Dr. David’s Indie Roundup: Amber Throne, Bionic Dues, Quadrilateral Cowboy, and River City Ransom

After having just experienced the magic of IndieCade 2013 last weekend, I'm feeling especially inspired to deliver this edition of the Indie Roundup. There's just so much awesome content coming on the indie front that it's impossible to not be excited. We're going to take a look at a few upcoming games (not necessarily from IndieCade) that are likely to bring joy to the gaming hearts of many, as well as the winner of this year's IndieCade Red Carpet Awards. Be sure to stay tuned for some previews straight from the show right here on GameZone.

Let's talk indie games!

Have you seen how pretty The Amber Throne looks?

A new turn-based RPG is currently under development by The Biggest Missile Ever. The Amber Throne tells the tale of Arra, a young woman who wakes up from a deep sleep with the task of destroying the titular throne, thus fulfilling her deceased father's final wish. As Arra, you must explore a mysterious world, following the words of your father and encountering several dangerous perils and formidable creatures.

As previously established, gameplay in The Amber Throne is a turn-based affair. Rather than relying on random encounters, the game thrusts you into battle whenever you come across visible enemies. From the sound of things, The Amber Throne won't deviate too much from the familiar RPG formula. That said, the game is clearly geared toward longtime fans of the genre, so if you're looking to play a new RPG, keep an eye on this one.

Speaking of keeping an eye on things (seriously, do good segues even exist?), The Amber Throne looks absolutely stunning. The whole thing looks like a hand-painted work of art. Thankfully, you can enjoy plenty of that lovely art if you head on over to the game's Imgur page. I'd highly recommend you do that if you enjoy looking at things that are just really, really pretty.

For more on The Amber Throne, check out IndieGames' impressions, which offer insight from the developer.

Arcen Games releases Bionic Dues

The development team behind A Valley Without Wind and A Valley Without Wind 2 has turned out its latest project. Bionic Dues is a game about destruction, humanity, and mechs. Of course, it's about much more than that, employing turn-based strategy gameplay, roguelike features, and randomly generated levels. Oh, and mechs, because seriously, it's always important to emphasize the presence of mechs.

Still, it's safe to say that the randomly generated formula of Bionic Dues stands out as much as the mechs do. Levels, enemies, and loot are all randomly generated, much like they were in Valley. The game can vary in difficulty, with certain enemies giving you a tougher time than others. It's safe to assume that Bionic Dues is much like Valley in that regard, as that game would send both punishing baddies and pushovers your way.

You can purchase Bionic Dues on developer Arcen Games' website or on Steam. Check out the trailer below for a closer look at the in-game action.

Quadrilateral Cowboy is a game about hacking by Thirty Flights of Loving dev

In case you weren't aware, Thirty Flights of Loving developer Blendo Games took home the Grand Jury Prize at this year's IndieCade Red Carpet Awards. The game that got the studio the prize was the hacking-themed title Quadrilateral Cowboy, which is due out sometime this year. The whole thing is based around the notion of hacking, and the gameplay actually has you breaking open computers and hacking 'em somethin' good.

Quadrilateral Cowboy does a good job of incorporating a simple polygonal visual style with realistic hacking techniques. Now, I'm not saying this game will turn you into some badass expert hacker, but it is a novel, quirky game that's doing something not seen in other titles. I mean, there's a difference between hacking a computer in a game by simply holding down a button on your controller and actually getting into different computer systems like you will in Quadrilateral Cowboy.

Check out the IndieCade trailer below, and be sure to visit the game's official site for more.

River City Ransom: Underground funded

Nostalgia is about to kick you right in the face, steal your milk money, and level up to uber nostalgia. River City Ransom: Underground, Conatus Creative's official follow-up to the classic NES beat 'em up, has been funded on Kickstarter. Aww, yeah! The game was able to reach and surpass its goal of $180,000, hitting a whopping $217,643. Not bad for the return of one of the beat 'em up genre's most kick-ass titles.

You can continue to donate funds to Conatus Creative through the game's alternate funding page. There are varying reward tiers based on how much you give, and the whole thing is handled via PayPal. So if you missed out on all of the Kickstarter madness and still want to help the dev team out and snag a copy of Underground for doing so, you most definitely can. The alternate funding page will remain open until November 9.

By the way, Abobo of Double Dragon fame is totally making a cameo in Underground. Suh-weet!

Latest indie game reviews

Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures Review: A sh*t load of 'f*ck yeah!'

Arma III Review: The incomplete product

Super Sanctum TD review: Tower defense's best-kept secret

Want to talk about indie games, Kirby, or cheap pizza? Follow me on Twitter @dr_davidsanchez.