With all these awesome features flying around Great Games Experiment these days, it’s becoming much easier to really define your Gamer Identity both on and off the site.

Last week, we made friendships and relationships become just a little more important to everybody by introducing the “My Feed” portion of your dashboard. To me, nothing is cooler than logging in first thing in the morning and seeing all the ratings, comments, kudos, reviews that my friends have posted while I was sleeping and regenerating for another day of coding and fun in the “GGE Pit”. I even added the RSS feed of “My Feed” to my Google Reader. This way I’m sure not to miss a beat of all the activity in my internal network here on Great Games Experiment. Of course, Jacob’s awesome RSS creation skills have made that feed convenient & easy to use with well placed links to all the recent activity in your feed. Click that “subscribe” button of your “My Feed” to add it to your favorite RSS reader.

This morning, things got really spicy here in the GGE kitchen when we added a couple of new Flash components to the site.

We now have new and improved Screenshot Modules for profiles. All of the old screenshot modules have been upgraded to utilize the new Flash animation. The introduction of Flash for these modules will help solve some cross browser compatibility issues and generally provide a better experience when viewing images for a game / user / group.

Also, we’re working hard to make it easier for you to define your Gamer Identity on GGE and take it wherever you please across the web. A major step in this process is the creation of a Gamelist Widget (for showing off your gamelists of course). Go create a gamelist, and when you get to the publishing phase, be sure to publish it out as a Widget and snag the embed code available. Go paste this code on your blogs or wherever you’d like. It’s an awesome way to show off the games you are playing right now, your favorite games, or games you can’t wait to come out!

Also, don’t forget to share and show off your Gamer Identity with your badges!

So there’s been a lot of action going on lately around GGE.  Let’s get started with all the goodies.

First the Navbar has been redesigned and added a Gamelist section header.  Now it’s easier to get those gamelists set up — and there’s more features with the Gamelists coming soon, very cool stuff.  Keep your eyes peeled.  

Speaking of Gamelists, you may have noticed the featured gamelist on the front page.  It changes daily, so if you want to be on the coveted front page all you have to do is create a good gamelist with comments and we’ll sniff you out and get you your moment.  

One of the newest cool features that has been integrated into the site recently is the News Feed in your account page.  Now you can see what’s happening with your friends, the games that you’ve bookmarked, groups, and multiple other areas of the site all in one easy to find location.  You can even subscribe to the news feed as it churns out an RSS feed.  Get updates from anywhere!

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Finally, one little update that should make everyone’s lives a bit easier.  The help tab has made it’s way back to the navbar!  In the form of a question mark you can have most of your answers about GGE solved very quickly.  And don’t worry, we’re working on making the help docs even more comprehensive with tips and tricks to get your games out there and how to navigate the site in general.  Oh yeah, the home tab is now a house!  Yup, that’s about all I got for now.  Have a good weekend everyone.

A veritable bevy of new Play Now games have been added to GGE in recent days. Two of which–Indestructo Tank and Dolphin Olympics–have been gnawing away more of our time than their simplistic gameplay would suggest possible.

How do these games pull this off? Some of it has to do with the simplicity of course: the arrow keys are all you need for either game. In Indestructo Tank, your Tank doesn’t actually have any weapons. Instead you use your tank to crash into and destroy as many enemies as possible, stringing together huge airborne combos along the way. Much like a Hummer, your only weakness is your fuel consumption. Run out of fuel before you pass on to the next level and you’re finished.

Coincidently, Dolphin Olympics contains no weaponry either, and the gameplay is essentially the same. In fact, you can almost use the same sentence to describe both games: You use your [dolphin] to [launch] into [the air] and [pull off] as many [sick tricks] as possible, stringing together huge airborne combos along the way. There’s a time limit instead of a fuel gauge in Dolphin Olympics, but you get the picture.

Another factor that keeps us four-keying our way to massive scores is the inclusion of online high score tables with multiply categories. Well, we could never be skilled enough (or have enough spare time) to even attempt to approach the Everestian heights of the current high scores, but it does allow us to compete against each other at work. And seeing frustration contorting a coworker’s face as they fall just short of besting one of the (very few) record I currently hold is like manna for my soul.

I could go on about the similarities between the games, and why they’re so addictive; unrealistic, but consistent and satisfying physics; simple, but difficult to master gameplay; instantly accessible and recognizable controls… but maybe you should just try them for yourself–Mark just beat my combo score on Indestructo Tank, so I gotta get on that.

Or, to be more kid friendly: really, really clumsy sumo wrestling. Sumotori Dreams is really just a demoscene, consisting of two self-balancing physics rigs facing off against one another in a sumo ring.

The game itself is very simple, but the true beauty lies in watching the rock ‘em sock ‘em-esque wrestlers as they attempt to get to their feet and bow to each other. If they’re not on solid ground, they’ll stumble around with their arms flailing until they regain their balance or take a hard spill. Adding to the already enormous pleasure of watching the AI look like Charlie Chaplin in a room full of banana peels is the breakable barriers surrounding the ring. A wrestler, in an attempt to regain its upward mobility, will fly off the ring and crash through one of these barriers, only to vainly try again to stand and instead stumble on the rubble recently created underfoot. Sometimes it takes over a minute for the wrestlers to regain their composure and bow respectfully.

The realism of the bumbling bots looks real enough at times to remind one of America’s Funniest Home Videos. Someone should hire Bob Sagat to narrate. The controls are simple, the matches are quickly over, and the self-balancing bipedal warriors are a hilarious and impressive technical feat that may lend themselves well to serious research in robotics.

