All-Time Most Popular Games Tagged '3D' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/games/popular/alltime/3D/?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss ]]> All-Time Most Popular Games Tagged '3D' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/css/logo.jpg All-Time Most Popular Games Tagged '3D' on The Great Games Experiment http://www.greatgamesexperiment.com/games/popular/alltime/3D/?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss ]]> en-us Quake Rage through 32 single player levels and 6 deathmatch levels of sheer terror and fully immersive sound and lighting. Arm yourself against the cannibalistic Ogre, fiendish Vore and indestructible Schambler using letal nails, fierce Thunderbolts and abominable Rocket and Grenade Launchers.
]]> 26 Nov 2006 04:48:39 Super Mario Sunshine
Super Mario Sunshine is a 3-D platforming video game developed and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo GameCube. It was released in Japan on July 19, 2002, in North America on August 26, 2002, and in Europe on October 4, 2002. It is the first original traditional Mario platformer since Super Mario 64, six years earlier. It will be succeeded by Super Mario Galaxy for Wii.
-Wikipedia
Mario sets out for the prestigious tropical retreat Isle Delfino, for a well-deserved vacation with Princess Peach, Toadsworth, and other many colored Toads. Upon arrival, Mario finds that the once-pristine island has been vandalized with graffiti and toxic goop. As a result of this pollution, sun-shaped objects called Shine Sprites, the island's sources of power, have dispersed, and the island is covered in a perpetual shadow. Even worse, the culprit seen spreading the graffiti is disguised as Mario (he is later referred to as "Shadow Mario"); thus, Mario is promptly arrested as he steps off the plane. Shadow Mario is identified as a blue, paintlike version of Mario with red eyes and a large paintbrush he uses to paint graffiti, including his double-arch-like tilted "M" symbol (similar to the McDonald's one) with a vertical dash above each hump of the "M".

Mario is put on trial, found guilty, and ordered to clean up the mess and return the Shine Sprites. To help with the cleaning, Mario finds FLUDD, a powerful water cannon toted like a backpack ("FLUDD" stands for "Flash Liquidizer Ultra Dousing Device"). Mario sets out on his adventure, promising to clear his name and locate the real criminal while restoring tranquility and order to Isle Delfino.
-Wikipedia
]]> 24 Jan 2007 10:30:45 Thief 2: The Metal Age On the streets and rooftops of a darkened city, where the forces of a corrupt sheriff loom, it takes someone with a soft touch and even softer step to stay ahead of the law. For a master thief like Garrett, the choices are clear: profit or perish. Thief II: The Metal Age expands on the smash-hit "first-person sneaker", Thief: The Dark Project, demanding a whole new level of stealth, strategy, and skill to survive.

(from the Eidos Interactive Thief 2 page)
]]> 05 Dec 2006 07:02:01 Crash Bandicoot Crash Bandicoot is a platform game made by Naughty Dog in 1996 for the PlayStation, featuring the character by the same name. In it, Crash must fight Dr. Neo Cortex's henchmen in order to save Tawna, his beloved bandicoot girlfriend for revenge on Cortex.

Evil dr. Neo Cortex and his sidekick dr. Nitrus Brio have captured Crash and his girlfriend Tawna to experiment on them. Crash was rejected as a failiure, but Tawna is still at the clutches of evil scientist Cortex. It is up to Crash to rescue her.

In Crash' first appearance on the Playstation, you must run, jump and spin your way through this part 3D platform/part Side Scroller/part Mario 64 style adventure.
]]> 03 Mar 2007 02:03:56 Heretic Raven Software teamed up with Id Software for the second time in its creation of the hit fantasy action game Heretic. Based on a modified DooM engine, Heretic pioneered a revolutionary new inventory system for character item use that has become commonplace in the FPS genre. Id Software published the game under its flag and it was distributed by GT Interactive.

Players took the role of Corvus, an Elven hero whose race was nearly eliminated by a horde of evil monsters from another dimension. The first episode of Heretic was released as Shareware as a precursor to the full version of the game, Heretic: Shadow of the Serpent Riders.

Heretic won several awards for excellence, appeared in such notable publications as USA Today and Playboy, and opened many new doors in the computer gaming software industry for Raven Software and its team of developers. Heretic was Raven Software's most popular, highest acclaimed, biggest selling game to that point.

