Gamer Tunnel - Idependent Games of the year
2007 Top 10 Games of the Year
2007 marks the sixth year of the Game Tunnel Independent Game of the Year awards. It's been along journey to get here and each year it seems Indie games are just a littlebetter known by the gaming public at large, which we view as tremendously goodnews.
The games themselves also seem to get a bit better each year, mixing uniquevisions with innovation to create experiences that speak to the heart of gamers.
Each of the games is a winner in its own right, an undiscovered gem just waitingto be found. So dim the lights and warm up your modem, as Game Tunnelpresents: The Top 10 Independent Games of 2007.
Number 10 - Kudos Rock Legend
| Developer:Positech Games | Players:1 |
| SystemRequirements: Windows 98+, 500MHzCPU, 256MB RAM | |
 Website |  Download |
Fran needs to go. Everyone can see it. At the tryout, her grooving guitarmade her an immediate 'must' for the band, but those were the early days: before the songs, before the gigs, back when we played anyvenue that would takeus and practiced in Jim's garage. To be fair, we're not a household nameyet, but we will be, we just need a little more oomph to take us over the hump.That means a new guitarist no matter what hardships we've gone through in thepast to build friendships. Everyone in the band agrees, except Fran.Poor brilliant Fran, whose guitar licks helped open our first doors.
Rock Legend is the follow-up toKudos, though the only similaritybetween the games is the interface. Rock Legend takes a completelydifferent approach to becoming a guitar hero as it places you in charge of aband. Putting together a band is a blast, and working to get hit singlesand sold-out shows is just the beginning. Players control every aspect ofthe band's life, from where they practice and what type of food they cater, towhat type of music they listen to. For everyone who has ever wanted to hitthe big time with their own band, Rock Legend is a must- play. It defines Indie.
Number 9 - Scavenger
| Developer:Pi Eye Games | Players:1 |
| SystemRequirements: Windows 2000+, 450 mhz, 64 mb RAM, DirectX8.1+ | |
| Website | Download |
I probably should have left the generator intact. With all the turrets inthis sector, knocking out the power seemed like a good idea. The darktunnel in front of me reeks of danger. My ship's lights reach into thedarkness, feeling through the black for signs of life. Slipping into a newroom, the air grows stale. I stare carefully at my surroundings. Thewalls in front of me seem to be organic. The truth strikes me just beforethe creature does. Suddenly those turrets don't seem quite so dangerous.
Scavenger is one of those games thatyou can tell is going to be great from the moment you start the first level. It's thekind of game that really shows what indie gaming can produce. It has all thefeeling (and difficulty!) of a great space shooter mixed with the creep andexplore-adventure of some of the best FPS games, taking the player fromcarefully moving down the hall to a frantic firefight in a matter of seconds.With multiple difficulty levels that give the player completely different gameplay experiences, Scavenger is brilliant fun that shouldn't be missed.
Number 8 - Galcon
| Developer:Imitation Pickles | Players:12 |
| SystemRequirements: Windows 98+ or Mac 10.3.9+ or Linux (32 bit), 1.0 ghz | |
| Website | Download |
I've spread the empire too thin. In the hopes of quickly conquering myfoes, I sent the fleet to every conquerable planet in the galaxy. Theshort-term gains of forming the largest empire composed of many small planets are starting tocrumble. Other forces in the galaxy spent their efforts on a few large worlds,and the production of those giants far outstripped our own. Inevitably,one by one, each of our planets was captured. In the horizon I can seehundreds of fighters. The end has come.
Galcon is a bare-bones strategy game with simple rules that you fully graspwithin minutes of playing. While its simple nature could lead you tothink that there is no depth of strategy, the opposite is true. Galconprovides complexity in its simplicity, challenging players to quickly considertheir resources, form ever-liquid strategy plans, and effectively engage incontinual tactical combat. Taking over new worlds, using the additionalresources to build more combat units, and then coordinating attacks to takeadvantage of the other player's actions in a galaxy full of combat creates avery exciting game of quick thought and strategy featuring massive battles withhundreds, and sometimes thousands of combat units, being destroyed in seconds.Galcon is brilliantly simple and wonderfully addictive tactical strategy game.
