#crossniq

[hakizanr]

[hakizanr]

[pumpkinpire]

hi im streaming tomorrow <3 7 PM EST babey! I'm gonna see if I can do Crossniq+ on desktop instead of on the switch? We'll see if my compy explodes... together! I'll be over at twitch! See you there!

[pumpkinpire]

Stream at 7 PM EST! I might actually do some crossniq+ while I discuss Stretch Rewards tonight. Hopefully I can catch you there!

[genopaint]

I’ve also been playing a few puzzle games on my switch. puyo puyo, panel de pon, and crossniq! a surprising amount of crossniq. i really like this game and i still think its an absolute tragedy that the story mode never got implemented, would love to see it come to life eventually.

well, regardless, i drew the coolest looking character. Haze.

[gamesline]

Our conversation with Max Krieger about his new game CROSSNIQ+ is free NOW! We talk about meditative gaming experiences, the technicals of Tetris, the history of Y2K aesthetics and how they're used in the game. Starlight Car is now available on it’s own feed on Spotify, Google Play, Pocket Casts and wherever you get podcasts.

[tinycartridge]

Crossniq+ is the puzzle game of the retro future ⊟

Crossniq+ does two totally disparate things really well, combining two disparate design accomplishments to create something special. First, Crossniq+ is a new, fresh, well-designed puzzle game, something I can’t conceive of doing myself and don’t understand how anyone could accomplish.

The second accomplishment is a note-perfect riff on the style of late-90s/early 2000s, mid-tier Japanese games. I never even considered that style a “style” until being presented with Crossniq+. Essentially, it’s as if developer Future Memory traveled back in time and came back with an undiscovered Dreamcast game.

Here’s a cool thing I can do: I can explain the gameplay by sending you over to the free web version. However, I can also explain it with words. You shift squares around on a grid to form intersecting lines. When a line from left to right crosses with a line from top to bottom, you get a “cross,” the ever-decreasing timer resets, your score increases, and the crossed tiles change colors for you to shift again. When I first encountered this, I felt like I was being asked to complete Rubik’s Cubes on a constant deadline, a task I haven’t otherwise been able to complete within a generous 39-year deadline. After a first attempt that saw the timer elapse while I stared hopelessly at the screen, it clicked for me and I was sliding tiles around the screen at high speed. It’s one of the most drastic, enjoyable learning curves I’ve had in a puzzle game. I’ve mostly been obsessively replaying the “endless” mode, submitting middling scores to the pre-launch leaderboard, but the game has local multiplayer as well, along with a nice “chillout” mode with no timers.

The excellent base game has been paired with some awesomely late-90s visuals and sound, described as a “Y2K aesthetic.” It’s kind of what I still think of as “the future,” with chibi superflat avatars, video backgrounds, and weird flavor text in corners. Every mode corresponds to a spot on a transit map for basically no reason, and everything sounds cooler than it needs to. 

I don’t think you need to be my exact age to enjoy Crossniq+. Though I’m biased, I think it looks cool. More importantly, it’s a deviously craveable puzzle game, great either on a TV or touch screen. Also, I happen to be my exact age, and it perfectly targets my sensibilities. That’s a bonus.

JOIN CLUB TINY AND OUR DISCORD Support Tiny Cartridge!

[plasmadisq]

Visit Original Link