It’s always good to have two countries work together to share their gaming offerings in a humble and manageable form. That was the gist of yesterday’s Games Exchange program between the Australian and Malaysian indie gaming scene, organized by Noble Steed Games and OutCrowd.

Basically, both countries exchange their titles and have them played by game developers and enthusiasts in their respective countries. In this case, Australia gets Malaysian games, while Malaysia gets Australian games, all in respectively-planned venues and setups. This is done to not only dish out insight on the other country’s perspective in game development, but also spread awareness about each other’s game development scene.

While the Australian side get Malaysian games like the upcoming Paper Ghost Stories: Third Eye Open and IGF 2024 critical darling Rhythm Doctor, the Malaysian side (at WORQ Subang) got to check out the following Australian-made indie games in bite-sized demo form. Whether they’re upcoming or out now and need some much-needed exposure, I’ve checked them all out and dished out my thoughts below:

Janet De Mornay Is A Slumlord (And A Witch)

A 3D adventure game in the veins of your Alone In The Dark titles and PS1 Resident Evil games, this horror-comedy title from Fuzzy Ghost puts you in the role of a queer renter stuck in the landlord’s apartment. The catch? The apartment is bugged out with the supernatural. As you start your adventure, you have to close the window in your room, otherwise you’re locked out into a bizarro world.

You’ll also come across a ton of puzzles and backtracking between rooms, opening doors through unconventional sorcery (I think) and sorting out landlord/rent stuff. Essentially the game is a comment on the harrowing life of a renter in Australia, and commentary on a system made by landlords for landlords, but in a witch’s house. I do think the shifting camera perspective makes the controls a tad more awkward, but beyond that, the title’s narrative tone and supernatural hook will keep you on your toes and dish out a jolly good time.

Janet DeMornay Is A Slumlord (And A Witch) will be out in 2024. 

The Godfeather: A Mafia Pigeon Saga

Hojo Studio brings us back to a time when titles like Grand Theft Auto were top-down, in 2D, and mission-based. The Godfeather is a top-down action game that reminds me of that era, with its sorta open-world approach and objectives involving having your controllable pigeon pooping onto targets. These include random humans (stationary or moving targets), bird baths occupied by rival avian creatures, and statues. The game is set in a roguelike structure, meaning if you run out of lives, you start from scratch.

The Godfeather is out right now. So if you need a humorous version of a top-down GTA game with bright graphics and a lot of vengeance bird turd-deploying, The Godfeather can scratch that itch.

Your Holy & Virtuous Heretic

Now we’re getting into the esoteric stuff. This role-playing game from I Will Bite Raw Coffee Beans is a monochromatic(?) abstract first-person turn-based game where you journey through the weird world of your own occult creation. You explore the dungeon filled with red and all manner of other 90s colours, get into turn-based fights with demons, and even recruit them if your tongue is silver enough.

Explore the area in real-time to collect SP for your spells, then use them against the more belligerent denizens. Collect clues and lore by talking to whoever seems approachable, then fight your way out. If 80s first-person dungeon-crawling & RPGing ala Wizardry/Ultima/Might & Magic is your jam, coupled with a psychedelic Earthbound coat of paint and Shin Megami Tensei demon-negotiating, you may want to keep an eye out for Your Holy and Virtuous Heretic.

Your Holy & Virtuous Heretic has no release date, but let’s hope to hear more from the developer about this out-of-this-world endeavour.

Which Way Up: Galaxy Games

2D Fall Guys meets game space physics! Which Way Up: Galaxy Games from Turtle Flip Studios is a multiplayer 2D platformer where players compete to get the most points in different minigames, all revolving around the orbit platform mechanic made popular by Super Mario Galaxy and the Strider series. Basically, each platform in the game has its own gravitational pull, meaning you can run around the platform you hop onto from top to bottom, rather than falling off the edge like most normal games.

Each minigame is different and requires deft use of your orbital platforming skills: one involves hitting comets into your goalpost for points, while another has you tagging bombs onto your opponent’s platform, blowing them up to score points.

My favourite minigame is Event Horizon, where players have to run away from the black hole on the left side, and just run as fast as they can to the right until the last space athlete is standing. As each player has access to a “star burst” move that lets you push opponents away from them, you can imagine the chaos this mode entails. Each of us vied to get to the far right while charging up our bursts to knock any poor fool silly enough to be behind me. The star burst however puts you in the state of suspension upon firing, so whatever momentum you gain from running and jumping is instantly lost, so that can backfire on you if you’re on a roll.

Simply put, this multiplayer PvP title is fun for anyone who wants a different 2D spin on the battle royale fare, especially with the criminally-underused gravity platform mechanic. Which Way Up will be out in Q1 2025; a demo is available right now.

The Master’s Pupil

Last but not least is this 7-years-in-the-making abstract 2D platformer from Pat Naoum. The Master’s Pupil is a hand-painted puzzle adventure set inside Claude Monet’s eyeball. It’s not only an insight into the artist’s mind and story, but also a 2D title chock-filled with puzzles with their own inventive colour-based gimmicks and engaging aesthetics. It’s a must-buy if you haven’t already, and if you love titles like Braid, Inside, and Limbo.

The Master’s Pupil is out now.

Do We Need More Cross-Country Initiatives Like These?

Yes, absolutely! When it comes to AU-made titles, we do need to know more developers beyond Team Cherry (Hollow Knight) and Massive Monster (Cult of the Lamb), go beyond our comfort zone and expand our palette. Conversely, the Australian scene (and everyone else within Asia Pacific) do need to know the wonders of indie game development in Malaysia.

Outcrowd and Noble Steed Games have done a great job in pulling this off; we do hope to see more of these happening in the next few months and beyond, because it would be a huge shame if this was just a one-off event.

That's a wrap on The Games Exchange! Huge gratitude and thanks to those who drove in the rain and traffic to join us, and again our friends @NobleSteedAU for co organising with us. Most importantly the volunteers who provided their machines and time to make this event happen ?? pic.twitter.com/6jEUmXIFoW

— OutCrowd ?@ Games Exchange MY (@outcrowd_msia) May 3, 2024