‘Diabotical’ – Kickstarter Game of the Month

Each month we are bringing you the best and most interesting Kickstarter games, from charming indies to inevitable blockbuster hits. This time we’re leading with the very charming Diabotical!

This month we take a look at the unusual and unique. We start if off with Diabotical — a new take on the old-school fast-action multiplayer arena FPS that ends September 1. Created and developed by former Quake and eSport professionals, Diabotical looks to compete in its genre by offering multiple maps, modes, and a plethora of customization options for solo and team players alike. That, however isn’t everything players can expect from this game.

Diabotical is unique in that it features adorable little ‘eggbots’ that can be heavily personalized with skins and stickers that can be obtained through gameplay or via purchase. Players can share a matching look with members of their Clan, the game’s version of team groups. Also new is the Community Hub. The Hub is a specific area for players in a Clan to socialize, watch Twitch streams live, interact in chat, join matches and watch rankings. The game will be fully moddable by the community but it already includes a multi-user map editor allowing all players to create new maps. Another cool feature is the upcoming coaching system designed to assist new players with learning the game before being pitted against more experienced combatants.

Diabotical was created specifically for the eSports genre and features matchmaking, ladder matches, tournaments and world championships. Sponsors and sponsored players will have the opportunity to obtain custom skins and in-game ad space. Diabotical is still under development by The GD Studio and is expected to release mid-2017. While fully funded in only four days, players may still have time to back the project. Share our enthusiasm for this featured game by joining our Diabotical community at Fandom.

Kickstarter Honorable Mentions

Mythica VR

This first choice in the Honorable Mentions isn’t exactly unique in that we have all heard about Virtual Reality in the form of headset wearing gamers. What is unusual however is that Mythica VR is a stand-up multiplayer dungeon crawler. Using a VR headset and duel hand-held motion controllers, players will complete quests and campaigns, hacking and slashing through mobs and levels. Play it alone or with friends.

Unique is the map builder. Not the builder itself as much as the way the building is done. There is the traditional use of mouse and keyboard, but where’s the fun in that, when you can walk around your map and build it in virtual reality. Become the NPC’s you create by acting with the motion controller and voicing them yourself. To answer questions regarding how this all works, how much room is required, how silly you might look playing and what platforms are supported (VIVE, Oculus, Steam VR and Google Cardboard confirmed), head over to their Kickstarter. Mythica VR is being developed by Arrowstorm Entertainment and is expected to release July of 2017.

Close Your

 Next in our look at the unique and unusual, we bring you Close Your – Life one blink at a time, developed by William Hellwarth. Remember the phrase “Blink and you’ll miss it”? In this game, that is absolutely true. Players will watch as their (virtual) life flashes before their eyes. One second they see a disaster about to strike and the next they could be standing in front of Death himself, all because they blinked at the moment of impact.

This game is a first person interactive short story where players can live an entire lifetime, from birth to death. Every decision will shape the outcome and determine how long the journey takes. The catch is that each scene only lasts as long as the players eyes are open. With the use of a webcam (required to play), the player’s eye’s are tracked and every blink could forward the scene anywhere from 5 seconds to 5 years. Life quite literally flashes before your eyes. Release is expected as early as Feb 2017. Time left to support this project as a backer is limited, so don’t wait.

 

Vulpine

Finishing up this look at the unique and unusual comes Vulpine by Clockwork Giant Games. The description states that this game is an “open-world game where you (the players) survive as ridiculously well-armed animals. Explore beautiful environments to hunt for food, gather resources, and search for signs of lost civilization”. If you haven’t watched the trailer above, I suggest you do, right now. Seriously — well, provided you can do it seriously. Why exactly would a bear need an axe to defend itself in the first place? To add to the oddity, animals can build ‘dens’ by first marking their territory (with a paintbrush! What were YOU thinking?) and once built, they can add items inside like a place to store weapons and even craft food, because foxes love soup.

Vulpine can be played on public or hosted private servers, or players can create their own private session. All of these support 32+ players. Form a pack to hunt down bigger and badder prey and find rare loot. PVP combat is also supported. The inspiration for Vulpine comes from games like Terraria, Monster Hunter and Tokyo Jungle. There is still plenty of time to become a backer and make this game a reality, so if this sounds like a game you could ‘sink your teeth into’, then head over to the Kickstarter and show them your support.

 

So that’s our look at Kickstarter games for this month. Some of the best and most unique ideas come from Indie developers, but they can’t make their games without the support of the players either through funding, or acceptance through venues like Steam Greenlight or both. While this monthly review takes a look at Kickstarter.com specifically, there are other funding communities out there that need your support as well.

Here’s a list new communities created based on Kickstarter-funded games from the last month. Help out the fans by becoming a contributor.

New Communities

Edengrad – MMO Survival game based in a post-apocalyptic world. Leave the safety of the underground and learn to adapt to life on the surface.

Fabular: Once Upon A Spacetime – Action RPG with a medieval/space theme. A young knight goes on an adventure in his trusty spaceship.

Wizard of Legend – Fast-paced dungeon crawler with roguelike elements. Travel through seamless dungeons in search of power spells and items.

Fictorium – Action RPG featuring customizable, dynamic spellcasting. Players can create or alter their spells creating unique abilities and destroy or save the world.

Diabotical – A fast-paced arena FPS featuring crazy eggbots, map building, team ranking and was our top feature in this article!