Game Downloader gives access to hundreds of games
Something that many gamers forget is that aside from the wealth of big companies making well known games, those featured on TV and in game stores, there’s also a huge other world of indie game development. While some of these are more akin to major titles, there are others which are more compact and casual and can easily go unnoticed. Thankfully, creators make software like Game Downloader to collate these games in one place, giving you free access to a wealth of fun, casual games.
Does what it says on the box!
Game Downloader really is one of those applications which does what it claims to do- lets you download games! This little bit of kit has a tiny install footprint and essentially works as a mini-store, letting you browse a collection of games and download the ones you want to play. You could compare it to the gaming platform Steam, but this is just for a selection of small indie games. The library of 200+ games is being expanded all the time, so you’ve got a lot of choice and they vary from action to puzzlers. For example, in the action category you have Faster Blaster, a chirpy little 8-bit adventure game which is a mashup of Master Blaster and Super Metroid from the NES days. In the FPS category you have titles like Dinocalypse, a tower defense shooter where you use turrets and plasma guns to fend of waves of dinosaurs. Some of these games are multiplayer, some are single player- there’s quite the variety.
Open source and free to use
Game Downloader is in a fact an open source download client which accesses a server library of games; there are no special bells and whistles here, just a bit of software which does its job. The software essentially exists to collate these games in one place so you don’t have to scour the web with your browser to find them. Indie developers will find this very interesting, a great way to get inspiration from small-scale games. Note that you will need .net framework 3.5 to run this software, but there’s a link on their website. In terms of usability, some aspects of the application are customable and you can’t go far wrong with the interface. You will see a set of navigation options along the top such as Settings and Downloads, while picking games is as simple as using a drop-down to choose your category, then clicking each item in the list. Each game has a description, details and screenshots to help you choose.
Nothing special, but a great free pastime
The open source nature of Game Downloader will appeal to developers. The software isn’t as polished as casual players might like, but it does have supporting help and a forum. While most of the games are very basic, they still have casual play appeal and might take you back to a simpler time of arcade games and good, clean fun. With a tiny install footprint and free price tag, this is well worth downloading to get access to an otherwise unseen side of gaming.
