darkness

Illuminator a Flash of Brilliance

  • Reading time:1 mins read

Logan Ames‘ Illuminator is a side-scrolling survival horror game, which for no particular reason reminds me of Sega’s Ghost House.

You start off in an empty, darkened house, armed with nothing but a flashlight. Flick on the light, and the path before you explodes with brightness. After a few seconds, the light fades and you need to recharge the batteries. Eventually you will start to encounter ghouls. Avoid them until your light is charged, then melt them with a bright flash. As you disintegrate the ghouls, the stitches in a tear in the fabric of reality begin to unravel. Defeat enough ghouls and you can pass through a starry void to the next house.

Along the way you will find night lights, Christmas tree lights, and so on. Plug them in, flick on televisions, and keep an eye on open windows to give yourself forewarning of ghoul attacks. There’s a helpful sound effect and flashing icon to let you know when you’re near a wall outlet.

( Continue reading at DIYGamer )

Cavanagh and Lavelle’s Snowdrift

  • Reading time:1 mins read

Terry Cavanagh of Don’t Look Back and VVVVVV and Stephen Lavelle of Whale of Noise have collaborated on a morbid little exploration of the link between psychological space and display limitations.

Snowdrift is filled with simple, flat-shaded rendering. You walk with WASD or arrow keys, and aim with the mouse. There’s a haze over everything — either from the snow and fog or, later, from the darkness — and unless you spend your time memorizing scant landmarks you’re never quite sure what’s over the next hill. Given that it’s cold out there, and the world seems more or less endless, that could be a problem. Sure, you can explore as far as you like. But how do you find your way back?

( Continue reading at DIYGamer )