Doctor Who: Worlds In Time

Yeah, that's right, a Doctor Who MMO. It was announced back in February, I believe, to surprisingly little fanfare. I mean, sure, it's going to be a browser game but it's still a Doctor Who MMO. Why am I only hearing about this now?

To anyone wilting at the words 'browser game', don't let it get you down. With the help of HTML5, platforms like Unity and, recently, the Unreal Engine's entry into the world of Flash, browser games are becoming a force to be reckoned with. Plus, this thing's being developed by Three Rings, the people behind Puzzle Pirates and the charming and stupendously Zelda-esque Spiral Knights. Based on the brief video at the official web site featuring the 11'th Doctor repairing the Tardis, it appears we'll be in for a 2d, cartoonish take on the world but it doesn't look half bad, considering. The Doctor's limbs animate individually and he even seems to have a decent range of facial expressions. If this means that I can invite my friends who may not have the latest in gaming hardware to go time traveling with me, I'm all for it.

What I'm wondering isn't whether the game will be fun, but how they're going to handle turning the Doctor's adventures into an MMO. A large part of the universe's appeal has to do with the Doctor himself and we can't all play as him, can we? Well, maybe we can. I can envision all sorts of Moffat-like twiddling that could be used to excuse this. But even if they can handwave millions of Doctors running around, how can they justify the fact that none of us could ever even pretend to be as inhumanly clever and moral as he is? This was the big problem I had with the Doctor Who adventures games - they had me playing as the Doctor and I'm no Doctor. My fumbling about, trying to figure out things that he'd have picked up on in half a second ruined the character for me. I felt like an imposter.

Could we all somehow play as companions to an NPC Doctor who's somehow been scattered into millions of alternate selves? This, I'd have an easier time buying but it would still be awkward. If we're going to be the ones actively playing, the Doctor's going to have to take a back seat, and who wants to see, let alone be a part of, a Doctor Who story that's mostly about a companion, even if that companion is us? The approach that would work the best would probably be to let us all play Time Lords but that would wreck havoc with the canon as it currently stands.

Don't get me wrong, I'm still psyched about this. I'm confident in the ability of Three Rings to create fun games with low system requirements that look great and if a Doctor Who game is going to happen, I think they're among the few that might be able to do it right. I'm just very curious to see how they're going to handle it.

The Humble Introversion Bundle

The Humble Bundle has always been a spectacular deal whenever one appears. It's back yet again, and what has me really excited is that this time, they'll throw in a couple of my personal favorites, Aquaria and Crayon Physics Deluxe, if you exceed the average price paid (currently 3.78).

For those few who might not be aware, the Humble Bundle packages are limited-time game bundles, usually of high quality independent titles, that are sold at a personalized price. Basically, you look at the games on offer, decide what they're worth to you, and pay whatever you like for the entire set. Lately, they've also started throwing in a few extra titles if you pay more than the average price. The games are all DRM-free, and you can even choose how you want them to distribute the money you use for your purchase between the developers, the Humble Bundle team, the Electronic Frontier Foundation and the Child's Play charity organization. You have roughly twelve days to jump on this one, so don't wait too long. Four or five bucks is a steal for any of these awesome games, let alone all six.

Shantae: Risky's Revenge

If you're a fan, as I am, of open-world side scrolling platformers like many of those in the Castlevania and Metroid series', you might want to take a look at Shantae: Risky's Revenge. Since I don't own a DS, its released slipped by me in October of last year, but I recently discovered the iOS port while poking around the app store and have been having a blast.

Shantae is an adventurous half genie with a distinctly nineties attitude and a tendency to solve her problems by embarking on epic journeys. Her friends include a sexy falconer, a stern-faced sparring partner, an eccentric treasure-hunting uncle, and a zombie girlfriend who keeps trying to convince her that puppies are delicious.

Risky Boots is a pirate in the fine tradition of Saturday morning cartoon villains whose list of misdeeds includes stealing stuff in big, conspicuous heists in front of lots of people, saying mean things, and employing a gang of faceless, bumbling minions whose primary function seems to be serving as targets for her insults.

These two conduct their capers in a colorful cartoon world full of floating platforms, quirky bad guys, helpful townies and ancient temples that, for all that they're ostensibly forbidden, seem to have been built for the sole purpose of being a blast to explore. Shantae is as agile and fun to control as any of the best platform mascots from the SNES or Genesis. She can run, jump, climb, duck, crawl, swim and even dance backward to avoid sudden attacks. Her primary weapon is her huge ponytail, which she uses as a whip, but she can also learn to fling fireballs, summon storm clouds, wield a morning star, and perform magical dances that will turn her into a monkey, elephant, or mermaid. This all comes spread with a thick layer of 16 bit flavor in everything from the character design to the art style to the sound effects and music. In a fun little twist, it utilizes parallax scrolling in game play. Layers that look like background scenery are actually separate play fields that Shantae can move to at specific points around the map. Can't figure out how to jump over that huge chasm? Maybe you don't have to. Hop into the background layer and see if you can find a way around it.

All of these are familiar elements to any veteran gamer but they're solidly executed with style and charm. The characters and environments have a Sonic-like appeal in their banter and presentation that evokes memories of childhood Saturday mornings spent losing oneself in an upbeat fantasy after a week of homework and teachers. There aren't enough of this kind of game anymore and as an example of the form, Shantae is as classy as they come. It's also inexpensive, at 11.99 for the DSiWare version and 4.99 for iPhone/iPod/iPad. On iOS, you can even go ahead and grab it for free, start a game, then pay to unlock the full version with your save file intact if you like it.