Metacell - 2D twitch puzzle shooter


Metacell is an immersive 2D twitch puzzle shooter with a hard sci-fi plot. Though we don't feature many puzzle shooters, this one peaked my interest. It's also the first installment in an epic five-game saga, with each game in the saga having its own distinctive gameplay tailored to its position in the story arc.  You play as a galactic hero with his crew fighting to save the universe from devastation. Just check out that huge eye, it's out to destroy us all ahhhhhhh!


Set in an alternate reality in the year 2272. This reality is comprised of two sides: the primeverse, where existence is structured and logical, and the metaverse, where things simply are with no rhyme or reason. Your character is currently having his well due leave, but this is cut short, by a distress signal from a place called Zion, which is a top secret research facility. All is not well, as a recent experiment with the mix of two sides in one being, has gone wrong. You must go into the danger area and defeat the Metalcell before it crosses into the prime verse and destroys it all

Game play features
  • Movement: the player's ship, the Judgement-Class Cruiser, rotates both clockwise and counter-clockwise around the Metacell. This gives the player a full 360 degree range around the Metacell.
  • Ramping Difficulty: Every 10 matches the level of the Metacell increases. As the Metacell increases in level, the rate of gene-spawning and the chance of triggering the Metacell's defenses and springing a trap increase as well.
  • Matching: in order to fight back the genes, the player must make matches of 3 or more like colors.
  • Score Multiplier: when you make matches quickly one after another you increase your score with a stacking multiplier.
  • Orphaning: when a gene loses connection with the center of the Metacell, the gene withers and dies.
  • Danger Zone: as the Metacell generates genes and the player fires genes into the Metacell to make matches, there is a risk of the Metacell filling up. Once that happens, the player will die if they can't make a match and clear enough space to keep battling the genes.
  • End Scenarios: The game ends if you run out of lives, score +1,000,000 points, or beat level 99.
  • The Bomb: When things get out of control and you’re about to lose, you can fire one of your bombs to clear a section of the board.
  • Traps: Whenever the player fires a gene into the Metacell there is a chance to trigger a trap bringing to life the Metacell's defenses that you will have to avoid or be destroyed.
  • Pick-ups: Every time you make a match there is a chance that you will generate a pick-up that will aid you in your battle against the Metacell.

As you can see by the gameplay video above, it's certainly different that's for sure. Almost a shoot em up, bubble bobble mix up in space.  Metacell incorporates puzzles, traps, and shooting. As the developer states : The game is in the match-three genre, so players must make matches of three or more genes of the same color to remove them from the Metacell. In order to make these matches, players circumnavigate around the Metacell shooting randomly generated genes from their ship.

If Metacell interests you then check out the kickstarter and pledge for the $35,000 goal. You will also be able to play the beta as a persuader for your pledge.  This game is also on Steam that needs your votes, we will have to see if the game makes it's goal. It's an unusual title, but it should do ok with lots of gameplay elements AND it's going to be on multiple platforms  : PC/XBOX360/MAC/LINUX/TABLET & WEB.

Kickstarter
Steam
Website

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