Today GameMaker Studio celebrates its 15th birthday. You read right, GameMaker Studio has been around for 15 years! Back in 1999, Mark Overmars created the first public version of GameMaker but it was called "Animo" back then. The software is apparently used by 1.2 million developers each month which sounds ridiculously large (especially considering how little of those developers actually end up completing a game and selling them commercially - it's actually quite depressing).
YoYo Games acquired GameMaker in 2007 and apparently there's a new GameMaker Studio version 2.0 in the works.
To commemorate this milestone, I've decided to trawl through the few GameMaker games I've reviewed right here on Choicest Games and showcase the quality of the games made with this nifty software.
Hotline Miami is probably one of the most well known, if not the most well known game to be developed using GameMaker Studio. While I never originally thought of playing it due to its violent nature, you soon find out that the game is much more than that (or is it?). The game will require you to be stealthy, have good aim, be good at puzzles and have a bit of luck in order to navigate through its difficult levels. The 80s inspired soundtrack (which you probably hear so much about) is pretty damn good too.
This is another one of those beautiful rags to riches stories. Okay, not quite rags to riches, but it did enable a game reviewer to quit his day job in order to pursue a full-time career as a game developer - how cool is that? The game is kind of like Deus Ex or any stealth action game but instead of it being a third or first person shooter, it's a platformer. Also, the jazzy soundtrack complements the neo-noir setting perfectly.
While Spelunky didn't quite grow on me as it did with other players, the game is still pretty damn popular and critically acclaimed. With a Metacritic rating of 90 and a Steam Rating of 92% Positive, there are a lot of players that really love this retro-style, rogue-like platformer.
I don't give 9/10s lightly on Choicest Games, let alone to indie games but Cook, Serve, Delicious! is that good. It combines typing-tutor-like gameplay along with some business/management sim elements in running your own restaurant. I don't even like cooking shows but somehow I like this game, very much. It's also refreshing to see a game that doesn't need to use violence as a drawcard although it'd probably also be kind of awkward having a violent cooking game.
Risk of Rain is actually a really fun, rogue-like co-op platformer set on an alien planet. While I did have some issues getting it to work, after I managed to get a few games going with mates, it's actually quite addictive. The prog rock inspired soundtrack by Chris Christodoulou is sublime too.
So do you have a favourite GameMaker Studio game? Which one is your favourite? Are you surprised to find that one of the games listed here was developed using the tool?
[ SOURCE: GameMaker Blog: GameMaker Turns 15 Years Old ]
YoYo Games acquired GameMaker in 2007 and apparently there's a new GameMaker Studio version 2.0 in the works.
To commemorate this milestone, I've decided to trawl through the few GameMaker games I've reviewed right here on Choicest Games and showcase the quality of the games made with this nifty software.
Hotline Miami - 8/10
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Hotline Miami is probably one of the most well known, if not the most well known game to be developed using GameMaker Studio. While I never originally thought of playing it due to its violent nature, you soon find out that the game is much more than that (or is it?). The game will require you to be stealthy, have good aim, be good at puzzles and have a bit of luck in order to navigate through its difficult levels. The 80s inspired soundtrack (which you probably hear so much about) is pretty damn good too.
Gunpoint - 8/10
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This is another one of those beautiful rags to riches stories. Okay, not quite rags to riches, but it did enable a game reviewer to quit his day job in order to pursue a full-time career as a game developer - how cool is that? The game is kind of like Deus Ex or any stealth action game but instead of it being a third or first person shooter, it's a platformer. Also, the jazzy soundtrack complements the neo-noir setting perfectly.
Spelunky - 7/10
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While Spelunky didn't quite grow on me as it did with other players, the game is still pretty damn popular and critically acclaimed. With a Metacritic rating of 90 and a Steam Rating of 92% Positive, there are a lot of players that really love this retro-style, rogue-like platformer.
Cook, Serve, Delicious! - 9/10
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I don't give 9/10s lightly on Choicest Games, let alone to indie games but Cook, Serve, Delicious! is that good. It combines typing-tutor-like gameplay along with some business/management sim elements in running your own restaurant. I don't even like cooking shows but somehow I like this game, very much. It's also refreshing to see a game that doesn't need to use violence as a drawcard although it'd probably also be kind of awkward having a violent cooking game.
Risk of Rain - 7/10
 |
Risk of Rain is actually a really fun, rogue-like co-op platformer set on an alien planet. While I did have some issues getting it to work, after I managed to get a few games going with mates, it's actually quite addictive. The prog rock inspired soundtrack by Chris Christodoulou is sublime too.
So do you have a favourite GameMaker Studio game? Which one is your favourite? Are you surprised to find that one of the games listed here was developed using the tool?
[ SOURCE: GameMaker Blog: GameMaker Turns 15 Years Old ]
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