EGX has always been about promoting new games, and whilst the big game publishers often dominate the event (they can afford the floor space), much of the true innovation lies within the indie and left-field collections.
As such, here are eight games from EGX that gamers should watch out for in the coming months.
One of the first games to interest me was JCB Pioneer: Mars, a collaborative exploration/survival game set on the red planet. What made this game especially interesting was the fact JCB had been heavily involved in the design of the Martian vehicles within the game, adding to the realism. If you had ever read Red Mars or watched The Martian, and thought you could do better, then this will be the game for you.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2NrQBPnvQ7Y
The second in The Fall series, Unbound is a sideways scrolling adventure game, much in the style of Another World (AKA Out of This World) and its spiritual successor Flashback. What made this game especially stand out was the involving narrative and excellent dialogue that added to the surreal nature of the game.
If you like games that invest you heavily in the character, then this adventure game will be for you.
The Bunker is quite different to many games out there, as it relies upon live-action footage rather than computer graphics to propel the story. It many ways it shares similarities with the point-and-click adventure games from the nineties, which is both good and bad. Whilst this mechanic works well, with the use of live-action footage, it is also a limiting feature as the narrative within the game cannot continue until the latest challenge/puzzle is resolved. Despite this, The Bunker does something genuinely new with an emotive storyline within the game.
Although only a month into development, Krucer Parallax will be the game to play for anyone who has ever wanted to lead a squadron of X-Wings, Starfuries or Vipers. Unlike many games, the game universe is left deliberately vague, as it is designed for the modding community to build upon. However, what there is, is a solid space fighter game that has an intuitive command interface that was a joy to use and soon had me switching the formations of my fighter wing.
Black and White Bushido was a great little game that I came across with a neat stealth mechanic. Viewed from the side and limited to a single screen that players jump around and lights that intermittently flicker. So far, so Splinter Cell. However, the Light side can only hide in the light and the Shadow side can only hide in the dark. Black and White Bushido was easy to pick up, but takes ages to master.
Imagine Strider with the aesthetics of Metal Gear Solid and animated in the style of Chinese shadow puppets, then you have an idea of what the sideways scrolling action game Earth’s Dawn looks like. It was swift, fun and intuitive to play, with a great visual style that was unlike a lot of games out there. My only concern was that whilst the characters looked great, they were also huge, and hence much of the combat was less about dodging, but shooting them before they can shoot you.
Bored with bland boy-racer car games and fancy something different? Then Drive Drive Drive is for you. Unlike most racing games, where you drive a single car in a single race, here you are simultaneously driving multiple cars in races at the same time, and in order to win all of your cars need to finish first. Imagine Stunt Car Racer in the world of Tron and you have an idea of what you can expect.
And finally, if you were not sufficiently scared by the first-person horror game Outlast, then the sequel ramps the horror all the way up to “11”. Visceral and disturbing in equal measure, the player relies on the night-vision setting of a video camera in order to see (provided that his glasses haven’t broken). Like the first, you also have no means to attack, but this time you also have no means to defend yourself (however much you may want to pick up a fence post, hammer – or anything – as some form of protection!)
