Tag: Gaming

Striking Voices – Video Game Voice Acting

Earlier this month, the Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, SAG-AFTRA, announced they had approved the strike by video game voice actors after a 96.52% vote in favour by members (of a 75% minimum required).

The strike looms over us. We don’t know all the details due to a media blackout and what little we know comes from SAG-AFTRA and vocal members such as Wil Wheaton. I’ve been wondering about what it might mean for our industry if all voice acting work suddenly stopped and it got me thinking about the conditions the actors deal with, what they’re asking for, some counter-arguments I’ve read but also about the importance of voice acting in video games, the impact these actors have on our experiences, on the memorable characters we love. Continue reading Striking Voices – Video Game Voice Acting

Adventure, A Genre of Virtues and Vices

I love the Adventure genre and most of my favourite video games are adventures. Even before I started playing Point & Click adventures a few years ago and became obsessed with them, I already loved what the genre had to offer. Exploring mysterious locations, solving puzzles and uncovering mysteries while using strange contraptions are just some of the things that draw me to this wonderful video game genre.

Every video game genre has its virtues, the elements that make them special and interesting, but also their vices, the ones that make the experiences drag or the overused tropes and clichés that bring nothing to the table yet developers constantly pick them from their toolboxes. Continue reading Adventure, A Genre of Virtues and Vices

Review: Lumini

The world is dead, poisonous clouds fill the air and the only thing that remains are the dwindling predators and what’s left of the world’s natural beauty. It’s about time for the Lumini to return! Continue reading Review: Lumini

Review: Mushroom 11

At Rezzed 2015 and later EGX 2015 I met the developers of this intriguing puzzler where you control an amorphous blob. The name they chose for this strange game and being was simply Mushroom 11. Continue reading Review: Mushroom 11

Review: 80 Days

Around the World in Eighty Days, by Jules Verne, is one of the classics of literature. It’s been adapted into plays and countless films and other media, but not so many video games. Well, 80 Days changes that! Continue reading Review: 80 Days

EGX Highlights – Best of EGX

EGX was a lot of fun, as you’ve been able to see from my previous articles and the many photos I took (though I promise to take even more next time around). I played tons of games, spoke to many developers and as I’ve mentioned in the past, I met new and old friends alike. It was a wonderful experience.

I’m not a fan of “Best of” a given event, as I feel it diminishes the value of every other game that I saw during EGX. But thanks to my friends at 1001Up, it’s public knowledge what my favourite game at the event was, so what the hell? I’ll talk about my Best of EGX 2015. Continue reading EGX Highlights – Best of EGX

EGX Highlights – Rising Star Games

One of the last people I met at EGX was Tyrone Walcott, PR Manager for Rising Star Games. We had an interesting chat about some of the games they had on show and the first thing that struck me was his barely contained energy. He spoke in a calm tone, but I could feel how excited he was about it all. I could almost picture him jumping up and down in excitement over them, much as I was on the inside.

The first thing he asked: “Which ones have played?” To which I replied Lumo and Lumini, two titles that got me hooked instantly. Lumo filled me with childlike joy and made me feel like Mickey Mouse in Fantasia, the bumbling apprentice in the Wizard’s Tower. Lumini was just relaxing. In the bustle of EGX, it was a title that was just about chilling.

It was surprising to me then when Tyrone filled me in on these games and I realised what I felt was pretty spot on. Continue reading EGX Highlights – Rising Star Games

EGX Highlights – Merge Games

I was looking forward to meeting the guys from Merge Games. I’ll admit that it was for a single title: Riot: Civil Unrest. Not many of you know this but I’m originally from Venezuela, a country that in the past few years has had its fair share of protests, marches and full on riots. It became very common to see it on TV.

So when I saw this game about Riots, about altercations with the police, Molotov cocktails, thrown bottles and angry shouts, it tugged at some part of me. So I had to see it.

It was a great surprise then, when other titles in their lineup attracted me as well. Continue reading EGX Highlights – Merge Games

EGX Highlights – Tears of Avia

One of the games for which I saw the longest queues in the Rezzed section over the course of my EGX adventure was Tears of Avia, a tactical RPG with anime-ish elements. It’s currently on Kickstarter. I passed by the stall and looking over people’s shoulders I saw bits of the gameplay and it was a style I was familiar with and knew I liked, a style all of you who ever played Final Fantasy Tactics will also recognise. Continue reading EGX Highlights – Tears of Avia

EGX Highlights – Theo & Lizzy

One of the biggest surprises I had during EGX was Theo & Lizzy. Ever since playing the original Super Mario Bros. with my NES back in the 80s, I’ve loved platformers and the faster they are the more I like them. I want a challenge when I play them, mostly so I can show off my skills—or lack thereof—by completing levels as fast as possible or not at all.

I went by Butcherlab’s stand and saw people playing it like crazy. Knowing how busy EGX was and how many people would crowd the booth, I’d decided to only play a little bit of Theo & Lizzy, to get a feel for its gameplay so I could write this article, but the moment I started playing and got a handle on the controls, I couldn’t stop. Ollie Elliot, Co-Founder of Butcherlab, sat by me to guide me through the demo as well as answer a few of my questions. Continue reading EGX Highlights – Theo & Lizzy