Cerebral Pop's 2010 Indie Game Round-Up

It's official: indie games are now an important part of today's pop culture. It cannot be denied.

Every day -- whether it's on their smartphones or on their favorite websites -- people who have no idea that an independent video game movement even exists play indie games. This has made the games industry reconsider the "wild" notion that a video game developed by one or two guys in their spare time -- and offered freely through the web -- can be played by thousands upon thousands of people.

Much like it was for both music and cinema, the evolution of the medium's tools of creation (they've become cheap and accessible) and a prevailing feeling of stagnation in its mainstream have set the stage for indie game designers to rise up and remind us, in the true spirit of punk rock, that, even though millions of dollars are being spent on developing derivative "triple-A" games, it only takes the will of a few, and a rudimentary knowledge of the medium's craft to create something passionate and engaging.

The independent game scene has grown so much since its future was discussed back at the 2007 Independent Games Summit. Today, we have bite-sized pieces of entertainment that tap into our culture of hyper-accelerated, hyper-connected living and multimedia induced short attention spans ( Angry Birds ); free-to-play, sprawling metroidvania adventures ( Cave Story ); old-school platformers that challenge the limits of our hand-eye coordination ( Super Meat Boy ); art-house pieces ( Everyday the same dream ); and even zen-like puzzle experiences ( Osmos ).

Still, all of the above mentioned examples achieve the same goal: they remind us that we started playing video games in the first place because it just seemed so easy for anyone to jump in and have a little fun.

2010 was host to a huge wave of indie releases for all types of audiences and on all available platforms. So, without further ado, here are our picks for Cerebral Pop's first ( and hopefully not last ) Annual Indie Game Round-Up:

Roberto's Pick: Give Up Robot (developed by: Matt Makes Games a.k.a Matt Thorson)

Matt Thorson's knack for precision platformers is well known (just play any game in his Jumper series -- specially the first one) within the indie circle, and 2010 seemed like a good year for him to bring it a bit closer to the mainstream.

His quirky game about a "dancing" robot with a grappling hook kept me on the edge of my then office chair ( yes, I played it at work ) for a solid couple of days. With some downright devious level designs, quirky music, and pop-art-like graphics, the game fits right in with the rest of his peers at Adult Swim's game section.

Give Up Robot 2 recently came out, and from what I've played it's another winner!

Warning: Not for those susceptible to rage quitting.

Alex Cronk-Young's Pick: VVVVVV

You know, I've been known to complain from time to time that games have become too easy. Never again. The growing trend in the last few years has been to throw the player through a meat grinder and then spit on their bruised and battered bodies on the other side -- and VVVVVV is certainly doing it's fair share of that.

I wasn't very keen on the demo back when it was all the rage on the various social networking sites, something about the gravity reversing controls didn't click with me. But my habit of abusing myself with video games has been growing, so when Alex Martin decided to gift me the game as some sort of backhanded birthday present, I trudged forward...and loved every second of the pain.

Alright, I'm being a tad hyperbolic. VVVVVV isn't ridiculously difficult, but it certainly falls in line with the usual suspects. Just like Mega Man 9/10, Super Meat Boy, 'Splosion Man, etcetera -- it boils down the gameplay and controls as much as possible, so that every death is clearly your own damn fault. But if you avoid some of the more diabolical trinkets it is well within everyone's abilities to complete. And you definitely should as the dialogue and story is amusing, the music is amazing, and the gravity flipping mechanic is inventive.

Cosmo's Pick: The Misadventures of P.B. Winterbottom

If I could have any dessert at this moment, I would choose pie, hands down. P.B. Winterbottom loves pie, too. But his love for pie is an unhealthy obsession, and the perfect recipe for a fantastic puzzle game.

Upon hearing the concept of the game, I was cautiously excited. But it wasn't until I played it for myself that I realized what an incredible game it really is. The art style needs to be seen in action, it's so unique and eye-catching; and the puzzles, although seemingly daunting based on screenshots and video, do a nice job of easing the player into the game mechanics. They are difficult, so don't expect to just breeze your way past most of them. But they aren't impossible, which I guess is what separates a good puzzle game from a terrible one.

From the moment I booted up the game, I knew the whole package was something special. The art style is brilliant; the music is fun and catchy; and the puzzles can be devious. Look, just try this game out. It's the price of a whole pie at the grocery store. But instead of enjoying it all in one sitting (what? I was hungry!) you'll be enjoying it for days.

Chris Whitehead's Pick: Super Meat Boy

The hardcorest, punishingest, slimiest, anti-anti-meatiest indie game of the year, Super Meat Boy has received plenty of praise from me already. Since writing my review, I have continued to return to the game, psych myself up for a few rounds, die a hundred thousand times, and achieve a few victories. It's longevity for me exists in its exponential difficulty spike in the endgame levels. The game deceived me by giving me over a hundred levels that were challenging but passable. After fifty stages, I thought I had the game figured out; I understood the type of challenge (think Megaman) and my ability to complete it. What's funny to me is that I thought I would speed through the game. Now, I doubt I'll achieve 100% completion.

