Do you like bending the laws of space and time while shooting stuff in space? I sure do and was very interested in the concept of Dimension Drive when it was brought to my attention.

Developed by 2Awesome Studio, the game is part of the shoot’em up genre, similar to R-Type and Gradius. For those unaware, those games revolved around you controlling a single ship against waves of foes with tons of bullets everywhere. They were very popular in 80s arcades. Through a second Kickstarter in 2015 -- after a failed attempt -- 2Awesome Studio raised $42,000 with the help of nearly 1200 backers.

The Story

The story follows Jackelyne Tywood (a.k.a. Jack), the last survivor of her race as a result of another race called the Ashajuls rising to power. Luckily, she was put inside a ship called The Manticore in order to escape. With The Manticore being the only thing able to stand up against the Ashajuls due to the Dimension Drive capability, Jack must fight alongside her A.I. guardian, V.E.R.A, in order to drive back the Ashajuls. The story is told mostly through still images and has a bit of a comic book style. The alpha never really goes too much into the story, which is fine for now. What is amusing is that sometimes after losing a life, both V.E.R.A and Jack talk to one another, sometimes showing determination or cracking jokes.

Gameplay

Gameplay is interesting. As opposed to being a single space, the screen is divided into two. Both screens might seem like they feature the same thing, but they do not. The overall layout of obstacles, enemy placement, power-ups -- almost everything -- differs. This includes attack patterns, so the need to switch to strike at a boss is important in order to quickly gain an advantage.

Of course, things are not so easy. You have a limited number of times you can shoot while on each screen. By switching screens, you can get more ammo on each side. Once again, another part of the challenge presents itself due to different layouts of each area. So, while you might switch to another screen, you could potentially crash your ship right into some asteroids or other obstacles, or even spawn on top of them and die instantly. This can work another way, however, as switching screens can help you get power-ups.

If you ever feel the speed is too fast or you want to get that pesky ship you missed to blow up, there is an inverted mode you can trigger that will slow down ship speed and allow you to attack enemies from behind. This is especially handy in stages where you need to hit switches in order to progress. It is also useful as the game has a point system. As long as you are not hit, you can keep chaining points from defeated foes to get a higher score. Based on the website for the game, however, this is mainly for the leaderboards.

The greatest challenge is balancing all of this. But it is possible -- especially with the checkpoints throughout the game. This is certainly a game that will require a bit of practice, but the controls are responsive and the gameplay remains fun despite the frustration at times.

The normal mode has plenty of challenges, but hard mode makes things even more difficult. For starters, you start off with zero shield power, meaning even a single shot is enough to kill you. You can still collect power-ups, including the shield, but it only lasts for a single hit and you cannot stack the shields. Combine all of this with trying to adjust to the playstyle of the game, and hard mode is definitely a strong challenge.

Of course, the game is still in alpha, and some glitches need to be ironed out. In one instance, a boss just seemingly stopped moving after several times of me losing to it. Then again, it could have just given up in pity. Other than that, Dimension Drive is a game you should definitely look forward to once it’s complete!

Dimension Drive is set for release in 2016 -- with no exact date just yet -- on PC, Mac, and Linux. It is available for pre-order for $11.99, or you can gain early access and get your name in the credits for $25. All of this can be found on their website here.

The initial Kickstarter attempt for Dimension Drive, the first game by Dutch developer 2Awesome Studio, fell victim to a troll who saw fit to 'donate' enough to see the game reach its pledge goal. After the bogus donation was revoked, the project was rendered unsuccessful. However, with a second campaign resulting in $36,996 pledged by 1,194 backers, Dimension Drive was finally successfully funded on Kickstarter. We caught up with the game's designer, David Jimenez, to discuss the game, the studio's experience with crowdfunding and what the future holds for Dimension Drive.

In today’s games industry, with open development platforms and self-publishing tools readily available to everyone, games need to have a hook and an original angle in order to stand out in this highly competitive market. Taking the essence of old-school top-down space shooters, Dimension Drive aims to do that with its dual-battlefield mechanic. This is a split-screen set-up with two dimensions running side by side that a single player must warp between in order to defeat enemies, solve puzzles and generally progress through its colorful comic book-style world. When asked how the team came up with the concept for Dimension Drive Jimenez said:

“Like most ideas it came in a moment where we were having fun. One evening, Alejandro and myself (David) were playing shoot'em ups from our childhood together and having some pizza and beers. At some point we ended up also watching some YouTube videos of hardcore players playing these kind of games, "superplays" they are called. We saw one guy playing 2 player mode, with 2 controllers just by himself. He managed to somehow dodge all bullets, kill enemies, and finish the level with the players single-handedly!!! We looked to each other and said … “let’s make a game like that”. We did, and it was almost impossible to play for an average player, but we have been iterating from that original idea together with our community till the solid concept we have today.”

