Steam Greenlight is awash with repetition, here are some exceptions

Steam Greenlight is opening the way for small-time game devs to get their work out there on Steam. It’s a great concept, and it’s awfully fair of Valve to put these decisions into the player’s hands. Upon my first browse of Steam Greenlight, I must say I was met with an unfortunate mass of survival horrors, zombie games, old-school rehashes and the next level of “innovation”. It was crap. The disappointment in my sights led me to search out the best, most genuinely innovative or just fun-looking games I could find, and here’s my list.

 

CONTRAST

Contrast is a puzzling, platforming adventure game in a somewhat surreal 1920s style. You play a woman whose main concern is aiding a little girl, Didi, in unveiling the secrets of her dark family. The gameplay looks pretty unique, as it switches between 3D and 2D puzzle solving/platforming as you move around both in the real world, and as a shadow. For more information, check out the trailer below. You can vote for Contrast here, and while you’re at it, check out Compulsion Games’ Twitter and Facebook accounts for the game.

 

FORGE

I’ve been watching Forge for a while, ever since its initial announcement a few months back. It’s a really promising looking game, it’s like they took some awesome elements from a few different game genres (MOBA, MMORPG, FPS) and mashed it all together into something that looks competitive and fun. In an interview with CTO/COO of Dark Vale Games, Tim Alvis, I was told a little about the balance of Forge, and it really sounds like they’re putting every effort into making the progession in this game very MOBA-esque. In League of Legends, as you gain levels, you don’t really get that much more powerful, but you’re filtered into games with only players of your level. In Forge, as you level up you essentially just build towards the playstyle that you want to use, mostly involving certain skills. To vote for Forge on Steam Greenlight, click here. For more information, you can check out Forge‘s very own website.

 

 

Regrettably, those are the only two games currently up on Steam Greenlight that really stood out to me as something new, something special. Here are two honourary mentions of games that may be the same thing all over again, but look great nonetheless.

 

BLACK MESA: SOURCE

Black Mesa: Source is something close to a lot of Half-Life fans’ hearts. Unlike Half-Life: Source, which is Half-Life on the Source engine, but with the same old graphics, audio etc., Black Mesa: Source is basically Half-Life with the Source engine and all the trimmings. It’s the mod of all mods, and will be sure to satisfy the Gordan Freeman in us all. You can click here for more information, or here to vote.

 

 

KENSHI

This game looks seriously fun, it seems like the kind of game that you could throw weeks of your life at. Kenshi is an RTS/RPG mashup, where you can wander the continent, fight, trade, start your own business, start your own town, the limits really seem to be sky high. Your character is also placed at the same level as your enemies, no hero-dynamics here. For more information, or to vote for Kenshi on Steam Greenlight, click here!

 

Well, that’s it for my taste of Steam Greenlight this week! I do hope you check out those games, they need all the love and support they can get.