User blog:Random-storykeeper/Pixel Love recap 2015

The year 2015 was a very interesting year for Pixel Love. Ever since their former web developer Tom left Nitrome, Pixel Love started hitting a major bump in the road. We'd get Pixel Love games featured on really off days like Thursday, and sometimes go weeks without Pixel Love. Finally, it all ended on October 21, 2015. Although Nitrome has somewhat expressed that they'd like to go back to Pixel Love, I hope that all will be well when they get a new web developer. But for now, let's take a moment to look back on the Pixel Love games we have seen featured in 2015.

I am going to start with one little exception, however. Back in 2014, I had to leave for winter vacation, and Nitrome ended up featuring one additional Pixel Love game on the Monday I was gone, that being Resort Empire. I won't put this into a section, but I will make general comments on it. Resort Empire had great music, art and atmosphere. I quite enjoyed letting the game run in the background while I did homework and then came back to it every so often with tons of money made. The only major issue I had was that progressing too far can cause the game to crash when reloading saves, forcing me to start a new game. Thus, I'm not actually sure if there is an end to Resort Empire.

Pixel Quest
2015 kicks off with Pixel Quest, a challenge based platformer about an explorer named Rex who helps his old professor (?) recover lost idols and treasure and whatnot. The game centres around a series of levels that you can unlock based on the number of idols you collect overall, though the basic goal is to reach the red door at the end of each level.

I definitely love Pixel Quest's choice of music, particularly the in-game, which pairs so well with the environment. I also do take a liking to the pixel art; there's something about chunky pixels and bright colours that make this game so inviting while still being pretty hectic. The game starts you off with optional tutorial levels, so there's opportunity to get to know the controls a little better. I also love the idea of having challenges within each level that give you extra rewards, such as collecting some of the idols or gems.

The game is also frustrating with a few details, for instance, the hit detection seems to be a few pixels apart from Rex's actual sprite, making close shaves harder to achieve. A few of the sound effects, particularly the saws, are really loud and annoying. Also, the game happens to have a time limit, which surprised me, since I thought the timer was just for score purposes. But no, it actually kills you once it hits zero. Thankfully, they allow the music to play while the game is paused, so I'm grateful for that.

On top of that, Pixel Quest is one of the few Pixel Love games that doesn't always load on the Pixel Love site, at least not in Chrome. I'll be noting these games that I've been consistently having such problems with as we go along.

Tightrope Theatre
This game was like AdventureIslands' sixth entry into Pixel Love? Anyways, it was made for Ludum Dare 31, where the theme was "Entire Game on One Screen". The idea behind this is that the entire game takes place on a single stage, where all changes happen behind the curtain. I thought this was a brilliant idea and executed pretty well for 48 hours.

So what's the game about? It's showtime, and you're the performer on set. The act is a unicycle on a tightrope, which you can maneuver around and jump on. The unicycle is pretty unstable though, and it's easy to fall off on tiny rope platforms. The goal of each level is to land on the spotlight to signal the next act.

As is consistent with all Adventure Islands games, Tightrope Theatre really delivers on the platforming and the pixel art. It's just a really solid work. I feel like maybe it could have gone a bit further with the stage theme and maybe have like an audience applause after each act, along with confetti and the like to really bring the "stage" effect out, but for the time the dev had to work with, this is a good entry. A really good one.

Zoi: The Escape
A silly little platformer about an alien who has (or is supposed to have) top notch jumping skills. The game challenges your precision jumping and compliments or insults you based on your failures and successes. The concept is really simple, but the game is quite tough to master. It is a bit rewarding, since you do unlock additional characters as you make progress. But I couldn't really get into this game after unlocking the first unlockable character.

Puzzle Legends
Since Nitrome missed a week of Pixel Love, they went ahead and featured two games the subsequent week. One is Puzzle Legends, a (duh) puzzle game by NazoSystems, the same devs who made Yellow Dreamer for the Nitrome Jam. You play as some hooded...entity whose goal is to reach the door, activated by flipping a switch. Sounds simple enough, but many obstacles, from snakes to monsters and even the innocent block, will stand in your path.