Fending off an alien invasion across two dimensions simultaneously sounds rather frantic, and the ability strike a balance between a chaotic concept and rewarding gameplay is crucial to this type of game.

When asked about how the team are approaching the games difficulty Jimenez explains that they are aiming to create an experience that will satisfy shooter veterans, but won’t alienate those less familiar with the stereotypically punishing genre.

“We are trying to strike some middle ground with Dimension Drive. The shoot'em up genre has become a hardcore niche especially when you consider 'bullet hells' from Japanese devs. We want to make Dimension Drive a challenging experience and bring some of that old-school difficulty without resorting to just fill your screen with bullets. On the other hand, we are implementing some game modes catered towards beginners. There's a resurgence now of the genre and we want to bring something new and innovative to the table.”

As already mentioned, Dimension Drive almost wasn’t funded.

The team had a second shot at Kickstarter after the first attempt was sabotaged. In the final hours of the first campaign, 2Awesome Studio received a pledge of €7,000 from a mysterious savior, leaving Dimension Drive just €200 shy of its €30,000 goal. Much to the delight of the team the project was funded, but disaster struck when Kickstarter informed them that the generous donation was, in fact, fraudulent - dashing the spirit of a company that was  unfairly conned into believing their dreams had just come true. Addressing the team’s reaction to the failed campaign, Jimenez said;

“It was devastating as you can imagine. It was hard. It could have been the end of Dimension Drive. The day after we didn’t know what to do, and we were mentally broken after an exhausting campaign ending with that incident to be honest.”

But 2Awesome Studio and the gaming community believed too much in the potential of Dimension Drive to let it end like that, and leading lady Jack came back fighting fit with a second Kickstarter campaign.

“Our second Kickstarter was not only about funding Dimension Drive, but also about not throwing the towel. We had people from all over the world sending messages of support and encouragement. They were asking us not to give up. We discussed with the team members and we decided to fight back. We really happy we took that decision. In the end, it's thanks to the community that we will be able to make this game. It was really tough, in the end we run two Kickstarter campaigns without a break and that is a huge amount of work.”

And after the gruelling business of running two Kickstarter campaigns there’s no rest in sight for the team.

The game has also reached many of its stretch goals that now need to be fulfilled. These will add a boss mode, horde mode and also the chance to share dimensions with a friend via two player local co-op, or blast them away in PvP. Curious as to how two player mode will be incorporated into the dual dimension set-up we quizzed Jimenez about it.

“We are still discussing how 2 player mode will be but one thing is clear for us, it has to be something new. We don't want just to slap another ship in there and call it a day. We would like that the two players have to really interact and play together to beat the levels in two player mode. For example, we are considering having them sharing the Dimension Energy, that way teamwork will be essential. Also, as Dimension Drive has been funded through Kickstarter we plan to gather the feedback of our backers and see what they would like this mode to be.”

Unfortunately, Dimension Drive missed out on the stretch goal that would have seen it reach the console market via PS4. But the team hasn't ruled out the possibility of bringing the game to other platforms.

“In the end it all boils down to time, funding and agreements with platform owners. We want to concentrate on the PC version first but we are open to port it to other platforms.”

With Dimension Drive expected to launch at the end of 2015 for Windows, Mac and Linux, we asked Jimenez what the future holds and whether we’ll see any more space shifting antics from the studio.

“We will, of course, support the players in case bugs or issues arise. If people want more of Dimension Drive and Jackelyne we will obviously work on expansions and sequels. It really depends on what people would like to see from us.”

Special thanks go to David Jimenez for this interview. More information about Dimension Drive can be found on the game's website or by following 2Awesome Studio on Facebook and Twitter.

Three weeks after a troll sunk their Kickstarter campaign, 2Awesome Studio has secured full funding for Dimension Drive. On May 13th, with only a few hours left in its crowdfunding effort, 2Awesome Studio received a single donation of the €7,000 needed to reach its €30,000 goal. Kickstarter discovered the generous offer was fraudulent with only 31 minutes to go. Dimension Drive failed to make up for the troll in time, and the development crew received nothing but heartache.

