inkulinati

Screenshot Survey: Illustrative Works

Published: March 21, 2020 3:59 PM /

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It’s Saturday, and that means it’s time for another Screenshot Survey. Every week, we take a look at a few cool new games in the works by game developers tweeting with #ScreenshotSaturday. For even more games you might be interested in, check out this hashtag on Twitter.

This week we have an assortment of games, including two with illustrative styles from the days of old, as well as two pixel games with admittedly loose ties to this week's latest releases, Doom Eternal and Animal Crossing: New Horizons.

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Dwerve

With the recent release of Doom Eternal, many of us have demons on our mind. That sounds really disturbing, but look at this GIF of Dwerve as an example. You can't tell me you don't see a cacodemon attack our blue-haired protagonist. However, where this monster sets himself apart is the powerful beam unleashed from his eye like some sort of demented Superman. What also stood out about this GIF is the artistry. The sway of the tree in the wind and the subtle falling of the leaves are excellent touches that paint a pretty picture, were it not for the demon-monster thing.

Dwerve is an upcoming "tower defense dungeon crawler RPG," according to developer Half Human Games. This mishmash of genres is definitely a unique combination that holds much potential. You play as a cute dwarven fellow who must set down traps and turrets to repel the invading monsters. With a campaign full of quests and loot, you can fight off hordes of trolls and other beasts when Dwerve launches in 2020.

Two Strikes

Here's something of a deviation on our usual format. I ask you to close your eyes and let the sound of Two Strikes' soundtrack put you in a peaceful state of mind—and believe me, we need it in times like these. This particular tweet has a wonderful background to it that sets a nice stage for this ancient Japan-inspired fighter. One of my favorite parts of games set in the Asia of old is the traditional music. My day already feels better listening to this short clip of audio.

There's only so much I can say about a short clip of music, but Two Strikes offers much more. Two Strikes is the sequel to One Strike, which is a 2D pixelized fighting game by Retro Reactor. Two Strikes stands apart by having a traditional illustrative style, so its fighters look like they popped out of an ancient scroll. It's a strikingly beautiful game, and the chaotic fighting is juxtaposed by the nice background music and stages. Two Strikes doesn't seem to have a release date yet, but you can follow its progress on Twitter.

Inkulinati

Let's move from one old culture to another. From Japan we go to something much more European, and the weirdness factor has been increased substantially so. I don't even know where to begin with this creature, if you could even call it that. With the body of a snake, the legs of some sort of dinosaur, and a hand for a head, I am not quite sure how this thing even lives, let alone knows how to swing an axe. The old medieval illustrative style is the perfect bow on this puzzling and slightly disturbing Hybrid.

Inkulinati is a turn-based title created by Poland-based developer Yaza Games. In Inkulinati, you will command various bizarre animals and monsters through the power of drawing. An uncanny hand will appear on the screen and draw units before your very eyes, and then you'll send them off to their death. A creative feature in Inkulinati is that, as you fight your battles, the story of your triumphant victory (or failure) is written on the pages of the manuscript.

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dotAGE

At the beginning of this Screenshot Survey, I mentioned Doom Eternal. One other powerhouse of a game that came out recently was Animal Crossing: New Horizons. If you find building towns to your liking, dotAGE might be the game to scratch your itch once you're done building your perfect island paradise. The charm of dotAGE is in its minimalism. Sometimes, it's nice to have a wide, sweeping view of all you've built. I wonder what kind of bustling metropolis can be made in dotAGE?

dotAGE is a town builder by CKC Games. It features dozens of buildings and resources, but despite all the tools at your disposal, it seems like a game that'll do everything in its power to ruin your town. The apocalypse is coming, and you need to survive it by defending your village from the harsh elements, as well as natural disasters. dotAGE is slated to come out this year.

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Interested in any of these games? What's your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!