Avid Insight

"Bad Rats: the Rats' Revenge" is a physics-based puzzle game by indie developer Invent4. Before I describe the game, a quick word of warning. It contains a lot of cartoon violence (think "Itchy & Scratchy" from the Simpsons), and it most certainly pushes the political correctness envelope!

That said, if you still want to find out about the game, then read on...

A story appeared on Slashdot today about the complexity of games, asking "Do Gamers Want Simpler Games?". Despite a vocal minority, and the arguments from industry critics, the findings suggest that simpler games may be better. I've been a moderately hardcore gamer for most of my life, and I've got to say that I agree wholeheartedly with the findings.

Don't let the name fool you -- "8 Ball Quick Fire Pool" game isn't actually 8 ball rules. Rather, it's a fun single-player game. The rules are somewhat similar to straight pool (or 14.1 continuous), in that you are allowed to hit and pot any ball you like, and you score points each time you do so. However, it is also a race against the clock, so speed is encouraged.

There are lots of things I like about this game. First and foremost is the fact that is very well polished. There are no rough edges or unnecessary extra features in it. It is all about potting as many racks of pool balls as possible in quick succession. The polish is certainly enhanced a lot by excellent top-down graphics.

I'm a stickler for a good bit of physical modelling, especially when it's used in games. We've seen quite a few Flash games of this type lately, but here's one which is just different enough to stand out: Fantastic Contraption.