What is XBLAH BLAH BLAH?

One thing missing from this blog is my own thoughts on XBLA games. I hadn't really been thinking about it - I post links to other reviews anyway, what else could I possibly add to that?

Instead, I'll do something different - a feedback or a critical analysis of sorts. A list of what I thought were really great, and some either bad or even just nitpicky - to help the developers on the little things. Instead of an arbitrary score I'll post my final thoughts on the overall product. Let's see how this goes!

What's good about Poker Smash?

- The graphics are very nice, the variety of backgrounds is great, and they don't detract from the game or confuse the player with similar colours to the cards.

- The zooming in and the guitar riffs when you get combos brings up the intensity, and a little more fun. It makes you feel like you're doing great even without doing some massive combos - it's things like this that get people to buy the full game after beating the demo.

- I love the idea of having to buy backgrounds and gamer pics using the points you've earned in the game.

- The music is great, it's soothing enough to warrant being in a puzzle game, and isn't annoying elevator music either! Considering the budget restraints a small games like this have, they've outdone themselves. You can download each track here - I'm particularly a fan of Jungle Theme, not so much Haunted Theme. Mine and Rock might be a little too over the top.

- The announcer isn't a pain in your backside, he says just enough and his voice it's annoying at all. "Challenge Met!" and all that.

How could Poker Smash have improved?

- The Help & Options page is a bit of a mess - It's clearly a text file reader with some files thrown in. It's all a bit out of order too - the page describing each kind of hand is far away from the one describing the points given for them. Needed to be cleaned up more with a bit more style - almost everyone will be looking at this in this game.

- Not a fan of the "Self Restraint" achievement. While it does take some skill to actually get it, the way of doing so goes against how one should actually be playing the game, making combos and going for those big multipliers. "Congratulations, you can suck if you really try hard enough!"

- While I understand why Online Multiplayer is done the way it is (Not seeing other players means not having some severe lag issues, consentrating on points only means a lag free game) it lacks the excitement

- I don't think the scoring system is as complicated as it could be. You have scores for same-colour rows, scores for Poker Hands, but not a lot of mixing between the two. For example, getting 5 Diamond Aces in a row will only net you "5 of a kind" with 125 points. There should have been some additional bonuses of getting 3, 4 or 5 of the same suite and colour in a row.

Final Thoughts

Poker Smash is a fantastic little game, bringing the intensity of Puzzle League to XBLA along with some new tricks, while appealing to the thousands of people playing Texas Hold'em every night. It's one of the best looking games on the platform and, unlike some games on the platform, the overall package is great - there really isn't anything you need to overlook in order to enjoy it. At 800 Microsoft Points, it's a steal.

Poker Smash and some Rez HD chat made it into this weeks 1UP Yours and Player One Podcasts!

"Flynn DeMarco of GayGamer.net joins the 1UP Yours crew for a discussion of maturity (seriously). But that's not all! Listen in the next thirty minutes, and you'll receive free bonus topics such as "gaming fatigue," "annoying enemies," and "Poker Smash." Stop listening to podcasts the old fashioned way, download 1UP Yours today!"

Dolphins may be warm-blooded, but Sega's Genesis hit Ecco the Dolphin...cold-blooded. One of the company's most experimental and renowned releases from the 16-bit era is P1P Game Club game #3, so we spend the second half of the show discussing it. A breakthrough game at the time, its age exposes the cracks of its control and gameplay mechanics.

But if fish talk isn't your speed we spend the first half of the show shootin' the bull with Patrick Klepek of MTV Multiplayer and talk about the games we've been playin' over the week -- Rock Band, Kingdom Hearts II, Kim Possible: What's the Switch, Chessmaster Live, Poker Smash, Twisted Metal Head-On, Puzzle Quest and Burnout Paradise.

Teamxbox have added their review of Commanders: Attack of the Genos a little early!

- Team Xbox review by David Chapman - 8.5/10

As well as an exclusive trailer for the game, which you can view here.

1UP.com have also added a late review for Chessmaster Live! Online testing is required, after all:

- 1UP.com review by James Mielke - 8/10

Source: Teamxbox.com, 1UP.com

Sierra and Disney Interactive have officially announced that Both Commanders and Discs of Tron will launch on Wednesday, February 13 at 9:00 a.m. GMT (1:00 a.m. PST).

“Commanders: Attack of the Genos” is a fast-paced turn-based strategy game featuring an art deco look and tongue-in-cheek storyline. The game requires players to devise a masterful tactical battle strategy to both cripple the enemy and defend their territory from Genos, a genetically modified super race. Fight alongside a powerful Commander, which serves as a hero unit, in the 15-mission campaign with an arsenal of weapons including missile launchers, bombers and infantry in this turn-based strategy game.

