2007 Top 10 Games of the Year
2007 marks the sixth year of the Game Tunnel Independent Game of the Year awards. It's been a
long journey to get here and each year it seems Indie games are just a little
better known by the gaming public at large, which we view as tremendously good
news.
The games themselves also seem to get a bit better each year, mixing unique
visions with innovation to create experiences that speak to the heart of gamers.
Each of the games is a winner in its own right, an undiscovered gem just waiting
to be found. So dim the lights and warm up your modem, as Game Tunnel
presents: The Top 10 Independent Games of 2007.
Number 10 - Kudos Rock Legend
| Developer: Positech Games |
Players: 1 |
| System Requirements: Windows 98+, 500MHz CPU, 256MB RAM | |
Website |
Download |
Fran needs to go. Everyone can see it. At the tryout, her grooving guitar
made her an immediate 'must' for the band, but those were the early days: before the songs, before the gigs, back when we played any
venue that would take
us and practiced in Jim's garage. To be fair, we're not a household name
yet, but we will be, we just need a little more oomph to take us over the hump.
That means a new guitarist no matter what hardships we've gone through in the
past to build friendships. Everyone in the band agrees, except Fran.
Poor brilliant Fran, whose guitar licks helped open our first doors.
Rock Legend is the follow-up to
Kudos, though the only similarity
between the games is the interface. Rock Legend takes a completely
different approach to becoming a guitar hero as it places you in charge of a
band. Putting together a band is a blast, and working to get hit singles
and sold-out shows is just the beginning. Players control every aspect of
the band's life, from where they practice and what type of food they cater, to
what type of music they listen to. For everyone who has ever wanted to hit
the big time with their own band, Rock Legend is a must- play. It defines Indie.
Number 9 - Scavenger
| Developer: Pi Eye Games |
Players: 1 |
| System Requirements: Windows 2000+, 450 mhz, 64 mb RAM, DirectX 8.1+ | |
|
Website |
Download |
I probably should have left the generator intact. With all the turrets in
this sector, knocking out the power seemed like a good idea. The dark
tunnel in front of me reeks of danger. My ship's lights reach into the
darkness, feeling through the black for signs of life. Slipping into a new
room, the air grows stale. I stare carefully at my surroundings. The
walls in front of me seem to be organic. The truth strikes me just before
the creature does. Suddenly those turrets don't seem quite so dangerous.
Scavenger is one of those games that
you can tell is going to be great from the moment you start the first level. It's the
kind of game that really shows what indie gaming can produce. It has all the
feeling (and difficulty!) of a great space shooter mixed with the creep and
explore-adventure of some of the best FPS games, taking the player from
carefully moving down the hall to a frantic firefight in a matter of seconds.
With multiple difficulty levels that give the player completely different gameplay experiences, Scavenger is brilliant fun that shouldn't be missed.
Number 8 - Galcon
| Developer: Imitation Pickles |
Players: 12 |
| System Requirements: Windows 98+ or Mac 10.3.9+ or Linux (32 bit), 1.0 ghz | |
|
Website |
Download |
I've spread the empire too thin. In the hopes of quickly conquering my
foes, I sent the fleet to every conquerable planet in the galaxy. The
short-term gains of forming the largest empire composed of many small planets are starting to
crumble. Other forces in the galaxy spent their efforts on a few large worlds,
and the production of those giants far outstripped our own. Inevitably,
one by one, each of our planets was captured. In the horizon I can see
hundreds of fighters. The end has come.
Galcon is a bare-bones strategy game with simple rules that you fully grasp
within minutes of playing. While its simple nature could lead you to
think that there is no depth of strategy, the opposite is true. Galcon
provides complexity in its simplicity, challenging players to quickly consider
their resources, form ever-liquid strategy plans, and effectively engage in
continual tactical combat. Taking over new worlds, using the additional
resources to build more combat units, and then coordinating attacks to take
advantage of the other player's actions in a galaxy full of combat creates a
very exciting game of quick thought and strategy featuring massive battles with
hundreds, and sometimes thousands of combat units, being destroyed in seconds.
Galcon is brilliantly simple and wonderfully addictive tactical strategy game.
Number 7 - Mr. Robot
HEL-9000 has been acting a little strange. First there were those weird
job requests and then the shutting down of vital programs and robots.
Finally came the death of a crew member while in stasis. Though there are
many questions as to what is happening, one question has been answered,
HEL-9000, the master computer running the ship, has become our enemy.
Teaming up with other Robots who have been disconnected from the mainframe,
we're setting out to save what is left of the colonists. Time is ticking
and HEL has been alerted to our efforts. Our only hope is to fight our way
through and break down the defense that HEL is creating.