Don't know what to do now, mentally devastated :( Don't know what to do now #gamedev #indiedev https://t.co/b9lROaQQvz

— 2Awesome Studio (@2AwesomeStudio) May 13, 2015

At the time, it seemed possible that 2Awesome Studio would abandon the project. The team persevered, however, and the Dimension Drive Kickstarter relaunched on May 18th, less than a week after its first incarnation was derailed. In under 24 hours, the campaign was halfway towards meeting its goal.

You did this, THANKS! 50% funded in <24h! https://t.co/E9HQ6Jn9XC #gamedev #indiedev #jackisback #DimensionDrive pic.twitter.com/A84sO6hC06

— 2Awesome Studio (@2AwesomeStudio) May 19, 2015

At the time of this writing, Dimension Drive has over one thousand backers and has exceeded its financial goal by over €3,400. If given €2,500 more, 2Awesome Studio promises Dimension Drive will have two-player co-op and PvP. Given the outpouring of support the developer has received so far, we're pretty sure that won't be a difficult goal to reach. The Dimension Drive Kickstarter ends on June 17th.

Digital content is largely bought and sold according to "all sales are final" policies. While this certainly doesn't prevent consumers from making digital purchases, it does generate large amounts of buyer's remorse. Earlier this week, PC software giant Steam rolled out a new refund policy, to adulations from gamers across the board.

And why not? There's no reason for digital content consumers not to be happy with refunds on Steam. You can now purchase a title with the confidence that, if you aren't satisfied, you can return the license for a full refund within two weeks or two play-hours. That confidence certainly makes gamers less afraid to take chances on unknown indie titles, and this, in turn, drives indie sales numbers upward.

Yet some indie developers have recognized a significant problem with Steam's new policy. As Cibele developer Nina Freeman points out, games like hers may not have over two hours of gameplay, meaning Steam users can easily purchase the game - and experience it in its entirety - before returning it for a full refund. Brianna Wu, the creator of Revolution 60, agrees:

Wow. @hentaiphd nails the problem with Steam refunds. They are brutally unfair for indie developers. pic.twitter.com/8DboZ9yAiG

— Brianna Wu (@Spacekatgal) June 2, 2015

Many indie games clock in well over Steam's two-hour cut-off, but many don't. The potential financial benefits mentioned earlier are all but lost on these indie devs, who will undoubtedly find their products bought, used, and returned like an expensive evening gown.

This might be a different conversation entirely if the gaming community wasn't beset by a toxic mean-spiritedness of late. Last month, developer 2Awesome Studio was crushed to learn that its apparently successful Kickstarter for Dimension Drive had been derailed by a fake 7000 Euro donation. Because the donation wasn't detected before the campaign's closing, 2Awesome and Dimension Drive were left without funding, per Kickstarter policy.

This is only one of the many cruel and vicious attacks on indie game developers. The potential for abuse within Steam's refund policy isn't lost on the gaming community, but the few viable alternatives - such as giving creators the ability to modify refund terms on their games - are unlikely to be implemented any time soon.

For now, indie devs have to hope their customers will be kind. That, or come up with a creative way around the new terms:

The steam refund policy doesn't really bother me because my game starts with a 2 hour unskippable cut scene before there's any gameplay

— Willy Chyr (@willychyr) June 2, 2015

Running a successful Kickstarter as a developer is hard work. Some people have likened it to a full-time job, where you have to constantly keep your game in the public eye. It's stressful, especially in the final days of running the Kickstarter when you're just a little bit shy of making your goal (and your dreams) a reality. 

2Awesome Studios were in the final day of their Kickstarter with their goal in site, $7K needed to make their $30k Euro goal when suddenly they were there. Right under the wire, they hit their goal with one large benefactor. Dimension Drive was successfully funded. 

Except it wasn't. 

Around the time their Kickstarter clock hit midnight, 2Awesome Studios was informed that the donation was fraudulent, and therefore they hadn't made their $30K goal. 

Somebody pledge 7k to our Kickstarter just to be taken a way in the last moment. Trolling our end of #Kickstarter. Funded and it's gone

— 2Awesome Studio (@2AwesomeStudio) May 13, 2015

All the official word has been from 2Awesome Studios right now, who are currently dealing with the devastation that comes from almost making their Kickstarter goal just to have it taken away. The user is apparently a confirmed troll: 

@SpeerofD3stiny Not exactly, he was a troll and did this in several campaigns. In our case was in the last moment getting us FAKE funded

— 2Awesome Studio (@2AwesomeStudio) May 13, 2015

There's been no official word yet on what 2Awesome Studio is going to do after their Kickstarter. If you want to learn more Dimension Drive you can check out their Kickstarter page; unfortunately, the funding window has passed.