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A phenomenal game of world conquest. This game single handedly destroyed 10 years of MacRisk loyalty for me. I tried to resist at first, but it was no use: the game is just too good. Wonderfully fast to play, fantastic AI, a huge assortment of maps to choose from and create, and a dedicated base of online players. What more could you want? Beautiful graphics? You’ve got it!

Probably the best side scrolling shoot 'em up on the market today. The levels are very well designed, the graphics are beautiful, and the game play will have you knee-deep in explosions in no time. The sound is also outstanding, with a 60-minute original heavy metal soundtrack from Swedish band Machinae Supremacy. Warning: blood and violence.

Mutant storm is a Robotron inspired arcade shoot 'em up explosion fest. One hand controls fire direction with the mouse, while the other controls your ship's movement as you progress through 89 beasty-filled arenas. The gameplay is fast, psychedelic, and a lot of fun. As PCGamer said, "Mutant Storm is arcade genius that you simply have to play, again and again and again."

For all you guitar hero fans, here it is at last on computer, in the form of Frets on Fire! FoF is essentially guitar hero, you hold your keyboard like a guitar and in no time you will be playing along to the music like a pro. It's hard to get the hang of, but once mastered, you'll be rockin n rollin like elvis and all your favorite stars! A boat load of fun awaits those who try this game out.

Teeworlds is a multiplayer-only 2d platform game that features FPS-style controls and deathmatch and capture-the-flag modes. Take the weapons from Quake, the gameplay of Unreal Tournament and Soldat, and the character of Kirby, mix them together and you get Teeworlds! The graphics are simple 2d but the overall result is a nice, cute, cartoon world. The gameplay is fast and addicting. This game will have you playing everytime you have a minute to spare.

You begin as a rather ugly man named "Beethro" who travels deep beneath the ground. There are other people down there too, citizens of a mysterious "Rooted Empire", that are carving tunnels and building things. Beethro just wants to know why, but it's hard to get a useful answer. He was always fond of saying "there is no problem that can't be solved with a really big sword," but upon arriving at the underground capital, Beethro is startled to find that nobody seems interested in attacking him. No, for some reason, they would rather persuade him to stand in a very long line. This is a must-try puzzle game!

Among the best independent games released in the last ten years, Cave Story is a traditional action adventure in the vein of old classics such as Metroid and Castlevania. It was five years in the making, and every detail shows off the love and care that went into its production. If you only play one indie game this year, make it this one.

One of my all-time favorite indie creations, N is a brilliant, minimalistic take on Lode Runner, and other classic platformers. Superb controls, a great physics engine, wonderful level design, and pure ninja goodness combine to make this one a true classic.

Be forewarned: this game takes time and dedication to appreciate. However, if you take that time, you will find in Dwarf Fortress one of the most amazing and complex simulation games that you will ever play. Combining aspects of roguelike, strategy, and "god" games, Dwarf Fortress has two modes of play: Fortress, where you oversee a dwarven civilization, and Adventure Mode, which plays like a typical roguelike game. To date I find Dwarf Fortress to be one of the most amazing games ever made, including all commercial offerings, but like I said: be warned that the game is not easily accessible! For help, look to the wiki. Also, try out Mike Mayday's Graphics Edition of the game.

One of the best platformers ever released for the PC. In Gish, you play a 12-pound ball of tar in search of true love. Become slippery to slide through small places, sticky to climb up walls and ceilings, and rock hard to force your way through barriers. The game's physics engine, along with all of its production values make this one a real pleasure to play.

Neko Puzzle is a wonderfully fast, fun little puzzle game that makes your brain feel really good! Guide your flying kitty in a course through each level solitaire-style, before the time runs out, or compete in real-time against another human opponent. The puzzles are different every time you play, so whenever your brain is in need of that "massaged" feel, pop open this game, and your good to go!

