Everyone in the Armor Games community is raving about Crush the Castle players pack. Now it is time to get a inside look at what to expect from Crush the Castle 2. To get the best inside look possible we had time to catch up with the developer himself, Joey, for some insight on the upcoming game.

What are some of the new features we can expect on Crush the Castle 2?

Crush the Castle 2 will be a refreshed experienced from the ground up. Everything from the castle editor to the trebuchet have been revamped and updated with a new look. Castles will look more detailed, environments will be more expansive, and as always the game will cater very much to the castle builders. New environmental features such as varied terrain and weather will offer a different challenge for players. Creative projectiles will offer more strategy and skill while still keeping the game simple and fun.

What are some of the new changes in game play we can expect?

The castle editor has seen the biggest change overall. With over 300,000 castles shared in the Players Pack alone, I really wanted to create a more robust editor and offer more creative freedom when building castles. With all of the creative and talented castle builders out there, I took it personally to make sure their experience was just as good as the castle crushers.

Is there a release date for Crush the Castle 2?

You can look for Crush the Castle 2 around early may.

Crush the Castle 2 sounds like it has the potential to surpass the original. With a refreshed new look, a higher level of strategy, and a more creative editor; this game has the potential to make players everywhere thrilled when it comes out. Look for the game when it launches on Armor Games in early May.

Exit Path is a game being developed that will be featured on Armor Games. To learn more about Exit Path, Armor Games caught up with the game developer himself, John. This is John’s first multiplayer game he is releasing on Armor Games.

What type of game is Exit Path?

Exit Path is a gauntlet-themed racing platform game that allows 3-4 players to race at once. The idea “Exit Path,” came from or was inspired by European exit signs

What can gamers expect when playing Exit Path?

It is a gauntlet-themed race track set up with multiple distractions set throughout the raceway to make it difficult to reach the finish line. For example, there will be spikes to jump over and treadmills to run on. The purpose of the game is to be the first one to cross the finish line before your competitors. There is a one-player mode offered to gain practice before joining multiplayer as well.

Is there any additional information you would like to share about Exit Path?

Exit path will also be available in BETA multi-player within a few weeks of its actual arrival. For all those who are interested in its release date, Exit Path will be releasing around mid-April.

All gamers should keep their eyes open for Exit Path! This is not a game you want to miss!

Game Distributor/Programmer - New Position Open!

Armor Games is a Flash game portal and developer, hosting thousands of Flash games on our website and producing our own premium games.  We are looking for an individual to jump into an entry-level part-time/full-time position for Flash Game development at our office in Irvine, CA. We develop many games concurrently and we need a qualified on-site individual to aid the end process of getting the games finalized, published, and distributed.  You’ll join an awesome team of developers who love to make and play games, and help our game reach millions of gamers around the world.

Responsibilities:
Implementation of third-party code into our Flash games
Distribution to various Flash portals and websites
General game testing, debug, and feedback

Here’s Some Requirements for the Job:
1-2+ years experience in Flash development, game programming preferred
Strong Actionscript 3 development experience (additional AS2 knowledge is a plus)
Understanding of Object-Oriented Programming
Strong background with Adobe Flash CS3 or CS4 environments
Experience in image editing (Photoshop, Fireworks, etc)
Fantastic interpersonal and communication skills
Work well with other programmers and their code
Understanding of basic game design principles
Internet and computer savvy

And some pluses:
AA Degree, Bachelors Degree, or equivalent
Experience in CSS, HTML, C++, and other programming languages
Mac and PC oriented
Previous experience implementing third-party code

What We Can Offer:
Competitive Pay/Salary
Company Incentives
Health and Dental Insurance
401k
Paid Vacation
Annual events with the company (golf, kart racing, company dinners, etc)
Open snack bar when you get hungry
Fun, casual office environment, and did we mention snacks?

Please send your resumé, questions, or whatever else you want to send us for the job to (DO NOT post it here!):

jobs+games [at] armorgames.com

We’ll get back to you shortly, thanks!

Hi, could you tell us a little about yourself and what you do?
Sure thing! I’m Ido. It’s a tricky one to pronounce, it’s originated from Hebrew. I love video games, and I’m an independent game developer. A highschool student as of today, but this is my last year. Hurray!

When and how did you become involved in Flash game development?
I was always curious about what’s happening behind the scenes in video games. I found video games and interactive worlds inspiring since I was a little kid. Eventually I got my hands on Flash 5 back in the day, and started out as an animator. I was never good at animating but it was fun, and in the long run also useful as I began to program games in Flash, using Actionscript 2 and then 3.

What do you like most about developing games in Flash?
I love how smooth it is to deliver the game to the player, since it’s played online. And everybody’s online. It’s incredible how a single indie production can reach millions. It gives the developer exposure and space to express creativity, while it gives the player a free game to play (well, in most forms). Win-win!

What were some of the first games you developed?
I developed little games in my early Flash years but none of them were worthy of a release. The first game I developed and actually released was the fan made game Portal: The Flash Version with my partner Hen who nailed the graphics. It was my ‘breach’ to the online game scene. I guess that’s how I am here!

Could you tell us about your future game trilogy, Echoes?
Echoes is an action-strategy game. It’s set in an extensive universe on a torn Earth almost three-hundred years in the future. It joins the famous Real Time Strategy genre with many elements from the Third Person Shooter genre, in a side-scrolling environment.
It is explored in three Acts, released as three games. Every Act is built from 5 stages and an unlockable challenge game-mode. Every stage has its own learning curve and objectives, and is loaded with dialogues carrying on the storyline of the series.