Featuring a 1930’s art deco look and feel, “Commanders: Attack of the Genos” offers two unique endings, two difficulty levels and 15 diverse playable units to keep gamers coming back for more. “Commanders: Attack of the Genos” allows players to either challenge or team up with three friends in battle locally or over Xbox LIVE.

In “Discs of Tron,” gamers play as Tron in an attempt to defeat the evil Sark in an electronic battleground, using the iconic disc weapon. Survive 12 levels of Sark’s attacks in the single-player campaign or grab a friend and face off in multiplayer mode over Xbox LIVE to discover the true disc champion.

This "Originals Monday" brought 3 classic Xbox games to the Marketplace - Ninja Gaiden Black, Sid Meier's Pirates! and Criterion's Black.

The European sizes for each are:

- Ninja Gaiden Black (5.9GB)
- Sid Meier's Pirates! (1.3GB)
- Black (2.1GB)

The American sizes should be smaller since they don't require all the languages Europe does.

Source: Xbox.com, Skilotonn on NeoGAF

In a recent announcement from publisher D3 about appointing Adam Roberts as their new Managing Director, a small quip at the bottom mentions this:

The company will also be releasing video games based on Aardman’s popular Shaun the Sheep character in 2008, alongside the eagerly-awaited follow-ups to the best-selling Ben 10 and Puzzle Quest.

That wacky fellow Jeff Minter has silently uploaded footage of his new Live Arcade game! While he had announced it on his blog back in October, we now have actual footage of Gridrunner+++! That's a whole plus more!



It doesn't show off footage of the new version of the game - instead it shows off some of the additional features the game will have, notably - emulated versions of the original Gridrunner! Both VIC-20 (classic PC) and Commodore 64 versions are included from what we can tell, along with Gridrunner+++ itself. You can also see the current title screen, clearly with Achievements and Leaderboards.

For those out of the know, Jeff Minter is the mind behind XBLA's Bizarre hit Space Giraffe, and the creator of the Xbox 360's inbuilt audio visualiser. He's got a large history of games for Commodore 64 and other computers, and a games which includes Attack of the Mutant Camels and Llamatron. I'm personally a fan of Space Giraffe and can't wait for Gridrunner+++ to make it's way to the 360 at some point in the future.

Check out some footage of Space Giraffe here and go download the demo off Marketplace. While you're at it, watch this lecture done by Jeff a few years ago, going through all his past games and his bizarre fascinations with Lambs, Camels and Llamas!

You can also download a demo of the Gridrunner++, the last version of the game here.

Source: Jeff Minter's Youtube and a big thanks to Rmk106 for pointing this out to me!

Spongebob Squarepants Underpants Slam, released Christmas last year to only the USA and Canada, appears to be going outside the Americas - It's been rated by both the Australian OFLC board, and the German USK board!

It'll probably pop up sometime unannounced, much like Ninja Turtles Arcade did for Australia. Though according to reviews, there really isn't much to wait for.

Source: OFLC rating, USK rating

Southpeak Interactive have announced they will be releasing a new Puzzle game to the XBLA, titled Roogoo!

Developed by Spidermonk Entertainment, Roogoo uses geometric shapes and rotating discs to craft a frenetic puzzle game framed within an imaginative storyline and a fantasy universe.

Roogoo tasks players with guiding meteors in the form of shaped blocks though a series of rotating disks as a means of saving the planet Roo and the entire Roogoo race. If aligned correctly, the disks allow the blocks to reach the ground and scores are awarded. However, it’s not as easy as simply rotating the disks to form a neat tunnel. Various obstacles and enemies will impede the blocks’ transit 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 is a rare breed of puzzle game that combines compulsive play with an engaging storyline and a wonderful fantasy world,” said Melanie Mroz, CEO of SouthPeak Games. “With its accessible game play, unique charm and high production values, Roogoo is set to carve its own niche when released for Xbox LIVE Arcade and PC. Gamers will definitely have loads of fun mastering its unusual depth and trying to become the guru of Roogoo.”

The Xbox Gamerscore Blog has added a new video interview with Terry Coleman, producer of Commanders: Attack of the Genos, along with a quick play through demonstration of the game. Give this a look if you're interested in the game coming out tonight!



Source: XBLA Preview - Commanders: Attack of the Genos @ Gamerscore Blog

Developer: SouthEnd Interactive
Publisher: Sierra Online
Genre: Strategy and Sims
Price: 800 Microsoft Points
Availability: Worldwide (with the exception of Japan and Korea)

Xbox.com Splash Page
Official NeoGAF Thread


Developer: Backbone Entertainment
Publisher: Disney Interactive Studios
Genre: Coin-Op Classics
Price: 400 Microsoft Points
Availability: Worldwide (with the exception of Japan and Korea)
Xbox.com Splash Page
Official(ish) NeoGAF Thread

Source: Major Nelson

Sidhe Interactive today announced the sudden availability of a new expansion pack for their game Gripshift: The Turbo Expansion Pack!

