KickTraq

Gamers who played the sci-fi Metroidvania-style game Dark Matter were shocked when the game ended with a black title card describing the ending. An alleged member of the indie developer InterWave blamed the failed Kickstarter drive for it. (Read More)

Dark Matter developer InterWave Studios says the game's abrupt "wall of text" ending, which has attracted a lot of attention on YouTube, is the fault of a failed Kickstarter and a blown budget. (Read More)

A jolting conclusion awaits anyone who bought Dark Matter, an indie game released two days ago on Steam. About four hours in, gamers were abruptly slapped with a wall of text signifying the end of the game. The game's maker says the hard stop is because the studio's Kickstarter failed and they ran out of money. (Read More)

There have been plenty of weeks with no losers and several winners, but I can’t remember compiling this column and finding losers without winners to sit above them. There are lots of projects that are readying themselves for a spot in the winners’ section though, propped on the podium, parading their plaudits. Dungeonmans and Tangiers are my current favourites, with Monochroma not far behind. It’s a busy week though and there should be something for everyone. Except sports fans. Nothing for sports fans. Probably the least Kickstarted genre actually. Licensing issues to blame? (Read More)

Here is the first of the two updates we promised last week! We have spent a lot talking about the game, and how it's put together, and what people can expect of gameplay. It's time to focus a little on the story, and one of the game's two main... (Read More)

Violence never truly solves problems. It may shatter them to pieces, or riddle them with holes, or disintegrate them at a quantum level so that they no longer are in your way, but it does not solve anything. Dark Matter’s story is nuanced enough to... (Read More)

As you’ll know if you’ve read my hands-on preview with the beta code, Dark Matter is a rather decent 2.5D sci-fi survival title. The Kickstarter isn’t doing too well, so developers InterWave are on a bit of a promotional push (hence why journalists have all found preview code in their laps.) (Read More)

Seekers are the deadliest enemies you will encounter in the world of Dark Matter. They are not the most armoured, nor are they the largest aliens in the game. Seekers don’t fly, and they don’t even have a ranged attack. What makes them a... (Read More)

Big Cousins hold many a record in Dark Matter. To start with, they wield the first ranged attack players have to deal with, in the form of a Scavenger acid projectile that sticks to the surfaces it hits. Even when a Cousin misses, its projectile... (Read More)

Last week I was at Rezzed instead of looking at Kickstarter pages but I’ve made up for it by spending most of today browsing through projects. Thoughts of Kickstarter’s purpose have been hanging in the air (on twitter and in chatrooms that I frequent) and I have been pondering how I see the site. I have backed projects knowing that I’m essentially pre-ordering something that I assume will be released and will be as expected, based on the team’s previous work and a comfortable place in a familiar genre. But I mostly back smaller projects that I want to support and to play because they are different, risky and challenging. There’s a great deal of innovation among the nostalgia. (Read More)

Interwave Studios has released a new mini-video demonstrating how light works in Dark Matter, its in-development Metroid-like, intense sci-fi side scrolling game that combines the twitch mechanics of a first person shooter with an adventure platformer. Dark Matter is on Kickstarter trying to fund £50,000 for this project. (Read More)

The first round of Dark Matter previews is in, and we’d like to take a minute to share some of them with our existing and potential backers. We are overwhelmed by the quality and professional tone of the media response so far. Here are some of the... (Read More)

Dark Matter is a sci-fi shooter being developed by InterWave. Currently the game is looking for Kickstarter backing to further polish the beta build. (Read More)

Real-time lights and shadows have been a part of Dark Matter since its earliest designs. In fact, they were already part of the game before it had a name, before it had a format and shape, back when it was little more than a “scary corridors with... (Read More)

Over the last quarter century, games got smart. As soon as CPUs and programming techniques could take the strain, strictly scripted enemy and event behaviours were replaced by powerful AI systems that interacted with each other to create fresh and... (Read More)

The world isn’t short on Metroidvania-style adventure games, but few are quite as taut as this one. Developed by Netherlands-based Interwave, the gamemaker is seeking £50,000 (about $80,000) to bring Dark Matter past the finish line. They sent over a (very) early for me to try out and while I’d once been unconvinced, an hour with the game swayed me. Let me explain what makes Dark Matter unique. (Read More)

We received several requests for information on level workflow with dynamic lights, and on how some of the effects shown in the video were made. In order to address those questions, we have prepared a small update for everyone, to give you a little... (Read More)

InterWave Studios are looking to crowdfund the last few months of development on Dark Matter, a Metroid-esque sci-fi side-scrolling title. (Read More)

Before we roll into three great crowdfunding projects I have to give a shout out to Mike Dietz, Ed Schofield and Doug TenNapel of Armikrog. There’s no godly reason why Armikrog shouldn’t cross the finish line, so it’s time to nut up and pledge your hearts out for Mike, Ted, and Ed. Now that Armikrog is successfully funded, we can move on. You’ll need to break out the AA’s and Halogen lamps for two of our projects, and your compass for the third, woodsmen unite! (Read More)

Classic Metroid fans, I’ve got a game for you. InterWave Studios announced a Kickstarter amd Steam Greenlight campaign that will run simultaneously for their upcoming, DRM-free game Dark Matter/, a side scrolling game that combines the twitch mechanics of a first person shooter with an adventure platformer. (Read More)

In the finest tradition of Mrs Ripley and Aran, the Ensign crosses dark corridors filled with deadly space parasites, deadlier mutated humans, and something else so alien and twisted that any attempts to analyse it made all on-line AIs commit... (Read More)