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Iji: Freeware Flashback With Skills, So I Hear

KupiKupi Registered User regular
ijint1.jpg

What is Iji?

Iji is a recently-released freeware game from Remar Studios, created with GameMaker 5.3. You play as a girl named Iji who, fortunately or unfortunately depending your perspective, happened to be visiting the military research base her father worked for when an alien species called the Tasen dropped through the atmosphere and nuked the base with a weapon called the "Alpha Strike". Knocked into a coma at the time of the strike, Iji awakens six months later to find that the surviving scientists have augmented her with a reverse-engineered Tasen "nanofield"-- a personal wall of nanites that protects her from harm and gives her all sorts of neat abilities above and beyond those of normal men. Naturally, she'll need those abilities to escape with her life.

The game was made with the graphical style of Out of this World in mind. All character sprites were pre-rendered in a 3D modeling program and converted to sprite animations. Still pictures don't do the game justice. Watch the trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=33mxD4FjD3w


Okay, so how's it play?

Iji is an exploration platformer-- think Metroid, Castlevania, and Cave Story. Your goal in each of the game's ten "Sectors" is to reach the exit by any means available. Along the way, locked doors, alien invaders, sentry turrets, and other hazards will impede your progress. However, in keeping with the tropes of this genre, there are many hidden paths that can only be accessed through creative means, like intentionally taking a rocket to the face in order to get blasted over a wall you can't jump high enough to clear. But there are plenty of points in the game where's it's just a matter of having the right stats at the right time.


So let's hear about those stats, eh?

One of the most fundamental parts of Iji's gameplay is its levelling system. As you pick up nanofield fragments from fallen enemies and the environment, Iji's nanofield will level up. Every time you level up, you get a point that you can spend at an upgrade station. There's a catch, though: you can't exceed a certain level cap per sector (which varies depending on the difficulty setting), so how you spend your points can affect what parts of the game are open to you and when. Here are the seven upgradable statistics:

Health: Simply put, how much damage you can take before you die.
Strength: Iji's physical strength. She has a kicking attack that can be used to smash through certain doors and knock over enemies. If her strength isn't high enough, she won't be able to smash through some doors or knock over heavy enemies.
Attack: Iji's attack power. Raising this stat increases the damage output of all of her weapons.
Assimilate: With a higher Assimilate rating, Iji gains the ability to carry more ammunition. Also, she'll gain more armor (a subset of her health) every time you pick up a restorative item.
Crack: Iji skill at cracking enemy nanotechnology. This skill has a broad range of uses, from unlocking storage containers and doors to sabotaging enemy abilities. For instance, if you sneak up behind an enemy and successfully crack his armor, it may explode and kill him instantly, or rig his heavy weapons to fire backward when discharged. A high Crack rating can help you avoid a lot of needless fighting, if that's your style. Finally, fusing weapons together at weapon stations requires the Cracking skill. A high Cracking skill can double your potential weapon loadout!
Tasen and Komato: Two separate stats with the same function. The higher your Tasen rating, the stronger calibre of Tasen weaponry Iji can wield. Similarly, when Komato-style weapons become available, the Komato rating dictates how powerful a Komato weapon Iji can use. Picking a side can work against you: many of the fused weapons mentioned above require a Tasen and a Komato weapon. So keep both of these stats high in order to get as many weapons as possible!

Furthermore, when you raise a stat to its maximum rank, you gain a powerful passive ability based on that stat. Max out your health, for instance, and you'll take less damage every time you're hit with a powerful attack.


Awesome! I'm ready to go frag some aliens!

Well... might want to give that a little more thought. It's not that you can't fight your way through the game-- that's what I did the first time. However, there are a ton of little details that you might miss if you just blast everything you see. The game tracks your body count, and modifies character dialog accordingly-- Iji's and several other characters'. There are a few tangible benefits to reigning in the bloodlust, as well: clear the first few stages without killing a single enemy, and you'll wind up with a few unlikely allies. What's most impressive about this system besides its attention to detail is the fact that, unlike many games that try to be "meaningful", Iji won't criticize you too heavily for your decisions. Whichever way you choose, that's the right way.