The game itself is quite straightforward - at least I found - for the most part. The main challenge, similar to games like Revive, is from the extra quirks needed for that 100% completion. Pretty much all levels have coins, which you can collect to skip levels or purchase artifacts. Some stages have chests with artifacts, and you must be able to open these and make it to the finish without killing any enemies. It mostly involves careful planning, though there are a few instances where timing skills are required.

I am deeply fond of this game's charm, coming straight from the music and art. The shopkeeper is also cool, with the amusing quotes, and I like how there's different music for even some of the smaller areas. The puzzles did get frustrating in some parts - I think I had to look at a walkthrough for one of the levels, though I can't exactly remember. Most of them, as I said earlier, are all about the planning, which I think is pretty standard for all puzzle games.

Boomerang Chang
Probably one of the most frustrating endless games to be featured on Pixel Love, albeit one of the more clever ones. You control a skilled master and his boomerang as you defend yourself from flying things and uh...bouncing things. The controls are pretty simple: up to jump, right to shoot the boomerang. The only quirk is that the boomerang is deadly to both you and the enemies.

So yeah, this requires a lot of skill knowing when to fire that boomerang and when to jump, etc. I haven't really given this a thorough playthrough - I played it more to appreciate just how difficult but awesome the concept is. With a lot of practice though, I'm pretty sure people will get the hang of this one.

Kram Keep
This Ludum Dare 31 entry takes on the idea of making an entire Metroidvania on one screen. Pretty interesting concept, which is also similarly explored in another top entry called Birdsong.

Kram Keep takes place in a castle, where you're this blue haired protagonist navigating around and collecting powerups while trying to avoid or defeat any enemies you encounter. This is quite standard for a metroidvania, though one of the standouts is that it still manages to feel vast despite taking place in the comforts of one screen. There is an option to zoom in on the protagonist - which is good - and the lighting around the protagonist is awesome. I do find the jumping to a be a bit iffy sometimes, especially when jumping across ladders, but every game that does the whole ladder jump thing seems to have this issue. I hear the boss is a bit of a pain too, but I've yet to get that far.

Prophet
This game was particularly special to me because it was featured on my birthday, hooray. You control a prophet, I'm assuming, and traverse through different lands (as well as different times?). You can wall jump, and collect stars, so that's cool.

The one thing I LOVE about Prophet is the art style. The silhouette style of the characters, enemies, platforms etc, are pitted against very colourful, atmospheric backgrounds. The audio is also very fitting and I just feel a sense of story or lore even though the game never explicitly mentions one. It's quite simple, and even getting the stars isn't too much of a challenge for the most part, but I think it's worth giving a shot.

Snailiad
I was really hoping Snailiad would one day get featured on Pixel Love, and it finally happened. Control a snail called...Snaily Snail who sets out on a journey to find out why all the snails are disappearing from Snail Town. That's a lot of snails, isn't it?

This game should have really appealed to me. After all, it's got snails (and I love snails), it's a Metroidvania packed with secrets and it's got extremely charming art and music. The only bad thing about it - well, has to do with me. I just never got far in it, and I don't know why. Something about the navigation; maybe it's a little too vast for my tastes. It didn't cause me to hate the game; it just caused me to stop playing it as other Pixel Love games got featured. Someday, I will definitely come back and play this to an ending (hopefully).

Canabalt
A fast paced endless game by Adam Atomic and Danny B where your goal is to simply "escape". Yep. The controls are simple: press X or C to jump. Obstacles can be used to slow down the protagonist, which is sometimes necessary because you start to pick up speed as you run. Oh and things sometimes crash down onto buildings - and those are necessary to jump over.

I love the minimal art and the somewhat ominous music. I also think it's cool how the game basically gets reduced to a blur as you start to get into a run. The game is pretty basic but for an endless game, it's worth spending time on. As an added touch, I like how they put "Nope" on the controls for the mouse and arrow keys.

Tiny Airships
Take to the skies with your little airship as you take down other ships bigger than yourself in this GameBoy style RPG shooter.