(from the Raven Software Heretic page)
]]> 13 Dec 2006 01:18:12 Homeworld Homeworld's epic tale begins in the far reaches of the universe. You were the benign lords of a peaceful society located in the center of a lush spiral galaxy. For as long as anyone could remember, no one challenged your peaceful existence. But then came the conquerors, invading with the sole purpose of overtaking your world. Billions died, and the survivors were relocated to a cold, lifeless planet on the edge of the galaxy. Hundreds of years later, all knowledge of your previous existence has been lost. Only vague myths remain, until the discovery of an ancient tablet buried within the ruins of a half-destroyed craft in the great-banded desert. This Guidestone reawakened the knowledge of your ancestry, and set your race on the path home - coordinates leading straight into the heart of the galaxy. Sixty years ago, construction began on the giant Mothership that will carry millions of your people into deep space. Construction is now complete. Your journey to the Homeworld begins here...
]]> 14 Dec 2006 12:19:35 Star Wars: Empire At War This game starts before A New Hope with the Rebels struggling to secure the Incom T-65 X-Wing Starfighter. You can fight the battle on many fronts, on land and in space. You can also bring heros into battle to add attributes to your characters. For example using Darth Vader adds points to your stormtroopers' fighting ability.
]]> 21 Nov 2006 11:19:15 HeXeN Raven Software's HeXen actually began development as an expansion for Heretic that was originally slated to hit the shelves as "Heretic II." However, the game design so expanded beyond the original game that this proposed the expansion of the Heretic universe took on a bold new identity of its own...HeXen: Beyond Heretic.

HeXen was developed over a period of 8 months, published by Id Software and distributed by GT Interactive in 1995. The game introduced the 3-D gaming world to the "hub system" of level progression, rotating polygonal brushes and multiple character classes that were available in both single player and multiplayer. All of this combined to help HeXen raise the bar for the first-person shooter genre. HeXen pushed Id Software's DooM engine to its absolute limits and surpassed Heretic as Raven Software's most popular, highly acclaimed title.

The success of HeXen prompted a mission pack, Deathkings of the Dark Citadel, and several ports to home console gaming systems including the Sega Saturn, Nintendo 64 and the Sony PlayStation. HeXen also became the first Raven Software game made available for the Macintosh.

(from the Raven Software Hexen page)
]]> 13 Dec 2006 01:40:26 Grim Fandango Something's rotten in the Land of Dead and you're being played for a sucker. Meet Manny Calavera, travel agent at the Department of Death. He sells luxury packages to souls on their four-year journey to eternal rest. But there's trouble in paradise. Help Manny untangle himself from a conspiracy that threatens his very salvation.
]]> 26 Nov 2006 12:17:40 Ultima Underworld: The Stygian Abyss You are the Avatar. Once again you return to Britannia. Upon your arrival, you witness the kidnapping of Baron Almric's daughter. Found guilty of the crime, you are thrown into the Great Stygian Abyss with the choice of either finding the girl or rotting in the dungeon. On your journey you have to get along with the many inhabitants of the dungeon, who are survivors of a failed colony, and eventually find out that there's much more to this kidnapping than meets the eye.

Ultima Underworld was the first RPG that had fluid first-person movement in a 3D environment, revolutionizing the genre. Unlike earlier first-person RPGs like Dungeon Master and Eye of the Beholder, the player can move in every direction and the graphics are updated continually. The dungeon also is not made entirely of corridors and rooms arranged in a rectangular fashion but has a lot of variety: slopes, stairs, bridges and more.

Underworld's combat system is action-oriented. The player has to draw his weapon and aim at his opponent in real time. The magic system is based on runes that can be found in the Abyss. If combined in the right order, they produce a magical effect. As the Abyss is populated by more than just monsters, there are also various dialogue sequences with NPCs, who one can also barter with.

(from the Moby Games UW page)
]]> 02 Dec 2006 01:23:49 Legend Of Mana "The world of Fa'Diel is a formless mass. It is up to you to create the world, using artifacts that are spread throughout the world. At the beginning of the game, the player must choose a female or male character, a starting weapon, and place to start. Once in the starting area, the player will be able to complete a small quest and find more artifacts. With that done, the new artifacts can be placed on the map to create new areas that have their own unique mini-quests. There is a total of 60 quests and artifacts to discover. The best way to think of all of the stories is to consider them the songs on a record. Individually, they are great; however, when combined they make up something much larger. The world of Fa'Diel will become what you make it in LEGEND OF MANA."-IGN
]]> 05 Feb 2007 03:49:51 Psychonauts Embark on a unique third person psychic adventure through the minds of misfits, monsters and madmen....

