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You don’t have to look far to know that both web-based gaming and social networking sites are kind of a big thing. Though some publishers have been attempting to release their own versions of each, GarageGames, the company behind the Torque Game Engine, have really embraced the concept and launched Instant Action, a web-based game platform.
With Instant Action, GarageGames is going after what they term the “Lapse Gamer”; these are the types of people who grew up playing games, but as life took them down their particular paths, they were forced to leave their consoles behind. The intent is to provide fun, engaging games that go a little beyond normal web games (such as the countless match-3 block games), but don’t require the huge amounts of dedicated time required by commercial releases.
The system is already in Beta, and the games already on the service are actually really cool. Games run completely out of your browser and are rendered in full 3-D, which is quite a feat. Among some of the games already available are Legions, which is proudly described as the spiritual successor to Tribes, and Rocket Ball, which is a mix of skee-ball, soccer and missile launchers. Other games include Marble Blast Online and Think Tanks.
On the social networking side of things, Instant Action borrows some of the best aspects of other game-centric services, like Xbox Live or PSN. You can choose your own avatar and manage a friends list. You’re able to see who is online, what they’re playing and send messages or jump in on their games. Though the service is free, some games have restrictions as to how often you can play them per day. Eventually, games will have a small “rental” fee or be free to play but with certain “perks” for a price, though those details are still being worked out.
While it may not be the future of gaming, Instant Action is a really cool service and shows a lot of potential. |