What kind of game-play can we expect to see in Echoes?
The gameplay in Echoes is combined. As mentioned, it joins RTS and Shooter. Ingame, this means you can switch live between Strategy-mode and Combat-mode.

- In Strategy-mode, you’re able to construct a base, recruit an army and control them around. To encourage that, some of the resources in the game are collected throughout the map by capturing Control Points.
- In Combat-mode, you’re able to join your army in the mission to repel the enemies. The cursor turns into a crosshair and the camera focuses on the hero - D.e.m. (name is storyline-related). Controls in Combat mode turn into action game controls. Dem is packed with abilities and weapons which he can carry out during the battle, to support allies and resist enemies. So basically you join your own army, and fight with them side by side in Echoes.

Every stage is filled with dialogues and cutscenes, each time revealing more about the universe of Echoes. All dialogues in the game are voiced, not a single line out!

How long has Act 1 been in progress and when will it be released?
We’ve been developing Act 1 and Echoes in general for some time now - the original design is over two years old! Echoes is a massive project, and it was not easy to develop independently, especially not for a perfectionist :). However I’m happy to say it’s a few weeks to release now.

When you are not developing games, what are some things you enjoy doing?
Hmm, random things I enjoy… I enjoy listening to music (I am pretty open about the genres), playing the drums (on and off for around two years), hanging out with mates… and I can drown myself into a 2 hour movie at 4AM after work spontaneously. And when I am not being teeny, I talk: I try to take opportunities to talk in front of a crowd. This is an opportunity that was given to me through the game industry after the first game I released, and I realized it’s a skill I must develop, especially because it’s not natural for me, deep down I’m kinda shy!

————

Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions Ido. We look forward to playing Echoes.

Everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) should fly on over to the screw attack website to check out the awesome video review of Upgrade Complete that was recently posted there.

Upgrade Complete on Screw Attack

It really is nice to get positive feedback in any form for work you do, but when someone goes to all that effort just to provide you with positive feedback (and entertain viewers, of course) it really makes you smile. Upgrade Complete was one of those  games that recieved almost universal acclaim for its quirkiness, most often for how unique the idea behind it all was, when in actual fact the entire project was pretty much moulded around the idea of Johns “Achievement Unlocked”, only taking a jab at a different aspect of gaming. I actually however, quite like the feeling of upgrading items/weapons/computers to run the latest games, so I hope no Upgrade friendly developers took too much offence (The end screen was, at one point, criticised for being too insulting, oh well!).

I hope everyone is having a good year so far, and I’ll be getting back to you very soon with some exciting updates! Thanks to Dan for showing me this great link

Hi, could you introduce yourself and tell us a little about what you do?
Hi, my name is Louis-Simon (louissi) and I live in Montreal, Canada. I am a flash games developer. I also studied in 3d animation and I am a pretty good artist. I like everything that is involved in the process of creating a game.

How and when did you first get involved in Flash games development?
I started using flash when I was 13. One of my teacher introduced me to the software and I really liked it. I started by animating stick mans but I moved to programming really fast. No one really knew how to code at my school so I had to learn by reading tutorials around the internet. I am really a self-thought person. My first game was about sheep simulation. You could buy sheep, shorn wool and send them to the butcher. I never finished that game but it was almost complete. I never stopped making experiments and starting games since then.

What was the first full game you completed?
I guess my first full game was Worms Level 1. Its a worm in the sewers killing zombie worms. It was decent. I really liked the worm idea, but it was too similar to the worms games.

How long was Neon Rider in development, and what were some challenges you encountered in developing it?
Neon Rider was a big project for me because it was the first time I was programing a game containing cars. It was a lot of work to learn, but in the end, by using Box2d I was able to code the movements of the game really fast. The whole game took around 2 or 3 weeks to complete. The part I most enjoyed was drawing the motorcycle and designing the look of the game.

What do you like most about Neon Rider?
When I started the project, I created a map editor. I really enjoyed creating levels and hopefully soon we will be able to share the map editor with all the users from ArmorGames to see everyone’s creativity.

What inspired you to create Age of War? What aspects of the game do you think made it so popular?
I started making a defense game, and I was looking for an interesting idea for the units. The game started with a gravity gun and etc, but I scrapped the idea and decided to make some “evolutions”. I was playing a lot of Starcraft at the time, and I really liked custom maps. One of the big trend was the “EVOLVE” maps. You could evolve into different species and etc. I guess the idea stayed in my head. I wanted to represent the fact that at all ages of our civilizations, there has been war. I think the “Ages” in the game made it popular. You just want to see what the units will look like in the next age.

Do you have any new games in the works or planned for the future?
I am currently working a on top-view survival shooter. I think there is some really nice elements in the gameplay that has not been combined in a flash game before. It will be a challenge to balance the game well, but its gonna be worth it. I am sure everyone will enjoy the game.

What are your favorite console games?
Castle Crashers
Pixel Junk Shooter
Soul Calibur 4

I only play FPS on PC, I hate aiming with a controller. On PC I play modern warfare 2 and I used to play a lot of counter-strike source.

When you are not developing games what are some things you enjoy doing?
I like to play games. I also play tennis and badminton. Being with my girlfriend or simply hanging out with friends when I can. I am a pretty normal dude, who is always working hard. I like to work.

Do you follow the winter Olympics? If you had to compete, which sports would you most likely compete in?
Haha, that’s a good question. By the way, the Olympics are in my country this year! Go Canada! TO answer the question, I would probably do some skeleton. Their helmets are awesome and the adrenaline rush seems incredible. I admire these athletes going at 100 km/h while lying on a luge face first.

I hope you got to know me better and I hope everyone will enjoy my games. I really put all my heart to make games that are fun to play.

~Thanks for reading!