Live Arcade Games

[SomeGuyWithDSL]

The game could really use some craters, a'la Moon Patrol.

 

Funny thing, that. I'd never played Heavy Weapon before downloading the XBLA demo, and I did actually hit the A-button to try to jump over the first impact mark (from an enemy projectile) I encountered.

[Gabriel]

Hmmm. You're right. It does look kinda like Moon Patrol, but I don't consider the gameplay as similar other than you're a roving tank on the bottom of the screen, scrolling right, and shooting generally upwards.

 

I disagree with the jump. I always hated that about Moon Patrol, as well as the floatyness of the jump.

 

Downloadable games are appealling to me more and more (despite the fact they're utterly evil). There's no running around town looking for a new release. There's no dealing with Wal-Mart employees who don't feel like opening the game case, or Gamestop employees who want you to reserve some game you don't want. There's no ordering it online and waiting a week or two for the game to arrive. Instead, it's just find what I want, select it, and I'm playing it within a few minutes. It makes it worth embracing the dark side.

[SomeGuyWithDSL]

I always hated that about Moon Patrol, as well as the floatyness of the jump.

 

Well, it is the Moon.

[Gabriel]

I always hated that about Moon Patrol, as well as the floatyness of the jump.

 

Well, it is the Moon.

 

Who cares? Keep the jumpy shit out of my shooty shit.

[Jess Ragan]

Folks have also compared Heavy Weapon to Paratrooper, the old PC game where a cannon fixed on the bottom of the screen had to blow away dozens of planes and airborne soldiers. Your tank's cannon rotates in the same way, but there are no soldiers floating down to the ground and building human pyramids in the hopes of blowing you to bits.

 

JR

[NE146]

Folks have also compared Heavy Weapon to Paratrooper, the old PC game where a cannon fixed on the bottom of the screen had to blow away dozens of planes and airborne soldiers. Your tank's cannon rotates in the same way, but there are no soldiers floating down to the ground and building human pyramids in the hopes of blowing you to bits.

 

JR

 

It's pretty much exactly like that (although the game had a different name on the apple 2). <edit> Yeah it was called Sabotage.

 

 

 

I like Heavy Weapon actually. It starts out real easy but come level 10, 11, 12.. holy crap.

 

My most played game is still Robotron though

Edited February 3, 2007 by NE146

[Gabriel]

It's pretty much exactly like that (although the game had a different name on the apple 2). <edit> Yeah it was called Sabotage.

 

 

 

I like Heavy Weapon actually. It starts out real easy but come level 10, 11, 12.. holy crap.

 

My most played game is still Robotron though

 

Hey. I remember playing that one. That's the one I'm probably dimly remembering when I feel I've played Heavy Weapon before. It's definitely nothing like Moon Patrol other than the fact you scroll along and enemies are in the air.

 

Anyway, this week is a no show for live arcade. Allegedly no games were ready in time. WTF ever happened to Gyruss? It was in preview videos back in at least November.

[Gabriel]

Well, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comes out today. This is the first XBLA release I've been interested in for over a month (since Heavy Weapon). I'll be kickin' some shell this evening if things go well.

 

Still, TMNT is only an appetizer. Bring on Double Dragon!

 

I'm still wondering whatever happened to Gyruss.

[Jess Ragan]

Hopefully we'll get some Simpsons action in time for the debut of that film. The Simpsons arcade game was great for two reasons... it's still arguably the best game to come from that license, and it's funnier than the first two seasons of the show!

 

JR

[Gabriel]

So, I hear there's this obscure little game called Castlevania: Symphony of Night coming out on XBox Live tonight. I realize that probably no one has ever heard of it. It's even by a completely unknown little developer named Konami. Anyone ever heard of these guys?

 

Anyone excited about this one?

[NE146]

So, I hear there's this obscure little game called Castlevania: Symphony of Night coming out on XBox Live tonight. I realize that probably no one has ever heard of it. It's even by a completely unknown little developer named Konami. Anyone ever heard of these guys?

 

Anyone excited about this one?

 

I'd be more excited except that I've finished the game a dozen times or more over the years.. and it pisses me off because my memory of the game contents faded somewhat after not playing it for like 9 years, but I just played it through using the PSP this past January! If I had known it'd be coming out on XBLive I'd have waited to re-play and re-discover the game.

 

Oh well, I'll still be a sucker and download it. Here's another 10 bucks to my former employer, Microsuckft.

[Gabriel]

Initially, I was going to just pass up Jetpac Refueled. It didn't sound very interesting. Plus, it had the negative stigma of being based not only on a Sinclair game, but also being made by Rare. Ewwww! But, wanting to play something requiring only a small time investment yesterday, I downloaded the demo.

