Konjak's Iconoclasts is on Steam Greenlight

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The action-adventure platformer Iconoclasts had already been kicking around for years when we spent seven hours with its "lush Metroidvania-style world" in early 2013, shortly after creator Joakim "Konjak" Sandberg released a new build for that year's Independent Games Festival. But even then, he refused to put a launch date on it. "Will we see its release in 2013?" we wondered at the time. The answer, obviously, was no, as it was for 2014, and is for 2015. But 2016 is looking pretty good.

"Robin is a mechanic, just like her father. She likes nothing more than to help people keep their machines in order. There’s just one minor problem: She’s unauthorized. That makes her an abomination in the eyes of One Concern, the militaristic governing religion attempting to maintain power over Robin’s home world," it says. "After instigating a series of unfortunate events in her home town, Robin must venture into a beautiful, hostile and frequently odd world. Along the way Robin and her pirate companion Mina, meets a colourful cast of oddballs, misfits, philosophers and sadists – all somehow connected to One Concern and the fate of the world."

A playable alpha version of Iconoclasts is available, and while it's from 2012 and thus probably shouldn't be taken as representative of the final product, it's plenty playable. And it's free, too, which is a pretty big plus in my book. Grab it at Konjak.org.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.