If there's anything to like with this game, it's the art style. The details, especially in the background, are really neat and remind me of Dirk Valentine. The music is also unique - it doesn't rely on chiptune as you would typically hear in a GameBoy style game, rather, it uses orchestral music for its soundtrack. I guess for most people, it would come off as not appropriate - is chiptune/NES music a standard in games with this aesthetic? Nevertheless, it was daring, and I love the choice of titlescreen music. As for the game itself, it is all right. Something about the way the tutorial and the levels are paced didn't really engage me; I always forgot the feeling I got when playing it. In my opinion, the art and different style of music are the only memorable features of this game so far.

Range Man
This is the second Pixel Love game by The Village Blacksmith (Recursion was featured back in 2013). It is pretty much the standard platforming experience - jump on enemies to kill them, reach the door. Sometimes the doors require a key to unlock, etc.

I wanted to like this game more than I did, but ultimately, I ended up having lots of issues with the gameplay overall. Well let's just start with the good things first. The art is quite nice in this - chunky pixels, bright colours, pretty much the same style as Recursion but with a brighter palette. The music is also very pleasant, particularly the track that plays on the titlescreen. Both music and art complement each other very well. Also, I like the fact that the heart is not obtainable until you lose health, so that you don't have to constantly avoid it when you're at max health.

With that being said, the game's platforming ends up being more cumbersome than its premise should be. For instance, some levels require you to get a key to unlock a door. In a number of the levels, the key is a pickup, but in some levels, all enemies in a level must be killed in order to get a key. I just wish the game would have committed to one method of key grabbing - either by killing all enemies or having it just be a pickup. To switch around between the two just seems inconsistent and infuriating. This probably would have been less of an issue if the platforming was tighter, but the jumping in this game is just really frustrating, especially concerning height and going across wide gaps. It seems even the slightest pixel can cause you to just barely miss that ledge. I did find the controls responsive for the most part though. Overall, Range Man is a simple, good looking and sounding game, but a little too irritating with its platforming.

Shark Lifting 2
Masivv Von Swoledre III needs YOUR help to lift tons of sharks and become THE shark lifting champion of the world - er universe. Click like mad to flex your muscles and raise those giant, heavy fish into the air while travelling around the globe and watching your fame rise.

Never quite have I seen a Pixel Love this crazy, but also lots of fun. What I find particularly interesting is that the game's story is told through text - the major opponents and events are mostly told to you rather than shown to you in a cutscene or something. And for some reason, it works for this game.

Shark Lifting 2 may seem like one mad clickfest - and for the most part it is - but it keeps up its variety by throwing in different mini challenges. The sport of shark lifting, you see, makes you a celebrity, so you'll be required to sign autographs for your many fans. Getting to places requires a bus, so the game may make you be the one to steer that bus and avoid traffic to keep up with the time limit. And finally, a shark lifting champion needs sharp memory skills, so you'll be challenged with crabs crawling under a rock. Pretty crazy, huh?

Glow Grid
Glow Grid is a relaxing puzzle game with nice graphics and pleasant sound effects. One at a time, you get a block (or set of blocks) that you snap to the grid. Match four tiles and they'll strike a major seventh chord or some variant as they disappear, leaving the spaces vacant. As you make matches, you fill an energy bar. Once it is filled, all non-matchable tiles disappear from the board. The game continues until you can't place any more blocks on the board (and there's no room for possible matches).

This game makes for a great puzzle game, and it plays pretty well on mobile. I love the sounds in this. I kind of wish it had more in-game music - there is some on the titlescreen, which is all spacey and cool. Well I suppose most people prefer to have silence while they strategise. Also this game does not load at all on the Pixel Love site for me now, for whatever reason. I always have to play it on Kongregate now.

Slimey's Quest
This was made for Ludum Dare's "Entire Game on One Screen", and also the second game by Letmethink to be featured on Pixel Love! Slimey's Quest is a puzzle-platformer with a simple goal: reach the button. Pressing the button brings up new obstacles or hazards which you'll need to overcome to reach that button. In later levels, enemies need to be "smashed" in order to make the button appear.