I've recently played other acclaimed platformers like Super Mario Galaxy 2 and 'Splosion Man, and I realized once again how good SMB feels. It's controls are spot on. If you have any experience with NES-era Castlevania games--whose controls force your character, when jumping, into a rigid, unchangeable arc as soon as you hit the jump button--imagine the opposite in precision. Put time into the game, and you will likely surprise yourself with your skill at landing Meat Boy directly between two killer saw blades, or making a screen-wide jump that seems impossibly long. I certainly had a great time with the game.

Harold Burnett's Pick: Bit.Trip Runner and Bit.Trip Fate

Since October of 2009 the extremely talented people at Gaijin Games have been hard at work creating what are, in my opinion, some of the best games for the Wii. In 2010 two entries in this six game saga were released. Bit.Trip Runner and Bit.Trip Fate.

Runner, the fourth game in the ever fun and confusing Bit.Trip series allows you the player to control lead character Commder Video. Part of the more recent genre of Auto Scrolling Platfomers, Bit.Trip Runner is everything that a great indie game should be; simple and addicting, with an art style that would make any gamer stop in their tracks to watch what is happening on the screen.

Success in Runner, along with all the other games in the Bit.Trip series, is based on your ability to follow the beat. By jumping, sliding, and springing you travel across levels designed to make you feel invincible and helpless all at the same time. A good streak in Runner is much like a good segment in Rock Band, or any other dexterity-based game. After completing it you feel pleased and satisfied with yourself.

Bit.Trip Runner is a game that combines all the great things about generations long forgotten. When all you needed was great gameplay and amazing music to justify a game's existence. All the Bit.Trip games possess a level of difficulty that is very reminiscent of the 8-bit era. Much like earlier offerings in this series, Runner starts you off at the beginning of the level you failed, but unlike previous Bit.Trip Games, once you complete a level you don't have to start the game from the opening level to continue on your journey with CommderVideo. If you have a Wii -- and chances are you do -- I cannot recommend Bit.Trip Runner enough. It is a great entry to a great series.

Bit.Trip Fate is the penultimate episode in the Bit.Trip Saga. Again, you are cast in control of CommderVideo. While Runner was more of a platformer, Bit.Trip Fate is a twin-stick on-rails rhythm-based shooter (Did you get all of that?) The rail itself is more of a beam that allows CommderVideo to travel forwards and backwards, through levels of old school inspired bullet-dodging gameplay.

Not only do you get to play as CommderVideo, but each level has power ups represented by other characters from the Bit.Trip series and other indie games such as Super Meat Boy. While my recommendation for Fate is slightly less than my love for Runner, both of these game are experiences you should seek out as Wii owner, and more importantly, a gamer.

Alex Martin's Picks: Limbo and Poker Night at the Inventory

All games aim to teach players; at the very least, they try to teach them how to play the game. Limbo and Poker Night at the Inventory, though, taught me that games can do two two things I hadn’t thought of.

First, Limbo taught me that games can play you. Not in that corny, Hollywood way; you don’t die when your adorable Danish boy is impaled by a spider’s leg. Instead, Limbo plays tricks on you.

Early in the game, you learn that if you stand on a button, an unavoidable piston will pounce from the heavens and crush this little Danish boy to death. The game reloads, you jump over the button. Now, you carry on walking forwards (right) until you come to a raised rectangle of floor. You walk up to it, ready to jump, a piston pounces from the heavens and crushes the adorable Danish boy to death.

There were two buttons surrounding that raised patch of earth.
The game got me good, and I laughed, glad to have been tricked but not punished by having to backtrack too far. This trick doesn’t get old because it’s only sparingly used before Playdead introduce new effects with which to solve puzzles. This early trick had a big part to play in my affection for the game, which is quite brutal in its difficulty.

Poker Night at the Inventory taught me (although others have tried this before, to lesser degrees of success) that games can be about just hanging out. Telltale only gave us one simple variation of poker. (According to those more knowledgeable than I, it actually got some of the betting rules wrong.) The act of playing poker sustains itself as well as it does in Red Dead Redemption -- you come to it infrequently, and leave after a few hands.

The experience of sitting around a table with four funny guys, hearing them chat, was a great draw because of Telltale’s writing (and the ready-made characters). I haven’t spent a whole lot of time with this game, but I always know it’s there when I want to sit back with something quietly interactive, and listen to the Heavy talk about his homeland. It’s not something every game should be -- but it is something every large, narrative-based game with distractions like darts, pool, or fooseball should include.