XBLA’s Most Wanted: Jet Force Gemini
During the late 90s and early 2000s, it seemed like Rare could do no wrong on the Nintendo 64. Responsible for massive hits like GoldenEye 007, Perfect Dark, Conker’s Bad Fur Day and Banjo-Kazooie, they cranked out memorable games dear to many gamers.
Jet Force Gemini might not be remembered in the same way as some of Rare’s other classics, but like many of their other titles, it was ahead of its time and pushed the boundaries of what the system could do. It’s epic scale, creative weaponry, surprisingly violent combat and emphasis on exploration landed it in the hearts of many, and would make a perfect HD remake for XBLA.
Orcs Must Die! Hands on Preview
Ensemble Studios shutting down was a bittersweet moment for a team that had grown extremely close over the years; however, as cliché as it sounds, the doors closing on Ensemble forced the team to look at open doors full of opportunity and new possibilities. For many this meant the first chance in years to break away from an already established IP in over fifteen years presenting a chance now to take risks and reinvigorate themselves. The tight-knit group showed that it really did believe in fostering community, as when the former Microsoft subsidiary disbanded as company but the majority of its members stuck together in one of four new studios: Robot Entertainment, Bonfire (now Zynga Dallas), Windstorm Studio and New Toy.
Recently we had the opportunity to visit Robot Entertainment in Dallas. While the studio may have a new name, they haven’t forgotten all the old lessons they learned. The team still believes in community both internally and with fans. Upon entering the studio, the open environment is striking: four main quadrants of desks with no cubicles or walls and a biergarten style lunch room comprise the majority of the studio. Outside of the two war rooms, server room and executive offices, it’s an entirely open floor plan mirroring the studios own level of openness with employees. The real decisions as to what games are made don’t come from a guy in a suit with a calculator, but from a collaborative process involving the entire team.
This “organic” process started six months ago. Development on Age of Empires Online was beginning to wind down, and the studio was looking toward what their next project would be. Instead of setting their sights on the traditional three year AAA development cycle, Robot chose to focus on the downloadable segment of the industry. The shorter development time allowed the fifty person team to the ability to not become re-tied down to a singular IP for the foreseeable future. Robot started to brainstorm and create basic prototypes for some of the better ideas, one of which was Orcs Must Die.
We ain’t afraid of no Ghostbusters screens
Atari have released another batch of screenshots for the upcoming Ghostbusters game, Sanctum of Slime. These particular screens focus on some of the large ghosts and otherworldly entity the team of rookies will have to take down. Check them out after the jump. Read More
Undead Labs reveals Class3, a new kind of zombie game for XBLA
Undead Labs has announced a new zombie game for Xbox Live Arcade, codenamed Class3. But before gamers collectively shake their heads in disapproval of another zombie shooter, Jeff Strain and his team at Undead Labs are promising a completely new experience, one that focuses on survival, strategy and consequence.
Abe’s Oddysee being remade, could come to XBLA
Just Add Water, the developer currently behind the Oddworld games is working on a HD remake of the classic puzzle platformer Abe’s Oddysee. However Microsoft is apparently …
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Zeit2 review (XBLA)
Zeit2 is a sidescrolling Shoot ‘em Up developed by Brightside Games and published by Ubisoft. It’s available on the XBLA for 800 microsoft points.
XBLA games are frequently prone to being viewed as “casual” because of their price point, and as such it’s easy to assume any XBLA title will have a casual playing style to it; Zeit2 does not. The game has a tutorial where they explain how the game works and how to play, along with supplementary tips throughout the Arcade experience, but the handholding quickly ends and Zeit2 shows itself to be a top shelf challenge worthy of any sidescrolling shoot ‘em up lover.
XBLAFans Presents: The 2010 Game of the Year Awards
On behalf of the XBLAFans staff, welcome to the first annual XBLAFans 2010 Game of Year Awards!
2010 was a fantastic year for the Xbox Live Arcade, filled with surprises, letdowns, and, of course, great releases that will be remembered for years to come, like Limbo, Super Meat Boy and Monday Night Combat.
We even saw the triumphant return of some classic franchises, with games like Perfect Dark, Casltevania: Harmony of Despair, Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 1, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light and Hydro Thunder Hurricane lighting up friend lists everywhere.
Yes, it was a fine year for the XBLA indeed.
We at XBLAFans.com have spent countless hours playing, discussing and writing about our favorite games to come out on Microsoft’s digital store. We know you love the XBLA as much as we do, and nominating five titles for each of the categories below was difficult. Deciding the winners was even more difficult, as many great titles sadly did not make the cut.
In the end, only a few winners received our highest accolades, with an honorable mention given to the runner-up. Here are the winners for the 2010 Game of the Year Awards:
Dead Rising 2: Case West Review (XBLA)
Dead Rising 2: Case West was developed by Blue Castle Games Inc. and published by Capcom. It was released on XBLA on December 27th.
Dead Rising 2: Case West is the second helping of small stand-alone games based off Capcom’s popular Dead Rising franchise. With Dead Rising 2: Case Zero setting record numbers in sales, the idea of a second bite-sized game left gamers begging for more. As a first of it’s kind, Case Zero showed that small downloadable versions of full retail titles can be a serious force in the XBLA world. Dead Rising 2: Case West promised a better experience than Case Zero by adding Frank West and co-op play to the formula. Case West may have added a few extra features, but describing it as a better experience is a bit of a stretch. Read More
Fire Pro Wrestling grapples with XBLA, leaving Japan afterall!
Back in September, Microsoft announced that they had commissioned Japanese developer Spike to create the next title in the Fire Pro Wrestling franchise for the 360 exclusively, notably on XBLA instead of retail, and with avatars instead of stylized 2D character models. What wasn’t announced, was if it would leave Japan. Full story after the break!
Epic Dungeon Review (XBLIG)
Epic Dungeon is the latest release from Eyehook Games, and it was released during the Indie Games Winter Uprising.
Epic Dungeon boasts 4 playable classes, dozens of monsters, loads of glittering loot, unique encounter system, 50 deadly dungeon levels and the low price point of 80MS Points ($1 US). Upgrade your skills, stats, and equipments as you forge your path to victory in this rougelike RPG.
So how does it fare? Click read more to find out of course. Read More