Number 7 - Mr. Robot
HEL-9000 has been acting a little strange. First there were those weirdjob requests and then the shutting down of vital programs and robots.Finally came the death of a crew member while in stasis. Though there aremany questions as to what is happening, one question has been answered,HEL-9000, the master computer running the ship, has become our enemy.Teaming up with other Robots who have been disconnected from the mainframe,we're setting out to save what is left of the colonists. Time is tickingand HEL has been alerted to our efforts. Our only hope is to fight our waythrough and break down the defense that HEL is creating.
Mr. Robot isa strange mix of a pseudo sokoban played isometricly and a super-cool RPG thatfeels futuristic and retro all at the same time. It's all glued together with animmediately engaging storyline, cool upgrades, unique items and innovativeweapons that make the typical RPG "grind" of combat and leveling feel anythingbut repetitive. The space theme is complemented by lots of sci-fi geekreferences that will surprise you and bring a smile to your face. The gamehas been called one of the best Indie games ever, and it's a title well-suitedto Mr. Robot.
Number 6 - DarkSide
| Developer:Pi Eye Games | Players:1 |
| SystemRequirements: Windows 2000+, 450 mhz, 64 mb RAM, DirectX8.1+ | |
| Website | Download |
Theplanet rotates beneath me. Though small, this outpost is valuable,valuable enough for at least one person to protect it. Today that someone is me.Rounding the planet on a simple patrol, I blast off the space debris and look forenemies. Two cruisers today is all the action I've seen. I wonder ifa larger attack is coming. Then on my next pass I see it-- high inthe air on long legs, walking across the planet's surface and flanked byabduction craft. My craft trembles as I open a full volley of laser fire.
Flying around spherical planets seems to be in style this year. From Mario Galaxyto Super Stardust HD, we've been offered some great planetary romps. Darkside,while a bit different in its approach, is no different in its quality.It's a spectacular game full of those qualities that make gaming great. Though itdoesn't have a deep story or some of the nuances that make some of the criticshappy, she's got it where it counts. The gameplay is simply fantastic,offering up fast-paced shooting action that is exciting, rewarding andrelentless. The graphics are amazingly good, belying the games 15mb size.The range of enemies and weapons complete the game as a tour de force that madeDarkSide a top 10 game of the year as well as our 2007 Action Game of the Year.
Number 5 - Knytt Stories
Walking through the cavern, I come to a series of water falls, each moremajestic and amazing than the last. The vegetation has taken on an alienappearance, rising in long twisting strands that seem to be topped withphosphorescent bulbs. Climbing up the walls and moving down a new corridorI find myself in peaceful underwater surroundings amidst a strangely constructedseries of tunnels and paths. The way opens with new vegetation marking yetanother change in my location. My surroundings show some signs of life,but a desolation begins to take hold. What are the machines doing to theworld?
Knytt Stories is as much art as it is agame. It's beauty in simplicity.Each area is carefully crafted so that it provides auniqueness that goes far beyond just looking and sounding different. Eacharea plays differently, taking on its own life and giving one the feeling oftruly visiting someplace far from anywhere you have ever been.Knytt Stories is something of apixel-perfect platforming nirvana, and though the accolades seem at odds withthe humble presentation, it's hard not to write a list of superlatives whendescribing the game. The expandability of allowing others to add their ownstories only serves to add to one of this year's most intriguing and enjoyableexperiences.
Number 4 - Immortal Defense
| Developer:RPG Creations (Paul Eres) | Players:1 |
| SystemRequirements: Windows 2000+, DirectX 8.0+, 128MB RAM, 1.0GHZ CPU, 32MBvideo card | |
| Website | Download |
It'sdifficult to say whether it has been pride or love that has saved me. Thatpart of me which is pride has taken a primary role in the defense, but withoutthe support of love (who refuses direct combat), it's power would simply nothave been strong enough to overcome the enemy. My fear has also been ofconsequence, once again stunning the enemy with an infusion of worry, while mycourage has pummeled them. Yet I feel something missing. My emotionsare powerful, but are they all that I am?
Like every other Tower Defense game, Immortal Defense is intensely addictive.Unlike any other Tower Defense game, Immortal Defense transcends to somethingmore. The game is built around a character who gives up their mortal stateto become a being of pure energy to save his family and world. Thestoryline covers the ground of standard sci-fi, but brings in deeper themesabout the true effects of one's actions and what it really means to be animmortal being, freed from the limitations of the physical body. Thedeeply philosophical approach can be felt throughout the game, with music andgraphics echoing the slowly revealed story. Deeply moody and satisfying,Immortal Defense mixes gameplay with art, creating a uniquely captivatingexperience that won it a place in our top 5 as well as the2007 Strategy Game of the Yearaward.
