BitSummit day one: J-Hip-Hop swordfests and a Seoul-crushing platformer

This 12 months’s BitSummit is now underway, with the primary day lately ending in Japan.

BitSummit is Japan’s main unbiased video games expo, that includes a complete host of recent and upcoming indie video games from all around the world.

This 12 months’s occasion, BitSummit Drift, takes place at its regular venue of the Miyako Messe in Kyoto, and I’m right here overlaying it for all three days.

Greater than 100 video games can be found to play this 12 months, and whereas it’s not potential to play all of them, I’m making it my mission to get via as many as I can and ship hands-on impressions.

A few of these video games might not be too acquainted to you now, however – as was the case final 12 months – most of them will finally get a western launch and can see extra protection sooner or later.

Contemplate this text, then, a take a look at a few of the indie video games folks shall be speaking about later this 12 months and subsequent, and a few of the extra fascinating lately launched titles you could have missed.

Sonokuni

This was the primary sport I performed on the day and it actually woke me up.

The sport is developed by Don Yasa Crew, a Japanese hip-hop group dipping its toes in sport improvement for the primary time.

I spoke to Don Sagawa, the chief of the crew, who advised me that Hotline Miami was an enormous inspiration, and the sport that made him need to get into sport improvement within the first place.

The inspiration is obvious, as a result of the sport is performed from a top-down perspective and has related visuals to Hotline Miami, nevertheless it’s actually its personal beast too.

The participant can die with one hit however they’re armed with the power to decelerate time, block blue projectiles and use their sword to knock again crimson projectiles.

Every of the enemy sorts is dealt with differently, and if one kills you, you may watch for a second and also you’ll be proven a fast diagram explaining which methods do and don’t work.

The problem is available in the best way every small room is filled with a wide range of these enemies which means you need to continually pay attention to everybody and plan out which order to defeat them.

You’ll die loads, however that’s the purpose of the sport, and each time you do you reply virtually immediately at first of the final room, which means you may fireplace out a bunch of various methods till you discover the one which works.

When all comes collectively every room looks like its personal motion film, with you placing collectively expertly choreographed sequences of dodges, blocks, deflections and time slowing trickery. It makes you are feeling cool as hell.

Naturally, given who’s behind it, The soundtrack is excellent. I requested Don Sagawa if it was going to get its personal standalone launch as a result of I’d fortunately hearken to it. He stated it was one thing he hoped to do. For now although, I’m extra eager to get my fingers on the complete sport.

Holo X Break

Hololive is a VTuber company which manages over 90 digital YouTuber personas.

It additionally has its personal indie sport publishing label, Holo Indies, of which 9 of its video games can be found to play at BitSummit.

I opted for Holo X Break, a easy however enjoyable sufficient beat ‘em up within the model of Remaining Battle and the like.

Gamers select from a choice of Hololive VTubers, every with their very own particular talents, and combat via every degree, rescuing companion characters who then combat alongside them.

It’s actually nothing life-changing, however I had a enjoyable sufficient time with it anyway, and on condition that it’s already on Steam and is totally free, you would possibly as effectively give it a go.

Oh, and the X within the title is outwardly silent, as a result of why not.

The Spirit of the Samurai

This can be a visually beautiful aspect scrolling motion sport, during which you play as a samurai and finally a kodama (spirit) and a cat.

The part we performed opened with a quick stage the place the samurai fights quite a few different sword-wielding enemies in a densely foggy setting.

It then moved onto a much bigger stage set inside and round a big home, which has been infested by large bug-like creatures and undead swordsmen.

The goal right here is to search out one of many survivors within the basement and assist them put together to depart safely.

The sport relies on stop-motion animation, so whereas the display screen scrolls easily the character motions are intentionally much less fluid, making for a novel impact whereas taking part in.

Sadly, after we met the survivor, she despatched us out to search out an object for her, and given the brief playtime we weren’t truly capable of finding the merchandise.

This, mixed with the marginally clunky controls (which can be deliberate to extend problem), made for a sport that I didn’t click on with instantly, however nonetheless left me wanting to attempt extra by the point the session had ended.

Voidwrought

Developed by Swedish studio Powersnake, Voidwrought is a Metroidvania that won’t win all of the prizes for originality, however performs solidly regardless.

The protagonist begins with a primary slash assault and fights skeletons and different grotesque creatures, giving a vibe much like the GBA and DS Castlevania video games (or, day I say it, Silksong).

By the point the demo had ended I had acquired two extra abilities – the power to cost assaults and break purple limitations because of this, and the power to fireplace out a tendril which attaches to grapple factors.

Nothing right here is remarkably distinctive, however what was on supply was nonetheless satisfying to play and I’m curious to see which powers get added afterward within the sport.

The music can also be completely large, getting significantly epic and grandiose through the tense boss fights we performed.

The demo for Voidwrought is accessible on Steam now, so don’t simply take my phrase for it, attempt it out.

Arranger: A Function-Puzzling Journey

Nintendo returns to BitSummit this 12 months with its Indie World sales space, the place visitors can queue as much as get quarter-hour taking part in a brand new or upcoming Change indie sport of their alternative, and be gifted with a towel with ‘Indie World’ written on hiragana after they depart.

There’s no means I used to be going all the best way to Kyoto and never leaving with some Nintendo tat, so I opted for Arranger, which is out subsequent week. If you happen to aren’t acquainted with it, it’s an fascinating journey sport the place the complete world is about on sliding rows and columns.

The opening part teaches you the mechanics by way of a wide range of puzzles, the primary sequence of which contain transferring round swords by sliding the grid round. By transferring a sword into an enemy they’ll die and clear a path.