Have you noticed the new sidebar styling for the game pages? This recent change adds a little more style to an already stylish GGE, as well as increased functionality. We have moved the “I Developed this Game” and “Become a Contributer” buttons to the top of the sidebar right next to the “Add Bookmark,” “I’ve played this Game,” and “Write a Review” tabs so it is now easier than ever to see your relationship to a game when you view its page.

You may also notice the new frontpage feature. Now, once you have logged in to GGE, the orange login box on the front page will show your inbox, allowing you to view your new messages easily.

Hopefully these new features will enhance your GGE experience. Enjoy!

For my money, one of the best features on GGE is the game review. Like many avid gamers I find a helpful and in depth review of a game very important, if not necessary. A bunch of excellent reviews will get me interested in a game, while several poor reviews will have an adverse effect. Even on the negative side, though, I am more likely to try a game out if it has any well thought out reviews than if it has none, or several reviews with little or no information. If a game is highly rated, but carries no intelligent reasoning behind its rating, I don’t know what to do. I, like many others, appreciate the time and effort put into game reviews. Reviews create a dialog within the community, let people voice there opinions, and help others try games they may not otherwise have been interested in.

With that said, I would like to start featuring reviews that are especially informative. I will feature one here at random and from then on feature reviews that you find especially helpful/insightful/interesting, etc. Feel free to send us reviews that either you have written or come across whilst exploring the site. I hope this will spur people to start reviewing all games they play. Remember, we are talking opinion here but there is a line between constructive criticism and simply bashing someone’s work. So keep in mind negative reviews are necessary at times, but can always be done tastefully and thoughtfully (Don’t think for a minute I won’t feature a well thought out negative review). Send your submissions to jamesw@garagegames.com with the subject line “review submission.”

I’d also like to take a moment and highlight the thumbsup/down feature of reviews. This allows you to support a review’s quality, or downgrade its effectiveness as a review. Use these tools. They help others to find the truly awe-inspiring reflections of a games worth. So, here is a featured review that I think is worth checking out:

and his review of

Occasionally, games pop up on GGE that are just too great not to talk about, especially if we know it’s great before we even play it. How did we obtain such omniscient foreknowledge of a game’s awesomeness? Here’s how: a free PC version of the original TMNT arcade game is in the works, and the first level is available for download now! While it is still in its preliminary phase, this project is definitely worth checking out for anyone who loves the classic Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Arcade Game.

The developer, Jason Orme, is rewriting the entire game using a windows engine and, once complete, the game will still be free. You can download the latest version from GGE here. With the same tubular look and feel of the original, TMNT Engine gives you all the turtle power you can handle.

As a lover of the original TMNT arcade game, I can’t help but get excited about a project like this. And with the apparent possibility of recreating many of the old Konami classics, I know I am going to keep my eyes on this one.

For anyone interested in the TMNT arcade game a simple search of of GGE for “TMNT” or “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” results in a slew of games — the TMNT Engine being one of them. Jason is looking for help to develop the rest of the game, so contact him if you think you have what it takes to assist with this historical gaming reenactment of epic proportions.

Check out a video of the TMNT Engine in action here.

You may have noticed the new Gamelist Central that Sean mentioned a couple of weeks ago, if not you can read more here and visit GameList Central. There have been even more additions to the Gamelists. When hanging out in Gamelist Central and creating your Gamelists you’ll notice a small eye icon next to your created Gamelist.

After clicking that little guy you’ll be brought to the Gamelist view.

You’ll also find a new module at the bottom of the game pages. This module shows Gamelists that feature that particular game in the list. If a game isn’t in any Gamelists yet, you’ll be notified and given the option to add the game to your Gamelist. Here’s what to expect at the bottom of a game page that belongs to a Gamelist.

So what does this all mean? Gamelists are another way to find games that may be similar to those that you enjoy playing. They may also bring you to someone’s page that enjoys playing similar games that you enjoy playing. That’s what GGE is all about anyway, finding new games and connecting with people that have similar interests in gaming. We’re trying to make this process as easy and enjoyable as possible.

As one of the new GarageGames interns, I’ve decided that it is time for me to step out into the light and start spreading the love. You may have noticed the recent addition of the “share” feature for nearly every aspect of GGE. This tool allows you to show off some of the coolest elements of the site. Post your favorite games, your badge or even the badges of your favorite gamers and developers with a simple copy and paste and instantly add serious flavor to your blog or personal website. The share tool is designed to help you express yourself. Tell others about which games you find the most interesting or fun, support your favorite Indie developer or just show off your own badge.

Sharing also enhances the gamelist function. For instance, if you have your gamelist posted on your website, but wanted to feature a particular game, the share tool would allow you to post a badge for a single game instantly, with all of its stats (views, rating, number of times rated, etc.). A pretty good example of how the share tool can be used to accentuate a website is The Gaming Realm’s blog. So, check out the share function and start sharing GGE with the world.

Because we have become a society of search, I decided that this day would be a nice one [albeit a cloudy one here in Eugene] to give the search a little love. Previously, when you searched on Great Games Experiment, you would receive the results for your query as a mish-mash of all types. For instance, if I searched for “Mario”.. I would get a master list of Games, Users, and Groups that made sense for my keyword. However, now you get to land on a page that gives you an overview of your search results.

Two choices here make sense for me. I can view all of the games tagged “Mario” by users who submitted mario games. Or, I can view all game search results. I’m going to go ahead and view all of the game results.

Voila! I have found my game. Now if you don’t mind, I’m going to go reminisce about my late youth and playing Dr. Mario.