 

It took one play before I knew I had to pay for the full game. In other good news, it was only a $5 game.

 

The reworked game is like the son of Joust and Defender. The flying gameplay is like Joust, only you don't flap, you just press the analog for the amount of thrust you want. It's like Defender in the general look and also the shooty and collecting feel of the game. Due to the flight mechanics, it also has a control feeling with some similarities to Defender.

 

From my initial plays, I didn't find anything I really disliked about the game. The deaths do seem a little bit cheap but it didn't bother me too much. I was a little bummed that two players couldn't cooperate in the main game, and instead seem limited to a sort of deathmatch where you play until your oxygen runs out.

[moycon]

Jetpac Refueled is an awesome update. I remember having that game on MAME. Dont really remember it from back in the day. I haven't played the retro version yet, but the updated version kicks ass.

[Gabriel]

Jetpac Refueled is an awesome update.

 

Yep. I think it just became my second favorite Live Arcade game, knocking Heavy Weapon down a spot. It's not as good as Geometry Wars Evolved, but still damn good, and refreshing after so many dual joystick blasters.

 

After playing some more, the main thing I dislike is the scaling and scrolling screen. The very top of the screen (and the enemies roving there) are often obscured by the scrolling. Meanwhile, the scaling occasionally conceals fast moving enemies and treasures just outside the edges.

[Gabriel]

This week it's "Boom, Boom Rocket." According to the description, it's another rhythm game. I'm not a fan of the genre. I see the style as a modern extension of the old Dragons Lair/Space Ace style games where you periodically tap the joystick to visual cues*. They're just faster is all, and less interesting to watch.

 

* = That describes all video games, but everyone should understand what I'm meaning here.

 

I'll download the trial game and see what it's like, but I'm not expecting anything I'll care for.

 

Last week was Luxor 2. I kind of liked the trial game. I just wasn't sure if I wanted to spend $10 to get the full version. I told myself I'd give it a week and decide when the next arcade game came out. If the new one was better, I'd forget Luxor and buy the new offering. Otherwise, I'd go ahead and pop for Luxor with the points I already have in my account. It looks like signs are strong I'll be buying Luxor.

 

Incidentally, I saw the new memory cards at Wal-Mart. I presume they were the new memory cards. They had 8X on them and came with Geometry Wars Evolved on them. Most places also have the Arcade Unplugged disc for $20 now, so it might be a good way to grab the games if you like several of them.

[Flojomojo]

In my opinion, XBLA has been on a major winning streak lately. JetPac is lovely and unlike anything out there, and the retro mode alone is worth $5 to me. Alien Hominid is also a thing of beauty, and has enough depth and difficulty to last a good long time. The multiplayer modes of Heavy Weapon are pure Zen. Boom Boom Rocket is simple, beautiful, and a great addition to the library. I bought it after playing through the first of many techno-classical songs.

 

It's understandable that some of these games aren't for everyone, but I applaud Microsoft Casual Games in their efforts at diversity and strict quality control. I'd much rather have 50 polished, unique titles with online additions than the overpriced ROMs that are regurgitated for the Wii Virtual Console. Don't take the XBLA free demos for granted -- one doesn't get that feature on the VC. Meh.

 

(Settlers of) Catan, a strategy board game, should be out soon, which is another niche title that looks to be very well done.

 

The only thing I'm really lukewarm about is the tragic Wing Commander Armada, which really should be 86'ed and redone as a cockpit-based 3D shooter with traditional mission objectives. Maybe that can still happen.

 

The great thing about these independent titles is that they're available so quickly and so inexpensively. Something like Boom Boom Rocket would never hold up on its own as a game on a disc, even at the $10 asking price. As an impulse download, however, I'm all over it and look forward to more. There's no other way that Space Giraffe (Jeff Minter's llama-based update to Tempest 2000) would ever see a commercial release on a modern console.

 

Another wish: Where's Bookworm Adventures?

[Gabriel]

JetPac is lovely and unlike anything out there, and the retro mode alone is worth $5 to me.

 

Jetpak: Refueled rocks. I wouldn't go so far as to say the retro mode alone was worth $5, but I would have paid 800 points for the whole package. It's just bad ass.

 

Boom Boom Rocket is simple, beautiful, and a great addition to the library. I bought it after playing through the first of many techno-classical songs.

 

Well, I'll disagree with you here. After playing the trial version, I wasn't just disappointed, I was outright insulted. It definitely joins my list of Live Arcade garbage titles like Small Arms and Cloning Clyde. The fact that it's 800 points just blows my little mind.

 

I'd much rather have 50 polished, unique titles with online additions than the overpriced ROMs that are regurgitated for the Wii Virtual Console.

