QCF: Elsie

t’s often said that necessity is the mother of invention, and in the case of the dispiriting limbo that Capcom has planted the Blue Bomber in, the iconic robot’s absence has encouraged multiple studios and visionaries to step up and deliver an experience not all too dissimilar to that of the Mega Man effect. With the rare exception of 2018’s Mega Man 11, the super fighting robot has been mainly relegated to nostalgia collections or vanity cameos, and the weight of his “pew-pew” gameplay has been carried on by a variety of indie developments or community efforts.

This new influx of games, however, has also encouraged studios to do more than a superficial spin on the trademark Run’nGun formula, with select titles really showing off the timeless potential of Mega Man-inspired side-scrolling action. One of which is Elsie, an independently developed adventure starring a larger-than-life, mascot-pilled android made by Knight Shift Games and published by Playtonic's new publishing branch, “Playtonic Friends.” As the fourth game to be supported by Playtonic’s offshoot publication label, Elsie offers many familiar dynamics that more resemble the feel of the Mega Man X series than its 8-bit counterpart, only with a Rougelike twist on the setup. While this territory isn’t exactly uncharted with 20XX and 30XX making waves in the subgenre, Elsie sinks its teeth more into the character-driven spectacle its inspiration is famous for, with a side of frenetic bullet action that blends into something like Mega Man X meets SuperGiant Games’ Hades.

I say this with my whole chest and every heavy breath huffed in—words really can’t serve justice to what Knight Shift Games has done with those mechanics—I genuinely believe that Elsie breathes a whole new sense of life into some admittedly fatigued concepts by delivering an immaculate sense of game feel and presentation that I haven’t experienced in years.

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QCF: Dragonborne

t isn’t too often that you see a brand new Gameboy game released, let alone in the same year that we see next-generation hardware launch but that just goes to show just how powerful the how well Nintendo’s trademark handheld still holds up.

Despite the strength of the Game Boy’s legacy though, some novel ideas, as unique as they may be, can still find a way to disappoint even the most open-minded of players—that’s Spacebot Interactive’s Dragonborne.

While this new top-down RPG adventure does an admirable job of paying tribute to the Game  Boy classics that came before it, Dragonborne’s individual spin on these familiar tropes ends up being nothing short of tedious at best, and just plain boring at worst.

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PPR Presents Play Play: Titan Souls

he thrill of pushing against overwhelming odds to the brink of death is a fantasy that anyone fan of a good action tale can relate to, but there is such a thing as overkill, and Titan Souls is a prime example of running a bit too far with the concept.

Join George and Ser as they stumble through the pixelated ruins of giants and monsters in Acid Nerve’s Titan Souls, and try to make sense of all death suffered in the process—it’s the kind of shit that will break you from the start.

Mail us at our new email Mailbag@presspauseradio.com, leave a voicemail at 469-PPR-TALK, and be sure to stop by at our Forums if you haven’t already registered and post your thoughts about the show. Finally, make sure to rate and subscribe to us on iTunes and YouTube, follow us on Twitch page and Twitter, and finally take part in our Facebook and Steam group!

PPR Presents Play Play: Tiny Dangerous Dungeons

hile it’s easy to dismiss the vast majority of retro-inspired indie love letters available as of late, I feel like the sentiment is still far from accurate. It’s kind an almost-trend of where the accusations of pandering or creative stagnation flood the discussion of this pseudo sub-genre, and  hopping on board with the consensus is one of the more common displays of low-hanging fruit that I’ve seen on both the community, and industry fronts of video games today.

Which is why it warms the heart to seen a game that’s solid enough to stand as an exception to that very inclination, and Tiny Dangerous Dungeons from Adventureislands is that title. This particular Play Play is solo one with George at the helm, as he wanted to share the game with everyone in a way where the a video was the better format over a “Late To The Party” feature when it comes down to conveying all the thoughts he has about it. Enjoy the sporadic Play Play and be sure to find the game and buy it to support the developer if you like what you see in the video!

Mail us at our new email Mailbag@presspauseradio.com, leave a voicemail at 469-PPR-TALK, and be sure to stop by at our Forums if you haven’t already registered and post your thoughts about the show. Finally, make sure to rate and subscribe to us on iTunes and YouTube, follow us on Twitch page and Twitter, and finally take part in our Facebook and Steam group!

QCF: Axiom Verge

hether you love it or hate it, the renaissance of independently developed indie games is still very much kicked into high gear, and new titles like Shovel Knight and Hotline Miami are keep everyone on notice.

And with indie games still heavy hitting the scene of console gaming, the inevitable swell of side-scrolling love letters coming out of the mix, but none more frequent then the fan-favorite sub-genre that’s fondly recognized by the portmanteau that every gaming enthusiast has come to know: Metroidvania.

While the argument for if whether or not the sizable wave of these games is doing more harm than good to the genre is still up for debate, one particular title has uniquely approached the formula in a different direction. A direction that magnificently caters to both the culture of the titular design, and the fundamental dynamics that drive its appeal; Tom Happ’s Axiom Verge, a title that beautifully integrates what it homages into an experience that you’ll keep thinking about it, even after it’s over.

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QCF: Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number

o matter what your standpoint on the matter is, it’s a fact that’s commonly accepted by a majority of modern society; violence is a part of life. Now when it comes to how people come to terms with this is an entirely different story, but I always found the concept of depictions that revel in graphically glorifying it as a point of illustration to be interesting; especially when it worked.

The argument on whether or not the gory aggression worked for Hotline Miami 2 though is a bit muddled, because when it works—it works.

And when it doesn’t, the title rings a bit hollow with a reverberation of pretension.

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GDC 15: Dissecting Narrative Design with Jurie Horneman

f there’s one thing that you can count on GDC delivering year after year, it’s the consistent distribution of new ideas and creative approaches shared from variety of talented game developers and visionaries in attendance.

Programmers and upstarts from around the world strive to share their ideas among their peers in hopes of improving the climate for video games, even when it comes to established philosophies and subjects in the field of design.

Jurie Horneman is one of these people, as he takes the stage at GDC 15 to challenge the climate of narrative direction in gaming, and how developers can be more conscientious with gameplay mechanics resonate with the plot and world of the experience in a way that can overcome the all too common issue of ludonarrative dissonance that currently plague modern gaming.

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PPR Presents Play Play: Transistor

hroughout the wreckage and calamity (see what I did there?) of Cloudbank, bears the stance of one woman, and her indignant sense of duty to right the wrongs of all the injustice that’s befallen her fair city and life.

Listen, it’s no secret, we love Super Giant Games’ sophomore release, Transistor, and while we’ve already reviewed, and talked about it at great lengths on the show, we figure we’d go one step further in showcasing our admiration for 2014’s indie darling in yet another edition of Press Pause Radio’s Play Play.

Come join us, join everyone, oh, everyone, before we all become one.

Mail us at our new email Mailbag@presspauseradio.com, leave a voicemail at 469-PPR-TALK, and be sure to stop by at our Forums if you haven’t already registered and post your thoughts about the show. Finally, make sure to rate and subscribe to us on iTunes and YouTube, follow us on Twitch page and Twitter, and finally take part in our Facebook and Steam group!