Okay! Fine! Where do I get it?

Download Iji here: http://www.remar.se/daniel/iji.php


Good luck, and enjoy the game! Plot, strategy, and exploration discussion to follow.

My favorite musical instrument is the air-raid siren.
Kupi on
«13

Posts

  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    This sounds neat and looks cool.. Too bad it doesn't come in Spore form! :O

    randombattle on
    itsstupidbutidontcare2.gif
    I never asked for this!
  • xWonderboyxxWonderboyx Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    There was a thread on the SA forums and someone mentioned it took them a minute to realize that was a gun in her hand and not a half-silhouetted man going down on her.

    Teehee.

    I don't have windows. Cannot play :(

    xWonderboyx on
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  • ImpersonatorImpersonator Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    This game is totally steam (and has been talked about on the Indy Games Thread but whatever).

    Everyone should play this, the art is shitty but the gameplay and the story are really great.
    It's one of my favourite games now :)

    Impersonator on
  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    There was a thread on the SA forums and someone mentioned it took them a minute to realize that was a gun in her hand and not a half-silhouetted man going down on her.

    Teehee.

    I don't have windows. Cannot play :(
    Now I can't NOT see this!

    randombattle on
    itsstupidbutidontcare2.gif
    I never asked for this!
  • DualEdgeDualEdge Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I love this game. I pulled it out between classes and showed a group of people the joys of jumping down a ventilation shaft, cracking an Elite, then proceeding to kick the guy next to him in the face until they died all while the big guy launched a rocket only for it to blow up in their face.

    The dialog if you go berserker run is amazing, everyone should go that route first. Man, I need to do a pacifist run.

    You should also mention in the OP that end game can get pretty heavy for lower end PCs, especially the final boss.

    DualEdge on
  • Bill CosbyBill Cosby Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Does anybody know if killing an enemy using cracks counts as a kill.

    Bill Cosby on
  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I would think if they explode and die it counts.

    randombattle on
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    I never asked for this!
  • LorkLork Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    The writing is terrible, the art style makes me want to tear my eyes out, and the controls are way more limiting than they should be, but somehow this manages to be fun anyway.

    And now I can't stop laughing at the title screen.

    Lork on
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  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Ok I just tried this and for fucks sake.

    INDIE GAME DEVELOPERS PUT AT THE VERY LEAST A FUCKING WINDOWED MODE SO I CAN PLAY YOUR GAMES ON A WIDESCREEN MONITOR

    Hurg.

    randombattle on
    itsstupidbutidontcare2.gif
    I never asked for this!
  • TychoCelchuuuTychoCelchuuu PIGEON Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I have to say that my favorite part of Deus Ex was not the 2d platforming. Maybe I'll try it out sometime, but I'm having trouble seeing how the two could compare.

    TychoCelchuuu on
  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I think 2d Deus Ex is not the most accurate comparison for this.

    A more actiony Flashback with skills is what I'd say.

    randombattle on
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    I never asked for this!
  • DeswaDeswa Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I feel half way bad bunny hopping just to shotgun aliens in the face.

    Also, I have no problem playing with a widescreen monitor.

    Deswa on
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  • RainbowDespairRainbowDespair Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Excellent game. I'm about halfway through and I'm already contemplating replaying it to try the harder difficulty levels or go for a different build or pacifist (right now, I just maxed out Strength as soon as possible and have kicked every enemy I've seen to death).

    RainbowDespair on
  • MMANMMAN Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Ok I just tried this and for fucks sake.

    INDIE GAME DEVELOPERS PUT AT THE VERY LEAST A FUCKING WINDOWED MODE SO I CAN PLAY YOUR GAMES ON A WIDESCREEN MONITOR

    Hurg.

    If it's like most indie games are then alt+enter should make it windowed

    MMAN on
  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    MMAN wrote: »
    Ok I just tried this and for fucks sake.