For years, the Psychonauts have deployed their psychically-armed operatives all over the world, but this time trouble is brewing in their own boot camp. A deranged scientist is abducting camp cadets for their brains. One student, a mysterious and powerful new arrival named Raz, stands alone against the lunatic. Raz must develop and unleash an arsenal of paranormal powers including his most powerful weapon of all: the ability to launch himself telepathically into the minds of others. Ultimately he must enter the psyche of his worst enemy and destroy his dark plans at their source while trying not to lose his sanity in the process.
]]> 25 Nov 2006 11:14:08 Betrayal at Krondor Based on Raymond E. Feist's Riftwar saga (and co-written with Feist himself) is Betrayal At Krondor, a new tale in the Riftwar universe. Exploration in a 3D world and turn-based combat complement the story, which is divided up into nine chapters. Each chapter has a goal to achieve before moving on to the next chapter, but how that goal is met is up to you.

(from the Moby Games Betrayal at Krondor page)
]]> 09 Dec 2006 09:11:56 SiN
You've made a religion out of fighting crime. Now you're going to make Elexis pay for her sins.

As freelance cop Colonel John R. Blade you're the head of the top private protection service in Freeport City, travelling through the embattled city to track down the mysterious source of the madness that is ravaging the streets.

With the help of the nerdy (and annoying) hacker and HardCorps operative J.C., your trail leads ever closer to the seductive but twisted scientist Elexis Sinclaire and her huge global corportation SiNTEK.

Your mission eventually takes you through over 20 diverse areas among six unique and exciting environments to explore and destroy, ranging from the inner bowels of the city to the serene underwater crevices of the deep ocean in this 1998 3D action shooter that was the basis of the current "SiN Episodes" series.

Additional Game Features:

  • Varied weapons include sniper rifle with scope, shotgun, spider mines, 357 Magnum, pulse cannon, and more.

  • Pioneering in it's time, SiN featured "Action-Based Outcomes." Players actions affected various outcomes within the level, and in some cases affecting later levels.

  • Some machinery can be operated, ATM's and computers can be logged into, walls break and traps await.

  • Mature Sexual Themes, Animated Violence, Animated Blood and Gore

  • 3D positional audio

  • Multiplayer deathmatch mode, including numerous maps additional to the campaign mode.

  • Reactive AI that don't just kill. Reacting to the situation, if they take too much damage they can duck out and go find a way to heal themselves. Choose stealth when required or the noise can attract your foes.

  • Quake II engine with enhancements.

  • 16-bit Color graphics in both hardware and software, colored lighting in both hardware and software, masked textures such as grates, catwalks, and chain-link fences, translucent textures such as windows and water surfaces. Advanced alpha blending methods for killer explosions and outstanding special effects.

  • Script based animation system - Allows each level to have completely unique scripted sequences, adding a level of realism and interactivity never before seen.

  • Full 360 degree environment mapped skies.

Developer: Ritual Entertainment
Publisher: Activision
released: November, 1998

System Requirements

Windows 95/98 or NT 4.0, Pentium 150 MHz processor (166 MHz or higher recommended), 32MB RAM, 100% Sound Blaster-compatible sound card, Joystick and mouse-supported (3-button mouse recommended), DirectX 5.x, GLSin supports some OpenGL 3D accelerator cards. Consult your hardware manufacturer to determine compatibility.


Trivia! The project budget for SiN was $2 million. 40 levels were originally created, 31 of which made it to the final game.
]]> 19 Dec 2006 03:05:11 Quest 64 -=Story=-

The game's story takes place in a typical fantasy world. The playable character is an apprentice mage named Brian (Aryon in the European version). Brian sets off to find his father who has left the monastery of the mages—the player learns later that his father is looking for a thief who has stolen the "Eletale Book". The player must also collect elemental amulets, which have been hoarded by powerful criminals and are integral in the defeat of the game's final boss.

The game's world is very colourful and open to exploration. This notwithstanding, the game is a very straightforward RPG. There are few surprises for the character and absolutely no cutscenes, puzzles, or mini-games.

-=Gameplay=-

The game is unique in that the experience system is not based upon a traditional "level-up" model. The character gains experience in the four classical elements of earth, wind, fire and water. As experience increases in each of these areas, the power and selection of spells the player can cast in each area grow.

The game's difficulty could be regarded as beginner-level for the genre. Of note, the game has no money system. Every item in the game is either found in a treasure chest or given to the player free of charge. Nor does the game deal harshly with the death of the player; when the player runs out of HP, the game will return him to the last inn at which he saved. He will have 1 HP, but that can be restored by saving inside that very inn. He will be allowed to retain all items, spells and experience he has gained.
]]> 06 Feb 2007 01:02:30 Battlezone Taking place in an alternate 1960's Battlezone features 2 campaigns, with the USA and the Soviet Union battling across the solar system over alien technology and bio-metal.

1998 Activision 3d remake of the arcade game of the same name, but remade into a hybrid of a tank sim, fps and rts. Also features multiplayer modes including death match and strat.