 

I mostly agree with you here, but I like a mix of the arcade classics and new games. I think the value for your dollar is also better on Live Arcade. Personally, I also think there are vastly fewer dogs of games on Live Arcade than on the Wii VC.

 

Don't take the XBLA free demos for granted -- one doesn't get that feature on the VC. Meh.

 

I definitely don't take them for granted. I feel that the lack of trial versions indicates a lack of faith in the product. Plus, trial versions inspire customers. While there are certainly games that I've decided I'll never buy after playing a trial version, there are more that I previously didn't have any interest in and ended up buying because of the trial version. In my mind, the only reason to not offer a trial version is when the game isn't good enough in the first place.

 

(Settlers of) Catan, a strategy board game, should be out soon, which is another niche title that looks to be very well done.

 

I'm curious about Catan, because I read a lot about it in the gaming forums I visit. However, I'm more interested in Band of Bugs.

 

The only thing I'm really lukewarm about is the tragic Wing Commander Armada, which really should be 86'ed and redone as a cockpit-based 3D shooter with traditional mission objectives. Maybe that can still happen.

 

There used to be a game on AOL called Silent Death. As I understand it, the game was a Space War style versus shooter with customizable ships. I think it was an EA game. I think Wing Commander Armada is supposed to be a spiritual descendant of that game and not the Wing Commander you're thinking of.

 

I'd prefer a traditional overhead view spacewar game with Geometry Wars style graphics and cool effects.

 

Space Giraffe (Jeff Minter's llama-based update to Tempest 2000) would ever see a commercial release on a modern console.

 

I'm really looking foward to this one too. But I also wish Double Dragon and Gyruss would hurry up and arrive.

[Flojomojo]

Boom Boom Rocket is simple, beautiful, and a great addition to the library. I bought it after playing through the first of many techno-classical songs.

 

Well, I'll disagree with you here. After playing the trial version, I wasn't just disappointed, I was outright insulted. It definitely joins my list of Live Arcade garbage titles like Small Arms and Cloning Clyde. The fact that it's 800 points just blows my little mind.

800 points is ten bucks, the price of a decent lunch or an album of music on iTunes. Seems fair to me. Then again, I used to buy Atari VCS games for $20+ each in the olden days ....

 

Tell me again how you paid full price for a Playstation 3 and you still have a problem with the XBLA pricing? With a straight face, please.

 

Boom Boom Rocket is definitely worth it to me, but I'm much more interested in music and rhythm games than the average person. I didn't like Small Arms either, but I could see how a fan of spaz-fighters like Super Smash Brothers could dig it.

[moycon]

I haven't tried it yet (probably will later today) but Boom Boom doesn't look like my type of game. I don't get into those dance games, or guitar games and this looks kinda like those. Mainly because I suck balls at them and just get frustrated. So it's kinda not fun you know. Space Giraffe on the other hand. Man O Man that looks to the THE Live arcade game for 2007 if you ask me. Can't wait for that one!!!!

[Gabriel]

800 points is ten bucks, the price of a decent lunch or an album of music on iTunes. Seems fair to me. Then again, I used to buy Atari VCS games for $20+ each in the olden days ....

 

Tell me again how you paid full price for a Playstation 3 and you still have a problem with the XBLA pricing? With a straight face, please.

 

Boom Boom Rocket is definitely worth it to me, but I'm much more interested in music and rhythm games than the average person. I didn't like Small Arms either, but I could see how a fan of spaz-fighters like Super Smash Brothers could dig it.

 

Well, as can be ascertained from my last post, I don't currently have a problem paying $10 for a game, if it's good. I even paid $20 for the download of Tekken 5: Dark Resurrection. I've paid $10 for other XBox Live Arcade games. It isn't that it's a downloadable game that costs $10. It's that, as far as I'm concerned, it's a bad game. Yeah, it's the price of a lunch, but if the lunch is a turd sandwich, it's still not worth it.

 

First off, I don't like the rhythm genre to begin with. But this game is just about the worst example of it I've seen. At least in several others, like Space Channel 5 for one, you get to watch little animated movies, maybe even with little freeform/improvised parts. But, in this game, you don't even get to enjoy that Dragon's Lairesque quality. You just scroll through a city. oh. wow. As for gameplay, it's pressing buttons on cue, really fast. I can't really say it has gameplay.

 

When particle effects are literally your entire game, you should make them look spectacular. But even 25+ year old Defender particle effects are better than the ones in this game. Toss me a bone here. If your entire game consists of nothing but particle effects, at least make them look as good as in Geometry Wars.

