Aztaka - Indie RPG Platforming

[Jason]

Tags: Aztaka

Indie RPG/platformer <b><a href="http://aztaka.citeremis.com/?page_id=7" target="blank">Aztaka</a></b> just saw its debut on <a href="http://www.direct2drive.com/481/8031/product/Buy-Aztaka-Download" target="blank">Direct2Drive</a>.
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<blockquote>-Manipulate spiritual energy to solve mysteries and vanquish foes
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-Enhance and customize your character by training skills and abilities, and acquiring ancient artifacts.
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-Embark on optional side-quests to acquire valuable items and gold.
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-Visit shops to buy and sell potions, rings, piercings and skills to aid in your travels.
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-Challenging yet simple spell casting system
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-Twenty-one unique and detailed levels</blockquote>
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This looks like a peek into an alternate reality where the Playstation and N64 never happened, developers are still creating games for the SNES, and Super Metroid is the model for action RPGs rather than Diablo. On the downside, there's no demo and the $24.95 price tag is a bit much for a blind impulse buy.<br>
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Spotted at: <A HREF="http://www.indiegames.com/blog/">IndieGames</A>

 

[Gwendo]

baby arm, the same could be said about turn based RPGs...

The game looks nice, but with no demo, there's no way I'm gonna buy it.

 

[Double Ogre]

Nice. Looks much better than AoD.

 

[Fat Dragon]

Could be interesting but I'll wait for some impressions before buying.

Nice. Looks much better than AoD.

Butthurt detected.

 

[Double Ogre]

Nah, I just can't stand low poly 3D with shitty textures running in a fixed resolution of 800x600. Can't help it.

 

[sirfink]

Looks about as RPG as Super Mario Bros.

 

[Dire Roach]

Pretty interesting except it sucks that you're forced to play as a Mexi-indian lol. Everyone knows they get wiped out eventually!

 

[Vault Dweller]

Nah, I just can't stand low poly 3D with shitty textures running in a fixed resolution of 800x600. Can't help it.

Yep. No butthurt whatsoever.

 

[L'ennui]

I saw an interview on television about this game. The designer explained some of the concepts and premises of the game, it looked very interesting.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NJr56HmY ... =quicklist

Soundtrack is pretty cool.

 

[Helton]

Drog is, without a doubt, the biggest faggot here since Mantiis stopped coming.

 

[Damned Registrations]

Nah, I just can't stand low poly 3D with shitty textures running in a fixed resolution of 800x600. Can't help it.

Yep. No butthurt whatsoever.

No butthurt whatsoever detected.

The game looks cool but I've never cared much for Mexican mythos stuff. A pity, I'd be all over this if it were almost any other setting.

 

[poocolator]

Soundtrack is pretty cool.

Would be more believable if it were in Nahua or w/e

Nah, I just can't stand low poly 3D with shitty textures running in a fixed resolution of 800x600. Can't help it.

Yep. No butthurt whatsoever.

No butthurt whatsoever detected.

The game looks cool but I've never cared much for Mexican mythos stuff. A pity, I'd be all over this if it were almost any other setting.

My opinion is completely the opposite: I'd rather see a good game bring justice to the culture for a change... instead of the usual regurgitated European/Egyptian shit everyone drools over.

 

[Damned Registrations]

Sorry, I just think the feathers/bird stuff looks stupid. And most of the art is horribly abstract (Or they just sucked at depicting things that much ) Egypt is only slightly ahead in this regard. Most ancient art sucked balls, but stuff from the ancient americas/africa is really horrible. And most of their stories revolve around an otherwise mundane animal that is either as smart as a human or very large, or both. Europe (and india actually) had all sorts of cool shit; medusas, dragons, angels, umpteen half man-half animal things from greece, magical swords and spears, people cursed by the gods...

I can't even think of a cool myth from the americas. They're almost always about how some bird spirit stole everyone's corn or something equally retarded. Unless you know of some awesome story where an Aztec warrior beats the shit out of 50 panthers and then uses their blood to quench a weapon forged in a volcano? (Oh wait, they used ROCKS for their weapons.)

 

[Apathy]

This looks neat. I want it but I'm not gonna buy it blind. I want a codex review! We haven't had one of those in a while.

 

[Melcar]

Sorry, I just think the feathers/bird stuff looks stupid. And most of the art is horribly abstract (Or they just sucked at depicting things that much ) Egypt is only slightly ahead in this regard. Most ancient art sucked balls, but stuff from the ancient americas/africa is really horrible. And most of their stories revolve around an otherwise mundane animal that is either as smart as a human or very large, or both. Europe (and india actually) had all sorts of cool shit; medusas, dragons, angels, umpteen half man-half animal things from greece, magical swords and spears, people cursed by the gods...

I can't even think of a cool myth from the americas. They're almost always about how some bird spirit stole everyone's corn or something equally retarded. Unless you know of some awesome story where an Aztec warrior beats the shit out of 50 panthers and then uses their blood to quench a weapon forged in a volcano? (Oh wait, they used ROCKS for their weapons.)

Considering that most of their written culture and art was destroyed by barbaric Eurofags, I can see how someone wouldn't be familiar with American ancient myths and stories. Most of the stuff that's still around are oral accounts and some post-colonial stuff that got published.
The Aztec myths of creation and tales of their Gods are rather enthralling; the tale of Huitzilopochtli's birth always fascinated me as a kid. The Maya also have some really cool stuff that is still passed on by the old folks; the Popol Vuh is the most informative modern source on Mayan legends and stories, but as I said, a lot of stuff is oral tradition now.

