With the popularization of indie titles over the past couple of years, many people have taken a stance of elitism regarding indie games. With both feet in their mouth, they’ll say that independently developed games are nonpareil to others, and pretty much say “If you’re not indie, f*ck you.” Mega64 took note of this- and turned it into yet another hilarious video.

Mega64 was hired to make two promos for the Independent Games Festival Awards at GDC, and the video you see above was one of them. The Mega64 crew went around punching those dumb Halo lovers, and stupid Madden fans. Ugh- they make me sick! Everyone knows that you’re supposed to only play indie games! If I see you with a laptop playing anything other than World of Goo, I WILL END YOU!

Ah, the RTS. Once a staple of strategy games, the genre’s been flooded with spinoffs, remakes, and more Age of Empires, Command and Conquer, and Warhammer releases than you can count. How are developers supposed to add vitality to a dwingling genre? With 20th-century mustachio dictator Josef Stalin and an extraterrestrial army, of course!

Independent developer Mezmer Games recently announced Stalin vs. Martians, a PC RTS which they themselves describe as “both masterfully trashy and absolutely over-the-top.” In the game, you control WWII-era USSR as they defend Earth from the Martian Invasion of 1942. With a dancing Stalin, some insane Russian techno, and fun-looking gameplay, Stalin vs. Martians looks like it’ll be loads of fun when it hits “all major digital distribution services” in April. Hit the jump for some screenshots, as well as the press release.

Smooth moves with Stalin vs. Martians!
Second Trailer of Stalin vs. Martians from Mezmer Games shows off the fast-paced arcade strategy gameplay. And dancing.

GDC San Francisco – March 27, 2009. Mezmer Games today released a second trailer from the arcade RTS game Stalin vs. Martians, developed by an alliance of three independent studios: Black Wing Foundation, Dreamlore and N-Game.

Following the avalanche of requests to see more of the gameplay in Stalin vs. Martians, Mezmer Games released a new video with in-game footage that gives everyone some answers and shows that the game is not just one big spoof. This video also nullifies all the evil rumors (probably spread by the Martians) that the gameplay would be slow.

Check out the trailer Smooth moves with Stalin vs. Martians here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x5uOTWJigZ4

The video features the retro-styled song All Hail Stalinator! by Ilya Orange and Space Detective. Ilya Orange is the author of the games original score, including the now-famous tune from the first Dancing Stalin trailer. Also, you will see glimpses of the extensive fauna of different alien creatures that the Red Army will fight against. Finally, the video shows a teenage girl showing off some wicked dance moves, most likely inspired by the great leader and dancer Stalin.

The game is scheduled for release in April 2009 as the first release of Mezmer Games, the new publisher label under Paradox Interactive that focuses on indie development and digital distribution.

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There’s always more than one side to an image, Super Paper Mario showed us that. That was just step one, however. Polytron’s Fez is taking that innovation to a whole new level. It’s showing us that there’s WAY more than one side to any image. It also shows us rotation is a hella lot of fun.

Check out the trailer at the jump. Be amazed.

Shacknews reports that Stardock’s distribution platform Impulse has updated with a Braid listing. The date of the game’s release is listed at March 31, but Stardock’s Mike Crassweller has noted in the comments at Shacknews that that is a placeholder date; we could see it at any time in March. The game is listed at $14.95.

Jonathan Blow, the game’s creator, has mentioned that the game may also be coming to Steam- “[Valve] are interested in putting the game up.” The game is likely to cost $19.95 across both platforms. After Soulja Boy’s expertly crafted review of the 360 version, I’m certainly looking forward to this.

I’m a fan of indie game Plain Sight. Developed by UK-based Beatnik games, the game is delightfully destructive and superbly simple. Now I’m done with the alliteration, I direct you here. The open beta of the game is finally here, much to my delight. Indie fans and anyone who has a decent enough PC are urged to try it out; I’m rooting on this one being a hit. The game is tentatively set for release in “Q1 2009″ and will cost in the region of $10, according to their site.