Features include

  • Innovative Command System menu that integrates troop and resource management for full control from within your vehicle.
  • 3-D topographical radar displays your base location, unit placement, field of vision and enemy position.
  • Nav Beacon Cameras that can be set up for for surveilance purposes or to stage attacks.
  • Scrap scavengers, Unit-building factories, Tanks, Solar arrays, gun towers, resource meters, numerous weaponry options that can be balanced according to your resources.

There are updated texture/asset files available, and due to continued fan devotion an alternate server.dat, as well as numerous community made maps.

Still a good looking and immersive game!
]]> 06 Dec 2006 08:19:51 Empire Earth
Essentially the 3D successor to designer Rick Goodman's previous successful title "Age of Empires", with a similar interface, great sounds effects, but with a much broader historic scope.

Forge the Greatest Empire the World Has Ever Seen!

Reign as a Greek conqueror, Roman emperor, medieval monarch, Renaissance prince, or benevolent despot. Select from 14 epochs in world history including the Bronze Age, the Renaissance, the Imperial Age, World War II and the Digital Age and establish an empire for the ages.

In Empire Earth, the military option is just one possible path to victory.

Additional Game Features:

  • Choose from 14 different epochs spanning 500,000 years of human history, from the Prehistoric Age and ending with the Nano Age, and even beyond by adding the Art of Conquest expansion.

  • Select from four epic single-player campaigns, and choose from 21 civilizations or create your own.

  • Campaign with legendary heroes of the past like Hannibal and Alexander the Great.

  • Deploy 30 types of aircraft, Spitfires, F-15s, B-2 bombers, and 40 types of ships - ships of the line, U-boats, aircraft carriers.

  • Visit natural catastrophes such as plague, famine and earthquakes on your adversaries.

  • Construct Wonders of the World that endow your civilization with special powers.

  • Fixed isometric view of the visually rich environments means no camera management required.

  • Major campaigns include Greek, English, German and Russian campaigns as well as a learning campaign.

  • Includes a robust campaign/scenario editor!

  • Designed by Rick Goodman, lead designer of Age of Empires, utilizing the Titan engine.

  • Full Multiplayer enabled for even greater challenge.


Developer: Stainless Steel Studios
Publisher: Sierra Entertainment
Released: November 13, 2001


Minimum System Requirements
Windows 98, Me, or 2000, Pentium II - 350 MHz or higher processor, 64 MB of RAM, 450 MB of hard disk space, DirectX 8, SVGA monitor supporting 1024 x 768 resolution, AGP (4 MB) or PCI (8 MB) 3D video card that supports 1024 x 768, 16 bit color resolution.
]]> 26 Jan 2007 09:23:17 AquaNox In the not too distant future a scarcity of resources leads to war that eventually escalates to nuclear holocaust. Nuclear winter then renders the surface of the earth uninhabitable, except for those rich enough to flee to refugee stations. Aqua is the world beneath the surface, the only remaining habitat fit for human habitation.

It's now the 27th century and we find that most of the life-sustaining technologies required for life in Aqua become monopolized by a single corporation, but there are plenty of rogues and pirates about. That's where we enter the fray as a mercenary who was first introduced in 1997's Archimedean Dynasty, the game that served as the foundation of the story of Aquanox. As the game progresses we find that there are other threats unleashed when ancient underwater caverns are unsealed.

Aquanox is part of a series of futuristic games based upon submarine combat simulation.

Additional Game Features:


  • Single-player campaign, along with several instant-action settings and multiplayer dogfight scenarios.

  • The player must progress through a linear series of missions, earning higher fees as they go in order to upgrade and arm.

  • GUI features an interface that displays a very detailed view of your surroundings.

  • Textures are colorful and extremely detailed, with care to many graphical touches, such as chips that flake off underwater hills hit by your projectile weapons.

  • Varied and well designed environments, allowing you to battle around underwater volcanoes and massive structures and be aided or hindered by swift currents and other environmental effects.

  • Joystick support as well as mouse/keyboard control.


