Nindies@Home E3 Event Previews

9 preview builds are now available to download for free.
If you download them you get 15% off when the games are released.
What do you think of them?


1. RIVE (Two Tribes)

RIVE was the very best of the bunch. It looks amazing. It's fastpaced and the controls are perfect. I love how Two Tribes use that amazing Toki Tori 2+ engine to great effect. The best part about it is the sheer amount of classic action that actually feels extremely fresh and unique. The slowmotion effects seem so natural and enhance the experience. There's so much to destroy and the explosions look great! The hacking was nice so far. I played the preview twice, because I wanted moooore!

2. Soul Axiom (Wales Interactive)

Right from the beginning this felt like a sequel to Wales Interactive's other firstperson adventure Master Reboot. And it probably is, kind of. I like how you have to find your way through interesting otherworldly landscapes and have to find out what's going on. The framerate could use some polish, but the atmosphere is great. The gloomy music adds to the tension. You never know what to expect. A definitive step forward from Master Reboot are the cutscenes - this time there's no clash of two different art styles. I wish the demo was longer as I'm sure there's much more to it than this tutorial-like basic puzzle solving. One small issue: I just hope you can walk a little bit faster in the final build.

3&4. Runbow (13AM Games) and Extreme Exorcism (Golden Ruby Games)
Both are rather simple 2D multiplayer platformers, but they're also charming and chaotic and just really fun. Even more important, both also have their very own unique twist to the classic jump&run gameplay: RB with its rhythm and colors gameplay and EE with its "Phantom Mario Galaxy" gameplay. I love both of them. Runbow will probably last longer, with 9-player mode and online, but 4-player Extreme Exorcism's detailed 16Bit style and many weapons will make its rounds on my Wii U as well. I strongly believe the RB and EE previews will get much more playtime than all the other previews. Their pickup&play nature + multiplayer are just perfect for a demo. They're not like the other previews that you play through once, maybe twice, and then maybe another time to show them off to friends.

5. Typoman (Brainseed Factory)
One of the surprises! A game I never heard of before! This is very original and fresh. Something completely new. I'm looking forward to it. I particularly liked how at one puzzle you can decide if you want to construct the word "SLOW" or "STOP" to get through the crusher machine. It was also a rather neat coincidence that the soundtrack for this game is made by Sonic Picnic, the same people who made the soundtrack to RIVE!

6. forma.8 (MixedBag)
The last game I want to play more of. It's a rather relaxing exploration game, with action, adventure, and puzzle elements. If the price feels right I will add it to my collection as well.

7. Freedom Planet (GalaxyTrail)
Even though it is a Sonic clone and an amazing one at that (probably even better than Sonic itself) with great graphics, level design and controls, I'm just not that much into it. I'm sure it will have many fans, but I need it more like Shantae, you know, more like a metroidvania, where you can revisit levels to complete them 100%. Maybe that will be possible in the final version of this game, but as of now, at the moment I'm not into something Sonic-y.

8. Mutant Mudds Super Challenge (Renegade Kid)
I completed all the other previews, but I couldn't beat a single one of the three stages in this one. (Well, it was getting late) I hope Europe still receives the complete package for Wii U though. The difficulty in this one probably scares people away. Not everyone would assume that the game is usually easier.

9. Lovely Planet (QUICKTEQUILA)
Yeah, give me Tequila, quick! I almost had to quit this game! Coming from Splatoon, this is rubbish, sorry.

I played both Freedom Planet and Mutant Mudds: Super Challenge today!

As for Freedom Planet I really, REALLY enjoyed the game! Read my first look of the game to find out why!

As for Mutant Mudds: Super Challenge it was stupidly difficult. I only managed to beat stage 1-1 today after 73 deaths. I'll also write a first look for this title later this week after the E3 hype starts winding down, but it probably will only receive a C+ in my first look preview of the game.

I'll try the other games over the course of the week as well.

I downloaded all of the demos and most of them are so much fun!

i didn't really like lovely planet. it was too easy to die and it was hard to aim

Agreed. Rive and Mutant Mudds Super Challenge were also brutally difficult as well, though they were fun.