What the ding-dally is Plain Sight, you ask? Well, dear reader, just take a seat and I’ll run you through it. Before the Eurogamer Expo, I had no idea about this game either, but after discovering and playing this gem I’m sure more people need to know about it.

The game is developed by six Londoners collectively known as Beatnik Games, and will be available at the start of 2009 on PC and later Xbox 360. I’m sure what you really want to know is what the fuss is about- hit the jump for the full preview.

In answer to your question, I refer you to this page. You play as a little ninja robot, with one point. The aim of the game is to kill other ninja robots to get more points and multipliers. Try to contain yourself from the excitement of ninja robots for a second, because there’s slightly more to it than that- the only way to actually score those points is to blow yourself up. The more people you catch in the explosion with you, the more multipliers you get. It’s simple enough once you get playing.

You get the idea.

The attack button auto-locks on to nearby enemies, but don’t worry about it being too easy- you still have to be facing them, and that likely means they’re facing you too. If you miss, your ninja robot will fly past them, and you’ll get stuck on something for a while, as if your sword has gotten jammed in the wall. If there are no walls, you’ll simply be unable to jump or attack again until you hit the floor or a building.

Once you want you bank your points, you’ll want to jump around a bit and take people out with you, while being careful not to get hit- if you do, you lose all of your multiplier. This is a great mechanic, as it allows those who are behind the others in points to grab a sneaky kill and keep everything fun for everyone. Oh, and by the way, in the build I played, the buildings lit up with your colour when you touch them, but this doesn’t seem to have any effect on your points or the gameplay. It looks pretty, though.

The game, in a word, is fun. Really, really fun. The simple mechanics, even in the short amount of time that we played for, were intuitive and highly enjoyable. The build we played was set up on some PCs over a LAN connection, but we played with Xbox 360 controllers, which was nice n’ easy. The physics were fantastic: at least as good as those in Super Mario Galaxy. The jumping felt fluid and natural, even when triple jumping, and moving around the little world (with its own gravity like the planets in Galaxy) was a joy.

There was, however, a spot of lag on the build we played, although perhaps it can be forgiven; it was pre-beta, after all. Other than that, Plain Sight is definately worth playing. The website says it will be priced in the region of £10 (about $16), which in my book is a bloody good deal. The only thing more I can say about this game is that everyone should be keeping an eye on this- it could turn out to be the next Braid. I’m sure Soulja Boy will give it a glowing review.

Petri Purho, of Crayon Physics Deluxe fame, brings us this happy tidbit as part of his Kloonigames blog, where he makes a game a month.

Jimmy’s TP is on the run and rolling it all back up is apparently his highest priority, since he jumps right off the toilet in the beginning to chase it down. Using the arrows (to run/jump) and the shift key (to grab hold of the paper to stop it from unraveling as you scamper around the stage), help Jimmy gather the paper–or if you get frustrated, just TP all the obstacles and restart the level.

There’s no way to save your progress and the character movement could be a little tighter–Jimmy skitters a few steps with each tap–but it only takes a couple seconds to download and the physics system is fun to watch. Grab it here!

Source: IndieGames: The Weblog

The 11th IGF kicks off submissions today, giving you until November to tweak your sweet indie game into something we’ll be talking about for months after you win that $20,000 Seumas McNally Grand Prize.

Finalists will be announced January 5 and playable on GDC show floor. Prizes in a variety of categories will be awarded on March 25 in a ceremony paired with the Game Developers Choice Awards. Check out this year’s winners here.

Oh, puppies! I’ll save you from the evil lip balm and the nasty scientists! I’ll climb mountains and parachute off cliffs for you! But Rescue: The Beagles, by nenad, comes highly recommended (as 1st place in TIGSource’s Procedural Generation Competition and from me) not only because it’s adorable, not only because of the audio-visual nostalgia wave, but also because it’s just really fun. The controls are tight in a way that makes every death feel like a player error.

It’s easy to control, but takes quite a bit of finesse to get the scores up. Arrow keys to move, with a double-tap up or down to climb or parachute, respectively, and z to shoot owls you collect out of trees (which sounds unbelievably corny on paper, but comes off without even a hint of lameness.)

