I can't this to work either. Tried several times, from different mirror sites, and different browsers. Kind of crashed computer. Too bad--this game looks interesting. Thanks anyway.

Bistecca: "(...) a game named “luxor”, but after all it is just a “bubblebobble-clone” and in the end bubblebobble itself is a tetris variant. (...)"

I don't think you really meant "Bubble Bobble" but "Puzzle Bobble" (aka "Bust-a-Move"), which actually featured characters from "Bubble Bobble" but basically was a completely different game. "Bubble Bobble" was no puzzler but a platform game.


BTW, no free games this weekend?

Oh yeah, and NoMad, I've just found you can get StarDrone for free from Gametop. When I bought it I thought I recognized it, lol. ah well, Iit only cost me a game credit with Bog Fish Games. I thought I'd bought it via the Direct to Drive facility at fileplanet, but that was a few other games, lol.

www.gametop.com.

Click on the space shooters link and you should easily find star drone.

Hi again Bistecca, I know what you mean. (I've also been playing Luxor - the last two releases and Ricochet infinity) Though I still didn't see it as a battlezone clone. :lol:

and true regarding original games

regards

WR

Thankyou Whiterabbit, perhaps I need to explain the point of view: hitting 40 takes you to recognize some "patterns", so I've learned to categorize games as "breakout-clones", "battlezone-clones", "bubblebobble-clones", "tetris-clones", "anotherworld-clones", "warcraft-clones" and so on... There are a very few games really innovative that can't be lead back to older games... :-)

It's not a way to say a game is bad, I've spend many hours playing a game named "luxor", but after all it is just a "bubblebobble-clone" and in the end bubblebobble itself is a tetris variant. I play often a game named "ricochet", but after all it's another arkanoid/breakout-clone...

So, this is why before to play a new game, I like to know if it fits into a known category... :-)

Hi Julie,
Thanks; I’m stuck at home since my accident 3 years ago, and the giveaway project just came along when I was starting to become interested in things again, so I’ve taken it to my heart so to speak. I used to devote much more time elsewhere , but I enjoy the games side of things, so here I am; almost a permanent fixture these days; though as with BuBBy and Lee I’m entirely voluntary. I’m certainly thinking of buying the Silkwood series, especially as it’s so cheap now.

Thanks Dex for answering my query. I do think you have a couple of unusual and quality products there, with more improvements and additions I reckon you’ll be a force to be reckoned with. :) I’ll be over to your site to purchase both available games just as soon as I get the time :) so you’d better not be planning to give one of them away any time soon, lol.

Hi Bistecca,
are you talking about the old Atari Battlezone game? If so, this is nothing like it.


Hi NoMad,

Pie Eyed Games released a great space shooter/asteroids game called Darkside early last year (2008), which would probably sate your appetite:

http://www.pieeyegames.com/DarkSide/Info.htm

and I've just bought another excellent action shooter from fileplanet called Stardrone that you may like:

http://www.arcade-gamespalette.com/games/breakout/star_drone/

though it's actually a cross between a space shooter and pinball

Just a simple question for "old" gamers: is this a Battlezone clone?

So far, I suck but the graphics are amazing. Thanks so much for this offer. Silkwood looks like it is more my kind of game. Too bad I missed that one.

This is a fairly good game.

@Whiterabbit
The offer for SilkWood and SilkWood Spring is the new permanent price. I just have to find the time to state that fact on our website.



Dex "DFX"

HATED IT!!!

Thanks Stephen. Some things are so obvious, I feel stupid when they aren't obvious to me! I did use the forums at Silkwood at length. It was the moderator who suggested I send an email. There are plenty of other issues that I'm sure needed dealt with and I'm sure someone intended on getting back with me and it could be that I just got lost in the shuffle. I'm guessing it had more to do with my system and less to do with the program itself. Thanks again, and I appreciate everything you do here from reviews of software to posting games, etc. It takes a lot of time to do what you do and I just wanted to say "thanks"!

To Dex, off topic, but how long is the offer for both silkwood games on for. I've decided I may buy them, but I want to check out the demos first to see if it's worth spending the money. Thanks in advance for any input.

Thanks for the info anonymuse. Looks like my wallet is going to be even lighter now, lol. Glad you got it to work oilyhuman (hat name reminds me of one of my old school masters, who we called something I wont mention here, but the name came about because of his 'oily' skin, lol

Stephen aka WhiteRabbit: Reflective Layer has a special on both SilkWood games right now! I already have 1.5 that I got here, but bought it today so I would have my own copy. I also got Spring for the sale price less another 70% using the 1.5 purchase ID! For a total of US$8.45 I got both! (And Chyrsalis-B is now Free!)
Dex, Looking forward to Prague!! These are the most unusual games I have ever played!

