Blogs - GameSomniac™

Everybody at one point or another has played a horror game. Through that time you learned that you either love them or you hate them. Over time the “Horror” in horror oriented games seemed to have diminished as technology has become more advanced but I’m here to tell you, one indie game developer is creating some of the scariest horror games to date with the the most dated technology. Pig Farmer Productions is the name of a one man indie game dev company that is creating 90’s style video games very reminiscent to that of the original Resident Evil Trilogy, The Silent Hill Trilogy and even Clock Tower for the PSX. Before October I’d never heard of the guy until Bloody Disgusting posted on facebook about a Video Game Adaption of John Carpenter’s Halloween. That’s right, Little Mikey Myers has his own video game! As soon as I saw this post I was highly intrigued and looked everywhere for the game. On youtube I came across an LP of the game from RaedWulfGamer (Check it out Here! Youtube.com) and after watching the hilariously scary game play out I was hooked on PF’s game dev style. I eventually found PF’s official website where he hosted all of his games, projects, videos and more including the Halloween video game adaption (Although was taken down on Oct. 28th for reasons he would not like to get in to.). Needless to say I downloaded that bitch quicker than Metallica fans on Napster. I managed to get the game 2 days prior to it’s removal and unfortunately I game on the Mac so I only have the Mac version which means No I can’t give you a copy of the game to play (Unless you too game on Mac \m/\m/ Yay Macs!).After completing my objective in downloading the game I then noticed a “Games” tab on the homepage of the site and I became very curious. I clicked on the button which took me to a glorious page of 4 awesome horror games just like Halloween, each with a different interactive experience. Some allowed you to play as the killer where you’re main objective is to KILL EVERYONE with an arsenal of Melee weapons, others putting you in the place of the victim trapped in a maze like area with a crazed serial killer stalking you. One of the games in the list was titled Halloween 3D, a 3D video game adaption of the film where you played as Michael himself stalking the graveyard shift of a local sanatarium. The game went through numerous incarnations (Many of these versions of the game can be seen on youtube by those lucky enough to have been able to play it) Unfortunately the game was cancelled and taken down from the site on Oct. 28th. I recently played one of Pig Farmer’s games called Minotaur for the GameSomniac Halloween Special and it was absolutely terrifying. I grew up watching horror movies and playing horror games and I can definitely hold my own around the genre but not since Clock Tower or Phantasmagoria have I been startled and downright scared. This game was simple, basic, straight to the point and most importantly FUN. It’s always been my belief that simplicity is key and PF’s games really demonstrate that you do not need to be a UDK or Unity Master in Game Dev to create something amazing. Check out Pig Farmer Productions by following the link below, also linked below are videos and trailers of his games for you to wet your gaming whistles. Game on guys and enjoy the fear!

PIG FARMER GAMES: Pigfarmergames.com
HALLOWEEN 3D BETA: Youtube.com
HALLOWEEN 3D BETA 2.0 Youtube.com

Avalanche Studios’ Mad Max doesn’t have to take cues from the likes of Fallout or Borderlands, says senior producer Emil Krafting. Mad Max’s dusty, post-apocalyptic wasteland has been a well-trodden one, with plenty of big- and small-screen imitators since, but these games owe Mad Max a debt rather than the other way around.

“We are not copying anyone; we are working with the original wasteland franchise,” says Krafting.

That said, Krafting is aware a younger audience may not necessarily be aware of Mad Max’s role in shaping the dominant style of post-apocalyptic dystopias: barren, desolate places ruled by people in outrageous vehicles and even more outrageous costumes.

“It is a franchise with a long heritage,” says Krafting. “I mean, I grew up with it, but most of the audience today didn’t.”

“But that doesn’t detract from the fact that this is pretty much what started it all, and we wouldn’t have had games like Fallout, or Rage, or Borderlands if we didn’t have Mad Max.”

Rumors of a Mad Max game out of Avalanche had been running rife since 2010 all the way up to the game’s official announcement at this year’s E3. Krafting concedes trying to keep the game under wraps for so long was tough.

“Certainly from the inside it was difficult,” he says. “It’s a franchise that most people in the studio just love it, grew up with it, and being able to work on it – to create our type of game – and not being able to talk about it for so long, even when the rumours started trickling out…”

“I think it’s sort of a double-edged sword because while, yes, development is affected by having to do trade shows and interviews and demos, it’s also such a vitalisation in development; you get that boost of people seeing and looking at what you’re doing, and you being able to talk about it.”

“It’s like you turn a switch once you go public and that just energises the entire team.”

Krafting believes Avalanche’s experience with the Just Cause series means very good things for Mad Max.

“The thing about the Just Cause games… is that emergent nature,” he says. “We are providing the player with a world and a set amount of tools to utilise in that world at their own will.”

