PAX Prime 2015 – Indie Highlights Day 1

I’ve come to terms with my taste in video games in the year and a half that’s passed since I’ve last written for Dorkadia. I used to think that one needed to have a universal appreciation for all genres and titles in order to truly “get games”. Screw that. Megan’s recent full embrace of her love of story games made me stand up and declare before my friends and family: I love quirky indie games, I love roguelikes, fuck the rest.

This revelation and has rekindled and focused my interest in video games, which is influencing how I’m spending my time at PAX Prime 2015 in a major way. I’m already having a time good enough to defy even my most optimistic expectations! I dove head first into the Indie Megabooth (and other indie developers) and didn’t come up for air until I had my fill of adorable pixelated graphics and permadeath. Here are a few highlights from the first day of PAX, all worth keeping an eye on.

Below, Capy (PC, X-Box One)

Below was the moodiest game that I had the chance to play in the Indie Megabooth today. Its solemn, bare presentation clashed with the booming expo floor around me. I leaned in close and tried to shut out the crowds, trying to soak in the game as much as possible.

This game is, of course, a procedural roguelike where you pilot a wanderer through an impossibly huge complex of dark caves filled with strange creatures. But few of the classic roguelike hallmarks are present: there are no stats, no experience points, no classes or races to choose from. That’s because Below is all about the environment; the stark geometric caves themselves are the true star of the show.

Everything the wanderer needs to survive is within the caves. Picking up materials will allow the player to use a simple crafting system to not bleed to death, craft a new weapon, or not starve. The demo I played had straight forward monsters that ran me through the game’s solid fighting controls. Death comes swiftly for when I didn’t respect the monsters and the caves themselves.

Below is a lonely, deliberate game that won’t be for everyone. But are you swayed by exploration, barren and beautiful presentation, and feeling the pressure of tons of rock over your head as you try to survive? You then need to play Below as soon as possible. Watch a video, and try to play a demo if you can. It’ll seep into your head and not leave.

Moon Hunters, Kitfox Games (PC, PS4, PS Vita)

The first of many games at PAX this year shares the DNA with Zelda: Four Swords, Moon Hunters is a one to four player co-op action RPG with enough unique elements to distance itself from the other myriad of action RPGs being developed. After discovering that the moon hasn’t risen, you and your friends set out to save the day in a procedurally generated fantasy world full of monsters, towns, and the occasional hand crafted event/secret.

Each game of Moon Hunters should take anywhere from two to three hours, specifically being designed to be completed in a serious afternoon of co-op play. Completing these small arcs allow you to unlock persistent content. The devs said that they were trying to create a family friendly and rewarding game, a goal that is as equally commendable as it is harder-than-it-sounds.

During your adventure you will interact with the many people that occupy the world, and the way that you interact with them will be remembered during your play through. Kitfox calls this “building your mythology”: act with generosity and townspeople will ask for your help, be a dick and they’ll hinder you. I would imagine that this pairs well with the two to three hour games, allowing you to truly explore what it means to be a flirtatious brash wizard or a truly selfless monk.

This combination of unusual-in-an-action-RPG social mechanics, the low time commitment multiplayer, and the fast paced combat I experienced first hand really makes for a fun time. Subsystems, like upgrades, cooking, and praying hinted at deeper subsystems that I didn’t get the chance to enjoy in the demo. In a sea of dual-stick RPG action games, Moon Hunters is worth your time.

Super Dungeon Bros, React Games (PC, X-Box One, PS4, Mac)

I’m not sure what more needs to be said about this game besides the fact that all four characters are named after classic rockers. And that their website has a section called “Brocabulary”.

If Moon Hunters and Super Dungeon Bros are both the proginey of Zelda: Four Swords, Moon Hunters is the studious overachiever while Super Dungeon Bros is the partying rebel that’s out to have a good time. Nothing about Super Dungeon Bros’s gameplay is new; if you have played any Gauntlet-style action game with your friends then you’re well equipped to succeed in this game. But the game’s frantic gameplay (that doesn’t allow you to think about anything too hard for too long) combines with just the right amount of dickery with your friends. You can pick up your friends and enemies alike, lifting them over your head and hurling them into pits or across chasms. You can even create a tornado of death by picking up a series of your friends (creating a knight totem pole) and the bottom player executing a Link inspired spinning super move attack. It’s not complicated, but it’s a hoot.

While React Games already has a winning formula that just needs to be expanded upon, they’re also courting the hardcore competitive crowd. Optional shrines can be activated before a mission, increasing the difficulty in some way (extra strong monsters, a timer for the level, etc) in exchange for a higher score. Daily and weekly challenges will come out with leader boards for each. I can already imagine hardcore groups of friends getting together every weekend to try to get the highest score by opting-in on all available difficulty shrines.

Super Dungeon Bros is hilarious, it’s frantic, it’s candy. I’m eager to see what content is in the game at launch and how well it will appeal to both casual and hardcore fans alike.

The indie offerings this year are excellent! These are just three games out of many worth keeping an eye on in the future. I will be back tomorrow with more to say about the indie titles that I can get one on one time with, like Darkest Dungeon, Ultimate Chicken Horse, and Necropolis.