Shmups FTW!

There is nothing quite like a good shmup. And by good shmup, I mean a game that offers fast-paced action, unending waves of enemies, and so many bullets on screen that it makes your eyes hurt. Seriously. There are plenty of shmups out there. There are even plenty of really good ones.

Then, you have some really excellent shmups, although not nearly as many of those. Following those are the really good ones, the ones that can keep you playing for hours.

And then, you have the greats. Games that can have you playing for days and weeks. Games that will keep you coming back day after day, month after month, year after year. There aren't many of these. You have games from the past, like Galaga, that are classic hits that will keep you coming back for the rest of your life. Sometimes, however, you just can't get to an arcade, and even when you can, you are lucky to find a game you want to continually throw quarters into.

This brings me to games you can play either in your web-browser or install on your computer. Games like Warfare Forever bring plenty to the table when it comes to good shmups. It's something fun to do. Tonite, I had the pleasure of finding something fun, exciting, and altogether my idea of a great shmup: Death vs. Monstars. You can find it here: http://armorgames.com/play/3307/death-vs-monstars

I suggest you check it out.

Bubble Tanks Tower Defense

I love Tower Defenses. Ever since I player my first one in Warcraft 3, I have found them to be fun and exciting. I have played hundreds of them, and created dozens of my own. I love finding new tower defenses based on interesting concepts, from the Bloons TD franchise to Anti-TD, I like them all and find them to be for the most part enjoyable.

I found Bubble Tanks Tower Defense this past week on Addicting Games. I loved the Bubble Tanks franchise for its near open-ended gameplay, its interesting upgrade system, and its replayability factor. These things are present in BTTD as well, and they have not skimped in any of those things. The game is fun, as is any tower defense. It can be pretty hard. It also comes with an FML setting. FML is pretty much impossible. I have only been able to beat the easiest of levels on FML mode so far, but have only been playing for a couple of days. We shall give it a few more before I make any firm commitment to the FML setting.

That being said, the game is exceptionally balanced. It also has a pretty unique upgrade system. It upgrades towers similarly to the way the tanks upgraded in the Bubble Tanks games, but it also allows the player to make Mega Towers and Mega Mega Towers if you play on the main website. The game also has a bunch of extra content available on the main site as well.

All-in-all, the game is a great change from the standard fare of tower defenses. I hope they continue to make these types of games in addition to their normal games.

Oh devious little people

Sometimes, I wonder just who it is that comes up with the ideas behinds some of these Facebook games. There are some that are fun. There are some that are not-so-fun. There are some that hook you for a couple of weeks and then fade away. There are some that having you thinking "Wtf?"

And then there are a few, a very select, limited few, that are fun, replayable, and ever-so-addicting. It's these games that I want to know who has that first tiny little inspiration. Games like Mousehunt or EggBreaker. These games have this tiny little smidgen of "Oh my god, this is fun. Let's just keep going." in them. And they have you hooked. They don't have the flashiest graphics, although their graphics are pretty good, and they have spent enough time on them to give them the polish they need to be part of the "in" crowd. They have great gameplay. And they have HUGE communities of players willing to help each other and share what they know.

And lastly, I want to know why there aren't more games out there like these. Why aren't more people developing fun, little past times that keep you hooked weeks, months, and years after starting. Games that take little time, and little effort. Games that are fun and exciting, yet simple enough for anyone to understand and play. I demand more of these gems, and so should you.