    INDIE GAME DEVELOPERS PUT AT THE VERY LEAST A FUCKING WINDOWED MODE SO I CAN PLAY YOUR GAMES ON A WIDESCREEN MONITOR

    Hurg.

    If it's like most indie games are then alt+enter should make it windowed
    Didn't work so I had to put it up in d3dwindower.

    randombattle on
    itsstupidbutidontcare2.gif
    I never asked for this!
  • KupiKupi Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    (and has been talked about on the Indy Games Thread but whatever).

    God damn it! That's why I couldn't find a thread it about on the front page. Egg on my face for sure.

    Does anybody know if killing an enemy using cracks counts as a kill.

    Having an enemy die as a result of any direct action (kicking, cracking, nuclear blast in the face) is a kill.

    Man, I need to do a pacifist run.

    I did that earlier today. Most of the boss dialog and core plot doesn't change much-- it's mostly in the logbooks, which are much harder to access when you've got a bunch of monsters that you aren't allowed to kill firing at you constantly.

    EDIT: Time-warp response to DualEdge's post below:
    Part of the reason that a pacifist run doesn't change the plot much is the fact that you always wind up fighting the bosses. To my knowledge, there are five unavoidable kills in the game:

    1. Krotera
    2. The grunt that shows up in the scene with Asha and Dan (yes, even though it's in a cinematic, it counts)
    3. Iosa
    4. Asha
    5. General Tor

    So, you can get four more kills past that and still retain your "innocent" title.

    ---

    Also, the Deus Ex metaphor is mostly a character-building thing.

    Kupi on
    My favorite musical instrument is the air-raid siren.
  • DualEdgeDualEdge Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Yeah I was looking at the log books before the first boss and it was talking of treason where it normally talks about how awesome I'm being.

    Is there a way to
    Not kill Krotera? I kinda like my truce and wish to keep it.

    DualEdge on
  • theclamtheclam Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Well that was pretty fun. Definitely better than most free games. It reminded me a lot of Immortal Defense in terms of the plot and the graphical style (not to mention the indie-ness).

    theclam on
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  • The_ScarabThe_Scarab Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    There was a thread on the SA forums and someone mentioned it took them a minute to realize that was a gun in her hand and not a half-silhouetted man going down on her.

    Teehee.

    I don't have windows. Cannot play :(

    You mother fucker post 3 and it is already ruined.

    I CANT UNSEE IT

    The_Scarab on
  • IriahIriah Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    DualEdge wrote: »
    Yeah I was looking at the log books before the first boss and it was talking of treason where it normally talks about how awesome I'm being.

    Is there a way to
    Not kill Krotera? I kinda like my truce and wish to keep it.

    yeah, I even tried killing the guy with the reflect-o-beam and it still counts. Can't cut me a break!

    Iriah on
  • DartboyDartboy Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    This game's pretty cool. And yeah, Flashback with stats is a more appropriate description. With this talk of not killing enemies, I'm wondering how exactly that would work, anyway. There's no way to disarm enemies or anything short of just kicking them over, so if you'd just be running away from most everything, which doesn't sound all that fun. Me? The only things I haven't been killing are those little slug things.

    Dartboy on
  • xWonderboyxxWonderboyx Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    The_Scarab wrote: »
    There was a thread on the SA forums and someone mentioned it took them a minute to realize that was a gun in her hand and not a half-silhouetted man going down on her.

    Teehee.

    I don't have windows. Cannot play :(

    You mother fucker post 3 and it is already ruined.

    I CANT UNSEE IT

    I lash out when I can't have things I want.

    xWonderboyx on
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  • ZombiemamboZombiemambo Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Iriah wrote: »
    DualEdge wrote: »
    Yeah I was looking at the log books before the first boss and it was talking of treason where it normally talks about how awesome I'm being.

    Is there a way to
    Not kill Krotera? I kinda like my truce and wish to keep it.

    yeah, I even tried killing the guy with the reflect-o-beam and it still counts. Can't cut me a break!
    You HAVE to kill 2 people in the game, total. I believe it's Krotera and the Assassin. I think if you're peaceful enough you don't kill that Invincible girl after the fight, and the final boss doesn't count as a kill, AFAIK.

