Best Of Indie Games: Week Of April 21st, 2008

[Every week, IndieGames.com: The Weblog editor Tim W. will be summing up some of the top free-to-download and commercial indie games from the last seven days, as well as any notable features on his sister 'state of indie' weblog.] This week on 'Best Of Indie Games', we take a look at some of the top titles released this week - including two sequels, an abandoned project, several game development competitions, a couple of interviews and a new release from cactus. Game Pick: 'Ad Nauseam 2' (cactus, freeware) "Fresh from releasing Vicious Cycle last week, cactus is back again with a new vertical shooter entitled Ad Nauseam 2. There's some mature content in the game, though players should really be worried about the seizure warnings instead. Mark Overmars would be proud." Game Pick: 'Karoshi 2' (Jesse Venbrux, freeware) "A suicide platformer in which players have to figure out ways to kill the protagonist to complete each level. Partly inspired by cactus' Psychosomnium, this sequel features updated graphics, over fifty stages and even a few easter eggs to discover." Game Pick: 'Noitu Love 2' (konjak, commercial indie - demo available) "Joakim's first commercial 2D action game is due out today. A sequel to his similarly-titled platformer released last year, this IGF Grand Prize finalist features more levels, better graphics, an innovative control system, and even has some of the most memorable boss encounters seen this side of the 21st century." Game Pick: 'Facewound' (Facepunch Studios, freeware) "Created by a team consisting of members Garry Newman (lead developer of the popular Garry's Mod) and Arthur Lee (The Underside), this 2D action game sports plenty of zombies, a wide selection of weapons, ragdoll physics and exploding barrels - all ingredients for a stellar commercial release. Therefore, it does come as a bit of a surprise to see the project released as a free download. Still, one can't complain much with a freebie of this quality." Article: 'Competitions with Cash Prizes' "We've analyzed and summarized a handful of competitions with cash prizes which are open to developers around the world. Also included, Alistair Wallis' fantastic list of ten indie and student game competitions. And while we're on the subject, TOJam 2008 is scheduled to take place from the 9th to 11th of May, 2008 at Innovation Toronto."