I must admit that my curiosity is at its peak in how the game executive determines the consumer price of “downloadable” games. Although I know I’m not up to the ins and outs of the cost of producing and distributing “downloadable games and content”. It seems to me that the cost of distribution should be minimal, right? However, it seems that we are still in the early stages of the gaming industry pricing. For a while now, $50 has seemed to be the industry norm for retail games. Until the launch of Microsoft’s Xbox 360 and Sony’s PS3, which increased to an average of $60 per game title. However, such standard rates are not in effect for the “downloadable” sector.
Don’t get me wrong, if the game title promises great gameplay and the reviews are good, I don’t mind spending more. However, I’ve played more than my far share of games that defy the average in both quality and quantity.
Anyway, forward and upward, this spring and summer seem to offer a lot of variety for all game genres. Defense Grid: Awakening for Xbox Live Arcade looks promising. If it sounds vaguely familiar, that’s because the cleverly designed tower defense game received a lot of attention upon its initial release on PC. As endless streams of aliens swoop down on your base to steal your power cores, your hastily built defenses hold the line against the enemy. The game takes the tried and true concept of tower defense and makes it worth buying by balancing a constant learning curve and an intriguing array of options as you craft your strategy. When you start shaping the board for your purposes and finding the right unit formula, Defense Grid starts to shine where most entries in the genre get repetitive.
PlayStation Network (Sony) is looking forward to the highly anticipated release of Rag Doll Kung Fu: Fists of Plastic. It began as a side project of Mark Healy during his tenure at Lionhead, and has since been tweaked and evolved for release on the Sony platform, though its creator Healy has moved on to Media Molecule. The game is a four-person fighting game, complete with wild martial arts combos and goofy kung-fu characters. The real fun begins with hilarious challenges like Capture-the-Fish, as well as a surprisingly deep control scheme, ensuring players have solid gameplay to tackle after the laughs die down. Sadly, even with its extensive character editor, this won’t hold your attention all summer long. However, it smacks of big weekend gatherings.
A recently released classic on DS titles has made its way to Live Arcade. Space Invaders Extreme offers the same great gameplay that helped secure its early niche in the gaming industry, descending spaceships faster and faster. It also features the addition of power-ups based on hitting similar colored enemies, which breaks the design and makes for some challenging gameplay sessions. Bonus rounds, multiple enemy types, branching tree levels, and boss fights all combine to create a game that is much more complex and entertaining than it might seem at first glance. Not to mention the best part for Live Arcade gamers… four-player online co-op.
Adventure gamers probably know Telltale Games, but their recent works deserve attention. Last year’s Strong Bad Cool Game for Good Looking People (PC and WiiWare) was a great take on the ever-growing point-and-click platform. Xbox Live Arcade and the PC download service will host the studio’s new project, Wallace and Gromit’s Grand Adventures. Telltale Games takes the classic claymation series and gives it the gaming treatment. As with Strong Bad, the charm of the main characters certainly shines through. The first of four episodes should be available on Xbox Live Arcade sometime this summer. If that’s not enough, it looks like Telltale is also working on a version of Sam & Max that they’re preparing for Live Arcade and that’s scheduled for a few months after that.
