''20XX'' is an

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Gaming *Independent video game development, video games created without financial backing from large companies *Indie game, any game (board ...

action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

platform video game A platform game (often simplified as platformer and sometimes called a jump 'n' run game) is a sub-genre of action video games in which the core objective is to move the player character between points in an environment. Platform games are charact ...

developed by American indie studio Batterystaple Games. The

early access Early access, also known as alpha access, alpha founding, paid alpha, or game preview, is a funding model in the video game industry by which consumers can purchase and play a game in the various pre-release development cycles, such as pre-alph ...

version was released for Microsoft Windows on

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizat ...

on October 12, 2016, and in full on August 16, 2017. It later launched on the

PlayStation 4 The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 in ...

and

Nintendo Switch The is a hybrid video game console developed by Nintendo and released worldwide in most regions on March 3, 2017. The console itself is a tablet that can either be docked for use as a home console or used as a portable device, making it a ...

on July 10, 2018, and on

Xbox One The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third base console in the Xbox series of video game consoles. It was first released in North America, parts of ...

on July 11, 2018. A sequel, ''

30XX ''30XX'' is a platform game from independent developer Batterystaple Games and the sequel to ''20XX''. It released in Steam (service), Steam early access on February 17, 2021, and is also planned to be released on consoles in the future. Like its ...

'', was released on Steam Early Access on February 17, 2021, and in full on August 9, 2023.

Gameplay

Inspired by ''

Mega Man X is a series of action platform video games released by Capcom. It is a sub-series of the ''Mega Man'' franchise. The first game was released on December 17, 1993 in Japan (January 1994 in North America) on the Super NES/Super Famicom; most o ...

'', players must defeat enemies and complete difficult platforming challenges to finish a stage. The twist is that these stages are generated randomly based on level segments, or "chunks", and allow for both local and online co-op. Rather than giving several lives, the game has

permadeath Permadeath or permanent death is a game mechanic in both tabletop games and video games in which player characters who lose all of their health are considered dead and cannot be used anymore. Depending on the situation, this could require the p ...

, but is a "roguelite" in that the player can use Soul Chips earned during the level to unlock new types of passive upgrades to buy, and gain upgrades for the next attempt of that particular run. During levels players can use bolts gained as currency to buy passive upgrades, or to gain back health or energy in vending machines. They can find upgrades in treasure chests and other places. Upon beating a boss the player can choose to take their power as a reward, granting them a new special ability, or take a reward of bolts or a random passive upgrade instead.

Plot

The game follows Nina, an armored girl armed with a power blaster, and Ace, an armored boy who has an energy sword, in the aftermath of a robotic uprising. Traveling from their base on the Ark, a space station orbiting the Earth, they have been hired to clear dangerous locations that are infested with robots that have run amok.

Development

''20XX'' began to be developed after a

crowdfunding Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and Alternative Finance, alternative finance. In 2015, over was rais ...

campaign on

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, K ...

in the spring of 2014, when the game was called ''Echoes of Eridu''. Following a successful Kickstarter, the game joined the Fire Hose Games accelerator program and appeared in the Indie Megabooth at

Penny Arcade Expo PAX (originally known as Penny Arcade Expo) is a series of gaming culture festivals involving tabletop, arcade, and video gaming. PAX is held annually in Seattle, Boston and Philadelphia in the United States; and Melbourne in Australia. PAX was ...

2015. The game was the developer Chris King's first commercial game, and its development was prompted by the belief that it was his last chance to do such a risky thing as game development without a family to support, as he was in his late 20s. The idea behind the game was due to his belief that

Capcom is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. It has created a number of multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being '' Resident Evil'', '' Monster Hunter'', '' Street Fighter'', '' Mega Man'', '' ...

had ceased to make enough ''

Mega Man ''Mega Man'', known as in Japan, is a Japanese science fiction video game franchise created by Capcom, starring a series of robot characters each known by the moniker "Mega Man (character), Mega Man". Mega Man (video game), The original game w ...

'' titles, and that he and other fans desired more of the same type of gameplay. The developer's main focus was on the

game feel Game feel (sometimes referred to as "game juice") is the intangible, tactile sensation experienced when interacting with video games. The term was popularized by the book ''Game Feel: A Game Designer's Guide to Virtual Sensation'' written by Steve ...

and getting it to play in a similar manner to ''Mega Man''. The most difficult aspect in developing the game was debugging its

netcode Netcode is a blanket term most commonly used by gamers relating to networking in online games, often referring to synchronization issues between clients and servers. Players often infer "bad netcodes" when they experience lag or when their inputs ...

that allowed for online play. Chris believes that

Early Access Early access, also known as alpha access, alpha founding, paid alpha, or game preview, is a funding model in the video game industry by which consumers can purchase and play a game in the various pre-release development cycles, such as pre-alph ...

program was essential to the development of the game, and "couldn't imagine" releasing it without it.

Soundtrack

The game's soundtrack was composed by Brandon "Cityfires" Ellis and includes chiptune and

synthesizer A synthesizer (also spelled synthesiser) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis ...

elements to make it resemble that of a

Super NES The Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), commonly shortened to Super NES or Super Nintendo, is a 16-bit home video game console developed by Nintendo that was released in 1990 in Japan and South Korea, 1991 in North America, 1992 in E ...

game.

Reception

Nintendo Life Gamer Network Limited (formerly Eurogamer Network Limited) is a British mass media company based in Brighton. Founded in 1999 by Rupert and Nick Loman, it owns brands—primarily editorial websites—relating to video game journalism and ot ...

'' described the gameplay as addictive, and, although they felt some aspects were a bit repetitive, they said the upgrades and customization made up for it. ''Nintendo World Report'' recommended it to fans of ''Mega Man'' and platform games, but they felt it should have more story.

References

External links

* {{Mega Man 2016 video games Action games Early access video games Kickstarter-funded video games Nintendo Switch games Platformers PlayStation 4 games Video games developed in the United States Windows games Xbox One games Video games featuring female protagonists Video games using procedural generation Indie games