Shwip Turbo Thumb Out Now

Along with Dash Quest Heroes, another local game was released on mobile phones recently. Jamhammer Games released shoot-em up Shwip Turbo Thumb for free on iPhone and Android. 

"Survive an onslaught of increasingly difficult enemy waves and formations in this beautiful pixel-fest-destruction shoot-em-up. 

Literally render your enemies into pixel-dust with your trusty dual-shot cannon and arsenal of other insanely powerful power-ups. The better you play, the more power-ups you receive."

This is just a side treat while we wait for Shwip on Steam, which you can add to your wishlist here.

GET YOUR WISHLIST ON! #Shwip Steam page is LIVE LIVE LIVE!! https://t.co/MB33UiIR7X #indiedev #indiegame #gamedev @TorontoGameDevs pic.twitter.com/kFRdWZD9hw

— Jamhammer Games (@JamhammerGames) September 26, 2017

Vertex Pop Updates Graceful Explosion Machine On Switch To Allow Video Capture

Nintendo recently updated the Switch to allow video capturing, and slowly games have been patched to allow it. We can now add Vertex Pop's Graceful Explosion Machine to the list - the game has been patched to add functionality.

"We have a small (but pretty cool!) update out for Graceful Explosion Machine today which adds Video Capture support for Nintendo Switch. Now when you pull of a particularly gracefulrun, you can just hold down the capture button and share.

We’re excited to check out all the cool videos you post, so please make sure to share them with us on Twitter!"

Dash Quest Heroes Announced - Out Now In Canada

Tiny Titan Studios tweeted earlier last month they were looking for Beta testers, and looks like we know what they were (probably) testing. The studio announced Dash Quest Heroes today, a free to play follow up to Dash Quest.

"Become a Legendary Hero and explore a vast world of fantasy adventure in Dash Quest Heroes! The Kingdom of Solas has fallen prey to the fiendish Zaru and it's up to the Heroes of the world to defeat him. Collect incredible gear and forge new items as you set out on a journey through rolling hills, cryptic caves, shrouded forests and more! Only the mightiest of Heroes will become legend."

You can download the game for free on iOS here, or on Android here. Make sure to let them know what you think on Twitter!

Guess what?! We're so excited to announce that our NEW GAME, Dash Quest Heroes, is now available in the App Store & Google Play Store in Canada! Check out the trailer below and stay tuned for the worldwide launch! #pixelart #indiedev #gamedev https://t.co/XpeH1OxrdF

— Tiny Titan Studios (@TinyTitanGames) December 4, 2017

Studio Monolith Launches Polyball On Steam

Though it was available in Steam Early Access before - Studio Monolith's Super Monkey Ball/Marble Madness inspired game has officially launched, and is enjoying a 20% discount on Steam right now.

"There's a lot to do in Polyball -- Challenge yourself or a friend to one of over 60 levels included in the initial release, with plans for many more levels via DLC. If you've got some friends over and are looking for something to play, Polyball's splitscreen multiplayer promises a good time. With classic modes like Battle and Trails, as well as a multiplayer version of the single-player experience, Polyball promises to be a must-have party game."

You can also check out the launch trailer, and some screenshots below:

Cuphead Gets Patched

Cuphead got patched the other day to fix some bugs and exploits, and general gameplay balance. Cuphead has been in the news a lot lately, confirming that the characters will return, and being nominated for awards. You can check out the full patch notes below - which sadly gets rid of the duplication/army bug.

• Fixed various freezes caused by controller disconnection/reconnection
• Fixed infinite controller rumble bug
• Fixed various freezes and soft-locks and crashes
• Improvements to saving and loading
• No longer possible to create a Mugman army.
• Fixed rapid-weapon-swap damage glitch
• Slight charge weapon damage reduction
• Charge weapon charge is now maintained during parry
• It is now possible to unequip secondary weapon, Super, and Charm from equipment menu (Press “Y” to unequip)
• Mr. Chimes no longer gets stuck or goes off-screen
• King Dice’s Start Over square will now only trigger once per attempt
• Player 2 now appears in the King Dice board after being revived at the end of a mini-boss level
• Dice Palace score now properly resets when retrying the level
• Fixed improper hit boxes on the Devil’s snake attack
• Fixed Devil’s goat attack so it hits ducking players
• Elevator on Rugged Ridge no longer locks if Player 1 dies
• A+ grade now possible on Funfair Fever and Treetop Trouble
• No longer possible to damage bosses that are off-screen
• Fixed rare crash when parrying on Carnival Kerfuffle
• Fixed Roundabout shots not coming back on screen on select stages
• Baroness Von Bon Bon death results now properly displays progress on phase 3
• Dr. Kahl’s Robot death results now properly displays progress on phase 1
• Fixed various minor collision bugs
• Various art and animation polish
• Minor sound effect bug fixes and polish
• Added spooky Mausoleum announcer
• Touch fuzzy, get a little dizzy

Cuphead and Warframe Represent Southern Ontario In Game Awards

The Video Game Awards will be next week on December 7th, and a few local games are up for rewards - with Cuphead grabbing 10 nominations for the following:

Best Art Direction, Best Score/Music, Best Action Game, Best Independent Game, and Best Debut Indie Game

Warframe is also up for nomination for Best Ongoing and consider it just got the big Plains of Eidolon update, it has a decent change of winning. 

