Practically ever since the launch of Twilight began to glitter the ultimate human predator, I have more or less been in the midst of an all out vampire boycott. In fact, the only exception in the last two years was playing Castlevania: SOTN on XBLA. Oh and I don’t want to hear any whining from you True Blood soap opera fans either. Now to the point, I’ve momentarily placed a moratorium on the blood sucking boycott for one very special game that we’ll be having a full review of in the near future(between now and when the Sun becomes a Red Giant engulfing the Earth). I’m bored with ending these the same way every time, so just know that the bold stuff is mine.
Dino ‘Splode |
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Dino ‘Splode is an exciting action platformer where the player controls a nearly nuclear dinosaur named Sandwich. The player travels through various unique locations, solves puzzles, survives harsh environments, and makes their way through the bloodthirsty and constantly feuding Caveman nations.
Developer: Owen Deery Price: 240 Microsoft Points Fairly enjoyable platformer with a kind of amusing sun/exploding lizard mechanic that creates a sense of urgency which persists throughout play. The speed of the game feels a little off though, I think it is worth genre fans’ time to give it a demo play. |
This Is Hard |
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Think you’re man enough to conquer the depths of THIS IS HARD? Trek your way through nefarious traps and deadly zombies to escape with your life. Who would fill the world with so many sharp and explosive objects? Conquer these challenges, or join the undead masses.
Developer: Stegersaurus Games Price: 80 Microsoft Points Awesome, hilarious, and fun go get your run on. |
Sharpshooter |
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www.yyrgames.com – An intense test of your target-shooting skills! Experience 20 unique games, dynamically-adjusting difficulty, and optional Double Mode where you play with two guns at once! Compete with a friend in two multiplayer modes, or compete online with Internet Ranking! Will your skills be enough to earn the top grades? Also includes “The Best of Xbox LIVE Indie Games, Volume 1.”
Developer: yyr Price: 80 Microsoft Points Mildly amusing thumb work out, yyr games typically runs competitions on their new releases as well. Competitions with MS Point rewards, so go check that out at their site if you end up getting the game. |
Sword&Magic |
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This game is a horizontal scroll shooting game. The character of two people can be switched. It raises the level when EXP is collected, and power improves. The trial version is 4 stages. The product version is 12 stages.
Developer: HUNTERS Price: 80 Microsoft Points Interesting side-scrolling shooter in which you swap characters in and out during play. The art is a little janky even by pixel art standards and the bullet patterns seem a bit inelegant. It still seems worthy of checking out the demo. |
German 101 |
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Learn German with 1000 flashcards featuring the most commonly used words.
Developer: Glass Joe Price: 80 Microsoft Points This one, obviously, isn’t a game in the traditional sense of the word. I still felt like mentioning it as it seems the developer put a lot of effort into its creation. |
Vampire Rage |
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Cursed for an eternity with the loss of a loved one. Revenge is a dish best served cold! Vampire Rage is a fast paced shooter, themed around vampires and the undead. Can you handle the RAGE?!
Developer: tricktale Price: 80 Microsoft Points A very very impressive demo experience. I would be willing to speculate that this one could be the best vertical scrolling shooter offering since Shoot 1UP! Just the environment and its various layers of parallax are enough for a thrill. |
Ancient Trader |
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The smell of exotic spices and the thunder of the sea accompany your journey as you discover new islands with thriving harbours full of goods. Sail through unknown waters where no ship went before, compete with other traders, fight mythical sea-monsters and gather ancient artefacts to claim a legendary treasure. Ancient Trader is a quick, pick-up-and play arcade family-entertainment strategy game.
Developer: Fourkidsgames Price: 240 Microsoft Points This one has a really nice look to it. I don’t know how good or bad the gameplay is as it seemed hard to get a feel for it quickly which could mean there is some gameplay depth there. It may have helped if I had read any of the help or tutorials, but those are for pussies. |