I’ve been following Len Stuart for a couple years now on DeviantArt and he’s contributing a nice stream of isometric pieces to my bottomless pit of DA notifications.

The locations he’s posting warm my heart as they immediately remind me of a Serbian ZX Spectrum game I always held in high regards, Movie. (I will use any excuse to post Spectrum screenshots.)

I think you can see why. You played as a 1930s detective infiltrating a mob boss hideout …

The screenshots that Len is posting come from a game called Pixel Noir where you play as a detective in the run-down streets of Pinnacle City. OK, the similarities end there as Pixel Noir is a JRPG with turn-based combat, but the action-adventure vibe of solving crimes with a cigarette in your mouth certainly holds to the same story aesthetic.

Pixel Noir has been funded on Kickstarter (best place to get in-depth updates on the game) and is developed by a wider team called SWDTech Games. They’re in alpha stage now and I’m very excited to try it out one day. Even the music they posted on their website sounds like if Sin City sported smooth chiptunes. One to keep on the radar, definitely.

IndieCade #SoundWall: Pixel Noir

Pixel Noir was submitted to IndieCade 2017: [SUBMIT YOUR GAME HERE]!

Title: Noir Theme Composer: Kunal Majmudar Game: Pixel Noir Developer: SWDTech Games

“Living on the streets of a shithole like Pinnacle City, there’s only two things to keep you going: A pack of cigarettes and the feeling that there’s more than this.”

Pixel Noir detective JRPG game to release in 2023 for Linux, Mac, and Windows PC. All due to the ongoing work of developer SWDTech Games. Which is currently available on Steam Early Access. Living on the streets of a mud hole like Pinnacle City, there are only two things that keep you going. A pack of cigarettes and the feeling that there's more to it than this. In Pixel Noir there was something rotten in that old hospital. Since you were following your instincts that night, those instincts got your partner and other people killed. With only a temporary insanity defense and nothing to clear your name. Now the system throws the book at you. For ten years, you were haunted by unanswered questions in Pixel Noir. Frightened by what you saw and did. Now you’re a private eye, scraping by and operating out of a crummy apartment on the wrong side of town. One day, a strange case comes along, giving you a chance to clear your name once and for all. With your sanity at stake, how can you refuse?

Pixel Noir announcement Trailer

Pixel Noir is a hard-boiled detective RPG set inside a sprawling metropolis. One where gangs also roam free and coffee cures all. Uncover the truth while you recover your sanity as you unravel Pinnacle City’s darkest secrets. Something happened that night in the hospital. Something that cost you your career as a police detective, your sanity. As well as the life of your partner. Ten years later, you have a chance to set things right. Are the hallucinations that haunt you a clue to what happened that fateful night?

Features:

Solve mysteries as Pinnacle City’s cheapest Private Eye in Pixel Noir! From missing pets to murder investigations. Your detective skills will earn you either fortune or face punches.

Explore Pinnacle City, a wretched hive of scum and villainy. All littered with black market trade, grifters, and players of all kinds.

Fight enemies in turn-based combat and unleash devastating combo attacks. Doing so by teaming up with others in your group!

Tune up your gear! Upgrade weapons with modifications to fit your play style.

End Of The Road For The PS Vita?

Last week saw a sombre event take place in the PlayStation Vita’s history. On 20th July 2021 we saw the last ever games released through the PlayStation Store for the console. From this point forward, time is ticking away rapidly for us so is the end of the road for the PS Vita in sight? The Final Games Released without any fanfare from Sony themselves, six final games made it out on to the…

Pixel Noir PS Vita Update

We’ve been talking recently about the Kickstarter funded RPG Pixel Noir and it’s status. Originally scheduled for release in 2016, the PC version entered Steam Early Access but no details have been made available about release dates for the other ports. I have been asking the developers, SWDTech, for more information regarding the PS Vita version specifically. I had expressed concerns, mainly for…

Whatever Happened To… Pixel Noir?

Despite being funded on Kickstarter several years ago, the crowded funded detective RPG Pixel Noir has still failed to materialise on the PS Vita.

Successfully funded in early 2016, the game was promised for the PC, Mac, PS4 and PS Vita. Other versions were added as stretch goals were reached. The initial target date of November 2016 came and went, and almost three years later there are still no…

Kickstarter-Funded PS Vita RPG Enters Early Access On Steam

Although it has finally taken a little longer than expected, SWDTech‘s retro RPG is now available on Steam Early Access system.

Pixel Noir is a J-RPG with a visual style reminiscent of the greatest moment of 16-bit splendour, combining the best of the genre that was enjoyed in the 1990s and a Noir aesthetic that blends classic detective stories with elements of science fiction and steampunk.

The…

Have a look at Pixel Noir

In this day and age, Kickstarter projects have become a common path for Indie developers to get anywhere for their game. Turning to crowd funding, it’s easy to see that some projects take it for granted or don’t fully come to grips with the reality of their goals. It’s for this reason that I take campaigns with a grain a salt when I look around. One of my favorite indicators for a potentially…