Evening Reading

February 11, 2011 5:00 PM

1239

Not to keep endlessly jabbering about Stacking, but it's really impressed me in a lot of ways -- most of which weren't immediately obvious to me from the get-go. Having played through the main storyline once, I'm going back to find alternate puzzle solutions and collectibles -- and having a blast doing it.

It's probably one of the best new attempts to revitalize the spirit of old-school adventure games, and does so by taking traditional conventions and streamlining them for the better. Early adventure gaming often times forced the player to resort to picking up everything that wasn't nailed down (regardless of its apparent usefulness), and combine those items with each other in a way that was increasingly random, depending on how "stuck" you were on a puzzle.

Stacking doesn't eliminate this prospect altogether, but streamlines it so that you might not even recognize its old-school underpinnings. Instead of an inventory, the player uses the different dolls that he's stacked (and their abilities, sometimes even in tandem with each other) to solve the game's conundrums. There's still experimentation required in the puzzle-solving, but it feels much more elegant.

There are probably a lot of other tried-and-true gameplay conventions ripe for a face-lift. What do you think?

And here's some Friday news, in case you missed it:

Jeff Mattas

Filed Under

From The Chatty

Refresh Go To Thread

[deleted] 840884651

 reply
February 11, 2011 5:01 PM

[deleted]
- SilverSnake
  
   reply
  February 11, 2011 5:02 PM
  
  ffs, top 25 and one game per page?
  
  /sigh
  - [deleted] 840884651
    
     reply
    February 11, 2011 5:03 PM
    
    [deleted]
  - spiderfill
    
     reply
    February 11, 2011 5:05 PM
    
    25 views bitches
  - eugthinks
    
     reply
    February 11, 2011 5:08 PM
    
    I'm making a list as I read it so I can post here, but they made it harder by making it so you can't select text in the article (such as the title of the game). :P
    - [deleted] 840884651
      
       reply
      February 11, 2011 5:14 PM
      
      [deleted]
      - eugthinks
        
         reply
        February 11, 2011 5:17 PM
        
        I have 4000 and change, will it be enough??? D:
        
        [deleted] 840884651
        
         reply
        February 11, 2011 5:31 PM
        
        [deleted]
    - eugthinks
      
       reply
      February 11, 2011 5:16 PM
      
      LIST:
      
      25. I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MBIES 1N IT!!!1
      24. Miasma: Citizens of Free Thought
      23. Murky Horizon
      22. Abaddon: Retribution
      21. Monsters (Probably) Stole My Princess
      20. PLATFORMANCE: Castle Pain
      19. Commander - World 1
      18. B.U.T.T.O.N.
      17. Gravitron360
      16. Ancient Trader
      15. Aphelion - Episode 2: Wings of Omega
      14. Clover: A Curious Tale
      13. ?????? (Protect Me Knight)
      12. Curse of the Crescent Isle
      11. Flotilla
      10. Arkedo Series - 03 PIXEL!
      9. Astroman
      8. Soulcaster
      7. Score Rush
      6. Aban Hawkins & The 1000 SPIKES
      5. Cthulu Saves the World
      4. Epic Dungeon
      3. Treasure Treasure: Fortress Forage: Extra Edition
      2. Decimation X3
      1. Hypership Out of Control!
      - Fenring42
        
         reply
        February 11, 2011 5:19 PM
        
        I'm just going to highlight Flotilla. It's made by a shacker, is completely awesome, and I am ranked at 62nd worldwide. GO BUY IT.
      - [deleted] 840884651
        
         reply
        February 11, 2011 5:21 PM
        
        [deleted]
      - AgentPothead
        
         reply
        February 11, 2011 5:32 PM
        
        Awesome, I already have a bunch of these.
      - Majuju
        
         reply
        February 11, 2011 5:33 PM
        
        missing Miner Dig Deep!
        
        [deleted] 840884651
        
         reply
        February 11, 2011 5:36 PM
        
        [deleted]
        
        Ride-My-Rocket
        
         reply
        February 12, 2011 12:02 AM
        
        ^^^^
  - atom519
    
     reply
    February 11, 2011 5:21 PM
    
    Fucking hate that.
- [deleted] 465401080
  
   reply
  February 11, 2011 5:34 PM
  
  [deleted]
  - [deleted] 465401080
    
     reply
    February 11, 2011 5:52 PM
    
    [deleted]
- [deleted] 1281235931
  
   reply
  February 11, 2011 5:38 PM
  
  [deleted]