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[Derek]

So the first guest articles experiment was a mixed bag. The idea was simply to proofread articles quickly for grammatical/spelling errors and then post them. I ran into a couple big problems with this:

1. Proofreading for grammatical/spelling errors actually takes a long time.

2. Most of the games were not really interesting enough for the front page, imo.

Basically, I felt like I was spending nearly as much time getting these guest articles up as writing them, and from my perspective, it was degrading the quality of the front page.

I want to try this again, though. I really like ortoslon's series of Knytt Stories articles and have been posting those. Noah! will hopefully write a very knowledgeable post about the shmup Hellsinker that I'd also like to post. I've been trying to get emshort to post about text adventures on TIGS, too - something like that would be great.


Anyway, I think the guidelines need to be slightly different this time around:

1. Your article may not necessarily get posted to the front page.

- Keep in mind that even if your article doesn't make it to the front page it will still get exposure here in this thread. I don't see any reason why this one can't stay stickied for awhile.

2. Here are some hints to help you get posted:

- Obviously don't post your own game or write an article that sounds like an advert.

- A lot of people submitted 48-hour game jam games and simple Flash/mobile games last time. I'm sorry, but there are so many of these types of games, and I don't want the front page to be even 50% little prototypes. If the game falls into this category, it should really stand out in some way.

- Please avoid hyperbole and artsy-fartsy language. If you can't describe the game without invoking the Ancients, it's probably not a good enough game. I'm actually very supportive of art games, but it should be more than a shallow statement about some sociopoliticart idea.

- In general, just pick a good game and let the game mostly speak for itself.

- Screenshots should be at least 640 pixels wide and crisp, without watermarks. If the game has nice screenshots on its website, that's fine.

- Otherwise, include a screenshot hosted somewhere relatively permanent, like imgur.

3. The thread can be used for article requests and discussion/correction as well as the posting of articles.

- If you're uncertain about something, just ask.

- I'll try to give more feedback myself this time around.

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

as i side note i felt that offal's guest article (which he kept bugging me to post in irc until i did) probably could have been a little better under your guidelines; the language felt too stilted/scholastic (eva said it "read like a college essay"), and it was entirely praise and no criticism, which felt a bit like an advertisement (it was even worse before i asked him to revise parts of it, which he did)

but nonetheless i felt that sophie's game was good and worth posting about, since it was a complete game with a new mechanic and good level design, and probably her best game yet (i felt it was much superior to the other games of hers that have already been posted about), so i overlooked the article's problems

[Derek]

Yeah, it kinda read like a Pitchfork album review, or something. I feel like those types of reviews do their games a disservice by turning away players who might otherwise be interested in the mechanics or level design.

Honestly, your second paragraph probably captures the essence of the game better than offal's article.

[ortoslon]

how my series started: i'd been bugging paul to write about knytt stories as a part of the weekly report for a month, got impatient and wrote the post myself. since then it's become a devious ploy to get more levels for my own enjoyment. it works: at least two levels were made by people who learned about KS from my posts and most featured levels' makers thank me for recognition outside nifflas' forums

[Alec S.]

The Ultimate Celebration



The Ultimate Celebration is a charming freeware exploration platformer from Brian Soulliard.  You are tasked with finding 20 friends in an open-ended and varied game world.  There are many enemies and obstacles on the way.  Similar to games like Wario Land and RunMan: Race Around the World, the obstacles in this game can't kill you, but instead can knock you back or otherwise hinder you.  However, the game is still quite challenging due to carefully designed levels with clever enemy placement.  Some challenges can actually become a bit frustrating at times, but the open nature of the game means if you're having trouble with one area, you can go try your hand at another.

The highlight here is the bright and clean pixel art that really brings the level design to life.  There is great variety in the environments in this gameworld, and they all blend together nicely.  One moment you might be facing a bear in a grassy field and the next you might be dodging snowballs in an icy cave or navigating underwater currents.  These environments are inhabited by clever and creative enemy designs.

The game has some nice surprises, and builds a great atmosphere with the graphics, music, and little bits of text when you find friends.  The game encourages multiple play-throughs to see all it has to offer, and seems suited to speedruns.

[phubans]

I'm going to review Retro City Rampage tonight. Stay tuned. Will edit this post when the review is done!

EDIT: Actually, I talked to the dev and there's a lot of stuff I haven't seen yet, so to be fair I'm probably gonna hold off on posting it until I've finished the game. But I'll get right on that and probably have a review up in the next day or so! Stay tuned...

[Shinji16]

A new project is in the works by Refract Studios, a group of developers that were part of the DigiPen team behind Nitronic Rush (which TIGSource covered previously). They've just announced a spiritual successor called Distance, and are trying to get the word out.

I'm really excited for this just because they've got a proven track record, and the work that's been posted so far looks amazing. I wrote a more formal article here and was hoping it could get published to help them get more exposure.

[CiroContinisio]

As I anticipated to Paul, I have written a small article for a game I love which has entered public beta these days, Clairvoyance.



I really hope it will get featured on the home page sooner or later, 'cause I really like Clairvoyance and since it's an online-based game it has to have a base of active players at all times.