Developer: Massive Development
Publisher: Fishtank Interactive
Released: November 30, 2001

System Requirements: Windows 95/98/ME/2000, 500 MHz Athlon or Pentium III processor, 128MB RAM, 16MB Direct3D compatible graphics card, DirectX 8 compatible sound card, 4X CD-ROM, 800MB HD space.
]]> 17 Dec 2006 08:57:23 Fade to Black Fade to Black is the sequel to Flashback, again letting the player control Conrad B., the hero from Flashback. Instead of the side view that Flashback had, Fade to Black features third person 3d gameplay, not unlike Tomb Raider (and in fact, this game predated Tomb Raider by a year).
]]> 06 Feb 2007 04:35:08 MindRover MindRover: The Europa Project was first released in 1999 by CogniToy.
]]> 04 Dec 2006 10:48:11 SkyRoads "You could play this game just for the amazing sound tracks, but the gameplay is also very catchy. Simply, you need to steer your space vehicle along the course, jumping and dodging blocks that will wipe you out when you're flying along at light-speed. Balancing acceleration and fuel usage becomes tricky when you've got a time limit to beat with hardly any fuel in the tank. Your reflexes and timing will be the difference between getting home safely and floating aimlessly through space."
-dosgamesarchive.com

This is truly an original. Very simple, very addictive.
]]> 19 Mar 2007 09:09:34 .kkrieger A really, really, really tiny first-person shooter, at least when it comes to download size, being under 100kB.

The game features a number of different textures, enemies and weapons.
]]> 04 Dec 2006 06:33:02 Transversion EX PLAYING THE GAME

On each screen your ship begins in the centre, and you must move and collect all the 80s items that are placed around the grid.

Most levels have holes which cannot be crossed, and must be moved around.

On the four edges of the grid there are moving laser cannons, which will attempt to destroy you with their photon shots. If one of them is level with your ship, either vertically or horizontally, they will open fire. Keep moving!

There is no ingame pause, but you may have a breather between levels, or before retrying a level you have failed.

If you complete all the levels, then you will be returned to the first, but the game speed will increase.

CONTROLS

On the title screen you can access the high-score boards using the cursor keys to move the tabs out from the sides of the screen, and to move up and down through the online scoreboard's four pages.

Also on the title screen, you may press "S" to sync the online board with the scores on my site.

PLEASE NOTE: Some firewalls may kick off or not allow you to post your scores - please make sure you have allowed the file access to the net connection. (you may have to ALT-TAB out of the game the first time you try to sync, in order to do this.)

In game the ship is controlled via any of the following:- Cursor keys, QAOP or Joypad/Joystick.

Spacebar or joystick fire button is used to start a game and also to retry a level, or move to the next level on collecting all the items on the screen.

Please read the readme.txt for more info on scoring, etc.
]]> 03 Feb 2007 06:37:28 Cholo Remake Welcome citizen. The information you are about to receive is classified and only available to the chosen few who pass the selection process.


Your skills with the RAT software are exceptional. Now it is time for you to put these skills to the test with the droids top side. The survival of the entire bunker is dependant upon your success.


This is no longer a game.

Use the Cholo archives to aid you in your task. You may find clues and information to help you in the city.

Good luck Jared.
]]> 07 Feb 2007 05:02:43 Impossaball Dare you face the corridors of death?

Avoid spikes, and spines and deadly cubes, while crushing all the cylinders contained in each level. When you have destroyed all the cylinders the exit will become open and you can cross the exit to the next corridor.

Score points for distance travelled, and cylinders crushed.

Watch your time, if it runs out then your game is over. More time can be acquired by pressing down the "Green Timer Disks", but beware: Once you touch them and take the prize, they will become "Red Disks of Death" and cannot be touched again.

Extra lives are awarded every 10,000 points.

The original Spectrum game contained eight corridors, who knows what challenging courses could have been built since then!

If you complete all the corridors, you will be returned to the first, but each time you loop around the level set, the time allowed will be reduced.

The top five scores are saved to disk... How high can you score? How far can you get?

Original game (c) John Phillips 1986, Music (c) Klaus Lunde, used with kind permission.
]]> 04 Feb 2007 11:14:42 Allegiance Allegiance, the multiplayer space-combat game from the minds of Microsoft Research, combines the challenges of tactical squadron-based combat, intense one-on-one space dogfights, and amazing graphical and sound effects into a space-action experience like nothing you've seen before.

Allegiance is an online multiplayer game featuring a mix of 3D space combat, and real-time strategy.
]]> 16 Dec 2006 12:55:54 BZFlag BZFlag is a free multiplayer multiplatform 3D tank battle game. The name stands for Battle Zone capture Flag.
]]> 03 Dec 2006 09:27:06 Blue Rabbit's Climate Chaos You are Blue Rabbit, and you are traveling to a small island chain to help the native chief find out what happened to his son. Walk around and explore to solve the puzzles.
]]> 29 Dec 2006 03:32:37 Wild Metal Wild Metal is a 3D strategic vehicular combat game set in a distant land, in which you command armed roving vehicles to disrupt dangerous automated military units that have overtaken the Tehric planetary system.
]]> 09 Dec 2006 08:41:38 DICE
]]> 28 Nov 2006 02:49:01 Aces High Over Verlor Island The airspace over Verlor Island is a hot spot for fantastic dogfights, and you're one of the pilots! Battle the computer or up to 7 other people online! Will you emerge from the fury of bullets and explosions as the best pilot in the sky?