    Zombiemambo on
    JKKaAGp.png
  • IdolNinjaIdolNinja Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    A Flashback/OOTW inspired indie game with stat progression? I can't download this quick enough!

    IdolNinja on
  • IriahIriah Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Iriah wrote: »
    DualEdge wrote: »
    Yeah I was looking at the log books before the first boss and it was talking of treason where it normally talks about how awesome I'm being.

    Is there a way to
    Not kill Krotera? I kinda like my truce and wish to keep it.

    yeah, I even tried killing the guy with the reflect-o-beam and it still counts. Can't cut me a break!
    You HAVE to kill 2 people in the game, total. I believe it's Krotera and the Assassin. I think if you're peaceful enough you don't kill that Invincible girl after the fight, and the final boss doesn't count as a kill, AFAIK.
    but the game says it's possible to complete the game with 0 kills - Innocent. Or at least, it's there at the end-game screen.

    Iriah on
  • john fechonjohn fechon Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Iriah wrote: »
    Iriah wrote: »
    DualEdge wrote: »
    Yeah I was looking at the log books before the first boss and it was talking of treason where it normally talks about how awesome I'm being.

    Is there a way to
    Not kill Krotera? I kinda like my truce and wish to keep it.

    yeah, I even tried killing the guy with the reflect-o-beam and it still counts. Can't cut me a break!
    You HAVE to kill 2 people in the game, total. I believe it's Krotera and the Assassin. I think if you're peaceful enough you don't kill that Invincible girl after the fight, and the final boss doesn't count as a kill, AFAIK.
    but the game says it's possible to complete the game with 0 kills - Innocent. Or at least, it's there at the end-game screen.


    When you beat the game, it rounds down your scores. So 5 kills would still round down to 0 - Innocent.

    It might be possible to
    not kill Krotera
    . I mean he'll still die, but you might be able to kill him by letting the turrets and his own rockets splash damage him. This method sounds kinda ridiculous though, and even if it didn't give you the kill point, I'm betting the story would still go as if you did kill him.

    Right now, I'm figuring there are at least 4 endings.
    Heavy Spoiler
    I did a kill everything run where I didn't save the brother. Iji goes a tad insane. I'm curious as to if she goes as insane if I went the pacifist route.

    This time I'm playing on hard as a pacifist and I saved the brother. Dialogue is pretty different since you still talk to your actual brother.

    I'm also collecting all the ribbons this time, so maybe the little sister can be saved.

    They also track your cracking and how much health you lose. I wonder if that affects the story at all.

    @Dartboy: The game is a tad harder when you run from everything, but there are still ways to kill them. Their own weapon splash damage is pretty much the main way. You might as well finish the game, beating it once unlocks maps for every stage. And going the pacifist route unlocks a teleporter to sector ???. This zone has a large stockpile of ammo and a free stat point. It also has a surprise once you're deep in there
    10 assassins

    john fechon on
  • IriahIriah Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    How do you save the brother?

    Iriah on
  • PeewiPeewi Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Iriah wrote: »
    How do you save the brother?
    Somewhere in the sector there's a "trapmine" which can be set on teleporter exits. There's a point where you're told to use it, but don't do it. Instead use it on the teleporter exit right at the end of the sector.

    Peewi on
  • IriahIriah Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Peewi wrote: »
    Iriah wrote: »
    How do you save the brother?
    Somewhere in the sector there's a "trapmine" which can be set on teleporter exits. There's a point where you're told to use it, but don't do it. Instead use it on the teleporter exit right at the end of the sector.

    I wondered why you didn't get more than one of those.

    Iriah on
  • PikaPuffPikaPuff Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    By the trailer, this totally is not OOTW/Flashback. Looks like it, but like the OP said, plays like Metroid.

    Not a bad thing, mind you, but I miss PoP/OOTW/Flashback like controls/gameplay :p.

