DoDonPachi Resurrection
By zippedyzipzang
iPad, iPod via the App Store (also available on PS3, Xbox 360) - Cave
Back in the 80’s and early 90’s my backward little hometown of Southend-on-Sea boasted a host of amusement arcades filled to the gills with all kinds of new, shiny, flashy video games. People from all around would come to see the latest in cutting edge video game technology and experience gaming the like of which wouldn’t be seen in your average home for years to come. When I saw Double Dragon in one of these arcades in 1987 it blew my little mind, the graphics were so crisp and colourful, everything was beautifully animated and the sprites were huge. It put to shame anything my trusty Commodore 64 could produce. It really was a treat to go to the arcades and it seemed that every week something new and game-changing would be released. Something that would push a genre forward, take it in a new direction completely or branch off and create its own genre. It really was an exciting time to be growing up.
Pony Club Races
By BillGameBase
PC (opens in a browser)
There are ten levels to play against the clock in this Lego inspired one button (space) horse jumping game. Each level gets slightly harder with more or bigger jumps. Once you have selected your rider at the beginning of the game using the mouse you can then navigate and play the game using just the space bar.
Timing is key. However, if you miss time your jump and land on a fence or don't even leave the ground you will be able to continue without any penalty (except losing some seconds on the clock) and try the jump again. If you complete the course within the time you can press space to try the next level. If you don't succeed, press space to retry it.
Play it online here: http://www.horsegames.net/games/2034/pony-club-race.html
Limbo (12A)
By zippedyzipzang
PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 - Playdead
The people at
Apple Industrial Design are a clever bunch. Through the thin,
shiny, clean-lined design of their devices, year on year they
have people clamouring to buy, at a premium, an incremental
improvement over what they released just a few short months
before. What’s even more remarkable is how they convince the
masses to buy what is essentially a larger version of an iPod,
instead of more practical and powerful laptops or
notebooks. [editor:
read on... all will become clear]
Need For Speed: The Run - Re-Mapping/Controller In-Game Options
By BillGameBase
Title: Need For Speed: The Run (EA)
Tested On: XBox 360.
Full Re-mapping: Buttons can be mapped to other buttons.
Button Layout Options:
Default layout:
Left Stick (Left & Right) = Steer
Right Stick (All Directions) = Look Around Car
Accelerate = RT
Brake = LT
Handbrake = X
Nitrous = A
Gear Up = Y
Gear Down = B
Change View = RB
Look Back = LB
Checkpoint Reset = Back
Button functions can be swapped with each other as well as the d-pad buttons. Buttons cannot be mapped to either thumbstick. The left tumbstick functions can be swapped with those on the right thumbstick.
...
Mario with Muscles
By One Switch"Advancer Technologies' USB Biofeedback Game Controller harnesses the power of electromyography to allow players to directly control video games with their muscles."
Fahr'n fahr'n fahr'n auf der Autobahn
By One Switch
"Drivey" (free
PC demo and screen saver) from Mark PurseyDrivey is a proof of concept demo, but it is gorgeous and a pleasure. It reflects a stylised version of driving, and aims to replicate the ease of driving when you get into a comfortable head-space and environment.
It achieves this with auto-steering and cruise-control, which I think is a unique and brilliant accessibility design feature. If you let go of your controls, the car will drive itself. You can choose when to overtake, speed up or slow down or go off-road. You can switch off the traffic if you wish and even the colision detection. You can drive using two switches alone for LEFT and RIGHT.
Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary - Re-Mapping/Controller In-Game Options
By BillGameBase
Title: Halo: Combat Evolved Anniversary.
Tested On: XBox 360.
Full Re-mapping: No.
Button Layout Options: 9 options available (layouts shown in video below).
Stick Layout Options: 4 options available: Default (left stick = aim/look and right stick = move), Southpaw, Legacy and Southpaw Legacy (layouts shown in video below).
Stick Sensitivity Options: Combined horizontal and vertical sensitivity with 10 different levels of sensitivity to choose from.
Look type: Normal and inverted are available.
Alt Controller v0.6 - Demonstrating custom windows
By Still Shakey
Hi everyone,
Here's a quick review to demonstrate the new version (v0.6) of Alt Controller, a free Open Source program for adapting computer inputs, such as mouse movements and key presses, in order to make computer programs more accessible. And play games!
The main new features
are:
- Ability to draw screen regions on top of game windows
- Ability to design custom windows with mappable buttons, "stay
on top" and translucency
- Three new profiles to demonstrate custom
windows
Groove Coaster
By zippedyzipzang
iPod, iPad, iPhone- TAITO Corporation
The relative ease and lack of expense of creating an application for Apple’s handheld devices has opened up the world of programming and self-publication to the masses, creating a thriving indie scene and some would say keeping the handheld gaming market alive. How many times have you seen a business man/lady on the train, the type that wouldn’t dream of owning a Nintendo DS, happily playing Angry Birds for the entire journey?
Greedy Bankers (iOS)
By One Switch
Eurogamer Indie Games Arcade finalist Greedy Bankers vs The World (iPad) has just received its first update, which aims to make the game more accessible to colour-blind players.
The update adds symbols that can be optionally added to the coloured gems in the game to make them visually distinguishable without the need for colour vision. "Because the gameplay of Greedy Bankers is largely based on colour, there were some obvious difficulties for colour-blind players. I thought it was unfair that people should be unable to enjoy the game properly, especially over an issue that was so easy to fix," said the developer Alistair Aitcheson.
Alistair also cited the charity Special Effect [us!] as an inspiration for the change, having met them at the Eurogamer Expo and approached them for advice. "I'm still looking for feedback on the updates, so that I can improve these accessibility elements. Hopefully with each update I'll be able to improve them based on players' experiences."
