Tetrageddon Games

Last updated
Tetrageddon Games
Tetrageddon Games Cover.jpg
Steam header art
Developer(s) Nathalie Lawhead
Platform(s) Windows, macOS
ReleaseWeb 4 October 2012
Desktop 12 May 2016
Mode(s) Single-player

Tetrageddon Games is an online compilation of video games and digital art by alienmelon, the pseudonym of independent developer and net artist Nathalie Lawhead. First published as a website titled Tetrageddon, hosting web games designed by Lawhead from 2008. Lawhead combined the releases into a compiled form on the website from 2012, receiving several iterations and revisions over time, and released a downloadable desktop release titled ARMAGAD in 2016. Following release, critics praised Tetrageddon Games for its eclectic mixture of aesthetics and gameplay styles. The project received several awards and nominations, including a Webby Award for the website version and a Nuovo Award at the Independent Games Festival.

Contents

Development and release

The visual aesthetic of Tetrageddon Games was strongly influenced by Lawhead's nostalgia for early web and interactive media design. Tetrageddon Games Screenshot.jpg
The visual aesthetic of Tetrageddon Games was strongly influenced by Lawhead's nostalgia for early web and interactive media design.

Tetrageddon Games was a collection of interactive web games developed by Lawhead and collaborators and hosted on the website Tetrageddon, a landing page created in 2008. [1] Games published on the website were open-source, allowing users to collaborate with Lawhead by downloading and modifying the game files. [2] In October 2012, under the initial title Tetrageddon Arcade, Lawhead compiled the games on the Tetrageddon website into a single freeware project. [3] A downloadable desktop version of Tetrageddon Games was published to Game Jolt on 12 May 2016. [4] Following the discontinuation of Flash integration, a revised version of the website was overhauled and introduced on the Tetrageddon website in 2021. [5] A Steam version was released on 29 June 2023. [6]

Describing the project as "experimental", [7] Lawhead stated the objective of Tetrageddon Games was to explore the Internet as a medium for creating interactive games, [8] designed to reflect "the fast-paced nature of web humor" and taking influence from internet hypermedia, interactive literature and pop art. [9] The visual presentation of the project combined a mixture of "hand-drawn vector art with dynamically generated or code-drawn visuals" in order to deliberately combine disparate styles and techniques that reflected this theme. [9] Lawhead described the compilation as a "love letter to the internet of old", particularly in the design of its user interfaces, [10] and was strongly influenced by the nostalgia of early web design and computer games. [11]

Reception

Critical reception

Describing the game as "playful and delightful", Alice O'Connor of Rock Paper Shotgun expressed that the compilation was a "bigger and weirder" summation of Lawhead's work due to its breadth of content, [12] with the website citing the game as one of the best titles of 2016. [13] Sophie Henry of Communication Arts expressed that Tetrageddon Games was "one of the most interesting pieces of interactive art I've seen", highlighting its "provocative and modern" collection of "references in style and content to old video games, Internet memes (and) digital pop culture". [7] Leigh Alexander of Boing Boing praised the collection as "delightful" and "nostalgic", highlighting the game's "multifaceted" assimilation of net art and gameplay. [14] Writing for Twinfinite, Andres Ruiz found the web version of the collection to feature games that were "wholly unique" and "bursting with personality", remarking that the game resembled "more of an interactive art piece than a video game" at times. [15]

Accolades

Tetrageddon Games received several awards and nominations, most notably including receiving the Nuovo Award at the 2015 Independent Games Festival and a Webby Award in 2022, [16] [17] as well as selections at the 2013 SXSW Interactive Awards and 2016 IndieCade. [18] On 26 May 2012, Tetrageddon Games received the 'Site of the Day' on The Favorite Website Awards. [19] Select titles from Tetrageddon Games were showcased at the 2015 Fantastic Fest Fantastic Arcade and the 2016 Game Developers Conference. [20] [21]

Awards and nominations received by Tetrageddon Games
YearAwardCategoryResultRef
2013 SXSW Austin Interactive AwardNominated [22]
2015 Independent Games Festival Nuovo Award Won [16]
2016 IndieCade Official SelectionNominated [18]
2022 Webby Award WeirdWon [17]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Browser game</span> Video game played in a web browser

