Thursday Triple is a weekly roundup of Indie Games from around the Net.
It’s a sign that I should exercise my brain more often when computing strings of logic makes my head hurt. In the interest of sharpening up, here’s a couple puzzlers to re-solidify the goop that’s potentially sitting between your ears as well.
Great Permutator
By Ripatti Software
The best puzzle games are the ones that appear elementary, with basic elements that are incredibly simple to grasp, but like the anecdotal frog you won’t realise just how crazy things can get until stuff is exploding around you.
Great Permutator is one such concept. You are the manager of operations at a factory, and the countless number of boxes you see each day need to get places. Somehow, through ingenious conveyor belt design, you have to make sure everything arrives precisely where it needs to at precisely when it’s supposed to.
It’s tough. Wrapping your head around so many moving pieces is like trying to count dust particles while a breeze blows through the room. Of course, the challenge is just part of the appeal. Those who get a kick out of engineering games like SpaceChem will find something to sink into here.
[youtube link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OeKGghkUN6Q” width=”590″ height=”315″]
J.U.L.I.A.: Among the Stars
By CBE Software s.r.o.
The premise seems familiar for a story-driven experience involving space, exploration, and extra-terrestrial life. In J.U.L.I.A.: Among the Stars, you take control of an astrobiologist stranded on a newly discovered planet. Survival is the first thing on your mind, though a bunch of questions arise as you notice you’re the only one of your crew still alive.
What makes the game stand out is its overall aesthetic and integrated puzzles. There’s plenty to see and mysteries to solve, both of which pull you deeper into the narrative.
For a slice of sci-fi meant to inspire the inner explorer, check out J.U.L.I.A., an experience that bundles all the things you’d expect of any game like it.
[youtube link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iuABNdxq-QI” width=”590″ height=”315″]
Reprisal Universe
By electrolyte
Paying homage to Populous, the father of the “god game,” is this slick strategy title. Reprisal Universe has you in charge of a civilization, and through the manipulation of elements, your task is to unite tribes from across the land.
There’s nearly three dozen different planets with over a hundred islands to explore. In your journey you’ll also meet adversaries – tribes that have their own agendas and may not take too kindly to your attempts at conquest. Despite the bright colours and light-hearted atmosphere, this isn’t your average stroll in the park for sure as the AI is as hell-bent in destroying you as you are in destroying it.
It’s hard to get the formula right, but at the very least Reprisal Universe is quite the beautiful game.
[youtube link=”https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aI-PIgPGR_k” width=”590″ height=”315″]