#action side-scrollers

[shrimpmandan]

CONSULTING TUMBLR. Do you guys have any recommendations for niche/indie Metroidvanias, 2D Action Side-Scrollers, and/or RPGs/JRPGs? If you answer with "Hollow Knight!!!" or "Dead Cells!!!" you owe me $1000

[hardcore-gaming-101]

Shake Kids

This article is part of our Japanese Obscurities feature. We put out a whole book about them, which is available as both a full color hardcover and a Kindle ebook from Amazon! If you’d like to see more of these features, please check out the book and if you enjoyed it, leave a five star review so we can do a follow up with even more interesting, offbeat, or historically important Japanese games!

In this 2.5 side-scrolling platformer from Digital Kids, a Japanese company that was later consumed by Ubisoft, you play as one of two children, each wielding an enormous cocktail shaker. You can toss it a short distance to attack enemies, which will stun them and eventually defeat them after several hits. But it’s much more effective to use a shake attack, which will suck all of them up into the shaker and turn the whole screen into a dance floor. Here, you use the trigger buttons to perform various shaking maneuvers, damaging the enemies until they’re knocked into the afterlife.

Shake more...

[brutalgamer]

MARVEL Cosmic Invasion debuts the Sensational She-Hulk and Rocket Raccoon

Adding to its already impressive cast is MARVEL Cosmic Invasion, with announcements of She-Hulk and Rocket Raccoon.

[prototype-n]

Halloween themed Prototype N side game released!

We've released a new game! It's a Prototype N side game called "Diamond in the Grave". It's halloween themed and a 6-level + 1 boss level campaign featuring tons of unique encounters and it's only $4.99! Happy Halloween!!

[wario-land]

TERMINATOR 2D: NO FATE

By Reef Entertainment, and Bitmap Bureau

Coming soon, September 5th. Releasing on all platforms

[pierrelucstl]

We just released The Glitch Fairy (A game I've been working on for 7 years) on itch.io!

Now it's available there AND on Steam! Epic is next 😎

If you're a fan of action platformers like Megaman, give it a try! Plus, if you like lore, you're in for a treat.

[satoshi-mochida]

Umbraclaw releases today digitally for the PS4/5, Xbox One/Series, Switch and Steam.

[papiplays]

If there was 1 game that defined my love for space shooters it was definitely Gradius III.

What shooters have you played?

Gradius III, released for the SNES in 1991, is a classic side-scrolling shoot 'em up game that tests players' reflexes and strategic skills. As the pilot of the Vic Viper spacecraft, players must navigate through waves of enemy ships and obstacles, upgrading their weapons and abilities along the way to face off against powerful bosses. With its challenging gameplay, stunning visuals, & iconic power-up system, Gradius III remains a beloved title in the shoot 'em up genre, offering intense action & nostalgia for fans of retro gaming.

[swiftsmash]

Team up for side-scrolling action as you brawl through various levels and adversaries in this nostalgic retro 16-bit beat 'em up fighting video game! 🎮

[sw4mpr07]

Vigil: The Longest Night

In a grim dark Victorian town beset by blighted and demonic monstrosities, lies corruption and mysteries waiting for a hero to uncover them and save this vistage of humanity. Vigil, as a game, does many things very well; From the gameplay loop, the traversal, the combat, and the world building are all incredible. However, the thing Vigil does best is narrate a story filled with dread and terror. I debated starting this post with a careful comparison to other similar games, but that doesn't do this game justice.

Set in a small Victorian town, the players take on the role of Leila, a freshly ordered vigilant returning to her hometown to see her sister. Upon arriving to the outskirts of town we are met by monstrous creatures and an enigmatic spirit telling us that we now begin the trial of the Vigilant. We must save our town from a blight that is spawning evil creatures and threatening the lives of people we know and love. Once you begin to unravel the mysteries, disappearances, and accusations, we find a seemingly endless journey to resolve the madness and restore humanity to our beloved town.