A browser game is a video game that is played via the internet using a web browser. They are mostly free-to-play and can be single-player or multiplayer. Alternative names for the browser game genre reference their software platform used, with common examples being Flash games, and HTML5 games.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jodi (art collective)</span> Internet artist collective (1994–)

Jodi, is a collective of two internet artists, Joan Heemskerk and Dirk Paesmans, created in 1994. They were some of the first artists to create Web art and later started to create software art and artistic computer game modification. Their most well-known art piece is their website wwwwwwwww.jodi.org, which is a landscape of intricate designs made in basic HTML. JODI is represented by Upstream Gallery, Amsterdam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick.com</span> Website owned and developed by Nickelodeon

Nick.com is a website owned and developed by Nickelodeon. The website previously served as an online portal for Nickelodeon content, and offered online games, video streaming, radio streaming and individual websites for each show it broadcasts. It now promotes the Nick mobile app which replaced it. Nick.com has received positive critical reaction and various awards, including a Webby in 2003. Positive praise has also been received because of the steps taken by the website to protect user privacy. Visits to the domain outside the United States are redirected to YTV in Canada, Nick.de in Germany or to the domestic network site of the visiting IP's nation or region due to programming licensing issues between territories.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hitcents</span>

Hitcents is a video game publisher and mobile app and games studio, headquartered in Bowling Green, Kentucky. They are the creators of the cross-platform gaming series Draw A Stickman. In 2014, Hitcents partnered with actor Tom Hanks to develop the Hanx Writer. Founded in 1999 as a software company by twin brothers Chris and Clinton Mills, the company has offices in Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Martin Percy is a director of interactive video. He has won a BAFTA British Academy Award, five Webby Awards and a Grand Clio;. He has also received three Emmy nominations, ten Webby nominations and fourteen Webby honorees.. He has created interactive video pieces for the Tate Gallery, Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, British Film Institute and National Theatre, working with people including Ian McKellen, Derek Jacobi, Gordon Ramsay, Julie Walters, Tracey Emin, Jonathan Ross and Malcolm McDowell. His interactive video pieces are integral to Tate Tracks, a marketing campaign for the Tate Gallery which won a Gold Lion at the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. His work is discussed in an interview with Betsy Isaacson for The Huffington Post. In 2014 he gave a TEDx talk about his interactive film Lifesaver.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J.Views</span> Musical artist

Jonathan Dagan, known by his stage name J.Views, is a two-time Grammy nominated musician based in New York.

<i>Machinarium</i> 2009 video game

Machinarium is a puzzle point-and-click adventure game developed by Amanita Design. It was released on 16 October 2009 for Microsoft Windows, OS X, Linux, on 8 September 2011 for iPad 2 on the App Store, on 21 November 2011 for BlackBerry PlayBook, on 10 May 2012 for Android, on 6 September 2012 on PlayStation 3's PlayStation Network in Europe, on 9 October 2012 in North America and on 18 October 2012 in Asia, and was also released for PlayStation Vita on 26 March 2013 in North America, on 1 May 2013 in Europe and on 7 May 2013 in Asia. Demos for Windows, Mac and Linux were made available on 30 September 2009. A future release for the Wii's WiiWare service was cancelled as of November 2011 due to WiiWare's 40MB limit.

Amanita Design is a Czech independent video game developing company founded in 2003 by Jakub Dvorský and headquartered in Brno, Czech Republic. The company has created award-winning games including Machinarium, the Samorost series and Botanicula, as well as educational and advertising minigames and animations, all using Adobe Flash. Clients include BBC, Nike and The Polyphonic Spree.

<i>Contre Jour</i> 2011 video game

Contre Jour is a physics-based puzzle video game for web browsers, Windows Phone, Blackberry, Android, iOS and Symbian. It was developed in 2011 by Ukrainian developer Mokus and published by Electronic Arts through its label Chillingo. The art for the game Contre Jour was created by artist Mihai Tymoshenko. The soundtrack for Contre Jour was composed by David Ari Leon. The game focuses upon a little blob named Petit, a reference to Le Petit Prince, whose means of locomotion is to be manoeuvered around by manipulating his environment through the various areas of the game using the touch screen.

