Fran Bow Pushes The Limits Of Horror While Aarus Awakening Sports Award Worthy Animation

Two amazing games have landed on Steam's Greenlight service, the first of which is a horror title that really pushes the limits of the adventure gaming genre with some disturbing stuff, while the second game, Aarus Awakening, sports some very compelling visuals to be a side-scrolling game.

Fran Bow, with its promo trailer above, sets a very dark tone right from the start. The trailer that contains just over a minute worth of gameplay introduces us to Fran, a heroine who could potentially fall closer to the side of an anti-villain more than anything else.

Fran suffers from nightmarish visions after seeing her parents murdered by dismemberment. The visions also seem to be encroaching more and more upon our waking life. She sees horrifying images and witnesses things that would destroy the mind of a lesser being. Players will help Fran, guided by the mysterious black cat known as Mr. Midnight, to solve the mystery of her visions, the death of her parents and the monster named Remor, who follows her around with terrifying results. The game is obviously not for the squeamish.

If Fran Bow is the kind of horror point-and-click game that tickles your interest-bone, feel free to learn more over on the official Steam Greenlight page. And congratulations to the team on hitting their Kickstarter goal with time to spare.

Lumenox Games' Aarus Awakening fits the bill as yet another side-scrolling indie game. I know a lot of people are tired of them, but this time is different. Aarus Awakening is a visually compelling game that focuses on hand painted environments, fluid animations and a platforming design scheme so that players are challenged both strategically and reflexively to everything happening around them in each of the levels.

I love the volcanic color palette and deep saturation of orange hues and dulled yellows. It's a unique look for the game that really helps it stand out from the rest of the crowd once you see it in action. That's not to mention that the movie-style presentation of the animations really gives the game a unique blend of a cinematic atmosphere and a traditional old-school platforming title.

The description of the game notes that it's a “dream art-style” and also utilizes a dreamy soundtrack as well. I'm thoroughly impressed and it looks like something that comes right off the 3DO.

This is definitely a game that takes the opposite end of the road from Fran Bow above, but if you're looking for a challenging platform game with beautifully hand-drawn backdrops and characters, be sure to give Aarus Awakening an upvote and a favorite by visiting the official Steam Greenlight page.