Game-related ramblings.

Tag: Approaching Infinity

An Updated Approaching Infinity Is Out Now On Steam Early Access

Well, this was a welcome surprise! Long time readers may remember that I quite liked the space exploration roguelike Approaching Infinity; I wrote about it shortly after its initial release, and then again once I’d tried out its v1.3 update. The biggest problem with the game was that it was stuck with niche wargame publisher Shrapnel Games, so it was only available direct from their site with a high price tag, greatly limiting the number of players it could reach. Well, no longer! Developer Ibology has re-acquired the rights to the game, and has brought an updated version to Steam Early Access. The new version now appears in full widescreen 1080p resolution, instead of the rather low original resolution, and also features a redesigned user interface, new quests and procedural generation algorithms, and many more additions planned during its stint in Early Access. Since the original version was already great, now is an excellent time to check out the game.

I haven’t had a chance to play the new version yet, but I certainly intend to and will be sure to share my thoughts on it here. If you’re curious, check my earlier posts about the original version, and visit the Steam page for more info. And stay tuned for more writing about the game here!

Back To Infinity: Approaching Infinity v1.3

If you haven’t already, you should read my earlier post about Approaching Infinity first. And, as always, you may click on images to view larger versions.

Longtime readers may remember that I quite liked the space-faring roguelike Approaching Infinity. I’d always planned to return to it, especially after it received some major updates, but kept getting distracted by other games instead. Now I have finally returned to it, prompted by a reader comment, so I can tell you what I think of the updates and give some more publicity to a great game that I fear may disappear into obscurity.

Roguelike Updates: Square Dancing On Stilts

Readers unfamiliar with roguelikes may wish to read my introduction to the genre, and possibly peruse some of my Roguelike Highlights posts. And maybe read about why we might want to start calling them deathcrawls instead. Also, as always, you can click on images to view larger versions.

I haven’t had as much time to play roguelikes as I’d (rogue) like, so this coverage of recent updates is far from comprehensive. But I have managed to follow the latest developments for Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup, Caves of Qud, and Approaching Infinity. Read on for some thoughts.

In Space, No One Can Hear Your Roguelike Updates

Readers unfamiliar with roguelikes may wish to read my introduction to the genre, and possibly peruse some of my Roguelike Highlights posts. Also, as always, you can click on images to view larger versions.

Well, it’s been another long delay between Roguelike Updates posts, largely because I haven’t had much time to play roguelikes recently. But I do want to highlight a couple of big updates. First, Approaching Infinity has been at version 1.1 for a while, with another update imminent. Second, Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup forever marches forward, now on version 0.16.1. I’ve had a chance to play both, and offer some quick thoughts below.

Roguelike Highlights: Approaching Infinity

Readers who are unfamiliar with roguelikes may wish to read my introduction to the genre, and perhaps peruse a few of my previous highlights. Also, as always, you can click on images to view bigger versions.

Longtime readers may remember that I posted about Approaching Infinity over a year ago, when it was just finishing up its Kickstarter campaign. The campaign was a success and the finished product is now available from Shrapnel Games (the Kickstarter campaign funded the majority of development, with the publishing deal with Shrapnel signed later). I intended to write about the game sooner because I was enjoying the various pre-release builds that were available during development, but once I started playing the official release I couldn’t stop. I had to see what the next few sectors would bring, always afraid I was missing something cool that I would want to write about. Now, having reached one of many possible endings, I can take a break to tell you about it.

First things first: Approaching Infinity ditches the traditional fantasy settings of most roguelikes and instead casts the player as a starship captain, exploring new sectors of space, landing on planets, finding equipment and trade goods, and doing business with various alien races, all in a universe that keeps going forever, without limits. And it’s great.

lim x→∞: Approaching Infinity Will Be A Space Exploration Roguelike

Readers unfamiliar with roguelikes may wish to read my introduction to the genre here, or my other posts about roguelikes here. Also, as always, you can click on screenshots for larger versions.

Regular readers will know that I’m quite fond of roguelikes. Given the genre’s roots of fantasy-themed dungeon crawling, however, it’s unusual to find roguelikes with science fiction settings. This may be why I’m drawn to examples like Xenocide and Caves of Qud, but even these still follow a single character exploring locations on foot. Approaching Infinity takes the roguelike to the stars, casting the player as a ship captain who both explores space in their ship and explores planets and shipwrecks with an away team. The game is on Kickstarter and has met its funding goal already, but there are three days left (at the time of writing) to raise more money for some stretch goals. If you’re interested, the Kickstarter page links to an alpha demo to try, and backers get an updated demo to play with. I’ve taken the public demo for a spin, and even in its unfinished alpha state I liked what I found.

Powered by WordPress & Theme by Anders Norén