F4T C4T Posted January 18, 2011 Ridiculous title I know, but this is a nice little masochistic 8bit platformer on XBLIG with a La Mulana/Spelunky vibe going on. It also reminds me of Limbo in it's 'teach you by killing you' style of level design (that'll probably make some of you hate it already). The idea is you have 1000 lives to (presumably) complete the entire game and boy do you go through them quick at times! The goal of each level is simply to collect the key for the door then get there. It boils down to memorising the level at the end of the day but they surprise you in devious ways and have a bit of puzzle solving going on with pushable blocks and the like to keep you interested. So far none have stumped me too much but then again I'm not too far into it yet. They also include the option to skip stages as well (despite scolding you for it in the tutorial). It's dead cheap so if you like this kind of thing I recommend checking it out: http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/Product/Aban-Hawkins-the-1000-SPIKES/66acd000-77fe-1000-9115-d80258550780 I'm really liking these little games from 8bits Fanatics (previous one was Tempura of the Dead, another 8 bit platformer with some interesting mechanics. Although it didn't engage me as much as this one has). I hope they continue to put stuff like this out on XBLIG. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
twmac Posted January 24, 2011 This was an instant buy, I love those guys. Haven't played it yet but I loved Tempura of the Dead so I reckon I will have a blast with this. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
F4T C4T Posted January 25, 2011 Have you had a chance to play it yet twmac? I haven't had much time myself but I have managed to claw myself somewhere into the 2nd chapter. There are more moving things about now and I'm still being surprised by places that spikes can come from. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
twmac Posted January 28, 2011 I demo'd it at the gaming night I do on Thursdays and everyone took great delight in watching me die, over and over again. Really like it and agree that it is better than Tempura of the Dead (I did like that too). Need to get my fighting trousers on and try and beat more than a few screens. Thanks for the recommendation! If you liked that though you should check out stuff like Hypership out of Control! and You Will die. Short and sweet in their execution and cheap but fun for about half an hour. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
F4T C4T Posted February 2, 2011 Thanks for the recommendations, I'll try them out when I get a chance. I've got another couple of XBLIG trials lined up to try out as well but I really want to go back to Aban. I love the atmosphere. I've reached the 3rd chapter now. Also, due to a combination of a crappy monitor with broken speakers and laziness I've been playing it on a small SDTV which actually adds a lot to the visual aesthetic! Oh, and after a bit of searching on the internets I'm under the impression 8 bits fanatics is just one guy. Cool dude. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
