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Well that's certainly one way to describe it. Whisker Squadron: Survivor is styled very much like the classic rail shooter Starfox but sprinkles in some elements popularised by Vampire Survivors.

I've been testing out the game for a little while, very much impressed by what I've seen from it. For anyone who likes retro styled 3D shooters like this you're definitely in for a bit of a treat. The developers, Flippfly LLC, have now announced that it will enter Early Access on August 21st and this is with full Native Linux support and it's Steam Deck Verified.

The developer mentions that "you'll have a robust set of loadout choices for each run including pilot, ship, primary guns and missiles, each with unique gameplay attributes. During a run, the randomized upgrades include a mix of stat modifiers, passive abilities and attacks, and each run can play out in really unique ways".

Check out their new trailer:

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Feature Highlight:

  • Embark on an ever-changing adventure across neon-laced roguelike levels featuring on-rails shooter runs that change with every 20-30 minute playthrough.
  • Design a fighter ship using randomized upgrades that can be built using scraps dropped throughout each level and Victory Points earned through play.
  • Change the way your runs play out by unlocking mods as you earn achievements.
  • Discover portals that will send you on a new and challenging secret path that will change the way you approach your run.

It's actually an off-shoot of another shooter Whisker Squadron, which will be launching sometime in 2024. 

You can wishlist / follow on Steam and there's a demo available.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
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4 comments

Pengling Jul 20, 2023
Even though I love the idea, I didn't get on with the demo for this one, as it felt like there wasn't enough audiovisual feedback for taking and doling out hits, which sometimes made it difficult to track what was going on, and I didn't like the controls either. I should give it another look to see if that was changed.


Last edited by Pengling on 20 July 2023 at 1:32 pm UTC
TiZ Jul 20, 2023
If you have any investment in the main game, Whisker Squadron, then it's worth it to check this game out. It's pretty good! If you backed Whisker Squadron, you should already have a key for this one. It's very likely that the gameplay for the main game will be highly similar to this spin-off, so if you find any big kinks in the main gameplay, this is the time to work them out.

However, one thing you should probably be conscious of is not to try too hard to make it exactly like Star Fox. There's already a game that's more-or-less exactly like Star Fox: Ex-Zodiac. The fact that Ex-Zodiac exists means they can be a little more mechanically adventurous; there's less need to recreate Star Fox gameplay verbatim since someone's already doing that.
elmapul Jul 21, 2023
i liked the sakuga at the begining and the character design reminds me of swat cats (or maybe samurai pizza cats?)
but they need to show more gameplay, changing the level all the time didnt did any favor for this trailer.

looks cool
RanceJustice Jul 21, 2023
If you have any investment in the main game, Whisker Squadron, then it's worth it to check this game out. It's pretty good! If you backed Whisker Squadron, you should already have a key for this one. It's very likely that the gameplay for the main game will be highly similar to this spin-off, so if you find any big kinks in the main gameplay, this is the time to work them out.

However, one thing you should probably be conscious of is not to try too hard to make it exactly like Star Fox. There's already a game that's more-or-less exactly like Star Fox: Ex-Zodiac. The fact that Ex-Zodiac exists means they can be a little more mechanically adventurous; there's less need to recreate Star Fox gameplay verbatim since someone's already doing that.

Agreed. I just recently learned about this title, but I am familiar with Ex-Zodiac which is coming along quite nicely in EA itself - and also supports Linux! There's room for more than one Star Fox inspired game out there, but I agree that I'm hoping the developers can be a bit more experimental and expand things a bit, especially if Whisker Squadron isn't arriving until 2024. If both the main Whisker Squadron and Survivor are "roguelike" in some regard, they'll also need to greatly expand the content and mechanics of the main game, while also ensuring that Survivor has enough depth and variation to foster enjoyment. Using Survivor as a testbed for different mechanics, encounters, progression and the like will be a good start so they can really ramp up the depth for when the full game arrives.

In any case, let us hope for the best and be thankful for the native Linux support for both titles!
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