Bear 71 is a 20-minute 2012 interactive National Film Board of Canada (NFB) web documentary by Leanne Allison and Jeremy Mendes about a female grizzly bear in Banff National Park named Bear 71, who had a tracking collar implanted at the age of three and was watched via trail cameras in the park from 2001 to 2009. The documentary follows the bear, exploring the connections between the human and animal world, and the far-ranging effects that human settlements, roads and railways have on wildlife.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UNIT9</span>

UNIT9 is a multidisciplinary production company working in different interactive areas: films, games, virtual reality and digital technology. Founded in 1997, UNIT9 operates globally with offices in London, Los Angeles, New York, Florence, Berlin and Poland. Directors, writers and technologists work collaboratively to create content, advertising, utility and gaming. Ad Age Production Company A-List, UNIT9 partners with advertising agencies worldwide on the digital components of campaigns.

<i>Mini Metro</i> (video game) 2015 puzzle strategy video game

Mini Metro is a puzzle strategy video game developed by New Zealand indie development team Dinosaur Polo Club. Players are tasked with constructing an efficient rail transit network for a rapidly growing city. The game's visual style makes use of bold colours and simple geometry to replicate the appearance of modern transit maps. The game uses a procedural audio system to generate sounds based on the player actions and transit network, with inspiration from works of minimal music.

<i>SpeedRunners</i> 2013 video game

SpeedRunners is a multiplayer side-scrolling racing game developed by DoubleDutch Games and published by tinyBuild. Originally a free web browser game titled SpeedRunner and later an Xbox 360 game by the name SpeedRunner HD on Xbox Live Arcade, SpeedRunners was released on Steam on 26 August 2013 into Steam Early Access, and as a full game on 19 April 2016. SpeedRunners was released on Xbox One in June 2017 as a Games with Gold title. A Nintendo Switch version was released on 23 January 2020. It was recognized as an esport by the Electronic Sports League in July 2015. However, due to decreasing activity the SpeedRunners section was ended on 28 August 2016 when the final community cup was held.

<i>Incredibox</i> Musical beatbox game and website

Incredibox is a music video game, developed and published by the French company So Far So Good (SFSG). The concept of the game is users dragging and dropping sound icons on different characters to make music. The player can find combos to unlock animated bonuses and record mixes to integrate a ranking. An automatic mode is also available to generate an endless composition of randomness.

<i>Wheels of Aurelia</i> 2016 visual novel by Santa Regione

Wheels of Aurelia is a 2016 visual novel and adventure video game that was developed and published by Italian studio Santa Ragione. It was released worldwide in September 2016 for Linux, Microsoft Windows, and OS X; in October 2016 for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One; October 2017 on iOS and Android; and November 2017 for the Nintendo Switch. Its story is set in 1978 Italy and tells the story of Lella who drives along the Italian motorway Via Aurelia alongside one or many companions; commenting on issues such as single parenthood, fascism, and the Mafia.

<i>The Gardens Between</i> 2018 video game

The Gardens Between is an adventure/puzzle video game developed by Australian studio The Voxel Agents and published in September 2018 for Windows, macOS, Linux, Nintendo Switch, and PlayStation 4. It was later released for Xbox One in 2018, iOS in 2019, Android in 2020, and PlayStation 5 in 2022. The game, which conveys its story through visuals and gameplay rather than dialogue or narration, follows two children, Arina and Frendt, in the treehouse in a garden between their houses. In a dreamscape, they progress through sets of island levels, each representing different shared experiences. The characters walk along a path that winds through each level, and the player solves environment-based puzzles that prevent the pair from reaching and activating a portal at the end of the path. To do so, the player controls the flow of time forwards and backwards and causes the characters to interact with nearby objects and spheres of light, rather than moving the pair directly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nathalie Lawhead</span> Net artist and independent game designer

Nathalie Lawhead is an independent net artist and video game designer residing in Irvine, California.

<i>Islands: Non-Places</i> 2016 art game

Islands: Non-Places is a 2016 abstract art game developed and published independently by artist and animator Carl Burton, best known for the animated GIF illustrations he created for season two of the Serial podcast. The game was released on November 17, 2016, on iOS, Windows, Mac, and Linux, and consists of a series of anonymous, liminal environments – the eponymous "non-places". These scenes appear mundane at first, but become increasingly surreal as the player interacts with the scenery.

