XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
07-19-10 | 12:36 AM
#2576
gamer for life
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
Finished Deathspank, and it was a lot of fun, but it was NOT as long of a game as some made it out to be in reviews. I did not finish all the side quests, and I plan on doing those still, but many of these I have actually finished I just got to turn them in so I would guess I have about 1 hour of playtime to finish those and get to level 20...that would make the game 6-7 hours long...on normal.
Still worth 15 bucks if you like the hack and slash stuff with minor puzzle elements....
Still worth 15 bucks if you like the hack and slash stuff with minor puzzle elements....
07-19-10 | 12:46 AM
#2577
DVD Talk Godfather & 2020 TOTY Winner
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
I'm thinking about Limbo if I like the demo, but beyond that the rest of the line-up does NOTHING for me. Actually, the Lara Croft game looks okay for a sale price but that's about it. Hydro Thunder looks WORSE than Afterburner and they're trying to charge 400 points more for it. I've got no problem with a 1200 point game that's meaty and polished like PQ2 or Death Spank. But when you charge a 400 point premium just because you're in the SotA line-up, that's a trend I'm pretty unhappy with and I'll be voting with my virtual wallet this year.
On the other hand, last year we didn't know how long we'd have to wait to see any discounts. Now we've seen every SotA game from 2009 go on sale at least twice, so it's not nearly as hard to take a wait-and-see approach to these games.
On the other hand, last year we didn't know how long we'd have to wait to see any discounts. Now we've seen every SotA game from 2009 go on sale at least twice, so it's not nearly as hard to take a wait-and-see approach to these games.
07-19-10 | 08:34 AM
#2578
Thread Starter
DVD Talk Hero
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
07-19-10 | 08:40 AM
#2579
Thread Starter
DVD Talk Hero
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
Looks like PopCap's Plants vs. Zombies is another thing to celebrate the end of SoA!
http://popcap.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=159
http://popcap.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=159
SEATTLE, July 19 /PRNewswire/ -- PopCap Games, the worldwide leader in casual video games, today announced plans to release Plants vs. Zombies™ for Xbox LIVEŽ Arcade (XBLA) this fall. With an anticipated launch in early September, Plants vs. Zombies on XBLA will deliver more game content than any previous iteration of the franchise, boasting seven game modes, including two all-new multiplayer modes, 12 unique achievements and 21 mini-games. Upon its release, Plants vs. Zombies for XBLA will be available for 1200 Microsoft Points (US$15.00).
"With a ton of new features and content exclusive to the XBLA version, we've pulled out all the stops to both expand and optimize this adaptation for a hard core gaming audience," said Ed Allard, head of worldwide studios at PopCap. "The two new multiplayer modes allow gamers to work cooperatively to defeat hordes of invading zombies, or go head-to-head in a true 'plants vs. zombies' challenge. We're also featuring a customized 'house' for tracking and sharing progress as well as a total of 21 mini-games and 12 achievements, all designed to enthrall Plants vs. Zombies players once again."
Plants vs. Zombies for XBLA showcases many standout features, including:
* A total of seven game modes, including two new multiplayer modes: Co-Op and Vs. Mode
* 12 achievements and 21 mini-games -- more than any other adaptation, and including the exclusive Heavy Weapon™-inspired mini-game
* A goofy new way to track and share progress online, where players create their own custom house and cruise down the street to see their friends' cribs!
* The highest resolution of any Plants vs. Zombies adaptation to date at 1920 x 1080
* All 50 levels of the original Adventure mode along with Puzzle, Survival, and Zen Garden
Later this year, PopCap will also release a retail boxed edition of Plants vs. Zombies (including Zuma and Peggle as well) for the Xbox 360, and a new "Game of The Year" boxed edition of the PC/Mac original, a limited number of which will include a zombie figurine. Both are expected to arrive on retail shelves later this fall and carry a suggested retail price of US$19.99 each.
