Best Of Indie Games: Ski Free, Cool Runnings

[IndieGames.com: The Weblog co-editor Tim W. rounds up some of the week's top free-to-download and commercial indie games from the last seven days on his sister 'state of indie' weblog.] This week on 'Best Of Indie Games', we take a look at some of the top independent PC Flash/downloadable titles released over this last week. The delights in this edition include an intriguing Indiecade competition submission, a racing game featuring the Grim Reaper on a bicycle, a skiing game where the slopes and hills are drawn by the player, a Mega Man-style 2D platformer, and an arcade shooter that supports cooperative play on the same keyboard. Here's the highlights from the last seven days: Game Pick: 'Sleep' (Asquared Games, freeware) "Sleep begins with a car speeding down a country lane, and although we don't see it, it's safe to assume that the driver loses control and crashes. What follows is the protagonist trying to work out where they are and what has happened to them. Once the hero has pictured all the different memories, he's thrown into what appears to be a flashback." Game Pick: 'Victorian BMX' (This is Pop!, browser) "Victorian BMX: Death on Wheels is a bit like Joe Danger, except that it's 2D, set in Victorian times, completely in black and white and features the reaper collecting people's souls. So... not that much like Joe Danger, then." Game Pick: 'Solipskier' (Mike Boxleiter and Greg Wohlwend, browser) "Solipskier (pictured) is a 2D action game which puts you in control of a stick figure skier, racing down whatever slope or path you decide to draw for him using your mouse cursor. The objective here is to score points by skiing through gates and executing tricks in the air, but beware of areas where no slopes can be drawn for a short distance." Game Pick: 'Warlock Bentspine' (Lazrool, freeware) "Warlock Bentspine is a 2D platformer that features four stages to beat, each with a set of randomized stages for you to play in whichever direction you decide to tackle a level. Similar to the Megaman series, players will gain a new weapon to use once they've beaten a stage boss. Besides being able to shoot horizontally and vertically, Mr. Bentspine can also execute double jumps and dash for a short distance." Game Pick: 'Not-So-Massive Action Game' (Ade, freeware) "Not-So-Massive Action Game puts you in the heat of battle, ready to shoot down helicopters, pump enemies full of bullets and bomb exotic bases. It's a relatively simple 2D shooter, but it's also a great deal of fun."