IND13’s Best of 2015





IND13’s contributing writers take a look back at their top games of 2015, featuring rampaging goats, hyper-violence, and gritty civil war survival experiences.

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number

Nick Borges-Silva, Staff Writer

My favorite game of 2015 would have to be Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number. The sequel to Dennaton’s 2012 hit shooter had a lot to live up to, and it certainly delivered. After finishing the game, I felt unsure about the changes Dennaton had implemented. There were many new characters but fewer choices in regard to playstyle. Levels generally became colossal, disposing of the tight corridor-based carnage of the game’s predecessor. The story reached new depths hardly hinted at in the original title; in other words, the game was unexpectedly immense.

I had to beat the game a second time before I realized Dennaton created a remarkable sequel. Wrong Number is a bit messy, but it manages to filter the best aspects of Hotline Miami into a fresh and addictive experience, which includes one of the most outstanding conclusions to an action game in recent memory. With the promise of an upcoming level editor, Dennaton has ensured I’ll be coming back to their blood-soaked sequel time and time again.

Oh, and the music’s phenomenal.

Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number is available from Steam. Check out Dennaton on Twitter.

Expand

Ruby Clyde, Editor

In October 2015, Chris Johnson and Chris Larkin released Expand. It’s a simple game, requiring the player to guide a small pink square through an undulating, twisting kaleidoscope of a black, white, and red world. Touching the red or getting trapped between black walls sends the map spinning back to the last checkpoint. The cool, minimalist design of this maze game in combination with Larkin’s moving soundtrack creates an oddly emotive experience. Its simplicity leaves a lot of room for allegory, but whether or not you want to search for meaning in it, this is an incredibly well made game. The gameplay experience can be frustrating as you attempt levels over and over, but can also be smooth and beautiful as you wheel through the shifting landscape. Every aspect of Expand has been designed for maximum effect, and it sticks with you when you’ve stopped playing. Expand is available on Steam. Check out the game’s website and follow creators @HyperNexus and @composerlarkin on Twitter.

Curry Goat Revenge

Harry Cole, Co-Founder and Publisher

I played Curry Goat Revenge at the end of 2015 and it instantly got me laughing. It’s from an awesome studio called Playback Interactive, based in South London. They’re a really cool group headed up by Samson Gabriels. Picking up the game, you instantly enjoy yourself. You’re a rampaging goat running through the streets of a Caribbean town, knocking over locals with your horns. It’s a medley of an endless runner, Crossy Road, and an order of goat curry. The humour in the game is on point and the graphics blare in your face. I dare anyone to play this game and try not to enjoy it. This brings culture to the forefront of gaming and it adds to a superb gaming experience. I expect big things for this studio, this game, and these guys, in the future. They made a title called Road Man! These guys are a superb London studio with huge potential.

This War of Mine

John Kenny, Staff Writer

This War of Mine (11-bit studios) was originally released on Steam in November 2014, but only really came to the attention of the casual gamer when it was released on IOS and Android in July 2015. So, what is it? A multi-character gritty survival strategy game set in the ruins of a modern city torn apart and isolated by civil war. Far from getting involved in the politics, combat or strategy of the war, your only job here is to keep your people alive until the war is over. Every decision you make will sculpt your characters for better or for worse, and as such, you will care what happens to them. Due to its massive success, This War of Mine has already inspired a few of the big publishing houses to produce similar games (e.g. Fallout Shelter, Bethesda) proving that indie game development is not only alive, but flourishing and influential. This War of Mine is available on Steam, iOS, and Android. Check out 11 Bit Studios on Facebook and Twitter.

I Am Bread

Lee Smith, Co-Founder and Creative Director

Doing the most simple of things, such as making toast, changed forever with the 2015 release of I Am Bread from Bossa Studios. By enabling you to control one slice of bread, and move each corner of it so that it can flip and flop towards the toaster, I Am Bread delivered a game which is unique in its ideas and execution but is, in essence, a puzzler/platformer. It is a game that has a large dose of humour and fun, as you try to keep your slice of bread clean from some of the game’s oh-so-dirty, most definitely unhygienic surfaces. Although the game is difficult, it is not so difficult that it is unplayable: it presents a decent challenge that you will want to revisit. It is also a unique lesson in physics, and that alone is worth I Am Bread‘s reasonable price point.

I Am Bread is available from Steam. Check out Bossa Studios on Facebook and Twitter.

Battle Fleet 2

Michael Variacion, Staff Writer

Battle Fleet 2 from Mythical City Games is a naval combat simulation set during World War 2, with battles taking place across the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. The player manually controls each ship’s loadout, and manoeuvres them in turn based combat. Firing on enemy ships is done via power and angle controls, and ballistic weapons use real time collision physics. This allows you to use the terrain of islands as cover, and can mean that individual shells can take out key systems such as enemy guns, flight decks, and rudders.

The game even makes me wonder if I could have changed the outcome of the war. With its amazing graphics and game features, this simulation game is seriously addictive!





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