Iridion 3D
I purchased this game merely due to nostalgia for arcade super scrollers like galaxy force 2 and it turned out to be a pretty fun game, but warning for potential buyers is that this is a straight up GBA port with nothing new added and looks kind of blurry all blow up on a big screen. One more knock against the game is the fact there is no ability to save and you have to rely on passwords. The game still is a fun arcade shooter, but don’t expect anything close to a remaster.
– Real player with 3.4 hrs in game
Read More: Best Space Shoot 'Em Up Games.
I honestly never expected to see this game on steam. Iridion 3D is one of my favorite games of all time. The game is a launch title for the Game Boy Advance, which is something to keep in mind about this game. The game uses a pseudo 3D effect in order to create a unique Shmup game that i have never seen an attempt to replicate the style of. While the pseudo 3D style can be very akward at first, if you are able to adapt, the game is a very fun, while short game. While some may feel the fact the game is short is a flaw, i find it adds to the ease of picking up the game for a quick playthrough. As a launch title for the GBA, the game has some audio oddities, along with issues due to developers still learning the limitations of the platform. all in all, if you can get past the flaws and get used to the pseudo 3D style, it is a very fun game.
– Real player with 1.7 hrs in game
Iridion II
my favorite gba game maybe the best im very godlike at it
– Real player with 10.0 hrs in game
Read More: Best Space Shoot 'Em Up Games.
Fun shooting game with interesting visuals originally on the Gameboy advance. While I recommend the game let it be known that it is a very straight forward port with little to no changes. The control scheme is a bit counter intuitive if you are playing on an Arcade stick so rebinding through steam is likely a good idea for most.
I still recommend the title and it is especially impressive given the time and hardware for which it was originally released. I do have a CRT monitor to play games like this so that does a long way in making the visuals pop. As mentioned in a negative review it would likely scale rather poorly to higher resolutions on lcd monitors.
– Real player with 6.9 hrs in game
Nexus - The Jupiter Incident
I liked this game and it was fun while it lasted, but a malfunction in the core won’t allow me past the first part of the last mission. So I cannot recommend a game I’m not allowed to beat. Once the game gets to the Noah Colony it gets pretty good for a while. Then it tails off at the end leaving a mediocre taste in your mouth. If you want more you can continue reading.
At the end some problems become apparent. Your ships remain un-upgradable just stacking points on, the Angelwing was god-like at the end. While others wither to your backlines because of a real deficit. Then you get a few ships late in the game that never really live up to anykind of hype. Wonky AI that will take a ship attacking another behind an ally not allowing your ship to fire. Mission with the convoy after arriving at Noah Colony, I’m looking at you.
– Real player with 148.9 hrs in game
Read More: Best Space Sci-fi Games.
Nexus The Jupiter Incident is one of those games that you wish had gotten popular simply because it deserves a sequel and copycats. It is a stunningly atmospheric game with highly complex, yet easy to use space combat. It is a Space Opera in the truest sense of the word.
You start the as spaceship captain Marcus Cromwell in command of the Stiletto out on the fringes of the solar system on patrol. Things quickly pick up speed however as aliens, wormholes and other outside forces conspire to put you smack dab in the middle of an epic conflict between various hostile alien armadas and a lost remnant of humanity. As you progress through the game your own fleet grows in size and power, new characters join your side and you will often get little role playing elements in the missions letting your chose how to proceed.
– Real player with 87.1 hrs in game
System Shock 2
The cult classic sci-fi horror FPS-RPG has returned.
System Shock 2 is an interesting game to review in 2014. When it first came out in 1999, it was met with a lot of praise from the gaming press, winning over a dozen awards, including several “Game of the Year” titles, and since then it has appeared on several “Greatest Games of All Time” lists. However despite the praise, not many people actually bought and played it.
It feels like System Shock 2 has been granted a second chance though. The success Irrational Games has had with BioShock and BioShock: Infinite has interested people enough to want to check out System Shock 2, which was the first game Irrational created. This is great news, because while you might not expect it, I feel that System Shock 2 is the best of all the “Shock” games. It makes you realize that for all of the steps forward we have taken in terms of technology, in a lot of ways modern gameplay has taken a few steps backwards.
– Real player with 161.0 hrs in game
System Shock 2 is a first-person science-fiction exploration-based action-adventure horror game with RPG mechanics developed by Irrational Games and Looking Glass Studios using the Dark Engine. Taking place after the first System Shock, the player-character awakes aboard the “Von Braun”, an empty starship devastated by a biological mass commanding an egregoric hive mind.
