Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

I checked it out too and had the same reaction. I may actually pull the trigger on it. Undecided.

To date Groov is still the only Community Game I've purchased. I keep forgetting to get Ultratron, which I also liked quite a bit.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

The demo didn't do much for me the first time through. It seemed a little too complicated in the controls for a puzzle game and not really all that much fun (IMO). Still, I'll give it a second go-around to see if I change my mind...

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

It is a little complicated in that you have many ways to address the problem.

You can move the fan, adjust 4 levels of how hard it blows, and add up to 4 levels of cold (causing the bubble to drop more quickly), or heat (causing it to rise more quickly). On top of all that you can place the fun to blow the bubble or place it slightly ahead of the path and have it suck the bubble through the blades to propel it a little farther.

It is admittedly complex but what really hooks me is that many of the levels have multiple ways to solve them so i genuinely feel like it is me outwitting the puzzle instead of trying to do exactly what the designer wanted. Also, there is no timer so i can really sink my teeth into it and burn some brain power on the thing.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Well, I do tend to like those "Think & Solve" type puzzle games (Exit, Switchball, Echochrome, Flock....kinda). It's nice to not have a timer -- that time restriction drives me NUTS in Echochrome. I will give it another chance. Thanks for the rec, miyu!

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

From IGN Australia. I assume the info applies here in the US as well.

'Xbox LIVE Indie Games' Service Announced
'Community Games' reborn - loads of changes on the way.
by Patrick Kolan, IGN AU
Australia, July 23, 2009 - As part of the gradual evolution of Microsoft's Community Games movement, fostering fresh game development ideas and indie games, Microsoft today announced a series of changes and updates to their XNA Creators Club service.

A load of changes and updates have been announced. For starters, 'Xbox LIVE Community Games' is no more; instead, the service has been rebranded 'Xbox LIVE Indie Games', coinciding with the release of XNA Game Studio 3.1 development software.

Pricing has been given a total overhaul, better reflecting the size and complexity of the game. Game prices now start at 80 MS Points for games less than 50MB in size. Games that currently cost 800 points will stay that way, but all new releases will have their maximum price capped at 400 Points. Other price changes will be rolled out by late October affecting current and new releases.

All game creators now have 'Reputation', affecting their rank and rating within XNA Creators Club. To aid sites like IGN, developers can now send media outlets 'Tokens' to download copies of their indie games. Handy!

Finally, Japan and Germany can begin to submit their independent creations to the service. Germany will have access to the service from August 11, 2009.

Make sure you check out the Official XNA Creators Club. site for the full list of changes and updates on the way.




It makes a LOT of sense to cap price at 400. I bet nobody is buying those 800 point games. Also, rep will make it easier to spot a good game. There's so much crap dumped on that service every week, I have no idea what's even worth a download.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

I recently got Miner Dig Deep and am totally obsessed with it. Such a simple game, but I've spent hours playing it. Seriously, this is the best $2.50 I've spent in a long time.

I bought this game and I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES!!!1 based on a couple of reviews that I just happened to stumble on and have greatly enjoyed them. For those familiar with what's offered on Indie Games, what are some of the better titles out there?

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

You have to check out Groov. (Demo) It's a music-based two stick shooter, kind of like Everyday Shooter. It's only $1 and it's really cool -- you can only shoot at a rate in time with the music. As the music speeds up, so does your rate of fire.

Speaking of two-stick shooters, Biology Battle (Demo) is pretty good. It started out priced at an absurd 800 points, but now it's down to 240 and it's pretty cool.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Groov was a steal at $2.50 when I wouldn't shut up about it, so it being $1 is ridiculous! Awesome news!

I've actually grown fond of a few Indie titles in the past few weeks. Pixel Man is an awesome throwback (Atari level graphics) platformer. It can be brutal and likes to mess with your preconceived notions quite a bit. A fun 20-30 minute experience for $1.