“How they combine those and what they do with them and how they experiment with the tools that we provide to create these crazy events, that is something that really taps into what is unique about games for me. To have that freedom as a player, that autonomy.”

“That feeds really well into the wasteland setting of Mad Max and I feel like that’s really where we’re going to stand out comparably to previous wasteland games that people have seen.”

The challenges of working on a game across two generations adds complexity but getting the balance right is something the team is acutely aware of.

“The 360 version of Just Cause came out after the original, so that was a very good exercise for us,” says Krafting. “In this case we’re releasing simultaneously on all platforms.”

“It is a challenge, but I think the biggest challenge is to make sure that the current gen version is the same next gen experience in terms of gameplay; there won’t be any gameplay differences between the current and the next gen versions. Gameplay is what comes first for us.”

“But when you get all that memory and all that power to work with you just want to go all-in on it, so it’s a challenge to find that balance in-between.”

(Source: ign.com)

So it's been a while since the initial reveal of the Xbox One and just recently the PS4. Microsoft came out and presented the new console with the up most confidence promising all kinds of awesome stuff like, needing to have mandatory internet connection, Kinnect would always be on watching you, Mandatory Kinnect installation in order for the system to work and if any of that wasn't awesome enough they also released info regarding indie game dev and the overall gaming experience on the X1. Indie Gamers would no longer be able to sell their games on Xbox Live, Games were to be downloaded and installed into the systems memory when placed into the system for the first time rendering the disc useless. No longer would you be able share games with friends or play used games for that matter AND without an internet connection you would not be able to play the disc based content such as SP campaigns. This system is awesome!!!

Said no gamer ever.

The X1 was a colossal failure on Microsoft's part. The system is pretty much like having controlled parental custody with supervised visits, the X1 being the child and Microsoft being the supervisor. The fact that the X1 required a mandatory installation of Kinnect and that it always was on watching your every move, needless to say it freaked people out. The amount of Terminator jokes that spawned because of it was pretty ridiculous (However very very funny). No one could even say that the X1 had potential, it was a whole lotta bad in one system. You had a new game policy that restrained you from being able to play used games, share games with friends and even buy or rent games from Gamefly, Redbox, Blockbuster (THEY STILL EXIST!) etc. The indie game developers were at a loss because no longer could they self publish and sell their creations on XBL. After the X1 Reveal, Sony's stock shot up with a 8% increase and didn't stop there. The stock continued to rise shortly after the PS4 reveal. As of May 22nd 2013 the stock had again increased by a total of 9%, documented by IGN. The amount of XB fans who converted to Sony was amazing, It was downright insane, The XB/Sony conversion was soooo huge that the Jehovah Witnesses started taking notes. This fan base shift was a huge deal and it showed in the system pre-orders. Up until the week ending June 15 the PlayStation 4 currently leads in the total number of pre-orders with about 75,000 (Rounded number). The Xbox One is lagging behind with 45,000 (Rounded number) pre-orders.

In recent events, Don Mattrick the head boss on the X1 revealed to fans that Microsoft would be changing the systems restrictions in certain areas to cater to what fans they had left. Here is what Mattrick had to say on the matter:

"An Internet connection will not be required to play offline Xbox One games. After a one-time system set-up with a new Xbox One, you can play any disc-based game without ever connecting online again. There is no 24-hour connection requirement and you can take your Xbox One anywhere you want and play your games, just like on Xbox 360.Trade-in, lend, resell, gift, and rent disc based games just like you do today. There will be no limitations to using and sharing games; it will work just as it does today on Xbox 360.In addition to buying a disc from a retailer, you can also download games from Xbox Live on day of release. If you choose to download your games, you will be able to play them offline just like you do today. Xbox One games will be playable on any Xbox One console--there will be no regional restrictions. We appreciate your passion, support and willingness to challenge the assumptions of digital licensing and connectivity," Mattrick said. "While we believe that the majority of people will play games online and access the cloud for both games and entertainment, we will give consumers the choice of both physical and digital content. We have listened and we have heard loud and clear from your feedback that you want the best of both worlds."

Through out all of the major social networking sites everyone is talking about the new systems and where they stand as gamers. After both reveals and even the X1 make over announcement it still remains that the majority of Xbox fans who have converted to Sony say they will stick around with Sony. Those wanting both consoles were happy to hear about the policy changes and will proceed with the dual purchase and of course XB fanboys and Sony Fanboys will stick to their individual systems. Only time will tell how good Microsoft makes on their promise and just how dominant the PS4 really is. Which system will be the best? You decide.

Derek~
-GameSomniac™

Article References
Gamespot.com
Ign.com
Vgchartz.com
Vg247.com
Sidequesting.com