Mr. Robot is
a strange mix of a pseudo sokoban played isometricly and a super-cool RPG that
feels futuristic and retro all at the same time. It's all glued together with an
immediately engaging storyline, cool upgrades, unique items and innovative
weapons that make the typical RPG "grind" of combat and leveling feel anything
but repetitive. The space theme is complemented by lots of sci-fi geek
references that will surprise you and bring a smile to your face. The game
has been called one of the best Indie games ever, and it's a title well-suited
to Mr. Robot.
Number 6 - DarkSide
| Developer: Pi Eye Games |
Players: 1 |
| System Requirements: Windows 2000+, 450 mhz, 64 mb RAM, DirectX 8.1+ | |
|
Website |
Download |
The
planet rotates beneath me. Though small, this outpost is valuable,
valuable enough for at least one person to protect it. Today that someone is me.
Rounding the planet on a simple patrol, I blast off the space debris and look for
enemies. Two cruisers today is all the action I've seen. I wonder if
a larger attack is coming. Then on my next pass I see it-- high in
the air on long legs, walking across the planet's surface and flanked by
abduction craft. My craft trembles as I open a full volley of laser fire.
Flying around spherical planets seems to be in style this year. From Mario Galaxy
to Super Stardust HD, we've been offered some great planetary romps. Darkside,
while a bit different in its approach, is no different in its quality.
It's a spectacular game full of those qualities that make gaming great. Though it
doesn't have a deep story or some of the nuances that make some of the critics
happy, she's got it where it counts. The gameplay is simply fantastic,
offering up fast-paced shooting action that is exciting, rewarding and
relentless. The graphics are amazingly good, belying the games 15mb size.
The range of enemies and weapons complete the game as a tour de force that made
DarkSide a top 10 game of the year as well as our 2007 Action Game of the Year.
Number 5 - Knytt Stories
Walking through the cavern, I come to a series of water falls, each more
majestic and amazing than the last. The vegetation has taken on an alien
appearance, rising in long twisting strands that seem to be topped with
phosphorescent bulbs. Climbing up the walls and moving down a new corridor
I find myself in peaceful underwater surroundings amidst a strangely constructed
series of tunnels and paths. The way opens with new vegetation marking yet
another change in my location. My surroundings show some signs of life,
but a desolation begins to take hold. What are the machines doing to the
world?
Knytt Stories is as much art as it is a
game. It's beauty in simplicity.
Each area is carefully crafted so that it provides a
uniqueness that goes far beyond just looking and sounding different. Each
area plays differently, taking on its own life and giving one the feeling of
truly visiting someplace far from anywhere you have ever been.
Knytt Stories is something of a
pixel-perfect platforming nirvana, and though the accolades seem at odds with
the humble presentation, it's hard not to write a list of superlatives when
describing the game. The expandability of allowing others to add their own
stories only serves to add to one of this year's most intriguing and enjoyable
experiences.
Number 4 - Immortal Defense
| Developer: RPG Creations (Paul Eres) |
Players: 1 |
| System Requirements: Windows 2000+, DirectX 8.0+, 128MB RAM, 1.0GHZ CPU, 32MB video card | |
|
Website |
Download |
It's
difficult to say whether it has been pride or love that has saved me. That
part of me which is pride has taken a primary role in the defense, but without
the support of love (who refuses direct combat), it's power would simply not
have been strong enough to overcome the enemy. My fear has also been of
consequence, once again stunning the enemy with an infusion of worry, while my
courage has pummeled them. Yet I feel something missing. My emotions
are powerful, but are they all that I am?
Like every other Tower Defense game, Immortal Defense is intensely addictive.
Unlike any other Tower Defense game, Immortal Defense transcends to something
more. The game is built around a character who gives up their mortal state
to become a being of pure energy to save his family and world. The
storyline covers the ground of standard sci-fi, but brings in deeper themes
about the true effects of one's actions and what it really means to be an
immortal being, freed from the limitations of the physical body. The
deeply philosophical approach can be felt throughout the game, with music and
graphics echoing the slowly revealed story. Deeply moody and satisfying,
Immortal Defense mixes gameplay with art, creating a uniquely captivating
experience that won it a place in our top 5 as well as the
2007 Strategy Game of the Year
award.
Number 3 - Venture Arctic
| Developer: Pocketwatch Games |
Players: 1 |
| System Requirements: Windows 98+, DirectX 8.0+, 2 ghz Processor, 512 mb RAM | |
|
Website |
Download |
With
the ice frozen in the winter, and the arctic wolf hungry for food, he ventured
forth. Slowly across the ice he crept until he reached the far shore.
A new home to explore. New food. The land had become barren.
Disease had taken many of the wolves after the food had become scarce.
Determined not to become another carcass on the snow, the wolf pushed forward,
looking carefully for any sign of life, hoping to find the unsuspecting
animal that could be the long-sought after meal, and the means of another day's
survival.