Mackerelmedia Fish is a 2020 experimental ARG-like browser-based video game developed by Nathalie Lawhead. The game explores themes and settings related to 1990s and early 2000s Internet culture, especially the loss of digital history through deprecations and data decay. Some of the game is directly implemented on a website's open .htaccess directories, while other portions of it take the user through other previous art projects by Lawhead, such as an application titled Electric Zine Maker.

<i>Everything is Going to Be OK</i> 2017 video game

Everything is Going to Be OK is a 2017 work of digital art by alienmelon, the pseudonym of independent net artist Nathalie Lawhead. Described by Lawhead as an "interactive zine", the work is a vignette of several non-linear and interactive elements informed by Lawhead's experiences with "struggle, survival and coping with the aftermath of surviving bad things". The work received positive reception from publications, with attention directed to the game's use of humor to humanise and relate to experiences of trauma and victimhood, and received several awards and nominations at the Independent Games Festival, IndieCade, and A-MAZE. Following release of the work, Lawhead experienced online and offline harassment when showcasing it at Double Fine's Day of the Devs event in November 2017, prompting a discussion from Lawhead and media publications about the challenges of publishing and exhibiting experimental or art games and the risks of online harassment relating to streaming of these works.

References

  1. ↑ Lawhead, Nathalie (7 April 2008). "Tetrageddon Dot Com: CENTALLY MHALLENGED GMAIMES!". Nathalie Lawhead.
  2. ↑ Lawhead, Nathalie (28 August 2012). "Tetrageddon: Desktop Games (PC)". Nathalie Lawhead.
  3. ↑ Lawhead, Nathalie (4 October 2012). "Tetrageddon Games". Nathalie Lawhead. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  4. ↑ Nathalie Lawhead (12 May 2016). "ARMAGAD (also Tetrageddon Games)". Game Jolt.
  5. ↑ Lawhead, Nathalie (20 January 2021). "New Tetrageddon.com is here! (Cybermonkey has died, a broken desktop haunted by skeletons of the past, and more…)". Nathalie Lawhead. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  6. ↑ alienmelon (29 June 2023). "Tetrageddon Games". Steam. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  7. 1 2 "Interactive Annual 19: Websites/Microsites - Tetrageddon Games". Communication Arts. 2013. Archived from the original on 8 March 2013. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  8. ↑ Ford, Rob (30 May 2012). "The Internet As A Game Mechanic". TheFWA. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  9. 1 2 "Design Diary - AlienMelon/Tetrageddon Games". Web Designer Magazine. September 2012. pp. 28–31.
  10. ↑ "Documenting the Internet & Webring of Tetrageddon (the desktop version)". Nathalie Lawhead. 20 March 2019. Retrieved 5 December 2019.
  11. ↑ "A Flock of Pixels: The 80s Design Comeback". Print Magazine. 19 May 2014. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  12. ↑ O'Connor, Alice (13 May 2016). "Oddball IGF Winner Tetrageddon Games Released". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  13. ↑ O'Connor, Alice (14 June 2016). "Our favourite PC games of 2016 so far". Rock Paper Shotgun. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  14. ↑ Alexander, Leigh (25 March 2015). "Fall in love with one special freeware arcade". Boing Boing. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  15. ↑ Ruiz, Andres (11 June 2014). "E3 – Tetrageddon Hands-On Preview". Twinfinite. Archived from the original on 19 August 2014. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  16. 1 2 "2015 Independent Games Festival Winners". Independent Games Festival. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  17. 1 2 "Tetrageddon". Webby Awards. 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  18. 1 2 Bittanti, Matteo (18 September 2016). "Event: INDIECADE 2016 (October 14-16 2016, Los Angeles, California)". GameScenes.
  19. ↑ "FWA of the Day: Tetrageddon Games". TheFWA. 26 May 2012. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  20. ↑ "2015 Games - Froggy". Fantastic Arcade. 2015. Archived from the original on 18 August 2015. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  21. ↑ "Stop by Mild Rumpus at GDC 2016 and play some charming indie games". Game Developer. 23 February 2016. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
  22. ↑ "Interactive Awards Finalists". SXSW. 2013. Archived from the original on 26 January 2013. Retrieved 5 December 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.