Off to install and try out Vega now... Thaks Dex and Game GAOTD!

Found it....Thanks!! I appreciate the help

O.H.

hi oilyhuman, I don't understand how the game doesn't appear once you've installed it? Though I think I know what you've done; you've assumed that unpacking and clicking on the set up file we get will install the game. What it does is unpack another installer labelled giveawayvega. If you can't find it try making a search for it using the following key word (which is the executable file once it's been properly installed):

vega



by default the game installer is installed to your C: drive using the same name, so you may find it there (though thats using XP). Once you've found the installer that's labelled giveawayvega, click on it and you'll get the game properly installed to C:\Program Files\ with a desk top ico installed. If you read the read me it tells you what to do.

This looked like it could be fun...however, after the D/L it never appeared anywhere on my machine. It went through the activation and everything OK, I thought so anyway. It looked fun, wish I could try it.

O.H.

Upon running the giveawayvega executable, SpySweeper informed me that a threat labeled "mal/behav-016" was trying to alter my file system. Can't run what I can't install safely - although this may be a (scary) red herring.

@Julie
About SilkWood, I apologize if someone did not get back to you in time. We try to make sure that all emails get answered. I know it to late now, but we're here to answers all of your questions about Reflective Layer games if you have any.


Dex "DFX" - Lead Developer of SilkWood

Hi Julie, have you clicked on the numbers that keep changing to the top middle of the playing area. That tells you how many pods are going to come in play. you can select up to 4 or 5, but I suggest using only one until you have got the hang of the controls. Once you click on the number button a pod will appear. You will need to fire your thrusters to manoeuvre the pod around the playing area.

With respect to after care service for both this and Silkwood, there are some forums where you can ask for help. the Silkwood forums look well used, so maybe you could return to the game if someone over there can help. I posted the link in my first post above (post#1)

regards

Stephen

I don't get it, use the arrows, but nothing happens. There is the shield that protects but nothing comes in that the arrow keys control. I liked Silkwood, but every time I had to close it, I lost all my worms. Even if I didn't have to close it, I lost them. Asked for help and got response once, but that was it. I guess if they didn't know how to help, to just ignore me. It worked, I went away and didn't bug them anymore, but as many hours as I'd spent on that silly thing, I was bummed when I couldn't get it to work properly.

You're right Anidem. an I've also noticed those that usually complain of repeats also haven't bothered to make an appearance today. It's a sad sad world really.

I appreciate the free giveaways a lot and always look forwards to checking out something new, which this game is.

As I said in my first post, I do think there's something lacking for a commercial title, but hopefully Dex will address these problems. Sadly, you can please everyone and there are always going to be those who will knock something.

I love the physics based part of the game, and it's for this reason that i'm going to keep it.

Thanks again DEX.

I hope you let the game giveaway team give away Silkwood again as I'd like to try it out to see if it's worth buying. I prefer to have long demos to do this, lol.

Have a great week folks and here's hoping for some more original games. Even though all we seem to see on the main arcade download sites like Reflexive, Alawar and Realore are match three, hidden object and time management games, there are actually some really cool innovative games around at the moment. I've just purchased one called On the Rain-Slick Precipice of Darkness, which comes in two episodes and is definitely different from your usual arcade game, then there are the American McGee's Grimm episodes. The latter are being released at an astonishing rate and cost less than $4 a shot; however, I'm waiting till the whole series is released as a bundle, which I think will happen sooner or later.

p.s. Thanks for answering Bears query Watcher13. :lol: (the two posts you asked to be deleted were deleted) :)

Please bring back Treasures of Montezuma! My kids and I loved that game.

well I'll be truthful! I didn't like it.
I found the game play to be some what boring.
If it was easier to play or if I had to collect the canisters with my pod, it may be better.
Pushing them to a landing pad just wasn't for me.

I also hate when you give the pod too much push and its gone off of the screen.

Tweak it, change it, use this forum to make it better and we'll try again.

How about if I could fire a rocket at the canisters to blow them up before they hit my shield but still have to save as many as possible.

Also, you can get the Your Uninstaller demo right from the developer: http://www.ursoftware.com/. Revo is the only one of these that’s free.

Bear, Revo uninstaller is also a well thought of free uninstaller: http://www.revouninstaller.com/ Use the advanced mode, which digs the deepest. It warns you that advanced takes a long time, but it's removed everything I've thrown at it quickly. Not perfect though, a recent uninstall of QuickTime for Windows left a lot behind. But, I'm hearing more and more that QuickTime is a particularly dirty install. There's also the other one Mama24Kiddies recommended, Cleanse Uninstaller. http://www.zardssoftware.com/

Hi Whiterabbit:
I read about the uninstaller 2008 but when I download it some of the files do not download. This stops me from using it. Can U tell me of a better program or an other place 2 get it.
Thanks Keith

@Davy
We're working on a tutorial on how to play.

