Screenshot Weekly – Cute Bunnies Slaughter Diplomatic Sumomen
Welcome back to Screenshot Weekly! Every Tuesday, IGM brings you exclusive looks at upcoming games in various stages of development. The featured image introducing each game will always be original, and made especially for IGM, so you’ll see them for the first time right here (make sure to click the pics to see them in their full screen glory)! Without further ado, let’s take a look at this week’s screenshots:
Lord of Rigel
Why was the math teacher late for school? Because he took the Rhombus! Haha, ha, eh, Sorry. Anyway, Rhombus Studios is currently working on Lord of Rigel, a 4x strategy game that wants to reinvigorate the genre. According to the team, “Lord of Rigel, like its spiritual predecessor Master of Orion, is heavily based on scifi tropes played straight. As such, each species represents a major trope in science fiction. Technologies, sound effects, and artwork also should intentionally evoke other work. Like the series that came before, this game is set in a loose enough setting that players can imagine specific conflicts that occur during their games being moments in some of their favorite space opera franchises.” Strategy fans may also be intrigued by the randomly generated galaxies and rich technology trees to explore, alongside the diplomatic and other assorted victory conditions. If you’d like to learn more, be sure to head over to the Lord of Rigel website, or you can also support the game’s Greenlight campaign.
OBEY
Bunnies are pretty cute, right? I feel like even the heartless monsters who poach unicorns and laugh when Bambi’s mom exits stage right have a soft, fuzzy spot for little bunnies. So who is the absolute evil incarnate that came up with OBEY, a game where players assume the role of a bunny in a giant robot suit tasked with gunning down other bunnies? His name is Daniel Dez, but apparently there’s more to OBEY than meets the eye. He describes the Unity 3D game as “a competitive multiplayer action game where you win by coercing your opponents into helping you win,” adding that “players compete as little bunnies to control the giant robot for money.” To better understand the gameplay mechanics, I suggest watching this video guide. All silliness aside, what’s genuinely intriguing about OBEY is the emphasis on strategy and psychology. If all goes according to plan, the game will require quite a bit of subterfuge. OBEY will head to Kickstarter this coming Monday, and you can sign up for the newsletter here.
Sumoman
Remember that cartoon, Super Duper Sumos? There’s no connection here, I just can’t believe that was ever a thing. Anyway, IGF China finalist Sumoman is about “a young Sumoman returning home from the sumo tournament [who] finds his fellow countrymen in a dramatic peril. An Evil Mage has enchanted the inhabitants of the island, including the magnificent Daughter of the Daimyo, putting them to the eternal sleep. Our clumsy yet fearless hero starts his journey across the stony islands, dark mountain caves, mysterious haunted mansions, deserted flotilla of merchant ships and many other scenic environments to reach the Daimyo’s castle. He will have to overcome the puzzling contraptions and threatening surroundings to face the Evil Mage.” The game features five environments, and 2-player Race and King of the Hill modes. Also, you eat sushi to regain health, and collect hourglasses that let you rewind time briefly. (No big deal.) You can find Sumoman on Steam Greenlight, and also on developer TequilaByte’s website.
That’s it for this week’s Screenshot Weekly. Be sure to come back next week to see more exclusive looks of the latest indie games in development! Let us know in the comments section what upcoming indie games you’d like to see featured in a future installment. As for any indie developers who would like to see their screenshots featured in an upcoming segment, feel free to send an email to IGM at [email protected] with the Subject Line: “Screenshot Weekly”. Or, if you’d like to be part of our Magazine’s Screenshot Monthly segment, include that in the email as well!