If you are looking for a beautiful, minimalistic puzzle game reeking of Eastern aesthetics, that will make you want to scream and pull your hair out... this is it! Devilishly difficult, Zen Puzzle Garden keeps me coming back again and again in an attempt to prove my puzzle solving prowess. If you're tired of all those easy puzzle games, and want something hard, look no further. A Game Tunnel Independent Game of the Year finalist.

A rather insane, 3D, abstract, scrolling, shoot 'em up game. The goal of the game is to progress through levels and to not run out of time, you lose time when you die, and gain time when you destroy small "bosses" and when you pass a level. A highly addicting game. I swear if you play long enough you will begin to see through the spinning track and shooting graphics!

A sliding block puzzle game that is very fun and original, Chocolate Castle is one of my favorite indie titles in this genre. The challenge of the puzzles is to rearrange large blocks of different kinds of chocolate into connected regions that can be consumed by four hungry, cute little animals. If you ever manage to finish the 120 puzzles that the game comes with you can use the built-in editor to design your own. Different difficulty levels mean that there's something for everyone here. Highly recommended.

Darwinia is an abstract, real time strategy which takes place inside a computer network that is populated by an evolving life form called the Darwinians. Your job is to destroy a computer virus that has grown out of control, and save the Darwinians. Darwinia was the winner of the IGF Game of the Year award in 2006. Everyone should try out this unique, amazing game.

In Democracy you're in control of a modern country. The goal of the game is to stay in office as long as possible by winning elections every four years, this is accomplished by enacting policies that appear to different groups of voters. You need careful consideration to not ruin the whole country. Democracy is a must have if you find politics interesting, but even if you aren't a die-hard politics fan you should still try this game out.

World of Goo is a physics-based puzzle game based on a seven day experimental game called Tower of Goo. The basic idea is to build structures using balls of goo. The goal of each level is to get enough of the balls of goo to a specified exit. The game has five chapters with several levels each, the game follows a storyline involving the mysterious World of Goo corporation.

Depths of Peril is a single player RPG with strategy elements. You play as a faction leader protecting the barbarian city of Jorvik from evil monsters. At the same time you must fight rivaling barbarian factions for leadership of the city, you must also complete quests to make yourself stronger. Barbarian leaders get chosen by fighting to the death! Will you be able to defeat the other faction leaders, or will you die in a fierce battle? This is your chance to find out!

If you are looking for a casual hack and slash game look no further! In Kivi's underworld you play as the young lumen warrior called Kivi who must make his way through the mysterious underworld. You must face your enemies with either the fury of the berserker, the fire spells of the dangerous fire mage, or confound your enemies with the sneaky scout, or play as one of the other numerous classes. In Kivi's underworld it is up to you to save the lumen people from the dangerous dark elves.

Clonk Rage is a game in the long running series of Clonk and it is the sequel to Clonk Endeavor. It is very similar in gameplay to Clonk Endeavor, but adds among other things, faster network, additional network options, full screen graphical menus, and a new control scheme that lets you move with the keyboard arrow keys.

Penumbra: Overture is a first person horror-adventure-puzzle type game which focuses on story, and immersion, and lots of puzzles. The game has a very advanced physics system which allows a never before seen environment interaction. The player can open drawers, pull levers, pick up objects and more using natural mouse movements.

Dofus is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game that was both developed and published by a French company by the name of Ankama. Dofus is a game of heart and charm, with wonderful 2D graphics and a strategic battle system. You could find that this wonderful little game surpasses your favorite 'big' game company MMOrpgs such as World of Warcraft.

In Altitude you pilot one of five different planes and battle against opponents in dramatic 2D aerial combat. There are two game modes: Free For All, and Team Base Destruction. You can get more experience points by mowing down planes or bombing the enemy base, you can then use this experience to unlock planes and some other features.

Mystic Mine takes simple mechanics and turns them into an amazingly fun and unique experience. Experience over 200 levels of single player gaming or play with up to six players on the same keyboard! If you are looking for a game that gives you pure, carefree fun, then this is it!