GripShift fans will enjoy tons of bonus content including all-new single player and multiplayer modes, eight new Race Tracks, eight new Deathmatch Arenas, and eighteen brand new music tracks.

"With Turbo we wanted to extend the GripShift experience for fans that loved the game's initial content." said Mario Wynands, Managing Director of Sidhe Interactive. "GripShift Turbo's bonus single player mini-games will ensure endless excitement for veteran players, while the new multiplayer mode gives new players a competitive edge. Penguin Bowling, the popular mini-game from the PSP version, is returning with as much penguin crushing excitement as ever."

The Turbo Expansion Pack has brand-new single player bonus mini-games including the immensely popular Penguin Bowling and challenging Playground as well as the exciting Snaker. Reverse Tag, the new multiplayer mode, challenges competitors to master their wit, weapons, and skills like never before.

Angry-Gamer.net have added a new (and funny!) interview with Drew Card, Creative Director for Void Star Creations.

Where did the initial idea come from? Obviously Panel De Pon would be part of the formula, but there's a lot more to Poker Smash than that.

I was initially introduced to Tetris Attack when I started working at Oddworld. We used to have these epic head to head Tetris Attack battles in the office. About the same time we all started playing weekly poker games, so pretty much all we talked about was Tetris Attack and poker. One day it just hit me that we should combine the two. The deeper parts of the game really came from iterating as we developed. We just kept playing over and over and tweaking settings until we found balanced settings that worked.

Top Arcade Titles (Full Versions)
1 Poker Smash (debut)
2 Rez HD (-1)
3 Chessmaster Live (-1)
4 Metal Slug 3 (-1)
5 UNO (-1)
6 Bomberman LIVE (-1)
7 Sonic The Hedgehog 2 (-1)
8 TMNT 1989 Arcade (-1)
9 Worms (-1)
10 Marble Blast Ultra (-1)
The above arcade list is based on full versions purchased.

Pretty much the exact same as last weeks chart, only everything is down 1 position because of Poker Smash debuting at #1.

Source: Major Nelson, Sean on NeoGAF

Reviews have trickled out for Both DOT and Commanders, the former getting an overall poor reception, while the latter is getting some decent scores!

Commanders: Attack of the Genos

- Xbox360 @ IGN.com reviewed by Erik Brudvig - 7.6/10
- Team Xbox reviewed by David Chapman - 8.5/10

Discs of Tron

- Xbox360 @ IGN.com reviewed by Hilary Goldstein - 3/10
- Team Xbox reviewed by David Chapman - 3/10

Major Nelson has updated his blog, citing that a new Chess Set is now available for Chessmaster Live!

Content: Calvert Chess Set
Price: Free
Availability: Not available in Japan, Korea
Dash Text: [ESRB: E (Everyone)] A faithful 3-D reproduction of the Calvert style chess set for Chessmaster Live.

Looks like several different styles might be on their way. What are the chances of Battle Chess making it?

Source: Major Nelson

Finally, Vigilante 8 Arcade has been officially announced by Activision and Isopod Labs!

V8: Arcade is a brand new re-imagining of the original themes and gameplay, engineered from the ground up for today’s hardware by the original founders of Luxoflux and V8 developers. Could things get any better?Absolutely, because quite soon, the magic of V8 car-combat will be available to millions of Xbox Live Arcade users via digital download, presented in cutting edge audio-visual splendor, and… at quite an affordable price, too!

• Five newly designed, highly interactive arenas, using Bezier patch technology for maximum surface smoothness!


• Eight gorgeous, highly varied ‘70s vehicles, rendered using advanced metallic shaders at 10,000+ polygons each


• Classic V8 character personas and unique special weapons


• Six standard weapon pick-ups with three advanced attacks each, featuring both ‘classic’ (combo) and ‘casual’ (charge-up) input methods


• Multiple collectible power-ups and ‘salvage points’


• User-customizable car paint color


• Advanced car physics for hyper-semi-realism and ultra high replay value — easy to pick up, difficult to master!


• Spectacular pyrotechnic, destruction effects, and physics-driven interactive hazards


• Single player modes against advanced bot AI


• Local split-screen modes up to four players


• Online multiplayer with up to eight human players


• Voice and (hopefully) camera support


• Leaderboards, achievements, unlockable secrets, and more!


• Free and premium extra downloadable content planned...