Introducing the Humble Indie Bundle 8

Well the new Humble Indie Bundle has been launched, and this time it brings you seven games at whatever price you deem fair. Not only is this a fantastic opportunity to get your grubby little mitts on some brand new games (right at the time you could do without distractions!), but it also gives you a chance to support some fantastic developers and donate to charity while you’re at it.

But, is it worth it?

Hotline Miami

Hotline Miami is the first of the two games available when paying above the average price and provides the perfect opportunity to unleash your inner psychopath. Taking several cues stylistically from the 2011 film Drive, the game draws you in to a cocktail of blood, neon and moody, electronic 80s beats. The topdown gameplay sees you running through a level cracking skulls and busting caps, no doubt dying hundreds of times yourself in the process. But as difficult as this game is, it isn’t entirely unforgiving and offers a very reasonable set of checkpoints. The stand out feature of this game though has to be the soundtrack, but I would avoid listening to it in public lest it send you in to a bloodthirsty frenzy.

Proteus

Proteus is the second game available when paying above average and is by far the most beautiful game of the bundle. There are no set objectives, no clear end result and only the WASD keys to guide you. However, what this game does offer is a truly stunning aesthetic experience.

This is a game that speaks to the same part of the brain tickled by a boxful of Lego or an undiscovered corner of a familiar place – there is a sense of awe and possibility in this game. If you are going to play any of these games over the next few weeks then Proteus will provide a calming tonic to help you recover after expelling all your rage in Hotline Miami.

Awesomenauts

If Super Smash Brothers and League of Legends ever had an alcopop-fuelled fumble one night, then Awesomenauts would come bouncing along nine months later. Combining the highly popular competitive form of the MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) with a 2D action platformer has proved to be a winning combination for this game and it can provide endless hours of fun. The fact that it presents itself as a Saturday morning cartoon, complete with the Power Rangers-esque soundtrack, all adds to the charm of this electronic sugar rush.[divider]

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Capsized

In Capsized we find a delightfully hand drawn, side-scrolling shooter. The game is extremely easy to pick up and play, and claims to offer a huge amount of gameplay and weapons to keep your palms tacky and your arse-cheeks flat. While this game may not offer much new to the ‘Metroid-Vania’ shooter, it does its job very well and will keep you entertained for a good few hours.

Thomas Was Alone

Thomas Was Alone is perhaps the most charming of the games on this list. While the gameplay itself is very basic – negotiate a group of different shapes around a platformer and utilise their different sizes and abilities to your advantage, this manages to become a compelling experience thanks to the use of some genius narration. Taking some inspiration from Portal 2, the developers brought in Danny Wallace to provide some British charm and bring these little shapes to life. If you think it’s impossible to empathise with a two dimensional object, then you’ve clearly not played Thomas Was Alone.

Dear Esther

Now this is a game that has divided opinion wherever it goes. Much like Proteus, Dear Esther offers an ambient and narrative experience without much discernable gameplay. While some will tell you it’s a beautiful way to spend some time, others will tell you that it’s nothing more than a walking simulator. Ultimately, I think that with this knowledge in mind, you will know on which side of the fence you are most likely to fall.

Little Inferno

Quite how the creators of World of Goo got talked in to curling this beige little turd in to the world, I don’t know. If you want to be offered neither challenge nor entertainment, then dive right in!

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Disclaimer: If you think it’s acceptable to pay only $0.01 for this package then you are an objectively awful human being.