Review: Convoy (PC)

Convoy's biggest problem is that every time I think about it I get a glimpse of The Simpsons episode “Maximum Homerdrive.” Through a cartoonish series of events, Homer winds up hauling cargo in an 18-wheeler. At one point a version of the diddy, “Convoy!” (or at least a version of it) is repeated.

“We're gonna drive this convoy...!”

And that little excerpt of song spins through my brain every time Convoy – the game – starts. It's really annoying.

Review: Legends of Aethereus (PC)

Role-playing games (RPG) are not everyone's bread and butter. For me, I find a good smattering of JRPGs (Japanese role-playing games) and domestic RPGs are part of a balanced gaming diet (apparently I should not write while hungry). Legends of Aethereus reminds me greatly of North American style of RPGs – visually similar to Ultima Online: using a 3rd person perspective, you guide your character through a series of quests in the never ending pursuit of riches and construction materials.

News: Can An "Eternal Darkness" Sequel Be Kickstarted?

IGN has posted the first teaser trailer for what appears to be a "spiritual sequel" to the 2002 GameCube horror title Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem.  The new title, called Shadow Of The Eternals, seems to hearken back to the ealier game from now-defunct developer Silicon Knights.  Purportedly, Denis Dyack and his team were working on a pitch for a proper sequel to Eternal Darkness before the company shut down following their legal troubles with Epic Games over Too Human.

There's no explicit reference to Kickstarter or any other crowdfunding site, though given the difficulties Lab Zero Games have experienced with IndieGoGo and PayPal, Kickstarter might be the safer and more obvious choice.  More details are promised on the game's website (currently showing a countdown timer) as coming out on Monday.

News: Indie Dev Tools Getting Kickstarted

Indie tool developer GarageGames recently announced their first Kickstarter campaign for their new development package, the 3 Step Studio.  Those who are familiar with GarageGames have recently benefited from the open source licensing of the company's signature Torque engine, and now the company looks to spread some more love with this newest toolset, which they seemingly intend to release for free.

News: Black Isle Returns; Gamers Suspect Scam

Old school gamers have likely noticed that Black Isle Studios has seemingly returned from beyond the corporate grave.  Like other developers who were part of Interplay have done in the recent past, Black Isle is announcing a new title and turning to the community for help.  However, the fine details suggest that this is not quite like the Kickstarter campaigns successfully funded by Obsidian and inExile.

News: Carmageddon: Reincarnation is a Go

Another Kickstarter project that many people have had their eyes on has now been funded.  This time it's Carmageddon: Reincarnation.  This new game promises to be more of what made the original popular with lots of driving around really fast, running over everything in one's path, and often going out of one's way to run things over.  There will also be both single and multiplayer modes.  So tick one more Kickstarter game off the list that now has enough money to go forward.

Editorial: The Trouble with Tentacles

There's been a bit of a brouhaha regarding Kickstarter, Soda Pop Miniatures, and their upcoming card game Tentacle Bento.

The premise involves players assuming the role of tentacle monsters passing themselves off as human (or just hiding really well in plain sight) with the goal of having sex with shojou-style Japanese schoolgirls.