Venture Arctic is a learning experience, but
not because it tries to be. The game, where you control the impact of
the seasons on the arctic animals, is about balance. Too many rabbits
leads to a barren landscape. Increasing the number of wolves to combat the
problem will quickly lead to no animals at all. The animals react to the
world around them as you paint the land with snow and the water with ice, and
then melt it all away. The Inuit-inspired art gives the whole game a
distinctive look that matches the game's uniqueness. Venture Arctic, like
the world it portrays, is a treasure of beauty and wonder. It's an
adventure into the unknown world around us that inspires and excites as players
enjoy each new discovery. There are a lot of games available, but few of them
are much more than a simple pastime. Venture Arctic is a game that stands out
from the pack as being not only meaningful, but also amazingly good. Those
qualities made it an easy pick as one of the Top 5 games of the year as well as
our 2007 Sim game of the year.
Number 2 - Depths of Peril
| Developer: Soldak Entertainment, Inc. |
Players: 1 |
| System Requirements: Windows 98+, 128MB RAM, 1.2GHZ CPU | |
|
Website |
Download |
Depths
of Peril is a hard game to describe. The first sensation that you are playing
something amazing and different comes when, instead of destroying the computer,
you find yourself competing against it. As you try to recruit players to
your faction ("covenant") you quickly find that the computer AI is leading the
other covenants, trying to complete the same quests and recruit the same people
before you do. Racing, you must out-compete the computer to survive.
However, you must also work to improve relations with the other factions to
trade for weaponry and find the allies you will need to fight off some of the
threats to the city of Jorvik that you all call home.
Speaking of threats, the second sensation of how amazing the game is comes as you
realize the dynamic world around you. Delay taking out an enemy threat
and that threat will grow, with some enemies of the group becoming leaders who
will recruit their own henchmen and grow further in power. Small uprisings
can become huge threats requiring covenants to work cooperatively to take down
the bosses and sub-bosses that were created by your delay.
Each moment of the game you must strategize what you will do next, ensuring the
safety of your city, racing to get the best recruits, and carefully working the
intricate web of relations with other covenants, thus avoiding inter-covenant
wars that can lead to disastrous results as you must take your eye off of the
rising threats outside the city to fight for survival. If that doesn't
get you excited to play the game, downloading it and playing it for a couple of
hours will. Depths of Peril is a spectacular game that is as engrossing as any
title you'll play anywhere this year. It won our
2007 Role-Playing game
of the year award and is our runner-up for Independent Game of the Year.
2007 Game of the Year - Aquaria
As
I enter the cavern, the fish swim by my side then change directions and
swim away. The world around me beckons and repels me. Each of the many dark
caverns that lead away from here has its own story. Some of that
story is darker than the caverns, filled with war and destruction. Other
parts are more sublime, echoing the dreams of civilizations long lost. My
part in the story seems to be ever changing as I discover melody in the peaceful
sounds of the waves and harmony in their angry thrashing on the shore.
Aquaria is perhaps the most well-known indie game in recent memory and it should
be. The underwater world painted on the screen is captivating and
mesmerizing. The game world feels immense and will leave more than a few people
scratching their head as it teases with information. It provides puzzles and
challenges that will test your abilities to reason and will occasionally leave you
entirely unsure of what to do next. As the breakthrough moments of
understanding hit, the game becomes magical. The feeling of success mixed
with the wonderful fantasy playing out in front of you creates an experience
that is as unique as every game wants to be.
Aquaria is a masterful stroke of vision in its appearance, sound and play.
It's a game that no one should miss. After walking away with our awards
for best graphics and
best sound as well as the
2007 Adventure game of the year award, we're
happy to add one final jewel to Aquaria's crown, the 2007 Independent Game of the Year.
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Other Awards & Game of the Year Award History
Game of the Year by Genre:
Action
- DarkSide
(link to Top 5)
Casual -
Snapshot Adventures: Secret of Bird Island
(link to Top 5)
Adventure
- Aquaria
(link to Top 5)
RPG - Depths of Peril
(link to Top 5)
Sim
- Venture Arctic
(link to Top 5)
Sports
- Reach
(link to Top 5)
Strategy
- Immortal Defense
(link to Top 5)
Special Awards
Kid's Game of the Year - The Tuttles Madcap
Misadventures
Player's Choice Award - Wonderland
Adventures
Game of the Year: Graphics
- Aquaria
Game of the Year: Sound - Aquaria
Game of the Year: Innovation - Determinance
Game of the Year: Multiplayer - ThreadSpace:
Hyperbol
GameTunnel Independent Game of the Year History:
2007 - Aquaria
2006 - Gumboy Crazy Adventures
2005
- Oasis
2004 - Gish
2003 - Starscape
2002 - Mutant Storm
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By: Russell Carroll
Posted: Monday December 31, 2007
Action
Adventure
Arkanoid
Fighting
Platform
Puzzle/Casual
RPG
Shooter
Simulation
Space Combat Sim
Sports
Strategy