Despite its simplicity, Slimey's Quest is a very well done and polished platformer to be made in the span of 24 hours. The art is pleasant, and I quite like the choice of audio. The only real issue I had was that the jump between long gaps isn't always consistent, and a bit frustrating. But it's such a short but sweet little game that it's hardly a nuisance in the end.

Greenie 2
Also by Letmethink, this puzzle-platformer involves another green two legged creature who must collect all stars in order to unlock the door which completes the level. You are able to control the solidity of certain blocks, which will help you reach the stars.

Personally I thought the puzzles were quite well designed. In later levels, you have to manipulate the enemies a lot and it gets frustrating, but at the same time, is a lot of fun. The game also forces you to remember to do things in a certain order. If something seems too complicated to achieve in terms of timing, there often seems to be an alternative path that just isn't as obvious. And I'm curious about the ending, where the dev mentions "secrets". I've yet to go for a second round at this game to see what they are.

Bed Hogg
Bed Hogg is a cute little fighting game made for Ludum Dare 32: An Unconventional Weapon, where the weapons are pillows! Slam your opponent three times in a row, then run to your side of the room to win! The game also has gamepad support for multiplayer rounds.

I don't really see a lot of fighting games (at least ones with an AI) in Ludum Dares, so this was quite an impressive feat in itself. The art is great, too - I love the perspective on the bed which serves as a great backdrop for the two characters. That being said, the AI is a little too easy to manipulate - getting close and spamming the charge key can usually make for a quick three hits. But overall it can be fun to just see how fast you can outsmart the enemy.

Crayon Poke
Another entry from Ludum Dare 32, Crayon Poke has you explore a vast Chinese-esque world. Gain knowledge to acquire trusty crayons, which can be used to attract enemies or provide steps for helping you to reach other areas.

Overall, Crayon Poke is a very straightforward and quite well put together metroidvania. I love the look and feel of this game, especially the triple metre loop. The idea of using crayons makes for some interesting yet frustrating platforming. It's interesting how the only enemies in the game - pigs - can be killed with crayons, but require more crayons than you can carry at a time. The enemies generally are used as springs or to destroy blocks. Additionally, there are three secrets that can be found in the game, just for the fun of it. Some of them are quite cleverly hidden. I found most of them unintentionally though. :P

Iridescent
In a world full of anthropormorphic cat creatures, a girl named Kate must set out on a quest to find an antidote needed to cure her ill sister. Among the shadows that lurk in the darkness and bad cat puns, will Kate find the antidote in time?

When I say "bad cat puns", I am not kidding. The game is full of them, most of them forced and cringeworthy. Though perhaps this was intentional, as it seems only Kate says them. Despite this, the art is nice, and I love the lighting effects. The music also seems to complement the game's strange atmosphere in a way I can't describe. The gameplay is okay, but a bit off at times. For instance, gems picked up can be used to kill enemies, but it seems as though the enemies die on contact with the gem. Thus if an enemy lands on a gem on the ground, it dies. That's not necessarily a bad thing; it was just odd to me. I have mixed feelings about this game as a whole.

Fathom
Fathom is another Ludum Dare 32 entry, made in the scope of 72 hours. The unconventional weapon this time, however, are bullets! Well, not your bullets, but enemy bullets. You are given the power to control the direction of bullets shot from turrets, which you can use to destroy other turrets or turn off power cells.

This game is VERY short, but extremely well put together. The art and music in this are top notch and it's very evident that a lot of work was put into those two components, and it shows. The gameplay is clever - I like the use of slow motion and being able to manipulate all nearby bullets. The only issue I had was that getting out of slow motion could be a little too slow at times. Also when you die, the game kind of respawns you in slow motion, it seems, which is slightly frustrating. But that only pales in comparison to the quality of this well put together game. In the end, completing Fathom made me want to see more done with this concept from the developer. I haven't been keeping check though, so I'm not certain if the dev ever did!

Potatoman Seeks the Troof
Set forth in search of the troof in this platformer by PixelJAM. Trek through the desert, shuffle through the forest and avoid constant obstacles like cactuses, bird eggs and squirrels throwing nuts.

