Back at the beach, time to talk about the Indies! (Indie catch up time!)

     When my family goes to the beach, I always find that it's a good time to catch up on some of the indie games that I haven't played yet, even if I've had them on my switch for a year or more already. While I'm not the biggest fan of the beach, there is definitely something about sitting and listening to the water that allows for a relaxing reprieve from normal everyday life. In that spirit, I'm going to write a more chill and laid back post about a few games that I've really been enjoying from the more indie side of things. I should say that I've not beaten any of these games yet, but I'm really looking forward to playing more soon! Let's begin with one of the newest (and most chill) games on the market, Terra Nil.

Save the world, then leave.

    With many games, the enemy will be some evil force or demon invasion, but in Terra Nil, there's nothing so supernatural, as the whole point of the game is to save a deserted ecosystem from extinction using some hi-tech buildings. The game has the camera of a strategy game, like an RTS (Real-Time Strategy), but instead of units that are being deployed from a barracks, this game is more like a puzzle game where you have to worry about only one resource, greenery. Once you've made usable soil with a device, you can use an Irrigator to make grass grow on that land, which gives you more greenery, and that will allow you to make more buildings which help purify more and more of the land. It's an incredibly satisfying game, where all of your buildings really do have a dramatic impact on the landscape. Eventually, that dead landscape of unusable ground that you've started with at the beginning of the level will be home to many different species of animals, and be a thriving ecosystem. Once you get to that point, it's time to break down whatever buildings you've made, and leave the area in the hands of mother nature. It's a really fascinating game, and one that I hope everyone will check out, especially since the developer, Free Lives, as well as publisher, Devolver Digital, are donating 8% of Steam sales to the Endangered Wildlife Trust, a South African organization devoted to preserving and maintaining the natural habitats of wildlife. I haven't played much of the game yet, since it's only on PC and mobile devices, and I don't think it's very long based on what I've seen and played so far, but it definitely looks to be worth your time. I really hope they bring this game to the Nintendo Eshop, where the rest of these games can be found.

Undertale for Rhythm Games?

    A while ago, I picked up a game called Everhood after watching one of my favorite streamers playing it. I love rhythm games, so I thought I would give it a try. I still haven't finished it, for the record, but what I've played so far is pretty phenomenal. Everhood takes a lot of the absurdity of games like Earthbound or Undertale and replaces the battles of both of those with mostly avoiding attacks that go along with a pretty killer soundtrack. You play as Red, a puppet mage who has lost his arm, and thus can't really do much other than avoid the attacks that the enemies send at you. I don't want to give any spoilers away, since this game is much deeper than one might think, but I will say that the structure of this game is a little weird. There's a lot of time devoted to wandering around and hoping that something is going to happen, but luckily it isn't too hard to find something to do. I also have to warn that it's not appropriate for the whole family, due to some language as well as some darker themes that come up later on in the story. That being said, if you're looking for a creative and enjoyable rhythm game that's different from "traditional rhythm games," I would at least advise you to look up what the game is like! I'm certainly loving it so far at least!

Dig Dig Dig!

    Shovel Knight Dig is the most recent spin-off of Yacht Club's beloved Shovel Knight, this time developed by Nitrome. Dig, like Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon, is a roguelike, but this one is a platformer. Unlike the original Shovel Knight which dealt with moving mostly from left to right like a standard platformer, this spin-off has Shovel Knight digging deeper and deeper down after the devious Drill Knight who stole his treasure. This game is a prequel to the original, which I assume will come up at some point in the game, but since I haven't gotten to the end, I haven't had anything in particular, other than the fact that Shovel Knight has treasure from adventuring with Shield Knight, who is also present for a lot of the game. There's also a pet owl involved who helps you with different things in your runs, and judging by the fact that I don't remember anything about an owl in the original game, I am a little worried about the wellbeing of our feathered friend. Either way, I'm sure the game will end well, and maybe even have a nice lead in about the Enchantress and maybe an introduction to the Order of No Quarter, who I've seen a few members of in the game so far. With the prequel angle as well, we see a few twists on the original bosses, along with new ones. Mole Knight, for example, has more water associated with him here, where he's more fire based in the original game. This goes along with his new area that he's stationed in, the Secret Fountain. This game is a great time, though it's certainly no cakewalk!

    It's kind of ironic that I started off this post by talking about relaxing while at the beach, when I talked about Everhood and Shovel Knight Dig, two games that both really make you work for that win. Terra Nil is a much more relaxing time, but there's something to be said about the different biomes, which make you learn a different set of rules every time. That makes Terra Nil even a bit of a brainteaser at times! Indie games are always interesting, allowing developers to create entirely new ideas, or at least great tributes to older titles that maybe haven't had an entry in a little while. In a speech that Reggie Fils-Aime said at the game awards a few years ago, he mentioned something to the effect of, "Indie Games are the future of game development," which is true, and it's wonderful to see so many fun and creative indie games coming out so often right now. It's a good time to be a fan of games, and as always, I can't wait for whatever comes next. With games coming up soon like Mina the Hollower, Animal Well, and Rift of the Necrodancer, I'm even more excited than usual.

    Thanks so much for reading this post, friends! I didn't have much to write about this week, so I just decided to turn my sights to a few games that I've been enjoying lately. Have you played any interesting Indie games, or games in general recently? Let me know! I'm always happy to hear about new titles! Until next time, I hope you'll have a great week and thanks again for your support! I'm Jonathan, your Self-Proclaimed Indie fan, and I'll talk to you again soon!