Game (Standalone): The Adventures of Square

Platform Played: PC

Price: Shareware

Developer: Big Brik Games

Publisher: Big Brik Games

This was quite a discovery. I was perusing gaming news on tumblr and I found this shareware gem. This is a throwback to the era of shareware gaming: i.e. Duke Nukem 3D (1996) and Quake (1996). This is a standalone game. All you need to do is download this game from here. After that you are in for a lot of fun.

The Adventures of Square is an awesome homage to the first generation of first person shooters. It is also an impressive cartoonish adventure that puts the fun in FPS. Armed with hilarious weaponry and one-liners the player character storms industrial facilities, cities, villages, and strongholds of the shapes in opposition to the player character. You’ll doge cannon balls, death rays, paint, bolts of electricity, and razor sharp jaws. Memories of Doom (1993)  will be invoked while you play this gem of a game.

Not a single level is linear. All have that classic labrynith feel of Doom and Wolfenstein (1992). Like Duke Nukem 3D though you chase more than keys. You interact with the environment by tripping switches and occasionally using explosives to breach your way into new areas. This game is far from boring with it’s level design and AAA titles in the FPS genre could learn much from it’s level design.

Weapons in the game range from paintball handguns, ooze submachine guns, and my personal favorite the paintgun cannon. I only made it to the Paint Factory level so I don’t know much about the heavier weapons. Here are some screen shots.

The Advenutres of Square is a brilliant shareware episode right now. It will be an excellent final game when it is finished. This game is like Chex Quest (1996) on one hand and like that games more serious first generation cousins: Strife (1996). Download The Adventures of Square. Enjoy the shareware.