The Xmas Bundle, and An Indie Bundle Round-Up
The Indie Royale have now launched The Xmas Bundle 2.0, containing six games at a current minimum price of £2.60.
Hairy Tales
Hairy Tales is a quirky action puzzle game by Arges Systems, released on Desura for Windows and Mac on 12th November, and on 25th October for iOS and Mac.
Preparing to Review: Hairy Tales
I was recently given a PC copy of Arges Systems’ Hairy Tales to review. The game is out for PC, but also for iPhone, iPad and the Mac. It’s also cheap.. only £2.99 on Desura, so go and get it 
Hairy Tales is a rather creative puzzle game featuring Lemming-like Hairys who need to be guided safely to the exit of each level.. dragging and turning tiles to allow them to collect mushrooms and avoid enemies. The graphics and animations are rather fun too, especially the little Hairy.
Procrastination..
Procrastination, you are no friend of mine.. I’ve been putting off a few posts due to holiday, illness, etc.. and the longer I put a post off, the less I feel like doing it!
I’ve actually completed a few console games.. RAGE, which has been lurking at 90% complete for a while, and then Enslaved.. which I finished rather quickly.. I adored this game and its DLC: Pigsy’s Perfect 10, and for the first time actually wished there was more DLC 
Hairy Tales Out Now
Hairy Tales, the debut puzzle game by Arges Systems, launched today on digital download service Desura for Windows and Mac. The game is also available for iPhone and iPad through the App Store, and for OSX via the Mac Store.. and is also on Steam Greenlight.
Incredipede
I spotted Incredipede last night on RPS: an indie puzzle by Colin Northway featuring Quozzle, an incredipede on a journey to rescue her sisters. Quozzle can grow new arms and legs as she goes, with muscle and leg positions determined at the start of the level.
A Virus Named TOM
A Virus Named TOM is an action puzzler by Misfits Attic, featuring the City of Tomorrow, filled with robot dogs and self-cleaning houses.. and a virus named TOM.
After using Dr X’s inventions to build the City of Tomorrow, MegaTech promptly fired him. However, Dr X had also invented TOM, a little virus which he now sets loose to destroy his creations! Spread the virus by rearranging circuits, but watch out for the anti-virus drones..
There are also two multiplayer modes, for up to four people: co-op, and competitive.
The game is due for release in March, but you can pre-order now, for $5.. this is 50% off the final price, and gets you access to the beta now, along with an opportunity to get your highscore on the final game’s baked-in leaderboard.
Also.. if you pre-order before Valentines, you can grab yourself an extra copy for a loved one!
Lucid
I wanted to make a quick meantion of Yeaboing‘s Lucid.. the developer has temporarily made the game available on a pay what you want, if you want, scheme, for PC or Mac, over on their website. Otherwise, it’s available on Steam.
Lucid is a match-all puzzle game, where you clear areas of coloured blocks by drawing a line through them with your mouse. The painted blocks then disappear, with remaining blocks filling in the gaps and more dropping in from the top.
The game is really easy to pick up, and clearing large areas feels quite satisfying.. but there is a trick..
You can only clear an area if your line passes through every block in that area. I thought I was being smart and setting myself up for a huge bonus, but instead trapped a large pile of blocks here!
Despite blocking myself in a bit, I was still able to clear other blocks, fill up the meter, and pass the level.
Lucid is a nice, casual game.. easy to play, lovely to look at, and rather relaxing. The music is rather soothing too.. that’s also available to download in OGG format for the time being, on Yeaboing’s page here.
The Indie Royale: The Valentine’s Bundle
Indie Royale’s The Valentine’s Bundle is now out, with five games, and bonus DLC! As usual the bundle is available on a pay what you want scheme, with a minimum price, although you can pay more to unlock the bonus, show your support, and knock down the price for others!
The games are: action fighting game Zeno Clash, by Ace Team, Hoard, a strategy game featuring dragons, by Big Sandwich Games Inc., adventure puzzle game Lume, by StateofPlay, and world premiere PC versions of retro RPG defense games Soulcaster and Soulcaster II, by MagicalTimeBean!
The bonus DLC in this bundle is for HOARD: Dynamite Roll!, which adds nine new maps and extra units, and Flame-Broiled SANDwich which adds a desert continent and remodelled buildings, units and terrain!
For those paying more than the current minimum, there’s also One Life Left’s music compilation, “Music To Play Games By Too“.
We looked at all the games in a bit more detail.. you can read it over here.
Cut The Rope
Cut The Rope is an iOS physics puzzler developed by ZeptoLab and published by Chillingo back in 2010 for both iOS and Android, and later for the iPad.
I’m very late to the party with Cut The Rope, I know.. but I finally got to play it after I saw on RockPaperShotgun that a browser version had appeared!
The object of the game is to feed candy to a cute green monster called “Om Nom”.. said candy being attached to ropes which you must cut so the candy falls into Om Nom’s waiting mouth. After the first few levels, this means cutting the right ropes in the right order so you can get the candy into his mouth.
As well as guiding the candy to Om Nom, there are stars to collect on each level, which can mean swinging the candy away from Om Nom.. going for the stars means thinking then cutting
If you drop the candy rather than getting it to Om Nom, he’ll be sad..
Later levels require more planning and timing, as you have to use bubbles and bellows to help move the candy, while avoiding spike traps, and other hazards. These include spiders.. good because they snare the candy and swing it into stars, but bad because they then start reeling in the candy too!
There’s also a Behind the Scenes section on the site for those wanting to know a bit more about HTML5 and the development of games such as this one!