I tossed up links to this stuff on Facebook, Twitter, Google+, etc etc, but it certainly merits a mention here as well: last week saw the release of some really great Indie RPG's, for prices that can only reasonably be called stupidly low.
Dungeons of Dredmor is a game I've been looking forward to for months, after interviewing the developers on the Immortal Machines podcast back in February. David and Nicholas from Gaslamp Games were hilarious to talk to, and it was clear that they wanted their quirky sense of humor to be front and center in their game. I'm pleased to say that from my first few hours with the game they certainly succeeded; Dredmor plays like a combination of Nethack, Quest for Glory and Monty Python, and that's a pretty brilliant blend. It's remarkably user-friendly for a roguelike, but it'll still kill you at the drop of a hat. Oh, and it's less than five dollars. So there's that.
Here's the trailer. Give it a look, and if you like it, your money will be well spent.
The other two started life as releases on XBox Live Indie Games, but just showed up on Steam for even less money than Dredmor: Breath of Death VII and Cthulhu Saves the World. Very much also in the "comedy RPG" genre, they play like classic Final Fantasy styled 16 bit RPG's, only funnier. I haven't spent much time yet with Cthulhu Saves the World, but here's the story pitch: the mighty Cthulhu awakens after eons of slumber, ready to rain madness and terror upon the Earth. Then a wizard curses him and steals all his powers, and the only way he can get them back is to become a hero. If he wants to destroy the world, he needs to save it first.
That kind of sells itself, doesn't it?
Breath of Death VII and Cthulhu Saves the World can be had together in a bundle pack for under three dollars! If you're even remotely interested there's pretty much no reason not to do this.
The best news is, to listen to the blogs and Twitter feeds of the developers, they're having huge success on Steam with these absurdly low prices. They've consistently been near the top of the best sellers list since release, and it seems like the whole thing has exceeded their expectations. I wish them the best; this is precisely why I love the indie scene so much.
I'll leave you with the very amusing trailer for Cthulhu Saves the World - if you want to see the Breath of Death VII trailer too, it's here.