I don't want to post any real deep story spoilers so I'll just mention a couple of big plot points. People are missing, including our sister, the doctor, a young girl, and a soldier. We find out from townsfolk that certain people were seen certain places, we arrive, find evidence, and find out where they were going when they left. We find journal entries from the missing, info from townsfolk, and the journal of a doctor that was working to fight off the cause of the blight.

Now to get into the game itself. Trappings of sidescrolling rpg, but a heavy focus on skilled combat. You'll have a jump, dodge, parry, melee, and ranged attack. Simple, right? Until some enemies can take you down in less than 5 hits, and not utilizing dodge and parry mechanics will make fights take up to 10 minutes. The platforming sections through a quite tedious area to traverse will be almost as frustrating as fighting enemies at times. For a 2d game to have many sections that are "indoors versus outdoors" having sections hidden behind press up to enter doors. While the gameplay can be downright frustrating, finding that hidden clue, climbing to the top of a canopy forest, and finally taking a boss down; those are the moments where the reward is worth the effort.

The world that is built here is beautifully constructed and rendered through high quality visuals, deep lore, and addictive gameplay. So dark and dismal but so beautifully constructed that you want to save and restore it. The endgame was a bit lackluster for me, and the final boss left a lot to be desired, IMHO. There is promised DLC that will be covered shortly, so I think the issues I had will be tied up there.

Final Thoughts

There was a controversy surrounding the game that caused it to be delisted for for a number of months. The Taiwanese Studio that created the game, Glass Heart Studio, was caught off guard when their Chinese publisher, Neon Doctrine, delisted the game from Steam and the Switch E-Shop. This led to a months-long litigation that ended in favor of Glass Heart receiving full rights to publish the game themselves. The story behind the game and DLC being heavily based in lore derived from Taiwanese revolutionary lore heavily upset the Chinese publisher (as Taiwan won its independence from China in said revolution), to the point that the publisher delisted the game. Still waiting for Xbox and PlayStation ports, as well as the promised DLC, but the game you can buy currently is updated and fully playable.

I compare this game A LOT to a 2D BloodBorne. It's got the same creepy vibe. Souls-like combat and enemies make the challenge feel just as real as a FromSoft game. I also compare it to the obvious suspects for MetroidVania style games, Castlevania Symphony Of the Night, Circle The Moon, Aria of Sorrow, and similar GBA\DS igavanias. I also think it compares to some games that have been released since its initial release in 2020, games like Blasphemous 2, Afterimage, Awaken: Astral Blade, Skelethrone, and The Last Faith.

IMO a MUST PLAY for fans of MetroidVanias, and 2D Dark Souls-esque experiences.

You can purchase the game on Steam

Or Switch

[hardcore-gaming-101]

Pitfall II: The Lost Caverns (Sega)

In 1985, Sega licensed Pitfall II from Activision and turned it into an arcade game – one of, if not the first, console games to receive this treatment. Sega didn’t just make a prettier port of the original, though. They added things from the original Pitfall!, plus a lot of original touches of their own. It’s like they took the best of the first two games, threw them into a blender, then added their own unique touches. The end result was Pitfall II: The Lost Caverns.

Read more...

[brutalgamer]

Mondo Gecko and Mona Lisa join the cast of TMNT: Shredder's Revenge

One of the best beat ’em ups in years, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder’s Revenge has some new guest stars.

[prototype-n]

Prototype N Demo v4.5 has crossed 1000 downloads!

🥳 Prototype N's latest demo has reached a combined 1k total of downloads on both itch io and SAGExpo! Enjoy this wonderful illustration by @rabbitlegs to celebrate! Thank you all for playing!

You can find the game here at arrietty.itch.io/prototype-n

[germality]

ChainStaff is a 2D side-scrolling action-platformer where your weapon is also your shield and grapple hook. Demo available now on PC.