CRYSTALS!
Crystal Control has just gone live, marking Mike's debut as a video game developer and the start of my decent into deep depression as I wonder if I could ever top the mechanical brilliance of his competitive shoot 'em up. How exciting!
We released a beta build of Crystal Control some time ago, but thanks to the artistic stylings of Colin Greenhalgh and the musical prowess of Derek Klaren, the game is looking and sounding better than ever. Don't take my word for it, though; grab a friend and check it out for yourself!
Play Crystal Control now!
CONTROLS!
Much like Dikdik before it, Crystal Control hopes to bring multiplayer back to the couch by forcing two players to share a keyboard in order to duke it out. Unlike Dikdik, however, Crystal Control is a bit complex and you may find that your keyboard can't handle all four keys (two per player) simultaneously. We've remedied this by allowing player one to use "Shift" and "Ctrl" instead of "W" and "S" (respectively) if this happens to be the case for your keyboard (don't worry: you can't start the game without holding all four keys down, so you should know right away what works and what doesn't).
Those alternative keys are specially designated as modifier keys (so they don't count toward the limit), but be cautious if you happen to have any odd keyboard shortcuts set up with any of the keys involved.
If you happen to have some Xbox 360 controllers on hand, however, you'll be happy to know that they're fully supported by Crystal Control! Just press any button on either controller and the game will automatically switch over to controller mode.
EPXCON!
If you happen to reside in the Iowa City area, you can stop by the University of Iowa's Art Building West for EPXCON RIGHT NOW, where the V-Comp booth is all set up and our games are on display (including Crystal Control...I'm accepting challengers)! Unfortunately, Mike wasn't able to make it, but you can still come by and tell me how great you think his game is (and maybe I'll pass the information on...maybe).
If you happen to stop by, be sure to also check out the Iowa City Public Library's booth, where you can find ANOTHER new title from Virtually Competent, tentatively titled Shipshape. We're really excited and honored to be developing Shipshape for the library's large "tablet table" project and we hope that the game will offer children a fun, cooperative experience when it hits in a few months. Of course, the prototype you'll see here is still very much in its early stages, so don't be too harsh when you visit the V-Comp booth to talk to me about it!
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Alright, I've got to get back to handing out V-Comp business cards and losing games of Crystal Control at our table, but stay tuned for lots of pictures post-convention!