"With a ton of new features and content exclusive to the XBLA version, we've pulled out all the stops to both expand and optimize this adaptation for a hard core gaming audience," said Ed Allard, head of worldwide studios at PopCap. "The two new multiplayer modes allow gamers to work cooperatively to defeat hordes of invading zombies, or go head-to-head in a true 'plants vs. zombies' challenge. We're also featuring a customized 'house' for tracking and sharing progress as well as a total of 21 mini-games and 12 achievements, all designed to enthrall Plants vs. Zombies players once again."
Plants vs. Zombies for XBLA showcases many standout features, including:
* A total of seven game modes, including two new multiplayer modes: Co-Op and Vs. Mode
* 12 achievements and 21 mini-games -- more than any other adaptation, and including the exclusive Heavy Weapon™-inspired mini-game
* A goofy new way to track and share progress online, where players create their own custom house and cruise down the street to see their friends' cribs!
* The highest resolution of any Plants vs. Zombies adaptation to date at 1920 x 1080
* All 50 levels of the original Adventure mode along with Puzzle, Survival, and Zen Garden
Later this year, PopCap will also release a retail boxed edition of Plants vs. Zombies (including Zuma and Peggle as well) for the Xbox 360, and a new "Game of The Year" boxed edition of the PC/Mac original, a limited number of which will include a zombie figurine. Both are expected to arrive on retail shelves later this fall and carry a suggested retail price of US$19.99 each.
07-19-10 | 09:35 AM
#2580
DVD Talk Legend
07-19-10 | 10:41 AM
#2583
DVD Talk Legend
Joined: Sep 2002
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From: Formerly known as "orangecrush18" - still legal though
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
Looks like PopCap's Plants vs. Zombies is another thing to celebrate the end of SoA!
http://popcap.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=159
http://popcap.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=43&item=159
07-19-10 | 10:45 AM
#2584
DVD Talk Ultimate Edition
07-19-10 | 10:48 AM
#2585
Thread Starter
DVD Talk Hero
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
On the lastest MN podcast, they touch on Destination Arcade and essentially confirm that it's an "experiment" that they're going to "learn from it". They don't call it a Beta or even imply it'll come back after it's pulled for new users. So weird.
07-19-10 | 11:15 AM
#2586
DVD Talk Godfather & 2020 TOTY Winner
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
I have several XBLA games on disc and honestly I never, ever play them. When they're on the HDD, I'll check in on them once in a while, but to actually dig through my library to play a single XBLA game is more inconvenient than you'd think.
I kind of feel this way too. I had assumed it would be 800 points and I'd just re-buy it. But 1200 points for a game I already have in my pocket? I think I can wait for a sale.
I kind of feel this way too. I had assumed it would be 800 points and I'd just re-buy it. But 1200 points for a game I already have in my pocket? I think I can wait for a sale.
07-19-10 | 11:18 AM
#2587
DVD Talk Legend
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
Oh no doubt. I just figure I'll end up getting it for around $10 at some point, so I'll deal with the inconvenience for the savings. Same reason I don't buy any regular games on Demand.
07-19-10 | 11:21 AM
#2588
DVD Talk Godfather & 2020 TOTY Winner
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
From Joystiq:
Review: Limbo
by Richard Mitchell on Jul 19th 2010 12:00PM
When trying to work out the best way to describe Limbo, I keep coming back to Edvard Munch. I've always been fascinated with Munch, an artist most famous for painting The Scream. It's his other works, however, that tend to stick with me, particularly his Madonna. As a work of art, Munch's Madonna presents the viewer with seemingly disparate imagery, at once both alluring and disquieting. It's dark, a little disturbing, and yet it's also engaging and beautiful.
That's Limbo.
Limbo (7/6/10)
Limbo has a rare quality to it: regardless of who actually holds the controller, anyone close enough to watch is automatically transfixed. Rather than bombarding you with graphical effects or thumping music, Limbo's distinct lack of visual and aural stimuli makes it most striking. Its true impact is achieved through emptiness, silence and simplicity.
