Million Onion Hotel (Onion Games)
This one is already out (iOS/Android), but has struggled to find an audience in the west. Possibly as it’s quite a pricey premium title with a style that can only be described as bizarre. It effectively asks you to constantly clicking onions and various other objects to clear the screen and create lines. That’s simple enough, but then there are rocket plants, unhinged cutscenes, and much more besides.
The developer was also trying to flog shirts and CDs based around the game on his booth. I could only applaud his entrepreneurial spirit.
Blockchain gaming is the next big thing, and this takes advantage of that. As a game however it is a simple enough Alleyway/Arkanoid style title where you shoot balls up into a well to destroy orbs and various other bric-a-brac. I think it would be kind to say it’s not the most inspired creation in the world. Oh and it’s already out.
Bunch (Facetime Live Games)
An add on for apps that allows you to video-chat with friends. It’s a relatively feature free version of something that’s available elsewhere, but seemed to work pretty well from what we saw of it in action on the show floor.
That’s all for this year’s GDC coverage, but hey – just drop us an email at editor (at) gamezebo (dot) com if you were at the show and didn’t bump into us! We’d love to know what you’re working on.
