Like Mr. Peabody's Pet Boy Sherman...

It seems like forever-and-a-day since I last spent time here, so here I go. Once again I'm digging-out of more snow here in Seattle, and in that spirit I've been busily digging into my older software files and enjoying some gaming from years past.


I feel rather like Mr. Peabody's pet boy Sherman throwing the leavers and hitting switches on the trusty 'ol Wayback Maching while playing these games. Which ones?

Three Dinosaurs, but still rather fun. They are:

1. Sierra On-Line's Outpost.
2. Mucky Foot's Startopia.

and

3. Vicarious Vision's Terminus.

Fine games all! But what about indie games? Ah, now that's soon to not be unknown. Come back in about a week and you'll see what else Mr. Peabody gave Sherman for the Holidays.

Mini-Review Merriment: Rest in Peace III: The Last Hero.

A departure from the norm.

"C'mon Unca Scrooge- if you won't buy it, I'll have to write... ."

Dear Santa, I've been as good as I can be this year, what with all the Demon-slaying and such. Why, I've not killed a single human except for collaborators keeping congress with the Demons. Times are tough out here on the battlefield and our defenses are wearing down, so if you see fit to ride your "slay" out to the front-lines, we can all use a little X-mas cheer. So, I'd like: A new Canon Bunker, A Pony (for Jane, really!) A brand-new X77 "DemonStomp" Combat Rifle, and A regular 'ol UZI (a used one if you have 'ta). We've no tree this year and our stockings have holes, but I'll leave some hardtack and a cup of whiskey for your troubles. Thanks, Timmy Black

***

"Eggnog for you son? No? How about that top-down shooter you've been anticipating? Yeah... that's the one... RIP 3: The Last Hero. What is it about... ? You're right, that David fella didn't say too much in his preview of the game and the review is yet to be written, so-"

"Mmmmfffff!"

"Sound? I did'nt hear-"

"Mmmmrrrfff! Nnnnnettt rrreeee aarrrrtt ffffff eree!!"

"Oh, that sound in the back of my sliegh? In the gift bag? Well, give me a hand... there, on three and LIFT aaaand down!"

"MMMMRRRFFFF! AT UURRTSS!"

"Gimme a hand here Timmy... on three...! Well, what do you know, its that- well, your that David writer! Merry X-mas David!"

"Rell o rource sss eee..."

"Here son, let me help you with that tape..."

"Ow, that *%^@#*# hurts!!!"

"Sorry son, but now that you've that tape off your mouth why don't you tell Timmy here about his present, 'kay?"

"Tim is it? Well this over-stuffed toymaker here, OUCH!"

"Sorry son, it's slippery in this snow here."

"Uh, this kindly toymaker brought me to these parts to give you the low-down on RIP 3: The Last Hero. Like the previous two titles in the RIP series, R3 is a top-down shooter that will place your profile character in the midst of danger amongst the minions of Hell - Ouch!"

"Language son."

"...Demons and such. Again, your character of choice can wade through the killing-fields on foot, in stationary bunkers, or in various modes of locomotion."

"He means vehicles son. Writers... . Timmy, wipe that tear off of your face and blow your nose. You don't need to worry about a game-re-tread with this RIP 3."

"He's right. The Elves over at White-Elephant have come up with some new features and innovations for this title."

"So tell him more, lest I need to warm-up my snow-kicking boots!"

"Right. RIP 3 brings back your three magical heros; Death, Rock-n-Roll, and Halloween. However, this time around brings three new characters for a total of 6 characters to choose from. There's a commando of sorts by the name of Jane. A grizzled war-hero, Captain Black (isn't he your dad Timmy?), and a state-of-the-art Cyborg named Fobos. While each character has different strengths and weaknesses, you could play through the campaign mode 6 times, honing your skills with each."

"Nice job writer. Talk. More."

"Right. This time around it seems White Elephant listened to player requests as well as exploring new gameplay territory. Again, you've got three modes of play for your demon-blasting pleasure. As with previous incarnations, there is the campaign mode which boasts over 90 relentless levels of of fighting the oppressors of mankind as well as their bosses. The campaign mode involves taking the battle from country roads to big-city streets and beyond."

"Beyond what?"

"Beyond beyond. Like, not the earth and more like oute- *OUCH*!!"

"Hush! Can't give it all away writer."

"Oh... well then, can you like stop with the boots and the kicking thing?"

"Never. Now be a good present and tell Timmy more."

"Well, it's a well known fact that playing video games can make one a bit isolated, so RIP 3 has incorporated both a multiplayer mode and a hotseat mode. While multiplayer mode speaks for itself, the hotseat mode places you and another player back-to-back, covering each-others back, whilst slaying the evil-doers. In short, the action is relentless so save your nap for when you are done playing."

"More?"

