When you wish upon a star, typically you don't think of that star as being a surly, violence-loving mass of energy with planets for fists looking to pummel the ever-loving crap out of everything in its path. But fortunately for us, Matt Thorson and Alec Holowka DID think of it, and it's pretty darned entertaining.

Grab a buddy, turn them into a heavenly body, and then thwak them silly in Matt Thorson's goofy, groovy versus fighting game made for a recent Ludum Dare competition. As planets orbit the sun, hurl them at your opponent for victory and shameless gloating rights in this amusing little diversion.

Give Up Robot 2 is a solid platformer with enough neat tricks and visual appeal to set itself apart from the crowd (and its predecessor). You'll guide Robot through 60 stages spread throughout three worlds, each of which is filled with a variety of deadly traps. Your only saving grace is Robot's built-in grappling hook, and you'll need to master its use quickly. It's worth a look for anyone who won't throw their computer through the nearest window after hammering away at a tough level.

Give Up, Robot is designed to punish you in as many different ways as possible. And that is what makes it great. Players control a unicycling, pixelated robot with a grappling hook and a stoic tenacity, who must traverse elaborate gauntlets at the behest of a fractured, highly vocal, passive-aggressive computer overseer.

RunMan: Race Around the World, by Tom Sennett and Matt Thorson, is a full-fledged follow-up to the RunMan series of speed-centric platform games. You control the titular RunMan who's really, really good at running. He's so good, in fact, he's entered a race to run around the world. Too bad everybody else quit when he showed up. RunMan is also an HonorableMan, however, and before he'll accept the winner's crown, he's going to earn it by running around the world on his own two little yellow feet.

Cheerio, my good man, pip pip! The name is Sir Reginald MoneySeize II, Esq. I'm out to construct the world's largest tower, and I'll need 1000 golden coins to do it. Are you up to the platform-jumping challenge, my well-buttered scone? I sincerely hope so, for I'm simply too well bred and important to fall to my death on a bed of spikes.

An Untitled Story is a perfect blend of tough platforming challenges, intimidating boss fights, and cunning secrets, all wrapped up in a layer of childlike mysticism and rough-shorn beauty. It is a chilled-out hardcore wonderland of action discovery, plus an unidentifiable je ne sais quoi that just makes you want to drink it down in one gulp and then spit out a rainbow.