Featuring detailed 3D environments, fast and easy online play, and an assortment of special moves and different ways to score, Aces High Over Verlor Island has something for everyone.

The final build features a tutorial mode, 3 single player modes, and online multiplayer for up to 8 players, so dust off your flight gloves and start practicing your maneuvers!
]]> 01 Jan 2007 04:47:06 N.O.M.A.D. The Game

Out in the vastness of space lies the heart of an Intergalactic Criminal Network, TALOS, a man-made asteroid slowly spinning through the void, spreading its evil through the Universe. At the head of this seemingly unstoppable force sits one man, the unspeakably vile Cyrus T. Gross.


A name spoken only in whispered voices, Gross is the embodiment of all that is criminal. Avoiding any attempt to curtail his ever spreading empire, he has crushed all opposition and seems invincible, ruling his depraved Zealots with a fist of iron and a heart of ice.

In a last ditch attempt, the rulers of the Free Worlds have called in the Nemesis organisation, a hardened cadre of humanoid and robotic freebooters who have assigned N.O.M.A.D. 471 (Nemesis Organisation Mobile Attack Droid) to penetrate Gross's heavily armed home world and destroy this vile despot once and for all.

Your mission is to guide N.O.M.A.D. through the four sections of Capital City towards Gross's inner sanctum.

You arrive at the spaceport and must then progress through the slums, into the city centre and penetrate the HQ; "Dun Dentin', before you reach his personal quarters for the final deadly confrontation.

Many dangers await you in all sections of Capital City. In true cowardly style, Gross has installed magnetrons, heat-seeking missiles,
and an infinity of equally deadly obstacles, all of which must be confronted and conquered.

N.O.M.A.D. 471 Specifications

Autonomous war-droid with high-intelligence, Infra-red visual receptors and high-frequency audio-receivers.
Fitted with anti-gravity pods and twin thrusters functional in both forward and backward directions and capable of great speeds with a high degree of manoeuvrability.

Armament

Titanium body shell ... Not totally impregnable. Two magnum 57 calibre blasters. The N.O.M.A.D. 471 series is as yet untested. This is his first and possibly deadliest mission. The chances of survival are slim ...

The freedom of the Universe is in your hands.

We salute you!
]]> 04 Feb 2007 04:07:40 Snapshot Adventures: Secret of bird island Let me get this out of the way: I consider myself at times a pretty "hard-core" video gamer. I mean, I'm not adverse to hacking and slashing Orcs in fantasy role-playing games, such as World of Warcraft. I can shoot down enemy aliens in Halo 2 and drop nukes on unsuspecting enemies in Supreme Commander. I'm tough, and I'm proud of it. So when my trusty Gamezebo editor asked me to review a "bird watching" game, you can imagine my initial reaction...

OK, so call me what you will, but after playing Snapshot Adventures: Secret of Bird Island, I'm not only sold on the concept, but completely hooked.

At the start of the game you find out your grandfather -- a famous bird photographer and naturalist who went missing six months ago -- left you a shoebox with your name on it. Inside you find a map of the U.S., his beloved camera and a half-empty field journal that alludes to a mystery (and uses your real name in the cryptic passage, since you typed it in when you started playing!). And so you decide to visit his old friends and colleagues, beginning in Pennsylvania, to find clues leading to his disappearance as well as learn the craft of nature photography in the process.

In fact, you're asked to snap photos of birds for magazine covers and your field journal, and receive advice along the way. For example, you'll get more points for your photos if they're close-up, unobstructed and centered shots, and if the bird is orientated well, such as looking at the camera or caught in the act of singing, eating, flying or preening.

Game-play works as follows. After you get your mission, such as take five photos of a Blue Jay in-flight or three photos with quality of at least 3 stars, you're presented with a landscape such as a forest, parks or shoreline (while you're on a moving boat). You can move the mouse side-to-side to see even more of the environment. Your mouse cursor is now a magnifier, so as you move it around to see subjects to photograph, you will see a larger view of the bird when your mouse is placed over top of it. Take the photo by pressing the left-mouse button. If you've earned the zoom lens you can use your mouse's middle-scroll wheel to zoom in closer; other tools you can unlock for completing missions include an infrared scope, bird seed (to get them to eat), bird identifier (which tells you what kind of bird it is), a "Flight Stimulator" plane (to make birds fly), camera auto-winder, and more.

Bonus points are awarded at the end of the level for finding other species (such as a Baltimore Oriole or red-winged blackbird) within a predetermined amount of time (and only if you have film left).

