Bounty Arms Demo

There are many incredible tools available today when it comes to game design, most of which are free to some extent and very powerful. The Unreal Engine development kit is one of them and it features some of the most advanced graphics and physics engines out there, not to mention a variety of other useful tools, all of which can be used by anyone to put their wildest ideas into practice.

Bounty Arms is a 3D platformer and sidescroller that aims to emulate the old-school classics, only with cutting edge special effects and a smooth interface. However, the core concept is the same, since you still have to jump over spikes, avoid falling into lava pits and kill the enemies that swarm on you every once in a while, using a variety of wacky weapons.

There isn’t too much of a story behind the game yet, but the futuristic theme is quite striking and the main character appears to be some sort of mutant himself, given his looks. The environments hint at some sort of factory, riddled with wild mechanical contraptions, gears and exposed power cables that can shock you to pieces if you happen to touch them.

The platforming bit is quite well-done, in the sense that the camera is always centered on the character and you never have to engage in leaps of faith, as it is case with most 3D platformers. You can jump or double-jump if you need to, as well as activate certain devices in order to unlock the way further into the level. The difficulty level is quite high as well, since you really need to coordinate your jumps to make it past the more difficult sections.

On the other hand, checkpoints are spread everywhere and you do not have to worry too much about dying, since you can do so indefinitely. This kind of ruins the overall experience a little bit, even if you are thankful to it when you find yourself falling into the same meat grinder the tenth time in a row.

All things considered, Bounty Arms is definitely worthy of a try, even if it is not completed yet and there are plenty of things that need more polishing before the game can be shipped out. The platforming is solid, the graphics are good and the level design is striking enough to make you wonder about what comes next.