Side by Side is a video series on local multiplayer games. This is episode 12 of 17.
This week Joel Goodwin of Electron Dance and Gregg Burnell of Tap-Repeatedly take it on the chin in Neverpants’ Super Punchball, where players don boxing gloves and fight to punch a ball into goal. Watch the video here or direct on YouTube.
- Super Punchball was made available to backers of the Sportsfriends Kickstarter but is also available on their itch,io page – as a browser game or PWYW direct download.
- Neverpants also offer a number of other titles on their itch.io page.
- Neverpants on Twitter.
- If you’re enjoying the series, please like our videos and consider subscribing to our channel.
The series theme is the delightful “Adventures in your sleep” by The Blake Robinson Synthetic Orchestra.
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It was interesting to watch the shots of you both playing. Just watching your hands in those moments, and unable to see the action on screen, if you’d asked I would have called it a metronome simulator. There was a predictable rhythm to the button taps. Many of the games in the Sportsfriends bundle would be great tools for designers to study. Each seems to call out and immensely highlight certain mechanics or technologies (bones and motion in QWOP, timing and input feedback in Super Punchball, etc). It’s like a series of play experiments. I wonder if developers will one day use them as reference material.
I love Side by Side! These days, couch multiplayer is a lost art, but your series reminds us how much laughter can be found in such experiences.
Hey Steerpike, turns out that the latest version of Super Punchball probably wouldn’t be such a metronome simulator! It offers a “joystick mode” where you can simply point where you want the the character to punch instead of waiting for the arrows to rotate.
Glad we’ve still got you watching! Just five episodes left to the end of the series…