I'd be more than willing to talk during a Carcassone game and explain strategy.

True. I guess some of the new IPs that are there (like Screwjumper and Space Giraffe) sucked absolute balls.

I guess i just hear about a couple neat unique games on the PS Network (like Calling All Cars, Flow, etc.) and i wonder where the 360s cool things like that are.

In spite of owning like 16 arcade titles on Live i'm still overall pretty disappointed... but i also had some expectations. I thought we would see new games weekly - as in new games, not remakes. I thought the remakes would be in addition to any new games. I also thought the XNA stuff would be out and being used to the point that we would be swimming in student projects.

I imagined there would be multiple free games to snag (for instance - college class projects) and the cream of the crop would be purchasable for MS points.

Again, that is just how i imagined things would be at this point since Live Arcade begin on the OG Xbox. Absolute crap like a freaking Asteroids remake or the horror that was Screwjumper is not what i expected.

Oh yeah, i also thought we would see mini-games that used the camera (a la the various Eyetoy collections).

I do like the trend of putting board games onto Live. I own Catan and Carcassonne. I will buy Alhambra, Puerto Rico, Cosmic Encounter, and whatever that dungeon crawler game is (Descent maybe?). However, I still crave something new and unique.

I have to agree with Miyu. I thought we'd be seeing quite a bit more free and unique games on Live, but I'm not disappointed with the overall experience. PacMan CE is great, and even though I've owned damn near ever release of worms, the XBLA version is by far my fave. Carcassone, which I picked up when it was free, is friggin awesome. I'd have paid for it if I'd have known...other than those and the Shumps, there's just not much there. The lone original standout for me is Space Giraffe.

***pipe dream***
Wouldn't it be nice if a dev team would make, say, a dreamcast emulator or saturn emu that would cost, say 1600 points, and would play your original discs from the respective systems? Like an XBLA version of Bleem...I know it will never happen, but damn that would be an idea...

Not fair complaint. Not at all. XBLA blows PSN away. There are now 101 XBLA game. Yeah, there's a lot of crap and a lot of remakes. There are also a heck of a lot of great original games like Geometry Wars, Assault Heroes, Mutant Storm, Undertow. There are lots of superb adaptations of previous games-- made unique for the arcade like Pac-Man CE, Pinball FX and Bomberman Live. Even some of the ports are well worth re buying, like Puzzle Quest, Lumines Live and Castlevania SOTN. Yeah, it's not perfect -- I, for example, have a big problem with tying your purchase to a console that has at least a 33% chance of dying in the next couple of years. Still it's a great game distribution system and actually a lot of fun. When the Arcade was introduced with the original Xbox, I thought the concept was a complete loser and that nobody would pay to DL games for a console. I was certainly wrong.

Don't forget Sturgeon's Law, which of course applies to XBLA and gaming also.
I like the mix of old, reimagined, and new games on XBLA, much better than the Virtual Console method. And yay for free downloadable demos.
I also was resistant to purchasing locked digital content, but I've been doing it.
Carcassone hasn't really clicked for me either, I'm just sort of laying tiles at random.
Screwjumper sucked, Undertow wasn't for me but I can see people liking it.

I'm looking forward to Arkadian Warriors but mainly because my brother wrote all of the music for it.

I would like to take you up on that offer sometime.

The Bus (Chiwotweiler)...I tried to take you up on your same offer last night and sent you a message. Maybe you didn't know who I was.

Still looking for anyone who has Streets of Rage 2 or Double Dragon for some co-op arcade goodness. Anyone? Anyone? :(


As far as Arcade Live goes, I am pretty happy. I get to play Mrs. Pac-man and most of my other arcade gems on my 65" TV anytime I want to for 5 dollars each. I know many of you want new games but I would rather see some more classic Arcade stuff released. Burger Time, Bag Man (maybe not so classic), Q-Bert, Mario Bros. & Donkey Kong (I know...those will never happen on Xbox), and even some more classic Sega stuff. I bought Sonic 1 & 2 yesterday and forgot how much I loved those games.

Any why the hell is Doom still 800 points!?!

I'll probably be playing the PS<strike>3</strike>2 tonight, but if you can give me a time (before 10PM CST) I'll gladly hop on the Xbox to play a few rounds. I'll also give the trial of Streets of Rage 2 another shot, I love that game but I remember the Xbox version being blurry as hell without an option to turn it off, which I refuse to support.

C'mon now, Arcade Hits just started THIS WEEK. But Doom is definitely in line for it.