[Nathan Cash]

I assume Spelunky Xbla already had an article? If not Ill write one on it.

[mysteriosum]

I wrote an analysis of the level design for "They Need To Be Fed" for iOS by YoYo games, and it's just been sitting in my Google Docs for a while. Could I post it here?

[Guert]

Demo

If the question "what if Avatar had been an 80's arcade game" ever titillated your imagination, then you got a couple of things in common with the folks over at New Horizon gaming. Their latest project, titled Empire Eden, has you battle an technology-driven empire who's taking over your homeland. Where the game gets brownie points over the cinematic blue giants, is that you settle the score Contra-style.

Any retro aficionado will notice the classic run 'n' gun inspiration, both in the character visuals and level environments. The game takes a few pages off the late 80's arcade games with speedy movement, action-packed sequence, and even a few tricks from RPGs. Throw in some special “animal spirit” powers in there, such as ramming space cowboys while in bull form, and you got something pretty darn interesting going on. The game is structured in rounds, which makes the game fast paced, as it throws at you waves after waves of enemies to destroy. There's also lots of muscular men running around in loin cloth, when not going commando, like most Shwarzy-Stallone era flicks.  And yes, there are naked chicks.  

A public demo was just released, allowing you to feel for the first time the manly universe.  Although action-packed, the game requires you to input all your virile actions through the FPS-standard WASD layout, which I believe doesn't do the game justice. I'm a game-pad type of guy, after all. I can only assume game-pad or keyboard setup options will be supported in further demos. Still, my hopes are up for this one. Not only does it wake memories of my 10 year old self yearning for the “S” power-up, it also reminds me that nothing is as fun as getting a brand new run 'n' gun game.

[ali00128]

I have a work in progress game which I wanna collect reviews and opinions on. Is this the right place to post and request for a article?

[Guert]

Post your game in Feedback.

[PrestonS]

//I'm not to sure how detailed you want these to be so I kept it short and to the point.

Dreadout is an upcoming Indonesian third-person psychological survival horror game being developed by Digital Happiness. The game is heavily influenced off the Fatal Frame series and fully utilizes the Unity Engine to put you in an aphotic and caliginous environment in which your character is constantly in a state of despair. You control a young female named Linda who was separated from her classmates while on vacation; she somehow obtains a spiritual power that allow her to use electronics such as digital cameras and camera phones to locate ghostly entities and solve puzzles to help her get back to her friends.

Greenlight

[ACOM]

OMG!

Can I write an article about "Shiny the Firefly"? Is a spanish game about a firefly, and I think it is really cute and worth about talking about it, but not perfect.

I am asking because I have never written for english media, so, I presume it will need a a proofreading for grammatical/spelling errors.

If that works, I will write it the next week.

Cheers!

[ஒழுக்கின்மை (Paul Eres)]

just write it and post it here i guess; if it has mistakes i can correct them if i have time

[phubans]

Here's a guest review for Mercenary Kings. I even made a video to go with it!

[

]

Mercenary Kings is simply amazing. You can always tell when you like a game - you start playing it and spend the next 8~ hours continuing to play it. It's that good. When I started out, I did the online co-op with a few friends over a Skype call, playing on my TV with a gamepad for the full experience. Co-op was great, but I kept playing for hours after everyone else left, completely immersed in the level of depth the game had to offer.

Let me just say that this game seems to have ticked all the right boxes. It goes without saying that a game featuring the awesome art and animation of Paul Robertson is going to look great, but beyond that it even feels great; the feedback couldn't be better. The music is also one of the game's strong points, with driving, energetic tunes that will have you humming along. But as great as it looks, sounds, and plays, I think the most compelling feature of the game is the weapon crafting system.

As you play the game, enemies and chests will drop common, uncommon, and rare materials. Back at base camp you can use these to craft weapons, armor, and accessory upgrades. But it isn't as simple as upgrading your gun to level 2. Perhaps the greatest aspect of Mercenary Kings is that every part of your gun is customizable - the receiver, the barrel, the stock, the magazine, etc. Using this system you can mix and match to create one of thousands of unique possible combinations.

The game also features a rank system where you'll rank up by completing various missions, including scenarios like hostage rescue, scavenger hunts for materials, and simply neutralizing or capturing enemies and bosses. Completing some missions will unlock new NPCs to interact with as well new missions, areas, and weapon parts to craft.

If RPG elements aren't enough to sell a Metal Slug-type game for you, then it's probably not your cup of tea, but as far as games in this genre go, this one is pretty great and easily one of the best games I've played so far in 2013. For fans of the Contra and Metal Slug series who also enjoy high-level weapon customization and RPG elements, this game is most certainly a must buy.

[Nitro Crate]

Did I miss the article on the Iconoclasts demo? I've been waiting for this game forever, I almost didn't notice!! Comeeeonnntiggy. I rely on you guys.

Edit: Oh my god, I'm an idiot. The demo came out in 2012 and you guys had an article for it.

[oahda]

the language felt too stilted/scholastic (eva said it "read like a college essay")

What's wrong with that?

[Krux]

Are front page articles coming back at some point in time? I have the impression they are somewhat dead, or there is almost nothing coming anymore.