August 4, 2008 – 7:00 am
Way back when the XBox 360 first launched, I remember my inaugural dip into the XBox Live Arcade including the download of the Geometry Wars demo. GW was a psychadelic flurry of crazy, reflex-demanding action, and I played the heck out of that demo. I never got around to actually buying the game, but I definitely logged some time on that demo. Now Geometry Wars Retro Evolved 2 is out, and I did drop my hard earned Microsoft points for this one. Is it worth the 800 points, or should I have just stuck with my demo-playing practices of old? Read on for my review after the jump.
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July 23, 2008 – 5:30 am
The much anticipated expansion to Puzzle Quest drops onto the XBox Live Arcade today at 700 MS Points. Titled Revenge of the Plague Lord, the expansion touts the following additions to the hit puzzle RPG:
- New classes: Bard, Warlock, Ranger, and Rogue
- 50 new spells
- 40 new items
- More than 25 new quests
- Level cap raises to 60
This follows the recent price drop on the XBLA for the original Puzzle Quest, down to 800 points.
July 23, 2008 – 5:30 am
If you’re interested in the XBox Live Arcade and have a knack for game development, you just might be able to turn a profit through Microsoft’s newly announced distribution plans. The XNA toolset has been out for a while, allowing average folks to program new games to submit to Microsoft for inclusion in some way in their XBox Live Arcade. The exact details have been sketchy until now.
In an interview with MTV Multiplayer, XNA head Chris Satchell revealed that users who develop games for the Arcade will be able to charge 200, 400, or 800 Microsoft points for their games, and they’ll be able to keep 70% of the revenue generated, depending on a few other details regarding Microsoft-assisted promotions.
You can see all the details over at the original article: MTV Multiplayer
July 11, 2008 – 2:28 pm
I posted a few weeks ago about Go! Go! Break Steady, the new breakdancing rhythm game that’s on its way to the XBox Live Arcade. I was fortunate enough to be able to talk with developer Ivan Tung of Little Boy Games, and he shared some more insight into what we can expect from the game, as well as some cool shots of the physical drawings that went into making the game’s unique art style. Here’s the full review.
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July 8, 2008 – 4:01 pm
The official XBox site has announced more details about the pub games that previously were announced for release in conjunction with Fable 2. Fable 2 is scheduled for release on the XBox 360 later this year, and preceding its release will be a series of gambling games that you’ll be able to download and play via the XBox Live Arcade. Gold you accumulate through those games will be transferable to your Fable 2 character once you get the full game. Gold really will be an in-demand commodity, considering that Fable 2 will allow you to buy literally anything and everything in the game world, from weapons to buildings to towns to kingdoms.
The new announcement shows off some new screenshots and also specifies that the Fable 2 Pub Games will be one downloadable game that includes three mini games:
- Keystone: A combination of Craps and Roulette
- Spinnerbox: An updated take on Slot Machines
- Fortune’s Tower: A “press your luck” style of game
There also will be a “Shell” tutorial of all three games for new players.
The most interesting announcement is that you’ll receive a free download of the Pub Games if you preorder Fable 2 before its release. If you don’t preorder, you can get Pub Games for 800 Microsoft Points (but why would you play it if you weren’t going to be building your bank for Fable 2?).
Fable 2 Pub Games will be downloadable on the XBox Live Arcade in August.
Source: XBox.com
June 26, 2008 – 11:06 am
As I’ve mentioned in the past, it’s a rare thing these days for me to find a game on the XBLA that I’m willing to drop actual Microsoft points to buy. Ticket To Ride is one game that did manage to pry 800 points from my miserly hands, and it’s a fantastic buy.
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June 24, 2008 – 5:00 am
Starting tomorrow, you’ll be able to grab these two new games on the XBox Live Arcade: Happy Tree Friends: False Alarm and Ticket To Ride. The games will be available for the recently standard XBLA price of 800 MS Points ($10) each.
Happy Tree Friends is a game adaptation of the overly violent and disturbing cartoon, putting you in control of Lumpy the Moose, who must save his animal friends from grisly ends. Here’s the official blurb:
Based on the popular and twisted Web series, Lumpy and his accident-prone friends face one gory, horrible disaster after another in Happy Tree Friends False Alarm™! Armed with a helicopter pack, Lumpy rescues his pals by blasting open areas where they may be trapped with flaming napalm or explosive nitro, or he can put them into a deep freeze if they are about to stumble into danger. Try to keep the friends from peril in ten exclusive disaster-filled scenarios, each with three frantic levels, and brand new cutscenes.
Ticket To Ride is based on the award winning board game from 2004 that has players competing to run train tracks across the United States (and, in later expansions, across other countries) to connect cities and complete routes for profit. Here’s the blurb for this one:
All aboard! Travel from coast to coast and visit all the stops on the exciting train adventure Ticket to Ride™. Plan your routes and connect your cities across the country to become the ultimate traveler. Earn points as you claim your tracks and complete your tickets for your chance at the big score. From sea to sea, crisscross the nation as you build the longest route and take home the prize. It’s hours of fun for your family and friends. Who will come out on top when the steam clears? Get your Ticket to Ride and see!
Ticket To Ride is one I’ve personally been looking forward to, but I’m intrigued enough by Happy Tree Friends to at least give the demo a download.
May 29, 2008 – 11:16 am
The June 4 game release on the XBox Live Arcade will be Roogoo, a 3D puzzler produced by SpiderMonk Entertainment. Featuring characters and graphics that look like the love child of Mighty Muggs and Katamari Damacy, here’s the official blurb from the developer:
Roogoo tasks players with guiding meteors in the form of shaped blocks through a series of rotating disks as a means of saving planet Roo and the entire Roogoo race. If aligned correctly, the disks allow the blocks to reach the ground and scores are awarded. Various obstacles and enemies will impede the blocks’ movement and with the flow of meteor blocks steadily increasing as the game progresses, players will have to think on their feet to save the Roogoo and rack up seriously high scores.
Roogoo will ship with more than 45 levels and includes single player as well as split-screen multiplayer and party play. The game will be on the Arcade next Wednesday for 800 MS Points ($10).
May 26, 2008 – 11:08 am
Ever since the XBox Live Arcade went online with the launch of the XBox 360, there’s been a steady flow of new games being released every week. I’ve always taken a certain satisfaction in knowing that all the games always would be there for download if I ever got an urge to give some of them a shot that I’d missed when they originally sprang onto the marketplace. And indeed, I occasionally do go back and sample the older wares, and it’s cool to see such a huge selection still available and growing by the week. Granted, a lot of it is arguably crap, but I like to think the consumers can make educated decisions on what they want to spend their hard earned Microsoft Points to purchase.
No longer! Marc Whitten, the general manager of XBox Live, has announced that Microsoft is about to start yanking poorly performing older games from the service. The criteria for a game to be pulled from the service include:
- The game is more than six months old.
- The Metacritic rating for the game is below 65%.
- The conversion rate for the game is less than 6% (meaning that less than 6% of people who download the demo end up unlocking the full game).
Metacritic is a site that collects review scores from various websites for games, movies, music, TV shows, and DVDs, and presents an overall collaborative score for easy digestion. It’s always lurking in the corner for game companies and developers, as many consider the Metacritic score the real benchmark for how good a game is and how well received it is by the general public. This is the first time I can recall hearing a major company cite it as a tool for determining their business practices, though.
Microsoft will be giving three months’ notice before removing games from the Arcade. At the end of those three months, the game will be zapped into the ether, never to be buyable again. If you already own the game after that time, you’ll still be able to play it online and off, and you’ll be able to redownload it as long as you’ve already purchased it.
Source: NextGeneration