Arkadian Warriors sounds pretty cool. I could get behind a Diablo II game on Live that would involve various equipment drops, trading, etc.

That would be awesomely addictive on Live.

I have to agree with you. It's just like the retail catalog of 360 vs. PS3. Sure there are some great exclusives on PS3 (Calling all Cars, Everyday Shooter, Pain), the library and variety(new, classic, adaptations) of XBLA kills it dead where it stands.

Other great originals you didn't mention, Aegis Wing, Cloning Clyde, Wik & Roboblitz. A couple of great adaptations, Worms & Zuma. Then you have all the board games like Catan, Carcossone, Uno, Backgammon, Spades & Hearts.

Not even an argument in my mind. I'd even give the VC an edge over PSN. Sure they are all ports, but the sheer quantity and quality(classics) is amazing.

Sorry, I probably got a message while playing Rock Band and I go into a weird trance where I don't even hear the telephone.

I'll be out tonight but I'll let you know next time I'm on for a while and I can run a little school on Carcassonne.

Pound for pound, I still think XBLA is the nicest thing to happen to gaming in years.

Alright, in my opinion, these games are as good as any retail game, measured in Entertainment-per-dollar.

Worms
Mutant Storm Reloaded
Carcassone
Bomberman Live
Lumines Live!
Pacman C.E.
Geometry Wars Evolved
Heavy Weapon
Street Trace: NYC
RoboBlitz
Band of Bugs
Marble Blast Ultra
Catan
Aegis Wing
Jewel Quest
UNO
Cloning Clyde
Feeding Frenzy
Outpost Kaloki X


Now note that most of these are either brand new IPs or re-workings of established games... None are straight-on arcade ports.

Marble Blast Ultra in my opinion, is an absolute must-have. You'll sweat. Hard.

Mr. The Bus, how are the add-on packs for Carcassonne?

I should clarify...I was agreeing that there should be more 'experimental' and original games. Giga Wing is fantastic, but it's a shooter. I mean 'original' game ideas.

On a side note, I'd love to see something like the flash game 'The Last Stand' on XBLA for free...I'd play that all damn night (and sometimes do).

The River II is basically more River tiles. I haven't bought the Baron one although I probably will. The kicker is the add-ons are cheaper online than in stores.

Yes, they expect you to pay $10 for a piece of wood and three new tiles.

If you're really into Carcassone, the Big Box Set (the real board game) is like $50, and it includes like a gazillion tiles. A bunch of expansions and the original. I highly recommend it.

I think the River expansion is overpriced, you're paying like $.50/tile. It's definitely cheaper than in store though.

Not sure what you mean. Is "Arcade Hits" something new where they are going to lower the price on a lot of games regularly?

I mentioned doom only because I wouldn't mind having it but it sits at 800 points. Sonic 1 & 2 only cost 400 points each and i would put them comparable to Doom. i just was saying i didn't understand why Doom is 800 and so many games similar to it in age and playability are 400.

Yeah, permanent price drops on select older Arcade games. First batch is Billiards and Lumines down to 800 pts, Zuma, Small Arms and Marble Blast for 400 pts each.

Ya, it was part of the dash update. 1/2 price games for 800->400 games (like Zuma), and 2/3 price games for 1200->800 (like Lumines)

I just got Bomberman Live as my first XBLA game. Some of my best days as a child were going to my friend's house and playing Super Bomberman for the SNES. I can't say if we were any good but damn if we weren't evenly matched. Every game was close and fun.

So far I've been getting my ass handed to me on both Live and even against Easy bots. I keep making stupid mistakes and I am still adjusting to the Powerups and flame lengths. I hope I improve quick because I can see myself having a lot of fun with this game. Anybody who likes to play regularly can feel free to add me as a friend - beesonosu is my gamertag!

It's a good addition, IMO.

If one is not familiar with the board game version: the Baron/King is a pretty straightforward addition that adds pieces (roads, cities) as well as new strategy (Baron = longest road, King = biggest city) that pays a bonus at the end of the game.

I wish that Fire Pro Wrestling could be brought to XBL. I really want to play it, but I've sold my PS2 away.

Arkadian Warriors is confirmed for next Wednesday. That's the Diablo style, hack-and-slash dungeon crawler. Assuming it doesn't suck (the gameplay videos look pretty good), who wants to join me for some dungeon crawling next week?

Hey Pixy! I am in your friends list. Kunane954. You can count on me to join ya! Or any other game I may have and you wish to play co-op.

I ended up with an extra download code for Puzzle Quest, is there any way to trade this or am I stuck with it?