Nix: The Paradox Relic logo new homebrew NES game

Some secrets should be lost to the veil of time...

A group of dangerous space pirates have hidden in the abandoned Neoterica Research Facility, built into the side of a huge asteroid. The facility is very dangerous, the home of many fearsome monsters and failed experiments. Valuable relics and technology exist in the facility but most adventurers are too scared to even try and enter it.

You are Nix, the only bounty hunter tenacious enough to enter the facility and take down the pirates. Use your special abilities as a Caniden to make your way deep into the facility, capture the pirates, and discover the secrets of The Paradox Relic!

Nix the caniden bounty hunter. Anthro / furry art style

What is Nix: The Paradox Relic?

Nix: The Paradox Relic is a 2D scifi adventure. Take control of the planet of Neoterica's most ferocious Caniden bounty hunter as you travel deep into the labyrinthine halls of its derelict space station and research facility. Hunt down and capture your prey as you battle against mutant creatures, cunning pirates, and rogue AI. But all is not as it seems, as you discover a mystery that could threaten the entire planet!

The game takes visual and mechanical inspiration from classics like Metroid, Castlevania, Mega-Man, and numerous other action-adventure games from the early days of gaming, as well as mixing in some new ideas. It has been carefully designed for the original NES system, and can play on original hardware, or on a modern pc.

Features:

  • A cast of colorful anthropomorphic animal characters to meet, and deadly space pirates to track down and defeat.
  • Explore the abandoned Neoterica Research Facility, with many unique environments, dangers, valuable artifacts, and secrets. Access new areas as your abilities grow.
  • Piece together the mystery of what happened to the facility as you speak to friendly characters, read computer terminals, and discover lost technological artifacts.
  • An array of unlockable abilities that increase your combat skills and allow you to access new areas.
  • A roster of deadly monsters to fight.
  • 7 intense and hand-crafted boss battles!
  • Flash based saving! (For the cartridge version) No worries about losing your save due to a dead save battery. (Saving compatible with emulators that support it, or skip the save points and use emulator save states.
  • An alternate ending for determined explorers!
  • General-audience friendly. Designed with the same standards a real NES game would have faced in the approval process. More info below:

-- Nix: The Paradox Relic is in no way affiliated, endorsed or licensed by Nintendo --

Wait? The Original NES? Why make a game for a system from more than three decades ago?

Yes, the original Nes. There are a number of reasons for this, but probably the biggest is: Why not? We have the NES to thank for everything that has come after, and its simple but powerful design has endured for decades. So many games on the system are called classics for a reason. They are not only still fun today, but serve as examples of how to make games entertaining, despite whatever limitations you may face. Almost everyone remembers and loves the NES, and with the recent release of the NESMaker game engine it has become much more accessible to create games.

But how am I supposed to play this?

After all, who still has an NES?

Nix: The Paradox Relic is going to be released in both Physical and Digital form. If you happen to still have an NES system, you can buy an actual physical cartridge of the game and play it just like any other Nes game. Otherwise, the game will be available as a rom to play in emulators, and hopefully in the near future a standalone PC executable.

How was this made?

Nix: The Paradox Relic uses Nesmaker, a new game engine that brings NES development to the modern age. It is a great introductory tool for game development, and you can make simple, hardware playable NES games with little or no programming experience. If you are willing to dive into a little assembly code, the possibilites with the tool open up exponentially. Make sure to check it out if you are interested in making your own game!

Check out Nesmaker!