And I think short games are working well for this series. But I have to admit that this was just one of the games in my GOG library that I’d vaguely heard of and knew was a walking simulator-type game. Rik: Well, I guess we normally talk about the game choice first, and it was my suggestion. Otherwise, the usual ***spoiler warnings*** now apply, should you read any further. We weren’t quite as fond of this one as the previous games we discussed, but it still has plenty to recommend it, and it’s reasonably short and digestible, so do check it out if it looks like it might be of interest. Here’s a short teaser trailer from the developers:
However, the basic setup is that you are Paul Prospero, a paranormal investigator who responds to a letter from a young boy, Ethan Carter, by travelling to Ethan’s home in Red Valley Creek, Wisconsin. Today’s game is The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, developed and published by The Astronauts in 2014.Īs with those other games in this discussion series, you’re probably best off not knowing too much about it before you start playing. Previously, Jo and I have talked about the FMV mystery Her Story and the 90s-themed exploration adventure Gone Home. They’re not traditional reviews, as such, and we go into some detail about the specifics of the story of each, and so they’re heavily flagged for spoilers.
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (Monolith Productions/Warner Bros.Today we’re continuing our series of discussions of more modern indie titles. Honorable Mentions: Child of Light (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft), Far Cry 4 (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft), D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die (Access Games/Microsoft), Bayonetta 2 (Platinum Games/Nintendo), Crypt of the Necrodancer (Brace Yourself Games) Honorable Mentions: Dragon Age: Inquisition (BioWare/Electronic Arts), Valiant Hearts: The Great War (Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft),Tales From The Borderlands: Episode 1 (Gearbox Software/Telltale Games), D4: Dark Dreams Don't Die (Access Games/Microsoft),Hatoful Boyfriend (Mediatonic/Devolver Digital) Best Audio: Kentucky Route Zero: Episode 3 (Cardboard Computer) Honorable Mentions: Never Alone (Upper One Games/E-Line Media), The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (The Astronauts), Transistor(Supergiant Games), Broken Age: Act 1 (Double Fine Productions), Destiny (Bungie/Activision) Best Narrative: Hohokum (Honeyslug and Sony Santa Monica/Sony)Ĭhild of Light (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft) Honorable Mentions: Bounden (Game Oven), Bravely Default (Silicon Studio and Square Enix/Nintendo and Square Enix), Desert Golfing(Blinkbat Games), Velocity 2X (FuturLab), Fantasy Life (Level-5/Nintendo) Best Visual Art: Honorable Mentions: Mario Kart 8 (Nintendo EAD Tokyo/Nintendo), Alien: Isolation (Creative Assembly/Sega), Destiny (Bungie/Activision),Monument Valley (Ustwo), Far Cry 4 (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft) Best Handheld/Mobile Game: Honorable Mentions: Dynamighty (CounterSpy), Hinterland Games (The Long Dark), 1337 & Senri (Leo's Fortune), MachineGames (Wolfenstein: The New Order), Hipster Whale (Crossy Road) Best Design:ĭragon Age: Inquisition (BioWare/Electronic Arts)Ĭaptain Toad: Treasure Tracker (Nintendo EAD Tokyo and 1-Up Studio/Nintendo) The Astronauts (The Vanishing of Ethan Carter) Honorable Mentions: Crypt of the Necrodancer (Brace Yourself Games), Extrasolar (Lazy 8 Studios), Elite: Dangerous (Frontier Developments), Elegy For A Dead World (Dejobaan Games), 80 Days (Inkle Studios) The Vanishing of Ethan Carter (The Astronauts)
and BANDAI NAMCO/Nintendo) Innovation Award: Honorable Mentions: Titanfall (Respawn/Electronic Arts) Valiant Hearts: The Great War (Ubisoft Montpellier/Ubisoft), Far Cry 4 (Ubisoft Montreal/Ubisoft), Dragon Age: Inquisition (BioWare/Electronic Arts), Super Smash Bros. Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft (Blizzard)Īlien: Isolation (Creative Assembly/Sega) Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (Monolith Productions/Warner Bros.
The full list of Game Developers Choice Awards nominees, including honorable mentions, is below. There will also be an awards show for indie games, and you can see all of the nominees for that event here. Winners will be announced Wednesday, March 4 at the Moscone Convention Center in San Francisco as part of the 2015 Game Developers Conference.