Whereas System Shock 1’s intimidating, obscure control scheme and sheer age would unappealingly cling to it as the years went on, its sequel’s reputation is of a kinder, more accessible game for modern audiences. System Shock 2 is often played as a standalone title, which its story and presentation gracefully allows, and historically this is often viewed as the preferable option. Yet in a number of significant ways, System Shock 2 can be as esoteric and uninviting as its predecessor. The start of the campaign, for instance, is marked by a pronounced learning curve, albeit mitigated by a tutorial, and there’s an unflattering chunkiness to the visuals, intensified by jerky, stretchy 3D animations. Oftentimes the presentation requires the player to mentally fill in the gaps themselves, projecting detail and significance where there is none. Much of the gameplay’s mechanics are abstrusely informed to the player, requiring uncomfortable guesswork or guide-consulting. Before even beginning the adventure, for instance, the player is forced to choose between multiple progressive tiers of precious skill points before knowing any details about what they do. In-game, multi-part objectives are often dumped onto the player all at once and out of order, creating an alienating sense of halted progression. This isn’t to say the comparison to System Shock 1 is unfounded. On multiple levels, System Shock 2 actively strives to be more inviting, understandable and instructive than its precursor. In other ways, the sheer gap of time and innovation between the two titles solidifies it as having more modern sensibilities. Unmissable tools exist to helpfully identify collected items, and there’s no shortage of exposition to elucidate details of the environment. An objectives tracker mercifully updates itself, keeping the player up-to-date on what they still need to do. The music and sound design are of a standard which is more refined, effective and deliberate than the first game’s implementation of the same, and the progression of the story is more carefully directed than would be achieved in any first-person action games from the prior title’s era. And it goes without saying that the control scheme supports mouselook for aiming and shooting, aiming generally to put the player’s attention on the gameworld itself, rather than the HUD.
– Real player with 69.3 hrs in game
Little Big Adventure
An absolute classic adventure/platformer game, not the sort that you see get made anymore.
I really loved it many years ago and still a great game to this day.
Originally it was released on steam with just the newest version but after lots of feedback the classic version was added.
Both versions are good but play out differently, The enhanced edition is a little more simplified but also easier to control (moving around and attacking).
It’s worth checking both out and playing through them.
It’s a little unfortunate that you can’t unlock achievements on the original (Dos) version, so if you want them you have to play the enhanced edition.
– Real player with 82.3 hrs in game
Edit: Thank you for listening to us DotEmu! This review has been revised due to post-release changes to alleviate some of my and others concerns.
It’s fantastic to finally see the original Little Big Adventure on Steam! The “Enhanced Edition” now available on Steam contains a port of the mobile version along with the original emulated in DosBox. I really recommend getting this version not due to the mobile port, but rather due to the original bundled herein.
If you have never heard of this games series before and do not intend on playing the mobile port there isn’t much more to say; stop reading now and get this gem! You won’t regret it.
– Real player with 29.0 hrs in game
Groov
Please buy this game its so cheap and regularly goes on sale, its a great value and the Dev is super helpful on steam and twitter.
Fun game. I’m so glad it came to Steam I loved it when it was on Xbox Indie Arcade back in the day. Has a lot of replayability.
The price is great.
The game play is great.
The sound design is great.
Cannot go wrong with this game. If I were rich I would gift this game to everyone on my friends list.
EDIT: After this review they added a bunch of online Leaderboards so it got even better!
– Real player with 6.9 hrs in game
Remember Geometry Wars? It’s similar to that but with Music at its core instead of bright explosions. I kept my 360 solely for this game, thats how great it is. Years ago, I’d get home around twenty after four from work and fire this game up. It was easily one of my favorite ways to chill and wind down after a long day. The game isn’t deep, but it has a lot of depth. 3 basic modes, the last 2 being locked until you beat the first mode.
Gameplay
The game takes place in a 2d box. Your a little spaceship(that always reminded me of The Last Starfighter) and every enemy is a musical instrument. Some enemies only need 1 shot to kill(or trigger their instrument) while others, aka The Romulan looking ship (the rapper) requires numerous hits to kill. There’s numerous waves which are all different. Each wave presents more difficulties than the last. There’s changes in your weapons, rate of fire, enemy population and variety, and a lot more. Later in the game, some pretty crazy things happen, which are pretty exciting to encounter and play through. You only get 3 lives. Theres no restart from checkpoint. So getting to the end is an amazing feeling. Its very reminiscent experience to playing old games at the arcade. Theres definitely a lot of strategy and you’ll learn through your play though how to attack each wave. However, I always called them Shells(guitar), can and will ruin your day. They can go out of the play zone, and come back in. They only take one shot, but when youve been backed into a corner or running a wall and your trying to get out, having a shell sneak in behind you is frustrating. Especially when you seconds to the next wave.. It is very easy to get swarmed and overwhelmed so here’s a couple of beginner’s tips.