At its core, Limbo is a puzzle platformer, though classifying it as such feels like a disservice to the game. The real outstanding feature, and the thing that will stay with me, is the world. It's bleak, desolate, rendered entirely in shades of black and gray. There is no color in limbo. None. There is no real music to speak of, apart from the occasional sting or drone.
[Limbo's] true impact is achieved through emptiness, silence and simplicity.
The protagonist, a small boy, wakes up in a dark forest and then the game just ... begins. No tutorials, no little signs explaining the buttons. Not that it needs any; there are only three functions in the entire game: Move, jump and action (used for grabbing objects, flipping switches, etc.). Using these functions, you traverse perilous terrain, solve puzzles and, in general, try to find a way forward and out.
Death -- your own and that of others -- is a pervasive theme. Nearly every mistake results in death, often leaving you dismembered or gored. For me, watching the little boy's eyes wink out was actually more disturbing than seeing him ripped apart. It gives the death a sense of weight (and perhaps meaning, if you care to ascribe any to it). Other characters, human and otherwise, seem to be characterized by death, suffering or savagery, making one thing clear: Something is wrong with this place. It's as good a motivator as I could imagine, begging the player to move forward, to get out. Whether you do it to see more of the nightmarish landscape, or to escape from it -- well, that's up to you.
I didn't come across many real stumpers, though a handful of the puzzles took more than a few attempts (and eventually resulted in rewarding "aha!" moments). There are a few more challenging (and optional) puzzles hidden throughout the game as well, which net various Achievements. These hidden puzzles are a nice diversion, and at least one of them offered a hefty challenge that took the better part of an hour to solve.
Rewarding as they may be, though, the puzzles really serve as a means to an end. The actual meaning of Limbo, I think, lies in the journey itself. In that sense, it reminds me most of Out of This World or the original Prince of Persia, in that it truly takes you to another place, puts you in another person's shoes. Dark, disturbing, yet eerily beautiful, Limbo is a world that deserves to be explored.
Review: Limbo
by Richard Mitchell on Jul 19th 2010 12:00PM
When trying to work out the best way to describe Limbo, I keep coming back to Edvard Munch. I've always been fascinated with Munch, an artist most famous for painting The Scream. It's his other works, however, that tend to stick with me, particularly his Madonna. As a work of art, Munch's Madonna presents the viewer with seemingly disparate imagery, at once both alluring and disquieting. It's dark, a little disturbing, and yet it's also engaging and beautiful.
That's Limbo.
Limbo (7/6/10)
Limbo has a rare quality to it: regardless of who actually holds the controller, anyone close enough to watch is automatically transfixed. Rather than bombarding you with graphical effects or thumping music, Limbo's distinct lack of visual and aural stimuli makes it most striking. Its true impact is achieved through emptiness, silence and simplicity.
At its core, Limbo is a puzzle platformer, though classifying it as such feels like a disservice to the game. The real outstanding feature, and the thing that will stay with me, is the world. It's bleak, desolate, rendered entirely in shades of black and gray. There is no color in limbo. None. There is no real music to speak of, apart from the occasional sting or drone.
[Limbo's] true impact is achieved through emptiness, silence and simplicity.
The protagonist, a small boy, wakes up in a dark forest and then the game just ... begins. No tutorials, no little signs explaining the buttons. Not that it needs any; there are only three functions in the entire game: Move, jump and action (used for grabbing objects, flipping switches, etc.). Using these functions, you traverse perilous terrain, solve puzzles and, in general, try to find a way forward and out.
Death -- your own and that of others -- is a pervasive theme. Nearly every mistake results in death, often leaving you dismembered or gored. For me, watching the little boy's eyes wink out was actually more disturbing than seeing him ripped apart. It gives the death a sense of weight (and perhaps meaning, if you care to ascribe any to it). Other characters, human and otherwise, seem to be characterized by death, suffering or savagery, making one thing clear: Something is wrong with this place. It's as good a motivator as I could imagine, begging the player to move forward, to get out. Whether you do it to see more of the nightmarish landscape, or to escape from it -- well, that's up to you.
