PLYMOUTH—The Plymouth-based game development company Stardock Corp. has introduced “The Video Game Machine,” a “sandbox” game where players can create, play, and share video games that they create themselves.
“If you play games, odds are you’ve wanted to try making one too,” said Scott Tykoski, lead designer. “The Video Game Machine is a game that lets you pick a genre, choose some rules, and unleash your inner game designer.”
Some of the game genres included are side-scrollers, shoot-‘em-up, and adventure games. The genre choice takes care of the game’s basic game mechanics. From there, the player sets up the game’s rules and selects the characters they want in their game such as knights, superheroes, ninjas, cats, and more.
The Video Game Machine includes a host of pre-made games that players can edit or they can choose with a blank slate and start creating. Players can share their games online as well as download games made by others to try them out.
“The game has been designed to be easy enough that anyone can create their own games while still having enough power that savvy gamers can create truly unique games with it,” Tykoski said. “We’ve made the art style match the 1980s-1990s golden age and included a lot of premade graphics sets so players can be up and making their own games in minutes.”
An alpha for The Video Game Machine begins on Wednesday, May 29 and will include the first two genres: Platformer and Adventure. Even those who aren’t interested in making games will find a host of classic-style games available to play.
The Video Game Machine costs $9.99. Users can pre-order and gain access to the alpha at www.TheVGM.com.