 

The two tracks available on the trial weren't anything I'd listen to. I suppose you can make a case that you're paying for the music and not the game. Personally, I'd just buy some music.

 

Maybe someday there will be one of these games that is good. This one isn't it, as far as I'm concerned.

 

But, at least we both like Jetpak Refueled.

[Flojomojo]

First off, I don't like the rhythm genre to begin with. But this game is just about the worst example of it I've seen. At least in several others, like Space Channel 5 for one, you get to watch little animated movies, maybe even with little freeform/improvised parts. But, in this game, you don't even get to enjoy that Dragon's Lairesque quality. You just scroll through a city. oh. wow. As for gameplay, it's pressing buttons on cue, really fast. I can't really say it has gameplay.

 

When particle effects are literally your entire game, you should make them look spectacular. But even 25+ year old Defender particle effects are better than the ones in this game. Toss me a bone here. If your entire game consists of nothing but particle effects, at least make them look as good as in Geometry Wars.

 

The two tracks available on the trial weren't anything I'd listen to. I suppose you can make a case that you're paying for the music and not the game. Personally, I'd just buy some music.

 

Maybe someday there will be one of these games that is good. This one isn't it, as far as I'm concerned.

Yeah, you don't get it, but at least you know it's just your opinion. Boom Boom Rocket is not about the graphics (remember all the Wii hype? same thing) and it's the antithesis of Dragon's Lair (which *is* about graphics and very little else). Boom Boom Rocket is a simple, pure game about rhythm, hitting the right notes, and getting better with practice, not unlike playing a real musical instrument. The graphics are superfluous here -- not as much as something like Sound Voyager, perhaps (which I also think is nifty but you should avoid), but I knew the package was worth $10 to me within 30 seconds of playing the demo.

 

Not everyone gets off on music. That's why football players are more popular in high school than band geeks or drama queens. Those stupid fatheads. We must agree to disagree.

[moycon]

(Settlers of) Catan, a strategy board game, should be out soon, which is another niche title that looks to be very well done.

 

Hmmm I just noticed. In addition to Catan: http://xbox360.ign.com/objects/850/850004.html

 

There are two other board games headed to Live!

 

A German board game Carcassonne that was a big hit in the year 2000

 

and a year 1983 (currently out of print) combination card and board game that had loose ties to the company's Warhammer Fantasy universe Talisman

 

Naturally the best part about these games is you can play against your friends online. I could see these games taking off. From what I understand Uno was a big hit. Sometimes slower paced games (preferably chased with a couple beers) can be great fun.

[StormSurge]

I love playing Uno. I'm hoping we some more classic board games released, especially Sorry.

[Gabriel]

and a year 1983 (currently out of print) combination card and board game that had loose ties to the company's Warhammer Fantasy universe Talisman

 

Oooooh! That's pretty awesome. Me and my RPG group used to break that one out every once in a while between Robotech games. The only problem is the game itself. When you get right down to it, Talisman is more or less just a dressed up version of Sorry or Parchesi. Still, it's cool that it will be on Live Arcade.

 

I'd really like to see the old Dungeon boardgame.

[Gabriel]

I'm late on this one, but I messed with Alien Hominid HD (again, I think).

 

I don't really understand the currently in-vogue concept that animated things have to look like primitive crap. Sometimes you get things that transcend that limitation (South Park, The Simpsons. The shows, not the games). Most of the time, that doesn't happen, and you're just left with something that looks crappy for the sake of "art." I feel Alien Hominid really leans towards the latter. But, the graphic style does have a certain charm to it, and isn't ugly just for the sake of being ugly like Robotech: Battlecry or Zelda: Wind Waker. One thing that helps it is the cartoony style in AH is seamless, unlike those other two games. It actually feels like I'm watching some crummy "edgy" kidvid, instead of looking at crippled CG. In the end, it's a big neutral point. It doesn't help the game, but it doesn't hinder it in my eyes.

 

The real element that made me dislike AH were the one hit kills. They make the game feel so arbitrary. Look at the original Contra. That game featured one hit kills and a very similar theme to AH, yet it didn't seem as pointlessly random as AH. AH isn't like Contra or even a bullet hell shooter where you have some time to react. A bullet just flies across the screen in the blink of an eye and you've lost a life. I don't know if a little three hit health bar would have made things better or not. I just know the one hit kills ruined the experience for me.

 

I'm sad about this. Unlike turds like Small Arms, AH seems like a cool game with a single, fatal, game ruining flaw. There's a thread running in Classic Games right now about games you wanted to like but can't. I really want to like this one, but I can't. Maybe I'll just pop for Contra arcade.

 

On the other hand, I finally downloaded the demo of Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy, and I'm in utter awe.