Bomb Sworders — Currently in development
A multiplayer game about bombs and swords. And hitting bombs with swords. And explosions. And you yourself avoiding explosions but hopefully not your opponents whom you want to explode.
Check out the Steam page and add us to your wishlist. The mailing list to hear news about Bomb Sworders and future Whatnotory projects. The blog for info. Or get in touch through twitter or discord
Game Ingredients
delayed attacks
You don’t hit opponents with swords.
Too medieval.
Nowadays, you hit bombs with swords and then those bombs explode… eventually… once the 9-second fuse triggers. That gives you the time to hit the bomb to the perfect spot but also gives your opponents the time to hit the bomb away — making it theirs and partially resetting the fuse.
attack vs territory-control
When bombs explode, they create blastZones (those bright circles). BlastZones stick around becoming hazards for your opponents: hampering their movement and killing them if they misstep.
Also, blastZones will hit bombs for you. So blastZones beget blastZones beget even more blastZones.
The question is– when you have a bomb that’s about to explode:
- will you place it to best slow down your opponents?
- or will you take aim with a difficult snipe shot?
there’s always hope
You’re never truly eliminated until the round ends. Instead, when you die you enter Limbo — stuck to the spot you died, but if you gather an item or explode a bomb, you’ll zip back to life.
opportunities to be nice
This one surprised us. At the first convention we went to after adding Limbo, suddenly the more-skilled players were frequently helping limbo-ed beginners revive. Act of altruism? Greedy strategic decision? Or just a fun challenge? Perhaps a little bit of all of the above.
But, truth be told, it has been genuinely heartwarming to see. (and also hilarious how fast the switch often is from “help” to “attack”)
strategic
The game was designed to have as little hidden-information as possible. e.g. a screenshot at any moment captures almost all relevant game state: positions, velocities, timings of near-future events. This allows players to make useful decisions about strategy and also rewards them for learning to quickly parse the game world.
a more advanced movement system than you’d expect
There’s a momentum-based movement system with jumps, bounces, dashes, and recoil.
There’s no double-jump per se, but try jumping then throwing your sword downward…
Or why not create your own platforms? You can jump off items too.
lots of ways to play
Play local — up to 8 players on supported platforms
Or online — up to 4 players
1v1v1v1? sure
2v2? yep
1v7? yeah but yikes
Plus, for online matches, multiple players can join from the same device.
Lastly, for single player there are a couple simple practice modes:
- Bot Battle: face off against bots on a series of increasingly difficult rounds.
- Exploder: how many blastZones can you explode in 40 seconds?
Various Advertising-type Words
- Grab a sword and start hitting some bombs around in this fast-paced multiplayer platformer for 2 to 8 players. Turn friends into enemies! Turn enemies into rubble!
- Finally, a 100% accurate bomb-swording simulator! Unique, fast-paced 2-to-8 player multiplayer game. Hit bombs with your sword, take over the level, and dominate your opponents!
- Friendly for beginners, tuned for competitors.
History
After a prototype was presented at Miltown Game Developers, a couple of us teamed up in early 2017 to develop it into a full game. Since then time has passed, development has continued, and another team member has been brought on.
We’ve shown it at a bunch of conventions and been thrilled with the reception.
Here’s some info about how we’ve improved Bomb Sworders through our conventions journey.
Music
Created by @raytoler
Release
PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox One.. maybe others
Steam Page here
Recognition
Selected for PAX Rising 2018
Shown at PAX East, Indie Game Party at Anime Central, Midwest Gaming Classic, Indie Arcade(s), Mooncat Arcade + more
