Our good friends at Mode 7 Games have released the Red expansion for their tactical heaven Frozen Synapse. They've added co-op, and a new campaign, and a new multiplayer mode, and...well, a ton of good stuff. It's absolutely jam-packed, and does more than just slap a fresh coat of (red) paint on one of the better indie games in recent memory.
Red's available now both through Mode 7 themselves and on Steam (both offering 15% off during the first week of release). The base game is also 50% off through launch week.
In Arcen news, GameSpy included AI War on their 10 Great Co-Op RTS Games for Comp-Stomp Fun list, while A Valley Without Wind reviews and video coverage are still trickling in as well:
Big things happening these days. A Valley Without Wind has seen several more additions and refinements over the past week as we approach the 1.1 (and first official) update for the game. We also have a pretty cool announcement we've been sitting on for a few days that hopefully we'll be able to share before the weekend, or at least by early next week. We'll see.
One press item we wanted to highlight regarding AVWW: Vagary TV's Indie Game Review podcast. In the inaugural episode the game is reviewed by the two hosts and then Chris joins for the interview portion.
Other happenings in the indie world we wanted to quickly mention:
The Because We May week has kicked off, where developers can and have freely reduced (or in a few cases increased) the prices on their games. There's a ton of indie devs taking part, and although we're not actively involved, you can be sure we're passively participating by pricing our games at their normal price during the week; because we may. ;)
Our pal Gnome points us to the Bundle In A Box Adventure Bundle. That goes through June 6th and includes a bunch of solid indie adventure games such as Gemini Rue and Size Five's Zombie Cow efforts. It also has The Sea Will Claim Everything, which people keep mentioning how awesome it is though I haven't had a chance yet to play.
Here's the press that's come in for Valley over the past few days:
Tom Chick talks to Chris for a good two and a half hours on Quarter To Three's podcast, chatting on AVWW, Arcen, some preferred genres, and gaming in general.
Also a reminder that there's still a day or so left in the SavyGamer anniversary sale. Here's the rest of the coverage that's come in this past week for AVWW/Arcen:
We're also happy to pass along that A Valley Without Wind is out on Desura. Both the full game and demo are available on their store to download now.
Another awesome note, Total Biscuit/Cynical Brit put together a "WTF Is..." for our game that's can't miss for a variety of reasons and moments in particular.
New Reviews, Impressions, Spotlights, LP Videos, And More
Just Press Start's Jeff Ortloff got the full tour of the Arcen Booth, posting audio interviews with both Chris and Pablo.
Gameinpublic posted the first ten minutes of the indie game talk I took part in. This was day two (we did a similar talk with different devs each day of the conference).
Andrew Whipple III of Gamer's guide to Life seems very pleased we're fleshing out a title in the sidescrolling action genre.
Patrick Lindsey put together a solid preview of the game over on BeefJack as well.
The Mash Those Buttons guys talk about the game for a decent chunk of their PAX East podcast.
Luigi Guarnuccio of Gamers Haven called AVWW 'a gem of a game' in his preview.
Matthew Jay discovers there's more to the game than what can be gathered at first glance in his preview over on Snackbar Games
OnLiveFans' Jeremy Burg mentioned us as one of the gems he got to play on the show floor in his round-up of the event.
Finally, GiantBomb snapped and posted a shot of the Arcen Games booth, check out those sweet banners. :)
Oh, one last item: 2nd Opinion Podcast's Chris Dunham will be live streaming A Valley Without Wind today at 3:45 PM ET for a good couple of hours. Tune in then to his Twitch.TV channel for a longer form, on-the-fly look at the game.
We spent much of our time at PAX East chatting it up with press, filling interview appointments and having them take a quick tour of A Valley Without Wind.
Here's the coverage to come about from our trip to Boston thus far:
Nearly 15 minutes of Front Towards Gamer's latest Gametwerp Podcast is taken up by a live interview with Chris.
The intriguing Ditto Monster stopped by for an enjoyable and surprising interview with Chris.
Anthony of TryIndie was trying his backside off all weekend, providing a ton of coverage for us. He has written up interviews with both Chris and Pablo, plus recorded some video footage of the indie game dev panel I submitted and participated in.
Zach Martin of PikiGeek apparently enjoyed his time with AVWW on the first day. He went and published his preview just hours later. Awesome that we caught his attention!