 

[Damned Registrations]

The legend of Huitzilopochtli is recorded in the Mexicayotl Chronicle. His sister, Coyolxauhqui, tried to kill their mother because she became pregnant in a shameful way (by a ball of feathers). Her offspring, Huitzilopochtli, learned of this plan while still in the womb, and before it was put into action, sprang from his mother's womb fully grown and fully armed. He then killed his sister Coyolxauhqui and many of his 500 brothers. He tossed his sister's head into the sky, where it became the moon, so that his mother would be comforted in seeing her daughter in the sky every night. He threw his other brothers and sisters into the sky, where they became the stars.[1]

Okay, that's pretty cool. But, it's generally pretty difficult to creature the sky in a pathetic way (although it has been done, I'm sure). Lets try something else. Oh look, the only Aztec hero mentioned on Wikipedia:

There are many versions in popular Mexican culture of supposed accounts of the mountains in Aztec mythology. For instance, in one version Ixtaccihuatl was a princess in an Aztec tribe. When she came of age, her father wanted her to marry an Aztec prince; however, she did not like any of them. One day by chance, she saw a prince named Popocatepetl in the street. He was the prince of a different indigenous tribe in Mexico (the Chichimeca tribe), so when he wrote a letter asking the emperor if he could marry his daughter, the emperor was furious and would not allow it. Ixtaccihuatl insisted on the marriage, though, so the emperor agreed to it on one condition: Popo and his tribe must help the emperor's troops in a war against their enemy. The emperor intended on the prince dying in the war.

Popo and the rest of the Chichimecas joined the Aztecs in war, but the Aztecs abandoned them at the height of the battle. Miraculously, the Chichimecas were still triumphant without the Aztecs' help. Even so, the emperor told his daughter that Popo had died in battle, and he wrote a letter to Popo saying that Ixtaccihuatl had died of sadness in his absence. Popo did not believe the emperor, and sneaked into the palace to reunite with Ixtac. Together, they ran away to get married. When the emperor found out, he disowned his daughter and proclaimed she was dead to him.

Ixtac and Popo built a humble house and lived happily for a few years. Suddenly, Ixtac got sick and died, in spite of Popo's efforts to save her. An earthquake occurred, and two volcanoes formed. A voice from the heavens ordered Popo to bring Ixtac’s body to the peak of one of the volcanoes. He obeyed and placed Ixtac’s body on top of a bed of flowers on the volcano. Popo then lay down next to her and waited to die. Years later, snow covered their dead bodies and they became two mountains. Popo became the mountain with smoke (known as “montaña humeante” or “smoking mountain”, and Ixtac became the mountain without (known as “mujer blanca” or “white woman”). The two mountains are named after the lovers to this day.

A different tale was told by the Nahuatl-speakers of Tetelcingo, Morelos, according to whom Iztaccíhuatl (or Istāksowātl, as they pronounce the name) was the wife of Popocatepetl, but Xinantécatl wanted her, and he and Popocatepetl hurled rocks at each other in anger. This was the genesis of the rocky mountain ranges of the continental divide and the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt that lie between the two mountains. Finally Popocatepetl, in a burst of rage, flung an enormous chunk of ice, decapitating the Nevado de Toluca. This is why the Nevado is flat-topped, with wide shoulders but no head. Conceivably this legend preserves the memory of catastrophic eruptions. (Pittman 1954:59)

See, now that's just dull. The first one is like some crappy star-crossed lovers bit and the second is retarded. They threw rocks at each other until there was a pair of mountains huh? Pulled from the otherwise empty skull of whoever conceived of this I suppose? Narcissus' was a better story, and that's just a crappy fable about being self centered. Actual popular myths are much more interesting.

 

[Melcar]

Wikipedia is shit for these kinds of things. As I said, there are very little written accounts left. Most are oral traditions, so if you want go interview some old Nahuatl folk. Some written accounts exist, but you have to really dig for the stuff. You could very well google "aztec legends" or "leyendas aztecas" and you'll probably get something, but the easiest stuff to find are badly written summaries of oral legends.

 

[inwoker]

@Vault Dweller
Is it indeed 800x600 fixed?

 

[Wyrmlord]

I think there have been not a few sidescrolling style RPGs out there. Saw a couple of such games in Abandonia, never played them.

 

[Helton]

There was a cool Aztec myth in the latest Ninja Turtles movie.

 

[Darth Roxor]

learned of this plan while still in the womb, and before it was put into action, sprang from his mother's womb fully grown and fully armed

Oh god fucking awesome

 

[Wyrmlord]

learned of this plan while still in the womb, and before it was put into action, sprang from his mother's womb fully grown and fully armed

Oh god fucking awesome

The end of this game will be of the warrior discovering the ghost of Quetzacoatl, causing him to go into a stasis for thousands of years. Eventually, archaelogists in gas mask find his still preserved body, and it ends in their remark:

"This is like that Cleve was talking about."

 

[Vault Dweller]

@Vault Dweller
Is it indeed 800x600 fixed?

No. Neither it's "low poly 3D with shitty textures".

 

[Gwendo]

@Vault Dweller
Is it indeed 800x600 fixed?

No. Neither it's "low poly 3D with shitty textures".

I hope it will support widescreen resolutions.

 

[allthewayround]

I bought this game yesterday and have been glued to it ever since. Great artwork and music.