I didn't come across many real stumpers, though a handful of the puzzles took more than a few attempts (and eventually resulted in rewarding "aha!" moments). There are a few more challenging (and optional) puzzles hidden throughout the game as well, which net various Achievements. These hidden puzzles are a nice diversion, and at least one of them offered a hefty challenge that took the better part of an hour to solve.
Rewarding as they may be, though, the puzzles really serve as a means to an end. The actual meaning of Limbo, I think, lies in the journey itself. In that sense, it reminds me most of Out of This World or the original Prince of Persia, in that it truly takes you to another place, puts you in another person's shoes. Dark, disturbing, yet eerily beautiful, Limbo is a world that deserves to be explored.
07-19-10 | 11:31 AM
#2591
Thread Starter
DVD Talk Hero
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
My review: http://www.gamerswithcasts.com/review-limbo-xbla/
Ultimately, the game is too short and static for the price. I really feel if it wasn't for Summer of Arcade, this would be an 800 point title and it would be a much easier recommendation, especially if there would be a 50% off sale in the future.
It's a game everyone should play, but only few people should pay $15 for. The best sale you can hope for is $10 or maybe even $7, but the amount of time it'll take for that to happen would be excruciating.
It's a beautiful and rewarding game, but once it's over, it's over. I do plan to keep playing it to get that last achievement but that just proves how short the game is. The achievement description is
Ultimately, the game is too short and static for the price. I really feel if it wasn't for Summer of Arcade, this would be an 800 point title and it would be a much easier recommendation, especially if there would be a 50% off sale in the future.
It's a game everyone should play, but only few people should pay $15 for. The best sale you can hope for is $10 or maybe even $7, but the amount of time it'll take for that to happen would be excruciating.
It's a beautiful and rewarding game, but once it's over, it's over. I do plan to keep playing it to get that last achievement but that just proves how short the game is. The achievement description is
Spoiler:
07-19-10 | 11:46 AM
#2592
DVD Talk Godfather & 2020 TOTY Winner
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
Interesting. I posted before that Game Informer said it had "Moderately High" replayablility. I had assumed it would be a one-and-done like Braid and was surprised by their declaration. Sounds like my hunch was right and they were off-base.
07-19-10 | 11:50 AM
#2593
Thread Starter
DVD Talk Hero
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
They do something novel with achievements in the game where they're hidden and off the beaten path. So in that regard, there's a bit to hunt but it really isn't necessary for the game itself.
I daresay you could tear through it in 2-3 hours once you know how to solve everything.
I daresay you could tear through it in 2-3 hours once you know how to solve everything.
07-19-10 | 11:56 AM
#2594
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
And my review - http://jefftalksgames.blogspot.com/2...-on-other.html
07-19-10 | 11:58 AM
#2595
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
They do something novel with achievements in the game where they're hidden and off the beaten path. So in that regard, there's a bit to hunt but it really isn't necessary for the game itself.
I daresay you could tear through it in 2-3 hours once you know how to solve everything.
I daresay you could tear through it in 2-3 hours once you know how to solve everything.
And yes - the achievements are nice. Both Pinata and myself have the game finished, and only have I think 2 or 3 overlapping achievements so far. One for finishing, the other for something really basic.
07-19-10 | 12:03 PM
#2596
DVD Talk Limited Edition
Joined: Mar 2002
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From: Marion, IA
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
I paid almost $10 to see a 90 minute movie a few weeks ago. By that token I can justify 3 hours+ for $15 being worth the experience. Although I am strongly in the camp of being worried about the overall mass appeal of the game.
07-19-10 | 12:07 PM
#2598
Thread Starter
DVD Talk Hero
Re: XBLA Thread Part 400 - Pinata's got a brown nose
"Hey, how is Limbo?"
"Amazing. Such a refreshing game."
"Sweet, should I get it?"
"I don't want to be responsible for how you spend your money."