@Anidem
When your ship goes off screen, you can use the radar crosshair in the UI to track its relative position to the Landing bay.



Dex "DFX"

Game installed; that is the only "bonus" or good thing. I read the instructions on gameplay - very vague and the "ACTUAL" gameplay did not work as described. I used the proper control keys to change pods, but did not work, nor did the arrows to "control" the pods. All this ended up being was a visual screen watching little air pods and other things flying around in a zero gravity environment.
Uninstalling this, as I completely expected something different, and even useful, which this is not.

Funny thing that I noticed Whiterabbit; As much as people complain for new stuff, they usually slam different things the most. Remember DLtv?

Ok, Finally got this working. I think the bottom line here is that the game does not seem innovative ENOUGH. The idea of bumping resources into a collection area is certainly new (to me at least) but it isn't really a big enough difference to make it different from other lander games I've played before. The learning curve is steep, probably too steep. You should probably have some tutorial levels
1)how to launch a pod - then let them move around
2)give them one resource to bump into the pad, one thats already on moving close to the right direction
3) how to launch two pods
4) give them a resources they have to bump off both pods
and so on. Too much is being thrown at you on the first mission.

I'm not sure how realistic the "bump" physics is. When a resource hits your ship, it seems to take on the same direction and velocity as the ship, rather then bouncing off. At the very least, the picture at the start of the first mission seems misleading. To me, the diagram appears to show some sort "bounce" off the ship, but that is far from what happens when you're actually playing.

I don't like that you only get to capture one resource for your pod. First, it seems like every pod I get is short of oxygen, so you've kind of made the decision for us as to which resource we NEED to get. Second, sometimes the pod comes down very slowly right next to a fuel and there isn't enough time to get away from it. So regardless of which one we need, random chance has forced a decision as to which one we GET. Give an extra control to grab a resource instead of docking with it so we at least have some control about the WHEN AND WHAT of what is being picked up.

Why do I care how many men/women/children are on the pod? The distribution of people, or even number of people for that matter, doesn't appear to affect gameplay. Unless this makes a difference in later missions, it seems like a waste of programming.

This is a rediculous game its almost uncontrollable,its not fun at all. My kid said "dad can you give this game back" But , hey what do ya want for free.

I seem to be having a bigger problem than others. When I start the first mission, there isn't a pod anywhere to control, which means the game is unplayable. Help?

Anidem, I’ve posted the key bindings which tell you how to go full screen, also if you click on the help button which appears once you press the play button, you can access the help document. Just read my pseudo review at #1

Anyway, here are the key bindings again:

Arrows – Controls the landing pod
Space – Switches between pods
F1 – Load/Save
M – Mission
P – Pause
S – Settings
H – Help
F – Full screen/Windowed toggle

You know, once you get the hang of the controls the game does become better. It took me around 15 goes before I got anything working the way I wanted. The control of the ship is very sensitive to the rockets you use, and need to be used judiciously, otherwise you will keep losing your pods. This game is all about management (of fuel and air as well as being able to juggle more than one pod in the playing area at any one tine - the more pods, the harder it becomes) and control (careful use of the burners to control the pods), and is certainly different to the games we’ve been getting for a long time. Just like the last title we got from this developer. :)

With all this controversy, how could one possibly not download the game to give it a shot?

Dex, please don't be discouraged by some of the people that leave pointless comments, free software sites like this one always attracts fools that think they "deserve" free games. I'm downloading now, thanks for commenting here, and thanks for the freebie!

For once I actually have some constructive criticism.

1) Surprisingly, installed and ran correctly (I think) in Vista 64.

2) Game would not go full screen. Do not know it this is intentional or a Vista conflict, but My desktop is only 1024 x768.

2) Game was not what it appeared to be due to the theme, Lunar Landers are usually a sign of LANDING. Basically this is a juggling game, however the notion of juggling Oxygen tanks and Life pods by bumping them with a Lunar Lander is kinda "HUH?!". I have a feeling you had the theme in your head before you had the gameplay set. Being somebody who used to have the awful tendency to try to write songs around good sounding titles, I understand this completely.

I cured this by giving up writing, I do NOT suggest the same approach for you unless you are also 41, getting fat and have almost no personal time due to children. If so, email me and we can co-found a "WTF happened to me!?" forum, LOL!

Seriously though, I actually like the idea you had for game mechanics (except that I was losing landers off screen with no idea what was going on with them. I am willing to think this was due to the above mentioned lack of Full screen view. If not, then that was a bad idea.) But to me, this has "Humorous Action" written all over it. This gameplay idea would have been better served with a theme tempered with the whimsical much like Peggle. Imagine if Peggles them would have been to land Astronauts into certain bases by bouncing them off of Asteroids via cannon launch. Popcap would be out of business.