Developed in collaboration with experts at Cornell University, this game features authentic-looking birds and animations, and realistic birdsongs. You can unlock additional birdsongs as a reward for taking good photos.

The big payoff is seeing your photos at the end of each level. You must choose between two side-by-side photos and once you do, the points are revealed for both so it's almost like a mini-game to choose the best one (and see if the game agrees!). You can see your best work as a cover of a magazine and in your field journal (which you can view at any time from the main menu) or with the click of a mouse you can email a photo to a friend right from within the game.

As you travel throughout the U.S. to photograph new birds, you will receive clues and other information that will eventually unravel this grand mystery.

A wonderful addition to Snapshot Adventures: Secret of Bird Island is an unlockable Bird Creator mode. With this clever in-game tool, you can create any bird you like. You begin with a basic shape -- such as an owl, gull, loon or hummingbird - then begin to tweak the wingspan, body size, beak length, eye style, field marks and color, and so on. Then you can name your bird (mine was called the Toronto Tailfeather), add other info if you like, and then upload to the Net for other gamers to download and photograph. I also downloaded close to 200 other custom-made birds to photograph in various locations.

As fun and unique this game is, there are a few faults. For one, it's far too easy to unlock the Bird Creator mode, which only took about 30 minutes or so. It would be a better dangling carrot if it took longer to achieve this bonus. Secondly, the feedback doesn't always match your performance; in one instance, a magazine editor told me "An excellent collection of new photographs!" yet I failed the mission and had to start it over again.

Even with these minor shortcomings, Snapshot Adventures: Secret of Bird Island may be the most refreshingly fun casual game of 2007. Seriously, yes, a bird photography game. But before you turn your beak up in disbelief, download this iWin game and give it a spin.

Written by: Marc Saltzman/Gamezebo
]]> 24 May 2007 05:48:53 Counterclockwise Counterclockwise is a remake of 1983 Spectrum game "Knot in 3D". Your goal is to navigate a mass-trail propulsion craft through zero-G space and survive as long as you can. There are other crafts (chasers) around, trying to cut you off with their trails. Avoid crashing into trails and showoff some fancy flying and shooting skills for extra score.
]]> 02 Feb 2007 12:37:48 3D Worm It's the classic game "Snake" in 3D
]]> 13 Dec 2006 05:20:37 Mage Bros. Mage Bros is a 2 player 3D side scrolling game. The gameplay is fun and the graphics will bring you straight back to the Nintendo 64. Plus you can play with a friend at the same time.
]]> 09 Jan 2007 07:13:28 The digger The game is about a small creature only known as "the digger".
One night while he is sleeping three gigantic knights steals his crystals which he has spent a hard time to gather. They throw him into the ocean and then they scatter all of his crystal across six different islands.
Armed with only a pair of motorized shovels it is up to you to get them back!
]]> 30 Dec 2006 10:11:50 Prism NB: Currently seeking a publisher/funding to realise the full game.

Prism is an action adventure platform game featuring a character comprised of two contrasting software systems; a creative artificial intelligence and a restrictive algorithm. Roaming from level to level to neutralise viruses in a corrupted server network, Routine404 is able to take three principle forms: Biped Mode, Jet Mode and Pure Mode.

It is also possible for Routine404 to take the form of its enemies in later stages of the game after being subjected to enemy code. The game world takes place across 7 nodes of the server network. Each node is split into rooms called cells, and each node is joined by a vertical scrolling shoot-em up section where Routine404 is in Jet Mode throughout.

Some levels begin with 3D cut scene animation for storytelling purposes, and some actions such as opening doors or defeating end-of-level enemies trigger short 3D animated clips.

As the player progresses through the game, an increased effort is made to draw the player's attention to his/her interaction with the game. The purpose of which is to generate a perspective of self reference; one that encourages the player to question their role within the game, and the role of the game (and interactive media as a whole) in their life.

The climax of the game reveals that the enemy and hero are one and the same; both created for the purpose of storytelling by a force that remains elusive.

The reward for completion of the game is a generative level; one that is created dynamically at run time for the player to obtain a high score among a community of players.
]]> 09 Mar 2007 07:54:41 Soulhunter Soulhunter is an adventure game in 3d and it is being developed in DarkBasic Classic. The main character of the game is "Soulhunter" a lonely and tortured creature, who has lost his soul after years of slavery, despair and inprisonment. One day something miraculous happens and the creature begins his journey into the heart of the dark forest where a mysterious wish-granting spirit dwells, the only one who could possibly recover the creature's soul.

In his escape from the one that held him inprisoned the little creature managed to steal a magic sword that allows him to absorb souls from monsters, and use these souls to temporary stay alive.

