HamsterBall | |
---|---|
Developer(s) | TikGames (PS3) Raptisoft (Windows) |
Composer(s) | Peter Hajba |
Platform(s) | PlayStation 3, Windows |
Release | 8 February 2004 (Windows) 25 March 2010 (PS3) |
Genre(s) | Racing, puzzle, action |
Mode(s) | Single-player and multiplayer party |
Hamsterball is an indie video game developed by Raptisoft Games, released on 8 February 2004 for Microsoft Windows. The TikGames PlayStation 3 version was created on 25 March 2010. [1]
Similar to the arcade game Marble Madness , the goal is to complete a series of 15 race courses in as short a time as possible while avoiding various obstacles. Instead of a marble, however, the player controls a hamster in a clear plastic exercise ball. A short fall causes the hamster to become dizzy and hard to control for a short time. If the hamster falls too far, rolls off the course, or is destroyed by an obstacle, a new one is placed on the course after a short delay. A set amount of extra time is added to the player's clock at the beginning of each race; if time runs out, the game ends.
By following invisible paths on the courses, players can unlock appropriately themed multiplayer combat arenas. During this mode of play, "Rodent Rumble", the goal is to knock opponents' hamsters off the edge or into lethal obstacles as many times as possible within a time limit. [2]
During the 7th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards, the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences awarded Hamsterball with "Computer Downloadable Game of the Year". [3]
Marble Madness is an arcade video game designed by Mark Cerny and published by Atari Games in 1984. It is a platform game in which the player must guide a marble through six courses, populated with obstacles and enemies, within a time limit. The player controls the marble by using a trackball. Marble Madness is known for using innovative game technologies: it was Atari's first to use the Atari System 1 hardware, the first to be programmed in the C programming language, and one of the first to use true stereo sound.
Unreal Tournament 2003 is a first-person arena shooter video game developed by Epic Games and Digital Extremes, and published by Infogrames under the Atari brand name. The game is part of the Unreal franchise, and is a sequel to 1999's Unreal Tournament. Like its predecessor, the game is designed mainly for multiplayer gaming.
SubSpace is a 2D space shooter video game created in 1995 and released in 1997 by Virgin Interactive which was a finalist for the Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences Online Game of the Year Award in 1998. SubSpace incorporates quasi-realistic zero-friction physics into a massively multiplayer online game.
Kirby Air Ride is a 2003 racing video game starring Kirby, developed by HAL Laboratory and published by Nintendo for the GameCube.
Katamari Damacy is a third-person puzzle-action video game developed and published by Namco for the PlayStation 2. It was released in Japan in March 2004 and later in North America in September. Designer Keita Takahashi struggled to pitch the game to Namco's superiors, eventually seeking student aid from the Namco Digital Hollywood Game Laboratory to develop the project for less than US$ 1 million. As director, Takahashi emphasized concepts of novelty, ease of understanding, and enjoyment.
Wipeout Pure is a 2005 futuristic racing video game developed by Studio Liverpool and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation Portable. It was released as a launch title for the platform in North America and PAL territories, in March and September respectively. The sixth installment of the Wipeout series, following Wipeout Fusion (2002), the game takes place in the year 2197, exactly 100 years after the events of Wipeout 2097 (1996), and revolves around players competing in the FX300 anti-gravity racing league.
Crash Team Racing is a 1999 kart racing video game developed by Naughty Dog and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation. It is the fourth installment in the Crash Bandicoot series. The game's story focuses on the efforts of Crash Bandicoot, Doctor Neo Cortex, and other ragtag team of characters in the Crash Bandicoot series, who must race against the egomaniacal Nitros Oxide to save the Earth from destruction. In the game, players can take control of one of fifteen Crash Bandicoot series characters, though only eight are available at first. During the races, offensive and speed boosting power-ups can be used to gain an advantage.
EyeToy: AntiGrav is a racing video game developed by Harmonix and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 2. It is the first game developed by Harmonix to not be a music video game and was touted as the first "real" game for EyeToy targeted to more seasoned gamers. The player moves their body to guide the on-screen character riding a hoverboard through a track. Some obstacles require the player to crouch or jump. Up to 4 players are supported.
Kirby's Dream Course is a 1994 miniature golf video game developed by HAL Laboratory and Nintendo EAD and published by Nintendo for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES). A spin-off of the Kirby series and the first released for the SNES, players control the pink spherical character Kirby through a series of courses by launching him towards the goal hole at the end. Kirby can hit enemies to collect power-ups that grant him unique abilities, such as those that allow him to destroy certain obstacles or fly around the level.
