Defy Gravity in Paperbound

There is an unfortunate shortage of local multiplayer taking place in today’s modern gaming culture, and considering the important role it’s always played in the gaming experience, it’s a shame. Local multiplayer is a vital gaming experience, and while AAA developers are having a hard time grasping this, the experience is still found on Kickstarter. Paperbound, a gravity-flipping arcade fighter seeking funding on Kickstarter, is one of a handful of games that really appreciates local multiplayer and seeks to continue mankind’s fine tradition of smacking that guy who totally cheated.

In theory, smashing a dude with a giant sword is fairly simple. Still a fun concept, but not one with a ton of depth or possibility. Paperbound took that simplistic concept and turned it on its head (literally) by adding the ability to swap gravity, leading to some crazy moments of fast-paced wall jumping action. Each level features some kind of unique platform or setpiece to make every map unique, and experimenting with the gravity mechanics on the stranger levels is something I look forward to playing (and recording for our YouTube channel, hint hint). You have a few different weapons to choose from, and they interact with each other in interesting and depth-adding ways, and each level is based off of a book or series, including levels based on Dante’s Inferno, A Journey to the Center of the Earth, and even the artwork of Tim Burton.

Paperbound has already garnered a fair amount of attention from sites like GameSpot and Rock, Paper, Shotgun, and was a finalist in the WIN Seattle Indie Game Competition, and with all that recognition and a personally “A-OK” from yours truly, I definitely think this is a campaign to watch. If you’re interested in helping out, their Kickstarter still has quite a ways to go before they reach their $10,000 goal for a PC launch (with stretch goals for 360, XBONE, and PS4 releases), and you can even help out for free by voting on Steam Greenlight. If you’d like to try the game before you pledge, there’s even a demo up on Kickstarter!