Exciting Indie Games We Saw At Gamescom Asia
We were recently at Gamescom Asia in Singapore! Touted as the ‘Heart of Gaming in Asia’, this convention is a sister to the original Gamescom held annually in Cologne. While it’s a much more intimate affair in terms of event space and offerings, there was no shortage of fun and unique indie games to try. The indie game area was organized by Indie Wavemakers and sponsored by Xbox. Here are some of the games we got to play!
Project Court 2050 by Cowbay Entertainment
Text meets turnabout court in this story-rich typing game. Play the role of a court clerk in a cyberpunk-esque era where it is your job to record everything that’s being said precisely. This might sound easy enough in theory but chaos ensues when everyone from the judge, plaintiff and defendant start talking over each other!
The demo we played was a lot of fun and we loved how the visual elements had hints of Ace Attorney and the Danganronpa series. We’re looking forward to trying out the full game as the more testimonials you record, the more you’ll discover the truth behind the government and its conflict with various factions in the cities.
Become The Moon by Feldspar Games and Alibi Games
Set in a chaotic world of broken magic and strange beings, this deckbuilding auto battler will require you to think several steps ahead to predict the outcome of each round. Assemble decks of minions, spells and relics, build overpowered synergies and shoot for the stars!
Deckbuilding has been a popular genre within the indie scene for years now but we really like the unique approach that Become The Moon has taken in how you must implement strategy from the start. However what we love most about this game is the unique artstyle that gives it a hand-drawn, picture book quality.
Sonokuni by Don Yasa Crew and Kakehashi Games
Top-down 2D pixel action has never looked so crisp as it does in Sonokuni. This dystopian action game will have players battling their way through a biopunk environment that’s also heavily inspired by Japanese mythology. It’s particularly challenging as Takeru, the character you play, will die instantly from a single hit. However it does make execution all the more satisfying when you can pull off the perfect run, aided by your trusty time-bending skills.
Sonokuni needs no introduction if you’re well-versed with the Japanese indie game scene. Most would know it for its developer Don Yasa Crew, who are also a hip hop group. The crossover is very obvious as you’ll hear it throughout the game’s intense bass soundscapes overlaid with Japanese rap. Whether you end up loving or hating it, there’s definitely nothing like Sonokuni.
Cory’s Tale by Nick Gilmore
Cory’s Tale is a JRPG bullet hell x hack and slash game. The art style features some very adorable animals, not unlike Winnie the Pooh and friends from the Hundred Acre Wood. Except in this world, they’re totally out for an epic adventure.
What drew us to Cory’s Tale was how incredibly ambitious solo developer Nick was as he rattled off some very formidable inspirations such as Undertale, Studio Ghibli and Final Fantasy. The juxtaposition of how adorable the characters are and how challenging the first boss was, was also pretty cool. The game is currently only available on itch.io but we’re excited to see more, including a Steam page in the near future!
Lighthaze World by Radiobush
There’s something to be said about games that exude a wave of calm without necessarily needing to be overtly cute and adorable. Lighthaze World is exactly that — a serene puzzle adventure about Nym and their dog Chewy. The protagonist, Nym, is an anxious individual and the world you see reflects their mental state. Players will need to overcome puzzles and obstacles inspired by the Tasmanian wilderness to help Nym get to the end — feeding Chewy their much-needed meal.
We had a nice chat with the developers at Radiobush to better understand the way they’ve woven the conversation around mental health into the game. Some of the puzzles we tried were easy but would take on more challenging variations as you explored further down a certain path. There’s definitely a charm to this game which both sets you at ease and has you itching to visit Tasmania and see some of these gorgeous landscapes in person.
