Ex Vitro

[Quote58]

So I thought I'd make a topic for this WIP game because A) It takes so much inspiration from metroid, and B) it's pretty good so far.
The game is called Ex Vitro, and it's quite interesting. The game has you take the role of a nameless soldier who starts out on a strange planet where in you run, jump, and shoot as you uncover a story. It's only a demo at the moment, but it's fairly large.
The gfx (as well as the whole game) take many cues from super metroid. In the way you upgrade your beam, acquire missiles, move around, etc. The gfx are gorgeous in some places, and kinda terrible in others. It's got a great atmosphere, secrets, bosses, etc.
It's not too linear and aside from some annoying bits in the gameplay, it's looking really good.
My main gripe with this game is the control scheme. It uses the mouse to aim and shoot, and aswd to move. The controld don't fit the game style very well IMO, but once you get used to them, you can enjoy the game more.
So, here is a gameplay vid.
Ex Vitro Jungle Sequence
Some things have since been updated, such as the character now spin jumping. More animations have been added, and the demo is much larger.
That's about it, here's a link to the website so you can download it.
http://www.indiedb.com/games/ex-vitro
So try it out and say whether you think it's good, bad, has potential, etc.

[Parabox]

Looks pretty ok. The background and foreground should be more animated, since the entities are so animated. Not a fan of mouse-aiming in these type of games, but I guess it'll have to do.

[EchoJerichoX]

Ah I forgot about this! Looks amazing!

Glad to see work is still being done :)

[Quote58]

Just to be clear btw, none of this is mine.
Anyway, played through a bunch of the game and I see only two problems so far. The controls, and the lack of save stations. I mean, you find them from time to time, but they are mostly before new areas or bosses. I found them to be too far away however when I got through a large section of an area, then died to a small enemy because I was low on health and the controls were just so annoying for platforming.
I like the story line so far and it's great in terms of non linearity. Things like being at a seemingly dead end, getting a weapon, and realizing that you've seen doors that you can now open, way back in a different area. As well, things like accel charge type items hidden in tunnels, behind foliage, that sort of thing make it feel a lot like a metroid game. Since this is only a demo, I think that if/when it's finished, it'll be a really good game.