In Paradroid, players controlled an “Influence Device,” an otherwise weak droid with a special ability, it could control and command droids after beating them in a logic-based circuit game. Droid Assault eschews this mini-game and lets you transfer to a droid as long as you have enough transfer points. Also, once a droid has been transferred, it joins your team and can be controlled at any time (or when your current droid is blown up). If you are a fan of Paradroid you should definitely try this out.

Weird Worlds: Return to Infinite Space is the sequel to Strange Adventures in Infinite Space. It is a casual space exploration game in which players explore a fictional region of the Milky Way called "The Purple Void". Like its prequel, Weird Worlds creates a new map each time the game is played. Stars, planets, aliens and many other things are randomized for each game session.

Uplink is a simulation game in which you take on the role of a hacker in the year 2010 who begins working for the Uplink Corporation which is a world-wide company that provides work for hackers. As the player you amass money, software, Gateway hardware and skill during the course of performing jobs for various clients, hacking servers of global corporations for profit.

In this mystic and intoxicating RPG you must travel into the strange and unknown underworld of Avernum. Avernum is a land full of unknown creatures and fantastic monsters. You must hunt the villain who tried to kill your empress, just make sure he doesn't assassinate you first!

If you are looking for a 3d third person action game Caster is the one for you! As a Caster you can dash along walls and perform super jumps! Also collect 6 unique attacks which you can then deform the terrain with and can also help you defeat the insect-like Flanx. Your powers can be upgraded between levels by collecting energy.

Professor Fizziwizzle and the Molten Mystery is a standalone expansion to it's precedent Professor Fizziwizzle. It is a puzzle-platformer which offers even more gadgets and enemies to interact with than it's prequel. Also includes a level-editor!

Jasper's cat has been stolen by a bad witch who wants to use him for her incredibly wicked potion! Playing as Jasper you must make your way through a world of magic and monsters to finally reach the castle belonging to the witch and save Orlando your cat. Jasper's Journeys offers to you a mix of exploration, jumps, and monster but-kicking action.

Eschalon : Book I is the first game in what is scheduled to be a trilogy set in the magical world of Eschalon. It's a turned based role-playing game with a non-linear story line. The world contains hundreds of unique items and monsters. Definitely a game that must at least be tried out.

Take on the role of a base commander on a far far away space colony. Use five different building types to expand and defend your base. Build power plants, harvest minerals, and erect defense towers and then make sure you have enough energy to fend off hordes and hordes of evil aliens that wish to destroy you.

Geneforge 5: Overthrow is the last chapter in the Geneforge rpg series. Return to the world of the Shapers for one last adventure. Explore a large war-torn world, create and train your own army of peculiar, mighty monsters, and choose a side to fight in an attempt to lead them to total victory.

Despite what it looks like, Lugaru is not some cartoony game that is over the top with twisted violence. While the characters in the game are in fact rabbits, they are neither cute nor cartoony. Strange as it sounds this game seems to employ some level of gritty realism. This might seem like a contradiction, but in fact it's true. Lugaru is a third person action game starring a anthropomorphic rabbit. The game features a unique combat system that allows you to fight with all sorts of weapons including your hands and feet!

Geneforge 5: Overthrow is the last chapter in the Geneforge rpg series. Return to the world of the Shapers for one last adventure. Explore a large war-torn world, create and train your own army of peculiar, mighty monsters, and choose a side to fight in an attempt to lead them to total victory.

This is the third game in the Dark Castle series, but the first created by Z Sculpt. The game retains the gameplay of its prequels but it adds fifty new levels including some "remastered" levels from the originals, as well as new items.

Roulette is a casino game named after a French diminutive for "little wheel". In a game of free roulette, players may choose to place bets on either a number, a range of numbers, the colors red or black, or whether the number is odd or even. To determine the winning number and color, a croupier spins a wheel in one direction, then spins a ball in the opposite direction around a tilted circular track running around the circumference of the wheel. The ball eventually loses momentum and falls on to the wheel and into one of 37 (in European roulette) or 38 (in American roulette) colored and numbered pockets on the wheel.