The creators of the superb, minimalist Race the Solar (opens in new tab) have as soon as once more tasked us with pushing a high-speed ship to its limits, this time within the Star Fox-inspired Whisker Squadron: Survivor (opens in new tab). As an alternative of a race towards time, it is a shooter, with neon corridors stuffed with obstacles and laser-spitting enemies. It is a good time, and you may take it for a spin now by downloading the Steam Subsequent Fest demo.
Whisker Squadron: Survivor is a roguelite deal, the place you choose a feline pilot, ship, weapons and perks, after which head right into a sequence of more and more lethal corridors, utilizing scrap claimed from fallen foes to degree up by a sequence of randomised upgrades. When you fail, you need to begin over, however with a leg up because of the factors you earned on the earlier run, which allow you to buy new ships and perks in addition to unlocking totally different tabby pilots.
It is easy and streamlined, however that is actually an appetiser for a beefier sport, merely known as Whisker Squadron (opens in new tab). It is also a roguelite shooter, however in addition to the lethal corridors seen in Survivor, there are additionally free-roaming exploration zones, and alternatives to search out “loot and alternatives” when you’re dodging lasers and blasting bosses. It would not have a demo simply but, however each video games are anticipated to launch later this yr.
Once I picked up a Mini SNES a couple of years again, I rekindled my love of Star Fox, and whereas Whisker Squadron: Survivor’s demo would not fairly boast the identical quantity of persona and, with its roguelite construction, is doing its personal factor, the vibes are nonetheless comparable, and boosting my method down its corridors has been a pleasant technique to spend a morning.
Only one piece of recommendation: You will be tempted to make use of a controller, however keep on with the mouse and keyboard. The best way the reticle snaps again to the centre made the capturing a bit awkward after I used my Xbox One pad, however that does not occur whenever you’re utilizing the mouse to goal.
It is shaping as much as be one other glorious Subsequent Fest, and we have already been having a good time with Shadows of Doubt (opens in new tab), the procedural detective sandbox; nevertheless it seems to be like the sport everybody’s excited about is Darkish and Darker (opens in new tab), an FPS dungeon romp I would by no means heard of till yesterday. The height concurrent participant rely yesterday was over 100,000, which is wild. Subsequent Fest runs till Monday, so you’ve got nonetheless obtained loads of time to sift by the large choice of demos (opens in new tab).