SSX 3 is a 2003 snowboarding video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports BIG label. It is the third installment in the SSX series. The game was originally released on October 21, 2003, for the PlayStation 2, Xbox, and GameCube, and was later ported to the Game Boy Advance by Visual Impact on November 11, 2003, and to the Gizmondo by Exient Entertainment on August 31, 2005, as a launch title.
MotorStorm is a 2006 racing video game developed by Evolution Studios and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 3. Based on off-road racing at a fictional festival, the game was announced at E3 2005, and released in Japan on 14 December 2006 and worldwide in March 2007. The game received a positive reception and sold well and led to a sequel as part of the MotorStorm series, MotorStorm: Pacific Rift (2008).
NBA Ballers is a 2004 streetball simulation video game developed and published by Midway. The game features fictional NBA analyst Bob Benson and MC Supernatural as the commentators. A majority of the moves in the game were from amateur basketball players, who provided some of their moves for the game. Stephon Marbury is on the cover.
Zuma is a 2003 tile-matching puzzle video game developed by Oberon Media and published by PopCap Games. It was released for a number of platforms, including PDAs, mobile phones, and the iPod.
Diner Dash is a strategy and time management video game initially developed by Gamelab and published by PlayFirst. It is now owned and published by Glu Mobile. It was one of the top-selling downloadable games of all time, available in multiple platforms such as PC, Mac, consoles, and mobile.
Flow is an independent video game created by Jenova Chen and Nicholas Clark. Originally released as a free Flash game in 2006 to accompany Chen's master's thesis, it was reworked into a 2007 PlayStation 3 game by his development studio, Thatgamecompany, with assistance from Santa Monica Studio. SuperVillain Studios developed a PlayStation Portable version of the game in 2008, and PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita versions in 2013. In Flow, the player navigates a series of two-dimensional (2D) planes with an aquatic microorganism that evolves by consuming other microorganisms. The game's design is based on Chen's research into dynamic difficulty adjustment at the University of Southern California's Interactive Media Division, and on psychologist Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi's theoretical concept of mental immersion or flow.
Thatgamecompany, Inc. is an American independent video game development company founded by University of Southern California students Jenova Chen and Kellee Santiago in 2006. The company was a developer for Sony Computer Entertainment, contracted to create three downloadable games for the PlayStation 3's PlayStation Network service, and has since secured independent funding. The first of their games is a remake of Chen's award-winning Flash title Flow, with enhanced visuals and sound, added multiplayer modes and compatibility with the PlayStation 3's motion-sensitive controller. The title was released on the PlayStation Store in 2007. The company's second PlayStation 3 game, Flower, was released on the PlayStation Store in 2009, and their third game, Journey, was released in March 2012 on the PlayStation Store. Their fourth game, Sky: Children of the Light, was released in July 2019 on iOS and in April 2020 on Android. Later, it released on the Nintendo Switch in June 2021 and on PlayStation 4 in December 2022.
Race Driver: Grid known outside of Europe as Grid is a 2008 racing video game developed and published by Codemasters for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Nintendo DS, arcade, Java ME and OS X. It is the first game in the Grid series.
Wipeout HD is a 2008 futuristic racing video game developed by Studio Liverpool and published by Sony Computer Entertainment for the PlayStation 3, the eighth installment of the Wipeout series and the first on this platform. It was originally released digitally on the PlayStation Network in September 2008, before a major expansion pack titled Wipeout HD Fury came in July 2009, followed by a retail version made available in Europe in October that year.
Burnout Paradise is a 2008 racing video game developed by Criterion Games and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Microsoft Windows. It was also released on the PlayStation Store and via Xbox Live Marketplace's Games on Demand. It was later added to the libraries of Greatest Hits and Platinum Hits titles and was made backward compatible with the Xbox One in November 2016. It is the first game in the Burnout series to be released on Microsoft Windows.
Mass Effect 2 is an action role-playing video game developed by BioWare and published by Microsoft Game Studios and Electronic Arts for Windows and Xbox 360 in 2010 and published by Electronic Arts for PlayStation 3 in 2011. It is the second installment in the Mass Effect series and a sequel to the original Mass Effect. The game takes place within the Milky Way galaxy during the 22nd century, where humanity is threatened by an insectoid alien race known as the Collectors. The player assumes the role of Commander Shepard, an elite human soldier who must assemble and gain the loyalty of a diverse team to stop the Collectors in a suicide mission. Using a completed saved game of its predecessor, the player can impact the game's story in numerous ways.