Issues get extra sophisticated when massive stone toes are added to the equation: these block swords, so you need to determine tips on how to slide the stage round to navigate the sword previous the toes and attain the enemy.

After this part you get to discover the world a bit extra and converse to a few of the NPCs, who’ve totally different sliding-related duties so that you can do.

Sadly, as a result of this demo was solely in Japanese, making these missions impenetrable, that is the place my time with Arranger ended. I favored what I performed nevertheless it has the potential to be a type of video games that offers you an enormous headache earlier than too lengthy.

Regardless, you’d higher consider I spent the final 5 minutes simply wandering round till my time ran out so I may declare a type of towels.

Dashing Beat X: Return of Brawl Brothers

The Dashing Beat video games have been a trilogy of 16-bit beat ‘em ups launched by Jaleco within the ‘90s, recognized within the west as Rival Turf, Brawl Brothers and The Peace Keepers.

Dashing Beat X brings the sequence again after a 30-year absence, with a model new fourth sport.

Somewhat than sticking with sprite-based pixel artwork for this fourth sport, Dashing Beat X switches to polygonal graphics, utilizing a cel-shaded impact to offer it a comic book ebook model.

So far as beat ‘em ups go this felt strong sufficient, and the 4 characters who have been out there within the demo all felt totally different sufficient to justify a number of playthroughs of the complete sport (although M Bison lookalike Douglas Bild, who was often known as Oozie Nelson within the west, is clearly the very best).

As a sucker for a retro revival I’m simply glad to see this sport exist, and the very fact it’s shaping as much as be a enjoyable sufficient beat ‘em up is a reduction.

Till then, all three video games within the unique trilogy can be found within the SNES library on Nintendo Change on-line, so that you’ve obtained loads of time to brush up on the sequence earlier than this fourth sport is out.

Hordes of Starvation

Hordes of Starvation is the most recent sport from Polish studio Hyperstrange, which beforehand labored on wild west FPS Blood West.

You play as Mirah, who has to defend her homeland from a continually oncoming horde of monsters. The sport’s a third-person rouge-lite enviornment slasher the place you’re given a sequence of missions and need to survive so long as you may.

I used to be capable of play via two missions earlier than my session ended. The primary was easy – kill 100 enemies with out dying. There are well being potions positioned across the stage however they aren’t highlighted till you’re near demise, which means you may’t simply run round storing all of them up at first of the mission.

The second mission was a defence process, the place Mirah has to face round somebody trapped in a set of shares, and defeat enemies till they’re finally freed. Cue extra hacking and slashing.

Naturally, this being a rogue-lite, the thought is that you simply’ll preserve dying, returning to the hub, shopping for upgrades to make you progressively stronger and tinkering together with your ever-varied loadout till you discover the setup that lastly will get you thru to the top of the sport. Which was a little bit of an ask for a 20-minute demo, to be truthful.

This was a enjoyable time, I’m curious to see the way it continues to maintain the participant’s curiosity 10 hours or so down the highway.

Umamusume Fairly Derby: Celebration Sprint

Umamusume Fairly Derby is a manga, anime and online game franchise a couple of world the place well-known race horses are reincarnated as ‘horse ladies’, that are principally idol ladies with huge ears and a tail. Look, I’ve obtained neigh thought.

Celebration Sprint is a multi-event social gathering sport. I first performed it at BitSummit final 12 months, the place solely one in all its occasions was out there – Hurtling Hurdles, a brilliantly barmy four-player race via metropolis streets.

This time developer Cygames is again with one other occasion, Dodgeball Demolition, which is a four-player dodgeball sport the place the goal is clearly to take out your opponents.

A few balls roll across the enviornment and you need to seize them and chuck them on the different gamers. You possibly can both faucet the button to throw usually, or cost your throw for a extra highly effective one.

As is the dodgeball means, you may both get out of the best way when a ball is thrown at you, or attempt to hit the button at simply the precise time to catch it, powering up your return shot.

You may as well cost up a brilliant energy by holding down a shoulder button. That is very dangerous as a result of it could actually take a very long time and you’ll’t transfer whilst you do it, so you need to hope the opposite gamers get busy preventing with one another. If you happen to pull it off, although, you may carry out a screen-filling blast.

It’s a enjoyable sufficient mode however the race occasion I performed final 12 months was a lot better. The total sport, containing each modes plus Gourmand Gauntlet and Blazing Baskets, shall be launched on August 30 worldwide.

Goodbye Seoul

It’s one thing of a pleasant bookend that the primary and final video games I performed on day 1 of BitSummit are the 2 I loved essentially the most.

Goodbye Seoul is a pre-apocalyptic sport set in South Korea’s capital metropolis, and follows a younger girl known as Rion as she wanders round a Seoul that has been ransacked and ravaged from pillar to publish.

The world is about to be hit by an asteroid in six months, and the folks of Seoul have triggered carnage because of this, turning the town into a whole wasteland.

Rion, who was already on a low ebb earlier than this occurs, decides to chop to the chase and heads to a bridge to take her personal life, however earlier than she does she finds herself tasked with a supply that might end result within the protected evacuation of a few of humankind, together with herself.

You solely want to look at the trailer above to see why Goodbye Seoul is so particular. From the pseudo-pixel paintings to the great music to the unimaginable artwork design, I fell in love with this one a bit.

The gameplay is the type of physics-based 2.5D puzzle platformer stuff you could have seen earlier than within the likes of Limbo and Somerville, and none of it was significantly taxing (although clearly I solely performed the primary 20 minutes or so), however the environment makes up a big a part of the expertise right here.

That’s all for our day one protection from BitSummit.

We’ll have extra hands-on impressions after day two and day three, together with an extended article on our Recreation of the Present as soon as it’s all wrapped up.