I’ve played several Sonic games over the last several years. Or tried to anyway. They just lack the excitement and fun of the original Sonic games and they always seem like they were rushed into production too. Is it too much to ask to give us a good Sonic game? Well, it looks like we may finally have one after all these years, judging by this gameplay footage of Sonic Generations.

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The only concern I would have is this: Hopefully these aren’t complete remakes of the original games. What we want is the old-school game play with some new elements added in. New areas to visit and new things to discover. Seeing the footage above definitely makes me want to take a closer look though.

[via Joystiq]

The Land Crawler xTreme robot offers its master a ride on top of  its square platform top, provided you don’t weigh more than 175 pounds. As it ambles around, it definitely doesn’t look like the smoothest or speediest way to get around the place, but it sure has got plenty of style doing it.

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Funny thing is the maker of the robot says he made the Land Crawler eXtreme as a toy for his 2-year old son because he told him that he wanted to ride on a robot. Why couldn’t we all have dads who were that handy with robotics?

[Singularity Hub via PopSci via Neatorama]

The gameplay of Tuper Tario Tros. starts out just like SMB, but as you start to proceed across the platforms, you quickly find out that the Mushroom Kingdom is largely impassable due to the configuration of blocks in your way. How ever do you get through? Simple – press your space bar and flip right into Tetris mode. You can drop your own blocks and create your own path to freedom.

The game combines platforms and puzzles in a way that works surprisingly well. The biggest challenge is that you constantly need to flip-flop between modes in order to battle baddies and to give you a place to go. It’s not easy – but if you do manage to get to the end of world 1-1, you’ll get “rewarded” with a Goomba boss battle where you have to build a castle out of Tetris blocks while being attacked. Fun, no? I dare you to make it past the first level.

Ready to try Tuper Tario Tros.? Head on over to Newgrounds and check it out now.

[via Switched]

So here’s what we do know: the NES-style will be maintained. There will be new bosses, like Sheep Man (who does in fact look a little sheepy). There will be Mega Man (and Proto Man). And, for all the crybabies out there (read: regular people with thumbs still sore from Mega Man 9), there will be an Easy Mode.

What we don’t know is where and when the game will appear, though another timed exclusive for WiiWare seems like a safe guess, with an eventual release to other formats.

[via Joystiq]

For something so simple, rComplex is absolutely stunning, from the shine of the backgrounds to the hard lines of the endless stairs. The simplicity, too, adds to the horror; I’m not really sure what that thing is, but that is one scary silhouette.

rComplex is, alas, only a demo for now–and a demo in need of a little polish at that–but this is a game worth watching out for. The concept is as simple as the look: run down the stairs and don’t get caught. There are a lot of stairs. There are obstacles. There’s music, and a voiceover, and enough challenge to make downloading the demo worth it. But do you really need to be convinced after seeing that screenshot? They had me at shiny.

[via IndieGames]

Night Sky is all about simplicity. Why bother with a humanoid character? Instead, players control a ball in this platform-puzzle game (think of all the love for the Weighted Companion Cubes of Portal before you question the logic of this) and roll through a beautiful and challenging landscape. Think darkness–Night Sky is done all in silhouettes and shadows.

But anyone can make something pretty. It’s what’s underneath that matters, and luckily, word is that Night Sky has plenty going for it beneath the hood. All signs point to an engaging puzzler with just enough challenge to keep players coming back–and all available at WiiWare prices sometime this winter.

In Trine, a wizard, a thief, and a knight are stuck together fighting an army of undead. Throughout the game, the player can switch off between heroes, using their strengths to help traverse puzzles, platforms, and legions of, well, undead. Because the legions of the undead are always the bad guys.

Trine got such a good reception that the PC game is expanding; this week, it moves to the aforementioned PSN store–at least, in Europe–and Atlus is working on a version for the Xbox 360, so you’ll have a chance to wield your characters in a variety of ways if you are so inclined. Trine sports lush visuals and well-received gameplay, so it might be something worth looking into.

[via IndieGames]

There’s so much to love here, from the bobbled hat and the heroine’s softly rounded face to the gorgeous light effects, and that’s even before you get to the fact that Lucidity is the product of the amazing folks at LucasArts.

Sophie, the game’s protagonist, moves on her own across the screen, while players must manipulate objects in the environment around her. It’s Lemmings for a new day, with an adorable little girl and her adventure. Not sure how it all works? Check out the vid.

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[via Joystiq]

Hudson Soft’s Shadow Tower was just revealed in Famitsu, and it features quite a concept: traveling the world as the shadow of an invisible boy, interacting with other shadows, with only a butterfly to help him along. The idea of a world within a world is fascinating, and there’s a lot of potential for tweaking platform traditions within the concept.

From the limited visuals available, it looks nice, too.

[1UP via Joystiq]

Rabbit Wants Cake is all about a remote-controlled rabbit who’s after a bit of cake. Players record moves and Rabbit executes them, but it isn’t as simple as it sounds. Rabbit Wants Cake has two modes, Normal and Expert. In Normal, you can record your moves, test them out, and then even change the duration of jobs with the bar at the top.

In Expert, well… get used to some trial and error, because you can’t do any of that fancy business.

Rabbit Wants Cake is deceptively difficult in places, but if you’re a meticulous planner, this is the game that will waste your time today. If you make it through all 25 levels, you deserve cake, but remember: the cake is for the rabbit.

