Favorite Games Of The Week
Today’s featured games selection is pretty arbitrary. As a matter of fact, one could argue that lists are always arbitrary, no matter how allegedly random the items may be: if a human being is involved in the process, items are always picked following some kind of criterion, which may or may not be conscious. Therefore, allow me to rephrase and let’s see what my subconscious may have in store.
Swords and Sandals 3 was picked out of sheer curiosity, I suppose. There is a whole “Gladiator” or “Spartacus” vibe to this game: you choose your own gladiator and fight an undefined group of slaves/gladiators not unlike yourself, until you feel lucky enough to challenge a higher-level fighter. However, “choose” maybe too lax a term: you actually build your fighter. You define your avatar’s height, weight, skin color and hair style, among others, and buy clothes and weapons for him according to your resources. Fights consist in each player taking turns at attacking or taking a defensive stand, which implies the need for a certain strategy in order to win. Something radically different from the usual: just pressing all buttons at the same time, hoping to hit some kind of combo.
Click to play Swords and Sandals 3
Atlantis 2009 was inevitably picked for looking similar to anime series Macross (a personal favorite). Graphics are great, you can switch among different weapons and upgrade them, and if you run out of ammo in the middle of a fight, you can always go back to your space station for some more. The real challenge of the game, in my opinion, is mastering the controls, since both mouse (for aiming and shooting) and keyboard (for movement) come into play. In this case, having a laptop may turn out to be a great disadvantage.
Pong 2 was probably chosen as homage to its predecessor, videogame pioneer Pong. The game has four different levels, with three levels of difficulty, but even the normal/easy one is pretty challenging. The bar is controlled by your mouse, making it extra sensitive – and extra fast, which may take a little time getting used to.
After taking a look at my picks, I realized that in an honest effort to produce a random list, I had come up with a definite pattern: variety. One action game, one shooting game and one classic game. What was I missing? Something completely different.
Rag-doll Goalie is one of the most unorthodox, utterly fun games I have ever played. As the name suggests, you control a goalkeeper, who happens to be a rag-doll. That means that you have to literally throw the goalie from one side to the other hoping to connect with the ball and prevent your rivals from scoring. Timing is a tricky thing and therein lies the real challenge; however, once you get the hang of it, you can see how many times in a row you can stop the row.
So, perhaps variety is not the only pattern: after all, these are four very different AND very fun games.
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