Number 3 - Venture Arctic
| Developer:Pocketwatch Games | Players:1 |
| SystemRequirements: Windows 98+, DirectX 8.0+, 2 ghz Processor, 512 mb RAM | |
| Website | Download |
Withthe ice frozen in the winter, and the arctic wolf hungry for food, he venturedforth. Slowly across the ice he crept until he reached the far shore.A new home to explore. New food. The land had become barren.Disease had taken many of the wolves after the food had become scarce.Determined not to become another carcass on the snow, the wolf pushed forward,looking carefully for any sign of life, hoping to find the unsuspectinganimal that could be the long-sought after meal, and the means of another day'ssurvival.
Venture Arctic is a learning experience, butnot because it tries to be. The game, where you control the impact ofthe seasons on the arctic animals, is about balance. Too many rabbitsleads to a barren landscape. Increasing the number of wolves to combat theproblem will quickly lead to no animals at all. The animals react to theworld around them as you paint the land with snow and the water with ice, andthen melt it all away. The Inuit-inspired art gives the whole game adistinctive look that matches the game's uniqueness. Venture Arctic, likethe world it portrays, is a treasure of beauty and wonder. It's anadventure into the unknown world around us that inspires and excites as playersenjoy each new discovery. There are a lot of games available, but few of themare much more than a simple pastime. Venture Arctic is a game that stands outfrom the pack as being not only meaningful, but also amazingly good. Thosequalities made it an easy pick as one of the Top 5 games of the year as well asour 2007 Sim game of the year.
Number 2 - Depths of Peril
| Developer:Soldak Entertainment, Inc. | Players:1 |
| SystemRequirements: Windows 98+, 128MB RAM, 1.2GHZ CPU | |
| Website | Download |
Depthsof Peril is a hard game to describe. The first sensation that you are playingsomething amazing and different comes when, instead of destroying the computer,you find yourself competing against it. As you try to recruit players toyour faction ("covenant") you quickly find that the computer AI is leading theother covenants, trying to complete the same quests and recruit the same peoplebefore you do. Racing, you must out-compete the computer to survive.However, you must also work to improve relations with the other factions totrade for weaponry and find the allies you will need to fight off some of thethreats to the city of Jorvik that you all call home.
Speaking of threats, the second sensation of how amazing the game is comes as yourealize the dynamic world around you. Delay taking out an enemy threatand that threat will grow, with some enemies of the group becoming leaders whowill recruit their own henchmen and grow further in power. Small uprisingscan become huge threats requiring covenants to work cooperatively to take downthe bosses and sub-bosses that were created by your delay.
Each moment of the game you must strategize what you will do next, ensuring thesafety of your city, racing to get the best recruits, and carefully working theintricate web of relations with other covenants, thus avoiding inter-covenantwars that can lead to disastrous results as you must take your eye off of therising threats outside the city to fight for survival. If that doesn'tget you excited to play the game, downloading it and playing it for a couple ofhours will. Depths of Peril is a spectacular game that is as engrossing as anytitle you'll play anywhere this year. It won our2007 Role-Playing gameof the year award and is our runner-up for Independent Game of the Year.
2007 Game of the Year - Aquaria
AsI enter the cavern, the fish swim by my side then change directions andswim away. The world around me beckons and repels me. Each of the many darkcaverns that lead away from here has its own story. Some of thatstory is darker than the caverns, filled with war and destruction. Otherparts are more sublime, echoing the dreams of civilizations long lost. Mypart in the story seems to be ever changing as I discover melody in the peacefulsounds of the waves and harmony in their angry thrashing on the shore.
Aquaria is perhaps the most well-known indie game in recent memory and it shouldbe. The underwater world painted on the screen is captivating andmesmerizing. The game world feels immense and will leave more than a few peoplescratching their head as it teases with information. It provides puzzles andchallenges that will test your abilities to reason and will occasionally leave youentirely unsure of what to do next. As the breakthrough moments ofunderstanding hit, the game becomes magical. The feeling of success mixedwith the wonderful fantasy playing out in front of you creates an experiencethat is as unique as every game wants to be. 
Aquaria is a masterful stroke of vision in its appearance, sound and play.It's a game that no one should miss. After walking away with our awardsfor best graphics andbest sound as well as the2007 Adventure game of the year award, we'rehappy to add one final jewel to Aquaria's crown, the 2007 Independent Game of the Year.