The Gamer's Guide To Life Channel took a short test drive of the game, as well as recording a live interview with Chris on the show floor.
Thrifty Nerd's preview concludes that they can't wait for the April 23rd launch.
Lastly, we were also glad to finally meet Nick Puleo of Co-Optimus. We have several other interviews and coverage still in the works with other outlets—so keep your eyes peeled for those in the coming weeks.
So much has happened since we launched public beta for A Valley Without Wind back in late September. In some respects it feels like it's been out forever, when really we've just reached three weeks. It's been fantastic to have anyone interested finally able to play the game. We've received both a wonderful response as well as excellent feedback from players and press alike in such a short amount of time.
A couple of Arcen Games/AVWW items we'd like to direct you to, including a couple of new interviews. Chris chats comprehensively with UsedGameReviews in a just released piece, and Arcen is featured in Play Tribune's Developer Chat audiocast (where Chris and I babble on for over an hour about indie gaming plus all the aforementioned.)
Plenty of Valley-specific stuff below as well. Thanks to all who took the time to talk with us and/or take a look at our game.
Several reviews and Let's Play videos have hit the net for AI War: Fleet Command 5.0 over this past year that we've been meaning to pass along. They all have some very nice words on the game, which is always rewarding for us to hear.
They're also a great reference point to have as a developer, especially with a unique title like AI War that has undergone as much change as it has over these first couple of years. So we're very appreciative of these journalists and reviewers to take the time to review a game originally released in 2009.
Reviews
"I was intimidated, even frustrated at first, but once I took it upon myself to learn the ropes, I discovered a deep strategy game that will keep me entertained for a good, long time."- GameRanx
"An elaborate back-and-forth game of action vs. reaction, patient wit vs. volatile force -- that’s what AI War is, for those who can play it well. It’s a game of manipulation, as you balance the AI’s sensitivity, tricking it into allowing you to cut a line straight to its heart, making it think of you as a trivial pest, while in reality you’re more like a hive of termites: an annoyance, as easily crushed as you are forgotten... until you bring their house crumbling down when they least expect it." - digital hippos
"Intimidating: Check. Difficult to learn: Check. Worth your money: You bet. AI War is many things (and game types) in one, and fortunately they are all good. You may have to dig a little (lot) to find it, but no one can accuse this game of being light on content. The dynamic AI makes for a different game each and every time you play, and the fact that you’re under the constant pressure of expanding without raising the alarm adds a level of complexity (and tension) to the genre that will make it hard for me to go back to traditional RTS games." - Platform Nation
Nearly a week into beta and A Valley Without Wind has cropped up more solid press previews and coverage, including some new videos as well. Thanks goes to these folks for talking time to play the game, have a look at what they're saying!
Several "Let's Play" video series for AI War have been popping up and we wanted to share! A big thanks goes out to these guys for taking the time to put all this good stuff together.
Special Thanks to Moonshine Fox for creating these awesome new tutorials for AI War 4.0 -- the older ones that I created were from AI War 2.0, so an update was long overdue. An updated game manual and wiki are in the works, as well as a new trailer for the game. So much has changed even since 3.120, the last official version.
Basic Tutorial
The first and most basic part of the official AI:War video tutorials.
View Larger Version
Intermediate Tutorial
The second part of the official AI:War video tutorials.
View Larger Version
Advanced Tutorial
The last part of the official AI: War video tutorials.
View Larger Version
Exclusive first peek at a new music track coming in AI War 4.0! Check out how the tempo shifts around 1:40
or so in the video -- Pablo's outdid himself, as usual. The entire AI
War (and The Zenith Remnant) soundtrack is fully remastered for the
upcoming AI War 4.0, but there are also some new tracks (even outside of
the new Children of Neinzul expansion), and this is one of them.
This
music track is set to a visual display of the new starfields and
nebulae in the AI War 4.0. The quality and variety here is incredibly
better than in the older 3.x versions, and really gives each planet a
unique feel. Some of the ones right at the very end of the video
happened to be particularly awesome -- they were generating at random as
I clicked through them, so I never knew what I'd get (there are two
billion possible starfield/nebula patterns, this shows only a couple of
dozen).