"Not the boot...! Uh, yeah, sure. If you were a fan of the first incarnation or two, well, here you go again with some new experiences in the RIP universe. I'm thinking that if you're totally unfamiliar with the RIP series and are in the mood for a loud and violent shooter, this game will provide that experience. Speaking as a reviewer of games and not a kidnapped writer-" *COUGH* *COUGH* "- White Elephant has done a fine job adding enough new elements to this third installment to keep the game fun. Few indie developers take the course of creating multiple sequels to a game in the form of ongoing chapters. If the RIP series of games has served as a test-bed for development of storyline content and player options, it makes me wonder what this indie developer has in store for the gaming community... *OUCH*!!!"

"You're not here to speculate! Back in the bag!"

"MMMmmrrrffff!"

********************************************

Well, that was real different. So, I think you get the idea. This has been a short review of White Elephant Games latest title, "RIP 3: The Last Hero", which has just been released. A full-review will be published down the road, but for now, well- 'nuff said.

Whatever your nationality, whatever your beliefs, I hope 2006 has been a good year, and may 2007 be just as grand!

Peace.

Interview with Indie Developer White Elephant Games

Talking with the developers of the RIP (Rest in Peace) top-down shooter series of games.


Thanks for giving-up some of your valuable time for a Q & A session.

1. Could you tell me about White Elephant Games? (who is the team, when, what, where, and why)

The company "White Elephant" has been developing computer games since 2003.The main body of the company consists of 10 people. The company founders - Andrey Pahmutov (project manager) and Peter Efimov (game designer) initially were in the board games business for a long period of time. Then they founded a small PC game developing company.
Now in our team we also have 3 programmers, 2 artists, 2 designers and the marketer, who helps to get the products to market.
Our programmers developed PC games since they were students. Even the degree work of one of them was a 3D arcade game. The artists have dealt with computer graphics for more than 6 years. They were the artists for GBA games, mobile games, and have also done webdesign.
Now at the end of 2006, I can say that we got success not only in PC games (both on-line and retail), our games are also very popular on Mac; and our next goal is getting the titles on consoles.

2. What makes a good game- moreover, what makes a good independently developed game?

FUN:
Flight of fancy
Unicity
Non-standard
a
Actually, it relates to both independent and commercial games, otherwise the game cannot be considered a good one.

3. What do you think differentiates independent games from their commercial counterparts?

Independent games are

For publishers – the way to save money on development and get a complete game at once
For Developers – their dearest kids
For reviewers – “the air-hole” from the daily routine.

Commercial games are:
For publishers and developers – the way to earn the money (though, they can be inspired by emotions).
For reviewers – their usual work, I suppose?

4. As an independent developer, what are the biggest challenges you face?

The search of proper partners. We try to be very careful when choosing the publishers, and work with only decent ones. For example, now we are seeking for the partner to get our newest game on consoles. We are absolutely sure, that only the publisher will manage to promote the game well and give it good exposure. But now we are facing a great problem of finding a good partner. So I am addressing the publishers:
If you are interested in partnering with our company, please, contact me: sales@elephant-games.com I will certainly consider all the offers.

5. White Elephant has enjoyed some success- what was your inspiration in creating RIP and it's sequels and were there any other games that inspired everyone during the development phase?

You might have noticed, that both RIP and RIP: Strike Back have nostalgia for early consoles. When developing those games, all our team kept in mind “Gauntlet” and “Cannon folder”. We dreamt of also making such great games one day. May be that’s why lots of our fans would like to see RIPs on consoles. And RIP2: The Last Hero – is the first step to our goal.

6. As a top-down shooter game, what sets the RIP apart from other similar titles?

We get lots of e-mails from our fans every day. Most of them feature easy control system, gaming world, the heroes and much FUN. To my mind, RIP is a very specific game.
You can either love it or not care. Those, who like the theme and idea, become fans; those, who not – simply pass it. We are happy that the first category is much more numerous.

7. While I'm sure readers are well aware of the RIP series, White Elephant games also has published other titles as well. What inspired Jungle Heart, Avalon, and Road Rush? What can a gamer expect from these titles?

We believe that games are a mass phenomenon. People play games for all their life. So we tried to make games for all the audiences: kids, women, young men and adults on the whole. New is always attractive, and we want to try all the fields – that’s what Jungle Heart, Avalon and Road Rush were inspired by. We will certainly continue this work, and very soon the gamers should expect our new games: Dragon Heart (a beautiful arcade, Jungle Heart’s “baby”) and Road Rush 2 (a new thrilling racer).

8. Both RIP and RIP: Strike Back have been released- what's next for the RIP series and what can the gaming community keep an eye open for?