Arkedo Series - 01 JUMP! is another platformer that looks pretty amazing. I'd say it's closest look is to the original Mario Brothers, but different gameplay elements. Collecting coins and defusing bombs before they go off to clear levels. Really great looking graphics though. A bit more pricey at $3, but it looks the price at least.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

this is my favorite game on the indie game section:

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Trino

only $3

and if you want a good breakout clone

Bricks4ever

is a steal at only $1!

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Blow is the absolute best game in the Indie section imo. A great relaxing puzzle game with no timer, insidious puzzles, a mode where it will randomly generate new puzzles (giving infinite replayability), and a very good chill soundtrack.

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Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Brand new indie game probably worth checking out : Arkedo Series - 02 SWAP! made by the same folks who made JUMP! It's 240 points and plays like Meteos or Poker Smash, except that you can move times in all four directions. That makes it a lot easier, so they speed things up more quickly here. Didn't buy it yet, but might since it's only 240 points and plays very much like those XBLA games. Anyone else try it yet?

Demo link

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Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

NO! Thanks a ton for the heads up! I've been totally slack on XBLA and the Inide games in the past few weeks thanks to Uncharted, Brutal Legend, and Borderlands. Looks fantastic!

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Avatar Snowball Fight is a fun little seasonal game.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Also avatar homerun challenge is kinda fun especially if you have weird avatars to play with.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Found this referenced today in Joystiq. This game is called Your Doodles Are Bugged! and it looks to be pretty good. It has Lemmings style gameplay, but instead of tools, you doodle lines to give the bugs a path to escape. It's only 80 points so unless it's somehow awful, I'll pick it up tonight.

Demo Link
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Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Lot's of really decent stuff keeps popping up on there for 80 points. The Indie Games are really starting to grow IMO.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

And of course the irony is that at the same time that the Indie games are flourishing, the XBLA games are really not so great and often look and play like community games, but at several times the price.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

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Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Those are the people who made Weapon Of Choice, which is a game I really like. I'm not a big fan of the bullet hell SHUMPS, but I'll check this out eventually when it's available.

They also have Grapple Buggy in the pipeline, which looks like a cross between Assault Heroes and Bionic Commando Rearmed.

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Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

So I checked out the Your Doodles Are Bugged demo. It's a very solid puzzle game and far more difficult than you'd think by watching the trailer. It's hard to draw using the analog stick, that's for sure. In any case, it's a lot of fun and EASILY recommended at 80 points -- it's a total steal. If you like Lemmings or the Lemmings clone on the XBLA (Eets?) check this one out for sure.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Rotor'scope: The Secret of the Endless Energy

I've got to say, this looks like one of the deepest and most professional Indie games out there. (Well, as professional as one can be while misspelling the word "Mystery"). It looks to have a presentation, um, heavily inspired by Prof. Layton. The puzzle mechanic is unique and looks to be pretty fun. I'll definitely checking this one out this weekend, despite the high-for-an-indie-game 400http://marketplace.xbox.com/xweb/lib...ints_12_12.png price tag.

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Trial Game

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Thanks for the recommendation! XBLA has been pretty crappy IMO since last summer, and it's easy for me to say that this indie game gives you more for your $5 than many XBLA games give you for $10 or $15. Everyone who likes puzzle games should really check out the trial version.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

I'll give it a try. BTW, I had no idea that you have to be online for the Indie games to work. Took my Xbox over to a friends and tried to show them a couple of the indie games, but since I couldn't connect my 360 online I wasn't able to play them. Seems like total BS to me. I bought them the same as XBLA so why do I have to be online when the XBLA stuff has no such requirement?

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Never knew that myself. In any case, Rotor'scope is magnificent for an Indie game and would be considered one of the best XBLA games in the past six months if it were released today on that service instead. I can't believe the quality of this game or that it was really made as an indie one. It's a very addictive little puzzler.

Re: Xbox 360: Anyone playing the Community Games?
 

Tunescape is probably the best Indie Game I've played this year. (If you're into music driven games you can play along with, you NEED to check it out.)

http://marketplace.xbox.com/en-US/ga...0-0000585504a2

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