Mu-cade is the latest release from Kenta Cho that plays quite differently from all his other efforts. A bit of Robotron: 2084 and Snake, your objective is to stay on the rectangular platform and knock other enemies off it by shooting at them repeatedly using the Z key.

For each enemy pushed off the platform, the tail of your ship grows longer and the score multiplier increases. A longer tail does complicate matters a little as it gets harder to stay on the platform. If the tail of your ship is over the edge, the weight will drag the rest of the ship with it as well.

Fortunately you only need to worry about the front portion of your ship. As long as this part of the ship stays on the platform, you can use the X key to blow up the entire tail and gain some additional firepower momentarily. You will lose the multiplier in the process though.

It gets increasingly harder to stay on the platform as time passes. An extra life is awarded for every 200,000 points earned, so it's important to refrain from using the X key too often unless necessary.

Sonic Ironstorm: Fatal Attack is an updated version of DHC's earlier 3Punge competition entry. Hold the Z key to shoot, and press the X key to launch a missile. The secondary weapon can be used repeatedly without any penalties.

Collectibles marked S increases your shield count, while acquiring items marked P upgrades your firepower in small increments. There are six stages to explore, though one is marked as a secret and players are only allowed to take on a maximum of three missions in each game.

Glum Buster is a puzzle adventure game which took CosMind four years to create with the Game Maker engine. Comparisons to Seiklus are likely, since both share more than a couple of similarities in terms of sparseness in storytelling efforts and a heavy emphasis on exploration.

The solutions to most puzzles are usually contained in the same room, although some locations may span several screens long and wide. Besides using the cursor keys for movement, you would need to interact with objects scattered around the environment quite frequently using either or both mouse buttons. Holding the left mouse button fires a red shot at whatever it is that you're pointing at, while pressing the right mouse button allows you to activate certain objects or attract them towards you.

Dear Agent is a short 2D platformer with a unique concept. The objective here is to neutralize the terrorists and destroy all of their equipment before you're allowed to the next level, but players never have enough ammunition or explosives to complete their tasks. The solution here is to use the surroundings and terrain to their advantage, for example blasting away the containing area of a lava and letting the fiery liquid flow towards your enemies, hence killing them instantly and saving you from needlessly using your limited starting equipment.

In Bullet Time, the goal of the game is to survive as long as you can. If things get too hectic, you can activate Bullet Time, which slows down enemy bullets long enough for you to navigate to safety. The highest rank is 'Martha', which requires you to survive for three whole minutes.

In Entanglement your goal is to place hexagon tiles so as to create the longest line possible without running into a wall. The more segments your line has, the higher the score you can achieve.

Use the arrow keys or the mouse scroll-wheel to rotate your tile. Click with the mouse or press the spacebar to place your tile and watch your line grow. Once you have placed as many tiles as you are able, your game will end.

Mogura 2 is an excellent horizontal shooter created by Krobon Station, featuring two characters with different abilities and weapons. Both gets a standard shield which can be activated using the X key. Hold the Z key to shoot, and tap the C key to initiate a special attack. Press the left control key to change the way your weapon operates.

A tutorial can be accessed from the main menu by selecting the third option. The second offers a difficulty setting. After picking a character, you can choose to either start from the first level or continue from the last stage attempted.

Installation can be a bit of a hassle but the effort is worth it. Rename the largest executable and cca file to the same name, then repeat for the smallest file. For example mogura2.exe, mogura2.cca, config.exe and config.cca.

The Crypts of Despair is a new release from the creator of Death Worm, though with a lot less action than it's famous counterpart.

The X key can be used to open a chest, collect items or rest in an alcove to restore energy. A food unit is consumed for every move, but can be replenished by collecting meat found in the crypt. Arrows can be used for range attacks if a bow is bought from the shop. Press the C key to enter the aim mode.

Fans of roguelike games will enjoy this tiny little dungeon romp quite a bit. There are thirty levels to explore in total.

Vacant Ark is a strange departure from standard horizontal shooters, featuring excellent sprite designs by Buster but employing a slightly awkward gameplay system. You can only store and use up to six bullets at any time, although this supply can be replenished by collecting blue gems from vanquished enemies.

You lose all your energy stock if an enemy bullet grazes your on-screen character. A life is lost if you have no energy left when receiving damage. Your pod can also turn enemy bullets into gems when not in use for a few seconds.

Each end level boss requires a different strategy to beat. Some weapons are more effective in certain situations. You can only progress to the next zone if none of the bosses escape.

Journey to the Center of the Earth is an exploration platform game in which you play the role of a treasure hunter, out to retrieve forty pieces of relics from the ruins of an ancient civilization. You carry an unlimited number of bombs that can be used to hurt enemies or launch yourself higher into the air. A treasure map showing location hints and relics collected is accessible by pressing the A key at any time.

The game runs at a resolution of 1280 by 720 pixels, but you can also play it in full screen mode by pressing the F4 function key. There is no progress save feature, so you will have to spend about half an hour or more to complete the entire adventure in one go.