Tag: Level 2: The Virus Master

Games of the Month – June 2014

So how about that Shovel Knight? Thankfully, June wasn’t a totally dry month other than our favorite Shoveler, but it sure came pretty close. I played way fewer games this month than usual, and hopefully I can dig up a bigger selection sometime this month. But, yeah, Shovel Knight is really good everybody.

Shovel Knight

It’s Shovel Knight. I’ve said more than enough about why I love the game in my review, so I’ll keep this brief. It’s an excellent platformer that feels like it jumped straight out of the late 80’s. Shovel Knight is as smart as it is cute and funny, and brings back really fond memories of blasting through robot masters and whipping walls to find secret chickens. It’s nice to have some of that back, if only briefly.

1001 Spikes

Another blast from the past, 1001 Spikes goes out of its way to be difficult. There are traps spread through each of it’s numerous levels, and your job is to somehow navigate past all of them, Indiana Jones style. You’ll die, again and again, (maybe even 1001 times) but you’ll keep coming back. Each trap has a logic behind it, and it laughs in your face as it destroys you as you run to the exit. If you’re up for some more old school action, with a few cameos from platformer heroes of yore, 1001 Spikes is the second best retro inspired indie platformer of the month. Who would have thought?

Level 2: The Virus Master

And now for something completely different. Have you ever played a music video? Maybe. But was it metal? Not like The Virus Master. It’s a shoot-em-up set to metal, and characters even animate to the music. It’s half watching some really cool stuff happen on-screen, and half trying your best to make sure it all explodes. You’ll play through it again and again to reach the highest score and the hidden level, but it’s so satisfying you won’t mind at all.

Honorable Mentions:

Coming Out Simulator 2014

Just play this.

July 10, 2014
The Metal Will Live On in Level 2: The Virus Master

Robots are everywhere, they’re going to sing metal at you, and you’re going to shoot them.

Level 2: The Virus Master marks the return of John Bell and Lazy Brain Games. After a brief hiatus from game creation due to some real life setbacks, Bell took some time off the job. Now he’s back and better than ever, and we should all be very thankful.

The Virus Master could be summed up as Galaga-turned-music video, but that would still be selling it short. It’s a score based shmup where robots pour from every corner, and you have to take them down as fast as you can. Split into four unique sections, Virus Master offers varied environments and plenty of bosses you’ll have to destroy over the course of its short run time. One playthrough will take you five minutes to complete, but chances are you’ll play it more than once to unlock the bonus stage, achieved by obtaining a near perfect score.

The soundtrack is composed by progressive metal band, Last Chance to Reason, and the game integrates music into the game in a way that reminded me of Child of Eden, and I loved Child of Eden. Enemies move to the music, and the soundtrack feels so smartly integrated into the game that it really makes the whole thing amazing to see in action. The shooting and score mechanics are already very good to begin with, but the additional layer the music adds makes it that much more special. The fact that a tiny team was able to recreate even a small portion of one of my favorite game experiences is incredible, and reinforces how totally worth your time it would be to check it out.

I would definitely drop more cash down to play more stages themed to new tracks, but I’m not sure how feasible that would be after seeing how much work has gone into creating this perfect five minute experience. Get the game from Lazy Brain Game’s itch.io page, and pay whatever you think is fair. I love John Bell’s previous work, especially Time Squid, and I definitely want to support him to see what he can do next.

June 18, 2014