Note that this is from within the Unity 3D editor, in
sort of a programmer test mode, so the bar along the top of the screen,
plus the little graphics status window at the top right, are both part
of the Unity 3D Editor and not part of AI War itself. Programmers in
the crowd might note how little graphics memory and how few draw calls
are actually needed here, though -- pretty cool, it's far less overhead
than what the uglier 3.x stars/nebulae needed! The fact of fraps
recording was dragging down the framerate into the 30-60fps range, but
without fraps on this same scene was rendering at about 600fps on my
machine.
The day that puzzle fans have been waiting for has finally arrived! After three months in public beta, the official version of Tidalis has finally launched! The game is now out on Steam, Impulse, Direct2Drive, GamersGate, myGameIQ (who just had their own launch this week, too, by the way), MacGameStore.com, and our own site store. In celebration of this event, Tidalis is 10% off of its normal price of $9.99 for this first week. We've also got a new launch trailer to share:
Not Familiar With Tidalis Yet?
Tidalis is a block-based puzzle game with casual appeal, hardcore depth, and an addictive new "streams" mechanic.
The basic rules of the game are this: blocks fall down into the board and have a color and an arrow direction. If a
stack of blocks exceeds the height of the board, you lose. In order to clear blocks, you must right-click and drag
paths through the arrows to set up chain reactions of like-colored blocks.
If this sounds simple, that's because it is -- you'll be lining up lengthy chains within minutes. But you'll be
surprised how much brainpower it takes to set up combos of multiple chains, and the many brainteaser-style puzzles
include some real stumpers. Tidalis has co-op and competitive multiplayer modes (both online and offline);
action-oriented modes and timer-less brainteasers; a lengthy, casual-friendly adventure mode; twenty unique game modes
providing innumerable twists to the basic gameplay; dozens of special blocks and items; and over fifty minutes of
beautiful music to go with the painterly art.
In short, several games' worth of content are built on top of this core
mechanic, which you'll quickly find to be as iconic as it is novel.
For Those Who Prefer Bullet Points:
* Puzzle game with casual appeal, hardcore depth, and an addictive new mechanic.
* Two-player co-op and competitive play (both local and networked).
* A wide selection of both action-oriented or brainteaser-like levels.
* Casual-friendly adventure mode, hardcore-focused custom games and vs modes.
* 20+ game styles, and dozens of items and special blocks.
* Rich, painterly art style and beautiful music.
* Players can create and share whole new themes, levels, and adventures.
* Options for colorblind players, players averse to lots of light and motion, and older computers.
For Those Who Prefer Really Long And Over-Detailed Lists:
* Supported Platforms: Mac OSX "Panther" 10.39 or higher, Windows 2000 or later
* Game Styles: Normal, Zen, Sun & Moon, Line Clear, Graviton, Frenzy, Featherweight, Trampoline, Light-Up, Item Survival, Water, Wind, Jumping Bean, Limited Streams, Eater Defense, Solitaire, Speed-Up, Block Swap, Shuffle, Bumpers
* Difficulty ranging from 0-10
* 115 Adventure Levels, 69 Brainteasers, 9 Ranked Boards, 5 Sampler Levels
* Block Sets: Smooth, Faces, Pixel, AI War, Organic, Shapes
* Music/Art Themes: Cavern, Fishing Village, Fishing Village Night, Forest, Forest Night, Night Marsh, Night Marsh Variance, Open Plains, Open Plains Cloudy, Rainy Mud Flats, Tidal Wreckage, Volcano, Windy Mountaintop, Jeweled Palace, River, Snowy Lowlands, Temple, Foothills, Hidden Theme 1, Hidden Theme 2, Hidden Theme 3
* General Special Blocks: Glass, Stone, Tinder, Fire, Ice, Bubble, Charred, Eater, Direction Locked, Color Reactive, Metal Grille, Turnip, Magnet (Repulsor), Magnet (Attractor), Quad Repeater, Flipper (180), Flipper (45), Crystalizer, Color Blocker, Emission Statue, Pit Monster, Sick, Cured, Living Stone, Inverter, Energizer
* Puzzle-only (or special mode) Special Blocks: Plastic, Metal, Wall (Passable), Wall (Solid), Water Fish, Water Balloon, Sponge, Apple, Golden Apple, Empty Block
* Easy, game-integrated game updates
* Mouse or keyboard controls, with keyboard control customization
* Multiple adventure savegames
* In-game tutorials
* Combinations of game modes in custom games
* Fun adventure mode story: Intro Cutscene, 45 Main Story Cutscenes, 6 Hidden Cutscenes, Ending Cutscene
* General Items: Place Color Block, Place Special Block, Can 'O Beans, Extend, Constrain, Crystal, Quake Hammer, Lightning, Question Mark, Huge Boulder, Rainbow, Flood, Icer, Turnipalooza, Color Popper, Fence, Hourglass, Running Shoes, Feather, Barbells, U-Turn, Wind Burst, Scrambler, Insta-Streams, Molasses-Streams
* Puzzle-only (or special mode) Items: Safety Pin
* VS Modes: Garbage, Endurance, or Freeform
* Co-Op-Only Modes: Sun or Moon, Block Vaporizer, Item Buddies
* Limited Vs AI
* 64 Achievements
* Adventure collectibles and brainteaser titles
* Level Editor, Adventure Editor, and Theme Editor
* Per-player handicaps, co-op items
* Local high scoreboards (daily and overall)
* Network play for up to two computers, with up to two players on each computer (so 2-4 players in all).