The trick is to not let any beagles slip by as the procedurally generated landscape scrolls along, but just as important is to make sure you can survive the fall before you take a flying leap at a dog below you, if you’re out of parachutes.

This may seem like a frustratingly old school challenge—I totally hate games where you can fall too far—but for some reason it really works here. Go figure! I guess because since there ARE parachutes, it’s your fault if you mismanage your resources, become short one, and then also throw yourself into a ravine.

It might be a beta, but it’s a plenty enjoyable one, so don’t let that put you off. Head over to the TIGSource forums for the download.

This post is the last in a series! See the 2nd and 3rd place winners…

Source: TIGSource

This game is seriously tripped out when you zoom way in and watch the plants grow. “Is it growing? I think so. I can’t tell. Is it getting bigger? It might be,” and then the little fireworks go off.

The game Dyson, by Alex May, Rudolf Kremers, and Brian Grainger for TIGSource’s Procedural Generation Competition, is a slick and pretty, real-time strategy game about colonizing an asteroid belt. Although your minions look like fruit flies, they are actually tiny mining machines that attack the eggy looking rocks like a pack of winged sperm.

As you plant more trees, you’ll produce more mecha-fly-sperm, and be able to gradually disseminate them throughout the belt. Highlighting an asteroid gives you detailed specs like attack power and core strength, which comes in handy both when attempting conquests and when waves of enemies start pouring in from beyond the fog of war.

This is only a partially zoomed out view. I’m losing!

In addition to just how pleasant the audio-visual experience is (and relaxing until the bad guys start swarming), the controls work really well, since the viewpoint moves while zooming in or out using the mousewheel or arrow keys to center on your pointer. I mean, how awesome would it be if Google Maps would do that?

Missed yesterday’s entry on the third place winner? Check it out here.

Source: TIGSource

This week TIGSource announced the results of their latest TIGER Assault, the Procedural Generation Competition, so I’m taking a look at the top three! The theme was obviously “Procedural Generation,” which devs were instructed to define as they liked, but with the implication of “’random’ content (like graphics or levels).” Third place goes to…

Self Destruct, a shmup by Terry Cavanagh and Annabelle Kennedy. I can’t say I really feel this game, NOT because I don’t like bullet hell. I can take it, I don’t even mind dying— I died a zillion times already, but this one just scrolls like it’s late for the birth of the universe or something. Luckily it’s extremely well made in two distinct areas—soundtrack and start screen. The music is compelling enough to make you want to jump in again, and when you die, the reboot time is so quick you will barely be able to tell you were out.

The goal is to get through 250 waves of quick and painful death, with a power-up augmented blaster, a shield, and bombs to assist you. The contest-required randomness comes into play for which waves come at which times, i.e. you’ll never know, so this is not the type of shooter you can just memorize your way through. No planning or plotting, just super speedy dodging and return fire. Grab it on the TIGSource forums, or just watch the fancy players school take on the score board via YouTube.

Source: TIGSource

Host Andy Schatz said of the indie game development scene, “The weather here is just fine,” and added that being an indie developer is not (always) just another stop on the road to the big time.

To prove it, he presented awards for the finest indie games of last year as selected by a jury of game industry greats. Check out the full list of winners after the jump!

Thankfully, the entire GDC awards ceremony (including the Game Developers Choice Awards) will be broadcast for the first time on G4, so you will be able to check out the whole thin. But if you don’t feel like watching it, here is the full list of winners for your pleasure.

Best Student Game – Synaesthete, by DigiPen Institute of Technology

Technical Excellence – World of Goo, by 2D Boy

Excellence in Visual Art – Fez, by Kokoromi

Design Innovation Award – World of Goo, by 2D Boy

Excellence in Audio – Audiosurf, by Invisible Handlebar

Best Web Browser Game – Iron Dukes, by One Ton Ghost

Best Strategic Game - Desktop Tower Defense, by Hand Drawn Games

Audience Award (voted on via the IGF website) – Audiosurf, by Invisible Handlebar

Seumas McNally Grand Prize – Crayon Physics Deluxe, by Kloonigames

The results of the IGF Mobile Awards can be found here.