''Dark Lands'' is an indie video game by Czech company Mingle Games. It was released in 2013 exclusively for Windows Phone. The game was scheduled to be released for iOS and

Android Android may refer to: Science and technology * Android (robot), a humanoid robot or synthetic organism designed to imitate a human * Android (operating system), Google's mobile operating system ** Bugdroid, a Google mascot sometimes referred to ...

in 2014. It was originally planned to fund these versions with

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, ...

but the campaign was unsuccessful.

Gameplay

''Dark Land'' is a

Hack 'n slash Hack and slash, also known as hack and slay (H&S or HnS) or slash 'em up, refers to a type of gameplay that emphasizes combat with melee-based weapons (such as swords or blades). They may also feature projectile-based weapons as well (such a ...

infinity runner. The player has to jump over obstacles or slide under others, such as whirling blades. There are also enemies they have to fight. Players can also stop running.

Plot

The story is told through a slideshow without text. It is about a brave knight who faces evil powers that have invaded the land.

Development

''Dark Lands'' is the third game by Mingle Games. It was preceded by '' Save the Birds'' and '' Dwarven Hammer''. The former was a success while the latter was a failure. After ''Dwarven Hammer'', the developers decided to stop making video games that they believed to be popular and instead to focus on games that they would play. Members of the team are all fans of fantasy and horror themes. They were influenced by works of Frank Miller ('' Sin City'' and ''

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''). Another inspiration was '' Limbo'' with its black-silhouette graphics. To make more animations with lower memory requirements, they used skeletal animations instead of sprites. At that point, the only problem was budget. Mingle Games decided to participate in AppCampus and applied for funding from the AppCampus program, and in the end were selected. This required the game be released exclusively for Windows Phone for a period of three months. The game was developed with only core gameplay and a limited amount of bosses and enemies, and only two game worlds. The development took 6 months. The game was released in December 2013. It gained promotional help from Nokia and Microsoft and some press. The game reached 1,600,000 downloads on Windows Phone (as of April 2014) and became the most successful project of AppCampus. Developers decided to port the game to other platforms such as iOS and

. These versions are published by

Bulkypix BulkyPix was a French company specializing in the development and publishing of video games, founded in December 2008 and dissolved in August 2016. The company published over 200 games, primarily for the mobile market and also for web browsers ...

. The game was released for IOS and Android on May 8, 2014 The iOS, Android and Windows versions were originally to be funded through

campaign. It was cancelled with US$4,081 raised of the $10,000 goal.

Reception

''Dark Lands'' received mostly positive reviews. The game was praised for its visuals and gameplay. However,

Pocket Gamer ''Pocket Gamer'' is a video game website that focuses on mobile, portable and handheld games. The site launched in 2005 and is published and owned by UK company Steel Media Ltd. The site covers all major portable and mobile gaming formats, incl ...

published a negative review. It criticized the level design, unresponsive controls and a frustrating gating. The reviewer also noted that components for a decent game are present but "are hacked to death" by these elements.

References

External links

Mingle Games site
{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140425160438/http://www.mingle-games.com/ , date=2014-04-25 2013 video games Endless runner games Dark fantasy video games Indie games Monochrome video games Windows Phone games Android (operating system) games IOS games Video games developed in the Czech Republic Video games with silhouette graphics Single-player video games BulkyPix games