* Alternatively, local 2-player multiplayer on a single computer.
* Server listings and filtering.
* Ability to sumbmit high scores and achievements to twitter.
We Would Like To Thank...
... our staff for their incredible dedication and the long hours it took to make this game a reality. Everyone on the team was working long hours and into the wee hours of the morning on their parts of the game, which is something Arcen would never demand of staff -- but the enthusiasm of everyone on the team for this project was so great that people were doing this of their own accord. June was admittedly pretty intense, but we pulled through and the game is better than we could have ever expected. On that note, we would also like to thank...
... the family and friends of our staff for their support and help as well. Many of them acted as alpha and beta testers, contributed design ideas, contributed levels or art or even more significant chunks of content. Thanks for your understanding and aid during this long project! And on that note, we'd especially like to thank...
... the fans who supported Tidalis during the beta, both with their patronage and with their ideas, comments, suggestions, and bug reports. The game wouldn't have been the same without you folks, and your encouragement helped us to make the game ever better. And next to last, a big thanks to...
... the existing AI War fanbase, for their understanding during this last month when AI War hasn't gotten the attention that we normally would give it. There are big things coming up soon for AI War (the 4.0 version as well as the for-charity micro expansion), but June and July have definitely been an unusual dry spell for the game. Thankfully there has still been a lot of discussion and involvement of the community on the forums, and this next official release for AI War is going to be extra polished thanks to all the time folks have had to work with the beta versions of that. Lastly, we'd like to thank...
...all of our amazing distribution partners! It's always a challenge to be an indie company, but our partners in a very real way are the ones that make it possible for us to be in business. They provide us with a level of visibility and a level of access to potential fanbases that we never would have access to without them:
Upcoming Tidalis DLC!
We are planning some free DLC goodies in the coming months, so keep an eye out! The game is already jam-packed with features and content, as you can see above, but we still have a lot of good ideas that we would like to explore post-release. Tidalis won't be in "perpetual development" in the same fashion that AI War is -- we just don't have the staff to maintain that -- but we plan on dropping in some goodies for Tidalis from time to time on a running basis. If there are a lot of custom levels, adventures, and such submitted by fans on the official forums, we might also do a community DLC release that we push out to all customers of the game. So there's still a chance to see your levels (and your name or nickname) become part of the official Tidalis package! Thanks for reading, and we hope you enjoy Tidalis as much as we enjoyed making it!
It's been a while since we've done an update to the installer for Tidalis, but if you've been following the Tidalis forums or the budding Tidalis wiki, you already know that the game has been seeing massive nearly-weekly public beta releases since mid-April. The latest version, 0.854, represents the culmination of everything we wanted to get done before the PAX 10 contest deadline. And look! We've also now done an official trailer for the game:
So what all is new since the last time we updated the installer build (which was version 0.407)?
Visually and Aurally
We've now completed all the visual/art themes for the game, though we're still adding animations and polish on the art. There are now 21 of these themes in all, counting three hidden ones that get unlocked during adventure play.