    Ooooh download's done.


    edit- great fun game. and yeah, it's nice to see flashback like graphics again :p. I like it.

    PikaPuff on
    jCyyTSo.png
  • IceBurnerIceBurner It's cold and there are penguins.Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Very much getting this when I'm in front of my gaming machine later :D

    Combines so many good things well, from looking at the trailer.

    IceBurner on
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  • PikaPuffPikaPuff Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I'm playing this on my netbook.

    PikaPuff on
    jCyyTSo.png
  • Fleck0Fleck0 Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I don't hear any music, anyone know why this might be? I want to do a hard - pacifist playthrough but from all the cool stuff I've heard about the music I can't bring myself to go through again without it.

    I can play the files fine outside the game

    Fleck0 on
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  • ZombiemamboZombiemambo Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Iriah wrote: »
    Iriah wrote: »
    DualEdge wrote: »
    Yeah I was looking at the log books before the first boss and it was talking of treason where it normally talks about how awesome I'm being.

    Is there a way to
    Not kill Krotera? I kinda like my truce and wish to keep it.

    yeah, I even tried killing the guy with the reflect-o-beam and it still counts. Can't cut me a break!
    You HAVE to kill 2 people in the game, total. I believe it's Krotera and the Assassin. I think if you're peaceful enough you don't kill that Invincible girl after the fight, and the final boss doesn't count as a kill, AFAIK.
    but the game says it's possible to complete the game with 0 kills - Innocent. Or at least, it's there at the end-game screen.
    That actually means less than 10 kills. Just like Immortal isn't 0 damage, it's just less than 100. It's in the Read Me.

    Zombiemambo on
    JKKaAGp.png
  • KupiKupi Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    While playing through Extreme for that alternate outfit, I discovered something interesting: if you kick an enemy to death, then juggle them against the wall (before they hit the ground and explode, that is), they'll start dropping small nanofield blobs. You can get up to five extra blobs out of them before they stop giving them up.

    Kupi on
    My favorite musical instrument is the air-raid siren.
  • FencingsaxFencingsax It is difficult to get a man to understand, when his salary depends upon his not understanding GNU Terry PratchettRegistered User regular
    edited September 2008
    MMAN wrote: »
    Ok I just tried this and for fucks sake.

    INDIE GAME DEVELOPERS PUT AT THE VERY LEAST A FUCKING WINDOWED MODE SO I CAN PLAY YOUR GAMES ON A WIDESCREEN MONITOR

    Hurg.

    If it's like most indie games are then alt+enter should make it windowed
    Didn't work so I had to put it up in d3dwindower.
    How do I make this work?

    Fencingsax on
  • randombattlerandombattle Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    Fencingsax wrote: »
    MMAN wrote: »
    Ok I just tried this and for fucks sake.

    INDIE GAME DEVELOPERS PUT AT THE VERY LEAST A FUCKING WINDOWED MODE SO I CAN PLAY YOUR GAMES ON A WIDESCREEN MONITOR

    Hurg.

    If it's like most indie games are then alt+enter should make it windowed
    Didn't work so I had to put it up in d3dwindower.
    How do I make this work?
    Just add the program in d3d and launch it same as fallout and anything else.

    randombattle on
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    I never asked for this!
  • cooljammer00cooljammer00 Hey Small Christmas-Man!Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    I agree that there are many flaws, but I can;t stop playing. I just beat the assassin.

    edit: Is the music just a Rush ripoff? It sounds like Tom Sawyer.

    cooljammer00 on
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  • cooljammer00cooljammer00 Hey Small Christmas-Man!Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    arrgh, so i ran the game out of the zip last night, and got past the assassin, and i open it this morning only to realize it doesn't save if not extracted. dumb me.

    anyway, i'm going pacifist this time. stupid kicks.

    cooljammer00 on
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  • PikaPuffPikaPuff Registered User regular
    edited September 2008
    This game is badass and more people should be playing this free game.

    PikaPuff on
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