It’s another week and we at Vikitech have got another Weekend Games Corner for you. This week promises to be a good one. We’ve got some especially fun games selected just for you, our readers. You guys are the best. No, really. It was scientifically proven [source].The games this week are interesting and different. They don’t differ in the important ways, though. They’re still free. They’re fun. They’re available for Android, iOS, and Flash. Even if you don’t have one of those devices, we’d be surprised if you didn’t have at least one. It would be a hell of a feat to read our website without using asmartphone, tablet, or computer. Here are a some games for those platforms.
14px (Android)
Concept: 14px is concept-apathetic. You’re a blob that has to run through dangerous obstacles to rescue your little blob buddies. The point of the game is the challenge, not the (lack of) story.
Gameplay: This is a smug bastard of a game. It’s a difficult platformer in the grand tradition of Super Meat Boy and N+. The challenge is like a bucket of ice water to the face. Seriously, this game is hard.
But, like receiving a real-life bucket of water in the eyes, 14px inspires a strong response. Dying is only motivation to try even harder. It’s a strange combination of frustration and satisfaction with which SMB and Dark Souls fans are all too familiar.
Basic gameplay is your standard running, jumping, wallclimbing, and dodging. Lots of dodging. The levels are packed with opportunities to kill yourself.
Speaking of levels, we were tremendously impressed with the inclusion of an online browser-based level editor. You can design your own stages on a PC, generate a unique code, and download that stage to your phone. That’s a hell of a feature for an app designed by one guy in six months.
14px isn’t without its flaws. The graphics are clearly programmer art. The collision boxes are also generous. At times we hit obstacles we thought were out of range. Keep a good distance from the spikes.
Cost: Nothing. The creator recently made the game free to download. It’s even free of microtransactions. If you want to reward the developer for being such a classy guy, send him a some cash for his wedding fundhere.
Verdict: Download this game, right now. As long as you don’t mind the blistering difficulty, 14px is superb (and available for iOS as well).
Ghostbusters (iOS)
Concept: The setup to Ghostbusters for iOS is hilarious. Remember that test volunteer from the first movie who was told he had psychic powers? He found out he really does have powers, and he’s furious at Venkman for misleading him. In order to stop the angry volunteer and his army of ghosts, you have to take control of the Ghostbusters.
The story in Ghostbusters for iOS is brilliant. It’s humorous and full of clever inside jokes and references to the movies. Whoever wrote the dialog in this game did a superb job. It feels like Ghostbusters.
Gameplay: Unfortunately, there isn’t much gameplay beneath the witty conversations and in-jokes. The core game mechanic revolves around using a squad of Ghostbusters to work together and capture ghosts. You can select targets to zap with proton packs. Once defeated, tap the ghost to slide a trap underneath them for capture.
The problem with this mechanic is that it isn’t particularly fun. Zapping ghosts is… alright, I suppose. It’s not entertaining.
The rest of the game is fleshed out well. There are persistent goals and rewards that reward you for completing the missions. Earning cash and power cores unlocks new armor, proton pack upgrades, and research against ghost types.
The research component is deep. That’s why it’s such a shame that Ghostbusters for iOS resorts to annoying FarmVille-esque tactics to drive microtransactions. Research takes real-world time. This time can be shortened by purchasing power cores.
You can only do so many missions before running out of “energy.” That energy is refilled at regular intervals or by, you guessed it, power cores.
Cost: Ghostbusters is free to play. The game is much slower without spending power cores, and that requires real money. This kills pacing. Not cool, guys.
Verdict: We hate to say this, but Ghostbusters is alright. It would be amazing if the gameplay was as original as the story. We’d recommend it to fans of the films looking for something new.
Nuclear Gun (Flash)
Concept: You are a gun turret that fights invading enemies. Nuclear power figures in somehow. Yep.
Gameplay: Nuclear Gun is the polar opposite of Ghostbusters. There’s little to no story but the gameplay is excellent. Mouse clicks fire the turret at waves of invading bad guys. If the bad guys destroy your gun emplacement, game over.
The base game mechanic is fun in a frantic sort of way. Nuclear Gun distinguishes itself through its moderate upgrade system. There are different types of weapons with unique blends of speed, power, and size.
The gun itself can also be upgraded. You can add bonuses to firepower, shields, and other stats. The upgrades aren’t that well balanced, though. An early bonus (the triple gun) is much better than other upgrades that cost eight times more.
The enemies are nice and diverse as well. There are different sizes and speeds of enemy. The game even includes bosses.
Verdict: We would definitely recommend Nuclear Gun. It’s fast, frantic, and fun. Beating back waves of enemies is great fun when you have the best gun turret ever.
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