There are now over 50 minutes of music in the game, or 90 minutes if you count the "dire" versions of the tracks.
A lot of the music has been updated since 0.407; we had some trouble initially getting just the perfect sound, but now we think we've really nailed it.
A ton of the art has already been polished and animated to a heavy degree; check out the Title Menu, the Open Plains theme, or the Volcano themes for specific examples. Pretty amazing, if we do say so.
Content
We're now up to 16 game styles for the game (counting the Normal style), which will probably be the final count for release.
We're now up to 31 special blocks for the game, which will probably be the final count for release.
The game now has items -- 25 of them -- which will probably be the final count for release.
There are now 74 (out of a planned 114) adventure levels, as well as 39 brainteaser-type puzzles. More coming on both of these.
The game now has achievements -- 20 so far -- with more coming.
There are now 19 story cutscenes out of a planned 40 or so.
Both co-op and VS play are available on the local computer, either with two humans or 1-2 humans against the AI.
What Isn't Complete?
We're still working on the networking, that will be done soon.
We still need to finish the last quarter or so of the adventure mode and story.
There are a few specific VS and co-op features that we still want to add.
More polish is still being added to the art, and we'll probably add a few more sound effects, too.
The VS AI is already pretty good in the specific game styles it is allowed to play in, but there are some tweaks we have in mind to make it better. All game styles are supported in human vs human play, but not all of them will be available for the AI; it's considered a fairly minor part of this game, by contrast with AI War.
Gamepad support.
Various other tweaks, polish, and bugfixes still remain, though our list is considerably smaller of late.
So, What's The Plan?
The beta is still in full swing, with the demo being free for anyone, and the full beta being available for anyone who preorders. Right now you can preorder at the main Arcen site, at GamersGate, at MacGameStore, and at myGameIQ. All of our existing partners who sell AI War will also be carrying Tidalis either at release or a few weeks ahead of release.
So when's the release? Right now we're looking at the week of July 12th, although we don't have a specific day nailed down just yet. We're still talking with our distribution partners and figuring out which day makes the most sense for everyone. But we expect to be materially complete with the game (including all the last polish, etc) by July 9th at the absolute latest, so anytime that week should be a possibility.
Check out the trailer if you haven't already, and if you're interested you might like to try the demo. Tidalis is available on both Windows and OSX (you get a license for both platforms when you buy it for either).
This game has grown incredibly far beyond what we had initially planned when we set out to make it, but that's largely due to the promise that the core mechanics showed and the team's enthusiasm for the project. Everyone on the team has the feeling that we've got something really special with this game, and so far beta customers seem to have that feeling, as well.
Definitely exciting times! We'll update with more news as the release gets nearer, and we'll also be having news in the next month about our upcoming AI War 4.0 (which will add full OSX support), and our upcoming charity-focused micro-expansion, AI War: Children of Neinzul. In the meantime, here are some other brand-new Tidalis videos that show off recent additions to the game:
About Tidalis
Tidalis is a block-based puzzle game with casual appeal, hardcore depth, and an addictive new "streams" mechanic. The basic rules of the game are this: blocks fall down into the board and have a color and an arrow direction. If a stack of blocks exceeds the height of the board, you lose. In order to clear blocks, you must right-click and drag paths through the arrows to set up chain reactions of like-colored blocks.
If this sounds simple, that's because it is -- you'll be lining up lengthy chains within minutes. But you'll be surprised how much brainpower it takes to set up combos of multiple chains, and the many brainteaser-style puzzles include some real stumpers. Tidalis has co-op and competitive multiplayer modes (offline only in this beta version); action-oriented modes and timer-less brainteasers; a lengthy, casual-friendly adventure mode; fifteen unique game modes providing innumerable twists to the basic gameplay; dozens of special blocks and items; and over fifty minutes of beautiful music to go with the painterly art.
In short, several games' worth of content are built on top of this core mechanic, which you'll quickly find to be as iconic as it is novel.
Version 0.407 of Tidalis, which has been inwork for a surprisingly long amount of time for one of our beta updates, is now out. If you look at the full features list, you can definitely see why it took more time than usual. The major new feature here is multi-well co-op play on the local computer, which has a lot of exciting possibilities that we're just starting to tap. This also paves the way for our Vs and network play modes, which will be making an appearance soon.
