Written by Tanner Banks, April 13, 2016, at 8:10 p.m.
If you haven’t noticed yet, I’m more hyped up for Indy PopCon than Macho Man Randy Savage after splitting a rail with Ultimate Warrior and Hulk Hogan. Part of it is because I get to fanboy over all the awesome voice actors, gamers, and general nerdy things that are involved with going to a convention.
But there is another reason. Game developers. If it wasn’t for independent game devs, I wouldn’t have a job here at Slickster. My Steam account would also be wayyyyyy smaller than it is now. Hell, my favorite series to write about is about indie crowdfunding campaigns for games. And that is where the two meet. This year’s Indy PopCon includes plenty of awesome game developers who are showcasing their talent and hard work at the convention.
Big Seat Studios is a two man team of students out of Greencastle, Indiana, who are currently working on the game Chicken Hero. This puzzle platforming game is a very solid demo as is. As the main protagonist, Chicken Phil, you have the task of getting back all your eggs that have been scattered about the land. The game has a charm to it that I can only describe as… happy. It feels like, while they were making the game, Justin and Dalton (the developers) had fun while making it. Made in the GameMaker engine this pixel platformer is made with one goal in mind. Have fun.
I don’t know what it is about this game that makes me so happy. Maybe it’s the way that any time that Phil jumps he looks into the sky with a little smile on his face. Maybe it’s the fact that I can get a Phil with an afro and gold chain on him. Maybe it’s the little legs the eggs have on them that look oh so adorable.
No matter how difficult certain portions of the map were (to be fair, I suck at platforming games) I never really got angry. The controls by the way are nice and light, which any chicken should be. But the gliding feature in the game is one of those things in a game that are just really satisfying to pull off. Every time I got a big glide it felt like a real accomplishment.
Now this game is by no means complicated, nor is it groundbreaking. But what it is, is solid. On a fundamental level it does everything well. There are no weak spots for a game like this. The design is solid. The sound is solid. The game play is solid. These two say that this is their first game together, and I think they’ve done a bang-up job so far.
The Kickstarter is really modest itself. They’re asking for $800 to help finish up the game and to help pay for the booth they’ve got at Indy PopCon. They’ve also promised the game to release for absolutely no cost what so ever. This team is trying to get exposure for their game, and for themselves as well. The great thing is that conventions are a great place to get exposure and feedback on what they can do better. This is a great example of bright young developers trying to improve their craft. The future of gaming looks bright, but you need to help them grow by supporting their Kickstarter.
If you want to check it out click here for the Kickstarter.