In this indie physics-based game from Eli Piilonen and Edmund McMillan, you play a test subject caught in a variety of devious puzzles, and your only method of escape is to barf your guts out so you can float your way out of the maze.

As you work your way through the game’s 60 levels, the challenges keep getting tougher and tougher. Luckily, you continue to evolve over time, and get bigger, badder and better regurgitation capabilities as you progress – and if you’re persistent, you might learn why you’ve been turned into a vomiting guinea pig.

So if you’ve got the stomach for it, head on over to Newgrounds and check out Spewer now.

[via The Independent Gaming Source]

The titular cat bounces (with an adorable sound effect) around collecting stars, but there are lots of secrets to discover, such as blocks that move and others that are invisible until smacked with a kitty head. Standard platforming fare, but freely available for the price of a few mouse clicks.

Cat Gets 100 Stars would have been worth checking out on the power of its name alone, but it’s nice to report there’s a lot more to it than that.

[Cat Gets 100 Stars via auntie pixelante]

Braid sounds simple: move through some levels, rescue a princess, save the day. It’s an old formula. But this beautiful (though short) game combines luscious visuals, tight gameplay, and a story that just might knock your socks right off (in a subtle, sneaky sort of way).

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At $14.95, Braid is a steal for Mac owners, and there’s even a demo for the careful consumers out there.

[Greenhouse via NeoGAF]

All I know for sure is that the video is titled Kubbur á hlaupum and was made by some guy(s) in Iceland, and that he/she/they is/are (a) filmmaking genius(es). Spielberg and Scorcese rolled into one. With hamsters. And a C64. The best thing to come out of Iceland since Björk. So sit back and enjoy the shöw…

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Doesn’t that music sound familiar? That’s because the video is actually based on the (sorta) classic Commodore 64 game Monty on the Run. Now you might say to yourself that Monty was a Mole, and the Monty in the video clip is a hamster, but you can suspend a little disbelief, can’t you? Anyhow, compare and contrast to the original. Talk amongst yourselves…

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Or maybe you’d prefer the  live version…

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And to the PETA folks reading this post – no hamsters were harmed in the making of this videogame. But a small family of cardboard boxes and magic markers died a horrible painful death. Oh, the humanity!

[via Chunel.TV]

In Sway, you move your character using your fingertips to control their hands as they grab onto objects and swing and sway through a maze of worlds, charged with the (not-so-innovative, but still fun) task of collecting stars before the clock runs out. And with character names like Lizzie, The Friendly Ninja, Benny the Bear and Recyclable Man, what’s not to like.

The gameplay mechanic sort of reminds me of a modern day take on the classic arcade game Crazy Climber, but instead of climbing up a building, you’re climbing up, down, left and right across the landscape. Be sure to check out the video clip below to see the game in action.

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Sway is the latest creation out of Illusion Labs, the same guys who gave us the addictive multitouch skateboarding game, Touch Grind. Expect the game to hit the iTunes App Store any day now.

The spindly-fingered titular hero faces 55 levels of puzzle-filled platforming through a sugary land filled with hazards, but don’t worry–there’s plenty of coffee along his path. Oh, and there are robots. Evil robots. If that sounds odd, well, the game’s origins may be odder still; Johnny Platform’s Biscuit Romp began life as a humble DS homebrew title. The Community Games title has kept the vertical orientation that worked to move gameplay across the DS’s two screens.

Johnny Platform’s Biscuit Romp is available now on the Xbox Live Community Games service for a mere 200 Microsoft Points, and there’s even a demo so you can try before you buy.

[Xbox Live Community Games via auntie pixelante]

Pachinko machines, of course, are the wildly popular Japanese slots-style games, except they’re everywhere and even more addictive. This particular pachinko machine is home a robot family… and a lot of dungeons. Ah, the pitfalls of gambling.

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Planet Pachinko will debut on WiiWare next Monday for the price of 500 Nintendo points, which is the equivalent of five dollars.

[WiiWare World via NWF]

The guys over at Borne Games have created this flattened version of the game (in partnership with EA), and it’s kind of reminiscent of classic Prince of Persia type of game when squished into just 2 dimensions. I suppose if there were some enemies in there, I’d think more Shinobi.

The keyboard controls are still a little wonky compared to a joystick, but it is only a Beta, so I’m sure it will improve.

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While the video above gives you a taste of what the game looks like, the best way to check it out is to head on over to the ME 2D web page and play it now. What are you waiting for?

[via The Awesomer]

Philly textile artist NovellaMarie’s Pitfall laptop case is covered with an intricate needlepoint scene of Activision’s classic platformer.

Oddly enough, the featured scene comes from the Apple IIC version of the game, not the Atari 2600, but I won’t tell if you won’t.

Each handmade bag comes with a sturdy adjustable red shoulder strap, and offers a padded polka-dotted lining to protect your precious laptop (13-inch or smaller models only). You can find the Pitfall laptop bag over on Etsy for $150 USD.

But this game wasn’t made under the watchful eye of Nintendo. It was actually created over five months by a rabid Mario fan (a 13-year old from Holland going by the name Lesjuh) and it’s quite faithful to the design styling of the original Paper Mario games. The game also pays tribute to Mario’s original appearance in Donkey Kong by outfitting the diminutive plumber with a giant hammer to smash his enemies.

You can check out the entire game for yourself over on Newgrounds.