A lot of this game's charm comes from its randomness and uncanny dialogue. Not obstacles behave straightforwardly, and this is made evident from the start of the game. The behaviour at specific parts, however, seems to be consistent so memorisation plays a big role in making progress. This game wasn't really my thing, so I didn't get too far into playing it. But it is available on Steam as well as iOS, with more content than this version.

Pixel Escape
The pixels lived in peace - that is, until their world started glitching. Help the little pixels escape with your ability to draw lines and their jumping abilities.

When I came upon this game on Newgrounds, the description boasted of this games "amazing" soundtrack. At first I was like "ehh it's all right" but ended up downloading the soundtrack anyway because I love chiptune. Having listened to it several times, it's actually grown on me a lot since. There's something about how simple and repetitive the songs are yet catchy at the same time, and that's kind of the beauty of it. Gameplaywise, the game is challenging and fast paced. Rescuing all the pixels is not necessary but makes the level complete screen somewhat more satisfying. I probably appreciate this game more than I've actually played it though. I do like how the game lets you listen to its different in-game tracks on the pause screen, and lets you choose the ones to play the level in. I guess if I had to nitpick a few things about this game that really bothered me, it was that the pencil cursor kind of looks out of place in comparison to all the other art. That and the lines could have faded out a bit faster. But maybe that's just me, eh heh.

Drop Wizard
An arcade platformer by Neutronized, the browser of Drop Wizard served as a precursor to the larger-scale mobile version released back in January 2015. Control a wizard who cannot jump, but can drop through gaps in platforms. Upon dropping, the wizard releases a projectile that can stun enemies, which you then run into to kill. Defeat all enemies to pass a level, but don't waste too much time or else a ghoul will be sent to chase after you!

Playing the browser version of Drop Wizard was an interesting experience...the site I first played it on before Pixel Love and Neutronized.com had display issues such that the bottom of the screen was also displayed on the top. Moreover, some of the enemies were interesting - the snowballs from Snow Tale make a cameo appearance as enemies, whereas in the browser version they are purely NPC and pose as audience members/sidekicks to Teo (the wizard). The boss battles work out a bit differently - the last boss battle of the browser version definitely poses a huge challenge, at least for me. All I can say is that if you've had some form of enjoyment from playing the browser version, play the iOS version. It is definitely worth the money and one of my most favourite iOS games from 2015.

Melee Man
Does this game seem a lot similar to Range Man? Well yeah, it is basically the precursor to Range Man, made by the same developer and all. Only this time, your man can shoot, and there are boss battles.

My thoughts on this are mixed. The art is good, but the backgrounds and foregrounds aren't distinguished enough, which can make it a distraction. The in-game music is great, and the titlescreen music is all right. I like being able to shoot, and the platforming here can get quite challenging and frustrating, especially with the boss battles. I haven't played this one in a while, and really only just open it up to listen to the music. But from what I remember, my thoughts on it were almost the same as Range Man's.

Retro Runners
A simple, straightforward endless side-scrolling platformer that can be played with one or two players on the same keyboard. Use the up arrow key to jump and the right key to dash to slide under blocks or defeat enemies. As simple as this game is, it's nice to see a multiplayer game featured on Pixel Love. The music is crazy and really dissonant. The minimal art style complements the game quite well. I wish they'd actually show you your high score after a game over, though.

Tiny Treasure
With the introduction of a "new" web developer, two games were featured on one day, the first being a short puzzle-platformer called Tiny Treasure. Two knights decide to help each other find treasure deep in the heart of a cave. But will they make it out alive?

The art in this is cute, as is the music, which is cheery and pleasant. I enjoy these sorts of puzzles, with two characters, and this is no exception. I like the challenge they have at the end once you do find the treasure.