– Real player with 2.1 hrs in game
Space Station 14
Space Station 14 is inspired by the cult classic SS13 and tells the story of an ordinary shift on a space station gone wrong. Immerse yourself into your role, tinker with detailed systems, and survive the chaos in this round-based multiplayer role playing game.
Your custom character can spawn as one of dozens of crew and enemy jobs, ranging from engineer to captain, or even a traitor, each with its own unique gear. Your duties guide you through rich interactions with complex mechanics, whether you’re managing your inventory, setting up the reactor, or flushing yourself down the disposal tubes.
As disaster, incompetence, and sabotage strike the station, the tension rises - opening up emergent situations that force you to make hard choices. Will you patch up the medical bay after an asteroid punches a hole in it, or fight for control when the captain gets murdered by revolutionaries? Do you break out an unjustly imprisoned clown, or sit back at the bar and serve drinks without a care in the world?
The story of the station’s collapse is in the hands of its players, and each round is an intense, immersive experience that will leave you wanting more.
Beyond Space Station 14
Space Station 14 is open-source and extremely extensible. Community servers are the backbone of the game, and can change every aspect of it to provide wildly different experiences. Altered mechanics, different roleplay atmospheres, and completely unique settings are all one click away from the server browser.
As a community project, we’re always looking for more volunteers, and encourage you to help out!
AI War: Fleet Command
This game is amazeballs and you should buy it now.
Oh, and if you want to play Ai War multiplayer with me just send me a friend request. :)
Alright so if that wasnt enough for you and my hours of playtime arent very convincing lemme tell you about AI War. This game has been called by many people a tower defense of sorts. I would mostly agree but you cant just put it as a tower defense when thats not what it aims to be. This is a real time strategy with some light 4X here and there, well mostly the Expand and Exterminate parts. This game does not feature a diplomacy system because it is always the ai against you beacuse of the plot of the game. Its written in the description of the game on the store page check it out and you will know why the ai is always your enemy.
– Real player with 820.0 hrs in game
This game is not fair. From the first second of any game, until (in most games) the last stages of the game, the AI possesses sufficient firepower to obliterate your insignificant rebellion without really stretching. In this repect, most games of AI War are a wonderful breath of fearful concern. Always looking over your shoulder. Always trying to avoid annoying the AI too much. Always treading softly, while carrying the biggest gun (indeed every gun) you can find.
Let’s be clear; if you’re looking for a game that holds your hand through a linear, scripted campaign, this is not the game for you.
– Real player with 517.7 hrs in game
Immortal Defense
Some of you have probably been waiting for this game to pop up. I considered about where to put it for a little while before eventually deciding to have it be at the very end. That’s because, in my opinion, Immortal Defense is the best tower defense on Steam at the moment.
The peaceful planet Dukis finds itself under attack by the evil Bavakh empire, a war-faring race of red, devilish aliens. Their armadas are vast, and with no notable army of their own Dukis is no match. However, they have one trick up their sleeve: Subject K, who has volunteered to be a Path Defender, a process that involves separating his soul from his body and sending it up into space. It’s unclear whether K represents one of his names, or whether he’s the eleventh person they’ve tried this with. Once up there, K gains the ability to see the Bavakh’s ships as they move through Pathspace (basically hyperspace), and the power to attack and destroy them before they reach their destination.
– Real player with 89.3 hrs in game
Whether you’re new or old to tower defense games, Immortal Defense is a good buy. With tons of unique mechanics but still holding together what makes a good tower defense a good tower defense, and on top of that all a great story considering it’s a game where you’re shooting geometrical shapes flying on a line… Immortal Defense is amazing for what it is.
In Immortal Defense, you play as a Pathspace Defender whose goal is to defend your home planet by literally becoming a god and shooting invisible hellbeams from another plane of existence at people who are invading you. You do this by what else- placing towers! While the story and gameplay get more complicated than that (and bring all sorts of delightful twists and turns), that is the basic premise to the game.
– Real player with 39.4 hrs in game
Pentasma
Excellent version of an arcade classic: Defender \ Stargate. Smooth and fast gameplay. Best played with an Xbox controller. Addictive!
– Real player with 272.8 hrs in game
This is basically a brilliant fan remake of the arcade classics Defender and Stargate (aka Defender II). If you have any nostalgia or even a passing interest in those games, then this is a must own. Long live Williams Electronics and Vid Kidz!!
– Real player with 43.9 hrs in game