Dude Icarus

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Icarus is one of the many tragic stories in Greek mythology. Daedalus built wings from feathers and wax so that he and his son Icarus could escape from Crete and return the the Greek mainland. But Icarus flew too close to the sun. His wings melted and he fell to his death.

In Dude Icarus, you play as Icarus, only instead of trying to keep away from the sun, you are trying to climb up towards the sun. You are trying to climb up various obstacles towards the sun to hang out with Apollo. The art and music are light and even a bit whimsical, it’s a bit more comedy than tragedy.

The game manages to be a little bit platformer and a little bit puzzle game. You’re trying to fly between platforms while finding more feathers, which let you fly even higher to other platforms. Managing to find platforms that are just the right height can be a bit of a puzzle at times, but fortunately you can catch a ride on passing clouds or birds to get your bearings. As you fly further up, the screen zooms out to give you a better view of the world. There is a roving sunbeam that will send all your hard work crashing down and force you to the ground. Fortunately, Dude Icarus avoids his namesake’s fate and suffers the sunbeam as a slight annoyance before trying again.

Dude Icarus was created for the Indie City Game Jam by our very own Switchbreak, and was featured in the Onion A.V. Club. So it’s only a matter of time before some sort of internet limo whisks him off to internet stardom. Then he will probably get caught doing internet cocaine off internet strippers and be right back here slumming with us again. Such is the life of internet fame.

Why You Should Check This Out: Dude Icarus takes the platformer formula and tweaks it just a bit, as you try to puzzle out how to proceed upward around a giant sphere. The graphics are a great way to lighten the mood, and the sound effects really keep the game from getting too frustrating. It’s just too silly to get really angry at. Tight controls keep the game fun, even when it gets a little tough. Plus, it was made by a goodjer!

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Comments

Okay, that was scary. I saw 'Icarus' and automagically put 'Kid' in front of it.

I had to re-read the title for my brain to parse it correctly.

Coldstream wrote:

Okay, that was scary. I saw 'Icarus' and automagically put 'Kid' in front of it.

I had to re-read the title for my brain to parse it correctly. :D

Mythology Professor: So you're already familiar with the tale of Icarus, right class?
Student: Sure, that's the one with the eggplants!

Internet cocaine here I come!

For the record, I did have help making this, I did the nerdy codey bits. The cute visuals are thanks to Erin (of Puzzle Bots internet fame), Scott and Nicole, and the sound stuff is from Jake (of Cardboard Computer internet famousness).

I won! Woohoo!

Yeah this is cool.

I enjoyed it, although I was frustrated the first time I attempted it (a few weeks back). I was hit by the first bird early on and so assumed that you had to avoid the birds entirely; obviously, this will prevent you from getting very far in the game. Once I had that figured out, it was a lot more fun.

Great job, Switchbreak!

Nice! I enjoyed playing this.

A Switchbreak joint?
Possible GOTY candidate, folks!

Dysplastic wrote:

A Switchbreak joint?
Possible GOTY candidate, folks!

Elysium will go with NBA Jam Wii.

I vote that all Switchbreak games be referred to as "Switchbreak Joints", and should always get a mention in the Week Ahead lists. Even if there isn't a new Switchbreak Joint released on a given week, the "Coming Soon" list should always have "A Switchbreak Joint, TBA".

I love Dude Icarus
It was an enjoyable experience playing this game while it was being made and seeing it evolve over time as well. Im pretty sure Switchbreak has alot of sleep to catch up on still!

Vote 1 MORE LEVELS

Congrats on finishing it, Switchbreak. Haven't played it yet, but I'll submit it to goty.cx.

Quintin_Stone wrote:
Dysplastic wrote:

A Switchbreak joint?
Possible GOTY candidate, folks!

Elysium will go with NBA Jam Wii. :|

I feel a disturbance in the force, as if one man in the UK stood up, cursed Elysium and Switchbreak with all his might, then sat down again.

cube wrote:
Quintin_Stone wrote:
Dysplastic wrote:

A Switchbreak joint?
Possible GOTY candidate, folks!

Elysium will go with NBA Jam Wii. :|

I feel a disturbance in the force, as if one man in the UK stood up, cursed Elysium and Switchbreak with all his might, then sat down again.

Nyuk nyuk nyuk.

Congratulations Switchbreak! Now you can put this on your resume and get all the ladies!

And then maybe he can trade them in?

Floomi wrote:

And then maybe he can trade them in?