THIS MONTH
Some of the other things on our minds when we weren’t doing everything else
TRAILER
Grand Theft Auto VI bit.ly/pettycriminal
The chaos of that hasty unveiling was, in the end, rather apropos. Plastered with a watermark inviting viewers to buy Bitcoin, the clumsy leak that forced Rockstar’s hand felt in keeping with the homespun footage scattered throughout the teaser, many of them recreations of real-world viral clips (we hope Rockstar resists the low-dangling fruit when naming its inevitable TikTok equivalent). Fitting, too, for a trailer that seemed overcranked – the packed beach scenes convinced, the crowded skies less so, suggesting issues at Leonida air-traffic control. If scenes of revelry and excess heightened the Florida Man vibe, it’s a Florida woman in the driving seat: Lucia is the series’ first female protagonist proper, the presence of a male partner (sounding to these ears very much like Troy Baker) hinting at a presumably doomed romance.
VIDEO
Every Indie Game bit.ly/sadjob
OK, not every one. But comedian Alasdair Beckett-King has enough knowledge of (and affection for) videogames to poke good-natured fun at a specific kind of narrative adventure. It follows a man, whose job is “being sad”, as he gains powers from a breakup with his girlfriend, allowing him to travel through time (we’ll refrain from making the obvious joke about Braid: Anniversary Edition’s imminent release). From a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it opening gag to a ‘symbolic’ platforming sequence – complete with dodgy framerate – this might hit rather too close to home for a few game developers.
WEB GAME
Hakopalace bit.ly/hakopal
Playing this after p86’s feature on Llamasoft:The Jeff Minter Story, we wonder if we might be in the presence one of Minter’s closest successors. Nizakashii is similarly prolific, turning out new games (albeit browser-based rather than released on cassette for the VIC-20) at a remarkable pace. Their games likewise boast a singular aesthetic and a focus on fast-paced arcade-style action, with each new release seeing them adjusting and refining their particular formula. The latest presents 15 bosses, though you only need down six to clear the game, your route to the end determined by which door you choose between fights. As ever, the play space is cramped – this time you can dash from wall to wall or floor to ceiling in an instant as you dart about, dodging