Also new in this version are more art/music background themes, more special blocks, the first few usable items, updates to the level editor, added animation techniques and general polish, more block skins including even better colorblind support, and dozens of more minor features. Things are moving fast as usual with Arcen, and we're looking to be right on schedule for our planned full release in early July (Windows and Mac OSX at first -- other platforms are under consideration for the fall and beyond).
We've also put together a new pair of videos for the game:
As you can read all about on the post below, Tidalis is now in beta and available for preorder. If you'd prefer a video introduction to the mechanics of the game before you download the demo, then this video covers the high points. Enjoy!
Tidalis is the second standalone game from indie developer Arcen Games, known originally for their hardcore RTS/4X hybrid, AI War: Fleet Command. Not wishing to be typecast, and having game and level design backgrounds in a wide variety of genres, Arcen chose pretty much the exact opposite genre for their second game. The final game will be complete with Arcen staples such as co-op, huge amounts of content, and attention to depth and detail -- Tidalis is extremely easy for casual players to pick up, but it will also keep hardcore puzzle fans entertained for months.
Also: it's coming to both Windows and Mac OSX! Beta will begin on April 15th, 2010 for both platforms. Beta means that people who want to demo the prerelease versions of the game can do so, and customers who preorder will be able to play the whole thing as soon as each new feature and component becomes available. This should be a pretty familiar arrangement to anyone who was around for the beta phase of The Zenith Remnant -- though instead of soliciting feature suggestions, we'll be interested in fan-created levels and puzzles, some of which may make it into the official game (with permission, and with full credit given, of course). Full digital release is expected in late June.
Arcen Games is pleased to announce the release of The Zenith Remnant, the first expansion to their hit RTS/4X hybrid, AI War! You can download a trial version or purchase a license key on the details page for the expansion. Thanks to all of our fans who have helped to make this game possible with their feedback, suggestions, and preorders over the last months!
The Zenith Remnant includes a massive amount of new content that brings the galaxy to life in exciting ways. Capturables, special AI ships, and ancient alien artifacts litter the cosmos, making your choices as a player more varied than ever. Do you risk total war with the AI by capturing and rebuilding a massive golem? Do you procure defensive superweapons from Zenith traders?
Maybe you’d like to finally be able to build the powerful Core ships that the AI has long used -- or the all-new experimental ships with strange and powerful abilities. Befriend the dangerous alien Dyson Sphere by helping it against the AI forces, or sneak around it to avoid incurring its wrath (that thing is moody). If you see a Devourer Golem, don’t forget to run -- preferably as it pummels your enemies. Any path you take, there are consequences; AI War is known for being heavily strategic even amongst strategy games, and The Zenith Remnant takes it to new heights.
Key Features * 122 new ships, including:
* 14 new ship classes with a variety of abilities.
* 7 massive capturable "Golem" ships.
* Dozens of other new capturables, including “experimental” ships.
* 12 new AI Types.
* 4 Zenith alien minor factions (NPCs).
* Over 40 minutes of new in-game music tracks.
* Several new map styles.
* Several new AI behaviors and many related special AI weapons.
Availability And Pricing
The Zenith Remnant has a retail price of $9.99 USD (or equivalent currency), and is digitally available in English in all territories. The expansion will, starting today, be available through all of our online partners including Impulse, Steam, Direct2Drive, and GamersGate.
50% Off Sale On AI War
In celebration of the release of the expansion, we and most all of our partners are selling the base game of AI War: Fleet Command at a 50% discount until the 18th or 19th (the end date varies depending on the vendor). If you already have the game, now's the perfect time to get a friend into it so that you can enjoy some co-op together!
Work on The Zenith Remnant is finally coming to a close, and the game will be officially released tomorrow --
it extends the base game even more than we had planned when we set out to create it. Thanks so much
to all of the AI War players whose suggestions really helped take things to the next level! For the first
preview of the new music that is in the expansion, check out the trailer:
Our good friends at Mode 7 Games have released the Red expansion for their tactical heaven Frozen Synapse. They've added co-op, and a new campaign, and a new multiplayer mode, and...well, a ton of good stuff. It's absolutely jam-packed, and does more than just slap a fresh coat of (red) paint on one of the better indie games in recent memory.
