Steel Sword Story

A game by 8bits Fanatics for PC, originally released in 2019.

Steel Sword Story is a sidescrolling actioner featuring sword-based combat and set in a medieval fantasy world. You take on the role of a former knight named Azul Palan Baru who has been banished from the kingdom after being falsely accused by the traitorous Prime Minister, Rufus. With nothing left to lose, Azul returns to defeat Rufus and restore the kingdom, using his old steel sword to serve up a nice cold plate of revenge.

The developer, 8bits Fanatics, is known for its chunky sidescrolling actioners, although they tend toward zanier premises, such as the spike-heavy worlds of 1001 Spikes, or the zombie head-juggling of The Tempura of the Dead. By comparison, Steel Sword Story is considerably more straightforward, with battles against creatures and bosses across four themed areas. The game is somewhat less colorful than the developer's previous efforts, and the game is not terribly well optimized, which may be due to the Pixel Game Maker MV tool on which it was built... and someone went a little overboard on the light bloom effect.

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 2019, 8bits Fanatics, Active Gaming Media, Kadokawa Corporation, PC

1001 Spikes

A game by 8bits Fanatics and Nicalis for PC, Mac, Linux, PS4, Vita, Wii U, Switch, and 3DS, originally released in 2014.

1001 Spikes is an abbreviation of Aban Hawkins & the 1001 Spikes. Including the subtitle, the full name is technically Aban Hawkins & the 1001 Spikes: The Temple of the Dead Mourns the Living, if you aren’t into the whole brevity thing. The game acts a pseudo sequel and enhanced remake of Aban Hawkins & the 1000 Spikes originally released on Xbox Live Indie Games in 2011 by 8bits Fanatics. For 1001 Spikes, Nicalis revisited the game and fleshed out the overall experience, adding a bit more than a single spike with a new storyline and cutscenes, a new introductory tutorial area, several multiplayer modes, enhanced visuals, and some extra tough single player challenges following the completion of the main game, making this the definitive version of the Aban Hawkins adventure.

The new story tells the tale of Aban Hawkins whose father, the famous archaeologist Jim Hawkins, recently disappeared while exploring the Antarctic. Years before, Jim Hawkins decided to leave his entire fortune to Aban’s sister Tina, leaving the impetuous Aban with nothing… in the hopes that he would become a “real man” and earn a fortune of his own.

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 2014, 3DS, 8bits Fanatics, Linux, Mac, Nicalis, PC, PS4, Switch, Vita, Wii U

Aban Hawkins & the 1000 Spikes

A game by 8bits Fanatics for Xbox 360, originally released in 2011.

Aban Hawkins & the 1000 Spikes, from 8bits Fanatics, is the very definition of a throwback title. Its chunky 8-bit style and high level of difficulty may remind gamers of the developer’s previous work, The Tempura of the Dead. But in actuality, the gameplay in Aban Hawkins has much more in common with another game in the 8bits Fanatics catalogue, namely their super-difficult platformer Challenge from Kiyoshi (see the 2D CRED section below).

Oh, and for extra funzies… apparently the subtitle to the game is “The temple of the dead mourns the livings.” Nice.

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 2011, 8bits Fanatics, XBLIG, Xbox 360

The Tempura of the Dead

A game by 8bits Fanatics for Xbox 360, originally released in 2010.

There once was a time when the President’s only role in an action game was to be kidnapped by ninjas or other nefarious ne’er-do-wells. Presidents and their daughters have been getting kidnapped for decades now, with little means to fight back on their own. For a long time, it seemed that Mayor Haggar would be the only public official capable of taking matters into his own hands.

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 2010, 8bits Fanatics, XBLIG, Xbox 360