Pixi Tower Defense
Use your arsenal of cute but deadly towers to take on the monsters that try to take over your base in this real-time strategy game. This game, to me, is pretty similar to Tiny Squad in that the appearance of enemies changes, but their behaviour is mostly the same. The enemies in Pixi Tower Defense all have varying speeds, but really, that is the only variety (aside from one enemy that splits when it dies). Overall, the game tends to get more tedious than it is fun, as it requires you to constantly level up towers as well as having just the right placement of towers. I'd say it does make for some level of fun, though. The in-game music also gets a bit irritating after listening to it for a while, but I do prefer the motif in its menu music form.

Egg Knight
You've survived bad cat puns in Iridescent, now get ready to sit through bad egg puns in Egg Knight! When Kiev discovers a mysterious rock while playing soccer, he is whisked away to a world where knights hatch from (and apparently live in) eggs. With your fighting expertise, Kiev and his army of knights must stop the Dark Army from taking over the land before it is too late.

I actually enjoy this game a lot. The dialogue is awkwardly constructed, yet it really adds to the game's charm and at times, the humour. I love the map music, and the upgrade system is kinda neat. Setting up the knights for the battlefield, however, is a bit confusing. Overall though, I think this is a fun experience.

Ribbitation
Ribbitation is the second game by Pixelulsaur to be featured on Pixel Love (the first being Hyper Pixel Man). Take control of a frog who can move up and down ladders and push crates. The challenge? Yes, you cannot jump.

The gameplay was a bit confusing at first, what with the way the frog behaves around falling with ladders. It's quite a simplistic game, but also has some difficult puzzles. I played until I got to level 9, but never bothered to continue it. I do like the transition between levels though - it kind of gives the old "TV game" sort of feel for me.

Tough Love Machine
Pixel Love on THURSDAY? Yeah, this was around the time Nitrome was starting to look for a web developer again, and thus, Pixel Love started becoming more...irregular. Better late than never though, I guess. Anywho, in this one, you control a pair of hands that can extend and retract. Use these to push the two hearts in the level together. Simple enough, eh?

The sound effects and the colourful art when you push the two hearts together is nice. I only recently started getting the hang of this game after being stuck on level 3 for quite some time. :/

Inversia
Play as a test subject put through multiple trials to entertain aliens as their new "weapon". With your flipping powers, you'll be required to go through multiple trials that cannot be escaped.

I haven't really been playing this one, but I've heard it's good. It definitely does remind me a lot of VVVVVV. The creepy atmosphere of the art and music does set it apart from VVVVVV, though. I love the look of the narrating alien. I'd look into playing this more when I have time.

Duke Dashington
Explorer Duke Dashington comes across temples filled with treasure! But when the ground crumbles and takes him underneath, can he make it out safely with the goods?

I purchased the mobile version of this game back when it came out. I cleared two of the temples, I think, last I checked. The art is wonderful, as always. There is something nice about the franticness of the music as well. I like how fast paced the rooms are as well. The dashing mechanic can be a little hard to grasp though. It seemed like lots of people were asking for D-pad controls for the mobile build because you can't actually move horizontally after just dashing (it can only be done while falling). I don't know if that's the real reason though. Still, the swipe controls worked well for this game.

Through
This puzzle-platformer was greated for GameBoy Jam 4. The little character who seems to greatly resemble Kodachrome's protagonist must reach the teleporter by jumping and phasing through walls. When phasing, the walls turn 90 degrees, helping you reach through certain layers to get to different places. The game is short, but well put together. And the mechanic is very clever. The only issue is that the sound effects are too loud against the music.

Birdy Fruit
Fliptic takes a spin on the Flappy Bird mechanic (well maybe it's not necessarily based on Flappy Bird but). Control a yellow bird by tapping the up arrow key to give it a short boost. Collect all fruit in a level to open the finish line, then land safely on it to complete the level.

Strangely enough, this game doesn't have a level select, nor does it save progress. Fliptic's previous games were capable of saving progress for the most part, so I'm not sure how long this game lasts for. The art, however, is really adorable as are the sound effects. I do like the music as well; it's quite fitting.

A Stroll in Space
A large green squid-like creatre crashes into your ship! To investigate, you'll need the help of a chimp friend who can press and hold a button at your command. This turns off gravity, which is basically like how Pause Ahead can preserve momentum upon "pausing".