Unlike every band in the history of the world,(with the possible exception of those chanting Benedictine Monks and AC/DC) I actually WOULD suggest you take you core idea and repackage it as a sequel and expect even better results.

thumbs down. BORING

I like it..I grew up with the Apollo moon landings..

Thank you, SkyFrontier.
We appreciate additional input on features for Vega.
The Little Green guy will be back before the summer.
We're working on Prague, the next update to SilkWood. Our hope is to tell the story of the Six Elder in greater detail since we'll have the entire screen to work with instead of a small area like in Silkwood.
Prague is our biggest project to date. More info is available on our website under New Projects.


Dex "DFX"

Hi Teddy,

You have to click on the numbers at the top middle of the playing area, depending upon which you select, will give you 1 to 5 pods to control.

I hope this helps

We could not get the pod to move. We tried all the keys on our keyboard, multiple times with the arrow keys, and no luck. The program seemed to install fine, no errors. This is on a Vista Home Premium with SP1. It's an HP computer.

Sorry, but I also don't like this game, not only because the idea is totally stupid and boring, but also because the physics engine and collision detection are really bad, even a beginner could code a better physics and collision detection engine.
A few examples:
Sometimes when you move a box with the leg of you pod and then want to go away from this box, then the box stops moving. You can also throw a box on other boxes and nothing physics like happens. The one box gets reflected, the other box stays where it was/is.
Sometimes I was also able to collect some boxes to use with my pod, sometimes it works, most of the time it does not work. The worst thing is that sometimes it also collects a box, which I don't wanted to collect.

The first level is also damn difficult already. But it's not only difficult, it's also too boring. You do the same thing on and on, and the game play is slow, really slow. No action, no change, nothing, only move pod, switch pod, move pod, switch pod, crash, move pod, switch pod, pod lost, move pod, crash, restart, ... Ey, is that a joke?
I played it around half an hour and removed it already again. (the uninstaller crashed at the end, no good sign) Sorry, but this game is crap. That's a "look, I've coded my first game. You control a thing and move a few things. I wasn't even able to add a working installer" game. That's like a cheap game for a school project. Sorry, that's garbage and was a waste of my time. I do not recommend this game to anyone.

Very poor.
Wouldn't have this free, let alone pay for it.
Actually, the games on here over the last few months have been almost all poor.

Hallo Dex!
First of all, thank you for the time - we're always glad to see a company representative and I'm sure community will spread the word about your work.
Will be busy the whole day as I've been lately, so no time to play this one to say something useful, but be sure I'll contact you thru some website "contacts" if any idea comes to mind after playing it a while - it's good to see Vega as an ongoing project, and I bet lots of us may write you also just to contribute.
BUT I'D LIKE TO THANK YOUR TEAM FOR ANOTHER GREAT GAME, and that is "Silkwood" (this one would not be found by searching THIS site, guys, so check it out here). That was really fun, I mean seeing that little green guy having a life and making it easier or seeing him getting sick even after adjusting each and single parameter to AVOID that was... unusual, and like real life, some things are just out of our hands. The first word that comes to mind when thinking on your game is "experience". Yes, it's not a game, it's an experience. Personal experience, I mean, such like 1st day in school, 1st kiss, riding a bike. "1st time you have to take care of another being". Yeah. Ingame cutscenes was a little surprise, despite being short they effectively contribute to the story in a kind manner.
So if you are part of it, Dex, thanks for the experience!

Hi Mamma24kiddies,

It really depends upon what sort of games you and your family like. Follow the link to my post in the forums (see post #1) where there are links to a couple of videos of gameplay. Maybe that will give you an idea as to whether you'll like the game; though there's nothing like trying the game out for yourself to make the decision. If you like physics based games then you may like this one. I've also posted some screenshots.

My conclusion above may give you some idea's as to what I think of the game and I'm sure there will be lots more as the day passes. This is a 'first time' game as opposed to the many repeats we've had of late..

Regards

Stephen aka Whiterabbit

@Whiterabbit
It will be an update.

#6.....When I can't uninstall something I use Your Uninstaller 2008...Or Cleanse Uninstaller....I like Your Uninstaller 2008 better...You can get it off CNET...If you google it, it comes right up....It will force the uninstall and clean up the files...Hope it helps...I like free software...and I had good luck with that one...:)

Does anyone like this game? I have downloaded so much on my comps, I just wanted to know if anyone thinks this is a game I should download or not. I like Arcade games....so it's just a matter of ...Is this game a good one to download....Is it difficult? Is it fun? and is does it have good graphics.....Thanks for any responses...and I greatly appreciate any opinions...Thanks again....Can't wait for those virtual games and sim games!!!! :)