The community should look forward to the next RIP! RIP 2: The Last Hero is
- a dark fantasy world of mysticism and hi-tech. Along with beautiful graphics,
It will feature easy controls, new heroes (including female), multiplayer and hot-seat.
The game will be released on November, 30. The demo is already available on our site.

9. Finally, is there anything else you'd like to say to the gaming public?

We are very grateful to you all for your help and support. All our team are always excited
to communicate with you via e-mail or on our forum. Let’s make games together, because
gaming must go on!


Thank-you for this interview and for allowing the Independent Community to become familiar with the team at White Elephant.

White Elephant Games 3rd RIP title: Soon!

Having had some success (and a good fan-base), White Elephant will soon be releasing the 3rd game in their manic top-down shooter series "Rest in Peace". Fans of the RIP series will soon again be teaming-up with their supernatural buddies as well as some new Human characters that will take on more baddies armed with magic and a fine assortment of automatic weapons.

Ooohhhh! Aaahhhh!

I've had the honor to test-drive a pre-release demo of RIP 2 and, as with the case of RIP: Strike Back, you'll find yourself in familiar territory with added game-elements and improvements.

Like... ?

Nice try, but I don't want to give away too much about this upcoming title and spoil the thrill of anticipation:-) As mentioned above, there will be the addition of 3 human characters and well as the return of those Netherworld folk known as Death, Rock n' Roll, and Helloween. As with the previous game, you won't just be stuck in the middle of the playfield with a gun, but you'll also be treated with several vehicles to ride and fight in. This game has a change in mood and atmosphere and presents itself with a dark and somber mood which works well with the continuing games storyline.
When will it be for sale?!?

Head over to Elephant Games and start anticipating 'cause this title looks to be a fine addition to the previous games!

Psychedelic Flower-power Shoot 'Em Up

Mind you, this title is taken from the read-me for the little gem I came across recently by the name of Blumenmacht - I Remember Your Name! That this game piqued my interest may indeed be a testament to the fact I spent many a year living in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district, as it brought back rather fond memories of those days. Nevertheless, I found this game to be a real feast!

Blumenmacht comes equipped with a short tutorial and making the attempt to explain the mechanics of the game is pointless unless of course you have the game in front of you. Here is a brief description as is found in the game's Read Me. Enchanting ballerinas use their magic hands to throw mystic flowers at each other - until they all dissolve in eternal happiness. It is your ambiguous destiny to bring their bodily existence to an euphoric end and remain as the only life in a hesitating universe.

You, the Prima Ballerina, are a trickster: Make use of various tricks to accomplish your mission. Remember another ballerina's exotic name to hijack her body and enlighten her! Freeze and rewind time! Let the muses sing for you! Finally, use the unique Muenchhausen Express! Your only ally is a grinning cat that allows you to guide growing flowers to their thankful destination and to move or throw objects around.

In the mood for something different? Go light-up a stick of Nag Champa and give Blumenmacht a try!

Peace.

2007 IGF Main Competition

Hey folks, it is time to head-on over to the Independent Games Festival's (IGF) website and have a look at the Big List of Games and Developers participating in the 2007 Main Competition! Game Submissions for this category are in, and while there still may be submissions in the Modding Competition and the Student Showcase Competition, there is lots of content to take a look at. This is your big chance to look at titles that will soon be up for sale (though many are for sale currently) and get all a-jitter with excitement!!

Hurry on over and take a look for you'll find interesting titles such as "Dangerous High School Girls in Trouble!" and "Steam Brigade". Have fun!

Northern Hemisphere Summertime Relaxation &... ?

Seemed like a proper title and, well, somewhat appropriate in that said title helps to explain why I've not updated in a while. So, what I've brought to the table are a couple items of interest that I've come across... .

Galaxy G

The folk at GCM Enterprises have released a brand-new version of their game, Galaxy G (now version 2.o3b). Galaxy G is a fine open-ended (yeah, what else would I keep my eyes open for) space game involving, trading, piracy, bounty-hunting and the like. Now, I've test-driven this game and so far all looks good, however I've held off going hog-wild with this title as I'm a bit on the busy side of things as of late. I'm looking forward to taking this game around-the-block soon as the earlier version of the game was/is a very fun game.

Oolite

It is a rare day that I give mention to a freeware title, however Oolite is a title deserving mention and praise! Oolite is a game many would consider an Elite (yes, the 1980's classic) clone, and in many respects they are correct. However, this title provides all of the gaming joy of the original Elite and oh-so-much-more.
Oolite is a fully-functional work-in-progress (updated with new features periodically) and boasts a huge fan and modding/add-on community as well. Furthermore, this shining vision of Elite is everything the original was but done with modern technology which makes this freeware title worth a very good look! Follow the above link to the Oolite site and then follow the links to the PC version, as this is a game ported to several operating systems. Go have some fun and don't take any lip from those darned Thargoids!