At PAX 2019 we were relaxing from a long day on the hard concrete show floor when we found a cute little party game that was flying under the radar. In the back corner of the Headup Games booth, Fromto’s demo offered a nice place to lounge while allowing players to unleash their creative or chaotic side in a race to the finish. We originally made our way to the Headup Games booth for our appointment with Gregor Ebert for a Hands-on preview with Silver Chains, Dead End Job, and Colt Canyon. After our appointment, we caught a glimpse of Fromto and decided it was a must try. Below we will be discussing our time with all four titles and why Fromto won our Team Choice Award.
On Saturday afternoon, we made our way to the back of the convention center to get a hands-on preview with Dead End Job. To our surprise, Gregor led us to a dark booth to give us an immersive dive with the upcoming horror suspense game Silver Chains. In the dark booth, we found ourselves in an eerie mansion with little insight into what had previously transpired. As we wandered through the mansion, the rushing sound of feet, the creaking of boards, and suspenseful music added to all of the horror elements at play. At one point we were startled when a horrifying woman similar to Momo appeared out of nowhere and started to chase after us.
The game was a little hard to navigate due to my lack of experience with a keyboard and mouse. Silver Chains offered some interesting puzzles and some out of the ordinary solving. Silver Chains is available for preorder on the steam store now and is set to release later this year.
After our sneak peek with SIlver Chains, we then moved over to Dead End Job. Now for those with little insight as to what Dead End Job might be about, just looking at the name could suggest that it’s either a game about the dead or about a man who has gotten sick of his job. Well, if you guessed number one you would be close.
Dead End Job is a 90’s-esqe level-clearing shooter inspired by a variety of 90’s themes. Players help Chief Exterminator Officer Hector Plasm as he attempts to be the greatest ghostbuster. Each ghost that captured and each citizen freed increases the character’s level and money owed from the client. During our hands-on demo, we were tasked with freeing citizens and exercising a park. The game will be co-op when it releases, however, we only experienced it through solo play. As the player progresses through the level, new areas are discoverable and new paths open up for a variety of directions to go. Smart ghost hunters should be aware though that a variety of objects can be destroyed in order to find additional perks and money. A variety of power-ups can also be obtained to aid in this wacky ghost-busting adventure.
According to the press announcement, players will have the opportunity to play with their audience members through Twitch or Mixer; viewers will have the opportunity to either aid or hinder the ghostbusting superstar. Overall, Dead End Job was a fun ghost-busting level-clearer that we look forward to playing again. It may not be the type of title that everyone rushes out to buy, but it is a game that can provide a relaxing and fun experience.
After we were done ghost-busting in Dead End Job, we thought we would take the opportunity to be a cowboy in the 2D platformer, Colt Canyon. Although Colt Canyon may not be the most graphically impressive title out there, the game offers some things that the recent cowboy fantasy Red Dead Redemption 2 does not. In this 2D adventure game, the player must move through the level clearing all foes in their way. The player has the opportunity to find new weapons, ammo, and treasure as they clear each area surviving waves of Indians, outlaws, wolves, and snakes. As the player moves throughout the levels, they have the opportunity to rescue hostages which can become helpful allies.
While we were playing the demo, we kept dying on stage 1-3. Aiming is not easy in this game and the player must learn how to adapt to the fast-paced action of the game. Colt Canyon reminds us of the old stick figure shooter that used to be popular during the early 2000s on multiple Flash game websites. Overall, Colt Canyon could provide hours of fun, map-clearing gameplay, however, the other two titles greatly overpowered its presence in our memories.
Our last and unofficial hands-on preview was with Fromto, a 2D sandbox racing game with a track building element built by a father and his two children. Erikson, the developer of the game, has become known worldwide for his contemporary art. In his latest project players take turns to complete the course and its obstacles. Once all players have had the opportunity to give the course a try, they are given the ability to modify the course. This ability allows players to make the course either easier or more difficult for their racing friends or foes. Once all modifications are complete, each racer has the opportunity to try the course again with the newly added obstacles.
The game is meant to be played by multiple people and even offers the ability to pass and play with a single controller. As players modify the world, the game tends to become more and more hilarious as players look for new ways to complete the course and obstruct their opponents’ pathways. In the building phase, players have the opportunity to secure building blocks to place. For players unlucky enough to not secure a building block passage, the opportunity to buy simple blocks is still available. During our PAX East 2019 preview, we found it rather difficult to put the game down and continue with our scheduled appointments. The game’s simple but creative design makes it enjoyable for gamers of all ages to pick it up, race against friends or foes, and let their inner child out.
We are extremely thankful to Headup Games for the opportunity to try out all four of these titles. Although there were lots of titles at the Headup Games booth, we were pleased to award Fromto and Studio Erikson the Marooners Rock “Team Choice Award” at PAX East 2019. Little did we know that giving this award would help alter the fate of Fromto. In a press release sent out on April 1st, HeadUp Games announced that Fromto would no longer be sold to the Museum of Modern Art. Players will now have the opportunity to race against one another online or in person in the four-player sandbox racing game.
