Horizon, Venus Patrol and MOCAtv's indie-focused E3 press conference, wasn't lacking in announcements and early looks at games in development — but it was severely lacking in pyrotechnics.
That is a very, very good thing. The bombast and decibel level of the major publishers' press conferences certainly helps their games seem larger than life, but they can distract from the games and ideas being conferred. At Horizon, no such distractions existed. Independent developers were given time and a stage with which to show off their projects, all of which were at various stages in their development.
Keita Takahashi's new game, in development with Robin Hunicke and Martin Middleton's indie team at Funomena, was revealed during the event, showing off a few of the ideas that inspired the title. Capy's Nathan Vella showed a slightly extended trailer for Below, the microscopic roguelike that debuted at Microsoft's E3 press conference. Die Gute Fabrik's Douglas Wilson and Hokra creator Ramiro Corbetta gave an update on Sportsfriends, and Wilson revealed his new, gorgeous adventure game Mutazione. There was even a "one last thing" moment, with the brief reveal of Polytron's Fez 2.
For more on Horizon's importance at an increasingly indie-aware E3, check out our round-up video above.