Good luck to all nominee's, and tune in December 7th to see the winners.

Embers of Mirrim Coming To Switch December 7th

Released earlier this year on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Steam - Creative Byte Studios is now bringing their game Embers of Mirrim to Nintendo Switch. Embers of Mirrim is a 2D platformer where you play as a mystical fox-like creature that can split into light and dark embers.  Players progress through the world saving their companions and solving puzzles using their splitting technique.

Embers of Mirrim pounces onto Nintendo Switch Dec 7th 2017 https://t.co/cO0DnVikLI #SplittingIsBelieving #NintendoSwitch #IndieGame #Gaming #madewithunity pic.twitter.com/zNBN5LnFrH

— Embers of Mirrim (@EmbersOfMirrim) November 29, 2017

You can also check out some gameplay and thoughts I had on the game in the video below. Overall it's a solid addition to an already growing list of Toronto games on Switch. Also coming out December 7th is Longstory on Steam.

Play Golfy Golf For Free Right Now

Our friends at Yah Man Games have released a beta version of Golfy Golf on Gamejolt which you can play for free right now.

"Golfy Golf is a fun, new, exciting take on the classic game of golf featuring, menacing enemies, stiff competition, beautifully laid our grounds, visually appealing graphics and innovative game play set up. Its is sure to get you on the greens. FORE!"

With the game in Beta, the developer is looking for feedback - so make sure to let them know on Twitter. You can check out the game right here.

Reptoid Games Discusses Their Experience In Winning The Indie Series From Ubisoft

Last year Reptoid Games won the Ubisoft Toronto Indie Series for Fossil Hunters, which got them (amongst other things) a cash prize, and mentorship. Ubisoft posted a video going over their experience which you can check below:

This year Ubisoft announced a round two of the competition, which you can check out here. We won't have to wait much longer for Fossil Hunters, which is expected to hit next year.

Patreon Update

Hey! So as you may or may not know, we are on Patreon. If you're unfamiliar with the platform, it's similar to Kickstarter but more of a subscription based service. You pay as long as you want, per month, and get rewards and perks, and then you can cancel anytime. It's a great way to financially help support what we're trying to do at TorontoGameDevs.

One thing I want to do more is engage with Patreon's more - I want them to have a say in how the site develops and evolves.  The first thing being how we'll do Game of the Year voting this year. So if you're a Patreon, check out the page to help with the site - and if you're not a Patreon - consider it :)

News Byte! November 24th - Longstory Games, SIM Expo, Steam Sale

News Byte! November 21st - Frolic Labs, Russian Subway Dogs, and Gunhead

Romance Game Longstory Coming To Steam December 7th

Longstory, the LGBTQ positive romance game that has been on mobile devices for a while will be making its way to Steam next month. Check out the Steam page and screenshots below - make sure to follow the game on Twitter as well.

"LongStory is a visual novel, dating sim about love, romance, relationships and mystery. The LGBTQ+ romance lets players choose their appearance and pronouns as well as who, or even if, they would like to date any of their 5 lovable friends. Honest and authentic, the game has a story for everyone."

Everyone stop what you're doing! #LongStoryGame is coming to @steam_games December 7, 2017! 🙌🏽#SteamComingSoon #indiegame #allthefeels #queergameplay #gaming pic.twitter.com/tbgF2QwlCi

— LongStory (@LongStoryGame) November 19, 2017

Gunhead Announced - FPS Sequel To Cryptark

Talk about unexpected, despite announcing a game just a few weeks ago Alientrap is at it again, this time announcing Gunhead, a direct sequel to its rogue-like shooter Cryptark.  However Gunhead is a first-person shooter, where you'll still enter procedurally generated ships to neutralize them with the story taking place right after Cryptark. 

First trailer for our new game - GUNHEAD. A FPS sequel to Cryptark. Coming 2018 - Steam page: https://t.co/FIG7MKA4be pic.twitter.com/VDRgCcA3Nv

— Lee Vermeulen (@Alientrap) November 17, 2017

Gunhead will be out on Steam next year, so make sure to add the game to your Steam page. Cryptark also came out on PlayStation 4, so hopefully we'll see its sequel make the console jump as well. In the meantime, make sure to check out the developers on Twitter.

Please RT! We've been working on it for about a year now - Gunhead team is myself / @harley_obium / @banjoduarte / @berv_ / @JesseMcGibs / @dualryan

— Lee Vermeulen (@Alientrap) November 17, 2017

Russian Subway Dogs Announced For PS4 And Vita

The Vita lives! And obviously the PlayStation 4 is doing great, but the Vita lives. Spooky Squid Games is bringing Russian Subway Dogs to PlayStation 4, and Vita next year, alongside a release on Steam and itch.io.

Russian Subway Dogs is a score attack game, featuring stray dogs of the Moscow Metro. You can check out some screenshots and the trailer below - last we heard they tried to get funded on Kickstarter, but sadly didn't make it.

Russian Subway Dogs is simple enough for a puppy to pick up but still packed with challenge. Run and jump along the subway platform. Bark behind people to scare up food and bounce vodka around the stage. Soon you’ll be discovering high level strategies like cooking and eating rival wildlife with vodka explosions!

The game will be playable at next month's PlayStation Experience, just like Guacamelee 2, and Riverbond, and we should see it in 2018.