video-games-pc-cosplay
A girl dressed in costume plays a video game at the PAX East gaming conference in Boston, Massachusetts April 7, 2012. Jessica Rinaldi

The indie gaming scene is indeed flourishing, as proven by the Indie Showcase over at PAX AUS held in Melbourne this weekend. The event, now in its fifth year, gave independent developers the opportunity to show the world what they can offer in the gaming industry. Here are some of the titles that caught everyone’s attention.

‘Rumu’ – Release: End of 2017

“Rumu” is the name of the main character, a smart robot whose job is to clean up a smart house. Under the guidance of artificial intelligence Sabrina, players help the robot solve the mystery of its missing owners and, ultimately, learn deep truths about life.

The game was developed by Aussie studio Robot House. Project lead Ally Mclean told CNET that the game was “inspired by traditional point-and-click adventures like [The Secret of] Monkey Island, but the way you have to twist your brain around is to really think about how you engage with technology on a day-to-day basis.”

‘Heist’ – Release: 2018

From Melbourne-based Atomizer Games comes “Heist,” a stealth-based noir title that has been a long time coming (it was announced way back in 2015). According to CNET, the game is gearing up for release next year, as soon as developers are confident with the results of the closed beta.

‘Regular Human Basketball’ – Release: 2018 for Steam

A certified crowd-puller, “Regular Human Basketball” is a co-op game in which players must play basketball not in a court, but inside giant robots. Developer Powerhoof has promised a Steam release next year, with new features such as an online multiplayer mode and additional arenas.