The game is actually quite engaging, though I made it out to be a lot more difficult than it was. I love the art in this game; the chunky pixels and colouration is pleasant, as is the calming music. This is another of the Pixel Love games I really need to play more of, as I didn't get too far in it.

Puppy Racing
What if Mario Kart had dogs instead of, well, Mario characters? Race using a puppy of your choice to try and nab the first place spot. Pretty straightforward, and pretty much like any race car game has to offer. There's something to be said about how nice the isometric art is (and some of the Nitrome staff did make some contributions to the art in this game!) and the bright warm colours for the background. One interesting thing to note, however, is the variety of music used for the game depending on the site it is hosted on. With the Pixel Love site, there is no music, only sound effects. AGame.com uses a more upbeat, dance-like music for its titlescreen while the version on Gameshot.org uses a completely different sounding theme. It's strange, because they all credit the same person for the audio, so I have no clue which theme is supposed to be the "true" one.

Tap Heroes
Brought to you by the same developer who did Loot Hero, this game is almost exactly like Loot Hero in the sense that it is a grinding game. Rather than facing against a whole line of opponents, however, take on enemies one at a time as you scroll through different areas. Your tapping powers can be used to heal your protagonist, and also take down enemies faster. Killing enemies earns coins, which you can use to upgrade your taps or the strength of the protagonist.

I like the visual style of this game; the staged battles are literally on a stage, and the cardboard cutouts are quite cute. The music is also good, making the battles seem more epic than just a grindfest. That being said, the progress in this game is more based on your endurance than skill. It's one of those games I'd play if I was super bored, just like Loot Hero. It's all right, but not super engaging.

Acid Factory
An explosion at the factory traps a worker named Harry. Can he escape the factory before it's too late?

Most people seem to have known this game - it's been out since 2006! All I can think of is that it reminds me a lot of another Miniclip game released around the same time called Piranhas. The two games pretty much play exactly the same - collect items to unlock a door, then get to the door, all on one life. It's challenging, but routinely and fun. For the most part.

I was surprised to see that Acid Factory's music was done by Lee Nicklen - it sounded just like his style. The art style is neat too - it also reminds me a lot of Piranhas. The one thing that does distinguish this from Piranhas though is that Harry can acquire a gun to kill enemies. The levels don't load on the Pixel Love site for me for some reason, so I always have to go to Miniclip to play this. It's nice, but frustrating.

Serious Dave
Serious Dave is an action shooter with run'n gun platforming. Control Dave, who can weave up and down platforms to outsmart enemies and hazards, all while picking up random mugs of beer to acquire guns for that extra kick. Yeahhhh! This game has nice music, and boasts some nice pixel art. I haven't gotten too much into it, though I like the shopkeeper. The game kind of reminds me of Fear Less a bit.

Infinity Inc
The final Pixel Love game to be featured this year, Infinity Inc stars an employee of Infninty Inc who comes across a cloning gun and breaks the facility's number 1 rule: Never clone yourself! This leads to all sorts of fun and bloody shenanigans.

Despite all the blood, the game's pixel art makes it bearable and less gory due to the low resolution pixels. I do like the little touches the game makes, with the background art and the secret rooms. The platforming puzzles were fun and I enjoyed the variety of stages. Also that last room is just a blast. If there were any issues I had with it, it was that the double jump is a bit...inconsistent. But there aren't really any major platforming issues I had with it, only near the beginning.

Conclusion
Considering how Nitrome hasn't featured a Pixel Love game since October, is it safe to say that we probably won't be seeing Pixel Love for a while? Thankfully, Nitrome doesn't seem to want to stop Pixel Love entirely. It all rests on finding a web developer. Here's to hoping for one in 2016.

What are your favourite Pixel Love features from 2015? If I had to pick a few, it would come down to:


 * 1) Crayon Poke
 * 2) Fathom
 * 3) Puzzle Legends
 * 4) Prophet
 * 5) Egg Knight
 * 6) Shark Lifting 2

But probably my most favourite would be...Egg Knight or Puzzle Legends. It's a tough call.