Slaves have never been so much fun

Ok, so maybe Travian isn't for you. How about giving Nile Online a try?

Currently in beta testing, Nile online attempts to remove some of the tedious troop building in Travian and instead focuses on a rich user run economy. This is a resource gathering game at heart, but there are enough neat twists to keep you interested.

This is not a game that you sit down and play over the course of an afternoon. It's one of the new brand of perpetual browser games where resources keep piling up in your city even when you aren't playing.


Basically everyone starts out with a small plot of land on the Nile. You then send people to work in one of the three basic resource areas (wheat, reeds, and clay) and a special resource area which is unique to your area of the world (gold, emeralds, leather, etc.). As you gather these resources and expand your town you'll eventually have to visit the open market for certain items. This is where the game is currently lacking, but where the broad goals of a user created and controlled economy really come into play. Unfortunately it's going to be a while before this area of the game picks up, but it's definitely worth getting in on the ground floor.

You can sign up for a free beta account at the website. Feel free to seek out my village "Fun Happy Land Smile" in the nome of Osirisduat.

EDIT: Don't for get to stop into the forums thread and let us know where your town is!

Kirby Quake

Today's little number is called Teeworlds. I often describe the game Culdcept or Culdcept Saga as a cross between Monopoly and Magic: The Gathering. If you think that combo is weird, try this on for size. Teeworlds is a cross between Kirby and Quake.

Teeworlds is a cutesy 2D environment set up like a traditional FPS server, including capture the flag and basic deathmatch games. Players move their 'Kirby-esque' characters around maps reminiscent of the Worms series and collect weapons ranging from mallets to rocket launchers. Power ups and armor also exist. All these things with the traditional FPS control scheme give this game a great familiar feel on a new concept.

There is a pretty good established community which means there is always a server to connect to and lots of maps to play on. I personally love capture the flag games with this game and there's a great mix of fun and frustration as you kill and are killed by more experienced players. The only thing that feels a little broken is the aiming scheme and the difficulty knowing if you've hit your opponent in the fast paced gameplay. Trying to aim is about the only learning curve aspect of Teeworlds.

tl;dr

Concept: Kirby + Quake = Cute destructive fun.
Controls: Traditional FPS controls are very comfortable.
Sound: Nothing great, nothing annoying.
Graphics: Cutesy and simple, but cool.

Overall: 8.2/10

ESSENTIAL LINKS
http://www.teeworlds.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teeworlds

First Post!!1!one

I've decided to start blogging about some of the stuff I hate and love. I'll be discussing cool indie games, TV, and lots of other boring shit. Simple enough?

Today I got involved in MTP Target a free game that picks up where the Super Monkey Ball target mini-game left off.

I started off pretty skeptical, working my way through the newbie levels which play like an exact clone of the aforementioned mini game. However, once you have a grasp of the mechanics additional servers open up and this is where the, dare I say it, fun actually starts.

MTP Target has you rolling a penguin down an icy slope with a ramp at the end. When you gain enough altitude you open your flippers and glide onto, through, or into a target located somewhere on the map. Depending on what the particular goal is, you earn points for yourself or your team. When every player has landed, points are tallied and everyone is transported to the next map in the sequence.

MTP Target servers allow players to vote on maps and have both individual and team challenges. The servers are on a constant cycle and nobody technically "wins". The goal is just to accumulate points which are displayed at the end of each battle. It gives the game a nice competition feel without making it all about team mechanics.

The controls are above average and have an "easy to learn hard to master" quality. The up arrow speeds your penguin up in flight and also causes it to lose altitude, you can probably guess what down does. Sometimes lining your penguin up with a target feels a little clunky and you'll probably end up in the drink more often than not as you get started.




tl;dr

Concept: An expanded Super Monkey Ball Target game.
Controls: Functional and easy to learn.
Sound: A bit annoying, but oddly soothing. (Turn the music cupcupcupcupcupcupcupcup)
Graphics: Very well done for a freeware game.

Overall: 8/10

ESSENTIAL LINKS
http://www.mtp-target.org