I wanted to write something about The Game Awards but it didn’t fit my exciting new site The Trash Enthusiasts Society and I don’t know what social media is. Then I remembered I have a whole website about video games that I have neglected. Yes I’m alive and while James and I wait for our children to age out of needing us so we can record again, perhaps I will regale you all with some other content.
So… How about them awards? We all know awards are meaningless and honestly pretty much everything nominated was excellent. Was this a show that celebrated the industry though? No. Speeches were cut off with brutal speed, most awards were given without any fanfare and the games nominated given no real exposure. This is all to be expected though and honestly, do you care? Sure I’d like to give due time to great games and developers. And I do. Because I, like all of you can do that. Do you think Pizza Tower should have swept the awards?! Great! Give it all your awards, maybe make a tribute, think piece, what have you. Chat to the devs and tell them you love them. It’s maybe the thing the internet is good for. Sharing and appreciating that which you think is worthwhile.
What I can’t do is have some awkward celebrities, awesome musical numbers (Thank you everyone involved in Alan Wake 2!) and ads for games we haven’t seen before. The rest of this “article” is dedicated to those ads.
Potential future games of the years
I had a wonderful time seeing new games. Daniel Mullins’ name was mentioned and I was on the edge of my seat. There was a teaser a week ago or so but what could the new project be?!?!
Pony Island 2: Panda Circus
Mullins doing a sequel excited me for one reason primarily. We don’t have to act surprised about the whole genre bending, post modern bullshit that I love in his games. When you’re a creator that has a gimmick it’s hard to keep it fresh but I don’t think Mullins is anywhere near running dry.
Big Walk
I love everything about this game so far. Perhaps my favourite trailer of the show. It’s SO Australian. I’ve never heard such a perfect cacophony of Kookaburras in a game before. Then these strange happy, brightly coloured creatures exploring a very realistic Australian landscape doing some kind of exploration and puzzle like activities. It made me realise how I haven’t really felt my country’s environment in a game previously. I have a million questions of House House but I am in no rush to have them answered. Oh and that soundtrack slaps.
The Rise of the Golden Idol
A sequel to the excellent Curse of the Golden Idol but with a slightly worse artstyle?! Eh it’s fine I guess. I am excited to see what they will do with it though. It’s not a very informative trailer and the Steam Page doesn’t add much. Set in the 70’s we can expect more pointing, clicking and brute forcing when we’re feeling a bit dumb.
Thrasher
They called this a follow up to Thumper but… it’s not. Drool isn’t involved. Only one half (Brian Gibson) of Drool is! I’m furious but still happy to see this follow up to Thumper. Ahh dammit they got me. The Steam Page does not mention VR but it’s obviously VR right? It’s gesture controlled and you can even see the silhouette of a human holding a magic wand to control it briefly in the trailer. With the Wii long dead I can only think of one type of system that involves magic wands.
World of Goo 2
Over the years I have bought over 50 copies of World of Goo. Yes most of those were incredibly cheap but it’s also just a terrific game that hit at the perfect time for indie success. A satisfying puzzle game that embraced a melancholic tone that carried over into all of Tomorrow Corporation’s games. I still remember my big beautiful goo ball flying away and how sad it was. Anyway it’s many years later and it’s time for more goo. They say never pre-order but that’s only because World of Goo 2 is not yet available for pre-order. Are you middle class enough to risk it?! PUNK!?
World of Goo 2’s official site
Windblown and No Rest for the Wicked
“Now Paul” I hear you start “those are two different games! Why have you grouped them together? Are you suffering from a mental episode?”. That’s pretty rich of you. I have to say though that there’s a simple reason. These two games look very good. Then I stopped watching once I saw the developers. Motion Twin and Moon Studios are incredible. These games look incredible. Windblown a multiplayer roguelike? Incredible. No Rest for the Wicked a… you know what? I just looked at it. Didn’t even check the genre. Oh cool hack and slashy. Oh Multiplayer too?! Geez I should have checked beforehand. Anyway. Incredible.
Windblown Steam page and No Rest for the Wicked Steam page
Harmonium The Musical
A musical focused on the deaf community. As a big musical fan I have to say I hate the lyrics and vocals in this trailer but I love everything else about it. Most of the deaf people I’ve known have professionally worked in the music industry so it’s a perhaps surprising natural fit for a story. Accessibility isn’t just a goal for games to cater for a wider group of people but also a ripe landscape to make games about and drive creative choices. The Odd Gentlemen have made some really interesting projects mostly around puzzle and adventure games but I’ll always associate them with their first game The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom because I am old and it has the word ‘bottom’ in it.
The Odd Gentlemen’s Official site
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU
Perhaps the only heartfelt moment of the show actor Abubakar Salim (Raised by Wolves) got up to present a game inspired by the passing of his father. It’s like when Kanye announced that game about his mother but in this case Abubakar and his studio Surgent Studios actually know about games and it looks damn good. Reminiscent of the upcoming Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown it looks like next year might be the battle of the side scrolling, mythical monster fighting, platformers. Remember. You can’t play both.
Tales of Kenzera: ZAU Steam page
Light No Fire
When No Man’s Sky launched it exceeded my expectations. That’s because I am a cynical man that also knew Hello Games a dozen people who had made Joe Danger(which I love). Plus they’d lost most of their codebase halfway through development due to a flood. I grew up with Peter Molyneux so talk is talk and none of the outrage phased me. Since the games’ infamous launch though Hello Games have continued to work on NMS creating a huge amount of tools and systems which are all obviously at play in their new title, Light No Fire. They’ve moved on to the stage of procedural generation that I feel is most important. Trying to create meaningful landscapes. Not just random faff. It’s no longer a near infinite universe, it’s one planet (with a more fantasy angle). One planet that doesn’t suck. That is much harder but I can’t see any other developer with the experience that could make it work.
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage and Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden
DON’T NOD continue to make games and I continue to generally enjoy them. That’s all I got.
Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden Steam page
Sega throws it at the wall to see what sticks
Jet Set Radio, Shinobi, Golden Axe, Streets of Rage, and Crazy Taxi were announced all at once. Being SEGA I hope two of them are good. Which two?! Place you bets!
There was much more to see but mostly big budget things that we’ve already seen, have not yet seen enough of or will just get so much coverage I have nothing to add. A new Secret of Mana Game? Looked good. Single player Dead by Daylight? Kojima making an unreasonably pretentious and poorly explained thing that will probably turn out pretty damn good? Did you know there’s a new Monster Hunter?! I bet there’s a Rathalos!
Oh go on. Let’s have a look anyway.
Eight and a Half Bit 
i too have 8 bits