DECAP-ATTACK: KONAMI’S CONTRA REBIRTH WIIWARE REVIVAL IN MOTION
IGN contributor Anoop Gantayat has uploaded video of the just released Contra revival Konami recently surprise-announced as a WiiWare downloadable, and it took no more than seeing the robo-decapitation in the first 10 seconds of the video above for me to decide that I’m going to need this game soon.
See Gantaya’s andriasang blog for a full breakdown of what the game entails.
Contra ReBirth Impressions [andriasang]
Previously:
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
ONE SHOT: JEREMIAH JOHNSON’S TORN-CODE DATA SPILLS
What happens when one slashes a program or piece of software? Code does not tear like a stretched canvas, but it does break in its own visually unique way.
Jeremiah ‘nullsleep‘ Johnson conjures Lucio Fontana‘s ‘slash paintings’ via the NES in his NYU Data Spills show. [via pixelstyle, I want one of the posters]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals, One Shot
ANCIENT PIXELS: 8-BIT GAME ICONS MEET ANDEAN TEXTILE ART
Alongside Data Spills is another ITP-NYU Thesis well worth mentioning: José Olivares Ancient Pixels, which makes the very logical leap in crossing low-bit game iconography (read: Atari 2600-esque graphics) with traditional Andean textile art for an installation backed by psych-pop visuals.
For the proposed installation, Olivares created three Andean “rugs” with projected animations that blur the line between outsider and pixel art, each with their own specific symbology.
Olivares — who, as Balún, is also part of the NYC Pulsewave/chiptune scene — has collected all of his research materials on his Ancient Pixels tumblr, where you can see a mockup of the entire ‘temple’ installation and a video of his presentation.
Ancient Pixels [tumblr, Balún, Olivares’ portfolio]
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
BEAM RIDER: THE LATEST LOOK AT GAIJIN’S BIT.TRIP: CORE
Gaijin Games shows off the latest video of their next WiiWare retro-future rhythm game, Bit.Trip: Core, this time adding a touch more intrigue with the first mention of its multi-beam powerup, which doesn’t look helpful so much as downright necessary in fending off the constant omni-directional onslaught of pixels.
Previously:
See more posts about: Bit.Trip, Gaijin, Offworld Originals
WAYFARER: BEN HEMMENDINGER’S DANGEROUSLY ADDICTIVE PROCESSING ROGUE-LIKE
Full disclosure: I’m about as far from an aficionado of Rogue and its various -likes as they come, certainly compared to the ongoing work of people like Andrew Doull and John Harris, but maybe it’s to Wayfarer‘s credit, then, that one quick “oh, what’s this Processing-built game all about, then” test click turned into an entirely lost hour.
Ben Hemmendinger’s take on the genre (still in alpha) is just the perfect amount removed from the ASCII-abstractions of usual rogue-likes to make it both accessible (especially with that 3D tilt-shift) and still hold retro charm, has just the right amount of humor and subtle touches (the pixel-blood-trails of escaping wounded beasts), and is just kind enough at its lowest levels (read: I didn’t instantly die) to very easily make it my new favorite web-time-sink, and the latest of its kind to hook me since I first discovered DND in my innocent youth.
Wayfarer (alpha) [Benhem, via Wiley Wiggins]
Previously:
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
STOMPING GROUND: KLEI’S UPCOMING BRAWLER SHANK IN MOTION
Klei Entertainment — creators of original Xbox Live Arcade game Eets and the studio that helped bring Metanet’s N to Live Arcade — calls this footage of their next console game, Shank, “pre-pre-pre-alpha”, but it’s hard to see how much better it can get.
Done up in traditional animation style, it’s already promising some seriously weighty and solid brawler mechanics: check the official Shank blog for more concept, character and storyboard art (and a hat-tip to Wolverine) from the team.
See more posts about: Offworld Originals, Xbox 360
PRICED TO MOVE: LAST CHANCE TO PICK UP ALIEN HOMINID ON GAMECUBE/PS2
A note as quick as theirs: The Behemoth has announced via their Twitter that the direct-sale GameCube and PS2 copies of their debut shooter Alien Hominid are the last available for good, so if — for some reason — you haven’t already made the jump to Xbox Live Arcade’s HD version, the Wii/mostly-PS3 playable versions are just $10 away.
The same goes for the fantastic vinyl toy five-pack, which comes as highly recommended.
The Behemoth store [via Twitter]
Previously:
- Precious stones: the cutie chaos of Behemoth's Game #3 – Offworld
- More details on Castle Crashers dev's cutely chaotic Game #3 …
- How Castle Crashers was almost a Muttpop/Lucha Libre game – Offworld
- You will know it by the piles of dead: building Behemoth's …
- There will be jewels: Castle Crasher devs tease new game – Offworld
See more posts about: Offworld Originals
ONE SHOT: BROWN BOX CREATOR BAER’S BIT.TRIP
How confident is Odyssey/’ping-pong’/videogame grandfather Ralph Baer at his own game? When he recently took on ‘pong’s neo-retro WiiWare remake Bit.Trip:Beat, he did it (and quite well, by the looks of the screen) holding the controller upside down. [via GaiijnGames]
Previously:
- Avoid missing: the Pong Museum opens its virtual doors – Offworld
- Beat: My god, it's full of bits – Offworld
- Beat connection: Gaijin send us on a second video Bit.Trip – Offworld
- Core rush: Gaijin tease next WiiWare Bit.Trip game – Offworld
- Cross core: first video of Gaijin's latest WiiWare Bit.Trip – Offworld
See more posts about: Bit.Trip, Gaijin, Offworld Originals
ONE SHOT: THE SAD SIGHT OF A MIDDLE AGED MARIO
Don’t get him started about his glory days at a liquid lunch. Part of Grupo Novel’s Dotter-esque print campaign that also included Donkey Kong gone carjacker, and DK damsel Pauline turned lady of the night. [via GamOvr]
Previously:
See more posts about: Offworld Originals, One Shot
MANNY MUNNY: KITT WALKER’S CUSTOM GRIM FANDANGO VINYL
Giving Iain Reekie’s custom Grim Fandango sculpey figures a serious run for their money, Kitt Walker has posted a few glamor shots of the Manny Calavera Munny made lovingly as a birthday gift by his “beautiful and gifted girlfriend.”
See the full set of three shots here.
Munny Calavera [flickr, via Toycutter]
Previously:
See more posts about: Offworld Originals, Toys
