Art Perspective: HUMBLE BUNDLE 4!

It has always struck me as odd that those with the least are the ones more likely to help others. A prime example of this is the Indie worlds charity baby the Humble Bundle (Don€™t worry if you call it Humble Bumble, it happens to the best of us, roll with it). Where as those corporate giants at EA can€™t even spare the tuppence to keep the FIFA servers open for those who don€™t want to by the same game every year, these small Indie guys are essentially giving stuff away for a good cause. All you need to do is find some left over cash from your Christmas shopping. If you were to buy each game the total cost would be $100, (Yeah they€™re American but don€™t let that dissuade you) but the good-natured guys at the Humble Bundle let you pay what ever you want. Even allowing you to choose the split of your donation, either to the developers or the charities. There is an incentive though, as those who fork out more than the average donation of around $5 will get two bonus games, and you can sleep at night knowing you€™ve done your bit for humanity. Before we get onto a run through of the games its probably worth mentioning the good causes that the Bundle is all in aid of, aside from the developers themselves. The American Red Cross do lots of great work helping out people effected by natural disasters and all that. Child€™s Play are an interesting charity, and should be supported by all those who love to game, they basically get consoles and stuff into hospitals so that sick kids can be called noobs with the rest of us. But anyway on to the games... Shank is an ultra gory, super fast and very good looking 2D side-scrolling hack and slash beat-me€™ up. Developed by the splendid yet small team at Klei Entertainment, this is easily the most graphically advanced title with a smooth comic book, this may appeal to those least familiar with the indie game aesthetic. Playing as muscle man Shank (which I assume is his last name) who angrily chops his way through other burly men. The great thing about this one is that being Mr Shank makes you feel like a total badass as you paint the walls with blood faster than a slaughter house worker with Parkinson€™s disease.

Developed by the brilliantly named Team Meat; Super Meat Boy is perhaps the most famous of the Bundle, with a release of the Xbox Live Market place in October 2010. The game as met with overwhelming praise from critics and fans and is still one of the highest rated Xbox games. We play as Meat Boy, a red square character (presumable some sort of unspecified beef joint) who is on a quest to get his girlfriend back from the evil Dr. Fetus. On his adventure Meat Boy must navigate his way through the games 300 stages, each with infinite lives as Meat Boy respawns instantly. The game play requires pin point controlling and split second reaction times, and is what can only be described the very best type of as trial and error. NightSky is a great example of a game come together to create something special, the sound effects, music and tranquil gameplay combine to create a playing experience that sticks in the mind. Without doubt NightSky alone is the reason to buy the Bundle, a true gem of the indie world. The feel of NightSky has a lot in common with such greats as Limbo and Braid. In this physics based puzzler the player controls a strange orb that can utilise various powers to get from one side of the screen to the other all with beautiful simplicity, you have to play this game.

Jamestown: Legend of the Lost Colony is a vertically scrolling shoot 'em up from Final Form Games. I€™m not a huge fan of this genre but I found the strong story, grandiose soundtrack and multiplayer fun kept me coming back for more. Jamestown is set is some unhinged parallel universe in which the colonists managed to get to Mars instead of America, but they essentially encounter the same old problems with the natives and the Spanish. The player (or players if you have friends) must blast their way through hordes of enemy attacks, with a well balanced escalating difficulty. The forth installment in Gaijin Games ever-growing Bit.Trip series is Bit.Trip Runner, which sees our old friend Commander Video don his trainers to keep his pixelated body in shape. Our protagonist automatically runs from left to right, the player must jump, kick and duck their way to the end of each level. The simple controls, addictive retro soundtrack and award winning oldskool visuals make this one a must play. Fans of nyan.cat/ may like this title, as being followed by rainbows appears to be in fashion.

Now we are onto the bonus games that only those that have paid more than the average donation can play. I wasn€™t too excited to play Cave Story+ but then I found out it was developed by one guy, in his spare time, over five years! It€™s a subterranean platforming adventure with lots of cute cave dwelling Japanese characters but no Taliban in sight. A great gaming experience with a surprising amount of depth and detail. The other bonus title is Gratuitous Space Battles a new hope for in-depth space strategy simulators. Use your forces you must to destroy the enemy fleets, tweaking your ships to the finest detail. Perhaps not a game for the casual gamer, but with a look. The Humble Bundle is only available for a short time, as of the posting of the article there are only 12 days left to get your hands on these great games and help out a couple of charities in the process.