This is one of those "platform-jumping/hack- and slash" games. The people that have tested it have said that it is like a mix of zelda, rayman and a nightmare before christmas. The game is still under development, I will hopefully finish it this(or next) year.
Recently Daz offered me to make music for this game and the samples he have made so far are sounding very good.


Developers:
Programming/graphics etc - Jarl Larsson
Music - DaZ Dicks / Kevin MacLeod
]]> 30 Dec 2006 11:15:38 Spring Spring (formerly known as TA Spring or Total Annihilation: Spring), is a full 3D open source RTS engine originally created by the Swedish Yankspankers, intended to bring the gameplay experience of Total Annihilation into three dimensions. The core game engine is released under the GPL License; however, the prepackaged mod that comes with the standard installation requires that one own a copy of TA to legally play it. There is, however, an official release which uses fully free content, and there are a number of mods, both in development and released, that are also completely free to use.

Spring is being developed by the Swedish Yankspankers and the Spring community. The initial goal was to have the game run the mods and 3rd party units from Total Annihilation. This goal is now mostly complete, and the project has moved on to including additional features. The game is mainly focused around multiplayer games over the Internet or a LAN connection. There are currently no single player campaigns or missions, although there is some basic support for this through Lua scripting. There are also many skirmish AIs under development, allowing for offline play or extra players in an online game. Two skirmish AIs ship in the game package.
]]> 06 Feb 2007 11:53:14 Block Mania This was my first attempt at full 3D computer game, this game was created using the Torque game engine, Maya and QuArK as part of my studies at JCU.

To complete this game the player must get from one end of the map to the other. Sounds easy but there are obstacles preventing an easy passage.

If the player can finish the stage the quickest they get placed on the Honer Board, by passing a stage within the required time more stages become available to the player.

The Water is the game boundary.
]]> 13 Apr 2007 01:07:32 Teaminator: Brew Isles
]]> 14 Aug 2007 03:36:36 Purge Jihad Purge Jihad is an online-only PC computer game. It is a hybrid First-Person-Shooter / Role-Playing-Game set in the near future accounting a war between the diametrically opposed forces of science-fiction (the Order) and fantasy (the Chosen). Technology versus magic. Science versus religion. It is a great divine war, where followers pray for intervention from the extraterrestrial deity Evod or the supernatural deity Mabus.

Completely FREE to play and download!
]]> 08 Dec 2006 10:04:35 3D Live Snooker 3D Live Snooker Game Online features full 3-D environment and perfect online game play. It supports Short Snooker(10 reds) and Full Snooker(15 reds) games. The balls roll just like real ones, and you can position your cue shot to hit at various places on the cue ball for different spins. The impressive internet lobby allows you to play & chat online with other players, watch snooker matches and earn 'snooker coins' by which you can order virtual goods or real games! We have 4 Elite Tournaments per day, monthly Snooker Skill Tournament and Online Snooker League, bonuses are delivered every day. There are plenty of events to keep snooker sharks busy!
]]> 25 Dec 2006 08:53:11 Robot Battle Arena Unlimited RBAU is a big ambitious project, and aims to be one of the most successful Game Maker Games yet. It RBAU, you get to customize and pilot your own personal robot, join one of the four massive teams, and battle it out over the internet for fame and money (Not real money) with which you can upgrade and customize your robot. It's still early in development, despite the fact that this project first began roughly three years ago.
]]> 13 Feb 2007 05:00:25 Zider Game Engine The Zider game engine is a 2D/3D hybrid game engine focusing on 2D side scrolling, and top down game play styles.

There is a game in the planning stages that will use the Zider engine called "LOTP: Heroes" (Title might change)
]]> 23 Jan 2007 12:38:39 stoned Stoned is a 3D simulation of curling.
Right now there are versions for Linux and Windows.
The MacOS version is in development right now.

It was the first curling simulation in 3D.
And (as of today) is the only one with network support.
]]> 26 Jan 2007 04:15:01 The Innominate Medieval environment, you need to defend the village and save the villagers from the Innominate by setting obstacles and traps and fighting them with different weapons 3rd or 1st person view Action-RPG style
]]> 06 Mar 2007 07:19:21 Metal Burger You play as Metal Burger, a burger who absolutely loves Heavy Metal music. Sadly, he has lost all ten of his favorite metal CD's, and they've been scattered all over the (unusually small) world he lives in. To make matters worse, he only has 3 minutes to get them back (for no apparent reason)! You'll need to make him run and jump his way through the world in order to retrieve the CD's with as much time and health left as possible.
]]> 29 Mar 2007 07:45:32 Tasty Treats Online Adventures
]]> 21 Aug 2007 08:14:56